Vision Engineering Mantis Elite-Cam-HD Microscope

“Cam HD” refers to the built-in high definition USB camera integrated into the Mantis Elite optical head. It allows simultaneous optical (3D stereo) viewing plus digital image capture (still images and video), annotation, archiving, and reporting—features that are especially useful for documentation, training, quality assurance, and traceability.

The Mantis Elite-Cam HD supports magnifications from 2× to 20×, with multiple objective lens options (2×, 4×, 6×, 8×, 10×, 15×, 20×) and a quick-change turret. There’s also a long working distance (SLWD) version for one of the 6× objectives.

Some examples:

• At 2×: ~ 160 mm working distance and ~ 57.0 mm field of view.
• At 4×: ~ 96 mm working distance and ~ 34.0 mm FOV.
• At 20×: working distance drops to ~ 29 mm, FOV to ~ 6.5 mm.

Illumination is via true-colour LED lighting. The incident (surface) lighting has up to ~ 9,400 lux for Elite-Cam HD at subject plane (white LEDs), with long LED life (~10,000 hours). There’s also sub-stage (transmitted/back-light) illumination when using bench stands. UV / white switchable lighting is available in some configurations to facilitate inspection of fluorescing coatings or faults.

The camera is CMOS, resolution is 1600 × 1200 pixels, with a 1/3” sensor and ~2.8 μm pixel size. Colour depth is 8-bit. Refresh rate is ~ 17-18 fps (frames per second). The interface is USB2.0. Supported image file formats include BMP, JPEG, PNG.

Supplied software (e.g. ViCapture) allows image capture, annotation, mark-ups, basic video recording (.avi), useful for training and documentation. For tasks requiring measurement or dimensioning there are optional upgrades.

Mantis Elite-Cam HD uses the eyepiece-less stereo head design, allowing users to sit upright, wear glasses or protective eyewear, move head freely without losing 3D vision. The long working distances and large field of view at lower magnifications help reduce operator strain. These design features aim to reduce fatigue and improve throughput in inspection / rework / assembly tasks.

Some limitations or trade-offs include:

• At high magnifications (15×, 20×), the working distance is much smaller, and field of view is tightly reduced, so sample positioning and lighting become more critical.
• The camera’s frame rate is relatively modest (~ 17-18 fps), so very fast motion or video-based inspections may feel less smooth.
• Although optical clarity is high, features with very low contrast or requiring extreme colour accuracy might need additional lighting or filters.
• The system requires suitable mounting / stands / sufficient space and power; reaching best performance depends on stable lighting and operator comfort.