profile ‘Although we don’t manufacture cameras,’
says Lang, ‘the lasers we provide are an essential part of the system. The laser projected needs to offer homogenous intensity distribution along a perfect straight line, and be industrial grade in terms of performance. We’ve invested heavily in new products in recent years, one of which is the ZM18, which incorporates a digital and analogue controller in one package. ‘In machine vision, our customers are
system integrators and machine builders. We design modules according to customer specifications, with specific beam shapes, which we call structured light projection. This means the modules project patterns according to customer needs, such as parallel lines, grids, dot grids and so on.’ In a competitive market, Lang believes
Z-Laser has many qualities that make it stand apart. ‘We are committed to lasers for use in industrial environments,’ says Lang. ‘That means our products are adapted for use in harsh environments, they can operate over a wide temperature range and are IP-67 rated. Our products are developed as a result of listening to customer needs. We work closely with them on designs that provide specific
Thomas Lang
‘In future, we will introduce more demanding products’
beam shapes that fit their application.’ As well as the bespoke products, Z-Laser
has range of standard product lines that are available from stock. ‘They have been designed to be used in a wide range of applications, without any need for modification,’ says Lang. ‘Sometimes a customer will take a standard product and test it for their needs. They may then come back to us with requests for more functionality, and we’ll work with them to customise the product accordingly. ‘Larger companies, such as those in the automotive industry, will come to us knowing exactly what they want. They’ll work with our R&D teams and we’ll develop a mutually agreed solution to their problem.’ Indeed, customer communication and
a larger R&D team are major strengths of Z-Laser, according to Lang. ‘The customer is the most important person,’ he says. ‘And our 17-strong R&D team has a wide skill set, including optical, mechanical and electronic design, and software. The customer can be certain of support from all of these areas.’ Assembly of the laser modules is handled in-house at the Freiburg facility, which is ISO-certified, underlining the company’s commitment to reliability. Lang also highlights a new department, established in the past year, focused on LEDs, rather than lasers. ‘These products are used for providing ambient light in medical equipment,’ he says.
Looking to the future, Lang says: ‘We
will introduce more demanding products, including more sophisticated laser modules with improved software and compatibility with PCs. We are also looking at higher power – 7W in infrared, 1.5W in red – which will allow us to better serve applications outside, where you might otherwise get interference from sunlight, or where the application is very fast, such as when the camera has a very short shutter time. We will also introduce rare wavelengths.’
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