Zhaolong Builds High-Speed Connectivity for Industrial Vision with CoaXPress Evolution

Against the backdrop of industrial vision systems' relentless pursuit of higher precision and faster response, connection methods have evolved from mere single data channels to a key factor determining the upper limit of system performance. With the rapid development of high-end applications such as intelligent manufacturing, semiconductor inspection, and life science imaging, how to achieve high-speed, low-latency, and low-interference image link connections in compact spaces has become a common challenge for equipment integrators and system engineers.

In the past, traditional solutions like Camera Link and GigE were widely used for over a decade thanks to their mature ecosystems. However, as the resolution and frame rate of high-speed cameras continue to improve, issues such as bandwidth bottlenecks and complex cabling have become increasingly prominent. Nowadays, CoaXPress (CXP) is gradually emerging as the mainstream connection standard for a new generation of high-speed vision systems.

High Speed is More Than Just "Fast": The Value of CXP in Equipment Integration

The advantages of CoaXPress are not limited to high-speed transmission. With the standard upgraded to CXP-12 (supporting 12.5Gbps per channel), its performance in terms of interface compactness, cable routing flexibility, and system integration convenience has become increasingly prominent.

Zhaolong Interconnect's new generation of CXP cable assemblies is a high-performance solution tailored to this trend. The product focuses on the core requirements of "high speed, compactness, and reliability", specifically reflected in:

- Interface miniaturization, supporting high-density integration: Compatible with various small connectors such as BNC, HD-BNC, and DIN 1.0/2.3 connectors, suitable for space-sensitive scenarios in industries like photovoltaic, semiconductor, and lithium battery. It effectively reduces the overall machine volume and improves integration density.

- Compact cable structure with excellent bending performance: Using specially designed coaxial cables with an ultra-fine outer diameter of 4.1mm and a smaller bending radius, greatly enhancing routing flexibility and adapting to various dynamic scenarios and internal module cabling.

- Long-distance high-speed transmission capability: The copper cable solution can still meet lossless high-speed transmission up to 19 meters, suitable for cross-rack between production equipment and high-precision image acquisition systems.

- Dynamic flexible design, validated by drag chain tests: High-flexibility CXP cables can pass ten million cycles of drag chain tests, ensuring signal stability, significantly reducing maintenance costs, and adapting to dynamic applications such as automated production lines and motion cameras.

- Optimized shielding to ensure signal integrity: The high-coverage double-layer braided shielding structure effectively resists EMI interference, maintaining clear and stable images even in high electromagnetic environments.

These features can effectively optimize cabling paths, reduce assembly interference, and improve the overall reliability and maintainability of the system in actual integration, especially suitable for modular, dynamically operating, and space-constrained platforms. Based on this, Zhaolong's CXP cable assemblies have become one of the preferred solutions for many system engineers in high-speed image links. At the same time, for scenarios with longer distance and higher bandwidth requirements, the trend towards fiber optic solutions is accelerating.

From left to right, they are Zhaolong CoaXPress cable assemblies with BNC, HD-BNC, and DIN1.0/2.3 connectors.

The rise of fiber optic solutions: CoaXPress over Fiber goes mainstream

Although copper cables remain the current mainstream connection solution, in harsh scenarios with long distances, high interference, and high bandwidth, the industry's exploration of the next generation of connection forms has long been underway, and CoaXPress over Fiber (CXPoF) is becoming an important upgrade direction for image transmission architectures.

CXPoF essentially converts the CXP protocol through optical modules for electro-optical conversion and transmits it to the remote end, then performs photoelectric restoration. While maintaining its high real-time performance and high throughput, it breaks through the limitations of traditional coaxial cables in length, electromagnetic interference, and cabling. This solution is compatible with the CXP 2.0 standard, supports point-to-point high-speed synchronous transmission, and can achieve system bandwidth of over 50 Gbps through multi-channel aggregation.

Compared with traditional copper cable solutions, Zhaolong's CXPoF cable assemblies have the following key advantages:

- Ultra-long-distance lossless transmission: Supports non-repeater transmission up to 100 meters or even hundreds of meters, completely breaking through the limitation that copper cables require relay amplification due to signal attenuation.

- Stronger anti-interference ability: Using optical signal transmission, it has excellent electromagnetic shielding properties and performs more stably in complex industrial environments.

- High-speed performance supports future vision trends: Easily meets the image flow of 40Gbps and above area/line scan high-speed cameras, providing a link foundation for the next generation of 8K/16K image acquisition systems.

- Flexible topology and lightweight cabling: With standardized SFP+ and QSFP modules, distributed camera arrays can be quickly deployed, simplifying the cabling scheme of complex detection systems.

Currently, mainstream capture card and high-speed camera manufacturers such as Teledyne DALSA, Euresys, Basler, and Active Silicon have released or are planning CXPoF product lines, which have been implemented in engineering projects in fields such as intelligent transportation systems, rail transit visual recognition, ultra-high-speed scientific imaging, and high-precision industrial inspection. This trend indicates that CXPoF is gradually transforming from a supplementary solution for specific scenarios to a key connection architecture in high-bandwidth image systems.

Based on this trend, Zhaolong Interconnect has simultaneously launched a series of CXPoF machine vision cable assemblies, supporting mainstream SFP+ and QSFP connectors, covering different needs of high-end vision systems, and further expanding the technical boundaries of CXP connection solutions.

Zhaolong's QSFP interface CXPoF cable assembly

Meeting Full-Scenario Connection Needs, Continuously Building Technical Advantages

The evolution of connection solutions not only reflects the rhythm of technological iteration but also bears the industry customers' expectations for system stability, integration efficiency, and future scalability. Centering on the key CoaXPress standard, Zhaolong is building a full product ecosystem covering CXP copper cable assemblies and CXPoF fiber optic cable assemblies, spanning from short-distance connections inside equipment to long-distance optical transmission for diverse application scenarios.

In the future, Zhaolong will continue to deepen product and solution layouts around the three core directions of "high speed", "compatibility", and "reliability", helping customers build a smaller, faster, and smarter next-generation vision system.