1. Types of Lenses

〇Catalog Lens

Refers to ready-made lenses sold on websites or in catalogs.

【Pros】
・Can be easily found and quickly purchased from catalogs and other sources
・Can be purchased in low quantities
・Wide lineup, ideal if you want to try out lenses with various specifications
・No initial investment needed for molds, jigs, evaluation machines, etc.

【Cons】
・There are cases where there is no match to the required specifications that you really want
・Even with higher purchase volumes, cost benefits are small
・It is hard to distinguish the product from others because anyone can purchase the product
・Specifications cannot be altered

〇Custom Lens

An order-made lens that is made based on the buyer’s specific optical performance and
specification requirements.

【Pros】
・It can be order-made
・Can meet the required specifications you want
・Specifications can be changed during the production process
    (Though, it might cost additional fee during development phase)
・It is easy to generate cost benefits per unit when the purchase volume is high
・Even if you don’t have specific specifications, suppliers can work with you from
    the product concept building stage

【Cons】
・It takes time
・There are initial costs for molds, jigs, evaluation machines, etc
・You have to provide a requirements specification
・Without optical knowledge, it is hard to know what to pay attention to and
    what are the key points to manufacture a lens

〇Summary of Catalog / Custom Lens Comparison

Knowing “what kind of lens you want, when do you want it, and how many do you want” is essential in selecting lenses. Therefore, one of the key points in avoiding problems in lens selection is to follow the above explanation.

2. Case Studies

〇Case 1

【Background】
This is a case in which TOYOTEC made a proposal to a customer who had purchased a catalog lens.The customer wanted to lower the unit purchase price, and asked TOYOTEC if the unit price could be lowered with a custom lens.

【Inquiry Details】
・Quantity：50 pcs / Month
・Product Life：10 Years（120 Months）
・Requirements：A lens unit using glass lenses, design / spec must be same as the current catalog lens

Figure 1: Comparison of Catalog and Custom Proposals

【Results】
The unit price of custom lenses was higher than the unit price of catalog lenses, and there was no benefit to the customer.

【Explanation】
As described in “1. Types of Lenses,” custom lens production requires initial costs for molds, lens jigs and tools, etc. In addition, if the quantity is small, it is difficult to reduce the unit cost of parts from that of a catalog lens. Under the customer’s requirements, there is no benefit in making custom lenses.

Figure 2: Cost Comparison of Catalog / Custom Lenses

However, as shown in Figure 2, the part cost decreases as the quantity of custom lenses increases, so when requesting custom lenses with a focus on cost, it is recommended that multiple quantity requirements be presented.

〇Case 2

【Background】
This is a case in which TOYOTEC made a proposal to a customer who had purchased a catalog lens as well as Case 1. This customer had requests to reduce product size while maintaining unit price and optical performance, and asked TOYOTEC if this was possible.

【Inquiry Details】
・Quantity：1,000 pcs / Month
・Product Life：5 Years（60 Months）
・Requirements：Production of a full lens unit. If optical performance can be maintained,
                                 the design can be freely chosen by the supplier.

Figure 3: Lens Miniaturization Image

【Results】
TOYOTEC analyzed the current product and redesigned the lens. As a result, we were able todownsize the lens while maintaining the same unit price and optical performance, thus achieving the customer’s needs.

【Explanation】
Unlike Case 1, there are two reasons for the positive results. One is because the quantity requirements were relatively large,and the other is because we were able to work with the customer from the development stage.

The post What Are the Points in Choosing Between Catalog / Custom Lenses? appeared first on Toyotec Solutions.

The new wide-angle lens unit developed by TOYOTEC

has the industry’s smallest distortion.

It provides accurate information over a wide area

to the system without image distortion correction.

Agritech (Smart Agriculture）and Remote Sensing

In agriculture, one of the ways to improve productivity is through the use of digital systems. Lately, this method is often treated as a theme of “agritech”, and it also occupies an important position in “smart agriculture” promoted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.

The smart agriculture market is one of the growing industries in Japan, as many startups and venture companies are flocking to take part in this market.
Looking at the Japanese market alone, it is said that a new market of 100 to 200 billion yen will be created by 2030 (although forecasts vary widely).

One of the core technologies in this smart agriculture market is remote sensing technology. This technology is used to monitor the condition of crops growing on farmland in real time while using digital systems.

Currently, farmers use their experience, instincts, and a lot of field labor to grasp the growth status and take appropriate measures.

In this technology, it is necessary to conduct observations from a position that allows a bird’s-eye view of the cultivated land, and for this purpose, there are three important technologies: drone technology, sensor technology, and image processing technology.

Ultra-low-distortion Lens and Remote Sensing

The accuracy of the image data that can be acquired and the speed of acquisition are crucial in the remote sensing of cultivated land. The acquisition speed is the same as the size of the image that can be acquired at one time. This means that the requirements for the optical system are simply “the ability to acquire image data over a wide area at a wide angle” and “the ability to accurately capture the actual situation with little distortion in the image data”.

TOYOTEC’S RDL Lens meet the above two conditions and is accepted by smart agriculture players as an important elemental technology in remote sensing for agriculture.

The post Story: Wide-angle, ultra-low-distortion lens brings innovation to next-generation agriculture. appeared first on Toyotec Solutions.