FPGAs Help Drive Innovation in Complex Medical Systems

by Kamran Khan, Xilinx - medicalelectronicdesign.com - April 3, 2012

More processing power and advanced configurability let designers run the algorithms needed for cutting edge platforms.

As baby boomers and Gen Xers reach the age where they more regularly encounter health issues, they’re seeking ways to effectively detect health issues early and treat those conditions with less invasive therapies and procedures that let them recover faster and live longer. To this end, medical equipment companies are turning to advanced electronics to create fantastically innovative and truly life-saving and enriching technologies, such as diagnostic imaging equipment and robotic-assisted surgical equipment.

At the heart of many of these medical technologies are advanced mathematical algorithms that companies traditionally implement in IC-based processors—specifically digital signal processors (DSPs). Now there’s a trend toward more flexible devices known as field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) to improve image-processing quality and performance and equipment responsiveness.

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