Library for Simplified Timer Implementation using Standard C++

Abstract

Temporization is a crucial aspects of control, automation and robotics systems. C++ is used in the development of such systems, especially if they are more complex and powerful. Because, the language and standard library do not support non-blocking timers with callbacks for event-driven programming, developers resort to libraries and frameworks that offer such functionality. However, their timer implementations are dependent on platform specificities and thus have more limited portability. C++11 has introduced features that enable standard implementations of timers. We propose a library that implements timers with simplified usage relatively to well-known libraries. The proposed library is contrasted with timers of two well know libraries, through a series of usage scenarios. We describe the design and provide performance measurements. The results show that it is faster and offers more accurate temporization.