Use the NPU from Docker

You can access the NPU from inside a Docker container on your Dragonwing development board through a Container Device Interface (CDI) file. The CDI file forwards the NPU device plus all required libraries to your container; so you don't need to install any drivers in the container itself.

Installing Docker on your development board

First, install Docker on your development board. Open a terminal on your development board, and:

# Install Docker
sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y docker.io

# Add your current user to the 'docker' group, so you can run Docker commands without needing sudo
sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
newgrp docker

# Verify that the installation works
docker run hello-world
# Hello from Docker!
# This message shows that your installation appears to be working correctly.

Installing the CDI, and running your first application

See qc-ai-test-docs-examples/docker/ for install instructions, and end-to-end examples. Open a terminal on your development board, and:

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/edgeimpulse/qc-ai-test-docs-examples
   cd qc-ai-test-docs-examples/docker

2. Follow the instructions in README.md.

Tips & tricks

Base container

For best results, use the same base container as your host OS (ubuntu:24.04).