Tamron announces a New Model of Industrial-Use Lens Covering a Wide Spectral Band from Visible to SWIR Band (SMA11F12)

June 25, 2021, Saitama, Japan - Tamron Co., Ltd. (President & CEO: Shiro Ajisaka; Headquarters: Saitama City, Japan), a leading manufacturer of optics for diverse applications, announces the release of a new industrial-use fixed-focal lens, SMA11F12, that features high spectral transmittance over a wide band from the visible-light to the SWIR bands1 while the focus-shift is suppressed to an absolute minimum over the entire band.

1 Corresponding to 400nm ~ 1700nm

High-resolution machine-vision cameras have become indispensable in industry applications such as inspection of external views of components and products, and inspection of electrical components mounted on circuit boards. Most cameras employ the visible-light band for inspection.

On the other hand, industrial-use cameras employing the SWIR (Short-Wave IR) band have gained a predominant position in applications that are not easily tractable in the visible-light spectrum. Such applications include inspection of defects in products and foods, detection of contaminating substances, and identification of materials under test. In recent years, a single camera solution that allows imaging in the wide spectrum including both the visible-light and the SWIR bands has become commercially available.

The new industrial-use cameras that enable imaging in the wide spectrum contributes, in addition to the benefit of using a single camera instead of multiple cameras, to improving the inspection and detection accuracy due to the use of a larger bandwidth for imaging.

To address the growing need in the market, Tamron now announces a new single-unit industrial-use 1” 5μm pixel-pitch fixed-focal lens compatible with the wide spectrum covering both the visible-light and the SWIR bands.

In addition to a new proprietary optical technology that makes the new lens compatible with the wider spectrum covering both the visible-light and the SWIR bands, the focus-shift in between different bands is reduced to an absolute minimum, thus eliminating the need of re-focusing over the entire band. A new advanced lens coating technology also assures high and constant spectral transmittance over the whole spectrum from the visible-light to the SWIR band.

Tamron continues to pursue high optical performance that warrants image details, and excellent user utility, addressing customers’ critical requirements and needs in the industrial-use machine-vision fixed-focal lenses.

Focus-shift occurring in between different bands is effectively reduced over the whole spectrum corresponding to the wavelength of 400 nm to 1700 nm.The new lens offers an optimum optical component for machine-vision cameras operating in the visible-light band, industrial-use cameras operating in the SWIR band, and industrial-use cameras operating in both bands.

Tamron’s new proprietary lens coating technology assures an approx. 80% constant spectrum transmittance over the whole spectrum from the visible-light to the SWIR* band.
* Band corresponding to the wavelength of 400 – 1700 nm

The image contrast is substantially enhanced at commonly used close-up distances.

The new lens is compatible with imagers with a pixel-pitch 5μm. The lens is also compatible with IMX990/IMX991*.
* Products of Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation