From Prototype to Product: Steps to Launch Hardware That Ships
You’re only 30 to 40 percent done when your hardware design is functionally successful (i.e., your prototype works). Shipping a real product involves multiple interdependent steps across engineering, supply chain, compliance, and operations. Here’s a detailed breakdown from functional design to selling on eCommerce platforms: 1. Design Verification Even if your prototype works, you […]
Six Steps to a New Hardware Solution (1 Minute Guide)
Six simple steps to get from idea to a production-ready electronics/embedded system, explained in less than 1 minute. 1. Understand product idea and requirements Understand which problem the device solves. Identify constraints such as cost, size, power, and battery life. List down all the requirements. 2. Component selection Select key components: microcontrollers (MCU), sensors, communication […]
Why Product Plans Fail in the Real World: Lessons from the Lab to the Assembly Line
When I was developing my first hardware product, we had planned for 2 hardware iterations. It took us 7. If you’ve built hardware before, you know the roadmap always starts out clean. Until reality hits. Things start breaking down as soon as you move from idea to development. And they continue through to production. […]
Cost Drivers in New Electronic Product Development
How much will the design and development cost? Let’s consider an example: a battery-powered hardware device with a microcontroller, two to three onboard sensors, extended memory, two wireless communication options (such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, LTE, NB-IoT, or LoRaWAN), and power management circuitry. This example is intended to provide a rough idea, as costs in […]
Select the Right Position Tracking Technology: Key Considerations and Comparisons
Choosing the right position/motion tracking technology is necessary for the success of any product that requires tracking the location of objects or individuals. Position tracking technologies have revolutionized numerous industries, from virtual reality and film production to healthcare and sports analytics. This article compares various real-time position tracking technologies, focusing on their operational principles, applications, […]
What are Release Notes? And Why are they Important in Embedded Development?
What are Release Notes? Release notes are documents or announcements that accompany the release of new software or updates to existing software. They are used to inform users, stakeholders, and developers about what has changed, what has been added, fixed, or improved, and any known issues. Why Are Release Notes Important? Release notes keep […]
What is Requirement Traceability? And Why Should Managers of Embedded Development Care About It?
Requirements’ traceability is the ability to track requirements throughout the product’s life cycle. This includes linking requirements with other higher and lower-level requirements, test cases, use cases, risks, and deliverables etc. Why Do We Need Requirement Traceability? In the case of Embedded system development, you need requirement traceability for the audits of the certification process. […]
The Leading Cause of Long Delays in Your Product’s Time to Market: Poorly Defined Requirements
One reason that caused the longest delays in the launch of embedded products in our experience has been unclear and changing requirements. When the requirements were poorly defined, we often had to rewrite the code, redesign the circuit and PCB, and even redefine the architecture. This made the development inefficient, caused a lot of wasted […]
Why Your Electronics and Embedded Product Development Is So Slow
Time to market can make or break a product’s success. Delays in product launches block revenue and cause a cashflow problem for the business. You have customers waiting. And you have competition arising from “Me Too” products. This is especially true in the world of embedded systems. If your electronics and embedded product development […]
