Stemmer Imaging to distribute Mitsubishi Contact Image Sensors

For many years Mitsubishi Electric Europe has offered cost-effective and easy to use products for the development of compact optical colour readers, mainly for high-end document scanning with high scan rates. The new KD series of contact image sensors feature a CameraLink interface, increased working distance and higher speeds and are the first sensors Mitsubushi Electric Europe have produced targeted at the machine vision industry.

Samples of the new KD series will be available before the end of this year, with mass production starting in the 2nd Quarter of 2013. The colour quality in combination with the very high scan rates of this system is impressive, and clearly suggests that this is a promising technology for demanding applications. Applications for the CIS technology can be found in all areas where flat objects and materials are to be tested quickly and with high resolution, e.g. for the inspection of printed circuit boards, printed matter or LCD panels.

These products feature scan widths of 309, 617 and 926mm and have a colour resolution of 600dpi and a working distance of 12mm. The line rate of 23kHz allows scan rates of 960mm/s equivalent to 44 us/line. The Contact Image Sensors supply data in both 8- or 10-bit formats over a configurable Camera Link output. The use of the integrated tri-linear sensors with filter-on-chip and white LED illumination is unusual in industrial CIS products but is proven in existing line scan cameras.

The recently signed agreement appointed Stemmer Imaging as the distribution channel for the Mitsubishi Electric CIS KD series in all European countries starting from 1 October 2012. Peter Keppler, Machine Vision Sales Manager at Stemmer Imaging, emphasises: "Mitsubishi Electric Europe 's Contact Image Sensors complement our product portfolio in a very useful, powerful way. With Mitsubishi Electric Europe, we now have a very reliable partner supplying this type of product for which we see a significant number of appropriate applications."

For further details about Mitsubishi Electric Europe's Contact Image Sensors (CIS) available from Stemmer, go to www.stemmer-imaging.co.uk.