ramé-hart Technical Document

Technical Bulletin

Running any ramé-hart Instrument with U Series camera on a Laptop or Notebook PC

The U Series cameras (e.g., U1, U2, U3, U4, U5...) are machine vision cameras with a USB 3.0 interface and requires both data transfer and power from the USB port. There are several reasons it may work fine on a desktop PC but not on a laptop:

1. The USB 3.0 ports can theoretically provide 900mA (4.5W) of power. The U1 (and U4) camera requires this much power to function properly. Most laptop PCs provide lower-powered USB ports (providing 500mA instead of 900mA) or sometimes even less. If the port does not provide enough power, the camera may not initialize, may disconnect, or may not function reliably. And if it does initialize, it will not continue to work properly.

2. Laptops often have power-saving mechanisms that reduce power output to conserve battery and this can wreak havoc with machine vision cameras like our U series cameras.

3. Shared power across multiple USB ports, can lead to insufficient power per port.

Desktop PCs typically have more robust USB power delivery because they have a dedicated power supply unit (PSU) that provides stable 5V power. The motherboard can handle higher power draw for peripherals.

Our U Series cameras are machine vision cameras that are 100% "bus-powered", meaning they rely entirely on USB power.

If the laptop's USB bus cannot supply enough power, the camera will not work properly. Desktops have stronger and more consistent USB power, allowing the camera to function correctly.

Thus, we ALWAYS recommend running only on a desktop PC and discourage using a laptop or notebook PC.

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If you require any additional technical assistance, please contact us with your instrument serial number and model number and provide detailed information on what you need help with.