Internet connectivity is becoming more important in our daily lives, and embedded systems are evolving to provide many of the Internet products to keep us connected in the post-PC era.

The Embedded Systems conference was held February 28 to March 2, 2000 in Chicago. The conference highlighted the increasing importance that Internet connectivity features are playing in embedded systems. Conference participants showcased technologies such as system-on-a-chip (SoC) integration, TCP/IP, embedded Web, Java, and Jini.

The embedded Internet has even made its way onto 8- and 16-bit microcontrollers. One of the major announcements at the show was the merger of two RTOS stalwarts, Wind River and Integrated Systems. Read our recent coverage of Wind River mergers.

The conference showed that Linux is making its way into the embedded sphere. Companies touting its open source benefits are now offering Linux products tailored towards the embedded market.

8/16-Bit Microcontroller Connectivity

Internet connectivity is not solely the privilege of 32-bit processors. Integrated TCP/IP features are allowing 8- and 16-bit microcontrollers to also carve out a space in the embedded Internet market.

Although 8- and 16-bit microcontrollers can't provide all the features and capabilities that 32-bit processors can, they do provide a cost-effective solution for applications that require a subset of connectivity capabilities. Applications with requirements of limited processing, small form factor, and low power at an extremely low cost have always been the domain of 8/16-bit microcontrollers. A number of microcontroller vendors are putting a new spin on this old technology to fit new market niches created by the need for connectivity. These companies are developing SoC designs using the base microcontroller core and coupling it with TCP/IP, DSP, and other peripheral functionality. Zilog, a name synonymous with 8-bit microcontrollers, displayed its extreme connectivity home demonstration at the conference.

Zilog's integrated home mockup showed appliances such as lights, a coffee maker, and entertainment systems connected and controlled through IR, TCP/IP, and X10 (power line carrier protocol) protocols. Zilog partnered with Sunbeam's subsidiary, Thalia, to provide the microcontrollers to connect its next generation smart household appliances.

A group of companies provides an avenue for standard 8/16-bit microcontrollers to obtain connectivity. EmWare is making a lot of noise with its EMIT technology to connect 8/16-bit microcontrollers. EMIT is a proprietary network that allows microcontrollers to exchange data and communicate via the Internet. EMIT requires a PC gateway to provide connectivity between the microcontroller network and devices on the Internet.

CMX Systems took an open approach and presented a lightweight TCP/IP stack for 8/16-bit microcontrollers. The footprint of CMX's stack varies from 1.8K to 11K depending on the required functionality. Embedding the stack into the software used by the microcontroller allows the stack to connect directly onto a TCP/IP network. In contrast, emWare's approach for providing TCP/IP stacks to 8/16-bit microcontrollers requires associated overhead of a gateway and its proprietary network scheme.

You can also provide the TCP/IP stack to 8/16-bit microcontrollers with hardware. IReady and ConnectOne's peripheral network interface chip provides TCP/IP functionality to microcontrollers. At the conference, ConnectOne displayed iChip, a peripheral chip that powers its iModem product. iModem is a simple low cost device that enables Internet emailing to remote devices. The company demonstrated the iModem at the conference as it dialed out to send and receive email messages.

Java Tools for Information Appliances

Even though the fanfare for embedded Java has been dying down, companies are introducing Java Application Frameworks for Information Appliances. Espial's Java-based customizable Internet application and development environment comes with out-of-the-box capabilities for browsing, email, application management, GUI tools, and an information manager. A visual IDE is included for developing Java applications for Information Appliances. Espial targets Internet-enabled consumer products such as set top boxes, networked game consoles, automotive computing, Internet screenphones, and wireless handhelds.

Like Espial, Hewlett Packard targets Internet-Enabled consumer products with Chai, a Java product with an application framework for Information Appliances. Chai doesn't seem to have the quick turn and integrated development environment of Espial, but does offer a much fuller set of functionality and performance enhancement tools. Chai consists of real-time VM, Ahead of Time (AOT) compiler to improve code execution time, memory usage optimizer, GUI tools, Web server, UPnP, browsing, management, and integration with Oracle8I Lite database. HP Chai is ideally suited for the Windows CE environment but has recently been ported to the Lynx BlueCat Linux OS.

Linux Moving Down From the Desktop

The latest rage in embedded systems design is embedded Linux. Two companies, Redhat and Lynx Real-Time Systems, both unveiled embedded Linux products. Interestingly, Redhat's eCos embedded platform is not Linux based. Redhat avoided embedded Linux because of its size and real-time performance. Redhat plans to use the EL/IX (Embedded Linux/POSIX) API as a bridge for eCos to utilize the embedded Linux libraries and tools. EL/IX will be available in the fall of 2000. ECos follows the Linux open source model and is freely available and royalty free, but support packages, which include tools and RTOS support, start at $15,000.

Lynx Real-Time Systems unveiled BlueCat Embedded Linux, an OS based on Red Hat Linux 6.1 and intended for Pentium and PowerPC processor-based systems. Lynx has integrated the HP Chai Java application framework onto the BlueCat environment.

Information Appliances and Platforms

A number of Information Appliances displayed their uses as well as their underlying technology. NetSilicon showed the use of its NET+ARM Ethernet-Ready ARM processor chips in an Internet weather station and a Serial to Ethernet Gateway platform. The Serial to Ethernet Gateway platform was developed by LogiSync and connects serially to equipment to provide a Web interface for remote monitoring and control. The gateway runs on the pSOS RTOS and includes features such as an HTTP server, SNMP, FTP, and email. Using this platform, LogiSync uses the Serial to Ethernet Gateway Platform in developing custom applications for its customers.

The Microsoft pavilion showed a number of appliances derived from the Windows CE operating system. Elcotel introduced a communications Kiosk called Grapevine, which is a next generation pay phone with built-in browsing capability. The Grapevine provides VoIP communication as well as Web browsing that is controlled by back-end service. It will also offer e-commerce by accepting smart debit or credit cards.

Stellcom displayed a Web tablet based on Windows CE, and a kitchen appliance that it developed for OEMs. Stellcom developed the Advantage 2000 kitchen appliance for CMi Worldwide. The Advantage 2000 integrates television, stereo audio and video CD in-home security monitoring, appliance communication, and Internet connectivity in a countertop appliance. The product was developed using the Hitachi SH3 processor, VxWorks OS, and Spyglass embedded Web browser.

Web Connectivity Driving Design Criteria

The Embedded System Conference indicates that all future embedded system development will contain some type of connectivity. Connectivity will supply even the simplest of devices with additional features and capabilities because it will be able to leverage processing power from a distributed network. The expression "less is more" will be applicable as individual systems work across a network to utilize each other's services and capabilities.