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 Robotics / RCX / pbFORTH / 326
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Subject: 
Re: serial port interrupts
Newsgroups: 
lugnet.robotics.rcx.pbforth
Date: 
Mon, 15 May 2000 13:11:41 GMT
Reply-To: 
sjm@judgement.comIHATESPAM
Viewed: 
1138 times
  
Ralph Hempel wrote:


o - Implement the simplest ring buffer.  Two pointers and a buffer.
<snipped buffer description...>

Sounds right, only I'd rewrite the RX? RX@ TX? and TX! words instead
of adding more FORTH code to get at this. I think that interrupt
driven receive of chars is something we would like no matter what, so
why not add it to the core?

Actually that's what I was intending but I couldn't remember the words
at my keyboard. To make debugging easier I will use parallel words
that can be merged in later.  I was going to use the following debugging
strategy: Put the isr init in a word that is not yet aumatically invoked at
startup
so I have a working system after firmware download at least until I run the

rx init code. This allows me to create debugging support in forth without
changing
firmware. After the isr init I would never use the existing I/O words.

During initial debugging the LCD is available for debug output at
the forth level even if I/O is hosed. I've debugged many a board with a
couple
of switches and a couple of LEDs, starting with the KIM-1. It's a lot
better
than no I/O. There was a life before gdb was available for remote debugging

and someone has to bring up the gdb stub.

With help from you I'll prototype this. I'll write downloadable forth
words for  the forth part.

If you're comfortable with assembler, you can do the buffer manipulation
in assembler and I'll desk check it and integrate it. If you're a real
wizard, you can get the gnu debugger set up and check your routines
in the H8 simulator that the gnu debugger provides. Don't assemble
the pbForth core and debug that - it's a nightmare.

Assembler doesn't scare me and the h8 seems very simple. I also have
your existing I/O code and legOS lnp-logical as working examples. I learn
best from reading other peoples code. Writing assembler is easy. Making it
work is the hard part. :-)

gdb has an h8 simulater? That's a new one on me. If it is not hard to setup

I might do that for debugging everything except the isr and hooks to forth.
That
will help a lot. Have you built gdb as an h8 cross? gdb was always pretty
light on config documentation for everything except native builds.

One thing to keep in mind is that the RCX "sees" every character it
transmits, just like the tower...

I was going to ignore the transmit part but now that I look at TX! I see
that
echo will have to be rethought.  For the first stage (debugging the rx isr)
I will
ignore TX! But then TX code will have to take the echo out of the rx buffer

instead of from the chip. I guess if RX? and RX@ stay in assembler most of
the
work will already be done.

I'll probably have a primitive start for you to "desk check" in a couple of
days,
certainly by the weekend.

One step at a time!



Message has 1 Reply:
  RE: serial port interrupts
 
(...) It's amazing, but I get all kinds of comments on how it's impossible to debug systems like the RCX brick. I guess if you're used to deeply embedded systems, figuring out how to let it tell you what's going on is a big part of the magic... (...) (24 years ago, 15-May-00, to lugnet.robotics.rcx.pbforth)

Message is in Reply To:
  RE: serial port interrupts
 
(...) Sounds good Steve, see notes below for some pointers... (...) Absolutely. All we have to do is enable the interrupts on the receiver throw the chars into a buffer. I'd keep the standard FORTH words that already exist so less system source (...) (24 years ago, 14-May-00, to lugnet.robotics.rcx.pbforth)

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