INTRODUCTION

Computers have evolved from few, huge mainframes shared by many people, and mini computers that were smaller but still shared to todays PCsmillions in number, miniscule in size compared to the mainframes, and used by only one person at a time. The next generation could be invisible, with billions being around and each of us using more than one at a time. elcome to the world of embedded systems, of computers that will not loo! li!e computers and wont function li!e anything were familiar with

WHAT IS AN EMBEDDED SYSTEM?

"s the name signifies, an embedded system is #embedded or built into something else, which is a non$computing device, say a car, T%, or toy. &nli!e a PC, an embedded computer in a non$computing device will have a very specific function, say control a car, or display eb pages on a T% screen. 'o, it need not have all the functionality and hence all the components that a PC has. 'imilarly, the operating system and applications need not perform all the tas!s that their counterparts from the PC sphere are expected to. (n short, we can define an embedded system as a computing device, built into a device that is not a computer, and meant for doing specific computing tas!s. These computing tas!s could range from ac)uiring or transferring data about the wor! done by the mother device to displaying information or controlling the mother device. *mbedded systems could thus enable us to build intelligent machines. *mbedded systems is not a new and exotic topic that is still confined to research theses. There are many live examples of embedded systems around us. +P, players -computing capability built into a music system., P/"s -computing in what essentially is an organizer., car$control systems, and intelligent toys are but a few examples of such systems already in place. " typical embedded system consists of hardware -typically %0'( or very large$ scale integrated circuits. specifically built for the purpose, an embedded operating system, and the specific application or applicatiospecification is considered to be an extension of the ('" bus specification. The PC 1234 standard has since been extended to PC1234$plus to include the PC( bus. 'o, today you have PC$based embedded systems that have the ('" bus, the PC( bus, or both. &nli!e with regular PCs, in the world of the embedded PC, ,56s, 456s and Pentiums are still good enough. 7esides these, there are a number of CP&s meant specifically for embedded applications, li!e the 'trong"rm and the +(P'. ith embedded PCs you can even go beyond the single$function definition of an embedded system, and could build an entire PC into another machine8 a PC inside a refrigerator, or a PC inside a car, for instance.

HARDWARE FOR EMBEDDED DEVICES

Universal Micro sys e! is a "eneral#$%r$ose &ar'(are &a can )e $ro"ra!!e' an' %se' o 'evelo$ a$$lica ions *or 'i**eren e!)e''e' 'evices +any modern appliances li!e +P, players, #intelligent refrigerators, and watches use embedded systems. 9owever, a common obstacle for developers has been the need to develop different sets of hardware and software, for different devices. "n #intelligent washing machine uses a hardware chip different from that used by an #intelligent wristwatch. (n addition, the software running on the hardware chip is different. This often results in increased costs and time ta!en for development. -:or more on embedded systems see PC;uest +ay<332,page,5.. The &niversal +icro 'ystem -&+'. from Cradle Technologies is a solution for this problem. &+' is a general$purpose chip built around a simple instruction set. (t can be used to develop applications for embedded devices because all the functionality re)uired for a specific device can be modeled in the software.

UMS HARDWARE
"ny software application expects four basic re)uirements from the underlying hardware= input unit, processing unit, memory unit, and output unit. 'ince the ma>or functionality provided in &+' is through software, the processor and memory units must be very fast and the input$output units must be programmable and versatile.

&+' uses a large number of high speed, low power and small ?('C$based processors -about @A. on a single chip. *ach processor also called a P* -processing *lement. coupled with two /igital 'ignal Processors called /'* -/igital 'ignal *ngines. form an +'P -+ulti 'tream Processor., which processes voluminous chun!s -stream. of data.

The &+' is structured into a number of ;uads. " ;uad, as shown in the diagram to the left, consists of four +'Ps, program or instruction cache, data cache and a programmable /+" -/irect +emory "ccess. unit. There is also a high throughput -about 4 B71sec. global bus interface, which interconnects all of them in a ;uad. The use of /'*s ensures smooth digital processing, while the powerful P*s carry out the arithmetic and logical functions on the processed data. :inally, the result of the processing is transferred from the local data cache of a ;uad to an external '/?"+ -'ynchronous /ynamic ?andom "ccess +emory. module via the /+" unit. The &+' chip does have an onboard /?"+ controller to interface with external '/?"+ modules. :eeding each ;uad with independent chun!s of data can ma!e optimal use of the raw processing speed of the &+' chip. (t is claimed that &+' has a raw speed of over 2A B:0CP' -Biga :loating Point Cperations per second. while consuming >ust 2.A watts of power. The (nput1Cutput unit of &+' is programmable. Dou can program it to support processing unit dependant data transfers, or do a /+" data transfer where data transfers can ta!e place without the intervention of the processing unit. (n fact, the programmable (1C is claimed to be so versatile that it can be used to model PC(, 'C'(, :ire ire, or /'0 interfaces using software. (n other words, the (1C hardware is extensively programmable through software.

