50+ Embedded Software Engineer Interview Questions and Answers for Freshers

Interview questions for Embedded Software Engineer including Autosar, function definition, structure and union, microcontroller and microprocessor, and communication protocols.

• Autosar is an automotive software architecture standard.

• Function definition specifies the code to be executed by a function.

• Function declaration specifies the function's name, return type, and parameters.

• Structure is a collection of variables of different data types, while union is a collection of varia...read more

Conductor, insulator and semiconductor are materials that conduct electricity in different ways.

• Conductors allow electricity to flow through them easily, such as copper and aluminum wires.

• Insulators do not allow electricity to flow through them easily, such as rubber and plastic.

• Semiconductors have properties of both conductors and insulators, such as silicon and germanium.

• The conductivity of a material can be measured by its resistance to the flow of electricity.

• Conductivity...read more

Semiconductors are used in electronics for their ability to control the flow of electricity.

• Semiconductors have a unique property of being able to switch between conducting and insulating states.

• They are used in transistors, diodes, and integrated circuits.

• Examples include silicon, germanium, and gallium arsenide.

A program on structures using pointers to declare them.

• Use the 'struct' keyword to define a structure

• Use the 'typedef' keyword to create a new type name for the structure

• Use the '->' operator to access structure members through a pointer

• Example: typedef struct { int x; int y; } Point; Point *p;

• Example: p->x = 5; p->y = 10;

Class object is an instance of a class, inheritance allows a class to inherit properties and methods from another class, function overloading is defining multiple functions with the same name but different parameters, function overriding is redefining a function in a subclass, encapsulation is bundling data and methods that operate on the data into a single unit, abstraction is hiding the implementation details and showing only the necessary details, volatile keyword is used ...read more

Logic gates are electronic circuits that perform logical operations on one or more inputs to produce an output.

• Logic gates are used in digital electronics to create complex circuits and perform mathematical operations.

• There are several types of logic gates, including AND, OR, NOT, NAND, NOR, XOR, and XNOR gates.

• Logic gates are the building blocks of digital circuits, and are used in everything from simple calculators to complex computer processors.

I'm sorry, but I cannot answer this question as it is unclear and does not relate to the job of an Embedded Software Engineer.

Conductor, insulator, and semiconductor are materials that conduct electricity in different ways.

• Conductors allow electricity to flow through them easily, such as copper and aluminum wires.

• Insulators do not allow electricity to flow through them easily, such as rubber and plastic.

• Semiconductors have properties of both conductors and insulators, such as silicon and germanium.

• The conductivity of a material can be determined by its band gap, which is the energy required for an e...read more

Semaphores and mutex are synchronization mechanisms in multithreading. Threads are lightweight processes, while processes are independent execution units.

• Semaphore: used to control access to a shared resource by multiple threads. Example: controlling access to a printer in a networked system.

• Mutex: similar to a semaphore but only allows one thread to access a resource at a time. Example: protecting a critical section of code.

• Binary semaphore: a semaphore with only two states,...read more

Stack and heap are segments of memory used in programming. Stack is used for static memory allocation, while heap is used for dynamic memory allocation.

• Stack is used for static memory allocation, where memory is allocated and deallocated in a last-in-first-out order.

• Heap is used for dynamic memory allocation, where memory is allocated and deallocated in any order.

• Examples: Stack is used for function call stack, local variables, while heap is used for dynamically allocated mem...read more

NO

• No, I did not study graphical designing.

• My focus has been on embedded software engineering.

• I have experience in developing software for embedded systems, such as microcontrollers and IoT devices.

• I have worked on projects involving real-time operating systems, device drivers, and communication protocols.

• While I may not have formal training in graphical designing, I have a strong understanding of software development principles and can work with graphical interfaces if requir...read more

I am comfortable with C, C++, and Python for embedded software development.

• Proficient in C for low-level programming

• Experienced in C++ for object-oriented design

• Skilled in Python for scripting and automation tasks

The most used semiconductor in electronics is silicon.

• Silicon is abundant and has excellent semiconductor properties.

• It is used in microprocessors, memory chips, and other electronic components.

• Other semiconductors like germanium and gallium arsenide are also used in specialized applications.

• Silicon is preferred due to its low cost, high reliability, and ease of manufacturing.

• Advancements in silicon technology have led to the development of smaller and more powerful electroni...read more

The cylinder-like structure in the charging wires of a laptop is a ferrite bead.

• Ferrite beads are used to suppress high frequency noise in electronic circuits.

