A real time vision architecture using a dynamically reconfigurable fast bus

Different existing vision machines are surveyed. The authors are particularly interested in their intercommunication system, which is a fundamental factor in the overall performance. In order to fulfil the need for a flexible, high-performance, and cost-effective vision machine a coarse-grain architecture is proposed. It is based on a dynamically reconfigurable fast bus. The authors are developing a prototype machine. This prototype, hosted by a PC, uses a VME-like back plane cabinet in which the P1 connector is used for the configuration control lines and the P2 connector for the implementation of 4 fast transfer lines channels. The DRIFT interface is designed to achieve a bandwidth of 1 Gbits/s. Processing modules are built on extended double Eurocards on which the DRIFT interface occupies 25% of the whole board surface. This prototype will be used in some vision applications in which broadcasting and dynamic reconfiguration are necessary