Abstract: Registration inspection of composite products during the fabrication of a series of such products is accomplished by making a two-dimensional image of a product and analyzing the image to determine the location of at least one component in the machine direction and the location of at least one component in the transverse direction. The thus determined locations are compared to the desired locations for the respective components in the composite article, and feedback control signals are utilized to adjust the fabrication process so that the components will be at the desired locations in subsequent products. When a component is outside of its acceptable position, the article can be removed from the fabrication line without further processing. The invention is particularly useful with fabrication lines for the production of absorbent articles, such as disposable diapers, incontinence devices, sanitary napkins, and the like.