JP2011220738A - Appearance checkup apparatus and appearance checkup method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent wrong decisions in checking up the appearance of ceramic substrates and to provide an appearance checkup apparatus capable of improving the efficiency of appearance checkup work.SOLUTION: An appearance checkup apparatus having a tray for individually housing a ceramic substrate, a first imaging device for obtaining a first image taken of a ceramic substrate against the tray as the background, an oscillator for oscillating the tray, a second imaging device for obtaining a second image taken of the ceramic substrate against the tray as the background after oscillation was applied by the oscillator, and an image processor for arithmetically processing the first and second images, wherein, if positional coordinate data regarding the discovery area of a dark colored region detected at the time of image processing of the first image and positional coordinate data regarding the discovery area of a dark colored region detected at the time of image processing of the second image are identical, that ceramic substrate is decisively identified as a defective product.

Description

  The present invention relates to an appearance inspection apparatus and an appearance inspection method for inspecting the appearance of a ceramic substrate divided and separated from a strip-shaped ceramic sheet.

Conventionally, when manufacturing a ceramic substrate obtained by dividing a strip-shaped ceramic sheet into individual pieces, there is a case where protrusions called burrs are formed around the outer edge of the ceramic substrate, particularly around the corners, and it becomes defective. There was a need to inspect the appearance before shipping to remove defective products.
Usually, in the appearance inspection of such a ceramic substrate, the ceramic substrate is individually accommodated in a tray having a large number of concave storage pockets for individually accommodating the individual ceramic substrates, and then the imaging device is used. For example, an image obtained by imaging a ceramic substrate against a tray using a CCD camera or the like is processed in an image processing unit to check whether there are burrs or the like around the corner of the outer edge of the ceramic substrate. I was inspecting.
In this case, if the corner of the ceramic substrate is in contact with or close to the inner surface of the storage pocket of the tray, a shadow will appear between the ceramic substrate and the storage pocket, and it will appear as if there are burrs. In other words, a product that should be determined as a non-defective product is erroneously determined as a defective product, causing a reduction in product yield.
In addition, even if debris such as debris or foreign matter attached to the ceramic substrate is attached to the outer edge of the ceramic substrate, it looks as if burrs are formed on the external appearance, and again the product It was a cause of lowering the yield.
In order to deal with such problems, an invention relating to an appearance inspection method for electronic components and the like is disclosed.

Patent Document 1 has a name “an appearance inspection method and an appearance inspection mechanism of an electronic component in a carrier tape”, and a concave pocket portion for storing an electronic component is accommodated in a carrier tape formed at a predetermined interval. The present invention relates to an appearance inspection method for inspecting appearance of electronic parts based on image information, and an appearance inspection mechanism used therefor. In particular, as an electronic part stored in a pocket portion of a carrier tape, for example, a chip size package of a semiconductor device ( An invention relating to a small chip type electronic component such as CSP (chip size package) is disclosed.
The invention disclosed in Patent Document 1 will be described using the reference numerals described in the document as they are. The pulse motor 3, the sprockets 5, 9 and the belt 7 for intermittently feeding the carrier tape 33, and images of electronic components. A camera 13 for acquiring information, an image processing unit 15 for determining the quality of an electronic component based on image information, and a control unit 11 for controlling the driving of the pulse motor 3 are provided. When the unit 15 determines that the inspection result of the electronic component is defective, the unit 15 sends a signal 23 to that effect to the control unit 11, and the control unit 11 moves the carrier tape 33 in the traveling direction (arrow A) and the backward direction (arrow B). The pulse motor 3 is driven so as to cause the carrier tape 33 to vibrate to correct the storage position of the electronic component in the pocket portion. It is characterized in that for performing re-inspection by La 13 and the image processing unit 15.
According to the invention disclosed in Patent Document 1 having the above configuration, a transport mechanism capable of forward and reverse rotation is used as a mechanism for intermittently feeding the pocket portion of the carrier tape to the image information acquisition position, and the inspection result of the electronic component is poor. When it is determined that the carrier tape is vibrated by moving the carrier tape in the forward and backward directions by rotating the transport mechanism forward and backward, and a re-inspection step of performing a re-inspection after the vibration step. Since the electronic component is abnormally stored in the pocket portion without using a special mechanism for correcting the storage position of the electronic component, the storage state can be normalized by the vibration process. Thereafter, by re-inspecting the electronic component, it is possible to avoid erroneous inspection due to abnormal storage of the electronic component. As a result, it is possible to expect an effect that it is possible to avoid an erroneous inspection due to abnormal storage of the electronic component at a low cost and without causing an increase in size of the apparatus.

