pco.dimax family S / HD / HS

Transcription

1 user manual pco.dimax family S / HD / HS pco.

2 Target Audience: This camera is designed for use by technicians, engineers, and scientists. In case of any questions or comments, please contact us at PCO. telephone +49 (0) fax +49 (0) postal address PCO AG Donaupark Kelheim, Germany The cover photo shows an exemplary PCO camera system. The lens is sold separately. Copyright 2014 PCO AG (called PCO in the following text), Kelheim, Germany. All rights reserved. PCO assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions in these materials. These materials are provided as is without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement. PCO further does not warrant the accuracy or completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained within these materials. PCO shall not be liable for any special, indirect, incidental, or consequential damages, including without limitation, lost revenues or lost profits, which may result from the use of these materials. The information is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of PCO in the future. PCO hereby authorizes you to copy documents for non commercial use within your organization only. In consideration of this authorization, you agree that any copy of these documents, which you make, shall retain all copyright and other proprietary notices contained herein. Each individual document published by PCO may contain other proprietary notices and copyright information relating to that individual document. Nothing contained herein shall be construed as conferring by implication or otherwise any license or right under any patent or trademark of PCO or any third party. Except as expressly provided, above nothing contained herein shall be construed as conferring any license or right under any PCO copyright. Note that any product, process, or technology in this document may be the subject of other intellectual property rights reserved by PCO, and may not be licensed hereunder. Released August 2015 PCO AG pco.dimax User Manual V2.01 PCO AG, Germany

3 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION 5 2. SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS 6 3. SYSTEM COMPONENTS 7 4. INSTALLATION CAMERA DRIVER CAMWARE 9 5. QUICK START PREPARATION START YOUR FIRST IMAGE CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE INTRODUCTION / CONTENT OVERVIEW OF ALL BUTTONS CAMERA CONTROL WINDOW TIMING TAB SENSOR (SIZE) TAB SENSOR (MISC.) TAB CAM RAM TAB RECORDING TAB I/O SIGNALS TAB CAMWARE FEATURES DEMO MODE FILE MENU CAMERA MENU ACQUISITION MENU VIEW MENU WINDOW MENU HELP MENU LOCAL MENU ADDITIONAL FEATURES 41 3

4 APPENDIX 42 A1 TECHNICAL DATA 43 A1.1 PCO.DIMAX S1/S4 43 A1.2 PCO.DIMAX HD/HD+ 44 A1.3 PCO.DIMAX HS1/HS2/HS4 45 A1.4 REVERSE WITH CAPTION 46 A1.5 PINOUT OF LEMO CONNECTOR 47 A1.6 MECHANICAL DIMENSIONS 48 A2 INTERFACES 49 A2.1 CABLE POSSIBILITIES 49 A2.2 USB 2.0 / A2.2.1 USB FOL EXTENDER 51 A2.3 GIGABIT ETHERNET 52 A2.3.1 QUICK INSTALLATION GUIDE 52 A2.3.2 GigE NETWORK INTERFACE CARD (NIC) 53 A2.3.3 PCO GigE INTERMEDIATE DRIVER 54 A2.3.4 NETWORK ENVIRONMENT/PATCH CABLE 55 A2.3.5 PCO GigE CALIBRATION TOOL 55 A2.3.6 PERFORMANCE 57 A2.4 CAMERA LINK 58 A2.5 HD-SDI 60 A3 BATTERY OPERATION 61 A4 IMAGE FILE FORMATS 63 A5 CUSTOMER SERVICE 65 A5.1 SERVICE AND MAINTENANCE 65 A5.2 TROUBLE SHOOTING 66 A6 INDEX 68 ABOUT PCO 69 4

5 1 INTRODUCTION 1. INTRODUCTION High-speed meets high resolution. This high-speed 12 bit CMOS camera family comprises advanced CMOS and electronics technology. It is perfectly suited for high-speed camera applications such as material testing, off-board crash or impact tests or super slow motion movie clips. The camera systems feature also a variety of trigger options to cover all off-board applications that have been required by the automotive industry. The camera s main features are: Maximum resolution (pixel) Maximum resolution (fps) pco.dimax S1 / S4 S1: 1008x1008 S4: 2016x2016 S1: 4467 S4: 1279 (mono) S4: 1102 (color) pco.dimax HD / HD+ HD: 1920x1080 HD+: 1920x1440 HD: 2128 HD+: 1603 pco.dimax HS1/2/4 (mono) HS1: 1000x1000 HS2: 1400x1050 HS4: 2000x2000 HS1: 7039 HS2: 5469 HS4: bit dynamic range Color or monochrome image sensor versions available Correlated Double Imaging for superior image quality Exposure time range 1.5 μs - 40 ms Integrated image memory (camram up to 36 GB) Double shutter operation (standard for S/HS, optional for HD) GigE and USB 2.0/3.0 or Camera Link data interfaces (HD-SDI optional) Multiple trigger interface Smart battery control (optional) for 1h full operation or 6h data backup IRIG-B (standard for S, HS - optional for HD/HD+) B000 through B007; B120 through B127 Areas of Application high-speed particle image velocimetry (PIV) short time physics spray analysis hyper velocity impact studies automobile crash tests material testing tensile tests airbag inflation fast flow visualization 3D high-speed photogrammetry hydrodynamics fuel injection sparks in electronical switches combustions imaging semiconductor quality control fast events in nature and industry super slow motion movie clips ballistics 5

6 2. SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS Please read the safety instructions completely. Never operate the camera in humid or dusty environments or in places with high amounts of X-ray radiation. Humidity, dust or X- rays could damage the camera. To avoid the risk of water condensation, protect the camera against extreme changes of ambient temperature. If condensation enters the camera, there is the risk of electric shock. To prevent damage to the camera, the system must be kept stable and protected against strong jolts or vibrations. The socket at the bottom of the camera is to be used for mounting purposes only. Electric shock warning Never slide any items through slits or holes into the camera because of the risk of electric shock if the voltage parts inside are touched. Each time the camera is used, check the power cable for any damage. Never position the cable in a way that it could become a tripping hazard. Do not force the lens onto the camera. To protect the lens connector thread from damage, use minimal force when attaching a lens to the camera. If any of the following conditions apply, immediately switch off the camera, separate it from the power line and contact our customer support: If the power cable or the power plug seems to be worn or damaged. If liquids have penetrated the device. If, after thoroughly reviewing the instruction manual, the device is still not operating properly. If the camera has been dropped or the casing is damaged. 6

7 3 SYSTEM COMPONENTS 3. SYSTEM COMPONENTS The camera system includes the following parts. Camera Head F-mount optical connection: The distance between the front edge of the F-mount and the sensor is mm. For standard F-mount lenses and adapters. Power Input (12-36 VDC) ON/OFF Switch Dust Filter (exchangeable) Interface (GigE Vision USB 2.0/3.0 CameraLink HD-SDI optional) Lemosa Connectors (Automotive/ industrial applications) LED indicates camera status Serial Number Tag Input/Output BNC connectors (Trigger Acquire IRIG-B Status Sync-in/out) Mounting Thread 3x 3/8''-16 UNC and 4x M8 threads (Bottom) and 2x 1/4"- 20 UNC (Top) Battery Pack (optional) Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO 4 ) battery Power Supply 24V AC external Power Supply ETF Power Chord (optional) Standard IEC13 connector Cable Depending on your interface: see A2.1 Digital Camera Tools (USB storage device content) Camware: software for camera control & image acquisition Camera driver & tools Software development kit (SDK) & demo programs in C and C++ 7

8 4. INSTALLATION You will find all necessary files on the accompanying USB flash drive (CamLink driver only on our website). You may also download the newest versions of our software, camera driver and third party software drivers from our website. It is possible to connect your pco.dimax camera to your computer via USB 2.0 or 3.0/CamLink/ GigE (depending on the interface card of your camera). Installation and all information about GigE see chapter A For CameraLink install your interface board and its driver and connect the pco.dimax to the interface board see A2.4. Minimum system requirements: Clock speed > 2.4 GHz (Intel Core i7) RAM 4 GB Windows 7 or higher (no server version) 1280 x 1024 pixel resolution display USB 2.0 (1000Mbps NIC with PCI-Express) NOTE If you are using Camware with more than one interface, connect your cameras only with the same data interface. Only use CameraLink or GigE/USB, because the camera filters nothing. Priority of USB over GigE when both connections are used at the same time! Commands over GigE will be ignored 4.1 CAMERA DRIVER Install the appropriate driver for the interface you want to use. The pco.dimax camera has many different interfaces, please read chapter A2. In this chapter configuration and installation of all different interfaces is described USB 2.0 / 3.0 A2.2 GigE A2.3 Camera Link A2.4 HD-SDI A2.5 8

9 4 INSTALLATION 4.2 CAMWARE The Camware Windows application software enables you to control every camera parameter or setting. Images can be displayed on a monitor and may be downloaded and stored. The enclosed USB storage device contains installation files for the software for latest Windows operating systems in 32 & 64 bit. After a successful installation, you will find the program file Digital Camera Toolbox in your program directory and a Camware 32/64 button on your desktop. Other helpful tools are also installed in the same directory. To uninstall the Camware program, please use the Software feature under Windows System Control. Please follow the installation wizard Install Camware as Admin to install to program folder, instead it will be installed only to user folder - 2 Then choose install directory - 3 Choose components: Select additional drivers for camera Link Interface - 4 After the next two screens installation is complete 3 4 9

10 5. QUICK START In order to get familiar with your new camera and software it might be helpful, if you first aim at an object that is easy to focus and that can be seen at standard light conditions. 5.1 PREPARATION Computer is turned on Installation is finished (see chapter 4) An appropriate lens is attached (remove cap) or the camera is attached properly to the microscope, spectrograph or other scientific device Camera is connected to the computer Camera is connected to the power supply and ready (one Beep: after 5 to 20s camera is booted ) 5.2 START Start Camware and the graphical user interface will start up: NOTE Always install latest Camware version to get access to the full functionality of your pco camera. 10

11 5 QUICK START 5.3 YOUR FIRST IMAGE Please follow the instructions: 1 Camware must be started 2 Open view window (b/w or color) 3 Start live preview 4 Apply auto range peak 5 You may adjust exposure time, aperture and focus 6 You should now clearly see the object in the window If you need to change exposure time (e.g. the image is still either too dark or too bright), please go to chapter If you want to record and save images, please see chapter and chapter for detailed information. (Screenshot shows color camera) NOTE Live preview: Useful for fast and easy camera adjustment and focusing. This command disables the Camera Control window if it is opened (except exposure time setting). No images are stored while using Live preview. 11

12 6. CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE 6.1 INTRODUCTION / CONTENT PCO s Camware is excellent software for camera control, image acquisition and archiving of images in various file formats. Camware works with any kind of PCO camera. Please see our Website for the latest version of this software. Chapter 6.2. gives an overview of all software buttons and menus of Camware. Chapter 6.3 the Camera Control window. Camera Control is the main interface for all camera settings: TIMING TAB Timing /trigger modes/ synchronization SENSOR (SIZE) TAB ROI / Sensor format / binning SENSOR (MISC.) TAB CDI / Double Shutter / temperature CAM RAM TAB Settings for camera internal RAM RECORDING TAB Recorder Aquire Mode / timestamp / sequence trigger I/O SIGNALS TAB Input and Output signal possibilities Chapter 6.4 introduces to further Camware features: DEMO MODE no camera connected FILE MENU Open, save and print files, Options CAMERA MENU Camera Control: Settings; Rescan ACQUISITION MENU Live preview; Acquire secquence; Rec. memory settings; Recorder settings VIEW MENU B/W or Color window; Convert Control, Image Browser WINDOW MENU Cascade; Tile; Arrange; Close all HELP MENU Help file, About Camware LOCAL MENU Zoom; Flip; Mirror; Rotate ADDITIONAL FEATURES White Balance, Contrast, ROI by Mouse 12

13 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE 6.2 OVERVIEW OF ALL BUTTONS Menu Bar Local Menu See chapter Toolbar Mouse right-click is explained in chapter Prints the currently displayed image or comment window Opens a b/w color display window Opens the camera control window (see chapter 6.3) Opens the convert control (see chapter 6.4.6) Auto range peak/crop (see chapter Convert Control) Live preview (see chapter 5.2) Cursor display Soft trigger captures a single image (see 6.3.1) Cursor: pixel position and intensity value Recorder Continuous auto range crop scaling Record START / STOP / PLAY Opens the recorder settings window (see 6.4.5) Replay navigation Image Browser: overview of the recorded images (see 6.4.6) Multi Frame Window (see chapter 6.4.6) 13

14 6.3 CAMERA CONTROL WINDOW The Camera Control window can be opened by selecting the proper command in the Camera Menu or by the corresponding button in the toolbar. 1 The Camera Control dialog always adapts to the camera type connected. For the pco.dimax the camera control settings are spread over six property sheets 1, which will be explained below. 3 2 Changes to the camera control sheets must be completed by pressing the Accept button 2. In the information field 3 you can see some information about the camera. Click into the info field to change the displayed views. The three available views of the information field 3 Camera type Actual temperature Image size, fps and recording time NOTE If the Accept button is not pressed, these changes will be ignored and lost. If the changes are within the allowed condition limits of the camera, a message is sent to the computer, the button disappears and the green lamp will be highlighted. The settings can not be changed so that they are out of range. 14

15 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE TIMING TAB 1 General Information The most important parameter for a highspeed camera is the frame rate. The upper limit of the frame rate is defined by the exposure time and the readout time. In this context trigger means exposure trigger, i.e. the trigger signal controls the exposure of a single image. Exposure and readout are done simultaneously, i.e. while image n is being readout from the sensor, image n+1 is already integrated within the sensor s pixel elements. In case of short exposure times, the readout is the limiting factor: readout n n + 1 n + 2 n n + 1 n + 2 exposure texp treadout For long exposure times, the exposure time is the limiting factor: readout n - 1 n n + 1 exposure n n + 1 texp tsys NOTE As the pco.dimax is a high-speed camera, triggering single images using the Soft Trigger button will result in a significantly degraded image quality (noisy images). Trigger Modes 1 Auto Sequence: The camera will optimize the image recording to achieve the best possible frame rate. In the Auto Sequence Exposure Control mode, the camera determines the fastest possible frame rate depending on the adjusted exposure time and the required readout time. After a start command is given, the sequential recording is started until a stop command is given. Soft Trigger: Single images can be recorded with this Camware command. The single image can be acquired by pressing the Single Trigger button. This button appears after pressing the Start Record button. Other signals cannot influence this operating mode. Ext. Synch. (BNC Exp. Trig.): In addition to the Master-Slave camera synchronization mode (see Camera Synchronization p.16) the pco.dimax also utilizes an external synchronization signal that feeds a phase-locked loop (PLL) in the camera. The exposure times are generated based on the frequency of the phase-locked loop. 15

16 Advantages of the PLL (Ext synch) solution: Reliability: In case of dropouts of the external synchronization signal, the synchronization is kept internally by the PLL signal with only small deviation. Noise immunity: Interference on the signal is automatically detected and discarded. Flexibility: The cameras can even be set to different frame rates, as long as all frame rates are an integer multiple of the synchronization frequency. External Exp. Start The image acquisition is triggered by an external signal. It is also possible to force a software trigger for a test image with the Single Trigger button. In the External Exp. Start exposure control mode, single image recording is started by the falling or rising edge of the voltage signal at the BNC Exp. Trig. input (see Appendix A1.4). The frame rate cannot be set, as the frame rate is defined by the frequency of the external signal. However the exposure time and ROI settings affect the maximum possible frame rate. exp trig (in) exp stat (out) busy stat (out) acc. not acc. accepted accepted NOTE If the trigger rate of the external signal is quite near the maximum possible frame rate (difference < 1/1000), then it will be random, whether or not a trigger is accepted! A new trigger is possible after t readout or (t exp + t sys ) (whichever is longer) after the preceding trigger. The Busy Status signal (see chapter 6.3.6) indicates if a new trigger will be accepted. The maximum achievable frame rate in External Trigger mode is negligibly less (about 0.1%) than when operating the camera in Auto Sequence mode. If the trigger rate of the external signal is higher than the maximum possible frame rate, then every second trigger pulse is ignored. Therefore the actual frame rate drops to ½ of the external trigger rate. If the trigger rate is increased further, then only every 3rd, every 4th etc. trigger edge will be accepted. exp trig (in) exp stat (out) busy stat (out) acc. not acc. acc. not acc. acc. not acc. acc. In order to avoid trade-offs at maximum frame rate use either the Busy Status signal (see chapter 6.3.6) or make sure that the external trigger rate follows this condition: Ext. Trigger Rate fmax /

17 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE External Exposure Control (Ext. Exp. Ctrl) An external signal, which is applied to the trigger (BNC exp trig) input, controls the start and the duration of the exposure (see chapter 6.3.6). In trigger mode External Exp. Ctrl a new exposure is started by the falling or rising edge of the voltage signal at the BNC input (see 6.3.6). The exposure is finished when the opposite edge is detected. Thus in this mode, the start as well as the length of the exposure time can be controlled. No further settings can be made, as the image timing is completely controlled by the exposure trigger signal. There is a maximum exposure time. If the trigger pulse is longer than 20ms, the integration will be stopped at 20ms. A new trigger is possible after t readout or (t exp + t sys ) (whichever is longer) after the preceding trigger. The Busy Status signal (see chapter 6.3.6) indicates if a new trigger will be accepted. exp trig (in) exp stat (out) busy stat (out) treadout acc. not acc. accepted accepted Detailed Timing for External Exposure Start /Ctrl The detailed timing for external trigger includes system delay times, an adjustable additional delay time and the jitter. NOTE There is no specified timing for the software trigger. The software trigger is not recommended for applications where an exact timing is required! exp trig (in) exposure trsys tdelay tjit tfsys tdelay tjit Parameters for the following tables: Width of the selected ROI must be a multiple of 24, minimum is 96. Data is not applicable in trigger mode external exposure start. Trigger edges occurring within t delay + 200ns after a preceding trigger are ignored. t jit: -0 /+25ns t delay configurable 0 1ms t rsys + t fsys system delay times depending on ROI (see next page) 17

18 Here we would like to show you a list of examples for different ROIs: pco.dimax S1, S4, HD, HD+ Double Image Mode Model ROI (width in pixel) t rys (µs) t fsys (µs) S1 Color 2000 (only S4) S1 BW 1440 (only S4) S4 BW S4 Color HD/HD (only S4) CDI Mode Model ROI (width in pixel) t rys (µs) t fsys (µs) S1 Color 2000 (only S4) S1 BW 1440 (only S4) S4 BW S4 Color HD/HD (only S4) pco.dimax HS1, HS2, HS4 Double Image Mode Model ROI t rys (µs) t fsys (µs) HS (HS4) HS (HS2/HS4) HS CDI Mode Model ROI t rys (µs) t fsys (µs) HS (HS4) HS (Hs2/HS4) HS Further timing settings for all pco.dimax versions available on demand. 18

19 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE Timing 2 2 The exposure and delay time can be adjusted exactly in steps of 1 µs. The effective stepsize depends on the operation mode. The slider and the up/down control refer to the blue highlighted unit. The resulting frame rate is derived from this setting. Delay time is not recommended for highspeed applications. 3 FPS based: The camera will optimize the image recording to achieve the selected frame rate. The exposure time is limited to 1/fps, lower values can be selected. (Selectable for Auto Sequence trigger mode and preset for External synchronization. mode.) camera type exposure time delay time pco.dimax 1,5 µs 40 ms 2 µs 40 ms First the frame rate is set. If the time required for readout of the image is longer than 1 / frame rate, then the frame rate will be reduced to 1 / treadout. If FPS based is selected and the selected exposure time requires a lower frame rate, the exposure time will be cut to the maximum possible time at that frame rate. The minimum selectable frame rate is Hz, but it only makes sense to use: 20Hz. Camera Synchronization The Camera Synchronization in Camware eliminates the need for an external synchronization source and facilitates easy camera synchronization. Using defined settings for all cameras the master camera takes into account the maximum frequency deviation between the cameras and calculates the maximum frame rate such that it is ensured that no camera drops images. Off: Set this camera as stand-alone, i.e. not participating in the chain. Master: Set this camera as master in a daisy chain. Slave: Set this camera as slave in a daisy chain. Wiring Scheme 3 Master The camera must be wired from the Sync Out to the Sync In of the following camera in the chain. The master camera must be at the beginning of the chain. 19

