Pco Edge 3.1, Edge 5.5, Edge Series, Edge 4.2 LT, Edge 4.2 User Manual

pco.

user manual

edge family

PCO asks you to carefully read this manual before using the pco.edge camera system and follow the instructions.

In case of any questions or comments, please contact us at PCO.

telephone +49 (0) 9441 2005 50

fax +49 (0) 9441 2005 20

email info@pco.de

postal address PCO AG Donaupark 11 93309 Kelheim, Germany

The cover photo shows an exemplary pco.edge CLHS camera. The lens is sold separately.

Copyright © 2017 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: July 2017 © PCO AG

pco.edge family User Manual V2.24 © PCO AG, Germa ny

TOP

1. INTRODUCTION 5

1.1 INTENDED USE 5

1.2 DATA OVERVIEW 6

2. SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS 7

3. SYSTEM COMPONENTS 8

4. INSTALLATION 9

4.1 DRIVER 9

4.2 CAMWARE 10

5. QUICK START 11

5.1 PREPARATION 11

5.2 START 11

5.3 YOUR FIRST IMAGE 12

6. CAMWARE 4 SOFTWARE 13

6.1 CHAPTER OVERVIEW 13

6.2 CAMERA OVERVIEW / LIST 14

6.3 CAMERA PROPERTIES 16

6.3.1 TIMING 17

6.3.2 ROLLING SHUTTER 20

6.3.3 GLOBAL SHUTTER 24

6.3.4 GLOBAL RESET 27

6.3.5 IMAGE SIZE 29

6.3.6 SENSOR CONTROL 31

6.3.7 RECORDING CONTROL 32

6.3.8 STATUS 34

6.3.9 HARDWARE IO CONTROL 35

6.3.10 CONVERT CONTROL 37

6.4 IMAGE OVERLAY 39

6.5 RECORDER TOOLS 40

6.6 VIEW WINDOW 42

6.7 RECORDER (IMAGES) 43

6.8 SETTINGS OVERVIEW 45

6.8.1 AUTO SAVE 46

6.9 CAMWARE MENU TABS & FEATURES 48

6.9.1 DEMO MODE 48

6.9.2 FILE MENU 49

6.9.3 CAMERA MENU 51

6.9.4 ACQUISITION MENU 52

6.9.5 VIEW MENU 53

6.9.6 WINDOW MENU 54

6.9.7 HELP MENU 55

6.9.8 VIEW WINDOW MENU 56

6.9.9 ADDITIONAL FEATURES 58

APPENDIX 59

A1 TECHNICAL DATA 60

A1.1 STANDARD VERSION 60 A1.2 WATER COOLED STANDARD VERSION 60 A1.3 CAMERA LINK HS VERSION 61 A1.4 SPECIFICATIONS 62 A1.5 MOUNTING 62

A1.5.1 INSTABLE MOUNTING 62 A1.5.2 CORRECT MOUNTING 63 A1.5.3 COOLING 63

A1.6 REVERSE WITH CAPTION 64

A2 F-MOUNT ADAPTER 65

A2.1 PCO F-MOUNT ADAPTER 65 A2.2 CHANGE FROM F-MOUNT TO C-MOUNT 66

A3 WATER COOLING OPTION PCO.AQUAMATIC II 67

A3.1 SYSTEM COMPONENTS 67 A3.2 FIRST TIME INSTALLATION 68 A3.3 OPERATION 69 A3.4 DIMENSIONS 70 A3.5 YOUR OWN COOLING SYSTEM 70

A4 INTERFACES 71

A4.1 CABLE POSSIBILITIES 71 A4.2 CAMERA LINK 72

A4.2.1 INSTALLATION OF FRAME GRABBER 72

A4.2.2 MICRO DIAGNOSTICS TOOL 73 A4.2.3 IMAGE DATA FLOW 74

A4.3 CAMERA LINK HS 76

A4.3.1 INSTALLATION OF FRAME GRABBER 77 A4.3.2 MICRO DIAGNOSTICS TOOL 78

A4.4 USB 3.0 79

A4.4.1 DRIVER INSTALLATION 79 A4.4.2 HARDWARE RECOMMENDATIONS 79 A4.4.3 USB 3.0 FAQ 81 A4.4.4 INSTALLATION OF THE USB 3.0 CARD 83 A4.4.5 RING BUFFER AND FIFO 84

A5 BINNING WITH CMOS SENSORS 85

A6 LIGHTSHEET SCANNING MODE 86

A7 IMAGE FILE FORMATS 87

A8 CUSTOMER SERVICE 89

A8.1 SERVICE 89 A8.2 MAINTENANCE 89 A8.3 RECYCLING 89 A8.4 TROUBLE SHOOTING 90

A9 INDEX 91

ABOUT PCO 92

1 INTRODUCTION

• live cell microscopy

• FRAP

1. INTRODUCTION

Advantages of the pco.edge family

The pco.edge family is a breakthrough in scientific imaging cameras. It has the distinctive ability to simultaneously deliver extremely low noise, high frame rates, wide dynamic range, high quantum efficiency, high resolution and a large field of view - all in one image.

The camera’s main features (model-specific)

1.1 INTENDED USE

• ultra low noise down to 0.8

• high resolution up to 5.5 megapixel

• best dynamic range up to 40000:1

• high-speed up to 100 fps @ full resolution

• high quantum efficiency up to 80%

• flexibility user selectable choice of shutter mode

• free of drift stabilized Peltier cooling in order to avoid any drift

phenomena in image sequences

This camera system is designed for use by technicians, engineers and scientists. It is a scientific measuring instrument, which provides images. The camera may only be used according to the instructions of this manual. The disclosures and operating conditions in these operating instructions must be respected. Unauthorized modifications and changes of the device are forbidden for safety reasons.

electrons

med

Areas of Application

• single molecule detection

• localization microscopy

• lightsheet microscopy

• selective plane illumination

microscopy

• SPIM

• structured illumination

microscopy

• SIM

• TIRF microscopy /

waveguides

• spinning disk confocal

microscopy

• genome sequencing (2nd

and 3rd gen)

• FRET

• lucky imaging astronomy

• adaptive optics

• solar astronomy

• fluorescence spectroscopy

• bio- & chemiluminescence

• high content screening

• photovoltaic inspection

• x-ray tomography

• ophthalmology

• flow cytometry

• biochip reading

• machine vision

• spectral (hyperspectral)

imaging

• laser induced breakdown-

spectroscopy (LIBS)

Read Out

Line time

Global

204 MHz

12.86

20 µs … 100 ms

Global

Reset

Global

Reset

95.3 MHz

(slow scan)

272.3 MHz 100 MHz

26.58

274 MHz

9.68

101

Global

160 MHz

16.40

20 µs … 100 ms

Global

Reset

95.3 MHz

(slow scan)

286 MHz

95.3 MHz

286 MHz

100 MHz

(slow scan)

286 MHz

(fast scan)

Global

286 MHz

9.17

10 µs … 100 ms

100 MHz

286 MHz

1.2 DATA OVERVIEW

This table shows an overview over all available pco.edge series camera models.

Type Shutter

Rolling 105 MHz 24.99 50 500 µs … 2 s

pco.edge 3.1

USB 3.0

Reset

pco.edge 4.2 LT

USB 3.0

Rolling 110 MHz 24.06 40 100 µs … 10 s

Frequency

105 MHz 24.99 50 30 µs – 2 s

110 MHz 24.06 40 30 µs … 2 s

(µs)

Exposure times Sensor Cooling

FPS

mono & color

mono + 10° C air

+ 5°C air

pco.edge 4.2

USB 3.0

pco.edge 4.2

Camera Link

pco.edge 4.2

Camera Link HS

pco.edge 5.5

USB 3.0

pco.edge 5.5

Camera Link

Rolling 110 MHz 24.06 40 100 µs … 20 s

110 MHz 24.06 40 30 µs … 2 s

27.77 35

Rolling

(fast scan)

Rolling

Rolling 86 MHz 30.51 30 500 µs … 2 s

86 MHz 30.51 30 30 µs … 2 s

Rolling

(fast scan)

Global 286 MHz 9.17 50 10 µs … 100 ms

Global

Reset

(slow scan)

(fast scan)

9.76 100

27.52 33

9.17 100

27.52 33

9.17 100

100 µs … 10 s mono

500 µs … 2 s

10 µs … 2 s

mono

mono & color

0°C air

0°C water

+ 5°C air

+ 5°C water

+ 7°C air

+ 5°C air

+ 5°C water

+ 5°C air

+ 5°C water

26.24 35

Rolling

pco.edge 5.5

Camera Link HS

Global

Reset

maximum frames per second @ full resolution

(slow scan)

(fast scan)

9.17 100

26.24 34

9.17 95

500 µs … 2 s

10 µs … 2 s

mono & color

+ 7°C air

2 SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS

NOTICE

DANGER

WARNING

CAUTION

2. SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS

CLASS 1 LASER PRODUCT (only pco.edge CLHS)

Risk of injury due to dazzle.

