Paper1

Ragini.Sunkara

Branch : EIE 3/4

E-Mail : rags_sunkara@yahoo.com

Ph No:9866289375

From : Bhoj Reddy Engineering college

J.Sravana

B ranch : EC E 3/4

E-Mail : sravana02 @yahoo.co.in

Ph No: 9391171864

From :Sri Indu Engg. C ollege

ABSTRACT

Approximately 3 billion embedded CPUs are sold each year, with smaller (4-, 8-, and
16-bit) CPUs dominating by quantity and aggregate dollar amount. It is expected that
in next 5 years, the market for embedded system products will reach over $300
billion each year. Most research and tool development seems to be focused on the
needs of high-end desktop and military/aerospace embedded computing.

This paper seeks to expand the area of discussion to a wide range of embedded systems in
various fields. The extreme diversity of embedded applications makes generalizations difficult.
Nonetheless, there is emerging interest in the entire range of embedded systems and its related
applications. This paper deals with:

• Design issues.

• Life cycle with emphasis on design challenges.

• Wide variety of applications.

We conclude by projecting on the future Embedded Systems in various fields and the
Job opportunities it offers.

CONTENTS

• Introduction

• Design Issues

• Size and Weight

• Safe and Reliable

• Cost Sensitivity

• Power Management

• Harsh Environment

• Life-Cycle with Design Challenges

• Component Acquisition

• System Certification

• Logistics and Repair

• Upgrades

• Long-Term Component Availability

• Applications

• Future Embedded System

• Conclusion

• References

Introduction

What is an Embedded System ?

Embedded Systems are specialized systems that are embedded in (a part of ) larger system,
device, or machine. For example, the computer that you are using to read this document has
embedded technology devices handling various sub-systems within it namely; keyboard/mouse
controller, C DROM drive, hard drive etc.

Embedded systems have received a major shot in the arm over the past two or three years due
to three factors. The first was the development of standard run-time platforms like Java, which
enabled their use in myriad ways that were unimaginable in the past. The second factor was the
emergence of several integrated software environments, which simplified the development of
these applications. The third factor was the coming together of embedded systems and the
Internet, which made possible the networking of several embedded systems to operate as part of
a large system across networks be it a LAN, WAN or the Internet. This convergence of embedded
systems with the Internet is going to transform the way we live.

Imagine a doctor is configuring a cardiac pacemaker inside his patient's chest while sitting 200
kilometers away. Another person is traveling in a driver-less car that takes him from Hyderabad
to New Delhi using its in-built navigation program. Sounds impossible? Not really. Advances in
technology have taken place at such speed that these fictitious scenarios are likely to be
translated into reality within the next couple of years. Embedded systems are among the several
technologies that play a major role in making these concepts possible.

Design Issues

Embedded systems typically have tight constraints on both functionality and implementation. In
particular, they must guarantee real time operation reactive to external

events conform to size and weight limits, budget power and cooling consumption, satisfy safety
and reliability requirements, and meet tight cost targets.

Size and Weight :

Many embedded systems are physically located within some larger artifact. Therefore, their form
factor may be dictated by aesthetics, form factors existing in pre-electronic versions, or having to
fit into interstices among mechanical components. In transportation and portable systems, weight
may be critical for fuel economy or human endurance.

Among the examples, the Mission C ritical system has much more stringent size and weight
requirements than the others because of its use in a flight vehicle, although all examples have
restrictions of this type.

Design challenges:

l Non-rectangular, non-planar geometries.

l Packaging and integration of digital, analog, and power

circuits to reduce size.

Safe and Reliable :

Some systems have obvious risks associated with failure. In mission-critical applications such as
aircraft flight control, severe personal injury or equipment damage could result from a failure of
the embedded system. Traditionally, such systems have employed multiply-redundant computers
or distributed consensus protocols in order to ensure continued operation after an equipment
failure, However, many embedded systems that could cause personal or property damage cannot
tolerate the added cost of redundancy in hardware or processing capacity needed for traditional
fault tolerance techniques.

Design challenge :

• Low-cost reliability with minimal redundan

Cost Sensitivity :

Even though embedded systems have stringent requirements, cost is always an issue. Although
designers of systems large and small may talk about the importance of cost with equal urgency,
their sensitivity to cost changes can vary dramatically. A reason for this may be that the effect of
computer costs on profitability is more a function of the proportion of cost changes compared to
the total system cost, rather than compared to the digital electronics cost alone. The chart shows
the dollar amount (billions) invested into embedded systems market since the years 1975 – 2000.

