Latest AI Innovations Bring the Power with Greater Efficiency

Nov. 14, 2023

From neural processing units to a panel PC, these new AI-focused products deliver TOPS performance with an eye on much sought-after efficiency and lower costs.

Cabe Atwell

Related To: Electronic Design

New Panel PC Made with AI in Mind

Estone Technology recently introduced the latest addition to its Power over Ethernet (PoE) lineup—the PPC-4910. Based on NXP’s i.MX8M Plus quad-core Arm processor, the PPC-4910 is an all-in-one device that focuses on edge AI, vision processing, and other multimedia applications.

Using the EMB-2239 as the foundation, the PC can support both LVDS and MIPI LCD panel interfaces, PoE-ready Gigabit Ethernet port, two camera interfaces with up to 12-Mpixel resolution, and serial communication interfaces that include RS-232, RS-485, and CAN bus.

The PC is able to use its AI interference processing power to perform artificial-intelligence (AI) and machine-learning (ML) tasks, thanks to its NXP eIQ ML software. On top of that, it supports ONNX Runtime, TensorFlow Lite, and DeepViewRT inference engines for many edge AI applications. In addition, the PC can be customized for various ML applications, including image classification, object detection, object tracking, natural language processing, and key phrase detection.

Slide 1 of 5

What you’ll learn:

How AI is being applied to MCU and SoCs.
The wide range of potential applications for these developments.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing microcontrollers (MCUs) and systems-on-chips (SoCs), enhancing their efficiency and intelligence. In MCUs, AI enables smarter decision-making and reduces latency, crucial for IoT devices and smart sensors. For SoCs, AI accelerates complex computations, boosting functionalities in consumer electronics, automotive systems, and mobile devices. This evolution leads to more autonomous and energy-efficient applications, significantly impacting various industries.

In this roundup:

About the Author

Cabe Atwell | Technology Editor, Electronic Design

Cabe is a Technology Editor for Electronic Design.

Engineer, Machinist, Maker, Writer. A graduate Electrical Engineer actively plying his expertise in the industry and at his company, Gunhead. When not designing/building, he creates a steady torrent of projects and content in the media world. Many of his projects and articles are online at element14 & SolidSmack, industry-focused work at EETimes & EDN, and offbeat articles at Make Magazine. Currently, you can find him hosting webinars and contributing to Electronic Design and Machine Design.

Cabe is an electrical engineer, design consultant and author with 25 years’ experience. His most recent book is “Essential 555 IC: Design, Configure, and Create Clever Circuits”

Cabe writes the Engineering on Friday blog on Electronic Design.