Video Interface Board PCBA

FPGA-Based Universal Video Format Bridge — MIPI/HDMI/SDI/DVP, Real-Time OSD — DO-160 / IPC-6012 Class 3

Product Overview

The Video Interface Board from Superb Automation is a versatile signal conversion and bridging PCBA that solves the complex challenge of connecting diverse camera and display standards within UAV imaging pipelines. Modern UAVs may carry cameras with MIPI CSI-2, parallel DVP, HDMI, SDI, or GigE Vision outputs, while downstream processors may accept only a subset of these formats. This board serves as the universal translator, accepting any of these input formats and converting them to the required output standard with frame-accurate timing and zero-frame-drop reliability. The board's FPGA-based architecture allows field-reprogrammable format conversion, enabling a single hardware design to serve multiple UAV configurations through firmware updates rather than hardware redesign. All fabrication meets IPC-6012 Class 3 for high-speed digital boards.

The 6-layer PCB handles the demanding signal integrity requirements of multi-gigabit video interfaces. All MIPI D-PHY lanes are routed as 100 Ω differential pairs with intrapair skew controlled to within 2 ps, while HDMI TMDS pairs maintain 100 Ω impedance with interpair skew of less than 20 ps across the entire board. The FPGA at the heart of the design — a Xilinx Artix-7 or Lattice CrossLink-NX — provides the logic fabric for pixel clock domain crossing, color space conversion (RGB to YUV and vice versa), format packing/unpacking, and frame buffer management through an attached 512 MB DDR3 memory. The board also includes a video overlay engine capable of superimposing OSD elements such as flight data, crosshairs, and telemetry onto the video stream in real time with sub-frame latency. DO-160 qualification covers the full environmental envelope.

Key Specifications

High-Speed Signal Integrity

The 6-layer stack-up dedicates two internal layers as continuous ground planes, providing an uninterrupted return path for all high-speed differential pairs. MIPI D-PHY lanes operating at up to 2.5 Gbps per lane are routed with intrapair skew within 2 ps and interpair skew within 60 ps. HDMI TMDS pairs at up to 6 Gbps require intrapair skew of less than 5 ps and are verified through post-layout electromagnetic simulation. The DDR3 memory interface is length-matched to within 25 mils across the byte lane and 50 mils for address/command groups. All critical traces are impedance-controlled at 100 Ω differential (MIPI, HDMI) or 50 Ω single-ended (SDI).

Test Strategy

Each board is validated with automated video pattern generation and capture across all input/output format combinations and resolutions. A video test pattern generator cycles through color bars, resolution wedges, and motion sequences while the capture system verifies pixel-accurate reproduction. Frame drop rate is verified to be zero over 1-hour continuous runs. OSD overlay accuracy is validated by superimposing known data patterns and verifying pixel-level correctness. DDR3 memory is tested with a full March C- algorithm at speed.

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