Keeping pace with the rapidly changing field of embedded systems is a daunting task. One practice I often advocate is the idea of lifetime learning and keeping your skillset current by continuing your education outside the classroom. For this reason, I decided to venture west this summer with an all-access pass to the 2019 Drive World Expo and Embedded Systems Conference in Santa Clara, California. Here, I would like to share with you a basic rundown of what I saw and what my overall impressions are for the event.
Introduction
As you might imagine, the embedded systems conference (ESC) has been on my watchlist of events to check out for quite some time. Since the mid 1990’s, improvements to solid state memory brought us drastic price reductions in micro devices like the inexpensive Motorola 68000, the Zilog Z80, and the PIC microcontroller.
For the first time ever, even the independent hobbyist could pick up a small embedded system like the Basic Stamp and combine it with other low-cost parts to produce anything from a small robot to a basic security system or a digital media player. Thanks to the internet: such embedded systems and the myriad number of educational kits would eventually drive the ‘maker movement’ of the last decade.
Today, embedded systems run everything from smart watches to the many controllers in your automobile. Increasingly, these systems are connected devices: dependent on elaborate networking assets like Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Ethernet, and many others. So it was exciting (to say the least) to learn that there was an entire conference dedicated to this sub-field of electronics.
This year, the ESC ran concurrently with the Drive World Expo. The Drive World Expo is a similar learning experience focusing mainly on advanced automotive applications. One of the hottest automotive trends this year has been the autonomous vehicle (i.e.: self-driving cars). This was well-reflected by the healthy mix of embedded and automotive tracks at this year’s schedule.
Scheduling
First off, if you have been to a technical conference or a large workshop, you are probably used to the multi-track approach many of these conferences use. Each track will group and serialize the sessions that cover similar topics. This helps you avoid wanting to be in 2 sessions at once.
Excluding keynote speakers and panel discussions, there were a total of nine official tracks in this year’s schedule. Being from the embedded world, much of what you will read today is distinctly on ESC side of things. But after reading the abstracts for all sessions before this event, I knew I had to visit at least one of the Drive World sessions on vehicle automation.
- Drive Security and Safety
- Drive Sensing Technology
- Drive Autonomous & ADAS
- Drive Connectivity & Infotainment
- ESC Embedded Hardware Design and Verification
- ESC Embedded Software Design and Verification
- ESC Internet of Things (IoT) and Connected Devices
- ESC Advanced Technologies (AI, Machine Learning, Blockchain)
Additionally, this 3-day conference is split up into a 1-day tutorial session and a 2-day conference. The tutorial sessions are longer in duration and are more interactive. I will go into some of the differences below. For now, if you prefer the step-by-step instructive approach, you should definitely consider checking these out.
Embedded Systems Topics
This year, one recurrent theme for the both the Drive World tracks and Embedded Systems side was Cybersecurity. Consumer data breaches, denial of service attacks another cybercrimes have increasingly exploited connected devices in recent years, so this topic was highly appropriate. This is a troublesome reality, as many of us in the field focus most of our education and workflow on engineering: rather than cybersecurity. To resolve this, we increasingly depend on cybersecurity frameworks like ARM TrustZone that are well-curated by 3rd parties.
Another area of focus was the real-time operating system (RTOS). Unlike general-purpose systems like Windows and the Linux Kernel, the RTOS focuses on deterministic, event-driven scheduling of tasks. These days, popular RTOSs range of free and open source options to proprietary versions; and each set has its own advantages and limitations. The number of RTOSs current in the development ecosystem is staggering, so even choosing one to work with can be a daunting task in itself.
Embedded Systems Tutorials
The very first tutorial session covered heterogeneous multiprocessing systems for real-time embedded applications. Heterogeneous multiprocessing systems (HMS) are those that use different devices (microcontrollers, microprocessors, programmable logic, etc.) that are interconnected. Some have these devices located on the same semiconductor die, but not always. Even if you don’t work with these devices on a daily basis, the explanations here were very well thought-out in my opinion.
