Himax Launches HE Series iToF Depth Decoder ICs for 3D Sensing in Robotics and Machine Vision

Himax Technologies, has announced the launch of its HE Series indirect Time-of-Flight (iToF) Depth Decoder ICs. The new ICs expand the company’s portfolio in 3D sensing and machine vision applications.

The HE Series features a hardware-based depth processing architecture, advanced image enhancement technologies, and a comprehensive hardware and software development platform. It supports high-frame-rate and high-precision 3D sensing for robotics, industrial automation, and AI vision applications.

The hardware-based architecture improves processing efficiency and reduces system latency compared to software-based solutions. It accepts up to 640 × 480 RAW data input at 240 fps in single-frequency and dual-frequency modes. Following depth decoding, the IC outputs 2D grayscale images and 3D depth information via MIPI and USB interfaces at up to 120 fps.

The iToF depth decoder IC is compatible with leading industry-standard VGA-resolution iToF sensors. It has been adopted by multiple industry partners, including optical module manufacturer OFILM, which integrated the IC into its RoboVision solution for robotic applications such as object picking, obstacle avoidance, environment mapping, and autonomous navigation.

The IC incorporates depth image enhancement technologies including depth noise reduction, flying pixel removal, and temporal filter...