Rutvij Trivedi

Rutvij Trivedi

Solution Architect, Silicon Signals Pvt. Ltd
Talk IndiaFOSS 2025

Implementing a Custom HAL in AOSP

Implementing a Custom HAL in AOSP

Session Description

In this talk, I will walk through the process of implementing a custom Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL) in the Android Open Source Project (AOSP). The session is designed to provide a clear, practical understanding of how Android communicates from the application layer to low-level hardware through its HAL interface. 

I’ll use a real-world example involving hardware activation to demonstrate:

  • Creating a HAL module and registering it with the Android system 

  • Modifying the AOSP framework to communicate with the HAL 

  • Establishing secure access to hardware nodes at the kernel level 

  • Managing permissions and SELinux policies for hardware control 

  • Developing a simple Android app and service to trigger HAL operations 

Whether you're working on sensors, indicators, or custom peripherals, this session offers a reusable blueprint for integrating the hardware layer into AOSP.