Overcoming the obstacles
As with most complex machine vision applications, there were obstacles. The seat frames moved within the process in a palette/jig and were manually handled up to the point of inspection, making positioning an issue. And the large frame size demanded a field of view big enough to encompass all areas of inspection, so special selection and placement of cameras was necessary.
VisionBlox software starts and runs automatically with power up. In this application, the inspection tools are grouped by eight functions. Completion of all eight inspections of about 80 components takes 2 to 3 s. The assembly process has a throughput of about one seat frame every 30 s. A Microsoft Windows interface shows the operator a seat frame with defect indicators on the test locations. When a frame inspection fails, the failure is highlighted in red, indicating the component to check.
This system has satisfied both parties: Lear reports better overall quality and less scrap, and Insight Integration reported a reduction in the usual development time involved in customizing an application.