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Introduction to embedded systems: a cyber-physical systems approach (2nd ed.)
Lee E., Seshia S., MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, 2017. Type: Book (9780262533812)
Date Reviewed: Aug 22 2017

This book begins with the statement (from page 1), “[A] CPS [cyber-physical system] is about the intersection, not the union, of the physical and the cyber. It is not sufficient to separately understand the physical components and the computational components. We must instead understand their interaction.” I am afraid that from half a century of embedded systems experience, I must politely but firmly disagree with this statement. If one does not thoroughly comprehend both the physical and the cyber, and from this, comprehend – deeply comprehend – their interactions and the ramifications of these interactions, then one does not comprehend the system and anomalies are inevitable.

Yet, despite this (perhaps) philosophical (or semantic) difference of opinion between the authors of this book and me, I would venture to say this book is probably one of the most advanced, high-quality books on the subject that I have seen for over a decade. The last really great book I read on embedded systems was Broekman and Notenboom, in 2003 [1].

In a sense, I would venture to opine that the authors support my (perhaps) broader view on page 5, when they describe in a sidebar the term “cyber-physical systems.” They note that Norbert Weiner based his concept of cybernetics upon a conjunction of control and communications. However, they go on to state that cybernetics is now a conjunction of physical processes, computations, and communication. And they end the sidebar with the statement that “it focusses instead on the fundamental intellectual problem of conjoining the engineering traditions of the cyber and the physical worlds.”

Another great quote from this book, also at the beginning (from page 3): “How can you ensure that the system will react and take over only when needed, and only exactly to the extent to which intervention is needed?”

In examining the book’s table of contents, one finds that it contains a considerable breadth of topics. I would venture so far as to say that any book coming out after this book on embedded systems, cybernetics, or reactive systems could do itself no better turn than to base its own table of contents on the analysis the authors provide. This alone would be (almost) a breakthrough in understanding such systems; luckily, the authors continue their good work throughout.

A chapter of particular note is chapter 5, “Composition of State Machines.” I have heard it said, by a professional chef, that the best “test” of a Chinese restaurant is the hot and sour soup--excellent if it is well done, awful if done poorly. The issue of states is the test of any book on embedded/reactive systems. If this material is done well, the book is likely to be very good. If done poorly, it’s probably best to save your time and skip the book. The material on state machines is done here exceptionally well. Do not skip this book.

The material in chapter 5 covers synchrony, asynchronicity, sharing, cascading (probably one of the hardest issues in state machines), hierarchies, and general notations (semantics and syntax). This is really hard stuff and the authors carry it off very well.

Chapter 6 covers concurrent models of computation. This is also very hard stuff to describe well. The most important construct here, in my humble opinion, is that of feedback loops – the heart of any real-world reaction mechanism. Once again, the authors bring this off well, though I would caution the reader to not skip over the sidebars because they are critical to comprehension.

In summary, I am pleased to recommend this book. It appears to be a good textbook for an embedded systems/reactive systems course. The publishers did an acceptable job with paper/print/binding quality, at an acceptable price. One can purchase it from Amazon or directly from the publishers for $50 (US) or (surprisingly) download the entire book for gratis (http://leeseshia.org/), in full color, as opposed to the print in black and grey. (I did and it is quite handsome, though I am a bit of a traditionalist and love the physical feel of paper.)

Reviewer:  Mordechai Ben-Menachem Review #: CR145496 (1711-0694)
1) Broekman, B.; Notenboom, E. Testing embedded software. Addison-Wesley, London, UK, 2003.
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