Set a Focus Area with Step Check
Overview
Setting a focus area with Step Check allows you to streamline the setup process by reducing the number of training images required. Instead of capturing hundreds of examples for each state, you can select a single thumbnail image for the Pass or Fail state (or both) and define a focus area that highlights the critical region to inspect. This approach enables a faster, more efficient setup while maintaining accuracy, making it easier to apply Step Check to a wider range of use cases. A few example use cases include:
• Continuous error states—In situations where a component can be in many incorrect positions but only one correct one, capturing all possible failure variations is unrealistic. With a focus area, you only need a single Pass image. Step Check will then return either a Pass result or an unsure result, without requiring failure examples for every possible error state.
• Unknown error states—When the goal is to confirm that something appears normal (for example, a printer head with no visible abnormalities), it may be impossible to anticipate or collect examples of all potential failure conditions. In this case, a single Pass image with a defined focus area is sufficient. Step Check will return Pass or unsure, helping flag anything that deviates from the expected appearance.
• Scarce image availability—In some environments, especially during early deployment or with rare failure modes, only one image per state may be available. For example, verifying that a cord is properly connected. If you have one image for Pass and one for Fail, you can define focus areas for both. Step Check will then return Pass, Fail, or unsure based on the selected regions—without requiring a full training set.
The table below displays which results will be returned based on the Step Check configuration.
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Configuration
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Is Pass result returned?
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Is Fail result returned?
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Is Unsure result returned?
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Standard Step Check
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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Focus area set only for Pass state
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Yes
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No
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Yes
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Focus area set only for Fail state
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No
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Yes
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Yes
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Focus area set for both Pass and Fail state
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes
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How a Focus Area Changes Standard Step Check Behavior
It is important to note that defining a focus area fundamentally changes how Step Check behaves. Once a focus area is set:
• You will no longer use the Start Training button; training is not required or available for steps with a focus area.
• Additional training images will not directly improve results. However, they may still be useful in the following cases:
◦ You can select a better thumbnail image from newly captured images and apply a new focus area.
◦ If a Fail image is eventually captured, you can apply a focus area to that image to enable Fail detection.
◦ Over time, if enough images are collected, you may choose to switch back to standard Step Check and initiate training for improved robustness.
Set the Focus Area
1. Setup Step Check as you normally would.
2. Once the procedure has been published, open it in Vuforia Vantage.
3. In Vantage, select Step Check Training and execute the procedure to capture a few images. A few things to keep in mind:
◦ You don’t need to capture a large number of training images as you would with a standard Step Check. As long as you capture at least one high-quality image, that may be sufficient when using a focus area.
◦ If you capture an image for only one state (for example, Pass), Step Check will return results for that state or an Unsure result (represented by the grey eye icon). To receive both Pass and Fail results, you’ll need to capture at least one image for both states.
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You can also upload a custom image to use as the thumbnail and set a focus area on. For more information, see Upload a Custom Image to Use as a Thumbnail.
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4. Once the procedure has been executed in Vantage and at least one image for a state has been captured, navigate back to Vuforia Editor.
5. Open the Step Check Dashboard for the step, and select Suitable as Thumbnail from the Filter drop-down.
6. From the filtered images, select the best quality and representation of that state, and click the three-dot menu on the image. Select Set as Thumbnail.
7. Once the image has been set as the thumbnail for a state, click Set Focus Area under the thumbnail image.
8. In the SET FOCUS AREA window, highlight the area of image that the AI should focus on most closely when making a decision on the state. For more information on using the tools on the SET FOCUS AREA window, see Set Focus Area Tools.
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The smaller and more specific the focus area, the more accurately Step Check can evaluate the step. A tightly defined region helps the AI concentrate on the most relevant visual details.
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9. Once you’re happy with the focus area you’ve set, click OK.
10. Next, navigate to the STEP CHECK tab and set STEP CHECK MODE to Active. Also, make sure that the results display in Vantage is set to any of the following (it should not be set to Silent if you want the results to be displayed in Vuforia Vantage):
◦ Auto Proceed on Pass or Fail
◦ Auto Proceed on Pass Only
◦ Recommend
11. Republish the procedure.
12. Your step is now ready to use the focus area with Step Check!
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You can configure a Step Check using only a thumbnail with a focus area for the Pass state. In this case, the system will return either a Pass result or an unsure result (represented by the grey eye icon). To receive both Pass and Fail results, you’ll need to define focus areas on thumbnails for both states.
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Remove the Focus Area
If you no longer want to use a focus area and prefer to return to the standard Step Check training process, you can remove the focus area from the thumbnail image. This will disable the simplified setup and allow Step Check to rely on traditional training with multiple images. Locate the thumbnail image that has a focus area set. Click the three-dot menu on the image and select Edit Focus Area. Delete or erase the highlighted area (the focus mask). Save your changes. Re-publish the procedure.
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If you’ve set focus areas for both the Pass and Fail thumbnails, make sure to remove them from both. Leaving a focus area on either state will prevent the step from reverting to standard Step Check.
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1. Open the Step Check Dashboard.
2. Locate the thumbnail and click Edit Focus Area.
3. Click the erase all icon to erase all highlighting.
4. Republish the procedure.
5. Your step will now use standard Step Check training.