Application Note | Case Study | Technology Primer | White Paper

Basics of Understanding
Machine Vision
An Introduction to Machine Vision
Machine vision (also called industrial vision or vision
systems) is the use of digital sensors (wrapped in
cameras with specialized optics) that are connected to
processing hardware and software algorithms to visually
inspectpretty much anything. Machine vision is a
true multi-disciplinary field, encompassing computer
science, optics, mechanical engineering, and industrial
automation. While historically the tools of machine vision
were focused on manufacturing, thats quickly changing,
spreading into medical applications, research, and even
movie making.
A machine vision system combines image capture and
processing systems (computer hardware and software)
with digital input/output devices (cameras) and computer
networks (to store and share the image data) to drive
real-time quality control systems, or to direct equipment,
such as manufacturing robots. This is slightly different
from computer vision, which is primarily about image
processing. Instead, machine vision systems are built for
visual inspection and control under demanding industrial
applications that require high-speed, high-magnification,
24-hour operation, and/or repeatable measurements.

This can be a part of the inspection process itself (e.g.

checking a measurement or identifying whether a character
string is printed correctly) or through some other input
needed for control (e.g. robot control or type verification).
The machine vision system can include almost any number
of cameras, all capturing, interpreting and signaling
individually to a central control system according to a predetermined tolerance or requirement.
This makes it easy to automate complex multi-stage visual
inspection tasks, or simply perform simple inspections
at speed and scale. These kinds of applications include
positioning, identification, verification, measurement, and
flaw detection. Machine vision system has driven ever
higher standards in manufacturing improved product
quality, higher yields and lower production costs. The
net result is greater productivity and improved customer
satisfaction through the consistent delivery of quality
products.

Doing a Thankless Job Really Well

No machine beats human vision for versatility, but
other human weaknesses limit their productivity in a
manufacturing environment. Because these kinds of jobs
are no fun. Boredom, distraction, and fatigue all typically
degrade human performance in vision-related factory
tasks like inspection, which require high speeds, constant
operation and a lot of monotony.
Factory automation utilizing a machine vision system
in such tasks, then, offers many benefits. Machine
vision systems can perform repetitive tasks faster and
more accurately, with greater consistency over time
than humans. They can reduce labor costs, increase
production yields, and eliminate costly errors associated
with incomplete or incorrect assembly. They can
help automatically identify and correct manufacturing
problems on-line by forming part of the factory control
network.

No machine beats human vision for versatility, but other

human weaknesses limit their productivity in a manufacturing
environment. Because these kinds of jobs are no fun.

Where Do You Want to Go Next?

Because machine vision systems are used literally
everywherein factories, on the road, and in spacethe
pieces they are built from need to be standardized but
customizable. In general, each component of a machine
vision system does one thing. This makes it easier to
swap parts to add a new capability or level of performance
without replacing parts unnecessarily. It also makes it
simple to replace a part that has failed. Cameras have
gone from the weakest link in the chain to the pixel-

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Property of Teledyne DALSA. Not for publication or reproduction without permission.

Copyright 2014 Teledyne DALSA. All Rights Reserved.

Application Note | Case Study | Technology Primer | White Paper

pushing drivers of innovation in the rest of the system. This

is in contrast to a consumer-level digital camera or even
digital film camera, which will record light, but also perform
different degrees of processing to improve image quality
or reduce file sizes as well as record out to a transferrable
medium.

Elements of Your Awesome Vision System

A typical machine vision system will be part of an
automated production process consisting of the following
components:
Camera: Systems will have one or more digital cameras
that record color, monochrome, or wide-spectrum images.
Just like consumer cameras, the optics/lenses attached
deliver a specific field of view and available light. To pick
the proper lens you will first need to know the field-of-view
(FOV) and the working distance. The FOV is the size of
the area you want to capture. The working distance is
approximately the distance from the front of the camera to
the part being inspected. A more exact definition takes into
account the structure of the lens.

Figure 1: A basic machine vision system. The target is lit as

it moves across the cameras field of view, and the data is
transferred to the vision processing system.

