LWIR infrared cameras can now measure up to 1500 °C

High-resolution infrared cameras for additional fields of application

Optris GmbH: The optris PI 450 and optris PI 640 infrared cameras can now also be calibrated for a temperature measurement range of up to 1500 °C. This allows the two high-resolution cameras to be integrated into applications which far exceed the previous threshold of 900 °C. “These camera models feature an impressive dynamic range from 200 °C to 1500 °C, thus extending their possible applications. In heat treatment processes and high temperature processes in particular, continual measurement without switching range is now possible”, explained Dr. Ulrich Kienitz, Managing Director of Optris.

High surface temperatures measurable with LWIR cameras
Now, Optris can offer five cameras in the LWIR range (7.5 – 13 µm) with resolutions from 160 x 120 pixels. The two high-resolution models with 382 x 288 and 640 x 480 pixels can now also be calibrated to the temperature range of 200 °C to 1500 °C. In this temperature range, the system accuracy is ±2 %. Uncooled, the cameras can be employed in environments from 0 °C to 50 °C (PI 640) or 70 °C (PI 450), and with a cooling housing even up to 315 °C.

High temperature applications without switching measurement range
The cameras are employed in high temperature processes. This includes, for example, the steel industry where the inner walls of combustion chambers are tested. In innovative industrial processes, too, such as selective laser melting, temperatures of over 900 °C need to be detected. Another application is in processes which have to be controlled or regulated across a wide temperature range. The glass industry is an example of this. Molten glass has a temperature of around 1000 °C, whereas the material cools down to less than 500 °C by the end of the process. The entire process can now be controlled with an infrared camera without changing systems or switching ranges.