Patent Document 2 discloses an invention relating to an electronic component appearance inspection method and an appearance inspection device for finding an appearance defect of an electronic component under the name of “electronic component appearance inspection method and appearance inspection device”. .
The invention disclosed in Patent Document 2 is an appearance inspection method for finding an appearance defect of an electronic component, which captures an appearance image of the electronic component, divides the appearance image into a plurality of inspection regions, The inspection reference value set for each inspection region is compared with the determination parameter calculated from the image data in each inspection region, and the presence or absence of the appearance defect is determined based on the result. It is what.
According to the invention disclosed in Patent Document 2 having the above-described configuration, an external image of an electronic component is captured, the external image is divided into a plurality of inspection areas, and an inspection set in advance for each inspection area Since the reference value is compared with the discrimination parameter calculated from the image data in each inspection area, and the presence / absence of the appearance defect is determined based on the result, the entire area of the electronic component is subdivided. It is possible to perform detailed inspections according to the characteristics of each region. It is possible to improve.

Furthermore, Patent Document 3 relates to an appearance inspection apparatus and an appearance inspection method for inspecting the appearance of an inspection object under the name of “appearance inspection apparatus and appearance inspection method”, and in particular, an inspection object stored in a tray pocket. An invention relating to an appearance inspection apparatus and an appearance inspection method for performing an appearance inspection by photographing by dividing into a plurality of fields of view is disclosed.
When the appearance inspection apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 3 is described using the reference numerals in the document as they are, the posture information calculated by the alignment processing by the posture detection unit 56 is output to the movement control unit 59, and the movement control unit 59 is characterized in that the imaging positions of all the imaging fields 8 after the second imaging field 82 are determined based on the posture information. The posture information calculated by the posture detection unit 56 is also output to the image processing unit 57, and the image processing unit 57 extracts the first region A from the image as an inspection region based on the posture information and corrects the tilt. The first region A extracted from the image by the image processing unit 57 and corrected for inclination is inspected by the inspection unit 58.
According to the invention disclosed in Patent Document 3 having the above-described configuration, when the inspection object stored in the tray pocket is divided and photographed in a plurality of shooting fields of view, the inspection object stored in the tray pocket is positioned. Thus, it is possible to provide an appearance inspection apparatus and an appearance inspection method capable of inspecting images captured in each field of view with high accuracy.

JP 2004-142774 A JP 2002-243655 A JP 2009-109505 A

  However, in the method disclosed in Patent Document 1, it is considered that the inspection accuracy can be improved by avoiding the erroneous inspection, but the inspection work is performed when the re-inspection is performed twice or more in one line. There is a problem that efficiency is lowered and it is difficult to improve productivity because it is necessary to spend a lot of time at the time of inspection before shipping the product.

  In addition, in the case of the inventions disclosed in Patent Document 2 and Patent Document 3, when the appearance inspection of the ceramic substrate as described above is performed, a shadow formed between the storage pocket of the tray and the ceramic substrate, There is a problem that it is difficult to avoid mistakenly determining that a ceramic substrate that should be originally determined to be appropriate due to dust adhering to the outer edge of the ceramic substrate is a defective product with burrs. there were.

  The present invention has been made in response to such a conventional situation, and the purpose thereof is to minimize the number of re-inspection in the appearance inspection of a ceramic substrate, and to erroneously determine a ceramic substrate that should be judged to be originally suitable. An object of the present invention is to provide an appearance inspection apparatus and an appearance inspection method capable of minimizing the determination of a defective product.

