Camera offers color The CL-T5 tri-TDI linescan camera combines red, green, and blue arrays; dichroic filters; three independently stage-selectable time-delay-and-integration imaging regions; and user-controlled coarse white color balancing to achieve color imaging. With a 2048-pixel horizontal resolution, the camera performs scanning at 25 MHz per channel through each RGB output. Pixel size is 14 x 14 µm with a 100% fill factor. The camera delivers 8-bit digital data at 75 MHz total throughput in LVDS format at line rates to 10.7 kHz. Dalsa Inc.,Waterloo, ON, Canada; (519) 886-6000.
Tiny camera does color The IK-MX1 one-piece color video camera measures 17 mm in diameter x 56 mm in length and weighs 20 g. It contains internal circuits that eliminate the need for a camera-control unit, uses standard microlenses, and fits a C-mount adapter. The 1/4-in. CCD provides 512 x 492-pixel resolution. An electronic shutter operates from 1/60 to 1/100,000 s. A single NTSC video output interfaces with most frame grabbers. Toshiba America Information Systems Inc.,Irvine, CA 92618; (949) 461-4986.
Frame grabber steams video The I-color frame grabber and video streamer board can accept up to four video inputs of composite color, S-Video, monochrome, NTSC, PAL, RS-170, and CCIR formats. Video digitization is 16 or 24 bits color and 8 bits monochrome. Color video formats include YUV 4:2:2 and RGB 8:8:8. Pixel jitter is ±2.0 ns, and the S/N is 47 dB. Providing PCI bus mastering, scatter-gather technology, and double buffering, the board supports 120-Mbytes/s sustained PCI bus transfers. It offers simultaneous real-time display via real-time transfer of images directly to display card memory or via image transfer over the VIP/VMI bus. Software support includes the IDEA software-development kit. Common Vision Blox, Image ProPlus, Optimas, and TWAIN drivers are also available. Foresight Imaging,Chelmsford, MA; (978) 256-4624.
Module combines sensor and lens The sealed PCm2112 front-end progressive-scanning module contains a lens/shutter assembly and a 1280 x 1024 CMOS color image sensor. Module is 25.7 mm in length with a barrel diameter of 16.5 mm and a base footprint of 26.3 x 25.5 mm. The lens includes an f-stop of 3.0 and a 12-mm focal length. An attached ribbon cable provides control of all module functions including shutter release to 1/200 s. The cable outputs 10-bit image data at up to 102 frames/s. The sensor can be programmed on the fly to select resolution, frame rate, and bit width and provides a pixel processor that does zoom, pan, tilt, flip, and mirror. The sensor array contains more than 1 million 7.5-µm2 active-pixel photodiodes in a 3/4-in. optical format. PixelCam Inc., Campbell, CA; (408) 558-8266.
Image sensor handles megapixels The Kodak Digital Science KAI-2000M progressive-scan interline CCD image sensor provides a 1600 x 1200-pixel resolution with 7.4-µm2 pixels, electronic shutter, exposure control, antiblooming protection, low smear, and a 60-dB dynamic range. At a 40-MHz clock rate, the imager's dual-output platform allows 30 frames/s. A fast line-dump feature permits image subsampling at a higher frame rate. Peak quantum efficiency is >40% for high sensitivity. Eastman Kodak Co.,Rochester, NY 14650; (716) 722-4385.
Imaging software expanded The MIL version 6.1 software-development kit can perform the JPEG software codec 400% faster. Its common API supports the company's line of imaging hardware and classic C/C++ or ActiveX for Windows 98/NT 4.0/2000. It enables nondestructive graphics overlay of live video with no host CPU intervention and eliminates tearing artifacts. The Bar & Matrix code module includes Datamatrix (ECC200), PDF417, BC412, and Codabar. The software comes bundled with ActiveMIL and integrates into Visual Basic or Visual C++ environments. Matrox Imaging,Dorval, Quebec, Canada H9P 2T4; (514) 685-2630.
Camera uses three CCDs The GP-US542 3CCD color microcamera head comes in a 20-mm-diameter cylindrical housing and uses three 1/4-in. interline transfer CCDs. It provides 768 x 494-pixel resolution and DSP circuits to produce images with 700 horizontal lines in a minimum illumination of 15 lux (f/2.8 at 18 dB). An automatic pixel-registration feature furnishes images without dropouts. The separate camera-control unit accepts interchangeable camera heads. Panasonic Industrial/Medical Group,Secaucus, NJ 07094; (201) 392-6674.
Camera sees infrared The UL3 Alpha camera operates in the 8-12-µm wavelength range. It weighs 6 oz and consumes less than 1 W. It provides analog video in RS-170A format, with optional CCIR, and real-time 12-bit corrected digital video. Images are displayed at 30 frames/s. Remote serial operation is furnished via a serial command interface. Indigo Systems Corp.,Santa Barbara, CA 93111; (805) 964-9797.
Lenses focus on low light The Universe HI-speed line of lenses suits low light and intensified imaging applications. The lenses are available in C-mount and straight barrel styles. They range from 25 mm and f/0.95 to 75 mm and f/1.3 and cover a 16-mm imager diameter (minimum). Universe Kogaku (America) Inc.,Oyster Bay, NY; (516) 624-2444.
