May 01, 2020 15:00:00

Raspberry Pi's high quality camera module 'High Quality Camera' that can attach and detach commercially available lenses that can be purchased in the 5000 yen range is now available

The ' High Quality Camera ', a high quality camera module that can be purchased for just $ 50 (about 5400 yen) from the single board computer '

Raspberry Pi ' equipped with ARM processor, was announced. This camera module uses IMX477 , a 12.3 megapixel sensor manufactured by Sony, and can be equipped with C-mount and CS-mount camera lenses.

New product: Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera on sale now at $ 50-Raspberry Pi
https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/new-product-raspberry-pi-high-quality-camera-on-sale-now-at-50/

The Raspberry Pi brand has announced 'High Quality Camera', a high quality camera module. You can see the details of the module by watching the following movie.

NEW Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera-YouTube


High Quality Camera

The High Quality Camera uses Sony IMX477 sensor, and the

image size is 7.9mm diagonal. To be precise, the image size of the IMX477 is 7.857mm (1 / 2.3 inch) diagonal and uses a 12.3 megapixel CMOS image sensor.

You can use an interchangeable lens with adjustable

back focus .

Lens mount supports C mount and CS mount.

Of course, it is a camera module for Raspberry Pi.

When mounting C mount and CS mount lenses, it is necessary to use a lens adapter. The lens adapter also has a ring for focusing and a hole for a tripod.

Detailed guidelines for mounting C-mount and CS-mount lenses are provided in each guideline.

HQ Cam Lens Diagrams-16 mm C-mount lens
(PDF)

https://static.raspberrypi.org/files/product-guides/Typical_C-Mount_Lens_Guide.pdf

HQ Cam Lens Diagrams-6 mm CS-mount lens
(PDF) https://static.raspberrypi.org/files/product-guides/Typical_CS-Mount_Lens_Guide.pdf

On the official Raspberry Pi blog, you can see the pictures actually taken by using the High Quality Camera.

Simon Martin, a senior principal engineer at the Raspberry Pi Foundation, said in a blog, 'There has been a big connection between hackers and cameras in Raspberry Pi. In 2012, we used a Raspberry Pi single board computer. then, pull out the more features from the digital single-lens reflex camera

interesting way has been proposed. and in 2013 of a camera module can be directly connected with the Raspberry Pi OV5647 appeared. then, with the infrared sensitivity sensor NoIR camera is It appeared and was used to attach it to a telescope or drone to observe the growth of plants, 'said the camera and Raspberry Pi connection.

However, the OV5647 was discontinued in 2015. As a replacement for it, the Camera Module V2 was launched in April 2016, which is a camera module that uses Sony's IMX219 , an 8-megapixel image sensor. When Martin surveyed the sales of Camera Module V2, it was revealed that the cumulative sales number at the time of writing the article was over 1.7 million units.

Camera Module V2 is a big hit, but the low light performance tends to be low due to the small sensor size. Also, users who have expensive camera lenses as assets cannot shoot the subject while changing the lens used at the time of shooting like a single lens reflex camera. For this reason, the High Quality Camera has a larger sensor size that compensates for the weaknesses of the Camera Module V2 and supports C mount and CS mount.

The following pictures are taken with Camera Module V2 of Raspberry Pi 4 . I was able to shoot without problems, but it is dim overall and you can see that it is blurred when you enlarge the small letters on the microcomputer board.

If you shoot the same Raspberry Pi 4 with a High Quality Camera, the whole becomes quite bright, and the numbers on the board and the characters of 'Raspberry Pi 4' can be clearly identified.

The Camera Module V2 was a camera module with an integrated lens, but the High Quality Camera does not come with a lens, so you can attach a commercially available C-mount or CS-mount camera lens. As a dedicated camera lens, a 6mm wide-angle CS mount lens is sold for $ 25 (about 2700 yen), and a 16mm telephoto C mount lens is sold for $ 50 (about 5400 yen). In addition, it seems that almost all models after Raspberry Pi Model B released on February 15, 2012 are compatible with High Quality Camera.

Technology review site Tom's Hardware describes the High Quality Camera as 'the High Quality Camera is the winner because of its great flexibility and resolution'.

Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera Review: Interchangeable Lenses, Powerful Sensor | Tom's Hardware
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/raspberry-pi-high-quality-camera

Tom's Hardware has the advantages of the High Quality Camera: 'It offers great flexibility by supporting interchangeable lenses,' 'Great stability provided by a tripod hole,' and 'Raspberry Pi models.' There are 3 points that can be used without using it, and 3 negative points are that software is being developed, that the lens is not included, and that it becomes expensive if the lens is combined. .

The High Quality Camera can be purchased from the following page and the price is $ 50. In addition, a camera guide that describes in detail how to handle the High Quality Camera is freely available in PDF format .

Buy a Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera – Raspberry Pi