SOFTWARE ON UMS

The software design has eliminated the need for customized hardware. (t has been left to the developer to utilize the power of the numerous processors by using efficient software algorithms. Cptimally, each ;uad must be fed with independent data bloc!s -called data parallelism.. This is the responsibility of the software developer. hat Cradle has provided are some tools to speed up this development= a C compiler, an assembler and a cross assembler, lin!er, debuggers, and most important, a software simulator of the hardware chip. " custom C$"P( -"pplication Programming (nterface., comprising of &+' specific library functions, is also provided. These include libraries for TCP1(P, CpenB0 ,/, PC(, :ire ire, +P*B and /% encoding and decoding.

'o the development tools shouldnt ta!e long getting used to, as no new programming language or paradigm has been introduced. 7ut what about the most crucial system software for any hardware in this worldthe operating system. &+' can use any ?TC' -?eal Time Cperating 'ystem. li!e ;EF or a micro !ernel based 0inux. ?ed 9at, the popular 0inux distribution, is porting its version of embedded 0inux on &+' along with the development tools. "lready a software +P*B< decoder has been developed for &+', while the hardware chip itself is under experimental stages. (nitially &+' will not be targeted towards small devices li!e mobile phones or wrist watches. (nstead, it will be used in devices li!e home routers and multimedia gadgets as ready$to$use software libraries are already there for these. 7ut the possibility of it being used in small devices cannot be ruled out.

A++,ICATIONS OF EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

E!)e''e' sys e!s are *in'in" &eir (ay in o ro)o ic oys an' elec ronic $e s- in elli"en cars- an' re!o e#con rolla)le &o!e a$$liances
E,ECTRONIC +ETS

Bone are the days when you had dumb stuffed toys with no motion, or feelings to play with. Than!s to the wonders of modern electronics, toys are getting a new life. They have been given feelings that get affected based on how you behave with them. "ll the ma>or toy ma!ers across the world have been coming out with advanced interactive toys that can become your friends for life. These toys are electromechanical in nature, have sensors to listen, see, tal!, and feel your touch. They have complex circuitry, and some use micro$controller chips to control everything. They have memory to store the code that drives the micro$controller, which in turn operates the remaining parts. (n other words, toys are amongst the most popular examples of embedded systems. (n this article, well see some of the most playful pets in the mar!et, and try to understand what ma!es them intelligent. The rapid development of intelligent toys has been fueled by the fierce competition amongst leading toy manufacturers. *very toy ma!er tries to introduce some hot selling toy to gain an edge over competition. 'o weve seen the intelligence level rising in the toys.

TEDDY RU.+IN Cne of the earliest intelligent toys was a teddy bear !nown as T*//D ?&FP(E. (t had in built cassette player which when played moved its lips according to the song and music being played. The story telling teddy bear was a hit among young children. 0ater on T*//D ?&FP(E' partner was introduced and both of them narrated a story. This was however not so intelligent as both them moved their lips according to the pre recorded stories. THE FURBIES Pet its bac! and it will wag its tail in a lovingly manner, tic!le its tummy and it will laugh and pass comments. These are the few things a :&?7D is capable

of doing. (t was manufactured by T(B*? *0*CT?CE(C' somewhere around 2GG5. (t has no resemblance to any living creature. (ts life cycle starts from a baby and it grows up into an adult. (t reacts differently to different situations. (nitially it spea!s its own language called #:&?7('9. 0ater on it spea!s english as we interact with it. (ts beauty lies in the fact that no two furbies are ali!e. (t has built in vocabulary of 263 words with which it can form 2333 phrases. Thats why it reacts differently to different situations. (t has five sensors and a built in microphone which is responsible for its varying responses to different sounds. (t also has a light sensor to detect changes in light. The best part is an (? port which it uses to interact with other furbies. AIBO THE SMART DO/ "ibo the smart dog was created by 'CED CC?PC?"T(CE. "(7C can display six emotions viz. happiness, anger, sadness, surprise, fear and disli!e. "( stands for artificial intelligence and 7C stands for robot. "ibo when translated in #partner # or #pal in Hapanese. (t has various sensors to detect various emotions. (t can recognize A3 words. (t learns and matures by interacting with people. (t has 'T"T* C: T9* "?T %C(C* ?*CCBE(T(CE 'D'T*+ that understands what you say. (t has four sensors of touch, hear, see and balance. (t has 25 >oints which can produce <A3 different motions. 'o it sit, stand, wal!, dance and play with a ball. "ll its actions are recorded on an 5 +7 memory stic!.

DRIVE 0AMES BOND1S CAR

Cars manufactured today come with at least one embedded computer, which is in charge of monitoring engine emissions and ad>usting the engine to !eep emissions as low as possible. "broad, additional computers already manage the air$bag system, cruise$control system, anti$loc! bra!es, and motorized seats that remember the seat and mirror setting for multiple drivers. *mbedded systems in cars, also !nown as telematic systems, are now being used to provide navigational -getting directions to your destination., security -notifying the police in case of an emergency., communication -ma!ing calls through hands$free voice$activated phones or getting personalized information from the (nternet., and entertainment -streaming music. services.

