Allied Vision Alvium Series User manual

V2.0.0
Allied Vision Technologies GmbH // Taschenweg 2a, 07646 Stadtroda / Germany 2019-Oct-18
USB3 VISION CAMERAS
Alvium USB Cameras
User Guide

Alvium USB cameras at a glance
2Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Alvium USB cameras at a glance
Shipping contents
• Alvium USB camera
• Alvium USB Cameras Quickstart Guide
What else do you need?
This is a selection of helpful downloads:
Read this document carefully
Learn to avoid damage to your Alvium USB camera and use it in the most safe and
efficient way.
Bandwidth and maximum frame rate
The default bandwidth for Alvium USB is 200 MBps. For some models, you can
achieve higher frame rates by increasing values for DeviceLinkThroughputLimit
and MaxTransferSize. See Operating systems and bandwidth on page 92.
Default pixel format for color models
The default pixel format for Alvium USB color models is Mono8. For a color image,
please change to a color pixel format.
Document Link
Alvium USB Cameras Quickstart Guide (multilingual) www.alliedvision.com/en/support/
technical-documentation/alvium-usb-
documentation
Alvium Cameras Features Reference
Alvium Cameras Hardware Options
www.alliedvision.com/en/support/
technical-documentation/alvium-usb-
documentation under Additional
documents
Alvium Cameras Accessory Guide
Optimum Heat Dissipation for Housed Alvium Cameras
application note
Electromagnetic Compatibility for Open Housing Alvium
Cameras application note
Avoiding Ground Loops in Vision Systems application note
Software Link
Vimba Suite for Windows, Linux, and Linux/Arm, including
Vimba SDK,Vimba Viewer, and Vimba Driver Installer for
Windows
www.alliedvision.com/software
Table 1: Downloads for Alvium USB cameras

Contact us
3Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Contact us
Website
General
www.alliedvision.com/contact
Distribution partners
www.alliedvision.com/en/about-us/where-we-are
Email
General
[email protected]
Support
[e-mail]
Headquarters
Allied Vision Technologies GmbH
Taschenweg 2a
07646 Stadtroda, Germany
T// [phone]
F// [phone]
Sales Offices
Europe, Middle East, and Africa
North and South America
Asia-Pacific
China
T// [phone]
Toll-free: +1 877 USA 1394
T// [phone]
California: [phone]
T// [phone]
T// [phone]

Contents
4Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Contents
Alvium USB cameras at a glance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Shipping contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
What else do you need? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Contact us . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Document history and conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Document history . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Conventions used in this user guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Typographic styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Symbols and notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Naming and terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Terms and acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Compliance, safety, and intended use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Compliance notifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
For customers in Europe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
For customers in the USA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
United States of America: Supplier Declaration of Conformity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
For customers in Canada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Pour utilisateurs au Canada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Bare board and open housing cameras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Avoid electromagnetic interferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Camera applications and intended use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
General use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Use in medical devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Copyright and trademarks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Your safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Handling lens mounts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Housed cameras: handling hot cameras. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Providing optimum heat dissipation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Product safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Electrical connections. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Camera mounting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Handling bare board cameras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Optical components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Heat sinks and conductive media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
BIOS drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Applied standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
GenICam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Contents
5Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
USB 3.1 Gen 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
USB3 Vision 1.0.1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
IP class . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Shock and vibration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Notes on specifications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Exposure time and frame rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Triggering and sensor shutter types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Power consumption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Storage and operating conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Alvium 1800 U-050m/c . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Absolute QE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Spectral response . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Frame rates vs. ROI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Alvium 1800 U-120m/c . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Absolute QE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Spectral response . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Frame rates vs. ROI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Alvium 1800 U-500m/c . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Absolute QE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Spectral response . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Frame rates vs. ROI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Dimensions, mass, and temperature. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Technical drawings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Bare Board. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Bare Board 90° . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Open Housing S-Mount . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Open Housing CS-Mount . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Open Housing C-Mount . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Open Housing S-Mount 90° . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Open Housing CS-Mount 90° . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Open Housing C-Mount 90°. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Closed Housing S-Mount . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Closed Housing CS-Mount . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Closed Housing C-Mount . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Closed Housing S-Mount 90° . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Closed Housing CS-Mount 90°. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Closed Housing C-Mount 90°. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Lens mounts and maximum protrusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
IR cut filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Lenses: Focal length vs. field of view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
About this chapter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Parameters in tables. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Optical vignetting with certain lenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
About S-Mount lenses. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Focal length vs. field of view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Contents
6Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Type 1/2.5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Type 1/3. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Type 1/3.6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Installing the camera. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Mounting the heat sink. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Mounting the camera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Mounting bare board cameras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Mounting housed cameras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Mounting the lens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Mounting and focusing S-Mount lenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Software and driver installation on the host . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Required components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Installing the camera driver using Vimba on a Windows system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Installing drivers for camera and host adapter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Camera interfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Recommended accessories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Back panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
I/O connector pin assignment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Non-isolated, programmable GPIOs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
GPIOs description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Input levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Output levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Status LED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Normal operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Error conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Triggering and timings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Compensation for the rolling shutter effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Trigger signal flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Trigger latency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Triggering with rolling shutter cameras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Value changes by features interdependencies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Effects for the related features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Image data flow. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Firmware update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Firmware update with Vimba. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Performance and troubleshooting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Optimizing performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Dark current compensation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Operating systems and bandwidth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Dividing bandwidth between devices on a common USB 3.0 or 3.1 Gen 1 bus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Contents
7Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Troubleshooting common issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Camera recognition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Unexpected events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Radio signal interference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0 8
Document history and conventions
This chapter includes:
Document history ................................................................... 9
Conventions used in this user guide....................................... 9
Naming and terms ................................................................ 11
Terms and acronyms ............................................................. 11

