Introduction

In the process of embedded system development and debugging, it is often necessary to use host software to monitor device operating status, send control commands, and analyze communication data. The traditional approach is to develop a dedicated host program for each project, which, while precise in functionality, incurs high development costs, is difficult to maintain, and lacks reusability. As project complexity increases and development cycles shorten, this “one project, one host” model has become inadequate. Therefore, developing a comprehensive, flexibly configurable, and highly adaptable general-purpose measurement and control host has become an urgent need to improve development efficiency and reduce debugging costs.

Project Overview

The general-purpose measurement and control host is designed to address the aforementioned issues as an open-source tool. It provides a highly configurable and feature-rich general platform for debugging embedded devices. Through a flexible configuration file mechanism, this host can adapt to various communication protocols, device types, and project requirements, avoiding the cumbersome process of repeatedly developing dedicated hosts.

Whether it is serial communication, network communication, or log playback, users can operate through a unified interface, greatly enhancing the flexibility and efficiency of debugging work.

Project Features

The host has complete measurement and control functions, mainly including the following aspects:

1. Status Monitoring and Command Issuance

Supports real-time display of sensor data, control status, and other information uploaded by devices, and allows users to send control commands through the interface, such as switch control and parameter settings.

2. Curve Visualization

Supports real-time curve display of multi-channel data, allowing users to freely choose to display or hide specific curves, supports two horizontal coordinate modes: time axis and count axis, and features loop display and long-term recording.

3. Enhanced Interface Interaction

Not only displays values but also indicates whether the data is up-to-date and whether commands have been successfully responded to, enhancing the intuitiveness of operational feedback.

4. Data Recording and Playback

Automatically records communication data as log files and supports playback functionality to reproduce historical data, facilitating problem reproduction and analysis. Supports variable-speed playback and single-frame stepping to meet detailed debugging needs.

5. Multi-Data Source Support

Compatible with various data input methods such as serial ports, networks (TCP/UDP), and log files, allowing users to switch freely for use in different debugging scenarios.

6. Configurable Protocol Parsing

Defines communication protocol formats through configuration files, supporting NMEA-like text protocols and binary data packets, allowing adaptation to new protocols without modifying code.

Project Description

Project Modules

MainWindow: Organizes interface logic, implements curve control, outputs a 10Hz timer, and calls processing flows.

com_mc: Defines measurement classes in the measurement and control concept: DataDes (data description), implements data structure and protocol processing; defines control command classes: CmdDes (command description); defines a general measurement and control class MC_Prot, organizing measurement object dictionary (dset) and control object dictionary (cmds).

com_mc_gui: Defines the interface display class for control commands in the measurement and control concept, implementing various forms of control command interfaces; for measurement, uses general controls, so none are defined.

state_dis: Partially implements the logic of the measurement and control application as part of MainWindow:

Organizes objects in the measurement and control concept, including logs, curves in the interface, measurement controls, etc.; implements the construction of measurement controls; implements the construction of control controls; implements the construction of menu controls; constructs timers, queries plugins; implements software control commands; implements data transmission and reception processing.

Main Process

Measurement and Control Concept Structure

The measurement and control concept mainly consists of several large parts: measurement and control communication, dynamic protocols, data sources, log recording, and playback.

The conceptual diagram is as follows:

Overall Data Up and Down Flow Chart

Project Usage

The generated file is com_mc.exe, and the default configuration file is config.txt. Generally, only these two files are needed to execute, making it very portable.

Project Effect

In practical applications, this general host has been successfully used in multiple embedded projects, such as motor control, sensor networks, and industrial automation. By changing the configuration file, the same software can achieve measurement and control for different devices, significantly reducing development and maintenance costs.

Project Source Code

The project is fully open-source and can be further developed or directly configured for use according to individual needs. The source code is hosted at the following addresses:

GitHub: https://github.com/yangzigy/com_mc

Gitee: https://gitee.com/yangzifb/com_mc

Conclusion

The general-purpose measurement and control host is an efficient debugging tool aimed at embedded development. It addresses the issues of repeated development and maintenance difficulties associated with traditional hosts through a highly configurable design concept. Its powerful features, flexible protocol support, and user-friendly interface make it an indispensable assistant for embedded engineers.

Keywords

#General Host, #Serial Debugging, #Curve Display, #Protocol Parsing, #Data Playback, #Configuration, #Embedded Debugging, C#, .NET, #Open Source Tool, #General Measurement and Control Host

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