Bend it, shape it, any way you want it

Last year, at Embedded World 2014, QNX Software Systems demonstrated three systems built by its customers: a touch display that connects washing machines to the Web, an operator panel that controls forklifts and bulldozers, and an inspection system that detects cracks in gas pipelines. These systems perform very different functions, and operate in very different environments, yet they have one thing in common: the QNX Neutrino OS.

Fast-forward to Embedded World 2015, where, once again, QNX will showcase the remarkable flexibility of its OS technology, in everything from a medical device that saves lives to a robot that cleans carpets. Of course, the new demos aren’t just about flexibility. They also showcase how QNX technology can make embedded systems easier to build, easier to certify, and easier to use. Not to mention more reliable.

So if you’re at Embedded World this week, come on over and visit us at Booth 4-358. In the meantime, here's a quick peek at what we plan to showcase:

Demo #1: The autonomous vacuum
Chances are, the QNX booth will have the cleanest floor in all of Embedded World. And for that, you can blame the Neato Botvac robot vacuum.

This Botvac is one smart appliance: Before it starts to suck up dirt, it scans and maps the entire room so it can work as quickly and methodically as possible. It’s also smart enough, and quick enough, to maneuver around furniture and to avoid staircases.

To quote Mike Perkins, vice president of engineering at Neato Robotics, “our autonomous home robots need fast, predictable response times, and the QNX OS enabled our engineers to achieve very high performance on cost-effective hardware. The QNX OS also helped us create a software architecture that can quickly accommodate new features, giving us the flexibility to scale product lines and deliver compelling new capabilities.”

Check out this video of the Botvac in action:



Demo #2: The defibrillator
If you don’t already know, the QNX Neutrino OS is used in dialysis machines, infusion pumps, angiography systems, surgical robots, and a variety of other hospital-based medical devices. But it’s also used in mHealth devices that provide critical therapy or diagnostics when the nearest hospital is miles away. Case in point: the corpuls1, a defribrillator and patient monitor for fire fighters and other first responders, built by GS Elektromedizinische Geräte G. Stemple:




Demo #3: The medical reference demo
The QNX booth will also feature our latest medical reference demo, which integrates a suite of QNX, BlackBerry, and third-party technologies for building connected, safety-critical medical devices. Here is what the demo system looks like:



And here is a sample of what’s under the covers:

● IEC 62304-compliant QNX OS for Medical
● HL7, the international standard for transfer of clinical data
● User interface based on the Qt application framework
● Java runtime engine
● Remote device management and end-to-end security of the BlackBerry BES12 architecture

Demo #4: The QNX SDK for Apps and Media
We released the first version of this SDK almost exactly one year ago. In a nutshell, it extends the capabilities of the QNX Neutrino OS 6.6, enabling embedded developers to create rich user interfaces and applications with HTML5, JavaScript, CSS, and other Web technologies. It also offers secure application management, comprehensive multimedia support, mobile device connectivity, an optimized HTML5 engine, and other advanced features for building mobile-class user experiences into embedded devices.

You can learn more about the SDK on the QNX Website. In the meantime, here’s the home screen of the SDK, showing several of its built-in applications and demos:



Demo #5: The [CENSORED] robot
What kind of robot, you ask? Sorry, you’ll have to wait until the first day of Embedded World, when we will showcase a video of this (very cool) QNX system in action.

Demo #6: The all-new QNX [CENSORED]
Again, I can’t tell you what this is. I can’t even give you a hint. I can mention, however, that it’s a brand new product that will run on an automotive demo system in our booth. But don’t be fooled by the automotive connection! The new product can, in fact, be used in a wide variety of devices, not just cars. Stay tuned.



Visit www.qnx.com to learn more about QNX at Embedded World, including presentations on IoT and safety-critical design. And while you're at it, download this infographic to see how flexible QNX technology really is.

New release of QNX OS closes UX gap between smartphones and embedded systems

Okay, this one is going to be short. I'd love to have you stay, but I'd like it even more if you jumped to the QNX website. Because if you do, you'll get the full skinny on a significant new OS release that QNX Software Systems announced this morning.

But before you go, the back story. Mobile devices (think smartphones) have transformed what people expect of embedded systems (think gas pumps, vending machines, heart monitors, or just about any other device with a user interface). Every time someone uses a smartphone or tablet, they become more conditioned to the user experience it delivers. And the more conditioned they become, they more they expect a similar experience in other systems they use. It's human nature, plain and simple.

People who create embedded devices get this. They know that, to succeed, they must up their UX game. The problem is, a gap has existed between the user experiences that embedded operating systems can support and the user experiences that people want. The latest generation of the QNX Neutrino OS, version 6.6, addresses that gap. And it does so by introducing a new and potent mix of graphics, security, multimedia, security, and power management capabilities.

