Window cache boosts the performance of graphic library

SEGGER has introduced a window cache feature for the emWin embedded graphics library, typically increasing performance by a factor of four in larger systems with sufficient RAM.

The content of each window or widget is automatically cached into spare memory. When a window – or part of a window – needs to be redrawn, its content is taken from the cache, avoiding the time-consuming rerendering process.

Configuration and use is very easy, requiring just one line of code to enable use on all windows. All windows can be cached, or caching can be enabled for selected windows only.

This makes emWin excellent for small microcontroller devices and systems with high-resolution displays and ample RAM. The efficiency increase eradicates costly redrawing, improves rendering performance, lowers CPU load, and saves energy. The gain in performance depends upon the complexity of the content to be redrawn.

"Running a graphics library in an embedded system occupies a significant amount of computing time. Most of the time is used for rendering," says Dirk Akemann, marketing manager at SEGGER. "Being able to minimise rendering efforts speeds up an application significantly. emWin's window cache does exactly that, and we can see a 4x increase in performance."

emWin is the company's leading embedded graphics library developed to provide an efficient GUI solution for applications with graphical displays. Its flexibility enables it to work seamlessly with different processors and display controllers. It is ideal for single- and multi-task environments, making it versatile for various applications.