JP7375277B2 - Internal quality inspection equipment for fruits and vegetables - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an internal quality inspection device for nondestructively inspecting internal quality that is difficult to distinguish from the appearance, such as black eye disease that occurs in pineapples, and that occurs partially inside fruits and vegetables.

Near-infrared spectroscopy is conventionally known as a method for non-destructively inspecting the internal quality of fruits and vegetables such as fruits and vegetables.
Near-infrared spectroscopy, for example, as disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2, involves irradiating fruits and vegetables with light that includes a wavelength band of near-infrared light, and measuring the transmitted light and/or the fruits and vegetables that have passed through the fruits and vegetables. By receiving the reflected light, the quality (characteristics) of fruits and vegetables is measured based on the decrease in light intensity (absorption of light) by the fruits and vegetables.

The wavelength at which light intensity decreases and its magnitude differ depending on the presence or absence of internal quality. Therefore, near-infrared spectroscopy can be used to easily and accurately inspect the internal quality of fruits and vegetables. The presence or absence of internal quality can be inspected.

In particular, in order to detect the internal quality that occurs locally inside fruits and vegetables such as hollow fruits, near-infrared light is irradiated from multiple light sources and multiple light sources are used, as disclosed in Patent Documents 2-5. By detecting the transmitted light that has passed through the fruits and vegetables using the light-receiving section of the sensor, it is possible to eliminate detection errors.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2014-174030 JP2006-98106A Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 6-288903 International Publication No. 01/022062 International Publication No. 05/108956

However, even when a plurality of light sources as disclosed in Patent Documents 2 to 5 are used, the transmitted light detected by the light receiving unit corresponds to the average value of all fruits and vegetables. For this reason, it has been possible to detect the sugar content and acidity of fruits and vegetables, as well as internal disorders that occur in specific locations, such as cavities that occur inside long or ellipsoidal fruits and vegetables. , for example, it has been difficult to detect internal disorders such as black eye disease in pineapples.

In view of the current situation, the present invention provides an internal quality inspection that can non-destructively inspect the internal quality of fruits and vegetables, including internal disorders that occur at unspecified locations inside fruits and vegetables, such as black eye disease that occurs in pineapples. The purpose is to provide equipment.

The present invention was invented in order to solve the problems in the prior art as described above, and the internal quality inspection device of the present invention includes:
An internal quality inspection device for inspecting the internal quality of fruits and vegetables,
a plurality of light projecting means for irradiating the fruits and vegetables with inspection light;
one light receiving means for receiving the inspection light transmitted through the fruits and vegetables;
arithmetic processing means for inspecting the internal quality of the fruits and vegetables based on the received inspection light,
The inspection light is shaped so that the irradiation shape on the fruits and vegetables is approximately rectangular, and the plurality of light projecting means are approximately annular so that the inspection light is irradiated over half the circumference of the fruits and vegetables. placed in
The fruits and vegetables and the light projecting means move relative to each other to move an irradiation area of the inspection light on the fruits and vegetables, and divide the fruits and vegetables into a plurality of areas to inspect internal quality. It is characterized by being configured.

Further, it further includes a conveyance means for conveying the fruits and vegetables,
By conveying the fruits and vegetables in a predetermined direction by the conveying means, the fruits and vegetables and the light projecting means may be moved relative to each other.

Further, it further includes a moving mechanism for moving the light projecting means,
By moving the light projecting means in a predetermined direction by the moving mechanism, the fruit and vegetables and the light projecting means may be relatively moved.

According to the present invention, by irradiating the inspection light over approximately half the circumference of the fruits and vegetables and inspecting the internal quality by dividing the fruits and vegetables T into a plurality of regions, there will be places in the fruits and vegetables where the inspection light does not pass through. In addition, since the internal quality is inspected for each divided area of fruits and vegetables, it is possible to detect internal defects with high accuracy, even if they occur at unspecified locations inside fruits and vegetables, such as black eye disease that occurs in pineapples. be able to.

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the configuration of the internal quality inspection device of this embodiment. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram for explaining the irradiation area of the inspection light on fruits and vegetables. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram for explaining the movement of the fruit and vegetable inspection area. FIG. 5 is a plan view showing the configuration of another embodiment of the internal quality inspection device of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG.

