Seeing beyond the human eye: AI-powered quality control on the factory floor
Manufacturing is changing, rapidly. Pressed by efficiency, and in the middle of a race to embrace automation, an overdue revolution is unfolding, driven by the power of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine vision. The traditional methods of quality inspection, reliant on hard-to-find human expert to manually scrutinizing products, are giving way to a new paradigm that promises to redefine what quality and consistency is in modern Manufacturing plants.
Leading the pack in this transformation is Neurala, the AI pioneer based in Boston. Since its founding in 2006, the company has relentlessly advanced its Deep Learning technology, and with Neurala’s Lifelong Deep Neural Network (L-DNN) algorithm, it is today leading the industry in AI-powered quality control, with Deep Learning algorithms that are continually learning and adapting to detect even the most subtle flaws, directly at the Edge where the data is analyzed.
Neurala’s mission is clear: to help manufacturers improve their vision inspection process. The industry faces mounting challenges, including supply chain disruptions and labor shortages, all of which are driving the need for more automation. Neurala’s Visual Inspection Automation (VIA) software goes beyond the capabilities of traditional machine vision, detecting anomalies and defects with unparalleled accuracy, even in the face of natural product variations. Powered by AI’s tireless “eyes,” smart camera equipped by Neurala’s VIA software suite can detect microscopic cracks, discolorations, and malformations – flaws that would often elude the human gaze. This not only reduces product defects and returns, but also increases inspection rates and prevents production downtime.
Neurala’s software can be easily retrofitted into existing production line infrastructure, without the need for costly AI experts or extensive capital expenditures. The true strength lies in Neurala’s ability to continually refine and enhance inspection capabilities based on real-world data streams, ensuring that the AI models remain effective as manufacturing processes evolve. As product lines and defect types change, traditional machine vision systems would require full reprogramming. Neurala’s AI, on the other hand, adapts on the fly, seamlessly taking on new challenges. Manufacturers can deploy Neurala’s vision AI models to meet their specific business needs, whether on the cloud or on-premise, further enhancing the system’s versatility.
By reducing labor needs and minimizing rework, Neurala’s AI solutions also deliver unparalleled cost efficiency, making this approach a game-changer for quality control in manufacturing. Thanks to this flexibilty and cost-efficiency, global leaders, such as a leading pet food manufacturer, have standardized quality across 21 plants by deploying Neurala’s vision technology on their production lines. The software’s innovative features, like “Explainability” and “Multi-ROI,” further illustrates the transformative potential of AI-driven quality control.
As AI and machine vision become indispensable tools for manufacturers seeking to compete by pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with quality and consistency, solutions like Neurala’s are away going beyond constraints of past approaches. This AI-powered revolution is not an incremental advancement. It is rather a massive leap into a new standard, unlocking greenfield applications previously unthinkable in the industry – or possible only through costly and unfeasable increase in manpower.
