LED illumination is often considered suitable for machine vision applications, because it produces a high light intensity at a relatively low cost, with a long service life (typically 100,000 hours). Firstsight Vision offers a range of LED illumination sources (which they feel ties in with this belief) to industrial and scientific OEMs, system integrators and resellers. This includes the range of LED sources from CCS Inc.
The LDR2/SQR series of LEDs from CCS has a high intensity light output which reportedly creates vivid images; and comes with a choice of heat dissipation characteristics and cost.
The LDR2 series features high-density LED arrays arranged in an umbrella configuration, creating a bright concentration of light at the centre of the illumination area. They use a heat dissipating enclosure for harsh environments and heat sensitive applications. This prevents the heat from building up in the LEDs and increases both life expectancy and uniformity of the unit.