Axel Wolf, Philips
Philips and Embedded Systems Academy

For all applications using embedded networks the selection of these networks should be carefully considered. Once a system needs to interface to other networks (for example by growth or customer demand), bridges or gateways are required. The development effort and performance requirements for bridges and especially for gateways must not be underestimated. Common network protocols should be used where possible, so that simpler bridges can be used instead of more complex gateways. Affordable, standard 32-bit microcontrollers with many communication interfaces such as the Philips LPC2000 provide both communication interfaces and ample performance to be used in many bridge or gateway applications.