JP2000241368A - X-ray inspection apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain an X-ray inspection apparatus by which the defect of an inspected object can be inspected more surely. SOLUTION: An X-ray irradiation part 16 on which a product 10 is irradiated with X-rays from the side part is installed in an inspection position on a conegeyance conveyor 12. An X-ray imaging part 20 which images the transmission image of the product 10 by the X-rays from the X-ray irradiation part 16 is installed in the side part of the inspection position on the conveyance conveyor 12. An image processing part 28 processes and inspects the image of the product 10 which is imaged by the X-ray imaging part 20. The X-ray irradiation part 16 and the X-ray imaging part 20 can be moved up and down by a movement mechanism 30 and a movement mechanism 32. Thereby, an imaging direction can be changed freely, and it is possible to obtain the transmission image from a proper direction according to an inspected object.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an X-ray inspection apparatus for inspecting an inspection target by irradiating the inspection target with X-rays and illuminating the inspection target.

[0002] Since the enforcement of the PL law, consumers have been interested in defective products. In the past, there has been a strong need for X-ray inspection inside products as a means of eliminating defective products in the fields of medicine, food, and agriculture, forestry and fisheries. Not reached. According to the present invention, by thoroughly reviewing such X-ray inspections, the original characteristics of X-rays can be maintained, and the X-ray dose can be reduced without limit. It realizes a device for inspecting internal defects in real time.

[0003]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been known an X-ray inspection apparatus proposed by the present applicant as an X-ray inspection apparatus for irradiating an inspection object with X-rays to inspect the inspection object (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-17887).
No. 2).

In the proposed X-ray nondestructive inspection apparatus, an inspection unit is formed by forming a closed space at an inspection position of a transport unit that transports an inspection object, and the inspection unit is allowed to enter the inspection unit. A first opening / closing unit that performs transmission from the inside of the inspection unit and a second opening / closing unit that allows transmission from inside the inspection unit. The object to be inspected is photographed by the X-rays obtained. By doing so, almost complete shielding against X-rays is possible, and when performing non-destructive inspection automatically by in-line X-ray irradiation, it is possible to prevent the irradiated X-rays from leaking out of the inspection space. It is possible to prevent.

[0005]

However, this X
In a line non-destructive inspection apparatus, it may be difficult to detect a defect from a captured image depending on the shape of an inspection target. For example, when the attached document attached to the medicine is thin, the attached document image in the photographed image is extremely thin, and it is difficult to determine whether the attached document is attached.

An object of the present invention is to provide an X-ray inspection apparatus capable of more reliably inspecting a defect to be inspected.

[0007]

The object of the present invention is to provide a receiver on which an inspection object is mounted, and an X-ray irradiator for irradiating the inspection object mounted on the receiver with X-rays. Changing the relative positional relationship between the X-ray imaging unit for imaging the inspection target with the X-rays emitted from the X-ray irradiation unit, and the mounting unit, the X-ray irradiation unit, and the X-ray imaging unit By doing so, there is provided an X-ray inspection apparatus, comprising: changing means for changing an imaging direction of the X-ray imaging unit with respect to the inspection target.

In the above-mentioned X-ray inspection apparatus, the placing section has a transport section for transporting the object to be inspected, and the changing section changes the position of the X-ray irradiating section. And an X-ray imaging unit changing means for changing the position of the X-ray imaging unit.

In the above-mentioned X-ray inspection apparatus, the X-ray irradiator irradiates X-rays in a pulsed manner, and the X-ray imaging section and the second X-ray imaging section perform a two-dimensional image of the inspection object. May be imaged.

[0010]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An X-ray inspection apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In the present embodiment, for example, an X-ray inspection apparatus that inspects, in a packaged state, the presence or absence of an attached document enclosed with a medicine, cosmetics, or the like will be described. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of the X-ray inspection apparatus according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a diagram showing details of the vicinity of the inspection unit of the X-ray inspection apparatus according to the present embodiment.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a product 10 to be inspected is conveyed by a conveyor 12 from left to right in FIG. At the inspection position at the center of the conveyor 12, the presence or absence of the package insert in the product 10 is inspected.

