IoT RFP kit for vision-based situational awareness applications

Congatec offers its new workload consolidation kit for vision-based situational awareness, qualified by Intel as Intel IoT RFP (Ready For Production) Kit. Based on a COM Express Type 6 module equipped with Intel Xeon E2 processor, the kit provides three VMs built on Real-Time Systems’ hypervisor technology for workload consolidation in vision applications. One VM runs a vision-based AI application based on Intel OpenVino software for situational awareness; the second VM is real-time capable and operates deterministic control software. The third VM runs an IIoT/Industry 4.0 gateway. The kit produced in cooperation with Intel and Real-Time Systems is aimed at the next generation of vision-based collaborative robotics, automation controls and autonomous vehicles that need to undertake multiple tasks in parallel, including situational awareness employing deep learning-based AI algorithms.

The Real-Time Systems based virtual machines make it feasible to combine the different tasks on a single edge computing platform, which ultimately saves costs. The Intel OpenVino software gives the appropriate AI for situational awareness. OEMs only need to load their control to the real-time VM, and they can enrich their real-time control with data from the situational awareness VM and to communicate in real-time with IIoT/Industry 4.0 counterparts to allow tactile internet controls.

“Workload consolidation demand is rapidly increasing in vision-based situational awareness applications: Machine controls, collaborative robotics and autonomous vehicles need virtualisation, as OEMs don’t want to assign the different control, vision and networking tasks to multiple dedicated systems,” explains Martin Danzer, director Product Management at congatec.