20 Cameras which are configured as slave or stand-alone, do electrically repeat the synchronization signal. A master camera ignores the signal at its Sync In port and generates a synchronization signal at the Sync Out port. Thus a master camera interrupts a wired chain. The cameras can also be wired as a ring structure. In this case any one of the cameras can act as a master camera. A camera configured as a stand-alone camera does not participate and can be operated individually, but does not interrupt the chain. All cameras should have the same sensor frequency. If not, please define the camera with the lowest sensor operating frequency as master. Specifications up to 50 m cable (RG174 or RG58) from camera to camera up to five cameras synchronization delay less than 1 µs (five cameras, 100 m cable in total) synchronization jitter less than 50 ns (for any camera in the chain) the maximum achievable frame rate in camera sync mode is only about 0,5 % less than when operating the camera individually Camera Setup Set all cameras to same ROI and same size of the CamRam segment. Define the master and slave cameras. Exposure/delay time and frame rate can only be set for the master camera. Start recording function of the master camera. Now all cameras are recording images. The software will start the slave cameras first and the master camera last (vice versa at acquisition stop). Stop recording of the master camera first (Stop button in Camware). The slave cameras will stop automatically after the master camera is stopped. All cameras have now recorded the same number of images. Images can now be read from all of the cameras. This is done by using an index, where #1 is the first/earliest image. Images with the same index requested from different cameras are taken at the same time. The sequence trigger can also be used in camera sync mode. However, only the master camera must be configured for the sequence trigger and trigger delay. The sequence trigger mode setting for all slave cameras must be off! Acquire Enable mode is not possible in camera sync mode. 20

21 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE SENSOR (SIZE) TAB Binning (not available) Feature not applicable for pco.dimax Sensor Format 2 The implemented sensor has the option to read out a standard size (effective pixels recommended by the sensor manufacturer) or an extended size (not for pco.dimax HD/HD+), which adds optical black pixels, which can be helpful for calibration or control purposes. In extended mode, you will not increase image size. 1 NOTE (only HS Version) If you change the ROI, for physical reasons, an increasing frame rate is only possible in specific steps. The frame rate increases more, if you make big changes (horizontal). Changes of only a few pixels only cause little frame rate changes (vertical). Region of Interest The ROI (region of interest) selects only a part of the sensor to be read out, in order to speed up the frame rate and to save memory. Due to the sensor structure and readout electronics the selectable region is always symmetric to the center. pco.dimax HD/HD+/S1/S4 increments horizontal: increments vertical: minimum ROI: pco.dimax HS 3 increments horizontal: increments vertical: minimum ROI: 48 pixel steps 4 pixel steps 48 x 8 pixels 2 pixel steps 2 pixel steps 4 x 4 pixels Examples of a possible ROI with corresponding storage/recording values (only valid for pco.dimax S4 monochrome differs for all other models): resolution horizontal (pixel) resolution vertical (pixe)] max frame rate (fps) # of images in camram (36 GB) recording time (s) Camware will show the actual frame rate and estimated recording time due to selected ROI and timing values in the information box. (Click in the information box to change view) 21

22 6.3.3 SENSOR (MISC.) TAB Pixel clock 1 The pixel clock sets the clock frequency and therefore the image sensor readout speed (and accordingly the frame rate). The readout noise slightly increases at higher clock frequencies. The pixel clock of your pco.dimax camera is optimally adjusted for best image quality and speed and can t be changed A/D Converter 2 not available for pco.dimax. Double Image / Doubleshutter 3 (Standard for HS/S, optional for HD/HD+) This feature is widely used for particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements and is a(n) (optional) feature of the pco.dimax. The first exposure time t e1 can be any exposure time of the available range of the pco.dimax camera. The second exposure time t e2 can not be directly adjusted. The length of the second exposure is determined by the readout time of the first image. The interframing time t itf denotes the transition time between end of exposure #1 and start of exposure #2. As can be seen the maximum frame rate of the double image mode (where frame rate is defined as the frequency of the double images) will drop to just half the value compared to the standard mode. The double image mode will operate only in the trigger modes Auto Sequence and External Exposure Start. See readout image n, 1st exp. image n, 2nd exp. wait image n+1, 1st exp. status expos exp trig ttd te1 tif te2 treadout General timing for the double image mode t e1 : exposure 1 t e2 : exposure 2 t td : trigger delay time t id : intrinsic delay t if : interframing time t readout : readout time CDI mode 4 The correlated double image (CDI) mode offers to record images with increased dynamic range and a 30% better performance on the weak signal side of the images (at the expense of half of the usual frame rate). 22

23 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE Offset Control 5 Offset control is done automatically for optimal results. B/W Noise Filter (only available for pco.dimax b/w) 6 An optimal hot pixel correction is already integrated. Analog Settings 7 The value refers to the conversion factor that defines how many charges (electrons), which have been generated by light in the image sensor in each pixel, are necessary to generate one count (one intensity level) in the digital image. It is optimally adjusted and can t be changed. Electronics Temperature 8 Display of electronics and sensor temperature. Due to digital temperature compensation and sophisticated electronic design the pco.dimax comes with ultra-stable offset, where there is no need for extra black or current session references CAM RAM TAB The CamRam tab controls the built-in memory (CamRam) of your pco.dimax. CamRam has four segments, but while using Camware only three are usable, because the fourth is used by Camware itself. You have the possibility to record into three different segments and to set the usage in percent or the size exactly. Pointer over the size field will show maximal possible number of images in each segment. (Quantities shown on screen are just examples: e.g. pco.dimax HD+ / HS2 36GB Ram) 23

24 6.3.5 RECORDING TAB NOTE Acquire mode still requires initial camera recording activation by software (press record button)! Recorder Mode In Sequence mode the camera will stop after the memory (i.e. the active CamRAM segment) is completely filled. In Ring Buffer mode the camera will record until it is stopped overwriting the previous images continuously. Acquire Mode The Acquire Mode gives you the ability to enable or disable the recording by an external signal. If set to Auto all images are accepted and all images taken are saved. A signal at the BNC acq enbl input (see 6.3.6) is ignored for this function. If set to External, the camera will only record images, when the external signal (voltage) applies. While the sensor timing scheme is not affected by the signal at the acq enbl input, the acq enbl input is sampled at the beginning of the exposure time, which can be seen at the rising edge of the exp stat BNC output. If the acq enbl input is high (low, when inverted) at that time, the image is saved to memory. If the acq enbl input is low (high, when inverted), the image is not saved to memory (image is lost). 2 1 exp stat (out) acq enbl (in) saved not saved not saved saved In trigger mode External Exp. Start, the acq enbl input works like a gate for the trigger signal. A trigger edge (rising, falling when exp trig is inverted) is accepted only when the acq enbl signal is high (low, when inverted). acq enbl (in) exp trig (in) exp Stat (out) accepted not acc. not acc. accepted 24

25 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE In trigger mode External Exp. Ctrl, the acq enbl input works very similar to the mode External Exp. Start. However, the acq enbl input is ignored for the edge which is closing the exposure time (started exposure will be finished accordingly). When using acq enbl in external trigger modes, the following timing specification should be met: exp trig (in) acq enbl (in) tsu th pco.dimax model S1/S4 HD/HD+ HS1/HS2/HS4 tsu 50 ns 60 ns 50 ns t h 50 ns 60 ns 50 ns If the acq enbl signal changes within the window of t su (set up) to t h (hold), the behavior is random. The trigger may be accepted or ignored. Sequence Trigger Mode 3 The Sequence Trigger Mode enables the user to stop capturing a sequence of images via an external signal, and then the number of images to be stored after this event can be defined. The Sequence Trigger function utilizes the acq enbl input port (see chapter 6.3.6), therefore the acquire function cannot be used and the acquire mode has to be set to Auto. The recorder mode should be set to Ring Buffer; otherwise the recording may stop, when the selected RAM segment is full. For most cases, this is long before the sequence trigger occurs. Off Function is not available; signal at acq enbl does not stop record. Software Event Only a software command can stop the sequence. Ext. or Soft. Event Both, an edge at acq enbl or a software command can stop the sequence. acq enbl (in) exposure record state Stop Event Delay Images = 10 25

26 The relative position of the trigger within the recorded time window depends on the size of the RAM segment and the delay images parameter. The following figure shows one example, where the buffer size is 1000 images: The position of the trigger is always calculated backwards from the end of the buffer. The relation is always in terms of images. RAM 1000 images #1 # images stop event Delay Images = 800 (80%) 4 Timestamp 4 A time stamp can be placed into the upper left corner of the image. It can be either put off, binary or binary with text. The time resolution is 1 μs. In binary mode the first 16 pixels will be filled with the time stamp information (binary code). The numbers are coded in BCD with one byte per pixel, which means that every pixel can hold two digits. If the pixels have more resolution as 8 bits, then the BCD digits are right bound adjusted and the upper bits are zero. For further information please refer to the SDK. In binary and ASCII mode text will be placed into the image replacing the content of the image (271x 8 pixels). The timestamp indicates the end of the exposure time. Three different information is stamped onto the image: number of the image 1, date 2 and time