At the inspection position of the transport conveyor 12, the product 1
X-ray irradiator 14 for irradiating X-rays from above with 0, and product 1
An X-ray irradiator 16 for irradiating X-rays from the side to 0 is provided. The X-ray irradiators 14 and 16 employ a flash X-ray system that irradiates X-rays in a pulse only during imaging.

The X-ray irradiators 14 and 16 are arranged around the X-ray irradiators 14 and 16 in order to prevent X-rays from leaking to the outside.
A cover (not shown) is provided to cover 6, and an opening (not shown) is provided for the product 10 to enter and exit.

Below the inspection position of the transport conveyor 12,
An X-ray imaging unit 18 that captures a transmission image of the product 10 by X-rays from the X-ray irradiation unit 14 is provided. Further, on the side of the inspection position of the transport conveyor 12, an X-ray imaging unit 2 that captures a transmission image of the product 10 by X-rays from the X-ray irradiation unit 16.
0 is provided. The X-ray imaging units 18 and 20 include X-ray photomultiplier tubes 18a and 20a, X-ray focusing optical lenses 18b and 20b, and CCD cameras 18c and 20c for capturing X-ray images, respectively. Have been. A transmission image by a weak X-ray can be captured.

The X-ray imaging units 18 and 20 are also covered with a cover (not shown) to prevent X-rays from leaking outside.

A moving mechanism 30 is provided to move the position of the X-ray irradiator 16 up and down. The moving mechanism 30
A block 30a fixed to the X-ray irradiator 16;
0b and a shaft 30c. The block 30a is moved along the shaft 30c, and the position is fixed by a screw 30b at a desired position.
Change the position of.

A moving mechanism 32 is provided for moving the position of the X-ray imaging unit 20 up and down. The moving mechanism 32
A block 32a fixed to the X-ray imaging unit 20;
2b and a shaft 32c. The block 32a is moved along the shaft 32c, and the position is fixed by a screw 32b at a desired position.
Change the position of.

A position sensor 24 is provided near the X-ray irradiation unit 16 and the X-ray imaging unit 20 to detect that the product 10 has reached the inspection position.

The X-ray irradiator controller 26 controls the X-ray irradiation from the X-ray irradiators 14 and 16. The X-ray irradiators 14 and 16 irradiate the product 10 with pulsed X-rays based on an X-ray irradiating signal from the X-ray irradiating unit controller 26.

The image processing unit 28 includes X-ray imaging units 18 and 20
The image of the product 10 imaged by is processed to determine the presence or absence of an attached document. An X-ray irradiation start signal is output to the X-ray irradiation unit controller 26 in synchronization with a detection signal of the product 10 from the position sensor 24, and video signals from the X-ray imaging units 18 and 20 are input. The image processing unit 28 performs a process on a captured image inside the product 10 based on a predetermined inspection condition parameter, determines whether an attached document is attached to the product 10, and outputs a presence / absence determination signal. .

As described above, in the present embodiment, the flash is irradiated only once when the product 10 passes, so that when the transport conveyor 12 stops or the trouble that the product 10 is clogged occurs. But product 10
Can be prevented from being exposed to X-rays for a long time.

In addition, the speed of the conveyor 12 fluctuates, and the product 10
Is stable, a stable transmission image can be obtained without such influence. Further, since a transmission image of a still image can be obtained even for the product 10 moving at a high speed, the production efficiency is not reduced.
The operation of the X-ray inspection apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described.

The product 10 is transported by the transport conveyor 12 and enters the inspection space inside through the opening of the cover (not shown). When the position sensor 24 detects that the product 10 has reached the inspection position, an inspection start signal is output to the image processing unit 28.

The image processing section 28 outputs an X-ray irradiation start signal to the X-ray irradiation section controller 26 based on the inspection start signal from the position sensor 24. The X-ray irradiation unit controller 26 outputs an X-ray irradiation signal to the X-ray irradiation units 14 and 16 based on the X-ray irradiation start signal from the image processing unit 28. The X-ray irradiators 14 and 16 irradiate the product 10 with pulsed X-rays almost simultaneously based on the X-ray irradiating signal from the X-ray irradiator controller 26.
The X-ray imaging units 18 and 20 receive X-rays transmitted through the product 10 and capture transmitted images from two directions inside the product 10, respectively. The two captured images thus captured are output to the image processing unit 28.

