PI-3105 Multi-Channel Data Acquisition System

Products > Data Acquisition > PI-3105

Click for larger image

Features:

• Low-noise architecture
• Scalable from 1 to 32 input channels
• 14-bit/10 MHz A/D modules currently available
• 10-, 12-, and 16-bit modules in development
• Correlated Double Sampling (CDS) option
• Aggregate data rate up to 1.6 GB/sec
• Up to 2 GB on-board memory
• Programmable gain, offset, filter, and convert/CDS strobe
• Real-time imaging

Testing Applications:

• Visible or infrared devices
• CCD, FPA or CMOS imagers
• Military/aerospace imaging
• Astronomical imaging
• CCD and FPA spectroscopy/spectrometry
• Machine vision
• Medical imaging
• PC and consumer electronics imaging
• Modular and reconfigurable for many applications

Description:

This highly flexible system is designed to test a wide variety of imaging devices, from low-noise astronomy and medical devices, to military and machine-vision devices with GB/sec data rates.

To accommodate devices with multiple outputs, the system has a modular design that will scale from 1 to 32 channels, and is customer-reconfigurable in the field.

Built from the ground up for low-noise performance, the PI-3105 puts the critical analog components adjacent to your DUT, while isolating all digital signals for noise immunity.

The system can be reconfigured easily by swapping out low-cost pre-amp and A/D modules. The included software controls gain, offset, filtering, and strobe timing, while video monitor outputs and real-time imaging provide immediate feedback on your sensor's performance. 

When integrated with our popular electronic stimulus products and our photon sources, the PI-3105 completes Pulse Instruments' 3rd-generation of fully-integrated imaging test systems. The PI-3105 can also be integrated with 3rd-party products and software.

System Overview:

Figure 1: Simplified diagram of a single channel

Pre-amplifier modules

Pre-amplifier modules come in two form factors, one for attaching directly to a Dewar, and the other for plugging into a PC board, such as a test fixture. Each pre-amp channel has independent 1x to 28x gain control and can drive several feet of coaxial cable without appreciable signal degradation. Global offset correction is also applied within the pre-amps.

Acquisition Interface Module (AIM)

The pre-amp outputs are cabled to the Acquisition Interface Module (AIM), which houses the Gain/Filter stages and the A/D Converter modules.

Gain and Filtering

The Gain/Filter stage provides additional programmable gain of 1x to 15x, for a total gain of 1x to 420x . A programmable filter stage provides selectable 10 MHz, 1 MHz, 100 kHz or 10 kHz filtering at -3 dB frequencies, or an un-filtered setting for maximum bandwidth.

A/D Conversion

The conditioned analog signal is then processed by the A/D converter modules, digitizing to 10, 12, 14, or 16-bits depending on the modules installed. An optional CDS feature provides correlated double-sampling via a second ADC, and the resulting values are summed digitally.

Sampling timing is independently programmable for each channel, both for the video sample and for the CDS.

The digitized outputs are then passed through a set of optical or galvanic isolators to the digital acquisition system.

Digital Multiplexing

Up to four digitized outputs can be multiplexed into a single digital stream via the PI-41110 Multiplexer Card. The card can be controlled in software to multiplex 4:1, 3:1, 2:1, or even 1:1 as a scanner or switch.

Digital Acquisition

The PI-41000 Digital Acquisition Card has twin 16-bit input ports, each with a 80 MHz maximum capture rate. Combined with the 4:1 Digital Multiplexer card described above, a single PI-41000 can acquire up to eight 16-bit data channels.

The PI-41000 has large on-board memories (128, 256, or 512 MB) to de-couple the data acquisition from the PCI bus. This permits un-interrupted capture from data streams that exceed the bandwidth of PCI. For many state-of-the-art imaging devices, this is the only way to collect a contiguous sample.

Up to four PI-41000 can operate in parallel, with multiplexing, to acquire up to 32 channels of data at a total data rate of 1.3 GBps into 2 GB of RAM.

Once captured, the data are transferred via DMA to the CPU for processing and display.

Timing and Control

The PI-41100 provides up to 16 programmable timing channels, and controls for up to 4 AIMs and the associated pre-amplifiers. A standard A/D channel requires one timing channel, and an A/D channel with CDS requires two.

Image Processing and Display

(Click screenshot for larger view)

PI-Controller software on the CPU provides control over the analog setup, the Area-of-Interest (AOI) to be captured, the number of frames to captured, and the processing and display of the acquired data. 

A "stitching" algorithm descrambles the multiplexed data from multiple channels and reassembles the final image. Built-in color-handling routines can perform Bayer de-mosaicing for devices with Bayer-pattern color filters.

The "preview" mode provides immediate feedback on the performance of your device, so timing patterns, clock rails, bias voltages, gain, and filter settings can be optimized for your device in real-time.

Specifications | Ordering Information | Datasheet