Illumination Techniques for Machine Vision

The quality of vision results, in Machine Vision as well as in Microscopy, strongly depends on the quality of lighting.
By using different lighting techniques different features of the object can be made visible.
Lighting and Optics are 80% of most machine vision applications.
If you cant see it in the monitor then the vision system cant see it either.
(Society of Mechanical Engineers/Machine Vision Association)
The purpose of the illumination is to enhance the contrast of the object in a way that the desired feature is detectable by the MV system.
On the basis of interaction of the light with the surface of the object a detectable contrast is created.
Important is which portion of the light is absorbed and which is reflected or transmitted back to the camera.
The most common lighting techniques are described following:
Front Ring Brightfield Illumination
Front Ring Darkfield Illumination
Directional Front Illumination
Coaxial Illumination
Diffuse Front Illumination
Diffuse Dome Illumination
Polarized Front Illumination
Transmitted Illumination

Front Ring Brightfield Illumination

Intense shadow-free even illumination for general purpose.

Advantages:
Non-directional, Eliminates contrasts
Disadvantages:
Not suitable for highly reflective surfaces
How to realize:
LED Ringlight
Fiber Optic Ringlight

Advanced Lighting Technology, SHEBAH

Front Ring Darkfield Illumination

Low incidence angle of light.
Field of view appears dark, defects appear bright through reflection into the camera.

Advantages:
Suitable for highly reflective shiny surfaces
Makes surface structure visible
Disadvantages:
Narrow working distance
Not suitable for flat surfaces
How to realize:
Darkfield LED Ringlight
Darkfield Fiber Optic Ringlight

Advanced Lighting Technology, SHEBAH

Directional Front Illumination

Creates shadows through incidence angle.
Brightfield
With increasing angle more light will be reflected from the surface
which reduces the visible contrast of the workpiece.
Advantages:
Easy handling
Good control of contrasts through shadows
Disadvantages:
May create unwanted shadows
Uneven illumination
How to realize:
LED Spotlight / Fiber Optic Bundle / Fiber Optic Gooseneck
Darkfield
With decreasing angle less light will be reflected. Only defects are
visible for the camera.
How to realize:
LED Linelight / Fiber Optic Linelight

Advanced Lighting Technology, SHEBAH

Coaxial Illumination
Light will be coupled into the axis of the camera by means of a beam splitter (half-mirror).

Advantages:
Eliminates shadows
Uniform illumination across field of view
For highly reflective surfaces
Disadvantages:
Requires space for implementation
Reduced light output
How to realize:
LED Spotlight with coaxial attachment
Custom light guide solution for microscopes

Advanced Lighting Technology, SHEBAH

Diffuse Front Illumination

Non-directional diffused light. Reduces contrasts in comparison to Ringlight.

Advantages:
Uniform illumination
Eliminates shadows
Reduction of specular reflection
Disadvantages:
Reduced light output
Not enough contrast for good edge detection
How to realize:
LED Ringlight with diffuser
Fiber Optic Ringlight with diffuser
LED Backlight with diffuser
Fiber Optic Backlight with diffuser

Advanced Lighting Technology, SHEBAH

Diffuse Dome Illumination

Further improvement of Diffuse Front Illumination by means of a diffuse coated dome.
Camera looks through opening in the dome onto the workpiece.

Advantages:
Non-directional completely diffused front light
Eliminates glare and shadows
Disadvantages:
Requires space for implementation
Reduces light output
How to realize:
LED Ringlight with dome attachment
Fiber Optic Ringlight with dome attachment

Advanced Lighting Technology, SHEBAH

Polarized Front Illumination

The workpiece is illuminated with polarized light.
Polarized reflections from workpiece will be removed from the analyzer in front of the camera.

Advantages:
Reduction of reflection from highly reflective surfaces
Eliminates glare
Disadvantages:
Reduced light output
How to realize:
LED Ringlight with polarizing filter
Fiber Optic Ringlight with polarizing filter
Fiber Optic Bundle with polarizing filter
Fiber Optic Gooseneck with polarizing filter
Fiber Optic Linelight with polarizing filter

Advanced Lighting Technology, SHEBAH

Polarized Front Illumination

Light source is positioned on opposite side of camera and workpiece.

Brightfield
By means of a diffuser between light source and workpiece a high contrast
image of the shape of the workpiece will be created.
Advantages:
Sharp silhouette of workpiece for edge detection (dimensioning)
Even illumination background for transparent and opaque workpieces
Disadvantages:
Surface structure not visible
How to realize:
LED Backlight / Fiber Optic Backlight / Transmitted Light Stage
Darkfield
Improves contrast of transparent workpieces. Low angle illumination
makes the edges appear bright against dark background.
How to realize:
Line light

Advanced Lighting Technology, SHEBAH