The biggest embedded world ever closes with new records

It is the No. 1 international gathering place for all aspects of embedded system technologies. Equally successful, and featuring even more participants, were the embedded world and electronic displays Conferences: 1,666 embedded and display experts from all over the world came to the Exhibition Centre Nuremberg to enjoy professional knowledge-sharing of the highest professional calibre.

“The 14th embedded world fair impressed yet again with greater display area and higher numbers of exhibitors and visitors. There was also an increase in the international contingent. The amount of potential here is extraordinary. The 939 exhibitors from 38 countries represent the highest participation rate to date, and we envisage scope to grow even more in this innovative and forward-looking sector. We are particularly pleased about the exceptional commitment on the part of visitors to the event. The 30,063 trade visitors from all over the globe confirm the significance of the fair and its congresses for the embedded community,” says a delighted Richard Krowoza, Nürnberg Messe Management Team.

The mood in the halls was extremely good thanks to the trade visitors on the one hand and the exhibiting companies on the other. Both groups met the kind of people they needed to conduct productive dialogue and get new projects under way. This is all also confirmed by our exhibitor poll, in which, for example, 93% of exhibiting companies rated the event as a success. Based on the atmosphere in the exhibition halls and the results at their stands, almost as many companies said that they would be exhibiting again in 2017,while 94% were able to forge new business contacts and nine out of ten companies expect follow-on business from the event. In addition, 97% confirmed that they were able to reach their target groups.

The visitor poll conducted by an independent institute also highlighted the mood in the halls. Almost without exception, trade visitors were satisfied with the content of the event and range of products on display. Nine out of ten of the 30,063 trade visitors are involved in the procurement decisions at their companies. This is further evidence of the great importance of the fair for the embedded community. This is also demonstrated by the fact that around 94% of respondents would recommend embedded world to their business contacts and colleagues, while 96% stated before the fair was even over that they would visit embedded world again in 2017.

“The Long Hard Road Out of the Cyber Dark Ages” was the theme of the impressive keynote address by Eugene Kaspersky, CEO of Kaspersky Lab, who was attending the leading international fair for the first time to hold the keynote speech and take part in a panel discussion. Before a packed audience, Kaspersky described how IT security aspects were also becoming more and more relevant in the IoT due to the increasing fusion of IT and the embedded environment. For cyber security experts, it was particularly difficult to secure systems that had not been developed to take account of potential security breaches. Kaspersky pointed out that the best IT security engineers, but also the best hackers, came from Russia. He called for the introduction of development standards that would make software inherently more secure.

In 2016, the theme of the embedded world Conference was once again 'We are the Internet of Things', but the event also focused on the equally important issue of safety and security. The development of the IoT calls for expertise in core disciplines of the embedded environment like hardware and software development, system engineering or management.

Not only in the keynote address by Eugene Kaspersky, but also in numerous sessions and classes, the main focus was on the security of embedded systems. Renowned experts from various companies presented protection solutions, discussed secure transmission channels and showed how security can be systematically planned and installed at different levels.

All three days of the Conference provided answers to the most pressing questions relating to the 'IoT', the second thematic focus of the event. The topics explored ranged from open source through the suitability of different communication protocols to best practice examples of specific IoT nodes and applications. However, plenty of attention was also devoted to 'traditional' subjects like systems, software and hardware engineering.

On its 30th anniversary, the electronic displays Conference impressed the professional community with its comprehensive and highly specialised programme. It provided the international experts who had travelled to the event with all relevant information about electronic displays for developers, users and decision-makers. This year’s highlights included keynote speeches on new conceptual approaches in display technology, market opportunities and display trends presented by internationally renowned experts. Success factors for displays in automotive applications and the latest trends in touch screens provided further thematic focus and highlights at the Conference. Sessions on topics like display measuring technology, interfaces and display optimisation provided a fitting complement to the programme. The regular author interviews after each session offered a great opportunity to discuss the presentations in a small group setting.

A genuine highlight at the heart of the action was the newly initiated “Safe for the Future”, a series of presentations and discussion panel with high-calibre experts on the second morning of the show. The panel brought together Eugene Kaspersky, CEO of Kaspersky Labs, Professor Nikolaus Forgó, Institute for Legal Informatics at the University of Hannover, and Dr Mathias Wagner, Senior Fellow, Chief Security Technologist, NXP Semiconductors. The discussion was moderated by Professor Axel Sikora from the University of Offenbach, who is also a member of the Steering Board of the embedded world Conference. One area explored by this top class discussion panel was how critical infrastructures can be usefully protected in the long term.

For the 12th time in succession, the embedded AWARD has recognised products that make a special contribution to the advancement of the entire sector of embedded systems and the IoT. The coveted award in the categories hardware, software and tools was presented during the press tour of embedded world 2016 by Dr Roland Fleck, CEO of NürnbergMesse and Professor Matthias Sturm, chair of the jury and the embedded world advisory board.

And the winners are:

• KEOLABS IoTize in the hardware category
• QNX Software Systems in the software category with its QNX OS for Safety
• GÖPEL electronic in the tools category with JEDOS (JTAG Embedded Diagnostics OS)

The embedded world student day is an event that is enshrined in the embedded world programme. On the third day of the fair, future engineers flock to the event. More than 1,000 highly motivated and committed young people came from Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic to enjoy an interesting and impressive lecture by Professor Franz Josef Radermacher. Radermacher lectures at the University of Ulm’s Institute for Databases and Artificial Intelligence and Research Institute for Application-Oriented Knowledge Processing (FAW/n).