From #define to function - c++

I have this code inside a function but I am not able to understand what it does.
....
#define ascend(i) do {\
int h = nodes[i].heavyindex;\
int p = nodes[i].heavypos;\
m##i = max(m##i + paths[h].ftree.sum(p), paths[h].stree.max_(0, p));\
i = paths[h].parent;\
} while (0)
while (nodes[a].heavyindex != nodes[b].heavyindex) {
if (nodes[a].heavyindex > nodes[b].heavyindex) {
ascend(a);
} else {
ascend(b);
}
}
#undef ascend
...
The code of #define, I think, is:
#define ascend(i) do {\
int h = nodes[i].heavyindex;\
int p = nodes[i].heavypos;\
m##i = max(m##i + paths[h].ftree.sum(p), paths[h].stree.max_(0, p));\
i = paths[h].parent;\
} while (0)
so the real code inside the function is only this:
while (nodes[a].heavyindex != nodes[b].heavyindex) {
if (nodes[a].heavyindex > nodes[b].heavyindex) {
ascend(a);
} else {
ascend(b);
}
}
1) It is right?
2) I want to move the code of the #define inside a function to better understand what it does, but how I translate the following line?
m##i = max(m##i + paths[h].ftree.sum(p), paths[h].stree.max_(0, p));\

Yes.
As mentioned by Ben Voigt in the comments, ## is the token-pasting operator. So with #define f(i) m##i defined, f(a) will expand to ma, f(b) will expand to mb, etc.
Since that's only possible with the preprocessor, you have to think of something else to implement it as a function. Passing ma and mb by reference would be a good idea. It could look something like this:
ascend(T& mi) {
...
mi = max(mi + paths[h].ftree.sum(p), paths[h].stree.max_(0, p));
...
}
Where T is the type of ma and mb. If they're of different types, you need to make it a function template.

Related

How to prevent c++ compiler optimising variable

tl;dr: In the code below, why does the Serial.println(value); statement change the behaviour of the code, and how can I make the code work properly without it ?
I need to save some values on a microcontroller that doesn't have any eeprom (an Arduino 33 BLE sense)
I have found a way to do that by declaring a const variable to reserve a region in the flash memory, and write to it using the microcontroller's NVMC (Non Volatile Memory Controller). This solution works fine but there is some weirdness I'd like to get rid of:
To read the values, I use the following function:
float getFloat(float *ptr) {
float value = *ptr;
Serial.println(value);
return value;
}
This works, but whenever I try to simplify this by
removing the Serial.println statement
not using the function at all and doing what it does inline: something.floatvalue = *ptr
...the code behaves as if the saved values were always 0 (A memory dump shows this is not the case)
I suspect the compiler is optimising stuff in a way I don't understand (I'm not too familiar with c++). How can I avoid that ?
Here ny current code:
#include <Arduino.h>
#include <stdbool.h>
// https://infocenter.nordicsemi.com/pdf/nRF52840_PS_v1.2.pdf
// nFR52 NVMC registers
#define NVMC_BASE (0x4001E000U)
#define NVMC_READY (NVMC_BASE + 0x400U)
#define NVMC_READYNEXT (NVMC_BASE + 0x408U)
#define NVMC_CONFIG (NVMC_BASE + 0x504U)
#define NVMC_ERASEPAGE (NVMC_BASE + 0x508U)
#define NVMC_ERASEALL (NVMC_BASE + 0x50CU)
#define NVMC_ERASEUICR (NVMC_BASE + 0x514U)
#define NVMC_ERASEPAGEPARTIAL (NVMC_BASE + 0X518U)
#define NVMC_ERASEPAGEPARTIALCFG (NVMC_BASE + 0X51CU)
#define NVMC_ICACHECNF (NVMC_BASE + 0x540U)
#define NVMC_IHIT (NVMC_BASE + 0x548U)
#define NVMC_IMISS (NMVC_BASE + 0x54cU)
// nFR52 MVMC values
#define MVMC_READ_MODE 0x00
#define MVMC_WRITE_MODE 0x01
#define MVMC_ERASE_MODE 0x02
typedef struct flash_mem {
float val_1;
float val_2;
// We want to fill a whole page of memory.
// A page is 4096 bytes, each float takes 4 bytes.
char filler[4096 - (4+4) ];
} flash_mem_t;
// This will reserve a space in flash memory for the values we need to save.
const flash_mem_t _values __attribute__((section("FLASH"), aligned(0x1000))) = {};
// A regular, in-memory instance of our values for easy manipulations.
// we'll use the load() and save() functions to move data between values and _values
flash_mem_t values;
void setup() {
// Initialize serial
Serial.begin(115200);
while (!Serial.ready()) { }
delay(500);
// Load and show saved values
load();
Serial.println(values.val_1);
Serial.println(values.val_2);
// Update and save values
values.val_1 += 1;
values.val_2 += 0.642;
save();
}
// Arduino expects this
void loop() {}
void load () {
// TODO: find a way to do this for all values in our struct automatically
values.val_1 = getFloat((float *)&_values.val_1);
values.val_2 = getFloat((float *)&_values.val_2);
}
void writeValues () {
// TODO: find a way to do this for all values in our struct automatically
*(float *)(&_values.val_1) = values.val_1;
*(float *)(&_values.val_2) = values.val_2;
}
bool save() {
// NVMC can only write on "deleted" bytes, so we delete the page _values sits on
deletePage((void *)&_values);
// make sure NVMC is ready
if (*(uint32_t *)NVMC_READY == false) return false;
// write values to flash
*(uint32_t *)NVMC_CONFIG = MVMC_WRITE_MODE;
writeValues();
while(*(uint32_t *)NVMC_READY == false) delayMicroseconds(50);
*(uint32_t *)NVMC_CONFIG = MVMC_READ_MODE;
return true;
}
bool deletePage(void *pageStart) {
if (*(uint32_t *)NVMC_READY == false) return false;
*(uint32_t *)NVMC_CONFIG = MVMC_ERASE_MODE;
*(uint32_t *)NVMC_ERASEPAGE = (uint32_t)pageStart;
while (*(uint32_t *)NVMC_READY == false) delay(85);
*(uint32_t *)NVMC_CONFIG = MVMC_READ_MODE;
return true;
}
float getFloat(float *ptr) {
float value = *ptr;
// This is the weird part: everything works properly whem the following line is here,
// but value is always 0 when it is commented out
Serial.println(value);
return value;
}
I didn't tag this question with the "arduino" tag because I feel like it's not really an arduino problem. If you disagree, I'll be happy to update the tags.
Thanks for any help!
Usually you can use volatile to inform the compiler that the variable can change (for example, in an interrupt), so it wouldn't optimize it away. See Why is volatile needed in C?.

