New high-performance compact vision system

Industrial Computer Hardware

I/O sensor/computer interfacing suppliers

January 2004 Industrial Computer Hardware

National Instruments is offering its CVS-1455 Compact Vision System, which delivers nearly twice the processing power and four times the storage of its NI CVS-1454 Compact Vision System released in July. With this optimised performance, engineers can use the new NI CVS-1455 to dramatically increase throughput of visual inspection applications.

"The NI CVS-1455 Compact Vision System high-performance processor, nonvolatile storage, and three IEEE 1394 (FireWire) ports make it well equipped to handle any inspection task, from precise assembly guidance to high-speed packaging inspection," said Tim Dehne, NI senior vice president of R&D. "In the past, engineers struggled to coordinate information and images from severeal independent machine vision nodes. Now they can integrate inspection into one embedded system without sacrificing performance. In fact, the NI CVS-1455 delivers the performance and functionality of multiple smart cameras."

Performing at 1436 million instructions/s (MIPS), the NI CVS-1455 delivers more than three times the processing power of a typical smart camera. This speeds visual inspection while giving engineers the power to build applications with multiple cameras without the need for separate processing units, saving both time and money. Engineers can choose from more than 50 IEE 1394-compliant cameras. The system also includes 128 MB of nonvolatile on-board flash memory - eight times the storage of a typical smart camera - so engineers can store more images for offline quality control and communication with PLCs, relays, Compact FieldPoint and other automation devices.

NI designed its 102 x 127 x 64 mm NI CVS-1455 rugged enough to perform flawlessly whether aligning wafers in a clean room or inspecting spot welds on a factory floor. It can withstand temperatures ranging from 0 to 55°C and does not include fans, external vents or any moving parts, enabling it to easily integrate into harsh, industrial environments. The system's high performance, flexibility and ruggedness make it suitable for inspection, alignment, gauging and identification applications.

Engineers can develop their machine vision applications on the NI CVS-1455 using either NI Vision builder for Automated Inspection or the NI LabVIEW graphical development environment. Vision Builder offers an intuitive point-and-click interface for rapid application development. For more sophisticated, highly customised vision applications, LabVIEW delivers an open, full-featured development environment. The LabVIEW code generation feature in Vision Builder for Automated Inspection gives developers the power to easily migrate to LabVIEW.

For more information contact Mike Hutton, National Instruments SA, 011 805 8197.

Share this article:

Industrial Computer Hardware

New high-performance compact vision system

Further reading:

Published by Technews