Imaging Products
Some examples from our wide range of custom scientific imagers are shown below. Please email us with your specific needs.
Note that we currently stock a wide range of 3- and 4-inch interference filters suitable for aurora and airglow work.
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Keo Sentry 3 xi
• Fast f/0.95 telecentric imager for narrow-band monochromatic observations (3-inch single-filter version shown. 4 inch also available.)
• Monochromatic imaging through 1.8 - 2.0nm FWHM 5-cavity interference filter (>80% transmission) for high-speed narrow-band observations of airglow or auroral line and band emissions
• Custom-ground optics and recent (2009) significant improvements in the design of telecentric and reimaging stages yield the higest sensitivity and best spectral resolution we have provided to date.
• Shown in photo with Andor back-illuminated EMCCD camera (1024 x 1024 pixels) for fast imaging of sprites and discrete aurora. Also available with other scientific grade back-illuminated CCDs and EMCCDs.
• Interchangeable fields of view modules available: 8 degrees, 19 degrees, 47 degrees, 76 degrees, and 180 degrees (allsky).
• Also available with 6 or 8 position filter wheels, and a variety of sensors (13 mm to 27 mm, CCD and EMCCD).
Example application: This is an excellent redline (630.0 nm) imager. Also ideally suitable for fast imaging of 427.8 nm, 557.7 nm, 777.4 nm, OH, and Na. Also available in optimized NIR and IR versions.
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Keo Horizon
• Low-cost, compact all-sky (fisheye) imager
• Fast telecentric optics (f/.95)
• Includes slot for hot mirror, ND filter, and/or 1-inch interference filter
• Optional bistable shutter available
• In configuration shown here: Starlight Xpress Mx716 CCD camera.
• Also available with USB2 color CCD camera
• Data capture via USB2 port (Linux/Windows support)
Its low cost and high sensitivity makes the Keo Horizon line of imagers the ideal building block for ground-based imager arrays. Keo
recently delivered 20 of these imagers to U C Berkeley for the ground-based observatories (GBO) component of the NASA THEMIS mission.
The University of Calgary THEMIS Team, led by Dr. Eric Donovan, have deployed and are currently operating 16 of these imagers on Canadian soil. Four additional imagers are deployed in Alaska. Data are avilable in realtime.
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Keo Sentry 2i
• 2-inch telecentric all-sky imager
• 4 – 8 position filter wheel, modified Prontor shutter
• Gen II image intensifier
• Peltier cooled CCD (e.g., Pulnix TM-745)
• RS-232 control, Linux support
• Full calibration services available
Two-inch diameter optics and off-the-shelf RS-170/CCIR camera-head result in an inexpensive imager with excellent 557.7 nm and 630.0 nm performance.
The Finnish Meteorological Institute's MIRACLE array currently
employs eight of these imagers.
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Keo Sentry 3i/TEC
• Fast 3-inch telecentric all-sky optics
• 4 – 8 position filter wheel
• Glass or interference filters
• Modified Prontor shutter
• Back-illuminated bare CCD, or Gen II or cooled Gen III intensifier
• Thermoelectrically cooled CCD, -80C, lifetime vacuum seal guarantee
• Temperature stabilized filter wheel
• RS-232 or USB control
• Linux and Windows control software
• Full calibration services available
This is the classic workhorse of auroral (e.g., H-Beta) and airglow research, designed by Dr. Bob Eather. This model
is being used in the Canadian NORSTAR array
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Keo Sentry 3/EMCCD
• Fast 3-inch telecentric all-sky optics (f/0.95 onto CCD)
• 6 – 8 position filter wheel
• Narrow band (2 nm FWHM) interference filters
• High-reliability Uniblitz capping shutter
• Thinned, back-illuminated Electron Multiplying CCD (EMCCD)
• EMCCDs with imaging areas of 8 x 8 mm to 13.3 x 13.3 mm available
• Thermoelectrically cooled EMCCD, -80C, lifetime vacuum seal guarantee
• Temperature stabilized filter wheel
• Linux and Windows control software
This model
is being used in the Canadian NORSTAR array
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Keo Sentry 4i
• 4-inch all-sky optics — for the highest airglow sensitivity
• 6 – 8 position temperature stabilized (PID) filter wheel
• Narrow band (1.8 nm FWHM) 4-inch diameter interference filters
• Thinned, back-illuminated 27 x 27 mm CCD, for the greatest sensitivity
• Thermoelectrically cooled EMCCD, -80C, lifetime vacuum seal guarantee
• Custom features available
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Keo Sentry 3i/LC
• Fast 3-inch telecentric all-sky optics
• 4 – 8 position filter wheel
• Glass or interference filters
• Modified Prontor shutter
• Gen II or cooled Gen III intensifier
• 512x512 pixel CCD
• Liquid cooled CCD/Intensifier
• Temperature stabilized filter wheel
• RS-232 or USB control
• Linux control software
• Full calibration services available
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Custom Imagers
Keo Scientific Ltd. offer a wide range of innovative imaging solutions.