Elegantly attempt to execute various functions a specific way

I'm attempting to execute various functions sequentially n number of times, only moving forward if previous function did not return false (error) otherwise I reset and start all over again.
An example of a sequence would be :
Turn module ON : module.power(true), 3 attempts
Wait for a signal : module.signal(), 10 attempts
Send a message : module.sendSMS('test'), 3 attempts
Turn module OFF : module.power(false), 1 attempt
Each of those actions are done the same way, only changing the DEBUG text and the function to launch :
DEBUG_PRINT("Powering ON"); // This line changes
uint8_t attempts = 0;
uint8_t max_attempts = 3; // max_attempts changes
while(!module.power(true) && attempts < max_attempts){ // This line changes
attempts++;
DEBUG_PRINT(".");
if(attempts == max_attempts) {
DEBUG_PRINTLN(" - Failed.");
soft_reset(); // Start all over again
}
delay(100);
}
DEBUG_PRINTLN(" - Success");
wdt_reset(); // Reset watchdog timer, ready for next action
Is there an elegant way I can put this process in a function I could call to execute the required functions this particular way, for example something like :
void try_this_action(description, function, n_attempts)
Which would make actions 1-4 above like :
try_this_action("Powering ON", module.power(true), 3);
try_this_action("Waiting for signal", module.signal(), 10);
try_this_action("Sending SMS", module.sendSMS('test'), 3);
try_this_action("Powering OFF", module.power(false), 1);
A difficulty I have is that the functions called have different syntax (some take parameters, some other don't...). Is there a more elegant modulable way of doing this besides copy/paste the chunck of code everywhere I need it ?
A difficulty I have is that the functions called have different syntax
(some take parameters, some other don't...).
That is indeed an issue. Along with it you have the possibility of variation in actual function arguments for the same function.
Is there a more elegant
modulable way of doing this besides copy/paste the chunck of code
everywhere I need it ?
I think you could make a variadic function that uses specific knowledge of the functions to dispatch in order to deal with the differing function signatures and actual arguments. I'm doubtful that I would consider the result more elegant, though.
I would be inclined to approach this job via a macro, instead:
// desc: a descriptive string, evaluated once
// action: an expression to (re)try until it evaluates to true in boolean context
// attempts: the maximum number of times the action will be evaluated, itself evaluated once
#define try_this_action(desc, action, attempts) do { \
int _attempts = (attempts); \
DEBUG_PRINT(desc); \
while(_attempts && !(action)) { \
_attempts -= 1; \
DEBUG_PRINT("."); \
delay(100); \
} \
if (_attempts) { \
DEBUG_PRINTLN(" - Success"); \
} else { \
DEBUG_PRINTLN(" - Failed."); \
soft_reset(); \
} \
wdt_reset(); \
} while (0)
Usage would be just as you described:
try_this_action("Powering ON", module.power(true), 3);
etc.. Although the effect is as if you did insert the code for each action in each spot, using a macro such as this would yield code that is much easier to read, and that is not lexically repetitive. Thus, for example, if you ever need to change the the steps for trying actions, you can do it once for all by modifying the macro.
You need to make the function pointers all have the same signature. I would use something like this;
typedef int(*try_func)(void *arg);
And have a try_this_action(...) signature similar to the following;
void try_this_action(char * msg, int max_trys, try_func func, void *arg)
You would then implement your actions similar to this;
int power(void *pv)
{
int *p = pv;
int on_off = *p;
static int try = 0;
if (on_off && try++)
return 1;
return 0;
}
int signal(void *pv)
{
static int try = 0;
if (try++ > 6)
return 1;
return 0;
}
And call them like this;
int main(int c, char *v[])
{
int on_off = 1;
try_this_action("Powering ON", 3, power, &on_off);
