Photron Fastcam SA6 User manual

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•Product specifications and manual contents can change without advanced notification.
•This manual was created taking every possible measure to ensure the accuracy of its contents. However, if you find a section which is unclear, a mistake, or an
omission, please contact Photron Limited using the contact information provided at the end of the manual.
•Photron Limited bears no responsibility for the results of using the product or from following the instructions in this manual.
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•Product specifications and features can change for the purpose of improvement without notification.

Introduction
Thank you for purchasing your Photron FASTCAM series high-speed camera system.
This manual contains the operating instructions and warnings necessary for using the Photron FASTCAM
Viewer (referred to as PFV).
Please read the entire manual before using the software.
If any part of this manual is unclear, contact Photron using the contact information printed at the back of this
manual.

Manual Notation
The following icons and symbols are used in the explanations in this manual.
Icon/Symbol Description
This symbol indicates content that should always be read.
This symbol indicates instructions that should always be
followed when using the software, or things to be careful of
when using the software.
This symbol indicates supplementary items to be aware of
when using the software.
This symbol indicates the location of a reference.
This symbol indicates a space for you to use for making
notes.
“ ” This symbol is used to indicate the names of items on a
screen, references, dialog names, and keyboard keys.
[ ] This symbol is used to indicate screen names, button
names, and menu names.
< > This symbol is used to explain operating procedures in
diagrams and supplementary items.

Table of Contents
Chapter. 1 Before Use 1
1.1. Photron FASTCAM Viewer Overview ......................................................................2
1.1.1. What Is PFV?..............................................................................................2
1.1.2. System Components...................................................................................2
1.1.3. What PFV Does ..........................................................................................3
1.1.4. FASTCAM Series High-Speed Camera Capability Chart 1 ........................4
1.1.5. FASTCAM Series High-Speed Camera Capability Chart 2 ........................6
1.1.6. FASTCAM Series High-Speed Camera Capability Chart 3 ........................8
1.2. Setup........................................................................................................................9
1.2.1. Necessary Items .........................................................................................9
1.2.2. Verify the Operating Environment.............................................................10
1.2.3. Connecting the Camera and PC............................................................... 11
1.2.4. Installing PFV ............................................................................................12
1.2.5. Installing DirectX .......................................................................................14
Chapter. 2 Basic Operation 17
2.1. Starting and Closing PFV.......................................................................................18
2.1.1. Starting PFV ..............................................................................................18
2.1.2. Closing PFV ..............................................................................................19
2.2. Screen Description.................................................................................................20
2.3. Displaying the Live Image......................................................................................22
2.3.1. When Multiple Cameras Are Connected................................................... 24
2.3.2. When Connected To A Multi-Head Camera ..............................................25
2.3.3. Zoom Window Display ..............................................................................26
2.3.4. View Window Information .........................................................................27
2.3.5. Display Device Information .......................................................................29
2.4. Toolbar ...................................................................................................................31
2.4.1. Standard Toolbar .......................................................................................31
2.4.2. Plug-in Bar ................................................................................................35
2.4.3. Waveform Input Board Bar........................................................................36
2.4.4. Time-lapse Bar..........................................................................................37
2.4.5. Image Trigger Bar .....................................................................................37
2.5. Navigation Mode .................................................................................................... 38
2.5.1. Gamma Correction....................................................................................39
2.5.2. Adjust Contrast .........................................................................................39
2.5.3. Adjust Brightness ......................................................................................40
2.5.4. Zoom IN/OUT Display ...............................................................................40
2.5.5. Pan/Move ..................................................................................................41
2.5.6. Select Trigger Mode (Live Mode, Live Stop Mode)...................................41
2.5.7. Select Frame Rate (Live Mode, Live Stop Mode) .....................................42
2.5.8. Select Shutter Speed (Live Mode, Live Stop Mode) .................................42
2.5.9. Select Resolution (Live Mode, Live Stop Mode) .......................................43

