CAD off-line programming for industrial machine vision

CAD/CAM tools are essential components of the computer-integrated factory. Up to now, they have been used for tasks such as the simulation and path programming of numerically controlled machine tools, and sometimes industrial robots. The CAD-vision interconnection described here enables us to program parts learning on the workstation, to download piece features in the vision system for inspection on the production line, to simulate the recognition process on a set of parts stored in the computer, and to update vision files after modifications in the CAD system database.