Point Grey Flea3 FL3-U3 Product manual

Flea3 FL3-U3
USB 3.0 Digital Camera
Technical Reference Manual
Version 5.2
Revised 9/27/2012
Point Grey Research®Inc.
12051 Riverside Way • Richmond, BC • Canada • V6W 1K7 • T [phone] • www.ptgrey.com
Copyright © 2011-2012 Point Grey Research Inc. All Rights Reserved.

FCC Compliance
This device complies 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 undesirable operation.
Hardware Warranty
Point Grey Research®, Inc. (Point Grey) warrants to the Original Purchaser that the Camera Module
provided with this package is guaranteed to be free from material and manufacturing defects for a
period of Two years. Should a unit fail during this period, Point Grey will, at its option, repair or replace
the damaged unit. Repaired or replaced units will be covered for the remainder of the original
equipment warranty period. This warranty does not apply to units that, after being examined by Point
Grey, have been found to have failed due to customer abuse, mishandling, alteration, improper
installation or negligence. If the original camera module is housed within a case, removing the case for
any purpose other than to remove the protective glass or filter over the sensor voids this warranty. This
warranty does not apply to damage to any part of the optical path resulting from removal or replacement
of the protective glass or filter over the camera, such as scratched glass or sensor damage.
Point Grey Research, Inc. expressly disclaims and excludes all other warranties, express, implied and
statutory, including, but without limitation, warranty of merchantability and fitness for a particular
application or purpose. In no event shall Point Grey Research, Inc. be liable to the Original Purchaser or
any third party for direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, special or accidental damages, including
without limitation damages for business interruption, loss of profits, revenue, data or bodily injury or
death.
WEEE
The symbol indicates that this product may not be treated as household waste. Please ensure
this product is properly disposed as inappropriate waste handling of this product may cause
potential hazards to the environment and human health. For more detailed information
about recycling of this product, please contact Point Grey Research.
Trademarks
Point Grey Research, PGR, the Point Grey Research, Inc. logo, Chameleon, Digiclops, Dragonfly, Dragonfly
Express, Firefly, Flea, FlyCapture, Gazelle, Grasshopper, Ladybug, Triclops and Zebra are trademarks or
registered trademarks of Point Grey Research, Inc. in Canada and other countries.

Point Grey Flea3 USB 3.0 Technical Reference
Table of Contents
1 Welcome to Flea3 USB 3.0 1
1.1 Flea3 USB 3.0 Specifications 1
1.1.1 FL3-U3-13S2M(Mono) Imaging Performance 3
1.1.2 FL3-U3-13S2C(Color) Imaging Performance 4
1.1.3 FL3-U3-13Y3M(Mono) Imaging Performance 5
1.1.4 FL3-U3-13E4M(Mono) Imaging Performance 6
1.1.5 FL3-U3-13E4C (Color) Imaging Performance 7
1.1.6 FL3-U3-32S2M(Mono) Imaging Performance 8
1.1.7 FL3-U3-32S2C (Color) Imaging Performance 9
1.1.8 FL3-U3-88S2C (Color) Imaging Performance 10
1.1.9 Flea3 USB 3.0 Camera Comparison 11
1.2 Analog-to-Digital Conversion 12
1.3 Flea3 USB 3.0 Mechanical Properties 13
1.3.1 Physical Description 13
1.3.2 Camera Dimensions 14
1.3.3 Tripod Adapter Dimensions 15
1.3.4 Lens Mounting 15
1.3.4.1 Back Flange Distance 16
1.3.5 Dust Protection 16
1.3.6 Mounting with the Case or Mounting Bracket 16
1.3.7 Infrared Cut-Off Filters 17
1.4 Handling Precautions and Camera Care 18
1.4.1 Case Temperature and Heat Dissipation 18
1.5 Camera Interface and Connectors 20
1.5.1 USB3.0 Connector 20
1.5.2 Interface Card 20
1.5.3 Interface Cables 21
1.5.4 General Purpose Input/Output (GPIO) 21
2 Getting Started with Flea3 USB 3.0 22
2.1 Before You Install 22
2.1.1 Will your system configuration support the camera? 22
2.1.2 Do you have all the parts you need? 22
2.1.3 Do you have a downloads account? 22
2.2 Installing Your Interface Card and Software 23
2.3 Installing Your Camera 24
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Copyright ©2011-2012 Point Grey Research Inc.

