FPGA specialist Microchip Technology unveiled its PolarFire FPGA Ethernet Sensor Bridge that works with the Nvidia Holoscan AI computing platform that provides edge-to-cloud sensor processing capabilities.
The move is likely to extend the value of Microchip’s low-power PolarFire FPGAs by helping developers leverage Nvidia’s Holoscan ecosystem(Holoscan is widely used for edge AI and robotics, as well as AI applications in other fields, such as medical) to build more edge AI sensor processing systems. The new sensor bridge uses Ethernet to extend multi-protocol signal conversion to Nvidia Jetson AGX Orin and IGX Orin software kits.
Chandler, Arizona-based Microchip has been committed to expanding its horizons by enabling multi-protocol sensor support, and this first solution to be released as part of Microchip’s platform is compatible with MIPI CSI-2-based sensors and the MIPI D-PHY physical layer, the company said.
Future solutions will support a wide range of sensors with different interfaces, including SLVS-EC 2.0, 12G SDI, CoaXPress 2.0 and JESD204B. The platform allows designers to leverage the power of the NVIDIA Holoscan ecosystem while taking advantage of the PolarFire FPGA’s power-efficient technology with low-latency communication and multi-protocol sensor support.
“The Ethernet sensor bridge is based on Microchip's highly power-efficient, secure and reliable PolarFire FPGA platform,” said Bruce Weyer, vice president of Microchip’s FPGA business unit. “By combining our flexible FPGA fabric with Nvidia's advanced AI platform and multi-protocol support, we're empowering developers to create innovative, real-time solutions that will revolutionize sensor interfaces across a wide range of powerful AI-driven edge applications.”