Patent ID: 7239399

Claim:
A pick and place machine for placing a component upon a workpiece, the machine comprising: a placement head having at least one nozzle for releasably holding the component; a robotic system for generating relative movement between the placement head and the workpiece; a first image acquisition device disposed to obtain a first view before-image of an intended placement location before placement of the component, and a first view after-image of the intended placement location after placement of the component; a second image acquisition device disposed to obtain a second view before-image of an intended placement location before placement of the component, and a second view after-image of the intended placement location after placement of the component; wherein the first and second views are spaced apart to provide stereovision inspection of the intended placement location; and wherein the first image acquisition device includes a CCD array having a frame rate, and wherein the first image acquisition device causes the CCD array to acquire the first view before image and the first view after image at a rate that exceeds the readout rate of the CCD array.