Fifth Annual Tcl/Tk Workshop, 1997
A Tcl-based Self-configuring Embedded System Debugger
Dale Parson, Paul Beatty and Bryan Schlieder
Bell Labs Innovations for Lucent Technologies
Abstract
The Tcl Environment for Extensible Modeling is a software
system from Bell Labs for the simulation, hardware emulation and debugging
of heterogeneous multiprocessor embedded systems. These embedded systems
contain one or more digital signal processors or microcontrollers that
execute real-time software written in assembly language and C. Tcl provides
an environment in which embedded system designers can interact easily with
their designs. Tcl serves as a processor query language, a modeling language
for connecting and scheduling processors, an extension language for adding
both model and environment enhancements, and as a user interface implementation
language. Tcl's C API and calling conventions provide C and C++-level standards
and portable libraries. The Tcl interpreter extends readily into a self-configuring
simulation-emulation-debugging tool set. This tool set can use new processor
types and new processor arithmetic without tool recompilation. This paper
looks at exploitation of Tcl from a system perspective, and at some technical
problems and solutions in applying Tcl.
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