News S


For the latest vision industry news, visit www.imveurope.com/news


EU Spirit project to advance robot inspection


pirit, a three-year EU research project, aims to reduce engineering costs when setting up inspection robots in factories. Te project partners, led by applied


research firm Profactor, will develop a soſtware framework for the robot for automatic coverage planning of a part, based on a CAD model. Te soſtware will incorporate different inspection modalities: visible, thermal, 3D sensors, and x-ray. Te system will be fed a CAD model of


the component and – to prevent collisions – that of the work cell. It then automatically calculates the path for the robot, depending on the sensor system and inspection task. Video cameras, or 3D sensors, can


be used for surface inspection; thermal imaging cameras for crack detection; and x‐ray sensors can check for completeness. Programming an application‐specific solution is oſten time-consuming, because the specific modes of operation and the different requirements of the sensors must be considered in planning the robot’s path around an object. InfraTec, one of the project partners,


will work on the thermal imaging aspect of the scheme. At the Austrian speciality


News from UKIVA By Paul Wilson, UKIVA chairman


With the dust having only just settled following UKIVA’s successful machine vision conference and exhibition, the thoughts of many members have turned to the busy autumn exhibition schedule. This includes the PPMA show, Photonex and, of course, the Vision show in Stuttgart.


The processing and packaging


industry continues to offer many opportunities for the use of vision, which is reflected in the level of interest in vision systems from visitors to the PPMA show. Figures from 2017 show that 26 per cent


of visitors expressed an interest in vision. It comes as no surprise that a number of UKIVA members will be exhibiting there. At the time of writing, 17 UKIVA members – Acrovision, Alrad Imaging, Baumer, Bytronic Automation, Clearview Imaging, Datalogic, FT Systems, Heuft, IFM Electronic, Industrial Vision Systems, Matrix Vision, Mettler Toledo, Multipix Imaging, Olmec UK, Omron Electronics, Sick UK and Stemmer Imaging – have booked stands at the show, which takes place at the NEC Birmingham from 25 to 27 September.


4 Imaging and Machine Vision Europe • August/September 2018 The full range of expertise


offered by UKIVA can be found at the show, with vision component suppliers, systems integrators and suppliers of equipment featuring integrated vision systems all being represented. There will be a wide range of process, product and packaging inspection solutions on display, with high-speed, high-performance code-reading equipment continuing to be of great importance. The diverse range of embedded vision solutions currently available opens up even greater possibilities for the direct integration


of vision into production lines, or into processing and packaging equipment itself. Capabilities range from system-on-chip up to multi- camera systems using embedded PCs. A number of vision systems installed on robots are expected to be present, as well as examples of the move of vision towards Industry 4.0. The show is also important for the association, as the winner of the ‘Most Innovative Vision Project’ award will be announced at the PPMA Group Awards gala dinner, to be held on the evening of 25 September.


@imveurope www.imveurope.com


steel manufacturer Böhler, a subsidiary of Voestalpine, crack detection of forged high‐performance parts for aerospace, energy generation or drive technology will be automated using high‐end thermographic technology from InfraTec. Other users in the project network include


the Fiat Research Centre – which will use the robot for automated inspection of engine assemblies – as well as Facc, a manufacturer of CFC lightweight components for aviation and the automobile industry, where the goal is greater flexibility in non-destructive inspection of high‐tech components.


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