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Getting Started With Zephyr: Devicetree Overlays

Mohammed Billoo September 25, 2023

In this blog post, I show how the Devicetree overlay is a valuable construct in The Zephyr Project RTOS. Overlays allow embedded software engineers to override the default pin configuration specified in Zephyr for a particular board. In this blog post, I use I2C as an example. Specifically, I showed the default I2C pins used for the nRF52840 development kit in the nominal Zephyr Devicetree. Then, I demonstrated how an overlay can be used to override this pin configuration and the final result.


Embedded Developers, Ditch Your IDEs – Here’s Why!

Amar Mahmutbegovic September 25, 20231 comment

Ditching your Integrated Development Environment (IDE) temporarily can be a transformative learning experience in embedded development. This post invites you to explore the underpinnings of IDEs by delving into alternative tools and processes like Makefile, CMake, Vim, GDB, and OpenOCD. Understanding these tools can demystify the background operations of IDEs, revealing the intricacies of compiling, linking, and debugging. This journey into the “under the hood” aspects of development is not just about learning new tools, but also about gaining a deeper appreciation for the convenience and efficiency that IDEs provide. By stepping out of your comfort zone and experimenting with these alternatives, you can sharpen your skills, enhance your knowledge, and possibly discover a more tailored and streamlined development experience. Whether you're a novice or a seasoned developer, this exploration promises insights and revelations that can elevate your embedded development journey.


C to C++: Using Abstract Interfaces to Create Hardware Abstraction Layers (HAL)

Jacob Beningo September 21, 20235 comments

In C to C++, we've been exploring how to transition from a C developer to a C++ developer when working in embedded system. In this post, we will explore how to leverage classes to create hardware abstraction layers (HAL). You'll learn about the various inheritance mechanisms, what an virtual function is, and how to create an abstract class.


The Backstreet Consultant

Ido Gendel September 18, 2023

In the uncharted land between Arduino-wielding kids and qualified electronics engineers emerged an entirely new market for embedded work. In this article, based on my personal experience and observations, I will attempt to outline this young market, the forces operating within it, and the kinds of people involved.

A short history

Up until fifteen years ago, give or take, embedded design was done exclusively by trained professionals: not just because of the required technical know-how, but also...


Are We Shooting Ourselves in the Foot with Stack Overflow?

Miro Samek September 8, 20234 comments

Most traditional, beaten-path memory layouts allocate the stack space above the data sections in RAM, even though the stack grows “down” (towards the lower memory addresses) in most embedded processors. This arrangement puts your program data in the path of destruction of a stack overflow. In other words, you violate the first Gun Safety Rule (ALWAYS keep the gun pointed in a safe direction!) and you end up shooting yourself in the foot. This article shows how to locate the stack at the BEGINNING of RAM and thus point it in the "safe" direction.


nRF5 to nRF Connect SDK migration via DFU over BLE

Mike Voytovich September 7, 20234 comments

This writeup contains some notes on how I was able to migrate one of my clients projects based on the nRF5 SDK, to nRF Connect SDK (NCS) based firmware, via a DFU to devices in the field over BLE.


FPGA skills for the modern world

GLENN Kirilow September 4, 2023

With the ever increasing number of applications involving video processing, AI or edge computing the appetite for suitably skilled FPGA Engineers has never been higher from the market which is expected to grow to $15 billion USD by 2027!

In terms of industries opportunities can be typically found within:

  • Automotive
  • Aerospace
  • Defense
  • Data Processing

However this list is certainly not exhaustive as any application requiring algorithms which can leverage from highly parallel and...


Who needs source code?

Colin Walls August 31, 2023

Many developers feel that the supplying source code is essential for licensed software components. There are other perspectives, including the possibility of it being an actual disadvantage. Even the definition of source code has some vagueness.


New book on Elliptic Curve Cryptography

Mike August 30, 20235 comments

New book on Elliptic Curve Cryptography now online. Deep discount for early purchase. Will really appreciate comments on how to improve the book because physical printing won't happen for a few more months. Check it out here: http://mng.bz/D9NA


Supply Chain Games: What Have We Learned From the Great Semiconductor Shortage of 2021? (Part 5)

Jason Sachs August 28, 2023

In this article we’re going to take a look at cycle time, queues, and inventory. Cycle time is a manufacturing term — for anything, not just semiconductors — meaning how long it takes for an individual product to make its way through a manufacturing process, from start to finish. We’re going to try to understand how long it takes to manufacture semiconductors. In particular, we’re going to try to answer these questions:

  • How long does it take...

