Aug 25 2016
IDS Imaging Development Systems is the first industrial camera manufacturer to offer a camera series with the future-oriented USB 3.1 Type-C connector. The newly-developed USB 3 uEye LE series are small, cost-effective project cameras that will be available as housed or single-board versions with different lens holders. The latest generation of high-performance CMOS sensors will be integrated starting with Sony’s 2 MP IMX290 sensor and 6 MP IMX178 sensor from its STARVIS series. Other CMOS sensors from ON Semiconductor, Sony and e2v will follow. Engineering samples for design-ins will be available in September with serial production scheduled for the end of 2016.
With the latest generation of the USB 3 uEye LE series, IDS focuses on the essentials of an industrial camera: small, cost-effective, powerful sensors. Thanks to the compact dimensions (36 x 36 mm) the new USB 3.0 LE camera generation can be integrated into a system particularly easily. Like its successful USB 2.0 counterpart, it will be available in different variants: as single-board version without lens holder, single-board version with S-Mount lens holder or CS-/C-Mount lens holder, and as a housed version with CS-/C-Mount.
The Type-C connector is the first step forward to USB 3.1, and the IDS portfolio provides appropriate cables with both-way pluggable USB connectors. The single-board version comes also with a 10-pin socket providing two general purpose I/Os, trigger and flash, as well as I2C bus for controlling external devices. The single-board cameras of the USB 3 uEye LE camera series are particularly appropriate to form the basis for OEM projects.
The first model is the UI-3860LE featuring the Sony IMX290 CMOS sensor with rolling shutter. This provides a resolution of 2 MP (1936 x 1096 px, Full HD: about 120 fps) and is aimed at customers with high demands on image quality and speed. The light-sensitive BSI sensor from the Sony STARVIS series is suitable especially for cost-driven applications in mechanical engineering, machine vision, metrology, medical engineering, or microscopy.
IDS will be implementing Sony’s IMX178 high-resolution CMOS sensor with rolling shutter in the UI-3880LE camera. This sensor provides a resolution of 6 MP (3088 x 2076) at frame rates of up to 60 fps. This camera is particularly well suited for visualisation tasks demanding high image details e.g. Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS). The BSI sensor from Sony’s STARVIS series will be one of the most light-sensitive sensors in our machine vision camera portfolio. Due to its 1/1.8" sensor format, a wide range of lenses will be available.
The IDS Software Suite supplied with each camera is an identical software package for all IDS camera models and interfaces, covering USB 2.0, USB 3.0, or GigE cameras. With it, users can keep their individual settings without having to change the program code, even if they change to another camera model.