Instrumentation specialist Ashtead Technology has added the i-SPEED 3 camera to its rental fleet of testing and monitoring instruments. By offering this device for hire, Ashtead is making the technology available to a much wider community. Initially designed for industrial applications and ballistics, the camera is now being employed in an enormous variety of applications in which the ability to capture high resolution images and film for fast moving images is important.
Explaining the popularity of the new instrument, Ashtead's Josh Thomas says: "As industrial processes become faster and increasingly automated, it has become more difficult to detect problems before they become serious or result in plant failure. However, the development of high-speed cameras has made it possible to visually slow down a process so that faulty or inefficient parts of the process can be identified before they cause a problem.
"This is extremely useful for inspection and maintenance staff and for product development teams looking to assess the performance of prototypes. However, high-speed cameras are finding their way into all sorts of applications; an ever increasing number of television programmes, films and web sites such as YouTube are now exploiting the benefits of this technology, so that viewers are able to see the finest detail of a dragonfly's beating wings for example, or a drop of sweat falling from a sportsman's face."
The i-SPEED 3 is able to record at a phenomenal speed of up to 150,000 frames per second (up to 1 second/picture in time lapse mode) and 10,000 pictures per second at a resolution of 1280 x 1024 pixels. However, despite the camera’s high specification and lengthy feature list, it is still relatively simple to operate and the unit's rechargeable batteries and Controller Display Unit (CDU) improve portability because they obviate the need for mains power and a computer.
The i-SPEED 3 joins a wide variety of video cameras and endoscopes in Ashtead's inspection fleet and Josh Thomas says: "This new camera offers an enormous array of very powerful features so it is a valuable (and expensive) tool. However, now that it has been added to the Ashtead Technology rental fleet; even those with a small budget can exploit the latest technology."
To view a video of the i-SPEED 3 in action please visit www.youtube.com/ashteadtechnology or use the following QR Code:
