OmniVision works with Texas Instruments to design home security cameras

OmniVision Technologies, developer of advanced digital imaging solutions, in collaboration with Texas Instruments (TI), a global semiconductor design and manufacturing company, announced a new reference design for low-power, battery-operated, instant-on smart home security cameras. This design pairs OmniVision’s OV788 video processor and OV9712 CameraChip image sensor with TI’s SimpleLink Wi-Fi CC3200 wireless microcontroller (MCU) to enable high-quality 720p high definition (HD) video capture, encoding, and streaming capabilities. In combination, these elements can help innovative startups and small- to medium-size smart home camera manufacturers compete in the rapidly growing do-it-yourself (DIY) smart home security system market.

“Market interest in DIY smart home security systems is steadily increasing as products such as battery-operated doorbell cameras and intrusion detection cameras have become easier to install," said Chris Yiu, Senior Strategic Marketing Manager at OmniVision. “Our low-power video processor, HD image sensor, and mature smart home security software development kit complement TI’s low-power, IoT-targeted SimpleLink Wi-Fi technology in delivering a reference design with advanced features and performance specifications that are tailored for this DIY smart home security market.”

“OmniVision’s new offering highlights the importance for IoT developers to have low-power Wi-Fi-based design resources at their fingertips,” stated Noa Chorev, Marketing Director, SimpleLink Wi-Fi solutions, TI. “Our customers are constantly working to leverage connectivity in new ways, and we are committed to bringing them the most flexible low-power solutions to meet those goals. IoT technologies are always evolving, and the SimpleLink Wi-Fi MCU family is helping challenge the status quo for what devices we can connect with Wi-Fi.”

The OV9712 CameraChip image sensor is built on OmniVision's OmniPixel3-HS high-sensitivity pixel technology. This technology enables delivery of outstanding scene reproduction in a variety of lighting conditions, which is a critical capability for home security cameras operating in indoor, outdoor, or low-light environments. The 1/4-inch OV9712 can capture 720p HD video at 30 frames per second. The OV9712 pairs with the OV788 video processor chip to deliver instant-on video recording and streaming over Wi-Fi networks.