Camera link to FPGA development board

[MJ Pearson]

Hello, I'm hoping for some advice... I'm currently performing image processing using a couple of camera link based cameras via a framegrabber and PC. I am wanting to perfrom the processing on a FPGA development board (http://www.xilinx.com/univ/xupv2p.html). As there are no camera link connectors on the board I will need to build or find an appropriate add-on board.

I was looking at using the chips DS90CR288A DS900CR287, to perform the data acquistion deserialisation and transmission. Does anyone have any advice or alternate methods of obtaining the data.

Any suggestions - I'd be very grateful.

Thanks

Marc.

Message Edited by MJ Pearson on 01-19-2007 08:44 AM

[Carmo]

Hi!

Did you have sucess on this?

I'm facing a similar problem.

Regards

[JonBowers]

Hi Marc,

I can't recomend a specific deserialisation chip but I notice that you are using a Vertex II development board. National instruments actually offer FPGA devices based on the Virtex II. These come in PCI-and PXI form factor and can be programmed graphically VI LabVIEW and the FPGA module without having to use VHDL. We also offer a range of PCI and PCIe camerlink acquisition cards ranging from base to full speed. For more information have a look at the following links:

http://sine.ni.com/nips/cds/view/p/lang/en/nid/201716

http://www.ni.com/fpga/

Regards

Jon B
Applciations Engineer
NI UK & Ireland

[MJ Pearson]

Hi, thanks for the reply.

I haven't got started on this problem yet, I'm attending a Machine Vision exhibition in the near future so was waiting to see if there was anything there.

I'll keep you posted on any progress, and I'd be very gratefull if you would do the same!

Regards

Marc.

[GavinPerry]

I have done this last spring, sorry I didn't see your request until now. I have a circuit board I laid out that works with a Nu Horizon dev kit (or other) and Verilog code to do the data processing and transfer.  My project is to build a Foveon imager based camera. I'm working on version 2 now, to move up to Camera Link Medium transfers.

Gavin

[RyanB]

What type of image processing are you planning to do on the FPGA?

-RB

[MJ Pearson]

Its not really image processing. The camera delivers one line of information per scan describing a laser line position. I then do some edge detection, tracking and measurements based on this information.

I have built a board using the receiver chip mentioned above. Seems to be working - from what I can tell using a scope, building an interface on the FPGA now.... 

[addicted2failure]

hey Pearson!
I too have the same board and some how same issues. Could you tell me which image acquisition board or  add-on-board you are using?can be direclty plug in the camera link image acquisition board directly to the board or we we need additional add-on-borad for LVDS conversion issues??

thank you so much

best regards
Aali khan

[MJ Pearson]

Aali,

I designed and built a PCB using the chip mentioned above. I cheated a bit though - I just wanted the data processing performed on FPGA, so I still use the PC and framegrabber to set-up and control my cameras. The PCB "taps-off" the data bits and sends these to the FPGA for processing.

If you want any further information, I'd be happy to help.

Regards

Marc.

[addicted2failure]

hi Marc!

actually I am doing my master's thesis "FPGA based Camera Link interface". i found some boards from Enrivium which gives you Built-in camera Link interface facility and in some case external. but when i went to my supervisor, he asked me to discard those boards from Enrivium and try to find and ad-on (external) camera link which is compatible with XUP Virtex-II pro (the one you're woking with).

i searched alot but unable to find such camera Link boards. I thought you might be aware of such add-on boards. does this board suppot camera link?? you know i cant use PCI/PCIe frame grabber. I think in case you pluged-in frame grabber to the PCI port of the PCI. but i have to plug-in into FPGA port. it should be stand alone n independent of PC.

take care

Best Regards

Aali khan