:::

【2020 Solutions】 AI Assistant - Zhihe Technology Develops the World's Smallest Diamond Sorting Machine

How should one inspect diamonds that are only half the size of human hair? The answer is to use AI for the inspection.

Zhihe Technology has developed the world's smallest diamond sorting machine. By integrating AI and machine learning, along with accumulating large sample data, the system becomes smarter, increasing the yield rate from 70% to 96% within two years. Moreover, by incorporating AI technology into the laser cross-cutting machine capable of handling 500-nanometer laser machining optical measurements, it becomes the first laser machine globally implanted with an AI system.

2016年從中國大陸回流的智合科技,是一家專門提供微測距影像量測系統服務的新創公司,其主要的服務項目包括微米級(µm)甚至奈米(nm)級的微測距應用、半導體檢測、鑽石相關產品、高米密度刀具量測及非標準件檢測。

Zhongxuan Li, General Manager of Zhihe Technology, has over a decade of experience in AOI inspection. After returning to Taiwan from mainland China, he established Zhihe Technology. At that time, semiconductor processes evolved from 8 nanometers to 3 nanometers. Due to high difficulty levels in processing, Li saw a significant market opportunity. Plus, AI's development accelerated after Google released the TensorFlow software in February 2017. TensorFlow is an open-source software library for machine learning applications in various perception and language understanding tasks.

World's Smallest Diamond Sorting Machine - Improved Yield to Over 96%

Consequently, combining his expertise in AOI and AI, Li chose the diamond sorting machine as their first proving ground. Zhihe Technology assisted a major industry company specializing in grinding, cutting tools, optics, wafer refurbishment, and other precision industries with automating human visual inspection process of diamond operations. This company's star product, the 'Diamond Disk,' uses diamonds the size of half a human hair. Previously, the company used traditional visual inspection, employing over 80 workers per production line, many of whom were foreign labor or older employees. The process was time-consuming, output was low, and labor costs were high. Most importantly, their semiconductor clients demanded automation, digitization, and increased precision for diamond inspections.

With Zhihe Technology's help, they supported a semiconductor equipment supplier in fully automating their manual diamond inspection process. They helped create the world's smallest AI-equipped diamond sorting machine, increasing the yield rate from below 70% to over 96%, gathering millions of diamond data points per day.

Using AI Technology to Create the World's Smallest Diamond Sorting Machine

▲靠AI技術打造全球最小的鑽石篩選機

運用AOI及AI交互應用,大幅提升鑽石篩檢效率

▲運用AOI及AI交互應用,大幅提升鑽石篩檢效率

此外,智合科技在2019年10月與雷射設備廠商雷科科技共同合作開發雷射十字加工機,簡單說,就是在只有髮絲二分之一的尖點上,打上十字,其精度及準度的要求更高。智合採用AOI方式自動標注,測量位置與角度對位及加工高度,再運用AI訓練位置與角度估算核心,反覆校調後,耗費4個月時間,開發出全球第一台植入AI系統的雷射十字加工機,有了AI技術的加持,讓原有的雷射機價格翻了三倍之多。

智合與雷科科技合作,共同打造全球第一台AI 雷射機

▲智合與雷科科技合作,共同打造全球第一台AI 雷射機

Three brilliant methods to make Auto-AI digital transformation so easy

Zhongxuan Li shared that Zhihe Technology is able to quickly integrate AI technology and develop Auto-AI, allowing enterprises to rapidly adopt and smoothly transition into digital transformation. There are three main methods of implementation:

Method 1, Simplifying training issues with an automated labeling platform: Use cameras to collect data from machine manufacturers, replace manual labeling with automated labeling, and progressively train to improve accuracy. The simpler the problem, the less data is needed for training.

Method 2, Parallel advancement of AOI and AI: In smart manufacturing processes, relying solely on either AOI or AI cannot achieve everything. First, AOI should be used to mark features and distinguish between good and defective parts, followed by AI for labeling and training. Using them in tandem enhances their effectiveness, and as the training data accumulates, the proportion of AOI decreases while that of AI gradually increases.

