EdgeApp/EdgeCore

What is EdgeApp in EdgeCore Context?

CalAmp's Telematics EdgeApp or CTEA is a custom application extension of CalAmp's Telematics EdgeCore or CTEC. CTEC is a containerized group of embedded software modules combined together to create a telematics stack for collecting, process, and reporting edge data to the CalAmp Telematics Cloud. The CTEC "Container" provides all the functionality to develop 'real-time' applications. Developing in the container ensures that the application is portable across platforms. Once the container is supported by the platform, by providing the "container fabric", then all the applications in the container are supported. All EdgeCore applications are required to be developed in the container.

The developer may choose to only use container APIs or to also use platform APIs. The benefits of using solely the container APIs are that the EdgeApp will be portable across multiple CTEC platforms with different OSs. Conversely, using platform APIs may provide more power and flexibility, but it will be at the expense of portability. Linux development would provide a great advantage to additional services, but at the cost of potential limited portability.

CTEC provides a long list of Edge functionality including but not limited to:

• Containerized development environment that supplies all the API's and services to develop 'real-time' applications.
• Reporting of events in near real time through CTC.
• Offline logging of event and telematics data for extended durations.
• A variety of levels of security considerations.
• A sophisticated Programmable Event Generator (PEG) that can be configured and updated remotely.
• Sophisticated motion algorithms with driver behavior, crash detection, and real time raw motion reporting.
• Sophisticated GPS tracking algorithms.
• Geo-fencing algorithms.
• Sophisticated vehicle interface support.
• Remote firmware upgrade and configuration support.
• Modular design that supports public API for all modules, and a system wide message bus for event generation.
• Platform independence.
• Built in testing framework.
• Complete Vehicle Bus interface with Light and Heavy duty support and significant YMM.

Figure 1: CalAmp Telematics Edge Core Architectural Diagram

The generic CalAmp telematics stack as shown above is reflective of a specific configuration, however, EdgeCore provides a library of telematics sub-systems. These sub-systems can be arranged in a variety of LMU configurations as well as co-processor/dongle processors that provide additional functionality to the main LMU processor. Figure 2 below attempts to demonstrate this combination of library components that are selected via the EdgeCore container to provide the telematics stack.

Figure 2: CalAmp Telematics Edge Core Telematics Library

CalAmp's Telematics EdgeCore provides a vast array of telematics and telemetry data, however, with CalAmp's Telematics EdgeApp, a custom application can be developed to enhance CTEC. CTEA integrates natively into CTEC and thus is provided nearly equal access to CTEC's functionality. This can provide customizable functionality at a more granular level than and official LMU build. Both CalAmp and Customer derived functions and features can be easily added to the device via OTA or at ATE.

Figure 3: CalAmp Telematics EdgeApp/EdgeCore Integration

With EdgeApp, a developer is provided with:

• A development framework with a multi-threaded computing environment and standard basic operating system constructs.
• In container or out of container development depending on the scope of the feature.
• Access to CTEC's modules via public API or Events.
• Access to some raw telematics data via the system message bus.
• Access to PEG Triggers and Actions.
• Ability to communicate to external 3rd party through CTEC's Serial Framework.
• OTA of files, scripts, or even firmware or files for 3rd party devices.
• Built in watchdog support to provide reliability.
• Platform independence.

EdgeApp application is developed on the same basic framework that the entire CTEC is developed on giving it the same footing that CTEC affords. With an already existing application framework, the work of developing a process is already done. Developers can directly start adding custom IP. Out of the box, a developer can build and either side-load, or FOTA a new fully operational application to the target device without writing a line of code.