Cognex In-Sight Vision Systems, New Zealand

Cognex / In-Sight vision systems

Fitting a better camera to the same bracket at the same distance changes what it sees. A different sensor size gives a different field of view through the same lens, and a different resolution changes every pixel measurement in the job. That is why an upgrade is a recommissioning job and a like-for-like is a swap.

In-Sight is a self contained vision system: camera, processor and inspection software in one body. That makes it easy to install and it means everything valuable lives inside a single unit.

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The generations

Range	Position	Status
In-Sight 5000 series	The long serving workhorse. Very large installed base	Obsolete
In-Sight Micro	Compact body, remote mounting	Obsolete
In-Sight 2000	Entry level, integrated lighting and lens	Mature
In-Sight 7000	Integrated lighting with interchangeable lenses	Mature
In-Sight 8000	Very compact, external lighting	Mature
In-Sight 9000	High resolution	Mature
Current D and L series	Including deep learning capable models	Current

The 5000 series is where most of our enquiries sit. Obsolete, widely installed, and running inspections that nobody wants to rebuild.

Two ways to build a job, and it matters

Worth establishing early, because it decides who can maintain the system.

	The guided approach	The spreadsheet approach
Looks like	A step by step application builder	A spreadsheet of cells and functions
Built by	Often plant engineering	Usually an integrator
Maintainable by	Most technical staff	Someone who knows the spreadsheet
Capability	Covers most inspections	Anything, including custom logic

A spreadsheet based job can contain a lot of custom logic that is not obvious from the outside. Calculations, string handling, conditional passes, communication formatting.

So when you open a job to look at it, note which sort it is. If it is a spreadsheet job built by an integrator, that job file is the only documentation of how the inspection works, and it is worth more than the camera by a wide margin.

Back up the job file

The single highest value action on this page.

Situation	What a camera failure costs you
Job file exported and stored	A camera, and an hour
Job only inside the camera	A camera, an integrator, and a line down while tolerances are re-established

The tolerances in a vision job were arrived at empirically. Somebody ran product through, watched what passed and what failed, and adjusted until the reject rate was acceptable. That work does not come back from a manual.

Three things worth storing together:

The job file itself, exported from the software.

The software and firmware version it was made with.

A photograph of the installation, showing the mounting position, the working distance and the lighting arrangement. That is the physical half of the setup and it is not in the file.

Version matching

Situation	Result
Job made on older software, newer camera	Generally loads, may need converting
Job made on newer software, older camera	Often will not load
Laptop software older than the camera firmware	Connection problems

Once a job is saved in a newer format, going back is awkward. On a plant with several cameras that can mean upgrading all of them together rather than one at a time.

So tell us your software version with the enquiry, and we will tell you whether the camera we are quoting fits your environment.

And be deliberate about upgrading a working system. There is rarely a reason to move a line that is inspecting correctly.

Sensor, lens and field of view

The technical content that decides whether a substitution works.

If this changes	Then
Sensor size	The same lens gives a different field of view at the same distance
Resolution	Every pixel based measurement and threshold changes
Lens focal length	Field of view changes at the same distance
Working distance	Field of view and focus both change
Monochrome to colour	Different tools and different lighting behaviour

Three of those four are outside the camera, which is why we ask for a photo of the installation rather than just a model number.

A job's inspection regions are positioned in the image. Change what the image contains and the regions no longer sit over the features they were drawn around, even if everything else is identical.

So on a like-for-like replacement: same model, same lens, same distance, same lighting, and the job loads and runs. Change any of them and expect to adjust.

Lighting is the usual culprit

Worth its own section, because it explains most vision systems that have become unreliable.

Symptom	Very often
Works in the morning, fails in the afternoon	Ambient light changing. Sun through a roof light or a door
Gradually less reliable over months	LED illuminator dimming, or a dirty lens
Fails on shiny or wet product	Glare. Wants a polariser or different lighting angle
Started failing after building work	Someone changed the lights above the line
Fails at speed only	Exposure time and motion blur
Inconsistent between shifts	Different ambient conditions, or product presentation

Controlled lighting is what makes an inspection repeatable. A system relying partly on ambient light works until the ambient light changes, and then it becomes intermittent in a way that looks like a camera fault.

Before ordering a camera, clean the lens, check the illuminator is at full output, and look at what light is falling on the product. All free.

