Abstract: A boundary of leads of an integrated circuit component shown by binary picture elements on a recognition plane of an image display means is detected by a conventional boundary detecting method, and respective corners of the leads are detected on the basis of variation of an angle between a predetermined axis and a line connecting two picture elements having a predetermined distance from each other on the boundary. Moreover, a shape of the lead is recognized on the basis of the shapes of the corners. Subsequently, a search zone containing a tip portion of one lead is set by referring the midpoint of the tip of the lead, and is scanned by horizonal scanning lines and vertical scanning lines. Then segments of both the scanning lines overlapping on the tip portion are obtained, and a protruding direction of the lead is detected referring to a segment touching on a boundary of a search zone. Furthermore, a midpoint of the tip is calculated from coordinate values of plural segments crossing the tip portion.