27 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE I/O SIGNALS TAB Acquire enable 1 Exposure Trigger 2 Status Exposure 3 Ready Status Type Polarity TTL High/low If checked, a signal for High High/low Acquire Mode or Sequence Level Trigger mode (see chapter CONTA Open/Close 6.3.5) is accepted at the CT (High/Low) acq enbl BNC input RS 485 High/low TTL Rising / If checked, a signal for Falling edge External Exp. Start or High Rising / External Exp. Ctrl trigger Level Falling edge mode (see chapter 6.3.1) is CONTA Rising / accepted at the exp trig CT Falling edge BNC input RS 485 Rising / Falling edge TTL High/low If checked, a signal indicating exposure status or busy status is given at the status BNC output. Once an acceptable trigger edge is received, busy will be high. As soon as busy is low again, a new trigger edge is accepted TTL High/low Automotive Feature (signal on Lemosa connector). NOTE (TYPE): CONTACT high: if contact is open, camera will capture images; CONTACT low: if contact is closed, camera will capture images. 27

28 Type Explanation TTL Maximum low level: 0.8V Minimum high level: 2V High Level Maximum low level: 5V Minimum high level: 10V CONTACT Maximum switch on resistance: 100Ohms Minimum switch off resistance: 40kOhms Minimum switch voltage rating: 5VDC Minimum switch current rating: 1mA RS485 Receiver sensitivity: +-200mV Note: termination of 120Ohms outside camera required Explanations: Exp trig (in) Exp Stat (out) Busy Stat (out) treadout BNC connectors see chapter A1.4 Filter electrical interference filters (off, medium, high). An active filter causes an internal signal delay. Polarity active for high/low signal or rising/falling edge 28

29 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE 6.4 CAMWARE FEATURES This chapter describes in detail the Camware Demo Mode and the File, Camera, Acquisition, View and Window menus DEMO MODE When Camware is started, it automatically recognizes the camera type of the connected and running cameras. Camware will start in Demo Mode, if your camera is switched off or no camera is connected In this mode all image processing features are available, but all camera settings are deactivated. The user only has to tell Camware what type of image he wants to open. For that purpose, the Demo Mode Setup window opens and asks for the corresponding input. Need Help? If this window pops up because you have trouble running the camera, please see instructions in appendix A5. Resolution The drop down list displays the existing image sensor spatial resolutions of all PCO camera systems. Please select the specific resolution and bit depth of the images to be opened! If double shutter images have been recorded and should be opened, Double Shutter Mode should be checked. Color With the radio buttons, the user can specify whether the image type is monochrome (b/w) or color. Alignment These two radio buttons adjust whether MSB (most significant bit) aligned (upper) or LSB (least significant bit) aligned (lower) images have been stored (see 6.4.2, Options File Settings). 29

30 6.4.2 FILE MENU NOTE Be aware of the different storage abilities of the formats, for example *.bmp - the bitmap format only allows for 8bit values to be stored and therefore the image content of a 16 bit image is reduced, if stored as bitmap. Open RAW File (single image only) This command should be used to import a single image into the currently active image window. Only files with the extension and format of *.b16 (=PCO proprietary binary image format) and *.tif (TIFF image format) can be imported. If the recorder is enabled, each imported image will be transferred to the buffer shown in the picture number. The image itself will be fitted to the current image size. If the recorder is disabled, the current image sizes will be set to the parameters of the imported image. Open RAW File Set (only for pco.hsfc pro camera) Open RAW Recorder Sequence (image sequence from one camera) This command is used to import a sequence of images. If more than one camera is connected and an image window is currently open, the sequence will be loaded to the active window. If no image window is open, the images will be loaded to camera #1. This command opens the Open file dialog box. Only files with the extension and the format of *.b16 and *.tif (TIFF16) can be imported. Save RAW File (single image only) This command should be used to save the image, which is displayed in the active window. The command opens the Save file dialog box. The image file can be saved in 16bit *.b16 and *.tif format. If more than one camera is connected, it is possible to save all current images by selecting Export all images in the Save file dialog box. With this feature it is possible to save one image of each active camera within one process step (it is not necessary to repeat the save process for each camera). The Save command will not be available, if no image window is open. Save RAW Set (only for pco.hsfc pro camera) Save RAW Recorder Sequence (image sequence from one camera) The Save Recorder command should be used to save or export image records. If more than one camera is connected and an image window is currently open, the record of the active window will be saved. The command opens the Save file dialog box. The Save Recorder command will not be available, if no image window is open. Export File (not reloadable!) Use this command to export the image of the active image window. This command will open the Save file dialog box. Files with the extensions fts, tif, bmp, asc, jpg, and jp2 can be exported. This item will not be visible, if no image window is open. 30

31 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE Export Recorder Sequence (not reloadable!) Use this command to export a sequence of images. If more than one camera is connected and an image window is currently open, the record of the window which has got the input focus will be saved. If no image window is open the images of channel 1 will be saved. This command will open the Export image dialog box. Files with the extensions fts, tif, bmp, asc, avi, mpg, jpg, jp2, and wmv can be exported. (see Appendix A4) Print Setup The Print Setup command opens the Windows Print Setup dialog box for adjustments and settings of the connected printer(s). Print Preview Opens a Print Preview window. Print Opens the Windows Print dialog box. This command opens the Options dialog, allowing special settings. File Settings Tiff File Settings: Align to MSB Here you can select the alignment of the pixel value, if the pixel depth is less than 16bit (e.g. MSB: each pixel value is shifted from bit 12-1 to bit 16-5 in case of 12bit). This removes the dark image effect inside other image applications. Tiff File Settings: RAW 16bit RGB Here you can select whether the 16bit RGB tiff file is saved with 16bit raw or white balanced data. If this item is checked, each 16bit RGB pixel value is saved as raw 16bit RGB (48bit) value, without white balancing. Saving to 16bit RGB can be done by selecting the color display window, export rec., selecting 8bit-tiff and checking Save 16bit RGB. ASCII file separator Here you can select an appropriate separator for the ASCII file format. JPEG File Settings Here you can select the quality of the saved jpeg/jp2 files: high quality saves images with 100% quality (otherwise 85% quality). Preserve Last Record If checked, a message box will pop up in case the user may overwrite or loose data. 31

32 Use six digits for filename If you record a sequence of *.b16 files and choose direct record to file Camware is always using six digits for filename (e.g. t_ b16). View Settings Image Browser Here you can select between showing all image files inside the browser window either b/w or color. Setting b/w will result in a faster refresh, (valid only for color sensor). Convert (Min/Max) (Continuous Auto Range Crop, see chapter under Convert Control BW) This option enables the automatic min/max function during record and replay. Disable this feature if the application stops responding during this mode (due to operating system capacity problems). Marker Use this command to display a crosshair in the center. It is possible to adjust length and color of the crosshair Paint Images This option enables the update of (both double shutter images or) multiple camera images during record and replay. Disable this feature if the application stops responding during this mode (due to operating system performance problems). Toolbar Toolbar Opens the corresponding toolbars (see 6.2) Math. Functions With the math window you have the ability to build the difference between a reference image and the actual image. If you activate math every new image acquired will be subtracted from the reference image or vice versa. last acquired image will be copied to reference buffer a reference picture will be acquired and copied to reference buffer add offset to avoid negative values, which would not be visible enable / disable math function Replay Speed Bar The faster replay speed is useful if large sets of image data need to be scanned. 32

33 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE Misc Infotext Use this command to show or hide the start-up information dialog box. Synchronous Scrolling If this item is checked all opened image windows will be scrolled at the same time and in the same manner. View Embedded Image Info (not available) Multi Win Picture Order With the Multi Window you have the ability to view the images of all active cameras in one window. You can select between camera order oriented or image time oriented order. Image time oriented means that the sequence of images depends on the individual time stamp of each image. Camera order oriented means that the first image shown is from camera 1, then camera 2 and so on. Logfile This option enables the logging of errors and system info. Enable this feature in order to create a support file, which can help to find out troubles with the camera (see A5.2) Load lookup Table (for monochrome cameras) With the Pseudo LUT (Lookup-Table) feature you can load any LUT with one of four different formats and you can view the result in the color view window. Use one of the attached predefined LUTs or define your own. Direct Record to File (not recommended for high-speed) Use this command to record images directly onto hard disk. This command will open the Save File dialog box. Set the number of images to store to disk. If the camera captures images faster than the computer can save to disk, then you will loose images. The displaying of the images doesn't interfere with the record process. A rate of 4-5 frames per second (fps) for display is typical. Record with Flowfile (for pixelfly and sensicam cameras) Exit This command exits the program and closes all channel dialog windows. Window positions, settings and sizes are stored in the windows registry and will be loaded again at next start-up. 33

34 6.4.3 CAMERA MENU Camera Control Use this command to open the camera control window (see 6.2). Load Camera Settings With this command you can reload camera settings which have been previously saved. You can reload only a file which has been made with the same camera configuration as it was found by the application at start-up. Save Camera Settings This command saves the actual camera settings of all existing cameras. Create Hot pixel List This feature applies for cameras with exposure times longer than 5s and is not applicable for the pco.dimax camera. Hot pixel Correction Sophisticated hot pixel correction is already implemented in the pco.dimax camera. Auto Exposure Starts some exposures and tries to find an exposure time that captures images with grey values between 1400 and It readjusts the lookup tables in order to display the images with the new settings best. For low light conditions only. Close Disconnects camera and switches Camware to Demo Mode. In case of multiple cameras, all cameras must be closed in order for Camware to switch to Demo Mode. Rescan Disconnect and reconnect camera. Setup (not available for pco.dimax). NOTE Hot pixel: Some pixels tend to become very bright during a long exposure. These pixels are called hot pixel. 34

