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10-Minute Version! Vol.1

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The A to Z of Machine Vision
Visual inspection automation has been advancing every year due to higher quality demands, as well as increasing labour costs. This technical guide
summarises the required knowledge for automating visual inspection processes. In this volume, the advantages of automating visual inspection,
equipment required, and examples of presence/absence applications are covered.

1. Overview
What is visual inspection automation?
Visual inspection automation includes capturing the image of inspection targets using a camera and processing the image data
with a vision system to analyse the target’s appearance. Defect inspection performed by human observation was an indispensable
process for the purpose of quality control. However, recent advancements in machine vision technology have resulted in wide-spread
deployment of visual inspection automation in various fields of manufacturing.

Advantages of Automated Visual Inspection

• Capable of high-speed, 100% inspection, which is impossible using manual, human inspection alone.
• Machine vision equipment used to be cost prohibitive, making it a major obstacle to introducing automation. However, through
standardisation of the equipment and improvements in software, the cost has decreased significantly and become the technology more
accessible to all users.

ations
es of Vision Applic
Successful Exampl
Visual Inspection 100% Inspection of High Speed Lines
Camera 2
Inspecting bottles for defects
of various types Camera 1 Camera 2
Loose cap
Liquid level
Problems
Camera 1 Label
• There is a chance that some defects misalignment
will be overlooked Advantages
Missing dates

• T here are variations depending on

the individual inspector • Various inspection modes from presence/absence inspection to
• 1 00% inspection takes a large dimension measurement can be done simultaneously
amount of time • 2 camera connection enables reliable detection in the area out of human sight
• Extremely fast process time offers support for high speed lines

Image Processing Equipment Icon-driven Menu For Easy Operation

Conventional image
processing equipment

Problems
• Expensive
• Complicated operation Advantages
• Bulky, which makes it difficult to install on site • Simply select the inspection type from the application menu
 Equipment Required
Machine vision mainly consists of three major steps: image capture " processing " output.
The equipment needed for each step is described below:

The target image is captured and the image data is transferred to the “processing” stage.
The main pieces of equipment required are cameras, lenses, and lighting.
Image capture/Transfer

A wide range of models with
various resolutions, transfer
Camera
speeds, sizes and more.
Selected for specific
requirements, including
Lens
high resolution, low
distortion, field-of-view,
and working distance.
There are various illumination
options depending on the types of
Lighting
the target materials, such as metals
and plastics.

The two main steps in the processing stage are pre-processing (colour conversion & image filtering) and
measurement processing.
Processing

Image
Processing This vision controller performs pre-processing and measurement processing then outputs the judgement results.
Controller

Based on the judgement results from the image processing controller, outputs will communicate information to
other devices that control the process, reject non-conforming products, or collect data.

This equipment is necessary for the sequence

control. This is used for activating various devices Lamp
Output

PLC Speaker (Warning Robot

on the line. lamp)

Commercially available computers (Windows) can Inspection status can be monitored in real time.
be used. This is used for making summaries of
PC Monitor
inspection results and preparing reports.

hin e Vision Setup

Example of Mac
Camera
PC Sensor, etc. SD card Mouse RGB monitor

Camera

USB
Camera
CV-X400/X420/
X450/X470 CA-E100 CA-DC40E CA-DC50E
Touch panel Camera

PLC

Network-
compliant HDD

RS-232C

PLC USB LED lighting PC

USB
HDD
Ethernet
How to select a camera
A full understanding of what is to be inspected is required when deciding which camera type is best for an application.

Consider if it is necessary to use a high-resolution camera. This may depend on the size of the target and
Target size
also the size of the smallest defects, such as scratches or cracks.

Consider using a colour camera when inspecting colour uniformity, consistency, or deviation, but it could
also be beneficial to use a colour camera when a flaw has a similar colour to the background, such as
Target colour detecting yellow on a white background.
Hue Change - Colour Camera
Brightness Change - Monochrome Camera

Line speed When performing inspection on a high-speed line, select a camera with a higher transfer speed.

2. Image capture
When the space for installation is limited, consider using a compact camera.
Line environment For stable lighting, it is highly recommended to have dedicated lighting for the inspection.

Camera Lineup

Camera
Up to 4 cameras can be connected
Controller expansion unit
to one main vision controller.

Camera input 2 + 2

A wide range of cameras can be used depending on the applications. Different resolution types as well as colour
and monochrome cameras can be connected at the same time to one controller. Up to 4 cameras can be connected
with resolution up to 21MP.

The LJ-V in-line profile measurement system has been added as a measuring head to the
conventional lineup of devices that can be connected according to line speed, installation space, and
3D inspection
inspection target requirements. This makes 3D profile measurements possible. Inspections that were
difficult to perform with area cameras are now possible.
 Common Inspection Examples
By taking advantage of machine vision equipment, it is possible to offer performance that is better than that of visual human
inspection in terms of the size, shape, position, colour and pattern of the target.
Applications for presence/absence, position and angle, colour, flaws, and more, can be solved by using vision inspection.

chine Vision
Examples of Inspection Using Ma
Inspection monitor
screen

Presence/
OK
absence OK

3. Types of Automated Inspections Using Image Processing

inspection
NG
NG (The package leaflet
(The seal is torn) is missing)

Counting the number of bottles Presence/absence of tear on safety seal Presence/absence of package leaflets

OK

Defect
inspection

Foreign material & lid misalignment detected

Flaw inspection of caps Defect inspection of crystal oscillator Inspection of cracks in bottle lip

Dimension
inspection

Measurement of outer diameter,

Sheet width inspection Inspection of loose caps inner diameter and width

Positioning

Detection of end face positions and

Glass substrate positioning Robot positioning label positions

OCR
(character
check)

Print inspection of expiration dates Product number character check

 Presence/absence inspection
Presence/absence inspection is an inspection performed to check whether some particular required part is missing on a target.
Examples of such inspections include those for the presence of electronic elements on a circuit board, the presence of screw fastening
of machine parts, and the presence of seal on the food product packaging.

Detection of fuses in machine assembled fuse boxes

The two common vision tools used for presence/absence inspection are Area and Blob.

The colour to detect is set to black. The colour to detect is set to white.
The Area tool uses what is called binary
Area processing. It will count the number
of pixels that are detected within a set
intensity or colour range.

Measured value: 10 Measured value: 5

Measurement area

The Blob inspection tool also uses binary image

Blob 1 processing, but instead of simply counting the
3
Detected blob number of pixels of a set intensity or colour range, it
4
will group the clusters together and give a count and
5 Measurement area
2 individual size (pixel count) of each detected blob.

Target for measurement

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