13.06.2024 
We’ve explained some of the architectural elements of building your own firmware over-the-air (OTA) soution for IoT and embedded systems in a previous blog. But what about the hardware requirements? Or processes? Let’s explore issues that are essential to solve for a robust OTA solution. Maximizing flash longevity Modern devices rely on solid-state drives, which […]
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Mastering the Embedded Update Process
The importance of updating your product after it’s in the field cannot be overstated. Not only is it essential for customer satisfaction with feature updates and bug fixes, but also for addressing security vulnerabilities. In this post, we’ll look at some key considerations and methodologies for updating embedded systems. Selecting an update approach Choosing the […]
Streamlining Strategies for Embedded Software Development
Developing embedded software is notoriously difficult – how can we simplify the process? Fortunately, there are lots of techniques you can use daily to help streamline your development. Embracing Automation The specialized nature of embedded systems extends the ramp-up time for developers and necessitates a higher level of expertise. Automating hardware-specific tasks, such as deploying […]
Streamlining Multi-platform Development and Testing
In today’s pervasively digital landscape, building software for a single platform is a 1990s approach. Modern applications, even those designed for specific embedded targets, must be adaptable enough to run seamlessly across various platforms without sacrificing efficiency or reliability. This is often easier said than done. Here are some key points to consider when developing […]
Punctuality Matters: Using Linux to Manage Time-Critical Situations
The robustness of Linux is widely acknowledged, but it can’t quite match the microsecond management of a real-time operating system (RTOS) for time critical situations such as CNC machine instructions, vehicular control, or health sensor collection. If your software must record, manage, or control events within a narrow and precise time window and you’re invested […]
Optimizing Embedded Product Design The Case for Off-the-shelf Boards
Choosing the right system-on-chip (SoC) is probably your first consideration when designing an embedded product, followed closely by deciding whether to use an off-the-shelf board or design your own. The case for commercial boards in initial designs For the first product in a new line, consider using a commercially available board that features your chosen […]
The Embedded Developer’s Dilemma in Choosing Hardware
When designing an embedded product, there’s a lot riding on those crucial first decisions of choosing a hardware vendor and board. Clearly, the hardware you select must be powerful enough to support your product, a challenging determination given that software is usually still in the planning stages at this point in the process. Plus, planning […]
Pimpl for Small Classes
The familiar solution for thick value classes that want to preserve binary compatibility is to use the pimpl pattern (private implementation), also known as d-pointer (pointer to data). In future versions of our class, we can freely change the contents of the pimpl (i.e. adding, removing, and/or modifying data members) but the binary compatibility of […]
Choosing a CPU Is the i.MX 8 Right for Your Project?
We’ll share with you some of our CPU choice considerations, helping eliminate some of the unknowns and hopefully clearing away some misconceptions in the process.
Fast Duplicate Tracking DuplicateTracker Merged to KDToolBox
In 2019, I optimized QStringList::removeDuplicates() by using std::pmp::unordered_set with a std::pmr::monotonic_buffer_resource, when available. The class that I wrote to encapsulate this optimization has since been re-implemented three times. The latest iteration has recently landed in KDToolBox. If you have code that looks a bit like this: then you should read on.