BANGALORE, INDIA: In 1976, the basic building block of an embedded system was
a microcontroller such as the 8748. Today's embedded systems need high performance
and developers are increasingly leaning towards multi-core embedded processors in
their systems design. Similarly, a range of new applications demand low thermals in
a small form factor setting.
Multicore in embedded
In the past, chip manufacturers released faster single-core processors to meet increasing
performance requirements. Recently, semiconductor manufacturers have recognized that
the way forward is to build processors that run at somewhat lower frequencies and voltages,
but to integrate two or more of these processing cores on a single chip. The overall
performance increases because multiple processing cores (aka multicore) can perform
two or more tasks at once.
Digital security and surveillance is one of the hottest new applications in the embedded
arena benefiting from the multicore phenomena. Old surveillance systems requiring human
monitoring are rapidly being replaced by sophisticated intelligent platforms. The latest
security and surveillance solutions need to be able to capture and process security video in real time.
For example, a surveillance system in an airport needs to be able to monitor unexpected
human behavior or recognize unattended baggage and send information to security. All this
requires heavy computational algorithms and compression technology. Dual and multi-core
processors such as Intel Core2Duo family of products are often the foundation of such platforms.
In the retail segment, which is rapidly growing in India, there is a trend toward increased performance,
connectivity and rich graphics. A point-of-sale terminal (PoS) is a great example of this. The latest
PoS devices incorporate dual-display for advertising, complex accounting applications and are
increasingly connected to a central server for remote management. Developers are increasingly leaning
towards dual core processors as the architecture of choice.
A growing market segment in India is medical imaging. Developers in India are working on the
latest ultrasound, MRI and diagnostic devices for both local and overseas markets. These devices
require speed, high resolution imagery, reconstruction capability and high bandwidth.
Reconstruction algorithms especially require a tremendous amount of processing power and
dual-core embedded processors are widely adopted in this segment.
Small and low power
Another growing trend in embedded is the move to small form-factor designs. In-vehicle
infotainment is a growing market in this arena. Digital content and services have extended
to the car in the form of GPS navigation systems, location based services, digital radio,
DVD video and MP3-based entertainment systems.
Today, automobile manufacturers want to deploy multi-media rich "Vehicle Infotainment" solution,
factory-fitted and embedded in the dashboard as a standard feature. While luxury automakers
have offered these platform capabilities in the past, consumers today desire these features
in mid-range and even entry price cars.
The latest generation of in-vehicle infotainment systems fitted into the car dashboard serve
as the central network hub to enable and control the vast array of on-board digital
entertainment and productivity tools in the car. Developers look at the Intel Atom processor
family for their new in-vehicle infotainment designs.
