Lesson 9: Challenges in Embedded

System Design: Optimizing the Design

Metrics and Formalism of System
Design

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 1
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Amount and type of hardware needed

Optimizing the microprocessors, ASIPs and
single purpose processors in the system

Optimizing according to the performance,
power dissipation, cost and other design
metrics the system

Optimizing hardware (memory RAM, ROM
or internal and external flash or secondary
memory in the system, peripherals and
devices internal and external to the system,
ports and buses in the system and power
source or battery in the system).

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 2
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Taking into account the design metrics

Design metrics examples –power

dissipation, physical size, number of
gates and engineering, prototype
development and manufacturing costs.

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 3
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 Optimizing the Power Dissipation

Clock Rate Reduction

Operating Voltage Reduction

Wait, Stop and Cache Disable Instructions –
Clever real- time programming. It is by
using of 'Wait' and 'Stop' instructions and
disabling or controlling certain units when
not needed is one method of saving power
during program execution

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 4
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Disable use of certain structural units of
the processor to reduce power dissipation

Caches—when not necessary and

Keep in disconnected state those structure
units that are not needed during a particular
software-portion execution, for example,
display screen, timers or IO units

Control of power requirement, for example,
by screen auto-brightness control

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 5
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Process Deadlines

Meeting the deadline of all processes
in the system while keeping the
memory, power dissipation, processor
clock rate and cost at minimum is a
challenge

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 6
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Flexibility and Upgradeability

Ability to offer the different versions
of a product for marketing and offering
the product in advanced versions later
on.

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 7
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Reliability

Designing reliable product by appropriate
design and thorough testing, verification
and validation is a challenge.

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 8
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Testing, Verification and Validation

Testing – to find errors and to validate that
the implemented software is as per the
specifications and requirements to get
reliable product.

Verification – refers to an activity to ensure
that specific functions are correctly
implemented.

Validation – refers to an activity to ensure
that the system that has been created is as
per requirements agreed upon at the
analysis phase, and to ensure its quality
Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,
2008 9
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Modules

Be clearly understood and maintain
continuity.

Appropriate protection strategies are
necessary for each module. A
module is not permitted to change or
modify another module functionality.

For example, protection from a
device driver modifying the
configuration of another device
Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,
2008 10
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Formalism of System Design

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 11
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Formalism of Steps

Requirements and Specifications of
hardware and software

Define architectures of hardware and
software

Coding and implementation as per
architecture

Testing, validation and verification of
system
Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,
2008 12
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 Diagrammatic model

UML (Universal Modeling

Language)

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 13
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 UML (Universal Modeling Language)

Conceptual design modeling

Classes and Objects to describe identity,
attributes, components and behaviour
– Inheritances in classes and objects
– Interfaces with the objects and their
implementation in the objects,

Structural description of the design
components

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 14
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 UML (Contd.)
– Behavioral description in terms of
states, state machine and signals
– Events description

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 15
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Disable use of certain structural units of
the processor to reduce power dissipation

Caches—when not necessary and

Keep in disconnected state those structure
units that are not needed during a particular
software-portion execution, for example,
display screen, timers or IO units

Control of power requirement, for example,
by screen auto-brightness control

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 16
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Process Deadlines

Meeting the deadline of all processes
in the system while keeping the
memory, power dissipation, processor
clock rate and cost at minimum is a
challenge

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 17
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Flexibility and Upgradeability

Ability to offer the different versions
of a product for marketing and offering
the product in advanced versions later
on.

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 18
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Reliability

Designing reliable product by appropriate
design and thorough testing, verification
and validation is a challenge.

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 19
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Testing, Verification and Validation

Testing – to find errors and to validate that
the implemented software is as per the
specifications and requirements to get a
reliable product.

Verification – refers to an activity to ensure
that specific functions are correctly
implemented.

Validation – refers to an activity to ensure
that the system that has been created is as
per the requirements agreed upon at the
analysis phase, and to ensure its quality
Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,
2008 20
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Modules

Be clearly understood and maintain
continuity.

Appropriate protection strategies are
necessary for each module. A
module is not permitted to change or
modify another module functionality.

For example, protection from a
device driver modifying the
configuration of another device
Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,
2008 21
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Summary
We learnt

Challenges in system design

Meeting design metrics

Power dissipation reduction

Enabling and controlling of processes

and hardware units

Flexibility, upgradeability and
reliability
Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,
2008 22
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 Summary
We learnt

Formalism of System design Processes

Use of UML for diagrammatically

modeling the system design Processes

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 23
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education
 End of Lesson 9

Chapter-1: "Embedded Systems - " , Raj Kamal,

2008 24
Publs.: McGraw-Hill Education