Shared Memory Based Communication Manager

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Overview

Shared Memory Based Communication Manager is a comprehensive C++ library collection for achieving ultra-fast inter-process communication within the same PC. This library consists of three main components:

🧠 Shared Memory-Based Communication Libraries

• shm_pub_sub - High-speed Publisher/Subscriber model communication (broadcast type)
• shm_service - Reliable Server/Client model communication (request-response type)
• shm_action - Advanced asynchronous processing communication (long-running task support)

📚 Documentation Index

Beginner's Guide

• 📖 Introduction - Communication Library Fundamentals
• 🚀 Quick Start Guide
• ⚙️ Installation and Configuration

Tutorials

• 📝 Basic Tutorials (C++)
  • 🔄 How to use Pub/Sub Communication
  • 🤝 How to use Service Communication
  • ⚡ How to use Action Communication
• 🐍 Python Tutorials
  • 🔄 Python Pub/Sub Communication

Detailed Specifications

• 📋 API Specifications
• 🔧 Advanced Configuration and Applications
• 🐛 Troubleshooting

References

• 📚 References
• 💡 Sample Code Collection

🎯 Features

🚀 Exceptional Performance

• ⚡ Microsecond-level ultra-low latency - Maximum speed through direct memory access
• 🎯 Zero-copy communication - Efficient transfer with minimal data copying
• 🔥 CPU cache optimization - Design considering memory layout

🔒 Safety and Reliability

• 🛡️ Thread-safe - Automatic mutual exclusion and deadlock avoidance
• 🔐 Type safety - Compile-time type checking with C++ templates
• 🚨 Exception safety - Reliable resource management through RAII design
• ✅ Data integrity - Corruption prevention through atomic operations

🎛️ Ease of Use

• 🎨 Intuitive API - ROS-like easy-to-understand interface
• 📦 Automatic memory management - Smart pointer design preventing memory leaks
• 🔧 Easy setup - No complex configuration, immediate use
• 🐍 Multi-language support - Same API for C++ and Python

🏃 Quick Start

1. Simple Pub/Sub Communication (Shared Memory)

#include "shm_pub_sub.hpp"
using namespace irlab::shm;
 
// Publisher
Publisher<int> pub("my_topic");
pub.publish(42);
 
// Subscriber
Subscriber<int> sub("my_topic");
bool state;
int data = sub.subscribe(&state);
if (state) {
    std::cout << "Received data: " << data << std::endl;
}

2. Simple Service Communication (Request-Response)

#include "shm_service.hpp"
using namespace irlab::shm;
 
// Server
ServiceServer<int, int> server("calc_service");
if (server.hasRequest()) {
    int request = server.getRequest();
    int response = request * 2;  // Return double
    server.sendResponse(response);
}
 
// Client
ServiceClient<int, int> client("calc_service");
client.sendRequest(21);
if (client.waitForResponse(1000000)) {  // Wait 1 second
    int result = client.getResponse();
    std::cout << "Calculation result: " << result << std::endl;  // 42
}

🎨 How to Choose Communication Methods

Use Case	Recommended Library	Features	Applications
Real-time data distribution	shm_pub_sub	⚡Maximum speed 📡Broadcast 🔄Continuous data	Sensor data distribution Image streaming Robot control signals
Reliable data exchange	shm_service	🤝Request-response guarantee ⏰Timeout support 🛡️Error handling	Database operations Configuration retrieval Calculation results
Long-running asynchronous processing	shm_action	⚡Asynchronous execution 📊Progress monitoring ❌Cancel functionality	File processing Machine learning training Large data conversion

📊 Performance Comparison

Metric	shm_pub_sub	shm_service	shm_action
Latency	~1μs	~2-5μs	~2-10μs
Throughput	Very High	High	Medium
CPU Usage	Minimal	Low	Medium
Memory Usage	Minimal	Low	Medium

📞 Support

• 🆎 Open Source: Contributions welcome
• 👥 Community Support: User mutual assistance
• 🐛 Bug Reports: Report via Issue tracker

📄 License

Apache License 2.0 🆎

Copyright 2024 Shared Memory Communication Contributors

This software is provided as open source under the Apache License 2.0. Commercial use, modification, and redistribution are permitted.

🛡️ License Features

• ✅ Commercial use allowed: Free use in commercial projects
• ✅ Modification allowed: Source code modification and extension possible
• ✅ Redistribution allowed: Redistribution possible with license notice
• ✅ Patent protection: Contributors' patent rights protected

Please see the LICENSE file for details.

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Next Step: Learn the basic concepts in 📖 Introduction!