DDC: Video and Image Processing Exoertise

DDC -> Services -> Fields of Expertise -> Video and Image Processing

Video Resume
DDC Advanced Graphics Controller
DDC FLIR IP
DDC FLIR Imaging Solutions

Video and Image Processing
DDC has a wide breadth of video and image processing talent and experience. DDC tends to be on the high end in terms of complexity and algorithmic sophistication, and we ultimately culminate our experience in the most advanced applications and highest levels of integration, using SoC (System On a Chip) technologies. We have developed our own MPEG stream editor and are video compression experts. Our video/imaging applications expertise loosely falls into 4 general categories, as outlined below. A representative offering that serves the varied applications can be found in a recent DDC offering, the DDC Advanced Graphics Controller
Military Video and Image Processing
DDC has researched, architected, then developed, implemented, and tested the actual hardware, for all video/image processing elements between several different CCD and FLIRs, to the display (both analog and digital) with 16 bit precision, at frame rates of 60fps and resolutions up to 1280. These are products in the field. This was accomplished with SoCs DDC created from scratch, using some of it’s own intellectual property, and developing the rest. The SoCs which DDC completely designed included: analog inputs (RS-170) and digital inputs, frame/field conversions, non-uniformity correction, bad pixel replacement, thresholding, histogramming, contrast enhancement/expansion, translation, rotation, zoom, picture-in-picture, sharpening, temporal filtering/averaging, median filtering, convolution, symbology overlay, analog (RS-170) and digital outputs, and all of the associated control, such as genlock, bandwidth management, SDRAM interfaces, processor interfaces, etc. Literally, DDC has done everything required to do this type of video and image processing.
Medical Video and Image Processing
DDC has developed several ASICs, FPGAs, and SoCs for medical imaging applications, for such companies as GE, Toshiba, Siemens, and Loral. Specifically, DDC has worked with angiography lineups, CT scanners, PET scanners (coincidence detection), all in the image processing sections of these products. DDC has developed very high speed portions of image reconstruction systems, including such functions as very high speed frequency domain filtering (FFT, IFFT, etc.), lossless compression, distortion correction, various weighting and extrapolation functions, warp, zoom, image reconstructions, etc. In many of these systems, DDC has developed the hardware and also developed the driver and application software, both in image reconstruction, image processing, and in control.
Commercial Video and Image Processing
DDC has also developed and implemented an imaging system for DNA slide analysis. We have also co-developed a high speed finger-print recognition system. Also we have developed and implemented a very high speed imaging system for airbag deployment in vehicles. We have also developed a very complex video/imaging chip for HD studio image processing. We designed the whole chip, which included all processing elements (such as video equalization, genlock, CCIR656 interfaces, various filters and transforms, etc.).
Consumer Video and Image Processing
DDC has much experience in consumer video electronics, as outlined below. There are many more. The following is a high level summary of the general product categories DDC has expertise in. Set-top box: DDC has developed several different compression chips including an MPEG set-top box lineup. This was an SoC which performed full MPEG I and II audio and video digital decompression and image reconstruction for digital TV applications. So, DDC has significant experience in compression, NTSC, PAL, CCIR656, CCIR601, RS-170, etc. DDC has created several tools for working with these types of systems. Digital Camera chips: DDC has developed several digital camera chips for companies such as Nikon, Kodak, and Motorola. They are typically high resolution SoC devices with many image processing algorithms, such as compression, color processing, zoom, etc. and with many peripherals (SmartMedia, CompactFlash, etc.) Videophone: DDC has developed significant portions of the image processing line-up in the Motorola video cellular phone. DDC has also written much of the image processing software which interacted with the image processing functions, and was also responsible for the image quality (with performing things such as white balance, contrasting, etc.