Omron / Sentech Sentech STC-B163POE-BC Series GigE Board Camera (1.6MP Mono/Color)
STC-BBS163POE-BC
The STC-BBS163POE-BC and STC-BCS163POE-BC are B-Series board-level GigE Vision cameras from Omron Sentech, both using the Sony IMX273 1/2.9" CMOS sensor with 1,440 x 1,088 effective pixels and a 3.45 µm pixel pitch. Both models feature a global shutter and achieve up to 70.7 fps over a 1000BASE-T GigE interface with GigE Vision 2.1 and GenICam compliance. The monochrome variant (STC-BBS163POE-BC) is powered via PoE (IEEE 802.3af Class 2), while the color variant (STC-BCS163POE-BC) requires an external +10.8 to +26.4 Vdc supply and includes an IR-cut filter. Both cameras share a compact 38 x 38 mm footprint with a C-mount lens interface, making them well-suited for OEM integration in industrial inspection systems.
Brand
Omron / Sentech
Camera type
Area Scan
Interface
GigE (1000BASE-T) with PoE (mono) / External DC (color)
Resolution
1.6 MP
Horizontal resolution
1440 × 1088 px
Mono / color
Mono (STC-BBS163POE-BC) / Color (STC-BCS163POE-BC)
The STC-BBS163POE-BC (monochrome) and STC-BCS163POE-BC (color) are built around the Sony IMX273, a 1/2.9" Pregius global-shutter CMOS sensor delivering 1,440 × 1,088 pixels at a 3.45 µm pixel pitch. Global shutter is the defining capability here: every pixel integrates simultaneously, so fast-moving parts on a conveyor or a robot end-effector in motion are captured without the rolling-shutter skew that would distort edge positions and compromise measurement accuracy. At 70.7 fps over 1000BASE-T GigE, the camera can pace with high-throughput lines while still delivering the full 1.6 MP frame — useful when you need both speed and enough spatial resolution to resolve small features without dropping to a sub-array. The 3.45 µm pixel pitch is well matched to the diffraction limit of typical C-mount industrial lenses at medium apertures, so the optical budget and pixel budget stay in balance without over- or under-sampling.
The interface is GigE Vision 2.1 with full GenICam compliance, which means any GigE Vision-compliant SDK or vision runtime can enumerate and control the camera through a standardized XML feature tree with no vendor-specific driver work. The monochrome variant is powered entirely by PoE (IEEE 802.3af Class 2, ≤5.1 W), so a single Cat-5e/6 cable carries both data and power back to a PoE switch; this eliminates a separate power harness and simplifies cable routing inside a tight enclosure. The color variant requires an external +10.8–26.4 Vdc supply and includes an IR-cut filter, which suppresses near-infrared leakage from ambient sources and keeps color fidelity consistent under mixed industrial lighting. Both variants share a 38 × 38 × 40.1 mm board-level footprint and weigh only 48 g, making them interchangeable mechanically in the same OEM housing design.
The C-mount lens interface gives access to the widest range of industrial optics. The 1/2.9" sensor format means a C-mount lens designed for 1/2" or larger image circles will fully illuminate the sensor with no vignetting; lenses specified only for 1/3" may clip the corners and should be verified against the approximately 5.5 mm image-circle diagonal. Because the pixel pitch is 3.45 µm, lenses with a limiting resolution above approximately 145 lp/mm at the image plane will not be the bottleneck — a well-corrected C-mount prime at f/4–f/8 is typically sufficient. The color variant's IR-cut filter is fixed, so applications requiring near-infrared imaging must use the monochrome variant instead.
Best for
High-speed conveyor inspection where global shutter eliminates motion artifacts on parts moving at line speed — the 70.7 fps ceiling gives a short inter-frame gap for triggering on closely spaced parts.
Compact OEM integration into robotic vision heads, inline measurement cells, or embedded inspection fixtures where the 38 × 38 mm board-level form factor and 48 g weight are a hard constraint and running a separate power cable is undesirable (monochrome PoE variant).
Surface and defect inspection of electronics PCBs, semiconductor substrates, or pharmaceutical blister packs in the monochrome variant, where the IMX273's global shutter and fine pixel pitch resolve fine scratches, contamination, and printing defects.
Color label verification, packaging print inspection, and OCR/OCV tasks (color variant with IR-cut filter) where accurate hue discrimination between label regions or ink colors is required for pass/fail decisions.
Dimensional measurement and robot guidance applications that demand sub-pixel repeatability: global shutter removes positional uncertainty from object motion, and GigE Vision with GenICam allows deterministic triggering and precise exposure control from the host vision controller.
Selection notes
Power architecture choice drives cabling design: the monochrome STC-BBS163POE-BC runs on PoE (IEEE 802.3af Class 2) and needs only a single GigE cable, while the color STC-BCS163POE-BC requires a separate +10.8–26.4 Vdc supply — factor this into enclosure and harness design before selecting the variant.
The 1/2.9" sensor format constrains lens selection: confirm the chosen C-mount optic's specified image circle covers the sensor's approximately 5.5 mm diagonal to avoid corner shading; lenses listed for 1/2" or 2/3" sensors are safe choices.
