Method and apparatus for adjusting illumination angle
First Claim
1. An illumination method for illuminating an object for machine-vision image acquisition, the method comprising:
- emitting light;
selectively polarizing the light to a selected one of a plurality of different selectable polarizations; and
selectively directing the light onto the object using a selected one of a plurality of different selectable illumination direction patterns based on its selected polarization.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A machine-vision system that provides quick changing and/or automatic adjustment of illumination angle, dispersion, intensity, and/or color of illumination. One such system includes a light source emitting polarized light, a machine-vision imager, an image processor operative to generate a quality parameter based on an image, and one or more of the means described above for selectively directing the light in a predetermined pattern based on its polarization and based on the quality parameter of the image. Some embodiments include an imager, a controllable light source, first and second optical elements that selectively direct light in first and second patterns, and a controller controlling the light characteristics using the first and/or second light patterns. One method includes setting one or more illumination parameters, illuminating the object based on the illumination parameters, obtaining an image, generating a quality parameter of a region of interest, and iterating using a different illumination parameters.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. An illumination method for illuminating an object for machine-vision image acquisition, the method comprising:
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emitting light; selectively polarizing the light to a selected one of a plurality of different selectable polarizations; and selectively directing the light onto the object using a selected one of a plurality of different selectable illumination direction patterns based on its selected polarization. - View Dependent Claims (2, 4)
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3. An illumination method comprising:
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emitting light; selectively polarizing the light; and selectively directing the light based on its polarization, wherein the selectively directing includes selectively reflecting based on polarization. - View Dependent Claims (5)
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6. An illumination method comprising:
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emitting light; selectively polarizing the light; and selectively directing the light based on its polarization, wherein the selectively directing further includes blocking light of one polarization and refracting light of another polarization.
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7. An illumination method comprising:
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(a) emitting light; (b) selectively polarizing the light; (c) selectively directing the light based on its polarization; (d) setting one or more illumination parameters to control the selectively directing of the light; (e) illuminating the object with the selectively directed light based on the one or more illumination parameters; (f) obtaining an image of the illuminated object; (g) generating a quality parameter based on an image quality of a predetermined region of interest in the image; and (h) iterating (e), (f), and (g) using a different illumination parameter. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. An illumination apparatus for illuminating an object for machine-vision image acquisition, the apparatus comprising:
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means for emitting light; means for selectively polarizing the light to a selected one of a plurality of different selectable polarizations; and means for selectively directing the light onto the object using a selected one of a plurality of different selectable illumination direction patterns based on its selected polarization. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14)
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15. An illumination apparatus comprising:
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means for emitting light; means for selectively polarizing the light; and means for selectively directing the light based on its polarization, wherein the means for selectively directing includes means for selectively reflecting based on polarization.
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16. An illumination apparatus comprising:
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means for emitting light; means for selectively polarizing the light; and means for selectively directing the light based on its polarization, wherein the means for selectively directing further includes means for blocking light of one polarization and refracting light of another polarization.
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17. An illumination apparatus comprising:
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means for emitting light; means for selectively polarizing the light; means for selectively directing the light based on its polarization; means for setting one or more illumination parameters to control the means for selectively directing the light; means for illuminating the object with the selectively directed light based on the one or more illumination parameters; means for obtaining an image of the illuminated object; means for generating a quality parameter based on an image quality of a predetermined region of interest in the image; and means for iterating operations of the means for illuminating the object with selectively directed light based on the one or more illumination parameters, the means for obtaining the image, and the means for generating the quality parameter using a different illumination parameter. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification