Analysis tools speed embedded software development

Metrowerks is now shipping the pre-eminent solution for embedded software developers who require code visibility and precise analysis of embedded systems in operation.

Metrowerks is now shipping the pre-eminent solution for embedded software developers who require code visibility and precise analysis of embedded systems in operation.

CodeTest software analysis tools have been used by avionics, networking/communications, and automotive developers to provide software measurement and verification.

This newest release of CodeTest software analysis tools, version 4.0, further extends these capabilities.

CodeTest software analysis tools are designed to allow developers and quality assurance managers to demonstrate standards compliance, improve overall software quality, and reduce development costs.

The tools are engineered to allow embedded developers to view the actual execution history of their systems at the source or real time operating system (RTOS) level, which eliminates the need to stop the system before the analysis is performed or to provide analysis only on statistical sampling.

The instrumentation technology, which is protected by one or more granted or pending patents, inserts instrumentation tags in the source code during compilation allowing these tags to be captured as the software is executed.

During the certification process, all components of an avionics system are assessed for safety.

Systems are analysed for fault tolerance and fault detection, more specifically, software is analysed for potential errors which could contribute to a failure condition within an avionics system.

Avionics and aerospace companies can expect to find CodeTest software analysis tools are engineered to provide three levels of coverage analysis required under the safety critical Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) guidelines for software certification.

The DO-178B certification requires different levels of documentation for each safety category, which include statement coverage (Level C - major category), decision coverage (Level B - hazardous/severe-major category) and modified condition/decision coverage (Level A - catastrophic category).

"Metrowerks software analysis tools provide the aerospace and military industries access to one of the few tool sets qualified under FAA guidelines with one of the most comprehensive code coverage recognised in the industry today", said Greg Rose Director of Product Management at LynuxWorks.

"Metrowerks CodeTest software analysis tools along with Lynx OS-178, our DO-178B Level A certifiable operating system (OS), is an embedded development solution that is already compliant with federal standards and designed to help speed the time to market of safety critical systems".

To support the complexities of the embedded software environment from host-based design and development to validation and verification, CodeTest software analysis tools are available in three variations: native, software probe and hardware probe configurations.

CodeTest software analysis tools, version 4.0, are engineered to provide four different tools to assist in the phases of system development including performance analysis, memory analysis, code coverage, and software execution trace.

"CodeTest is a core technology we offer as part of a comprehensive solution for embedded software development", said Jim Welch, President and CEO of Metrowerks.

"Metrowerks tools, solutions and services support development of successful platforms and guides developers through each stage of the development lifecycle".

CodeTest software analysis tools, version 4.0, are designed to support Windows, Solaris and Linux host-operating systems and provides off-the-shelf support for numerous commercial real-time operating systems including Vx Works, OSE, QNX, LynxOS and Linux.

CodeTest software analysis tools support 16 and 32bit processors, and Metrowerks can provide support for additional RTOSs.

In November 2002, Metrowerks acquired select technology assets from Applied Microsystems Corp including the CodeTest product line.

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