Compare VISION INSPECTION SYSTEMS. See the latest in vision inspection system technology. Vision inspection systems for industrial application have been in use for many years. The algorithms and software for visual inspection with a CCD camera were developed in the 1960s. The increase in computer power at lower cost has made it a tremendous tool for many industrial and commercial applications..

CCD cameras view an object and are programmed to recognize a certain shape or edge. The camera can then track this shape as the object is moved under the camera. The lighting is critical to the proper recognition of the desired object.  The models listed here come with lighting and optics installed along with software and instructions for proper operation.

Vision measuring systems are primarily used in a laboratory environment. With color CCD cameras, inspection by color analysis or differentiation has added another tool to the great variety of inspection tools possible. Unlike with optical comparators, vision measuring system can come with large tables with long X and Y axis travel. The combination of camera and scanning table depends on the need of the user.

The monitors of vision systems and cameras are primarily black and white for very precise dimensional measurements. Here the pixels of the CCD camera can be applied for edge detection or the 256 grey shade profile for shape recognition. In a color camera, these pixels have to share the blue/green/red detection analysis. This is at the cost of resolution. The color CCD camera, however, gives the vision system the ability to detect and differentiate surface color. This along with dimension measurement makes it ideal for circuit board and chip inspection.

In recent years the CMOS camera has become a practical tool. The CMOS pixels send a digital signal to the frame grabber which requires less electronics in the vision measuring system than the CCD camera. However the resolution and frame speed are not as great as the CCD camera.

Stage size and travel is important for dimensional inspection. Stage travel can be manual, servo or CNC. The CNC drive is particularly useful for computerized inspection of large objects. Most visual inspection is two dimensional. Height or Z axis inspection is now done with a laser probe which comes through the camera lens.