 Do not point the laser beam at persons.  Do not look into the laser beam or at direct reflexes.  Manipulations of the laser device are not allowed.

DAMAGED POWER CABLE OR POWER PLUG

Danger to life due to electric shock.

 Each time the camera is used, check the power cable for

damage.

ELECTRIC SHOCK WARNING DUE TO VOLTAGE PARTS INSIDE Risk of injury due to electric shock.

 Never slide any items through slits or holes into the camera.

CONDENSATION

Risk of injury due to electric shock if condensation enters the camera.

 To avoid the risk of water condensation, protect the camera

against extreme changes of ambient temperature.

TRIPPING HAZARD

Risk of injury from tripping over loose cables.

 Never position the cable in a way that it could become a

tripping hazard.

HUMID OR DUSTY ENVIRONMENTS

Humidity, dust or X-rays could damage the camera.

 Never operate the camera in humid or dusty environments

or in places with high amounts of X-ray radiation.

JOLT & VIBRATION

To prevent damage to the camera, the system must be kept stable and protected against strong jolts or vibrations.

 Use the mounting threads of the camera to mount the

camera stable.

LENS MOUNTING

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.

LIQUIDS DAMAGE CAMERA

If liquids have penetrated the device.

 Immediately switch off the camera, separate it from power

line and contact our customer support.

DAMAGED CAMERA HOUSING

If the camera has been dropped or the casing is damaged.

 Immediately switch off the camera, separate it from power

line and contact our customer support.

Reverse

A1.6

Frame Grabber Card / USB 3.0 Interface Card

Cable

3. SYSTEM COMPONENTS

The camera system includes the following parts.

Camera

F-mount optical connection (standard)

For standard F-mount / SLR lenses and adapters.

C-mount ring provided (see A2)

For standard C-mount and microscopy connectors.

see

• DC Power Jack connect to power supply

• Input / Output 4x SMA connectors

• Interface Camera Link, Camera Link HS, USB 3.0

• LED indicates camera status

Serial Number Tag on the bottom of the camera

Mounting Thread

¼”- 20 UNC mounting threads

PCI Express x4 Card (Camera Link) or PCI Express x4 Card (Camera Link HS) or PCI Express x1 Card (2 x USB 3.0)

Power Supply

24 V power supply (model depending) (connector: Lemo FGG.0B)

Interface depending (see A4.1)

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 / C++

4 INSTALLATION

•

• RAM > 8 GB DDR3

• PCI Express x4 Gen 2 (CLHS)

• PCI Express x4 Gen 1 (CL)

• Windows 7 or higher

4. INSTALLATION

You will find all necessary files on the accompanying USB storage device. You may also download the latest versions of our software, camera driver and third party software drivers from the PCO website.

Minimum system requirements:

4.1 DRIVER

Intel® Core™ i7

Please contact PCO for an appropriate system configuration.

There are three different kinds of interfaces available:

Full-HD resolution display

Camera Link (Frame Grabber card)

When operating the camera with Camera Link Interface: Please run the appropriate grabber driver installation with default settings. For detailed installation instructions please see A4.2.

Camera Link HS (Frame Grabber card)

When operating the camera with Camera Link HS interface: Please run the appropriate grabber driver installation with default settings. For detailed installation instructions please see A4.3.

USB 3.0

When USB 3.0 is used as a camera interface, it is recommended to use the enclosed PCIe Interface card. For detailed installation

instructions or further hardware recommendations, see A4.3.

Graphic card NVIDIA Cuda Driver:

Please update your NVIDIA driver for Camware 4. In case of an old driver version GPU Processing is not working. Therefore image processing is slow.

Please check if GPU Processing is activated by having a look into the Proc config settings in the Convert Control window (see Convert Control chapter 6.3.10). If GPU Processing is disabled and shown grayed, please update your NVIDIA driver or check the website of the computer manufacturer for graphic card driver updates. Your NVIDIA driver version must be at least 333.11 or higher.

2 3 4

1 2 3

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 USB storage device contains the installation files for the software for latest Windows operating systems in 32 & 64 bit. After a successful installation, you will find the program folder 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

• Then choose install directory

•

Choose components: select additional drivers for Camera Link interface Silicon Software DLL ME IV and for Camera Link HS Silicon Software DLL CLHS (no additional files needed for USB version)

• After the next two screens installation is complete

5 QUICK START

NOTE

5. QUICK START

5.1 PREPARATION

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.