I should note I brought a laptop along for this trip so I could follow the tutorial in real time. The HMS system was a piece of real hardware we had live in the tutorial session to program. As you would imagine, it takes a bit of step-by-step instruction to get new hardware set up—which is why the tutorial sessions are longer in duration than the typical 90-minute college class (don’t worry: there are break sessions).
The software utilities for setting up the HMS were provided by the instructor via virtual machine. By installing virtualization software (VMware in my case), all it takes is the supplied USB drive and you already have all the software resources you need to follow along. This was a smart move in my opinion, since attendees seemed to have an eclectic mix of operating systems running on their own laptops.
This only covers one of the sessions from the tutorials day. Overall, the online schedule did a good job of notifying visitors if an action on your part was recommended for a particular session.
Embedded Systems Conference
The ESC conference sessions ran through day 2 and day 3 of the conference. These sessions are shorter: at just under an hour each—depending on question & answer (Q&A) session time.
One of the standout sessions on the topic of cybersecurity was Embedded Systems from a Hacker’s Perspective. Recently, I had purchased a copy of 24 Deadly Sins of Software Security, so I was curious to see if there would be any overlapping topics between the two. The session did an excellent job of framing the current state of embedded IoT security using real case studies and a few events that did not make the mainstream news.
As with the other conference sessions, there was a good emphasis on best practices. Different types of IoT attacks were presented with practical advice on countermeasures and lists of real-world consequences for ignoring them. Even though these sessions were short in duration, there was generally enough time for a quick Q&A session afterward, plus additional minutes to take a short break, grab of cup of coffee or tea and continue to the next session.
Expo
Of course, no conference would be complete without a visit to the expo area. This is where vendors and sponsors present their latest live demos. This is also an area I recommend visiting, for at least a full hour; even if your conference schedule is tight.
This year, the main exhibit was the autonomous vehicle developed by Minneapolis-based VSI Laboratories. The vehicle (and its research team) had journeyed from Minnesota to California as part of the group’s Automated Drive West test program. The research team was also available in the expo hall in a scheduled talk: “The Automated Drive West,” with plenty time to respond to questions from visitors. The vehicle itself was also available for ride-along demos as it navigated a pre-defined course on the expo floor (don’t worry, this was separate from the areas with regular foot traffic).
The expo center provides an easy opportunity for face-to-face interaction with field application engineers (FAEs), who are typically very knowledgeable about the product lines they are representing. If you have a question he or she cannot answer, it’s best to follow up with them later by exchanging contact information.
Other Remarks
The venue for this event was the Santa Clara Convention Center. I had never been to this facility before, but I found it very easy to navigate. This is probably because the organizers did a very good job of using event signage to direct guests on how to reach different areas of the conference. And maps were provided in advance in electronic and print form. There were a couple other unrelated events being hosted and yet there was never a time when the two activities seemed to clash or direct too many people to an area at once. The venue staff were professional and helpful throughout.
Wi-Fi connectivity was surprisingly fast, even for an event this size. If you attend conferences often, you’re probably familiar with the myriad problems that can pop up with shared Wi-Fi, and I’ve seen events with as little as 15 attendees have internet problems. This was not the case here.
Summary
Overall, my impression of the Drive World Expo / ESC Conference is highly positive.
If you plan to check out this event for yourself, I highly recommend planning several months in advance so that you can take advantage of any early bird registration options. In addition to saving you some cash, you will have extra time to plan out your schedule to get the most out of your time.
Additionally, plan to take plenty of notes during these sessions. This is something I would recommend for any technical conference in general. Having a laptop or smart device will prove extremely handy in jotting down specific part numbers, web addresses, contact information, and other useful tidbits you will encounter in large quantities here. Even taking a simple pad and pencil is better than going in empty-handed. Likewise, having a set of business cards is a good way to stay in touch with your new contacts after the event.
So in closing, I highly recommend checking out a future Drive/ESC conference for yourself; and I am very likely to attend another event in the future.
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