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Using the Code Interface Report to Analyze the Generated Code Interface

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Code Interface Report Overview Generating a Code Interface Report Navigating Code Interface Report Subsections Interpreting the Entry Point Functions Subsection Interpreting the Inports and Outports Subsections Interpreting the Interface Parameters Subsection Interpreting the Data Stores Subsection Code Interface Report Limitations

Code Interface Report Overview

When you select the Create code generation report option for an ERT-based model, a Code Interface Report section is automatically included in the generated HTML report. The Code Interface Report section provides documentation of the generated code interface, including model entry point functions and interface data, for consumers of the generated code. The information in the report can help facilitate code review and code integration.

The code interface report includes the following subsections

• Entry Point Functions — interface information about each model entry point function, including model_initialize, model_step, and (if applicable) model_terminate

• Inports and Outports — interface information about each model inport and outport

• Interface Parameters — interface information about tunable parameters that are associated with the model

• Data Stores — interface information about global data stores and data stores with non-auto storage that are associated with the model

For limitations that apply to code interface reports, see Code Interface Report Limitations

Note   This section uses the following demo models for illustration purposes: rtwdemo_basicsc (with the ExportedGlobal Storage Class button selected in the demo model window) for examples of report subsections rtwdemo_mrmtbb for examples of timing information rtwdemo_fcnprotoctrl for examples of function argument and return value information

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Generating a Code Interface Report

To generate a code interface report for your model, perform the following steps.

1. Open your model, go to the Real-Time Workshop pane of the Configuration Parameters dialog box, and select ert.tlc or an ERT-based System target file, if one is not already selected.

2. Go to the Real-Time Workshop > Report pane of the Configuration Parameters dialog box and select the option Create code generation report, if it is not already selected. The rtwdemo_basicsc, rtwdemo_mrmtbb, and rtwdemo_fcnprotoctrl demo models used in this section select every Report pane option by default, but selecting Create code generation report alone is sufficient to generate a Code Interface Report section in the HTML report.

   Alternatively, you can programmatically select the option by issuing the following MATLAB command:

   set_param(bdroot, 'GenerateReport', 'on')

   If the Report pane option Code-to-model is selected, the generated report will contain hyperlinks to the model. You should leave this value selected unless you plan to use the report outside the MATLAB environment.

3. Build the model. If you selected the Report pane option Launch report automatically, the code generation report opens automatically after the build process completes. (Otherwise, you can launch it manually from within the model build directory.)

4. To display the code interface report for your model, go to the Contents pane of the HTML report and click the Code Interface Report link. For example, here is the generated code interface report for the demo model rtwdemo_basicsc (with the ExportedGlobal Storage Class button selected in the demo model window).

   

For help navigating the content of the code interface report subsections, see Navigating Code Interface Report Subsections. For help interpreting the content of the code interface report subsections, see the sections beginning with Interpreting the Entry Point Functions Subsection.

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Navigating Code Interface Report Subsections

To help you navigate code interface descriptions, the code interface report provides collapse/expand tokens and hyperlinks, as follows:

• For any lengthy subsection, the report provides [-] and [+] symbols that allow you to collapse or expand that section. In the example in the previous section, the symbols are provided for the Inports and Interface Parameters sections.

• Several forms of hyperlink navigation are provided in the code interface report. For example,

  • The Table of Contents located at the top of the code interface report provides links to each subsection.

  • You can click on each function name to go to its declaration in model.c.

  • You can click on each function's header file name to go to the header file source listing.

  • If you selected the Report pane option Code-to-model for your model, you can click hyperlinks for any of the following to go to the corresponding location in the model display:

    • Function argument

    • Function return value

    • Inport

    • Outport

    • Interface parameter (if the parameter source is a block)

    • Data store (if the data store source is a Data Store Memory block)

For general backward and forward navigation within the HTML code generation report, use the Back and Forward buttons above the Contents section in the upper left corner of the report.

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Interpreting the Entry Point Functions Subsection

The Entry Point Functions subsection of the code interface report provides the following interface information about each model entry point function, including model_initialize, model_step, and (if applicable) model_terminate.

Field	Description
Function:	Lists the function name. You can click on the function name to go to its declaration in model.c.
Prototype	Displays the function prototype, including the function return value, name, and arguments.
Description	Provides a text description of the function's purpose in the application.
Timing	Describes the timing characteristics of the function, such as how many times the function is called, or if it is called periodically, at what time interval. For a multirate timing example, see the rtwdemo_mrmtbb report excerpt below.
Arguments	If the function has arguments, displays the number, name, data type, and Simulink description for each argument. If you selected the Report pane option Code-to-model for your model, you can click the hyperlink in the description to go to the block corresponding to the argument in the model display. For argument examples, see the rtwdemo_fcnprotoctrl report excerpt below.
Return value	If the function has a return value, displays the return value data type and Simulink description. If you selected the Report pane option Code-to-model for your model, you can click the hyperlink in the description to go to the block corresponding to the return value in the model display. For a return value example, see the rtwdemo_fcnprotoctrl report excerpt below.
Header file	Lists the name of the header file for the function. You can click on the header file name to go to the header file source listing.

For example, here is the Entry Point Functions subsection for the demo model rtwdemo_basicsc.

