Product category:
Microprocessors, Microcontrollers and DSPs
News Release from: Analog Devices | Subject: ADSP-BF533
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial
Team on 20 February 2006
Processor adds colour to infra-red
imaging market
The ADSP-BF533 Blackfin processor plays a key role in the AXT100 thermal infra-red imaging camera from Ann Arbor Sensor Systems.
The ADSP-BF533 Blackfin processor plays a key role in the AXT100 thermal infra-red imaging camera from Ann Arbor Sensor Systems Blackfin, which plays a pivotal role in the AXT100's transformation of infra-red energy into colour images, has ultimately helped Ann Arbor shatter the traditional price/performance barriers that have slowed the thermal infra-red imaging camera market
This article was originally published on Electronicstalk on 21 Mar 2006 at 8.00am (UK)
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Infra-red imaging is critical in manufacturing applications, such as die-casting and plastic injection, for specifications that are not visible to the naked eye.
Ann Arbor's AXT100 camera uses an array of sensors, called a thermopile focal plane array (TFPA), which allows for much smaller, lighter, and more power-efficient cameras.
"Until now, fixed cameras for process-control applications were very expensive and not widely adopted because of the cost barrier", said David Kryskowski, Director of Ann Arbor Sensor Systems.
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"To develop a lower-cost solution, we needed a signal processor that offered a low-risk, rapid design cycle that did not require a lot of 'glue logic' to connect the processor to memory and peripherals".
"With its high-level of integration on a single chip and processing performance of 600MHz, Blackfin proved to be the ideal solution for us".
"We've been so blown away by the processor's performance that we plan to use the ADSP-BF561, the dual core Blackfin processor, for our next-generation thermal infra-red imaging camera".
Ann Arbor also benefited from using uClinux - an open-source embedded real-time operating system (RTOS), which is ported on Blackfin processors - to develop its application.
Using a graphical user interface (GUI) and the Blackfin Stamp development platform, Ann Arbor was able to write its own device-specific drivers and modified parameters.
"Having uClinux on Blackfin dramatically reduced our development time and costs", said Kryskowski.
"We designed our camera using the Blackfin Stamp board and uClinux, which provided the software drivers we needed for the Ethernet interface, to name one example".
"We made some minor modifications to the prototype board, but the camera worked the first time with very few changes to the software".
Added John Croteau, General Manager, Convergent Platforms and Services Group, Analog Devices: "Across industries, our Blackfin processors are being adopted in greater and greater numbers as a key enabling technology in designs that place a premium on innovation and time to market".
"Our work with Ann Arbor Systems again highlights that designers can 'have it all' with Blackfin - low-cost, high-performance and great power efficiency".
Analog Devices' Blackfin embodies a new breed of 16/32bit embedded processor with the industry's highest performance and power efficiency for applications where a convergence of capabilities - multiformat audio, video, voice and image processing; multi-mode baseband and packet processing; and real-time security and control processing - are critical.
It is this powerful combination of software flexibility and scalability that has gained Blackfin widespread adoption in convergent applications such as digital home entertainment; networked and streaming media; automotive telematics and infotainment; and digital radio and mobile TV.
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