Beaverton, Ore., Aug. 7, 2000 -- Imagenation Corporation announced today the new release of the PXD1000 Digital Frame Grabber for machine vision applications. The new, feature-rich PXD1000 V2 offers greater flexibility, able to support both RS422 and RS644 input signals on the same board, while also being priced at $995 per single unit, 25 percent less than competing frame grabbers.

The PXD1000 V2 is designed specifically for image-critical applications where high data rates, advanced control options and high-resolution capture capabilities with superior dynamic range are essential. These include semiconductor wafer inspection, medical and scientific imaging, continuous web inspection, microscopy, high-speed industrial machine vision, motion analysis and object tracking and thermal imaging.

Imagenation’s PXD1000 V2 offers an increased memory allocation of up to 4 megabytes (MB) onboard, first-in, first-out memory (FIFO). As a result, vision systems that incorporate the PXD 1000 V2 have demonstrated higher integrity and reliability. Imagenation further packages its frame grabber with easy-to-use camera configuration tools that allow users to create, modify and test configuration files quickly, without requiring knowledge of the frame grabber’s internal architecture. A video window reacts to changes in real-time, to support interactive experimentation with a variety of camera parameters.

Imagenation’s PXD1000 V2 supports most commercially available digital cameras. Optional cables also are available.

"There has never been a better time to move to a higher-resolution digital solution," said George Fabel, Imagenation president. "Increasingly, equipment designers are relying on digital cameras because of their ability to improve performance and reduce overall system cost, by providing greater resolution and faster frame rates."

The PXD1000 V2 is among the industry's most flexible frame grabbers. Working with single, dual or four channel cameras, it supports both RS422 and RS644 signals on the same board, at up to 30 megahertz (MHz) and 40 MHz per channel, respectively. Area scan, line scan and time delay and integration (TDI) cameras can be accommodated with equal convenience. Imagenation provides pre-configured files for several operating modes of popular digital cameras, enabling them to work quickly with the PXD1000 V2.

Imagenation also provides users with the ability to decode an encoded filter colored image into true RGB color. This is invaluable in those applications where there is a need to discern more than one color at high resolutions in real time, such as printing, food processing and pharmaceutical production. The conversion routine can be downloaded via the Technical Support page of the Imagenation web site (www.imagenation.com). Also available online are demo programs and information regarding cable alternatives. Sample code is available for instructions on grabbing and queuing frames, as well as controlling strobes and triggers.

The PXD1000 V2 works with standard machine vision software that allow new users to quickly capture images, save images to disk and adjust image capture features without writing a single line of code. Additional information, technical assistance, current software and examples are all available at the Technical Support page of Imagenation's Web site.

• Excellent sustained 100 MB/sec PCI bus performance, coupled with 4 MB of onboard FIFO memory, means no risk of losing important image data

• High input data rates with up to 40M pixels/sec per 8-bit channel; 160M pixels/sec maximum with 4-channel cameras

• The ultimate in camera flexibility, comes with access to a user-friendly camera configuration application that allows you to add a new camera or easily reconfigure an existing one

• Works with single, dual or four channel digital area scan, line scan and time delay and integration (TDI) cameras

Input video formats: RS422 and RS644

Pixel rate: 40M pixels/sec (signal channel cameras); 80M pixels/sec (dual

channel cameras); 160M pixels/sec (four channel cameras)

Image size: Up to 32K x 32K for area images; 32K wide for line scan images

Data throughput: 100 MB/s sustained PCI bus transfers, 132 MB/s burst speeds

Base board memory: 4 MB image FIFO memory

The PXD1000 V2 is available immediately for only $995 per single unit - quantity pricing is available.

Imagenation is an international leader in the design and manufacture of machine vision (MV) systems and subsystems. The company has gained a solid reputation for reliability and price/performance leadership by providing effective MV system solutions for high-volume OEMs. Its product line includes monochrome, color and digital frame grabbers for ISA and PCI

buses. Imagenation also specializes in embedded form factors (PC/104, PC/104-Plus and CompactPCI) and provides VisionCells — stand alone, integrated vision systems that perform image capture, processing and analysis, all on a single board. Imagenation's technical support and

understanding of applications are of high value to its customers, with whom Imagenation works closely to deliver customized solutions. For more information about Imagenation, call

1-800-366-9131 toll free or (503) 495-2200, send a fax to (503) 495-2201, e-mail info@imagenation.com, or visit the company's Web site at www.imagenation.com.

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