(Source: Electronic Business)

Design challenge:

l Variable “design margin” to permit tradeoff between product

robustness and aggressive cost optimization.

Power Management :

A less pervasive system-level issue, but one that is still common, is a need for power
management to either minimize heat production or conserve battery power. While the push to
laptop computing has produced “low-power” variants of popular C PUs, significantly lower power is
needed in order to run from inexpensive batteries for 30 days in some applications, and up to 5
years in others.

Design challenge :

l Ultra- low power design for long-term battery operation.

Harsh Environment :

Many embedded systems do not operate in a controlled environment. Excessive heat is often a
problem, especially in applications involving combustion ( e.g., many transportation applications).
Additional problems can be caused for embedded computing by a need for protection from
vibration, shock, lightning, power supply fluctuations, water, corrosion, fire, and general physical
abuse. For example, in the Mission C ritical example application the computer must function for a
guaranteed, but brief, period of time even under non-survivable fire conditions.

Design challenges:

l Accurate thermal modeling.

l De-rating components differently for each design, depending

on operating environment.

Life-Cycle with Design Challenges

The above figure shows the embedded product life cycles. First a need or opportunity to deploy
new technology is identified and subsequently a product concept is developed. This is followed by
concurrent product and manufacturing process design, production, and deployment. But in many
embedded systems, the designer must see past deployment and take into account support,
maintenance, upgrades, and system retirement issues in order to actually create a profitable
design. Some of the issues affecting this life-cycle profitability are discussed below.

Component Acquisition :

An embedded system may be more application driven than a typical technology-driven desktop
computer design, there may be more leeway in component selection. Thus, component acquisition
costs can be taken into account when optimizing system life-cycle cost. For example, the cost of a
component generally decreases with quantity, so design decisions for multiple designs should be
coordinated to share common components to the benefit of all.

Design challenge :

• Life cycle, cross-design component cost models and optimization rather than simple per-unit
cost.

System Certification :

Embedded system can affect the safety as well as the performance of the system. Therefore,
rigorous qualification procedures are necessary in some systems after any design change in order
to assess and reduce the risk of malfunction or unanticipated system failure. This additional cost
can negate any savings that might have otherwise been realized by a design improvement in the
embedded system. This point in particular hinders use of new technology by resynthesizing
hardware components the redesigned components cannot be used without incurring the cost of
system rectification. One strategy to minimize the cost of system desertification is to delay all
design changes until major system upgrades occur. As distributed embedded systems come into
more widespread use, another likely strategy is to partition the system in such a way as to
minimize the number of subsystems that need to be decertified when changes occur. This is a
partitioning problem affected by potential design changes, technology insertion strategies, and
regulatory requirements.

Design challenge :

• Partitioning/synthesis to minimize recertification costs.

Logistics and Repair :

Whenever an embedded system design is created or changed, it affects the downstream

maintenance of the product. A failure of the computer can cause the entire system to be unusable
until the computer is repaired. In many cases embedded systems must be repairable in a few
minutes to a few hours, which implies that spare components and maintenance personnel must be
located close to the system. A fast repair time may also imply that extensive diagnosis and data
collection capabilities must be built into the system, which may be at odds with keeping production
costs low. Because of the long system lifetimes of many embedded systems, proliferation of
design variations can cause significant logistics expenses. For example, if a component design is
changed it can force changes in spare component inventory, maintenance test equipment,
maintenance procedures, and maintenance training. Furthermore, each design change should be
tested for compatibility with various system configurations, and accommodated by the
configuration management database.

Design challenge
• Designs optimized to minimize spares inventory. High-coverage diagnosis and self-test at
system level and not only at digital component level.

Upgrades :

Because of the long life of many embedded systems, upgrades to electronic components and
software may be used to update functionality and extend the life of the embedded system with
respect to competing with replacement equipment. While it may often be the case that an
electronics upgrade involves completely replacing circuit boards, it is important to realize that the
rest of the system will remain unchanged. Therefore, any special behaviors, interfaces, and
undocumented features must be taken into account when performing the upgrade. Also, upgrades
may be subject to recertification requirements. Of special concern is software in an upgraded
system.Legacy software may not be executable on upgraded replacement hardware, and may not
be readily cross-compiled to the new target C PU. Even worse, timing behavior is likely to be
different on newer hardware, but may be both undocumented and critical to system operation.

Design challenge :
• Ensuring complete interface, timing, and functionality compatibility when upgrading designs.

