Introduction
The Renesas RA8 series is the first product to implement the Arm Cortex-M85, a high-performance MCU core tailored for advanced AI and machine learning at the edge. Featuring Arm Helium technology and enhanced ML instructions, it delivers up to 4x the ML performance of earlier M-series cores. With high clock speeds, energy efficiency, and TrustZone security, it’s ideal for tasks like speech recognition, anomaly detection, and image classification on embedded devices. Edge Impulse includes support for Nvidia TAO transfer learning and deployment of Nvidia Model Zoo models to the Renesas RA8D1. This project provides a walkthrough of how to use the Renesas EK-RA8D1 Development kit with Edge Impulse using an Nvidia TAO-enabled backend to train Nvidia Model Zoo models for deployment onto the EK-RA8D1. By integrating the EK-RA8D1 with Edge Impulse’s Nvidia TAO training pipeline, you can explore advanced machine learning applications and leverage the latest features in model experimentation and deployment.Hardware
Renesas EK-RA8D1 - Evaluation Kit for RA8D1 MCU GroupPlatform
Edge Impulse VisitSoftware
Edge Impulse CLI Install JLink Flashing Tools Download Edge Impulse Firmware for EK-RA8D1 DownloadGetting Started
Renesas EK-RA8D1
Renesas supports developers building on the RA8 with various kits, including the EK-RA8D1, a comprehensive evaluation board that simplifies prototyping. As part of the Renesas Advanced (RA) series of MCU evaluation kits, the EK-RA8D1 features the RA8 Cortex-M85 MCU which is the latest high-end MCU from Arm, superseding the Cortex M7. The Cortex M85 is a high-performance MCU core designed for advanced embedded and edge AI applications. It offers up to 4x the ML performance of earlier Cortex-M cores, powered by Arm Helium technology for accelerated DSP and ML tasks.
Edge Impulse and Nvidia TAO
Create Edge Impulse Project
To get started, create a project and be sure to use an Enterprise plan as the Nvidia TAO training pipeline requires an Enterprise plan. For more info on the options, see the plans and pricing.
Connect your Device
There two ways to connect the board, either using the Edge Impulse CLI or directly from within the Studio UI. To access via the CLI run the commandedge-impulse-daemon
and provide login credentials, then select the appropriate Studio project to connect your board.





needle_sealed
is created by setting the label to this name and then capturing pictures of sealed needles.



Create Impulse
The next step is to create a new Impulse which is accessed from the Create Impulse menu. Select the Renesas RA8D1 (Cortex M85 480Mhz) as the target, doing so automatically targets the EK-RA8D1 which is the RA8D1 based board supported by Edge Impulse.

Feature Generation
Classification requires an Image processing block; this is added by clicking Add a processing block and then selecting Image from the options presented.




Nvidia TAO Classification
Once the image features are done, a green dot appears next to Images in the Impulse design navigation. The Transfer Learning submenu is then activated, and can be accessed by clicking Transfer learning in the navigation pane under Impulse design, this takes you to the configuration area of the learning block.


Training
Once the Nvidia TAO Classification model is selected all the relevant hyperparameters are exposed by the GUI. The default training settings are under the Training settings menu and the Advanced training settings menu can be expanded to show the full set of parameters specific to TAO.




Model Testing
Before deploying the model to the development kit, the model can first be tested by accessing the Live classification menu on the left navigation. Clicking the Classify all button runs the Test dataset through the model, and shows the results on the right:


edge-impulse-daemon
CLI command to connect the camera just as you would when you perform data acquisition.


Deployment
To test the model directly on the EK-RA8D1, go to the Deployment page by clicking the Deployment sub menu item in the left navigation. In the search box type Renesas.
- Renesas EK-RA8D1 target – This builds a binary for when RAM and ROM usage fit within the RA8D1 MCU’s integrated RAM and FLASH memory.
- Renesas EK-RA8D1 SDRAM target – This builds a binary that loads the model into the external SDRAM when the model is over 1Mb. (Note there is a slight performance penalty as the external RAM has to be accessed over a memory bus and is also SDRAM vs the internal SRAM)
.zip
archive containing the prebuilt binary and supporting files, which downloads automatically when completed.
This archive contains the same files as the Edge Impulse firmware you would have downloaded when following this guide at the begging of the project when you were connecting your board for the first time. The only difference is that the firmware (.hex) now contains your model vs the default model.
To flash the new firmware to your board, replace the contents of the folder where you have the firmware with the contents of the downloaded archive.




edge-impulse-run-impulse
CLI command:
