FLIR Boson 640 Pro: what is this market-leading product worth?

“The Boson camera from FLIR is a compact LWIR thermal camera module, available in different versions,” states Joël Thomé, CEO at PISEO, part of Yole Group.

Fueled by multiple drivers, including the need to measure the temperature of many people due to COVID-19 as well as the need for surveillance, the market for IR thermal imaging cameras and modules is expanding at a rapid pace. PISEO’s partner, Yole Intelligence, expects an 8% CAGR between 2019 and 2025. Many new players, especially from Asia, have already started disrupting the market with impressive innovations. In this highly competitive environment, users, integrators, and sensor manufacturers need to discriminate between marketed products based on accurate and independent assessments of performance and features. PISEO offers valuable performance analyses and helps the leading players to make appropriate choices.

With a dedicated team of analysts, PISEO investigates the disruptive thermal imaging technologies and evaluates the latest innovations.

As an independent innovation center, the company releases today a new performance report dedicated to this camera: FLIR BOSON Thermal Camera Performance Analysis. This report follows the previous one dedicated to iRAY’s T3S camera: iRAY T3S Thermal Camera Performance Analysis.
Today, PISEO’s team reveals how the successful FLIR Boson camera module performs, from sensor detection through to image production. Carried out by a team of experienced optical and system engineers, PISEO’s report is based on robust and comprehensive test protocols and thorough analyses of the test results. The outcome of this process is a set of typical performance indicators, such as responsivity, NETD, scene dynamic, operability…, leading to functionality assessment and image quality appreciation. Together, they make it possible for PISEO to develop its own benchmark procedure for thermal cameras, which enabled them to test independently the FLIR Boson 640 Pro Camera.

What are the functionalities and uses of the Boson 640 Pro camera? What is the optical architecture and design, as defined by FLIR? What are the performance characteristics of the camera? Is the performance in line with FLIR’s announcement and datasheet?
PISEO’s analysts invite you to discover the technical choices made by FLIR, through an in-depth added-value analysis of its Boson 640 Pro camera.

According to Olivier Andrieu, PhD., Innovation Leader and System Architect at PISEO: “In order to characterize the camera performance, PISEO’s experts use their own test protocols, software, and lab equipment, which includes a calibrated HGH black body and climate chamber able to perform tests at ambient temperatures ranging from -20°C (-4°F) up to 100°C (212°F)”.
The Boson camera module is available in many options: size of imaging sensor (resolution), three accuracy options, 16 optics configurations. PISEO has chosen to characterize the 640 Pro version fitted with a 50° FOV optic since it’s a successful representative thermal camera module used across professional, industrial, and defense applications, where the trends are shifting toward higher resolutions.
For Joël Thomé, CEO of PISEO: “Our test protocol covered different aspects such as microbolometer sensor performance, image processing and quality, and finally the ease of use and configuration of the device. At the sensor level, we issued a set of typical performance indicators, such as responsivity, NETD, scene dynamic, operability, amongst others. It was interesting enough to find a significantly higher NETD value (from raw data, without significant image processing and correction algorithms) than the one published by the manufacturer, but we also found a significant number of bad pixels. This is a clear indication to us that FLIR doesn’t disclose in its datasheet the real performance of the sensor itself, which appeared to be non-top-notch. However, our assessment left us highly respectful of the sophistication of the image processing algorithms that ultimately well compensate for what has been observed at the sensor level. The Boson appears to be a very versatile platform for many different use-cases. However, it requires quite some know-how to get the best out of it”.
For more information about PISEO and its performance analyses, read an exclusive interview with Joël Thomé: “Thermal camera/sensor due diligence: why is it essential for end-users? – An interview with PISEO” on i-Micronew.com.
Indeed, although fitted with a non-top-notch sensor, thanks to great software capabilities the FLIR Boson 640 Pro appears to be a very versatile and high-performing IR camera platform for many different use cases.