Image acquisition system and image acquisition method

{
  "publication_number": "US11175236B2",
  "country": "US",
  "kind": "B2",
  "title": "Image acquisition system and image acquisition method",
  "abstract": "An image acquisition system includes a feeding unit supplying a product, a product pickup platform onto which the product is supplied by the feeding unit, and a camera capturing an image of the product on the product pickup platform. The camera identifies a position and an angle of the product based on the image. The image acquisition system includes a robot gripping the product from the product pickup platform based on the position and the angle identified by the camera and an image acquisition platform onto which the product is placed by the robot. An imaging microscope of the image acquisition system captures an image of a surface of the product facing upwards on the image acquisition platform and a computer stores the image of the surface of the product captured by the imaging microscope.",
  "claims": [
    "1. An image acquisition system, comprising: a feeding unit supplying a product; a product pickup platform including a first endless conveyor onto which the product is supplied by the feeding unit; a camera capturing an image of the product on the product pickup platform and identifying a position and an angle of the product based on the image, the feeding unit and the first endless conveyor being switched off when the product on the first endless conveyor is moved to a predetermined position in a field of view of the camera; a robot gripping the product from the product pickup platform based on the position and the angle identified by the camera; an image acquisition platform onto which the product is placed by the robot; and an imaging microscope capturing an image of a surface of the product facing upwards on the image acquisition platform.",
    "2. The image acquisition system of claim 1, wherein the camera captures the image of the surface of the product in a state in which the feeding unit and the first endless conveyor are switched off, and the product is gripped by the robot in the state in which the feeding unit and the first endless conveyor are switched off.",
    "3. The image acquisition system of claim 2, wherein the product pickup platform is adapted to detect whether the product on the first endless conveyor has been moved to the predetermined position in the field of view of the camera.",
    "4. The image acquisition system of claim 1, wherein the feeding unit includes: a storage box adapted to contain the product and a vertical conveyor mechanism; and a vibration conveyor mechanism receiving products conveyed upwardly in the storage box and conveying the product forwards in a vibrating manner such that the product is evenly dispersed and conveyed onto the product pickup platform.",
    "5. The image acquisition system of claim 4, wherein the storage box has a feeding opening through which the product is loaded into the storage box.",
    "6. The image acquisition system of claim 1, wherein the robot moves the product on the image acquisition platform to allow each of a plurality of surfaces of the product to sequentially face upwards, so that an image of each of the surfaces of the product is captured by the imaging microscope.",
    "7. The image acquisition system of claim 1, wherein the imaging microscope automatically adjusts a focal length of the imaging microscope based on a size of the surface of the product and a distance between the surface of the product and the imaging microscope to allow the imaging microscope to be automatically focusable.",
    "8. The image acquisition system of claim 1, further comprising a display in communication with the imaging microscope to display the image captured by the imaging microscope.",
    "9. The image acquisition system of claim 4, further comprising an endless conveyer mechanism arranged below the product pickup platform.",
    "10. The image acquisition system of claim 9, wherein the product on the product pickup platform that is not gripped by the robot falls onto the endless conveyor mechanism and is conveyed into the storage box by the endless conveyor mechanism.",
    "11. The image acquisition system of claim 10, wherein the endless conveyor mechanism has a first end extending into the storage box to feed the product back into the storage box and a second end below an end of the product pickup platform to receive the product that falls off the end of the product pickup platform.",
    "12. The image acquisition system of claim 11, wherein the endless conveyor mechanism includes an endless conveyor belt, the product is carried on the endless conveyor belt and fed back into the storage box by the endless conveyor belt.",
    "13. The image acquisition system of claim 12, wherein an end baffle is mounted at the second end of the endless conveyor mechanism to prevent the product from falling off an end of the endless conveyor belt.",
    "14. The image acquisition system of claim 1, wherein the robot has a gripper to grip the product.",
