Automation Technology for Fabric Inspection System

In order to establish good company image and be more competitive in the marketplace, inspection system can ensure the optimum quality of product on hand and help improve the product quality. Therefore, a lot of factories pay attention to improve the inspection system, especially in textile industry. Human inspection is generally used in textile industry because the cost is very low. However, the disadvantage is that the nature of work is very dull and repetitive, which leads to high inspection error. The automated inspection by machine, on the other hand, can solve this shortcoming. There are more advantages in applying automation technology for inspection system. First, 100% inspection can be obtained. Secondly, it elimi nates high inspection error due to human frailty. Thirdly, it can save the labor cost, and reduce the demand for highly skilled inspectors. This paper describes the development of an Automated Visual Inspection (AVI) system for weaving defect detection based on image processing and recognition algorithms. The literatures contain many articles to illustrate a great variety of algorithms dedicated to the description or classification the weaving defect[1-3]. The purpose of the developed system is used to fully inspect the fabric and weaving products from a textile factory. The location, size and image of the defect are recorded in the system. After the inspection process, The product will be graded in terms of severity and the detailed report will be printed. In addition to the use of standard image processing functions for enhancing and modifying the digital image, the paper will describe the techniques from neural network for classifying the weaving defect. The aim is to obtain saving of manpower and time as well as increased accuracy in the inspection process. This project was proposed from a general discussion with a Managing Director of a local textile manufacturer about the needs and problems in the textile weaving industry. There are indeed such automatic fabric inspection systems in the market (e.g. I-Tex, Elbit Vision Systems Ltd., Israel; SICK Scan, Erwin Sick GmbH, Germany; SCANTEX, Sam Vollenweider Ltd., Switzerland). However, they are very expensive and most local manufacturers cannot afford to purchase them. For example, one complete set of such machinery called I-Tex would cause several million HKD. This proposal aims to develop a low -cost alternative for the local manufacturers. Also, it is high time for the Government to realise the importance of developing and applying high -tech in Hong Kong. There is enough expertise locally and we are committed to developing an automated fabric inspection system comparable to those in the market, for the benefits of the textile and garment industries in Hong Kong. Our success is based on the followings: (1) use of the latest low-cost but high-performance computer hardware and CCD digital cameras; (2) use of advanced software techniques for image processing and defect detection; (3) years of experience and research at the Industrial Automation Laboratory at The University of Hong Kong.