REMOTE CONTRO, YOUR HOME

9ome appliances, from refrigerators and air$conditioners to televisions and microwave ovens, are going the embedded way. This means that youll soon be able to control the temperature of your air$conditioner over the (nternet, chec! e$mail on your refrigerator, ma!e your microwave download recipes from the (nternet, or surf the eb on your television. 'everal home$appliance players have already entered the embedded arena and more are expected to follow. 9eres a loo! at some products that have made an appearance 0B *lectronics /igital /(C' refrigerator can be used for surfing the (nternet, chec!ing e$mail, ma!ing video phone calls, and watching T%. (t has a 2A.2I T:T$0C/ touch screen and its own port to connect to the (nternet. 'amsungs digital networ! refrigerator also lets you surf the (nternet and chec! mail using a pop$up !eyboard window, ma!e video or regular telephone calls, do instant messaging with your family members, and watch T% or films on video tape or /%/.

 0Bs washing machine has a communication cable that you can lin! to a PC with an (nternet connection. Dou can then connect to the washing machines website, download washing programs suitable to the different types of clothes you want to wash, and store them in the washing machine. The microwave oven has a built$in modem that it uses to access websites on coo!ing. (t also goes a step ahead and automatically downloads information li!e coo!ing time and microwave level for different recipes. These products are a harbinger to what lies ahead. 'o, you can loo! forward to a future where you can wor! in office and wash clothes at home simultaneously, or let your microwave do the coo!ing while you surf the (nternet on your television.

DEVE,O+MENT INITIATIVES IN EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

A loo2 a In*erno an' C&ai- (o $o$%lar 'evelo$!en environ!en s &a are %se' o 'evelo$ a$$lica ions *or &ar'(are %se' in e!)e''e' sys e!s " lot of development is happening on embedded systems with many development platforms, environments, and operating systems being created to help with this process. e present two popular initiatives. INFERNO (nferno was developed by Computing 'cience ?esearch Center of 7ell 0abs. (ts core feature is a virtual machine called /is which ma!es it portable across various platforms, including (ntel x56, 'un 'parc, +(P', and PowerPC. 'o it can be used across all the ma>or C's li!e indows -ET and GA., and many flavors of &nix including 0inux. (nferno runs as a service under these C's. (t also has its own micro!ernel, so it can be deployed on embedded devices without a native operating system underneath. CHAI This development environment -runtime and compile time. provides tools to develop applications for embedded devices. (t is based on Hava technology and consists of the following components=

Chai%+= The Chai virtual machine Chai" T= Braphics library for coding B&( components Chai'erver= :or intercommunication and remote configuration of Chai applications

Chai"ppliance Plug and Play= an open$standard technology for automatic and transparent connectivity between embedded devices Chai1*$spea!= 0ibraries which enables Chai applications to act as e$ services Chai1Cpen%iew= *nables management of Chai application by 9Ps Cpen%iew Eetwor! Eode +anager. Chai:arer= " web browser for embedded devices.

racle 5i lite= /atabase for embedded devices

EMBEDDED REA, TIME O+ERATIN/ SYSTEMS

The term embedded means combined. "n embedded hardware device contains a single chip that contains both hardware and software components of a computer such as memory and base operating systems. *mbedded software can be used for a variety of purposes ranging from powering handheld PCs to large scale factory automation. To run these software we need operating systems. *mbedded operating systems are used in P/"s, high end cellular phones,+P, players and palmtop computers. *mbedded Cperating 'ystems come in three flavors= (E/C ', 0(E&F and others. There are a few dozens of embedded operating systems but we explore a few.

WINDOWS CE 345
There are no fewer than four versions of (E/C ' C* ,.3 designed for various types of hardware. indows C* includes ,< bit windows technology and networ!ing support amongst other features familiar to normal windows user. " number of development tools are available for this platform. /atabase support is available throtabase support is available throC* *dition.

WINDOWS NT EMBEDDED
indows ET *mbedded is a little different from indows C* *dition. (t is developed on windows technology and it excels in networ!ing and communications. (ts price to most of the hardware manufacturers is higher as compared to other operating systems and so it is less popular as compared to other operating systems such as indows C* *dition.

EMBEDDED ,INU.
0inux powerful and full featured operating system and its embedded version is no exception. *mbedded linux is free >ust li!e its PC counterpart. (ts source code is freely available and the user can modify the core according to his convenience without going through long procedures of licensing and paying for the operating system. (n fact, many have predicted that the future of linux is in *+7*//*/ C?0/.

CONC,USION
e are on the threshold of the next wave of rapid growth in high technology. /uring the 2G@3s we witnessed the proliferation of semiconductors that enabled the digital generation. (n the 2G53s came the decade of /?"+s as semiconductor vendors perfected their manufacturing technologies to allow a dramatic increase in memory capacity. The 2GG3s will be remembered as the decade of microprocessors as even the casual customer is aware of the megahertz and the motherboard. "nd now as we have entered the new millennium EMBEDDED SYSTEMS has become the technology of focus with consensus expectations of exponential growth.