The image processing section 28 performs an attached document presence / absence determination process based on the two input captured images, and determines whether the attached document is attached to the product 10. The determination result is output as a presence / absence determination signal, and the product 10 determined to be defective is removed from the transport conveyor by a product removal device (not shown) such as a flapper or an air jet.

As shown in FIG. 3, the X-ray inspection apparatus according to the present embodiment irradiates X-rays almost simultaneously from above (A direction) and from the right side (B direction) in the transport direction of the product 10. Then, transmission images from two directions are taken almost simultaneously,
A defect is inspected from these two captured images.

For example, as shown in FIG.
An attached document 11b is provided beside the medicine 11a which is the content, and when the medicine 11a and the attached document 11b are packaged in a packaging box 11c and the product 10 is conveyed in the conveying direction, the A direction and By irradiating X-rays from the B direction, the transmission images shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B can be captured. In FIG. 4A, the attached document 11b is captured as a two-dimensional image, and in FIG.
Is captured as a linear image.

When the attached document 11b is very thin paper, it is difficult to detect the transmitted image shown in FIG. In the case of the transmission image shown in FIG. 4B, even if a sufficient difference can be secured, it is difficult to detect the transmission image because the line of the transmission image is too thin.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, the X-ray irradiator 16
The X-ray imaging unit 20 is moved up and down to change the relative position of the X-ray irradiation unit 16 and the X-ray imaging unit 20 with respect to the product 10. In this way, a defect is detected by obtaining a transmission image in a direction in which the inspection target can be easily detected.

This will be described with reference to FIGS. For convenience of explanation, a product 10 in which a package 11 d having a thickness D is placed in a packaging box 11 c will be described as an example. In order to make the description easy to understand, the thickness of the attached document 11d is shown so as to be understood.

As shown in FIG. 5 (a), the conveyor 1
When the X-ray irradiator 16 and the X-ray imaging unit 20 are located at substantially the same position with respect to 2, the X-ray transmission image becomes as shown in FIG. The transmission image of the attached document 11d in the packaging box 11c is captured as one line as shown in FIG. If the thickness D of the attached document 11d is extremely small, the attached image of the transmission image is also extremely thin and cannot be detected.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6A, for example, the X-ray irradiator 16 is moved downward, the X-ray photographer 20 is moved upward, and the product 10 is irradiated obliquely from below. The transmitted image is captured by the X-ray imaging unit 20. As shown in FIG. 6B, the transmitted image from such a direction is attached to the attached document 1.
The transmitted image of 1d becomes thicker and can be easily detected. The same applies to the case where the X-ray irradiation unit 16 is moved upward and the X-ray imaging unit 20 is moved downward.

As shown in FIG. 7, for example, with respect to an attached document 11d having a thickness D, X
Assuming that the X-rays are radiated and imaged on the opposite side, only a distance A (= D / sin θ) passes through the package insert 11d, so that a sufficient amount of X-ray attenuation can be expected. Also,
The thickness L (= D / sin (π−θ)) of the package insert 11d extends in the up-down direction to a sufficient thickness, and the shadow area increases, so that it can be easily detected.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, since the photographing direction can be freely changed, it is possible to obtain a transmitted image from an appropriate direction according to the inspection object, and conventionally, it has been difficult to detect. The inspection target can also be easily detected.

Further, according to the present embodiment, even when the direction of the product 10 is different, since the transmission images are taken from two directions, a transmission image suitable for inspection can be reliably obtained.

Further, a pseudo three-dimensional image can be generated by performing image processing on transmission images from two directions. For example, it is difficult to grasp the positional relationship before and after each part of the image in a transmitted image from one direction because the image is a transmitted image. The relationship can be easily grasped.

If the X-ray inspection apparatus according to the present embodiment is installed in the middle of a production line, it is possible to automatically inspect all the products without stopping the products. Defective products can be automatically rejected using the presence / absence determination signal of the X-ray inspection apparatus.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible.

In the above embodiment, the positions of the X-ray irradiation unit and the X-ray imaging unit are changed, but the positions of the transport conveyor may be changed. In short, any changing means may be used as long as the relative direction of the transport conveyor, the X-ray irradiation unit, and the X-ray imaging unit can be changed to change the imaging direction of the X-ray imaging unit with respect to the inspection target.

