Flir ThermovisionPathFindIR LE User Manual

							334-0001-00-10-LE, rev. 100 May ’08i
 –  – 
User Manual
334-0001-00-10-LE, rev. 100
May ’08 
						

							© FLIR Systems, Inc.. All rights reserved worldwide. No parts of this 
manual, in whole or in part, may be copied, photocopied, translated, or 
transmitted to any electronic medium or machine readable form without 
the prior written permission of FLIR Systems, Inc.
Names and marks appearing on the products herein are either registered 
trademarks or trademarks of FLIR Systems, Inc. and/or its subsidiaries. All 
other trademarks, trade names, or company names referenced herein are 
used for identification only and are the property of their respective owners.
This product is protected by patents, design patents, patents pending, or 
design patents pending.
FLIR Systems, Inc.
70 Castilian Drive
Goleta, CA 93117
Phone: 1-877-773-FLIR (3547)
www.corebyindigo.com 
www.flir.com
  
						

							334-0001-00-10-LE, rev. 100 May ’08iii
Warnings and Cautions
Introduction
Getting Started
Caring for your PathFindIR LE
Options and Accessories
Technical Data
Installation
Infrared Technology1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 
						

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ivMay ’08 334-0001-00-10-LE, rev. 100 –  
						

							334-0001-00-10-LE, rev. 100 May ’08v
1 Warnings and Cautions
1.1 Cautions  ................................................................................. 1
1.2 General Information  ................................................................. 2
2 Introduction
2.1 Overview  ................................................................................. 3
2.2 Thermal Imaging Driver Vision Enhancement System  .................. 3
2.3 What is Thermal Imaging? ........................................................ 5
2.4 Vehicles that use PathFindIR LE  ............................................... 5
2.5 Part Numbers .......................................................................... 6
3 Getting Started
3.1 Using your PathFindIR LE  ........................................................ 7
3.2 Initial System Startup  .............................................................. 7
3.3 Heater Element  ....................................................................... 8
3.4 Automatic Shutter  ................................................................... 8
3.5 In Case of Difficulty  ................................................................. 8
3.6 Troubleshooting ....................................................................... 9
4 Caring for your PathFindIR LE
4.1 Product Cleaning ................................................................... 11
4.2 Temperature  ......................................................................... 11
4.3 Maintenance  ......................................................................... 11
5 Options and Accessories
5.1 Accessories  ........................................................................... 13
5.1.1 PathFindIR Interface Cable  ........................................... 13
5.1.2 PathFindIR LE Vision Enhancement Kit  .......................... 14
6 Technical Data
6.1 Performance Specification ...................................................... 15
6.1.1 Side View  .................................................................... 16
6.1.2 Side View, Additional Dimensions .................................. 17
6.1.3 Front View  ................................................................... 18
7 Installation
7.1 PathFindIR LE Installation ..................................................... 19
7.2 Preparation  ........................................................................... 19
7.3 Installation  ........................................................................... 20
7.4 Installation Guidelines and Precautions  ................................... 20
7.5 Installation Assistance  ........................................................... 21 
						

							viMay ’08 334-0001-00-10-LE, rev. 100
7.6 Mounting Assistance .............................................................. 21
8 Infrared Technology
8.1  History of Infrared  ................................................................ 23
8.2 How do Infrared Cameras Work? .............................................. 27 
						

							334-0001-00-10-LE, rev. 100 May ’081
1
1 Warnings and Cautions
1.1 Cautions
Do not operate any function that takes your attention away from safely driving 
your vehicle.
Any function that requires your prolonged attention should only be 
performed after coming to a complete stop. Always stop the vehicle in a 
safe location before performing these functions. Failure to do so may 
result in an accident.
Consult your local and state driving regulations prior to installation.
In many states using active monitors in view of the driver is prohibited. 
Consult your local and state driving regulations for laws and guidelines. 
User assumes all risks and indemnifies the manufacturer from any 
liability.
Minimize display viewing while driving.
Viewing the display may distract the driver from looking ahead and may 
result in an accident. The PathFindIR LE thermal imaging system should 
not be used as a substitution for head lamps or head lamp assisted human 
vision during vehicle operation.
Use this product for mobile 12VDC applications.
Use for other applications may result in excess heat, fire, and equipment 
malfunction.
When installing the PathFindIR LE, do not block the vehicle’s vents or radiator 
panels.
Doing so may result in heat buildup, equipment breakage, and/or fire. Caution! This guide uses the term Caution to indicate a potentially 
hazardous situation, which, if not avoided, may result in injury, damage 
to the vehicle or PathFindIR LE, or other property damage. 
						