Point Grey Flea3 USB 3.0 Technical Reference
2.4 Controlling the Camera 25
2.4.1 Using FlyCapture 25
2.4.2 Using Control and Status Registers 25
2.4.2.1 Modes 25
2.4.2.2 Values 26
2.4.2.3 Using the Inquiry Registers 26
2.4.2.4 Using the Absolute Value Registers 26
2.5 Configuring Camera Setup 27
2.5.1 Configuring Camera Drivers 27
2.5.2 Maximum Number of Cameras on a Single Bus 27
3 General Camera Operation 29
3.1 Powering the Camera 29
3.1.1 CAMERA_POWER: 610h 29
3.2 Device Information 29
3.2.1 SERIAL_NUMBER: 1F20h 30
3.2.2 MAIN_BOARD_INFO: 1F24h 30
3.2.3 SENSOR_BOARD_INFO: 1F28h 31
3.2.4 VOLTAGE: 1A50h – 1A54h 31
3.2.5 CURRENT: 1A58h – 1A5Ch 31
3.2.6 TEMPERATURE: 82Ch 32
3.2.7 PIXEL_CLOCK_FREQ: 1AF0h 32
3.2.8 HORIZONTAL_LINE_FREQ: 1AF4h 32
3.3 User Memory Channels 32
3.3.1 MEMORY_SAVE: 618h 33
3.3.2 MEM_SAVE_CH: 620h 33
3.3.3 CUR_MEM_CH: 624h 33
3.3.4 Memory Channel Registers 33
3.4 On-Camera Frame Buffer 35
3.4.1 IMAGE_RETRANSMIT: 634h 36
3.4.2 Example: Retransmitting in Image External Mode Using Registers 36
3.4.3 Example: Storing Images for Later Transmission Using Registers 37
3.5 Non-Volatile Flash Memory 38
3.5.1 DATA_FLASH_CTRL: 1240h 38
3.5.2 DATA_FLASH_DATA: 1244h 38
3.6 Camera Firmware 39
3.6.1 Determining Firmware Version 39
3.6.2 Upgrading Camera Firmware 39
3.6.3 FIRMWARE_VERSION: 1F60h 39
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Point Grey Flea3 USB 3.0 Technical Reference
3.6.4 FIRMWARE_BUILD_DATE: 1F64h 40
3.6.5 FIRMWARE_DESCRIPTION: 1F68-1F7Ch 40
4 Input/Output Control 41
4.1 General Purpose Input/Output (GPIO) 41
4.2 GPIO Modes 41
4.2.1 GPIO Mode 0: Input 41
4.2.2 GPIO Mode 1: Output 41
4.2.3 GPIO Mode 2: Asynchronous (External) Trigger 42
4.2.4 GPIO Mode 3: Strobe 42
4.2.5 GPIOMode 4: Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) 42
4.3 Programmable Strobe Output 42
4.3.1 Synchronizing Image Capture with an Output Trigger or Strobe 43
4.3.2 Example: Setting a GPIOPin to Strobe (Using the Camera Registers) 44
4.3.3 Example: Setting a GPIOPin to Strobe (Using the FlyCapture API) 46
4.3.4 Strobe Signal Output Registers 47
4.3.4.1 Strobe Output Registers 47
4.3.4.2 GPIO_STRPAT_CTRL: 110Ch 48
4.3.4.3 GPIO_STRPAT_MASK_PIN: 1118h-1148h 49
4.3.4.4 GPIO_XTRA: 1104h 49
4.4 Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) 50
4.4.1 GPIO_CTRL_PIN: 1110h-1140h 50
4.4.2 GPIO_XTRA_PIN: 1114h-1144h 51
4.5 Serial Communication 51
4.5.1 Serial Output Transaction (Transmitting Data) 52
4.5.1.1 Example: Transmitting Characters to a PC 52
4.5.2 Serial Input Transaction (Receiving Data) 53
4.5.2.1 Example: Receiving Characters from a PC 54
4.5.3 Transmitting and Receiving Data Simultaneously 55
4.5.4 Serial Input/Output Registers 55
4.6 GPIO Electrical Characteristics 59
4.6.1 GPIO0 (Opto-Isolated Input) Circuit 59
4.6.2 GPIO1 (Opto-Isolated Output) Circuit 60
4.6.3 GPIO 2/3 (Bi-Directional) Circuit 61
5 Video Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 63
5.1 Video Modes Overview 63
5.1.1 Video Mode Descriptions 64
5.1.2 Calculating Format 7 Frame Rates 66
5.2 Pixel Formats 66
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Copyright ©2011-2012 Point Grey Research Inc.