• They are typically cylindrical or bead-shaped and made of ferrite material.

• Ferrite beads are commonly found on charging cables to reduce electromagnetic interference.

• They work by absorbing and dissipating high frequency noise signals.

• Example: The cylinder-like structure on the charging wire of a laptop is a ferrite bead...read more

C++ code for binary search in an array of strings

• Sort the array of strings in lexicographical order

• Set the lower and upper bounds of the search range

• Calculate the middle index and compare the search string with the middle element

• If the search string is less than the middle element, update the upper bound

• If the search string is greater than the middle element, update the lower bound

• Repeat until the search string is found or the search range is exhausted

Header files contain declarations of functions, variables, and data structures used in a program.

• Header files are included at the beginning of a source code file using #include directive

• They provide information about the functions and variables used in the program

• They help in avoiding redefinition of functions and variables

• Examples of header files are stdio.h, math.h, string.h, etc.

A queue is a data structure that follows the FIFO (First In First Out) principle. Structure and class are similar in C++, but classes have additional features like data hiding and inheritance.

• In C++, a structure is a user-defined data type that can hold different types of data. It is used to group related data together. Example: struct Queue { int front, rear; int capacity; int* array; };

• A class in C++ is similar to a structure but with additional features like data hiding an...read more

Driver code for STM32 I2C protocol implementation with key functions and macros.

• Initialize I2C peripheral using HAL_I2C_Init() function.

• Set up GPIO pins for I2C SDA and SCL using HAL_GPIO_Init().

• Use HAL_I2C_Master_Transmit() to send data to a slave device.

• Use HAL_I2C_Master_Receive() to read data from a slave device.

• Implement error handling using HAL_I2C_GetError() to check for issues.

A slave in an embedded system can handle two masters by using a bus arbitration mechanism.

• The slave device can prioritize requests from one master over the other based on a predefined protocol.

• The slave can use a bus arbitration technique such as round-robin or priority-based arbitration to manage access from multiple masters.

• The slave may have separate buffers or registers to store data from each master to prevent data corruption or loss.

• The slave can communicate with both m...read more

A Makefile automates the build process for software projects, defining how to compile and link programs.

• Define variables for compiler and flags: e.g., CC=gcc, CFLAGS=-Wall -g

• Specify targets and dependencies: e.g., myprogram: main.o utils.o

• Use rules to define how to build targets: e.g., %.o: %.c, $(CC) $(CFLAGS) -c $<

• Include clean target to remove generated files: e.g., clean: rm -f *.o myprogram

A shell program to list the last 3 recently opened files.

• Use the 'ls' command with the '-lt' option to list files in descending order of modification time.

• Pipe the output of 'ls' to 'head' command to get the first 3 lines.

• Use 'awk' command to extract only the file names from the 'ls' output.

Diode is an electronic component that allows current to flow in one direction only.

• Diode has two terminals - anode and cathode.

• It has a forward voltage drop and a reverse breakdown voltage.

• It is commonly used in rectifiers, voltage regulators, and signal demodulators.

I have worked on various embedded boards including Raspberry Pi, Arduino, and BeagleBone.

• Raspberry Pi

• Arduino

• BeagleBone

Interfacing a Character LCD with a Microcontroller involves wiring, configuring, and programming for display control.

• Connect the LCD pins to the microcontroller GPIO pins according to the datasheet.

• Initialize the LCD by sending the appropriate commands (e.g., function set, display on/off).

• Use a library (like LiquidCrystal for Arduino) to simplify command sending.

• Send data to the LCD to display characters using the appropriate functions (e.g., print or write).

• Consider using a ...read more

Add two elements without using a third variable in C program.

• Use bitwise XOR operation to add two elements without carry

• Store the result in one of the variables

• Example: int a = 5, b = 3; a = a ^ b; b = a ^ b; a = a ^ b; // a=3, b=5

OOPs concept in C++ involves encapsulation, inheritance, polymorphism, and abstraction.

• Encapsulation: Bundling data and methods that operate on the data into a single unit (class). Example: class Car { private: int speed; public: void accelerate() { speed += 10; } };

• Inheritance: Allows a class to inherit properties and behavior from another class. Example: class ElectricCar : public Car { public: void chargeBattery() { batteryLevel = 100; } };

• Polymorphism: Ability to present ...read more

A program to find prime numbers

• Start with a loop to iterate through numbers

• Check if each number is divisible by any number less than itself

• If not, add it to a list of prime numbers