rAPID iMAGING
iN THE NEWS
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Rapid Imaging Implementing DRILL Video Processing
Rapid Imaging | 8300 Airport Road - Suite 3, Middleton, WI 53562 | 608.824.1131 | info@rapidimagingtech.com
April 16th, 2018
[Middleton, WI] – DRILL Video Processing, a proprietary video analytics technique developed by Rapid Imaging and their artificial intelligence partner, Perceptual Labs, was recognized at GTC-Silicon Valley 2018, the premier Artificial Intelligence Conference in the World, as a leading software application by NVIDIA Corporation. The technology was praised for its leading performance which allows an artificial intelligence to identify objects of interest at up to 60 frames per second and then an augmented reality solution, SmartCam3D®, locate the objects of interest in real-time and on-device.
The concept of DRILL Video Processing was first presented in 2017 at the SOFWERX Thunder Drone RPE II event, which was a counter-UAS Summit designed to evaluate emerging technologies for U.S. Special Operations Command and other Government entities.
Starting in May of 2018, DRILL Video Processing will be deployed as a commercial application for the first time in conjunction with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Each year, Embry-Riddle deploys a specialized Emergency Response Team to Oklahoma as part of a partnership with Oklahoma Emergency Management. This Response Team is comprised of trained-UAV pilots and support staff and is tasked with responding to Tornado events throughout Oklahoma. The team from Embry-Riddle will utilize DRILL Video Processing software to collect video analytics relating to storm damage throughout Oklahoma.
“We are excited to once again work with the team from Embry-Riddle,” said David Geisler, CEO at Rapid Imaging; “The team is highly-trained and the work they complete each year with Oklahoma Emergency Management is invaluable.”
DRILL Video Processing is a significant capability when used in conjunction with both airborne and ground-based camera systems. “Having the ability to recognize objects in a scene and accurately locate them is a software solution that provides leverage to existing camera platforms,” said Geisler, “while traditional cameras simply record video to be analyzed later by a person, DRILL Video processing derives similar analytics but in real-time and without reliance on a human data-analyst.”
As reported in late 2017, Rapid Imaging is working on a variety of applications across multiple commercial and governmental markets for its augmented reality and artificial intelligence solutions. Most recently, Rapid Imaging has collaborated with an Ohio-based defense contractor to provide on-solider video analytics for various sensor platforms using the same DRILL Video Processing Framework it has designed for airborne use.
Rapid Imaging is excited to continue exploring the many opportunities associated with video analytics and looks forward to the results of its existing projects.
NVIDIA Recognizes Middleton Technology Collaboration
Rapid Imaging | 8300 Airport Road - Suite 3, Middleton, WI 53562 | 608.824.1131 | info@rapidimagingtech.com
March 15th, 2018
Rapid Imaging and Perceptual Labs Collaboration Selected As Finalist In NVIDIA Developer Challenge
[Middleton, WI] – NVIDIA Corporation, a world-leader in Artificial Intelligence computing, has recognized Rapid Imaging Technologies and Perceptual Labs’ collaborative development of “On-UAV Realtime Detection of Storm Damage,” a product that couples real-time artificial intelligence with augmented reality, as a finalist in NVIDIA’s Jetson Developer Challenge, a global competition searching for the best uses of artificial intelligence on embedded computing devices. The collaborative project between Rapid Imaging and Perceptual Labs is one of three finalists in the competition that included 114 entries and almost 2,400 participants from 80 countries. The overall winner will be announced at GTC Silicon Valley, the premier AI and Deep Learning Conference, on March 29th.
“NVIDIA is a world-leader in AI computing and having our technology recognized by their machine learning team is a significant accomplishment,” said David Geisler, CEO at Rapid Imaging. “NVIDIA is the chip-maker behind many of the AI initiatives across multiple markets including autonomous driving, smart cities, health care, big data, virtual reality and high-performance computing – so having our technology running on their hardware connects us to many markets.”
As announced in February, Rapid Imaging, a leading Augmented Reality provider to both governmental and commercial clients, secured a strategic partnership with Middleton, WI-based Perceptual Labs, a world-leading artificial intelligence (“AI”) company focused on providing on-device software frameworks based on machine learning and convolutional neural networks. The technology collaboration for the NVIDIA Challenge incorporated aspects of both companies’ core competencies. “On-UAV Realtime Detection of Storm Damage” allows an airborne vehicle to collect video analytics by allowing an artificial intelligence network to identify damaged structures in a scene and then georeference the structure by using SmartCam3D, Rapid Imaging’s proprietary technology that was developed for NASA and is currently being used by the US Military.
“Having the ability to recognize objects in a scene and accurately locate them from a live video feed is a powerful technology,” said Geisler, “the use of this new technology is applicable to many markets and we think NVIDIA recognized the scalability of this solution.”
Representatives from Rapid Imaging and Perceptual Labs will travel to GTC Silicon Valley at the end of March to take part in the premier AI technology conference. NVIDIA is expecting over 8,000 attendees, among them, representatives from many of the largest technology companies in the world. NVIDIA’s core technology, the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), is currently used in the machine-learning processes used by companies like Facebook and Google, most self-driving car companies, including Audi, Mercedes-Benz, Tesla, Toyota and Uber, and many other companies from a variety of industries.
