Chapter 1
Introduction
1-2
ni.com
For detailed specifications of the NI 1428, refer to
Getting Started with the
NI PXI/PCI-1428
.
Camera Link
This section provides a brief overview of the Camera Link standard.
For more detailed information about Camera Link specifications, refer to
the
Specifications of the Camera Link Interface Standard for Digital
Cameras and Frame Grabbers
manual. This manual is available on several
Web sites, including the Automated Imaging Association site at
www.machinevisiononline.org
.
Overview
Developed by a consortium of camera and image acquisition device
manufacturers, Camera Link is a standard for interfacing digital cameras
with image acquisition devices. Camera Link simplifies connectivity
between the image acquisition device and the camera by defining a single
standard connector for both. This standard ensures physical compatibility
of devices bearing the Camera Link logo.
The basis for the Camera Link standard is the National Semiconductor
Channel Link chipset, a data transmission method consisting of a
general-purpose transmitter/receiver pair. The Channel Link driver takes
28 bits of parallel digital data and a clock and serializes the stream to
four LVDS (EIA-644) data streams and an LVDS clock, providing
high-speed data transmission across 10 wires and over distances of up
to 10 m.
Software Overview
Programming the NI 1428 requires the NI-IMAQ driver software for
controlling the hardware. National Instruments also offers the following
application software packages for analyzing and processing your acquired
images.
•
NI Vision Builder for Automated Inspection
—Allows you to
configure solutions to common inspection tasks.
•
NI Vision Development Module
—Provides customized control over
hardware and algorithms.