Point Grey Flea3 USB 3.0 Technical Reference
5.2.1 Raw 67
5.2.2 Mono 67
5.2.3 RGB 67
5.2.4 YUV 67
5.2.5 Y16 (16-bit Mono) Image Acquisition 68
5.2.5.1 DATA_DEPTH: 630h 68
5.2.6 Y8 or Y16 Raw Bayer Output 68
5.2.6.1 BAYER_MONO_CTRL: 1050h 68
5.3 Supported Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 69
5.3.1 FL3-U3-13S2 Video Modes 69
5.3.1.1 FL3-U3-13S2 Standard Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 69
5.3.1.2 FL3-U3-13S2 Custom Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 69
5.3.2 FL3-U3-13Y3 Video Modes 71
5.3.2.1 FL3-U3-13Y3 Standard Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 71
5.3.2.2 FL3-U3-13Y3 Custom Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 71
5.3.3 FL3-U3-13E4 Video Modes 72
5.3.3.1 FL3-U3-13E4 Standard Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 72
5.3.3.2 FL3-U3-13E4 Custom Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 72
5.3.4 FL3-U3-32S2 Video Modes 73
5.3.4.1 FL3-U3-32S2 Standard Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 73
5.3.4.2 FL3-U3-32S2 Custom Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 74
5.3.5 FL3-U3-88S2 Video Modes 75
5.3.5.1 FL3-U3-88S2C Standard Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 75
5.3.5.2 FL3-U3-88S2C Custom Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 75
5.4 Video Format, Mode, and Frame Rate Settings 76
5.4.1 FRAME_RATE: 83Ch 76
5.4.2 CURRENT_FRAME_RATE: 600h 77
5.4.3 CURRENT_VIDEO_MODE: 604h 78
5.4.4 CURRENT_VIDEO_FORMAT: 608h 78
5.4.5 Example: Setting a Standard Video Mode, Format and Frame Rate Using the FlyCapture API 78
6 Image Acquisition 79
6.1 Global Shutter 79
6.2 Rolling Shutter 79
6.3 Rolling Shutter with Global Reset 80
6.4 Asynchronous Triggering 81
6.4.1 External Trigger Timing 81
6.4.2 Minimum Trigger Pulse Length 82
6.4.3 Maximum Frame Rate in External Trigger Mode 82
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Point Grey Flea3 USB 3.0 Technical Reference
6.4.4 Camera Behavior Between Triggers 83
6.4.5 Changing Video Modes While Triggering 83
6.4.6 Trigger Modes 84
6.4.6.1 Trigger Mode 0 (“Standard External Trigger Mode”) 84
6.4.6.2 Trigger Mode 1 (“Bulb Shutter Mode”) 84
6.4.6.3 Trigger Mode 15 (“Multi-Shot Trigger Mode”) 85
6.4.7 Example: Asynchronous Hardware Triggering (Using the Camera Registers) 86
6.4.8 Example: Asynchronous Hardware Triggering (Using the FlyCapture API) 88
6.4.9 Asynchronous Software Triggering 88
6.4.10 Asynchronous Trigger Settings 89
6.4.10.1 TRIGGER_MODE: 830h 90
6.4.10.2 TRIGGER_DELAY: 834h 90
6.4.10.3 PIO_DIRECTION: 11F8h 91
6.4.10.4 SOFTWARE_TRIGGER: 62Ch 91
6.4.10.5 ISO_CHANNEL/ISO_SPEED: 60Ch 91
6.4.10.6 ISO_EN/CONTINUOUS_SHOT: 614h 92
6.4.10.7 ONE_SHOT/MULTI_SHOT: 61Ch 92
7 Imaging Parameters and Control 94
7.1 Overview of Imaging Parameters 94
7.2 Brightness 95
7.2.1 BRIGHTNESS: 800h 95
7.2.2 Example: Setting Brightness Using the FlyCapture API 96
7.3 Gain 96
7.3.1 GAIN: 820h 97
7.3.2 Example: Setting Gain Using the FlyCapture API 98
7.4 Saturation 98
7.4.1 SATURATION: 814h 98
7.4.2 Example: Setting Saturation Using the FlyCapture API 99
7.5 Hue 100
7.5.1 HUE: 810h 100
7.5.2 Example: Setting Hue Using the FlyCapture API 101
7.6 Sharpness 101
7.6.1 SHARPNESS: 808h 102
7.6.2 Example: Setting Sharpness Using the FlyCapture API 103
7.7 Gamma and Lookup Table 103
7.7.1 GAMMA: 818h 105
7.7.2 Example: Setting Gamma Using the FlyCapture API 106
7.7.3 LUT: 80000h – 80048h (IIDC1.32) 106
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Point Grey Flea3 USB 3.0 Technical Reference
7.8 White Balance 109
7.8.1 WHITE_BALANCE: 80Ch 110
7.8.2 Example: Setting White Balance Using the FlyCapture API 110
7.9 Shutter 111
7.9.1 Extended Shutter Times 112
7.9.2 SHUTTER: 81Ch 112
7.9.3 Example: Setting Shutter Using the FlyCapture API 113
7.10 Auto Exposure 114
7.10.1 AUTO_EXPOSURE: 804h 114
7.10.2 AE_ROI: 1A70 – 1A74h 115
7.10.3 Example: Setting Auto Exposure Using the FlyCapture API 116
7.11 Bayer Color Processing 117
7.11.1 Accessing Raw Bayer Data 117
7.11.2 BAYER_TILE_MAPPING: 1040h 118
7.11.3 Example: Accessing Raw Bayer Data using FlyCapture2 118
7.12 Image Flip/Mirror 119
7.12.1 MIRROR_IMAGE_CTRL: 1054h 119
7.13 Embedded Image Information 119
7.13.1 FRAME_INFO: 12F8h 120
8 Troubleshooting 122
8.1 Support 122
8.2 Camera Diagnostics 123
8.2.1 INITIALIZE: 000h 123
8.2.2 TIME_FROM_INITIALIZE: 12E0h 123
8.2.3 TIME_FROM_BUS_RESET: 12E4h 123
8.2.4 XMIT_FAILURE: 12FCh 124
8.2.5 VMODE_ERROR_STATUS: 628h 124
8.2.6 CAMERA_LOG: 1D00 – 1DFFh 124
8.3 Status Indicator LED 125
8.3.1 LED_CTRL: 1A14h 125
8.4 Test Pattern 126
8.4.1 TEST_PATTERN: 104Ch 126
8.5 Blemish Pixel Artifacts 127
8.5.1 Pixel Defect Correction 127
8.5.2 PIXEL_DEFECT_CTRL: 1A60h 127
8.6 Rolling Shutter Artifacts 128
8.7 Fixed Pattern Noise Artifact 129
8.7.1 FPN_CTRL: 1A0Ch 129
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Copyright ©2011-2012 Point Grey Research Inc.

