VLSI Realization of a Two-Dimensional Hamming Distance Comparator ANN for Image Processing Applications

This paper presents the hardware realization of a Hamming artificial neural network, and demonstrates its use in a high-speed precision alignment system. High degree of parallelism is exploited in the proposed architecture, where the result of NxN array of sum of products is provided simultaneously. The full operation of the artificial neural network requires three clock cycles, which are shown to be completed within a few tens of nanoseconds, depending on the chosen architecture, thus realizing a complex operation using a fast and low-power circuit. Possible applications of the device include industrial image processing such as focus recovery, fast and precise alignment in a noisy environment, and vehicle navigation systems.