Global shutter image sensor delivers higher resolution, better performance

By Alex Pluemer, contributing writer

ams recently launched the CSG14k, a global shutter image sensor that delivers greater image quality and higher throughput than existing devices that support the 1-inch optical format, according to the company. The new image sensor targets automated optical inspection (AOI) equipment and machine-vision applications.

The CSG14k features a 3,840 × 3,584-pixel array, providing 14-MP resolution at a greater frame rate than competing devices. The sensor’s 3.2 µm × 3.2-µm pixels are 66% smaller than the previous generation of ams’ 10-bit image sensors, enabling it to provide better performance and higher resolution while offering a 12-bit output and lower noise.

The higher speed and image quality are advantages in high-throughput production settings, said the company, by enabling machine-vision equipment to take more detailed and more accurate images of objects as they travel along the production line at high rates of speed. The new sensor is also a good fit for AOI equipment, sorting equipment, laser triangulation, and other measurement instruments and robotics.

“Future advances in factory automation technology are going to push today’s machine-vision equipment beyond the limits of its capabilities,” according to Tom Walschap, ams marketing director in the CMOS Image Sensors business line. “The breakthrough in image quality and performance offered by the CSG14k gives manufacturers of machine-vision systems headroom to support new, higher-throughput rates while delivering valuable improvements in image quality and resolution.”

The CSG14k features a 12-bit output that delivers enough dynamic range to handle a variety of subjects and lighting conditions, and its global shutter featuring true correlated double sampling (CDS) provides high-quality images of objects moving rapidly while eliminating motion artifacts.

The new sensor’s configuration settings can be tuned to meet a specific application’s requirements. Configuration options include low-power modes at a reduced frame rate and optimizations for low noise and high dynamic range.

The CSG14k comes in a 218-pin, 22 × 20 × 3-mm LGA package that’s compatible with 1-inch lenses commonly found in small-form-factor camera designs and includes a sub-LVDS output interface compatible with existing CMV image sensors from ams. The new device will be available for sampling in the first half of 2019.