Point Grey Flea3 USB 3.0 Technical Reference
Appendix A: Control and Status Registers 130
A.1 General Register Information 130
A.1.1 Register Memory Map 130
A.1.2 Config ROM 131
A.1.2.1 Root Directory 131
A.1.2.2 Unit Directory 132
A.1.2.3 Unit Dependent Info 132
A.1.3 Calculating Base Register Addresses using 32-bit Offsets 133
A.2 Inquiry Registers 133
A.2.1 Basic Functions Inquiry Registers 133
A.2.2 Feature Presence Inquiry Registers 134
A.2.3 Feature Elements Inquiry Registers 136
A.2.4 Video Format Inquiry Registers 138
A.2.5 Video Mode Inquiry Registers 138
A.2.6 Video Frame Rate Inquiry Registers 140
A.3 Video Mode Control and Status Registers 143
A.3.1 FORMAT_7_RESIZE_INQ: 1AC8h 144
A.3.2 Inquiry Registers for Custom Video Mode Offset Addresses 144
A.3.2.1 Image Size and Position 145
A.3.2.2 COLOR_CODING_ID and COLOR_CODING_INQ 146
A.3.2.3 PACKET_PARA_INQ, BYTE_PER_PACKET, and PACKET_PER_FRAME 146
A.3.2.4 FRAME_INTERVAL_INQ 147
A.3.2.5 VALUE_SETTING 148
A.4 Absolute Value Registers 148
A.4.1 Setting Absolute Value Register Values 148
A.4.2 Absolute Value Offset Addresses 149
A.4.3 Units of Value for Absolute Value CSR Registers 150
A.4.4 Determining Absolute Value Register Values 150
Contacting Point Grey Research 152
Revision History 153
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Copyright ©2011-2012 Point Grey Research Inc.

Point Grey Flea3 USB 3.0 Technical Reference
List of Tables
Table 1.1: Temperature Sensor Specifications 18
Table 1.2: USB 3.0 Micro-B Connector Pin Assignments 20
Table 2.1: CSRMode Control Descriptions 26
Table 4.1: GPIO pin assignments (as shown looking at rear of camera) 41
Table 5.1: FL3-U3-13S2M Custom Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 69
Table 5.2: FL3-U3-13S2C Custom Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 70
Table 5.3: FL3-U3-13Y3M Custom Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 71
Table 5.4: FL3-U3-13E4M Custom Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 72
Table 5.5: FL3-U3-13E4C Custom Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 73
Table 5.6: FL3-U3-32S2M Custom Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 74
Table 5.7: FL3-U3-32S2C Custom Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 74
Table 5.8: FL3-U3-88S2C Custom Formats, Modes and Frame Rates 75
Table A.1: Custom Video Mode Inquiry Register Offset Addresses 145
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Copyright ©2011-2012 Point Grey Research Inc.