An embedded operating system (EOS) is an

operating system An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware and software resources, and provides common daemon (computing), services for computer programs. Time-sharing operating systems scheduler (computing), schedule tasks for ...

designed specifically for embedded computer systems. These systems aim to enhance functionality and reliability to perform dedicated tasks. When the multitasking method employed allows for timely task execution, such an OS may qualify as a

real-time operating system A real-time operating system (RTOS) is an operating system (OS) for real-time computing applications that processes data and events that have critically defined time constraints. A RTOS is distinct from a time-sharing operating system, such as Unix ...

(RTOS).

Overview

Fuji Xerox Document Centre 505 and Taiwan Xerox Walk-In 120D at ROC National Central Library 20101211

Embedded operating systems are integral to

consumer electronics Consumer electronics, also known as home electronics, are electronic devices intended for everyday household use. Consumer electronics include those used for entertainment, Communication, communications, and recreation. Historically, these prod ...

such as

camera A camera is an instrument used to capture and store images and videos, either digitally via an electronic image sensor, or chemically via a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. As a pivotal technology in the fields of photograp ...

s and

mobile phone A mobile phone or cell phone is a portable telephone that allows users to make and receive calls over a radio frequency link while moving within a designated telephone service area, unlike fixed-location phones ( landline phones). This rad ...

s. Additionally, they power

automotive electronics Automotive electronics are electronic systems used in vehicles, including engine management, ignition, radio, carputers, telematics, in-car entertainment systems, and others. Ignition, engine and transmission electronics are also found in tru ...

, aiding in functions like cruise control and

navigation Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the motion, movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navig ...

. Moreover, they are essential for factory automation infrastructure. Everyday applications of EOS include

office automation Office automation refers to the varied computer machinery and software used to digitally create, collect, store, manipulate, and relay office information needed for accomplishing basic tasks. Raw data storage, electronic transfer, and the manageme ...

devices such as

image scanner An image scanner (often abbreviated to just scanner) is a device that optically scans images, printed text, handwriting, or an object and converts it to a digital image. The most common type of scanner used in the home and the office is the flatbe ...

photocopier A photocopier (also called copier or copy machine, and formerly Xerox machine, the generic trademark) is a machine that makes copies of documents and other visual images onto paper or plastic film quickly and cheaply. Most modern photocopiers ...

s, and

wireless access point In Computer networking device, computer networking, a wireless access point (WAP) (also just access point (AP)) is a networking hardware device that allows other Wi-Fi devices to connect to a wired network or wireless network. As a standalone ...

s. Home automation systems, including security systems, also depend on EOS.

Design

Embedded systems comprise a processor and corresponding

software Software consists of computer programs that instruct the Execution (computing), execution of a computer. Software also includes design documents and specifications. The history of software is closely tied to the development of digital comput ...

Embedded software Embedded software is computer software, written to control machines or devices that are not typically thought of as computers, commonly known as embedded systems. It is typically specialized for the particular hardware that it runs on and has tim ...

requires storage for

executable In computer science, executable code, an executable file, or an executable program, sometimes simply referred to as an executable or binary, causes a computer "to perform indicated tasks according to encoded instruction (computer science), in ...

s and temporary data processing during runtime. Embedded systems typically utilize

ROM Rom, or ROM may refer to: Biomechanics and medicine * Risk of mortality, a medical classification to estimate the likelihood of death for a patient * Rupture of membranes, a term used during pregnancy to describe a rupture of the amniotic sac * ...

and RAM as

main memory Computer data storage or digital data storage is a technology consisting of computer components and recording media that are used to retain digital data. It is a core function and fundamental component of computers. The central processin ...

components. For functionality, embedded systems necessitate input and output interfaces. Embedded hardware configurations are often unique, varying according to the application. Given the resource limitations of embedded system hardware, operating systems are designed with a narrow scope, tailored to specific applications to ensure optimal operation within hardware constraints. The choice of embedded operating system, which organizes and controls the hardware, often dictates the additional required embedded hardware components. Software developers might write essential code in

assembly language In computing, assembly language (alternatively assembler language or symbolic machine code), often referred to simply as assembly and commonly abbreviated as ASM or asm, is any low-level programming language with a very strong correspondence bet ...

to harness the full processing power of the

central processing unit A central processing unit (CPU), also called a central processor, main processor, or just processor, is the primary Processor (computing), processor in a given computer. Its electronic circuitry executes Instruction (computing), instructions ...

(CPU). Assembly language, being ''machine-efficient,'' can enhance speed in deterministic systems but may reduce portability and

maintainability Maintainability is the ease of maintaining or providing maintenance for a functioning product or service. Depending on the field, it can have slightly different meanings. Usage in different fields Engineering In engineering, maintainability ...

. Frequently, embedded operating systems are coded in portable programming languages like C.

