OmniVision Technologies introduces processors for driver monitoring systems

     OmniVision Technologies has released the OAX8000. This AI-powered automotive application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) is optimized for entry-level independent Driver monitoring systems (DMS). The OAX8000 uses a chipstack architecture to provide on-chip DDR3SDRAM memory (1GB) for the industry's only DMS processor.

     OmniVision Technologies says it is also the only dedicated DMS processor to integrate a neural processing unit (NPU) and image signal processor (ISP), providing dedicated processing speeds of up to 1.1 trillion operations per second for eye gaze and eye tracking algorithms.

     Thanks to high processing speeds, 1KMAC Convolutional neural network (CNN) acceleration, and integrated SDRAM, DMS systems can achieve low power consumption - the total power consumption of OAX8000 and OmniVision Technologies automotive image sensors is only 1 watt under typical conditions. This integration further optimizes the DMS system and also reduces the board area of the engine control unit (ECU).

     Brian Pluckebaum, OmniVision Automotive product Marketing Manager, said, "Most DMS processors on the market today are not specifically designed for this type of application and require additional circuitry to perform other system functions, which in turn consumes more power and takes up more board space. And you can't reserve space for on-chip SDRAM. The OAX8000 ASIC is specifically designed for entry-level DMS and provides an optimized solution for the automotive industry."

     The OAX8000's on-chip NPU is supported by the TensorFlow, Caffe, MXNet, and ONNX toolchains. In addition, the ASIC is embedded with a quad-core Arm CortexA5 CPU core for accelerating video encoding/decoding and on-chip video analysis algorithms, as well as hardware for image processing, video encoding and RGB/IR processing. The ASIC's high dynamic range (HDR) processing capability allows it to accept input from the RBG/IR image sensor and supports high-quality image output, allowing video to be captured in daytime or night conditions with strong light and dark contrast. At the same time, its integrated video encoder can receive images from the 5-megapixel Howe automotive image sensor and output 2K resolution video at 30 frames per second.

     The startup time of the OAX8000 is much faster compared to competing products, thus eliminating the delay between ignition and activation of the DMS camera. In addition, OAX8000 also supports a secure startup function to ensure network security. Other applications include processing occupant detection algorithms, such as distinguishing between babies and shopping bags, and providing alerts when objects are left in the car. In addition, the ASIC can be used to perform functions such as FaceID in automotive video security systems and to preset driver comfort Settings such as seat position when the DMS scans the driver's face for the first time.