And just what are those capabilities? You'll have to jump to the press release to find out. :-)


The QNX SDK for Apps & Media — one of many significant new features
in the latest release of the QNX OS.

QNX at Embedded World: three distinct systems, one OS platform

A whole new way to

take QNX out for a spin.

Quick: what do washing machines, bulldozers, and pipeline inspection tools have in common? Simple: they all demonstrate the remarkable flexibility of the QNX OS.

Next week, at Embedded World, QNX will showcase three systems built by three different customers, for three different markets. Each system addresses different technical challenges and targets different end-users. And yet, in each case, the development team behind the system chose the same OS — a testament to the “bend it, shape it, any way you want it” quality of QNX technology.

Of course, not everyone can attend Embedded World. So for anyone who can’t go (or for anyone who plans to go and would like a taste of what they’ll see), here’s a sneak peek of the three systems. Mind you, this isn’t everything we will demonstrate next week — but that’s the subject of another post. :-)

Washing machine touchscreen from Dalian Eastern Display
Imagine a web-connected washing machine that can play your favorite music and videos, provide tips on removing stains, and let you choose laundry settings with the tap of a touchscreen. The system from Dalian Eastern Display lets you do all this and more, and it’s one of many solutions that Dalian is creating for IoT smart appliances.

For instance, this screen lets you quickly choose your fabrics, including cotton, wool, or polyester. It also provides a mixed setting — handy for people who aren’t sure of the difference. Me, for instance.



Once you’ve chosen the right fabric, you can fine-tune the parameters of your wash cycle, including time, temperature, speed, and water level:



Meanwhile, this menu lets you configure everything from your network connection to the system’s sound settings:



Murphy PowerView 780 display for heavy machinery
If you build equipment that has an engine and demands a rugged display, chances are its owners and operators will benefit from a Murphy PowerView 780. Designed for use with electronic or mechanical engines in everything from boats to bulldozers, the PowerView 780 integrates engine, transmission, and diagnostic information into an easy-to-read user interface. The PowerView 780 is built for extreme outdoor environments and features a 7-inch bonded LCD that is readable in direct sunlight. Better yet, it’s easily configurable to application needs. Using Murphy’s PowerVision Configuration Studio™, developers can customize the user interface with their own graphics or display parameters, track maintenance schedules, log operation data and faults, and add OEM branding.



Murphy, the company behind the PowerView 780, is a global supplier of controls and instrumentation for almost any application that involves engines or engine-driven equipment. The company is celebrating 75 years of serving the oil and gas production, engine OEM, construction, irrigation, agriculture, power generation, and work and pleasure boating markets.

LineExporer pipeline inspection system from NDT Global
When it comes to oil and gas pipelines, safety is job one. But to ensure safety, you need to keep pipelines properly maintained — and to maintain them, you need accurate and reliable inline inspection tools. That's where NDT Global comes in. NDT is a leading supplier of ultrasonic pipeline inspection and pipeline integrity management services worldwide, with operations in Germany, Russia, the US, Canada, Mexico, U.A.E., Malaysia and Singapore. At Embedded World, QNX Software Systems will showcase an NDT LineExplorer inline inspection tool for 10" pipelines that can detect and measure corrosion and cracks, depending on the sensor carrier.



For more information on QNX at Embedded World, visit the QNX website.

Chinese manufacturer chooses QNX for IOT home appliance control systems

A view of the Dalian factory

QNX Software Systems has announced that Dalian Eastern Display, a Chinese manufacturer of applications and controls for LCD panels and modules, is using QNX technology to create control systems for Internet of Things (IOT) home appliances.

The control systems will allow intelligent washing machines, intelligent refrigerators, high-end air conditioners, and other home appliances to connect wirelessly to the Internet.

Dalian Eastern Display also plans to use QNX in systems for medical devices and construction machinery.

“The QNX Neutrino RTOS has proven well-suited to developing IOT intelligent home appliance nodes and terminals… we look forward to working closely with QNX Software Systems as we develop other competitive products,” said Duan Yunsheng, general manager, Dalian Eastern Display.

According to the press release, the QNX Neutrino RTOS helps Dalian to achieve stable performance and fast startup times, and to reduce the time and effort of developing graphical user interfaces.

In 2010, the Chinese government puts its weight behind the IOT market by incorporating it into the country’s 12th five-year plan.
 

BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.0 aces HTML5 test

PlayBook OS 2.0 supports a lot of cool features, including a unified inbox, social media integration, and thousands of new apps. Not to be outdone, the team responsible for the PlayBook's browser have also upped the ante. In fact, the browser for OS 2.0 has become the top scoring tablet browser on html5test.com.

