Transform retail operations with Zebra’s retail technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for improving inventory management and empowering teams.
Streamline operations with Zebra’s grocery technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for improving retail shelf management, ordering and replenishment.
Enhance e-commerce operations with Zebra’s real-time inventory and automated workflows. Ensure accurate fulfilment, efficient returns, and seamless service.
Zebra’s technology solutions for department stores and speciality stores, feature hardware and software for retail management and workforce management.
Zebra’s omnichannel fulfilment technology solutions, feature hardware and software for timely order processing across channels and unified customer experience.
Zebra’s retail inventory management solutions, feature hardware, software and supplies for optimising inventory management and demand forecasting.
Enhance transactions with Zebra’s POS technology solutions, featuring hardware, software and supplies for optimising the checkout experience.
Zebra’s customer experience technology solutions, feature hardware and software for delivering personalised retail experiences and self-service capabilities.
Safeguard profits with Zebra’s retail loss prevention technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for enhancing security and product movement visibility.
Zebra’s associate engagement technology solutions, feature hardware and software for shift scheduling, task management, and team communications.
Streamline operations with Zebra’s healthcare technology solutions, featuring hardware and software to improve staff collaboration and optimise workflows.
Zebra’s hospital technology solutions, feature hardware and software for automating health system processes, reducing errors, and ensuring compliance.
Zebra’s patient registration technology solutions, featuring hardware, software, wristbands, and supplies improve patient identification for safer registration.
Optimise critical assets with Zebra’s healthcare asset tracking technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for ensuring equipment readiness.
Improve decision-making with Zebra’s Health Information Technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for enabling secure communication and data access.
Reduce lab errors with Zebra’s sample identification technology solutions, featuring hardware, software, labels, and supplies for accurate sample and specimen labelling.
Improve pharmacy workflows with Zebra’s pharmacy automation technology solutions, featuring hardware, software, labels, and supplies to reduce medication errors.
Zebra’s point-of-care solutions, feature hardware, software, and supplies for mobile access to critical information, patient ID, specimen collection and labelling.
Enhance processes with Zebra’s manufacturing technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for automation, data analysis, and factory connectivity.
Streamline operations with Zebra’s automotive manufacturing technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for reducing downtime and improving processes.
Optimise processes, assembly and supply chain efficiency with Zebra’s electronics manufacturing technology solutions, featuring hardware and software.
Boost production with Zebra’s food and beverage manufacturing technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for compliance and quality monitoring.
Achieve excellence with proactive quality management. Use Zebra’s solutions for precise root cause analysis and quality assurance.
Achieve seamless production with Zebra’s manufacturing WIP solutions, featuring hardware and software for tracking products and spotting bottlenecks early.
Ensure efficiency with Zebra’s material handling technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for automating systems to prevent delays.
Optimise operations and gain inventory and shipment data with Zebra’s supply chain visibility technology solutions, featuring hardware and software.
Boost performance with smart digital solutions. Equip your team with Zebra’s AI-powered tools for real-time guidance and efficient workflows.
Drive efficiency with Zebra’s unified communications solutions, featuring hardware and software for connecting teams for seamless operations.
Achieve excellence with Zebra’s proactive quality management solutions, featuring hardware and software for supporting root cause analysis and assurance.
Gain transparency with Zebra’s manufacturing traceability solutions, featuring hardware and software for tracking products for compliance and quality control.
Prevent downtime with Zebra’s manufacturing asset tracking solutions, featuring hardware and software for efficiently locating equipment and materials.
Zebra’s transportation and logistics technology solutions feature hardware and software for enhancing route planning, visibility, and automating processes.
Protect products with Zebra’s cold chain logistics technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for accurate tracking, monitoring and data logging.
Enhance operations with Zebra’s post and courier technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for package tracking, proof of delivery, and more.
Zebra’s warehousing and distribution technology solutions, feature hardware and software for inventory tracking, order fulfillment, and warehouse automation.
Ensure accuracy with Zebra’s proof of delivery technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for capturing delivery data efficiently.
Improve efficiency with Zebra’s cross docking technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for real-time tracking and automating scanning and labelling.
Zebra’s order processing technology solutions, feature hardware and software for shipping optimisation, order tracking, data analysis and better inventory control.
Zebra’s warehouse inventory management solutions, feature hardware and software for inventory tracking, space utilisation, and data-driven insights.
Zebra’s inbound logistics technology solutions, feature hardware and software for inventory management, order fulfilment, and better visibility of shipments.
Zebra’s reverse logistics technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for better visibility and streamlining receiving, sorting, and managing returns.
