The Challenge
Arcturus Networks, a pioneer in smart camera software, wanted to create a scalable platform for intelligent vision systems that could operate reliably at the edge. Their objective was to deliver:
- Real-time video analytics without cloud dependency
- Low power consumption in compact form factors
- Secure and flexible deployment for industrial and security applications
- Reduced time to market for OEMs building smart cameras
Conventional approaches often required multiple processors, external accelerators, or reliance on cloud services. This added cost, risk, and complexity, making it harder for customers to move from concept to deployment.
The Solution
Arcturus integrated its Brinq™ smart camera software stack with the Synaptics Astra SL1680 SoC, which is at the heart of the Synaptics Astra SL1680 Development Kit (020-0007) .
Synaptics SL1680 SoC.
The development kit provides an out-of-the-box platform for edge AI, built around the Astra SL1680 SoC. This combines:
- Quad-core Arm Cortex-A73 CPU up to 2.1 GHz
- NPU delivering 7.9+ TOPS inferencing
- Dual-camera ISP and 4K video processing
- Integrated GPU, audio DSP and robust security features
- Rich I/O including HDMI, USB-3, Ethernet, MIPI-CSI, GPIO, and PoE
Synaptics Astra Machina SL1680 Development Kit.
This modular kit is designed for fast prototyping, with the same compute core suitable for scaling into production hardware. Arcturus’ Brinq™ software, built on containerised microservices, runs directly on the kit to deliver:
- Multi-stream video analytics
- Real-time inferencing on-device
- Local dashboards via HDMI or embedded web UI
- Secure, containerised deployment models
Image Credit: Arcturus.
Results
By combining the SL1680 with Arcturus’ Brinq™ software, developers and OEMs benefit from:
- Faster prototyping: Immediate access to AI-ready hardware and software reduces bring-up effort.
- Reduced system complexity: CPU, GPU, NPU, ISP, and security functions are all integrated in one chip.
- Scalable deployment: The development kit supports proof-of-concepts that can migrate seamlessly into production using the same core SoC.
- Real-time performance: Edge AI inferencing enables analytics such as loitering detection, access control, or industrial monitoring without cloud latency.
- Secure foundation: Hardware-backed secure boot and encryption protect sensitive applications.
At Embedded World 2025, Arcturus showcased the solution running live demonstrations of multi-camera feeds, forensic playback, and embedded analytics, all executed natively on the SL1680 kit with low latency and high reliability.
Conclusion
The partnership between Arcturus and Synaptics demonstrates how the Astra SL1680 accelerates the path from concept to deployment in edge AI vision.
For organisations building smart cameras, industrial inspection systems, or intelligent IoT devices, the combination of Arcturus’ Brinq™ software and the Astra SL1680 kit delivers:
- Powerful AI performance at the edge
- Secure and modular system design
- Faster time to market
- Scalable hardware and software integration
The Synaptics Astra SL1680 Development Kit (020-0007) provides not just a prototyping tool, but a direct bridge to production, giving OEMs a clear path to building next-generation edge AI products.
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