• 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

(green LED flashes)

5.2 START

Start Camware and the graphical user interface will start up:

Always install latest Camware version to be able to use full function of your pco camera (www.pco.de/support

NOTE

2 3 4 5 6

2 3 6 4 5

5.3 YOUR FIRST IMAGE

Please follow the instructions:

• Camware must be started

• A view window is shown automatically /or open a new one

• Start live preview

• Right-click in the view window and apply Continuous Auto

Range

• You may adjust exposure time , aperture and focus

• Now you should clearly see the object in the window

Live preview: Useful for fast and easy camera adjustment and focusing. Does not record or store images.

If you need to change exposure time (e.g. the image is still either too dark or too bright), please go to chapter

6.3.2.

If you want to record and save images, please see chapter

6.3.7 and chapter 6.6 for detailed information.

6 CAMWARE 4 SOFTWARE

6.2 Camera Overview/List

Preview, connected cameras, recording profiles

6.3.1 Timing

Exposure time / Trigger modes

6.3.2 Rolling Shutter

Explanation / Timing

6.3 .3 Global Shutter

Explanation / Timing

6.3.4 Global Reset

Explanation / Timing

6.3.5 Image Size

ROI / Sensor format

6.3.6 Sensor Control

Pixel clock / BW noise filter

6.3.7 Recording Control

Recorder mode / Acquire mode Timestamp / Sequence Trigger

6.3.8 Status

Temperature

6.3.9 Hardware IO Control

Input / Output signals

6.3.10 Convert Control Dialog

Contrast / Saturation / Gamma…

6.4 Image Overlay

Overlay for recorded images

6.4 Recorder Tools

Record / Play / Settings

6.6 View Window

View window functions

6.7 Recorder (Images)

Preview of recorded images

6.8 Settings Overview

Overview of all property settings / Auto File Save

6.9.1 Demo Mode

No camera connected

6.9.2 File menu

Open / Save / Print files / Options / Avi

Lookup table

6.9.3 Camera

Camera control / Close / Rescan

6.9.4 Acquisation menu

Live preview / Acquire sequence / Rec.

6.9.5 View menu

New window / Convert control / Multi window / Toolbar / Application look

6.9.6 Window menu

New / Close / Split window

6.9.7 Helpmenu

Logfiles / Support file / About

6.9.8 View window menu

Right-click: Zoom / Flip / Mirror /

6.9.8 Additional features

White Balance / Contrast / Short cut list

6. CAMWARE 4 SOFTWARE

PCO’s Camware is an excellent software for camera control, image acquisition and archiving of images in various file formats. This chapter provides a detailed description of all Camware functions. Camware works with any kind of PCO camera. Please see PCO website for the latest version of this software.

6.1 CHAPTER OVERVIEW

Chapter 6.2: lists all connected cameras

Chapter 6.3 Camera Properties: main dialog for all camera settings:

Chapter 6.4/ 6.5 /6.6 /6.7 / 6.8 describe the recording functions

Chapter 6.9 describes the available menu tabs

Codec Dialog / Direct record to file /

memory settings

Rotate…

1 2 3

2 3 4

5 5 6

6.2 CAMERA OVERVIEW / LIST

If closed, the Camera Overview window can be opened by selecting the View tab and Toolbars and Docking Windows → Camera Overview.

The Camera Overview window allows you to manage several connected cameras. It displays a list of all connected PCO cameras. Camware is able to scan 2 for connected cameras or close a connected camera. It is possible to define many different

settings for each camera (max. 30 sets per camera → add new set 3 ). New view windows 4 can be opened and the Live Preview 5 can be started. When unfolded, the Preview shows a small preview window 6 (always monochrome) integrated to the

camera list.

Live preview enables the adjustment of aperture and focus and to have a first look at your object. During live preview no images are saved into the computer RAM.

During Live preview Trigger and Acquire mode are set to Auto.

Camera Setting: All Preferences that have been made in the Camera Properties (see 6.3) are saved to Camera Settings. Define

different Settings with different Preferences in Camera Properties for each of your experiments. Settings can be switched easily at any time (not during record) and can be copied to other cameras.

Link Preview Set to ‘Preview’

When Link Preview Set to Preview is activated the Preview set with its parameters will always be active when you start a Live Preview 5 .

In case this function is deactivated, the Live Preview will always show live images with the parameters of your active setting. Setting a higher exposure time for Preview set and linking it to the preview function can be a great advantage if preview light conditions are different from those in recording situations.

