Vision + Automation Products

Vision-guided robot assembles small parts

LR Mate 200iC/5H robot is designed for small-part assembly applications typically handled by SCARA-type robots. The five-axis LR Mate 200iC/5H supports a variety of intelligent functions including an internal programmable controller, Ethernet, iRVision (built-in), force sensing, and the iPendant. The iRVision system is a ready-to-use robotic vision package, requiring only a camera and cable. It has a 2-D robot-guidance tool to accomplish part location, error proofing, and other operations that normally require special sensors or custom fixtures.
FANUC Robotics America
Rochester Hills, MI, USA
www.fanucrobotics.com

Stepper/servomotion card gives control

PCI-8174 stepper and servomotion control card has an on-board DSP with motion ASIC for simplified implementation of time-critical motion sequences. The PCI-8174 can operate as a stand-alone controller by executing all processes in the hardware layer and can simultaneously execute a sequence via the motion ASIC without consuming CPU resources. It is for applications such as semiconductor front- and back-end equipment, TFT/LCD manufacturing equipment, and electronic assembly and testing equipment. Features include high-frequency pulse output rates up to 6.55 MHz and software security protection.
Adlink Technology
Irvine, CA, USA
www.adlinktech.com

Smart vision sensor has built-in touch screen

ZFX machine-vision sensor simplifies automated inspection. It consists of a camera with intelligent lighting and a controller with built-in HMI. The ZFX programming environment uses a live color image for maximum accuracy in setup and monitoring. It can inspect up to 32 regions of interest with 360˚ rotational search in less than 28 ms. Onboard communication ports include RS-232C/RS-422, USB 2.0, and Ethernet. The controller for the ZFX has a built-in 3.5-in. TFT color LCD touch screen with stylus and is available in NPN or PNP output models.
Omron Electronics
Schaumburg, IL, USA
www.omron247.com

Microscope measures without contact

LSM 5 EXCITER laser scanning microscope system analyzes relatively soft materials such as polymers in a noncontact procedure with high accuracy and resolution. Users can visualize and measure 2- and 3-D topographies, determine roughness and waviness, and measure porosity and volume content. Additionally, the possibility of working in both reflected and fluorescent light expands the flexibility of analytical techniques. The microscope’s StitchArt plus option allows for extra-long line profiles or image stack arrays that extend over more than 800 times the size of the scan field to be captured automatically with variable overlapping areas.
Carl Zeiss MicroImaging
Thornwood, NY, USA
www.zeiss.com/micro

Small camera uses GigE interface

GC2450 Gigabit Ethernet camera runs 15 frames/s at 2456 × 2048-pixel resolution over a GigE Vision-compliant interface. It uses a Sony 5-Mpixel ICX-625 progressive-scan CCD sensor with global electronic shutter suitable for capturing high-speed motion events. Key features include programmable exposure controls, area-of-interest readout, advanced binning modes, 12-bit readout, asynchronous external trigger and sync I/O, autoiris control, and RS-232 peripheral port. The GC2450 does not require a frame grabber because it connects directly to the Gigabit Ethernet port on the host computer. The camera housing measures 33 × 46 × 43 mm.
Prosilica
Vancouver, BC, Canada
www.prosilica.com

Positioning stages are compact

Compact, single-rail positioning stages are lightweight, have a small footprint, and offer high acceleration up to 12 g, zero cogging, high resolution to 0.1 µm, high repeatability to ±1 µm, and load capacity to 25 kg. These high-speed linear motor stages are ideal for applications requiring high acceleration, high accuracy, repeatability, and reliability. For easy integration into new and existing applications the stages can be supplied vacuum compatible, custom mounting holes can be specified, and the stages can be specified as part of a complete motion-control system.
H2W Technologies
Valencia, CA, USA
www.h2wtech.com

Color monitor assists in surgery

LMD-2450MD 24-in. flat-panel LCD monitor from Sony is specifically designed for use in medical applications and delivers precise color reproduction and high-brightness, high-contrast images using its superwide-aperture WUXGA LCD panels. The monitor utilizes Sony’s ChromaTRU color-processing technology to provide consistent color calibration. It also includes a second calibration so that white balance is maintained at consistent color temperatures throughout all gray-scale levels. Parallel and serial control (including via Ethernet) are standard.
Scientific Vision Systems
Carlsbad, CA, USA
www.svsimaging.com

Camera is progressive-scan

CCD-16000 VDS is a 16-Mpixel CCD camera based on a sensor within a 36 × 24-mm format. Readout is 2 images/s with 12-bit dynamics. The CCD-16000 has an RS-644 output that is pin-to-pin compatible to the company’s entire CCD series. Additional modules for IEEE 1394, Camera Link, and Gigabit Ethernet are available.
VDS Vosskühler
Osnabrück, Germany
www.vdsvossk.de