Hereinafter, embodiments (examples) of the present invention will be described in more detail based on the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the configuration of an internal quality inspection apparatus according to this embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line AA in FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the internal quality inspection device 10 of the present embodiment includes a transport means 12 for transporting fruits and vegetables T in a predetermined direction, and a plurality of transport means 12 provided in a substantially annular shape on the side and above the transport means 12. Light projecting means 14a to 14h, a light receiving means 16 provided below the conveying means 12, and an arithmetic processing means 18 for inspecting the fruit or vegetables T based on the light intensity received by the light receiving means 16. .

The conveying means 12 is capable of conveying the fruits and vegetables T in a predetermined direction, and is configured so that the inspection light (transmitted light) that has passed through the fruits and vegetables T can be received by the light receiving means 16 provided below the conveying means 12. It is configured. In this embodiment, as such a conveying means 12, a tray conveyor using a perforated tray 12a as shown in FIG. There may also be two belt conveyors arranged with a distance of 1.

Each of the light projecting means 14a to 14h is configured to irradiate the fruit or vegetable T with inspection light shaped so that the irradiation shape is approximately rectangular. Then, by irradiating inspection light from the light projecting means 14a to 14h arranged approximately in an annular shape, the inspection light is irradiated (inspection light irradiation area M).

In this embodiment, a plurality of light projecting means 14a to 14h are used to irradiate the inspection light over approximately half the circumference of the fruits and vegetables T. However, for example, one light projecting means consisting of an LED array etc. You may do as you please.

The light projecting means 14a to 14h are particularly limited as long as they can emit light having a wavelength of 400 to 1700 nm, more preferably light having a wavelength of 500 to 1100 nm, as inspection light. However, as a light source, for example, a halogen lamp, a sodium lamp, a fluorescent tube, a neon tube, an LED (Light Emitting Diode), a laser light source, etc. can be used, and a wavelength variable light source may also be used.

When using a light source with a diffused luminous flux, such as a halogen lamp, as the light source of the light projecting means 14a to 14h, the luminous flux is shaped by an optical system (not shown) such as a slit or a collimator, so that the irradiation shape is adjusted in the transport direction. The width of the fruits and vegetables T is adjusted to be narrower than the width of the fruits and vegetables T.

The light receiving means 16 is not particularly limited as long as it is capable of receiving such inspection light, and may be, for example, a photodiode made of Si, InGaAs, Ge, PbS, etc. Area cameras, line cameras, spectrometers, imaging spectrometers, multiband cameras, etc. using these photodiodes can be used.

The arithmetic processing means 18 controls the operations of the light projecting means 14a to 14h and the light receiving means 16, and also inspects the fruits and vegetables T based on the measured values obtained by the light receiving means 16. Such arithmetic processing means 18 can be, for example, a computer having arithmetic means, storage means, communication means, etc., and may be a personal computer, workstation, general-purpose server, etc., or a microcontroller or the like. It can also be a form.

Note that the arithmetic processing means 18 may perform the inspection by directly using the measured value obtained by the light receiving means 16, that is, the light intensity value of the transmitted light, or by using, for example, a light receiving means 16 having a spectroscopic function. In such cases, the spectrum of transmitted light can also be used as a measurement value. Alternatively, the absorbance spectrum calculated based on the spectrum of the direct light received by the light receiving means 16 and the spectrum of transmitted light when the light receiving means 16 is directly irradiated with inspection light from the light projecting means 14a to 14h may be used as the measurement value. Alternatively, data obtained by second-order differentiating this absorbance spectrum with respect to wavelength may be used as the measured value. That is, it is preferable to use the optimum measurement value for the inspection content by appropriately converting the measurement value according to the inspection content of the fruits and vegetables T.

In the internal quality inspection device 10 of the present embodiment configured in this way, the arithmetic processing means 18 inspects the internal quality of the fruits and vegetables T, such as sugar content, acidity, ripeness, internal disorders, etc., based on the measured values. I can do it. In order to make it easier to handle with a computer, it is preferable to quantify the internal quality and use it as a quality value. Furthermore, when inspecting the presence or absence of an abnormality as a quality value, Boolean data type data may be used. Note that a conventionally known method can be used as a method for inspecting such internal quality.

Specifically, the internal quality inspection device 10 of this embodiment can inspect the internal quality of fruits and vegetables T as follows.
The fruits and vegetables T placed on the perforated tray 12a of the transport means 12 are transported in a predetermined direction at a constant speed. As shown in FIG. 4(a), when the fruits and vegetables T reach the irradiation area of the inspection light, the inspection light is irradiated onto the fruits and vegetables T from the light projecting means 14a to 14h, and the light is transmitted through the fruits and vegetables T by the light receiving means 16. Receives inspection light (transmitted light).