Enhance deliveries with Zebra’s outbound logistics technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for ensuring timely, precise shipments.
Zebra’s warehouse asset management technology solutions, featuring hardware and software for improved visibility and control of asset movements.
Zebra's hospitality technology solutions equip your hotel and restaurant staff to deliver superior customer and guest service through inventory tracking and more.
With Zebra's Hospitality Communication Solutions, you can enable real-time communications for your hospitality staff with mobile computers and smartphone devices.
Zebra's card printing solutions allows for fast, on-demand printing of room access keys, VIP badges, loyalty, membership and gift cards
Keep track and stay prepared by monitoring and tracking inventory and asset locations with Zebra's restaurant and hotel inventory management solutions.
Zebra provides food label solutions for restaurants, hotels and more. Our labels meet local regulations for direct and indirect food contact.
Zebra's restaurant mobile POS and ordering devices can increase your restaurant sales, enhance server productivity, and increase guest satisfaction.
Zebra's food safety hardware and software keep your guests safe and enable you to automate food safety procedures, reducing the odds of spreading food-borne illness.
Zebra's QSR software can enable you to increase inventory counts, scan guest loyalty apps, decrease wait times and increase customer satisfaction.
Zebra's market-leading solutions and products improve customer satisfaction with a lower cost per interaction by keeping service representatives connected with colleagues, customers, management and the tools they use to satisfy customers across the supply chain.
Enable field workers to perform pre-sales, sales, route accounting activities and more effectively interact with customers.
Instant access to technical specs and inventory helps improve customer satisfaction.
Mobile computers and printers ensure accurate chain of custody handoff during pick-up and delivery.
Empower your field workers with purpose-driven mobile technology solutions to help them capture and share critical data in any environment.
Zebra's mobile computing portfolio is designed to help utility companies improvement the management and lifecycle of their assets.
Zebra's mobile devices enable your entire staff, from call centre representatives to field technicians, to deliver enhanced customer service through the use of mobile technology.
Zebra's rugged mobile technology solutions provide the field dispatch and routing tools needed to accelerate in-field operations. Learn More.
From first call through incident investigation, Zebra ruggedised mobile solutions enable emergency response personnel to serve public safety and utilities industries more effectively with industry-leading mobility strategies.
Zebra's rugged mobile devices provide your field teams and contractors with complete situational awareness to meet customer service needs.
Zebra's mobile computing solutions provide utilities companies with the tools needed for advanced GIS asset mapping of in-field infrastructure.
Zebra's mobile computing portfolio features tools to help you upgrade processes such as digitising record inspections to speed up efficiencies. Learn More.
Zebra's mobile computing solutions specialise in the real-time, data-powered mobile workflows to help utility companies with inventory management. Learn more.
Zebra's rugged HazLoc mobile devices help optimise your critical operations with safety as a top priority. Learn More.
Zebras field-certified rugged mobile devices connect oil and petrol field workers to real-time critical data. Learn More.
Zebra's mobile technology solutions enable your operators to get real-time remote asset monitoring across your operations. Learn More.
Zebra's rugged mobile computing solutions enable your staff to plan, schedule and complete maintenance and repairs in any environment. Learn More.
Drive successful telecom management with mobile devices designed to meet the demands of public safety and customer service.
Zebra's data-powered mobile technology solutions help you to generate efficiencies across your field service operation in the water industry. Learn More.
Zebra's mobile work order management technology allows you to leverage your existing systems to your operations perform at their very best. Learn More.
Zebra's range of mobile computers equip your workforce with the devices they need from handhelds and tablets to wearables and vehicle-mounted computers.
Zebra's desktop, mobile, industrial, and portable printers for barcode labels, receipts, RFID tags and cards give you smarter ways to track and manage assets.
Zebra's 1D and 2D corded and cordless barcode scanners anticipate any scanning challenge in a variety of environments, whether retail, healthcare, T&L or manufacturing.
Zebra's extensive range of RAIN RFID readers, antennas, and printers give you consistent and accurate tracking.
Choose Zebra's reliable barcode, RFID and card supplies carefully selected to ensure high performance, print quality, durability and readability.
Zebra's location technologies provide real-time tracking for your organisation to better manage and optimise your critical assets and create more efficient workflows.
Zebra's rugged tablets and 2-in-1 laptops are thin and lightweight, yet rugged to work wherever you do on familiar and easy-to-use Windows or Android OS.
With Zebra's family of fixed industrial scanners and machine vision technologies, you can tailor your solutions to your environment and applications.