35 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE ACQUISITION MENU Live Preview The Live Preview is useful for fast and easy adjusting and focusing of the camera. The active window will be updated. To see another window, simply click on the window. This option is not available in double shutter mode. Acquire Picture (not available for pco.dimax) Records single images in case of sensicam cameras. (legacy) Acquire Sequence Starts recording images into the system memory according to Trigger Mode selection (see 6.3.1). During the recording, the camera controls are locked. Rec. Memory Settings (not available for pco.dimax) Recorder Settings This command opens the Play Settings dialog window. The Play Settings are referred to the camera. If more than one camera is connected, the camera number is retrieved from the image window that has received the input focus (is active). If no image window is opened, the dialog is referred to camera 1. If the Set to all checkbox is checked the settings apply to all connected cameras. The Global Settings are valid for all connected cameras. Averaging If in the Avg. dropdown list a value not equal to 1 is selected, the corresponding number of images is averaged in the buffer, reducing the statistically independent noise. Another option to reduce the noise is the activation of the Infinite impulse response IIR lowpass filter. This filter takes 90% of the previous image and 10% of the new image to create images with clearly reduced noise. Image (actual) = Image (act - 1) * Image (new) * 0.1 Replay Speed Slider The slider can be used to adjust the sequence replay speed, from slow (turtle) to fast (rabbit). Seq. Wrap Rec Sequential Wrap Recording sets Recorder Mode (6.3.5) to Ring Buffer. Seq. Wrap Play The play button starts the display for a sequence as defined by the first image/last image fields and will loop until the stop button is pressed. Reverse Play If checked, it is possible to play the recorded images in reverse. 35

36 6.4.5 VIEW MENU B/W Window Use this command to open a b/w display window. Color Window Use this command to open a color display window. Convert Control BW The user can influence how the 12 bit intensity values (x-axis: grey scale value) of the original image are converted into 8bit values (yaxis: frequency of grey scale value) to display it on 8bit monitors or export the data into 8bit file formats. BW Settings (includes histogram of original data) It is possible to hide the histogram of original data 1 and to switch tab/histogram 2. Green sliders in histogram 3 left slider = Min controller (corresponds to value 0 of the 8 bit display). Values below that mark are set to 0, i.e. displayed as black. right slider = Max controller (corresponds to value 255). Values above that mark are set to 255, i.e. displayed as white. The values in-between are converted into a value between 0 and 255 according to Contrast and Gamma settings. See the small graph 4, which reflects the calculation. Proc config tab: please see under Convert Control Color (next page) Converted Hist This tab shows you the histogram of converted data. How the Auto Range applies Auto Range Peak searches for the minimum and maximum 12 bit intensity values of the image. Given these number the converter scales the 8 bit display (256) within these two values. Auto Range Crop sets the converter to ignore the extreme intensity values of the image and scales the display in a smaller range. Thus dark or bright light spots, reflections, etc. are cut off. Min/Max (Automatic) = Continuous Auto Range Crop 36

37 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE Convert Control Color (only pco.dimax color) Color Balance (Histogram of original data) Intensity of single color can be controlled by Saturation and Vibrance 1. Press the Auto button to set the white balance 2. 6 The balancing of RGB can be controlled by Col.Temp and Tint 3. It is possible to hide the histogram of original data 4 and to switch tab/histogram 5. The user can influence how the 12 bit intensity values (x-axis) of the original image are converted into 8 bit values (y-axis) in different ways. White sliders in histogram 6 left slider = Min controller (corresponds to value 0 of the 8 bit display). Values below that mark are set to 0, i.e. displayed as no color. right slider = Max controller (corresponds to value 255). Values above that mark are set to 255, i.e. displayed as full color. The values in-between are converted into a value between 0 and 255 according to Contrast and Gamma settings. See the small graph 7, which reflects the calculation. Converted RGB Hist This tab shows you the histogram of converted data. Proc. Config (Process configuration) Due to proprietary high-end algorithms used for these image processing features, no detailed description is given here switch on in order to significantly reduce processing time increases refresh rate of the live image. 2 pixel color correction 3 non local means algorithm 4 adaptive to brightness and patterns 5 sharpen 37

38 GPU Processing In order to benefit from all of Camware s advanced processing features, we highly recommend a NVIDIA CUDA-enabled graphics processing unit (GPU). Find a list of CUDA-enabled products here: Get the CUDA driver here: Make sure: that the CUDA driver is successfully installed. that the GPU has at least 512MB memory. Camware Image Processing color monochrome Pre Processing Noise Reduction Bayer Processing Bayer Demosaicing Sharpen Refine Process Chroma Blurr Post Processing Offset, Gain (Min/Max) Color Correction Saturation, Vibrance Color Temperature, Tint, White Balance Gamma, Contrast Browser The Recorder Browser gives an overview of the images in the Recorder, and helps you in an easy way to select a new current image. Simply click on the desired image to make it the current image. It may then be viewed in the Black/White and Color Window. The Browser window can show up to 40 pictures per page, thus enabling easy printing of the Browser window. You can switch between the single pages by double clicking inside the Browser window or with the local menu (right mouse button). Skip #images allows for convenient overview at large numbers of images. You can view e.g. every 10 th or 50 th image only. Multi Window View the images of all active cameras in consecutive order in one window. Time oriented means that the sequence of images depends on the individual time stamp of each image. Camera number oriented means that the first image shown is from camera 1, then camera 2 and so on. Embedded Image Info (not available for pco.dimax) 38

39 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE WINDOW MENU Cascade Show all windows overlapped. Tile Tile windows vertically or horizontally. Arrange Icons Rearranges all minimized topic icons on the desktop. Close All Close all windows HELP MENU Contents Opens the main page of the program help. Search for Help on Opens an index list for program help. About Camware This window shows program information and contains helpful support links. In case of a camera problem, support files (see Options/Misc/Logfile) may be generated, which can be automatically attached to the . The support files contain relevant hardware information, the log files and the PCO related registry entries. These files are moved into a zip-archive called CWSupport.zip, which can be found in the application folder. 39

40 6.4.8 LOCAL MENU The local menu is opened by clicking the right mouse button inside the client area of an image window. Image Properties Opens an information bubble with main image properties and activates the in-image display. It does not overwrite image data. Camera Control Opens the Camera Control window (see chapter 6). Convert Control BW/Color Opens the corresponding Convert Control windows (see chapter 6.4.5). Zoom Changes the zoom used to display the image. Auto Range Peak/Crop Displays the image in a predefined scaling (see chapter 6.4.6). Auto Balance Color (only available for pco.dimax color) The white balance feature, which corresponds to the white balance button in the Convert Control Color (see chapter 6.4.6). Auto Exposure Auto Exposure feature (see chapter 6.4.3) Flip The image will be flipped before display. Mirror The selected image will be mirrored before display. Rotate The image will be rotated by 90 counter clockwise (left) or clockwise (right) before it is shown in the image window. Line Tool Select Line Tool to show a graph, which shows the intensity of the pixels under the red line shown in the image window. The selection of this menu item determines the location of the first point. After this you can move the mouse to the second point, which can be selected by a left click. Now a Line Diagram opens and the length of the line (unit: pixel) is shown in a bubble and displayed in the window. Copy To Clipboard Copies the active image to clipboard (only as 8 bit image file). 40

41 6 CAMWARE 3 SOFTWARE ADDITIONAL FEATURES White Balance by Mouse It is possible to change white balance easily by mouse: You only have to press the CTRL (Strg) and the shift button at the same time and select a white or gray area within the image. The pixel values within the coordinates of the selection rectangle are used for calculating a new white balance. For best results we recommend to use the white balance button in the Convert Control Color (see 6.4.5) or the Auto Balance Color in the Local Menu (see 6.4.8) respectively. 1 Fold Up Window The Convert Control windows can be minimized / folded up 1. Just move the pointer over the bar and the window will unfold again 2. 2 Setting Contrast Area by Mouse You can control the minimum and maximum values used for the conversion from 16 bit to 8 bit with the mouse. Move the mouse cursor into a region which should be shown with maximum contrast. Press the shift and the left mouse button. Hold down the mouse button while increasing the size of the selection rectangle with mouse moves. After releasing the mouse button the coordinates of selection rectangle act as a border for calculating the minimum and maximum values. Setting a new ROI by Mouse It is possible to change Region of Interest easily by mouse (see ROI ) for the camera. You only have to press the CTRL (Strg) button and drag an area with the left mouse button. The coordinates of the selection rectangle are used for calculating a new region of interest, which will be adapted to the camera capabilities automatically. You can reset the ROI to maximum by pressing the CTRL (Strg) button and the right mouse button. 41

42 APPENDIX A1 TECHNICAL DATA 43 A1.1 PCO.DIMAX S1/S4 43 A1.2 PCO.DIMAX HD/HD+ 44 A1.3 PCO.DIMAX HS1/HS2/HS4 45 A1.4 REVERSE WITH CAPTION 46 A1.5 PINOUT OF LEMO CONNECTOR 47 A1.6 MECHANICAL DIMENSIONS 48 A2 INTERFACES 49 A2.1 CABLE POSSIBILITIES 49 A2.2 USB 2.0 / A2.2.1 USB FOL EXTENDER 51 A2.3 GIGABIT ETHERNET 52 A2.3.1 QUICK INSTALLATION GUIDE 52 A2.3.2 GigE NETWORK INTERFACE CARD (NIC) 53 A2.3.3 PCO GigE INTERMEDIATE DRIVER 54 A2.3.4 NETWORK ENVIRONMENT/PATCH CABLE 55 A2.3.5 PCO GigE CALIBRATION TOOL 55 A2.3.6 PERFORMANCE 57 A2.4 CAMERA LINK 58 A2.5 HD-SDI 60 A3 BATTERY OPERATION 61 A4 IMAGE FILE FORMATS 63 A5 CUSTOMER SERVICE 65 A5.1 SERVICE AND MAINTENANCE 65 A5.2 TROUBLE SHOOTING 66 A6 INDEX 68 ABOUT PCO 69 42

43 A1 TECHNICAL DATA A1 TECHNICAL DATA A1.1 PCO.DIMAX S1/S4 Subject to change, please refer to current data sheet available on our website. 43

44 A1.2 PCO.DIMAX HD/HD+ Subject to change, please refer to current data sheet available on our website. 44

45 A1 TECHNICAL DATA A1.3 PCO.DIMAX HS1/HS2/HS4 Subject to change, please refer to current data sheet available on our website. 45

