Dec 17 2007
Metrologic Instruments, Inc. today announced the release of the IS4920, a miniature mega-pixel imaging engine with a hardware decoder. Original equipment manufacturers (OEM) can easily integrate the high-performance engine into a wide range of devices whose applications demand robust omnidirectional scanning of 1D and 2D bar codes.
The IS4920 joins Metrologic's IS4910, which was released in August 2007. As the first member of Metrologic's imaging engine line, the non-decoded IS4910 is intended for OEM's desiring full control of the camera and decoding software libraries on their embedded microprocessors.
The IS4920 captures high-resolution images and decodes bar codes in applications associated with mobile computers, hand-held scanners, self- service and payment kiosks, identity verification, medical/diagnostic instruments and lottery terminals. Since the IS4920 draws approximately half the operating current of comparable products (235 mA of current at 3.3 volts), it is well-suited for battery-powered devices.
"The IS4920 was designed and built to meet the often underestimated needs of integrators," said Mark Schmidt, Metrologic's vice president of product management and marketing. "The IS4920 enables integrated devices to decode the widest set of symbologies and OCR fonts -- including bar codes scratched, torn, poorly printed, worn or wrapped in clear plastic -- at the industry's highest rates for speed and aggressiveness. And thanks to its mega-pixel resolution and wide-angle lens design, it can also capture very wide bar codes other imaging engines cannot."
At the core of the IS4920's aggressive performance is a 400-mHz processor, which gives the engine more than double the processing speed of comparable products. The IS4920's industry-standard form factor features a 1.2 mega-pixel sensor with a wide-angle lens that covers twice the scan area of competing products. This optical architecture eliminates the scanning dead zone associated with comparable devices by offering a depth of field over 11 inches and unmatched up-close scanning which starts one inch from the face of the engine. A built-in aiming LED simplifies targeting and makes scanning intuitive.
The IS4920 can be used for scanning bar codes as well as for uploading images in applications such as capturing signatures and lifting documents. It provides consistent scan performance under any ambient light condition from complete darkness to direct sunlight.
Patented FirstFlash(R) technology enables the IS4920 to decode bar codes with a single flash of illuminating LEDs. With CodeSelect(TM), the IS4920 decodes multiple bar codes captured in a single image and then transmits the data in any pre-determined order. SwiftDecoder(R) software from Omniplanar(R), gives the engine the power to decode bar codes as dense as four mil (0.102 mm). The IS4920 also reads application specific optical-character-recognition (OCR) fonts such as those found on passports and checks.
With its open-system architecture which accepts third-party and custom plug-ins, the IS4920 has virtually unlimited application flexibility. The imager and decode board can be ordered as an assembled module or separate components. Metrologic also supplies a software development kit to facilitate development of customized plug-ins.