Reading an IC Inscription

This sample application deals with reading the inscription on an IC. The image displays the IC after the NeuroCheck check routine has segmented the characters. The original size of the IC is just about 0.25cm2. Because the IC is used in air bag controllers, the inscription of every single IC has to be read prior to delivery of the circuit board.

The main difficulty in this application consisted in light reflections from the circuit board, which interfered strongly with the segmentation of the characters from the background. This problem was solved by a circular illumination using polarized light. In addition, the image was subjected to a preprocessing (check function Enhance Image) prior to analysis to compensate for variations in the print quality. The system was then able to read the characters perfectly.


The following image shows the simple straightforward construction of a character recognition application in NeuroCheck: