Patent ID: 8553969

Claim:
A method of counting pliable objects, the method comprising: capturing an inspection image of a plurality of pliable objects using a camera as the plurality of pliable objects passes into a field of view of the camera, wherein: the inspection image is a top view of the plurality of pliable objects; a non-uniform gap is present between adjacent pliable objects of the plurality of pliable objects; and each non-uniform gap is substantially represented by a first luminance value range and each pliable object is substantially represented by a second luminance value range in the inspection image; partitioning, by a processor, the inspection image into a plurality of windows traversing the inspection image; preparing the inspection image for image analysis by setting a background luminance value of the inspection image to within the second luminance value range that substantially represents the pliable objects; for each individual window of the plurality of windows, performing a blob extraction process to determine a plurality of blobs corresponding to regions within the inspection image having substantially the second luminance value range such that the plurality of blobs correspond to the plurality of pliable objects; counting a number of blobs within each window of the plurality of windows; and providing a signal rejecting or accepting the plurality of pliable objects based at least in part on the number of blobs that are counted in one or more windows.