ViaLogy and Boeing develop detection system emulating bugs' eyes

At times the more humble creatures on the planet can teach us a thing or two. This is the approach taken by the researchers at Altadena, California-based ViaLogy (LSE: VIY), a specialist in real-time network-centric signal processing platforms for sensor-intensive applications. These researchers’ interest: The eyes of bugs and reptiles. Just think of a lizard watching a flying insect and then, in an instant, launching its sticky tongue to capture the insect in mid-flight. Now think of trying to shoot down a short-range Katyusha rocket in mid-flight (Israel did not do a very good job at it during the July-August war with Hezbollah).

Let’s get some of the acronyms out of the way first. The company has announced that it has successfully completed the Critical Design Review (CDR) milestone on the Multi-parallax Exploitation (MPEX) Electronic Eye program with Huntington Beach, California-based Boeing Phantom Works. Now, the Electronic Eye program is the result of the recognition by the military and intelligence communities of the growing need for ever-more precise detection in next-generation missile detection and defense systems (seekers) and panoramic airspace surveillance platforms. The joint ViaLogy-Boeing program saw ViaLogy’s core signal processing technology — Quantum Resonance Interferometry, or QRI — providing the basic engine for powering the silicon electronic-eye based on vision constructs found in insects and reptiles. Note that Vialogy has a patent pending on the MPEX Electronic Eye and its applications.

Why turn to bugs and reptiles? Currently, most advanced vision systems are limited to only stereo vision with a single parallax based on the coregistration of frames from two eyes, allowing only a scan of the horizon. MPEX Electronic Eye, on the other hand, is exploiting multiple parallaxes to achieve panoramic or 360-degree viewing capability and three dimensional perception using multiple, overlapping fields-of-view.

Boeing’s Dr. Edward McCullough said that “Researchers have been studying the computational architectures, functions, mechanisms, and principles of visual perception underlying biological systems for over three decades to find ways to implement them. We have specific near-term and long-term interests in this technology to support our defense, homeland security and space program needs.” ViaLogy’s CTO Dr. Sandeep Gulati agreed:

“We are building upon seminal work conducted by Dr. McCullough and his team in the area of biomimetic-based advanced autonomy for future planetary rovers and space operations. Our core technology provides a near-term opportunity for overcoming some of the fundamental information processing and system engineering challenges in implementing multi-parallax construction to address practical omni-directional surveillance applications.”

Michael: The text below is in a blue box

MPEX technology applications

ViaLogy’s initial MPEX Electronic Eye applications are geared to detection of very fast moving targets such as in missile interceptors, deployment on fast moving ground vehicles, and airborne platforms such as UAVs, and omni-directional tower mounts for border surveillance and critical infrastructure security. ViaLogy’s CEO, Michael Kelly, says:

MPEX is very well aligned with the ViaLogy business model. We can apply our unique expertise and sensor-agnostic signal processing technology to commercial off-the-shelf hardware and sensors to deliver enhanced performance at a fraction of the cost of comparable systems especially designed for military applications.

Next steps in the Boeing collaboration include a demonstration of the use of MPEX Electronic Eye engineering for detection of ground-based border intrusion events, and an aerial payload for low altitude UAVs. Successful operational demonstration of the proprietary MPEX technology could lead to its use in a number of future defense and homeland security programs.

-read more in this news release