"3D technologies" is a generic term for a very wide field of methods, sensors, algorithms and applications. What is the benefit for the user, which technology is the best for which application, what is state-of-the-art today and what more can be expected in the future?

The INSPECT had invited six experts from industry and research to debate these and other questions during a panel discussion at the Vision trade show 2009. About 170 visitors came to the Industrial Vision Days forum on the second day of the trade show and followed the lively discussion.
The cost benefits of using 3D inspection technology for alleged traditional 2D tasks was discussed as well as the challenge to not only acquire high precision measurement data in ultra-short amount of time but to also compress these data to the core in a smart way to employ them as decision basis for process modifications.

It was unanimously agreed among the experts that the ease-of-use for 3D systems needs to be increased. Ideally the systems should be as easy to integrate into the production environment as an optical sensor.
To give you an impression of the panel discussion, we sampled some quotes out of the debate. You will read more about it in the editorial part of next month´s Buyers Guide issue of the INSPECT.

Dr. Wolfgang Eckstein, MVTec: „Like in other industries we will need standardization here as well. This is the path to make the integration of the different 3D components quite easy."

Dr. Heiko Frohn, Vitronic: „Time-of-Flight cameras will probably change much more than the field of robot vision. They provide a possibility to open up entirely new applications fields, especially in security and traffic applications."

Dr. Mats Gökstorp, Sick: „3D enables the next step of automation and opens up new applications. The key for that is significantly increased ease-of-use."

Per Holmberg, Hexagon Metrology: „I think that you will see here in the next one, two, three years a series of new sensors coming out for different applications, much simpler than today, cheaper, and more flexible."

Leonard Metcalfe, LMI Technologies: „The ability of using 3D to supplement, and use sensor fusion to bring all the different technologies together is going to make very robust products that can be installed by plant personnel and will work right away."

Dr. Christian Wöhler, Daimler: „The combination of different technologies - 2D, 3D - will be a great benefit for the applier because it will probably decrease the price and keep the accuracy at least constant."