Multi-Camera High-Speed Synchronization Without Physical Wiring
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing high-speed cameras struggle with synchronizing trigger signals across multiple units due to asynchronous electronic devices in communication formats, leading to complex cable wiring and restricted installation and movement.
Innovation Solution
A synchronous camera apparatus with a system control unit in each camera, utilizing current time generation, synchronization signal setting, and frame association means to synchronize cameras wirelessly without physical connections, using TCP/IP protocol for time synchronization and electrical cables for minimal delay.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If asynchronous electronic devices are used in communication formats for trigger signal transmission, then communication flexibility is improved, but synchronization precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a master camera as an intermediary device that generates and distributes trigger signals to slave cameras. This master camera acts as a centralized coordination point, ensuring all cameras synchronize to the same time reference while allowing flexible communication protocols to be used in the distributed network.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces physical cable connections with wireless communication protocols (TCP/IP, UDP, Wi-Fi) for trigger signal transmission. This substitution eliminates the need for complex cable wiring while maintaining synchronization capability through software-based timing protocols.
2Reliability
If cable wiring is used for trigger signal connection, then synchronization reliability is improved, but installation complexity and movement restriction increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces mechanical cable connections with electromagnetic wireless communication for trigger signal transmission. This eliminates the physical complexity of cable routing and connection management while maintaining reliable signal delivery through protocol-level synchronization mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent makes the camera system universally compatible with standard network communication protocols (TCP/IP, UDP, Wi-Fi), allowing the same camera apparatus to function both as an imager and as a trigger signal distributor. This multi-functionality reduces the need for dedicated synchronization hardware and simplifies installation.
3Ease of operation
If wireless communication is used for synchronization, then ease of installation and movement is improved, but trigger signal transmission delay increases
Solution Approach 1:
The master camera preliminarily generates and distributes trigger signals before the actual imaging operation begins. The trigger time is calculated in advance based on the round-trip communication delay, allowing slave cameras to compensate for wireless transmission latency and maintain precise synchronization.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where cameras report their received trigger signal timing and status back to the master camera. This feedback loop allows the master to adjust future trigger signal timing to compensate for variable wireless communication delays, maintaining synchronization accuracy.
Data Source
AI summary
A synchronous camera apparatus including a plurality of high-speed cameras according to the present invention includes a plurality of high-speed cameras each including an imager unit that sequentially images a target video image at a set exposure timing, a video recording memory, a video recording unit that video-records a predetermined image imaged by the imager unit as an image frame of digital data in the video recording memory by input of a trigger signal, and a system control unit that has a timer and performs various types of calculations, and synchronization signal means a setting for setting synchronization signal in each of the high-speed cameras and transmitting the set synchronization signal to each of the high-speed cameras. The synchronization signal is a trigger time. The synchronization signal is a sequence number matching time and a trigger sequence number.