GigE Vision camera achieves 200 frames/s
GE680 runs 200-plus frames/s at VGA resolution and up to 1500 frames/s when using a 25 × 25 region of interest. The GE680 Gigabit Ethernet interface can sustain data rates of 125 Mbytes/s. It complies with the AIA GigE Vision interface standard, making it easy to integrate into real-world applications. Features include a high-performance progressive-scan CCD sensor with global/snapshot shutter, external trigger and sync, and general-purpose I/O. The color models have various output formats, including direct RGB color interpolation that minimizes CPU load on the host computer.
Prosilica
Burnaby, BC, Canada
www.prosilica.com
Resolution chart is updated
Enhanced digital-camera-resolution chart, designated the QA-77, is based on the original ISO-12233 specifications but has been improved with extended resolution ranges and more usable features. The QA-77 chart has a resolution range from 100 to 4000 linewidths per picture height (lw/ph) on the central hyperbolic wedges and up to 2000 lw/ph on the corner wedges. This is twice the resolution performance specified in the ISO-12233 standard. The QA-77 target is available on high-quality reflective material in three overall sizes: 200 × 356, 100 × 178, and 400 × 711 mm.
Applied Image
Rochester, NY, USA
www.aig-imaging.com
Frame grabber family adds functionality
New PCI Express model extends the mvDELTA family of frame grabbers. A disablable automatic gain controller eliminates unwanted fluctuation in brightness. The frame grabber can handle composite and Y/C color video signals and has a PCI master DMA interface for real-time data transfer to the main memory of the PC or graphics card. Images are digitized in high quality with full PAL resolution of 768 × 576 pixels. Image parameters such as contrast, brightness, and color saturation can be set digitally.
Matrix Vision
Oppenweiler, Germany
www.matrix-vision.de
Digital camera family grows
Two new members of the LYNX digital-camera line, the IPX-16M3-G and IPX-16M3-L, offer fully programmable resolution, frame rate, and exposure control. The cameras have a 16-Mpixel Kodak KAI-16000 interline-transfer CCD sensor to deliver up to 4872 × 3248-pixel resolution. High-speed data clocks allow full-resolution images to transfer at rates up to 3 frames/s using dual output. The 16M3-L offers a standard RS-232 port for control and the Base Camera Link interface for the image data. The 16M3-G offers a Gigabit Ethernet connection for both control and data. The cameras are available in either monochrome or color configurations.
Imperx
Boca Raton, FL, USA
www.imperx.com
Compact slides scan
XSlide compact, linear stages are constructed of hard coat anodized aluminum dovetail ways and PTFE bearings. The slides have a load capacity of 35 lb (15.9 kg) horizontally and 10 lb (4.5 kg) vertically. Straight-line accuracy is 0.001/10 in. (0.076 mm/25 cm); repeatability is 0.0001 in. (0.00025 mm). The slides come in eight travel lengths from 2 to 30 in. Each slide includes integrated limit switches and will accept either NEMA 17 or NEMA 23 motors. Maximum input shaft speed is 30 revs/s. They are suitable for either incrementing or scanning applications.
Velmex
Rochester, NY, USA
www.velmex.com
Miniature camera is IR-sensitive
When used with an IR LED illuminator, CS8620Hi near-IR RS-170 analog camera achieves detailed surface inspection of superficial irregularities, blemishes, or defects not easily observed in the visible spectrum. It features a 380,000-pixel (EIA) CCD that attains a horizontal resolution of 570TV. The package measures 29 × 29 × 32 mm and weighs 50 g. DIP switches on the back panel allow the CS8620Hi to be configured in many different modes.
Toshiba Teli America
Irvine, CA, USA
www.toshiba-teli.com
X-ray camera works to 20 frames/s
Shad-o-Box HS is a high-sensitivity/high-speed, stand-alone x-ray camera with 12-bit digital interface for direct connection to a frame grabber. The camera is designed to operate in real-time radiography applications at up to 20 frames/s. The 512 × 512-pixel, 2-D CMOS photodiode array sensor with 96-µm pixel spacing provides a 2 in. active sensing area for applications ranging from 10 to 160 kV. All Shad-o-Box cameras are available with both standard and premium image-quality grades.
