Pulsar-4 Interface, Vega Meter

MKS Ophir, Light & Measurement

Request Info

For Laser Meter Measurement Applications

Ophir-Spiricon Inc. said its Pulsar-4 is a multichannel smart-head-to-PC interface that accomodates Ophir's smart heads and converts a PC or laptop into a full-featured laser power/energy meter. The company's Vega is an advanced handheld laser meter with a color display for laser beam measurement. Ophir-Spiricon is featuring both products in San Jose, Calif., this week at the SPIE Photonics West 2008 exhibition.

With plug-and-play connectivity, the Pulsar-4 channel USB interface functions as the gateway connection between the PC and the laser/power energy meter, eliminating the need for an external display, the company said. It records pulse energies at up to 20,000 Hz for all four channels simultaneously, and is designed with an external trigger that measures missing pulses or specific pulses designated by the operator.

Pulsar-4 supports up to four smart heads at once, giving operators the ability to conduct testing simultaneously or sequentially. It is compatible with most Ophir products including thermopile, photodiode, and pyroelectric smart heads. Ophir's USBI PC software is included with each device and converts any PC into a comprehensive laser power/energy meter, with functions such as log power and energy, averages, statistics, histograms, and more. ActiveX and complete LabView support will be standard with the Pulsar-4, the company said.

"Eye-safe requirements and other industry regulations have accelerated the importance of testing lasers and energy power in a wide range of applications," said Gary Wagner, president, Ophir-Spiricon. "Pulsar-4 provides the widest flexibility for laser and energy testing with support for testing up to four smart heads at once and recording pulse energies up to 20,000 Hz. With that kind of flexibility, our laser meters are able to withstand the most adverse or high power applications that are being driven in the defense and medical instrument sectors."

Also on display at the company's booth at SPIE Photonics West exhibit is the Vega handheld laser meter with a color display.

Available with digital or analog needle display, Vega offers an illuminated display screen with backlit navigation buttons that are easy to use under all lighting conditions. The 320 x 240 color display with large, 16-mm digits provides legibility and eases eye strain. The advanced screen assists operators with identifying trends or warning signals; colors can be optimized for use with laser protection glasses.

Vega is also compatible with all Ophir thermopile, photodiode, and pyroelectric smart heads, the company said. Its compact design includes rubberized bumpers and a stable kickstand. The system enables operators to log every point at up to 4000 Hz with pyro heads, and includes nonvolatile data storage of up to 200,000 points. The user interface includes a laser tuning screen and power and energy log, with USB and RS232 output to the user's choice of statistics packages on a personal computer. New software features include power or energy density units, min/max limits, graphing, attenuation scaling, and more.

"The need for more versatile handheld laser measurement devices is growing in leaps and bounds, in parallel with the increasing complexity of laser applications," Wagner said. "Vega addresses the market's needs by providing a plug-and-play instrument with larger-than-average user interface and brilliant colors that can be adjusted for use with laser protection glasses, which often mask laser beam colors. In addition, we continue to enhance the sophistication of our devices by broadening Vega¹s built-in software capabilities."

The Pulsar-4 and Vega are available now; OEM pricing based on quantity ordered, Ophir-Spiricon said.

For more information, visit Booth 834 at Photonics West, or www.ophiropt.com; e-mail: [email protected]

Ophir-Spiricon Inc.
60 West 1000 North
Logan, UT 84321
Phone: (435) 753-3729
Fax: (435) 753-5231

Visit company website

About this supplier

Published: January 2008