Excerpts from the Introduction:

Machine vision research and engineering has been discussed in a wide range of books and other forums. As a result, it often difficult for an author to find a fresh approach to the subject. The aim of this book is to look at the development of tools, techniques and systems that will enable vision engineers to design the next generation of industrial vision systems. Such systems will have to be more adaptive than their predecessors to their environment and for this reason have the appearance of intelligence.

Chapter 2 lays the framework for this discussion, by reviewing the current state of machine vision engineering and pays particular attention to basic machine vision techniques. This chapter is aimed at readers with minimal prior experience of machine vision. More experienced readers will find most of this material familiar, although they may wish to use this chapter as a reference to the Prolog+ commands used in the remainder of the book. Chapter 3 introduces the reader to intelligent image processing. This discussion will include an introduction to interactive image processing and the Prolog+ vision language used by the authors in the development of intelligent vision systems. A number of Prolog+ programs are include to illustrate the power of this approach to image processing and analysis.

Chapter 4 discusses intelligent systems that have been enhanced by expanding the basic Prolog+ concepts introduced in the previous chapter. As machine vision applications become more complex, the knowledge-based functions will also need to be automated. The use of expert systems to aid in the design of a vision systems optical arrangement, lighting configuration and even camera selection will become commonplace. The ideas behind this knowledge automation are also outlined in Chapter 4, which also deals with understanding simple spoken expressions and the integration of intelligent multi-camera systems within the Prolog+ environment.

Since machine vision systems interact with a (mainly) mechanical world, the need for intelligent control of external devices is a key factor in the overall design of the vision system. Chapter 5 introduces a general purpose interface unit, developed for use with a flexible inspection cell in conjunction with Prolog+. Vision system calibration and a range of general system issues are also discussed in this chapter. Chapter 6 introduces the issues involved in colour image processing and analysis. It outlines a number of approaches to the colour imaging task. Chapter 7 puts the ideas outlined in the previous chapters into practice. A number of applications of intelligent vision systems to a range of industrial problems including food inspection and automated packing systems are covered.

There are five appendices. Appendix A presents some of the proverbs, opinions and folklore that surround machine vision. While this section is offered in a light-hearted manner, it encapsulates some important lessons that we have learned but which are unfortunately not universally acknowledged or understood. Appendix B outlines some of the important factors that must be considered when designing a vision system. Appendix C contains a compilation of general reference material, useful for machine vision designers. This includes machine and computer vision texts, conference proceedings, special issues of relevant journals, survey and review papers, lists of periodicals, journals and magazines relating to machine vision and references to a wealth of on-line Internet resources. Appendix D outlines the issues relating to a general purpose software implementation of Prolog+, while Appendix E summarises the Prolog+ commands used throughout this book. Finally, a glossary of machine vision terms is included.

Reviews:

Amazon.com

:) "OVERALL: A VERY GOOD book for those who are familiar with Computer Vision (academic) and are trying to understand the problems of Machine Vision (engineering), written by someone who obviously understands both worlds deeply."