try_this_action("Signaling", 10, signal, 0);
}
Functions of different arity may be abstracted with a generic signature (think about main). Instead of each giving each their own unique arguments, you simply supply them all with:
An argument count.
A vector of pointers to the arguments.
This is how your operating system treats all programs it runs anyways. I've given a very basic example below which you can inspect.
#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
/* Define total function count */
#define MAX_FUNC 2
/* Generic function signature */
typedef void (*func)(int, void **, const char *);
/* Function pointer array (NULL - initialized) */
func functions[MAX_FUNC];
/* Example function #1 */
void printName (int argc, void **argv, const char *desc) {
fprintf(stdout, "Running: %s\n", desc);
if (argc != 1 || argv == NULL) {
fprintf(stderr, "Err in %s!\n", desc);
return;
}
const char *name = (const char *)(argv[0]);
fprintf(stdout, "Name: %s\n", name);
}
/* Example function #2 */
void printMax (int argc, void **argv, const char *desc) {
fprintf(stdout, "Running: %s\n", desc);
if (argc != 2 || argv == NULL) {
fprintf(stderr, "Err in %s!\n", desc);
return;
}
int *a = (int *)(argv[0]), *b = (int *)(argv[1]);
fprintf(stdout, "Max: %d\n", (*a > *b) ? *a : *b);
}
int main (void) {
functions[0] = printName; // Set function #0
functions[1] = printMax; // Set function #1
int f_arg_count[2] = {1, 2}; // Function 0 takes 1 argument, function 1 takes 2.
const char *descs[2] = {"printName", "printMax"};
const char *name = "Natasi"; // Args of function 0
int a = 2, b = 3; // Args of function 1
int *args[2] = {&a, &b}; // Args of function 1 in an array.
void **f_args[2] = {(void **)(&name),
(void **)(&args)}; // All function args.
// Invoke all functions.
for (int i = 0; i < MAX_FUNC; i++) {
func f = functions[i];
const char *desc = descs[i];
int n = f_arg_count[i];
void **args = f_args[i];
f(n, args, desc);
}
return EXIT_SUCCESS;
}
You can use a variadic function, declaring in the parameter list first those parameters that are always present, then the variable part.
In following code we define a type for action functions, void returning having as parameter an argument list:
typedef void (*action)(va_list);
Then define the generic action routine that prepare for the action execution:
void try_this_action(char *szActionName, int trials, action fn_action, ...)
{
va_list args;
va_start(args, fn_action); //Init the argument list
DEBUG_PRINT(szActionName); // This line changes
uint8_t attempts = 0;
uint8_t max_attempts = trials; // max_attempts changes
//Here we call our function through the pointer passed as argument
while (!fn_action(args) && attempts < max_attempts)
{ // This line changes
attempts++;
DEBUG_PRINT(".");
if (attempts == max_attempts)
{
DEBUG_PRINTLN(" - Failed.");
soft_reset(); // Start all over again
}
delay(100);
}
DEBUG_PRINTLN(" - Success");
wdt_reset(); // Reset watchdog timer, ready for next action
va_end(args);
}
Each function must be coded to use an argument list:
int power(va_list args)
{
//First recover all our arguments using the va_arg macro
bool cond = va_arg(args, bool);
if (cond == true)
{
... //do something
return true;
}
return false;
}
The usage will be:
try_this_action("Powering ON", 3, module.power, true);
try_this_action("Waiting for signal", 10, module.signal);
try_this_action("Sending SMS", 3, module.sendSMS, "test");
try_this_action("Powering OFF", 1, module.power, false);
If you need more info on variadic functions and usage of stdarg.h macros google the net. Start from here https://en.cppreference.com/w/c/variadic.
It could be coded also as a macro implementation, as the excellent proposal in the John Bollinger answer, but in that case you must consider that each macro usage will instantiate the whole code, that could be eventually even better for speed (avoiding a function call), but could be not suitable on systems with limited memory (embedded), or where you need reference to the function try_this_action (inexistent).