While the additional features and operational requirements

depend on the application, all machine vision systems
share some fundamental attributes and behaviors.
Systems all have a need to image or inspect a scene or
object, operating on a continuous basis at the fastest
practical speed.

Trigger: This component makes sure that specific action

takes place in response to something the camera sees. A
synchronizing sensor for part detection (often an optical
or magnetic sensor) to trigger image acquisition and
processing and some form of actuators to sort, route or
reject defective parts
Image Processor: A computer program (normally running
on a version of Microsoft Windows) to process images,
detect, measure, compare etc. in order to confirm a quality
criteria has been met or to provide type verification or
robot control to another control system.
Cables: Input/output hardware (e.g. digital I/O) or
communication links (e.g. Ethernet, USB, Firewire,
CameraLink, etc.) to report results and to automatically
reject components.

Building Your Own System

Any machine vision system consists of a few critical
components. The image sensor/ camera captures light
and converts it into an electrical signal that computers
can understand and sends it to a processing engine that
renders and communicates the result to a computer that
can do something with it.

Figure 2: An inspection system that not only visually inspects the

target, but feeds the acquisition system to react based on the
scanned information. Objects that dont meet specifications are
rejected from the assembly line.

The essential elements of an inspection system, shown in

Figure 2, include a delivery vehicle, the vision system, the
response system, and sensors to trigger image capture
and system response. The delivery vehicle positions the
object for inspection. The vision system, which includes
camera, optics, lighting, and image processor, captures
and processes the object image to determine a pass/fail
response. The response system takes the required action
as well as communicating results to operators or other
systems. The sensor triggers a response, identifying when
the object is positioned properly for the system to perform
their tasks.
continued >

Property of Teledyne DALSA. Not for publication or reproduction without permission.

Copyright 2014 Teledyne DALSA. All Rights Reserved.

Application Note | Case Study | Technology Primer | White Paper

The first, and arguably most important, step in developing

an inspection system is positioning or staging. After
all, no amount of processing can retrieve information
that a sensor didnt capture at the scene. This is the
determination of how a subject will be situated in front
of the camera for imaging. Figuring out how objects will
be delivered to the camera and sensor can also be the
hardest part of machine vision design. The delivery choice
will frame all the remaining system choices, including
camera, lighting, sensors, and response systems.
And it seems like the camera can go almost anywhere.
Lets look at a few extreme examples. Instead of objects
being delivered via conveyer belt in a tidy and predictable
fashion, they could run or even fall in.

Figure 3: The conventions of an inspection system get turned on

their head. Multipe cameras are ringed around the target. The
multiple visual information feeds are joined together to build a
more complete picture - whether its a winning touchdown or a
secret spy skydiving.

In the case of systems built by Replay Technologies for

their stadium systems, the target is in the middle. It can
be used to capture an entire football or basketball game.
or it could be a James Bond skydiving scene in Quantum
of Solace. In the latter, the cameras were in a ring around
a wind tunnel to ensure that action was captured from
multiple angles.

Figure 4: Full motion picture machine vision. Instead of the target

moving at high speed on an assembly line, the front end of the
vision system is in motion.

The system in Figure 4, works for filming movie stunts,

reversing the motion relationship that typical vision
assumes: here the camera the thing that is moving. That
which is being filmed, namely the motorcycle and rider,
does not move in relationship to the camera. The other
subject being recorded, the scenery is fixed. Its the
camera that is moving at 240km/hour.
Getting Better All the Time
Its not just whats possibleits what you do with it.
Strong industry innovation and competition have driven
dramatic improvements in what cameras, processing, and
automation can do. Visual inspection makes it possible to
precisely guide robots and other machinery to create more
adaptable manufacturing processes. Custom products
and more variable production environments are possible
when machines can see as well as build and much of this
is taking place on line, making for a more efficient and
faster inspection and eliminating waste or scrap material
as they run.
With a never-ending thirst for improved quality and the
availability of higher resolution cameras with faster and
more efficient processing power, increasing bandwidth,
and access to lower cost cabling and storage, there
truly is no limit to where one might find what started as
machine vision. The sky (and the universe) truly is just the
beginning.

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