Rapid Imaging and Perceptual Labs are excited for the opportunity and look forward to the final results of the NVIDIA Jetson Developer Challenge on March 29th at GTC Silicon Valley.
Rapid Imaging Partners with Perceptual Labs
Rapid Imaging | 8300 Airport Road - Suite 3, Middleton, WI 53562 | 608.824.1131 | info@rapidimagingtech.com
February 6th, 2018
Introduces Artificial Intelligence Feature
[Mount Horeb, Wis.] – Rapid Imaging, a leading Augmented Reality provider to both governmental and commercial clients, has secured a strategic partnership with Middleton, WI-based Perceptual Labs, a world-leading artificial intelligence (“AI”) company focused on providing on-device software frameworks based on machine learning and convolutional neural networks.
“We’ve been in discussions with Perceptual Labs for the past several months and are happy to have secured this partnership and look forward to the opportunity of working with a group we believe is at the forefront of the AI industry,” said David Geisler, CEO at Rapid Imaging. “As a pioneer in the Augmented Reality space with a history going back two decades, Rapid Imaging recognizes the importance of continued innovation and finding partners who are leaders in their field.”
Perceptual Labs is headed by Brad Larson, PhD., a world-leader in on-device artificial intelligence and machine vision. Dr. Larson provided one of the first public demonstrations of GPU-accelerated video processing for iOS in 2010 and developed an open-source framework based on this demonstration that made it possible for other developers to do live video processing on iOS devices. This framework would go on to become the 3rd most popular open source project in the history of iOS and it is used by tens of thousands of applications on the App Store, including many of the most well-known. Most recently, Dr. Larson has developed an AI framework that leads the industry and allows for live processing, at 60 frames per second, without an internet connection or server infrastructure.
On-device artificial intelligence provides unique opportunities when coupled with augmented reality. Rapid Imaging is currently working with Perceptual Labs to create a video analysis technique called DRILL Video Processing. This new form of video analysis leverages artificial intelligence by allowing a computer to watch a video feed and report what it sees in real-time. This provides enhanced situational awareness, rapid response and significantly reduces the number of hours required by human video-analysts.
On January 10th, the DRILL Video Processing technique was selected by SOFWERX for the Counter-UAS Tech Expo taking place at SOFWERX Headquarters in Tampa, FL. SOFWERX is a non-profit that invites Special Operations Forces (SOF) Warfighters, Interagency Partners, and select contributors from Industry and Academia to participate in Rapid Prototyping Events. SOFWERX was created under a Partnership Intermediary Agreement between the Doolittle Institute and the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM).
“The selection by SOFWERX shows the importance of these technologies,” said Geisler, “the automation of processes, particularly those related to video processing, is of upmost importance because of the significant time savings possible – and in turn, the ability to respond efficiently.”
Rapid Imaging and Perceptual Labs have already begun work on a variety of projects and look forward to continued applications in the government and commercial spaces.
Rapid Imaging Moving to Wisconsin
Rapid Imaging | 8300 Airport Road - Suite 3, Middleton, WI 53562 | 608.824.1131 | info@rapidimagingtech.com
December 20th, 2017
Leading New Mexico Technology Company Setting Up Shop in Mount Horeb
[Mount Horeb, Wis.] – Rapid Imaging Software, a leading technology provider to the US Military, is moving to Wisconsin after being acquired by long-time Vice President of Operations, David Geisler, a Wisconsin native and former Marine who joined Rapid Imaging more than 15 years ago.
Rapid Imaging provides Augmented Reality (AR) software utilized on all US Army and Marine Tactical Unmanned Arial Vehicle (UAV) Systems.
Augmented Reality pioneer Mike Abernathy founded the company in 1995. Mr. Abernathy has a storied career in aviation software. He demonstrated one of the first successful AR applications, for space debris, in 1993. He created Landform, synthetic vision software utilized on manned and unmanned aircraft in 1995.
He later introduced SmartCam3D, which was used as the primary flight display for NASA’s X-38 Crew Return Vehicle and serves as the primary product of Rapid Imaging to this day.
Mr. Abernathy and Mr. Geisler first partnered in 2003 when the Pentagon requested a demonstration of SmartCam3D for use on unmanned systems. Mr. Geisler had assisted in the creation of the United States Marine Corps first unmanned aviation squadron VMU-2, and served as the Chief Test Pilot for the demonstration. Mr. Geisler would later field test the software while serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom as an embedded contractor conducting one of the US Army’s earliest combat operations with the Shadow RQ7A Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS). Today, all US Army Shadow and Grey Eagle Systems utilize SmartCam3D Software.
“I am really happy to be bringing this technology home to Wisconsin, this is the perfect place to set up shop. The business climate is favorable, there is no shortage of talent, and there are some really innovative people in this area that we hope to work with,” said David Geisler, who will serve as CEO of Rapid Imaging moving forward. “I’m looking forward to leveraging the talent, work-ethic, and values of the people of the Badger State to continue the culture of innovation displayed by Mike Abernathy and Rapid Imaging over the past two decades.”
Rapid Imaging Technologies will be headquartered in Mount Horeb, Wisconsin and focus on various commercial and Department of Defense projects. The company is in the process of debuting several commercial applications of its software for use on small UAS. This includes with emergency management uses, where the software has recently been fielded in support of Wisconsin flooding, as well as Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.