A processor with a hardware video accelerator can provide an interesting alternative to a traditional DSP-based multimedia system design, writes Israel Shem-Tov, high-end applications engineer at Future Electronics (Israel).
Recent years have seen the proliferation of a new type of general-purpose processor containing a hardware accelerator video processing unit (VPU).
This architecture provides an alternative to the traditional DSP-based approach that implements video processing in software. While a DSP system can support a wide variety of video formats, the requirement for ever faster computation of video data streams strains many DSPs to the limit.
Hardware accelerator VPUs are finding favour, therefore, in part because they offer low CPU overhead, and lower power consumption than a DSP-based system.
For designers of embedded systems, however, there is another strong reason to evaluate a VPU: both the implementation of video functions in hardware, and the software and tools available from the device manufacturer, serve to ease the design of sophisticated, modern user interfaces.
For engineers who are new to the world of embedded graphics, evaluating a device such as the i.MX53 application processor from Freescale can provide a route to implementation of high-quality video.
