Patent ID: 7404861

Claim:
A dispensing system for dispensing materials onto a substrate, the dispensing system comprising: a dispenser having a dispensing outlet positionable and moveable over a top surface of the substrate, the dispenser having a substantially vertical dispensing axis along which material from the dispenser is dispensed; a vision system, mechanically coupled to the dispenser, the vision system being positionable to obtain images of the top surface of the substrate along an optical axis, wherein the vision system is constructed and arranged such that the optical axis intersects the dispensing axis, the vision system including a telecentric lens configuration, the vision system being configured to obtain two-dimensional images of the top surface of the substrate; and a controller coupled to the dispenser and the vision system, the controller being configured to control dispensing parameters of the dispenser and to control the vision system and acquire images from the vision system, the controller and the vision system being configured to capture an image of a drop of material dispensed onto the substrate and to determine at least one parameter of the drop of material, the controller being configured to compare at least one parameter with a predetermined boundary for the at least one parameter to obtain a comparison result and to adjust the dispensing parameters based on the comparison result.