Week 18: Embedded Rust (Advanced)

Overview

Week 18 introduces embedded systems programming with Rust. You’ll learn how to work without the standard library, interact directly with hardware, and build applications for resource-constrained environments. This week combines systems programming knowledge with embedded-specific techniques to create reliable, efficient firmware.

Day 1-3: Bare-metal Programming

Topics

• No-std development:
  • Understanding no_std attribute
  • Core library vs standard library
  • Minimizing binary size
  • Alternative allocators for embedded
  • Panic handling in no_std environments
• Embedded development workflow:
  • Target-specific toolchains
  • Cross-compilation setup
  • Cargo configuration for embedded targets
  • Linker scripts and memory layout
  • Flashing and debugging tools
• Microcontroller programming:
  • Register access patterns
  • Peripheral Access Crates (PACs)
  • Hardware Abstraction Layers (HALs)
  • Device initialization and configuration
  • Memory-mapped registers
• Embedded-HAL ecosystem:
  • The embedded-hal traits
  • Driver implementation and usage
  • Platform-agnostic drivers
  • Common peripherals (GPIO, UART, SPI, I2C)

Resources

• Embedded Rust Book
• The Embedonomicon
• Rust Discovery Book
• Embedded HAL
• STM32 Rust Example
• No-std Rust

Use Cases

• Microcontroller firmware
• IoT devices
• Real-time systems
• Sensor interfaces
• Motor control
• Wearable devices
• Smart appliances
• Low-power applications

Day 4-7: Real-time Considerations

Topics

• Interrupt handling:
  • Interrupt vectors and controllers
  • Safe interrupt management in Rust
  • Critical sections
  • Shared resources in interrupt context
  • Interrupt priorities and nesting
• Real-time scheduling:
  • Task prioritization
  • Preemption
  • Deterministic timing
  • Real-time Operating Systems (RTOS) integration
  • Deadline scheduling
• Resource management:
  • Static allocation strategies
  • Stack usage optimization
  • Power management
  • Memory constraints
  • Fixed-point arithmetic
• Concurrency patterns for embedded:
  • Mutex and critical section abstractions
  • Message passing for embedded
  • Actor frameworks
  • State machine implementations
  • Non-blocking algorithms
• Hardware timer management:
  • Precise timing operations
  • PWM generation
  • Timer interrupts
  • Watchdog timers

Resources

• RTFM (Real-Time For the Masses) Framework
• Embassy - Embedded Async Framework
• Interrupt Handling in Rust
• Embedded FreeRTOS with Rust
• Performance Analysis for Embedded
• Real-time in Rust

Use Cases

• Safety-critical systems
• Industrial control
• Medical devices
• Automotive systems
• Robotics
• Aviation electronics
• High-reliability devices
• Low-latency applications

Exercises

1. Set up a no_std project for a microcontroller target
2. Implement a simple LED blink program using direct register manipulation
3. Create a HAL driver for a sensor using embedded-hal traits
4. Develop an interrupt-based UART communication interface
5. Build a simple real-time scheduler for embedded tasks
6. Create a power-efficient state machine for a battery-powered device

Advanced Challenges

1. Implement a no_std asynchronous executor for embedded systems
2. Build a feature-complete driver for a complex peripheral (e.g., display, Ethernet)
3. Create a preemptive multi-tasking system for a microcontroller
4. Develop a memory-safe DMA controller interface
5. Implement a real-time control system (e.g., PID controller for motor)

Next Steps

After completing Week 18, you’ll have the skills to develop embedded applications with Rust. Week 19 will shift focus to performance analysis and benchmarking, teaching you how to measure and optimize your Rust code for maximum efficiency.