Military Embedded Systems
Op-Eds
Comms
Fighting stray frequencies in PCBs - Blog
October 07, 2015
To meet the constant consumer demand for higher bandwidth in their wireless devices, companies have developed ultra-wideband communications equipment and advanced wireless techniques, such as frequency-hopping spread spectrum transmission, in which radio signals are rapidly switched between frequencies. The same technique can also guard against eavesdropping. With those advances, however, comes a growing challenge for manufacturers of the high-performance printed circuit boards aimed at the wireless communications market. That challenge lies in controlling a phenomenon known as Passive Intermodulation.
From The Editor
DSEI London highlights - Blog
September 29, 2015
Anyone thinking the global defense market is slowing down would’ve been surprised if they attended the Defense and Security International (DSEI) show this month in London. Thousands of attendees saw everything from uniforms to tanks to radar signal processing board displayed at the stands. Highlights for me were an anti-drone system from three British companies, a cyber defense solution for submarine control systems (yes you can hack a submarine), a synthetic vision type of system for ground vehicles, and of course a plethora of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) devices for electronic warfare, radar, and unmanned systems applications.
Radar/EW
DSEI, VPX, COTS boards, and a bit of DSP history - Blog
September 28, 2015
Nearly two decades after I last manned a stand at the Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) show in London, I strolled the halls again this month. There I found floating point digital signal processing (DSP) has overtaken fixed point as the preferred method for military signal processing applications and that VPX is remarkably popular despite its expensive price tag. I also re-established that DSEI is still a one-stop show of military suppliers selling everything from radar processing boards to electric socks for frigid deployments.
Radar/EW
Sensor networks and warfare - Blog
September 25, 2015
EVOLUTION OF WARFARE BLOG. In this segment, we will take a look at the sensor networks used by our intelligence community and military and their importance to maintaining secrecy in warfare. As Sun Tzu stated in "The Art of War," "secret operations are essential in war; upon them the army relies to make its every move."
Radar/EW
GE embedded computing business bought by Veritas Capital - Blog
September 23, 2015
Rumors were flying last week, but the official announcement that GE was selling its embedded computing business – which falls under GE Energy Management’s Intelligent Platforms subdivision – to venture capital firm Veritas Capital in New York City didn't hit the wires till yesterday.
Radar/EW
Standards -- VPX, CompactPCI, etc. -- are a thing of the past - Blog
September 08, 2015
There are lots of standards out there, such as VPX. But what actually makes a standard standard? I'll use VPX as my example. According to my definition of a standard, I should be able to remove a CPU board from the box and replace it with another CPU board, regardless of the manufacturer, and have it come up and running with fairly minimal effort.
From The Editor
Radar/EW
Next generation warfare: unexpected happenings - Blog
August 20, 2015
EVOLUTION OF WARFARE BLOG: Now that we have looked at the evolution of warfare through the ages in the previous seven articles, and speculated on what the future may hold, there are several significant incidents that beg examination and explanation. While the U.S. unquestionably has the most sophisticated weapons and intelligence systems on the planet, are our enemies catching up or even getting ahead of us? And do we already have next-generation intelligence systems operating secretly?
Cyber
Embedded systems, meet the Internet of Things - Blog
August 20, 2015
OPEN SOURCE WAY BLOG: In many ways, embedded systems are the progenitor of the Internet of Things (IoT) – and now IoT is changing key aspects of how we design and build military embedded systems. In fact, the new model for embedded systems within IoT might best be described as design, build, maintain, update, extend, and evolve.
Comms
Ensure authenticity by eliminating counterfeit parts - Blog
August 12, 2015
Counterfeit electronics are becoming increasingly common in the marketplace. These counterfeits can lead to problems with product safety and reliability, a risk for end users of the products that incorporate them. It’s possible, however, to minimize the problem by being aware of it and taking proper steps to identify parts and mitigate the issue.
From The Editor
Unmanned
Looking toward 7th and 8th generation warfare - Blog
July 07, 2015
WARFARE EVOLUTION BLOG: “The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting,” wrote Sun Tzu in his book "The Art of War."If you can convince your enemy that his military efforts will all be in vain, then you can win without fighting, which is where 7th and 8th generation warfare (7GW and 8GW) will lead us.
Avionics
Going modular? Meet data and control coupling - Blog
June 10, 2015
CODE QUALITY BLOG: Since the dawn of the discipline of software engineering, one of the persistent mantras has been modularization. This structured design and functional decomposition approach breaks software down into clearly defined functional units, or modules, with unambiguous interfaces. The proven value of this approach is high quality software. When you go modular, however, software testing must examine the way that the modules come together and interact. This kind of testing is dubbed “data and control coupling.”
Radar/EW
Security value of processor-driven configuration for FPGA-SoCs - Blog
June 01, 2015
With the massive increase in content and IP options made available in the modern field programmable gate array (FPGA) system-on-chip (SoC) device, the last true frontier in flexibility is the configuration process itself. Expect to see next-generation FPGA SoCs that make this flexibility in security, configuration times, and single-event upset (SEU) responses a reality.
Radar/EW
Intel to buy FPGA maker Altera for more than $16 billion - Blog
June 01, 2015
According to a report I heard on CNBC this morning, computer chip giant Intel in Santa Clara, Calif., is looking to buy FPGA-designer Altera in San Jose, Calif., for about 16.7 billion or $54 a share. Altera Stratix FPGAs play key links military signal processing chains for applications such as radar, sonar, and electronics warfare to name a few.
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Position, navigation, open compute module for small UAS showing at Xponential 2026
May 12, 2026
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Armed robotic quadruped to undergo special operations evaluations
May 11, 2026
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Autonomous conference lands in Detroit: Xponential 2026
May 11, 2026
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Product of the Week: Omnetics High-Speed Nano-D
May 11, 2026
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Radar from Raytheon garners large order from defense logistics group
May 06, 2026
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Space-based interceptors to be developed for U.S. Space Force by Anduril team
May 06, 2026
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Improved threat detection system to be developed for U.S. Army by Northrop Grumman
May 05, 2026
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Space-based interceptor capabilities to be developed for U.S. Space Force by Lockheed Martin
May 04, 2026
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U.S. Navy embedding AI into Maritime Operations Centers, admiral says
April 20, 2026
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Mission data center to be established in Belgium by QinetiQ
April 02, 2026
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Agentic AI capabilities to be integrated into defense platforms by BAE Systems, Scale AI
March 27, 2026
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Artificial intelligence tools to be explored for GlobalEye aircraft by Saab and Cohere
March 24, 2026
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Software delivery to F-22 accomplished with USAF, cybersecurity firm
March 18, 2026
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GUEST BLOG: Making the most of the transition to IPv6
March 11, 2026
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Cyberdefense company to leverage AI tools for U.S. federal agencies
February 23, 2026
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IT infrastructure award announced by U.S. Air Force
February 12, 2026