2.5.10. Select Playback Speed (Memory Mode Only) ..........................................43
2.5.11. Set Playback Start Frame (Memory Mode Only) ...................................... 44
2.5.12. Set Current Frame (Memory Mode Only) .................................................44
2.5.13. Set Playback End Frame (Memory Mode Only) ....................................... 45
2.6. Crosshair Cursor....................................................................................................46
2.7. Drawing Text/Graphics...........................................................................................48
2.7.1. Drawing Toolbar ........................................................................................48
2.7.2. Drawing on a Frame .................................................................................49
2.8. Scale Display .........................................................................................................54
2.9. Live Image and File Image Overlay Display .......................................................... 57
2.10. Plug-in Bar Operations...........................................................................................59
2.10.1. Angle Measurement..................................................................................59
2.10.2. Distance Measurement between Two Points............................................61
2.10.3. Histogram Display.....................................................................................63
2.10.4. RS-232C Control.......................................................................................67
2.10.5. Line Profile Display ...................................................................................71
2.10.6. Batch Data Converter ...............................................................................72
Chapter. 3 Setting Shot Conditions/Shooting 77
3.1. Buttons Used To Set Shot Conditions....................................................................78
3.2. Select the Camera .................................................................................................79
3.2.1. Select With the “Standard Style” ...............................................................79
3.2.2. Select With the “Camera Tree” .................................................................80
3.2.3. Changing the Camera Name ....................................................................83
3.3. Setting and Registering the Frame Rate/Resolution .............................................85
3.3.1. Set from the List........................................................................................85
3.3.2. Variable Setting ......................................................................................... 85
3.4. Setting the Shutter Speed......................................................................................93
3.4.1. Setting from the List ..................................................................................93
3.4.2. Setting Automatic Exposure Control .........................................................94
3.5. Setting the Trigger Mode .......................................................................................96
3.5.1. What Is The Trigger Mode? ......................................................................96
3.5.2. Trigger Mode Types ..................................................................................98
3.6. Using Low Light Mode .........................................................................................109
3.7. Shading (Black Level) Correction ........................................................................ 111
3.8. Other Settings ...................................................................................................... 112
3.8.1. Pixel Gain Correction ..............................................................................124
3.8.2. Dividing Partition .....................................................................................128
3.8.3. Setting the Recording Memory Size .......................................................131
3.8.4. Pre-LUT Free Edit ...................................................................................132
3.9. Partition Settings..................................................................................................135
3.10. Saving and Using Set Shot Conditions................................................................136
3.10.1. Creating a Settings File...........................................................................136
3.10.2. Loading a Settings File ...........................................................................137
3.10.3. Updating Settings....................................................................................139
3.11. Making a Recording .............................................................................................140

3.11.1. For Start, Two-Stage, Random, And Random Reset Modes ..................140
3.11.2. For Center, End, And Manual Modes......................................................142
3.11.3. Time-lapse Recording .............................................................................144
3.11.4. Recording by the Image Trigger..............................................................150
Chapter. 4 Image Playback 159
4.1. Playing Images Recorded On the Camera ..........................................................160
4.2. Playback at the Selected Speed ..........................................................................164
4.3. Move to Trigger Frame.........................................................................................165
4.4. Moving To an Optionally Set Trigger Frame ........................................................166
4.5. Move to an Event Marker.....................................................................................168
4.6. Specify and Play Only Part of the Sequence.......................................................169
4.7. Skip Play ..............................................................................................................170
4.8. Stop Playback by Image Trigger ..........................................................................171
Chapter. 5 Saving Images to the PC 177
5.1. Saving Images Recorded On the Camera to the PC...........................................178
5.1.1. About The Save Location/File Naming Conventions .............................. 178
5.1.2. Saving Files.............................................................................................181
5.1.3. Save As Bayer Pattern............................................................................186
5.1.4. Setting the Save Format .........................................................................187
5.2. Saving Project Files .............................................................................................190
5.3. Layout Save .........................................................................................................193
5.4. Skip Save.............................................................................................................197
5.5. Group Saving Files for Specified Partitions .........................................................199
5.6. Saving a Portion of an Image ..............................................................................201
5.7. Automatic save Setting ........................................................................................205
5.8. Adding Data to the Image And Saving.................................................................207
5.9. Saving a Snapshot Image....................................................................................214
5.10. Resize Image and Save.......................................................................................217
Chapter. 6 Display/Playback Saved Data 219
6.1. Playback Image Data Saved to the PC ...............................................................220
6.1.1. Open Saved Data....................................................................................220
6.1.2. Open Multiple Saved Data ......................................................................223
6.1.3. Saved Data Color Temperature Adjustment............................................226
6.1.4. Sequential Playback of Files Saved Split................................................227
6.2. Resaving a Loaded File .......................................................................................228
Chapter. 7 PFV Configuration 231
7.1. Settings Related To the Camera..........................................................................232
7.1.1. Connection Method Setting.....................................................................232
7.1.2. Recognized Camera Model Setting ........................................................233
7.1.3. Set/Verify the Camera’s IP Address........................................................233
7.1.4. Set the Display Mode When PFV Starts To Live Mode...........................237
7.1.5. Shutter Speed Notation Setting...............................................................237

