Cradle's chips shrinking to 90 to 65 nm

PUNE, INDIA: Cradle Technologies, a digital video surveillance systems company whose products are based on its proprietary and patented Multi-core DSP (MDSP) technology will move ahead to 90 nanometer or 65 nanometer chip size from the current 0.13 micron. This is expected sometime next year.

Chairman & CEO Suhas Patil shared that the company is continually improving the architecture and is focusing on enabling effectively writing programs which is more important than just adding processors as per the core technology. “We are concentrating on higher levels of computing, utilizing less wattage and cost-effectiveness of the processor technology. Chip hardware should be done is such a manner that it evolves over the years and performance is derived from embedded firmware.”

Related applications of this technology apart from present video surveillance systems would be in areas of remote supervision. “This would enable security in the night hours while ensuring effectiveness of business in the day hours for a customer. For example, a retailer can remotely supervise how his customers are being handled at the store while the surveillance systems also take care of pilferage or theft events.

Patil was here to talk about the newly launched Janus, a surveillance product along with advanced Video Analytics for real-time relevant event detection. “Janus enables the delivery of video centric intelligent event detection anywhere, anytime, anyhow and in actionable manner.”

Next in Cradle’s pipeline are new form factors that will deliver the current technology as per different needs of various market segments. “Form factor issues are galore and can range from IP camera attachments like a normal video camera to a single mother board delivering everything on a smaller box and taking less power. We will attack the form factors one by one and next to come would be an embedded box. This will be succeeded by advanced follow-ons of Janus with more computing power.”

It’s Pune center has been involved with work on software algorithms and tools while the chip work happens in the US. Going ahead, Pune can possibly be used for product related works. “In due course of time, we will be making these products in India and hopefully in the next 18 months would be able to make Janus right here,” he revealed. Fabrication, as Patil maintains, however will be not be sourced from India, but from Taiwan.

Cradle Technologies is a fabless semiconductor company with Multi-core DSP (MDSP) solutions for real-time video, audio, and imaging applications.Cradle markets its card level products to OEMs like Zicom who create video surveillance systems. Patil denies any possibility of forward integration where it can handle the end-product deployments like other vendors. "We will stay in the space where we are.”