A Single Top-Down Image Cannot Show You the Relief: TR-55, a 3D Surface Observation Unit
kotai2003TOMOMI RESEARCH, INC. has begun offering TR-55, a compact unit for observing the fine relief of sample surfaces in three dimensions in research and development settings. At its core is 3D reconstruction. The calculated surface shape is reconstructed as a three-dimensional model, which you can rotate, zoom, and view from an oblique angle, as if looking down on it.
In R&D, the means of seeing "the shape of a surface" are limited
Materials development, surface treatment, machining, electronic component mounting. In many R&D settings, checking "what the surface of a sample looks like" with your own eyes is a daily task.
However, the images obtained with cameras and optical microscopes mix the color of the material itself with the shading created by the lighting. Because the impression changes with even a slight change in how light is applied, it is not always easy to tell whether a difference you are looking at is "a difference in color" or "a difference in shape."
There are instruments that extract the surface shape itself. However, most are dedicated equipment, not something you can casually use in day-to-day experiments. That, we believe, is how it feels in many R&D labs.
TR-55: a 3D surface observation unit that sits on the lab bench
[Exterior of TR-55. A white sample stage sits at the center of the top of a black benchtop base; on a vertical post at the back are a ring light and, above it, a camera and lens]
TR-55 is a 3D surface observation unit that uses FORESIGHT STEREO®, our 3D imaging technology developed in-house from Photometric Stereo. As its operating environment, it comes with the GUI application FORESIGHT STEREO Viewer.
TR-55 is not an inspection system for integration into a mass-production line. It is a unit for observing sample surfaces in three dimensions in R&D settings.
The configuration is very simple. A white sample stage on top of a black benchtop housing. On the post at the back, a ring light and, above it, a camera and lens.
Operation is just as simple. Place the sample, display it on screen with Live, and press Start. That alone gives you multiple outputs at once, with color and shape separated. No retakes, no lengthy condition tuning.
Being able to swap samples and check the results on the spot. The design of TR-55 is centered on this one point, because research by trial and error loses its pace whenever waiting time creeps in.
One capture separates color and shape
[A 2×2 grid of the four outputs of TR-55: top left Live, top right 2D Texture, bottom left 3D Surface, bottom right Surface Normal. These are the results of a single capture of the same UK £2 coin. In 3D Surface the color is gone and only the surface relief remains; in Surface Normal the orientation of the surface is expressed in colors based on blue-violet]
TR-55 extracts four types of output from a single capture. Live is the image as the human eye sees it; 2D Texture is an output that extracts only the color and pattern of the surface; 3D Surface is an output that reconstructs only the shape (relief) of the surface; and Surface Normal is an output that encodes the orientation of the surface as color, which serves as the source data for 3D reconstruction. You switch the display with Show Mode on screen.
The image above is an example of observing a single UK £2 coin that has actually circulated and become worn. Its bimetallic construction, a gold-colored ring and a silver-colored disc, makes it a good subject for following how color and shape separate. In 3D Surface, the boundary between gold and silver cannot be found, because it was "color," not "shape."
Core feature: 3D reconstruction. Rotate, tilt, and look
[The 3D Reconstructed Surface window. The surface shape of the UK £2 coin is reconstructed as a three-dimensional model, with the 2D texture applied to the solid and shown from an oblique viewpoint. The lettering on the outer ring and the portrait on the inner disc can be seen as raised shapes]
The four outputs so far are all flat images seen from directly above. And from a single top-down image, it is hard to grasp how the relief rises or how far the wear has spread. The moment a surface is transferred onto a plane, the freedom of "where to look from" is lost.
3D reconstruction (3D Surface Reconstruction), the core feature of TR-55, fills this gap. It reconstructs the calculated surface shape as a three-dimensional model and displays it in a dedicated window called 3D Reconstructed Surface. From there, you are free. You can rotate the model, zoom in, and observe it from an oblique angle, as if looking down on it.
The image above shows that oblique view. The inscription running around the outer ring appears not as lines drawn on a plane but as raised shapes. The portrait on the inner disc, too, exists not as an outline but as relief.
This view has one more feature: the 2D texture is applied to the reconstructed solid. The colors of the gold ring and the silver disc sit on top of the reconstructed shape. In other words, you can check "which color sits on which shape" at the same time. Separate color and shape once, then overlay them again to look: a way of seeing that is possible precisely because they have been separated.
The window also has a function for pointing to any spot, so you can proceed with observation while marking the areas of interest.
* This feature is for visualizing and observing the shape of the object and does not guarantee measurement results for dimensions or depth.
Access not only to the results but also to the intermediate data
[The FORESIGHT STEREO Viewer operating screen. On the left, the coin in 3D Surface view; on the right, settings panels for Show Mode, Enhance Mode, Preprocess Mode, Auto Object Alignment, Image Save Mode, and Control; at the bottom of the screen, previews of three outputs]
FORESIGHT STEREO Viewer is designed to give you access not only to the final results but also to the intermediate data.
Rather than handing over the technology as a black box, we provide it in a state where you can see inside and work with it. For a unit placed in a research setting, we believe this is the more natural approach.
Expected applications
- Observing machined surfaces of metals and resins, and the condition of surface treatments and coatings
- Observing surface condition as wear and degradation progress
- Checking relief, inscriptions and fine shapes on prototypes
- Examining shape changes with little color contrast by separating color and shape
- Research and education at universities and research institutes
- Acquiring datasets for image processing and machine learning research
Availability
You can choose a configuration according to your application, camera / lighting setup, and software options. We offer configurations that can also be considered at the level of an individual laboratory, and quotes are provided individually according to the configuration.
Insights gained through TR-55 will also be fed back into our AI visual inspection systems TR-100 / TR-300 and our anomaly detection engine E3 ENGINE® as we continue to advance the technology.
Summary
Looking at the shape of a surface has long belonged to the realm of dedicated equipment. TR-55 is a unit for moving it onto the lab bench. Place a sample, press a button, and rotate the three-dimensional model that comes out. We hope you will get a feel for it with your own samples.
The images in this article are observation examples of a single UK £2 coin. They do not guarantee results for all objects and conditions. In addition, the images and outputs shown are visualizations of the object's shape, not measurement results for dimensions or depth. Please confirm with actual samples whether observation is possible for your specific objects and conditions.
For details on TR-55, please see the press release (in Japanese).
https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000005.000137322.html
We welcome requests for demos and consultations on observing your own samples.
press@tomomi-research.com / Tel: 0466-54-9003
"FORESIGHT STEREO," "E3 ENGINE," "TR-300," and "TR-100" are trademarks or registered trademarks of TOMOMI RESEARCH, INC.
