UserManual

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Last updated: Sept 02, 2015
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Version 3.03.00

µC/TCP-IP is a compact, reliable, high-performance TCP/IP protocol stack. Built from the ground up with Micrium’s unique combination of quality, scalability and reliability, µC/TCP-IP, the result of many man-years of development, enables the rapid configuration of required network options to minimize time to market.

The source code for µC/TCP-IP contains over 100,000 lines of the cleanest, most consistent ANSI C source code available in a TCP/IP stack implementation. C was chosen since C is the predominant language in the embedded industry.

Portable

μC/TCP-IP is ideal for resource-constrained embedded applications. The code was designed for use with nearly any CPU, RTOS, and network device. Although μC/TCP-IP can work on some 8 and 16-bit processors, μC/TCP-IP is optimized for use with 32 or 64-bit CPUs.

Scalable

The memory footprint of μC/TCP-IP can be adjusted at compile time depending on the features required, and the desired level of run-time argument checking appropriate for the design at hand. Since μC/TCP-IP is rich in its ability to provide statistics computation, unnecessary statistics computation can be disabled to further reduce the footprint.

Coding Standards

Coding standards were established early in the design of μC/TCP-IP. They include:

  • C coding style
  • Naming convention for #define constants, macros, variables and functions
  • Commenting
  • Directory structure

These conventions make μC/TCP-IP the preferred TCP/IP stack implementation in the industry, and result in the ability to attain third party certification more easily as outlined in the next section.

MISRA C

The source code for μC/TCP-IP follows Motor Industry Software Reliability Association (MISRA) C Coding Standards. These standards were created by MISRA to improve the reliability and predictability of C programs in safety-critical automotive systems. Members of the MISRA consortium include such companies as Delco Electronics, Ford Motor Company, Jaguar Cars Ltd., Lotus Engineering, Lucas Electronics, Rolls-Royce, Rover Group Ltd., and universities dedicated to improving safety and reliability in automotive electronics. Full details of this standard can be obtained directly from the MISRA web site at: www.misra.org.uk.

Safety Critical Certification

μC/TCP-IP was designed from the ground up to be certifiable for use in avionics, medical devices, and other safety-critical products. Validated Software’s Validation SuiteTM for μC/TCP-IP will provide all of the documentation required to deliver μC/TCP-IP as a pre-certifiable software component for avionics RTCA DO-178B and EUROCAE ED-12B, medical FDA 510(k), IEC 61508 industrial control systems, and EN-50128 rail transportation and nuclear systems. The Validation Suite, available through Validated Software, will be immediately certifiable for DO-178B Level A, Class III medical devices, and SIL3/SIL4 IEC-certified systems. For more information, check out the μC/TCP-IP page on the Validated Software web site at: www.ValidatedSoftware.com.

If your product is not safety critical, however, the presence of certification should be viewed as proof that μC/TCP-IP is very robust and highly reliable.

RTOS

μC/TCP-IP assumes the presence of an RTOS, yet there are no assumptions as to which RTOS to use with μC/TCP-IP. The only requirements are that it must:

  • Be able to support multiple tasks 
  • Provide binary and counting semaphore management services 
  • Provide message queue services

Micrium provides an Kernel Abstraction layer that allows for the use of almost any commercial or open source RTOS. It can be found under the KAL folder of the µC/Common directory. Details regarding the RTOS are thus hidden from μC/TCP-IP. KAL includes the encapsulation layer for μC/OS-II and μC/OS-III real-time kernels.