MACHINE VISION & FIXED INDUSTRIAL SCANNING
The incorporation of fixed position industrial scanners, cameras and sensors into the production process means that verification of products can be completed accurately and at high-speed. Whether simply providing an automated scanning solution or a more complex verification check, machine vision technology is revolutionising productions lines.
The majority of failures seen in production and manufacturing environments can still be largely attributed to human error, with tiredness and boredom accounting for a failure rate of roughly 5%, even with the introduction of visual inspections and basic barcode scanning processes. If your business is processing 100,000 orders per month, that's a failure rate of around 5,000 orders per month, which is a significant and often costly number of failed orders, even at a 95% success rate.
Machine vision technologies remove the need for human intervention and inspection, increasing accuracy to around 99.9999% and significantly reducing customer imposed fines and costly rectification of incorrect orders. The scope for machine vision projects is far reaching with the introduction of built-in AI (Artificial Intelligence), Deep Learning and OCR (Optical Character Recognition) technologies a huge growth area, which is becoming more accessible to businesses of all sizes in every sector.
Fixed Industrial Scanners
Fixed position scanning isn't new, but as with all technology, time reduces costs meaning it's now affordable to almost all businesses. Scan finished goods on the production line without the need for human intervention and at high-speeds with mounted cameras, or simply provide a hands free solution for staff to scan product. Teamed with easy to use software applications, fixed industrial scanners can be mounted anywhere in your business to improve productivity and reduce errors.
Smart Cameras
Providing a solution to reduce production defects, missing items and even label quality issues, smart cameras are revolutionising manufacturing and production environments. Whether it's as simple as checking a hole is drilled in every part on a production line, or as complex as checking the fill line in drinks bottles, smart cameras provide the visual inspection accuracy that your business needs. Identify product issues or incorrect orders before shipping to reduces costs and improve customer satisfaction.
3D Sensors
3D sensors deliver outstanding accuracy and versatility to support complex machine vision inspection, dimensioning and picking applications found in manufacturing and logistics. With the ability to capture detailed data of stationary or moving objects, 3D sensors detect even the most subtle defects or variations that can be missed with 2D imaging solutions alone. They can handle a variety of shapes, sizes and surface textures and are less sensitive to lighting conditions, making them suitable for a wider range of applications and environments.
Artificial Intelligence
Using AI within your supply chain can speed up manual processes and ensure data is accurately recorded and passed back to your ERP. Take full information from products at goods in or look for damaged products on a production line. Improve operator onboarding and free up managers by running AI applications on devices that allow users to access company information easily or find answers to frequently asked questions. The possibilities for using AI in the supply chain are endless and certainly something we'll see develop more over the next few years.