Products > Thermal Imaging

Does a SWIR camera sensitive to thermal energy?

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sam1275:
Hi everyone.
Today I found one of my old collection and decided to give it a try, this is the camera: https://www.eevblog.com/forum/projects/usb-to-pci-adapter/msg614754/#msg614754
I tried to find a connector for it in that post, and didn't success, so I just connect the video output to a monitor, and... it works! It boot up and display a big "Indigo system" logo, then the image shows successfully ;D
But... I bought it as a SWIR camera, and now, it act like a thermal camera...
It don't see through glass and not respond well to light shadows, but it show thermal very well, I put my hand on the table and it clearly shows the print after I take my hand away. It also have a shutter that automatically do the NUC, and do have effect on images. I don't have a SWIR light source so I cannot test very well.
So... for you guys opinion, is it a SWIR camera? I think SWIR camera can only see thermal with very high temperatures, and they work by photon so shouldn't need NUC. So do I actually got a thermal imaging camera?
Thank you.

joe-c:
what you describe sounds like a thermal camera.

i ask google...

--- Code: ---In 2003, FLIR acquired Indigo Systems,
a leading developer and supplier of a wide range of infrared imaging products,
including cooled and uncooled infrared detectors, camera cores, and finished cameras.
--- End code ---
http://www.flir.de/about/display/?id=55679

i think yes  :-+

Fraser:
Sam1275,

My comments....

1. That is an Indigo compact thermal camera, likely originally deployed in a thermal CCTV application.
2. The camera contains a microbolometer and is LWIR
3. SWIR is a thermal wavelength as well.
4. SWIR cameras are normally cooled by Liquid Nitrogen or a Sterling Cooler. The Sterling Cooler takes around 5 to 10 minutes to get the die down to -196C
5. The presence of a FFC shutter indicates a microbolometer sensor array.
6. For info there are three wavelengths associated with Thermal imaging.... SWIR, MWIR and LWIR. These are very different wavelengths to those used for IR vision in CCTV etc. Those wavelengths are commonly called Near IR (NIR) and cannot resolve a thermal scene unless its temperature is very high indeed. A CCD imaging sensor can resolve targets in excess of 400C.

I hope you enjoy using your Indigo thermal camera :)

Fraser

Fraser:
Without more pictures I cannot be certain but it looks like the Indigo UL3 VOx sensor based Alpha Series or possibly an OMEGA series camera.

Take a look here......

http://www.dtic.mil/get-tr-doc/pdf?AD=ADA461318

Look familiar ?

Fraser:
Looking at the one rear picture you have provided, I believe you have the Indigo UL3 Alpha thermal camera. This uses a VOx Microbolometer with 160 X 120 pixels. It incorporates a thermo electric temperature stabiliser (Peltier type) and is a LWIR camera as already stated. The zuS lilitary document I referenced provides some insight into the UL3 Alpha series and the later Omega series.

There was a spin-off Alpha NIR camera that was not thermal. It was designed for detection of NIR energy from lasers etc. Such a camera would not produce a thermal image of a target at ambient temperatures.

The rear multi pin connector provides access to the cameras data I/O port but I have no details of the data format, or command sequences that it responds to. It operates in a fully automatic 'best image' mode when not under remote control. As such it makes a great thermal CCTV camera or observation camera on a UAV. This was its use in the military.

Fraser

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