GigE Vision over 1000BASE-T has a practical cable run of approximately 100 m with standard Cat-5e/6, but latency and packet loss become significant on congested networks — dedicate a NIC or managed switch port to the camera and enable jumbo frames (MTU 9000) on the host for sustained 70.7 fps throughput.
Operating temperature is rated from 0°C to +67°C measured at the internal sensor; in sealed or poorly ventilated enclosures, account for self-heating (≤5.1 W dissipation) and enclosure thermal resistance when validating the thermal budget for continuous operation.
The color variant's IR-cut filter is fixed, not removable — if the application requires near-infrared imaging (e.g., silicon wafer inspection under 850 nm illumination), the monochrome variant without an IR-cut filter must be selected instead.
Specifications: General
Brand
Omron / Sentech
Camera type
Area Scan
Specifications: Sensor
Resolution
1.6 MP
Horizontal resolution
1440 × 1088 px
Mono / color
Mono (STC-BBS163POE-BC) / Color (STC-BCS163POE-BC)
Sensor manufacturer
Sony Pregius (IMX273)
Sensor model
Sony IMX273
Shutter
Global Shutter
Sensor size
1/2.9 inch
Pixel size
3.45 µm
Specifications: Performance
FPS
70.7 fps
Specifications: Interface
Interface
GigE (1000BASE-T) with PoE (mono) / External DC (color)
These steps take an Omron Sentech (STC) camera from the box to a stable first image and on to your own application. They apply across the GigE Vision, USB3 Vision and CoaXPress STC families; the interface only changes how you cable and power the camera.
Download and install the Sentech SDK on the host PC. The package provides StViewer, the viewing and configuration software you use to bring the camera up, and StApi, the programming SDK you integrate later. Because the cameras are GenICam/GenTL-compliant, StApi also registers a GenTL producer, so any GenICam-compliant third-party vision software can discover and drive the camera as an alternative front end.
2. Cable, power and connect the camera
Connect according to the interface. GigE Vision: link to a Gigabit NIC (use PoE or the separate power input) and put the camera and host on the same subnet; for USB3 Vision use a USB 3.x port and a certified cable; for CoaXPress (STC) connect to a CoaXPress frame grabber, which also supplies Power-over-Coax. Then open StViewer and let it enumerate the camera. If a GigE camera does not appear, check the IP configuration and firewall, and on USB3 confirm the host bandwidth and driver.
3. Configure exposure, gain and white balance
Open the device in StViewer and start a live stream. Set exposure and gain for a well-exposed, low-noise image: raise exposure first and only add gain when more light or a faster shutter is not an option, keeping exposure short enough to freeze motion on global-shutter models. On colour cameras, run white balance under your actual production lighting. Adjust the lens aperture and focus on a representative target before tuning anything else.
4. Set the trigger and grab a first image
Start in free-run (continuous) acquisition to confirm a clean, stable image. For inline inspection switch to hardware or software triggering: select the trigger source, set the active edge and any delay, and wire the strobe or illumination to the camera's I/O so lighting fires with each exposure. Acquire and save a frame in StViewer; this saved image is your reference for the SDK stage and for downstream inspection.
5. Move to the StApi SDK (or any GenICam software)
Once the image is stable, reproduce the same settings in code. Use StApi to open the device, apply the GenICam features you validated in StViewer (exposure, gain, trigger, pixel format) and grab frames into your application via the bundled C++, C, C#/.NET or Python interfaces; the included samples are the fastest starting point. Prefer a different stack? The same GenICam/GenTL camera works with third-party vision libraries. With a reliable feed, you can route it into a deep-learning inspection such as Rosepetal for AI-based defect detection.
Frequently asked questions
Yes — the monochrome STC-BBS163POE-BC draws power from the Ethernet cable via PoE (IEEE 802.3af Class 2, ≤5.1 W total), so a single Cat-5e/6 run to a PoE switch or PoE injector is all that is needed. The color STC-BCS163POE-BC does not support PoE and requires an external +10.8–26.4 Vdc DC supply in addition to the GigE cable.
Global shutter eliminates rolling-shutter distortion by capturing all pixels simultaneously. However, blur due to object motion during the exposure window is a separate issue and depends on shutter speed (exposure time). To freeze a fast-moving part you still need a short exposure, typically achieved with a bright light source combined with a short electronic exposure time.
Both variants use a C-mount. The Sony IMX273 sensor has a 1/2.9" optical format (approximately 5.5 mm diagonal). Any C-mount lens with an image circle of 1/2" or larger will cover the sensor fully. Lenses specified only for 1/3" formats may not cover the corners and should be checked before use.
Yes. Both models are GigE Vision 2.1 compliant and implement the GenICam standard, which means they are supported out of the box by any GigE Vision-compliant SDK or runtime without requiring vendor-specific drivers.
The rated maximum frame rate is 70.7 fps at the full 1,440 × 1,088 pixel resolution over 1000BASE-T GigE. Achieving this consistently requires a dedicated Gigabit Ethernet connection and, typically, jumbo-frame support enabled on the host NIC and switch port to reduce CPU overhead at high data rates.
