A multiple-level heterogeneous architecture for image understanding

First- and second-generation implementations of an image understanding architecture, IUA, are described. The IUA system is designed specifically for computer vision processing that relies heavily on artificial intelligence techniques to classify objects. To provide for low-, intermediate-, and high-level computer vision processing-required for model-/knowledge-based interpretation of sensor data-the IUA system combines three heterogeneous levels of parallelism with associative processing mechanisms. The tightly coupled symbolic and numeric processing capabilities constitute a unique computing paradigm ideally suited to computer vision applications, which require both control- and data-parallel processing. The IUA architecture, hardware, and software are described