3D Eyepiece-less Inspection Microscope
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Mantis Elite is a patented ‘eyepiece-less’ stereo microscope, offering truly superb 3-D imaging and unparalleled levels of comfort, reducing operator fatigue and increasing quality and productivity.
Winner of numerous industry design awards, the outstanding ergonomic design is unrivalled by other inspection stereo viewers.
With magnification options up to 20x, Mantis Elite is the high performance stereo viewer of choice for a wide range of precision tasks requiring magnification.
Fatigue-Free Viewing
Patented optical technology removes the need for restrictive eyepieces of a conventional microscope, allowing operators freedom of head movement, providing superb ergonomics and hand-eye co-ordination, plus the ability to wear glasses, if required.
Mantis Elite is a perfect alternative to traditional stereo microscopes, in use throughout the world for a wide range of inspection, preparation and manipulation tasks requiring hand-to-eye co-ordination.
Highlights
- 2x – 20x magnification options (2 in quick change turret)
- Superior ergonomics for fatigue-free viewing and increased quality / productivity
- Superb hand-eye co-ordination for inspection and manipulation tasks
- Long working distance and large field of view
- True colour, LED illumination providing up to 10,000 hours of shadow-free viewing
- Choice of stands and accessories to suit numerous applications
- Mantis Elite-Cam variant, with internally integrated USB2.0 digital camera
Stand Options
Universal Stand |
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Bench Stand |
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Floor Stand |
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Articulated arm |
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Details
Mantis Elite 3D Inspection System Details
Since its introduction, Vision Engineering’s Mantis has become the accepted standard for ergonomics and high performance magnification with over 150,000 installed units worldwide.
“Wow!” The most common reaction when looking into a Mantis for the first time…
Patented eyepiece-less technology provides the Mantis Elite with truly exceptional 3-D imaging, plus a significant ergonomic advantage over conventional stereo microscopes, minimising operator fatigue and allowing the greater freedom of head movement, leading to increased quality and productivity.
Mantis Elite offers a large field of view and generous working distance to allow for a wide range of inspection, preparation and manipulation tasks, all with exceptional hand-eye co-ordination.
Price and Performance
Mantis incorporates the most modern advances in optical design with LED illumination and a small footprint, giving a superb price / performance ratio.
Features and Benefits
Advances in optical design allow your eyes and hands to work together resulting in increased throughput, accuracy and reduced scrap and rework.
2x – 20x magnification options with quick change turret allows users to switch between low magnification inspection and high magnification fine detail tasks.
Ease of Use
Increased head and body freedom for the operator leads to greater productivity, increased throughput, improved quality control and less fatigue.
Mantis Elite offers simple 3-dimensional viewing, with the apparent distance to the viewed object image identical to that of the real object, eliminating re-focussing of the operator’s eye; thus reducing the likelihood of fatigue.
Stand Options
- Universal arm for simplicity and flexibility.
- Rigid bench stand for added stability with substage illumination options.
- Articulated arm for applications requiring extended reach, without compromising stability. Optional secondary link extends reach by 150mm.
- Floor stand (with articulated arm) for inspection where subjects are immobile, or require a standing position.
Image Capture Capabilities
The new Mantis Elite-Cam variant comprises of a standard Mantis Elite, with a factory-integrated digital camera, bringing image capture capabilities to the outstanding eyepiece-less optics of Mantis Elite …
Accessories
The Mantis stereo inspection system is a popular solution for inspecting and manipulating samples under magnification
A range of accessories provides extended reach, increased height and larger working distances to reduce the difficulties of inspection tasks.
Episcopic Illuminator |
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The Episcopic illuminator provides a concentration of light through- the-lens (TTL) to illuminate the bottom and sides of component features, which would otherwise be difficult to view.
With an iris feature to allow focusing of the light, the Episcopic Illuminator is ideal for the inspection of complex internal/external features, such as bores, pipes, tubes, slots, holes and connectors.
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UV/White Light Illumination |
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Mantis Elite UV is a variant of Vision Engineering’s Mantis Elite stereomicroscope, offering clear, magnified imaging of UV fluoresced cracks, flaws and coatings.
The dedicated variant incorporates switchable UV/white light illumination for the combined benefits of stereo magnification and UV inspection, making it ideal for a wide range of specialist and general UV inspection tasks.
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Floating Stage |
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Provides smooth and sensitive control allowing for samples to be accurately inspected. For use with bench stand only.
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Objective Lens
- 2x, 4x, 6x, 6x SLWD (Super Long Working Distance), 8x, 10x, 15x and 20x objective lenses are available, to suit different application requirements.Mantis Elite houses 2 objectives in a quick rotate turret, so you can inspect at lower magnification, then switch to higher magnification for detail work.With a 112mm working distance, the 6x SLWD objective is an ideal solution for precision applications requiring both inspection and detail tasks, such as hair restoration and dental laboratory work.Disposable lens protection caps are available to protect your objective lens from damage when soldering, or in similar aggressive environments.
Technical
To discuss your particular requirements in further detail, please contact your local Vision Engineering representative.
