Company advanced programming interface

• US 8,667,464 B2
• Filed: 03/19/2010
• Issued: 03/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/19/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Pittway Sarl (Resideo Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Honeywell Technologies SARL (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Inventors: Crippa, Gianluigi, Bakos, Radovan
• Primary Examiner(s): Dao, Thuy
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chowdhury, Ziaul A
• Application Number:
  US12/728,134
• Publication Number:
  US 20110231815A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,446 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 717/113
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/63 Image based installation; Cloning; Build to order
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/71 Version control security arrangements therefor G06F21/57; Configuration management

Abstract

An approach which may be regarded as a company advanced programming interface (CAPI) applicable, for instance, to boiler displays and remote man-machine interfaces. CAPI may use a product software structure combined with a personal computer (PC) or web based program capable of creating an embedded microcontroller program without a need for programming capabilities or a program recompile. Implementation may be done at both the product microcontroller level and the PC or web based program to be used by an end customer to “customize” its product. The present approach may partially move development and final tuning processes to an original equipment manufacturers (OEM). Modifications of the product may be done without a need for specific and expensive software development tools for embedded devices such as a compiler and a debugger, and hardware tools for simulation and analysis, and other like items. The present approach may also provide immediate response to simple OEM requirements.

Claims

1. A method executable by central processing units for providing a company advanced programming interface aiming, via personal computer (PC) software installed on a customer computer, to allow an original equipment manufacturer customer to define its product functionality without need for company involvement in microcontroller programming and compiling, comprising:

preparing PC software by a company;

installing the PC software on a customer'"'"'s computer;

building configurable firmware from a library at the company;

sharing a map file and template from the configurable firmware on the customer'"'"'s computer;

reconfiguring the configurable firmware by the customer on the computer with the PC software;

uploading a first reconfigured configuration file to a configurable man-machine interface device having a direct and immediate feedback to the customer of its selected functionality;

returning a second reconfigured configuration file by the customer to the company upon satisfaction of the functionality of a sample of the firmware after receiving feedback from the configurable man-machine interface device; and

on approval producing batches of man-machine interface devices with customer defined functionality.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising combining the configuration file with the firmware to produce a standalone man-machine interface with customer defined functionality and smaller non-volatile memory size compared to a configurable device provided to customer as a sample.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising optionally sending to customer a new sample of the standalone interface device for final approval.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising combining the configuration file with the configuration firmware for production of a man-machine interface device with customer defined functionality.

5. A method executable by central processing units for providing a company advanced programming interface aiming, via provided web based software accessible by a customer computer, to allow an original equipment manufacturer customer to define its product functionality without need for company involvement in microcontroller programming and compiling, comprising:

building configurable firmware from a library;

creating and uploading a map file and initial template to a company web server;

invoking communication to the company web server by a customer using a computer to reconfigure a man-machine device in an interactive way;

obtaining, upon request by the customer, a binary configuration file from the web server and storing it on a customer'"'"'s computer;

uploading a reconfigured configuration file to a configurable man-machine interface device having a direct and immediate feedback to the customer of its selected functionality;

combining the configuration file from web server with the firmware to produce a standalone man-machine interface with customer defined functionality; and

on approval producing batches of man-machine interface devices with customer defined functionality.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising providing a smaller non volatile memory size compared to configurable device provided to customer as sample.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising optionally sending to customer a new sample of standalone device for final approval.

8. The method of claim 5, further comprising combining the configuration file from web server with the configuration firmware for production of a man-machine interface device with customer defined functionality.

