The usefulness of advanced machine vision techniques for automated inspection is restricted by long development cycles for the inspection software and a lack of general applicability of the resulting system. These difficulties arise because in the majority of cases the particulars of the inspection are embedded in the software structure resulting in severe restrictions on user reconfiguration. This paper describes the structure and major components of an inspection system which is capable of tackling a wide range of inspection problems without reprogramming. User configurability is based around a simple, interpreted geometric description language which provides support for both dimensional and surface quality measurements. The operation of the system is illustrated using the inspection of automotive brake assemblies as an example. © 1995.