Long-Term Component Availability :

When embedded systems are more than a few years old, some electronic components may no
longer be available for production of new equipment or replacements. This problem can be
especially troublesome with obsolete processors and small-sized dynamic memory chips. When a
product does reach a point at which spare components are no longer economically available, the
entire embedded computer must sometimes be redesigned or upgraded. This redesign might need
to take place even if the system is no longer in production, depending on the availability of a
replacement system. This problem is a significant concern on the Distributed example system.

Design challenge :
• C ost-effectively update old designs to incorporate new components.

Applications

Medical :

A time when body transplants like cardiac pacemakers will be able to monitor and manage
themselves remotely. Another point is of their stability, instantaneous response and efficiency.
Embedded system advances are pointing towards the use of pacemakers that can be transplanted
in or near the heart itself. This capability will enable the pacemaker to automatically vary its
operation to suit the changing body conditions. In case any abnormality is detected, the doctor will
be able to take remedial action even from a remote location.

Automobile :

C ommon application of embedded systems in the real world is in automobiles because these
systems are cheap, efficient and problem-free. Almost every car that rolls off the production line
these days makes use of embedded technology in one form or the other. Most of the embedded
systems in automobiles are rugged in nature, as these systems are made up of a single chip.
Their compact profiles enable them to fit easily under the cramped hood of a car.

Embedded systems can be used to implement features ranging from adjustment of the suspension
to suit road conditions and the octane content in the fuel to antilock braking systems (ABS) and
security systems. Speaking of things nearer home, the 'computer chip' that controls fuel injection
in a Hyundai Santro or the one that controls the activation of air bags in the recently launched Fiat
Palio is nothing but an embedded system. Right from brakes to automatic traction control to air
bags and fuel/air mixture controls, there may be up to 30-50 embedded systems within a present-
day car. And this is just the beginning.

Domestic :

Homes will employ embedded devices to become 'intelligent', wherein you have a network of
smart devices such as a fridge, TV, microwave oven, washing machine, etc. They can optimize
themselves or report maintenance problems to technicians using built-in management functions.
And they will also be connected to the Internet in most cases.

Future Embedded System

How would you like to live in a house that recognizes your

fingerprints and opens the front door automatically? A fridge that checks your food supplies and
places orders to replenish them; or intelligent lights and air conditioners that adjust their settings
automatically according to the light and heat available at various times of the day. What about a
microwave oven that can send a message to your PDA saying that the cake you kept to bake is
done? These are all possible in the near future. In fact, many of these devices have already made
their debut using embedded systems for controlling them and the Blue tooth technology for
communication. And they will also be connected to the Internet in most cases.

Think a mobile in the form of a ring or an earring? This can soon be a reality. IBM is already
working on the prototype of a mobile phone that can be worn as jewellery. The components of the
phone will be distributed among different pieces of jewellery like earring, necklace, ring and
bracelet.

In the medical field the pacemaker will be able to monitor parameters like blood pressure, blood
flow, pulse rate, temperature, etc, using micro sensors planted in various parts of the body. It will
also transmit data using wireless transmission, thus enabling a doctor to constantly monitor its
operation. In most cases, wireless transmission is likely to be done by a transmitter implanted
near the surface of the skin.

C onclusion

Many embedded systems have requirements that differ significantly both in details and in scope
from desktop computers. In particular, the demands of the specific application and the interface
with external equipment may dominate the system design. Also, long life-cycles and in some
cases extreme cost sensitivity require more attention to optimization based on these goals rather
than maximizing the computational throughput. However, to be successful future tools may well
need to increase scope even further to include life-cycle issues and business issues.

Job Opportunities :

T he segment within the embedded systems arena that is exhibiting promise is the embedded
software development tools segment, which logged in a turnover of US$ 310.8 million during 2001
and is expected to expand to US$ 531.8 million by 2006, according to Venture Development
C orporation ( VDC ). The key trends within this market segment are as follows:

l C onsumer electronics devices did well in 2001 and are expected to display even faster
growth owing to developments such as digital TV, digital music becoming mainstream.
l Embedded software development tools vendors catered predominantly to verticals such as
military/aerospace/avionics during 2001

Indian software companies are well positioned to participate in the embedded systems and
solutions market on account of their significant resource/skills base. Increasingly, OEMs in
industries such as automotives are looking for third party service providers to supplement their
software development skill sets. The Indian software industry can play a role here. The rising
component of software within embedded systems is also proving to be a key attraction.

References

• Daniel D. Gajski, Frank Vahid, Sanjiv Narayan & Jie Gong,

Specification and Design of Embedded System

• Philip Koopman, “Perils of the PC Cache”, Embedded Systems

Programming

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