While loop - how to remove code duplication

It's not the first time I find myself in the following situation:
bool a = some_very_long_computation;
bool b = another_very_long_computation;
while (a && b) {
...
a = some_very_long_computation;
b = another_very_long_computation;
}
I don't want to compute everything in while condition, since computations are long and I want to give them appropriate names.
I don't want to create helper functions, because computation uses many local variables, and passing them all will make the code much less readable (and it will be some_huge_call).
It's unknown whether loop body will be executed at least once.
What is a good pattern in such situation? Currently I face it in C++, but I've encountered this in other languages as well. I can solve it by using additional variable isFirstPass, but it looks ugly (and, I guess, will cause some warnings):
bool a, b;
bool isFirstPass = true;
do {
if (!isFirstPass) {
...
} else {
isFirstPass = false;
}
a = some_very_long_computation;
b = another_very_long_computation;
} while (a && b);
The direct simplification of your code is:
while (
some_very_long_computation &&
another_very_long_computation
) {
...
}
If you want to keep the variables a and b:
bool a, b;
while (
(a = some_very_long_computation) &&
(b = another_very_long_computation)
) {
...
}
If you don't want to put the conditions into the while condition:
while (true) {
bool a = some_very_long_computation;
bool b = another_very_long_computation;
if (!(a && b)) {
break;
}
...
}
You could also create helper lambdas (which have access to local variables):
auto fa = [&]() { return some_very_long_computation; };
auto fb = [&]() { return another_very_long_computation; };
while (fa() && fb()) {
...
}

How to use macro arguments in call to another macro?

I'd like to be able to create a macro which calls other macros. The macro I'd like to call is the Benchmark macro from folly.
Ultimately, I'd like to have a bunch of macros that look like:
BENCHMARK(filter_10_vector_1_filter, n) { ... }
BENCHMARK(filter_10_set_1_filter, n) { ... }
BENCHMARK(filter_10_vector_2_filter, n) { ... }
BENCHMARK(filter_10_set_2_filter, n) { ... }
BENCHMARK(filter_10_vector_3_filter, n) { ... }
BENCHMARK(filter_10_set_3_filter, n) { ... }
... all the way to 10_filter
BENCHMARK(filter_100_vector_1_filter, n) { ... }
BENCHMARK(filter_100_set_1_filter, n) { ... }
... all the way to 10_filter
I tried creating a macro that looks like:
#define CreateBenchmark(numElements, numFilters) \
BENCHMARK(filter_##numElements_vector_##numFilters_filters, n) { ... } \
BENCHMARK_RELATIVE(filter_##numElements_set_##numFilters_filters, n) { ... }
CreateBenchmark(10, 2);
which would hopefully halve the number of macros I need to write. However, the ##numElements and ##numFilters substitutions are not happening as I hoped. The result of the CreateBenchmark(10, 2) call is
============================================================================
FilterWithSetBenchmark.cpp relative time/iter iters/s
============================================================================
filter_numElements_vector_numFilters_filters 264.35us 3.78K
filter_numElements_set_numFilters_filters 99.93% 264.54us 3.78K
============================================================================
I was expecting filter_10_vector_2_filters and fitler_10_set_2_filters. Is there a way to sub the values supplied to the CreateBenchmark macro into the values passed to the BENCHMARK and BENCHMARK_RELATIVE calls?
As a bonus, can my CreateBenchmark macro use a for loop to create all of the XX_filters so that one call to CreateBenchmark generates 20 macro calls (10 for _vector_ and 10 for _set_)?
You forgot the trailing concatenation operator ##:
#define CreateBenchmark(numElements, numFilters) \
BENCHMARK(filter_ ## numElements ## _vector_ ## numFilters ## _filters, n) { ... } \
BENCHMARK_RELATIVE(filter_ ## numElements ## _set_ ## numFilters ## _filters, n) { ... }
Think of ## as the string concatenation operator just like + in Java or Python.
Figured it out by accident. My create macro function needed more #. Here's the new one:
#define CreateBenchmark(numElements, numFilters) \
BENCHMARK(filter_##numElements##_vector_##numFilters##_filters, n) { ... } \
BENCHMARK_RELATIVE(filter_##numElements##_set_##numFilters##_filters, n) { ... }
Basically, what I want subbed needs to be completely enclosed in double #. Went from ##numElements to ##numElements##. Similarly for numFilters.
You can use __VA_ARGS__ to represent the macro arguments.

