Releases and features

The first final version (1.0.0) of DSLib was released on February 10th 2001. Since then, new releases will have different version numbers. The meaning of these version numbers is as follows:

VERSION.EXTENSION.REVISION

A new release with the same VERSION and EXTENSION numbers, but greater REVISION number, means that it fixes some bugs of the previous release.

A new release with the same VERSION number, but greater EXTENSION number, means that it adds new features, but maintains compatibility with the previous release. It can also fix some bugs.

Releases with different VERSION numbers are not compatible, so the interface and/or usage is different and the code based on DSLib needs to be updated.

The following are the most important features introduced by this new version. Notice some of the features of the last v1 release are not implemented, so you may not want to "upgrade". This release does not support RTLinux. Check TODO file for more details.

• Template-based code generation: Code is generated as specified in separated template files. Templates are defined with a set of six template-commands, and plain text to be carbon-copied. This new system makes it easy to customize code generation to port to new target systems or add new types of outputs. Existing templates make it possible to generate:
  • Realtime kernel modules for RTAI.
  • Command-based monitors to set, read, and log variables during realtime execution.
  • Simple Tcl/Tk interfaces for the command monitors.
  • Makefiles to compile and install all the above in RTAI systems.
• Superblocks: It is possible to define several levels of encapsulation by defining Superblocks composed of Blocks and/or other Superblocks.
• Copy-construction of components: This makes it possible to define components as replicas of already defined components in a single line of code. Specially usefull with superblocks, since all the contained components and internal input-output links will be copied.
• Schedulers: They substitute loops. Blocks are executed in the same order as they are added to the scheduler. This has two important advantages:
  • Makes it possible to freely decide the execution order.
  • Gets rid of the problem of finding a right set of initializations for the input variables (see chapter 16 of v1's tutorial).
• Inputs and outputs as block's attributes: Inputs and outputs for a block are defined in single lines by using a function of the block, instead of having to define them in several lines as separated components as in v1.
• Block's before-run and after-run operations: Initialization and clean-up is now defined in the blocks instead of the variables. This makes it possible to define an order to initialize variables as functions of already initialized variables.

• Comedi input block: Class CComediInput reads an analog input channel by using the Comedi library. See the dslib-1.2.0.cpp example.
• Comedi output block: Class CComediOutput writes an analog output channel by using the Comedi library. See the dslib-1.2.0.cpp example.

Bugs fixing:

• Fixed a problem with the sampling capability of logging fifos that prevented it from working properly when it was used in more than one fifo.

• Integrator block: Class CIntegrator implements a discrete-integration block as an IIR filter. See an example of how to use it.
• Gain block: Class CGain implements a gain block. Gain factor can be constant or variable. See an example of how to use it.
• Summing point block: Class CSummingPoint implements a summing point block with an unlimited number of inputs. Inputs values can be added or substracted. See an example of how to use it.
• Sampling in logging fifos: By using CLoggingFifo::SetSamplingRate(...) it is possible to make the fifo log values in a fraction of the iterations of the loop, reducing processor load. See an example of how to use it.
• Variables setting with shared memory: Class CSettingSharedMemory makes it possible with non-blocking synchronization. See an example of how to use it. See also an example of how to set the memory from user-space.