NavLive has chosen the NVIDIA Jetson Orin™ system-on-module as the core of its latest handheld construction scanner, enabling advanced real-time processing in a lightweight, portable device.
The scanner integrates five sensors – three cameras, LiDAR and an IMU – all streaming simultaneously to support SLAM and computer vision tasks on site. Previous generations required separate microcontrollers for each sensor, but with Jetson all processing is consolidated into a single platform.
“By moving to Jetson Orin NX, we reduced weight and power requirements while increasing capability. Customers immediately notice that the device is easier to hold, yet it delivers much more in terms of performance.”
Dr David Wisth, CTO and Co-founder, NavLive
Key advantages of Jetson Orin NX for NavLive include:
- Compact system-on-module with integrated CPU, GPU and deep learning accelerators.
- Lower power draw enabling lighter batteries and extended one-hour runtime.
- Interfaces to handle multiple sensors, including MIPI CSI-2 camera inputs.
- All processing kept on-device, removing reliance on cloud.
NavLive worked with Connect Tech Inc., adopting the Boson carrier board to support three cameras – a requirement not met by other off-the-shelf boards.
The scanner uses the Jetson to power real-time SLAM and object detection of building features such as windows and doors. The hardware also leaves room for scaling, including anonymisation features like face detection to support compliance.
NavLive leverages NVIDIA’s software ecosystem – including L4T, VPI and the Multimedia API – to optimise performance. A custom camera driver developed by NavLive engineers offloads heavy computer vision tasks such as debayering and undistortion to specialised hardware (VIC and PVA), freeing the CPU and GPU for other workloads.
“Jetson gave us a platform that was powerful, efficient and well supported. It allows us to deliver a lightweight, practical tool for construction professionals while keeping all processing secure and on-device.”
Dr David Wisth, CTO and Co-founder, NavLive