Camera reads megapixels The model ES 4.0 CCD camera provides 4 million pixels by capturing 15 images/s (30 images/s with 2 x 2 binning) using electronic shuttering. The 2048 x 2048-pixel interline transfer sensor offers progressive-scan readout and dark current suppression. Each pixel measures 7.4 µm square with a 60% fill factor using a microlens. The camera comes in an 8-bit or optional 12-bit version. Roper Scientific MASD,San Diego, CA 02139; (858) 535-2909.
Cameras use three chips The MS2200 line of three-chip linescan cameras use a color-separating prism and three linear CCD arrays for handling red, green, and blue imaging and multispectral imaging based on visible and near-infrared wavelengths. Other features include line rates to 15 kHz, F-mount lenses, an RS-232 remote-control interface, automated flat-field normalization, and on-board FPGA-based image processing. Digital output data are available at 8- or 10-bit resolution per color plane (24- or 30-bit data). Users can select interlaced NTSC/PAL or progressive scan RGB for analog preview. Duncan Technologies Inc.,Auburn, CA 95603; (530) 888-6565.
Illuminator shines bright The MH-24 fiberoptic illuminator delivers white light from a 24-Watt metal-halide lamp at a color temperature higher than 5400 K using a 1.2-mm arc gap. Light is transferred into a 3-mm-diameter fiberoptic bundle at 611 lumens and into a 5-mm fiberoptic bundle at 923 lumens. Median lamp life is rated at 500 h. The device weighs 1.7 lb and operates from an external 100-125-Vac, 50-60-Hz power supply. An adapter cable allows operation from a +12-Vdc battery supply. Dolan-Jenner Industries,Lawrence, MA 01843; (978) 681-8000.
Interface cards address DSPs The Fast4, FastI/O, and FastMem PMC interface daughtercards expand PCI Rev. 2.1 system functionality in DSP processing, input/output, and memory, respectively, using a 32-bit-wide sideband bus. The Fast4 card provides four TriMedia TM-1x00 processors, 8-16 Mbytes of SDRAM at 400 Mbytes/s, and a PCI peak-DMA transfer rate of 132 Mbytes/s. The FastI/O card adds analog and digital inputs with a TriMedia processor, 8-16 Mbytes of SDRAM at 400 Mbytes/s, an on-board FPGA, and a 16-Mbyte frame buffer. The FastMem card adds 64-512 Mbytes of SDRAM and a full-speed DMA interface. Alacron Inc.,Nashua, NH 03060; (603) 891-2750.
Recorder sustains bus rates The StreamStor CPIC-408 disk recorder can handle data rates from 480 to 800 Mbits/s for nearly 50 minutes on the CompactPCI and PXI buses. It provides random data retrieval and a total capacity from 52 to 300 Gbytes without resorting to data compression. Data are directed to disk without going through system memory. Drivers and programming libraries support the Windows 95/98.NT operating systems and National Instruments' hardware and software. Boulder Instruments,Longmont, CO 80501; (303) 485-1246.
Camera shrinks size The PixelFly 12-bit digital CCD camera measures 39 x 39 x 61 mm and weighs 250 g. It delivers speeds to 140 frames/s, has 1360 x 1024-pixel resolution, and offers three CCD sensor types: 1/2 in. VGA, 2/3 in. SVGA, or 1/2 in. HiRes SVGA. The range of exposure times covers 1/100,000 to 10 s. A serial data link connects the camera head to a PCI or CompactPCI board. The PCI boards include a front-end processor that can handle task controls and provide opto-isolated triggers. All camera functions can be remotely controlled by a digital interface, enabling intranet and Internet operation. The Cooke Corp.,Auburn Hills, MI; (248) 276-8825.
Vision system uses menus The CV-500 series of machine-vision systems contains a built-in monitor and a one-touch controller that provide context-sensitive pull-down menus. The attached camera delivers 24.5 million-subpixel processing for parts measurements of outside diameters, inside diameters, pitch, and gap. An adjustable target-angle compensation feature corrects for target position variations. Built-in independent processors allow two-camera use without speed loss and eliminate the need for a PC or additional software. Digital image-processing algorithms are provided and work under low-level light conditions. The split-screen display can show both images simultaneously. Keyence Corp. of America,Woodcliff Lake, NJ 07675; (888) 539-3623.
Smart camera comes complete The VC-38 industrial smart camera uses a Sony 1/3-in. progressive-scan sensor with a 640 x 480-pixel resolution. It comes with a digital signal processor, 8 Mbytes of SDRAM, and 2 Mbytes of flash EPROM. Other features include four 12-24-V inputs, four 150-mA outputs, an RS-232 serial port, pixel-identical sensor readout, and a VGA output. Operational parameters comprise full-frame integration/image acquisition, program-controlled and external triggering, vertical resets/restarts, and 1/10,000 to 20 s shuttering. VC series-compatible pattern-matching and OCR libraries are available. Vision Components,Cambridge, MA; (617) 492-1252.
Camera runs FireWire The monochrome XCD-SX900 and XCD-X700 1/2-in. progressive-scan CCD cameras incorporate the IEEE-1394 (FireWire) digital interface. The XCD-SX900 offers 1280 x 960-pixel resolution at 7.5 frames/s; the XCD-X700 delivers 1024 x 768-pixel resolution at 15 frames/s. The two one-piece cameras measure 44 x 33 x 116 mm and weigh 250 g. Exposure times range from 1/100,000 to 2 s. A six-pin IEEE-1394 connector allows multiple camera connections. Sony Electronics Inc.,Park Ridge, NJ 07656; (201) 930-6357.
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