Arm Training

Our manufacturer independent ARM training classes cover the ARM Embedded architectures (ARM7, ARM9, Cortex-M0/M3/M4) and give participants all the information they need to make an educated decision when selecting cores, chips, tools and libraries.

With ARM one has many choices: there are different cores like ARM7, ARM9 and Cortex-MX, many manufacturers for chips, compilers, debuggers and software libraries and source codes like Real-Time Operating Systems and communication stacks (for Ethernet, CAN, USB and others). Of course there are performance differences between all of those, however, it is generally underestimated how sever these differences can be.

Participate in this training class to learn what the major technical differences between selected architectures, chips, compilers and libraries are. Get the tools and skills to determine for yourself which combination of chips and software tools bring the best performance to your application.

In the hands-on part this class uses Keil's uVision, the GNU compiler system and the ARM RealView compiler system. Examples for various ARM microcontrollers from Atmel, NXP and ST Microelectronics will be generated and debugged / measured.

• General Introduction to the ARM architecture: supported instructions sets (ARM32, Thumb, Thumb-2), conditional execution benefits, code sizes, types & alignments, pipeline, selected registers, interrupt handling.
• ARM core comparison and selection criteria (ARM7, ARM9, Cortex-M3), specialties of Cortex-M3 (data alignment, bit-band, MPU, interrupt controller).
• Manufacturer specific considerations: data busses and paths, AMBA, AHB, APB, Bus Matrix, Flash memory acceleration Code efficiency: compilers and libraries Summarized Results of Performance Comparisons, why at the same core clock rate one implementation can still be 50 times faster than the other.
• Hands-On: Creating an example program "from scratch" for an ARM derivative from Atmel, NXP or ST Microelectronics and measuring program execution times with Keil's simulator.
• Lesson & Hands-On: Introdution to Embedded Real-Time Operating System Programming on the ARM architecture.
• Programming examples or exercises depending on audience: USB, Ethernet, CAN, CANopen, Bootloading.