Controllers aid in harsh environments

HE-1400 and HE-1600 Series controllers are designed to aid manufacturers building hardened LCD display systems for military and industrial applications. Both controllers feature wide-tolerance power supplies (12 Vdc ±25%), locking connectors, and low-mass tantalum capacitors for maximum tolerance to shock and vibration, Mil-spec silicon resin conformal coatings, laboratory-certified operating temperature ranges of -40ºC to +80ºC, and calculated MTBF in excess of 150 K hours (HE-1600) and 200 K hours (HE-1400). Both are RoHS compliant. Accessories are available.
Digital View
Morgan Hill, CA, USA
www.digitalview.com

Array delivers high-intensity light

PresencePLUS sealed linear-array lights provide high-intensity lighting of large areas or objects at long distances with maintenance-free LED illumination. These high-power, solid-state arrays are housed in a durable, waterproof, IP68-rated housing. They connect directly to 24-Vdc power; constant intensity and strobe control are built into the light. They are offered in models with infrared or visible red, blue, green, or white LEDs and with a choice of clear acrylic, glass, or acrylic diffusing windows.
Banner Engineering
Minneapolis, MN, USA
www.bannerengineering.com

Capture card is scalable

Morphis DVR-16 is a scalable video-capture card with real-time multichannel compression designed for digital video recorders. The Morphis DVR-16 captures from NTSC, PAL, RS-170, and CCIR video sources. It can record from 4 to 16 channels of compressed video and audio. Each channel supports motion, blind and night detection, as well as detection of video loss. The hardware engine can perform real-time compression in MJPEG and MPEG-4 formats. The display overlay also supports region blanking. Software support is available for Microsoft Windows XP and consists of the Matrox Imaging Library (MIL)/ActiveMIL or MIL-Lite/ActiveMIL-Lite development toolkits.
Matrox Imaging
Dorval, QC, Canada
www.matrox.com/imaging

Camera delivers high frame rates

Falcon 1.4M100, a 1.4-Mpixel area camera, delivers 100 frames/s at full resolution in an ultracompact body. Fully programmable via Base mini-Camera Link, the Falcon 1.4M100 incorporates exposure control, windowing, gain and offset adjustment, and flat-field correction. Ease of use is enhanced through direct camera control using the company’s CamExpert point-and-click graphical user interface and the ability to transmit data with 10-m-long mini-Camera Link cables. Other features include 7.4 × 7.4-μm pixel pitch, 2 × 80-MHz data rates, and a dynamic range of 57 dB.
DALSA
Waterloo, ON, Canada
www.dalsa.com

Camera delivers high resolution

Fastcam MC1 high-speed camera is designed for production-line fault finding and process control. The small remote-head camera, fitted with a C-mount lens adaptor, delivers 2000 frames/s at full resolution and up to 10,000 frames/s at reduced resolution. The head connects to a compact processor unit via a flexible, shielded 7-m camera cable, allowing for easy placement into confined spaces. The Fastcam MC-1 is available with an optional remote keypad with a built-in 5-in. LCD via the RS-422 connector. Fastcam Viewer software is included. Power supply is 24 Vdc.
Photron
San Diego, CA, USA
www.photron.com

Viewer works without PC

SensorView 35 is a compact, industrial, color panel-mount viewer for Checker 200 Series inspection sensors. It allows operators to view production statistics and inspection images without connecting to a PC. SensorView 350 features a simple interface for displaying images of passed or failed parts, along with status indicators and results statistics to more easily monitor the production process.
Cognex
Natick, MA, USA
www.cognex.com

Microscope views still or video

MSX-500Di is a small, lightweight, 2.11-Mpixel digital CCD microscope that features an integrated 3.5-in. TFT LCD monitor and SD card flash memory storage The microscope incorporates a CCD imaging system and adjustable high-intensity LED lighting to deliver sharp, well-lit images from 1X to 500X magnification without changing lenses. The proprietary LED lighting is arranged in two concentric rings. By selecting combinations of the LED arrays in the inner and outer rings subject lighting can be optimized so that features can be highlighted or unwanted reflections eliminated. A freeze button allows switching between still images and video mode.
Moritex Europe
Cambridge, UK
www.moritex.com

