The Embedded Open Source Summit was held April 16-18 in Seattle, Washington, alongside Open Source Summit North America. Zephyr Developer Summit was under the EOSS umbrella and was for developers using or considering Zephyr in embedded products. This year, we focused on supporting topics of interest to users of Zephyr, developers contributing upstream, and maintainer-specific topics.
More than 860 people registered for the EOSS conference – representing 721 organizations across 46 countries around the globe. Zephyr had 50+ technical sessions (in-person and on-demand) for 3 tracks focused on users of Zephyr, developers contributing upstream, and maintainer-specific topics.
All of the videos from the Zephyr Developer Summit can be found on the Zephyr Project Youtube channel. Each week, we’ll highlight a few videos in a blog for easy access. Today, we’re featuring a few popular sessions including: Keynote: Evolution of Open Source for Safe Usage in Critical Systems by Kate Stewart, Vice President of Dependable Embedded Systems, The Linux Foundation and Keynote: Zephyr is Not a Product! by Anas Nashif, Principal Software Engineer, Intel.
Keynote: Evolution of Open Source for Safe Usage in Critical Systems by Kate Stewart, Vice President of Dependable Embedded Systems, The Linux Foundation
This talk is about safety in open source software used in critical systems and it starts with an analogy of cars. Cars are increasingly reliant on open source software, and as they become self-driving, the safety implications become more significant. Open source software needs to be managed properly to avoid safety issues.
She pointed out that many components in modern cars are built on open source, including entertainment systems, drivetrains, and safety – critical aspects.
Kate highlighted the integration of cameras and radar sensors in cars to enhance safety by providing drivers with better visibility and alerts about potential hazards. Emphasizing the importance of coordinating inputs from multiple sensors to ensure the safety of drivers, passengers, and pedestrians, she also discussed the challenges posed by autonomous systems, such as the need to filter and react appropriately to sensor data.
Furthermore, the presentation delved into incidents involving self-driving cars, particularly focusing on Tesla’s autopilot capability and the challenges it faces in recognizing various traffic signs and objects. Mentioning Tesla’s use of Linux in its cars and the expansion of self-driving capabilities, which has led to an increase in reported incidents, Kate emphasized the need for transparency and standardization in managing the risks associated with open-source components in safety-critical systems. Initiatives such as the SBOM (Software Bill of Materials) were discussed, along with the importance of accurate and comprehensive metadata in supply chains.
Moreover, highlighting ongoing efforts to automate safety analysis and management using tools like SPDX (Software Package Data Exchange) and Basel, she also mentioned projects like AGL, Zephyr, Zen, and Yocto, which focus on integrating open source efficiently into system engineering and ensuring safety and security in embedded devices.
Keynote: Zephyr is Not a Product! by Anas Nashif, Principal Software Engineer, Intel
Anas’s talk emphasizes the importance of neutrality in open source projects, focusing on Zephyr as a prime example. He discusses the evolution of Zephyr from a proprietary product to an open source framework and the challenges of maintaining inclusivity amidst various contributors.
He underscores the collaborative nature of Zephyr, welcoming industry leaders and companies to participate, thereby preventing it from being perceived as merely another proprietary product.
Stressing that Zephyr is structured as a framework rather than a product, enabling flexibility for building embedded systems across different architectures and use cases. He emphasizes Zephyr’s success in enabling product development, with numerous products based on the framework.
Regarding challenges related to safety certification, Anas echoed Kate’s concerns about selecting suitable hardware for certification. He acknowledged the difficulty in certifying Zephyr across all architectures and use cases, highlighting the need for a strategic approach to expand hardware support while maintaining neutrality and accessibility for all users.
Anas underscored the separation between upstream and downstream development in Zephyr, encouraging innovation while maintaining communication and collaboration between contributors. He emphasized the importance of clear communication and collaboration between upstream and downstream development to ensure the smooth functioning of downstream projects.
Anas concluded his talk by reaffirming Zephyr’s role as a foundation for building products, emphasizing its neutrality and the importance of parallel development to avoid conflicts between upstream and downstream efforts.
Watch the rest of the Zephyr Developer Summit videos here. The schedule and links to the PPT presentations can be found here. Photos from the EOSS can be found here.
For more information about the 2024 event, stay tuned by subscribing to the Zephyr quarterly newsletter or connect with us on @ZephyrIoT, Zephyr Project LinkedIn or the Zephyr Discord Channel to talk with community and TSC members.
