Artificial neural networks function the same way as the human nervous system, and are based on interconnected processing elements working together to solve specific problems

A team of researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Hyderabad, has developed a new technique that promises to help deploy high volume artificial neural networks (ANNs) on mobile phones and portable devices.

Artificial neural networks work the same way as the human nervous system, and are based on interconnected processing elements working together to solve specific problems. But they need large amount of computations and storage space. Compressing these networks to adjust to available space on devices may compromise the quality of output.

The new technique may help overcome the problem. “Neural networks are based on numerical files and are stored in binary form in devices. Our technique helps by grouping binary files into fragments of certain fixed lengths. This has helped us generate repetitions of unique BIT patterns of certain frequencies. We have achieved a compression of up to 64 per cent and a minimum single module decompression time of 0.33 seconds,” explained Amit Acharyya, member of the research team.

“The technique can be implemented in individual cores of multi-core mobile platforms. This has been achieved without stopping on-going process of other memory core modules. This obviated the need to place the entire decompressed file on a single on-chip memory. The technique can also be used to increase memory storage capacity for using intelligent algorithms in standalone as well as distributed environment,” he adds.

This design has been patented and is currently being used by industries.

The research finding was recently showcased at the International Symposium on Circuits and Systems held in Florence, Italy. The work was partially funded by the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB). (India Science Wire)