46 A1.4 REVERSE WITH CAPTION LED Colors 1 Error: red; status: green; record: blue and green BNC Connectors 2 (see also chapter 6.3.6) BNC acq. enbl trigger(aquire enable) Function: sequence start/stop trigger Type: Input; Feature: galvanic isolated Int1: Pin 2 (signal), Pin3 (GND) Selectable: TTL; High Level TTL; CONTACT mode; RS485 differential (+ time constant input per software) BNC exposure trigger (sync.) Function: single image start trigger, external sync. Type: Input; Feature: galvanic isolated, impedance: 1kOhm (should be externally terminated with 50 Ohms); Int1: Pin 4 (signal), Pin 5 (GND) Selectable: TTL; High Level TTL; CONTACT mode; RS485 differential (+ time constant input per software) BNC status Function: exposure time out, busy signal Type: output; Feature: galvanic isolated Int2: Pin 3 (signal), Pin 4 (GND) Fixed: TTL = 5V => rec. status on; TTL = 0V => rec. off BNC IRIG-B / sequence trigger Function: IRIG-B signal / sequence trigger Type: Input; Feature: galvanic isolated; fixed: 1 10V BNC camera sync output (only Master/Slave sync.) Function: pco.dimax camera synchronization Type: output; Feature: non isolated; fixed: TTL BNC camera sync input (only Master/Slave sync.) Function: pco.dimax camera synchronization Type: input; Feature: non isolated; fixed: TTL Power on/off switch 3 Power connector 4 Pin1 GND; Pin V; Pin3 not used PC Data interface 5 Selectable: USB 2.0 or 3.0, Camera Link (see A2.4), GigE (see A2.2.1), HD-SDI (see A2.5) Lemo connectors See A1.5 6 Serial number tag 7 Dust filter 8 Exchangeable 46

47 A1 TECHNICAL DATA A1.5 PINOUT OF LEMO CONNECTOR Lemo connector is a high grade push-pull connection device. Connector: (org. Lemosa Part Number) Int1: ECJ.2B.314.CLD; Int2: ECJ.2B.319.CLD e.g. fitting plug connector: (org. Lemosa Part Number) Int1: FGJ.2B.314.CLLD72; Int2: FGJ.2B.319.CLLD72. Lemosa (LEMO) Connector Int. 1 and Int. 2 LEMO Int 1 Pinout (14pins): Pin Signal name Dir. Feature description 1 shield 2 trigger (signal) IN galvanically isolated, 3 trigger (GND) IN selectable behavior (BNC) 4 sync (signal) IN galvanically isolated, 5 sync (GND) IN selectable behavior (BNC) 6 ready status (sig.) OUT galv. isol., TTL=5V => armed (LED) TTL=0V => not armed 7 ready status (GND) OUT 8 fault status (sig.) OUT galv. isol., TTL=5V => no fault (LED) TTL=0V => fault 9 fault status (GND) OUT 10 supply voltage (+) IN input of (+) VDC 11 supply voltage (+) IN input of (+) VDC 12 supply voltage (-) IN input of (-) VDC 13 supply voltage (-) IN input of (-) VDC 14 NC LEMO Int 2 Pinout (19pins): Pin Signal name Dir. Feature description 1 set ready (signal) IN galvanically isolated, selectable behavior 2 set ready (GND) IN 3 exposure time out OUT galvanically isolated, TTL (BNC, LED) (signal) 4 exp. time out OUT (BNC) (GND) free definable

48 A1.6 MECHANICAL DIMENSIONS All dimensions given in millimeter. Input Window Filter NOTE F-Mount flange focal distance: 46,50 mm In front of the sensor is an input window, which acts as safety glass as well as filter and contains an anti-reflective coating (98 % light transmission). The pco.dimax b/w camera screens a standard spectral range of 300 nm 800 nm. The spectral range of the pco.dimax color is a different one: 400 nm 700 nm. 48

49 A2 INTERFACES A2 INTERFACES Many different interfaces are available for the pco.dimax camera. This chapter describes the installation and configuration of USB / GigE / Camera Link and HD-SDI interfaces. A2.1 CABLE POSSIBILITIES Overview of the maximum cable lengths Camera Link base: standard: 3 m optional: 5 m maximum: 10 m no cables are included in the camera price USB 2.0 : standard: 5 m cable is included in the camera price USB 3.0: standard: 3 m cable and proper PCI express board included in the camera price Gigabit Ethernet : standard: 10 m optional: 0.5 m; 2 m; 5 m; 12.5 m; 30 m; 50 m maximum: 100 m cable (10m) is included in the camera price 49

50 A2.2 USB 2.0 / 3.0 Please start the USB 2.0 or 3.0 driver installation from your pco.usb flash drive (or download the latest version from our website. Don t connect the camera to your computer before driver is completely installed. Run the provided installation file and follow the instructions of the installation wizard. 1 After finishing 2 the driver installation wizard please connect your pco.dimax camera to its power supply and via enclosed USB 2.0 cable to your computer. The first time the camera is connected via USB to the computer, Windows will notify the user that a new device has been detected. USB 2.0: 1 2 USB 3.0:

51 A2 INTERFACES A2.2.1 USB FOL EXTENDER The Adnaco-SU1 is a FOL Extender for USB 1.1./2.0/3.0 devices. It contains two components: the Adnaco-UT1 (USB Converter) with power supply and the Adnaco-UF1 (active USB 3.0 FOL cable (integrated electrical optical converter with length of 10, 30, 50 and 100m). The UT1 transmits signals from USB 1.1/2.0/3.0 to USB 3.0 and has two Type-A USB connectors named Host and Device and a 5.0V power supply device. The Host connector has to be linked with the UF1 USB 3.0 FOL cable and this cable directly to the computer. The Device connector has to be connected with the pco.dimax USB camera. If you confuse the connections, the camera will not be identified by your computer. There shouldn t be any damages to your devices if you confuse the connections. The UF1 is a pure USB 3.0 cable and is built up symmetrically and therefore it is not possible to confuse the connections or to connect the pco.dimax (which has a USB Type-B connector) with this cable. This system only works at a computer with a proper USB 3.0 slot; your camera will not be identified, if you connect it to a USB 2.0 connector. The Adnaco-SU1 is an optical insulator and also gives you the opportunity to physically extend the transmission path between camera and computer. Absolute requirement: usb driver version It is not working properly with older versions. Performance If you use a USB 2.0 device at the Adnaco SU-1 a maximum data transfer rate of 24.5 Mbytes/s will be reached. Cable length USB 3.0* 1 USB 2.0* 2 USB Configuration 357 Mbytes/s 40.1 Mbytes/s Without SU-1 SU-1 10m cable 352 Mbytes/s 24.5 Mbytes/s SU-1 100m cable 330 Mbytes/s 23.4 Mbytes/s * 1 : e.g. pco.edge * 2 : e.g. pco.pixelfly usb 51

52 A2.3 GIGABIT ETHERNET GigE is an interface standard for high-performance industrial cameras. It has been developed by a group of about 50 companies. GigE is based on the Gigabit Ethernet standard which uses standard Ethernet category cabling. The standard is trying to unify protocols currently used in machine vision industrial cameras and let 3rd party organizations develop compatible software and hardware ( System Requirements (check PCO website for latest version) Latest Camware version & GigE/USB driver package Complete network environment must be GigE compliant (see Fehler! Verweisquelle konnte nicht gefunden werden.) Cat5e or higher patch cable Virus protection deactivated A2.3.1 QUICK INSTALLATION GUIDE Install GigE card (NIC) Please follow the steps in this order. Additional information can be found in the respective subchapters Install GigE driver GigE_Installer_xxx_xx.exe: automatic installation. Please follow instructions. (see A2.3.3) Start PCO GigE Calibration Tool for camera calibration see chapter A2.3.5 Deactivate (uncheck) the GigE driver at each NIC that will not physically be connected to your camera! (see A3.3) Make sure that just the service pco.camera with GigE and the protocol Internet protocol (TCP/IP) are activated for each NIC used for PCO cameras! Make sure the descriptors of your NIC are set to its maximum! (see A2.3.2; A2.3.3) Start Camware (see chapter 5) 52

53 A2 INTERFACES A2.3.2 GigE NETWORK INTERFACE CARD (NIC) A gigabit network interface card (NIC) is attached to your computer and ready to use. Ideally it is a PCI-Express NIC to bring out the best data throughput, e.g. Intel Pro/1000 Pt with Intel 82572GI chipset. NOTE It is absolutely essential that the NIC is Gigabit compatible. Such cards should be designated with a maximum data throughput of 1000 Mbps. Furthermore it is important to know which kind of PCI interface the NIC uses. The PCI-Express interface allows a faster and more stable data transfer than ordinary PCI interfaces. Finally, the NIC s vary in the used chipset. Strongly recommended are chipsets from Intel. There are different ways to connect one or several PCO GigE cameras to a computer. Only some of them are introduced here: NOTE It is recommended to install the original INTEL driver. One camera system: Point to Point connection: NIC and camera are connected via a patch cable directly. Before you turn on the camera set the NIC IP address to manually. Otherwise the connection between NIC and camera will not succeed, because both, camera and NIC, have to be located to the same subnet. The PCO GigE camera is set to the persistent IP address by default, if no DHCP server is available. Use the tool PCO GigE Calibration Tool to change the persistent IP address (see A3-5). The camera will be automatically reset, if the persistent IP address was changed. Several camera systems: Via a switch without a DHCP Server: Camera and NIC IP addresses have to be set manually. Via a switch with DHCP Server: NIC and cameras obtain the IP addresses automatically by a DHCP-Server. Via several NIC s at one PC: Camera and NIC IP addresses have to be set manually. Each camera-nic pair needs a separate network/subnet. Camera1 IP: Sub: Camera2 IP: Sub: Camera3 IP: Sub: NIC1 IP: Subnet: NIC2 IP: Subnet: NIC3 IP: Subnet:

