Embedded System Design

UNIT-1
By
Dr. M. Parvathi

Introduction to Embedded
systems

Department of ECE

BVRIT HYDERABAD
College of Engineering for Women
Bachupally, Hyderabad – 500090
EMBEDDED SYSTEM : AN INTRODUCTION

UNIT-1

• Introduction to Embedded Systems

• Definition of Embedded System
• History of Embedded System
• Embedded System & General purpose computer
• Classification of Embedded System
• Application of Embedded System
• Purpose of Embedded System
• Characteristics of Embedded System
• Quality Attributes of Embedded System

1. INTRODUCTION

This chapter introduces the world of embedded systems.

Everything that we look around us today is electronic. The
days are gone where almost everything was manual. Now
even the food that we eat is cooked with the assistance of a
microchip (oven) and the ease at which we wash our
clothes is due to the washing machine. This world of elec-
tronic items is made up of embedded system. In this chap-
ter we will understand the basics of embedded system right
from its definition.

2 DEFINITION OF AN EMBEDDED SYSTEM

An embedded system is a combination of computer hard-
ware and software designed for a specific function or func-
tions within a larger system.

The systems can be programmable or with fixed function-

ality. Industrial machines, consumer electronics, agricul-
tural and process industry devices, automobiles, medical
equipment, cameras, household appliances, airplanes,
vending machines and toys, as well as mobile devices, are
possible locations for an embedded system.

An embedded system is a combination of 3 things:

Hardware
Software
Mechanical Components
And it is supposed to do one specific task only.

Example 1: Washing Machine

A washing machine from an embedded systems point of
view has:
Hardware: Buttons, Display & buzzer, electronic circuitry.
Software: It has a chip on the circuit that holds the
software which drives controls & monitors the vari-
ous operations possible.
 Mechanical Components: the internals of a washing
machine which actually wash the clothes control the
input and output of water, the chassis itself.
Example 2: Air Conditioner
An Air Conditioner from an embedded systems point of
view has:

Hardware: Remote, Display & buzzer, Infrared Sen-

sors, electronic circuitry.

Software: It has a chip on the circuit that holds the

software which drives controls & monitors the vari-
ous operations possible. The software monitors the
external temperature through the sensors and then
releases the coolant or suppresses it.

Mechanical Components: the internals of an air con-

ditioner the motor, the chassis, the outlet, etc

An embedded system is designed to do a specific job

only. Example: a washing machine can only wash
clothes, an air conditioner can control the temperature in
the room in which it is placed.

The hardware & mechanical components will consist all

the physically visible things that are used for input, out-
 put, etc.
An embedded system will always have a chip (either
microprocessor or microcontroller) that has the code
or software which drives the system.

3 HISTORY OF EMBEDDED SYSTEM

The first recognized embedded system is the Apollo
Guidance Computer( AGC) developed by MIT lab.
AGC was designed on 4K words of ROM & 256
words of RAM.
The clock frequency of first microchip used in AGC
was 1.024 MHz.
The computing unit of AGC consists of 11 instructions
and 16 bit word logic. It used 5000 ICs.
The UI of AGC is known DSKY (display/keyboard)
which resembles a calculator type keypad with array
of numerals.
The first mass-produced embedded system was guid-
ance computer for the Minuteman-I missile in 1961.
In the year 1971 Intel introduced the world's first mi-
croprocessor chip called the 4004, was designed for
use in business calculators. It was produced by the
Japanese company Busicom.

4 EMBEDDED SYSTEM & GENERAL PURPOSE

COMPUTER
The Embedded System and the General purpose com-
puter are at two extremes. The embedded system is de-
signed to perform a specific task whereas as per definition
the general purpose computer is meant for general use. It
can be used for playing games, watching movies, creating
software, work on documents or spreadsheets etc.

Following are certain specific points of difference between

embedded systems and general purpose computers:

5 CLASSIFICATION OF EMBEDDED SYSTEM

The classification of embedded system is based on follow-
ing criteria's:
On generation
On complexity & performance
On deterministic behavior
On triggering

On generation
First generation(1G):
Built around 8bit microprocessor & microcontroller.
Simple in hardware circuit & firmware developed.
Examples: Digital telephone keypads.

Second generation(2G):
Built around 16-bit µp & 8-bit µc.
They are more complex & powerful than 1G µp &
µc.
Examples: SCADA systems

Third generation(3G):
Built around 32-bit µp & 16-bit µc.
Concepts like Digital Signal Processors (DSPs), Ap-
plication Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs)
evolved.

Examples: Robotics, Media, etc.

Fourth generation:
Built around 64-bit µp & 32-bit µc.
The concept of System on Chips (SoC), Multicore
Processors evolved.
Highly complex & very powerful.
Examples: Smart Phones.

On complexity & performance

Small-scale:
Simple in application need
Performance not time-critical.
Built around low performance & low cost 8 or 16 bit
µp/µc.
Example: an electronic toy
Medium-scale:
Slightly complex in hardware & firmware require-
ment.
Built around medium performance & low cost 16 or
32 bit µp/µc.
Usually contain operating system.