Expect a value within a given range using Google Test

I want to specify an expectation that a value is between an upper and lower bound, inclusively.
Google Test provides LT,LE,GT,GE, but no way of testing a range that I can see. You could use EXPECT_NEAR and juggle the operands, but in many cases this isn't as clear as explicitly setting upper and lower bounds.
Usage should resemble:
EXPECT_WITHIN_INCLUSIVE(1, 3, 2); // 2 is in range [1,3]
How would one add this expectation?
Google mock has richer composable matchers:
EXPECT_THAT(x, AllOf(Ge(1),Le(3)));
Maybe that would work for you.
Using just Google Test (not mock), then the simple, obvious answer is:
EXPECT_TRUE((a >= 1) && (a <= 3)); // a is between 1 and 3 inclusive
I find this more readable than some of the Mock based answers.
--- begin edit --
The simple answer above not providing any useful diagnostics
You can use AssertionResult to define a custom assert that does produce useful a useful error message like this.
#include <gtest/gtest.h>
::testing::AssertionResult IsBetweenInclusive(int val, int a, int b)
{
if((val >= a) && (val <= b))
return ::testing::AssertionSuccess();
else
return ::testing::AssertionFailure()
<< val << " is outside the range " << a << " to " << b;
}
TEST(testing, TestPass)
{
auto a = 2;
EXPECT_TRUE(IsBetweenInclusive(a, 1, 3));
}
TEST(testing, TestFail)
{
auto a = 5;
EXPECT_TRUE(IsBetweenInclusive(a, 1, 3));
}
There is a nice example in google mock cheat sheet:
using namespace testing;
MATCHER_P2(IsBetween, a, b,
std::string(negation ? "isn't" : "is") + " between " + PrintToString(a)
+ " and " + PrintToString(b))
{
return a <= arg && arg <= b;
}
Then to use it:
TEST(MyTest, Name) {
EXPECT_THAT(42, IsBetween(40, 46));
}
I would define these macros:
#define EXPECT_IN_RANGE(VAL, MIN, MAX) \
EXPECT_GE((VAL), (MIN)); \
EXPECT_LE((VAL), (MAX))
#define ASSERT_IN_RANGE(VAL, MIN, MAX) \
ASSERT_GE((VAL), (MIN)); \
ASSERT_LE((VAL), (MAX))
In the end I created a macro to do this that resembles other macros in the Google Test lib.
#define EXPECT_WITHIN_INCLUSIVE(lower, upper, val) \
do { \
EXPECT_PRED_FORMAT2(::testing::internal::CmpHelperGE, val, lower); \
EXPECT_PRED_FORMAT2(::testing::internal::CmpHelperLE, val, upper); \
} while (0)
Using an Existing Boolean Function in Google Test which don't need google mock.The link is quite specific.
Here is the example.
// Returns true iff m and n have no common divisors except 1.
bool MutuallyPrime(int m, int n) { ... }
const int a = 3;
const int b = 4;
const int c = 10;
the assertion EXPECT_PRED2(MutuallyPrime, a, b); will succeed, while
the assertion EXPECT_PRED2(MutuallyPrime, b, c); will fail with the
message
!MutuallyPrime(b, c) is false, where
b is 4
c is 10