Opales, machine vision
Machine vision · Lons-le-Saunier, Jura, France

Part inspected,
defect rejected,
at your line speed.

Vision, mechanics, automation and software brought together in a single company since 1992.

Opales designs, builds and commissions camera-based inspection systems: turnkey machines, integration on your lines, our own VisiOpal software, and upgrades of existing installations.

Have my parts tested See our case studies
Over 2,000 cameras installed since 199230 countriesCognex PSI partner
Opales inspection machine for thermoformed parts: a row of cameras above the parts
1992year founded
Over 2,000cameras installed since 1992
30countries served, 5 continents
Cognex Partner System Integratorofficial integration partner
Delta Groupsensors and measurement for heavy industry
What we inspect

Send us your parts: we show you what vision can guarantee, before any commitment

Your parts go through our laboratory first. From simply checking that a component is present to 3D measurement of steel strip moving at 4 m/s, we choose the technique that keeps up with your line speed and your tolerance.

Presence and conformity

Assemblies, components, packing: every part is compared with its recipe, with more than 250 inspection points if needed.

e.g. dashboard →

Dimensional measurement

Dimensions, profiles and shapes measured without contact, down to micron repeatability on pipettes.

e.g. pipettes →

Surface and defects

Inclusions, missing material, scratches, drift of a surface treatment.

e.g. capsules with AI →

Reading and traceability

Barcodes, DataMatrix, text and mould cavity numbers read and archived with the image.

e.g. cavity number reading →

Robot guidance

Part identification and guidance for picking and placing, with an on-board or fixed camera.

e.g. cylinder heads →

3D measurement and flatness

Laser projection, stereo vision: shapes, widths and flatness, even on fast-moving products.

e.g. steel strip at 4 m/s →

Hot products and thermal imaging

Measurements on products above 600 °C, thermal infrared cameras.

e.g. rolling mill →

Artificial intelligence

Deep learning for surface defects that are hard to describe with rules.

Artificial intelligence →
Three ways to work together

From a complete machine to upgrading your installation

Opales inspection machine with operator screen

Turnkey inspection machines

A complete machine, designed and built by Opales around your part.

  • Mechanics, electrics, lighting and vision
  • Sorting and rejection by defect type
  • Operator interface, statistics, archiving
The machines
Opales laboratory test bench with cameras and lighting

Vision integration on your line

We add vision to your machine or to your existing line.

  • Choice of cameras, optics and lighting
  • Communication with your PLCs and robots
  • On-site commissioning and training
Integration
Row of Cognex cameras in operation

Audit, recommissioning and retrofit

Your installation is ageing or no longer performs as it should: we diagnose it and bring it up to date.

  • Audit of images, optics and lighting
  • Report and recommissioning plan
  • Replacement of end-of-life cameras
Retrofit
Case studies

Inspections in production, with their figures

Line speeds, accuracy, number of checks: a few systems designed and commissioned by Opales.

Food industry

Coffee capsule inspection

The needInspect every coffee capsule at 20 parts per second, across more than 200 product references, and reject defective ones by defect type.

The solution

  • Turnkey machine at 20 parts per second
  • More than 200 recipes
  • Rejection by defect type with image archiving
  • Operator interface with traceability and statistics
TurnkeyHigh speedRejection
Automotive

Dashboard inspection

The needCheck that an assembled dashboard matches its reference on hundreds of points, from the kanban batch to packing.

The solution

  • Conformity of kanban batches, of the finished product after assembly and of packing
  • One or more very high-resolution cameras
  • More than 250 checks
  • Traceability and statistics of results with the images
ConformityHigh resolutionTraceability
Steel industry

Flatness measurement of steel strip in continuous rolling

The needMeasure the flatness of a strip moving at 4 m/s, with 50 ms for acquisition and calculation.

The solution

  • Strip speed of 4 m/s, i.e. 50 ms for acquisition and processing
  • Multi-line laser projection for 3D measurement
  • Sub-pixel repeatability through interpolation
3D laserReal timeSub-pixel
Plastics

Capsule integrity inspection with artificial intelligence

The needDetect inclusions and missing material too variable to be described by rules, and know which mould cavity each capsule comes from.

The solution

  • Camera with an artificial intelligence system
  • Deep learning algorithm
  • Detection of inclusions and missing material
  • Traceability through the mould cavity number
AISurfaceTraceability
Electrical industry

Conformity of electrical industry parts

The needCheck the dimensions of parts produced at 200 per second and monitor the drift of their surface treatment.

The solution

  • High-speed inspection: 200 parts per second
  • Dimensional inspection
  • Visualisation of surface treatment drift
High speedDimensionalSurface
Automotive

Robot guidance for handling cylinder heads

The needRecognise the type of cylinder head presented and guide the robot to pick and place it, whatever the reference.

The solution

  • Camera mounted on the robot
  • Identification of the cylinder head type
  • Robot guidance for picking
  • Robot guidance for placing
Robot guidanceIdentification

All case studies by industry

Our method in six steps

A single contact, from laboratory testing to maintenance

Vision, mechanics, electrics, automation and industrial IT all work together at Opales: nothing gets lost between two subcontractors.

Feasibility

Your parts go through our laboratory: cameras, optics and lighting are tested to establish what vision can guarantee.

Proposal

Shared specification: checks, line speed, expected detection rate, interface and communication.

Design

Lighting developed for your production; optics, mechanics, electrics and software designed in-house.

Manufacturing

Manufacturing, wiring and programming, then validation on your parts before shipping.

Commissioning

On-site installation, adjustment in production, acceptance and training of your teams.

Support

Telephone support, remote maintenance, on-site service and annual maintenance contract.

In-house software

VisiOpal, the software suite for your inspections

More than 30 years of development: acquisition, image processing, AI, PLCs, database and operator interface, programmed without code. Opales tools with no third-party licence; Cognex VisionPro as an option.

Over 60 fpsPattern · codes · AI OCROpenCVPROFINET · EtherNet/IP · Modbus

Discover VisiOpal

Two M8 screws inspected by VisiOpal: on the left a good screw, OK verdict; on the right a screw with a broken thread tooth, flagged in red, NOK verdict
Retrofit

Your smart cameras are reaching end of life, not your inspection

A housing with the same dimensions and connectors replaces the obsolete camera; processing moves to a VisiOpal unit. The PLC sees the same camera: its program does not change, and the line stops for only a few hours.

In-Sight 5000, Micro, 1000, 7000, 8000PLC program unchanged

See the retrofit

Cognex cameras in operation on a line
Automation and supervision

Automation expertise born at Siemens

As a vision integrator for Siemens France, Opales created the PROFIBUS DP communication blocks for the Simatic VS710. We develop for Siemens, Allen-Bradley, Télémécanique and Pro-face, and our supervision interfaces run multi-camera lines.

PROFIBUS DP · PROFINET · EtherNet/IPVB6 · Delphi · C#

Discover our automation work

Siemens SIMATIC S7-1200 PLC wired in a cabinet, with its Ethernet switch
Industries

Every industry that manufactures in series

Automotive, steel, food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, plastics, electrical industry: each industry has its constraints, from the clean room to the hot rolling mill.

AutomotiveFood industryPlasticsCosmeticsPharmaceuticalElectrical industrySteel industry
Partners and integrated equipment

The right equipment for each application

Cognex integration partner and Delta Sensor integrator; Basler and IDS cameras, Siemens and Allen-Bradley PLCs in our systems.

Cognex Partner System Integrator Delta Sensor, Delta Group BaslerIDSSiemensAllen-Bradley
Frequently asked questions

Before starting a vision project

All questions

What is needed to study the feasibility of an inspection?

Representative parts, good and defective, the line speed, the available space and the environment (dust, temperature, vibration), and what the PLC must receive in return. We run the parts through our laboratory, equipped with a full range of cameras, lenses and lighting.

Do you build complete machines or only the vision part?

Both. Opales designs and builds turnkey inspection machines based entirely on cameras, and also integrates vision into your own machine or line. The team covers vision, mechanics, electrics, automation and industrial IT.

Do you work only with Cognex?

Opales has been an official Cognex integration partner (PSI) since 2006 and uses the Cognex range when it is the right answer. We also develop our VisiOpal software, which drives Basler and IDS cameras with our own processing tools, with no third-party licence; Cognex VisionPro tools remain available as an option.

Can you take over an existing or faulty installation?

Yes. An audit assesses image quality, optical settings, lighting and processing tools, and concludes with a report of solutions to bring the installation back into service. For end-of-life cameras, we offer retrofit.

Let's talk about your project

An inspection to set up, an installation to take over?

Send us your parts, good and defective: we run them through our laboratory and show you what vision can guarantee on your line.

Request a feasibility study +33 3 84 24 88 66 contact@opales.fr