Embedded Computer Vision: Running OpenCV Programs on the Raspberry Pi

Embedded computer vision is a very practical branch of computer vision that concerns itself with developing or modifying vision algorithms to run on embedded systems—small mobile computers like smartphone processors or hobby boards. The two main considerations in an embedded computer vision system are judicious use of processing power and low battery consumption. As an example of an embedded computing system, we will consider the Raspberry Pi (Figure 11-1), an ARM processor–based small open-source computer that is rapidly gaining popularity among hobbyists and researchers alike for its ease of use, versatile capabilities, and surprisingly low cost in spite of good build and support quality.