Drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), have surged in popularity due to their versatility in various fields, from military reconnaissance to agriculture. Integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into drones has enabled them to operate autonomously, without human intervention, revolutionizing industries and expanding their capabilities.

This article, written in two parts, provides a comprehensive guide for developers and enthusiasts on the benefits of using Mistral’s MRD5165 Eagle Kit to construct a fully autonomous drone equipped with advanced AI analytics. By leveraging the MRD5165 Eagle Kit, powered by the Qualcomm QRB5165 SoC, developers can harness cutting-edge technology to create drones capable of operating under diverse conditions with minimal human intervention. The first part of the blog addresses the architecture and hardware capabilities of the Eagle Kit, while the second part delves into the software features and how drone developers can benefit from the flight control software and various Qualcomm SDKs.

How Mistral MRD5165 Eagle Kit Empowers Drones!

The Mistral MRD5165 Eagle Kit, built around the Qualcomm QRB5165 SoC, offers a powerful platform for developing AI-enabled drones. Let’s look at the Hardware and Software architecture and how each component aids a drone developer to build advanced aerial systems.

Heterogeneous Computing Architecture:

The MRD5165 Eagle Kit leverages the powerful heterogeneous computing architecture of Qualcomm QRB5165 SoC, combining different processing units to optimize performance for various tasks. This is particularly crucial for drones that require versatile computing capabilities for tasks like navigation, obstacle avoidance, and real-time decision-making.

Components of Heterogeneous Computing Architecture in MRD5165 SOM,

1. The Processing Core:

The Octa-Core Qualcomm® Kryo™ 585 CPU @ 2.84 GHz offers high performance and efficiency for drones due to:

• High processing power: Eight cores running at 2.84 GHz enable fast execution of complex algorithms.
• Multitasking capability: Efficient multitasking ensures smooth operation under heavy loads.
• Real-time processing: High clock speed facilitates rapid decision-making for safe navigation.
• Power efficiency: Designed to maximize battery life while maintaining performance.
• Integrated GPU: Paired with a powerful GPU for enhanced graphics rendering and image processing.
• Optimized for embedded systems: Compact design and compatibility make it ideal for drone integration.
• Advanced connectivity: Features like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, and 5G enhance functionality and versatility.

2. Graphics Processing Unit (GPU):

The Qualcomm® Adreno™ 650 GPU is specialized for parallel processing of graphics-related tasks. It excels at handling large amounts of data simultaneously, making it ideal for rendering images, videos, and performing parallelizable computations. The Qualcomm® Adreno™ 650 GPU offers several advantages for drone developers, primarily in enhancing computational performance, enabling advanced image processing and analysis, and supporting real-time decision-making. Key benefits include:

• Parallel Processing: Efficiently handles parallel tasks like sensor data fusion and machine learning.
• Image Processing: Accelerates tasks such as object detection and tracking for aerial photography and surveillance.
• Computer Vision and AI: Enhances autonomous navigation and obstacle avoidance through accelerated algorithms.
• Sensor Fusion: Improves accuracy by combining data from multiple sensors.
• Real-Time Decision Making: Enables quick responses for autonomous flight and emergency situations.
• High-Resolution Video Processing: Facilitates real-time transmission of detailed video feeds.
• Efficient Power Consumption: Balances performance and power efficiency for extended flight time.
• Flexibility and Programmability: Adaptable to various tasks through programming frameworks like CUDA and OpenCL.

3. Digital Signal Processor (DSP):

The inbuilt Qualcomm® Hexagon™ 698 Digital Signal Processor (DSP) in the Qualcomm QRB5165 SOC play a crucial role in drone design, offering several advantages that enhance the performance, efficiency, and functionality. Here’s how the Eagle Kit with integrated Qualcomm® Hexagon™ 698 DSP facilitates you in drone development.

Sensor Data Processing: Qualcomm® Hexagon™ 698 DSP processes data from various sensors onboard drones, such as accelerometers, gyroscopes, magnetometers, GPS receivers, and altimeters and efficiently filter, calibrate, and fuse sensor data to provide accurate and reliable information about the drone’s orientation, position, velocity, and altitude.
Real-Time Signal Processing: The Eagle Kit supports real-time signal processing tasks onboard drones, such as audio processing for communication systems, video processing for live streaming, and radar signal processing for obstacle detection and collision avoidance. By processing signals in real-time, Qualcomm® Hexagon™ 698 supports timely decision-making and enhance situational awareness.

Real-time Communication: The Qualcomm® Hexagon™ 698 DSP onboard Eagle Kit helps encode, decode, modulate, and demodulate signals for wireless communication links, including Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, cellular, and satellite communication. The DSP ensure reliable and efficient data transmission, enabling drones to communicate with ground control stations, other drones, or remote servers.

