Methods and systems to focus an imager for machine vision applications

1. A machine vision method comprising:

capturing, via an imaging assembly, an image of an indicia appearing within a field of view (FOV) of the imaging assembly;

recognizing, via a controller, the indicia as a focus adjustment trigger, the focus adjustment trigger operative to trigger an adjustment of at least one focus parameter associated with the imaging assembly;

determining, via the controller, a focus distance to an imaging plane based at least in part on the indicia;

adjusting the at least one focus parameter based at least in part on the indicia by adjusting the at least one focus parameter based at least in part on the focus distance;

locking the at least one focus parameter such that the at least one focus parameter remains unaltered for a duration; and

responsive to the locking of the at least one focus parameter, capturing, via the imaging assembly, at least one subsequent image of an object of interest,

wherein determining, via the controller, the focus distance to the imaging plane based at least in part on the indicia includes determining the focus distance to the imaging plane based at least in part on (i) payload data conveyed by the indicia, and/or (ii) decoding the indicia to read predetermined distance data.

2. The machine vision method of claim 1 , wherein the duration extends until a subsequent indicia appears within the FOV of the imaging assembly, and wherein the subsequent indicia is recognized as another focus adjustment trigger for another object of interest.

3. The machine vision method of claim 1 , further comprising decoding, via the controller, payload data of the indicia to determine the focus distance.

4. The machine vision method of claim 1 , further comprising:

recognizing, via the controller, the indicia according to an industry standard; and

determining, via the controller, the payload data based on recognizing that the indicia conforms to the industry standard.

5. The machine vision method of claim 1 , wherein adjusting the at least one focus parameter based at least in part on the indicia includes focusing, via an autofocus module, the imaging assembly on the indicia.

6. The machine vision method of claim 1 , further comprising:

further adjusting the at least one focus parameter based at least in part on the indicia;

locking the further adjusted at least one focus parameter such that the further adjusted at least one focus parameter remains unaltered for another duration; and

responsive to the locking of the further adjusted at least one focus parameter, capturing, via the imaging assembly, at least one additional subsequent image of another object of interest.

7. A machine vision system comprising:

an imaging assembly;

one or more processors; and

a non-transitory machine-readable memory storing machine-readable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the machine vision system to:

capture, via the imaging assembly, an image of an indicia appearing within a field of view (FOV) of the imaging assembly;

recognize the indicia as a focus adjustment trigger, the focus adjustment trigger operative to trigger an adjustment of at least one focus parameter associated with the imaging assembly;

determine a focus distance to an imaging plane based at least in part on (i) payload data conveyed by the indicia, and/or (ii) decoding the indicia to read distance data;

adjust the at least one focus parameter based at least in part on the indicia by adjusting the at least one focus parameter based at least in part on the focus distance;

lock the at least one focus parameter such that the at least one focus parameter remains unaltered for a duration; and

responsive to the locking of the at least one focus parameter, capture, via the imaging assembly, at least one subsequent image of an object of interest.

8. The machine vision system of claim 7 , wherein the duration extends until a subsequent indicia appears within the FOV of the imaging assembly, and wherein the subsequent indicia is recognized as another focus adjustment trigger.

9. The machine vision system of claim 7 , including further machine-readable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the machine vision system to decode payload data of the indicia to determine the focus distance.

10. The machine vision system of claim 7 , including further machine-readable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the machine vision system to:

recognize the indicia according to an industry standard; and

determine the payload data based on recognizing that the indicia conforms to the industry standard.

11. The machine vision system of claim 7 , including further machine-readable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the machine vision system to adjust the at least one focus parameter based at least in part on the indicia includes focusing, via an autofocus module, the imaging assembly on the indicia.

12. The machine vision system of claim 7 , including further machine-readable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the machine vision system to:

further adjust the at least one focus parameter based at least in part on the indicia;

lock the further adjusted at least one focus parameter such that the further adjusted at least one focus parameter remains unaltered for another duration; and

responsive to the locking of the further adjusted at least one focus parameter, capture, via the imaging assembly, at least one additional subsequent image of another object of interest.