Embedded Computing Design

No two embedded applications are the same. Hence, no two solutions should be the same.

In some cases, computations occur at the Edge, a decision is made, and an action is carried out. In other configurations, the data is sent back to the Cloud to perform the calculations.

The situation at WINSYSTEMS is nearly business as usual. The key difference is that we are strictly adhering to all the recommended health precautions, which are implemented throughout the building.

The Yocto Project, a collaboration under the auspicies of the Linux Foundation, is an open-source distribution that gives developers the ability to collaborate on projects involving embedded devices.

PC104 has been around for over 30 years. That?s a long time, even for embedded systems. Despite that age, it remains a viable and important architecture for embedded systems.

We are now living in the craziest of times, certainly the craziest of my lifetime, and likely yours. Obviously, I?m referring to the COVID-19 pandemic, and all the issues that?s it brings with it.

Inference engines such as Intel's Movidius and Google's TPU are being paired with vision systems and embedded computers to monitor for social distancing and surveillance of businesses.

WINSYSTEMS embedded computers are used in numerous applications around the world to support emergency recovery.

When it comes to IIoT and embedded systems, rapid software development is crucial, for a variety of reasons. The most obvious is that design windows are fixed.

Inexperienced engineers may view a form, fit, and functional replacement simply as hardware with the same mechanical measurements, connector pin-out, and equal or better performance.

Many embedded applications can be expanded using Power-over-Ethernet PoE, a simple, logical solution for networked devices.

The demand from customers for long-term availability remains unchanged. This is especially problematic for the military, medical and industrial sectors.

Fans are often installed to remove the heat from the board. A case fan can draw cooler air in from the outside or expel warm air out of the computer.

Rugged computers can be found in harsh manufacturing environments, automotive or other mobile/transportation applications, including aviation and rail.

If we have an alternative that?s faster and ubiquitous in the industry, why are we still including it on our boards?

There are methods to determine how much of an issue heat is in your system, and some of them are quite complex.

Where consolidation becomes a challenge is when you want to retrofit into existing equipment. Swapping in new boards or servers isn?t as simple as it sounds, particularly from a software perspective.

Ethernet Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) has emerged as a solution for bridging enterprise and operational networks, from the data center to the control layer.

Industrial engineers may want more or different connectivity supported natively on their processor to reduce bill-of-materials (BOM) costs and integration work.