Monthly Archives: August 2018

Photogrammetry can simply be defined as the measurement of photographs. It is a process that largely depends on camera positioning around the given subject and light control to create high resolution details of skin and clothing. The scanning can be used for capturing data for various projects including face replacements and CG characters. With so many variables to control, photogrammetry scanning can be overwhelming. There is just too much trial and errors involved to achieve best practices but with a few helpful tips, it is very possible to achieve accuracy and top quality with the process.

Tip 1 – Think about overlapping coverage. When building your setup, you should use as many cameras as possible so you are able to reduce or minimize manual cleanup later. Enough coverage translates into very decent recreation and you will also rarely miss any information when you use enough cameras so manual cleanup is very minimal.

Tip 2 – Put in measures to minimize distortions. When there are distortions, it is given that your system will have issues aligning the images. The fact is that most Photogrammetry systems come with a lens that helps reduce images, but it is always a much better choice to try and minimize it in-camera. Use tools that match with the camera format that you are using to get the best results every time.

Tip 3 – Mask out the background to dramatically improve overall quality of generated mesh and post processing time. It is a process that can be time consuming, especially when you need to go through every single picture but it pays off in the end. If manual masking is something you would rather avoid, then you can use systems that offer automatic masking feature to achieve a clean background. It also helps to tie cables together and eliminating any junk from the frame, especially when using a camera rig.

Tip 4 – Focus on more resolution when operating. You can use as much as necessary from your sensor because the more the resolution you can achieve then the more detailed your mesh is going to be. Try every way not to waste a single pixel if you can actually use it for quality benefits.

Tip 5 – Remember that lighting remains key in all kinds of photography. To increase depth of filed and eliminate photo noise, keep your aperture small and ISO as low as you can. But because doing so will definitely decrease amount of light that you get to work with, ensure that you have other light sources to substitute. Consider using flashes over continuous lighting that are less efficient, less color accurate and expensive for that matter. Flashes keep talent comfortable and enough lit unlike continuous lights that can produce heat leaving enclosed rig hot.

Tip 6 – Pay attention to photo orientation. It is factor that plays a huge role in accuracy of projects and it needs to be accurate for every camera position. Increase number of well-positioned points to improve orientation quality. These points should take up a greater percentage of photograph area.

Photogrammetry is among the services that you can enjoy from 3D scanning experts. Choose a service provider you can trust to deliver quality to your photo project, however demanding it could be.

If you ask many people, they will tell you that they know fiber optic cables for their use in computers. While they are heavily used in that area, they are also heavily used in other areas including:

Cable television

I know that you can’t get off the couch due to your favorite program. Did you know that you are receiving the signals courtesy of fiber optic cables? Telecommunication companies are now heavily using the cables as they have greater speeds and bandwidth. The cables are also cheaper compared to copper wires.

Telecommunication companies are also heavily using the cables in speeding up communication in telephones. Due to their installation, you are able to connect faster and have clear conversations regardless of where you are calling from.

Medical applications

Fiber optic cables are widely used in medicine and research. In medicine, they are majorly used in intrusive surgical methods where it’s used in reducing the number and sizes of incisions. The cables are also used in biomedical research where they are used in the field of prosthetics where the researchers are working in developing real-feel prosthetics. Researchers are trying to come up with prosthetics that have the ability to send information through the nervous system into the brain.

Automotive industry

Cables are also used in lighting and safety features in automobiles. They are used in lighting both the interior and exterior of the car. They are used in the vehicles since they conserve space and also provide superior lighting than other materials. The cables are also able to transmit signals between the different parts of the vehicle at high speeds. In addition to being used in lighting the vehicles, they are also used in the safety applications of the car including airbags and traction control.

Lighting and decorations

Due to their high speed, fiber optic cables are widely used in lighting decorations and Christmas tree illumination. In addition to lighting the trees, they are also economical and easy to install. The cables are also used in museums where they are used in illuminating and decorating museum artworks.

Conclusion

These are some of the uses of fiber optic cables. When buying them, ensure that you buy them from reputable cable dealers. The way that you install them greatly impacts their working. For ideal results ensure that the cables are installed by a certified and experienced professional. To be on the safe side, work with a technician recommended by the company you buy the cables from.

In addition to manufacturing optic cables we also manufacture a wide selection of CWDM and DWDM that is ideal for both indoor and outdoor environments. Both DWDM and CWDM allow you to increase the capacity of the existing fiber.

With drones becoming increasingly popular amongst individuals and businesses, new models are constantly being released into the market. Each release comes with the aim to bring improvements in the flying experience. This new technology actually has great potential for different industries and choosing the best drone is what you should be paying attention to in relation to your needs. Whether you are getting a drone for your new flying hobby or for business, there are things that you must take into consideration to end up with the best model. Below are helpful questions you should answer to guide your purchase.

What is my intended use? Remember that different drones have different features to complete specialized tasks easily. If it is just for flying fun, for instance, then it should not matter whether it has a camera or not. If it is for taking pictures and videos, however, then you want to make sure that it comes with a premium camera that you can trust for quality images. Let the tasks that you wish to complete with your drone lead you to the best drones for sale.

