16 Essential Skills Of Embedded Engineering

Why these skills are important

Embedded systems are everywhere - from our smartphones and home appliances to complex industrial machinery and medical devices. Every electronic device with any kind of programmable functionality in it can be considered to be an embedded system.

Building such systems requires an array of specific skills. The two main skill areas you need are of course software development and hardware design.

However there are other important skills around these areas which are so important that if you have not mastered them you will struggle. One example is control theory - without it you will be forever stuck trying to manually tune PID controllers while with it you will simply solve things mathematically.

Mastering the necessary skills enables you to create innovative solutions, solve real-world problems, and stay ahead in the rapidly evolving tech industry.

Many skills outlined in this post are also highly transferable meaning that they are useful in other software domains as well.

The demand for skilled engineers continues to grow and by acquiring these skills you will be able to explore new opportunities and ensure your growth towards mastery in the embedded domain.

So let’s get right into it!

Quick Overview

In this post I’m going to cover the 16 most essential skill areas of embedded engineering.

I wanted to reduce this list further but embedded systems is just such a diverse and multidisciplinary area of computer science that all of these skills are equally as important nearly every embedded project benefits from having a team that together can cover all of these areas.

The 16 key skill areas that we are going to cover in this article are:

Skill 1: Embedded Systems Design

To build efficient and reliable systems, it’s crucial to understand the core principles of embedded systems design, including hardware-software co-design (physical and simulated) as well as system architecture.

This involves the following key areas:

Here are some resources that you may find useful for system design:

Open source and open hardware projects are an excellent source of ideas and inspiration that you can learn from to build embedded systems faster than ever before.

Skill 2: Programming Languages

Programming language skills are almost taken for granted today. And yes, new programming languages are fairly easy to learn once you have mastered a few because many concepts are completely transferable from one language to another.

However, for effective embedded systems development you do need to develop proficient skills in the most essential programming languages suitable for such work which includes: C, C++, Assembly, C#, Python and Rust.

Why Python? Because Python is essential in build automation and testing. You will quickly find yourself writing automation in Python.

Why C#? Because Renode uses it as the main extension language so when it comes to extensive device simulation you will find yourself writing test harnesses in C#.

Why Rust? Because it is basically "C done right". It is a language that forces you to write good C code by simply refusing to compile code that doesn’t follow good conventions and so by learning Rust you can then transfer these skills to your C programming or simply use Rust directly since it is possible to compile Rust code and link it with C for embedded firmware use.

Beyond that you can of course also learn other languages, but the above are the most essential.

Other areas that also belong to programming languages are:

The biggest limiting factor beyond just learning a programming language is learning how to APIs and libraries connected to that programming language and the platform on which your software is built.

Here are some online resources related to programming that you may find useful:

Skill 3: Microcontroller Programming

Once you have thorough knowledge of programming languages involved in embedded workflow, it is time to understand how to use these languages effectively to program the chips that you will actually be working with.

While it is for the most part a rather low level task to be programming the microcontroller directly, you still need to understand how the chips operate in order to write software that can make effective use of on chip peripherals.

This area thus is a separate skill that is learned primarily by studying microcontroller data sheets and writing software that directly interacts with the on chip peripherals.

This area of knowledge can be further broken down into the following parts:

Here are some application notes and resources that you may find helpful:

Skill 4: Real-Time Operating Systems (RTOS)

Real-Time Operating Systems (RTOS) have been steadily replacing single main loop programming in embedded systems due to the growing complexity of applications and the need for efficient resource management.

As embedded systems become more complex, a single loop programming approach can become cumbersome and inefficient.

RTOS provides a far better architecture by offering multitasking capabilities, which enable the concurrent execution of multiple sequences of operations (multiple loops) in a controlled and organized manner.

This allows developers to break down complex applications into smaller, more manageable units which can then be developed independently and do not require changes when timing requirements change.

RTOS platforms can prioritize these sequences (tasks) based on their importance and timing requirements, ensuring that critical tasks are always executed on time, while lower-priority tasks are executed without causing interference.

An additional advantage of using an RTOS is the ability to manage system resources more effectively. This is primarily due to the fact that RTOS allows multiple sequences of operations to wait for hardware without blocking other code.

This allows the firmware to easily use hardware peripherals in parallel without requiring sophisticated state machines making it possible to take full advantage of the built in parallelism that is inherent in the hardware itself.

