We’ve been writing about OpenMV open-source camera boards programmable with MicroPython at least since 2015, with the latest model OpenMV Cam H7 based on STM32H7 Cortex-M7 microcontroller introduced in 2018.
But the company has now gone a step further with OpenMV PureThermal board equipped with a more powerful STM32H7 dual-core Arm Cortex-M7/M4microcontroller, and supporting FLIR Lepton 2 to 3.5 thermal imagers, allowing the system to overlay the thermal map on top of the image like an augmented reality app would do. It can do so on the integrated LCD display or on an HDMI display.
OpenMV PureThermal features & specifications:
- MCU – STMicro STM32H7 Arm Cortex-M7 @ 480 MHz) and Cortex-M4 @ 240 MHz microcontroller
- Memory – 64MB SDRAM
- Storage – 32 MB of QSPI flash for the firmware, a microSD card slot for saving pictures and machine vision assets
- Display
- 800×480 touch Screen LCD
- DVI out for driving an external display (compatible with HDMI TV up to 1080p30, or 720p60)
- Camera
- OV5640 image sensor capable of taking 2592×1944 (5MP) images
- FLIR Lepton 2 to 3.5 compatible socket
- Connectivity – 802.11b/g/n WiFi 4 via ATWINC1500 module
- USB – USB-C full speed port for USB MSD, Virtual Com port, power and charging
- Expansion – QWIIC or Grove connector
- Misc – RTC
- Power Supply
- 5V via USB-C port
- Single Cell Li-Ion battery charging
The new camera board is compatible with the software used with OpenMV Cam H7 Plus model which supports TensorFlow Lite for Microcontrollers, Edge Impulse and machine vision features such as frame differencing, color tracking, marker tracking, face detection, eye tracking, person detection, optical flow, QR code and linear barcode decoding, shape detection (e.g. line, rectangle, circle)… as well as of course image capture and video recording.
But where OpenMV PureThermal stands is with the thermal camera features as demonstrated in the video below.
OpenMV PureThermal is offered on GroupGets for $289 plus shipping. But note that the Lepton thermal imager is not included ($ 149 to $199), and due to supply issues, the WiFi module is not available either and can be soldered later on if needed.
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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