What is Project Eddie?

Eddie is our concept for an embedded computer system that can be used to create and test small volume, high value technical products. These are typically found in scientific, industrial and some commercial settings.

Our background is in systems that use novel sensing techniques to analyse mined material in on-line processing settings. These systems require control and measurement computers and in some cases the processing power to compute results in real time. When developing such systems, we found that carrying the hardware and software used in initial laboratory settings through to systems with high technical readiness saved significant effort and cost.

There are microcontroller systems that many students and early career researchers and engineers are familiar with. These are often not robust enough to take from the initial prototype to final products. Much effort is usually needed to transform the basic parts into a robust product. There are robust industrial control systems (e.g. Programmable Logic Controllers) that have a high cost of entry and use programming techniques unfamiliar to these types of users.

Our idea is to provide a robust, modular system where the computer power, input and outputs and communications interfaces can be selected and scaled all the way through the process. The system should have a realistic cost of entry and the robustness to endure use in a final product.

For more information on Eddie’s development you can visit our Eddie Blog. We also encourage you to email us to nominate your interest in Eddie so we can get your input as we develop Eddie.