THOP AG builds industrial vision systems for machine builders and manufacturers. We focus on easily integrated plug-&-produce solutions — from feasibility study to finished vision solution. Instead of delivering individual components, we develop complete systems that integrate quickly and reliably into existing machines and production lines.
Many vision projects start with a seemingly simple requirement: the camera should detect whether a part is OK.
In practice, this quickly becomes a demanding engineering project. Which defects must be reliably detected? How small are they? Which deviations are still acceptable? How do material, surface, position and ambient light affect the result?
We know projects in which these questions were only asked after cameras, lighting and software had already been selected. The detection works in a demonstration – but under real production conditions the results become unstable, good parts are rejected or defects go undetected.
Individual components are often offered as a quick, ready-to-use solution. But a powerful camera alone is not yet a reliable inspection system. Optics, lighting, part handling, software, machine connection and operation must work together as a complete system. After the purchase, there is also often no contact person who takes responsibility for the complete application.
THOP grew out of exactly this experience. We wanted to approach vision projects differently: first understand the inspection task, then investigate feasibility, and only then develop the right system.
We are not tied to any particular technical platform. Depending on the task, we develop a complete THOP system with our own inspection software and multilingual HMI, or we integrate a proven solution from an established manufacturer. What matters is what works reliably under actual production conditions.
Across many projects, we've seen that industrial image processing is often needlessly complex. Cameras, lighting, software and integration frequently come from different suppliers and cause high engineering effort.
With THOPinspect we take a different approach: complete, pre-configured vision systems that can be deployed in equipment and production lines with minimal integration effort.
Every solution begins with a feasibility study
Plug & Produce instead of months of integration
Not AI everywhere, but where classic methods reach their limits.
Short communication paths, direct contacts and practical solutions
THOP is a young Swiss engineering company. We cannot point to decades of company history – and we do not want to give that impression.
Our credibility comes from a different way of working: we make technical assumptions visible, investigate critical points early and document in a traceable way why a solution works. If an inspection task has limits, we say so openly.
Our customers have one direct contact person throughout the entire project – from the first meeting and feasibility study through software, HMI and integration to commissioning and acceptance.
Our aim is not to sell as many cameras or software licences as possible. We want to develop vision systems that are easy to operate, produce reliably and can still be supported and extended after handover.
For us, a system is therefore not finished as soon as it works in a demonstration. It has to prove itself under the agreed production conditions. On request, we support acceptance with documented inspection trials, boundary samples and suitable measurement system analyses or proof of system capability.
We develop our inspection software and operator interfaces ourselves at our Feldbach site. We carry the swiss made software label for this software development.