Throwback Thursday – Thermovision 680 Medical

Check these pictures out for #TBT; a Thermovision 680 Liquid Nitrogen cooled system circa 1968 that was utilized for medical applications.

Originally manufactured by AGA Infrared Systems of Sweden, the camera had interchangeable lenses and a Polaroid camera attachment that was used to capture the infrared images shown on a display unit (not seen here) as there was no on-board file storage.

The "Short Wave" model used a single InSb (Indium Antimonide) detector while the Long Wave version featured a HgCdTe (Mercury Cadmium Telluride) detector.

Throwback Thursday – AGA Thermovision 651

While at FLIR Systems in Täby, Sweden last week for the ITC User Conference, I came across this on display in the main lobby that I just had to share as a “Throwback Thursday” item.  It’s an AGA Thermovision 651, the world’s first commercial infrared system from the mid-1960s.

The device used liquid nitrogen to cool the detector and worked with a display that was a modified oscilloscope. The camera had a field of view of 5˚ x 5˚, a thermal sensitivity of 0.2˚C (0.36˚F) and a frame rate of 16 Hz.  Total weight, including all necessary accessories (tripod, oscilloscope, etc.) exceeded 110lbs (50kg)!

Thermal imagers certainly have come a long way since then, but having the chance to see this in person really makes me appreciate what we have for options in the marketplace today.