NXP i.MX 8 Series: i.MX 8M Plus and i.MX 95 for Embedded Vision and Edge AI

Selecting the right processor is one of the most important decisions when developing an embedded vision system. The processor needs to provide enough computing performance for the application while also supporting camera interfaces, image processing, AI acceleration, graphics, video, connectivity, and the required software environment.

NXP's i.MX 8 series provides a range of Arm-based applications processors for embedded applications. Two particularly important platforms for vision and edge AI are the i.MX 8M Plus and i.MX 95.

The i.MX 8M Plus is designed around machine learning, vision, multimedia, and industrial IoT applications, while the i.MX 95 provides a higher-performance platform for demanding edge-AI, industrial, automotive, robotics, and safety-oriented applications.

What Is the NXP i.MX 8 Series?

The NXP i.MX 8 series is a family of multicore applications processors based on Arm CPU architectures. Different members of the family are optimized for applications including embedded vision, machine learning, graphics, multimedia, industrial automation, and human-machine interfaces.

For embedded vision, the processor becomes the central computing platform connecting the camera system, operating system, image-processing pipeline, AI accelerator, and application software.

A simplified architecture is:

Camera Sensor → MIPI CSI-2 → ISP → CPU / NPU → Computer Vision / AI Application

Both the i.MX 8M Plus and i.MX 95 can be used to build this type of architecture, although they target different levels of system performance and complexity.

NXP i.MX 8M Plus

The i.MX 8M Plus is specifically designed for machine learning, vision, multimedia, and industrial IoT applications.

The i.MX 8M Plus integrates quad or dual Arm Cortex-A53 application processor cores, a Cortex-M7 real-time processor, a dedicated NPU, dual image signal processors, graphics acceleration, video processing, and multiple high-speed interfaces.

One of the most important features of the i.MX 8M Plus for camera applications is its integrated vision processing hardware.

The i.MX 8M Plus includes:

Up to 2.3 TOPS NPU performance
Dual image signal processors
Two MIPI CSI camera interfaces
ISP support for resolutions up to 12 MP
Hardware video encode and decode
3D and 2D graphics
Cortex-A53 application processing
Cortex-M7 real-time processing

This combination makes the i.MX 8M Plus particularly useful for smart cameras, industrial machine vision, robotics, surveillance, edge-AI devices, and other embedded products that need to process camera data locally.

i.MX 8M Plus Camera Processing

The camera architecture of the i.MX 8M Plus is particularly relevant to embedded vision development.

A typical system can be structured as:

Image Sensor → MIPI CSI-2 → i.MX 8M Plus ISP → Image Processing → NPU / CPU → Application

The dual ISPs in the i.MX 8M Plus can process camera data before it reaches the AI application. NXP specifies support for image resolutions up to 12 MP and input rates up to 375 megapixels per second.

The ISP can perform image-processing operations such as HDR processing, noise reduction, image enhancement, and lens dewarping. This is particularly useful when a camera system needs to convert raw sensor data into high-quality image data before computer vision or AI processing.

The i.MX 8M Plus can also support two camera inputs, making it suitable for applications such as stereo vision and multi-camera systems.

i.MX 8M Plus for Edge AI

Another major feature of the i.MX 8M Plus is its dedicated neural processing unit.

The i.MX 8M Plus NPU provides up to 2.3 TOPS of AI inference performance. This allows neural-network workloads to be accelerated without placing the entire processing load on the Cortex-A53 CPU cores.

For example:

Camera → ISP → Preprocessing → i.MX 8M Plus NPU → Object Detection → Application

This architecture can be used for:

Object detection
Classification
People detection
Industrial inspection
Robotics
Smart surveillance
Gesture recognition
Machine vision

The CPU can continue handling operating-system and application tasks while the NPU accelerates supported machine-learning workloads.

NXP i.MX 95

The i.MX 95 takes the i.MX platform into a higher-performance class.

The i.MX 95 is designed for demanding edge applications including industrial automation, robotics, automotive systems, medical platforms, networking, and advanced human-machine interfaces. NXP describes the i.MX 95 as the highest-performance MPU in its i.MX applications processor portfolio.

The i.MX 95 integrates six Arm Cortex-A55 cores, an Arm Mali GPU, video processing, an NXP ISP, and the eIQ Neutron NPU. It also incorporates advanced security and functional-safety capabilities.

This gives the i.MX 95 significantly more processing resources for systems that need to combine AI, computer vision, graphics, networking, and other workloads.

i.MX 95 for Embedded Vision

The i.MX 95 is particularly interesting for multi-camera and high-performance vision applications.

The platform provides two 4-lane MIPI CSI interfaces with ISP support. NXP specifies support for configurations including:

One 4Kp60 camera
Two 4Kp30 cameras
Four 1080p60 cameras
Eight 1080p30 cameras using MIPI virtual channels

This makes the i.MX 95 suitable for applications that need to combine multiple camera streams with local AI processing.

