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Probe Lens Camera Mount / Tilting Lens - Tube Length, End Angle, and Offsets

Summary

Modern Flair probe setup works best through Camera Mount and the Tilting Lens / Snorkel / Probe style controls. Operators often miss this because Tube Length, End Angle, End Length, twist, and additional lens offset fields may not appear until Camera Mount is being used.

This workflow is recommended for straight probes, angled probes, relay lenses, and probe lenses where the optical path is not the same as the camera body position.

Symptoms

  • Tube Length / End Angle / End Length controls are missing.
  • Operator is trying to enter a probe lens using only front nodal / measure optical.
  • DZO probe goes to a new location when entering Carts.
  • Probe setup asks for a go-to that throws extend forward and focus to infinity.
  • Front nodal keeps going back to 0.
  • Offset signs are confusing, including negative measure optical or negative sensor offsets.

Community Solutions

[CONFIRMED] Use Camera Mount first

Set the camera/sensor position in Camera Mount. Then enter the probe/tilting lens values such as tube length, end angle, end length, twist, and lens nodal point.

Confidence: 0.9

[CONFIRMED] Use Tilting Lens and type tube length

For DZO X-Tract and similar probes, switch to Tilting Lens and type tube length rather than trying to solve it only with front nodal.

Confidence: 0.88

[LIKELY] Camera Mount is more intuitive than Measure Optical for complex probes

Where Z Nodal / Measure Optical and negative offsets become difficult, community guidance repeatedly points back to Camera Mount because it separates camera position from lens geometry.

Confidence: 0.8

[NEEDS REVIEW] Front nodal may be overridden or reset in some tilting lens setups

One Innovision probe thread reported that front nodal kept returning to 0 while tube length and end angle were set. The thread did not reach a confirmed fix; previous known-good jobs and bug/config reports were recommended.

Confidence: 0.58

WhatsApp Excerpts

Timestamp User Evidence
2024-04-25 23:19 Timothy Heys Cerchio "The Straight tube and the 35 degree module are now nicely resolved with the extra settings in Lens Setup that take care of probe type lenses: Tube length and Tilt angle."
2024-07-23 22:50 Timothy Heys Cerchio "Use the new features in Lens Setup: Tube Length, End Angle, End Length."
2024-07-23 23:27 Ben Myers "You have to use camera mount ... Set the nodal point of the sensor. Then you have all of the options to set the tube length, twist, angle."
2024-07-23 23:58 Felix Roth "The camera mount was missing. Thank you."
2024-07-25 22:21 Ben Myers "Try camera mount. It works quite well. You can put the nodal point for the sensor ... and then ... tube length, twist, and angle."
2024-07-25 22:26 Timothy Heys Cerchio "Camera Mount is much more intuitive to use and then you would have more Offset options for the Lens too."
2025-04-16 05:12 Timothy Smith "Using the innovision probe with prism adapter ... front nodal keeps going back to 0 ... enter carts it wants a go to that throws the extend forward and focus to infinity."
2026-03-12 07:11 Ben Myers "Switch to tilting lens and type in tube length instead of front nodal."
YouTube Focus Follows Target - Flair 7 Setup Flair 7

▶ 00:00 — Target tracking/focus setup context before adding probe geometry