BACKGROUND TECH DATA
For anyone interested in digging into the technical details about our cameras, you may find some of the data sheets and other material below useful. Additional technical material can be found in the FILES area of the MALLINCAM YAHOO GROUP.
For anyone interested in digging into the technical details about our cameras, you may find some of the data sheets and other material below useful. Additional technical material can be found in the FILES area of the MALLINCAM YAHOO GROUP.
- CCD Sensor Data Sheets
- SONY ICX413AQ (datasheet for AQ-S model not publicly available), 1.8" color Super HAD. PDF1 PDF2
- SONY ICX418AKL, 1/2" color non-EXview HAD. PDF
- SONY ICX428ALL, 1/2" monochrome EXview HAD. PDF
- SONY ICX428AKL, 1/2" color EXview HAD. PDF
- SONY ICX672AK, 1/3" color EXview HAD II. PDF
- SONY ICX810AKA, 1/3" color Super HAD II PDF
- SONY IMX035LQR, 1/3" color Exmor sCMOS. PDF
- SONY ICX828-829, 1/2" EXview HAD II Sensor, PDF
- SENSOR SIZE, TYPE and SENSITIVITY CHART PDF
- SONY ICX418AKL, 1/2" color non-EXview HAD. PDF
- SONY ICX428ALL, 1/2" monochrome EXview HAD. PDF
- SONY ICX428AKL, 1/2" color EXview HAD. PDF
- SONY ICX672AK, 1/3" color EXview HAD II. PDF
- SONY ICX810AKA, 1/3" color Super HAD II PDF
- SONY IMX035LQR, 1/3" color Exmor sCMOS. PDF
- SONY ICX828-829, 1/2" EXview HAD II Sensor, PDF
- SENSOR SIZE, TYPE and SENSITIVITY CHART PDF
- Cable Wiring Schematics
- Miscellaneous Background Material
- Astro-video camera design whitepaper by Jim Thompson titled: "What's In an Astro-Video Camera?". PDF
- Instructions on how to build your own RS485 to USB adapter. PDF
- Instructions on how to build your own RS485 to USB adapter. PDF
CCD Sensor Classification and Testing
CCD sensors classification is done by the following:
On a brand new video camera, Boot the camera and set it to SENS 128X, 2 seconds integration with AGC set to OFF. Run the camera for 3 minutes from cold start.
3 hot pixels or less = class 0, no column defect
5 hot pixels or less= class1, no column defect
10 hot pixels or less= class2 no column defect
All our sensor are hand picked for each camera to have no column defect.
International agreement on ccd classification is as followed:
5 hot pixels= class 0, no column defect
10 hot pixels= class 1, with column defect
20 hot pixels= class 2, with column defect
Our own classification is more strict than the industry standard.
What is column defect? See this image taken from a $10,000.00 popular CCD camera.
The camera was running at -45C below ambient with Peltier cooler on. Click Here
Class 0 will also have a smoother background and better image with zero column defect
Hot pixels are the bright ones. Faint ones are warm pixels and are not hot pixels, they build up with heat as the camera is running. Not the same. As soon you boot the camera and you see bright lite pixels, that's a hot pixel. They are permanent. A normal occurrence in all CCD sensors made on this planet.
NEVER- test the camera at more than 2 seconds integration on a bench. You have no image entering thus the video processor can't lower the pixels count against a image or signal coming it. This is no way to determine hot pixels on a true video ccd camera. Also, over heating of the camera will occur causing more permanent hot pixels and resulting in damage to cooling system. You need to have the camera mounted in a metal focuser to dissipate the heat. This applies to MallinCam Hyper, Hyper PLUS, VSS, VSS+ Xtreme and Xterminator only.
You need a live image to determine remaining hot pixels and warm pixels.
On a brand new video camera, Boot the camera and set it to SENS 128X, 2 seconds integration with AGC set to OFF. Run the camera for 3 minutes from cold start.
3 hot pixels or less = class 0, no column defect
5 hot pixels or less= class1, no column defect
10 hot pixels or less= class2 no column defect
All our sensor are hand picked for each camera to have no column defect.
International agreement on ccd classification is as followed:
5 hot pixels= class 0, no column defect
10 hot pixels= class 1, with column defect
20 hot pixels= class 2, with column defect
Our own classification is more strict than the industry standard.
What is column defect? See this image taken from a $10,000.00 popular CCD camera.
The camera was running at -45C below ambient with Peltier cooler on. Click Here
Class 0 will also have a smoother background and better image with zero column defect
Hot pixels are the bright ones. Faint ones are warm pixels and are not hot pixels, they build up with heat as the camera is running. Not the same. As soon you boot the camera and you see bright lite pixels, that's a hot pixel. They are permanent. A normal occurrence in all CCD sensors made on this planet.
NEVER- test the camera at more than 2 seconds integration on a bench. You have no image entering thus the video processor can't lower the pixels count against a image or signal coming it. This is no way to determine hot pixels on a true video ccd camera. Also, over heating of the camera will occur causing more permanent hot pixels and resulting in damage to cooling system. You need to have the camera mounted in a metal focuser to dissipate the heat. This applies to MallinCam Hyper, Hyper PLUS, VSS, VSS+ Xtreme and Xterminator only.
You need a live image to determine remaining hot pixels and warm pixels.