What is my budget? Apart from what you can afford, the intended use can determine what amount is reasonable for a drone. Recreational purpose drones are cheaper compared to those that are created for specialized tasks. The rule here would be to get a drone that you can afford and one that gives you the flying experience that you are looking for. For instance, cheaper drones may prove harder to fly for beginners because they lack some features that would otherwise make flying easy. Repairs and maintenance should also feature in the budget considering that drones are crash prone.

What type of drone is more convenient for me? Getting familiar with the types of drones available in the market is paramount in making the most suitable decision in terms of purchase. The types are differentiated by the features and the common drones today are ready to fly or RTF, BNF or bind and fly drones, ARF or almost ready to fly drone, RTH or return to home drones and FPV or first person view drones. You will also find drones with GPS navigation. These types offer varying assembling and flying experiences and you should consider each one before deciding what type works best for you.

Are there are any registration requirements? Usually the weight of the drone will determine whether you need to register it with the relevant agency of not. Most toy drones are not heavy enough to require a registration but you might need to register more sophisticated business related drones to avoid civil penalties. Apart from registering, you will need to adhere to flying guidelines. For instance, you may not be allowed to fly above given heights and near airports.

Where will I fly the drone? This is very important because there are places that are off limits. Think safety and legality when looking at drones for sale.

There are a huge variety of drones for sale. To make the right choice you would have to be clear about your needs so you select a drone with all necessary features to make your flying experience most rewarding.

Signing on the dotted line with an IT services and support provider can be a challenging proposition. With a lot of big market players making their presence felt and various critical factors to size up for making a well-thought-out decision, settling for a right provider may eat up more time and efforts than expected. Moreover, no company would let the deal break the bank. Although the situation may not seem as grim as you walking a tightrope, you must exercise ample caution before contracting out IT services to a vendor.

Draw out the Benefits of IT Support Services

With the competition among the industry rivals going through the roof, it is important that you do not falter on technological grounds. As a result, sound IT infrastructure should be high on the agenda. To ensure that all your information technology needs are duly met, make it a point to find a trusted and professional IT solutions provider. Serving the organizations of all magnitude, ranging from small-scale to large-scale, an information technology consultant firm focuses on combining technological innovations with business practices and thereby ensuring seamless day-to-day operations. This, in turn, propels the growth of the business.

Leap at What Serves the Purpose

Although an IT firm may cover a broad spectrum of technology solutions, you may go in for stripped-down features which fit in with your business needs and suit your pocket. Some of the fundamental IT services are:

• Software and Hardware installation, maintenance, and regular upgrades.
• Computer, Network, and Server Analysis: Tracking down potential threats and addressing them for the optimized performance.
• Patch Management: This ensures that your systems operate with the latest critical security patches.
• Proactive Support: Offsite monitoring of critical systems to ensure maximum uptime and productivity.
• Remote Office Access: Allowing the authorized users access to secured files and e-mails.
• Round-the-clock Technical Assistance
• Virus and Spyware Protection and Removal
• Prompt response to technical glitches

With such a wide array of IT solutions, you are rest assured that your business will progress ahead by leaps and bounds. Above all, it will take the information technology loads off your shoulders and will let you focus and build on your core strengths and competencies. It will, ultimately, leave you with the bang for your bucks.

On the conclusive note, it is worth mentioning that information technology serves as a backbone of any business entity. As a result, it is important that you have everything covered on the technological front.

This article equips the readers with the various facets of IT support and the need to align your business with a professional and trusted IT vendor.

Your network is only as effective as its reach – yet unbalanced signals such as USB and RS-232 can reliably transmit only up to 15 feet, and even balanced Ethernet signals are capped at 300 feet. With a growing range of connectivity platforms, modern data networks require not just compatibility and reliability but also flexibility and expandability. There are many ideal solutions to meet modern networks’ data distance needs such as converting unbalanced signals to balanced ones, deploying repeaters to boost signal strength, and implementing hubs for star-configured connections, while still taking full advantage of cost-effective and readily available copper wire. For large systems that go far beyond what copper wires can reach, fibre-optic converters can used to work in both conventional point-to-point and advanced daisy-chain / redundant-ring configurations, giving your data network a boost in distance, ranging from 3 miles to hundreds of miles, and additional flexibility, reliability, and expandability. The use of a Serial-TCP program is another ideal solution for merging serial communication protocols with modern TCP/IP communication, yielding benefits such as widely available infrastructures and greater distance, reliability, and speed.

Point to Point

Used mostly for one-to-one unbalanced signal (RS-232, TTL, and USB, etc.) extension, it can also be used for one-to-one optical fiber extension. Depends on the signal types, the extended distance ranges from 250 feet (70 m) to 4000 feet (1.2 km) on copper wire and 3 miles (5 km) to 40 miles (25 km) on optical fiber.

