National Instruments announced the addition of Windows OS support and Camera Link connectivity for NI Embedded Vision Systems, providing manufacturing engineers and system integrators three new options to develop high-performance machine vision solutions. Two of the new options featuring Windows support, the NI EVS-1463 and EVS-1464 systems, offer 80 GB storage and are suitable for image and data logging. They are based on the Windows 7 OS, making it possible to develop directly on the deployment system while eliminating the need for a separate PC for the operator interface. The EVS-1463 and NI EVS-1463RT introduce a Camera Link connectivity option for high-bandwidth, low-latency and line-scan imaging applications. These new systems expand the NI Embedded Vision System family, which also includes the NI EVS-1464RT with GigE Vision and IEEE 1394b camera connectivity.

The EVS-1463 and EVS-1464 are particularly well-suited for the following applications:

* Multicamera industrial inspection
* Line-scan camera systems for inspecting continuous webs and discrete parts for defects
* Image logging and streaming for product traceability and event capture for root cause failure analysis

All NI Embedded Vision Systems have a fanless design and are intended for industrial environments with rugged housing and a 0º to 45º Celsius operating temperature range. In addition, all NI Embedded Vision Systems come with a powerful multicore processor and 2 GB RAM, which is capable of handling large images and user interfaces. The EVS-1463 and EVS-1463RT can acquire and process images from Camera Link and multiple GigE Vision cameras, and the EVS-1464 and EVS-1464RT can acquire and process images from multiple IEEE 1394 and GigE Vision cameras.

The systems also feature a wide range of digital I/O and industrial communications options, including TTL and optically isolated I/O, EtherNet/IP, Modbus and RS232 serial connectivity, for integration with other automation devices. The EVS-1463RT and EVS-1464RT now also serve as EtherCAT master devices, offering a simple way to integrate single-point I/O, including motion drives and I/O expansion devices. In addition, MXI-Express connectivity on all NI Embedded Vision Systems provides deterministic integration for high-speed measurements and supports a variety of I/O in high-channel-count systems.

All NI Embedded Vision Systems can be configured with NI Vision Builder for Automated Inspection (AI), an interactive software environment for prototyping, benchmarking and deploying machine vision applications. For applications that require a programmatic solution, customers can choose the NI Vision Development Module to implement vision solutions in NI LabVIEW software. For systems based on Windows, customers also can use NI LabWindows/CVI or Microsoft Visual Studio .NET software.