7.1.6. Shading Setting.......................................................................................238
7.1.7. PFV Exit Setting......................................................................................238
7.2. Settings Related To Saving Data .........................................................................239
7.2.1. Auto-Split AVI File Setting .......................................................................239
7.2.2. AVI File Playback Speed Setting.............................................................240
7.2.3. Save the Settings for the Live Mode Display Screen .............................241
7.2.4. Specify and Save Partitions ....................................................................242
7.2.5. Setting Related to File Names when Saving Data..................................242
7.2.6. Snapshot Setting.....................................................................................243
7.2.7. Load a Bayer Pattern File as Color.........................................................244
7.2.8. Check Files When Loading A CIH File....................................................245
7.2.9. Comment Setting ....................................................................................246
7.2.10. Filename Setting When Saving Multi Head Camera Data......................246
7.2.11. Display Depth Setting for the Image Level Display.................................247
7.2.12. Resized Image Save Setting...................................................................247
7.2.13. Number of Digits for Numbers Added to Save File Names Setting ........248
7.2.14. AVI Codec Setting...................................................................................249
7.2.15. Project File Save Setting.........................................................................249
7.2.16. Handling Missing Frames (IDP-Express)................................................250
7.3. Display Screen Settings.......................................................................................251
7.3.1. Operating Language Setting...................................................................251
7.3.2. Main Control Button Setting ....................................................................252
7.3.3. Zero Frame Setting .................................................................................253
7.3.4. Center Point When Zooming Setting ......................................................254
7.3.5. Setting Plug-in Bar ..................................................................................255
7.3.6. Hotkey Assignment Setting .....................................................................256
7.3.7. Setting Standard Toolbar.........................................................................257
7.3.8. Image Display Screen Background Setting ............................................258
7.3.9. Navigation Mode Display Setting............................................................259
7.3.10. Setting Crosshair Cursor.........................................................................260
7.3.11. Resize Interpolation Method Setting.......................................................262
7.3.12. Time Code Setting ..................................................................................263
7.3.13. Show the Status of Each Camera Setting...............................................264
7.3.14. File name display method Setting...........................................................265
7.3.15. Elapsed Recording Time during Filming Display Setting ........................266
7.4. Settings Warning Message ..................................................................................268
7.4.1. Display Warning When Overwriting ........................................................268
7.4.2. Display Notification when Shading Required..........................................269
7.4.3. Display of Shading Correction Warning Message ..................................269
7.4.4. Display Warning When Saving Split AVI Files.........................................270
7.4.5. Display the Expected Data Size When Saving .......................................271
7.4.6. Display Warning During Time-lapse Recording ......................................272
7.4.7. Display Warning When Saving Zoomed Images ....................................272
7.5. Settings When Recording ....................................................................................273
7.5.1. Direct Record Setting..............................................................................273

