Intellimetrix

04/25/2023

Today is National Penguin day. So let's give a shoutout to Tux.

04/25/2023

So, I've been working with the Raspberry Pi 3 B now for a couple of years mainly for my classes at UCSD. I finally decided to bite the bullet and dive into the device tree to see just how complex it is. Very!

I've published a very detailed paper on the R Pi device tree with the hope of giving other embedded engineers a leg up. It's available on my google drive here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Zw4a0leP1BO-A7qrgc9MiPOzzCEV1Puz/view?usp=share_link

01/22/2023

The Embedded Linux Learning Kit is once again available. I've been able to secure enough Raspberry Pi 3B boards to be able to offer the kit.

12/20/2021

From Jack Ganssle's Embedded Muse newsletter.
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"A school teacher was arrested at John F. Kennedy International Airport as he attempted to board a flight while in possession of a ruler, a protractor, a compass, an ancient wooden device called a 'slide-rule' as well as a device called an 'abacus' that he claimed was a calculator. At a morning press conference, the Attorney General said he believes the man is a member of the notorious Al-Gebra movement. He did not identify the man, who has been charged by the FBI with carrying weapons of maths instruction.

12/19/2021

The following is excerpted from an article in the Voler Systems newsletter. The chip shortage is affecting me in that I can’t get Raspberry Pi boards for the Embedded Linux Learning Kit
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Anyone in the tech industry knows that we're in a global supply crunch. It's an issue that continues to dominate news headlines. While many believe that the shortage is simply another byproduct of the worldwide pandemic, its impact has far-reaching effects that could shape the market moving forward.

The demand for IoT technology is at an all-time high, and the pandemic only accelerated the need for high-tech solutions in healthcare, manufacturing, logistics, and other crucial industries. Unfortunately, the shortages are putting a damper on progress, leaving many tech companies to reevaluate their plans and find alternative solutions to overcome these unique challenges.

Contrary to popular belief, the timeline of our current shortage doesn't fall in line with the COVID-19 pandemic. The public health crisis certainly exacerbated the challenges we face today, but many experts say that its problems with chip manufacturing started much earlier.

A dramatic increase in demand from the automotive industry is a significant contributing factor. Over the last decade, manufacturers have included more and more intelligent electronics systems into vehicles. Infotainment systems, navigation, steering support, rearview cameras, and other automotive components utilize high-tech chips. The production of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems, in particular, has seen a steady increase since 2014.

The fallout from the global chip shortage is massive. It doesn't just affect one industry or cog in the supply chain. The crisis impacts everything from the design process to consumer pricing.

Companies developing products are experiencing significant delays. Chip delivery times surpassed 20 weeks in 2021. Even Fortune Top 10 companies like Apple had to delay product launches because no semiconductors were available to meet the demand.

Despite the many steps manufacturers and governments are taking to curb the parts supply crisis, it's not a quick fix. We're starting to see improvements in many areas, but the ripple effect will continue to impact the tech industry over the next several years.

Analysts believe that the shortage will last until 2023. Some think that the disruption the crisis caused will take even longer to recover.

12/06/2021

Here's the second part of the 2-part history of the Intel 4004 microprocessor:
https://www.eejournal.com/article/say-happy-50th-birthday-to-the-microprocessor-part-2/

Part 1 of this article describes how Busicom chose Intel to develop and manufacture the world’s first commercial microprocessor. Part 2 describes how the Intel 4004 microprocessor was created and b…

12/06/2021

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the first commercial microprocessor, the Intel 4004. There's an interesting 2-part history on the 4004 by Steven Leibson in Electronic Engineering Journal.

Here's the first part. I'll post the second part in a separate post
https://www.eejournal.com/article/say-happy-50th-birthday-to-the-microprocessor-part-i/

The same year that I began my quest for a BSEE at Case Western Reserve University in 1971, someone posted a photocopy of a groundbreaking ad on the EE department’s bulletin board.

11/01/2021

11/01/2021

"One of the first things I had to internalize when transitioning to embedded design was that my software was invisible in the end system. The end user had no idea it was there—nor did they ever need to. I believe this an essential component of what makes something an embedded system. This had a significant impact on how I defined my worth and my ability to tell people what I did for a living. I laughingly adopted the philosophy of "You know you’re an embedded designer when you have to oversimplify your job description for ‘normal’ people". I found myself just telling people I worked on the Space Shuttle or aircraft because it was too frustrating to try to explain the invisible portion of the system that I actually worked on in those types of systems."

Robert Cravotta, Embedded Engineer

10/28/2021

"As car sales fell during the pandemic, automakers paused their orders just as electronics manufacturers began ramping up production, and snapping up the existing supply of chips, to meet the raised demand in laptops and gaming consoles. When consumers started buying vehicles again, automakers were met with a global semiconductor shortage that has led to most OEMs — apart from Tesla and Toyota — idling production lines that caused a dip in car sales. As most OEMs also came out with aggressive plans to go electric, the need for chips has never been stronger. Aside from Hyundai, Tesla and General Motors have announced plans to produce their own chips and cut out the middle man."
https://techcrunch.com/2021/10/13/hyundai-motor-plans-to-develop-its-own-chips/?utm_campaign=Newsletter%20&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=176173644&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_htV08Slt5ubUfah0-mSIsCCTur0PnKMlePzx1S-QihArfNezvRPCKfiA9PA_7vzHbXQeJYKrc8fBOZs9SU4vxIcn4Ag&utm_content=176173644&utm_source=hs_email

Hyundai Motor is the latest automaker to announce plans to develop its own semiconductor chips in order to reduce reliance on chipmakers, according to the company’s global chief operating officer, José Munoz. As car sales fell during the pandemic, automakers paused their orders just as electr…

05/19/2021

Here's an interesting piece from Blackberry.

"Despite the great strides we have made in robotics and autonomous systems in recent decades, we are as yet nowhere near building robots with the agency implied by Asimov’s Laws. Robots don’t have the capacity to make moral decisions. However, we who design and build robots do have this capacity, and thus we have the responsibility of ensuring that the robots we build don’t unwittingly become agents of injury or destruction."

https://devblog.blackberry.com/en/2021/05/will-our-robots-obey-asimovs-laws?utm_medium=Email&utm_source=Pardot&utm_campaign=QNX_Newsletter_May_2021

We’re still a very long way off from a world where robots have moral agency. But as we build more sophisticated systems, the complexities of our task to meet our moral responsibilities increases. Building on a trusted foundation doesn’t absolve us of responsibility, but it can lighten the practi...

04/25/2021

“Programming today is a race between software engineers striving to build bigger and better idiot-proof programs, and the universe trying to produce bigger and better idiots. So far, the universe is winning.”
--Anonymous

04/23/2021

From now until the end of May get 20% off the retail price of the Embedded Linux Learning Kit. Enter this code, 48FB753, on this page: http://intellimetrix.us/EmbeddedLinuxKit.html

02/26/2021

Our on-demand, online, Introduction to Embedded Linux class at gogotraining.com has been majorly overhauled and updated. Check out the new version here:
https://youtu.be/P0ebTmB53aQ

http://gogotraining.com, 877-546-4446, sign up for a free account and watch all the preview videos for free!Linux is the Leading Platform for Embedded Device...

02/26/2021

Our on-demand, online, Linux device driver class at gogotraining.com has been majorly overhauled and updated. Check out the new version here:
https://youtu.be/RojukD-t4zU
Get 15% off the retail price by entering this coupon code at checkout: Linuxwiz15%

http://gogotraining.com, 877-546-4446, sign up for a free account and watch all the preview videos for free!Welcome to Linux Device Drivers: Programming at t...

02/20/2021

Well, this is a hoot. The helicopter drone that's part of the Perseverance Mars rover runs Linux.

https://www.theverge.com/2021/2/19/22291324/linux-perseverance-mars-curiosity-ingenuity

A rover and a helicopter running Linux land on the Red Planet.

02/05/2021

Linux trainer and author Jason Cannon has written an excellent piece clearly explaining the changes Red Hat is making to CentOS that I reported about back in December. It's probably not as scary as we first thought.

https://www.linuxtrainingacademy.com/centos-linux-vs-centos-stream/

In this article, you’re going to learn about the change in focus of the CentOS project from CentOS Linux to CentOS Stream. More importantly, you’re going to learn what that means for you and any actions you might want to take as a result of this change. So, if you use CentOS in any capacity, [.....

01/11/2021

So, perhaps not surprisingly, this year's Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is being held virtually starting today. No need to spend money on travel, hotels, or outrageously expensive restaurants. Or even registration for that matter. But then again, you don't get to play with all the neat new gadgets. Here's the website:

https://ces.tech/

For more than 50 years, CES® has been the global stage for innovation. And the all-digital CES 2021 will continue to be a platform to launch products, engage with global brands and define the future of the tech industry. You’ll be able to participate in all the awe-inspiring moments of CES wherev...