What is an Inspection Camera

Posted on June 7, 2013 by olegzuev

Inspection cameras are a new generation of survey tools that are becoming more and more popular among professionals that need to explore and fix hard-to-reach areas. They save a great amount of time and money both for contractors and their clients, as they allow to get to the places you can’t normally see without having to tear apart the whole area. Instead you can just run one of these inspection devices behind the walls, in the ceiling cavity, down the pipeline and other hard-to-see spots. Inspection cameras come with videoprobes of different lengths, diameters and functionality to fit different types of inspections.

Several integral features of an inspection camera bore scope include the insertion probe section, the articulated tip, articulation controls (up, down, left, right) on the control handle, lighting bundle, high intensity external light source and cable interface with outputs to the display (LCD or CRT) and external media recording device such as computer hard disk or compact flash card. The system normally will record either live video or still photos.

Inspection cameras differ greatly in price range depending on the scope of features they offer. You can get a basic inspection device that will allow you to locate the problem area. As prices go up, you get more sophisticated equipment with advanced illumination, zooming, pan-and-tilt options, still or video images capture features, high-resolution displays and more.

As either an AC or DC portable visual inspection system, the components are designed to be compact and be hand carried without shipping cases on wheels or large boxes.

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What makes rigid borescopes better than fiberscopes

Posted on May 8, 2013 by olegzuev

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Specialists who are interested in rigid borescopes want to know their pros and cons.

A rigid borescope is an optical instrument with a metal insertion probe and eyepiece on one end and an objective lens on the other. There is a complex relay optical system between them. There are three types of optical systems: Hopkins rod lenses, achromatic doublets and gradient rod lenses. For large diameter the achromatic doublet relays are sometimes used. For smaller diameters the rod lenses provide better images. For very small rigid borescopes, the gradient index lens relays are better. The insertion tube also contains glass fibers for illumination. The illumination can be provided either by LED light source attached as a handle to the light post of the borescope, or by an external powerful Metal Halide, LED or Halogen light source. In the latter case the light is transmitted through flexible glass fiber guide. An internal image of the object is formed by the objective lens and magnified by the eyepiece, which presents it to the eye.

What are advantages of rigid borescopes? They provide a superior image at lower cost compared to fiberscopes. The image has a very high clarity. When an object is located within direct access, rigid borescopes work well. They are recommended for gunsmithing, automobile inspection like observation of automotive cylinders, injectors and hydraulic manifold bodies. A video camera can be attached with the help of special adapter to the eyepiece, and after that it is possible to record video and still images for further processing.

What are disadvantages of rigid borescopes then? They are limited to access to a straight line. It is impossible to view hidden objects behind obstacles. Besides they are fragile instruments and don’t like falling down.

There are many rigid borescopes in the market with diameter from 1.8 mm to 8 mm and length from 10 cm to 90 cm. As you can see they have more advantages than disadvantages and can be very efficient for inspection work.

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Inspection Cameras. How to use them?

Posted on April 5, 2013 by olegzuev

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Today remote visual inspection is becoming more and more popular throughout the world. But sometimes technicians hesitate to use inspection camera because they are not sure if they need any special training or skills to work with a borescope. However inspections with such devices in the most of cases do not require any special knowledge or skills. There are some simple rules to follow.

First of all it is necessary to determine the length and diameter of insertion probe. Then you have to choose between a rigid and a flexible insertion rod. If you need further documentation, you would need an inspection camera with a special monitor hub and recording ability.

Optical borescope lets you see the defective place or part through an eyepiece. Insert the probe carefully through the inlet and switch on the light source, and you would immediately see the desired area. Handheld LED light sources are very convenient to use. In case of a videoscope after turning on it is ready to inspect. If light intensity is too strong or too low, you can adjust it according to your needs. Press on recording button and your video will be recorded in AVI or other format onto an SD card. Keep in minds that insertion probes are rather fragile, therefore it is better to avoid excessive bending or forcing the probe.

Here is an example of using a videoscope to inspect a car engine. When a car has an interference engine and timing belt is broken, it is possible that the pistons hit valves before the engine stopped completely. After compression test, if the valves are bent they will not seal properly and the compression readings are low. Get your inspection camera and inspect through the spark plug holes, looking for impressions on the piston tops. Devices with 2 or 3 meter long probes and tip articulation are the most convenient. The flexible probe of the inspection camera lets you see the damage that may have occurred without disassembling the top part of the engine.

For more information go to Fiberscope.net and talk with a tech support

How to Choose an Automotive Borescope?

Posted on March 21, 2013 by olegzuev

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There are many applications where borescopes are important and even critical. Borescopes are used every day by automotive technicians to inspect automotive components. The most important components such as fuel nozzles, hydraulic components and systems, welded tubing, engine cylinders, valve seats are all inspected using borescopes or fiberscopes. The borescope allows the mechanic to inspect defects inside the part that otherwise would remain undetected, causing a potential failure down the road. Without borescopes technicians often use invasive testing or disassembling which is both costly and time consuming. Borescopes and video borescopes (videoscopes) pay for themselves by detecting problems and improving overall quality.

What is the difference between borescopes and video borescopes (videoscopes)? The main difference is that videoscopes transmit video or still images from the camera in the probe tip to the recording and imaging hub, while optical borescopes use optical relay system or glass fiber bundle, and they are mainly used for eye only inspection.

Auto and diesel engine mechanics often use borescopes and videoscopes to inspect cylinders, piston crowns, valves and valve seats. This often prevents costly and time consuming tear down.

Flexible videoscopes with articulation are very useful. Technicians observe hard-to-reach places and record images or video for further analysis and to in order to the best method of repair in difficult cases.

Articulated videoscopes are often used to inspect gear boxes and cylinder blocks. The insertion probe is water-, oil-, gas-, and diesel-proof and efficient enough for everyday inspections.

Many videoscopes have a durable stainless steel braided probe and super bright LED light source incorporated in the camera tip. Technicians choose steel braided videoscopes for long-term work of the videoscope because of sharp edges and metal parts.

Today modern videoscopes have high resolution monitors which permit to see very small details in the inspected area. LED light sources provide good illumination in completely dark conditions. To achieve the best results mechanics use videoscopes with the most powerful LED bulbs.

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What is a Videoscope?

Posted on March 8, 2013 by olegzuev

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A videoscope is a borescope with a video camera at the tip of an insertion probe and a monitor to visualize the inspection. The tip contains also generally LED light source. The insertion probe contains electrical wires and special steel wires to control the tip if the device is articulated. A videoscope is an inspection tool with a flexible optical tube to insert into bores, pipes, holes and cavities for visual inspection. Nowadays they are used more often than optical rigid borescopes and fiberscopes.
The videoscopes are classified according to the following important specifications: presence of articulation, diameter of probe, working length, field of view (FOV), direction of view (DOV) and minimal focus distance. Articulation is a feature of tip bending with the help of a knob or a ring. The diameter of probe is usually between 4-10 mm. The working length is the length of the probe. The field of view is the viewing area. It is a measure of how much of the visual field is taken up by the image. The direction of view is the direction the axis of view. The minimal focus distance for the borescope is the minimum effective focusing distance.
Flexible videoscope tips may be bent back and forth using a control in the handpiece, which allows changes to view angle. A two-way articulated tip can be manipulated and implies single plane of articulation. A four-way articulated tip can be manipulated in two plane articulation.
Often articulated videoscopes include stainless steel or even tungsten braiding of insertion tube, which guards electrical wiring and control wires from damage. Tungsten braiding is twice more durable than steel braiding and often used in premium systems.
Today customers are offered with a wide range of videoscopes from simple ones with PVC covered flexible probes to highly efficient ones with stereo measuring ability, four-way articulation, a number of sensors, tungsten sheathing and high resolution video cameras.

