Patent ID: 8154593

Claim:
An appearance inspection device for inspecting an appearance of test objects, the appearance inspection device comprising: a first conveying means and a second conveying means for conveying the test objects; a back/front reversal means for turning over front and back surfaces of the test objects being conveyed by the first conveying means and supplying the turned-over test objects to the second conveying means; a plurality of image-pickup means for obtaining image data by capturing images of each test object of the test objects from upper oblique directions while the test objects are conveyed by the first conveying means and the second conveying means; and a defect detection means for detecting a presence of defects in the test objects based on the image data obtained by the plurality of image-pickup means, wherein the first conveying means and the second conveying means are provided in parallel in a horizontal direction, such that the first conveying means and the second conveying means convey the test objects in opposite horizontal directions, and wherein the plurality of image-pickup means are arranged so as to capture the images of each of the test objects along a same scanning line while the test objects are conveyed by the first conveying means and the second conveying means.