Embedded Systems Europe Standards Column Vol1.2 March 2009 Standards: Resession? Depresion? or Rvolution? Evolution? By Chris Hills

 

These are my own personal views and not those of my company Phaedrus Systems see www.phaedsys.com which is where the full version of this column, with links etc, resides under the Documents tab.

 

As the Editor and Jack Gansel said in their columns last month we have difficult times globally. It was interesting to see Jack’s US of the industry view and I also have the views of Steve Goddard, Global Infrastructure Director for TRW. Steve gave a presentation to the BCS (British Computer Society) on working in a multi-national company (Avail able on the Phaedsys Web Site ), A presentation many of you will find interesting because the industry is global whether we like it or not.  

 

Many companies are having to work across international boarders now the internet makes . Though I have a magazine on mechanical Engineering in Birmingham UK that said in the 1970’s they still regarded an “export” as anything outside the city limits!

 

On that note a survey of 500 for the embedded industry is, according to what I remember of my statistics course, far too lower sample size as we have over 40,000 working in the sector in the UK alone.  This may account for the odd results in places. Also you have to factor in the sort of people who answer questionnaires and those who don’t.  The current ISO-C 99 has features that compiler makers are not implementing because a small pressure group pushed it through. Small groups can make big difference in these surveys.

 

In general I have noticed that whilst some companies are tightening their belts and being cautious it is the consumer manufacturing areas that are having problems.  Many industries are doing the R&D for the next generation even whilst the production lines are having extended holidays.  This trend has been seen by most of our suppliers and their distributors across Europe and it seems Asia and the US too, though I have less data for that.

 

It appears to me that some companies are using he “economic crisis” to re-organise their companies for the next decade or two and are trimming or cutting out things all together. So whilst manufacturing may be going to the cheapest place globally, depending where the delivery market is.  The R&D is going to the innovative places that can produce good systems not necessarily the cheapest per hour costs. 

 

The only thing I would say is that most of the ways out of global warming, the energy crisis and other problems of efficiency usually involve high tech solutions to control them.  This means more embedded systems not fewer.  Not that we will get any praise for it but embedded systems could save the planet. Though this will not be of comfort to those who loose their jobs in the mean time I think the embedded sector overall will be one that is the least affected.

 

On that note there is more of a requirement to get things right and be efficient in development and production of embedded systems. As the old mantra from the BS5750 (predecessor of ISO9000) said ”If you haven’t got time to do it right when will you have time to fix it?”   Though it will be difficult to convince some managers and accountants that spending money on tools and process up front is a safer strategy than a low cost start up. I get the impression that some are planning to fail rather than planning to succeed.

 

One thing that came my way was an article from CIO (Chief Information Officers) http://www.cio.com/article/print/470103   about 25 ways to know if your SW development is doomed. Many look as though they are the script for a Dilbert cartoon or that project I was on in 19**…. Several of them have links to background stories confirming your worst fears. It should cheer you up a bit amidst the ruins!    It always cheers us up to find we are not alone and some one else is suffering too!

Whilst thinking about disasters waiting to happen I note what not only are cars full of software and the first thing a mechanic does is connect a laptop or test station but now they are looking at communicating with cars remotely. Some systems can do this now but these are the very few high-end cars. The cart can now book a service, call out the mechanics, they know where you are from the GPS, and even download software patches or change the settings on the engine. For some you can cal the car and switch on the heating so the car is warm when you get to it. Very helpful after a romantic dinner out.

 

The other side of the network is also looking at more connectivity.. In-car infotainment not only GPS, and DVD but full internet connectivity and a connectivity that will include road/toll charging, location specific information… Not just fuel stops or accommodation but  ”Hi, as you are in slow traffic on the A1 why not drop into Joes café 500 metres on the right and wait out the traffic jam in comfort.”  Or “We know you like Gucci. [From your credit card spending profile] There is Gucci outlet 2 miles ahead.”  Though for many men, given I am writing this on Feb 15th “The last flower shop between here an home is 200 metres on the left.” Might have saved me.

 

Couple this with the idea of cloud computing where you use sw modules and applications from all over the internet.  Unless the whole IT world suddenly starts writing software to safety critical standards, which let’s face it is not going to happen, your car could be hacked because some one who provided functionality several levels down made a mistake and left a hole in their software.  Also you have no idea who is writing the lower levels, the holes may not be accidental. The hacker may not even be intentionally targeting cars.  You only have to see how many web sites have malware attached now to realise that connecting a car or truck to the internet could be fatal.

 

What happens when the majority of card have internet connectivity not to mention Bluetooth and wifi… It will be a very tempting target for Hackers. Will we see “Norton for Nissan” and “Mcafee for Mercedes”? A blue screen at home or in the office is infuriating.  At speed on the autobahn it will be fatal.  Who’s responsibility will it be?  In the UK you need to look to the corporate Manslaughter Act that came in to force in April 2008, it is the act I was warning about since 2003.  

 

Author Details and contact

 

Eur Ing Chris Hills BSc CEng MIET MBCS MIEEE  FRGS   FRSA is a Technical Specialist and can be reached at This Contact

 

Copyright Chris A Hills  2003 -2008
The right of Chris A Hills to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988