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Operation 15
RM/TM-4200GE Series
3
Operation
Progressive Scanning
The TM-4200GE uses a state-of-the-art progressive scanning interline transfer CCD (Kodak KAI-16000) which
scans all lines sequentially from top to bottom at one frame rate. Like a non-interlace computer monitor, it
outputs a stable, crisp image without alternating lines and a full vertical resolution of 2048 lines. Note: many
computer monitors may not support the full vertical resolution of the TM-4200GE, however most modern
monitors have display modes ranging as high as 2048 x 1536 pixels, enabling the output of a TM-4200GE camera
to be displayed at nearly full resolution.
Progressive scanning is in contrast to standard TV-system interlace scanning which alternates outputting
“fields” of odd and even lines to produce one frame. The scanning rate is either 50Hz or 60Hz depending on the
TV standard used, resulting in a frame rate of either 25 fps or 30 fps. This is true even for many HDTV sets,
which can support a maximum of 780 progressive scan lines (780p) or 1080 interlaced scan lines (1080i).
The use of an interline transfer (IT) architecture in conjunction with progressive scanning enables the TM-
4200GE to support simultaneous electronic shuttering of all lines/pixels in order to freeze fast moving objects.
This is different from frame transfer architectures which require a mechanical shutter or strobe light to
capture objects in motion.
3.1.1
Preset Scan Area
TM/TMC-4200 has four fixed Scan Area Modes: full scan, centered 1000 lines, centered 500 lines, and centered
250 lines. In full scan mode, all active lines of the CCD sensor, 2048 lines, are transferred out line by line. In
centered mode 1000 lines are transferred out, in 500 line and 250 line mode, only the centered lines are
transferred out line by line. The rest of the lines are dumped out using the fast dump function of the CCD. This
transfer method causes the frame rate of each mode to vary.
3.1.2
Programmable Scan Area
In Programmable Scan Area Mode, users can specify both the start point of the active scan area and the total
active lines. The area selected by users is transferred out line by line. The rest of the lines are dumped out
using the fast dump function of the CCD. The frame rate in this mode varies according to the selected active
area. When the active area starts from x row, and the active lines are y lines, the frame rate can be calculated
using the following formulas.