Smart Camera Core Real-Time Data Bus Interface
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing smart cameras face challenges in meeting hard real-time requirements for image recording and data exchange in industrial image processing due to interrupt latency and communication latency times, which can lead to system errors and shutdowns, especially in highly dynamic machines or systems.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating a real-time data bus interface and a camera control unit within the camera core, allowing the camera control unit to trigger image recording within a bus cycle of the real-time data bus, and providing a flexible configuration with additional interfaces for software and hardware processing units, enabling real-time image processing and synchronization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a software processing unit controls image recording and data exchange, then the smart camera can perform complex image processing and evaluation, but interrupt latency and communication latency prevent meeting hard real-time requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the camera system into two independent control paths: a software processing unit for complex image processing tasks and a hardware processing unit for real-time control functions. The hardware processing unit includes dedicated interfaces (real-time data bus interface, image sensor interface) and control logic that operate independently from software interrupts, ensuring deterministic real-time performance while the software unit handles versatile image processing.
Solution Approach 2:
The hardware processing unit acts as an intermediary between the image sensor and the software processing unit. It receives synchronization signals via the real-time data bus interface, triggers image recording directly at the sensor level, and manages data transfer without requiring software intervention. This intermediary hardware layer eliminates software interrupt latency and communication overhead for real-time operations.
2Ease of operation
If interrupt-controlled software processing is used, then flexible image processing and control are achieved, but interrupt latency times cause difficulty in meeting hard real-time requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the software-based interrupt control mechanism with a hardware-based control mechanism. The hardware processing unit contains dedicated circuitry that directly responds to synchronization signals from the real-time data bus and autonomously triggers image recording and manages data transfer. This hardware substitution eliminates interrupt latency entirely, as hardware operations execute deterministically without software context switching or interrupt handling overhead.
3Reliability
If a hardware processing unit is added for real-time control, then real-time capability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The hardware processing unit is designed as a multi-functional component that simultaneously performs multiple tasks: receiving synchronization signals via the real-time data bus interface, triggering image recording at the image sensor, managing data transfer between the sensor and software processing unit, and coordinating with the software unit for image processing. This consolidation of multiple functions into a single hardware unit achieves real-time capability without proportionally increasing overall system complexity.
Data Source
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Figure 3~4
AI summary
To realize a real-time capable, hardware-flexibly configurable smart camera, a camera core (15) is provided, wherein the camera core (15) is designed as a hardware computing unit and additionally includes a real-time data bus interface (7) for connecting a real-time data bus (11) and a camera control unit (3), wherein the camera control unit (3) is connected to the real-time data bus interface (11) and the image sensor interface (4), and the camera control unit (3) is controlled via the real-time data bus interface (11) to trigger an image capture, wherein the camera control unit (3) controls the image sensor interface (4).