Embedded computers are compact

ARK-1000 series compact embedded computers are powerful all-in-one fanless systems designed for rugged and space-critical applications in automation control. A solid, sealed-aluminum case provides vibration and water resistance and functions as a passive cooling solution. The ARK-1000 computers feature AMD Geode to Intel Core Duo processors, along with flexible storage and connectivity, from multiple Gigabit Ethernet and COM ports to wireless connectivity. The systems can be mounted inside machinery or other equipment, or they can be stand-alone, wall-mounted, DIN-rail mounted, or VESA mounted. The series accepts a range of power supplies.
Advantech
Irvine, CA, USA
www.advantech.com

Operating system for smart cameras

The 5.26 version of the real-time operating system VCRT can be used to update VC2xxx, VC4xxx, VCSBC4xxx, and VisiCube smart cameras. It features upgrades such as improved read and write performance on SD memory cards, higher upload speed for the FTP server, faster timing for the TCP/IP stack, speed-optimized memory allocation, automatic event connection, and an increased number of events. Additionally, the display can be switched off in VC4038 cameras and upward, and emulator debugging is possible with relocatable programs. Registered customers can download the operating system from the company’s Web site.
Vision Components
Ettlingen, Germany
www.vision-components.com

Board connects cameras

CL-500, a Camera Link mezzanine board for the company’s StreamStor Amazon high-speed recording system, provides connectivity for one to two cameras at data rates up to 500 Mbytes/s. It offers high-speed and long-duration recording capability required when shooting high-resolution and/or high-frame-rate digital video. The Camera Link mezzanine board provides support for nearly any Camera Link Full, Medium, or Base configuration. The board is priced at less than $4000.
Conduant
Longmont, CO, USA
www.conduant.com

Sensor is multifunctional

Sharpshooter combines CMOS-sensor-based vision capability, LED lighting, and photoelectric sensor design simplicity and provides reliable error proofing and quality inspection. Sharpshooter can replace up to 32 sensors in an error-proofing process and can take the place of up to seven different discrete or analog sensor functions. It provides reliable part or feature presence/absence, position detection, and dimensional verification.
Balluff
Florence, KY, USA
www.balluff.com

Objectives increase magnification

Optimized for use with Optem zoom and FMOS lenses and A-Zoom2 automated microscopes, the family of Optem infinity-corrected objectives is an alternative to Mitutoyo objectives. Optem’s field-proven high-resolution objectives are designed to deliver increased magnification for those applications requiring maximum resolution while maintaining 34–13-mm working distances. Optem objectives can be mounted onto A-Zoom2 microscopes, as well as the Optem FMOS CCD lens family.
Qioptic Imaging Solutions
Fairport, NY, USA
www.qiopticimaging.com

DSP supports imaging systems

TMS320C6452 digital signal processor (DSP) is designed to optimize price and performance for multichannel infrastructure and medical imaging systems. Based on the enhanced TMS320C64x+ core, the C6452 DSP delivers double the L1 cache memory and 40% more L2 cache than the C6415T. The C6452 DSP also includes two Gigabit Ethernet MAC ports and one Gigabit switch, which improves the efficiency of multichip designs by automatically monitoring the data stream.
Texas Instruments
Dallas, TX, USA
www.ti.com

Motion capture out of the box

FLEX:V100 camera is an integral part of the company’s Foundation Package, which features ARENA motion-capture software that allows a single user to create advanced motion-capture sequences, work with the data, and export in popular formats such as BVH, C3D, and real-time MotionBuilder. The B&W CMOS imager can capture 100 frames/s in the integrated image capture and processing camera.
Natural Point
Corvallis, OR, USA
www.NaturalPoint.com

Surveillance system is small

ADAMANT IR camera is a compact, thermal surveillance system featuring a 640 × 512 MCT, 15-µm pitch FPA packaged in a fully mil-spec, marine-qualified enclosure weighing 9 kg. The triple field-of-view lens features a 21.7° × 17.5° FOV, a medium-range 6.9° × 5.5° FOV, and a narrow 1.7° x 1.4° FOV, enabling detection of a tank-sized target at 16 km. The system is designed for fixed-position surveillance, passive observation, detection, and recognition of targets. ADAMANT can be delivered with Ethernet or optical-fiber output, allowing remote control and video display over long distances.
Cedip Infrared Systems
Croissy-Beaubourg, France
www.cedip-infrared.com

Camera is for industrial applications

Phantom Miro cameras are compact, lightweight, and rugged cameras targeted at industrial applications ranging from vehicle crash testing to automated assembly-line manufacturing processes. The Miro 1, the entry-level camera in the Miro family, can take images with resolution up to 640 × 480 pixels at any of eight fixed-frame rates, ranging from 50 to 500 frames/s. The Miro 2 gives users the additional ability to control key camera parameters such as frame rates and shutter speeds in increments of one unit.
Vision Research
Wayne, NJ, USA
www.visionresearch.com