Our team is ready to assist you in designing a system specific to your needs
or project/proposal.
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Keo SilverTalon
• Telescopic imager
• Field of View: 2 degrees (other FoVs are available)
• Fast 3-inch telecentric narrow-field optics
• Includes piggy-back bracket for spotting camera
• 6 position filter wheel
• 3", 5-cavity interference filters
• Modified Prontor shutter
• A variety of CCD sizes/types available, including EMCCD (Roper/Andor)
• Thermoelectrically cooled CCD, lifetime vacuum seal
• Temperature stabilized filter wheel
• RS-232 or USB control
• Windows/XP and Linux control software
• Full calibration services available
This instrument is being used by our customers for high-resolution studies of the microphysics of aurora/airglow (whether real or artifically induced).
Photo showing suggested setup, with piggy-back camera for context imaging. Mount is Paramount ME from Software Bisque, supplied upon request.
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KeoFPI — Keo Scientific Fabry-Pérot Interferometer (FPI)
Shown here is a Keo Scientific Fabry-Pérot Interferometer with optional Keo Scientific SkyScan first surface
articulated mirror assembly front-end for pointing FPI to any point in (or quadrant of) the sky, and for
scanning along any defined curve/line in the sky.
Available with 5 to 8-position PID temperature-stabilized filterwheel (2 to 4 inches diameter
1-2 nm FWHM narrow band interference filters), optional shutter, and CCD camera. A variety of apertures/etalon-sizes are available to satisfy the individual customers' needs.
Mounting example.
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Keo SkyScan
A dual first-surface articulated mirror assembly, this miniaturized Sky-Scanner is suitable for use with, for example, Photometers and Fabry-Pérot Interferometers.
4-inch aperture (other apertures available upon request), 2-axis scanning of the sky via two high-reflectance first-surface mirrors and high-transmittance entrance window.
Other aperture sizes available as well.
Fast and accurate pointing/scanning is achieved by means of Animatics SmartMotor technology.
Controllable from any computer/laptop USB or RS-232 port (only one port required).
Software library included.
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Real-Time Video Recording of the Aurora
Real-time imaging of auroral phenomena at very high frame rates — from analog 30 or 25-fps TV cameras, to digital 1000-fps cameras — straight to
hard disc via FireWire interface is now feasible, alleviating the need for
video cassette recorders and eliminating the hassle of limited-length video tapes.
Keo Scientific make use of Terabyte FireWire harddiscs and FireWire-support in the
latest Linux kernel to optimize throughput and maximize reliability and scalability.
In the case of remote field sites, imaging (including still-image or movie acquisition without dropped frames, generation of quicklook collages or subsampled movies for web presentation)
can be performed via crontab, /etc/inittab, or interactively through the Internet via ssh; no GUI required.
We can provide the customer with a complete, compact digital video recording suite with GPS
kernel clock discipline.
The system shown here has a $500 CCD camera head with a 1/3" CCD and a 25 mm lens. It acquired
this pulsating aurora sequence (subsampled and scaled down for web presentation).
The whole system travels in one convenient water- and air-tight foam-fitted case.
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Some underlying principle employed by Keo Scientific Ltd. in designing the above telecentric all-sky imaging systems is described on our Technology page. A suggested way of setting up and operating our imaging systems is shown in this block diagram. Keo Scientific can assist with system integration.
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