A New Related Site!

Stephane Boucher September 22, 20224 comments

We are delighted to announce the launch of the very first new Related site in 15 years!  The new site will be dedicated to the trendy and quickly growing field of Machine Learning and will be called - drum roll please - MLRelated.com.

We think MLRelated fits perfectly well within the “Related” family, with:

  • the fast growth of TinyML, which is a topic of great interest to the EmbeddedRelated community
  • the use of Machine/Deep Learning in Signal Processing applications, which is of...

Donald Knuth Is the Root of All Premature Optimization

Jason Sachs April 17, 20172 comments

This article is about something profound that a brilliant young professor at Stanford wrote nearly 45 years ago, and now we’re all stuck with it.

TL;DR

The idea, basically, is that even though optimization of computer software to execute faster is a noble goal, with tangible benefits, this costs time and effort up front, and therefore the decision to do so should not be made on whims and intuition, but instead should be made after some kind of analysis to show that it has net...


Using a RTLSDR dongle to validate NRF905 configuration

Fabien Le Mentec January 27, 20146 comments
I am currently working on a system to monitor the garage door status from my flat. Both places are 7 floors apart, and I need to send the data wirelessly. I chose to operate on the 433MHz carrier, and I ordered 2 PTR8000 modules: http://www.electrodragon.com/w/NRF905_Transceiver_433MHz-Wireless_ModuleThe PTR8000 is based on the dual band sub 1GHz NRF905 chipset from NORDICSEMI: http://www.nordicsemi.com/eng/Products/Sub-1-GHz-RF/nRF905I...

OOKLONE: a cheap RF 433.92MHz OOK frame cloner

Fabien Le Mentec August 12, 201417 comments
Introduction

A few weeks ago, I bought a set of cheap wireless outlets and reimplemented the protocol for further inclusion in a domotics platform. I wrote a post about it here:

//www.embeddedrelated.com/showarticle/620.php

Following that, I had access to another outlet from a different vendor:

http://www.castorama.fr/store/Prise-telecommandee-BLYSS---Interieur-prod4470027.html

The device documentation mentions that it operates on the same frequency as the previous...


Someday We’ll Find It, The Kelvin Connection

Jason Sachs July 28, 20142 comments

You’d think it wouldn’t be too hard to measure electrical resistance accurately. And it’s really not, at least according to wikiHow.com: you just follow these easy steps:

  • Choose the item whose resistance you wish to measure.
  • Plug the probes into the correct test sockets.
  • Turn on the multimeter.
  • Select the best testing range.
  • Touch the multimeter probes to the item you wish to measure.
  • Set the multimeter to a high voltage range after finishing the...

Coding - Step 0: Setting Up a Development Environment

Stephen Friederichs November 25, 20145 comments

Articles in this series:

You can easily find a million articles out there discussing compiler nuances, weighing the pros and cons of various data structures or discussing the  optimization of databases. Those sorts of articles are fascinating reads for advanced programmers but...


Bad Hash Functions and Other Stories: Trapped in a Cage of Irresponsibility and Garden Rakes

Jason Sachs January 28, 20141 comment

I was recently using the publish() function in MATLAB to develop some documentation, and I ran into a problem caused by a bad hash function.

In a resource-limited embedded system, you aren't likely to run into hash functions. They have three major applications: cryptography, data integrity, and data structures. In all these cases, hash functions are used to take some type of data, and deterministically boil it down to a fixed-size "fingerprint" or "hash" of the original data, such that...


Introduction to Microcontrollers - Adding Some Real-World Hardware

Mike Silva October 8, 20132 comments

When 2 LEDs Just Don't Cut It Anymore

So far, we've done everything in this series using two LEDs and one button.  I'm guessing that the thrill of blinking an LED has worn off by now, hard as that is to imagine.  What's more, we've just about reached the limits of what we can learn with such limited I/O.  We have come to the point where we need to add some hardware to our setup to continue with additional concepts and microcontroller...


StrangeCPU #2. Sliding Window Token Machines

Victor Yurkovsky March 5, 201313 comments
Summary:

An in-depth exploration of Sliding Window Token Machines; ARM notes.

Table of Contents:

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