7.5.2. Shot Record Settings ..............................................................................274
7.5.3. Display Mode after Recording Setting ....................................................275
7.5.4. Trigger Input to Slave Cameras Setting..................................................276
Chapter. 8 Appendix 277
8.1. File Format List ....................................................................................................278
8.2. CIH File ................................................................................................................282
8.2.1. CIH File Contents....................................................................................282
8.2.2. PCIH File (Project File) Contents............................................................283
8.3. About The IFD (Image File Directory) Tag ...........................................................284
8.4. FTIF Video Border Data.......................................................................................285
8.5. Video Border Data ...............................................................................................287
8.6. IRG File Structure ................................................................................................289
8.7. MCD File Structure...............................................................................................290
8.8. WVD File Structure ..............................................................................................294
8.9. CSV File Structure ...............................................................................................296
8.9.1. TYPE A....................................................................................................296
8.9.2. TYPE B ...................................................................................................297
8.10. Settings Saved In the PCS File ...........................................................................298
Index 301
Contacting Photron 305

1 Photron FASTCAM Viewer
Chapter. 1 Before Use
The following describes what to do before using the PFV for the first time.
FASTCAM Series
High-Speed Camera
PC
PFV
Shooting
Recording Playback
Saving
Camera Control
What is PFV?
An overview of the
control software.
<Chapter.1 Contents>
Setup
Connect the camera and PC, install PFV.
Prepare PFV for use
Image playback Saved data playback Saving images
Basic PC control operation Shot conditions/shooting

Chapter. 1 0BBefore Use
2
1.1. Photron FASTCAM Viewer Overview
1.1.1. What Is PFV?
PFV is software used to control Photron FASTCAM series high-speed cameras from the PC.
Operations such as setting camera options, shooting, and saving recorded data to the PC can be
accomplished with PFV.
This manual covers PFV Ver. 3.
1.1.2. System Components
The basic system components when using a FASTCAM series high-speed camera are shown
below.
PC
Stora
g
e Device
Shooting
Recording Playback
Saving
Camera Control
Analysis Software
(
TEMA
,
etc.
)
Analysis
Control (shot settings,
display settings) the
camera/shoot from the PC
using PFV.
Record the
images to the
camera’s
memory.
Playback the images
recorded by the camera on a
PC.
(The images can also be played on a video
monitor.)
Savethe imagesrecorded onthecamerato the
PC
(
save as files
)
.
Perform analysis on the
saved data.
Saving
Save to an external
device as required.
Play data
savedtofileon
the PC.
FASTCAM Series
High-Speed Camera PFV

3 Photron FASTCAM Viewer
1.1.3. What PFV Does
Playback of the camera’s recorded images
Play the images recorded by the camera
Select replay speed and number of frames
Saving recorded images
Save recorded images to the PC
Save as a specified file type
Saveaspecifiedareaor numberofframes
Add information to an image and save
Play saved data
Play/resave data saved to the PC
Read/simultaneous playback of multiple
data
Control the high-speed camera with the
PC
Display the live image
Set shot conditions
Collective control of multiple cameras
Set the trigger mode Shoot
Chapter.2 page 17
Chapter.3 page 77
Chapter.4 page 159
Chapter.5 page 177
Chapter.6 page 219

Chapter. 1 0BBefore Use
4
1.1.4. FASTCAM Series High-Speed Camera Capability Chart 1
Function / Model Name
FASTCAM SA6
FASTCAM SA4
FASTCAMBC2HD
FASTCAM SA5
FASTCAM SA2
Variable Frame Rate / Resolution √√√√√
Auto Exposure √√√√√
Low-Light Mode √√√√√
Shading Correction √√√√√
Pixel Gain Correction √√√√√
Edge Enhancement Correction √√√√√
Sensor Gain
Dual-Slope Shutter √√√√√
External I/O Port √√√√√
Event Marker √√√√√
IRIG Input √√√√
IRIG Synchronization √√
IRIG Live Display √√
MCDL Input √√√√
Video Output √√√√√
Video Out Setting During Memory Playback √√√√√
Color Temperature Setting(Color Only) √√√√√
Pre-LUT Adjustment √√√√√
Split Partition √√√√√
Discretionary Partition Division
Recording Memory Size Setting
Partition Auto-Increment By Camera √√√√√
Signal Delay Setting √√√√√
Signal Width Setting √√√√
Programmable Switch √√√√√
Shutter Lock Mode √√√√√
SYNC OUT Times Setting √√√√
Output 8bit Select √√√√√
Head Exchange
Maximum Frame Rate Switching √
Auto Play √√
Factory Defaults Setting √√
Resolution Lock Mode √√√
Shutter Speed u Seconds Notation √√√√√
Switch Number of Record Bits √
Color Enhancement √√√√√
Store Preset √√√√√
Switch Hardware Recording Type √√√√√
Status Indicator LEDs On/Off √√
FPGA Rewrite
Shading Type √
Black Clip Level (Color Only) √