Zebra’s line of kiosks can meet any self-service or digital signage need, from checking prices and stock on an in-aisle store kiosk to fully-featured kiosks that can be deployed on the wall, counter, desktop or floor in a retail store, hotel, airport check-in gate, physician’s office, local government office and more.
Discover Zebra’s range of accessories from chargers, communication cables to cases to help you customise your mobile device for optimal efficiency.
Zebra's environmental sensors monitor temperature-sensitive products, offering data insights on environmental conditions across industry applications.
Keep labour costs low, your talent happy and your organisation compliant. Create an agile operation that can navigate unexpected schedule changes and customer demand to drive sales, satisfy customers and improve your bottom line.
Empower the front line with prioritised task notification and enhanced communication capabilities for easier collaboration and more efficient task execution.
Get full visibility of your inventory and automatically pinpoint leaks across all channels.
Reduce uncertainty when you anticipate market volatility. Predict, plan and stay agile to align inventory with shifting demand.
Drive down costs while driving up employee, security, and network performance with software designed to enhance Zebra's wireless infrastructure and mobile solutions.
Explore Zebra’s printer software to integrate, manage and monitor printers easily, maximizing IT resources and minimizing down time.
Make the most of every stage of your scanning journey from deployment to optimization. Zebra's barcode scanner software lets you keep devices current and adapt them to your business needs for a stronger ROI across the full lifecycle.
RFID development, demonstration and production software and utilities help you build and manage your RFID deployments more efficiently.
RFID development, demonstration and production software and utilities help you build and manage your RFID deployments more efficiently.
Zebra DNA is the industry’s broadest suite of enterprise software that delivers an ideal experience for all during the entire lifetime of every Zebra device.
Advance your digital transformation and execute your strategic plans with the help of the right location and tracking technology.
The Zebra Aurora suite of machine vision software enables users to solve their track-and-trace, vision inspection and industrial automation needs.
Zebra Aurora Focus brings a new level of simplicity to controlling enterprise-wide manufacturing and logistics automation solutions. With this powerful interface, it’s easy to set up, deploy and run Zebra’s Fixed Industrial Scanners and Machine Vision Smart Cameras, eliminating the need for different tools and reducing training and deployment time.
Aurora Imaging Library™, formerly Matrox Imaging Library, machine-vision software development kit (SDK) has a deep collection of tools for image capture, processing, analysis, annotation, display, and archiving. Code-level customisation starts here.
Aurora Design Assistant™, formerly Matrox Design Assistant, integrated development environment (IDE) is a flowchart-based platform for building machine vision applications, with templates to speed up development and bring solutions online quicker.
Designed for experienced programmers proficient in vision applications, Aurora Vision Library provides the same sophisticated functionality as our Aurora Vision Studio software but presented in programming language.
Aurora Vision Studio, an image processing software for machine & computer vision engineers, allows quick creation, integration & monitoring of powerful OEM vision applications.
Adding innovative tech is critical to your success, but it can be complex and disruptive. Professional Services help you accelerate adoption, and maximise productivity without affecting your workflows, business processes and finances.
Zebra's Managed Service delivers worry-free device management to ensure ultimate uptime for your Zebra Mobile Computers and Printers via dedicated experts.
Find ways you can contact Zebra Technologies’ Support, including Email and Chat, ask a technical question or initiate a Repair Request.
Zebra's Circular Economy Program helps you manage today’s challenges and plan for tomorrow with smart solutions that are good for your budget and the environment.
Both machine vision and computer vision can perform tasks at a faster speed than ordinary human vision, but there are some key differences between the two. One difference between computer vision and machine vision is that machine vision systems give vision capability to existing technologies. Machine vision systems involve image processing and work on a set of rules and parameters to support manufacturing applications such as quality assurance. On the other hand, computer vision refers to the capture and automation of image analysis. The image analysis is done by the machine vision system, which can be applied across a wide range of theoretical and practical applications.
While both machine vision and computer vision involve ingesting and analyzing visual inputs, there are differences between the two. Machine vision systems capture images using digital cameras and then process them to output a decision. These decisions can include pass or fail decisions in a production line that are based on a defect that the vision system detected. Machine vision systems also typically contain a camera, lens, processor and software to enable the machine to make these decisions. In other words, machine vision needs to be part of a larger machine system. On the other hand, computer vision systems can be used on their own.
In addition, computer vision does not necessarily need to capture an image as it can work off of saved images. Computer vision systems can interpret data from a saved image and produce a result or set of results. Unlike machine vision systems, computer vision systems do not require a camera. Computer vision has more flexibility in this regard as it can work by using real-life images or synthetic images. Computer vision systems can gain valuable information from images, videos and other visuals, whereas machine vision systems rely on the image captured by the system's camera.
