Developing a hardware prototype proof of concept (PoC) does not require a major investment in electronic components and test equipment. Such electronic components and test equipment include active integrated circuits, electromechanical tactile switches, LEDs, oscilloscopes, and function generators. Several prototype PoCs can be built quite rapidly using an embedded hardware development board or kit, one to three electronic modules, and an AI LLM.

Another item that can aid in providing design focus when engineering a PoC is the use of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs model. The model has five characteristic levels that can identify the customers’ requirements. With such a model, a needs analysis can be included within the hardware PoC development process.

This talk will illustrate the application of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs model with an AI LLM to create a 3-bit binary counter for a PoC controller. The Renesas EK-RA3E1 kit will serve as the rapid hardware development platform for the project demonstrator.