In 1969, the first CCD image sensor was born at Bell Labs in the United States, opening the door to digital imaging for the industrial vision industry. Since then, various aspects of life and production have become connected with images and vision.
The field of machine vision also began to sprout and grow: from black and white to color, from low resolution to high resolution, from static images to dynamic images. Today, we have enabled machines to understand the real three-dimensional space and present stereoscopic images visually, which is what industry insiders call the fourth visual revolution. The key to this fourth visual revolution is the rapid development of the 3D sensing industry.
Machine vision has evolved from the previous 2D plane to a 3D stereoscopic "world." The common and frequently used technologies such as facial recognition payment, Face ID, VR, unmanned convenience stores, and intelligent robots all rely on 3D vision technology. The combination of the fourth visual revolution and the industrial internet maximizes the value of the real economy and technology, gradually moving towards real industrial scenarios, production efficiency, and industrial feasibility.
If we were to describe the relationship between the industrial internet and 3D machine vision in one sentence, the most accurate description would be: the future of the industrial internet is based on 3D machine vision control and AI cognitive system processing. The application of machine vision in the industrial field is not a new thing; it has a history of more than thirty years. With the rise of industrial 3D vision technology, its importance in the industrial manufacturing field is becoming increasingly significant.
From single scenarios to empowering entire production lines
The earliest technology adopted in automated production was 2D vision technology. However, because 2D vision can usually only solve problems on a flat plane, it is difficult for 2D vision to function effectively for objects with height information, such as curved or arc-shaped products. This has promoted the rise of 3D vision. Compared with 2D vision, 3D vision is less sensitive to changes in ambient light, and has higher accuracy and reliability. In production lines, it can detect fast-moving targets and obtain information such as shape, color contrast, and spatial coordinates. 3D vision can meet more industrial application scenarios that 2D vision could not previously satisfy, complementing 2D vision. In addition, with the increasing demand for precision in precision manufacturing industries such as consumer electronics, automobiles, and semiconductors in recent years, high-precision 3D vision technology has become a market hotspot.
Industrial 3D vision mainly focuses on three major application categories: size and defect detection, intelligent manufacturing, and autonomous navigation. The biggest change in the use of industrial 3D vision technology in the industrial sector over the past two years is its evolution from single-scenario applications, such as quality inspection, to empowering entire production lines.