Models

Optec has offered several different filter wheel products. The current production models are the IFW 2 and HSFW filter wheels. All models support the same wheels, these include 5 position 55mm wheels, 8 position 25mm wheels and 7 position 36mm wheels. All models are able to read the wheel id and store unique identifiers for each filter position. High Speed models take around 2 seconds to home and .8 seconds to switch to an adjacent filter. See below for differences between the different models.

IFW 2

The IFW 2 is the latest model in the lineup. It is the first High Speed IFW that supports a serial connection. The IFW 2 supports hardware RS 232 serial, USB CDC (virtual serial over USB) and an optional hand controller. The IFW 2 is the first model to support field firmware updates without requiring an upgrade chip. The IFW 2 is fully backwards compatible with the original IFW serial commands.

HSFW

The HSFW is the first High Speed Filter Wheel from Optec. It can move and home substantially faster then the original IFW. The HSFW supports USB HID communication. Most software is written to use the C# .Net, Python, or native C libraries rather then direct commands.

IFW

The Intelligent Filter Wheel is the first filter wheel from Optec. It has a required external hand control box. It supports hardware RS 232 serial. The original IFW has been superseded by the IFW 2.