LBL-0440 - Version 1
Last Updated September, 2023
Noxturnal leverages Artificial Intelligence (AI) for automatic analysis of HSAT and PSG studies for sleep staging, sleep arousal scoring, respiratory scoring, and Nox BodySleep. The most recent updates to sleep staging, sleep arousal, and Nox BodySleep automatic analysis require specific PC hardware. For these features to work in Noxturnal, AVX and AVX2 are crucial CPU functionalities. This article will guide you through these specifications.
Which Noxturnal Analysis Require AVX and AVX2?
The following is a list of automatic analysis in Noxturnal 6.2.2 and later that require processor support for AVX and AVX2. The following features will not function on processors that do not support this function:
- Nox BodySleep
- Sleep Staging
- Sleep Arousals
- SAS Sleep Staging
- SAS Arousals
Future analysis for Noxturnal will likely require these hardware specifications.
The image below shows the failed Nox BodySleep analysis and the “tensorflow” error associated with having a processor that does not feature the specifications required for the analysis to run.
What are AVX and AVX2?
AVX (Advanced Vector Extensions)
AVX, introduced by Intel in 2011 with their Sandy Bridge microarchitecture, is a set of extensions to the x86 instruction set architecture. It supports executing more operations per clock cycle, aiding in faster data processing, especially for floating-point intensive computations, which are quite common in AI and machine learning tasks.
AVX2
AVX2 is an enhancement of AVX, introduced by Intel in 2013 with their Haswell microarchitecture. It expanded most integer commands to 256 bits and introduced fused multiply-accumulate (FMA) operations. In layman’s terms, it means even better performance and efficiency for computation-heavy tasks, like those found in advanced AI features.
Manufacturer's Specification Sheet
Always refer to the CPU specification sheet provided by the manufacturer (like Intel or AMD). It will list down all the features the CPU supports.
Checking if your CPU supports AVX and AVX2
When considering a new computer purchase to run Noxturnal AI features, it's essential to verify if the CPU supports these functionalities. Users can find the model of their current processor and use the tools and information listed below to determine if it supports AVX and AVX2. To do this, right-click on the Windows start button and select System. View the model of the processor as highlighted in the image below.
Users can also install a tool to check if their current processor supports these AXV/AVX2:
HWiNFO-64 is the easiest way to check whether your system supports AVX. You can download the software by following this link: https://www.hwinfo.com/download/h
Running this tool will give a spec overview:
MacOS if using Noxturnal in Bootcamp or via virtualisation software
Go to the Apple Icon in the top left of the menu bar and click the About option. From here, users can research online to determine if the chip supports AVX and AVX2. Note that Noxturnal is a Windows-only program and is not supported on virtualization programs on non-windows platforms.
Note that Apple Silicon Macs do not support supports AVX and AVX2.
Conclusion
AVX and AVX2 are not just jargon but essential for smooth, real-time AI computations, especially for specific features in Noxturnal software. Ensure that any new computer purchase supports these functionalities for optimal performance.
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