This disclosure is directed to techniques for utilizing various sensors and models to evaluate glass as it progresses through the tempering process in order to ensure that the tempered glass is of a proper quality. If, according to any of the various sensor measurements, the tempered glass is not of a proper quality, the system may automatically adjust one or more settings in any of the various components of the system in order to bring future panes of tempered glass back to having the proper quality. The system can measure for any number of glass characteristics or system characteristics, including edge quality, vertical flatness, haze, washing process variables, thermal imaging, distortion, blower information, production data, and furnace process data.

A rope tester to ascertain the condition of a wire rope in advance without increasing workload, Including a magnetization detector having a magnetizer for generating a magnetic force, and a detector for detecting a change in magnetism produced in a wire rope magnetized by the magnetic force generated by the magnetizer; a digital camera, which is provided a predetermined distance away from the magnetization detector along the traveling direction of the wire rope, for imaging the wire rope; and a controller, which is connected to the magnetization detector and to the digital camera, for detecting the location of a defect in the wire rope based on a change in magnetism detected by the magnetization detector, and outputting a drive signal that actuates the digital camera at a timing at which the defect location arrives at the location at which the digital camera is installed.

An object is to shorten time required for visual inspection. A visual inspection device (1) configured to inspect an appearance of an inspection object (30), the visual inspection device (1) including: an imager (3) configured to image the inspection object (30) arranged at a predetermined position of the visual inspection device (1); and a height measurer (11, 12) configured to measure a height of the inspection object (30) carried into the visual inspection device (1) or carried out from the visual inspection device (1).

A surface inspection method includes: an irradiating step of emitting oblique illumination light onto an inspection target region of steel material using two or more oblique line light sources; an imaging step of receiving each of reflected light beams of the oblique illumination light from the respective oblique line light sources, the reflected light beams being from the inspection target region, and capturing images of the inspection target region, by one or more line sensors; and a detecting step of detecting a linear surface defect at the inspection target region using the images captured at the imaging step, wherein orthographic projections of at least two oblique illumination light beams, out of the oblique illumination light from the two or more oblique line light sources, onto a surface of the steel material are orthogonal to each other on the inspection target region.

System and methods used to inspect a moving web (112) include a plurality of image capturing devices (113) that image a portion of the web at an imaging area. The image data captured by each of the image capturing devices at the respective imaging areas is combined to form a virtual camera data array (105) that represents an alignment of the image data associated with each of the imaging areas to the corresponding physical positioning of the imaging areas relative to the web. The image output signals generated by each of the plurality of image capturing devices may be processed by a single image processor, or a number of image processors (114) that is less than the number of image capturing devices. The processor or processors are arranged to generate the image data forming the virtual camera array.

Inspection apparatus A according to the present exemplary embodiment includes an illumination device capable of emitting first light in a first wavelength band and reference light in a reference wavelength band overlapping with the first wavelength band, an imaging device that images an inspection body and outputs a pixel signal, and an image processing device. The illumination device emits the first light and the reference light to the inspection body at different timings in one imaging time. The image processing device calculates a first reflectance that is a reflectance in the first wavelength band of the object based on the pixel signal, and determines physical properties of the object based on the first reflectance.

Inspection apparatus A according to the present exemplary embodiment includes an illumination device capable of emitting first light in a first wavelength band and reference light in a reference wavelength band overlapping with the first wavelength band, an imaging device that images an inspection body and outputs a pixel signal, and an image processing device. The illumination device emits the first light and the reference light to the inspection body at different timings in one imaging time. The image processing device calculates a first reflectance that is a reflectance in the first wavelength band of the object based on the pixel signal, and determines physical properties of the object based on the first reflectance.

The present disclosure provides systems and methods for calibration. In one example, the method may comprise optical image analysis for calibration. The method may comprise generating an optical projection of one or more calibration features onto a material surface provided in a material fabrication or processing machine, and determining one or more spatial characteristics of the calibration features. The one or more spatial characteristics may comprise a distance, a position, an orientation, an alignment, a size, or a shape of one or more calibration features. The one or more spatial characteristics may be used to adjust at least one of (i) a position or an orientation of an imaging unit relative to the material surface and the material fabrication or processing machine, (ii) an angle or an inclination of the material surface relative to the imaging unit, and (iii) one or more imaging parameters of the imaging unit.

A film inspection system includes a film positioner having a film holder configured to hold a printed film having a printed layer on a substrate of the printed film. The film holder is configured to fix a perimeter of the printed film. The film positioner includes a film stretcher positioned relative to the film holder to interface with the printed film. The film stretcher is movable relative to the film holder to stretch the printed film at a stretch area while the perimeter of the printed film is fixed by the film holder. The film inspection system includes a vision system having an imaging device configured to image the printed film at a scan area within the stretch area. The film holder and the imaging device are movable relative to each other to move the scan area along the printed layer to image the printed layer of the printed film.

A method for quantitatively measuring internal defects in an as-cast steel product includes optically scanning at least a portion of a surface of the steel product with a scanning device to create a digital image thereof, analyzing the digital image to calculate a quantitative value for an amount of internal defects therein, and normalizing the quantitative value to a rating according to a standardized scale.