Inspection is not surveillance with a better adjective. You are asking whether a gap is 1.2 mm, whether a code is in the quiet zone, whether a pallet is present. If the lens bows the grid, or the shutter tears a moving bottle, the algorithm will invent a defect or miss a real one.
Start from the defect
- Moving parts or blinking LEDs: start global shutter. Rolling shutter is a cheaper lie.
- You measure: lock distortion, working distance, and a lens you can still buy next year.
- You read a code: resolution at the edge of the FOV, not only in the centre.
- The line is bright then dark: HDR or lighting you control. Do not outsource that to a 'WDR' badge.
Interface on the line
PCs and existing vision software still like USB camera modules. Embedded boxes and Jetson PCs like MIPI camera modules. Pick one pipe and keep the cable honest. A five-metre USB lead is a different product from a 50 mm flex.
Then industrialize. Repeatable focus, a holder that does not creep, black PCBs, and the custom camera module flow. A demo camera on a tripod is not a station.