To illustrate how timing information might be listed for a multirate model, here are the Entry Point Functions and Inports subsections for the demo model rtwdemo_mrmtbb. This multirate, discrete-time, multitasking model contains Inport blocks 1 and 2, which specify 1-second and 2-second sample times, respectively. The sample times are constrained to the specified times by the Periodic sample time constraint option on the Solver pane of the Configuration Parameters dialog box.

To illustrate how function arguments and return values are displayed in the report, here is the Entry Point Functions description of the model step function for the demo model rtwdemo_fcnprotoctrl.

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Interpreting the Inports and Outports Subsections

The Inports and Outports subsections of the code interface report provide the following interface information about each inport and outport in the model.

Field	Description
Block Name	Displays the Simulink block name of the inport or outport. If you selected the Report pane option Code-to-model for your model, you can click on each inport or outport Block Name value to go to its location in the model display.
Code Identifier	Lists the identifier associated with the inport or outport data in the generated code, as follows: If the data is defined in the generated code, the field displays the identifier string. If the data is declared but not defined in the generated code — for example, if the data is resolved with an imported storage class — the field displays the identifier string prefixed with the label 'Imported data:'. If the data is neither defined nor declared in the generated code — for example, if the option Generate reusable code is selected for the model — the field displays the string 'Defined externally'.
Data Type	Lists the data type of the inport or outport.
Dimension	Lists the dimensions of the inport or outport (for example, 1 or [4, 5]).

For example, here are the Inports and Outports subsections for the demo model rtwdemo_basicsc.

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Interpreting the Interface Parameters Subsection

The Interface Parameters subsection of the code interface report provides the following interface information about tunable parameters that are associated with the model.

Field	Description
Parameter Source	Lists the source of the parameter value, as follows: If the source of the parameter value is a block, the field displays the block name, such as <Root>/Gain2 or <S1>/Lookup1. If you selected the Report pane option Code-to-model for your model, you can click on the Parameter Source value to go to the parameter's location in the model display. If the source of the parameter value is a workspace variable, the field displays the name of the workspace variable prefixed with the label 'Workspace variable:'; for example, Workspace variable: K2.
Code Identifier	Lists the identifier associated with the tunable parameter data in the generated code, as follows: If the data is defined in the generated code, the field displays the identifier string. If the data is declared but not defined in the generated code — for example, if the data is resolved with an imported storage class — the field displays the identifier string prefixed with the label 'Imported data:'. If the data is neither defined nor declared in the generated code — for example, if the option Generate reusable code is selected for the model — the field displays the string 'Defined externally'.
Data Type	Lists the data type of the tunable parameter.
Dimension	Lists the dimensions of the tunable parameter (for example, 1 or [4, 5, 6]).

For example, here is the Interface Parameters subsection for the demo model rtwdemo_basicsc (with the ExportedGlobal Storage Class button selected in the demo model window).

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Interpreting the Data Stores Subsection

The Data Stores subsection of the code interface report provides the following interface information about global data stores and data stores with non-auto storage that are associated with the model.

Field	Description
Data Store Source	Lists the source of the data store memory, as follows: If the data store is defined using a Data Store Memory block, the field displays the block name, such as <Root>/DS1. If you selected the Report pane option Code-to-model for your model, you can click on the Data Store Source value to go to the data store's location in the model display. If the data store is defined using a Simulink.Signal object, the field displays the name of the Simulink.Signal object prefixed with the label 'Global:'.
Code Identifier	Lists the identifier associated with the data store data in the generated code, as follows: If the data is defined in the generated code, the field displays the identifier string. If the data is declared but not defined in the generated code — for example, if the data is resolved with an imported storage class — the field displays the identifier string prefixed with the label 'Imported data:'. If the data is neither defined nor declared in the generated code — for example, if the option Generate reusable code is selected for the model — the field displays the string 'Defined externally'.
Data Type	Lists the data type of the data store.
Dimension	Lists the dimensions of the data store (for example, 1 or [1, 2]).

For example, here is the Data Stores subsection for the demo model rtwdemo_basicsc (with the ExportedGlobal Storage Class button selected in the demo model window).

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Code Interface Report Limitations

The following limitations apply to code interface section of the HTML code generation reports.

• The code interface report does not support the GRT interface with an ERT target or the C++ (Encapsulated) language option. For these configurations, the code interface report will not be generated and will not appear in the HTML code generation report Contents pane.

• The code interface report supports data resolved with most custom storage classes (CSCs), except when the CSC properties are set in any of the following ways:

  • The CSC property Type is set to FlatStructure. For example, the BitField and Struct CSCs in the Simulink package have Type set to FlatStructure and are not supported by the code interface report.

  • The CSC property Type is set to Other. For example, the GetSet CSC in the Simulink package has Type set to Other and is not supported by the code interface report.

  • The CSC property Data access is set to Pointer, indicating that imported symbols are declared as pointer variables rather than simple variables. This property is accessible only when the CSC property Data scope is set to Imported or Instance-specific.

  In these cases, the report displays empty Data Type and Dimension fields.

• For outports, the code interface report cannot describe the associated memory (data type and dimensions) if the memory is optimized. In these cases, the report displays empty Data Type and Dimension fields.

• The code interface report does not support data type replacement using the Real-Time Workshop > Data Type Replacement pane of the Configuration Parameters dialog box. The data types listed in the report will link to built-in data types rather than their specified replacement data types.

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Generating an HTML Code Generation Report

Optimizing Generated Code

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