Customizable Algorithms: The powerful DSP offer programmability and flexibility, allowing developers to implement custom signal processing algorithms tailored to specific drone applications and requirements. This flexibility enables innovation and optimization in areas such as navigation, obstacle avoidance, target tracking, and payload management.

CubePilot Flight Control Unit

The MRD5165 Eagle Kit integrates a CubePilot Cube Orange +, one of the most advanced Flight Control Units available in the market today. The Cube Orange empowers drone developers by providing a reliable and versatile flight controller platform. With its advanced features and open-source architecture, developers can customize and optimize drone performance according to their specific needs. The Eagle Kit functions like a companion computer to Cube Orange, offering robust hardware and software support, facilitating the integration of various sensors, peripherals, and software modules. Cube Orange is compatibility with popular autopilot software such as ArduPilot ensures flexibility and ease of development.

Thus, the MRD5165 Eagle Kit serves as a powerful platform for drone developers to create innovative and high-performance aerial systems.

Key parameters to consider while building an AI-powered Drone

The MRD5165 Eagle Kit ticks all boxes when it comes to building an AI-powered drone. Let’s check the highlights here.

Computer Vision: The inbuilt Qualcomm® Adreno™ 650 GPU helps accelerate image processing and computer vision algorithms, allowing drones to efficiently analyse visual data for tasks like object detection, tracking, and scene understanding.

Navigation and Control: The Octa-Core Qualcomm® Kryo™ 585 CPU can handle all navigation tasks, while the GPU can contribute to real-time rendering of maps and visual data. The DSP may assist in signal processing tasks related to navigation systems.

Communication: The DSP onboard Eagle Kit can be utilized for efficient signal processing in communication systems, ensuring reliable and optimized data transfer between the drone and external devices.

Sensor Fusion: The heterogeneous architecture of the Eagle Kit facilitates superior sensor fusion, where data from different sensors (accelerometers, gyroscopes, cameras) can be processed efficiently for a comprehensive understanding of the drone’s environment. The computing architecture enhances overall system performance, energy efficiency, and versatility. It allows drone developers to optimize their applications by leveraging the strengths of different processing units for specific tasks, ultimately contributing to the advancement of AI-enabled drone capabilities.

The Magic of Qualcomm 5th Generation AI Engine:

The 5th Generation AI Engine, featured in the MRD5165 Eagle Kit, brings a significant boost in AI processing capabilities. In the context of drones, this advanced AI engine opens a wide range of applications that enhance functionality, intelligence, and adaptability. Here are some of them:

• Object Detection and Recognition
• Autonomous Navigation
• Obstacle Avoidance
• Precision onboard analysis
• Aerial Surveillance and Security
• Environmental Monitoring
• Adaptive Imaging and Photography
• Dynamic Mission Planning
• Energy Efficiency Optimization

Eagle Kit Integration with Drones:

The Eagle Kit promises an easy and seamless integration with your Drones. Key hardware features that come into picture are,

Compact Form Factor: The SWAP optimized design of MRD5165 Eagle Kit makes it an ideal fit for drones where size and weight are crucial factors. This allows developers to integrate powerful AI capabilities without compromising the drone’s agility, aerodynamics, and manoeuvrability.

Camera Interfaces: Featuring 6x MIPI-CSI CPHY and DPHY interfaces, the MRD5165 Eagle Kit facilitates seamless integration of multiple cameras on your drone. Drones equipped with the Eagle Kit can leverage advanced imaging capabilities for applications like aerial surveying, monitoring, and surveillance. The MIPI-CSI interfaces, coupled with the processing power of the kit’s heterogeneous computing architecture, enable seamless integration with computer vision algorithms.

Connectivity Features: The Eagle kit offers a variety of advanced wired and wireless connectivity features, enabling drones to communicate effectively with ground stations, other devices, or cloud services. This connectivity is vital for real-time data transfer and remote control.

The kit incorporates advanced wired and wireless connectivity features, including on-Board Wi-Fi 6, BT 5.2,5G/LTE support, ensuring seamless communication between the drone and external devices or networks.

Conclusion:

The MRD5165 Eagle Kit, through its heterogeneous computing architecture and versatile processing capabilities, empowers drone developers to push the boundaries of aerial systems innovation. Developers can leverage the combined power of Octa-Core Qualcomm® Kryo™ 585 CPU, Adreno™ 650 GPU, and Hexagon™ 698 DSP to optimize performance for various tasks like navigation, obstacle avoidance, and real-time decision-making. This hardware synergy ensures efficient multitasking, real-time processing, and advanced connectivity options crucial for drone operations.

The MRD5165 Eagle Kit’s compatibility with CubePilot Flight Control Unit enhances reliability and versatility, enabling developers to customize and optimize drone performance according to specific needs. Furthermore, the Eagle Kit’s seamless hardware integration, compact form factor, and extensive connectivity options facilitate easy deployment and operation in diverse environments.

Read second part of the blog that details various software packages of MRD5165 Eagle Kit and their benefits