RTOS can manage memory, power modes, and handle peripheral devices, making it easier to optimize system performance, simplify the design of the system and reduce power consumption all at the same time.

Single loop programming typically lacks such built-in capabilities, which can lead to sub-optimal performance and unnecessary complexity.

We can further divide the topic of realtime operating systems into the following areas which you need to master in order to master the topic as a whole:

Here are is a collection of resources that will help you with RTOS development:

Skill 5: Electronics And Circuit Design

Circuit design is central to embedded product development.

Even though all the advances in chip manufacturing have led to the emergence of cheap System-on-Chip (SoC) components that need nothing more than a few supporting components, the importance of understanding circuit design has not gone away.

With the advent of highly integrated SoC systems the focus of circuit design has instead shifted towards creating robust and efficient interfaces between the SoC and external components, sensors, or actuators, which are essential for the embedded system to interact with the real world.

Designing these interfaces requires a deep understanding of both the capabilities of the SoC itself (such as timing and GPIO capabilities) and the specific features of the target application. This involves selecting appropriate interface circuits that can reliably convert and transmit signals between the SoC and the external environment.

We can subdivide the area of circuit design into the following smaller areas:

Here are some resources on these topics that you may find interesting (most of these books are readily available in digital versions from several sources):

Skill 6: PCB Layout

There are many similarities between laying out a PCB and compiling C source code into a binary image, despite the graphical nature of the PCB layout process.

Both processes involve converting a designed system into a manufacturable (or deployable in the case of software) unit which can then be printed into many copies.

Just like with C source code, designing the physical PCB with emphasis on testing is just as important for PCB design as it is for writing source code. Features like test points, accessible component pads, and accessible debugging interfaces make troubleshooting the PCB a lot easier.

After your circuit is designed, simulated and reviewed, it is time to do the PCB layout. This is where you load your circuit design into layout CAD software and start placing the electrical components and copper tracks.

We can further split the PCB layout task into following knowledge areas:

And here are some resources that you may find useful:

Skill 7: FPGA Development

FPGAs allow developers to extend existing designs that use microcontrollers and SoCs with additional high speed hardware over which the developer has full control.

These hardware extensions can be developed in a hardware description language such as Verilog and VHDL and then loaded into an FPGA over SPI bus, giving the developer incredible additional freedom of creating customized peripherals.

Customized peripherals can then be used for highly time critical tasks such as realtime data capture and processing, signal generation and control.

This area embedded development can further be split into the following topics:

Here are some additional resources that you may find useful:

Skill 8: Signal Processing

Signal processing is a critical aspect of embedded systems, as it involves the mathematical tools for manipulating and generating signals, which are the primary means of communication and data exchange between the physical world and the embedded systems.

These signals often start as analog when they enter the PCB from the real world (ie radio waves or analog sensor signals) and are then filtered, amplified and conditioned using analog components and is then converted into digital domain where the signals can be processed by a microprocessor.

Depending on whether the signal is sampled (digital) or continuous time (analog) the equations for handling the signal are different.

Digital signal processing (DSP) is concerned with the manipulation of discrete-time signals, which are represented as a series of numerical values. In embedded systems, digital signals are often generated by analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) that sample the continuous-time signals and convert them into lists of values that a software program can work with.

Digital signal processing techniques include digital filtering, frequency-domain analysis, and time-domain analysis.

In both digital and analog signal processing, the primary goal is to extract meaningful information from the input signals and respond accordingly by for example generating an actuator output signal.

Signal processing requires a separate section because it is such an involved discipline that requires extensive understanding of the mathematics of dynamic systems. It is highly important because all control tasks, signal capture and filtering depend on understanding signal processing.

This can be further divided into the following distinct areas of study:

Here are some resources that you may find useful:

Skill 9: Communication Protocols

Communication protocols play a vital role in embedded systems, as they define standardized rules and formats for data exchange between system components. These protocols allow for seamless integration, enabling devices to work together efficiently and reliably.

By gaining a deep understanding of communication protocols, you gain ability to choose the most suitable protocol for a particular application, ensuring optimal performance and disturbance resilience.

Understanding of communication protocols enables you to identify and resolve potential communication issues during the development and be able to debug communication problems more easily.

We can divide the area of communication protocols into the following main areas of study:

Here are some tools that will make your life easier:

Skill 10: Control Systems Design

Control theory is extremely important because it provides the foundation for designing and implementing control algorithms that govern the behavior of a wide range of physical systems.