In order to achieve the above object, an appearance inspection apparatus according to claim 1 is an appearance inspection apparatus for inspecting the appearance of a ceramic substrate divided from a strip-shaped ceramic sheet and separated into pieces. An appearance inspection apparatus includes a tray having a plurality of concave storage pockets for individually storing ceramic substrates, and a first imaging device for obtaining a first image obtained by imaging the ceramic substrate with the tray as a background. A vibration device for applying vibration to the tray, a second image pickup device for obtaining a second image obtained by picking up an image of the ceramic substrate against the tray after the vibration is applied by the vibration device, The ceramic substrate is darker than the surface on which the storage pockets of the tray are formed, and is used for image processing of the first image. Thus, all the ceramic substrates accommodated in the tray are inspected to determine whether or not there is a dark color region formed in contact with the outer edge in the region outside the outer edge including the corners of the sides. Is detected as a defective product. In the image processing of the second image, only the ceramic substrate in which the dark color region is detected in the image processing of the first image is targeted, and the target ceramic substrate If there is a dark color region formed in contact with the outer edge, and the dark color region is detected, the position of the dark color region detected in the image processing of the first image with respect to the discovery area The ceramic substrate is determined to be defective when the coordinate data matches the position coordinate data related to the discovery area of the dark color system area detected during image processing of the second image. .
In the first aspect of the present invention, the tray and the storage pocket formed on the tray have an effect of individually storing and holding the individual ceramic substrates in the storage pocket.
In addition, the first and second imaging devices have an action of acquiring electronic data of the first and second images by imaging individual ceramic substrates against the background of the tray. In addition, by making the ceramic substrate a darker color tone than the surface on which the storage pocket of the tray is formed, the boundary between the ceramic substrate and the tray is clarified when images are taken by the first and second imaging devices. It has the action.
In addition, the image processing unit recognizes the ceramic substrate individually in the first and second images together with the peripheral region thereof, and the individual ceramic substrate is arranged in the region outside the outer edge including the corner of the side. It has an effect of inspecting whether there is a dark color region formed by contact. When a dark color region is found at the outer edge of the ceramic substrate, the ceramic substrate is provisionally determined to be defective.
Further, the vibration device has an effect of indirectly applying vibration to the ceramic substrate via the tray. The vibration causes the ceramic substrate that is in contact with or close to the inner surface of the storage pocket to be separated from the inner surface of the storage pocket when the first image is captured.
In addition, the image processing unit recognizes the ceramic substrate individually in the first and second images together with the peripheral region thereof, and the individual ceramic substrate is arranged in the region outside the outer edge including the corner of the side. It has an effect of inspecting whether there is a dark color region formed by contact.
When a dark color region is found on the outer edge of the ceramic substrate, the ceramic substrate is provisionally determined to be defective.
According to the first aspect of the present invention, after the image processing of the first image, each ceramic substrate temporarily determined to be defective is subjected to vibration by the vibration device, and then again with the tray as the background. Position of the dark color area detected at the time of image processing of the first image on the ceramic substrate is detected again by separately processing the second image and processing the second image separately. The configuration is such that the ceramic substrate is finally determined as a defective product only when the data and the positional information data regarding the detection area of the dark color system area detected at the time of image processing of the second image match. The provisional determination of a defective product when the image of image 1 is processed is not based on the defect of the ceramic substrate itself, and the ceramic substrate is not properly stored in the storage pocket. Reexamination of the appearance of the ceramic substrate without the cause. Has the effect of making possible.
As a result, the ceramic substrate is erroneously determined to be defective as compared with the case where only the first image is subjected to image processing, and only the result is used as the basis for determining whether the individual ceramic substrate is appropriate or defective. This has the effect of greatly reducing the risk of being lost.
Furthermore, when image processing of the second image is performed, only the ceramic substrate that has been provisionally determined to be defective in the image processing of the first image is targeted, and the image processing of the second image is performed. It has the effect of greatly shortening the time.