54 For some NIC s you have the opportunity to set parameters manually affecting the stability of the data transfer. The most important one is called Number of Descriptors (Receive Buffers & Transmit Buffers). Set the value of this parameter to its maximum. To do so open the windows device manager and right-click on the NIC, that is connected with your camera, and select Configuration under Properties. Set Receive- and Transfer-buffers to its maximum size. This step is individual for each NIC. For instance, the descriptors of the Intel PRO/1000 Pt are set with its Performance-Options dialog. Its maximum size is A2.3.3 PCO GigE INTERMEDIATE DRIVER Automatic Installation Open the GigE Driver Install Shield (GigE_Installer_xxx_xx.exe). Please follow the instructions shown by the dialogwindow. How to uninstall open the file GigE_Uninstall.exe Start->Programs->Digital Camera Tools->pco.gige->UnInstall pco.gige or call the GigE Driver Install Shield (GigE_Installer_xxx_xx.exe) and click uninstall Activating/Deactivating The checkbox next to pco.camera with GigE is checked for activating and unchecked for deactivating. NOTE It is absolutely essential that the PCO GigE driver is only activated at the specific NIC that is physically connected to your camera! In addition, just the service pco.camera with GigE and the Internet protocol (TCP/IP) should be activated for each NIC used for PCO cameras. 54

55 A2 INTERFACES A2.3.4 NETWORK ENVIRONMENT/PATCH CABLE A correct configuration of the network is important for the throughput of the image data which could be brought out. It is mandatory that any component used for the network connection between camera and computer is compatible with a data throughput of 1000Mbps. Some of these components are the NIC, Router, Hub, Switch, etc., but also the patch cable. The quality of patch cables is specified in categories. It is necessary to use category 5e-, 6-, or 7- patch cables for a network connection with a data throughput of 1000Mbps. (for wide distances/emvcompatible please use Cat.6 or higher) Virus protection needs to be inactive or uninstalled. A2.3.5 PCO GigE CALIBRATION TOOL Use this tool for each Network Interface Card (NIC) connected to any PCO camera. The PCO GigE Calibration Tool is part of the PCO software package and is started automatically during the PCO GigE Driver installation or can be opened by double-click on: Start->Programs->Digital Camera Tools->pco.gige->Calib Tool (Win8 different) The purpose of this software is to set network parameter (Packet-Delay-Time) to change the persistent IP of the camera to find out which PCO GigE cameras are currently online, to check, if the network is configured correctly. How does it work? First of all the camera is set to default. After that, images of the PCO camera are requested with a delay of 80 μs between each UDP image packet (after start-up of calibration). If the image could be transferred (no lost packets), the delay is decreased and again images are requested. This procedure will be repeated until a packetdelay is found at which images can be transferred without losing packets or until the delay value is 0 μs. After the camera was successfully tested a respective message appears in the Message Box. Press Save Results to save the calibration result or press Save Results and Quit to save calibration results and quit the program. If the PCO GigE Calibration Tool is opened, it is connected to each detected camera (max. four cameras) and will not allow any other program to open them. Any PCO camera, which is physically connected to a NIC and turned on, is listed and its Network Settings can be changed. But only accessible PCO cameras (not used by another application) with a valid connection can be calibrated. 55

56 3 The GigECalib Dialog This is the screen displayed after start-up of the PCO GigE- Calibration Tool Short Description: First wait for the automatic scanning progress of the GigECalib- Tool. It 1 will display detected cameras. (precondition: pco.dimax is started and a beep was heard). Then 2 if camera was successful identified please start calibration. The System displays whether the test was successful 3 and the speed of your connection. If no camera was detected, you will have to change camera Ip-address 4, save and start rescan 5. Always finish configuration by the Save, Reboot and Quit button 6. Button Explication start new calibration for selected camera progress of current image transfer test total progress of calibration quit program and save parameters to a file save parameters to a file Save Camera Network settings, reboot Camera GigE Interface and refresh camera list. Save Camera Network settings, reboot camera and quit program quit program without saving parameters Configuration Parameter These parameters are necessary to set up the communication between PCO GigE Cameras and a computer. It is recommended to always use the PCO GigE Calibration Tool to set the GigE Configuration Parameters. If the configuration succeeded, the parameters are saved to the windows registry. If the configuration fails or the PCO GigE Calibration Tool is not used, default parameter values are set and the image transfer via GigE does not work with maximum performance! Packet Delay: The delay between two UDP packets sent from a PCO GigE device to a computer. Values from 0 μs to 320 μs are possible. 56

57 A2 INTERFACES A2.3.6 PERFORMANCE The following tables give two example configurations, minimum and recommended. The specified values are only valid for these configurations and should act as an orientation. Setup NIC Minimum 1000Mbps NIC with standard PCI interface Recommended 1000Mbps NIC with PCI-Express interface (e.g. Intel Ethernet Server Adapter I210 T1, I350 T2 or I350 T4.) NIC configuration number of descriptors are set to its maximum number of descriptors are set to its maximum Network connection P2P or via switch P2P (e.g. NetGear GS 605) Patch cable Cat5e Cat5e or higher Additional network components switch, hub, router are compatible to No additional components 1000Mbps Network environment - virus protection/ firewall inactive Driver PCO GigE driver installed PCO GigE driver installed Packet delay /max 20µs / off 0 µs / off speed mode Computer INTEL Core i5 CPU; 2.4GHz; 4GB RAM INTEL Core i7 CPU; 2.8GHz; 8GB RAM Operating system Win 7/8 x64/x86 Win 7/8 x64 NOTE Data throughput performance depends on sensor resolution. 57

58 A2.4 CAMERA LINK NOTE Hardware Installation must be performed by a technician, because high voltages can occur on the device. Always pull the main plug before opening the device. Instructions for installing and testing the SILICONSOFTWARE microenable IV (ME4) Camera Link grabber card Please install the latest silicon software runtime package before installing the hardware. (Download: When working on a 64 bit operating system, please make sure to install the proper (64 bit) runtime when also a 64 bit application will be operated. If the application is 32 bit, you need to install the 32 bit runtime accordingly. - 1 If there is no microenable board installed, please deselect Support for - 2 Let the program also update device drivers. - 3 Shutdown your computer, open the computer case and install the grabber card - 4 The grabber card should be displayed within the device manager. If the device is not shown this way, please reinstall the SiliconSoftware device driver. - 5 After the installation, please start the program microdiagnostics. (see next page)

59 A2 INTERFACES How to use microdiagnostics Tool 1 Please verify the firmware 1 version, which must be 1.40 (1.28 in hex) or above. To test the board, select the board in Hardware 1 and click Test Board If the firmware is not 1.40 (1.28 in hex), please upgrade to the latest firmware. Select Flash Board(s) 3, then select the grabber in the dialog and open the appropriate hap file. Then click on Yes when you re asked to proceed. You must power cycle your computer after the upgrade. In case the firmware version is ok, please click on Test Performance. 4 The transfer rates, as shown, 5 should be displayed. 5 For further information or problems with mainboards please contact our support section. 59

60 A2.5 HD-SDI HD-SDI is the High Definition Serial Interface and a special standard of the film industry. Only available for color version of the pco.dimax S4 and HD/HD+. HD-SDI can only transfer certain resolutions and frame rates! It can be used e.g. for an output monitor. Possbile resolutions SingleLink, DualLink, 3G 1920x1080 Pixel (1080p/i/psf - Full HD) 1280x720 Pixel (720p - HD Ready) Frame rates PAL (24, 25, 30, 50 und 60 fps) NTSC (23.98, 29.97, fps) Image transmission progressive, interlaced, progressive segmented frame Color models RGB, YCC, RAW Bit rate PAL SingleLink & DualLink: Gbit/s PAL 3G: 2.97 Gbit/s NTSC SingleLink & DualLink: Gbit/s NTSC 3G: Gbit/s f NTSC = f PAL /1.001 Cable 75 Ohm coaxial cable (RG59, Belden 1694A) 60

61 A3 BATTERY OPERATION A3 BATTERY OPERATION The pco.dimax models are optionally available with a highperformance battery pack, which is mounted on top of the camera body. Charging the Battery The pco.dimax cameras have a built-in battery recharge circuitry, which will recharge the battery and maintain the battery charge level, whenever the power supply is connected and working. Therefore it is not required to remove the battery pack for recharge. NOTE The battery is recharged automatically when the power supply of the camera is connected AND the camera is switched on. The recharging process starts few seconds after the power has been connected. Battery recharge does not depend on the configured battery operating mode. Specifications and General Notes Battery operating time (100% charged) Standard Operation Mode: Power-Save Mode: Maximum recharge time Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO 4 ): 1 hour 5-6 hours 6 hours Calculating remaining time in Power-Save Mode (t ps ) t ps = 360 min t op * 6 t op [min]: preceding operating time on battery backup Power Consumption The data for the power consumption mentioned in the pco.dimax datasheet does not include the recharge current for the battery. If the camera will recharge the battery, an additional 40 W peak power is required. Resetting Camera by Power Switch With the power switch in off state, the external power supply as well as the battery is disconnected from the camera. There is only a very small self-discharge current within the battery itself. Some customers are used to switch the camera on and off not using the power switch but switching off the supply voltage connected to the camera. However, this is not possible with attached backup battery. In the worst case, the battery will be excessively discharged next day (when done overnight) and (if repeated many times) it will lead to significantly increased aging and possibly early defect of the battery! 61

62 Standard Operation Mode The Standard Battery Operation is the default setting of the camera and activated when shipped to customer. In order to maintain stable operation of the camera, the battery backup provides power immediately in case the power supply fails. As soon as the power supply is reestablished, the camera draws the supply current again from the power supply. Whenever the power supply is disconnected the camera runs on battery until the battery is discharged. Before the battery is finally dead the camera shuts down completely. In that case the current settings as well as the image data are lost! The camera provides information about the current charge level of the battery. This information can be used to estimate the remaining operating time as well as to avoid loss of image data. This mode is applicable for: Operating the camera in an environment where no regular power supply is available or desired. Backup capability to maintain camera operation in case of unexpected supply breakdowns. Power-Save Mode The Power-Save Mode will keep recorded images in the event of a major power breakdown. The camera must be configured by SDK to change into Power-Save Mode and the user can define a desired delay time. After a power breakdown the camera will continue in Standard Operation Mode. If there is no power supply available during the configured delay time, the camera stops the current recording and enters into Power-Save Mode. When power supply is available again, the Standard Operation Mode will be restored and the battery will be charged. If the main power supply is available for at least 10 seconds during the delay time, the delay is stopped. If the power supply is disconnected again, the delay starts from the beginning. Also, the Power-Save Mode is stopped if power is available again for at least 10 seconds. Please note: reestablish the power supply in order to bring the camera back to Standard Operation Mode close and reopen the connection to the camera after the camera is back to Standard Operation Mode reconfigure all settings and validate them by an Arm Camera command, when the camera shall be used for recording again it is possible to read recorded images from the camera memory without restoring any settings. 62