Document history and conventions
9Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Document history
Conventions used in this user guide
To give this document an easily understood layout and to emphasize important
information, the following typographical styles and symbols are used:
Typographic styles
Version Date Remarks
V2.0.0 2019-Oct-18 • Added Alvium 1800 U-050 and U-120 models.
• Updated contents about bandwidth.
• Updated screenshots for camera driver
installation.
• Added Dark current compensation on page 90.
• Updated technical drawings and dimensions for
bare board in Technical drawings on page 42.
• Applied editorial changes.
V1.1.0 2019-Jul-01 • Added missing color pixel formats and removed
separate bit depth in Specifications on page 26.
• Corrected ADC bit depth for Alvium U 1800-500 in
Specifications on page 26 and in Image data flow
on page 86.
V1.0.0 2019-Jun-13 Release version
Table 2: Document history
Style Function
Emphasis Programs, or highlighting important things
Feature names Names for GenICam features
Feature options Options for GenICam features
Input commands Text or command to type in by the user, selected menu
options, or other selectable options
UIElements Text that is displayed, or output, by the system for the
user, like parts of the GUI, dialog boxes, buttons,
menus, important information, or windows titles
Web addresses and
references
Links to webpages and internal cross references
Table 3: Typographic styles

Document history and conventions
10Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Symbols and notes
CAUTION
Personal injuries
Precautions are described.
NOTICE
Material damage
Precautions are described.
Practical tip
Additional information helps to understand or ease handling the camera.
Avoiding malfunctions
Precautions are described.
Additional information
Web address or reference to an external source with more information is shown.
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Document history and conventions
11Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Naming and terms
Camera model naming
Alvium cameras are named to identify model properties.
For example, Alvium 1800 U-500c is composed of:
Terms and acronyms
Alvium 1800 U500 c
Content Camera
series
Camera series details Interface Resolution Color/
monochrome
Examples Alvium 1500: Video4Linux Access
(CSI-2 cameras only)
1800: Vimba Access
C: MIPI CSI-2
U: USB
500: 5.0 MP
050: 0.5 MP
c: color
m: monochrome
Table 4: Camera model naming
Hardware options
Alvium USB cameras are available with various options for housing, lens mount, or
USB connector position. For ordering, see hardware options and product codes in
the Alvium Camera Hardware Options document at
www.alliedvision.com/en/support/technical-documentation/
alvium-usb-documentation under Additional documents.
Term or
acronym Description Reference
bare
board
Camera consisting of electronics and
sensor on a common printed circuit board
(PCB), to be designed into a housing with
heat sink and lens mount
Bare Board on page 43
CRA Chief ray angle Specifications on page 26
EMVA European Machine Vision Association www.emva.org
ESD Electrostatic discharge ESD on page 20
FCC Federal Communications Commission For customers in the USA on page 14
fps Frames per second Specifications on page 26
GenICam Generic Interface for Cameras, EMVA www.emva.org
GND Ground (power) I/O connector pin assignment on page 77
Table 5: Terms and acronyms (Sheet 1 of 2)
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Document history and conventions
12Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
GPIOs General purpose inputs and outputs
(non-isolated)
GPIOs description on page 78
H × V Horizontal × Vertical (sensor resolution) Specifications on page 26
KB Kilobyte Specifications on page 26
MBps Megabytes per second Specifications on page 26
open
housing
Camera housing that is open at the back
side to be designed into an encompassing
housing with other components
Open Housing S-Mount on page 45
PCBA Printed circuit board assembly PCBAs on page 21
QE Quantum efficiency Absolute QE on page 37
RoHS Restriction of Hazardous Substances
Directive
For customers in Europe on page 14
ROI Region of interest Frame rates vs. ROI on page 38
SFNC Standard Feature Naming Convention
(GenICam)
www.emva.org
S-Mount M12-Mount Mounting and focusing S-Mount lenses on
page 67
Term or
acronym Description Reference
Table 5: Terms and acronyms (Sheet 2 of 2)

Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0 13
Compliance, safety, and intended use
This chapter includes:
Compliance notifications ...................................................... 14
Camera applications and intended use ................................ 17
Copyright and trademarks .................................................... 18
Your safety............................................................................. 19
Product safety ....................................................................... 20

Compliance, safety, and intended use
14Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Compliance notifications
For customers in Europe
For customers in the USA
Closed housing cameras only: FCC Class B digital device
This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B
digital device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to
provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential
installation. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency
energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions, may
cause harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no
guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this
equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which
can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to
try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:
• Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
• Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.
• Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which
the receiver is connected.
• Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.
United States of America: Supplier
Declaration of Conformity
Alvium USB cameras comply with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to
the following two conditions:
1. This device may not cause harmful interference, and
2. this device must accept any interference received, including interference that
may cause undesired operation.

Compliance, safety, and intended use
15Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Party issuing Supplier's Declaration of Conformity
Allied Vision Technologies GmbH
Taschenweg 2a
07646 Stadtroda
Germany
T// [phone]
[email protected]
Responsible Party - U.S. Contact Information
Allied Vision Technologies, Inc.
102 Pickering Way – Suite 502
Exton, PA 19341
USA
T// [phone]
Note: changes or modifications not expressly approved by the party responsible
for compliance could void the user's authority to operate the equipment.
For customers in Canada
Closed housing cameras only
This apparatus complies with the Class B limits for radio noise emissions set out in
the Radio Interference Regulations.
CAN ICES-3 (B) / NMB-3 (B)
Pour utilisateurs au Canada
Boîtier de caméra fermé seulement
Cet appareil est conforme aux normes classe B pour bruits radioélectriques,
spécifiées dans le Règlement sur le brouillage radioélectrique.
CAN ICES-3 (B) / NMB-1 (B)

Compliance, safety, and intended use
16Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Bare board and open housing cameras
Bare board and open housing cameras are designed for integration and are
delivered with open camera back or without housing on customer's request.
Housing design is critical for electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) of the camera.
Avoid electromagnetic interferences
Interface cables, power cables, and I/O cables are sensitive to electromagnetic
interference.
• Use shielded cables only.
• We recommend using cables offered by Allied Vision.
• Avoid coiling.
• We recommend using GPIOs only in environments with low electromagnetic
interference.
Moreover, avoid unnecessary bending to prevent damage to the cables.
Requirements for an EMC housing
See the Electromagnetic Compatibility for Open Housing Alvium Cameras
application note at www.alliedvision.com/en/support/technical-documentation/
alvium-usb-documentation under Additional documents.
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Compliance, safety, and intended use
17Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Camera applications and intended use
General use
• The user is responsible for operating the camera within the specifications that
are defined in this document, and within appropriate environmental
conditions and technical prerequisites, to ensure trouble-free camera
operation.
• The camera is compliant with current data communication standards; however,
those standards do not allow for self-monitoring. Thus, the camera cannot be
used as a standalone device for security-related monitoring operations.
• The camera is a hardware product. Only when used with appropriate
accompanying software, the camera will produce the desired results. The
realization of intelligent solutions requires additional software that is suitable
to run with the camera.
• The camera is a component, it is neither a complete product, nor is it a
ready-made technical solution.
• The camera-supporting software can be obtained and installed separately from
the camera. Usage of the software is solely the responsibility of the user.
• The camera must not be opened. For all repair tasks, contact Allied Vision or
one of Allied Vision's authorized representatives.
• Observe the intended use. The camera must only be used for purposes that are
in conformity with the stated intended use.
• Additionally, refer to the warranty information on the Allied Vision website.
• For usage in product with specific safety requirements a Quality Assurance
Agreement with Allied Vision is required.
• The camera is intended for use in a commercial, industrial, or business
environment. The test phase and programming should be carried out by
advanced users.
Use in medical devices
The camera provides basic adequacy to be used in medical devices as well,
however, is not specially designated for operation in medical devices. When used
as part of a medical device, a review of the specific application is necessary. For
usage in medical product, a Quality Assurance Agreement with Allied Vision is
required. Users who integrate the camera into an application must comply with the
rules and regulations concerning medical devices.

