Point Grey Research selects Kodak Sensor to launch first IEEE-1394b camera
MAY 3--Point Grey Research Inc. (PGR) will unveil the Dragonfly Express, its first IEEE-1394b camera product, at The Vision Show East in Boston, May 4--6, 2004. As an extension of the popular Dragonfly camera, this high-speed version uses the new IEEE-1394b interface and the KODAK KAI-0340M VGA charge-coupled-device (CCD) sensor to stream 640 x 480 images at greater than 175 frames/s. Maintaining most features of the original Dragonfly camera, the Express is ideal for OEM integrations.
Via the new 1394b interface, users can take advantage of up to 80 Mbytes/s of data transfer, doubling the bandwidth available with 1394a. Point Grey was able to fast-track the development of its 1394b camera by designing its own 1394b LINK layer in a Xilinx FPGA versus sourcing the components from a semiconductor vendor.
The Dragonfly Express incorporates the Kodak KAI-0340M image sensor, a 640 x 480 resolution, 1/3-in. optical format, progressive-scan interline-transfer CCD. The KAI-0340M has additional features of electronic shuttering, peak QE (quantum efficiency) of 55%, extremely low noise, and low dark current. These features give the KAI-0340M exceptional sensitivity.
Point Grey Research develops advanced digital-camera technology products. Based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, PGR designs, manufactures and distributes IEEE-1394 cameras, stereo vision cameras, and spherical digital video cameras to a broad spectrum of industries. For further information on Point Grey Research and its products, go to www.ptgrey.com.
Kodak is a major participant in infoimaging, a $385 billion industry composed of devices (digital cameras and flat-panel displays), infrastructure (online networks and delivery systems for images) and services & media (software, film and paper enabling people to access, analyze and print images). With sales of $13.3 billion in 2003, the company comprises several businesses: health, supplying the health-care industry with traditional and digital image capture and output products and services; commercial printing, offering on-demand color printing and networking publishing systems; commercial imaging, offering image capture, output and storage products and services to businesses and government; display & components, which designs and manufactures state-of-the-art organic light-emitting diode displays, as well as other specialty materials, and delivers optics and imaging sensors to original equipment manufacturers; and digital & film imaging systems, providing consumers, professionals and cinematographers with digital and traditional products and services.