Software guides robots Using acuFinder software, OEMs can eliminate the need for costly mechanical fixtures. acuFinder is a rotation and scale invariant pattern location software supported by a PCI-based vision processor for robot-guidance applications. It is designed to locate parts that are randomly oriented at up to 360 or that change from 50% to 200% of the original size. Because it uses gray-scale image analysis, the software provides repeatable results despite changes in ambient lighting or part appearance. Cost is between $5500 and $7500, depending on configuration. Cognex, One Vision Drive, Natick, MA 01760; (508) 650-3000.