The PlayBook browser achieves a score of 354. The closest competitor, Firefox Mobile 10, comes in at 315.

To learn more about the HTML5 test and how scores are calculated, click here.
 

BlackBerry PlayBook becomes first tablet certified for U.S. government

This just in: RIM has revealed that the QNX-powered BlackBerry PlayBook has received FIPS 140-2 certification, making it the first tablet certified for deployment within U.S. federal government agencies.

According to the press release, the PlayBook is the only tablet to achieve FIPS (Federal Information Processing Standard) certification from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), which is required under the Federal Information Security Management Act of 2002 (FISMA).

Yes, I know, that's a lot of acronyms. But cool news, nonetheless!

For breaking coverage of this story, see the National Post, TheBerryFix, and CrackBerry.com.
 

BlackBerry PlayBook takes home Best of Show from FOSE conference

This just in: Government Computer News has announced that the QNX-powered BlackBerry PlayBook won the Best of Show award at the 2011 FOSE Conference and Exposition, an event dedicated to the government IT market.

The PlayBook also won in the handheld devices category.

According to the article, the panel of judges picked the PlayBook for its user interface, security, enterprise features, and government-friendly focus.

To read the full article, click here.

p.s. Thanks to RobertS for sharing this story with me.
 

Videos: Rich content and a new Facebook app for the BlackBerry PlayBook

Check out these two BlackBerry PlayBook videos recently produced by Adobe TV. The first video focuses on the PlayBook's suppport for HD video, multitasking, mobile apps, and digital publications. The second focuses on the new Flash-based Facebook app. Speaking of which, the app is now available for download from BlackBerry App World.





 

New gesture video for BlackBerry PlayBook

If you've ever tried a BlackBerry PlayBook, you'll agree that it's one heck of a multi-tasking machine. Mind you, that should come as no surprise. After all, the PlayBook's underlying QNX Neutrino OS has supported multi-tasking since the early 1980s and symmetric multiprocessing (SMP) since the late 1990s.

Still, a true multi-tasking tablet can't simply process multiple tasks all at once. It must also allow the user to interact with those multiple tasks in a fluid, intuitive manner. And that's where the advanced gestures of the BlackBerry PlayBook come into play.

Recently, a couple of my QNX colleagues put together a video to show how those gestures can help you make the best use of the PlayBook. So, without further ado, roll the tape:


 

The tablet PC, then and now

It was billed as the "portable web browsing device that could enable mass adoption of Internet access." So okay, they got that part wrong. In any case, the NatSemi WebPAD offered a tantalizing hint of things to come.

It was, first of all, a hand-holdable tablet, albeit a bulky one by today's standards. And sure enough, it let you surf wirelessly via a 2.4 GHz base station. But despite these capabilities, it was doomed to fail — not because it was deficient, but because it was ahead of its time.

You see, the WebPAD made its debut in 1998, long before Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube came on the scene. There was no social media, no Web 2.0, no eBay, no Wi-Fi hotspots, and few broadband connections. By today's standards, the web could be defined by what it lacked. So while something like a wireless tablet was extremely cool, it wasn't compelling as a consumer product. There was only so much you could do with it.

Fast-forward to 2011. The challenge of building a tablet has changed radically. In 1998, NatSemi built a tablet and hoped the web would catch up. Now, the web is rich beyond measure and needs an extremely powerful tablet to take full advantage of it. If you've seen videos of the BlackBerry PlayBook's web fidelity, wicked-fast multitasking, or HD video, you know what I'm talking about.

More to the point, the web really has caught up. As a result, the tablet concept, which was simply cool in 1998, has become simply huge in 2011. So, hats off to the folks who pioneered the concept so many years ago. And kudos to my many colleagues at QNX and RIM who are transforming that concept into a thing of beauty. Consider me blown away.
 

Embedded World video: iControl's home management platform

In February I introduced you to iControl's broadband home management platform, which uses an ARM-powered, QNX-controlled touchscreen to access thermostats, security cameras, healthcare services, news apps, and a variety of other services.

Well, here's a brand new video of the iControl system, taken at the recent embedded world conference. This time round, you get to see some nice closeups of the touchscreen interface:


 

QNX VP showcases multitasking prowess of BlackBerry PlayBook

Hey, check out this video of Sebastien Marineau, VP of engineering at QNX, as he explains how the multi-core capabilities of the QNX Neutrino OS allow the BlackBerry PlayBook to run multiple apps simultaneously:



Technically speaking, QNX Neutrino's advanced support for symmetric multiprocessing, or SMP, makes this multitasking possible. A large variety of systems, including the world's largest Internet routers, have used QNX SMP for well over a decade. Which means that the PlayBook, with its ability to deliver a full web browsing experience, uses the same technology that helps power the Web itself. Now that's pretty cool.
 