Daisy Chain (Multi-Drop)

Typically used for multi-drop RS-485 / RS-422 networks, addressable commands from the Master can be sent to all Slaves, and the addressed Slave can respond to the Master through the same wires, thus reducing the system’s costs. The typical distance for a daisy-chain RS-485 / RS-422 network is 4000 feet (1.2 km), and with the RS-485 / RS-422 repeater, this distance can be extended by another 4000 feet (1.2 km).

Star Wiring

Due to the nature of the signals and the requirements of impedance matching, the RS-485 / RS-422 network must run on a linear, daisy-chain (multi-drop) configuration; however, star-wiring is inevitable in many places. With very well-engineered hubs, the star-wiring configuration is more than just possible; it makes the system much more robust and reliable.

Redundant Ring

Data networks are critical for production, security, and information exchange, any system downtime is very costly – and even deadly in some situations. With an extra self-healing redundant link, a system will not break down even if there is a breaking point in the system, as these redundant-ring networks work both clockwise and counter-clockwise. If the clockwise link is down, the counter-clockwise link will recover the system instantly.

Network

Legacy serial communication protocols such as Modbus have merged rapidly with modern TCP/IP communications, yielding benefits such as widely available infrastructures and greater distance, reliability, and speed. A suitable Serial-TCP program offers ideal solutions to bridge your existing Serial/COM port and TCP/IP without the need for changing protocol. It works seamlessly and transparently, just like a pair of passive repeaters; furthermore, instead of requiring installation of cables and converters with limited distance, it simply makes use of existing computers and networks with an unlimited transmission distance.

To achieve any of the above 5 ways to enable your data travel without limits, CommFront has the complete product range of converters, repeaters, hubs, fiber-optics, and software solutions to make it all possible.

Not many companies are well versed with camera designs and their tweaks and hence few players are moving towards custom development of board cameras and smart vision sensors based on different processors. Also with the advent of several cameras and camera architectures, companies now have a strong base to build new products.

Some companies can design cameras to customer requirements in short timelines too.

The Challenges

Companies usually face the challenge of meeting hardware and software design specifications of the camera.

High definition images might have to be clicked at regular intervals, sometimes in a fraction of a second! Some companies now opt for drones that would house several cameras, and then try to stitch and synchronise the images simultaneously, so that the shots can be taken from all possible angles.

Also the core challenge here is to reduce the camera size since the product needs to be a marketable product that also needs to be considerably affordable.

For such a camera design, companies strike a balance with its hardware design, PCB design, Bootloader porting, and the efforts expended on Device drive modification, Camera app development and Testing procedures.

The need for integrated camera solutions

Integrated camera solutions with small, lightweight, and inexpensive 5 Megapixel camera with an adequate CMOS sensor is in great demand in the market. These solutions include the snapshot mode and the continuous mode at various resolutions. The MiniSD card works for local storage for such cameras.

The solution also includes an external trigger for Camera synchronization, instinctive photo captures, and the like.

Such companies offer independent camera design offerings including

• Prototype development
• Complete board design and Mechanical design
• uBoot and Kernel changes
• Porting on new hardware
• Production support
• CMOS and CCD sensor integration
• Monochrome, Color, and near IR development
• Embedded processor development including FPGA and ARM processors
• Standard/ Custom mounting options
• Robust enclosures suitable for industrial camera use
• Integrated LED lighting

Types of Cameras for Different Applications

• 3 megapixel Cameras with color and monochrome sensors
• 2K Line Scan Camera compliant with DCAM standard
• VGA cameras with onboard DSP
• Line-scan sensor integrated with DSP
• A PTZ (Pan-Tilt-Zoom) High Definition 720p or 1080p 30fps conferencing camera with autofocus
• Linescan camera setup with onboard image processing
Custom cameras are developed for integrate the required sensor, optics or mounts. These cameras also include autofocus feature, lighting setup, enclosure material based on the environment, ruggedness to shocks and vibrations, and adherence to several safety and regulatory compliances.

Benefits offered by integrated cameras and their design proposed by the best vendors

• Reduced time for development: The company’s experience in designing imaging products and solutions is crucial and hence becomes the differentiating factor in the faster process execution of design and building cameras.

• Reduced cost: The platform based development model reduces the cost of development of camera products considerably. Nowadays offshore companies can even lower the cost of development especially if they are developed from scratch.

• Application Support: Support at the application level is crucial especially in context with image processing algorithm development. Years of expertise and experience in imaging and image processing boil down to the efficiency rendered during support. Also a company with resources who have previous system integration experience would relate with customer needs and pain points too.

• Integrated Solutions: Companies who are certified for CE, FCC, and UL will always strive to get the prototype ready based on the design in terms of ingress, temperature, and other specifications.

A graduate in technology, Toya Peterson is an avid blogger who is always interested in the recent fads and trends related to wearables, IoT and embedded technologies. A mother of two, she aspires to be a photo-blogger soon as she is honing up her skills in photography. In her leisure time, she loves to go hiking with her friends.