Metrology system for imaging workpiece surfaces at high robot transfer speeds

A system for processing a workpiece, comprising:

• at least one processing chamber;
• a workpiece transfer robot adapted to transport a workpiece to said at least one processing chamber along a workpiece transit path;
• a camera stationed at a fixed position overlying and facing a transit path portion of said workpiece transit path, said camera comprising a pixel array of plural pixels, said pixel array having a stationary elongate field of view having a length transverse to said transit path and corresponding to a workpiece diameter, and a width less than said length, said pixel array corresponding to an image frame of said camera;
• a light source at a fixed position facing said transit path portion and comprising an elongate light emitting array having a light source array length corresponding to the length of said pixel array of said camera and extending generally parallel to said pixel array;
• an image control processor coupled to said camera and a robot controller coupled to said workpiece transfer robot, said image control processor being adapted to cause said camera to capture N successive image frames through said field of view while said robot controller causes said robot to move said workpiece through said transit path portion, said N successive image frames corresponding to successive still images of successive portions of said workpiece, said successive image frames together corresponding to a still image of the workpiece, wherein N is an integer and is a function of said width.