High-Speed Weld Pool Camera — Direct View, Frame by Frame
PoolDrop is a high-speed weld pool camera that captures the molten pool and surrounding work zone at up to 480 frames per second, with Class 1 laser-safe integrated lighting that suppresses arc glare.
Built as a modular component of the HeatCore platform, PoolDrop plugs into any HeatCore Basic, AI or Robotic server over USB 3.0 — adding visual evidence to thermal monitoring without changing the rest of your stack.
Standard cameras miss what the arc hides
Off-the-shelf industrial cameras at 30 to 60 fps see a blur where the weld pool actually is. Arc glare saturates the sensor; high-frequency events pass between frames; surface defects appear only after the bead has cooled.
Why most setups fall short
- 30/60 fps cameras can’t resolve pulsed-MIG transients
- Arc glare saturates pixels around the pool
- No dedicated illumination for the visible band
- Visual evidence collected only post-weld
What you lose
- Root-cause analysis based on after-the-fact macros
- No frame-accurate evidence for ISO 17637 visual testing
- Process drift noticed only when scrap rate climbs
High-speed visual coverage as a HeatCore module
PoolDrop is the visual component of the HeatCore platform. It runs alongside HeatCam thermal cameras on the same server, so you get fused thermal and visual evidence from a single inspection record.
480 fps capture
High-speed acquisition resolves transient events that 30/60 fps cameras miss.
- Pulsed-MIG droplet transfer
- Short-circuit and stub-out events
- Arc start and end-of-bead transients
Class 1 laser-safe illumination
Integrated lighting tuned to suppress arc glare and reveal the pool.
- Class 1 per IEC 60825-1 — no operator-facing hazard
- Constant illumination of the work zone
- Compatible with TIG, MIG/MAG, plasma, laser, hybrid and additive
- No additional eye protection required
USB 3.0 industrial interface
Plug-and-play connection to any HeatCore server.
- Shielded industrial cable
- Low-latency streaming for real-time recording
- Replaceable protective optical window
Compact rugged form factor
Designed for tight installations on torches, robot arms, and fixed cells.
- Compact industrial housing
- Easy mounting bracket included
- 96 × 30.7 × 36 mm, 230 g
One platform, two complementary streams
PoolDrop is sold as part of the modular HeatCore architecture. The same server that hosts HeatCam thermal cameras also handles PoolDrop frames, giving you a unified weld record with both thermal and visual evidence indexed by joint ID.
Pair with HeatCam IR-C or IR-S
Combine PoolDrop visual streams with the thermal data from HeatCam thermal cameras to triangulate defects.
- Thermal anomaly + visual confirmation in one record
- Surface defects (ISO 17637) and subsurface drift (ISO 17635) covered together
- Single review interface, single export
Run on any HeatCore tier
No new server required. Existing HeatCore deployments accept PoolDrop over USB 3.0.
- Live view in the operator console
- Low-latency livestreaming and recording
- Compatible with Basic, AI and Robotic servers
Key specifications
Industrial form factor designed for weld cells, robot torches, and additive deposition heads.
Capture & optics
- Up to 1440 × 1080 px at 60, 120 or 240 fps
- 720 × 540 px at 480 fps (high-speed mode)
- Field of view 20° × 16° (69 × 51 mm at 200 mm)
- Spectral band: visible
- Illumination: laser-safe integrated, Class 1 (IEC 60825-1)
- Replaceable protective window
Interface & integration
- USB 3.0 industrial, shielded cable included
- RTSP video output, OPC UA control
- 24 V DC supply
- Compatible with HeatCore Basic, AI and Robotic
Form factor
- 96 × 30.7 × 36 mm, 230 g
- Working distance 100, 200 (default), 300 or 400 mm
- Operating 0 °C to 60 °C; water cooling optional for hot cells
- Standard mounting bracket for torch-side and fixed installs
PoolDrop in action: real 480fps footage
Filmed with the camera on this page — no renders, no stock. Melt pool solidification, droplet transfer, and a defect caught at the timescale it actually happens.
PoolDrop at 480 fps, HeatCam at 25 fps and the WeldTrace current at 25 kHz, recorded during the same bead in our robotic R&D cell. Watch the full clip →
More weld pool footage from this camera: watch a molten pool form and freeze at 480 fps, or study pulsed-arc droplet transfer frame by frame.
The PoolDrop camera
Compact industrial housing with integrated Class 1 laser-safe illumination — built for torch-side and fixed-cell installations.
Related cameras, systems & guides
Where PoolDrop fits in the Therness weld-monitoring stack.
- Welding camera overview — visual vs thermal
- HeatCore weld monitoring system
- WeldTrace — welding parameter data acquisition at 25 kHz
- HeatCam IR-C thermal welding camera
- Weld pool camera at 480 fps — full guide
- Welding camera vs thermal camera
- Weld monitoring video library
- Compare visualization and thermographic AI weld cameras
Add visual evidence to your weld monitoring
Talk to a Therness engineer to scope a PoolDrop integration for your line — alongside HeatCam thermal cameras or as a stand-alone visual upgrade.
Frequently asked questions
What is a weld pool camera?
A weld pool camera is an industrial imaging system designed to show the molten pool during welding despite intense arc glare. PoolDrop combines matched illumination and filtering with capture at up to 480 fps, making droplet transfer, pool oscillation, arc starts, short circuits, and solidification visible frame by frame.
What is PoolDrop used for?
PoolDrop provides direct visual access to the weld pool and the surrounding work zone for fusion welding processes. It captures up to 480 frames per second with Class 1 laser-safe integrated lighting, making it suitable for surface defect detection, operator feedback, and visual testing aligned with ISO 17637.
How does PoolDrop integrate with HeatCore?
PoolDrop is a modular component of the HeatCore platform. It connects via USB 3.0 to any HeatCore Basic, AI or Robotic server, where its frames are recorded together with the thermal stream from a HeatCam-IR camera. Combined visual + thermal evidence is stored per weld for traceability.
Why 480 fps?
Standard industrial cameras at 30 to 60 fps miss high-frequency events like arc instability, wire stub-out, and short circuits in pulse-MIG. 480 fps captures these transients at the timescale they actually happen, making visual root-cause analysis possible.
Is PoolDrop laser-safe?
Yes. PoolDrop's integrated illumination is Class 1 under IEC 60825-1, the safest laser classification — safe for continuous viewing under all normal operating conditions, so it can be deployed in welding cells without additional eye protection beyond the standard arc shielding already required.
Scope PoolDrop for your line
Send the joint, the process and the cell constraints. A Therness engineer replies within one business day with a deployment path, not a sales deck.
