Press Release
Tyzx Announces Technology for Devices that See in 3D
Tyzx was founded by Harvard and Stanford scientists who developed the breakthrough stereo vision technology while working at Interval Research Corporation, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen's former think tank in Palo Alto. Current customers include ChevronTexaco, iRobot, MD Robotics, MIT, and private and government agencies working on confidential security and surveillance applications. [an error occurred while processing this directive] "With the current market focus on homeland defense solutions, the Tyzx technology will be very interesting to firms who want to solve the 'where' as well as 'who' problems of tracking potential terrorists," said Anil Phull, senior analyst for security solutions & services at the Yankee Group and formerly an operations officer at the National Security Agency. "Stereo vision is a best-of-breed approach to solving these complex problems in surveillance. Historically such problems required high performance and costly computing resources."
"Tyzx is a platform for a wide range of markets that require intelligent, automated, visual input," said Ron Buck, CEO of Tyzx. "Our software and hardware solve some of the most difficult problems ever thrown at computers but at a performance and price point that allows 3D vision capabilities for security and many exciting new applications."
Tyzx technology is based on a concept called stereo vision. It works much like the human eye and brain. A pair of inexpensive CMOS imagers captures left and right views of what it sees. The left and right images are compared by a Tyzx ASIC chip to measure the distance to each pixel with millimeter resolution. The image information is processed by Tyzx devices at rates of up to 132 frames per second to track moving objects over a wide range of distances. The computations are performed at over 50 billion calculations per second (compared to today's fastest microprocessors that perform approximately 2.5 billion calculations per second) while using very little power. Taking the 3D image data, Tyzx software then interprets what it sees and responds in real-time.
"Tyzx has developed breakthrough technologies for 3D vision that promise a wide range of affordable consumer and industrial devices for all new markets and applications," said Professor Takeo Kanade, former head of Carnegie Mellon University's prestigious Robotics Institute and a pioneer among the world's leading computer vision experts. "Tyzx's micro-chip stereo devices have the best combination -- size, performance and cost. We expect them to appear in cars, computers, homes, offices, factories and for enhanced security at airports and other public places."
"The Tyzx technology offers a unique way for us to develop systems with intelligence that can react in real-time to changes in their environments, whether it's for aerospace or even outer space," said Dr. Piotr Jasiobedzki, staff scientist at MD Robotics, the world leader in space robotics and makers of robotic arms for the U.S. Space Shuttle and International Space Station. "Vision systems currently developed by MD Robotics will analyze 3D data, such as information produced by the Tyzx system, in real time and guide robotic arms on board unmanned servicers to capture free floating satellites and service them autonomously."
Tyzx was co-founded in 2001 by Dr. John Woodfill, Dr. Gaile Gordon and Ron Buck. Buck, CEO, is a Silicon Valley veteran with 20 years of executive experience who most recently served as CEO at Verano, an enterprise software company. Woodfill, the chief technology officer at Tyzx, is a former scientist with Xerox PARC, SRI and IBM with a Ph.D. in computer vision from Stanford University. Gordon, vice president of advanced development for Tyzx, is a former scientist at MIT, DEC and TASC (working on DARPA projects) with a Ph.D. in computer vision from Harvard University. Tyzx recently completed a Series A investment round. Financial terms and the names of investors were not disclosed.
Tyzx, Inc., based in Palo Alto, Calif., is a 3D vision company developing software and hardware for inexpensive consumer and industrial devices that can comprehend the world around them. Tyzx boasts an industry advisory board comprised of world-leading computer vision chip and software experts from Altera Corporation, Carnegie Mellon University, Hewlett-Packard, MIT and Stanford University. The company is privately funded. For more information, visit www.tyzx.com.
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