Optical data
| Optical Data | ||
| Objective Lenses | Working Distance | Field of View |
| 2x | 160mm | 57.0mm |
| 4x | 96mm | 34.0mm |
| 6x | 68mm | 23.0mm |
| 6x SLWD* | 112mm | 20.0mm |
| 8x | 59mm | 17.0mm |
| 10x | 54mm | 13.5mm |
| 15x | 40mm | 8.8mm |
| 20x | 29mm | 6.5mm |
* cannot be used together with 2x or 20x objective lens
Illumination
| Illumination | ||
| Surface | 24 LEDs | 11,000 LUX |
| Substage (bench stand only) |
58 LEDs | 2,700 LUX |
Power Supply
- 9V DC external plug transformer, available in all worldwide plug configurations.
- Bench Stand: 100-240VAC 50-60HZ 1.0A Max, available in all worldwide plug configurations.
Dimensions
Universal Stand |
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Bench Stand |
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Articulated Arm |
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Floor Stand |
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Accessories
- 2x, 4x, 6x, 6x SLWD, 8x, 10x, 15x, 20x objective lenses
- UV/White light illumination
- Episcopic illuminator
- Epi block spacer
- Floating stage
- Secondary link arm
- Lens protection caps, disposable
- Dust cover, Universal Stand
- Dust cover, Bench Stand
- Replacement LED array
FAQ's
How does Mantis work?
Is working distance dependent on magnification?
Yes. The working distance of fixed objective lenses reduces as you increase the magnification. Mantis uses fixed objective lenses.
| Objective lenses | Working distance |
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| 2x | 160mm |
| 4x | 96mm |
| 6x | 68mm |
| 6x (SLWD)* | 112mm |
| 8x | 59mm |
| 10x | 54mm |
| 15x | 40mm |
| 20x | 29mm |
* cannot be used together with 2x or 20x objective lens.
Zoom stereo microscopes have a fixed working distance across the entire zoom range.
What is depth of focus (depth of field)?
Depth of focus is the depth of the subject being viewed that is in sharp focus.
We do not quote depth of focus for the Mantis objective lenses, as exact figures are dependent on many external influences, not least being the user’s eyes. In general, depth of focus is larger at low magnifications and reduces as you increase magnification.
What illumination options are they?
All Mantis Elite uses twin LED arrays for surface illumination, containing 24 bright white long-life LEDs. Replacement LED arrays are available (left and right).
LED substage illumination is included with the bench stand.
Switchable UV/white light surface illumination is also available.
Can I increase the working distance?
The 6x SLWD (Super Long Working Distance) objective, increases the working distance from 68mm (for the standard 6x objective), to 112mm (for the 6x SLWD lens).
Many customers find the 6x SLWD objective lens ideal for dissection of hair follicles (in hair transplant/hair restoration), dental laboratory work, plus many other activities where the user performs manipulation tasks for prolonged periods of time.
What objective lenses do I require?
Mantis Elite uses two objectives in a rotating turret, so you can switch between lower magnification inspection and higher magnification detail work. Choice of objective lenses depends on individual application requirements, but also user preferences.
When viewing or inspecting objects, it is advantageous to see more of the sample (i.e. larger field of view), with more of the sample in focus (i.e. larger depth of focus). So typically, Mantis users might inspect at 4x, or 6x magnification.
When manipulating samples, the same rules apply, so users might manipulate at 4x, or 6x magnification. Lower magnifications mean that the sample remains in focus, you can see more of the sample (so you can see visual references), plus you can even hold the sample by hand without the image appearing distorted.
For detail work (e.g. electronics rework/soldering etc.), higher magnifications is typically preferred, dependent of application requirements.
Users typically inspect at 4x, or 6x magnification, then perform detail work at 8x, or 10x.
You might expect that higher magnification is always better, but in fact users tend to prefer 8x, or 10x magnification for detail work, since as you increase magnification (15x or 20x), the field of view reduces (so you view less of the sample, which can make orientation more difficult).
Additionally, the depth of focus reduces, so less of your sample would be in focus (especially if your sample had tall features). Reduced depth of focus would not be an issue if your sample was fairly flat.
Can I use 15x or 20x objective lens options with the Universal Stand?
The 15x and 20x objective lens is recommend for use with a Mantis Elite bench stand, as the bench stand incorporates a focus adjustment, plus is more rigid than the Universal stand.
The 15x and 20x lenses will work fine with the Mantis Elite Universal stand, but depending on your work environment you may experience slight movement in the viewing head, caused possibly by nearby working machinery, floor movement etc.
What system would you recommend for electronics inspection and rework?
Users typically prefer to configure their Mantis Elite with a 4x objective for visual inspection and an 8x, or 10x objective for rework.
What is the price of Mantis Elite?
The cost of Mantis Elite depends on configuration requirements. You will need to choose a Mantis Elite optical head, a stand option (Universal stand is a popular choice), plus at least one objective lens (but typically users choose two objectives – one for lower magnification inspection and one for higher magnification detail work).
LED surface illumination is included with the Mantis Elite head. A universal power supply (suitable for all plug configurations) is included in every stand option. A dust cover is also included.
To find out prices, or to discuss your specific application, why not talk to one of our experts?
