Although the resulting product was decried by many converts to the open source movement, the developers successfully asserted their right under the GPL to keep portions of the code proprietary. But it also prompted multiple authors to fork new code bases aimed at satisfying a wide range of requirements. Most retail wireless routers are based on Systems-on-Chip (SoC) that incorporate a processor, memory, and specialized peripherals. Such systems restrict the number of hardwired LAN connections, ...Read More

Software and hardware have a “chicken and egg” relationship – one really can’t work without the other. In Steve Leibsen’s blog, he talks about getting more capacity through multi-core based systems. That’s the hardware side of the equation, now let’s look at software to make realtime industrial control function. Ethernet was born of a PhD Dissertation by Robert Metcalf in the early 1970s. Xerox PARC, center of many new computing technologies, develope...Read More

Industrial and military robots come in all shapes and sizes, tethered and untethered, autonomous or human operated, and designed for many different environments. But no matter how advanced robots are today, we’re still a long way from having a humanoid robot from science fiction.      Where do you start in assembling a practical military (or industrial) robot? As with any engineering task, we need a set of objectives and a mission, which in turn defines the capabilitie...Read More

The complete Digital Surveillance System relies on several key technologies:   Image capture using IP-enabled video cameras Image encode, often provided by newer generations of IP enabled cameras to minimize bandwidth requirements Image decode for playback Data storage and database analysis Image and scene analysis Threat/anomaly reporting   The first four requirements provide an updated technical equivalent of an analog Video Cassette Recorder. Technological advances provide smaller,...Read More

During the course of this series, we’ll make full use of the Intel Embedded Alliance Program and other IA resources. In this installment, we’ll use Intel design decision tools that aid in choosing candidate embedded processors from among Intel Architectures. The second installment will explore Compiler Alternatives and the unique VirtuaLab access to real world development hardware. Intel, Green Hills Software, and Wind River provide mainstream development tools considered.  
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