Examples: Industrial machines.

Large-scale:
Highly complex hardware & firmware.
 Built around 32 or 64 bit RISC µp/µc or PLDs or
Multicore Processors.
Response is time-critical.
Examples: Mission critical applications.

On deterministic behavior
This classification is applicable for “Real Time”
systems.
The task execution behavior for an embedded sys-
tem may be deterministic or non-deterministic.
Based on execution behavior Real Time embedded
systems are divided into Hard and Soft.

On triggering
Embedded systems which are “Reactive” in nature
can be based on triggering.

Reactive systems can be:

Event triggered
Time triggered
6 APPLICATION OF EMBEDDED SYSTEM
The application areas and the products in the embedded
domain are countless.
Consumer Electronics: Camcorders, Cameras.
Household appliances: Washing machine, Refrigerator.
 Automotive industry: Anti-lock breaking system(ABS),
engine control.
Home automation & security systems: Air conditioners,
sprinklers, fire alarms.
Telecom: Cellular phones, telephone switches.
Computer peripherals: Printers, scanners.
Computer networking systems: Network routers and
switches.
Healthcare: EEG, ECG machines.
Banking & Retail: Automatic teller machines, point of
sales.
Card Readers: Barcode, smart card readers.

7 PURPOSE OF EMBEDDED SYSTEM

Data Collection/Storage/Representation
Embedded system designed for the purpose of data col-
lection performs acquisition of data from the external
world.
Data collection is usually done for storage,analysis, ma-
nipulation and transmission.
Data can be analog or digital.
Embedded systems with analog data capturing tech-
niques collect data directly in the form of analog signal
whereas embedded systems with digital data collection
mechanism converts the analog signal to the digital sig-
nal using analog to digital converters.
 If the data is digital it can be directly captured by digi-
tal embedded system.

A digital camera is a typical example of an embedded

System with data collection/storage/representation of
data.
Images are captured and the captured image may be
stored within the memory of the camera. The captured
image can also be presented to the user through a
graphic LCD unit.

Data communication
Embedded data communication systems are deployed in ap-
plications from complex satellite communication to simple
home networking systems.

The transmission of data is achieved either by a wire-line me-

dium or by a wire-less medium.

Data can either be transmitted by analog means or by digital

means.

Wireless modules-Bluetooth, Wi-Fi.

Wire-line modules-USB, TCP/IP.
Network hubs, routers, switches are examples of dedicated
data transmission embedded systems.
 Data signal processing
Embedded systems with signal processing functionalities are
employed in applications demanding signal processing like
speech coding, audio video codec, transmission applications
etc.

A digital hearing aid is a typical example of an embedded sys-

tem employing data processing.

Digital hearing aid improves the hearing capacity of hearing

impaired person

Monitoring
All embedded products coming under the medical domain are
with monitoring functions.

Electro cardiogram machine is intended to do the monitoring

of the heartbeat of a patient but it cannot impose control over
the heartbeat.

Other examples with monitoring function are digital CRO,

digital multi-meters, and logic analyzers.

Control
A system with control functionality contains both sensors and ac-
tuators.
Sensors are connected to the input port for capturing the
 changes in environmental variable and the actuators con-
nected to the output port are controlled according to the
changes in the input variable.

Air conditioner system used to control the room temperature

to a specified limit is a typical example for CONTROL pur-
pose.

Application specific user interface

Buttons, switches, keypad, lights, bells, display units etc are
application specific user interfaces.

Mobile phone is an example of application specific user in-

terface.

In mobile phone the user interface is provided through the

keypad, system speaker, vibration alert etc.

8.CHARACTERISTICS & QUALITY ATTRIBUTES OF

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

The characteristics of embedded system are different from

those of a general purpose computer and so are its Quality met-
rics. This chapter gives a brief introduction on the characteristics
of an embedded system and the attributes that are associated with
its quality.
Following are some of the characteristics of an embedded
system that make it different from a general purpose computer:
Application and Domain specific

An embedded system is designed for a specific purpose only.

It will not do any other task.
Ex. A washing machine can only wash, it cannot cook
Certain embedded systems are specific to a domain: ex. A
hearing aid is an application that belongs to the domain of
signal processing.

Reactive and Real time

Certain Embedded systems are designed to react to the

events that occur in the nearby environment. These events
also occur real-time.

Ex. An air conditioner adjusts its mechanical parts as soon as

it gets a signal from its sensors to increase or decrease the
temperature when the user operates it using a remote control.

An embedded system uses Sensors to take inputs and has ac-

tuators to bring out the required functionality.

Operation in harsh environment

Certain embedded systems are designed to operate in harsh

environments like very high temperature of the deserts or
very low temperature of the mountains or extreme rains.
 These embedded systems have to be capable of sustaining
the environmental conditions it is designed to operate in.

