MVTec HALCON

Development Tools & Programming

MVTec HALCON offers development tools that support machine vision projects from initial prototyping and validation to integration, execution, and long-term operation in productive environments.

It outlines the available tools and shows how they fit into a typical workflow, so teams can choose the right approach for each project phase.

HDevelop

Interactive development and prototyping

HDevelop is the integrated development environment (IDE) of MVTec HALCON. It is used to design, test, debug, and optimize machine vision logic in an interactive and visual way.

HDevelop is typically the starting point of a HALCON project. Developers build and validate image processing workflows, inspect results immediately, and refine parameters until the solution meets the application requirements. The environment supports rapid prototyping, visual debugging, and a smooth transition from development to integration.

HDevelopEVO (Preview)

HDevelopEVO is the next-generation integrated development environment for HALCON. It focuses on improving daily development work through better project organization, navigation, editing, and visual debugging, while keeping familiar HALCON concepts.

The preview is intended for developers who want to explore upcoming workflows early and gain experience with new concepts such as enhanced project navigation, improved scripting, and visual debugging. HDevelopEVO complements HDevelop and provides insight into how future HALCON development environments may evolve.

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HDevEngine

Execution and maintenance in productive systems

HDevEngine enables the execution of HDevelop scripts directly inside applications. Vision logic can be loaded and executed at runtime without recompiling the surrounding software.

This makes HDevEngine suitable for productive systems where inspection logic must be updated, adapted, or maintained over time. The separation of vision logic from application logic supports flexible updates, reduced validation effort, and long-term maintainability of machine vision solutions.

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A typical HALCON development workflow follows a clear and structured sequence

How The Tools Work Together

Develop And Validate In HDevelop

Machine vision logic is created, tested, and optimized interactively in HDevelop, with immediate visual feedback and integrated debugging.

Prepare For Future Workflows
(optional)

HDevelopEVO can be used alongside HDevelop to explore its new IDE concepts and scripting workflows that will be relevant for future projects.

Integrate And Deploy With HDevEngine

Once the vision logic is ready, it is integrated into the target application. Using HDevEngine, HDevelop programs can be executed at runtime, enabling updates without recompiling the full application.

Operate And Maintain

During operation, vision logic can be adjusted or extended to handle new products, inspection tasks, or process changes, while keeping the surrounding application stable.

This workflow clearly separates development, execution, and operation, supporting scalable system architectures and long-term use of HALCON-based machine vision applications.