Step Engineering

Darrell L Wilburn

John R Mick

Michael J Miller

Van T Hua

Darryl R Plauck

Gordon A Minami

Robert J Kresge

Michael D Phillips

Charles Verhaegh

An in-circuit emulator (ICE) for hardware/software development and debugging microprocessors. Program execution reconstruction is extracted from an on-board cache memory. An external ICE enclosure interfaces to a target system microprocessor via a cable and a buffer/interface pod. A control program directs a non-intrusive emulation and a monitor program resides in a personal computer host and supports ICE commands. The monitor program allows a user to follow a target system's program flow, to capture related processor information, to make program modifications, and allows the user to restart programs. An on-line disassembler presents a display so as to allow the designer to examine memory, using instruction mnemonics rather than hexadecimal values, thus improving the designer's ability to read program memory. A bit trace buffer records the state of each the microprocessor's signals during each cycle of each instruction. Multiple breakpoints allow a system developer to control a program in ROM, as well as one resident in RAM. An external-range hardware breakpoint and up to sixteen software breakpoints are provided and these allow a designer to display, set and reset breakpoint addresses.

High speed microcomputer in-circuit emulator

Disclosed is a mobile incident logger for monitoring an on-board, automotive, computer and signal levels developed by analog and digital sensors, the logger employing a coverage monitor, which records which memory locations are accessed by the computer; a cycle tag counting unit, which counts bus cycles of the computer; a discriminator, which detects the occurrence of incidents the logger is to record; a trace memory unit, which stores bus states of the computer; a trace memory unit, which stores memory variables of the computer; a discriminator, which detects the occurrence of some of the incidents the logger is to record; and a trace memory unit, which stores the sensor signals.

Mobile incident logger

A logical grouping of facilities within a computer development system where said facilities include breakpoint control, trace control and memory, a plurality of VLSI emulators, a plurality of storage device emulators, a plurality of emulators for simulating program or microprogram storage, and may be selectively assigned to said grouping by a user. Said selectively assigned facilities are associated with a clock control and are used for the design, debugging and testing of computer systems.

Logical grouping of facilities within a computer development system

A device for developing and editing a computer program in an electronic memory which is utilized to control a physical item having momentum. The device includes first and second program memories and means for exchanging one memory for the other without interrupting operative control of the physical item so that one of the program memories can be edited while the other is interactively controlling the physical item.

Software editing instrument

An emulator for non-fixed instruction set VLSI devices having a microprogrammable emulator controller which can be used with a variety of VLSI devices and provide in-circuit emulation for general VLSI technology with capabilities comparable to the in-channel emulation capabilities previously available for fixed instruction set MOS microprocessors. This includes a device specific emulator head which is controlled by the emulator controller to emulate a VLSI device in a target machine. The VLSI device to be emulated is removed from the target machine and a device plug of the emulator head is inserted into the target machine. The VLSI device is placed in a socket in the emulator head. The emulator controller monitors instructions sent from the target machine to the VLSI device and provides instructions to the VLSI device.

Growing community of inventors

Saratoga, CA, United States of America

Darrell L Wilburn