6 CAMWARE 4 SOFTWARE

1 2 3

Click and drag camera setting: If you want to copy e.g. Camera Setting 1 to Camera Setting 4, just drag & drop Setting 1 to Setting 4 and Camware will ask if you want to copy the settings. It is

possible to copy each setting to every camera.

Master Sets

This function facilitates the image acqusition with multiple cameras. Define two or more Master Sets to switch during an experiment very easily between different predefined settings for each camera. Each image acquisition or experiment can be recorded with its own Master Set.

To display Master Sets, please right-click in the Camera

Overview window and select Show Master Sets.

Master Set window

Define different Master Sets. Select individual Camera Settings within each Master Set.

Functions:

Add Master Set or Remove active master . Put it to active status by clicking on one of your sets .

Important Setting (for cameras without internal memory)

Memory Allocation Dialog

If you want to change the number of recorded images in Camware, you have to open the Acquisition Tab (see 6.9.4) and choose Recorder Memory Settings. This sets the number of images recorded in one sequence. The maximum is defined by approved RAM size.

6.3 CAMERA PROPERTIES

The Camera Properties window in Camware is the main interface for all camera settings. The active set selected within Camera List can be adjusted here.

The former main instance Camera Control (known from Camware

3.x) and the Convert Control (see 6.3.10) can be opened additionally.

Three view options with various functions can be selected: Basic,

Custom and Expert.

Basic mode 1 only shows camera infos, exposure time / delay time,

image size (ROI) and temperature settings. In Basic mode the frame rate is always calculated automatically based on the selected exposure time, i.e. if exposure time is increased, the frame rate is decreased. It is recommended for new Camware users.

Custom mode shows several more setting possibilities and functions can be hidden or shown by the Custom Properties

Button.

Additional to the Basic mode many more options are selectable.

Expert mode (for advanced users) shows all possible camera property settings.

An explanation for every setting is displayed below the properties dialog.

6 CAMWARE 4 SOFTWARE

n + 1

n + 2

n + 1

n + 2

exp treadout

n - 1

n + 1

del

readout

exposure

1 2 1 2

6.3.1 TIMING

Introduction to timing

An important parameter for a camera is the frame rate. The upper limit of the

frame rate is defined by exposure and

readout time.

The figure below shows the timing scheme. Exposure and readout are done readout from the sensor, image n+1

simultaneously, this means while image n is

is already integrated within

the sensor’s pixel elements.

Figure shows, that in case of short exposure times, the readout is the that for long exposure times the exposure (t

) is the limiting factor.

delay

limiting factor. The second figure shows

time plus delay

Figure : Image timing for short exposure times

exp

Figure : Image timing for long exposure times

If a lower frame rate is desired, this can be achieved by inserting additional delay times. These rules also apply in external trigger mode, i.e. this

defines when the next trigger can be applied or

recognized.

For further timing explanations (e.g. fps based timing) please read the following chapters for Rolling Shutter, Global Shutter and Global Reset.

Busy Status (out)

accepted

not accepted accepted

accepted

Exposure Exposure

Status (out)

NOTE

Trigger Mode

In this context trigger means exposure trigger, i.e. the trigger signal controls the exposure of a single image (light integration time).

Auto Sequence: the camera will optimize the image recording to achieve the best possible frame rate. In the Auto Sequence 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. A single image can be acquired by pressing the

Single Trigger button. This button appears after pressing the Start Record button (see 6.4 ). Other signals cannot influence

this operating mode.

If the trigger rate of the external signal is quite near the maximum possible frame rate (difference < 1/1000), it will be random, whether or not a trigger is accepted!

In the External Exposure Start exposure control mode, single image recording is started by the falling or rising edge of the voltage signal at the SMA input #1(see 6.3.9). The frame rate cannot be set, as the frame rate is defined by the frequency of the external signal. However the predefined exposure time and ROI settings affect the maximum possible frame rate.

The Busy Status signal at SMA #3 (SMA explanation see 6.3.9) will indicate whether a new trigger is accepted.

Trigger (in)

The maximum achievable frame rate in external trigger mode is negligibly less (about 0.1%) than operating the camera in Auto Sequence mode.

If the trigger rate of the external signal is higher than the maximum possible frame rate, every second trigger pulse is ignored. Therefore the actual frame rate drops to half of the external trigger rate. If the trigger rate is increased further, then only every third, every fourth etc. trigger edge will be accepted.

