Event-based sensor for ‘always-on’ video, low-power apps
Event-based image sensor pioneer Prophesee SA (Paris, France) has launched a low-power 320 pixel by 320 pixel event-based sensor for multiple applications including ‘always-on’ applications.
The GenX320 is the first of Prophesee’s fifth generation of event-based image sensors and is made at a European foundry that makes image sensors and supports back-side illumination, said Luca Verre, CEO and co-founder of Prophesee. Generations 2 and 3 were fabbed for Prophesee by Tower Semiconductor and Gen4 by Sony said Verre but he declined to identify the manufacturer of the GenX320.
The emphasis for the GenX320 is on low power consumption and it is the world’s smallest and most power-efficient event-based vision sensor, said Verre. This makes it suitable for integration in IoT camera and detection systems, AR/VR headsets, gesture recognition devices and eye-tracking applications.
The fifth generation Metavision sensor has a die size of 3mm by 4mm with a 6.3-micron pixel BSI stacked with a 1/5-inch optical format.
Specifications
The small size and low power consumption open up numerous edge-applications. For people-counting and fall-detection, the lack of resolution is a virtue allowing the maintenance of privacy, Prophesee said.
Latency is of the order microseconds for high-precision time-stamping of events and the nature of event-based detection makes it suitable for high-dynamic range and low-light applications such as outdoor environments.
Power management modes on-chip reduce power consumption down to 36-microwatts allowing an image sensor to be an always-on resource that can wake up a system. Deep sleep and standby modes are also featured.
MIPI or CPI data output interfaces offer low-latency connectivity to embedded processing platforms, including low-power microcontrollers and modern neuromorphic processor architectures. The sensor also supports histogram output compatible with multiple AI accelerators.
There is native compatibility with Prophesee’s Metavision Intelligence event-based vision software suite.
Early access
Prophesee has sampled the GenX320 to a number of customers who are developing some specific use cases.
Zinn Labs is developing gaze tracking systems with a power budget below 20mW. The package size of the GenX320 allows it to be applied to space-constrained head-mounted applications in AR/VR products.
UltraLeap Ltd. is using GenX20 event-based sensors for hand tracking and gesture recognition in its TouchFree interface application.
The GenX320 is available for purchase from Prophesee and its sales partners. It is supported by a complete range of development tools for easy exploration and optimization, including a comprehensive Evaluation Kit housing a chip-on-board GenX320 module
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