SIGMA designs Xilinx Spartan-6 FPGAs into newest line of SIGMA SD1 high-performance digital cameras

TOKYO, JAPAN: Xilinx Inc. announced that longtime customer, SIGMA Corp., has designed Spartan-6 FPGAs into its flagship digital single lens reflex (DSLR) camera, the SIGMA SD1, for professional and enthusiast photographers. Shipping since June, the new 46-megapixel camera delivers robustness in a splash-proof and dust-proof body, providing high-definition and high resolution images.

SIGMA Corp., a leading researcher, developer, manufacturer and service provider of some of the world's most impressive lines of lenses, cameras and flashes, has designed Xilinx field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) into two digital SLR cameras and two compact cameras.

The SIGMA SD1 design team credits the performance, low power and flexibility of Xilinx's Spartan-6 FPGA with enabling high-quality, reliable image capture, while minimizing power consumption to reduce standby power in suspend mode and extend battery life. Spartan-6 FPGAs interface to the 23.5x15.7mm APS-C full-color X3 direct image sensor, serving as a fundamental component for capturing all primary RGB (red green blue) colors at each and every pixel location for a full and complete image,
with a 3-dimensional, film-like quality.

Spartan-6 FPGAs also handle large volumes of data at high speed, supporting double data rate 3 (DDR3) buffer memory technology for shooting capability of 5 frames per second and capture of up to seven RAW images (the output from each of the original red, green and blue sensitive pixels of the image sensor) per sequence.

"We are carving out a new category in the market place with SIGMA SD1 by providing high-end photographers with an alternative to expensive medium-format cameras, while offering unrivaled image quality," said Tatsuya Inui, Doctor of Science and Hirouki Toyama, Section Manager of Electronic Engineering Div. at SIGMA Corp.

"Market response has been phenomenal. Our engineering team has relied on Xilinx FPGAs for many years to design high performance cameras that stand apart from the competition – this is one more stellar example of that. We are delighted with the support we've received and results achieved with Xilinx and Avnet EM Japan to date, and look forward to the company's new 7 series FPGAs and other new products."