6 CAMWARE 4 SOFTWARE

Busy Status (out)

not accepted

Exposure Trigger (in)

Exposure Status (out)

accepted

not accepted

accepted

not accepted

readout

Busy Status

accepted

not accepted

accepted

Exposure

Exposure Status (out)

Shutter

Mode

Maximum

exposure time

Rolling

2 s

Global

100 ms

Global Reset

2 s

Rolling

10 s

Global Reset

pco.edge 4.2 Camera Link

Rolling

10 s

pco.edge 4.2 Camera Link HS

Rolling

10 s

Rolling

20 s

Global Reset

2 s

pco.edge 5.5 Camera Link

Rolling

2 s

Global

100 ms

Global Reset

2 s

accepted

In order to avoid trade-offs at maximum frame rate use either the Busy Status signal or make sure that the external trigger rate follows this condition: 0.999 x External Trigger Rate ≤ f

max

External Exposure Control An external signal applied at SMA #1 (see 6.3.9), controls the start and the duration of the exposure.

A new exposure is started by the falling or rising edge of the voltage signal at the SMA input. 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 external trigger signal.

Trigger (in)

(out)

Be aware, that the externally controlled exposure time is limited. The integration will be stopped automatically if the maximum exposure time is achieved.

The Busy Status signal at SMA #3 (see 6.3.9) indicates if a new trigger is accepted.

Camera

pco.edge 3.1 USB 3.0

pco.edge 4.2 LT USB 3.0

pco.edge 4.2 USB 3.0

pco.edge 5.5 Camera Link HS pco.edge 5.5 USB 3.0

reset

readout

global

texposure (l ast row )

tall rows

Camera (Rolling Shutter)

Exposure time

Delay time

pco.edge 3.1 USB 3.0

500 µs … 2 s

pco.edge 4.2

100 µs … 10 s

NOTE:

NOTE

exposure and delay time can be adjusted in steps of

6.3.2 ROLLING SHUTTER

In Rolling Shutter mode the pixel reset and exposure start is carried

The available Rolling Shutter readout modes see chapter 6.9.3.

out row by row. Each row has the same exposure time, but a different start and end of exposure. The pco.edge image sensor consists of two discrete halves, which are exposed and read out simultaneously, i.e. from the outside to the center by default. Within one row, the exposure starts simultaneously for all pixels.

General Timing Diagram

start

end

start

end

frame

exposur e (first row)

The exposure time of each row starts with the corresponding reset of

The

the row. Then after a predefined time, the exposure is stopped. The light induced accumulated charge carriers of the pixels in a row are

one line time (see 1.2).

recorded into memory in a low noise (readout) mode. This results in the total image appearing in memory corresponding to the row readout.

Timing

pco.edge 4.2 LT USB 3.0

pco.edge 4.2 USB 3. 0

Camera Link

pco.edge 4.2 Camera Link HS

pco.edge 5.5 USB 3.0

pco.edge 5.5 Camera Link

pco.edge 5.5 Camera Link HS

100 µs … 10 s

100 µs … 20 s

100 µs … 10 s

500 µs … 2 s

0 … 1 s

6 CAMWARE 4 SOFTWARE

0.1…35 fps @ 95.3 MHz

0.1…100 fps @ 272.3 MHz

0.5…100 fps @ 286 MHz

Expos ( Start

Global ( Start

Trigger ( Start

Busy ( Start

t exposur e

image

t exposur e

image

t all rows 1st

Δt = t

NOTE

(see chapter 1.2)

FPS based (only Camera Link interface) The camera will optimize the image recording to achieve the selected frame rate with chosen exposure time as close as possible. Only for Auto Sequence trigger mode and only available with Camera Link Interface

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

readout

1 / t

The frame rate can be adjusted in steps of 1 mHz (Rolling Shutter). If the selected exposure time would require a lower frame rate, the exposure time is cut to the maximum possible time at that frame rate.

Camera Frame rate (FPS Based) Exposure time

pco.edge 4.2 Camera Link

pco.edge 5.5 Camera Link

0.1…100 fps @ 272.3 MHz

100 µs…10 s

500 µs…2 s

Exposure time > Sensor frame readout time (Auto Sequence)

In case the required exposure time is longer than the frame readout time, the image sensor is completely exposed to light for some time

). In case of a triggered flash illumination, this would be the best

global

moment to illuminate the image sensor.

1st row, 1 st

in)

out)

t = t : 1 line time

1st row, 2nd

out)

frame

all rows 2nd

exposure stop & readout

reset & expos ure start

band of sim ult an eous exposures

The hardware signal for the time t

is available on connector #4

global

(Global out see 6.3.9).

