Teledyne DALSA semiconductor inspection demo system at a trade show booth

Two and a Half Weeks, One Very Fancy Camera

A gigapixel wafer-inspection demo system for Teledyne DALSA

The short version: brief to booth in two and a half weeks, built around Teledyne DALSA's own industrial line scan camera, precision optics, coaxial light source and nanometre-resolution linear motor stage. This demo system launched the new Linea ML 32K at VISION in Stuttgart and is now doing the semiconductor trade show circuit across Asia, Europe and North America.

Teledyne DALSA needed to show its new Linea ML 32K industrial line scan camera doing what it does best: scanning a real semiconductor wafer, live, in front of customers. A spec sheet can't do that. A demo system can.

1 gigapixelFull-wafer scan in under a second
2.5 weeksFirst conversation to finished system
3 continentsTouring trade shows in Asia, Europe and North America

The Brief

Teledyne DALSA supplied the core hardware: the Linea ML 32K camera, a Nikon Rayfact lens, a coaxial light source, a Zaber linear motor stage and a semiconductor wafer. The job was to turn those precision parts into a cohesive system: reliable, built to show the camera at its best, and finished like a product.

With the launch date fixed, there was no second attempt. So the work started with the application, not CAD: what the coaxial light source needs to do, how the wafer moves under the lens, and what a visitor needs to see in the first few seconds.

Fusion 360 render of the complete demo system
The complete system in Fusion 360, reviewed before a single part was made.

Working From Real Hardware

The coaxial light source had no CAD model, so it was measured and modelled from the part itself. That's routine in demo work, and it's why the design fit the real hardware the first time.

It rides on its own MGN12 linear rail with a lead screw and brass nut, so its height is set independently of the camera.

Digital calipers measuring the coaxial light source
CAD render of the coaxial light source carriage with MGN12 rail

Structure: Aluminum Where Stiffness Matters

Imaging at this resolution leaves no room for flex. The pillars and most of the frame are 6060 aluminum extrusion, cut to length in-house and enclosed in printed covers: rigid underneath, clean on the outside.

6060 aluminum extrusion frame under assembly

Finish: Product, Not Prototype

The visible housings are printed in ASA-CF for its clean, matte carbon-fibre finish. ABS and ASA handle the remaining parts, and laser-cut acrylic covers the deck. The base ring bolts together in segments, with the Teledyne logo on all four sides, so the brand reads from every angle of the booth.

Printed base ring segments with Teledyne logos
Close-up of the white Teledyne logo set into the black printed housing
Assembled base ring with coaxial light source and linear stage

Designed for the Show Floor

The camera and coaxial light source each ride on their own MGN12 rails. Focus is manual by design: turn the knob and the lead screw moves the carriage. With depth of field around a third of a millimetre, that precision matters.

Fewer moving parts means fewer things to go wrong on a show floor, and booth staff can adjust it without software or training. Motorized focus is an easy upgrade if a future system calls for it.

CAD render of the camera carriage with lead screw, knob and MGN12 rail
Linea ML 32K camera and Nikon Rayfact lens in the printed bracket
Camera carriage with lead screws, brass nuts and white knobs

Build and Assembly

Every printed part was made in-house on the Tundra 3D print farm (yes, the printers are named Bonjour, Hola, Ciao and Aloha) and assembled on the bench.

Two and a half weeks is a compressed schedule. It works because the first days go into understanding the application, the design is reviewed in CAD before anything is made, and the system is built to be right the first time. It worked at its first show and has kept working since.

Demo system being assembled on the workbench, with tools and hardware around it
Pillars and coaxial light source carriages on the acrylic deck with printers behind
Base with coaxial light source carriage and rails during assembly

On the Show Floor

Fan-cooled coaxial light source at the trade show
Semiconductor wafer on the linear stage under the coaxial light source
Linea ML 32K camera on its gantry with the live wafer scan on screen
The Linea ML 32K on its gantry, with the live scan on screen behind it.

The Result

"We were proud to release this new product at the VISION show in Stuttgart using the Tundra3D demo system."Teledyne DALSA

Since VISION, the system has been doing the semiconductor trade show circuit across Asia, Europe and North America, and the live demos have helped drive sales. It's the second demo system Tundra 3D has built for Teledyne DALSA; the first, for the AxCIS camera, is on the road too.

What Working Together Looks Like

You provideYour hardware, any CAD or drawings, and your launch or show date.
We deliverCAD design reviews before anything is made, progress updates throughout, and a finished system built to your shipping requirements.
Typical timeline4 to 6 weeks, depending on scope. Tighter deadlines are possible: this one took two and a half weeks.
  • Built to travel: modular construction, standard hardware and reprintable parts, easy to ship, set up and service.
  • Built around your brand: logos, colours and finishes designed in, not stuck on.
  • Built around your product: the design starts with how your hardware is used, so it looks its best.

Have a Launch or Trade Show Coming Up?

Tundra 3D designs and builds demo systems, enclosures, fixtures and prototypes in engineering-grade materials. Let's talk about your demo. Based in Guelph, Ontario.