3D Machine Vision System for Defect Inspection and Robot Guidance

This paper describes a vision system which can be used for defect inspection of machinery parts and guidance of industrial robots. The system is an important part of a conceptual production cell project. Based on the goal tasks, a 3D smart camera is selected. The appropriate sample for defect hunting is considered. Significance of the work scene lighting is emphasized and the built-in blue-light capabilities of the smart camera are indicated. Connection with a PC is established ensuring all needed communications. An application for visual inspection is developed which includes four building blocks and several techniques for measuring object characteristics. Convenient human-machine interface is built which allows fast system reconfiguration and project structure adjustment. Finally, essential propositions for further system improvement are outlined.