Scratchpad-based operating system for multi-core embedded systems

A method comprising:

• determining, by an operating system, that a first logical partition of an application scratchpad memory coupled to an application processor core is empty and a first application stored in a main memory is scheduled to execute;
• in response to determining that the first logical partition of the application scratchpad memory is empty and the first application stored in the main memory is scheduled to execute, instructing, by the operating system, a DMA engine to load the first application from the main memory into the first logical partition and then instructing the application processor core to execute the first application from the first logical partition;
• while the first application is being executed from the first logical partition, determining, by the operating system, that a second logical partition of the application scratchpad memory is empty and a second application stored in the main memory is scheduled to execute;
• in response to determining that the second logical partition of the application scratchpad memory is empty and the second application is scheduled to execute, instructing, by the operating system, the DMA engine to load the second application from the main memory into the second logical partition;
• determining, by the operating system, that execution of the first application has completed;
• and
• in response to determining that execution of the first application has completed, instructing, by the operating system, the DMA engine to unload the first application from the first logical partition to the main memory and instructing the application processor core to execute the second application from the second logical partition, wherein operations that load applications from the main memory to empty partitions of the application scratchpad memory have precedence over operations that unload applications to the main memory from the application scratchpad memory.

An article of manufacture including a non-transitory computer-readable medium, having stored thereon program instructions that, upon execution by a computing system, cause the computing system to perform operations comprising:

• determining that a first logical partition of an application scratchpad memory coupled to an application processor core is empty and a first application stored in a main memory is scheduled to execute;
• in response to determining that the first logical partition of the application scratchpad memory is empty and the first application stored in the main memory is scheduled to execute, instructing a DMA engine to load the first application from the main memory into the first logical partition and then instructing the application processor core to execute the first application from the first logical partition;
• while the first application is being executed from the first logical partition, determining that a second logical partition of the application scratchpad memory is empty and a second application stored in the main memory is scheduled to execute;
• in response to determining that the second logical partition of the application scratchpad memory is empty and the second application is scheduled to execute, instructing the DMA engine to load the second application from the main memory into the second logical partition;
• determining that execution of the first application has completed;
• and
• in response to determining that execution of the first application has completed, instructing the DMA engine to unload the first application from the first logical partition to the main memory and instructing the application processor core to execute the second application from the second logical partition, wherein operations that load applications from the main memory to empty partitions of the application scratchpad memory have precedence over operations that unload applications to the main memory from the application scratchpad memory.