ADLINK PCIe-CPL64 Image Acquisition Card Hardware Trigger and Encoder Application

ADLINK PCIe-CPL64 Camera Link Image Acquisition Card Hardware Trigger and Encoder Application Analysis

In the field of machine vision and industrial inspection, real-time acquisition and transmission of image data from high-resolution and high frame rate cameras has always been a core challenge in system design. The Camera Link interface, with its high-speed LVDS signal and mature standard protocol, has become the preferred connection method for line scan and area scan cameras. The ample bandwidth provided by the PCI Express bus provides a reliable transmission channel for multi-channel or high-resolution image data. ADLINK PCIe-CPL64, as a PCIe x4 interface based Camera Link frame acquisition card, supports dual Base configuration or single Medium configuration, with a maximum pixel clock of 85MHz. It integrates encoder input, multi trigger I/O, and Power over Camera Link (PoCL) functions, providing a high-performance and flexible image acquisition platform for applications such as semiconductor inspection, PCB automatic optical inspection (AOI), and printing quality monitoring. This article will provide a detailed technical reference for system integration engineers from the aspects of hardware architecture, trigger mode, encoder position synchronization, software configuration, and practical debugging points.

Product positioning and core specifications

PCIe-CPL64 is positioned for machine vision systems that require high bandwidth, multiple camera access, or complex external synchronization. Its core features include:

Interface and configuration: PCI Express x4, supports simultaneous acquisition of two independent Base mode Camera Link cameras (dual Base) or one Medium mode camera (single Medium). In dual Base mode, the total bandwidth can reach 255MB/s per channel, while in Medium mode it can reach 320MB/s.

Image Cache: Onboard 128MB 200MHz DDR SDRAM, used to buffer image data and prevent frame loss caused by bus congestion.

PoCL support: Each channel can output+12V/1A power supply, automatically detect PoCL compatible cameras and provide power, while also having overcurrent protection.

External I/O: 4-channel TTL digital input, 4-channel digital output (open drain, can be pulled up to+5V), 2-channel TTL trigger input, 2-channel TTL trigger start input, 2-channel exposure output, and encoder differential input (RS422, A/B/Z three-phase, up to 1MHz).

Camera control: CC1~CC4 LVDS control signals, configurable as pulse or level outputs, used to control camera exposure, line period, etc.

This card supports Windows XP/Vista and subsequent systems (UAC needs to be disabled), and provides a complete API library (C++, C #, VB.net) and CamCreator configuration tool, greatly simplifying system development and debugging.

Hardware layout and key connectors

PCIe-CPL64 adopts the standard PCIe half height card size (167.65mm × 111.15mm), and its main interfaces include:

CN1 and CN2: Two MDR26 Camera Link connectors, corresponding to channel 0 and channel 1 respectively. In dual Base mode, each connector is connected to a Base camera; In Medium mode, only CN1 is connected to one Medium camera (occupying two data channels).

The CN3: 25 pin D-SUB connector integrates encoder input, trigger input/output, universal DI/DO, and exposure output. For specific pin definitions, please refer to Table 2-1 in the manual. Encoder A-phase/B-phase/Z-phase differential pairs, TTL trigger input, line trigger enable, etc. are all led out through this connector.

SW1:4 DIP switch, used to set Card ID (0~15), supports multi card coexistence.

SW2: A 4-bit independent switch used to select whether DO0~DO3 should be internally pulled up to+5V (through a 10k Ω resistor) for direct driving of PNP or NPN loads.

JP1: Used to select the input level of Z-phase encoder as TTL or RS422, default RS422.

LED indicator lights: LED3/LED5 respectively indicate the PoCL power supply status of channels A/B, and LED4/LED6 indicate the acquisition status (flashing indicates image capture).

Note: This card only supports x4, x8, or x16 PCIe slots. If inserted into an x16 slot that only supports VGA, the speed will decrease to x1, affecting performance.

PoCL Power Supply and Cable Safety

Power over Camera Link is an important extension of the Camera Link standard, allowing power to be supplied to the camera through data cables and reducing external power wiring. PCIe-CPL64 can provide+12V/1A power per channel and has automatic detection function (set to 0: Auto Detect through SetPowerState). In this mode, the card will detect whether the connected camera supports PoCL. If it supports PoCL, power will be supplied; otherwise, power will not be supplied. In addition, it can also be manually set to "Short ground" or "Short+12V" mode, but the latter is only for use with PoCL cameras, and misconnecting a non PoCL camera may cause damage.

Practical suggestion: When connecting an unknown camera for the first time, it is recommended to use Auto Detect mode and observe the status of LED3/LED5 to confirm that the power supply is normal. If the power consumption of the camera exceeds 1A, an external independent power supply is required, otherwise overcurrent protection may be triggered.