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Embedded systems architecture : a comprehensive guide for engineers and programmers
Noergaard T., Newnes, Burlington, MA, 2005. 656 pp. Type: Book (9780750677929)
Date Reviewed: Oct 26 2005

This book takes a bottom-up approach to embedded systems; that is, it builds readers’this knowledge beginning from the lowest layers of hardware, up to the software design level. It is structured into four parts, covering an introduction to embedded systems, embedded hardware, embedded software, and embedded application development.

The introduction defines an embedded system architecture as “an abstraction of the embedded device,” or “a generalization of the system that typically doesn’t show detailed implementation information such as software source code or hardware circuit design.” A crucial component of this part of the book is an overview of standards, whether formal or de facto standards, relevant to embedded system design. This overview mostly focuses on programming languages and the network International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Reference Model, and can be skipped by readers familiar with developments such as transmission control protocol/Internet protocol (TCP/IP). Personally, I would have liked to see an overview of hardware standards, especially those defining various types of computer buses, which are crucial in embedded design.

Part 2 makes up nearly half of the book, and discusses general board design, as well as its respective components: processors, memory, input/output (I/O) interfaces, and two buses (inter-integrated circuit (I2C) and peripheral component interconnect (PCI)). Elementary information is given on timing diagrams and lowest-level components, such as capacitors, transistors, gates, and integrated circuits. A presentation of processors and memory follows. The material is covered at a very basic level, and without much detail. Most of the text is rather superficial, although I/O is discussed with examples of serial, parallel, wireless, and ethernet interfaces.

In the part on embedded software, the author does a relatively good job of discussing device drivers, including extensive portions of pseudocode, a topic rarely covered in books on embedded devices or systems, but essential for device operation. This was the most informative chapter of the book. The chapters on operating systems and middleware are informative as well, but one would probably want to go to complete books on these subjects to really learn the material in detail.

In the final chapters, the author presents the application of her architectural processes to the development of an embedded system. The process is composed of six essential stages: acquiring a solid technical base, understanding and establishing the architecture business cycle, defining the architectural patterns and models, defining the architectural structures, documenting the architecture, and analyzing and evaluating the architecture. This is followed by an example of traditionally understood implementation and testing, which concludes the book.

Normally, people write books and articles to share their knowledge with others. In this respect, the author does a very good job, since it is clear from the book’s contents that she has a vast knowledge of her subject. On the other hand, when you look at this book from the perspective of a potential reader, one who wants to learn, I must say that, to someone with an electrical engineering or computer science degree, this book will not be very useful, since it is too basic. It may be good, though, as an overview of subjects related to embedded systems, because it discusses most issues one may encounter during the design process, although not in enough detail to be really useful for designers.

Reviewer:  Janusz Zalewski Review #: CR131934 (0609-0891)
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