5 Photron FASTCAM Viewer
FASTCAM SA3
FASTCAM CT3
FASTCAM SA1.1 FASTCAM SA1 FASTCAM-APX RS
√√√√√
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√√√√√
√√√√√
√√√√√
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√
√√
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√√√√√
√√
√√√√√
√√√√√
√√
√√

Chapter. 1 0BBefore Use
6
1.1.5. FASTCAM Series High-Speed Camera Capability Chart 2
Function / Model Name
FASTCAM MC2.1
FASTCAM MC2
FASTCAM MH4-10K
FASTCAM MC1
Variable Frame Rate / Resolution
Auto Exposure
Low-Light Mode √√√√
Shading Correction
Pixel Gain Correction
Edge Enhancement Correction √√√√
Sensor Gain √√√√
Dual-Slope Shutter
External I/O Port √√√√
Event Marker √
IRIG Input
IRIG Synchronization
IRIG Live Display
MCDL Input
Video Output √√√√
Video Out Setting During Memory Playback √√√√
Color Temperature Setting(Color Only) √√√√
Pre-LUT Adjustment √√√√
Split Partition
Discretionary Partition Division
Recording Memory Size Setting
Partition Auto-Increment By Camera
Signal Delay Setting √√√√
Signal Width Setting √√√√
Programmable Switch √√√√
Shutter Lock Mode √√√√
SYNC OUT Times Setting √√√
Output 8bit Select
Head Exchange
Maximum Frame Rate Switching
Auto Play √√√
Factory Defaults Setting √√√
Resolution Lock Mode √√√
Shutter Speed u Seconds Notation √√√√
Switch Number of Record Bits
Color Enhancement √√√√
Store Preset √√√√
Switch Hardware Recording Type √√√√
Status Indicator LEDs On/Off
FPGA Rewrite
Shading Type
Black Clip Level (Color Only)

7 Photron FASTCAM Viewer
FASTCAM – APX
FASTCAM - Ultima 512
√√
√√
√
√
√√
√√
√√
√√
√√
√√
√√
√√
√√
√√
√√
√√

Chapter. 1 0BBefore Use
8
1.1.6. FASTCAM Series High-Speed Camera Capability Chart 3
Function / Model Name
IDP-Express R2000 IDP-Express R2000-F
FASTCAM - 1024PCI
FASTCAM - 512PCI
Variable Frame Rate / Resolution √
Auto Exposure
Low-Light Mode
Shading Correction √√√
Pixel Gain Correction √√√√
Edge Enhancement Correction √√√√
Sensor Gain √√√
Dual-Slope Shutter √
External I/O Port √√√√
Event Marker
IRIG Input
IRIG Synchronization
IRIG Live Display
MCDL Input
Video Output
Video Out Setting During Memory Playback
Color Temperature Setting(Color Only) √√√√
Pre-LUT Adjustment √√√√
Split Partition √√√√
Discretionary Partition Division √√√√
Recording Memory Size Setting √√
Partition Auto-Increment By Camera
Signal Delay Setting
Signal Width Setting
Programmable Switch
Shutter Lock Mode √√
SYNC OUT Times Setting
Output 8bit Select √√
Head Exchange
Maximum Frame Rate Switching
Auto Play
Factory Defaults Setting
Resolution Lock Mode √√
Shutter Speed u Seconds Notation √√√√
Switch Number of Record Bits
Color Enhancement √√√
Store Preset
Switch Hardware Recording Type
Status Indicator LEDs On/Off
FPGA Rewrite √
Shading Type
Black Clip Level (Color Only)

