Modern automotive embedded systems present significant complexity with multi-core SoCs, adaptive AUTOSAR implementations, and strict safety-critical timing requirements. Traditional debugging methods provide insufficient visibility into dynamic runtime behavior, creating challenges for functional safety certification and system reliability. Many embedded engineers are unaware that their existing microcontrollers contain built-in tracing capabilities designed to address these challenges.
This survey presentation examines timing analysis techniques available across different microcontroller families. The session covers software instrumentation, sampling methods, and hardware tracing capabilities including instruction trace, data access trace, and real-time profiling. Implementation approaches for ARM, RISC-V, and AURIX processors are discussed, highlighting underutilized features that provide timing insights without additional hardware requirements.
The presentation addresses trade-offs between fidelity, efficiency, and availability across different tracing approaches, enabling engineers to select appropriate methods for their automotive applications. Through examples, attendees will understand how to effectively utilize existing development hardware for comprehensive timing analysis.