Implementation of Visual Tracking System using Artificial Retina Chip and Shape Memory Alloy Actuator

We implemented a visual tracking system using an artificial retina chip and the shape memory alloy actuator. A foveated complementary metal oxide silicon (COMS) retina chip for edge detection was designed and fabricated for an image sensor of the developed system, and the shape memory alloy actuator was used for mimicking the roles of the ocular muscles to track a moving object. Also, we proposed a new computational model that mimics the functional roles of our brain organs for generating the smooth pursuit eye movement. In our model, a neuromorphic model for the medial temporal (MT) cell generates motion energy, and the medial superior temporal (MST) cell is considered to generate an actuating signal so that the developed active vision system smoothly pursues the moving object with similar dynamics to the motion of our eyeball during the smooth pursuit. Experimental results show that the developed system successfully operates to follow the edge information of a moving object.

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