We supply lighting, filters and polarisers, and on a system that never quite worked those are usually a better spend than a better camera.

What else is in the installation

Part	Notes
Power and I/O cable	A specified part, not generic
Ethernet cable	Industrial rated with the correct connector
Breakout or I/O module	Where trigger, pass and fail outputs and power land
Trigger sensor	Usually a photoelectric sensor. A common cause of no inspection at all
Lighting and its controller	Separate on external lighting
Mounting bracket and housing	Separate parts

If the camera has stopped inspecting entirely, check the trigger before the camera. No trigger means no inspection, and the trigger is usually an ordinary photoelectric sensor that costs very little.

Talking to the PLC

The communication setup is part of the job, including which results map to which addresses.

Method	Notes
Discrete I/O	Pass and fail on wires. Simple and very common
EtherNet/IP	Usually with Allen-Bradley
PROFINET	Usually with Siemens
Modbus TCP or TCP strings	General purpose

Record the camera's IP address before removing it. A correct camera at the wrong address is invisible to the line, and that wastes an hour at exactly the wrong moment.

Before ordering a replacement

Symptom	Check first
No inspection at all	The trigger sensor and its wiring
Unreliable results	Lighting, lens cleanliness, ambient light
Works early, fails later in the day	Sunlight reaching the product
Fails only at full line speed	Exposure and motion blur
Camera not reachable	IP address, cable, switch port
New camera fitted, nothing happens	Job file and communication mapping
Job will not open	Software and firmware versions
Upgraded camera, regions wrong	Sensor size and resolution changed the image

What to send us

The camera model number.

A photo of the installation, showing mounting, distance and lighting.

Your software version.

Whether the job file is backed up.

The lens, if it is a model with interchangeable optics.

How it communicates with the PLC.

Whether you need cables, lighting or the breakout module.

What we can supply

Cameras. In-Sight across the current and obsolete generations, including the 5000 series and Micro, as new, surplus and tested used.

Optics. Lenses, extension tubes, filters and polarisers.

Lighting. Ring, bar, dome and backlight illuminators and controllers.

Accessories. Power and I/O cables, Ethernet cables, breakout and I/O modules, brackets and protective housings.

Complete arrangements. Where a system needs camera, lens, lighting and cabling together, we quote the set so nothing is missing on the day.

A sensible vision spares position

Item	Why
Job files exported and stored off the camera	Free, and it is the whole inspection
A photo of every installation	The physical half of the setup
A spare trigger sensor	Cheap, and it stops the inspection entirely
A spare illuminator	They dim with age and take the reliability with them
One matching camera on a critical line	Obsolete supply thins out and does not improve

The first two cost nothing. They are also the difference between a one hour swap and a day with an integrator.

We buy In-Sight

In-Sight holds value, particularly the obsolete generations, because plants running them cannot buy new and rebuilding an inspection is expensive.

Keep the lens, the lighting, the cables and the breakout module with the camera. A complete arrangement is worth considerably more than a bare body. See Sell To Us.

Common questions

Can you get a part that is not listed on your site?
Usually. The site shows what we hold, not what we can source.

Can I fit a higher resolution camera?
Yes, but the field of view and the pixel measurements change, so the job needs setting up again.

My job file will not load.
Usually a version mismatch. Tell us the software and firmware versions.

The system has become unreliable.
Lighting, lens cleanliness and ambient light, before the camera.

Nothing is being inspected at all.
Check the trigger sensor. No trigger means no inspection.

Do you supply used cameras?
Yes, tested before shipping. On obsolete In-Sight it is often the only way to keep an existing job in service.

What is the lead time?
Ex stock items ship the next working day within New Zealand. We give you a firm lead time with the quote.

Do you quote in NZD?
Yes, in NZD including GST for New Zealand customers.

Send us your model numbers

And a photo of the installation. On vision the mounting, the distance and the lighting are as much a part of the specification as the camera is. Quotes in NZD including GST.

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Industech is an independent supplier of new, surplus and used industrial automation equipment. We are not an authorised distributor of, approved by, sanctioned by, or affiliated with Cognex. Cognex and In-Sight are trademarks of Cognex Corporation. EtherNet/IP is a trademark of ODVA. PROFINET is a trademark of PROFIBUS Nutzerorganisation. All trademarks, brand names and model numbers are the property of their respective owners and are used here for identification purposes only.