The Power of DSP
DSP, or Digital Signal Processing, is the art and science of extracting useful
information from physical signals found on our planet. Sound, pressure, temperature,
seismic, radar, heat, and light are some examples. DSP devices are the electronic
chips that do this work -- they are usually small, low-power, but still as
high-performance as the Pentium inside your PC. DSP devices are found in many easily
recognizable products, including cell phones, DVD players, cars¹, MP3 players, and
many others. We like to say that DSP devices go into products that need a Pentium
but are too small to hold a heatsink and a fan².
Until recently, DSP devices have not been fast enough to process images and video in
real-time -- that is to say not fast enough to keep up with smooth, continuous video
and still extract useful information. The latest generation of DSP devices is
changing that. One such example is the Texas Instruments DM642 processor, which can
perform extremely fast calculations and algorithms specialized for image processing
The DM642 is what we use inside the SigCAM and forms the engine that allows SigCAM to
recognize and act on image content -- rather than simply compress and store
images as do typical digital cameras and cell phones.
For more information on the DM642 device, here are some links:
DM642 Overview
DM642 Device
Notes:
¹ DSP devices are found in cars in multiple places, such as anti-lock braking systems and engine monitoring.
² A heatsink is the large metal block with "fins" fastened to the Pentium inside your PC. It dissipates the high amount of heat generated by the Pentium processor.
Intel and Pentium are register trademark of Intel Corporation.
