Cartoni, a veteran in professional camera support systems, is continuing to expand its e-heads (encoded fluid heads) technology as the company celebrates its 90th anniversary in the industry.
Last year at NAB 2024, Cartoni unveiled its initial line of encoded fluid heads, becoming the first company to integrate position tracking technology in camera support products. These “E-Heads” incorporated high-precision absolute optical encoders directly on the rotation shaft, providing angular position data for production applications.
What are Cartoni e-heads?
This is what they announced last year:
- A full line of encoded fluid heads (e-heads) in various sizes for different applications
- Position tracking technology integrated into fluid heads, jibs, and the Lambda 25 nodal head
- The Cartoni VR Box featuring a specialized electronic interface for virtual engines
- The Lifto 25 motorized elevation column with enhanced PTZ capabilities
- A redesigned High Precision Pedestals series with a manual elevation second stage
- New accessories including a rail clamp support for bowl base heads and a Rosette Extender
90th anniversary celebration and future developments at NAB 2025
For the upcoming NAB 2025, Cartoni is preparing a special anniversary celebration highlighting its 90-year history in the industry. 90 years is an incredible number for an industry as technology-driven as ours. Plus of course, the company also plans to showcase an expanded E-Series lineup with eleven encoded fluid heads specifically designed for SFX, VFX, VR, and XR applications.
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Looking back and looking forward
The NAB 2025 exhibit will feature a retrospective ranging from Cartoni’s earliest 1935 cinema tripod and Gyro head (displayed with a 1936 Mitchell NC camera, courtesy of the American Society of Cinematographers) to their latest broadcast and cinema E-Series heads.
Cartoni: camera support will require to include positional data
According to Elisabetta Cartoni, President and CEO, the company has been developing this position tracking technology for approximately a decade, anticipating the growing need for camera position data in modern production environments. “Very soon the integration of camera support positional data will be required to correctly match virtual or graphic inserts to a real-time image,” she stated.
Cartoni’s technology provides open protocol data compatible with image composition software, allowing precise tracking for remote cameras with zero-delay response. Throughout its history, the company has registered 36 different patents related to Fluid Action and Counterbalance Systems across multiple countries.
Cartoni tripods factory tour video
In case you missed it, about seven years ago we were able to shoot a factory tour at the Cartoni factory near Rome, Italy. A worthwhile insight into a family-owned business that has been in the industry now for what will soon be an entire century:
Cartoni’s full anniversary presentation will be located in the North Hall at booth #N2539 during NAB 2025. Have you worked with Cartoni e-heads before, and will you be there? Let us know in the comments below.
