Aaron Needles

Background

About Aaron Needles

I am an embedded systems consultant specializing in the design of embedded software and hardware, from concept to production. I have over 25 years of experience solving real-world problems in the creation of hand-held devices, networking switches, robotic manipulators and vehicles, lighting and camera controls, power systems, motor controls and distributed control systems. My experience in these areas allows me to maximize product functionality while also negotiating environmental, packaging and cost constraints. I offer my services in the design of turnkey solutions or to complement your existing design team where needed. Technical Strengths • Embedded software and system design for real-time control. • Control system design, configuration and tuning. • Sensor interface and integration. • Communications and networking over serial buses, ethernet, and wireless links. • Design of bootloaders with custom integration over communication channels. • User-machine interfaces. • Motor control for BLDC, BLAC and PMSM motors. Stepper motor interfacing and sequencing. • Actuator and valve control. • Robotic vehicle control and motor synchronization. Robotic arm kinematics and control. • Built-in diagnostic tools for detecting and displaying system state and faults. • Design of microcontroller-based PCBs for control and communication. • Languages: C, C++, Assembly, Verilog, VHDL, C#.NET WinForms, HTML, JavaScript, Perl. • RTOS: VxWorks and custom. • PCB Layout in Orcad and Altium Designer, Gerber editing tools. • Peripheral interfaces: Ethernet, I2C, SPI, JTAG, RS-232, RS-485, etc. • Networking: TCP/IP and related protocols. RSTP network configuration. • Microcontrollers: Atmel, Motorola/Freescale, Microchip Tech. and x86 microcontrollers. • DSPs: Motorola, Texas Instruments, fixed and floating point. • Xilinx and Altera FPGAs and CPLDs • Controllers: Handheld pendants, VME-bus systems, Compact PCI, Industrial PCs, Sensor I/O boards, custom designs and off-the-shelf varieties