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Vision Inspection System Enables Manufacturers to Adapt Quickly to Shifting Market Demands

Manufacturers are facing irregular patterns in consumer demand, and heightened pressures on machine utilization, production efficiencies, and quality control. Neurala’s Via software is described as an affordable, flexible technology that helps them maintain their competitive edge amid these shifts.

Clare Goldsberry

June 11, 2020

2 Min Read
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Image: Putilov_denis/Adobe Stock

Neurala has introduced Via software, an integrated solution to help manufacturers improve quality inspection on the production line while scaling to meet demand. Founded in 2006, Neurala helps industrial companies improve their quality inspection process with technology that reduces the time, cost, and skills required to build and maintain production-quality custom vision solutions.

“Vision systems with artificial intelligence (AI) will be key in enabling manufacturers to answer the call of demand, increasing productivity and maintaining their competitive advantage as requirements continue to shift,” Versace added. “We’re proud to launch Neurala Via to give customers the option to finally deploy vision AI without requiring massive amounts of data, expensive hardware, or specialized AI expertise.”“Historically, automated inspection has been too expensive or complex to deploy at scale in a manufacturing environment,” explained Neurala co-founder and CEO Max Versace. “As the world approaches a new normal, manufacturers are facing irregular patterns in consumer demand, and heightened pressures on machine utilization, production efficiencies, and quality control. They need to address all of this with fewer people on the factory floor.

Via software enables manufacturers who have not worked with AI before to train and use vision AI to identify defects in products or packaging on the production line. Capable of running on existing hardware on the factory floor, Via makes AI accessible to industrial automation users who prefer not to rely on internet access or connectivity to the cloud. As a result, manufacturers can keep their data on the factory site, without concerns about privacy or lag time typically associated with cloud deployments.

With less data required and faster training, Via automates quality inspection processes that were previously not viable — improving inspection rates, decreasing human intervention, and allowing smaller batches to be inspected. Via also optimizes the production process by allowing production facilities to avoid wasted resources by catching defects early.

Via software reportedly is more affordable and flexible than traditional vision systems on the market, and allows users to apply their own GigE camera and PC that directly communicates with a PLC. The ability to train and run multiple AI models, compatible with any GigE camera and mid-range industrial PC, gives the Via system unique capabilities, according to Neurala. Operators are able to quickly build and deploy new models as parts come in for inspection.

Additionally, Neurala Via software can identify products that deviate from “acceptable” images without having to collect images of defective parts.

“In today’s climate, there is a clear need for an integrated solution that allows manufacturers to quickly adapt to changing markets within the constraints of their environment,” Versace stated. “Via will meet that need, while giving manufacturers a flexible solution that will allow them to continuously adapt, whether that’s introducing new products into production or [accommodating] irregular patterns in consumer demand that will arise in the new normal,” said Versace.

Image: Putilov_Denis/Adobe Stock

About the Author

Clare Goldsberry

Until she retired in September 2021, Clare Goldsberry reported on the plastics industry for more than 30 years. In addition to the 10,000+ articles she has written, by her own estimation, she is the author of several books, including The Business of Injection Molding: How to succeed as a custom molder and Purchasing Injection Molds: A buyers guide. Goldsberry is a member of the Plastics Pioneers Association. She reflected on her long career in "Time to Say Good-Bye."

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