Obviously, if during exposure and readout, parts of the viewed image are moving horizontally, this would result in image distortion. This is why the global shutter mode may be a prerequisite for some applications.

However, most dynamic events can be captured in 1 ms, which is a common integration time with SLR cameras set at 1/1000 exposure. The time shift from one row to another is only about 10 µs (fast scan). The resulting maximum readout time of 10 ms (at full resolution) seems to be sufficient for a broad spectrum of dynamic events.

The 10 ms is also faster than the image shift process of most frame transfer emCCD image sensors previously used for low light applications. If this does not influence the image recording and processing, then rolling shutter mode will not affect it either.

Exposure time < Sensor frame readout time (Auto Sequence)

In case the required exposure time is shorter than the frame readout time, the image is composed of two exposure bands moving from the outside to the center of the sensor.

For example the shortest exposure time in Rolling Shutter is 100 µs for the pco.edge 4.2.

The band of simultaneous exposure is in this case (smallest possible height) at full resolution:

e.g. pco.edge 4.2: 100 µs / 24.93 µs (line time (see 1.2)) = 4 → number of simultaneous rows = 8

Previous comments on image distortion (also known as Rolling Shutter Effect) apply here as well.

6 CAMWARE 4 SOFTWARE

Exposure

jit

jitter

≤1 line time1

rsys

fixed system delay of rising edge

50 … 150 ns

fsys

fixed system delay of falling edge

50 … 150 ns

delay

programmable delay time

0 µs … 1 s

Exposure ( Start

Trigger ( Start

Busy ( Start

t t

all rows 2nd image

all rows 1st image

NOTE

can be a

maximum of one

Auto Sequence graph

The jitter t

jit

row/line time.

in)

out)

frame

Details for External Exp. Start and External Exp. Ctrl

The detailed timing for external trigger includes system delay times, an adjustable additional delay time, and the jitter.

trigger (in)

rsys

delay

jit

fsys

delay

Name Explanation Value

jit

line time → see 1.2

For optimized synchronization (minimized jitter time) use the falling edge of the line signal at the status output (see 6.3.9).

System times t can be read out from your camera, for further information see SDK manual function PCO_GetImageTiming.

rsys

and t

are depending on your camera settings and

fsys

pco.edge 3.1 USB 3.0

20 µs … 100 ms

pco.edge 5.5 USB 3. 0

20 µs … 100 ms

pco.edge 5.5 Camera Link

10 µs … 100 ms

pco.edge 5.5 Camera Link HS

10 µs … 100 ms

NOTE

available for pco.edge

4.2 (all interfaces).

6.3.3 GLOBAL SHUTTER

First, all pixels are globally reset and these reset values are shifted

Global Shutter is not

into so-called diffusion nodes. From there, they are non-destructively read out into memory as reset dark images. The exposure starts after transfer of the reset dark image to the diffusion nodes, where they are stored on the chip. The exposure is stopped by global charge transfer to the diffusion nodes. Then, the exposure image is read out to the memory, where the former reset dark image is subtracted to perform an external correlated double sampling, which reduces the noise. Since two images have to be read out to receive one resulting image, the sCMOS image sensor’s Global Shutter mode has only half of the frame rate of the Rolling Shutter mode.

Reset Exposure Readout

Timing

The exposure and delay time can be adjusted in steps of one line time (see 1.2).

Camera (Global Shutter) Exposure time Delay time

FPS based (only edge 5.5 Camera Link)

The camera will optimize the image recording to achieve the selected frame rate with chosen exposure time as close as possible.

Only for Auto Sequence trigger mode and only available with Camera Link Interface.

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 / t

. Minimum frame rate is 1 / max. exposure time.

readout

The frame rate can be adjusted in steps of 1 mHz (Global Shutter). If the selected exposure time would require a lower frame rate, the exposure time is cut to the maximum possible time at that frame rate.

Camera Frame rate (FPS Based) Exposure time

0 µs … 1 s

pco.edge 5.5 Camera Link

10 … 50 fps @ 286 MHz 10 µs … 100 ms

6 CAMWARE 4 SOFTWARE

jit

line time1

ROI(y)∗  

Programmable:

1 line time1 … 100 ms

delay

(system)

frame

– t

exp

)

tif

line time1

NOTE

Trigger (in)

External Exposure Start

(Auto Sequence respectively)

Busy (out)

Exposure (out)

Frame

Name # of lines

frame

exp

line time → see 1.2

The listed parameters can be output via SDK function PCO_GetImageTiming dependent on the selected ROI.

