ARM Cortex-M Processor Programming

ARM Cortex-M Processor in One Lecture
Check out everything from concepts to practical know-how.

Course Topics 📖

_{Source: ARM}

CORTEX-M processor is the most popular and noteworthy 32-bit microprocessor used in embedded systems in various fields including drones, smart factories, autonomous vehicles, aerospace, medical diagnostic devices, home appliances, Internet of Things, and environmental energy.

The CORTEX-M processor is suitable for applications that prioritize price and power efficiency over performance. It is a processor with a low gate count, low interrupt latency, and debug capabilities .
Supports THUMB2 instructions as the basic instruction set.
The NVIC is tightly integrated with the processor core, providing low-latency interrupt handling .
Supports ' tail chaining ' and ' LATE ARRIVING ' interrupts to improve interrupt response time.
Supports bit -bands, including bit- band write and read operations to support atomic access.

_{Microcontroller boards from STmicro are readily available for under $100 .}

developer

I don't think there has ever been a time in the past few decades when developers were valued as much as they are now. When you ask young people what they want to be when they grow up, you might hear the answer "doctor" or "prosecutor" along with the word " developer ."

As developers become more valuable and their salaries rise, computer science and electronic engineering are ranked high in the popularity rankings of universities. Just like the movie title “As Good as It Gets,” it reminds me of people who set out for El Dorado in search of gold in the 19th century American West. It could be called the golden age of developers.

Developer with problem solving skills?

This comment that leaked out from inside a domestic company M in 2016 was even on the news and was talked about for a while. And even if this had not happened, it is a word that everyone would have heard at least once in their lives. But a developer with problem-solving skills? Why did this become an issue?

What I understand this sentence to mean is, in simple terms, this. Let me give you an example. This code is definitely mine. There is definitely a bug in this program. I know it. But I can't fix it. It can take hours, days, months.

If you ask me if something like this could really happen, I would say that of course this situation is possible. That's why it became an issue.

Coding is something that anyone can do with a little bit of knowledge, but problem solving is a whole other level of problem.

Embedded Systems Developer

It is difficult to create software that works on embedded systems, but it is even more difficult to solve rare and tricky problems. This is because, depending on the case, narrowing the scope of the problem down to software alone may not solve the problem. It is necessary to consider that the components of embedded systems are 'hardware + software'.

Even now, many new types of silicon are released every year. Also, many more types of hardware are made that use these chips. Can we believe that all of this is hardware-wise perfect?

When troubleshooting, the possibility of a hardware bug should also be considered. If a problem is not easily solved, software developers should be able to consider whether it is a hardware problem or a software problem.

But this is something that should be trained regularly. It is difficult to convince anyone by claiming, “This is a hardware problem” or “This is a software problem” without any basis.

I have met quite a few software developers who, whether voluntarily or not, have little knowledge of hardware, or even no interest at all. That is why developers with problem-solving skills are all the more valuable and important in this field.

paradigm shift

The conclusion is already out there. You have to try to understand the hardware.
Understanding hardware doesn't necessarily mean soldering electronic components onto a printed circuit board. It doesn't mean mastering LEDs or push-button keys.

Rather, you should study assembler and understand the basic principles of how embedded systems work . The two key words that I believe and understand in solving embedded software are assembler and interrupt .

Assembler is for understanding hardware, and interrupts are a software mechanism that runs asynchronously, so they are likely to harm the stability of the system. Therefore, you should learn them well to create reliable software.

Why Assembly?

There are various views on assembly language among developers. First, read the post on the bulletin board of a famous domestic developer community.

Modern compilers are much smarter than they used to be. They are good at producing optimized code. The days of coding in assembly language to improve system performance are a thing of the past. So why do I emphasize assembly language so much?

The reason we learn assembler is to better understand how embedded systems work. Assembler helps developers see into the inner workings of embedded systems .

Just as the saying goes, “Don’t look at the trees, look at the forest,” no matter what you study, you should constantly try to understand the structure (system) of the subject you are studying. We need to think again that embedded systems are “hardware + software.”

If you have been developing for more than two years and have not seen any significant improvement in your embedded system development skills, it is time to fundamentally change your learning method.

There is a saying that goes, 'If you invest 10,000 hours in any field, you will become an expert in that field.' I agree with that, but I would like to change this sentence a little bit. It would be, ' If you invest 10,000 hours in any field in an effective way, you will become an expert in that field .'

The benefits of learning assembler

In addition to the advantages mentioned above, learning assembler has several additional benefits.

First , any software unconditionally includes 1-5% of assembly code (you will know why if you study assembler). If you understand the embedded assembly code, you will be able to have 100% complete control over the software.
Second , it creates a foundation for understanding boot code (not the bootloader) written in assembler and being able to code it yourself.
Third , the spectrum of debugging (troubleshooting) tool usage capabilities broadens and deepens.
Fourth , we can improve the quality of software to improve system performance and utilize memory efficiently.
Fifth , making software that runs on one hardware run on another hardware is called porting, and in this case, the ability to use assembler is essential.
Sixth , you can easily understand pointers in the C language. (The concept of address is essential when controlling memory or I/O devices in assembly language.)

conclusion

This course (ARM Cortex-M Processor Programming) covers both of these (assembler, interrupts) for sure.

If you think you are not interested in assembly language, please ignore this course and filter it out. I only want to go with people who truly understand its value.

In offline ARM processor training, I have always emphasized this content to students as a personal belief. Through this course, I would like to provide a perspective to look at embedded systems from a different perspective.

You will learn: 📚

All of the above are the core topics of this lecture. Now, let's get into the details.

ARM Processor Lecture Know-how with Over 14 Years of Experience 💡

Based on my experience in conducting ARM processor field lectures for 14 years with over 1,000 students, I have created this online lecture to meet more students. I will meet you as an online lecture that optimizes the content of 5 days of field lectures to 15 hours .

Recommended for these people! 🔑

Embedded Systems
Beginner

Already CORTEX-M
I'm using it though
Systematic organization
Anyone in need

In embedded software
To increase understanding of Korea
Hardware Developer

Successful RTOS porting and
For operation
Microcomputer knowledge
Anyone in need

Besides that, it would be good for people like this to learn too!

• 👉 For those who want to develop products with high system stability and reliability
• 👉 For those who want to learn ARM assembly language
• 👉 Those who need to learn inline assembly, linker script, and boot code
• 👉 For those who do not have time to attend offline classes

What's special about this course ✨

• Feature 1. The video is divided into approximately 110 subchapters, making it easier to find later.
• Feature 2. 2D animation was actively used to help with understanding.
• Feature 3. We have made it possible for students to have an experience similar to participating in a practical training session directly on site.
• Feature 4. It helps you boldly discard unnecessary content and focus more on the core .
• Feature 5. We have put in every effort to ensure that you can learn through videos alone, without having to look at developer manuals such as databooks.

_{A textbook (pdf) consisting of approximately 400 slides used in the lecture is provided.}

Check out the tools we use 🧰

• Compiler: STM32CubeIDE
• Practice Board: STmicro Official Board STM32F429I-DISC1
  
• Practical examples and textbook files: CMPro_tutorials.zip (located in s102_Practical Environment Construction Getting Started with STM32CubeIDE )
• The board used in the lecture is STM32F429I-DISC1.

Created a lecture
Introducing the knowledge sharer ✒️

Expected Questions Q&A 💬

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