Embedded system with interrupt handler for multiple operating systems

• US 6,631,394 B1
• Filed: 01/20/1999
• Issued: 10/07/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: RealD Incorporated, WSOU Investments, LLC (WSOU Holdings, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Mobile Phones UK Limited (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Lempinen, Kim, Ronkka, Risto, Leskela, Jyrki, Kantola, Janne, Saarinen, Vesa, Purhonen, Anu
• Primary Examiner(s): Courtenay, III, St. John
• Assistant Examiner(s): Opie, George Lawrence
• Application Number:
  US09/234,433
• Time in Patent Office: 1,721 Days
• Field of Search: 709/100, 709/102, 710/260-269
• US Class Current: 718/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/45533 Hypervisors; Virtual machine monitors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4812 by interrupt, e.g. masked

Abstract

An embedded system (1) comprising at least one processor (2) for running an operating system (OS_A, OS_B). The embedded system (1) further comprises:

means (17, 401, 412) for running at least two operating systems (OS_A, OS_B) in said processor (2),

a first operating system (OS_A) comprising a first group of threads (THA1, THA2, THA_IDLE),

a second operating system (OS_B) comprising a second group of threads (THB1, THB2, THB_IDLE),

means (nFIQ, nIRQ, SWI) for generating an interrupt (FIQ, IRQ, SWI) to said processor (2),

means for examining (401, 603, 617) to the execution of which thread (THA1, THA2, THB1, THB2, THA_IDLE, THB_IDLE) the interrupt (FIQ, IRQ, SWI), that has come to the processor (2), affects, and

means (401, 412, 603, 609, 617) for transmitting interrupt data to said operating system (OS_A, OS_B) which relates to the thread (THA1, THA2, THB1, THB2, THA_IDLE, THB_IDLE) affecting the interrupt (FIQ, IRQ, SWI) received by the processor (2).

Claims

1. An embedded system comprising:

at last one processor operable to run at least two operating systems, wherein the at least two operating systems include

a first operating system including a first group of threads, and

a second operating system including a second group of threads;

means for generating an interrupt to said processor;

means for selecting a thread from said first and second group of threads to execute as a result of said interrupt and as defined by any applications, said means for selecting including at least one at least partly common interrupt handler for said at least two operating systems; and

means for transmitting interrupt data to the operating system from which the thread was selected including said thread to execute.

2. An embedded system according to claim 1, further comprising mobile station functions and data processing functions, wherein the first operating system relates to running of the mobile station functions, and the second operating system relates to running of the data processing functions.

3. An embedded system according to claim 2, further comprising at least a first user interface which relates at least partly to the mobile station functions, and at least a second user interface which relates at least partly to the data processing functions.

4. An embedded system according to claim 3, wherein the first user interface and the second user interface comprise an at least partly common display device.

5. An embedded system according to claim 3, wherein the first user interface and the second user interface comprise at least partly common means for supplying data.

6. An embedded system according to claim 1, further comprising means for moving from the execution of the first operating system to the execution of the second operating system when no thread of the first operating system is running.

7. An embedded system according to claim 1, further comprising means for moving from the execution of the second operating system to run the first operating system when an interrupt to the processor affects the running of at least one thread under the first operating system.

8. An embedded system according to claim 1, wherein at least the first operating system is a real time operating system.

9. An embedded system according to claim 1, wherein the processor comprises at least the following modes:

user mode,

privileged mode,

undefined mode, and

one or more interrupt modes,

and that the first operating system is arranged to operate at least partly in the undefined mode, the second operating system is arranged to operate at least partly in the user mode, and that the interrupt handler is arranged to operate in the one or more interrupt modes.

10. An embedded system according to claim 1, wherein one thread of said first group of threads comprises said second operating system.

11. An embedded system according to claim 1, further comprising:

at least two interrupt service routines for at least one interrupt; and

means for selecting one from said at least two interrupt service routines to be used in connection with said interrupt.

12. A method for executing an operating system in a processor of an embedded system, the method comprising:

executing at least two operating systems in said processor, wherein a first operating system includes a first group of threads, and a second operating system includes a second group of threads;

generating an interrupt to said processor;

selecting a thread from said first and second group of threads to execute in response to said interrupt and as defined by any applications using at least one interrupt handler at least partly common to said at least two operating systems; and

transmitting information of said interrupt to the operating system from which the thread was selected including said thread selected to be executed.

13. A method according to claim 12, further comprising executing mobile station functions and data processing functions in the embedded system, wherein the first operating system relates to executing mobile station functions, and the second operating system relates to executing data processing functions.

