Northeast Robotics LLC

Michael C Messina

Timothy P White

Steven M LeBlanc

Jonathan Charles Chouinard

Sheila Pauline Bergeron Dunn

Joseph Marcel Laflamme

A back light illumination system for providing substantially uniform illumination to a surface of an object to be observed so that the object may be accurately perceived by a machine vision system. The back light illumination system includes a light transmissive element having a central light transmissive portion and an opaque perimeter portion. A diffuser is located to cover the entire light transmissive portion and a rear surface of the diffuser is provided with a transmissive right angle film. A pair of opposed light sources are provided for illuminating a rear surface of the transmissive right angle film to supply light to the diffuser which uniformly diffuses the light and provides lighting of a substantially equal intensity and character to the light transmissive portion of the light transmissive element so that the back light illumination system thereafter emits substantially uniform illumination. The light supplied from the light sources to the right angle film is generally supplied at a shallow angle of between 0.degree. and 20.degree..

Back lighting illumination system

An apparatus and method for forming a conical or domed ring light having a plurality of light sources arranged at a desired angle with respect to an optical axis. Some of the dimensions of the illumination apparatus are first determined and, then using the appropriate formulas, the remaining dimensions of the circuit board are calculated. Thereafter, the calculated dimensions are employed to cut, from a planar flexible circuit board, the desired arcuate section(s). The light sources are then installed at desired locations on a first surface of the flexible circuit board and are each coupled to a common electrical connector, having one or a plurality of power sources, to facilitate supplying electrical power to each one of the light sources. The circuit board is then folded into a conical or domed configuration, with the light sources facing inward, and each abutted end and lateral surfaces of the folded circuit board is suitably secured or fastened to one another to permanently retain the flexible circuit board in its folded state.

Flexible lighting element circuit and method of manufacturing the same

The invention pertains to a method and apparatus for providing a continuous, uniform, diffuse lighting environment for use in conjunction with electronic machine vision, or manual microscope inspection systems to inspect specular surfaces such as soldered circuits, ball bearings, reflective packaging, relective packaging, etc. The disclosed invention effectively eliminates apparent variations in surface brightness caused by the reflection of discontinuities in traditional machine vision lighting systems that typically require windows or viewing openings or orifices to allow visual access to the object being observed, thus allowing for a true observation signal from which the effect of surface geometry has been substantially removed. The object being observed is illuminated using a diffuse lighting system that comprises, in combination, an on-observation axis diffuse light source and an off-observation axis light source each controlled under separate brightness control such that a substantially uniform diffuse lighting environment is created over the entire object.

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Goffstown, NH, United States of America

Michael C Messina