If t

exp

< t

system delay (t

frame

) is added before exposure starts.

delay

jit

line time1

ROI(y)∗  

exp

Trigger (in)

External Exposure Control

Busy (out)

Exposure (out)

Frame

Name # of lines

frame

line time → see 1.2

Counted line time1

In External Exposure Control trigger mode the external signal controls start of image acquisition and duration of the exposure.

First, all pixels are globally reset and these reset values are shifted into so-called diffusion nodes. From there, they are non-destructively read out into memory as reset dark images.

In this mode, the exposure starts always after the readout of the dark image is completed. The length of the exposure has been detected by the sensor from the trigger input. The exposure is stopped by global charge transfer to the diffusion nodes after the respective time.

Then, the exposure image is read out to the memory, where the former reset dark image is subtracted to perform an external correlated double sampling, which reduces the noise.

Since two images have to be read out to receive one resulting image and the exposure cannot start during readout time of the dark image, this specific Global Shutter mode provides less than half of the frame rate of the Rolling Shutter mode.

6 CAMWARE 4 SOFTWARE

pco.edge 3.1 USB 3.0

pco.edge 4.2 LT USB 3.0

pco.edge 4.2 USB 3.0

pco.edge 5.5 USB 3.0

pco.edge 5.5 Camera Link

pco.edge 5.5 Camera Link HS

NOTE

available for pco.edge

Link HS.

reset /

readout

start

readout

end

6.3.4 GLOBAL RESET

All pixels are globally reset and the exposure starts for all rows at the

Global Reset is not

4.2 Camera Link and pco.edge 4.2 Camera

same time. The exposure stop is carried out row by row; therefore the duration of the exposure is not the same for all pixels. The rolling readout improves the image quality, but due to the difference in exposure time, a flash illumination is recommended. The readout (exposure stop) is done from the outside to the center.

General Timing Diagram

exposure start

The exposure time of all rows starts simultaneously. The exposure time of the first row stops after the predefined time, the following rows are read out from the outside to the center row by row. Please note that this leads to a different duration of exposure time for all rows.

Timing

global

exposure (fir st row)

exposure (l ast row)

frame

all rows

The exposure and delay time can be adjusted in steps of one line time (see 1.2).

Camera (Global Reset) Exposure time Delay time

30 µs – 2 s

0 µs … 1 s

10 µs – 2 s

Exposure

Exp trig (in)

1…33.3 fps @ 95.3 MHz

jit

jitter

≤

rsys

time rising edge

fsys

time falling edge

delay

delay time

0 µs … 1 s

FPS based (only edge 5.5 Camera Link)

The camera will optimize the image recording to achieve the selected frame rate with chosen exposure time as close as possible. Only for Auto Sequence trigger mode and only available with Camera Link Interface.

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

readout

to 1 / t The frame rate can be adjusted in steps of 1 mHz (Global Reset). If the selected exposure time would require a lower frame rate, the exposure time is cut to the maximum possible time at that frame rate.

Camera Global Reset Frame rate (FPS Based) Exposure time

pco.edge 5.5 Camera Link

1…100 fps @ 286 MHz

10 µs…2 s

Details for External Exp. Start and External Exp. Ctrl

The detailed timing for external trigger includes system delay times, an adjustable additional delay time and the jitter.

rsys

delay

jit

fsys

delay

Name Explanation Value

1 line time1

line time → see 1.2

For optimized synchronization (minimized jitter time) use the falling edge of the line signal at the status output (see 6.3.9).

System times are depending on your camera settings and can be read out from your camera, for further information see SDK manual PCO_GetImageTiming.

jit

+ 65 hidden pages

Pco Edge 3.1, Edge 5.5, Edge Series, Edge 4.2 LT, Edge 4.2 User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 INTENDED USE

1.2 DATA OVERVIEW

2. SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS

3. SYSTEM COMPONENTS

4. INSTALLATION

4.1 DRIVER

4.2 CAMWARE

5. QUICK START

5.1 PREPARATION

5.2 START

5.3 YOUR FIRST IMAGE

6. CAMWARE 4 SOFTWARE

6.1 CHAPTER OVERVIEW

6.2 CAMERA OVERVIEW / LIST

6.3 CAMERA PROPERTIES

6.3.1 TIMING

6.3.2 ROLLING SHUTTER

6.3.3 GLOBAL SHUTTER

6.3.4 GLOBAL RESET