eRTIS: the Embedded Real-Time Imaging Sonar
The eRTIS (Embedded Real-Time Imaging Sonar) represents the culmination of a decade of intense research, delivering an industrially viable and market-ready high-resolution 3D imaging sonar sensor. Designed specifically for applications in industrial environments where traditional sensing modalities like LiDAR or cameras struggle with medium distortions such as fog, dust, or moisture, eRTIS leverages ultrasound to achieve high-resolution 3D object perception. This capability allows for unencumbered sensing in the most challenging scenarios, making it a transformative solution for robotics and industrial systems. Fully embedded, compact, and power-efficient, eRTIS captures the entire frontal hemisphere with real-time 3D localization, excelling in tasks like SLAM, autonomous navigation, and object recognition.
Tested across a wide variety of domains, eRTIS has proven effective in autonomous driving, mining, construction equipment, agriculture, nautical applications, and even navigation aids for wheelchairs. Its versatility is matched by CoSys-Lab's expertise in collaborating with industry partners to explore new application scenarios. With tools like simulation environments, ROS APIs, and networking capabilities for sonar sensor arrays, eRTIS is ready for rapid prototyping and deployment in cutting-edge projects. Whether you're looking to enhance autonomous systems or innovate in smart industries, eRTIS is a robust, reliable, and advanced solution. For more information or to discuss potential collaborations, contact us via email or visit us at a major robotics or sensors conference to explore our latest research!
uRTIS: The smaller brother of the eRTIS
The uRTIS (Micro Real-Time Imaging Sonar) is the compact sibling of the renowned eRTIS, shrinking the power of advanced sonar technology into a pocket-sized device. Through the ongoing miniaturization of electronic hardware and advanced signal processing techniques, the uRTIS maintains high spatial perception capabilities while achieving a significant reduction in size and cost. Measuring just 5.7 cm by 4.6 cm, it features a 30-microphone Uniform Rectangular Array (URA) and uses the sophisticated MUSIC algorithm for high-resolution 3D imaging. This makes the uRTIS ideal for mobile robotic applications such as drones or compact vehicles requiring cost-effective, real-time environmental perception without relying on optical sensors.
Designed for challenging environments where optical sensors fail, such as areas with fog, dust, or airborne particles, the uRTIS provides reliable 3D perception using acoustic waves that penetrate these distortions. Validated across a range of scenarios, from navigation in narrow corridors to object detection in cluttered environments, the uRTIS delivers high-resolution 3D imaging and robust performance. Whether you're exploring robotics, autonomous navigation, or innovative industrial applications, the uRTIS offers a powerful and portable solution. For more details or collaboration opportunities, feel free to contact us or discover our latest innovations at leading robotics and sensor conferences!
HiRIS: In-Air Ultrasound Imaging with 1024 Channels
The HiRIS (High-Resolution Imaging Sonar) sensor represents a significant leap forward in in-air ultrasonic imaging technology, featuring an unparalleled 1024-channel microphone array arranged in a 32x32 uniform rectangular configuration. Developed at the CoSys-Lab, University of Antwerp, this groundbreaking system leverages distributed embedded hardware and advanced beamforming techniques, such as the broadband MVDR with forward-backward spatial smoothing (FB-SS), to achieve artifact-free imaging with exceptional spatial resolution and dynamic range. HiRIS provides a 70 dB main lobe-to-sidelobe ratio in single-source scenarios and can create both 2D and 3D ultrasound images of the full-frontal hemisphere. This sensor is designed for challenging environments, delivering high-fidelity acoustic imaging even in conditions that compromise other sensing modalities, such as LiDAR or cameras.
HiRIS marks the culmination of over a decade of ultrasonic sensing research, scaling up from earlier systems like eRTIS and uRTIS by increasing the number of microphones 32-fold. Its robust distributed architecture ensures reliability and modularity, with a dedicated front-end PCB for the microphones and a back-end PCB for signal processing and data acquisition. Despite its complexity—comprising nearly 5,000 components and 127 meters of PCB traces—HiRIS achieves real-time synchronization and low-latency data processing, enabling applications in robotics, predictive maintenance, and beyond. The sensor's ability to capture detailed, high-resolution acoustic images with virtually no artifacts sets a new benchmark for in-air sonar systems, paving the way for further exploration of ultrasound sensing limits and industrial adoption in complex environments.
