VisionGauge® OnLine version 13.99, dated February 24th, 2020, is available for download.
The following enhancements have been made over the last few update versions:
VisionGauge® OnLine users may now specify the type of image that can be collected in a Data Group. Either the ‘raw’ image (without annotations or measurements) or the ‘displayed’ image (with measurements and ROIs) can be stored in a Data Group. It could be particularly useful to view the displayed image from a measurement if the Data Group shows a ‘Fail’ for a certain result to see inspect what went wrong.
VisionGauge® OnLine’s IO Monitoring/Conditions feature allows users to a) configure specific output channels on which to output a signal when a certain condition is met during a operation of the software and to b) select an input channel to monitor for a signal to perform a specific action in the software.
When both Input Monitoring and Output Conditions are combined, VisionGauge® OnLine can be remotely automated by a robot or a controller that issues commands to the software. The Remote Program Communications feature was originally developed for communication by commands sent through TCP/IP or over a COM port, but this IO Monitoring/Conditions update allows either simplified automation using exclusively Digital IO’s or expands upon the existing Remote Program Communication feature-set with additional command/verification methods.
Input Monitoring allows digital input channels to be periodically scanned for a signal. When the target channel is activated, the software will perform specific actions. VisionGauge® OnLine presently supports the following Input signal monitoring actions:
- Loading a program
- Starting a program
- Stopping a program
- Pausing a program
- Clearing Program Errors (when operating in ‘Silent Mode’)
- Stop/Prevent Stage Motion
- Check VisionGauge® OnLine Software Active Status (make sure the software is still alive and responding)
Output Conditions allow the user to configure digital output channels to be activated when certain conditions are met during software operation. VisionGauge® OnLine presently supports outputting a signal when the following conditions are met or actions are performed:
- Program is Loaded and Ready to Run
- Program is Running
- Program is Paused
- Program Error
- Silent Mode is Enabled
- Program is Completed
- Program Result (Pass/Fail)
- In-Position (Stage is at a certain position)
It is possible to reserve output channels so programs and operators cannot accidentally output on those channels.
A new quick access button, accessible from the “Customize – User Interface” menu, also allows Input Monitoring and Output Conditions to be started or stopped by an operator.
Full documentation to describe how to use these input and output signals to work remotely (e.g. via a cell controller), is available.
VisionGauge® OnLine programs can take advantage of our True Position measurement tool. Our approach to True Position allows a user to define a Nominal feature whose position is compared to the Actual occurrence of that feature. Features are defined using datums that have been set in previous program steps. Nominal features can be defined using either Cartesian or Polar coordinates, which is convenient for different types of applications. Nominal features can also be offset using Basic Dimensions in the current measurement units.
VisionGauge® Online presently supports Cylindrical (point location) and Non-Circular (line) features of size, and the Nominal tolerance zone is displayed along with the Actual feature location. As with all VisionGauge® Online measurements, results, including a Pass/Fail result, can be output to Data Groups and other reporting options.
Follow the link for more information about our True Position measurement software tool.
This update also adds support for Laser Angle Correction – to address the situation where a system’s lasers for measurements are not perfectly at 45 degrees with the stage.
Various fixes, performance enhancements, and improvements in memory management.
VisionGauge® version 10.91 is available for download.
This update includes support for a newer USB computer controlled illumination module, fully compatible with Windows 10.