Silicon Software: Applets - Apps for Frame Grabber

Hardware applets are a software code of only a few MBytes for FPGA processors. It is loaded to the chip in just a few milliseconds and then restructures the chip's hardware configuration. This provides the processor with new functions, which can be executed directly on the hardware and under real-time conditions. The logic density of FPGAs has increased considerably over the past few years, thus enabling complex program sequences. Instead of monolithic programs, which can only be loaded once and describe the entire functionality of a device, the concept of function applets has proven its effectiveness. Tailored to their use, the available resources are used efficiently for the required functions. If you want to use the frame grabber for an additional task, you just load a new applet in place of the old one. This process is automated via software programming and does not slow down the system, due to the short duration of the loading operations.

The feasibility of an application is defined, among other things, by the selection of the camera type and colour mode. These criteria are used for selecting the AcquisitionApplets of Silicon Software. Area or line scan cameras are distinguished, apart from the sensor type, also by the required trigger functions or sensor corrections. Coupling to encoder signals is, for instance, a typical line requirement.

In contrast, a spatial correction, which corrects the offset of the RGB colour lines, is not used with monochrome sensors. Tap sorting, which re-sorts sensor data to obtain a complete image, is of no significance for area and line scan cameras. This functional matrix allows efficient and specialised programs to be created even for small FPGAs.

The AcquisitionApplets from Silicon Software cover the frame grabber and image pre-processing basic functionality. What is beyond this functionality, is covered by the SmartApplets. They use the same principle for loading extended image-processing functions as a function of the application.

The basic idea of the frame grabber apps is similar to that of the smartphones: They offer additional functions that are easy to use and are tailored to the device that executes them. In the same way that apps do not replace a desktop computer, the image-processing software is not replaced by the hardware applets. By transferring image pre-processing to the dedicated hardware, the overall system is accelerated, relieving the CPU at the same time.

The ease of use of frame grabber apps is an important argument. Programming is replaced with configuring. The image-processing system is defined via function blocks that are activated or deactivated and parameterised. Like the apps, a SmartApplet can be put into operation intuitively and immediately.

Despite complex functions and hardware processing, the user does not have to deal in detail with these complex issues. The functions preview immediately shows the results on which the user can base his decision about which configuration to use. Since the libraries are constantly extended, the user can increasingly find, select and load more and more suitable functions, as already happens today in the apps shop.

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