Toshiba Imagery

An innovative linear image sensor for line scan cameras and visual inspections

Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation has launched "TCD2400DG," a lens-reduction type CCD linear image sensor developed expressly for line scan cameras used in visual inspections. Shipments started December 17th on the new product. Image inspection equipment that integrates line scan cameras, including color sorters, is used in diverse applications, among them sorting and grading foodstuffs, recognizing and removing foreign objects, identifying types of recycled plastics, and detecting scratches or stains on industrial products.

Toshiba's TCD2400DG is a color CCD linear image sensor with 4096 picture elements in a three-line array, with a 7μm pitch between elements. Each line functions independently to recognize red, green and blue (RGB). The line rate (the number of lines captured per second) of 22.7kHz is said to be "faster than that of the 10.5kHz TCD2564DG," Toshiba’s current product for image inspection equipment.

Image inspection equipment rapidly processes massive volumes of image data to precisely and accurately identify objects passing in front of the equipment at high speed. By approximately doubling the readout speed of its predecessor, the new product is expected to contribute to equipment with improved processing speeds.

Applications

• Color sorter

  • Food sorting machines for grains and other agricultural products

  • Industrial product sorting machines for plastic pellets and similar materials

• Inspection equipment

  • Web inspection (for sheet materials such as rolls, paper, cloth, and film)

  • Printed material inspection

Features

• High-speed line rate: 22.7kHz (max)

• Number of image sensing elements: 4096 elements (three independent lines for RGB), widely adopted for inspection equipment.

• The element array consists of three independent element lines (4096 elements×3 lines), one each for RGB, enabling acquisition of high-resolution images without the delay caused by color interpolation processing.

• The built-in timing generator circuit and CCD driver help facilitate system development and reduce EMI.