OmniVision reduces Camera Design Complexity with OAX4000 ASIC Image Processor
OmniVision Technologies, Inc., a leading developer of advanced digital imaging solutions, today announced the new OAX4000, a companion image signal processor (ISP) that offers design flexibility for next-generation automotive single- and multicamera architectures, enabling OEMs to future-proof their designs for added functionality as market demands change.
In combination with OmniVision’s comprehensive sensor portfolio, the OAX4000 provides the ultimate automotive solution for applications both inside and outside of the vehicle.
Ideal for multiple automotive applications including surround-view systems, e-mirror, interior and autonomous driving cameras, the OAX4000 is a high-performance application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) capable of processing data streams from up to four cameras at 3MP or one at 8MP. It supports multiple color filter array (CFA) patterns and provides the option to output stream for both machine vision and human viewing pipelines independently. Additionally, the imaging pipeline has been upgraded to provide superior image quality. This includes the next-generation tone-mapping algorithm.
“Our mission is to help automotive OEMs by understanding the problems they need to solve now, as well as in the future,” said Andy Hanvey, director of automotive marketing at OmniVision. “The new OAX4000 ISP offers the design flexibility and compact size to fit into a wide variety of camera architectures, reducing development complexity and cost. Additionally, this high-performance ASIC has the processing capacity for a wide variety of camera use cases.”
“The mid- and long-term automotive vision processing market is expected to grow at double digits well into the next decade, however the market for vision processing in automotive is not a one-size-fits all,” says Tom Hackenberg, principal analyst for Computing and Software in the Semiconductor, Memory and Computing Division at Yole Développement (Yole). “The strategies for developing vision processing for advanced driver assistance serving the mass consumer market, shipping and transit, mobility-as-a-service or tomorrow’s autonomous vehicles are all on diverse paths. It can range from smart camera modules to a multitude of basic cameras attached to a single domain controller. It may require integrating other sensors to imaging. What is clear is that there are many paths to vision processing and image processing will need to be rich in features and adaptable to all of these scenarios.”
High Performance
The OAX4000 is a companion ISP for the OmniVision HDR sensors, designed to provide a complete multicamera viewing application solution with fully processed YUV output. It is capable of processing up to four camera modules with 140dB HDR, along with the leading LED flicker mitigation (LFM) performance in the industry and high 8MP resolution.
It supports multiple CFA patterns, including Bayer, RCCB, RGB-IR and RYYCy. Additionally, the OAX4000 offers more than 30 percent power savings over the previous generation.
Compact Design
Traditionally, electronic control modules required two ISPs; however, only one is needed when using the new OAX4000, reducing design complexity and space, and improving overall reliability.
OmniVision’s OAX4000 ISP will be presented at AutoSens Detroit, taking place May 12-13, 2021, featuring overviews and video demos available on demand throughout the virtual conference.
The OAX4000 complies with ASIL B advanced safety standards. It is available now for sampling and mass production.
