Abstract: A method for sequentially picking up non-faulty chips arranged on an X-Y table. A plurality of chips disposed in an aligned arrangement is viewed by a camera in a field of view of the camera to provide an image data for enabling a preceding image recognition for a chip simultaneously with a pick-up operation for another chip. Three chip locations adjacent to each other along a moving direction of the camera are encompassed by the field of view. During the time period for a pick-up operation of a particular chip located at the center of the field of view, a preceding recognition is conducted for the succeeding chip located adjacent to and ahead of the particular chip on the basis of image data, thereby examining whether the succeeding chip is faulty or non-faulty during the pick-up operation for the particular chip. If the succeeding chip is found to be faulty, the succeeding chip is skipped for positioning a third chip for a next pick-up operation.

Abstract: An image recognition apparatus with which rapid height discrimination can be performed for a large number of small protrudent objects disposed on a substrate, and further a height inspecting method with the use of the image recognition apparatus, are disclosed. Two slit incident beams having been emitted from an illuminant and passed through slits fall on an object to be inspected each at an incident angle from the direction perpendicular to the surface of the object to be inspected. There are irregularities of objects to be detected on the object to be inspected. The slit beams are intercepted by protrudent parts of the objects to be detected, so that the morphologies of bright lines produced on the surface of the object to be inspected are changed depending on the heights of the objects to be detected. An image of the bright lines is picked up by a television camera, and the resultant signal is compared with an image signal previously stored.