Spatially Nonuniform Filtering and Encoding of Visual Information in a Retinomorphic Hardware System

Efficient information processing in biological early-vision systems is thought to rely on spatially nonuniform computations in the central and peripheral visual fields. Inspired by this functional segregation, we developed a digital hardware vision system that integrates two distinct spatiotemporal filters and spike encoders for the central and peripheral regions on a single image sensor plane. The system employs digital processing techniques to emulate graded potential signals and point-process spike outputs, mimicking the functionality of vertebrate retinas. System-level testing on actual hardware equipment verified region-specific response characteristics for the central and peripheral regions. This proposed approach advances the realization of retinomorphic efficient computations in future robotics and embedded vision systems.