Interview with Phillip Johnston Part 2

The Pragmatic Embedded Podcast · 29 Nov 2022 · 42m

What this episode covers

Phillip Johnston, founder of Embedded Artistry, discusses the practical implementation of remote monitoring and debugging for embedded devices, focusing on data storage, transmission, and Over-The-Air (OTA) update strategies. He argues that while building these capabilities in-house is possible for large enterprises or consultancies, most companies should use services like Memfault, Golioth, or Mender to avoid the high cost and long development time required to match their maturity. The conversation covers the trade-offs between local storage and connectivity, the necessity of robust fallback mechanisms for OTA updates to prevent bricking, and the critical role of human oversight in interpreting automated data.

Mentioned

Companies
Embedded Artistry, Memfault, Golioth, Mender, Tesla, BMW
Tools
Zephyr, MCU boot

Other shows on the same ground, closest first.

  • Embedded.fm · 1h 12m

    390: Irresponsible At the Time

    Tyler Hoffman, co-founder of Memfault, discusses the challenges of managing firmware updates, device diagnostics, and remote monitoring for millions of IoT devices. He draws on his experience at Pebble and Fitbit to explain why existing cloud platforms are often unsuitable for resource-constrained embedded systems, highlighting the need for secure boot, staged rollouts, and efficient heartbeat reporting. Hoffman details how Memfault’s platform helps engineers detect crashes, track battery life trends, and prioritize bugs by aggregating data from large device fleets. The conversation emphasizes the importance of defensive programming and building robust OTA systems to prevent bricking devices at scale.

  • Over the Air · 34m

    Revolutionizing IoT Device Management: Updating the World with Peridio

    Bill Brock, COO, and Justin Schneck, CPO, of Peridio, discuss the challenges of managing IoT device fleets and their platform's approach to device-centric CI/CD. They explain why web development abstractions fail in embedded systems, highlighting the critical need for atomic updates to prevent 'bricked' devices from power failures or poor connectivity. The conversation covers the shift from simple sensors to complex edge AI, requiring collaborative workflows that bridge embedded engineers, data scientists, and web developers. They argue that current cloud providers offer scale but lack the necessary collaboration tools and safety nets for physical device distribution.

  • Embedded.fm · 1h 10m

    528: Goldfish Chunks

    Tyler Hoffman, co-founder of Memfault (now part of Nordic Semiconductor), discusses the architecture and philosophy of Memfault, a platform for embedded device diagnostics and observability. He explains the separation of operational data from product data, the 'device-in-control' approach to firmware updates, and the use of Memfault Diagnostic Service (MDS) for BLE devices. The conversation covers when to use Memfault versus building custom solutions, the challenges of low-bandwidth connectivity, and the realities of scaling fleet management.

  • The Amp Hour · 1h 19m

    Firmware for Hardware Engineers with Phillip Johnston

    Phillip Johnston of Embedded Artistry explains how hardware engineers can improve firmware quality by adopting software engineering practices like separation of concerns, information hiding, and loose coupling. He details the implementation of Continuous Integration (CI) pipelines using tools like Jenkins and GitHub Actions to automate testing, static analysis, and hardware-in-the-loop checks. Johnston also discusses the strategic shift from bare-metal development to ecosystems like Zephyr RTOS and the importance of designing for change to mitigate supply chain risks.

  • IoT For All Podcast · 24m

    The Importance of Device Management in IoT Solutions | Memfault's François Baldassari

    François Baldassari, Founder and CEO of Memfault, explains how his experience building firmware for Pebble and Oculus Quest revealed the need for cloud-based observability in IoT devices. He details Memfault's SDK, which collects fault and battery data to help companies like Whoop reduce RMAs and support costs. Baldassari also discusses the industry's shift toward complex embedded software, the critical importance of early security integration, and strategies for managing customer expectations regarding physical constraints.

The summary, chapters and topics are generated from the episode’s audio by this directory, not written by The Pragmatic Embedded Podcast. The episode itself belongs to its publisher.