InstrFetchProhibited Error using DFRobot_DF2301Q library

[iKK001]

I am new to the DFRobot SEN0539 module and I am driving it by an ESP32S3-WROOM-1U-8N8R.

Therefore I have 8MB of RAM and 8MB of Flash available.

Everything works as expected - until the moment where I include another library into my code and try to execute its e-ink-display driver code with it.

See minimum code-example at the very bottom of this entry...

#include <GxEPD2_BW.h>   // https://github.com/ZinggJM/GxEPD2/tree/master

As soon as I add the above include-statement, together with the most simple e-ink-driving code, then I get a memory crash errror InstrFetchProhibited.

Important: As I said, the DFRobot code alone works. And also, the GxEPD2 example as a standalone-code works fine. ONLY in combination, these two libraries do crash.

Here the error message (i.e. the processor keeps crashing again and again no longer being capable of booting the code properly).

The error log sais:

ELF file SHA256: ed7694204b47b38f

Rebooting...
ESP-ROM:esp32s3-20210327
Build:Mar 27 2021
rst:0xc (RTC_SW_CPU_RST),boot:0x9 (SPI_FAST_FLASH_BOOT)
Saved PC:0x42051082
SPIWP:0xee
mode:DIO, clock div:1
load:0x3fce3808,len:0x44c
load:0x403c9700,len:0xbe4
load:0x403cc700,len:0x2a68
entry 0x403c98d4

Guru Meditation Error: Core  1 panic'ed (InstrFetchProhibited). Exception was unhandled.

Core  1 register dump:
PC      : 0xffffff00  PS      : 0x00060230  A0      : 0x82005792  A1      : 0x3fcebb10  
A2      : 0x3fc96dd2  A3      : 0x3c0603fc  A4      : 0x00233bc6  A5      : 0x00000001  
A6      : 0x0000012c  A7      : 0x00000000  A8      : 0x82005502  A9      : 0x3fcebaf0  
A10     : 0xffffffff  A11     : 0x00000001  A12     : 0xffffffff  A13     : 0x3fcf5520  
A14     : 0x00000001  A15     : 0x3fce9dc0  SAR     : 0x00000006  EXCCAUSE: 0x00000014  
EXCVADDR: 0xffffff00  LBEG    : 0x42007a70  LEND    : 0x42007ad3  LCOUNT  : 0x00000002  

Backtrace: 0x7ffffefd:0x3fcebb10 0x4200578f:0x3fcebb30 0x4200588c:0x3fcebb50 0x420059c5:0x3fcebb70 0x42005aea:0x3fcebbc0 0x42002f61:0x3fcebc00 0x4200360d:0x3fcebc30 0x4200877a:0x3fcebc50

Now it is pretty clear that the two libraries (i.e. DFRobot_DF2301Q and GxEPD2) are spilling memory of the ESP32S3 type at choice.

When I investigate more closely, I get the above crash inside the while loop of my GxEPD2 code:

    display.setRotation(0);
    display.setFullWindow();
    display.firstPage();
    do {
        display.fillScreen(GxEPD_WHITE);
    } while (display.nextPage());

Now my questions:

1. Is this a RAM or FLASH issue ?
2. could I prevent the error when using the ESP32S3-WROOM-1U N16R8 that has 16MB of Flash and 8MB of PSRAM ? Unfortunately, there are no models having more RAM. Could the double Flash work ?
3. What else could I do to prevent the InstrFetchProhibited error from happening ?

Thank you for any support on this. I am aware that I could ask this same question also in the GxEPD2 forum - since it is unclear where the error really originates... So I did : https://forum.arduino.cc/t/instrfetchprohibited-error-using-gxepd2-in-combination-with-another-library/1279812

Here the minimum code-example that reproduces the memory issue nicely:

Pleae note: As soon as I uncomment the do-while loop, then I get the error! The question is WHY ?