Another difference is that computer vision systems are commonly used to extract and use as much data as possible about an object. In contrast, machine vision systems typically focus on specific parts or critical parts of an object and then process that data from its image capture. Since it is used more to find specific qualities, machine vision is normally used for fast decisions in a controlled environment.
Regardless of the differences between the two, the applications of both computer vision and machine vision technologies are immensely diverse.
For a more detailed introduction to machine vision, you can visit our dedicated what is machine vision FAQ.
Computer vision sits within a machine vision system. Machine vision uses computer vision, but the machine vision system also involves the post-image capture part of the process.
The goal of machine vision is to use image capture and process the images to define an action. Machine vision is commonly used in industrial applications such as automatic inspection and manufacturing processes. For instance, manufacturers can use machine vision to process and identify issues like if a product has a defect.
You can look at machine vision as a subset of computer vision. Computer vision is a broader term involving the automation of image analysis without relying on human eyes to do so. It is a field of artificial intelligence that trains computers to interpret and understand images. Machine vision uses computer vision in industrial and practical applications by using image capture to determine an action after interpreting and processing the images. Machine vision can use a frame grabber to capture individual still frames that are commonly high-resolution digital still images and then analyze them. Artificial intelligence can also be used in machine vision to help speed up the system's decision-making process.
Computer vision has many practical and important applications. Some of these applications include detecting objects, scanning images, scanning texts, scanning videos, recognizing images, detecting faces and tracking objects. Computer vision is also used in virtual reality, augmented reality and more.
In addition, computer vision seeks to automate tasks that the human visual system can do and focuses on how computers can be purpose-built to gain a high-level understanding of digital images or videos. It also includes new applications which leverage advances in machine learning.
Machine vision has many practical and important applications such as inspecting objects, detecting flaws in objects and inspecting packages. Machine vision systems can also be programmed for classifying objects, detecting colors, verifying colors, detecting patterns and matching patterns. In addition, machine vision is also used when reading barcodes in a structured environment. Because of its wide applications, machine vision is widely used in process control and robot guidance across many businesses and industries.
The combined technologies have applications and benefits within quality assurance and efficiency of operations. More companies are relying on machine vision systems to meet goals surrounding quality and to drive higher customer satisfaction.
Some typical examples of how businesses use machine vision systems include:
Within the automotive industry, machine vision can be used to inspect and determine if a bead has been properly applied, ensuring the assembled parts do not leak and are fully sealed.
These ensure quality and eliminate rework, repair and scrap, especially as more parts in manufacturing are now being bonded together with adhesives. Both 2D and 3D machine vision can be used to solve these applications. More advanced setups use special machine vision tools to solve bead applications.
An additional use case in automotive is end-of-line inspection and barcode reading. Powertrain/propulsion process inspection to ensure that the engine/transmission is correctly assembled, there are no missing parts or extra “bonus” parts and that the clips are all in place. Engines/transmissions have many direct parts marked data matrix codes on them, these codes are read at numerous points in the process as part of the track and trace procedures. The same camera can carry out both inspections and code reading.
In the food and beverage industry, machine vision can be used within the bottle cap and fill process. The machine vision system can inspect to determine if the bottle is filled and if the cap is correctly applied to the bottle. This reduces scrap and waste while ensuring that the product is complete and safe.
Within the solar industry, the machine vision system can inspect the solar panel assembly process to determine that the panels are correctly built. These can be done by detecting the presence or absence of parts, the location and the measurement, which ensures that the parts being produced will work when completed and achieve maximum efficiency.
In durable consumer goods (e.g., dishwashers, ovens, refrigerators, microwaves) component inspection can determine that the machines and assemblies are correctly built via presence/absence, location, measurement and color identification tools.
In fastener manufacturing, the system can inspect fasteners to ensure that they are properly formed. Normally the tops and the threads of the fastener are inspected. This ensures that the parts are correctly formed, which helps to determine the quality and make sure that bad parts do not make it to the end customer.
In plastic injection molding, machine vision can inspect and ensure that the parts being molded are fully formed. The deformed parts could be a result of short shots, meaning not enough material has been inserted into the mold and the part is deformed. This improves quality and reduces waste. By integrating machine vision, manufacturers can achieve higher precision, reduce manual inspection time, and enhance overall production efficiency. Furthermore, data collected from these inspections can be analyzed by teams to optimize the molding process and predict maintenance needs, further driving down costs and increasing productivity.
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