Phase One Industrial just unveiled a monstrous 280MP aerial camera system that, according to the company, “redefines large format aerial imaging.” It’s also described as “affordable,” weighing in at just $455,000 for the full solution.
Before sticker shock sets in, it’s worth pointing out that this is affordable … relatively speaking. Industrial large format aerial imaging systems like this include a lot more than a single camera and processing unit, and the latest creation from Phase One is a veritable beast that’s both compact and extremely high resolution.
The so-called 280MP “Aerial Solution” is a relatively lightweight system that includes the IXM-RS 280F large format camera, Applanix GNSS/IMU receiver, Somag gyro-stabilized mount, Phase One iX Controller, and the iX Flight Management software.
The camera itself is a dual lens metric camera that uses two 150MP BSI CMOS sensors behind two 90mm lenses to generate a central projection with equal ground resolution. And if you want to expand the system further, you can add a 50mm lens and yet another 150MP sensor to capture Near Infrared images and turn this into a 4-band (R,G,B, NIR) system.
Here’s a closer look at the camera:
And here’s the full “280MP Aerial Solution” assembled. You can just barely see the two lenses spoking out of the bottom:
The point of this system is (obviously) high-resolution aerial mapping.
Previous solutions were much larger and occasionally more expensive, limiting who could buy them and what aircraft could be used. The new 280MP Aerial System seeks to solve this issue with its “unprecedented […] image quality, operational flexibility, reliability and affordability,” says Doy Kalinski, GM of Phase One Industrial.
These high-resolution sample photos (click for larger version) give you some sense of the kind of detail this 280MP system can capture… and these aren’t even full-res:
Obviously this camera system is not the faint of heart, or for general consumers, but if you want to learn more about the full system, check out Phase One Industrial’s aerial imaging brochure or visit their website.
And if you are interested, you can actually order it from Phase One Industrial partner’s starting today—jus keep in mind that the two-lens system (no infrared imaging) starts at $455,000.
(via DPReview)
