BitFlow Axion-xB Frame Grabbers Improve Performance of Camera Link Imaging Systems

New frame grabbers acquire stable, low-latency data from CL Base Cameras

Design engineers in the machine vision industry now have more configuration options than ever before with the introduction of the new Axion-xB line of frame grabbers from BitFlow, with support for the highest performance Camera Link® Base cameras on the market. Available in single, dual and quad link versions for maximum design flexibility, the new frame grabbers demonstrate BitFlow’s ongoing commitment to the highly popular Camera Link (CL) standard.

“Axion-xB frame grabbers represent a major upgrade from our renown Neon family of CL frame grabbers that we are phasing out in favor of this faster, more economical design,” said Donal Waide, Director of Sales for BitFlow, Inc. “Today, we are making it much easier for developers to bring the power, acceleration and versatility of technologies we’ve incorporated in our high-end CoaXPress frame grabbers into a Camera Link system environment, including the BitFlow StreamSync DMA engine and buffer manager that eliminates the need for on-board memory.”

As data generated by faster, higher-resolution cameras continues to grow exponentially, the Axion-xB’s PCIe Gen 2 interface — with the DMA optimized for modern computers — is now in line with the rest of the Axion family. Features such as, easier switching between different tap formats, more powerful acquisition engine and a more flexible I/O and timing generator are all now readily available in a dedicated low cost CL Base orientated frame grabber.

NEON UPGRADE SOLUTION The Axion-xB line addresses the challenge to developers of delivering greater return on machine vision system investments. One way to add value is to upgrade to the Axion-xB from existing Neon frame grabbers. Moving from the Neon family to the Axion family is simple. No code alterations are required — designers just recompile with the latest BitFlow SDK (6.5). Or if a 3rd party application is installed, such as Cognex Vision Pro or LabVIEW, the user can download the latest driver from BitFlow and the program will be immediately supported.

BitFlow Axion-xB frame grabbers are complimented by a sophisticated application software package and the BitFlow SDK for Windows and Linux operating systems. They can be integrated with virtually every available software library to permit seamless custom application development.