AUTOMATIC GENERATION OF OBJECT INSPECTIONS
In an embodiment, a method for automatically generating object inspections includes generating a preliminary list of inspection directions for an object to be inspected. The method also includes checking a compatibility of the preliminary list of inspection directions with each of a plurality of surfaces of the object. The method also includes creating a master set of direction-surface pairs responsive to the checking. The method also includes selecting candidate inspection points for each direction-surface pair in the master set of direction-surface pairs. The method also includes, responsive to a determination that the plurality of surfaces each have at least one compatible inspection direction indicated in the master set of direction-surface pairs, generating an optimized set of direction-surface pairs using a minimization algorithm. The method also includes returning the optimized set of direction-surface pairs and corresponding inspection points.
1 . A method for automatically generating object inspections, the method comprising:
generating a preliminary list of inspection directions for an object to be inspected;
checking a compatibility of the preliminary list of inspection directions with each of a plurality of surfaces of the object;
creating a master set of direction-surface pairs responsive to the checking;
selecting candidate inspection points for each direction-surface pair in the master set of direction-surface pairs;
responsive to a determination that the plurality of surfaces each have at least one compatible inspection direction indicated in the master set of direction-surface pairs, generating an optimized set of direction-surface pairs using a minimization algorithm; and
returning the optimized set of direction-surface pairs and corresponding inspection points.
2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the preliminary list comprises at least one default inspection direction for each of the plurality of surfaces.
3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the checking comprises determining at least one inspection direction in the preliminary list to be incompatible with at least one surface in the plurality of surfaces in response to a determination that the at least one inspection direction would result in a collision with at least a portion of an inspection machine.
4 . The method of claim 3 , wherein the at least a portion of the inspection machine comprises a fixture used to support objects for inspection.
5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the creating the master set of direction-surface pairs comprises associating each inspection direction in the preliminary list with each surface of the plurality of surfaces to which the inspection direction is deemed compatible.
6 . The method of claim 1 , comprising:
generating a library of inspection points; and
wherein the selecting comprises selecting the candidate inspection points from the library of inspection points.
7 . The method of claim 1 comprising, for each inspection direction in the optimized set, removing, from the candidate inspection points, associated inspection points that are deemed not inspectable.
8 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the associated inspection points that are deemed not inspectable comprise one or more points that are determined to create collisions.
9 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the associated inspection points that are deemed not inspectable comprise one or more points that are determined to be unreachable.
10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the returning is performed responsive to a determination that one or more quality standards applicable to the object are satisfied.
11 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the one or more quality standards specify a minimum number of inspection points for at least one surface of the plurality of surfaces.
12 . The method of claim 10 comprising, responsive to a determination that the one or more quality standards applicable to the object are not satisfied for at least one direction-surface pair, removing the at least one direction-surface pair from the master set to yield a revised master set of direction-surface pairs.
13 . The method of claim 12 , comprising:
responsive to a determination that the plurality of surfaces each have at least one compatible inspection direction indicated in the revised master set of direction-surface pairs, generating a second optimized set of direction-surface pairs using the minimization algorithm; and
responsive to a determination that the one or more quality standards applicable to the object are satisfied, returning the second optimized set of direction-surface pairs and corresponding candidate inspection points for each direction-surface pair in the optimized set.
14 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the one or more quality standards are associated with individual surfaces of the plurality of surfaces of the object.
15 . The method of claim 10 , wherein at least one of the one or more quality standards is associated with a particular surface of the plurality of surfaces and requires a certain number of inspection points on the particular surface.
16 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the minimization algorithm comprises a minimal hitting-set algorithm.
17 . A computer system comprising a processor and memory, wherein the processor and memory in combination are operable to implement a method comprising:
generating a preliminary list of inspection directions for an object to be inspected;
checking a compatibility of the preliminary list of inspection directions with each of a plurality of surfaces of the object;
creating a master set of direction-surface pairs responsive to the checking;
selecting candidate inspection points for each direction-surface pair in the master set of direction-surface pairs;
responsive to a determination that the plurality of surfaces each have at least one compatible inspection direction indicated in the master set of direction-surface pairs, generating an optimized set of direction-surface pairs using a minimization algorithm; and
returning the optimized set of direction-surface pairs and corresponding inspection points.
18 . The computer system of claim 17 , wherein the checking comprises determining at least one inspection direction in the preliminary list to be incompatible with at least one surface in the plurality of surfaces in response to a determination that the at least one inspection direction would result in a collision with at least a portion of an inspection machine.
19 . The computer system of claim 17 , wherein the creating the master set of direction-surface pairs comprises associating each inspection direction in the preliminary list with each surface of the plurality of surfaces to which the inspection direction is deemed compatible.
20 . A computer-program product comprising a non-transitory computer-usable medium having computer-readable program code embodied therein, the computer-readable program code adapted to be executed to implement a method comprising:
generating a preliminary list of inspection directions for an object to be inspected;
checking a compatibility of the preliminary list of inspection directions with each of a plurality of surfaces of the object;
creating a master set of direction-surface pairs responsive to the checking;
selecting candidate inspection points for each direction-surface pair in the master set of direction-surface pairs;
responsive to a determination that the plurality of surfaces each have at least one compatible inspection direction indicated in the master set of direction-surface pairs, generating an optimized set of direction-surface pairs using a minimization algorithm; and
returning the optimized set of direction-surface pairs and corresponding inspection points.