9 Photron FASTCAM Viewer
1.2. Setup
Installing the PFV Software.
1.2.1. Necessary Items
Ready the PFV software installation CD.
Photron cameras compatible with PFV Ver. 3 are listed below.
Product Name Connection Method Compatible OS
FASTCAM SA6
FASTCAM SA4
FASTCAM BC2 HD
FASTCAM SA5
FASTCAM SA2
FASTCAM MC2.1
FASTCAM MC2
FASTCAM SA3
FASTCAM CT3
FASTCAM SA1.1
FASTCAM MH4-10K
Gigabit Ethernet(1000Base-T) Windows 7, Windows Vista,
Windows XP, Windows 2000
FASTCAM-APX RS
Gigabit Ethernet(1000Base-T)
IEEE1394
Photron Optical
Windows 7, Windows Vista,
Windows XP, Windows 2000
(Excluding Windows 7, IEEE1394
is only 32-bit compatible)
FASTCAM-APX IEEE1394
Photron Optical
Windows 7, Windows Vista,
Windows XP, Windows 2000
(Excluding Windows 7, IEEE1394
is only 32-bit compatible)
FASTCAM-Ultima 512 IEEE1394
Photron Optical
Windows 7, Windows Vista,
Windows XP, Windows 2000
(Excluding Windows 7, IEEE1394
is only 32-bit compatible)
FASTCAM MC1
FASTCAM SA1
Gigabit Ethernet(1000Base-T) Windows 7, Windows Vista,
Windows XP, Windows 2000
IDP-Express R2000
IDP-Express R2000-F
PCI Express x8
Windows 7, Windows Vista,
Windows XP
(All only 32-bit compatible)
FASTCAM-1024PCI
FASTCAM-512PCI
PCI Windows 7, Windows Vista,
Windows XP, Windows 2000

Chapter. 1 0BBefore Use
10
1.2.2. Verify the Operating Environment
Verify that the host system has the required environment for using PFV.
Compatible PC PC/AT Compatible Computer
Operating
System
Windows 7 Ultimate, Windows 7 Enterprise, Windows 7 Professional,
Windows 7 Home Premium,
Windows Vista Ultimate, Windows Vista Enterprise, Windows Vista Business,
Windows Vista Home Premium, Windows Vista Home Basic
Windows XP Professional, Windows XP Home,
Windows 2000 Professional,
Installation of DirectX 8.1 or higher is recommended
The "DDraw video playback" function is not supported on Windows 7.
IEEE1394 is not supported on Windows 7 or 64-bit versions of Windows.
Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP 32-bit/64-bit (x64) supported.
DirectX 8.1 or higher must be installed to input/output AVI 2.0. However, as
DirectX 8.1 or higher is included as standard on Windows XP, Windows Vista
and Windows 7, a separate installation is not necessary.
To output AVI 1.0 files on Windows Vista, you must install an update with
Windows Update (update number KB938979) or install Windows Vista SP1.
To output MOV files, you must install QuickTime Player 7.5.5 or higher.
CPU Intel Pentium III or compatible CPU 1GHz or higher
Multi-core processor recommended
Memory 256MB or higher
1GB or higher is recommended
Hard Disk UltraATA100 compatible 80MB or higher (during installation)
Display
Resolution
1024x768, 24-bit color or higher
1280x1024, 24-bit color or higher is recommended
Other
・A high-capacity hard disk or removable media drive for saving recorded
image data
・A CD-ROM drive (for use during installation)
・When using the Gigabit Ethernet connection, a 1000Base-T capable NIC
with “Jumbo Frame” support is recommended
・When using the Photron Optical connection, a Photron Optical interface PCI
board is necessary