Imaginant HR-1100c, HR-200c Operator's Manual

HR Series Digital

Cameras

Operator Manual

May 2005

3800 Monroe Avenue

Pittsford, New York USA 14534

[phone]

www.imaginant.com

[e-mail]

Copyright (c) 2005. All Rights Reserved

Remove Power Cord from any HR series camera before replacing the fuses.

There are no user serviceable parts in the HR series cameras other than the fuse. The cameras should be
returned to the manufacturer for any repair.

Enlevez le cordon de secteur du HR avant de remplacer les fusibles.

Il n'y a pas d'utilisateur parties utilisables dans le HR, autrement que le fusible. Les appareils-photo de HR­1100/200 devraient être retournés au fabricant pour n'importe quelle réparation.

Read the operator manual thoroughly and follow all safety related statements before operating the camera.

HR Series Digital Camera Operator Manual Page 2

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. General Description............................................................................................4

2. Principles of Operation ......................................................................................5

3. Network Setup.....................................................................................................6

4. Installation...........................................................................................................8

5. Operation.............................................................................................................9

6. Camera Service.................................................................................................11

7. Appendix A: HR-1100c Specifications............................................................13

8. Appendix B: HR-200c Specifications..............................................................15

9. Appendix C: Trigger Input & Strobe Output Connections ............................17

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1. General Description

Description

HR series digital cameras are designed for high-quality image capture with fast shutter-speed,
action-stopping capabilities. These cameras produce photographic quality color images from
which high quality hardcopy prints can be created or upon which detailed image analysis may be
performed. These cameras offer in-camera image processing with JPEG compression. The HR
series cameras connect to a standard, high-speed Gigabit (1000Base-T) Ethernet network and use
the network interface for all configuration, setup and image-transfer operations. Application
software on the host Workstation provides camera system control.

International certification assures worldwide acceptance of the camera. The camera’s universal
internal power supply allows operation over all international supply voltages and frequencies.

The HR series cameras accept asynchronous trigger signals and can perform burst image captures
synchronized to these trigger signals. The user controls the number and the timing of the image
captures that the HR series cameras perform in response to an external trigger signal. The time
intervals between the trigger inputs and the moments of image capture are adjustable through the
HR series camera’s Ethernet Interface. The image capture timing for multiple HR series cameras
may be synchronized so as to simultaneously capture scenes from multiple angles, or to capture
scenes at higher effective frame rates.

The HR series cameras can generate strobe synchronization signals for controlling strobe lamps or
other equipment. The camera has six (6) X-sync strobe trigger outputs that may be flexibly
configured to control the firing sequence of up to six strobe lamps. The strobe lamp timing and
sequencing is adjustable by the user. The image capture timing of multiple HR series cameras can
be synchronized to enable multiple cameras to employ the same strobe illumination.

The HR-200C camera model can capture images as rapidly as 14 frames/second, up to the 15
image capacity of the camera’s internal memory. Subsequent images can be captured when
memory is freed through the transfer of images to the host Workstation. The average image capture
rate is determined by the image transfer rate to the host Workstation.

The HR series cameras accept standard EF-mount lenses and include an electrical interface for lens
focus and aperture control. Aperture control allows exposure adjustments beyond those achievable
using only the “electronic iris” integration-time control available in most industrial CCD cameras.
Aperture control allows the shutter-speed to remain constant over a wider range of ambient light
levels.

The primary differences between the HR series camera models are shown in the chart below. The
appendices provide detailed specifications for each HR series camera model.
Feature
Resolution 4032 x 2686 1608 x 1206
Aspect Ratio 3 x 2 4 x 3
Frame Rate (frames per sec) 2.5fps 14fps
Memory depth (#images) 4 15
Preview Resolution 672 x 448 804 x 606

HR-1100c HR-200c

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2. Principles of Operation

Camera Operation

The setup and configuration of the HR series cameras are controlled by application software
running on the Workstation. This software communicates with the camera through the Ethernet
Interface. Upon camera power-up, the camera attempts to link with the Workstation application
until a connection is attained. The camera then enters Setup Mode and begins the Setup Sequence
during which the Workstation configures the camera’s image capture timing parameters. After
configuration the camera is ready to capture images and to automatically transfer them to the
Workstation.

Images are transferred to the Workstation in either raw TIFF format or as fully processed color
images in compressed JPEG format. The JPEG format images may be compressed to a variety of
quality levels using the software interface. The user may thus adjust the quality level and,
consequently, the file size of the transferred image. The HR series cameras also support a Preview
Mode in which reduced resolution images are transferred to the host Workstation at a higher rate
for previewing. Preview images are 1 byte/pixel monochrome images, possess no TIFF header, and
are reduced in resolution both horizontally and vertically. The purpose of Preview Mode is to
continuously display monochrome images for focus, framing and exposure control.

The images captured by the HR series camera are each uniquely identified by an image sequence
number. This image sequence number is transmitted to the host Workstation together with each
image. The image sequence number is reset to zero at each power-up of the camera, and increments
by 1 with each image captured.

An Imaginant Camera Demonstration Application is provided. This is a demonstration Windows
application that provides control over the main set of HR series camera features. An HR Camera
Software Development Kit is provided for users that wish to write custom applications to take
advantage of the full set of HR series camera features. The HR Camera Software Development Kit
is easily integrated into user application software.

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3. Network Setup

Workstation

Any Workstation connected to an HR series camera must have a properly configured Ethernet
card. Workstations that run the Windows operating system must be configured to support the
TCP/IP protocol in the Windows software network setup function. HR series cameras are set to an
IP Address of “194.194.194.205” and the Workstation must be configured for IP Address
“194.194.194.206” with a subnet mask of “255.255.255.0” which will configure the interface for a
Class “C” network.

IP ADDRESS SUBNET MASK

Workstation 194.194.194.206 255.255.255.0

HR Camera 194.194.194.205 255.255.255.0

To optimize performance it is recommended that the camera and Workstation be the only devices
on the subnet network. This is because HR series cameras transfer a large amount of image data to
the Workstation following image capture and other network traffic will increase the image transfer
times. Although a dedicated camera to Workstation network is recommended, the camera protocol
and network activity should be compatible with standard Ethernet network configurations. Thus the
camera should successfully co-exist with other network activity although with potentially reduced
image transfer rates.

A Workstation connected to an HR series camera that is must also be connected to a network can
be configured with two (2) Ethernet cards. In this case, one Ethernet card can be dedicated to the
HR series camera while the other Ethernet card can service the network. In order to prevent any
routing problems, this second card should typically utilize a different IP Address Class, something
other than 194.194.194.X. Follow the Ethernet card manufacturer’s instructions in this regard.

Ethernet Cabling

Ethernet networks typically utilize a “hub” or “router” to connect multiple devices to the network.
In this configuration the hub performs a cabling translation by sending the Transmit signals from
one device to the Receive input of other devices and vice versa. Since the “hub’ performs this
translation, the cables that are employed with a hub are wired 1:1 (straight-through cables). This
means that the connectors at opposite ends of these cables have the same pins connected together
(pin 1 to pin 1, etc).

When a dedicated connection between an HR series camera and a Workstation is employed, a hub
is not used. In this case, a Crossover Cable would typically be necessary. A Crossover Cable is
wired so as to connect one device’s Transmit signals (output) to the Receive signal (input) of a
second device, and vice versa. However, the HR series camera will work with a straight-through
cable, as the cameras are capable of automatically swapping the Transmit and Receive signals as
necessary. This allows the HR series cameras to be connected directly to the Ethernet card of the
Workstation using either standard straight-through cables or using cables that have the Transmit
and Receive pairs swapped.

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