The arithmetic processing means 18 inspects the internal quality of the area of the fruit or vegetable T irradiated with the inspection light (the first area M ₁ of the fruit or vegetable T) based on the measured value acquired by the light receiving means 16 .

As the fruits and vegetables T are conveyed by the conveyance means 12, the irradiation area of the inspection light on the fruits and vegetables T moves from the Mth area M _M to the Nth area M _N as shown in FIGS. 4(b) and 4(c). (M and N are natural numbers, and M<N.). While moving the irradiation area of the inspection light in this manner, the light receiving means 16 sequentially acquires measurement values in the irradiation area, and based on this, the arithmetic processing unit 18 sequentially inspects the internal quality in each irradiation area. How many parts the irradiation area for the fruits and vegetables T is divided into can be determined as appropriate depending on the type and size of the fruits and vegetables T.

In this way, by irradiating the inspection light over approximately half the circumference of the fruits and vegetables T, and by dividing the fruits and vegetables T into a plurality of regions and inspecting the internal quality, there will be places in the fruits and vegetables T where the inspection light does not pass through. In addition, since the internal quality is inspected for each divided area of the fruit or vegetable T, it is possible to accurately detect internal defects that occur at unspecified locations within the fruit or vegetable, such as black eye disease that occurs in pineapples. can do.

Note that the irradiation area of the inspection light on the fruits and vegetables T can be determined by, for example, detecting the position of the perforated tray 12a of the conveyance means 12 using a linear encoder or the like.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing the configuration of another embodiment of the internal quality inspection device of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG.
The internal quality inspection device 10 in this embodiment basically has the same configuration as the internal quality inspection device 10 shown in FIGS. Omit detailed explanation.

The internal quality inspection device 10 of this embodiment includes a mounting table 52 having a perforated tray 52a on which fruits and vegetables T are placed, and a moving mechanism 54 that moves the light projecting means 14a to 14h in a predetermined direction at a constant speed. ing.

In the internal quality inspection apparatus 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the fruit or vegetable T placed on the perforated tray 12a is transported by the transport means 12 to move the irradiation area of the inspection light on the fruit or vegetable T. In the internal quality inspection device 10 of this embodiment, the fruits and vegetables T are placed on the mounting table 52, and the light projecting means 14a to 14h are moved by the moving mechanism 54, thereby moving the irradiation area of the inspection light on the fruits and vegetables T.

Even with this configuration, internal quality can be inspected in the same manner as the internal quality inspection apparatus 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 4.
That is, by relatively moving the fruits and vegetables T and the light projection means 14a to 14h, the irradiation area of the inspection light on the fruits and vegetables T is moved, and the fruits and vegetables T are divided into a plurality of areas to inspect the internal quality. Can be done.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited thereto, and various changes can be made without departing from the objective of the present invention.

10 Internal quality inspection device 12 Transport means 12a Perforated tray 14a Light projecting device 14b Light projecting device 14c Light projecting device 14d Light projecting device 14e Light projecting device 14f Light projecting device 14g Light projecting device 14h Light projecting device 16 Light receiving device 18 Arithmetic processing Means 52 Mounting table 52a Perforated tray 54 Moving mechanism M Inspection light irradiation area T Fruits and vegetables

Claims (3)

An internal quality inspection device for inspecting the internal quality of fruits and vegetables,
a plurality of light projecting means for irradiating the fruits and vegetables with inspection light;
one light receiving means for receiving the inspection light transmitted through the fruits and vegetables;
arithmetic processing means for inspecting the internal quality of the fruits and vegetables based on the received inspection light,
The inspection light is shaped so that the irradiation shape on the fruits and vegetables is approximately rectangular, and the plurality of light projecting means are approximately annular so that the inspection light is irradiated over half the circumference of the fruits and vegetables. placed in
The fruits and vegetables and the light projecting means move relative to each other to move an irradiation area of the inspection light on the fruits and vegetables, and divide the fruits and vegetables into a plurality of areas to inspect internal quality. An internal quality inspection device comprising: Further comprising a conveying means for conveying the fruits and vegetables,
2. The internal quality inspection apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the fruit and vegetable are transported in a predetermined direction by the transporting means, thereby moving the fruit and vegetables relative to the light projecting means. Further comprising a moving mechanism for moving the light projecting means,
The internal quality inspection according to claim 1 , characterized in that the moving mechanism is configured to move the light projecting means in a predetermined direction to relatively move the fruits and vegetables and the light projecting means. Device.

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