Rad-icon Imaging
Santa Clara, CA, USA
www.rad-icon.com
Lens is compact
The DSL228 wide-angle lens is designed for security and automotive applications. It features a compact design, wide field of view, and predictable distortion characteristics suitable for dewarping. The DSL228 is optimized for 1/4-in.-format CMOS sensors with multimegapixel resolution. The horizontal field of view is 75˚ on a 1/4-in. sensor, and the relative aperture of f/2.0 provides good low-light performance. The lens construction is aluminum with glass elements.
Sunex
Carlsbad, CA, USA
www.sunex.com
Frame grabbers support Camera Link
X64 Xcelera Series of frame grabbers based on PCI Express currently support high-performance Camera Link cameras, with future versions extending to multiple-input, progressive-scan analog and parallel LVDS digital cameras. Xcelera Series delivers bandwidth of 1 Gbyte/s over multiple-lane PCI Express implementations. Features include trigger-to-image reliability, acquisition pixel clock rates up to 85 MHz, and compatibility with Windows XP Professional X64 (64-bit OS).
DALSA
Waterloo, ON, Canada
www.dalsa.com
Laser works in extremes
Lasiris PowerLine structured-light laser is a line generator developed for demanding industrial and scientific applications. Compact in design, this thermoelectrically cooled laser can emit at powers up to 1 W at 810 nm and 500 mW at 670 nm. It can be operated in extreme environments ranging from -20°C to +50°C. The laser beam can be modulated by an external signal through a DB-9 connector on the back panel, and all models can operate in either CW or external modulation mode. The laser is protected against overvoltage, reverse polarity of the power supply, overtemperature, and ESD.
StockerYale
Montreal, QC, Canada
www.stockeryale.com
Driver package transports data
Pylon driver package is designed to operate with all the company’s cameras that have an IEEE 1394a, IEEE 1394b, or GigE Vision interface. Using the unified C++ camera API, all camera models can be controlled by the same commands. The pylon driver offers reliable image data transport into the memory of a PC with a very low CPU load. Additionally, the integration of standardized GenICam technology affords easy access to the newest camera models and latest features. The SDK of the pylon driver package contains the driver itself, a viewer application, installation support, and sample programs.
Basler
Ahrensburg, Germany
www.basler-vc.com
Lens is for online inspection
Telelens with focal length of 150 mm provides 1:1 magnification with a 160-mm scanlens. It has a 1/2-in. sensor, which gives a 6 × 4-mm field of view. The lens has a large focusing range to compensate for the focal length difference between laser wavelength and inspection wavelength. The telelens design offers a compact envelope and allows integration of a beamsplitter cube for coaxial illumination through the lens.
Sill Optics
Wendelstein, Germany
www.silloptics.de
Single-board computer is fast
NuPRO-851 Series features an Intel LGA-775 for Pentium 4 with FSB 533/800-MHz, dual-channel DDR2 memory at speeds of 400/533 MHz and an Intel GMA900 graphics-core architecture providing up to 2048 × 1536-pixel resolution with 8.5-Gbyte/s peak memory bandwidth. Based on the Intel 915GV and ICH6 chipsets, the two on-board Marvell 88E8052 controllers support dual Gigabit Ethernet ports via the PCIe bus. In addition to powerful computing capabilities, the NuPRO-851 comes with two USB 2.0 ports and four Serial ATA ports for high-speed data-transfer rates up to 1.5 Gbits/s.
ADLINK Technology
Irvine, CA, USA
www.adlinktech.com
Extender is easy to install
USB 2.0 X-TENDER fiberoptic extender is designed to extend USB 2.0 interface hub signals up to 500 m over standard duplex multimode fiber. The USB X-TENDER supports USB 2.0 peripherals, as well as USB 1.1 low-speed and full-speed devices. Comprised of two compact units, the transmitter connects to the host computer with a standard USB cable, and the receiver provides four ports for connection of peripheral devices. Installation is plug-and-play, no adjustments are necessary, and LEDs provide link performance status at a glance.
Thinklogical
Milford, CT, USA
www.thinklogical.com
Software runs FireWire cameras
Advision DCAM software is for use with FireWire output cameras. It is simple to use and can acquire images from any FireWire (IEEE 1394) camera that complies with the IIDC digital camera specification v 1.30 and v 1.31. Features include saving still images, saving sequences of images in various formats, and applying a grid or crosshairs over an image.
