embedded-guru 0.4.3

Firmware development mentor skill for Claude Code — teaches bare-metal embedded firmware by doing

Runs inside Claude Code. Zero libraries. Zero hand-holding. Just registers, datasheets, and real hardware.

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What is this?

EmbeddedGuru is a Claude Code skill that teaches bare-metal embedded firmware the way a senior engineer would — by making you build real things, not by explaining slides at you.

It won't write your code. It'll ask what the peripheral status register says. It assigns real hardware tasks with specific exit criteria, remembers exactly where you left off, tracks your progress across sessions, and pushes back the moment you try to copy-paste your way through a concept.

It knows registers, not libraries. Datasheets, not tutorials.

New to embedded systems entirely? New to Claude Code? Both are fine — the sections below walk through everything from scratch.

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🚀 Quick Start

New here? Start with step 0 — it's the one people skip and then get stuck on.

0. Install Claude Code

EmbeddedGuru is a skill that runs inside Claude Code, Anthropic's official CLI. If you don't have it yet:

npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code
claude          # launches Claude Code — sign in with your Anthropic account when prompted

Don't have Node.js? Grab it from nodejs.org first (v18+). Full install docs: docs.claude.com/claude-code

1. Install EmbeddedGuru

pipx install embedded-guru      # install the CLI (isolated, no dependency conflicts)
embeddedguru install            # seeds Claude Code with the mentor skill + curriculum graph

Don't have pipx? See Prerequisites below.

2. Start learning

embeddedguru run

That's it — embeddedguru run launches Claude Code and drops you straight into your first /guru session. Prefer to do it manually? Open Claude Code yourself and type /guru.

Behind the scenes, the installer:

1. Checks Graphify is installed — installs it if not
2. Copies the SKILL.md mentor brain into ~/.claude/skills/embedded-guru/
3. Copies the curriculum knowledge base (protocols, registers, boards, standards) into ~/.claude/embedded_guru/curriculum/
4. Registers the /guru trigger in ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md

On your first session, the skill builds the curriculum knowledge graph automatically inside Claude Code. Every session end, your student graph (profile, assignments, milestones, progress) is updated — so the mentor always knows exactly where you are.

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Four Domain Tracks

Track	Hardware	Protocols	Standards
IoT	ESP32 · STM32	UART · I2C · SPI · MQTT	—
Automotive / CAN	STM32 · CAN transceiver	CAN · OBD-II · UDS · ISO-TP	ISO 11898 · ISO 14229
Medical	STM32 · ADC frontend	I2C · SPI · ADC · IWDG	IEC 62304 · IEC 60601-1
Industrial / RTOS	STM32 · RS-485	FreeRTOS · Modbus RTU · DMA	IEC 61508 · MISRA-C

Every track shares a common foundation: GPIO → UART → I2C → SPI → DMA — from registers, not libraries.

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Knowledge Graph Architecture

~/.claude/embedded_guru/
├── curriculum/
│   ├── concepts/        UART · SPI · I2C · CAN · DMA · FreeRTOS · watchdog
│   ├── hardware/        boards, peripherals, capabilities
│   ├── milestones/      IoT · Automotive · Medical · Industrial roadmaps
│   ├── mistakes/        10 common hardware + firmware mistakes
│   ├── standards/       MISRA-C · ISO 26262 · IEC 62304 · Modbus
│   └── graphify-out/
│       └── graph.json   ← curriculum facts (read-only, seeded at install)
│
└── <your-name>/
    └── graphify-out/
        └── graph.json   ← your profile, progress, assignments (updated each session)

Before generating any output, the mentor queries the graph:

graphify query "I2C pull-up resistor value" --graph ~/.claude/embedded_guru/curriculum/graphify-out/graph.json
# → returns verified fact from curriculum, not a hallucinated value

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Prerequisites

• Claude Code installed — see step 0 above
• Python 3.9+
• pipx

Install pipx:

brew install pipx        # macOS
sudo apt install pipx    # Linux
pip install pipx         # Windows

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Upgrade

pipx upgrade embedded-guru
embeddedguru install

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Session Commands

Command	What happens
/guru	Start or resume your session
/guru debug	Jump straight into a debugging session
/guru roadmap	See your current roadmap and next milestone
/guru assignment	Check your open assignments
/guru goal	Review or update your end goal
/guru profile	See your full student profile
/guru interview	Run a mock technical interview — calibrated to your level and domain
/guru assess	Run a formal assessment → generates a PNG scorecard you can share

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Mock Interview

/guru interview simulates a real embedded engineering technical interview: 8–10 questions across warm-up, register-level, debugging scenario, and system design categories — calibrated to your current level.

No hints. No feedback mid-session. Debrief with per-question scores, strengths, gaps, and interview readiness at the end.

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Assessment Scorecard

/guru assess runs a formal 5-category scored test and generates a PNG certificate you can share on LinkedIn.

Categories:

• Core Firmware Fundamentals (20%)
• Protocol Knowledge (25%)
• Safety & Reliability (20%)
• Domain Expertise (25%)
• Debugging & Problem Solving (10%)

Grades: Novice → Practitioner → Engineer → Senior Engineer → Expert → Principal Engineer

The scorecard PNG is watermarked with EmbeddedGuru branding and your name.

