Embedded Designs Move to Linux and Systems-on-a-Chip

The computer is experiencing another of its many transformations. The age of electronic computing began with machines that filled warehouses, cost millions of dollars and were unavailable to anyone other than governments and large corporations. Gradually they evolved from mainframes to minicomputers and then microprocessors. The age of pervasive computing is driving the need for higher levels of integration and lower costs. Products that require an end user who must be skilled in the use of complex software programs or nonintuitive commands have as much chance of succeeding in today's competitive market as an automobile that requires a hand crank to start the engine.

Advances in integrated circuit manufacturing technology have made it possible to have miniaturized computing power that was inconceivable just a few years ago. Now, true single-chip systems with more processing power than was used to launch the first manned missions to the moon are reality. These Systems-on-a-Chip (SOC) bring a level of reliability and flexibility to product design that will dramatically change the nature of the world around us.

By balancing performance, functionality, integration and reliability such devices can be truly green, consuming less than one watt.

There has been a great deal of discussion recently about the post-PC era. Predictions that the post-PC era began last year or that it is just dawning are made by those who, by and large, are mistaken. A glance at the data regarding the total number of processors shipped since the dawn of the microprocessor will quickly reveal that the desktop PC has been, and continues to be, the proverbial drop-in-the-bucket of computation devices (see Figure 1). Rarely since the invention of the microprocessor has more than 5% of total production gone onto the desktop. Today, ever-increasing numbers of microprocessors are being embedded in products that surround us wherever we go. The past and future of computing has been and will continue to be embedded systems.

Figure 1. Embedded Systems Shipped

The same is true in terms of software. It is not uncommon, when operating systems are being discussed, for the ``experts'' to casually toss out the ``fact'' that 85% (or whatever number is currently in vogue) of all computers run on Microsoft software. It stands to reason then, that if less than 5% of the microprocessor hardware shipped is going into personal computers, the vast majority of operating system code must not be desktop-type operating systems. In fact, in numerous studies, by far the most pervasive operating systems have been those termed proprietary.

OEMs must have control over their own destiny. There are two ways to accomplish this. One is to continue creating proprietary architectures. The worldwide shortage of programmers and time-to-market constraints are making it much harder to justify reinventing the wheel. The best solution by far is to seek out open standards and open architectures. More than 60% of the embedded systems produced in the last four years have used a proprietary operating system. This has been driven by the need to own the source code. Less important than eliminating royalties on a per unit basis has been the need to support products in the field long beyond the life span of the typical desktop OS. Also, there is a very high cost associated with developing and maintaining proprietary software. It is rapidly becoming an overwhelming undertaking when attempting to balance ever-shorter product life cycles and shortages of programmers with increased demands for reliability and ease of use.

It is this dilemma that is generating the enormous level of interest in Linux. Leveraging the work of thousands of contributors can cut development time, increase the richness of functionality in products and lower costs while maintaining the proprietary control that is critical to long-term support of mass-market products.

Although nothing comes without a price, the royalty-free nature of the Linux OS makes it particularly attractive as a solution for high-volume applications where the success of a product can hinge on achieving low overall production cost. The modularity, scalability and flexibility of Linux add to its attractiveness as a base from which to begin.