In the above embodiment, the position is changed by the operator. However, the position may be changed automatically using an electric motor or the like. Also, change the position at high speed,
Transmission images from various directions may be obtained for one product. Inspection accuracy can be dramatically improved.

In the above embodiment, the positions of the X-ray irradiating section and the X-ray photographing section for irradiating X-rays from the side of the product and changing the image are changed. The positions of the X-ray irradiation unit and the X-ray imaging unit to be performed may be changed.

Although the present invention has been applied to the inspection of the presence or absence of package inserts attached to pharmaceutical products, the present invention can also be applied to the inspection of the presence or absence of various attachments of other products. For example, inspection for the presence of instructions attached to food, inspection for the presence of seasonings attached to instant food, inspection for the presence of spoons and straws attached to food, inspection for the presence of instructions attached to cosmetics, The present invention can be applied to inspection for the presence of various accessories of all products, such as inspection for the presence of brushes and brushes attached to cosmetics.

Also, since the inspection is carried out using a transmission image, the product is inserted and packaged in a box, case, sheet, or the like made of paper, resin, or metal, or the product is filled and sealed in a container of paper, resin, metal, or the like. In addition, the present invention can be applied to inspection of assembled, casing, and molded parts of internal parts and structures.

Further, the present invention can be applied to all inspections of products, not limited to accessories.

In the above embodiment, the inspection object is irradiated with X-rays from two directions to capture a transmission image. However, the inspection object is irradiated with X-rays from multiple directions such as three or more than four directions or four directions. The inspection target may be inspected based on the transmission images.

[0046]

As described above, according to the present invention, the X-ray irradiation direction on the inspection object is relatively changed to change the imaging direction on the inspection object, so that the defect of the inspection object can be reduced. Inspection can be performed reliably.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an X-ray inspection apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing details of an X-ray inspection apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a specific example of an X-ray irradiation direction in the X-ray inspection apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a captured image in the X-ray inspection apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of an imaging principle of the X-ray inspection apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of an imaging principle of the X-ray inspection apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of an imaging principle of the X-ray inspection apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Product 11a ... Chemical 11b ... Package 11c ... Packaging box 11d ... Package 12 ... Conveyor 14, 16 ... X-ray irradiation part 18, 20 ... X-ray imaging part 18a, 20a ... X-ray photomultiplier tube 18b , 20b: Optical lens 18c, 20c: CCD camera 24: Position sensor 26: X-ray irradiator controller 28: Image processing unit 30, 32: Moving mechanism 30a, 32a: Block 30b, 32b: Screw 30c, 32c: Shaft

Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Yasuhiro Oshima 3-7-15 Nakaochiai, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo F-term in STABIC Co., Ltd. (reference) 2G001 AA01 AA10 BA11 CA01 DA01 DA02 DA03 DA06 DA09 GA08 GA13 HA13 JA09 JA11 JA15 KA05 LA01 LA20 PA01 PA03 PA11 SA13

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A mounting section on which an inspection target is mounted, an X-ray irradiator configured to irradiate the inspection target mounted on the mounting section with X-rays, and irradiation from the X-ray irradiator. An X-ray imaging unit that captures the inspection target using the X-rays obtained, and a relative positional relationship between the placing unit, the X-ray irradiation unit, and the X-ray imaging unit, thereby changing the X-ray imaging. An X-ray inspection apparatus, comprising: a change unit configured to change an imaging direction of the inspection target by the unit. 2. The X-ray inspection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the placement unit has a transport unit that transports the inspection target, and the changing unit changes the position of the X-ray irradiation unit. X-ray irradiating unit changing means and X for changing the position of the X-ray imaging unit
An X-ray inspection apparatus, comprising: a radiographing unit changing unit. 3. The X-ray inspection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the X-ray irradiator irradiates the X-ray in a pulsed manner, wherein the X-ray imaging unit and the second X-ray imaging unit are An X-ray inspection apparatus, which captures a two-dimensional image of the inspection object. 4. An X-ray inspection apparatus for inspecting an inspection target by irradiating the inspection target with X-rays and illuminating the inspection target, wherein an X-ray irradiation direction on the inspection target is relatively changed. An X-ray inspection method, wherein an imaging direction with respect to the inspection target is changed.