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Teach the Mentor Your Datasheets

Drop any datasheet, reference manual, DBC file, or application note into the curriculum:

embeddedguru add ~/Downloads/STM32H7_RM.pdf
embeddedguru add ~/projects/vehicle_signals.dbc
embeddedguru add ~/docs/company_spi_spec.md

On your next /guru session, the knowledge graph is rebuilt automatically — and the mentor can now answer questions grounded in your exact chip, bus definition, or document.

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Install Options

embeddedguru install --dry-run        # preview without making changes
embeddedguru install --skip-graphify  # skip graphify check (offline / CI)
embeddedguru add <file>               # add any document to the curriculum
embeddedguru scorecard <file.json>    # generate PNG from an assessment JSON

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Uninstall

embeddedguru uninstall          # keeps student data
embeddedguru uninstall --all    # removes everything including progress
pipx uninstall embedded-guru

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What the mentor will and won't do

Will do

• Ask who you are first (12th standard, college student, ECE/EEE grad, or working professional) — then assess your real level (L0–L3) within that persona from how you answer questions, not what you claim
• Teach you your first program from scratch if you've never written code at all, on your own board, in the same session — not send you off to learn elsewhere first
• Build a custom roadmap for your domain and board
• Assign real hardware tasks with specific exit criteria
• Tell you which register to read when you're stuck
• Push back on code dumps — "I could. You'd fix this bug and forget how."
• Acknowledge frustration before redirecting
• Track everything across sessions — no re-explaining your background each time

Won't do

• Write your firmware for you
• Accept "it works" as a milestone exit — working code + test output required
• Let you skip Milestone 0 (datasheet literacy) regardless of claimed experience
• Pretend a Raspberry Pi 4 is suitable for bare-metal embedded development
• Teach I2C without first asking what pull-up resistor value you used

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Supported Boards

Board	Domain	Level	Notes
STM32 Nucleo-F446RE	All	L1–L3	Recommended for most tracks
STM32 Nucleo-F411RE	IoT · Medical	L1–L2	Budget option
ESP32-DevKitC	IoT	L1–L2	WiFi/BT built-in
Raspberry Pi Pico	IoT	L1	Good starter board
STM32F103 Blue Pill	All	L2–L3	Cheap, widely available
Arduino Uno	IoT	L0 → L1 only	HAL-only, no bare-metal CAN
Raspberry Pi 4	—	—	⚠ Not suitable for bare-metal embedded

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Contributing

PRs welcome for curriculum files, new board entries, and regression tests that expose wrong advice.

git clone https://github.com/nikhil-robinson/embedded_guru
cd embedded_guru
pip install -e .
embeddedguru install --dry-run

Open issues at github.com/nikhil-robinson/embedded_guru/issues

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Acknowledgements

Knowledge graph powered by Graphify — built by @safishamsi. Graphify turns raw files into queryable knowledge graphs and is what keeps the mentor grounded in verified facts rather than hallucinated register values.

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Disclaimer & Legal Notice

EmbeddedGuru is an educational tool. It is not a professional engineering service, a certified design tool, or a substitute for human expert review.

No Data Collection

EmbeddedGuru collects no personal data. All student profiles, progress files, curriculum graphs, and assessment results are stored exclusively on your local machine under ~/.claude/embedded_guru/. Nothing is transmitted to the developer or any third party by this software.

EmbeddedGuru runs inside Claude Code, an Anthropic product. Your conversations are subject to Anthropic's Privacy Policy. EmbeddedGuru has no control over or access to that data.

AI Limitations — Verify Everything

Outputs produced by this skill are generated by a large language model and may contain errors, including but not limited to:

• Incorrect register addresses, bit masks, or timing values
• Inaccurate protocol specifications (CAN, I2C, SPI, Modbus, UDS, ISO-TP)
• Outdated or inapplicable references to datasheets and standards
• Plausible-sounding but incorrect debugging guidance

Always verify any register value, timing requirement, voltage level, or protocol detail against the official datasheet or reference manual for your specific hardware revision before using it in real firmware.

Safety-Critical Domains

EmbeddedGuru teaches concepts related to medical devices (IEC 62304, IEC 60601-1) and automotive systems (ISO 26262, ISO 14229, MISRA-C) for educational purposes only.

• It is not a certified validation or verification tool under any standard.
• It does not produce outputs suitable for submission to any regulatory body.
• Firmware intended for use in medical devices, vehicles, industrial control systems, or any other safety-critical application must be designed, reviewed, and validated by qualified engineers following the applicable certification processes.

Using this tool for safety-critical production firmware without proper human expert review and certification is done entirely at your own risk.

No Warranty / Limitation of Liability

This software is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, express or implied. To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law:

• The developer (Nikhil Robinson) and any contributors are not liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages arising from the use of this software or the AI-generated content it produces.
• This includes, without limitation: hardware damage, data loss, personal injury, regulatory non-compliance, financial loss, or any other harm resulting from acting on AI-generated advice without independent verification.

See LICENSE for the full MIT license terms.

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License

MIT — see LICENSE

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Built by Nikhil Robinson

If this helped you understand why your I2C bus was stuck at 3am, consider buying a coffee.