Disassembly of the SATIR MinIR80 thermal camera
The MinIR80 is the entry level model in the SATIR E8 range of cameras. As such it has a resolution of 80x60 pixels and no visible light camera. It also comes without the docking station that is provided with the other models.
The docking station connects to the Molex 'Handylink" connector at the base of the handle. This port provides power input, video output and USB communications to the camera. The basic MiniIR80 model comes with an external battery charger and an SD card reader for accessing stored images on the cameras SD card.
The battery used in the camera is a common Sony Li-Ion pack available cheaply on line.
With only 80x60 pixels this camera is never going to provide detailed images and the lack of any visible light camera makes the context of the provided images challenging in some situations. On a positive note, the camera is fitted with a large manual focus lens that is removable. I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the provided lens and expected something far smaller. More on that later.
The SATIR E8 series can be found under other brand names, TROTEC and UNI-T being just two that I have seen.
Why did I buy such a low resolution camera ? Pure curiosity. I suspected that the whole Satir E8 series of cameras share the same PCB's and microbolometer with only 'bolt-on' part differences and software configuration setting the specification. This would be similar to the situation with the FLIR Ex series of cameras, if it were found to be true.
A word on these Chinese thermal cameras. The Chinese are excellent at taking a proven design and reproducing it at a lower cost in order to make such equipment more affordable and profitable for themselves. Thermal cameras are little different except for the microbolometer sensor FPA. SATIR and other similar Chinese thermal camera manufacturers look at the West's thermal camera designs and seek to emulate such using basic development and design data. The exterior of the Chinese cameras may look similar to say a FLIR model, but internally there is little, or no similarity.
OK , back to the SATIR MinIR80 disassembly.
I took an X-Ray image of the camera to establish the location of all case screws and any clips. Only screws were present and all but two were either visible or just covered with a rubber cap. The two hidden screws are located under the MinIR badge in the top of the camera. The case cannot be opened without removing the hidden screws.
To remove the badge, just warm it with a hair dryer and gently lift it away with a scalpel under one corner. The adhesive stays intact on the badge, ready for re-application.
Once all of the case screws have been removed the case may be disassembled without trouble. The top panel holding the keypad first, then front laser cover followed by the lens and finally the two side halves may be parted.
Inside the MinIR I found a pretty nicely built camera that appears to follow the design of development boards that I am aware of. The PCB's have empty chip locations as the models with greater capabilities contain a visible light camera etc.
The microbolometer is not Chinese in origin. It is a ULIS part from France. More precisely, it is a ULIS Nano-160P UL002152-020. This is the first Generation of the UL0215 FPA. I am fortunate enough to have the full datasheet for this particular microbolometer so can identify all pins and signal requirements.
Now an interesting fact. The UL0215 is a 160x120 pixel microbolometer that is configured through a serial port. It offers windowing to set the resolution to 80x60 pixels and this is what Satir have used to limit the resolution of the MinIR80. Only the central portion of the microbolometer is being fed to the main board electronics. I already suspected this to be the case as I stated. The FOV of the MinIR80 is half of that found on the 160x120 top of the range E8 model. That immediately suggested that the same microbolometer and lens could be in use across the range. However, ULIS do make a Micro80p microbolometer that could have been used in the MinIR80 and that has only 80x60 25um pixels so would have produced the same effect of half the FOV. I got lucky with this camera.
If you look at the pictures of the microbolometer sensor PCB you will see that the designer has annotated the important pins around the Nano-160P and this aids investigation of the signals. I am fortunate to know what each pin does and the signal that should be present. I also know the ULIS proprietary command format to set up the microbolometer ROIC via its serial input pin. I will include some interesting pictures from the ULIS datasheet that may be of interest to some readers. I cannot post the whole datasheet as it is not for public distribution.
The MinIR80 is basically as I expected, a simple development platform design that has been translated into complete camera with Microbolometer windowing to limit its resolution and some parts not fitted that are only needed on higher spec units in the range. She works but is nowhere near as polished a product as my other cameras.
I have had contact with Satir (UK) in the hope of getting the pin-out for the docking connector and save myself some investigation. The chap I dealt with looked promising as he is Ex NEC Avio (UK) and I got on well with them in the past. Sadly this was not the case. Satir (UK) would not help me. I asked to buy a docking unit and they flat ignored me.... not great customer support. I will provide the docking port pin-out as part of this tread. Satir (UK) did offer to sell me a 'custom' video output cable that one of their techs uses to test cameras. It was an abomination made using a Molex connector and a piece of RG58U coax... it looked a real mess. It did prove that the MinIR80 is capable of video output though.
OK on with the pictures.
Fraser
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