FAQ

What is TwinCAT Vision?

TwinCAT Vision is an industrial image processing software. You can capture images with industrial cameras and calculate information about the recorded scene from them.

Frequent use cases are:

• Presence check
• Object recognition
• Optical measurement
• Code Reading

Can I test TwinCAT Vision free of charge?

Yes, you can generate 7-day trial licenses for the runtime components. The engineering is free of charge.

Do I need TwinCAT in order to use TwinCAT Vision?

Yes, TwinCAT Vision is fully integrated in TwinCAT. A compatible TwinCAT version must be installed before TwinCAT Vision can be installed.

What cameras can I use with TwinCAT Vision?

TwinCAT Vision supports cameras with the GigE Vision interface. GigE Vision cameras are connected to the IPC via an Ethernet cable.

Can I use several cameras at the same time?

Yes, with the TwinCAT GigE Vision Connector you can operate several cameras, depending on the license.

Can I connect several cameras via a single switch?

Yes. Pay attention to the maximum available bandwidth (e.g. 125 MB/s in case of 1 GigE, effectively nearer 110-115 MB/s).

Are there samples for TwinCAT Vision?

Yes, in the chapter Samples.

Are there benchmarks for the TwinCAT Vision functions?

No, because the execution time of vision algorithms strongly depends on the performance of the IPC, the image size, the function parameters and the image content. Therefore, it is helpful to have a basic understanding of how algorithms work and what factors influence the respective computing time.

Can other image processing software also be used in TwinCAT as an alternative to TwinCAT Vision?

Images can be recorded via GigE Vision with the TC3 GigE Vision Connector. The image processing can then take place in various ways:

• Use of the TwinCAT Vision API via the PLC library Tc3_Vision
• Use of the self-written TwinCAT PLC or C++ algorithms
• Using the TwinCAT Vision API in a C++ module
• Use of Matlab/Simulink
• Retrieving image data via ADS from other applications

What is the difference between image processing software such as TwinCAT Vision and smart cameras?

Image processing software such as TwinCAT Vision:

• Image data received from a camera
• Process this on a computer
• Send processed information to the controller
• Advantage of TwinCAT Vision: control and image processing are the same software and run in the same system. Therefore, additional interfaces and protocols are not required.

Smart cameras:

• Have an internal processor
• Carry out image processing operations directly on the camera
• Supply processed information such as good/bad information or the position of a workpiece via additional interfaces

Can TwinCAT Vision be executed on a GPU?

No, TwinCAT Vision runs exclusively on a CPU in the TwinCAT real-time environment. Alternatively, TwinCAT Vision offers the option of an automatically parallelized execution by using the multi-core functionality of TwinCAT (in interaction with job tasks).