As you look at the automated machinery in a modern factory, the one thing you can't help but notice is that it is running far too fast for the human eye to monitor. These speeds have created a need for monitoring equipment that can support quality control checks in the increasingly robotic-enabled manufacturing process. Before the introduction of Thunderbolt, the newest version of machine vision cameras is the Gigabit Ethernet vision camera.

The Gigabit Ethernet vision camera was built to use a CAT5E Ethernet cable, which is the newest version of Ethernet cable and is also used to connect the rest of your network together. This type of cable is an advanced version of the original CAT5 cables and allows for minimal loss of signal and speed over long distances when compared to coaxial cable. At Fast Vision, we have been building this type of camera into our machine vision systems since they first became availabl

FastVision is carefully evaluating the new Thunderbolt integration technology between cameras, framegrabbers and PCs.  Thunderbolt may significantly simplify the end-user experience by concurrently supporting data and display connections over a single cable.

Intel Thunderbolt™ chips interconnect a PC and other devices, transmitting and receiving information for both PCI Express* (PCIe*) and DisplayPort* protocols. The Thunderbolt™ chip switches between the two protocols to support communications over a single cable. Intel is making its chip available to the industry, and is working with other component manufacturers to deliver the Thunderbolt™ connectors and cables. For cameras, it could act as a transmitter of data out.

 While it remains an emerging technology for commercial machine venor manufacturers Dr. Sgro regards it as potentially superior to such existing Interfaces as CoExpress, Camera Link 1 and GigE.  Camera Link 2.