This area of study provides the mathematical foundation for designing systems that can precisely adopt their behavior and generate appropriate signals for motors and other actuators based on data from sensors. Many embedded systems are in fact either communication or control systems.

Linear and nonlinear control techniques form the cornerstone of control theory. By learning both approaches, you can tackle a wide variety of system dynamics, from simple linear systems to complex nonlinear ones.

The knowledge of robust and adaptive control methods allows you to create systems that can maintain performance in the face of uncertainties, parameter variations, or unanticipated disturbances.

The study of control theory consists of the following main areas of study:

And here are some resources on this subject that you may find interesting:

Skill 11: Sensors Actuators

Sensors and actuators are the primary way of the embedded system to interact with the real world. In fact, the most simplified way to illustrate what an embedded system is would be to draw a black box with sensors coming in on one end and actuator signals coming out of the other.

In order to do measurement and control tasks we must therefore work with sensors and actuators. In this section we will go over the vast number of different sensors and actuators that you may run into in your embedded systems career.

Skill 12: Testing And Debugging

Testing plays an absolutely essential role in embedded systems development, ensuring that the final product is reliable, efficient, and performs as intended.

A thorough testing process helps developers identify and fix issues early, to validate system requirements, and to improve the overall quality of the embedded system.

Testing automates a lot of the work that developers would otherwise have to do manually. A major driving force behind testing is to avoid doing manual work more than once.

We can divide testing and validation into the following key areas:

Here are some resources that you may find useful:

Skill 13: Software Development Methodologies

The continuously increasing complexity of embedded systems demands a highly adaptable and efficient development process to keep up with the ever-changing technologies and customer needs. Scrum, as an Agile methodology, offers significant advantages over older approaches like the Waterfall model, which can make it a more suitable choice for managing embedded systems projects.

Scrum comes with its inherent flexibility and adaptability. In contrast to the rigid structure of older approaches to building projects, Scrum accommodates changes in project requirements, technology, or scope with relative ease. This agility allows development teams to react quickly to new information, ensuring that the end product remains aligned with customer needs and the latest industry standards.

However, implementing scrum as a process requires heavy use of automation - you simply have to build systems around your code and build your code specifically to accommodate for rapid and reliable testing in order to even be able to implement scrum. All such efforts are absolutely worth it but what this means is simply that we can not just talk about scrum without also putting a significant focus on the CI infrastructure around your embedded firmware project.

The study of scrum and agile methodologies can further be split into the following areas:

Here are some resources that you may find valuable:

Skill 14: Project Management

While project management and software development methodologies do in fact overlap, they do still have slightly different focus.

Project management encompasses a broader set of techniques, principles, and practices used to plan, execute, and control embedded product projects. This involves managing various aspects of a project, such as scope, time, cost, resources, risks, quality, and communication. Project management ensures that projects are completed on time, within budget, and according to the defined requirements.

Software development methodologies, on the other hand, are specific approaches and frameworks used to manage and organize specifically software development projects.

These methodologies, such as Agile and Scrum, provide a structured process for developing software and focus on improving collaboration, adaptability, and efficiency within the software development team.

This involves techniques like iterative development, continuous integration, and regular review, which are particularly useful for software projects where the team has access to specific tools like GitLab and a CI server.

Project management, therefore, is a broader concept that applies to all aspects of managing a project, while software development methodologies are specialized approaches tailored specifically for software development projects, and consequently also embedded systems.

Adopting a suitable software development methodology is a part of an overall project management strategy but does not replace the need for effective project management.

We can divide project management into the following important areas of study:

Project management is essentially an exercise in leadership while software development methodologies are a technical methodology for managing large amounts of code. The area of project management is primarily concerned with people.

Here are some useful resources that you can find on the area of project management and beyond:

Skill 15: Cybersecurity

In an embedded software team, the responsibility of security typically falls on all team members, including system architects, software engineers, hardware engineers, and testers. Just like with unit/integration/system testing, security is more a habit rather than a chore.

It is surprising to see that even the most experienced C programming teams so often overlook even the most basic security measures such as always using snprintf instead of sprintf where the latter one depends on data not being garbled up in order to not crash the system (or worse become a security risk).

We can subdivide security into a number of distinct areas:

Here are some resources about secure software development for embedded systems:

Skill 16: Machine Learning

Modern machine learning has come a long way from its roots in classical nonlinear model identification methods. With the creation of powerful computational resources (like GPUs and TPUs), advanced algorithms, and the availability of massive amounts of data, machine learning has evolved significantly over the recent years, enabling the development of highly accurate and sophisticated models for various applications which would take millions of years for human civilization to comprehend without machine learning.

