Blackberry QNX (RTOS)

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Program Schedule:

Day 1: Introduction to Real-Time Programming

Understanding Real-Time Systems (2 Hrs.)

- Real-time vs. General Purpose Systems: Discuss the fundamental differences between real-
time systems, which are designed to respond to events within strict time constraints, and
general-purpose systems.
- Importance of Determinism and Predictability: Explain why determinism and predictability
are critical in real-time systems, as they ensure that tasks are completed within specified
timeframes

Introduction to QNX (3 Hrs.)

- History and Background: Explore the history of QNX as an operating system and its evolution
over time.
- Key Features and Advantages: Highlight the features that make QNX suitable for real-time
applications, such as its microkernel architecture and reliability.
- Supported Hardware Platforms: List the hardware platforms and devices that are compatible
with QNX.

Real-Time Application Development Life Cycle (3 Hrs.)

- Requirements Analysis: Discuss the initial phase of software development, where the specific
requirements and constraints of the real-time application are identified.
- System Design: Explain how to design a system architecture that meets real-time
requirements, including task scheduling and resource allocation.
- Implementation: Detail the process of coding and building the real-time application on the
QNX platform.
- Testing and Validation: Discuss testing methodologies and validation techniques to ensure
that the application meets its real-time performance goals.
- Maintenance: Highlight the ongoing maintenance and updates required for real-time systems
to remain reliable and efficient.
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Day 2 QNX Fundamentals

QNX Architecture (3 Hrs.)

- Microkernel Architecture: Describe the microkernel architecture of QNX, emphasizing its

benefits for real-time systems.
- Process and Thread Management: Explain how QNX manages processes and threads
efficiently.
- Inter-Process Communication (IPC): Detail the IPC mechanisms in QNX for communication
between processes and threads.

QNX Neutrino RTOS (2 Hrs.)

- Kernel Services: Explore the core services provided by the QNX Neutrino real-time
operating system, including memory management and resource allocation.
- File Systems: Discuss the file systems supported by QNX and their usage in real-time
applications.
- Memory Management: Explain how QNX manages memory, including virtual memory and
real-time memory allocation.
- Networking Stack: Overview the networking capabilities of QNX and their relevance to real-
time applications.

QNX Development Tools(3 Hrs.)

- QNX Momentics IDE: Introduce the integrated development environment used for QNX
application development.
- Compilers and Cross-Compilers: Discuss the compilers available for QNX and their role in
cross-compilation.
- Debugging Tools: Explore debugging tools such as GDB, DDD, and the QNX System Profiler
for diagnosing issues in real-time applications.

Day 3: Real-Time Application Development on QNX

Building QNX Real-Time Applications (2 Hrs.)

- Creating a QNX Project: Explain the steps to set up a QNX project, including configuring
build settings.
- Writing and Compiling Code: Guide students on writing code for real-time applications and
compiling it for deployment.
- Deploying Applications: Describe the process of deploying real-time applications on QNX.
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Multi-Threaded Programming on QNX (3 Hrs.)

- Creating and Managing Threads: Teach how to create and manage threads in a multi-
threaded QNX application.
- Synchronization Mechanisms: Explain the use of mutexes and semaphores for thread
synchronization.
- Thread Priority and Scheduling: Detail how to set thread priorities and manage scheduling
for real-time performance.

Inter-process Communication (IPC) (2 Hrs.)

- Message Passing: Demonstrate how to implement message passing between processes and
threads.
- Shared Memory: Explore the use of shared memory for efficient data sharing in real-time
applications.
- Sockets and Networking: Discuss socket-based communication and networking in QNX.

Day 4: Debugging and Analysis Tools

Debugging Techniques (3 Hrs.)

- Using GDB for QNX: Provide in-depth guidance on using the GNU Debugger for QNX
application debugging.
- Tracing and Logging: Explain how to implement tracing and logging in real-time applications
for debugging purposes.
- Remote Debugging: Show how to set up and use remote debugging for QNX applications.

QNX System Profiler (2 Hrs.)

- Profiling Real-Time Applications: Describe how to use the QNX System Profiler for profiling
and analyzing real-time applications.
- Analyzing CPU and Memory Usage: Teach students how to analyze CPU and memory usage
patterns.
- Identifying Performance Bottlenecks: Explain techniques for identifying and addressing
performance bottlenecks in real-time systems.

Memory Analysis (3 Hrs.)

- Memory Leak Detection: Discuss methods for detecting memory leaks in real-time
applications.
- Dynamic Memory Allocation Profiling: Explore tools and techniques for profiling dynamic
memory allocation.
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Day 5: Real-Time Performance Optimization

Profiling and Optimization (4 Hrs.)

- Identifying Performance Hotspots: Show how to identify areas of code that impact
performance.
- Code Profiling Tools: Introduce various code profiling tools available for QNX.
- Optimization Strategies: Discuss strategies for optimizing real-time performance, including
algorithm optimization and resource management.

Real-Time Safety and Reliability (4 Hrs.)

- Error Handling and Recovery: Explain the importance of error handling mechanisms for
maintaining system reliability.
- Redundancy and Failover Mechanisms: Discuss redundancy and failover strategies to
ensure continuous operation in critical real-time systems.

Projects

Project 1: Real-Time Data Acquisition and Processing (4 hrs.)

- Description: Students develop a real-time data acquisition system on QNX, focusing on
efficient data transfer and processing using IPC. Performance monitoring and optimization
techniques are applied.

Project 2: QNX-Based Embedded System (4 hrs.)

- Description: Students design an embedded system using QNX for a specific application
(e.g., IoT device). Emphasis is placed on optimizing resource usage and real-time performance,
with remote debugging and monitoring capabilities.

Project 3: Real-Time Control System (4 hrs.)

- Description: Students create a real-time control system using QNX, implementing thread
synchronization and prioritization for precise control. They analyze system performance and /
optimize for minimal latency.

Hardware & Network Requirements: 8GB or 16GB of RAM preferably

Linux systems

STM Microcontroller Kit (STM32F407xx)

Software Requirements: QNX Neutrino RTOS

QNX Momentics IDE / VS Code

MinGW Compiler, GDB