History

Early embedded operating systems

The concept of a real-time multitasking kernel emerged in the late 1970s. During the 1980s, as embedded systems applications grew in complexity, operating systems with real-time multitasking kernels struggled to meet the evolving demands of embedded development. This led to the evolution of the real-time multitasking kernel into a comprehensive operating system ( RTOS), encompassing networking, file management, development, and

debugging In engineering, debugging is the process of finding the Root cause analysis, root cause, workarounds, and possible fixes for bug (engineering), bugs. For software, debugging tactics can involve interactive debugging, control flow analysis, Logf ...

capabilities. Today, RTOS constitues a global industry. In 1981, Ready System developed VRTX32, the world’s first commercial embedded real-time kernel. In 1993, following a merger, Ready System and Silicon Valley’s Microtec Research developed two new RTOS kernels, VRTX32 and VRTXsa, building upon VRTXmc. Concurrently, the VRTX integrated development environment, Spectra, was introduced. In 1996,

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company, technology conglomerate headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975, the company became influential in the History of personal computers#The ear ...

released its embedded operating system, WinCE, which supported various processor architectures including

x86 x86 (also known as 80x86 or the 8086 family) is a family of complex instruction set computer (CISC) instruction set architectures initially developed by Intel, based on the 8086 microprocessor and its 8-bit-external-bus variant, the 8088. Th ...

, ARM, SH4, and MIPS. WinCE has since become obsolete, with mainstream support having ended in 2018. OS-9 and

VxWorks VxWorks is a real-time operating system (or RTOS) developed as proprietary software by Wind River Systems, a subsidiary of Aptiv. First released in 1987, VxWorks is designed for use in embedded systems requiring real-time, Deterministic system, ...

are also notable embedded operating systems.

Modern embedded operating systems

In the current landscape of the

internet of things Internet of things (IoT) describes devices with sensors, processing ability, software and other technologies that connect and exchange data with other devices and systems over the Internet or other communication networks. The IoT encompasse ...

(IoT), embedded devices are ubiquitous, with cars alone utilizing hundreds of sensors. IoT systems, in contrast to traditional embedded systems, necessitate lower power consumption, enhanced safety and reliability, and the capability for ad hoc networking . The communication layer must facilitate the conversion between diverse protocols, while the application layer should enable

cloud computing Cloud computing is "a paradigm for enabling network access to a scalable and elastic pool of shareable physical or virtual resources with self-service provisioning and administration on-demand," according to International Organization for ...

capabilities over the

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the Global network, global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a internetworking, network of networks ...

Contemporary embedded operating systems

As a result, several new embedded operating systems have gained popularity, such as embedded Linux variants (

OpenWrt OpenWrt (from ''open wireless router'') is an open-source project for embedded operating systems based on Linux kernel, Linux, primarily used on Embedded system, embedded devices to Router (computing), route network traffic. The main components ...

, Zeroshell, Android,

LineageOS LineageOS is an Open-source software, open source Android (operating system), Android operating system for smartphones, tablet computer, tablets, and set-top boxes. It is community-developed and serves as the successor to CyanogenMod, from which ...

, LEDE, LibreCMC),

OpenHarmony OpenHarmony (OHOS, OH) is a family of open-source distributed operating systems based on HarmonyOS derived from LiteOS, donated the L0-L2 branch source code by Huawei to the OpenAtom Foundation. Similar to HarmonyOS, the open-source distrib ...

, Oniro OS,

HarmonyOS HarmonyOS (HMOS) ( zh, s=鸿蒙, p=Hóngméng, tr=Vast Mist) is a distributed operating system developed by Huawei for smartphones, tablet computer, tablets, smart TVs, smart watches, personal computers and other smart devices. It has a microk ...

NetBSD NetBSD is a free and open-source Unix-like operating system based on the Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD). It was the first open-source BSD descendant officially released after 386BSD was fork (software development), forked. It continues to ...

, PX5 RTOS, ThreadX,

FreeRTOS FreeRTOS is a real-time operating system Kernel (operating system), kernel for embedded devices that has been ported to 40 microcontroller platforms. It is distributed under the MIT License. History The FreeRTOS kernel was originally developed ...

, SEGGER embOS, Tock among others.

Linux-based projects

Numerous

Linux Linux ( ) is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an kernel (operating system), operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991, by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically package manager, pac ...

-based projects, toolkits, and frameworks have been developed for creating operating systems that operate on a variety of embedded systems. Prominent examples of these include OpenEmbedded, BusyBox, uClibc, musl libc, and

Buildroot Buildroot is a set of Makefiles and Patch (Unix), patches that simplifies and automates the process of building a complete and bootable Linux environment for an embedded system, while using Cross compiler, cross-compilation to allow building for ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Embedded Operating System Embedded operating system