							1 – Warnings and Cautions
2May ’08 334-0001-00-10-LE, rev. 1001 – Warnings and Cautions
1.2 General Information
Do not open the camera body for any reason. Disassembly of the camera 
(including removal of the cover) can cause permanent damage and will 
void the warranty.
Operating the camera outside of the specified input voltage range or the 
specified operating temperature range can cause permanent damage. 
Do not image extremely high intensity radiation sources, such as the sun, 
lasers, arc welders, etc.
The camera is a precision optical instrument and should not be exposed to 
excessive shock and/or vibration. Refer to paragraph 6.1 “Performance 
Specification” on page 15 for detailed environmental requirements.
Great care should be used with your camera optics. They are delicate and 
can be damaged by improper cleaning. Refer to Chapter 4 “Caring for your 
PathFindIR LE” on page 11.Caution! The PathFindIR LE thermal imaging system is not intended to 
be used as the primary navigation system. The PathFindIR LE should not 
to be used as a substitution for head l a m p s  o r  h e a d  l amp assisted human 
vision during vehicle operation. It should be used only as an aid to 
cautious night-time driving. 
All thermal imaging systems are subject to export control. Please 
contact FLIR for export compliance information concerning your 
application or geographic area. 
						

							334-0001-00-10-LE, rev. 100 May ’083
2
2 Introduction
PathFindIR LE - See More, Be Safer!
2.1 Overview
Congratulations! You have purchased one of the most sophisticated and 
important instruments you will have on your vehicle. The FLIR 
ThermoVision
®PathFindIR LE is a state-of-the-art thermal imaging system 
that will provide you with excellent night visibility and situational 
awareness, even in absolute darkness. 
The PathFindIR LE system is designed for simple, intuitive operation. The 
PathFindIR LE camera is a sophisticated thermal sensor that converts 
thermal content (heat) of a scene into a 2-dimensional image for display 
on a video monitor inside your vehicle.
2.2 Thermal Imaging Driver Vision Enhancement System
The FLIR Systems, Inc. PathFindIR LE camera is a high performance, 
rugged, thermal imaging camera designed to provide driver vision 
enhancement in adverse weather conditions and better situational 
awareness than with traditional head lamps.
Many serious accidents occur at night because the driver is not able to see 
the cause of the accident in time to prevent the collision. PathFindIR LE 
directly addresses this problem, allowing drivers to see farther ahead on 
nighttime roadways and identify potential problems earlier. The majority of 
trucking accidents occur in rural areas, where visibility is severely reduced 
at night. Humans and other warm blooded animals offer significant 
thermal contrast to driving backgrounds and are easy to spot with the 
PathFindIR LE. The system allows drivers to see without any additional 
lighting and provides real-time imaging at any speed.
Different than visible light cameras, thermal imagers do not display 
reflected light as seen with human eyes. Rather, thermal imaging cameras 
only 'see' temperature differences which are converted into shades of grey, 
from black to white. The PathFindIR LE camera displays cold objects as 
black and hot objects as white. 
						

							2 – Introduction
4May ’08 334-0001-00-10-LE, rev. 1002 – Introduction
When using a thermal imager in darkness, the image is created based on 
temperature differences of objects in the field of view, rather than 
reflected light from headlights. 
Furthermore, because thermal imaging cameras only 'see' heat sources 
and not reflected light, they are ideal to assist with driver vision and 
situational awareness for oncoming obstructions such as animals, people, 
and other vehicles
. 
The above images show a comparison of typical night time driving 
compared to using the PathFindIR LE thermal imager. The image on the 
left is from an ordinary digital camera and shows the amount of visible 
light as illuminated by headlights; the image on the right is a thermal 
image created by the PathFindIR LE thermal imaging camera. Note the 
PathFindIR LE camera is sensitive to warm objects, such as the deer, and 
provides visibility over a much greater distance.
Some of the objects that are most critical for a driver to avoid are people 
and animals. Because these objects are naturally warm, they are 
particularly easy to see with the PathFindIR LE and clearly stand out in the 
video image. 
Figure 2-1: PathFindIR Makes the Difference