The life cycle is referred as models. A typical simple product contains five phases:

1) Requirement analysis

2) Design

3) Development and Test

4) Deployment

5) Maintenance

The Embedded Product Life Cycle Model contains the phases:

1. Need
2. Conceptualisation
3. Analysis
4. Design
5. Development and Testing
6. Deployment
7. Support
8. Upgrades
9. Retirement/disposal

Need:

Embedded product evolves as an output of 'Need'. The need may come from an individual or public or company. Based on the need, a statement or concept proposal is prepared. This proposal should be reviewed by the senior management and the funding agency and should get the approval. After approval, it goes to product development team, which can be an organisation from which need arise or third party. There are three types of need. They are:

1. New/Custom Product Development: The need for a product which does not exist in market or a product which acts as a competitor to an existing product in the current market will lead to development of a new product.

2. Product Re-Engineering: The embedded product market is dynamic and competitive. The product developer should be aware of general product available in markets, technology changes and user taste. Re-engineering a product is the process of making changes in an existing product design and launching it as a new version.

3. Product Maintenance: It deals with providing technical support to the end user for an existing product in the market. Corrective maintenance deals with making corrective actions following a failure of non-functioning. Preventive maintenance is the scheduled maintenance to avoid the failure of the product.

Conceptualisation: It is the 'Product Concept Development Phase' and it begins immediately after approval. It defines the scope of the concept, performs cost benefit analysis and feasibilty study and prepares project and risk management plans.

$\;\;\;$Feasibility study: It examines the need for product carefully and suggests solutions to build the need as product along with alternatives.

$\;\;\;$Cost Benefit Analysis: Identifying and analysing total development cost and profit expected from the product.

$\;\;\;$Product Scope: It deals with knowing what is in scope and not in scope of the product.

$\;\;\;$Planning activities: It covers various plans required for the product development.

Analysis: It starts after the conceptualisation phase is approved by client/sponsor of the product. Analysis is performed to develop a functional model of the product under consideration. Here, product is defined in detail w.r.t input, process, outputs and interfaces at a functional level. It determines what functions must be performed by the product.

Analysis and Documentation: It consolidates the business needs of product development and analyses the purpose of the product. It addresses various functional aspects and quality attributes of the product, defines functional and data requirements and connects them.

Interface definition and documentation: If embedded product is part of another system, there should be an interface between product and other parts of the system.

Defining Test plan and Procedures: Identifies the tests to be informed and what should be included in the test.

$\;\;\;$Unit testing: Testing each unit or module independently.

$\;\;\;$Integration testing: Integrating each module and testing the integrated unit.

$\;\;\;$System testing: Testing the functional aspects.

$\;\;\;$User Acceptance testing: Testing the product to ensure that it is meeting all the requirements of the end user.

Design: It deals with entire design of the product taking requirements into consideration and focusing on 'how' the required functionalities can be delivered to the product.

Development and Testing: It transforms the design into a realizable product.

Deployment: It is launching the first fully functional model of the product in the market. Deployment includes some important tasks:

$\;\;\;$Notification of product deployment: Whenever the product is ready to launch in the market, launching ceremony details should be communicated to stake holders and the public.

$\;\;\;$Execution of Training Plan: Training has to be given to the end user to get them acquainted with the new product.

$\;\;\;$Product Installation: Install the document as per the installation document to ensure that it is fully functional.

$\;\;\;$Product post-implementaion review: This has to be conducted to determine the success of the product.

Support: It deals with the operation and maintenance of the product in production environment. The activities are:

1. Setup a dedicated support wing.

2. Identify bugs and areas of improvement.

Upgrades: It deals with development of upgrades for the product which is already present in the market. Product output results as an output of major bug fixes or feature enhancement requirements from the end user. In this phase, there will be modifications to fix the bugs.

Retirement/disposal: Due to increased user needs and revolutionary technological changes, a product cannot sustain in the market for a long time. This is the last phase where the product is declared as obsolete and discontinued from the market.