It can be tough to start working with embedded systems. Most software engineers need a crash course in electrical engineering, and most electrical engineers need a crash course in software design. Working closely with a member of the opposite discipline will make getting into embedded systems much easier. Some of my best friends are electrical engineers.
If you’ve never been through a development cycle that includes hardware, it can be a bit daunting to try to intuit your roles and responsibilities. In this chapter, I’ll start out with an overview of how a project usually flows. Then I’ll give you some more detailed advice on the skills you need to hold up your end of the team, including:
Reading a datasheet
Getting to know a new processor
Unraveling a schematic
Creating your own debugging toolbox
Testing the hardware (and software)
Hardware/Software Integration
The product starts out as an idea or a need to be filled. Someone makes a high-level product design based on features, cost, and time to market. At this point, a schedule is usually created to show the major milestones and activities (see Figure 3-1).
Figure 3-1. Ideal project schedule example
Ideal Project Flow
This sort of schedule is based on the engineering managers (or tech leads) talking about the goals and then estimating the time and resources the project ...
Become an O’Reilly member and get unlimited access to this title plus top books and audiobooks from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers, thousands of courses curated by job role, 150+ live events each month, and much more.
O’Reilly covers everything we've got, with content to help us build a world-class technology community, upgrade the capabilities and competencies of our teams, and improve overall team performance as well as their engagement.
Julian F.
Head of Cybersecurity
I wanted to learn C and C++, but it didn't click for me until I picked up an O'Reilly book. When I went on the O’Reilly platform, I was astonished to find all the books there, plus live events and sandboxes so you could play around with the technology.
Addison B.
Field Engineer
I’ve been on the O’Reilly platform for more than eight years. I use a couple of learning platforms, but I'm on O'Reilly more than anybody else. When you're there, you start learning. I'm never disappointed.
Amir M.
Data Platform Tech Lead
I'm always learning. So when I got on to O'Reilly, I was like a kid in a candy store. There are playlists. There are answers. There's on-demand training. It's worth its weight in gold, in terms of what it allows me to do.
O’Reilly covers everything we've got, with content to help us build a world-class technology community, upgrade the capabilities and competencies of our teams, and improve overall team performance as well as their engagement.