Method 3, Enhancing the integration capabilities of embedded system peripherals: Establishing new computation platforms (embedded systems or IPC platforms) continuously enhances the computing power of AI, thus lowering the industrial threshold for AI applications.

為降低AI使用門檻與成本,智合科技建立自主開發核心-Auto-AI(又稱為傻瓜系統),目前已經跟國內知名工控電腦大廠進行合作,提供使用者更簡易的AI 使用環境。李忠軒表示,台灣是全球最適合作AI系統的國家,擁有超強的電腦設計能力與系統整合能力,若能再加上軟核心平台,將可大幅提升AI落地應用的實證。

AOI與AI交互並行,將AI應用落地時程大幅縮減

▲AOI與AI交互並行,將AI應用落地時程大幅縮減

智合科技有研發能力相當強的機械控制及AI演算法的專業團隊,主要是公司的薪酬制度不同,智合將70%的利潤分享給員工,讓員工共同享受公司的成長果實,因此能吸引優秀人才投入,即時協助解決客戶痛點,在不更新設備的情況下,藉由AI技術的導入,提升原有設備價值。李忠軒也自許,智合將從純粹業務推銷性質的設備商,轉變成為工業升級服務方案商,並將客戶的滿意度與安全感,轉變成為市場行銷上的卓越口碑。

智合團隊,圖(左一)為總經理李忠軒

▲智合團隊,圖(左二)為總經理李忠軒

「Translated content is generated by ChatGPT and is for reference only. Translation date:2024-05-19」

Recommend Cases

【解決方案】2秒鐘完成結帳動作 Viscovery AI影像辨識助攻智慧零售
Complete checkout in 1 second, Viscovery AI image recognition assists smart retail

Artificial intelligence AI has gradually changed the way various industries operate in recent years However, most of the work is still done by humans, with AI playing a supporting role This has led to emergence of the term "AI Copilot," which stands for "AI-driven tools or assistants" that aim to assist users in completing various tasks and improve productivity and efficiency The concept of AI Copilot comes from the role of "co-pilot" During flight, the co-pilot assists the main pilot in completing various tasks to ensure flight safety and efficiency In fact, there have been signs of various "machines" beginning to play the role of "copilot" in different fields since the Industrial Revolution, assisting humans in completing heavy physical and repetitive tasks, greatly improving factory production efficiency, and driving rapid economic development Following the advancement of computing equipment and breakthroughs in machine learning, deep learning, and image recognition technologies, the concept of AI Copilot has gradually taken shape The development of AI Copilot marks the transition from "machine-assisted to AI-assisted" Early robots could only complete preset repetitive tasks, but today's AI copilot can learn and adapt to new environments and tasks, and continuously optimize its performance in practical applications This transformation not only changes human-machine interactions, but also has a profound impact on various industries The application scope of AI copilot covers various industries, including finance, healthcare, manufacturing, education, retail, etc, and are everywhere to be seen Application of AI copilot in the retail industry AI image recognition checkout In the retail industry, the application of AI copilot has begun to show concrete results Take Viscovery's AI image recognition checkout system as an example This system is a type of AI copilot model that helps store clerks speed up checkout or assists consumers in simplifying the self-service checkout process The store clerk needs to scan the product barcodes one by one in the regular checkout method If a product does not have a barcode, such as bread and meals, the clerk needs to first visually confirm the items, and then input them into the POS checkout system one by one Based on actual measurements at a chain bakery, it takes 22 seconds for an experienced clerk from "visual recognition" to "entering product information of a plate of 6 items into the checkout system" New clerks may need even more time In addition, according to a Japanese bakery operator, it takes 1 to 2 months to train employees to become familiar with products Now with AI image recognition technology, store clerks let AI handle the "product recognition" step, and AI will play the role of copilot, quickly identifying items within 1 second, speeding up checkout to save 50 of checkout time, and optimizing customers'shopping experience The time cost of training employees to identify bread can also be effectively shortened Even for products with barcodes, AI can quickly identify multiple items in one second, which is more efficient than scanning barcodes one by one The self-checkout system "assisted" by AI image recognition allows consumers to successfully complete shopping without the help of store clerks, eliminating the trouble of swiping barcodes or searching for items on the screen, which improves the shopping experience In a time when store clerks are hard to hire due to labor shortage, this also helps stores reduce operating costs AI quickly identifies multiple checkout items in just one second Source of image Viscovery Recently, startups dedicated to developing AI image recognition checkout solutions have emerged in various countries The most lightweight solution currently known is in Taiwan It can be immediately used by installing a Viscovery lens and a tablet installed with Viscovery AI image recognition software at the checkout counter to connect to the store's existing POS checkout system There are various integration methods, including plug-and-play and API solutions integrated with the store's POS system Viscovery AI image recognition system can be painlessly integrated with the store's existing POS system Source of image Viscovery Example of AI image recognition checkout Currently, the Viscovery AI image recognition system is being used in bakery chains in Taiwan, Chinese noodle shops in Singapore, micromarkets in department stores in Sendai, Japan, and Japanese bakeries and cake shops Over 7 million transactions were completed through this AI system, which identified more than 40 million items These use cases demonstrate the extensive application of the Viscovery AI image recognition system in the retail industry In the future, the company will continue to explore the various possibilities of using Vision AI in retail and catering nbsp The Viscovery AI image recognition system is already being used in bakeries, cake shops, restaurants, and convenience stores in Japan, Singapore, and Taiwan Source of image Viscovery

這是一張圖片。 This is a picture.
Make Meeting Records Efficient and Time-Saving with DeepWave's Smart Meeting Ink AI

Meeting Ink Enterprise Edition is now being launched Studies show that around 50 of content is forgotten within two hours after a meeting if not tracked and reviewed immediately multiple reports and transmissions can result in losing over one-third of key information Precise meeting records are crucial for organizations with strict operational protocols and public sectors However, with extensive meeting demands, recording can lead to losses in meeting outcomes and increase team burdens Spotting this market pain point, Taiwanese AI startup DeepWave has introduced 'Meeting Ink'—a new solution for meeting records that integrates voice, text, and automated AI technologies Meeting Ink supports voice-to-text transcription, speaker recognition, verbatim translation, and automated meeting summary highlights, offering flexible services for consumers and enterprises This year, it has added real-time verbatim scripting and translation, creating a new paradigm in meeting management AI Technology Solves Meeting Recording Pain Points in One Go Since its launch at the end of 2023, 'Meeting Ink' has become a high-efficiency and accurate meeting record management solution on the market DeepWave combines its proprietary technology, third-party tools, and Microsoft Azure's voice recognition technology to create the best voice-to-text experience Furthermore, this includes speaker recognition and segmenting, multiple language translation, and meeting summary functionalities across various scenarios To achieve broader applications, Meeting Ink also provides real-time application solutions, making it suitable not just for regular meetings but also for events, forums, and educational sessions Currently, Meeting Ink supports both app and web platforms, offering enterprise customization options to expand its applications further Excellent Voice Recognition Technology and Optimal User Experience Meeting Ink stands out in the market due to its precise voice recognition technology and user-centered application design Relying on DeepWave's proprietary technology, Meeting Ink can convert audio signals into text representing each speaker, distinguishing each participant's voice to ensure information is clearly differentiated Additionally, meeting content can be further summarized according to the speaker and, with DeepWave's optimized system, generate exclusive summary templates for various scenes and roles Whether for executive meetings, academic forums, personal interviews, or learning sessions, Meeting Ink produces tailored summaries for different contexts, bringing higher efficiency and flexibility to meeting recording experiences Precisely Targeting Enterprise Needs, Providing Comprehensive Enterprise Applications Anticipating the shifting market demands, DeepWave has launched a customized service plan tailored for B2B frameworks, further optimizing Meeting Ink's application on the enterprise side Enterprise clients can use the professional edition and enjoy exclusive customized summary modules tailored to specific industry needs DeepWave commits to regularly updating AI modules to ensure the most advanced technological support Additionally, Meeting Ink's enterprise service plan emphasizes data security, account permission management, unlimited storage space, and multi-device compatibility supporting all recording scenarios Offered at the lowest market rates, this provides an economical and efficient solution for enterprises, allowing them to focus on core tasks and enhancing overall meeting efficiency Embracing the Pulse of the AI Era, Leading Market Applications According to a 2023 market report, the global market for AI application tools is expected to grow from nearly 7 billion to 50 billion over the next decade, with business and learning tools playing key roles Facing the rapid progression of AI technology, DeepWave leverages its technical prowess and innovative capacity to penetrate international markets with Meeting Ink, continually bringing revolutionary changes to meeting records for both businesses and individuals Going forward, DeepWave will continuously optimize Meeting Ink, committed to promoting the close integration of AI technology with everyday work and learning scenarios, creating more convenient and efficient working environments for users 「Translated content is generated by ChatGPT and is for reference only Translation date:2024-11-15」

【解決方案】小柿智檢 以「AOIAI」雙劍合璧,軟加硬體千錘百鍊 打通外觀瑕疵檢測任督二脈
Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection uses the two swords of "AOI + AI" to combine software and hardware to open up the two channels of appearance defect detection and supervision.

Quality inspection, like a double-edged sword, has always been a favorite and painful subject for Taiwanese manufacturers When AI deep learning enters the industrial visual inspection of traditional manufacturing industries, it can not only save inspection manpower investment, solve the problem of inconsistent manual visual standards, overcome the limited visual recognition and defect detection blind spots of traditional automatic optical inspection AOI, and also enable real-time traceability Causes of quality problems The overall AIAOI visual inspection solution developed by Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection integrates software and hardware to create efficient appearance defect detection capabilities, helping electronics OEM customers create high-efficiency products with a miss detection rate of less than 1 and an overkill rate of less than 3 Check the level Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection was established in 2020 Although it is a new venture two years ago, it did not start from scratch Founder and CEO Hong Peijun and the core team have been deeply involved in Foxconn factories for many years and participated in countless smart factory-related solutions and process improvements , has profound AI deep learning development capabilities, and accumulated rich experience in world-class AI application implementation Seeing that AI industrial inspection must be the last mile for the manufacturing industry to move towards Industry 40, Hong Peijun resolutely decided to implement AI deep learning technology in the field of smart manufacturing with high output value, and specialized in the development of AI industrial visual inspection For the manufacturing industry, product inspection is the most important part of all quality control, but traditional industrial inspection faces two major pain points 1 Manual visual inspection Today, more than 95 of the entire manufacturing industry still relies on manual visual inspection Inspection makes it difficult for manual visual quality inspection standards to be consistent, and visual inspection of fine objects, such as passive components or highly reflective components, will cause long-term vision damage 2 Traditional AOI automatic optical inspection The product has limited visual recognition capabilities and blind spots in defect detection Among them, the detection of appearance defects such as scratches, oil stains, dirt or hair and other unexpected subtle defects has always been a problem in AOI applications Insurmountable difficulties AIAOI visual inspection overall solution is a great boon for appearance defect detection When designing the product roadmap of Xiaoshi Zhikan, customer group positioning and strengthening customer product services and value were important indicators Moreover, appearance defect detection has always been an unresolved pain in the manufacturing industry, Hong Peijun said With industrial quality inspection AI software as the core, Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection provides an overall solution for AIAOI visual inspection It mainly promotes three major products, including "QVI-T AI deep learning inspection modeling platform software" and "AI six-sided defect inspection and screening machine" ” and “AI Industrial Quality Inspection Platform” The main customer groups served are semiconductor packaging and testing, EMS electronics foundry, small metal parts processing and other industries with high production capacity and high gross profit margin In response to customer needs, Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection provides corresponding software and hardware services, combining self-developed AI deep learning software and hardware quality inspection equipment to reduce the manual visual burden on the production line and effectively improve the production quality of the factory In order to help equipment manufacturers and technical engineers with development capabilities accurately grasp product appearance defect detection, Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection independently developed QVI-T deep learning detection software, which can provide customers with defect location, defect classification, defect segmentation, anomaly detection and text recognition Key functions such as this are different from the fixed detection methods of traditional software Algorithms can be refined based on different industrial detection methods and different APIs can be developed to connect devices with different lenses The software design of this platform is very lightweight It is a SaaS software built on public cloudprivate cloud It mainly involves simple image uploading, labeling, training modeling, and verification testing After completion, users can download models, SDKs, APIs, and reports Effectively help customers achieve AI inference functions Currently, most of the industrial inspection services on the market are traditional AOI software industrial inspection machines, which can only measure product contours such as the head and length of fasteners, etc, and cannot truly provide detection of subtle product surface defects such as screw head cracks and tooth damage There is a lack of such high-precision defect detection companies in the market, Hong Peijun observed Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection developed and independently built the "AI six-sided defect detection and screening machine" from customized services in the past to providing standardized services for customers at the current stage It provides standardized testing services for fasteners in measurement and surface defects, as well as passive components High-speed surface defect detection of similar products This professional machine uses the AI deep learning AOI composite algorithm technology independently developed by Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection Through parallel computing technology, it can achieve model inference up to 3 milliseconds per picture, and realize multiple complex defect detection on the electrodes and body of passive components This professional machine is mainly used for the inspection of fasteners, small metal parts and passive components In terms of competitiveness in the industry, the software hardware integration provided by the AI six-sided defect inspection and screening professional machine is an important core competitive advantage of Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection It is not as simple as it sounds Hong Peijun said with emotion that this special machine is very important in the industrial inspection industry Commonly known as the highly integrated integration of optical mechanisms, electronic controls, software and algorithms, the process requires continuous optimization and iteration, and requires multiple client verifications and modifications After a long period of hard work, the technical threshold has also been raised The AI six-sided defect detection and screening professional machine will be the main product promotion direction of Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection in the next 3-5 years It is believed that AI combined with measurement technology and surface defect detection will be an important source of core competitiveness of Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection, Hong Peijun said AI six-sided defect detection and screening professional machine will be the main product promotion direction of Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection in the next 3-5 years Faced with the booming development of Industry 40 in smart factories, customers often ask "Does quality inspection data have secondary use value" Hong Peijun said that the "AI Industrial Quality Inspection Platform" launched by Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection has a machine learning mechanism , which can be used for secondary use of quality inspection data to provide customers with multiple functions including real-time monitoring and early warning of production quality, quality traceability analysis, quality factor assessment, process parameter prediction and recommendation Taking the successful introduction into the automotive parts factory as an example, through the prediction and recommendation of process parameters provided by the AI industrial quality inspection platform, when we know the product defects, we build a set of models based on the experience of past masters, coupled with the network connection data from the previous stage, After integration, we have process data, incoming material data, and quality inspection data We can predict whether these machine parameters have run out, and we can recommend whether the process parameters of certain sections should be adjusted up or down Through the AI industrial quality inspection platform, Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection can help customers connect visual quality inspection results, process data and acceptance standards with the existing MES system of the customer's factory to improve production quality, improve efficiency and reduce costs In terms of business model, Xiaoshi Zhiqian also provides a software subscription system for the deep learning detection modeling platform software It provides public cloud customers with traffic subscription and charges based on the amount of image uploads, while private cloud customers adopt an annual license fee license charging mechanism In addition, the company also provides customers with a buyout charging mechanism for the overall solution equipment, and provides a one-year warranty, after which consumables and software update maintenance fees are charged annually Going in the opposite direction, using both hard and soft methods, with a missed detection rate of less than 1 and rapid modeling in 15 minutes Faced with various small-volume and multi-sample inspection needs in the manufacturing industry, general AI deep learning visual inspection