The appearance inspection apparatus according to claim 2 is an appearance inspection apparatus for inspecting the appearance of a ceramic substrate divided from a strip-shaped ceramic sheet and separated into pieces, and the appearance inspection apparatus is a ceramic inspection apparatus. A first tray having a plurality of concave storage pockets for individually storing substrates, and a first tray having a plurality of concave storage pockets for individually storing ceramic substrates moved from the first tray. Two trays, a first imaging device for obtaining a first image obtained by imaging a ceramic substrate with the first tray as a background, and provisionally determined as a defective product when the first image is processed. , A second imaging device for obtaining a second image obtained by imaging the ceramic substrate moved from the first tray to the second tray against the background of the second tray, and the first and second images Compute The ceramic substrate is darker than the surface on which the storage pockets of the first and second trays are formed, and the first tray is used for image processing of the first image. All the ceramic substrates housed in are checked whether there is a dark color region formed in contact with the outer edge in the region outside the outer edge including the corner of the side, and the dark color region is detected. In the second image processing, the dark color region formed in contact with the outer edge of all ceramic substrates moved from the first tray to the second tray in the second image processing. Is inspected and if dark areas are detected,
When the position coordinate data related to the discovery area of the dark color area detected during the image processing of the first image matches the position coordinate data related to the discovery area of the dark color area detected during the image processing of the second image The ceramic substrate is determined to be a defective product.
In the invention according to claim 2 configured as described above, the first and second trays and the storage pockets formed on these trays individually hold and hold the separated ceramic substrates in the storage pockets. Has an effect. In addition, the first imaging device has an effect of acquiring electronic data of the first image by imaging the singulated ceramic substrate against the background of the first tray. Further, the second imaging device is configured such that the ceramic substrate that has been provisionally determined to be defective when the first image is image-processed and has been moved from the first tray to the second tray is placed against the second tray. It has the effect | action of acquiring the electronic data of a 2nd image by imaging.
In addition, by setting the ceramic substrate to a darker color tone than the surface on which the storage pockets of the first or second tray are formed, the first or second imaging device can be used when the first or second imaging device captures an image. This has the effect of clarifying the boundary between the ceramic substrate and the tray in the second image.
In addition, the image processing unit recognizes the ceramic substrate individually in the first and second images together with the peripheral region thereof, and the individual ceramic substrate is arranged in the region outside the outer edge including the corner of the side. It has an effect of inspecting whether there is a dark color region formed by contact.
When a dark color region is found at the outer edge of the ceramic substrate, the ceramic substrate is provisionally determined to be defective.
Further, the moving device has an effect that when the first image is subjected to image processing, the ceramic substrate temporarily determined to be defective is taken out and moved to the second tray. As a result of this operation, when the first image is subjected to image processing, the provisional determination of a defective product is not caused by a defect of the ceramic substrate itself, but is caused by a defect of the first tray. This has the effect of eliminating the cause at the time of imaging.
In the second aspect of the invention, as a result of the image processing of the first image, only the ceramic substrate tentatively determined to be defective is moved to the second tray by the moving device, and then the second tray is used as the background. Regarding the detection area of the dark-colored region detected at the time of image processing of the first image on the ceramic substrate, the second image is picked up and the defective portion is extracted again by separately processing the second image. Only when the position information data and the position information data regarding the detection area of the dark color system area detected at the time of image processing of the second image coincide with each other, the ceramic substrate is finally determined to be defective. The provisional determination of a defective product when the first image is image-processed is not based on the defect of the ceramic substrate itself, but the first tray itself or the ceramic substrate in the storage pocket. If was caused by accommodating position of is inappropriate, has the effect of allowing re-examination of the appearance of the ceramic substrate in a state that eliminates the cause.
As a result, the ceramic substrate is erroneously determined to be defective as compared with the case where only the first image is subjected to image processing and only the result is used as the basis for determining whether the individual ceramic substrate is appropriate or defective. It has the effect of greatly reducing fear.
Furthermore, when image processing of the second image is performed, only the ceramic substrate that has been provisionally determined to be defective in the image processing of the first image is targeted, and the image processing of the second image is performed. It has the effect of greatly shortening the time.

