The latest GigE Vision products for 2022

GigE Vision is a global camera interface standard that was first developed in 2006, by a group of 12 companies, for high-performance industrial cameras. It was designed to provide a framework for the fast transmission of images using low-cost standard cables.

One of the key benefits of GigE Vision is that it allows multiple cameras to be controlled and synchronised on a 24-hour basis from a remote location. Since its introduction, the committee has grown to more than 50 members, and the standard’s administration and ongoing development is now overseen by A3 the Association for Advancing Automation. There have been a number of updates since the standard’s inception, the most recent of which was in June, when it was updated from version 2.1 to 2.2. Primary enhancements include GenDC streaming and multi-event data.

There are many new GigE products on the market – not all will necessarily be GigE Vision compliant – including those from Basler, JAI, Teledyne Flir, and Lucid Vision Labs. All of these firms now offer a 5GigE portfolio using Sony Pregius global shutter CMOS sensors. Basler’s Ace 2 Basic cameras, Teledyne Flir’s Forge area scan camera family, and cameras in JAI’s Go-X series now include models with resolutions ranging from 5 to 24MP.

Teledyne Flir’s Forge will be available in Q4. In addition to supporting link speeds of 1, 2.5, and 5GigE, Forge offers burst mode to capture images at speeds up to 10Gb/s into memory. This, combined with a 500MB image buffer, allows engineers to capture information in bursts for high-speed applications. The camera's reliability framework gives engineers tools to develop reliable systems faster.

The latest Atlas models from Lucid Vision Labs with the 5GBase-T interface include 2.8, 8.9 and 12.3MP versions using Sony Pregius sensors. The Atlas Factory Tough camera line is designed for industrial applications requiring high bandwidth and high resolution in a robust IP67-rated housing. It features active sensor alignment for superior optical performance, a compact 60 x 60mm size, M12 Ethernet and M8 general purpose I/O connectors for robust connection resistant to shock and vibration, industrial EMC immunity, and a wide ambient temperature range of -20°C to 55°C. The Atlas IP67 models feature C-mount lenses and are compatible with the standard IP67 lens tubes from the Triton cameras.

IDS now offers 10GigE uEye Warp10 cameras, also based on Sony Pregius sensors (5, 8.9, and 12MP), while Optomotive has released Smilodon, a customisable and user-programmable FPGA-based high-speed smart camera featuring a Xilinx Zynq FPGA. It includes Arm system-on-chip technology, combined with Gpixel sensors available from 5 to 25MP, and a 1 or 10 Gigabit Ethernet interface. Targeted for applications in laser triangulation, motion capture, process automation and quality control, Smilodon 10G Evo has a user-programmable open-reference design.

Newly available from E-con Systems is the RouteCam_CU20, an HDR GigE ultra-low light camera with network synchronisation capability. It is an OEM HDR camera based on the Sony Starvis IMX462 sensor that comes with low light and NIR performance. The camera can be easily integrated with all image processing platforms including X86 processors and Arm processors.

Matrox Imaging recently released Matrox GevIQ, a smart network interface card (NIC) offering generic GigE Vision acquisition offload at speeds up to 25Gb/s per port, without any packet loss. It is designed to provide a more versatile and widely compatible alternative to proprietary 10+ GigE acquisition solutions.

The boards pair readily with currently available GigE Vision cameras, delivering transmission rates up to dual 25GbE with very little host CPU usage. The NIC boards pair with Matrox Imaging Library X software and include both Matrox Gecho – a logging utility that records events generated by the Matrox GevIQ device driver and saves these to a JSON or CSV file for viewing in Google Perfetto – and Matrox Capture Works, a utility that allows users to rapidly evaluate the performance and functionality of virtually any GigE Vision-compliant camera or 3D sensor.

Pleora Technologies offers a software solution, eBus Edge, that converts embedded platforms, sensors, and cameras into GigE Vision devices. For 3D inspection, designing eBus Edge into imaging devices can help manufacturers overcome multi-part data support and interoperability challenges that traditionally add cost and complexity. It converts 3D images and data into GigE Vision- and GenICam-compliant time-stamped data that is transmitted with associated metadata over low-latency Ethernet cabling.

Data from multiple sensors, including 1D and 2D images, can be synchronised and transported in parallel using multiple streams.

This is not an exhaustive list. If you provide GigE Vision-compliant products and technology, and you’d like your company to be included, please email: [email protected].

Sensor to Image (S2i) offers a set of IP cores and a development framework to build FPGA-based products using the GigE Vision interface. GigE Vision cores are compatible with Xilinx 7 Series devices (and higher) and Intel/Altera Cyclone V devices (and higher).

S2i offers a complete suite of functions and tools to ease the implementation of the protocol. These include: A top level design; vendor specific framebuffer; working reference design, offering top performance and the smallest footprint; video acquisition module source code; GigE packet composer; software and hardware toolkits, including application samples, and access to the FPGA integrated CPU. Find out more information about Sensor to Image (S2i) at the EureSys website.

Allied Vision’s Alvium platform now includes industrial vision cameras with a GigE Vision interface. Alvium G1 camera series comes in a future-proof package with a comprehensive feature set including a broad selection of the most popular sensors in machine vision. Alvium G5 cameras with 5GigE Vision interface offer all the advantages of the GigE Vision standard while providing more bandwidth for applications, where resolution and frame rate are critical.

The Alvium G5 camera series enables an easy upgrade of existing systems (USB3 Vision or GigE Vision) and offers backwards compatibility with GigE solutions. The models cover a broad spectral range including UV, visible light, NIR, and SWIR. With superior image quality through FPNC, DPC, Active Sensor Alignment, and industrial standard hardware, both Alvium G1 and Alvium G5 cameras provide future-proof reliability for vision applications. The new series increase the flexibility of the Alvium platform concept and offer the user even more options to choose from. Find out more about the Alvium G5 camera series at the Allied Vision website.

IDS Imaging Development Systems recently launched the webcam-like 13 MP autofocus camera uEye XC, which closes the market gap between industrial cameras and webcams. Setting up and operating only requires a cable connection. After that, the autofocus camera immediately delivers high-resolution, detailed images and videos. It can easily handle changing object distances.

With the optionally available, quickly exchangeable macro lens, users can easily shorten the minimum object distance of the camera. This makes it also suitable for close-up applications. Unlike consumer webcams, the uEye XC camera is especially designed for industrial use. Its components score with long availability – a must for industrial applications. Useful features such as 24x digital zoom, auto white balance and colour correction ensure that it can capture all details perfectly. uEye XC is suitable for kiosk systems. It can also be used for quality control, logistics automation and medical technology. Find out more about the 13 MP autofocus camera uEye XC at the IDS Imaging Development Systems website.