NAJAARSCONFERENTIE 1999
(Lezing)


Linux for fast prototyping
a consumer device

Philips Research
Ronald Tol en Erik Niessen

<ronald.tol@philips.com>
<erik.niessen@philips.com>

 

ABSTRACT

The STORit project investigates end-to-end solutions for the delivery of multimedia services to end-users involving the combination of a broadband delivery channel such as DVB, lower bandwidth connections such as internet and affordable local mass storage at the users home.

Features provided are: 'clicking' a button while watching a programme trailer will record the advertised programme and 'clicking' on a 'weblink' to a tv-series ensures that the entire series will be captured.

The STORit box is the consumer-side platform developed in the project. It provides storage for 10 hours of television programmes on a large hard disk and about 10 hours per medium on removable media.

Linux has been chosen as the operating system for the box. It enabled us to quickly develop the prototype. E.g., the necessary device drivers for our custom-made hardware could be developed relatively easy. Thus we could concentrate on the functionality of the STORit box.

In the paper we first describe the STORit system and its area of application. Then we focus on the STORit box and describe its development. We discuss in great detail how Linux helped us in that development. Finally, we end the paper with the advantages and disadvantages of our approach.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Ronald Tol graduated from the University of Groningen in 1990 in Computing Science. In 1995, he obtained a Ph.D. degree in Mathematics and Natural Sciences from the University of Groningen on a thesis with the title: "Formal design of a real-time operating system kernel". In 1995 he joined Philips Research. His research interests include: - architecture of (in-home) storage systems - (real-time) file systems - real-time operating systems - information management in products. He participated in the EU-funded SMASH project (AC018). Currently he is involved in the EU-funded STORit project (AC312) as a workgroup leader responsible for the hardware/software platform.

Erik Niessen graduated from the H.T.S. of Eindhoven in 1994 in telecommunication. In 1994 he did his service in the army. In 1995 he joined Philips Research. His research interests include: - architecture of (in-home) storage systems - (real-time) file systems - real-time operating systems in products. He participated in the EU-funded SMASH project (AC018). Currently he is involved in the EU-funded STORit project (AC312) as a software engineer responsible for the hardware/software platform.


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Last update: 12-10-99