usually requires customers to collect a large number of photos of defective products, which is time-consuming to label, and also causes customers to have difficulty in importing AI, and defective products cannot be collected The introduction cycle is long and implementation is full of risks If there are not enough bad samples, the model will be inaccurate Kosaki Chikan goes in the opposite direction and uses its product "AI Visual Inspection Model Development Tool" to train models through pictures of good products provided by customers It is relatively easy for AI to learn good products, no labeling is required, and the time can be quickly compressed to complete the modeling Take the implementation of IPC electronics industry - AAEON Technology as an example In order to reduce the manpower input of the quality inspection station in the PCBA production line and have standardized quality inspection, Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection provides an overall solution for PCBA AI visual inspection software and hardware services, and conduct in-line inspection on the factory's highly automated assembly line, effectively saving inspection manpower investment, improving the standardization of quality inspection rates, and improving the problem of inconsistent standards caused by manual visual inspection Through the introduction of AI visual inspection software and hardware integrated solutions, we have effectively helped customers maintain an overkill rate of less than 3 in the past two years, and achieved high-efficiency performance with a missed detection rate of less than 1 In addition, this solution allows practitioners who do not understand AI to quickly operate modeling By installing the modeling tool on the device, when the customer has a new product number and needs to create a model, he only needs to provide 10 pictures of good products to scan under the device It only takes 15 minutes to quickly train the model In terms of product core strategic layout, compared with market competitors who rely solely on general software services to seize all manufacturing markets, it is not feasible to apply it to industrial inspection Hong Peijun has observed over the past 10 years and believes that only software hardware can With technical thresholds and focusing on one industry and field, only by adopting a standardized company's AI six-sided defect detection and screening special machine can it be replicated and scaled up, and the company can truly continue to move towards optimization and create product competitiveness, even if there are other competing products It’s not easy to compete for this pie, Hong Peijun said Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection’s overall AIAOI visual inspection solution creates rapid modeling and excellent results for customers with a missed detection rate of less than 1 The most competitive AIAOI overall solution provider with global presence For new entrepreneurs, facing business expansion is a challenge every day Hong Peijun said that small companies are easily snatched away by large companies, company talents are poached by high salaries, lack of deep customer relationships, and the business team is not large enough, etc How to overcome this Hong Peijun believes that the key to success and competitiveness of a new start-up company is to be diligent in making up for mistakes, provide better services, provide more immediate feedback, and create more professional solutions to convince customers Since its establishment in 2020, Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection has always gone against the grain in terms of product core strategic layout, surpassing the competitive market among its peers, and actively taking root in the overall solution of AI visual inspection software and hardware Hong Peijun hopes that Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection will become the world's most competitive AIAOI overall solution provider for the electronics and semiconductor industries in the future, and provide the top AIAOI professional machines and equipment to the electronics and semiconductor industry customer base Hong Peijun said that the technical capabilities of the company's AI six-sided defect detection and screening professional machine have reached the top domestic level In order to speed up the research and development of professional machines to become more standardized and sell them to overseas markets, the company will conduct a fundraising plan at this stage, hoping to use legal persons such as the Capital Strategy Council to assist in more business connections and fundraising channels For the medium and long-term goals, Xiaoshi Intelligent Inspection will lay out the global market including mainland China and Southeast Asian countries At the same time, it will follow the international footsteps of major OEMs in global layout Under the target inspection project, it will continue to develop specialty products and spread towards the international field 「Translated content is generated by ChatGPT and is for reference only Translation date:2024-05-19」