9. A method executable by central processing units for configuration of a device by a customer to define its product functionality without need for company involvement in microcontroller programming and compiling, comprising:

compiling and linking a source code comprising a library function to result in an executable binary;

loading and locking the executable binary into a program memory of a man-machine interface device;

generating a map during compilation;

deriving a file holding structure from the source code with a parsing process;

filtering the map to get a map file;

creating a template file that describes basic functionality of the man-machine interface device;

providing a sample of a configurable man-machine interface device to the customer; and

uploading the binary configuration file to the man-machine interface device, which results in the man-machine interface device acting according to a new configuration.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

providing the template file, file holding structure, and map file;

running on a customer'"'"'s computer an editor software capable of modifying a content file according to rules of the file holding structure and the map file, wherein an initial version of the content file is the template file;

interpreting and modifying basic configurable elements with editor software, or performing complex configuration tasks with external tools;

upon customer satisfaction with a resulting configuration, launching build linker software on request; and

taking content entered by a customer and using rules and data stored in the file holding structure and map file to create a binary configuration file with a build linker.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

uploading the template file, the file holding structure and map file to a repository on a web server;

accessing a repository with editor software to perform tasks of interpreting and optionally modifying basic data elements, more complex tasks using external tools, or tasks of interpreting and optionally modifying basic data elements and more complex tasks with external tools;

uploading by a customer, specific files to the repository on a web server;

accessing web server tools, such as editor software and external tools, to modify a configuration of the man-machine interface device, with a web browser by the customer; and

downloading invoked by the customer via the web browser to get a build linker to process data from the repository to create a configuration binary file which is stored in a computer of the customer.

12. A system comprising:

a customer computer;

the system configured to implement;

a company advanced programming interface aiming, via personal computer (PC) software installed on a customer computer, to allow an original equipment manufacturer customer to define its product functionality without need for company involvement in microcontroller programming and compiling;

a build of PC software provided to the customer computer by company;

install the PC software on a customer'"'"'s computer;

build configurable firmware from a library at the company; and

sharing a map file and template from the configurable firmware on the customer'"'"'s computer;

reconfigure the configurable firmware by the customer on the computer with the PC software;

a configurable man-machine interface connected to the computer via a communication interface;

upload a first reconfigured configuration file to the configurable man-machine interface device having a direct and immediate feedback to the customer of its selected functionality;

returning a second reconfigured configuration file by the customer to the company upon satisfaction of the functionality of a sample of the firmware after receiving feedback from the configurable man-machine interface device; and

a modifiable library able to satisfy special requirements from the customer and able to be compiled to an executable binary firmware program for the device;

configurable firmware compiled from the library and uploaded to the configurable man-machine interface; and

production firmware compiled from reduced and customized functions from the library, uploaded to a standalone man-machine interface.

13. The system of claim 12, further comprising alternately server hosted web software.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein:

the build of software is for building software for the customer computer;

the customer may provide a request for special requirements which represent missing and expected functionality from the customer to be implemented into the library; and

in response to the request the library compiles into the new version of configurable firmware to be verified by customer; and

on satisfaction the latest version of the library is compiled to production firmware avoiding library functions unused by the customer, and such recompilation can save an economically reasonable amount of non-volatile memory space in device.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein:

a source code of the configurable firmware provides during a compilation process a map file and template to a customer'"'"'s installation of PC software or server hosted WEB software and a sample of the configurable man-machine interface with configurable firmware sent to customer;

after the customer enters or modifies data in the computer, or the customer modifies data on a web server, computer or server provides configuration information to the configurable man-machine interface; and

the configurable man-machine interface provides a virtually instant feedback to the customer.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein:

the customer provides a configuration file to compile production firmware from library;

the production firmware is installed to additional sample of a standalone man-machine interface sent to the customer for final verification before serial production of devices with the firmware;

the customer provides final approval to production; and

the production starts producing batches of devices with approved firmware.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the library comprises custom functions, standard functions, a platform and hardware drives as needed for the configurable firmware and the production firmware.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein a serial production uses production firmware to produce customized devices in batch.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein:

the computer or web server, the configurable man-machine interface, the standalone man-machine interface, and the batch are accessible by the customer; and

the build software module, the library, the production are property of a company.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein:

the computer is a PC;

the web server is a service provided by the company; and

the customer is a customer of the company.