    "15. An image acquisition method, comprising the steps of: providing an image acquisition system including a feeding unit, a product pickup platform including a first endless conveyor, a camera, a robot, an image acquisition platform, and an imaging microscope; supplying a product onto the product pickup platform with the feeding unit; switching off the feeding unit and the first endless conveyor when the product on the first endless conveyor is moved to a predetermined position in a field of view of the camera; identifying a position and an angle of the product on the product pickup platform with the camera; gripping the product from the product pickup platform with the robot based on the position and the angle identified by the camera; placing the product gripped by the robot onto the image acquisition platform; capturing an image of a surface of the product facing upwards on the image acquisition platform with the imaging microscope; and storing the image captured by the imaging microscope.",
    "16. The image acquisition method of claim 15, wherein the capturing step includes moving the product on the image acquisition platform with the robot such that each of a plurality of surfaces of the product sequentially face upwards to allow the imaging microscope to capture an image of each of the surfaces of the product.",
    "17. The image acquisition method of claim 15, wherein the feeding unit includes a storage box adapted to contain the product and a vibration conveyor mechanism, the method further comprising the steps of: receiving products conveyed from the storage box; and conveying the product forwards in a vibrating manner such that the product is evenly dispersed and conveyed onto the product pickup platform.",
    "18. An image acquisition system, comprising: a feeding unit supplying a product and including: a storage box adapted to contain the product and a vertical conveyor mechanism; and a vibration conveyor mechanism receiving products conveyed upwardly in the storage box and conveying the product forwards in a vibrating manner such that the product is evenly dispersed and conveyed onto the product pickup platform; a product pickup platform onto which the product is supplied by the feeding unit; a camera capturing an image of the product on the product pickup platform and identifying a position and an angle of the product based on the image; a robot gripping the product from the product pickup platform based on the position and the angle identified by the camera; an image acquisition platform onto which the product is placed by the robot; and an imaging microscope capturing an image of a surface of the product facing upwards on the image acquisition platform."
  ],
  "description_excerpt": "The present invention relates to an image acquisition system and, more particularly, to an image acquisition system adapted to capture an image of a product.\n\nA machine vision system is widely used in industrial production. An artificial intelligence system (AI) and a machine learning system (ML) play a huge role in identification and classification of features of a product. In order to accurately and efficiently identify the features and categories of the product, the AI and the ML are generally trained with pre-captured product images. Thousands of pre-captured product images are used during the training, so that the AI and the ML may accurately store distinguishing features of each surface of the product. After the training is completed, the AI and the ML may quickly and accurately identify the product based on surface characteristics thereof. The images of the respective surfaces of the product are usually captured by a manual photographing method. For example, the images of the respective surfaces of the product are captured manually and individually with a camera. However, at least thousands of images of the product are needed to train the AI and the ML, which would require workers to take weeks or even longer to photograph these images. Therefore, the method for manually capturing the images has very low efficiency and accuracy, which affects the training of the AI and the ML.\n\nAn image acquisition system includes a feeding unit supplying a product, a product pickup platform onto which the product is supplied by the feeding unit, and a camera capturing an image of the product on the product pickup platform.",
  "cpc": [
    "G01N 21/8851",
    "B25J 9/1697",
    "B65G 47/90",
    "G01N 2021/845",
    "G01N 2021/8455",
    "G01N 2021/8883",
    "G01N 21/8806"
  ],
  "ipc": [
    "B25J 9/16",
    "G01N 21/84",
    "G01N 21/88"
  ],
  "assignees": [
    "TYCO ELECTRONICS SHANGHAI CO LTD",
    "TE CONNECTIVITY CORP"
  ],
  "inventors": [
    "LIU HONGTAO",
    "ZHANG DANDAN",
    "LU ROBERTO FRANCISCO-YI",
    "WANG CHANGJUN",
    "ZHOU LEI",
    "TAO ZONGJIE"
  ],
  "filing_date": "2019-09-11",
  "publication_date": "2021-11-16",
  "grant_date": "2021-11-16",
  "priority_date": "2018-09-12",
  "application_number": "US-201916567411-A",
  "family_id": "69621291",
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}