Embedded Software Blog

We just wrapped up our google hangout with Alison Chaiken and Ravi Puvalla discussing the use of Linux in automotive systems. It was a pretty interactive discussion and questions covered quite a wide range of topics including AUTOSAR, V2V communication, automotive networks and buses, as well as some opinions from attendees on security and liability. You can view the archive on the event page and post … Read More

vehicle to vehicle communication, AUTOSAR, google hangout, Automotive, v2v communication, v2x comunication, Infotainment, Linux

Some time ago, I recorded the content for a Web seminar about power management in embedded software. Although I am talking about the subject generally, I am, of course, strongly alluding to the capabilities incorporated into Nucleus RTOS. The session was “broadcast” last week, but, if you would like to experience a rare example of me being caught on video, you can watch the recorded version. … Read More

Low Power, Nucleus, Power Management

In a previous blog, I shared news of work that we at Mentor Embedded had done with NVIDIA to help enable development of Android applications for NVIDIA Tegra devices, within the Microsoft Visual Studio environment. This technology is a key part of the NVIDIA NSight Tegra (https://developer.nvidia.com/nvidia-nsight-tegra) product. Earlier in the month, we hosted a joint webinar with NVIDIA to talk … Read More

tegra, visual studio, android development, Android, OSS, Nsight, Nvidia

Allison Chaiken recently presented this information at the Embedded Linux conference in San Francisco. Alison and Ravi Puvvala will host a Google Hangout to discuss this topic further, with some question and answer opportunity. We hope you’ll be able to join us. Her abstract for the sessions follows: From the embedded point of view, a car is a LAN with a large number of CPUs ranging from internally … Read More

automotive network, GENIVI, Automotive, Infotainment, Linux

I remember reading a book about nuclear power, which had been written in the 1950s. It confidently foretold that an era of cheap energy was about to commence – so cheap that electricity would not need to be metered. I, for one, am still awaiting this golden age. Of course, things did not work out like that and meters for gas and electricity are still with us. The technology of those meters is … Read More

Nucleus, smart meter, SEP, smart energy

Last week in my blog, I shared some views (courtesy Rich Rejmaniak) on the emerging trend of the role of RTOS in the embedded design space, specifically targeted at the current generation 32-bit microcontrollers. Further to that post, I am excited to share the launch of a new product, Nucleus SmartFit, targeted at embedded developers primarily involved with designing for 32-bit MCUs. Nucleus SmartFit … Read More

rtos nucleus mcu microcontroller rtos nucleus arm cortex-m4 stellaris kinetis

In almost all modern embedded systems, memory is organized into bytes. CPUs, however, process data as 8-, 16- or 32-bit words. As soon as this word size is larger than a byte, a decision needs to be made with regard to how the bytes in a word are stored in memory. There are two obvious options and a number of other variations. The property that describes this byte ordering is called “endianness” … Read More

endianity, endianness

Every once in a while, I get the opportunity to introduce my colleagues to the world of blogging. This time, it is the turn of Rich Rejmaniak, Technical Marketing Engineer in the Mentor Embedded division. Rich has extensive experience and insight into the rapidly evolving embedded system space. Here is his take on the emerging role of RTOS in the rapidly evolving embedded space. When computers … Read More

rtos nucleus mcu microcontroller

The role of Android as an alternative to embedded Linux has been a subject of quite a bit of discussion recently. As the use of open source software in automotive gains momentum there are differing opinions on the subject of using Android, Linux or both. The Linux Foundation recently wrote a post summarizing a discussion during a panel at the Android Builders Summit as well as some interviews from … Read More

Infotainment, IVI, Automotive, MontaVista, Virtualization, Linux, linux container

I am always pleased when one of my colleagues volunteers to make a guest posting. Apart from the obvious benefit that I have less work to do, it does broaden the range of topics covered. A frequent guest blogger is Brooks Moses who always has something interesting to say. Today he is musing on sorting algorithms … In my last guest post, I alluded to an interesting story about the sort routine … Read More

LAPACK, Mentor Embedded Performance Library, Quicksort, sorting, MEPL, qsort

Two weeks ago we announced the acquisition of the MontaVista Automotive Business Unit, including the Linux IVI (infotainment) platform called the MontaVista Automotive Technology Platform. When Mark Mitchell, GM of Open Source Embedded Solutions, was interviewed by EE Times he mentioned he expected to be have a combined release of the MontaVista Linux solution for IVI and the Mentor Embedded Infotainment … Read More

Infotainment, IVI, Automotive, yocto project, MontaVista Automotive Technology Platform, openembedded

Sometimes I think that I fully understand something, but then I have doubts. I have been reflecting on something very everyday and simple: how we judge distance. We all know how to assess a distance. You just need to look and you intuitively have an idea how far away something is. The question is: how do your brain/eyes arrive at this information … Most animals have two eyes. They may be set … Read More

Off-Topic

The month of February has been a hectic one in terms of embedded activities in the industry, especially with two major conferences – the Embedded Linux Conference (ELC) in San Francisco and Embedded World in Nuremberg, happening within days of each other. The Mentor Embedded marketing team has been on its toes supporting these. Now that the conferences are behind us, reflecting upon them, I am sure … Read More

busybox, Mentor Embedded, bbappends, recipes, Yocto embedded Linux ELC OpenEmbedded

Voice activated features such as placing calls have been available in automobiles for many years. Today the most advanced systems under development and research are in the areas of autonomous vehicles. At the Embedded World Conference 2013 I was reminded about a car from the 1980’s that already had all these capabilities built in. Yes it was KITT (the Knight Industries Two Thousand)! The car was right … Read More

Linux, Infotainment, Automotive, Automotive IVI, Android, Embedded World, Autonomous Vehicle, AUTOSAR

I recall a few years ago, I was at the Embedded Systems Conference in San Jose, CA. We had a presentation theater on the booth and my job was to manage it. That meant that I got to do some of the presentations and persuaded colleagues to do others. One session, that was not mine, was particularly successful. I am not sure whether this was because of the unique style of the presenter or the words she … Read More

Nucleus, start-up, Nucleus RTOS