The Complete Guide to Customizing Android for New IoT and Embedded
Devices
Inside the Android OS is a comprehensive guide and reference for
technical professionals who want to customize and integrate Android into
embedded devices, and construct or maintain successful Android-based
products. Replete with code examples, it encourages you to create your
own working code as you read---whether for personal insight or a
professional project in the fast-growing marketplace for smart IoT
devices.
Expert Android developers G. Blake Meike and Larry Schiefer respond to
the real-world needs of embedded and IoT developers moving to Android.
After presenting an accessible introduction to the Android environment,
they guide you through boot, subsystem startup, hardware interfaces, and
application support---offering essential knowledge without ever becoming
obscure or overly specialized.
Reflecting Android's continuing evolution, Meike and Schiefer help you
take advantage of relevant innovations, from the ART application runtime
environment to Project Treble. Throughout, a book-length project covers
all you need to start implementing your own custom Android devices, one
step at a time.
You will:
- Assess advantages and tradeoffs using Android in smart IoT devices
- Master practical processes for customizing Android
- Set up a build platform, download the AOSP source, and build an
Android image
- Explore Android's components, architecture, source code, and
development tools
- Understand essential kernel modules that are unique to Android
- Use Android's extensive security infrastructure to protect devices and
users
- Walk through Android boot, from power-on through system initialization
- Explore subsystem startup, and use Zygote containers to control
application processes
- Interface with hardware through Android's Hardware Abstraction Layer
(HAL)
- Provide access to Java programs via Java Native Interface (JNI)
- Gain new flexibility by using binderized HAL (Project Treble)
- Implement native C/C++ or Java client apps without bundling vendor
libraries
