Embedded Android

Chapter 1. Introduction

Putting Android on an embedded device is a complex task involving an intricate understanding of its internals and a clever mix of modifications to the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) and the kernel on which it runs, Linux. Before we get into the details of embedding Android, however, let’s start by covering some essential background that embedded developers should factor in when dealing with Android, such as Android’s hardware requirements, as well as the legal framework surrounding Android and its implications within an embedded setting. First, let’s look at where Android comes from and how it was developed.

History

The story goes^[2] that back in early 2002, Google’s Larry Page and Sergey Brin attended a talk at Stanford about the development of the then-new Sidekick phone by Danger Inc. The speaker was Andy Rubin, Danger’s CEO at the time, and the Sidekick was one of the first multifunction, Internet-enabled devices. After the talk, Larry went up to look at the device and was happy to see that Google was the default search engine. Soon after, both Larry and Sergey became Sidekick users.

Despite its novelty and enthusiastic users, however, the Sidekick didn’t achieve commercial success. By 2003, Rubin and Danger’s board agreed it was time for him to leave. After trying out a few things, Rubin decided he wanted to get back into the phone OS business. Using a domain name he owned, android.com, he set out to create an open OS for phone manufacturers. After ...