# Measuring cpu load of interrupt routine

I have an isr that is updating a display at a fixed frequency. I would like to tune my routine to minimize overhead and keep as much cpu time as possible open for other processing, but I don't have any good way to collect metrics to determine my cpu load.

I could look at the assembly and analyze the routine, but I don't have the patience or the ability to do that accurately. I don't feel like I need terribly fine grained results either, just a simple percentage of cpu time occupied by the isr.

I could set a pin high only when the isr is active and measure it externally. That has a minimum of overhead in the code, but I do not know what to measure it with. I don't have an oscilloscope or anything like that. Is there a simple ic or an easy way to use another micro to measure duty cycle? I have heard of dedicated frequency counter chips, but is there anything for duty cycle?

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Just a half-baked idea, you might be able to make use of timers like so (pseudo code):

int main(void)
{

/* ... init timers and uart here, enable your interrupts ... */

start_timer0();
while (!timer1Started()){}
stop_timer1();

uart_puts("Idle ticks: %d, ISR ticks: %d", timer0_value, timer1_value);

}


ISR_display()
{
stop_timer0();
start_timer1();

/* ... your ISR routine ... */
}


I've made a few assumption here. 1 - that you're not using your timers for anything else, and that, 2 - the overhead of starting and stopping a timer is minimal (typically done with a single register write). EDIT: and a 3rd assumption, you can capture all of this before a timer overflow occurs, but maybe you can account for that as well.

There will be some context switch overhead that you won't be able to catch, and this also adds two additional operations in your ISR (be sure to use macros for your start_timer/stop_timer to eliminate function call overhead). If you can get the total number of cycles used for start+stop timer macros, then you can subtract those ticks from the timer1_value to get the ISR ticks value a little more accurately. Your final calculation for % of CPU time used would simply be:

$$Usage_{cpu} = (\frac{Ticks_{isr}}{Ticks_{isr} + Ticks_{idle}}) * 100$$

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+1 for a solution requiring no external hardware. Probably a more cumbersome way to do it, but it fits in my constraints. I just need to learn about timers now. Thanks. –  CMP Nov 7 '11 at 19:44
I used this on an AVR for a similar project. It works very well. –  drxzcl Nov 7 '11 at 22:26

Set an output pin when you enter the ISR and clear it before returning from it. Filter the output with an RC filter. The voltage across the capacitor should give you the ISR duty cycle.
For instance, if your power supply is 3.3V and you measure 33mV, then you spend 1% of the time in the ISR.

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This is exactly what we do, except for the RC filter part. We set an output pin on entering the ISR, then clearing it on return. Looking at this on an o-scope will give all sorts of useful info. –  user3624 Nov 7 '11 at 18:03
@David - I also just watch the pulses on a scope, but OP says he doesn't have one. –  stevenvh Nov 7 '11 at 18:05
It looks like I need to start saving for a good scope. –  CMP Nov 7 '11 at 19:40
@stevenvh, exactly what I was going to suggest when I saw the absence of a scope. This is why those embedded guys love a few extra digital out pins. –  Kortuk Nov 7 '11 at 20:03
Filtering to meter in absence of a scope a nice idea. Turn LED on/off and measure effective brightness :-).(Very hard to see even quite large variations - but cute.) –  Russell McMahon Nov 7 '11 at 22:14