Sending Superheroes Into Retirement
What if you could see in the dark, or through smoke, fog, and other hazy conditions?
With thermal imaging, you can. Infrared (IR) cameras capture the heat energy emitted
by objects, providing clarity where eyesight fails. Infrared vision has obvious
advantages for police and firefighting applications:
- Locating suspects
- Finding survivors
- Identifying hot spots in a fire
Infrared tools make it much easier to navigate dangerous situations and save lives
quickly, feats that used to be reserved for caped wonders. They are such a critical
life-saving tool that fire departments are willing to spend as much as $17,000 to
own just one. And that’s about all many departments could hope to afford—until
now.
Infrared Vision for the Masses
Agiltron recently developed a design that pairs infrared and conventional visible-light
sensors to create true thermal imaging in a mass-marketable sensor. This new technology
drops the cost of infrared imaging to just a few thousand dollars—80 percent
less than IR systems cost now. Large-scale production could push that price much
lower, to a point where infrared cameras become standard equipment for every firefighter,
as common as a helmet and heavy gloves. Pricing in that range also opens up new
uses, like integration with surveillance and automotive cameras.
Agiltron saw the potential for a market once limited to a handful of high-end military
and heavy industrial customers. In order to open that market up, they needed to
develop a visible-light image sensor that hit their performance and cost targets.
Agiltron looked at a lot of sensor suppliers during product development. Micron
stood out as the clear choice because we provided a high-performance, cost-effective
sensor backed by knowledgeable design support.
Micron’s partnership with Agiltron is part of a broader strategy to help create
breakthrough technologies that open significant new markets, technologies that will
provide real improvement to thousands of lives. We focus on developing high-value
IP, and we find ways to move those ideas into new markets where we can add value.
Micron’s penchant for patenting great ideas is well established. In 2006,
IEEE recognized our extensive patent portfolio as the most valuable one in the world.
Take a second look at Micron—we’re not just a DRAM commodity supplier
anymore.
Click on the video to view a demonstration of Agiltron's LightLever™ imaging camera.
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