Compliance, safety, and intended use
18Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Copyright and trademarks
All text, pictures, and graphics are protected by copyright and other laws
protecting intellectual property. All content is subject to change without notice.
All trademarks, logos, and brands cited in this document are property and/or
copyright material of their respective owners. Use of these trademarks, logos, and
brands does not imply endorsement.
Copyright © 2019 Allied Vision Technologies GmbH. All rights reserved.

Compliance, safety, and intended use
19Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Your safety
This section informs about issues related to your personal safety. Descriptions
explain how to avoid hazards and operate Alvium USB cameras safely.
Handling lens mounts
The lens mount thread has sharp edges. Be careful these edges do not cut your
skin when mounting or unmounting lenses.
Housed cameras: handling hot cameras
If the mainboard temperature exceeds 80 °C for more than 2 seconds, the camera
is powered off automatically. The current value for mainboard temperature is
output by DeviceTemperature. You can use this value to control cooling by
software, for example, to control a fan.
However, if you hold the camera in your hands during operation, your skin may get
hurt. If you touch the camera when it is heated up, we recommend wearing
protective gloves.
Providing optimum heat dissipation
Design bare board and open housing cameras into a heat dissipative housing with
a high thermal conductivity. For more information, see Mounting bare board
cameras on page 65. Keep the operating temperature in the specified range to
enable best image quality and to protect the camera from damage:.
For your safety and to improve camera performance, operate the camera:
• Mounted to a base with a high thermal conductivity
• With lens or other optical components mounted
• With a heat sink mounted that has large surface areas (closed housing cameras
include a heat sink).
• With active cooling of camera, mounting base, and heat sink, such as by
ventilation.
Hardware option Housing Components in
the cooling area1Mainboard2
Bare board cameras Not applicable +5 °C to +85 °C +5 °C to +80 °C
Housed cameras +5 °C to +65 °C Not applicable
1See Mounting the heat sink on page 64
2Output by DeviceTemperature
Table 6: Operating temperature ranges for Alvium USB cameras

Compliance, safety, and intended use
20Alvium USB Cameras User Guide V2.0.0
Product safety
To prevent material damage, read the following and understand how to safely
handle and operate the camera. Get helpful details about electrical connections
and learn how to optimize camera performance.
Electrical connections
ESD
ESD is dangerous for electronic devices, especially when tools or hands get in
contact with connectors and electronic components. We recommend measures to
avoid damage by ESD:
• Unpacking: Remove the camera from its anti-static packaging only when your
body is grounded.
• Workplace: Use a static-safe workplace with static-dissipative mat and air
ionization.
• Wrist strap: Wear a static-dissipative wrist strap to ground your body.
• Clothing: Wear ESD clothing. Keep components away from your body and
clothing. Even if you are wearing a wrist strap, your body is grounded but your
clothes are not.
• Bare board and open housing cameras: use a special ESD housing.
Cable connections
Provide sufficient strain relief for all cable connections to avoid short circuits and
malfunctions.
More information
For more information on heat dissipation, see the Optimum Heat Dissipation for
Housed Alvium Cameras application note at
www.alliedvision.com/en/support/technical-documentation/
alvium-usb-documentation under Additional documents.
65 °C
Max.
Heat sink Camera housing Lens
Base
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