Q+A CENTER

Machine vision is a multi purpose technology that is increasingly used worldwide in various industries as well as in medical technology. A machine vision system is composed of one or more special cameras, an illumination device, a data transfer unit, and a computer to process and analyze the accordant images. The nucleus of any machine vision system is the software.

"I would say the biggest performance challenge for machine vision software developers will be meeting the needs of next generation hardware and host acceleration," said Inder Kohli, DALSA Frame Grabber/Software Product Manager. "Chief among these, on the host side, is support for Microsoft Vista; in both 32-bit and 64-bit version of the libraries. Moreover in order to take full advantage of advancements in multi-core hyperthreading CPUs, developers will need to ensure their algorithms are fully optimized to meet the increased demand for system multi-tasking."

3Dsolve Inc. (Cary, N.C.) revealed new information on OV3D (Operational Views in 3D), an innovative 3D visual simulation tool that enables the U.S. Army to create scenarios describing communications networks in a modern battlespace environment.

Extracting from relational database descriptions, OV3D can display the hierarchical relationships, dependencies, and activities among platforms, equipment, and personnel while deployed in a battlefield. OV3D provides an instant and easy to grasp visualization of database reports that are otherwise difficult to understand for interactive editing and presentation to decision makers.

In an OV3D project scenario, a technician can import existing architecture or operational data or use a PC mouse to quickly position people and equipment on a terrain to generate a geospatial view that illustrates the subtle implications of changes to a battlespace configuration. This enables users to visualize, analyze, and present complex data in a way everyone can understand.