The start of a new year is the perfect time to take a few moments and examine what worked and what did not work last year. I often find that development teams spend most of their time scrambling to meet deadlines and crank out product features. In general, I’ve found that across industries and dramatically … Continue reading 3 Engineering Resolutions to Kick-off 2021
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5 Skills Every Developer Needs in 2021
The end of the year is always a favorite time of mine. Yes, I enjoy the Christmas lights, egg nog and the general holiday cheer, but I also enjoy the opportunity to strategize about the upcoming year. The end of the year is a great time to look at what went right and wrong this … Continue reading 5 Skills Every Developer Needs in 2021
5 Best Practices for Over-the-Air (OTA) Updates
In my last post, I explored how OTA updates are typically performed using Amazon Web Services and FreeRTOS. OTA updates are critically important to developers with connected devices. In today’s post, we are going to explore several best practices developers should keep in mind with implementing their OTA solution. Most of these will be generic … Continue reading 5 Best Practices for Over-the-Air (OTA) Updates
CEC – Designing Embedded Systems using the ESP32
Microcontrollers and Wi-Fi radios dominate the IoT device landscape but are often designed separately into a product. An interesting solution for low-cost edge devices is to use the ESP32 Wi-Fi / MCU combo module. This course will explore how to design Wi-Fi based applications using the ESP32. Attendees will learn how to set up the … Continue reading CEC – Designing Embedded Systems using the ESP32
Over-the-Air (OTA) Updates with AWS and FreeRTOS
Updating firmware in the field has always been a critical component to nearly every embedded system since the dawn of embedded systems. Access to programming tools like a JTAG or SWD programmer and physical access to the programming port has often necessitated the need to update firmware using an alternative interface such as USB, CAN, … Continue reading Over-the-Air (OTA) Updates with AWS and FreeRTOS
How to Organize a Firmware Project
There are many benefits to having a software project that is organized. First, it makes it easy to find modules and files when you them rather than wasting time hunting around things. Second, an organized project can help with project scalability by not requiring constant adjustments to a project make file or project properties. Third, … Continue reading How to Organize a Firmware Project
3 Common Challenges Facing RTOS Application Developers
Real-time operating systems (RTOS) are now included in many embedded applications. They can dramatically simplify time and task management in a system and help improve scalability and maintainability (if the application is designed correctly). I’ve found though that there are several common challenges that face RTOS application developers. Let’s examine these challenges and discuss a … Continue reading 3 Common Challenges Facing RTOS Application Developers
3 Tips for Repurposing Development Boards for Testing
Unfortunately, my embedded software development co-pilot (An original Saleae Logic probe that I’ve had for a decade) bit the dust the other night. I was working late and accidentally connected one of the channels to a 12-volt signal when the analyzer was designed for 5V with 10V overvoltage protection. (Yes, that means another article on … Continue reading 3 Tips for Repurposing Development Boards for Testing
3 Tips for Validating Sensor and Communication Data in Embedded Systems
Software engineers have a bad habit of being very optimistic. This optimism often doesn’t just include their calculation on how long it will take for a specific task to be completed but also on potential failure modes for their system. If it works on the bench, the assumption is that it will also work in … Continue reading 3 Tips for Validating Sensor and Communication Data in Embedded Systems
5 Tips for Developing an RTOS Application Software Architecture
Real-time operating systems (RTOS) are finding their way into nearly every IoT device. An RTOSes ability to manage low-level resources and complex timing requirements make them well suited for these applications. It is not uncommon though to struggle with how to design a software architecture that includes an RTOS. In today’s post, we will examine … Continue reading 5 Tips for Developing an RTOS Application Software Architecture