Dalsa Corporation, a global leader in machine vision technology, announced the availability of a new line of Piranha ES cameras for machine vision applications. With various models in the ES line, these new Piranha cameras deliver cost-effective solutions with Time Delay and Integration (TDI) technology; the same leading edge technology used in Dalsa's HS (High Sensitivity) TDI cameras. TDI is a method of line scanning which provides dramatically increased responsivity compared to single line scanning methods. TDI permits much greater scanning speeds in the same lighting condition, or allows reduced lighting levels, and costs, while maintaining the same speeds.

The Piranha ES line brings an incredible combination of speed, resolution and sensitivity to low-light applications, bridging the sensitivity gap between single line cameras and the highest sensitivity Piranha HS series (selectable to a maximum of 96 stages). This new product line features cameras with up to 8k resolution with a 7x7 µm pixel size and provides a maximum line rate of 68 kHz and throughput of 640 Mpix/sec. The Piranha ES cameras open new possibilities for high-performance cost sensitive inspection, now making it easy and cost-effective to switch from traditional line scan to TDI.

The new ES camera offers up to 30 times greater responsivity than a single line scan camera. All Piranha ES cameras are capable of bi-directionality with selectable 32 or 16 stages. The Piranha ES is available in two speed grades, ensuring the best camera throughput can be selected according to the application. Programmable features position them among the most advanced cameras in the market. Camera configuration is extremely flexible and the throughput and line rate are all software controllable. It is ideally suited for applications such as flat-panel display, electronics manufacturing, document scanning, web inspection and general machine vision.

"The new Piranha ES product family fills the gap between our flagship high sensitivity HS TDI and single line scan cameras. For certain applications, customers are looking for enhanced sensitivity at lower costs. The ES cameras will meet their cost expectations while achieving excellent signal-to-noise ratios that cannot be achieved using single line or dual line scan technology in low light applications," comments Xing-Fei He, Senior Product Manager at Dalsa.