A possible architecture is:

Multiple Camera Sensors → MIPI CSI-2 → i.MX 95 ISP → Preprocessing → eIQ Neutron NPU → Computer Vision → Application

This type of architecture can be useful for robotics, industrial inspection, intelligent transportation, automotive systems, and advanced machine-vision platforms.

i.MX 95 and eIQ Neutron NPU

The i.MX 95 introduces NXP's eIQ Neutron NPU, providing dedicated hardware acceleration for machine-learning workloads. NXP designed the i.MX 95 around the combination of high-performance CPU processing, AI acceleration, graphics, vision processing, and high-speed connectivity.

This allows the i.MX 95 to divide workloads across different processing resources.

For example:

Cortex-A55 → Linux / Application Processing

ISP → Camera Image Processing

eIQ Neutron NPU → AI Inference

Mali GPU → Graphics / Parallel Processing

Real-Time / Safety Resources → Deterministic Control

This heterogeneous architecture is valuable when an embedded product needs to perform several demanding operations simultaneously.

i.MX 8M Plus vs. i.MX 95

The i.MX 8M Plus and i.MX 95 both support embedded vision and edge AI, but they are intended for different levels of system complexity.

The i.MX 8M Plus is a strong option for compact embedded vision products that need integrated camera processing and AI acceleration without the processing requirements of a larger platform.

The i.MX 95 is better suited to higher-performance systems that require more CPU processing, more advanced AI acceleration, multiple camera streams, high-speed networking, graphics, and additional safety and security capabilities.

The choice depends on factors such as camera resolution, number of cameras, frame rate, AI model complexity, power consumption, memory bandwidth, connectivity, graphics requirements, operating system, and functional-safety requirements.

ISP Tuning and Image Quality

Choosing an i.MX processor is only one part of building a camera system.

Both the i.MX 8M Plus and i.MX 95 rely on their integrated image-processing capabilities to convert raw camera data into useful image outputs. The quality of this pipeline depends on the sensor, lens, ISP configuration, and tuning.

A typical development flow can be:

Image Sensor → Sensor Driver → MIPI CSI-2 → ISP → ISP Tuning → YUV / RGB → AI Preprocessing → NPU

ISP tuning can involve:

Auto exposure
Auto white balance
Color correction
Noise reduction
HDR
Tone mapping
Lens shading correction
Sharpening
Gamma
Image scaling

Good ISP tuning is also important for AI. An AI model receives the processed image, so issues such as poor exposure, excessive noise, incorrect color, or lost highlight and shadow detail can affect computer-vision performance.

Embedded Linux and Camera Integration

The i.MX 8M Plus and i.MX 95 are also designed to support sophisticated embedded software environments.

Linux is an important option for both platforms, and NXP provides BSP and software resources for developing embedded systems. The i.MX 95, for example, supports Linux, Android, FreeRTOS, and commercial operating systems including QNX and Green Hills Software.

A camera implementation may involve several layers:

Camera Sensor → Device Tree → Sensor Driver → MIPI CSI-2 → ISP → V4L2 / Camera Framework → GStreamer → AI Application

Hardware configuration, sensor drivers, camera frameworks, ISP configuration, and application software all need to work together.

For the i.MX 8M Plus, this can mean integrating the camera sensor, configuring the dual ISP, setting up the MIPI CSI interfaces, and connecting the resulting image stream to the NPU or computer-vision application.

For the i.MX 95, multi-camera systems introduce additional considerations around bandwidth, virtual channels, memory, synchronization, ISP resources, and AI processing.

Applications

The i.MX 8M Plus is well suited to applications such as:

Smart cameras
Industrial vision
Robotics
Machine inspection
Smart home devices
Edge AI gateways
Surveillance
Human-machine interfaces

The i.MX 95 extends these capabilities toward more demanding applications such as:

Multi-camera robotics
Advanced machine vision
Industrial automation
Automotive edge systems
Intelligent transportation
Medical equipment
Advanced HMI
High-performance edge AI

Both platforms provide a path for processing camera data locally rather than relying entirely on remote servers or cloud infrastructure.

Conclusion

The NXP i.MX 8 series provides a scalable platform for embedded vision, AI, multimedia, and industrial applications.

The i.MX 8M Plus combines Cortex-A53 processing, a dedicated 2.3 TOPS NPU, dual camera ISPs, two MIPI CSI interfaces, graphics, video processing, and real-time Cortex-M7 processing. This makes the i.MX 8M Plus a strong platform for compact embedded vision and edge-AI products.

The i.MX 95 builds on this concept with six Cortex-A55 cores, eIQ Neutron NPU acceleration, an integrated ISP, Mali graphics, extensive camera connectivity, high-speed networking, and safety and security features. The i.MX 95 is designed for more demanding multi-camera, AI, industrial, automotive, and edge-computing applications.

For camera products built around the i.MX 8M Plus or i.MX 95, successful development requires coordination across hardware, camera sensors, optics, PCB design, sensor drivers, ISP tuning, embedded Linux, AI acceleration, and computer-vision software.

Building a production-ready vision system around the NXP i.MX 8M Plus or i.MX 95 requires careful coordination between the camera sensors, optics, ISP, processing platform, and embedded software. Explore our hardware design services to learn how we support custom camera integration, ISP development and tuning, schematic and PCB design, and complete embedded vision hardware development for NXP platforms.