Distributed

Certain embedded systems are part of a larger system and

thus form components of a distributed system.

These components are independent of each other but have to

work together for the larger system to function properly.

Ex. A car has many embedded systems controlled to its dash

board. Each one is an independent embedded system yet the
entire car can be said to function properly only if all the sys-
tems work together.

Small size and weight

An embedded system that is compact in size and has light
weight will be desirable or more popular than one that is
bulky and heavy.

Ex. Currently available cell phones. The cell phones that

have the maximum features are popular but also their size
and weight is an important characteristic.

For convenience users prefer mobile phones than phablets.

(phone + tablet pc)
 Power concerns

It is desirable that the power utilization and heat dissipation

of any embedded system be low.
If more heat is dissipated then additional units like heat sinks
or cooling fans need to be added to the circuit.

If more power is required then a battery of higher power or

more batteries need to be accommodated in the embedded
system.

9. QUALITY ATTRIBUTES OF EMBEDDED SYSTEM

These are the attributes that together form the deciding fac-
tor about the quality of an embedded system. There are two types
of quality attributes are:-
Operational Quality Attributes.
These are attributes related to operation or functioning of an em-
bedded system. The way an embedded system operates affects its
overall quality.
Non-Operational Quality Attributes.
These are attributes not related to operation or functioning of an
embedded system. The way an embedded system operates affects
its overall quality. These are the attributes that are associated
with the embedded system before it can be put in operation.

Operational Attributes
Response
Response is a measure of quickness of the system.
 It gives you an idea about how fast your system is track-
ing the input variables.
Most of the embedded system demand fast response
which should be real-time.

Throughput
Throughput deals with the efficiency of system.
It can be defined as rate of production or process of a de-
fined process over a stated
period of time.
In case of card reader like the ones used in buses, through-
put means how much transaction the reader can perform
in a minute or hour or day.

Reliability
Reliability is a measure of how much percentage you rely
upon the proper functioning of the system .
Mean Time between failures and Mean Time To Repair are
terms used in defining system reliability.
Mean Time between failures can be defined as the average
time the system is functioning before a failure occurs.
Mean time to repair can be defined as the average time the
system has spent in repairs.

Maintainability
Maintainability deals with support and maintenance to the
end user or a client in case of technical issues and product
failures or on the basis of a routine system checkup
 It can be classified into two types :-

A. Scheduled or Periodic Maintenance

O This is the maintenance that is required regularly after a
periodic time interval.
Example :
Periodic Cleaning of Air Conditioners
Refilling of printer cartridges.

B. Maintenance to unexpected failure

This involves the maintenance due to a sudden

breakdown in the functioning of the system.
Example:
Air conditioner not powering on
Printer not taking paper in spite of a full pa-
per stack
Security
Confidentiality, Integrity and Availability are three corner
stones of information security.

Confidentiality deals with protection data from unauthorized

disclosure.
Integrity gives protection from unauthorized modification.
Availability gives protection from unauthorized user
Certain Embedded systems have to make sure they conform
 to the security measures.
Ex. An Electronic Safety Deposit Locker can be used only
with a pin number like a password.

Safety
Safety deals with the possible damage that can happen to the
operating person and environment due to the breakdown of
an embedded system or due to the emission of hazardous
materials from the embedded products.
A safety analysis is a must in product engineering to
evaluate the anticipated damage and determine the best
course of action to bring down the consequence of damages
to an acceptable level.

Non Operational Attributes

Testability and Debug-ability

It deals with how easily one can test his/her design, application
and by which mean he/she can test it.
In hardware testing the peripherals and total hardware function
in designed manner
Firmware testing is functioning in expected way
Debug-ability is means of debugging the product as such for
figuring out the probable sources that create unexpected behav-
ior in the total system

Evolvability
For embedded system, the qualitative attribute “Evolvability” re-
fer to ease with which the embedded product can be modified to
take advantage of new firmware or hardware technology.

Portability

Portability is measured of “system Independence”.

An embedded product can be called portable if it is capable of
performing its operation as it is intended to do in various
environments irrespective of different processor and or con-
troller and embedded operating systems.

Time to prototype and market

Time to Market is the time elapsed between the conceptuali-

zation of a product and time at which the product is ready
for selling or use. Product prototyping help in reducing
time to market.
Prototyping is an informal kind of rapid product develop-
ment in which important feature of the under consider are
develop. In order to shorten the time to prototype, make use
of all possible option like use of reuse, off the self compo-
nent etc.

Per unit and total cost

Cost is an important factor which needs to be carefully

monitored. Proper market study and cost benefit analysis
should be carried out before taking decision on the per unit
cost of the embedded product.
When the product is introduced in the market, for the initial
period the sales and revenue will be low
There won’t be much competition when the product sales
and revenue increase.
During the maturing phase, the growth will be steady and
revenue reaches highest point and at retirement time there
will be a drop in sales volume.
In order to shorten the time to prototype, make use of all
possible option like use of reuse, off the self component etc.

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END OF UNIT-I

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