Enabling the digital home: iControl's broadband management platform

I can't believe I missed this one. Recently, I've been profiling some of the cool QNX-based devices that wowed the crowds at this year's CES conference. These devices included the BlackBerry PlayBook, the BMW ConnectedDrive system, and the Audi 3G MMI system.

There was one system I missed, however: iControl's broadband home management platform, which uses an ARM-powered, QNX-controlled touchscreen to deliver home security, energy management, and home healthcare. The device offers multiple connectivity options, including Wi-Fi, Ethernet, and ZigBee — the latter allows the system to integrate with thermostats, smart bulbs, light switches, motion detectors, and other devices.

Okay, enough from me. Let's listen to Jason Domangue from iControl as he provides a guided tour of the system:



News Flash: I just found out that the iControl system will be featured in the QNX booth at Embedded World.

 

BlackBerry PlayBook tablet makes Yahoo's worth-the-wait list

This just in: The QNX-powered BlackBerry PlayBook has made Yahoo's “Top 5 Gadgets Worth the Wait” list. According to the folks at Yahoo, other devices worth the wait include the Chevy Volt, the Nintendo 3DS, and, ahem, that other upcoming tablet device... :-)

Cue the video:

Smartphone connectivity solutions clean up at CES

If you follow this blog, you know how much I like to blab about the growing integration between cars and smartphones. Well, just to show you that I'm not totally obsessed with this theme, here's something completely different: integration between smartphones and dishwashers!

Seriously, I just came across a Techmeme article on Kenmore's upcoming line of smartphone-savvy washers, dryers, stoves, and refrigerators, which were showcased at CES. The appliances look pretty cool, but won't be available until 2012. So don't get too excited (yet) about using your BlackBerry to check whether the roast is done.

By the way, Kenmore has its own blog site, called that's genius. I just dropped by and discovered that one of the bloggers, C. C. Chapman, took this video of the QNX-powered BlackBerry Playbook while visiting CES. Check it out:


Blackberry Playbook from C.C. Chapman on Vimeo.

To read C.C.'s blog post on the PlayBook, click here.
 

New BlackBerry PlayBook demo showcases full-blown browsing experience

Yesterday, the folks at the BlackBerry channel posted a new video showcasing the "web fidelity" of the BlackBerry PlayBook. I could blabber on about the incredible, desktop-caliber browsing experience, but hey, the video says it much better than I could.

So dim the lights, grab some popcorn, and check it out:

Engadget: BlackBerry PlayBook hands-on demo

Yesterday, RIM's Jim Balsillie treated members of the Engadget team to a hallway demonstration of the BlackBerry PlayBook. The team's cameras were rolling at the time, and in the video, someone exclaims "Oh, man... oh, that's just beautiful" in response to the PlayBook's multitasking.

Well, I'm pretty sure that's what they said. You can judge for yourself; just click here to view the Engadget video.
 

Video: QNX CEO talks BlackBerry PlayBook OS at DEVCON 2010

Here's a clip of QNX CEO Dan Dodge speaking at BlackBerry^® DEVCON on the new QNX-based BlackBerry PlayBook OS.

Dan provides a quick intro to the QNX architecture, including its reliability and realtime performance, and discusses how it powers everything from cars to wind turbines to Internet routers. But most of all, he focuses on what QNX technology brings the BlackBerry PlayBook OS, including bred-in-the-bone multicore support and tight integration with Adobe AIR.

Enough blather. Let's watch the video:



Yesterday, RIM launched the BlackBerry Tablet OS SDK for Adobe AIR, as well as a new BlackBerry PlayBook simulator. For details, click here.

RIM releases BlackBerry Tablet OS SDK for Adobe AIR

This just in: Research In Motion (RIM) has launched the new BlackBerry^® Tablet OS SDK for Adobe^® AIR^® and the new BlackBerry PlayBook simulator. According to the press release:

• The SDK integrates new extensions for Adobe AIR that have been highly optimized for the BlackBerry Tablet OS
• Developers can immediately begin building applications for the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet
• Early feedback from developers highlights ease of development and high performance

For details or to download the SDK, click here.

 

BlackBerry 6: Another sneak peek

On Monday, RIM posted a new sneak peek of its BlackBerry 6 OS. The video highlights several features, including a new browser, universal search, and the ability to post to multiple social networking sites simultaneously. (That last feature makes my social-media me very happy.)

Enough blather. Let's watch the video: