Embedded Topics

December 1, 2009

Wright on target

We are given plenty of reasons why we ‘should’ all buy electric cars. They will safeguard the environment. They will enhance national security by reducing our dependence on foreign oil. They will create a Detroit 2.0 that can pay back the taxpayer. What we do not hear is a more free-market economic argument. “And the […]

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December 1, 2009

Rapid prototyping for MCUs

The increasing capability and performance of microcontrollers suggests that they can now reach markets for which they were never previously envisioned, particularly as 32-bit devices move into the mainstream. However, prototyping and even researching new application spaces is difficult with existing tools. These are highly optimized for existing uses, but as such very unwieldy when […]

September 1, 2009

Implementing a unified computing architecture

Netronome offers a range of programmable Network Flow Processors, which deliver high-performance packet processing and are aimed at designers of communications equipment whose requirements extend beyond simple forwarding. Many network processors and multicore CPUs lack L4-L7 programmability or cannot scale to 10Gbit/s and beyond. Netronome’s flow processors are powered by 40 programmable networking cores that […]

September 1, 2009

Engineering creativity

To the world at large, Junot Diaz is well on the way to becoming a literary superstar. His novel The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao has already earned critical superlatives and the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for Literature. And deservedly so. It is a fabulous, accessible book, expressed in language that—when you buy a copy […]

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September 1, 2009

Linux Nucleus… Or both

Until recently, operating system (OS) specification for embedded systems has been seen largely as an ‘either/or’ exercise. Similarly, OSs that have their foundations in the embedded market and those that have grown out of desktop computers have been seen as competing rather than complementary technologies. Cost and performance criteria within specifications will often lead to […]

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June 1, 2009

Embedded software virtualization comes of age

New separation kernels and embedded hypervisors can help ease the pain of migrating legacy systems to new hardware platforms, including multicore processing systems. Bringing multiple OSs and applications on to the same hardware also opens up new possibilities for combining systems that offer real-time performance within a familiar GUI environment. The LynxSecure separation kernel and […]

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May 11, 2009

Connecting to embedded design

Universal Serial Bus (USB) is a connectivity specification that provides ease-of-use, expandability and good performance for the end-user. It is one of the most successful interconnects in computer history. Originally released in 1995 for PCs, it now is expanding into use by embedded systems and is replacing older interfaces such as serial and parallel interfaces […]

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May 1, 2009

Find your low-power path

Semiconductor vendors face increasing demands to lower power consumption. This trend has intensified in the last couple of years with the rejuvenation of the ‘green’ movement. In response, the industry has been getting smarter about low-voltage design, current-saving techniques for both the circuit and process levels, and coordinated power management. Meanwhile, programmers are concentrating on […]

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March 1, 2009

Mainstream not niche

Green design will be one of the enduring themes of 2009, or so we are told. As hard-faced as it might sound, though, it is hard to see this theme getting the attention it needs right now. My problem with the whole concept is that it currently seems to attract a premium at just about […]

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March 1, 2009

A profitable discipline

The software food chain Software has become a ubiquitous part of many products and services, some of which are distributed and used on a massive scale. Think of cloud computing, online banking and the engines for today’s cellphones and cameras. Competition requires that such new products are developed more quickly than ever before and yet […]

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