Scalable systems for glass inspection

End product: Modular    perfume bottle    inspection system by    Visiglas
TI DSP: TMS320C44
Third-party product:    Imaging hardware and    software by Hunt    Engineering
Success achieved:    Modular imaging    boards based on ’C44    parallel processing    enabling a system architecture configurable to a wide range of requirements for visual inspection of glass.

For many years, the Visiglas team has worked with Hunt Engineering to develop online inspection systems for perfume bottles and drinking glasses.

Using Hunt products enabled by TI’s TMS320C44 DSPs, Visiglas has deployed advanced technical solutions that include illumination techniques and image processing technology. By fusing these technologies with expertise in glass manufacturing, Visiglas has developed such high-performance products as the Argos system, aimed at crack detection in bottle necks, and the Astra system, aimed at side wall inspection.

With the aid of the Hunt HETVIO2 board, which provides frame grabbing, display and image processing power, Visiglas has designed a system architecture configurable to a wide range of inspection requirements, from a single-camera system up to systems including eight or more cameras.

The development of high-performance industrial software has given the Visiglas products a ruggedized operator interface and makes possible the inspection of perfume bottles at speeds up to 900 inspections per minute, 24 hours a day. The modularity of the systems is such that this inspection speed is possible, however many cameras are used.