Electronex 2023: Field Lessons for the Next Generation of Embedded & Robotics Systems

Last month I was in Melbourne for Electronex 2023, Australia’s premier electronics and embedded systems expo. It’s one of the few events where hardware engineers, firmware specialists, manufacturers, and applied-AI developers all converge in one place — and it’s always a useful snapshot of where the industry is heading.

The expo reaffirmed something that’s becoming increasingly clear across robotics, industrial IoT, and comms infrastructure: reliable, maintainable embedded systems are becoming the backbone of every modern autonomous platform.

What resonated most

Electronex is always a good temperature check for the practical side of engineering. This year, a few themes stood out:

1. Connectivity architectures are shifting

Manufacturers and integrators are moving toward:

• more modular WWAN/WLAN subsystems
• smarter fallback logic
• and embedded firmware designed to survive unpredictable real-world networks

This aligns strongly with the multi-robot communication work I’m doing in my PhD — and it’s a gap many companies are now actively trying to close.

2. Real-time visibility is becoming a non-negotiable

From handheld test gear to cloud-integrated devices, engineers increasingly expect:

• field-diagnostic tools built into the firmware
• self-reporting systems
• and data that helps teams tune performance in real-world environments

Given the Telstra signal analyser and industrial modems I’ve helped engineer, this demand felt very familiar.

3. Collaboration is where momentum comes from

Some of the best conversations came from unexpected places —

RF specialists discussing resilience; robotics teams talking about bandwidth constraints; manufacturers reflecting on long-term maintainability.

These are exactly the cross-disciplinary touchpoints that drive meaningful progress in embedded and autonomous systems.

Why NB Embedded shows up to events like this

Electronex isn’t just a showcase; it’s an opportunity to look ahead:

• What design patterns are emerging in embedded Linux?
• How are teams thinking about long-distance connectivity?
• Which constraints are shaping the next generation of robotics and IoT hardware?

For NB Embedded, these insights feed directly into how I help clients: designing firmware and communications systems that remain reliable, observable, and maintainable long after deployment.

Looking forward

Thanks to the event organisers and the engineers who shared their work so openly. It’s encouraging to see such strong momentum in Australian electronics and robotics.

Electronex 2024 is already pencilled in.

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NB Embedded is a consulting practice focused on embedded Linux, wireless networking, and robotics autonomy infrastructure, helping teams build reliable systems for real-world environments.