Specifications
| Type | 2D monochrome area scan camera |
|---|---|
| Resolution | 3MP (2048 × 1536 pixels) |
| Sensor | Sony IMX264 Gen2, 1/1.8" CMOS, global shutter |
| Pixel size | 3,45 × 3,45 µm |
| Frame rate | 120 fps (full resolution) |
| Interface | USB 3.0 (5 Gbit/s), Micro B connector |
| Inputs / outputs | M8 8-pin: 1 input, 1 output, 2 general-purpose lines |
| Lens mount | C-mount |
| Dimensions | 29 × 29 × 38 mm, 90 g max. |
| Power supply | 5 VDC over USB 3.0, approx. 2.4 W |
| Operating temperature | 0 à +65 °C |
| Protection rating | IP 40 (with lens and cable fitted) |
Why a 3MP global-shutter camera to inspect cans after filling?
On a packaging line, the product doesn’t stop in front of the camera: it moves past it. A line-by-line shutter stretches it and distorts the edges, where inspection is measured to the nearest tenth of a millimeter to determine whether a setting meets specifications. Global shutter freezes the entire surface at the same instant, and the 3MP resolution of the Sony IMX252 sensor provides enough pixels on a fine defect for a vision model to distinguish it from a simple variation in brightness.
- Global shutter: the moving product is frozen with no motion blur or edge distortion.
- Exposure adjustable from 1 µs, for very high-speed lines.
- Monochrome: a crimping defect stands out from the edge of the case because of its contrast, not because of its color.
- Wired trigger input (M8): image capture is synchronized with the line's presence sensor.
- USB 3.0: no frame grabber needed, but a limited cable length that constrains the layout.
Psycle does not simply distribute this camera: it integrates it into high-value vision applications. The sensor provides the image; what is extracted from it depends on the vision software running behind it, the model trained on the line's real defects and the lighting scheme that makes them stand out. The same VCXU.2-31M does not see the same things depending on whether it works with low-angle lighting, backlighting or dome lighting.
This is the setup used in the cans inspection cells at several partner manufacturers: integrity of the crimp, mix-up checks to prevent mixing of production orders, legibility of the coding, and ejection of non-conforming units before packaging. Inspections cover 100% of products, at line speed, with no manual sorting station downstream.
Before installing
Three points that determine everything else
USB 3.0 does away with the frame grabber, but it imposes its own distance: beyond a few meters of passive cable, you need an active cable or a fiber extension. The position of the control cabinet is therefore decided at the same time as that of the camera, not afterwards.
The housing is rated IP 40 with lens and cable fitted: nothing that will withstand a food line washdown. In wet areas, the camera goes into an enclosure, and it is the enclosure window (its cleanliness, its reflections, its condensation) that becomes the weak point of the inspection.
The sensor is 1/1.8": a C-mount lens designed for a smaller format vignettes the corners, and the defect that slips through is precisely the one that comes in from the edge of the image. Check the lens image circle before the focal length, and the focal length before the mount.
Documentation
Cans inspection
explained in detail.
The component is only one part. Camera, lighting, vision software, ejection and line interfacing: the complete solution, with all the settings it requires.
see the solution