Product category:
Vision and Colour Sensors
News Release from: Flir Systems
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 07 April 2004
Milestone in IR camera production
Flir Systems has produced its 25,000th infra-red camera, at its facility in Danderyd, Sweden.
Flir Systems has produced its 25,000th infra-red camera, at its facility in Danderyd, Sweden The Danderyd facility is the worldwide centre for FLIR System's Thermography Division that produces infra-red cameras for commercial and industrial applications
This article was originally published on Engineeringtalk on 29 Jun 2000 at 8.00am (UK)
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"This is an important milestone for our company and the industry as a whole", said Arne Almerfors, President of the Thermography Division at Flir Systems.
"This industry is no longer serving the needs of a select few", said Almerfors.
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"This milestone signifies the beginning of the broader acceptance of a technology that will one day be a common tool used in existing and new applications around the world".
Flir systems produced the first infra-red camera for industrial use in 1968 when AGA/Bofors built the first camera used to find faults in electrical power lines.
"In those days we only produced a few cameras a year", said Almerfors.
"Our new affordable line of E-Series cameras has made us think about production from a different perspective".
"It's exciting to see the industry transformation", said Almerfors.
"In the 70s, infra-red cameras weighed 50 pounds or more and could only be afforded by the world's leading utilities.
Now we sell 1.5lb cameras to small electrical co-ops and electrical contractors who accept infra-red technology as a standard tool of the trade".
Advances in lower cost detector technology and electronics allow Flir to promote infra-red camera technology to price sensitive markets unable to afford $50,000 infra-red imaging systems.
"We are now selling infra-red cameras for under $10,000 to building inspectors who are finding it's the fastest way determine the location of and extent of water damage in buildings", Almerfors said.
"We didn't even dream of this in 1968".
Flir has also found lower cost cameras are attractive alternatives to visual technology in production environments because the infra-red images and temperature measurement capability can find production flaws that cannot be detected by visual cameras.
"There are opportunities to deploy infra-red technology in many new markets", said Almerfors.
"In the past year we have sold hundreds of cameras to address the potential SARS epidemic.
Veterinarians are now using our cameras more frequently as a tool to determine race horses are too lame to race or train".
Almerfors expects that infra-red cameras will become a standard tool for even more applications as FLIR continues to make the cameras more affordable and easier to use.
"Our recent acquisition of Indigo Systems allows us to now produce the sensor that is the primary cost component in our camera systems", said Almerfors.
"We can combine this capacity with our existing capabilities in lens production, optical coating and large scale camera production to address the markets of the future". Request free introductory details about products from Flir Systems ...
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