Alrad Imaging
Newbury, UK
www.alrad.co.uk
Bundles are easy to use
VisionGauge Smart Camera Bundles are complete all-in-one solutions for both imaging and machine-vision applications. They include either the VisionGauge or VisionGauge OnLine software package, as well as a Sony smart camera-a self-contained unit that includes a camera and PC that runs Windows XPe operating system. The VisionGauge/Smart Camera Bundles come with everything fully installed and configured and are ready to run immediately. They include all of VisionGauge’s software tools, which are easy to set up and use. They are suited for a wide range of applications including industrial, imaging, microscopy, image analysis, machine vision, and quality control.
VISIONx
Pointe-Claire, QC, Canada
www.visionxinc.com
Switch controls signals
CLever switches are designed for Camera Link applications. They connect two cameras and two frame grabbers with independently controllable image data path, camera-control signals, and serial communication. Images can be split to two frame grabbers for parallel processing or multiplexed into one frame grabber for cost saving. Control signals can be sent from the same frame grabber to different cameras for synchronization. CLever can also be used as a repeater for Medium or dual Base configurations. Users can control the unit via a RS-232 port or by the DIP switch on the front panel. The multiple functionalities provide flexibility on system integration and cost saving.
Phrontier Technologies
San Jose, CA, USA
www.phrontier-tech.com
Frame grabber is for PCI Express bus
PIXCI E4 frame grabber for the four-lane PCI Express bus interfaces to one Base, Medium, or Full configuration Camera Link camera and captures images or image sequences at sustained rates up to 700 Mbytes/s. The PIXCI E4 uses an advanced Altera chip with high-speed serial transceivers for the x4 PCI Express bus to transmit image data to motherboard memory via the dedicated Express bus. The PCI Express bus is not shared and provides guaranteed bandwidth for high-data-rate cameras.
EPIX
Buffalo Grove, IL, USA
www.epixinc.com
Illumination modules are improved
Telecentric illumination modules consist of TZ supply, TZ illumination module, and TZ specialized optics. They yield an improvement in reproducibility up to factor of 10 compared to standard illumination. Different power modules can manage current from 20 to 2000 mA to fit standard LEDs, as well as high-power LEDs for light-sensitive applications. Telecentric illumination heads with differently colored LEDs, including infrared, as well as special aspherical illumination optics for fields of view up to 55 mm, are available.
IB/E Optics
Hutthurm, Germany
www.ibe-optics.com
Spectrograph images into the IR
ImSpector L120M spectrograph operates at 8- to 12-µm wavelength range. Attached either to an uncooled microbolometer camera or to a cooled MCT camera, it achieves typically spectral sampling of 60 nm with about 70 spectral bands. Exact values depend on the camera. The thermal spectral camera can be used in numerous industrial, security, and military applications of thermal spectroscopy.
Spectral Imaging
Oulu, Finland
www.specim.fi
Company offers lighting solutions
Ai Series and QL Series illumination solutions will now be offered by SICK and complement the company’s existing ICL series of illumination products. All products built by Ai and CCS America will be made available through SICK. New products include direct ringlights, low-angle and darkfield ringlights, line lights, spotlights, backlights, dome lights, and on-axis lights. These lines come standard with flying leads and are based on LED and high-intensity LED technology.
SICK
Minneapolis, MN, USA
www.sickusa.com
System monitors events
SVstream can record up to 1700 images/s, store the images as stream, and play them back. SVstream is compatible with cameras with GigE, Camera Link, FireWire, USB 2.0, or StandardVideo interfaces. It can display recorded sequences forward, backward, or in a user-defined speed, such as slow motion. Depending on size and speed of the hard disk used, sequences up to one hour can be written either compressed or decompressed. Single pictures can be isolated from a sequence and can be stored for documentation purposes.
SVS-VISTEK
Seefeld, Germany
www.svs-vistek.com
Camera works in harsh environments
SI-VGA60-EM camera is based on electron-multiplied CCD technology and provides 640 × 480-pixel resolution for environments ranging from daylight to overcast starlight conditions. Unlike traditional image intensifiers that can only provide monochrome images, the SI-VGA60-EM is available with on-chip, color filters that provide color imagery at up to 60 full frames/s; therefore, the camera can capture extremely short exposures many dynamic imaging environments.
Salvador Imaging
Colorado Springs, CO, USA
www.salvadorimaging.com
Sensors optimize inspection
Industry-standard 8k linear CCD sensors are targeted for use in high-speed inspection applications, such as printed-circuit boards and print webs. These high-performance linescan products are available for stand-alone sensor-level use, enabling companies to build cameras customized to their needs. Sensors feature eight output ports, each running at speeds up to 19 MHz; a front-illuminated CCD sensor with 7 × 7-µm square pixels; and a dynamic range of more than 1500:1 for more measurement range in each field of view.
