Position-determining system and method

A method for determining position and orientation of an work piece positioned on a flat work surface, comprising:

• providing:
• an image-capturing device directed towards the work surface;
• a processor;
• and
• a recognition assistant attached on the work piece;
• wherein the recognition assistant comprises a first recognition assistant part and a second recognition assistant part, the recognition assistant parts are configured to be readily recognizable in an image processed by the processor running a template matching algorithm;
• capturing an image of the recognition assistant by the image capturing device;
• establishing an image coordinate system in the image and a corresponding work piece coordinate system;
• taking a subsequent image of the recognition assistant;
• determining coordinates of the first and the second recognition assistant parts in the image coordinate system as defined by the subsequent image;
• and
• calculating a position of the work piece in the work piece coordinate system.