Description
Product Overview
The Basler scA640-120gm is a monochrome industrial area-scan camera from the Basler Scout GigE camera family, developed for high-speed machine vision and scientific imaging applications. It uses a Sony ICX618 monochrome CCD sensor with a 1/4-inch optical format, 659 × 494 pixel VGA resolution, global shutter, and a maximum acquisition rate of 122 frames per second. Its combination of high frame rate and compact construction makes the Basler scA640-120gm particularly suitable for inspecting fast-moving objects where motion blur and acquisition latency must be minimized.
The Basler scA640-120gm communicates through Gigabit Ethernet and supports GigE Vision and GenICam, providing a practical interface for industrial PCs and machine-vision software. Exposure can be controlled through the camera API, while synchronization can be achieved through software or an external trigger. The camera also provides two digital inputs and four digital outputs, allowing it to interact directly with external sensors, triggers, lighting controllers, and automation equipment.
For automated inspection systems, the Basler scA640-120gm can be integrated with PC-based vision platforms and software such as Basler pylon and compatible third-party vision environments. Its high-speed monochrome acquisition makes it well suited to production inspection, electronics manufacturing, measurement, laboratory imaging, and applications requiring rapid image capture. The model is now considered a legacy/discontinued product, so replacement planning should take hardware compatibility and software integration into account.
Technical Specifications
| Parameter Name | Parameter Value |
|---|---|
| Product Model | scA640-120gm |
| Manufacturer | Basler AG |
| Product Family | Basler Scout GigE |
| Product Type | Industrial Monochrome Area-Scan Camera |
| Sensor Type | Sony ICX618 CCD |
| Sensor Format | 1/4 inch |
| Resolution | 659 × 494 pixels |
| Pixel Size | 5.6 × 5.6 μm |
| Maximum Frame Rate | 122 fps |
| Shutter | Global Shutter |
| Interface | Gigabit Ethernet / GigE Vision |
| Pixel Bit Depth | Up to 12 bits |
| Lens Mount | C-Mount |
| Digital Inputs | 2 |
| Digital Outputs | 4 |
| Power Supply | 12–24 VDC |
| Typical Power Consumption | 3.5 W |
| Operating Temperature | 0°C to +50°C |
| Housing Dimensions | 73.7 × 44 × 29 mm |
| Weight | Approx. 160 g |
| Protection / Compliance | IP30, CE, FCC, RoHS, GenICam, GigE Vision |
Specifications are based on Basler documentation and supporting technical references.
Main Features and Advantages
High-speed monochrome acquisition
The scA640-120gm combines VGA resolution with an acquisition rate of up to 122 fps, making it suitable for fast inspection processes where a conventional low-frame-rate camera could miss moving objects or produce excessive motion blur. Basler’s original product information highlights the model’s high sensitivity and high-speed imaging capability for demanding machine-vision applications. (Vision Systems Design)
Global-shutter CCD imaging
The Sony ICX618 CCD uses a global shutter, allowing the image to be captured across the sensor without the geometric distortion associated with rolling-shutter acquisition. This is particularly advantageous for moving components, conveyor inspection, rotating machinery observation, and precision measurement.
SCA640-120GM
GigE Vision connectivity
The Gigabit Ethernet interface provides a convenient connection to industrial PCs and vision-processing systems. GigE Vision and GenICam compatibility simplifies integration into standardized machine-vision architectures and allows the camera to be used with established imaging software ecosystems.
Flexible triggering and I/O
External triggering enables image acquisition to be synchronized with production-line sensors or machine events. Two digital inputs and four digital outputs provide additional interaction with external automation equipment, enabling coordinated camera triggering, lighting control, and inspection-result signaling.
Compact industrial design
With a standard housing of approximately 73.7 × 44 × 29 mm and a typical weight of 160 g, the scA640-120gm can be installed in space-constrained inspection stations. Its 12–24 VDC power requirement is also convenient for integration into industrial control cabinets.
Application Fields
The Basler scA640-120gm is designed for high-speed machine-vision applications in industrial automation. In manufacturing lines, it can capture fast-moving components for presence/absence inspection, dimensional verification, surface inspection, alignment checking, and production-quality control. Its global shutter and high frame rate are particularly useful when objects move rapidly through the camera’s field of view.
In electronics and semiconductor manufacturing, the monochrome CCD sensor can be used for inspection of components, assemblies, markings, positioning features, and manufacturing defects. The high acquisition rate helps maintain inspection throughput on automated production equipment. Basler’s launch information specifically identified factory automation and semiconductor/electronics manufacturing as target applications.
The camera can also be applied to packaging, food processing, laboratory imaging, scientific measurement, and automated dimensional inspection. One documented application used the scA640-120gm with a laser-line setup and image-processing software to construct a 3D profile for biscuit dimensional measurement, demonstrating its suitability for high-speed measurement applications.
For PLC and industrial automation systems, the camera normally operates as part of a PC-based vision layer rather than as a direct PLC I/O device. Its digital I/O and GigE interface allow inspection results and triggering events to be coordinated with PLC-controlled machinery, conveyor systems, actuators, and other production equipment.
Related Products
- scA640-120gc – Color version of the same Scout camera family, using a similar 640-class resolution and 122 fps performance for applications requiring color information.
- scA640-74gm – Monochrome Scout camera with 659 × 494 resolution and a larger 1/2-inch sensor, providing a different optical configuration for inspection applications.
- scA640-70gm – Monochrome 640-series camera with approximately 71 fps performance and a 1/3-inch sensor, suitable when lower acquisition speed is sufficient.
- scA750-60gm – Monochrome Scout GigE camera with 752 × 480 resolution and approximately 60+ fps performance, offering an alternative sensor configuration.
- scA780-54gm – Higher-resolution monochrome Scout camera with 782 × 582 pixels, suitable when additional image resolution is more important than maximum frame rate.
- scA1000-30gm – Higher-resolution monochrome GigE camera designed for applications requiring greater spatial detail at a lower frame rate.
- scA1300-32gm – 1296 × 966 monochrome Scout camera, providing substantially higher spatial resolution for detailed inspection tasks.
- scA1390-17gm – Higher-resolution monochrome model for applications where image detail takes priority over acquisition speed.
- scA1400-30gm – Higher-resolution Scout GigE model offering 1392 × 1040 imaging and approximately 30 fps, suitable for detailed industrial inspection.
