Large military truck runs embedded Linux, open-source database

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Apr. 04, 2005

A maker of trucks for the military market has used embedded Linux and an embedded database in a heavy truck's fault-reporting system. The Oshkosh A3 HEMTT (heavy expanded mobility tactical truck) runs Linux on an ARM 9E processor, along with the db.* database from ITTIA.

(Click for larger view of large Oshkosh truck)

According to ITTIA's Daniel Hornal, previous Oshkosh truck models had no user-visible computer systems, making cost a key concern. "The project lead at Oshkosh told me that it was hard for him to justify to his bosses having a computer system at all. That's why (along with the inherent stability of the OS) they went with embedded Linux for the truck; it was extremely important to keep costs down, and eliminate licensing fees, as well as having something that can run on minimal hardware. Of course, that's also why they went with db.*."

The db.* database has a small footprint, in part because it was developed a long time ago, in an era of considerably less powerful processors. The db.* database was first released in the 1980s, as dbvista. It was released under an open source license in the early 2000s, after owner Centura went out of business. ITTIA, a small database consulting firm, adopted it in 2004, subsequently launching "Club ITTIA," an online community from which free and commercial support is available. ITTIA announced the ARM port of db.* last month.

Jim Bomkamp, a development manager at Oshkosh, said he chose db.* based on performance, support availability, and the zero-cost licensing fee, as well as footprint size. "There were some other database companies that would do what we wanted to do, and would provide training and so forth, but they were far more expensive," he said.

According to ITTIA, Oshkosh hired ITTIA to provide training, after which Oshkosh engineers were able to optimize their code. ITTIA estimates that Oshkosh will save "hundreds of thousands of dollars" over the lifecycle of its Linux-based fault-reporting system -- which Oshkosh expects to use in other truck models -- thanks to its choice of database. The db.* database is free to download, develop, and distribute, and the mature code is well-documented and well-supported, leading to low TCO (total cost of ownership), ITTIA claims.

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