Patent ID: 7079141

Claim:
A method for specifying a machine vision process, the method comprising: displaying an image on a display; displaying a graphical user interface on the display, wherein the graphical user interface comprises a plurality of possible image processing steps; receiving first user input selecting a plurality of image processing steps to be applied to the image; creating a process specification in response to the first user input, wherein the process specification comprises the plurality of image processing steps, wherein the process specification specifies a first portion of the machine vision process; receiving second user input selecting a plurality of nodes and interconnecting at least two of the plurality of nodes, thereby specifying a plurality of interconnected nodes; and creating a block diagram in response to the second user input, wherein the block diagram specifies a second portion of the machine vision process, wherein the block diagram comprises the plurality of interconnected nodes which visually indicate operation of the second portion of the machine vision process; wherein the process specification is distinct from the block diagram; and wherein the process specification and the block diagram collectively specify the machine vision process.