#include "DFRobot_DF2301Q.h"
#include <GxEPD2_BW.h>

#define EPD_WIDTH     400
#define EPD_HEIGHT    300
#define EPD_ARRAY     EPD_WIDTH*EPD_HEIGHT/8

#define CS_SS_PIN     SS    // 10 (CS SS)
#define HSPI_COPI     MOSI  // 11 (MOSI)
#define HSPI_SCLK     SCK   // 12 (SCK)

#define BUSY_PIN      A5       // 6   (BUSY)
#define RST_PIN       A6       // 7   (RST RES)
#define DC_PIN        A14      // 15  (DC)

#define SDA_PIN       GPIO_NUM_14
#define SCL_PIN       GPIO_NUM_21

GxEPD2_BW<GxEPD2_420_GDEY042T81, GxEPD2_420_GDEY042T81::HEIGHT> display(GxEPD2_420_GDEY042T81(CS_SS_PIN, DC_PIN, RST_PIN, BUSY_PIN)); // GDEY042T81, 400x300, SSD1683 (no inking)

DFRobot_DF2301Q_I2C asr;

void setup() {
    
  Serial.begin(115200);
  delay(2000);

  Wire.begin(SDA_PIN, SCL_PIN);

  // Init the sensor
  while (!(asr.begin())) {
    Serial.println("Communication with device failed, please check connection");
    delay(3000);
  }
  asr.setMuteMode(0);
  asr.setWakeTime(20);

  display.init(115200, false, 10, false);
  display.setTextColor(GxEPD_BLACK);
  display.setRotation(0);
  display.setFullWindow();
  display.firstPage();

  // ***********************************************************
  // UNCOMMENTING THIS DO-WHILE LOOP MAKES THE MEMORY-CRASH !
  // 
  //  do {
  //    display.fillScreen(GxEPD_WHITE);
  //  } while (display.nextPage());
  // 
  // ***********************************************************
  
}

void loop() {
  uint8_t CMDID = asr.getCMDID();
  switch (CMDID) {
    default:
      if (CMDID != 0) {
        Serial.print("CMDID = ");  //Printing command ID
        Serial.println(CMDID);
      }
  }
  delay(300);
}

[iKK001]

I finally found a "solution" (...well not yet quite sure what I've found).

It turns out that the DFRobot's DFRobot_DF2301Q-library contains a line of code that was the root-cause of my code-crash:

Inside the file DFRobot_DF2301Q.h, on line 217, there is the faulty instruction:

#pragma pack(1)

If I put a comment on this line, then my code compiles without crash !

(I am using the I2C example right now - and I guess therefore none of the UART-code is used and most likely the comment-out of this #pragma pack(1) has no effect (other than making my code run super smooth :) )

Can somebody please explain why this #pragma pack(1) line of code is there ? And what does it exactly do ?

And why did it cause a crash on the ESP32 S3 board ?

[YeezB]

Hello,
#progma pack() is a function for structure alignment, because the alignment of structures may be different in different compilers, and space may be wasted if alignment rules are not specified.
For example, in this sUartMst_t structure under the #progma pack(1) , if you don't do structure alignment, all the variables in the structure will occupy the variable with the largest number of bytes in the structure.

That is, if you remove #pragma pack(1), the structure will occupy 16 * 6=96 bytes.
If #pragma pack(1) is used, the current compiler will force the structure to be aligned to 1 byte. That means sUartMst_t will occupy 16 * 2+8 * 4=64 bytes.

But the problem with the current version of the code is that it doesn't end the byte alignment process. #progma pack() should be used in pairs. One #pragma pack() must be added at the end of the structure for the command to cancel the custom structure alignment, if not, it may lead to problems in the whole program, because it will affect the way other structures are aligned.

It should be used like this:

#pragma pack(1)
struct example
    {
        char a;
        double b;
    };
#pragma pack()

I fixed this bug in my branch, but unfortunately I don't have your e-ink-display to test it with.
You can use my branch to test it and I will raise a PR if the problem is fixed.

https://github.com/YeezB/DFRobot_DF2301Q

[iKK001]

@YeezB, thank you very much for the detailed explanation. I only have time to test your branch by the end of the upcoming week. I'll let you know....
Many thanks, so far for your support.

[Octopaws]

Did it work, i have same issues, literarily at the bearest minimum

[YeezB]

Hello,
can I ask if my code work?

[Octopaws]

It did for me. thanks man