To accurately determine whether a particular lens provides sufficient image quality, you must multiply its MTF function by the MTF function for each component in the system. You can observe how MTF affects system performance by comparing the resulting MTF for two different lenses used with the same camera. The double-Gauss lens is the better choice. Watch Lens MTF Specs Lens manufacturers often can provide theoretical or nominal MTF graphs for lenses. Although this information can be helpful for planning purposes, it doesn't indicate the actual performance of a manufactured lens.
Manufacturing always introduces some imperfections that degrade the performance of a lens.
Not all lens manufacturers can provide accurate MTF measurements, however. Be sure to ask for measured MTF data when you're evaluating lenses for machine-vision systems. He received his B.S. in physics from the University of Rochester. Cahners Business Information , a division of Reed Elsevier . All rights reserved.