63 A4 IMAGE FILE FORMATS A4 IMAGE FILE FORMATS There are different file formats available for saving camera images with Camware: b16 The b16 16 bit format is similar to the bmp format. However, 16 bit pixel values are used instead of 8 bit pixel values. The file format consists either of a Basic Header (six Long-parameter) or of an Extended Header (32 Long-parameter), the latter of which is optionally for additional information. There might follow a variable comment field (ASCII code). Finally, there is the actual data set that is saved linearly (as in the case of BMP files). With the exception of the first value, all parameters are Long Integers (4 Byte). The first six parameters must always exist. The rest of the parameters, as well as the comment field, are optional. Parameter Function 1 PCO- the first 4 byte are the characters PCO- 2 file size file size in byte 3 header length header size + comment filed in byte 4 image width image width in pixel 5 image height image height in pixel 6 extended header -1 (true), extended header follows 7 color mode 0 = black/with camera, 1 = color camera 8 b/w min black/white LUT-setting, minimum value 9 b/w max black/white LUT-setting, maximum value 10 b/w linlog black/white LUT-setting, 0 = linear, 1 = logarithmic 11 red min red LUT-setting, minimum value 12 red max red LUT-setting, maximum value 13 green min green LUT-setting, minimum value 14 green max green LUT-setting, maximum value 15 blue min blue LUT-setting, minimum value 16 blue max blue LUT-setting, maximum value 17 color linlog color LUT-setting, 0 = linear, 1 = logarithmic 18 internal use 266 Comment file in ASCII characters with variable length of 0 XX. The length of the comment filed must be documented in the header length field. W Wline 1, pixel 1 16 bit pixel data value of the first pixel e line 1, pixel 2 value of the second pixel We recommend that all images should be saved first in the b16 or TIFF format. The advantage is to have the b16 or tiff images available all the time. You will always have the maximum 16 bit information. Please note that not all image analysis programs can accommodate 16 bit data. The 8 bit format saves only the information displayed on the monitor screen. The 16 bit information will be lost and cannot be displayed later. 63

64 pcoraw This 16 bit PCO file format is based on the BigTIFF format, thus allowing for file size > 4GB. A new PCO proprietary compression scheme is added in case it is necessary. Standard File Formats TIFF Tag Image File Format, version 6.0 and lower. There is a 16bit monochrome and color image format. BMP Windows Bitmap Format, b/w or color 8 bit format images, which have been saved in BMP format can t be reloaded in Camware - only as 8 bit images, i.e. part of the original information (16 bit) is lost. FTS Flexible Image Transport System, Version 3.1. There is a 16 bit image format. The NASA/Science Office of Standards and Technology (NOST) has defined this format. Some programs use the FIT extension for this format. ASCII 16 bit format, some mathematical programs prefer ASCII data. JPG JPEG (named after the Joint Photographic Experts Group who created the standard) is a commonly used method of lossy compression for photographic images. The degree of compression can be adjusted, allowing a selectable tradeoff between storage size and image quality. JP2 JPEG 2000 is a wavelet-based image compression standard and coding system. It was created by the Joint Photographic Experts Group committee in the year 2000 with the intention of superseding their original discrete cosine transform-based JPEG standard (created 1992). AVI Audio Video Interleave is a multimedia container format introduced by Microsoft in November 1992 as part of its Video for Windows technology. MPG MPEG-1, similar to JPEG, is a standard for lossy compression of video and audio developed by the Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG). WMV Windows Media Video (WMV) is a compressed video compression format for several proprietary codecs developed by Microsoft. The original video format, known as WMV, was originally designed for Internet streaming applications, as a competitor to RealVideo. 64

65 A5 CUSTOMER SERVICE A5 CUSTOMER SERVICE A5.1 SERVICE AND MAINTENANCE Service The camera is designed to operate with no need of special adjustments or periodic inspections. Maintenance Unplug the camera from any power supply before cleaning it. Use a soft, dry cloth for cleaning the camera. Do not use liquid cleaners or sprays. The lens is best cleaned with pressurized air or with liquid cleaners such as pure alcohol or with special optical cleaners that are available at high quality photo stores. Never use aggressive cleaning liquids such as gasoline, acetone, spirits or nitro cleanser. Every time the input window is cleaned, there is the possibility of surface damage. Do not clean the input window unless it is absolutely necessary. Be careful and avoid scratches and damage to the input window surface. Use a cotton swab dipped in pure alcohol or optical cleaning liquid and wipe only on the glass surface. Do not get any cleaning liquid on the metallic parts such as the lens thread, because tiny detached particles may scratch the surface. Always store the camera with the protective cap or with a lens mounted to avoid dust and dirt on the input window! Camera Disposal The camera includes electronic devices, which can contain materials harmful to the environment. If the camera is to be discarded, please dispose of it in an environmentally responsible manner and use recycling facilities, where available. 65

66 A5.2 TROUBLE SHOOTING If you have a question, which is not adequately addressed in this manual, please contact PCO or your local dealer. To speed up your request, we need the following information: Short description of the problem Description of your application Camera settings Type and version of camera software being used Camera serial number Operating system (PC) Processor type (PC) Memory Graphic card Graphic card setup Please use the options in the Help menu (see 6.4.7) How to create a logfile: Enable log files: File Menu Options MISC (see) Reboot your pco.dimax Repeat the workflow which produces the faults. Open the About Camware window (Menu? About) and click at the support links to send an directly to PCO-Support Or visit our website: Trouble Shooting Communication problems (camera is not detected) Take a look at the LEDs and note their state Disconnect and reconnect your interface (GigE, USB, CameraLink), then wait for Beep (about 1 min) and start Camware camera search again If this does not work please test another interface o Restart your camera by plugging off /on power supply: look at LED sequence and note their state o all LEDs are off for several seconds (if the break time was too short, it might be possible that last LED status will be shown again) o all LEDs light up (red, green and blue) o green LED is blinking for several seconds, then green continuous, all other LEDs off o red LED means initializing failed Please show us your log-files including extra information (any other abnormalities / camera equipped with a battery?) Image Error (e.g. quadrant error) Please describe your error (send us a Raw B16 or TIFF screenshot) 66

67 A5 CUSTOMER SERVICE Fan control The pco.dimax has a fan control. After starting or restarting your camera fan runs with highest rotation (noisy) and should slow down after about 30s. GigE-Connection After start-up or (re)connection of GigE cable or by pushing the resetknob at the backside of the pco.dimax, the connection of the GigE interface will be reassembled. A short beep signalizes a physical network connection- this has nothing to do with pco.camera driver (only so much of course that a operating network connection is required for the pco camera driver) A repetitive sequence of beeps signalizes that an infected cable is detected but no communication is possible (autonegotiation failed). Repair Before sending the camera for repair, first contact your local dealer or PCO respectively. When shipping the camera for repair, be certain to carefully pack the camera with proper shipping materials. If possible use the original packaging. Use the protection cap to protect the camera on the lens thread. Firmware, Software and Driver Update You will find all necessary software and drivers on the accompanying USB storage device. For the latest versions please check our website: 67

68 A6 INDEX NOTE: The mentioned page is always the starting page of a chapter! Key word Chapter Page Acquire mode Battery A3 61 Binning Cable lengths A Camware software 6 12 Camera Link A Connection options A CDI mode Contrast settings (Convert control) Data sheets A1.1 ; A1.2 ; A Demo mode (Camware) Dimensions A Direct record to file Double image mode Driver installation 4.1 ; A2 8;49 Frame rate GigE configuration A HD-SDI A Help (online) Input / Output possibilities ; A1.4 27; 46 Interfaces A2 49 Internal Memory Lemo connector A Logfile (Options) 30 Live preview Options Play settings Recorder modes Recorder settings Recorder memory settings Region of interest (Sensor) Rescan for cameras Safety instructions 2 6 Save / Open / Print files Sequence trigger mode Support A5 65 Synchronization Time stamp Timing Trigger Mode USB A White Balance

69 ABOUT PCO pco. In 1987, PCO was founded with the objective to develop and to produce specialized fast and sensitive video camera systems, mainly for scientific applications. Meanwhile the product range of PCO cameras covers digital camera systems with high dynamic range, high resolution, high speed and low noise, which are sold in the scientific and industrial market all over the world. Currently PCO is one of the leading manufacturers of scientific cameras. Worldwide representatives, together with our own sales department and technical support assure that PCO keeps in touch with our customers and their needs. The actual wide range of specialized camera systems is the result of technical challenge and product specific know-how. A design according to advanced techniques, a high standard of production and strict quality controls guaranty a reliable operation of the cameras. Our own developments in conjunction with an excellent contact to leading manufacturers of image sensors ensure our access to state-of-the-art CCD- and CMOS-technology for our cameras. Since 2001, PCO is located in its own facility building in Kelheim at the shore of the beautiful and international river Danube. Here in the county Bavaria, which is well known for its excellent support and conditions for high technology companies, we share the benefits of the simple access to high performance products and services in the surrounding area. Kelheim itself is a historical town, first documented in 866. The small city is founded at the confluence of the Danube and the Altmühl, which has been converted into the Rhine-Main-Danube bypass channel for water transport. Located in Danube-valley, it is the heart of a beautiful river and forest covered lime plateau landscape. It s landmark, the Hall of Liberation, was built by Ludwig I. in 1863 on the Mount Michael and is visible from all over the city and valley. The beautiful Danube-Gorge, which is protected as natural monument since 1840, is located between Kelheim and the famous abbey Weltenburg. 69