In the early days of machine learning, researchers primarily focused on simpler techniques like decision trees, support vector machines, and artificial neural networks to model nonlinear relationships. These techniques, while somewhat effective, had limitations in terms of scalability, expressiveness, and the ability to handle complex data.

With the increasing availability of data and computational power, the field witnessed the rise of deep learning, which has revolutionized the way we approach nonlinear model identification and machine learning in general.

Deep learning focuses on the development of deep neural networks, which consist of multiple layers of interconnected neurons. These networks are capable of learning highly complex and hierarchical representations of data, allowing them to outperform traditional techniques in many applications, such as image recognition, natural language processing, and reinforcement learning.

The success of deep learning is attributed to its ability to automatically learn features from raw data, eliminating the need for manual feature engineering, which was often a time-consuming and challenging task in traditional machine learning techniques.

Combined with the massive amount of information that has been digitalized over the last 30 years, today we not only have the ability to train neural networks effectively but we also have all the data needed for effective training. This alignment of circumstances has been a major contributing factor to the explosion of deep learning.

We can divide machine learning into the following areas of knowledge:

It is fascinating to see how the predictive models of today have evolved from rather basic mathematical principles and how we are able to extend these new models to predict uncertainties in the highly complex world.

Using the steadily growing volume of data that we can collect from widespread sensor technology (this is where IoT plays key role!), I believe that in the next quarter of a century humanity is going to be able to predict almost every event in the world with a steadily extending horizon.

Just like a Kalman filter can predict the next value of a signal in the presence of Gaussian noise, the neural networks are steadily improving towards being able to predict many other types of variables where the noise doesn’t need to be Gaussian to make a good prediction.

This means that if humans are able to pair together with AI, then this has an almost unlimited potential for humanity at large.

Here are some resources that you may find interesting on the topic of machine learning:

Closing Words

This concludes the outline of the 16 most essential skills for building embedded systems faster than ever in the modern world where machine learning and continuous delivery play an increasingly important role.

By mastering these skills, you’ll be well-equipped to face the challenges of embedded systems development. This will not only help you create innovative and reliable products, but it will also open up a world of exciting career opportunities in this high-demand industry.

Remember, practice makes perfect, so keep learning and honing your skills through hands-on projects and courses.

If you don’t want to do all your learning yourself, you can explore additional books, courses and consulting services at swedishembedded.com to get help in building your embedded systems faster than ever before.

Books Courses And Consulting

The 16 Essential Skills Of Embedded Engineering

This issue of the Embedded Insights newsletter (you can subscribe here: https://swedishembedded.com/#/portal/signup/free) outlines the 16 most essential skill areas of embedded engineering that can help you build embedded systems faster than ever.

Here is a quick summary of the skills:

- Embedded Systems Design: so you can build efficient and reliable systems through hardware-software co-design and good system architecture.
- Programming Languages (C, C++, Assembly): so you can write efficient and maintainable code and optimize system performance.
- Microcontroller Programming: so you can understand how to use the programmable hardware to its fullest.
- Real-Time Operating Systems (RTOS): so you can ensure timely task execution and avoid inventing your own scheduling algorithms.
- Electronics and Circuit Design: so you can design your own schematics and electronic circuits.
- PCB Design and Layout: so you can build your own boards that work.
- FPGA Development: so you can extend your existing digital hardware with fast custom peripherals.
- Signal Processing: so you can filter and process signals efficiently using mathematics.
- Communication Protocols (UART, SPI, I2C, CAN): so you can pick the right protocol for the job.
- Control Systems: so you can build precision control into your application.
- Sensors and Actuators: so you know what sensors and actuators you have available to you for interaction with real world.
- Debugging and Testing: so you can avoid having to find the same bugs twice.
- Software Development Methodologies (Agile, Scrum): so you can manage millions of lines of text effectively.
- Project Management: so you can manage the whole product lifecycle.
- Cybersecurity: so that your embedded devices are secure and robust.
- Machine Learning and AI: so you can combine together human element and machine into a single whole.

Whether you're a seasoned professional or just starting out, this article is a goldmine of information to help you build robust, efficient, and secure embedded systems. Don't miss out on this opportunity to boost your career and stay ahead of the curve.

==> Read the full article here: https://swedishembedded.com/insights-build-embedded-systems/

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