Getting Started With Embedded Linux - From Nothing To A Login Prompt
One of the famous observations that have been made related to embedded systems is referred to as “Moore’s Law”, which states that the number of transistors in integrated circuits doubles every year. This observation has held mostly true for the past several decades, so powerful CPUs are no longer simply relegated to servers, desktops, and laptops. Instead, we see powerful CPUs with increased capabilities being introduced into embedded systems on devices that live at “the edge”....
Definite Article: Notes on Traceability
Electronic component distibutor Digi-Key recently announced part tracing for surface-mount components purchased in cut-tape form. This is a big deal, and it’s a feature that is a good example of traceability. Some thing or process that has traceability basically just means that it’s possible to determine an object’s history or provenance: where it came from and what has happened to it since its creation. There are a...
Patents and the little guy working at home
There are pluses and minuses to having patents. As it stands now the patent system is horribly broken and not doing what the founders intended when they set it up.I have some patents through work and it does look nice to see my name on the patent database. It's kinda like wetting yourself in a dark suit - it gives you a warm feeling but nobody notices.Don Lancaster makes a compelling argument that for the little guy it’s best to avoid the whole mess to the degree possible.
Android for Embedded Devices - 5 Reasons why Android is used in Embedded Devices
The embedded purists are going to hate me for this. How can you even think of using Android on an embedded system ? It’s after all a mobile phone operating system/software.
Sigh !! Yes I did not like Android to begin with, as well - for use on an Embedded System. But sometimes I think the market and needs decide what has to be used and what should not be. This is one such thing. Over the past few years, I have learned to love Android as an embedded operating system....
Favorite Tools: C++11 std::array
Many embedded software and firmware projects must be developed to high standards of reliability. To meet these reliability requirements, firmware project teams will consider many design tradeoffs. For example, an engineering team may avoid or outright ban the use of dynamic memory allocation, a feature typically accessed via the C library call "malloc" or the C++ allocator "new". When authoring software under such...
Unmanned Ground Vehicles - Design Considerations for Snow and Cold Environments
It's that time of year when the white stuff falls from the sky across the US, and with it comes lower temperatures. These conditions must be taken into consideration when designing a vehicle for outdoor use.
A few definitions from wikipedia:
Flurry: light, brief snowfall
Snow shower: intermittent snowfall
Light snow: over 1km visibility
Moderate snow: 0.5 to 1km visibility
Heavy snow: less than 0.5km visibility
Blizzard: lasts 3 hours or longer, sustained wind to 35mph, visibility...
Choosing a Microcontroller for Your Vehicle
There are many things to take into consideration when choosing a microcontroller or microprocessor for your autonomous vehicle.
Voltage
Some processors run on 5V and others use 3.3V. Be sure to check the documentation before you buy. Make sure your supply has a high enough amp rating that your microcontroller doesn't lose pwer.
Power
Can the system run using batteries? Large, automotive sized vehicles can be run from large batteries or inverters in the vehicle. Smaller...
Embedded Firmware Refactoring, Optimisation and Migration
Legacy products are often based on older hardware platforms which often become under-powered or run out of memory which constrains further product development. Customers are always looking for new features and improved performance but often either don’t want to invest in new hardware or need to retain the current field population of devices.
These are ongoing challenges for any product manufacturer, but are particularly highlighted in embedded systems where product...
Motion Sensor with Raspberry Pi and MPU6050 - Part 1
This blog will help you build your own, low cost 3-axis motion sensor using Raspberry Pi and Invensense MPU6050. For the benefit of the beginners, I will be beginning with the basics - setting up Raspberry Pi in part 1 of this blog series and then proceed to interfacing the MEMS based tri-axial motion sensing unit - MPU6050 to Raspberry Pi board in part 2. The final part no. 3 will be about acquiring data on the client computer. I have tried multiple...
The Dilemma of Unwritten Requirements
You will probably hear the word “requirements” at least 793 times in your engineering career, mostly in the context of how important it is, in any project, to agree upon clear requirements before committing to (and hastily proceeding towards) a deadline. Some of those times you may actually follow that advice. Other times it’s just talk, like how you should “wear sunscreen when spending time outdoors” and “eat a diet low in saturated fats and...
