As part of their collaboration to develop artificial intelligence at the heart of image sensors, SATT Nord and Yumain signed an exclusive sub-license last November. These new generation image sensors will be much more environmentally friendly as they consume up to a thousand times less than the previous generation of sensors.

These new generation sensors will integrate an embedded AI, developed by Yumain. This neuromorphic technology will make it possible to meet the energy challenges of sustainable development, for applications in transport, mobile robotics and home automation, but also in the field of the Internet of Things (IoT) to analyze human activity in the context of smart cities or wildlife to preserve biodiversity.

The creation of these sensors was made possible thanks to the research on AI conducted by the Institute of Electronics, Microelectronics and Nanotechnology (IEMN) and the Research Institute on Software and Hardware Components for Information and Advanced Communication (IRCICA). These institutes have all been working closely since 2011 with Yumain, a Dijon-based company specializing in the development of intelligent recognition solutions and industrial cameras incorporating AI.

SATT Nord has helped finance the research conducted by Christophe Loyez, research director at the CNRS, François Danneville, professor at the University of Lille, both researchers for IEMN/IRCICA, around this new technology included in these sensors. Yumain’s managing director, Marc Benoît, explains the interest of this collaboration:

“This cooperation with SATT Nord and IEMN/IRCICICA allows us to
This cooperation with SATT Nord and IEMN/IRCICICA allows us to develop intelligent and innovative sensors in the short term, which are energy autonomous and capable of providing disruptive solutions compared to the technologies currently used.

His opinion is in line with that of SATT Nord President Fabrice Lefebvre and Kévin Carpentier, SATT Nord Maturation Engineer, who explains all the interest of these new generation sensors:

“The support of this project by SATT Nord through, in particular, my hiring, has allowed us to advance the technology from simple artificial neurons to larger and more complex networks as well as the realization of an electronic chip containing an imager, made up of thousands of light sensors connected to these intelligent neural networks through synaptic links.”

The collaboration between IEMN/IRCICA and Yumain, in partnership with SATT Nord, also aims to create a TRL6-level prototype in order to be able to demonstrate the full effectiveness of its sensors in a meaningful environment.

Translated from IEMN/IRCICA et Yumain avec le soutien de la SATT Nord ont développé des capteurs d’images à IA embarquée