Looking for a reliable videoscope? Shop here

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Comparison of rigid and flexible articulated videoscopes

Posted on February 21, 2013 by olegzuev

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Videoscopes Rigel, Heron, Orion represent a whole new line of modern industrial videoscopes for NDT inspection. They are supplied with variety of probes – rigid, flexible and articulated. But what is the difference between rigid and fully flexible articulated videoscopes? Let’s see where it is better to use rigid probe and where – flexible? These and some other questions are answered in the following video. This video is about rigid videoscope Heron and flexible videoscope Rigel.

Comparison of rigid and flexible videoscopes

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Our Rigel Videoscope was used on Graveyard Carz!

Posted on December 11, 2012 by olegzuev

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Video Borescopes have long be used to inspect inside engines, gas tanks and other hard to visualize places on auto mobiles. Borescopes can be used to look into any cavity that has a large enough access point to insert the probe. So there really is not limit to the ways videoscopes can be used by mechanics or anyone working on vehicles.

We recently had our Rigel Videoscope featured on an episode of Graveyard Carz, they used the Rigel to look into rocker panels and uni-body rails of a car being restored to check for rust.

Rigel being used to inspect the body of the car

Rigel showing the rust in the body panels of the car

Check out the video on our youtube channel.

We would like to thank Graveyard Carz for sharing this footage with us.

New Videos of Triton Push Camera, with Self Levelling Camera Head.

Posted on December 4, 2012 by olegzuev

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We have posted some more videos highlighting our new Triton Industrial Pipe Inspection Camera on our YouTube Channel. please take a moment and check them out, let us know what you think. Also let us know what video’s you would like to see us make in the future!

Triton Self Levelling Camera Head

Triton with self levelling camera head inspecting laterals

These videos feature the Triton with the self levelling camera head. The pipe camera head is 1.68″ in diameter and the rest of the units features the same specs listed on our website. This option is not currently advertised on the website, but just contact our resident tech specialists through the website or over the phone for more information on this version of Triton.

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Our Customer Shares Images from Pipe Inspections

Posted on November 27, 2012 by olegzuev

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We recently had a customer from Switzerland purchase a 40m Viper Portable Push Camera from our online store. Geologische Beratungen, Schenker Korner & Partners GMBH were very happy with their purchase, and send us back some images they captured with their push camera. The Viper has a CCD camera and 8 bright LED lights in the head of the waterproof probe to capture these bright, clear, colour images of inspections.

Encrusted Pipe

Clean Pipe

Unprofessional Implantation of pipe

Root invasion into Pipe at 7m depth

Geologishe Beratungen are using the camera for quality control, inspecting underground pipes that were part of their studies dealing with pollution legacy, foundation ground and hydro geology. We would like to thank them for sharing their results with us.

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Exploring the Reasons for Price Differences Between Similar Looking Video Scopes

Posted on November 20, 2012 by olegzuev

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When looking for a Video Borescope the biggest factor to take into account is the job that needs to be done, and then the budget you have to work with. The price of a unit does not necessarily determine the quality of a product, but is a good thing to keep in mind when comparing scopes. High end scopes are going to be more expensive than economy scopes, the main reason for this is that higher end scopes tend to use higher resolution video chips in the camera heads, the better the quality of the camera, the better your inspection results will be. High quality camera chips also ensure that any light provided will be used to the best advantage of the recording device.

Scopes like our Orion II Video Borescope have a higher resolution CMOS camera chip than the Voyager Video Borescope, with more LEDs built into the tip of the scope. This means that while the specs of these scopes may appear to be similar, you will get much better image quality from the Orion. Also the more costly scopes become, the more features they tend to offer the user such as articulation, different focal ranges and structure and design of the probe. Higher quality scopes are designed for someone that is using their scopes more often and for more intricate inspections. Economy scopes are designed to be affordable options for someone who may not use their scope enough to justify a higher price tag, but who still wants the advantages gained by using videoscopes to do inspections. It’s best to talk to a representative to determine which scope will meet your needs and budget the best.

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