Complexity in Consumer Electronics Considered Harmful
I recently returned from a visit to my grandmother, who lives in an assisted living community, and got to observe both her and my frustration first-hand with a new TV. This was a Vizio flatscreen TV that was fairly easy to set up, and the picture quality was good. But here's what the remote control looks like:
You will note:
- the small lettering (the number buttons are just under 1/4 inch in diameter)
- a typeface chosen for marketing purposes (matching Vizio's "futuristic" corporate...
Getting Started With Embedded Linux - From Nothing To A Login Prompt
One of the famous observations that have been made related to embedded systems is referred to as “Moore’s Law”, which states that the number of transistors in integrated circuits doubles every year. This observation has held mostly true for the past several decades, so powerful CPUs are no longer simply relegated to servers, desktops, and laptops. Instead, we see powerful CPUs with increased capabilities being introduced into embedded systems on devices that live at “the edge”....
Favorite Tools: C++11 std::array
Many embedded software and firmware projects must be developed to high standards of reliability. To meet these reliability requirements, firmware project teams will consider many design tradeoffs. For example, an engineering team may avoid or outright ban the use of dynamic memory allocation, a feature typically accessed via the C library call "malloc" or the C++ allocator "new". When authoring software under such...
A Working Real Time Clock (RTC) Implementation
In one of my projects, data captured from various sensors had to be time stamped in the YearYear/DayDay/MonthMonth, HoursHours:MinutesMinutes:SecondsSeconds format. My initial thought was because there was already a GPRS modem in the system, I could simply configure it to use the network time delivered by the base station when it fired up. Once the GPRS module started up and retrieved the correct time, I could then invoke a simple AT command to read the time stamp into the microcontroller....
Choosing a Microcontroller for Your Vehicle
There are many things to take into consideration when choosing a microcontroller or microprocessor for your autonomous vehicle.
Voltage
Some processors run on 5V and others use 3.3V. Be sure to check the documentation before you buy. Make sure your supply has a high enough amp rating that your microcontroller doesn't lose pwer.
Power
Can the system run using batteries? Large, automotive sized vehicles can be run from large batteries or inverters in the vehicle. Smaller...
Android for Embedded Devices - 5 Reasons why Android is used in Embedded Devices
The embedded purists are going to hate me for this. How can you even think of using Android on an embedded system ? It’s after all a mobile phone operating system/software.
Sigh !! Yes I did not like Android to begin with, as well - for use on an Embedded System. But sometimes I think the market and needs decide what has to be used and what should not be. This is one such thing. Over the past few years, I have learned to love Android as an embedded operating system....
Embedded Firmware Refactoring, Optimisation and Migration
Legacy products are often based on older hardware platforms which often become under-powered or run out of memory which constrains further product development. Customers are always looking for new features and improved performance but often either don’t want to invest in new hardware or need to retain the current field population of devices.
These are ongoing challenges for any product manufacturer, but are particularly highlighted in embedded systems where product...
Definite Article: Notes on Traceability
Electronic component distibutor Digi-Key recently announced part tracing for surface-mount components purchased in cut-tape form. This is a big deal, and it’s a feature that is a good example of traceability. Some thing or process that has traceability basically just means that it’s possible to determine an object’s history or provenance: where it came from and what has happened to it since its creation. There are a...
Embedded Software Creation II - European Normative & Legislation
In this post I will explain the European Normative. I will answer the main questions and I will be open to answer all the doubts any of you could have. Please leave a comment and I will answer if i could.
Why I need to look and accomplish some standards?The main reason is if you want to comercialize the product in the European Union, if exists any European Directive that cover the product, the product must be marked with the CE mark. For USA it work in the same way by the...
Motion Sensor with Raspberry Pi and MPU6050 - Part 1
This blog will help you build your own, low cost 3-axis motion sensor using Raspberry Pi and Invensense MPU6050. For the benefit of the beginners, I will be beginning with the basics - setting up Raspberry Pi in part 1 of this blog series and then proceed to interfacing the MEMS based tri-axial motion sensing unit - MPU6050 to Raspberry Pi board in part 2. The final part no. 3 will be about acquiring data on the client computer. I have tried multiple...
