The new ZEISS industrial lenses with an M42 thread mount feature a compact size, good image quality and a robust, all-metal body. They are approximately the same size as larger C-mount lenses. The new ZEISS lenses are equipped with a flexible and stable M42 thread and create an image circle of 43 mm. It is therefore ideal for imaging on area sensors between 1.3” and 24x36 mm, or line sensors between 28 mm and 43 mm.
The new lenses are only half the weight of the known ZF lenses from ZEISS and take up only one quarter of the volume taking into account the shorter flange focal distance . The very short flange focal length of just 26.8 mm also facilitates an overall compact camera lens system. The focus and aperture are fixed by knurled screws.
Currently, three different lenses are available:
- ZEISS Biogon T* 2,8/21 Z-M42-I
- ZEISS Biogon T* 2/35 Z-M42-I (35 mm focal length, maximum aperture f/2.0, extremely low distortion of max. 0.15%)
- ZEISS C-Sonnar T* 1,5/50 Z-M42-I (50 mm focal length, maximum aperture f/1.5, very fast)
Thanks to their compact and stable design, the new lenses can better withstand shocks and vibrations.
Typical applications include images taken with unmanned aerial vehicles, interior photos during crash tests and deployment for traffic enforcement. Furthermore, the lenses flex their muscles in quality inspection with industrial image processing systems (machine vision) featuring mid-range camera sensors (4/3, Foveon, APS-C, APS-H, DX etc.). Finally, these compact ZEISS lenses can be used by demanding customers for many additional applications.