14. A method according to claim 13, wherein the mobile station functions utilize a first user interface, and the data processing functions utilize a second user interface.

15. A method according to claim 14, wherein the mobile station functions and the data processing functions are shown on an at least a partly common display device.

16. A method according to claim 14, wherein for using the mobile station functions and the data processing functions, data is supplied by means of at least partly common means.

17. A method according to claim 12, wherein from the execution of the first operating system, transformation is made to perform the second operating system in the phase when no thread of the first operating system is in the run mode.

18. A method according to claim 12, wherein from the execution of the second operating system, transformation is made to perform the first operating system in the phase when the interrupt received by the processor affects the execution of at least one thread under the first operating system.

19. A method according to claim 12, wherein at least the first operating system is a real time operating system.

20. A method according to claim 12, wherein said second operating system is executed in one thread of said first group of threads.

21. A method according to claim 20, wherein a priority for each thread of said first group of threads is determined, and wherein the priority of the thread in which said second operating system is executed can be raised for increasing the execution time of said second operating system.

22. A communication device comprising:

at least one processor for executing at least two operating systems, wherein the at least two operating systems include

a first operating system including a first group of threads and

a second operating system including a second group of threads;

means for generating an interrupt to said processor;

means for determining a thread selected from the first and second group of threads to execute in response to said interrupt and as defined by any applications, said means for determining including at least one at least partly common interrupt handler for said at least two operating systems; and

means for transmitting interrupt data to the operating system from which the thread was selected including said thread to be executed.

23. A communication device according to claim 22, further comprising mobile station functions and data processing functions, wherein the first operating system relates to running of the mobile station functions, and the second operating system relates to running of the data processing functions.

24. A communication device according to claim 23, further comprising at least a first user interface which relates at least partly to mobile station functions, and at least a second user interface which relates at least partly to data processing functions.

25. A communication device according to claim 24, wherein the first user interface and the second user interface include an at least partly common display device.

26. A communication device according to claim 24, wherein the first user interface and the second user interface include at least partly common means for supplying data.

27. A communication device according to claim 22, further comprising means for moving from the execution of the first operating system to the execution of the second operating system when no thread of the first operating system is running.

28. A communication device according to claim 22, further comprising means for moving from the execution of the second operating system to run the first operating system when an interrupt to the processor affects the running of at least one thread under the first operating system.

29. A communication device according to claim 22, wherein at least the first operating system is a real time operating system.

30. A communication device according to claim 22, wherein the processor comprises at least the following modes:

user mode,

privileged mode,

undefined mode, and

one or more interrupt modes,

and that the first operating system is arranged to operate at least partly in the undefined mode, the second operating system is arranged to operate at least partly in the user mode, and that the interrupt handler is arranged to operate in the one or more interrupt modes.

31. A communication device according to claim 22, wherein one thread of said first group of threads comprises said second operating system.

32. A method of operating an embedded system having a plurality of operating systems comprising:

receiving an interrupt;

operating an interrupt service program to service said interrupt;

identifying at least one thread from a group including at least one thread from each of said plurality of operating systems to be run as a result of operating said interrupt service program and as defined by any applications; and

running said at least one thread by the operating system from which it was selected upon termination of said interrupt service program.

33. The method of claim 32, further comprising:

identifying at least one delayed service routine to be run as a result of operating said interrupt service program; and

running said at least one delayed service routine upon termination of said interrupt service program.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein said at least one delayed service routine is run after said at least one thread.

35. The method of claim 33, wherein said at least one thread is a thread of a first of said plurality of operating systems and said delayed service routine is a delayed service routine of a second of said plurality of operating systems.

36. An embedded system comprising:

a plurality of operating systems;

an interrupt handler for receiving an interrupt and causing an interrupt service program to operate to service said interrupt;

circuitry for identifying at least one thread from all the threads of said plurality of operating systems to be run as a result of operating said interrupt service program and as defined by any applications; and

a scheduler for causing said at least one thread to run under the operating system from which the thread was selected upon termination of said interrupt service program.

37. The embedded system of claim 36, further comprising circuitry for identifying at least one delayed service routine to be run as a result of servicing said interrupt, wherein said scheduler is operable to cause said at least one delayed service routine to run upon termination of said interrupt service program.

38. The embedded system of claim 37, wherein said scheduler is operable to cause said at least one delayed service routine to run after said at least one thread.

39. The embedded system of claim 37, wherein said at least one thread is a thread of a first of said plurality of operating systems and said delayed service routine is a delayed service routine of a second of said plurality of operating systems.