Call graph and control flow graph visualization for developers of embedded applications

Abstract

When working with complex software, visualization improves understanding considerably. Thus, enhancing the ability of programmers to picture the relationships between components in a complex program not only saves time but becomes progressively mission-critical with increasing software complexity. aiCall is a software visualization tool which helps programmers to better understand their software, generally improving learning, speeding up development and saving considerable effort and expense. aiCall visualizes the call graph and the control flow graph of embedded application code. Currently supported targets are Infineon C16x [EBF01, Inf97] and STMicroelectronics ST10. These microcontroller families are very popular and widely used in consumer goods (cellular phones, CD-players, washing machines) and in safety-critical environments (airbags, navigation systems, and automotive controls).