Advantech, Overview Partner on AI Visual Inspection

Advantech, a provider of IIoT edge hardware technology, has partnered with vision and deep-learning specialist Overview. The companies will develop an end-to-end, AI vision inspection solution that combines Advantech hardware, specifically its edge AI camera, ICAM-500, with deep learning technologies from Overview.

The partnership aims to help manufacturers improve quality control, traceability, and speed for high-quality production line operations.

ICAM-500 combines an industrial-grade image sensor, advanced LED lighting, and a variable focus lens with acquisition and AI computing capabilities. The camera is embedded with NVIDIA Jetson Nano modules, and its features enable systems integrators and software vendors to integrate AI and machine vision into applications while also performing AI automated optical inspection, AI optical character recognition, and object recognition at the edge.

The Snap Platform, Overview’s machine vision solution, can be integrated with smart cameras such as the ICAM-500 to perform automatic inspections from a programmable logic controller trigger, interval, or — in the case of video events — continuous capture.

According to Carolyn Swan, director of IoT partnerships in the Advantech IIoT Group, integrating the ICAM-500 with the Overview Snap platform creates a solution for the manufacturing industry, as Advantech’s built-in camera helps reduce latency challenges that usually occur due to the distance between IP cameras, the cloud, and AI inference systems.

“That low latency improves efficiency of on-site AI inference, creating an ideal solution for edge AI applications on the production line,” Swan said.