Sarnoff Imaging Systems
Princeton, NJ, USA
www.sarnoffimaging.com
Camera speeds image capture
Multiple framing camera is for material studies, automotive, aerospace, and high-voltage electrical-discharge research. It was designed to extend the analytical gathering capacity of high-speed data from ultrafast events. It eliminates effects such as parallax and shading, and the >50-lp/mm spatial resolution is the same frame to frame and in both axes. It incorporates an optical port into the primary beamsplitter to which various secondary recording instrumentation can be interfaced. The camera provides 4, 6, 8, or 16 separate optical channels without comprising performance or image quality.
Specialised Imaging
Tring, UK
www.specialised-imaging.com
Multisensor system measures 3-D
NEXIV video-measuring-system now includes the i NEXIV VMA-2520, which is designed to measure 3-D workpieces, is touchprobe ready, integrates the latest imaging processing software, and incorporates a new 10x optical zoom system and laser autofocus option. Its 200-mm z-axis measuring range together with an optical system featuring a 73.5-mm working distance enables measurements of tall mechanical parts, plastic injection molded parts, electronics components, and medical devices. It is also prewired for touchprobe. In addition to the standard vision autofocus, a fast laser autofocus option is also available.
Nikon Instruments
Melville, NY, USA
www.nikonusa.com
Interface is upgraded
New HALCON interface enables filter operations to run directly on the microEnable III frame grabber from Silicon Software. By image preprocessing on the frame grabber’s field-programmable gate array, significant computing time can be saved. The user does not need any expertise in FPGA programming and can select which algorithms are preprocessed by the FPGA and which remain for subsequent applications.
MVTec
Munich, Germany
www.mvtec.com
LED systems are interchangeable
Campbell, CA, USA
www.light-speed-tech.com
Diffuse illuminator has new design
The DL083, a flat diffuse illuminator with a 2-mm profile, uses surface-mount LEDs to provide light for inspecting reflective objects. The 200 x 200-mm surface projects a large, effective area of even illumination from a range of 100 to 300 mm, which is a significantly longer working distance than traditional diffuse lights. The DL083 has a 45-mm aperture and can be mounted with an integral M6 nut channel. The light can be ordered in red or infrared and can be wired for use with the company’s Pulsar 710 high-current strobe controller.
Advanced Illumination
Rochester, VT, USA
www.advancedillumination.com
Megapixel camera is high speed
Fastcam SA-1 camera features 5000 full megapixel resolution frames per second and 2-µm global shuttering. The camera design offers two memory configurations: 8 Gbytes featuring 6 s at 1000 full frames/s and 16 Gbytes with 12 s at 1000 full frames/s. The high-speed imager has a maximum speed at reduced resolution of 150,000 frames/s. It supports IRIG/GPS inputs to meet precision time stamping and synchronization requirements. Full control via Gigabit Ethernet or remote control via the accompanying keypad with built-in LCD display offers flexibility in high-speed imaging tasks. It is dc-operated with SDI and RS-170 video outputs.
Photron USA
San Diego, CA, USA
www.photron.com
Products address IR needs
Company has introduced high-performance machine-vision products for infrared (IR) applications. These include its Micro Machine Lenses (MMLs)-ultracompact, low-mass lenses based on a telecentric optical design. Three fixed-magnification MMLs for IR applications are available: 4X, 6X, and 8X magnification, all with a working distance of 80 mm. Also, a new range of IR LEDs in four different configurations includes array-type backlight, bar-type, ring, and shadowless ring. In addition, the new MHF-D100LR-IR provides a highly effective lamp light source providing illumination for a range of different semiconductor-material applications.
Moritex Europe
Cambridge, UK
www.moritex.com
Tools transform robot
RoboGauge, a comprehensive set of tools to create or transform an industrial robot into a powerful in-line coordinate measuring machine, is designed to provide real-time 3-D data for inspection of critical dimensions in almost any manufacturing process and production line. It features a SKEYE 6M 3-D laser scanning head, an RT-series vision controller, and FLY, a high-performance 3-D data-acquisition and 3-D processing library for the creation of acquisition sequences and automated inspections. Mounted on the end of an industrial robot or multiaxis system, RoboGauge scans parts and converts data using proprietary optimized algorithms that produce an accurate and repeatable representation of the surface to be inspected.
Orus3D
Montreal, QC, Canada
www.orus3d.com