Lightweight Data Structures for Embedded Systems

Lite-DS is a lightweight library of data structures specifically designed for bare-metal embedded systems.

Modules

• cirbuf: Circular buffer implementation.
• msg-queue: FIFO message queue.
• mem-pool: Memory pool for efficient memory management.

Advantages and Limitations

Advantages

• Dependency-free: Relies only on the C standard library, with no external dependencies
• Permissive license: Can be freely used in proprietary software
• Simple interface: Inspired by the design principles of large, well-known libraries
• Easy CMake integration: Straightforward setup (see the CMake section below)
• Unit test coverage: Provides a higher level of trustworthiness

Limitations

• Not thread-safe: Users must ensure thread safety in multi-threaded environments
• Not a replacement for RTOS primitives: In RTOS environments, it is often better to use the primitives provided by the RTOS
• Uses dynamic memory allocation: Dynamic memory is employed to achieve better encapsulation and a consistent interface
• Uses assertions: Assertions are used to improve safety without the cognitive overhead of explicitly handling trivial errors like null pointers

Additional design decisions are documented in the README files for each module.

Quick Build

1. Configure CMake

cmake -B build -D LITEDS_BUILD_TESTS=1

2. Build and test the Library

cd build
make all test

CMake Integration

1. Add this project to your codebase, either as a submodule or by copying it directly into your project
2. Include it in your build system using add_subdirectory(lite-ds)
3. Link the library to your target with target_link_libraries(your-artifact PRIVATE lite-ds)

Epilogue

When I was applying for a Software Engineer position, I found it somewhat annoying that companies expected a deep understanding of data structures and algorithms. However, when I needed implementations of a few simple algorithms tailored to my use case, I ended up creating this small library. Writing these data structures wasn’t about innovation but about necessity - building the foundation for the domain logic of the applications I work on. In the process, I gained a deeper understanding of how these data structures function, and now I see why such knowledge is a justified requirement.