A realtime image processing chip set

A chip set is described which meets the requirements of calculation-intensive image processing algorithm (e.g. correlation) for real-time execution. It calculates one million two-dimensional correlation coefficients per second on a 16*16 pixel image at 25 MHz with a 6-b input resolution. The set consists of two chips, a multiplier-accumulator unit (MAC) and an arithmetic processing unit (APU). The MAC processes image data of different formats, up to 32 by 32 pixels, with a 6- or 12-b resolution, and outputs sums of products in an 18- or 36-b integer format. The APU converts these sums to a single-precision floating-point format (the internal data format) and calculates the correlation coefficient in 1- mu s with floating-point precision using the standard formula. A system configuration with both chips, a host processor, and input/output components is shown. The chip characteristics are summarized, and chip micrographs are shown.<>