Android for Embedded Devices - 5 Reasons why Android is used in Embedded Devices
The embedded purists are going to hate me for this. How can you even think of using Android on an embedded system ? It’s after all a mobile phone operating system/software.
Sigh !! Yes I did not like Android to begin with, as well - for use on an Embedded System. But sometimes I think the market and needs decide what has to be used and what should not be. This is one such thing. Over the past few years, I have learned to love Android as an embedded operating system....
Favorite Tools: C++11 std::array
Many embedded software and firmware projects must be developed to high standards of reliability. To meet these reliability requirements, firmware project teams will consider many design tradeoffs. For example, an engineering team may avoid or outright ban the use of dynamic memory allocation, a feature typically accessed via the C library call "malloc" or the C++ allocator "new". When authoring software under such...
Complexity in Consumer Electronics Considered Harmful
I recently returned from a visit to my grandmother, who lives in an assisted living community, and got to observe both her and my frustration first-hand with a new TV. This was a Vizio flatscreen TV that was fairly easy to set up, and the picture quality was good. But here's what the remote control looks like:
You will note:
- the small lettering (the number buttons are just under 1/4 inch in diameter)
- a typeface chosen for marketing purposes (matching Vizio's "futuristic" corporate...
Choosing a Microcontroller for Your Vehicle
There are many things to take into consideration when choosing a microcontroller or microprocessor for your autonomous vehicle.
Voltage
Some processors run on 5V and others use 3.3V. Be sure to check the documentation before you buy. Make sure your supply has a high enough amp rating that your microcontroller doesn't lose pwer.
Power
Can the system run using batteries? Large, automotive sized vehicles can be run from large batteries or inverters in the vehicle. Smaller...
The Dilemma of Unwritten Requirements
You will probably hear the word “requirements” at least 793 times in your engineering career, mostly in the context of how important it is, in any project, to agree upon clear requirements before committing to (and hastily proceeding towards) a deadline. Some of those times you may actually follow that advice. Other times it’s just talk, like how you should “wear sunscreen when spending time outdoors” and “eat a diet low in saturated fats and...
A Working Real Time Clock (RTC) Implementation
In one of my projects, data captured from various sensors had to be time stamped in the YearYear/DayDay/MonthMonth, HoursHours:MinutesMinutes:SecondsSeconds format. My initial thought was because there was already a GPRS modem in the system, I could simply configure it to use the network time delivered by the base station when it fired up. Once the GPRS module started up and retrieved the correct time, I could then invoke a simple AT command to read the time stamp into the microcontroller....
Embedded Firmware Refactoring, Optimisation and Migration
Legacy products are often based on older hardware platforms which often become under-powered or run out of memory which constrains further product development. Customers are always looking for new features and improved performance but often either don’t want to invest in new hardware or need to retain the current field population of devices.
These are ongoing challenges for any product manufacturer, but are particularly highlighted in embedded systems where product...
Getting Started With Embedded Linux - From Nothing To A Login Prompt
One of the famous observations that have been made related to embedded systems is referred to as “Moore’s Law”, which states that the number of transistors in integrated circuits doubles every year. This observation has held mostly true for the past several decades, so powerful CPUs are no longer simply relegated to servers, desktops, and laptops. Instead, we see powerful CPUs with increased capabilities being introduced into embedded systems on devices that live at “the edge”....
Motion Sensor with Raspberry Pi and MPU6050 - Part 1
This blog will help you build your own, low cost 3-axis motion sensor using Raspberry Pi and Invensense MPU6050. For the benefit of the beginners, I will be beginning with the basics - setting up Raspberry Pi in part 1 of this blog series and then proceed to interfacing the MEMS based tri-axial motion sensing unit - MPU6050 to Raspberry Pi board in part 2. The final part no. 3 will be about acquiring data on the client computer. I have tried multiple...
Definite Article: Notes on Traceability
Electronic component distibutor Digi-Key recently announced part tracing for surface-mount components purchased in cut-tape form. This is a big deal, and it’s a feature that is a good example of traceability. Some thing or process that has traceability basically just means that it’s possible to determine an object’s history or provenance: where it came from and what has happened to it since its creation. There are a...