An appearance inspection method according to a third aspect of the invention is an appearance inspection method for inspecting the appearance of a ceramic substrate divided from a strip-shaped ceramic sheet and having a plurality of concave storage pockets. A first step of individually storing the ceramic substrates in the provided tray, and a first image obtained by imaging the ceramic substrate with the first imaging device against the tray after the first step. After the second step, after the second step, the first image is subjected to arithmetic processing in the image processing unit to perform provisional determination of defective products, and after the third step, the vibration device A fourth step of applying vibration to the ceramic substrate together with the tray, and after the fourth step, a fifth image is obtained by imaging the ceramic substrate with the second imaging device against the tray as a background. Process and this fifth work And a sixth step of extracting a defective portion by performing an arithmetic processing on the second image in the image processing unit, and the ceramic substrate is darker than the surface on which the storage pocket of the tray is formed. Yes, in the third step, for all the ceramic substrates accommodated in the tray, whether or not there is a dark color region formed in contact with the outer edge in the outer region including the corners of the sides. When the dark color system region is detected and is detected as a defective product, in the sixth step, only the ceramic substrate temporarily determined as a defective product in the third step is targeted, and the target ceramic substrate If a dark color region formed in contact with the outer edge is detected and a dark color region is detected, the position coordinate data relating to the discovery area of the dark color region stored in the third step When, When the position coordinate data about the discovery area of stored dark color regions matches the sixth step, the ceramic substrate is characterized in that is determined to be defective.
In the invention according to claim 3 configured as described above, the first step is a preparatory step in which the ceramic substrates are individually accommodated in a tray having a plurality of concave storage pockets.
In addition, the second step has an effect of acquiring the first image by imaging the ceramic substrate with the first imaging device with the tray as a background.
Further, the third step has an effect that the first image is subjected to arithmetic processing in the image processing unit, and a provisional determination of a defective product is performed. More specifically, for all ceramic substrates accommodated in the tray, for each ceramic substrate, a dark-colored region formed in contact with the outer edge is formed in the region outside the outer edge including the corners of the sides. By inspecting whether or not there is a possibility that a defective part such as a burr exists on the outer edge near the corner of the ceramic substrate, it is inspected, and the ceramic substrate considered to have a defective part such as a burr Has the effect of extracting.
The following fourth step is to apply vibration to the ceramic substrate together with the tray by the vibration device, so that when the ceramic substrate is in contact with or close to the inner surface of the storage pocket in the storage pocket of the tray, the vibration of the storage pocket is reduced. The ceramic substrate is separated from the inner surface.
Further, the fifth step has an effect that the ceramic substrate is imaged by the second imaging device with the tray as a background to obtain a second image.
Then, the sixth step has an effect that the second image is subjected to arithmetic processing in the image processing unit, and defective portions are extracted. More specifically, the ceramic substrate tentatively determined as a defective product in the third step is targeted, and whether or not each ceramic substrate has a dark color region formed in contact with the outer edge is inspected. Therefore, it is inspected whether or not there is a possibility that a defective portion such as a burr exists on the outer edge near the corner of the ceramic substrate, and the ceramic substrate that has a defective portion such as a burr is extracted. .
Further, by setting the ceramic substrate to a darker color tone than the surface on which the storage pockets of the tray are formed, the boundary between the ceramic substrate and the tray in the first or second image is made clear.
In the appearance inspection method according to claim 3, in the third step, each ceramic substrate temporarily determined as a defective product is vibrated by the vibration device and then again with the tray as the background. Position of the dark-colored area detected at the time of image processing of the first image on the ceramic substrate by extracting the defective portion again using the second image in the sixth step. The structure is such that the ceramic substrate is finally determined as a defective product only when the data and the positional information data regarding the detection area of the dark color system area detected at the time of image processing of the second image are matched, and they match. Thus, the provisional determination of the defective product in the third step is not based on the defect of the ceramic substrate itself, and the storage position of the ceramic substrate in the storage pocket is When it is appropriate, or when dust such as debris or foreign matter is temporarily attached to the outer edge of the ceramic substrate, the appearance of the ceramic substrate can be re-inspected without the cause. It has the effect of making it.
As a result, the ceramic substrate is erroneously determined to be defective as compared with the case where only the first image is subjected to image processing, and only the result is used as the basis for determining whether the individual ceramic substrate is appropriate or defective. This has the effect of greatly reducing the risk of the occurrence.
Furthermore, the image processing target in the sixth step is only the ceramic substrate that has been provisionally determined to be defective in the third step, thereby significantly reducing the time required for image processing of the second image. Have

An appearance inspection method according to a fourth aspect of the invention is an appearance inspection method for inspecting the appearance of a ceramic substrate divided from a strip-shaped ceramic sheet and comprising a plurality of concave storage pockets. A first step of individually storing the ceramic substrates in the first tray provided, and after the first step, the ceramic substrate is imaged by the first imaging device with the first tray as a background. A second step for obtaining one image, a third step for performing a tentative determination of a defective product by performing arithmetic processing on the first image in the image processing unit after the second step, and the third step After the step, a fourth step of moving the ceramic substrate tentatively determined as a defective product in the third step to a second tray having a plurality of concave storage pockets, and after the fourth step, the ceramic substrate Back the board and the second tray The fifth step of obtaining a second image by taking an image with the second image pickup device, and after this fifth step, the second image is subjected to arithmetic processing in the image processing unit to extract a defective portion. And the ceramic substrate is darker than the surface on which the storage pockets of the first and second trays are formed, and is accommodated in the first tray in the third step. For all ceramic substrates, it is inspected whether there is a dark color region formed in contact with the outer edge in the region outside the outer edge including the corners of the sides. In the sixth step, all ceramic substrates accommodated in the second tray are inspected for the presence of a dark color region formed in contact with the outer edge, and the dark color system is determined. If a region is detected, it is acquired in the third step The ceramic substrate is determined to be defective when the position coordinate data relating to the discovery area of the dark color region and the position coordinate data relating to the discovery area of the dark color region acquired in the sixth step match. It is what.
In the invention according to claim 4 configured as described above, the first step is a preparatory step of individually storing the ceramic substrates in a first tray having a plurality of storage pockets having a concave cross section.
In addition, the second step has an effect that a ceramic substrate is imaged by the first imaging device with the first tray as a background to obtain a first image.
Further, the third step has an effect that the first image is subjected to arithmetic processing in the image processing unit, and a provisional determination of a defective product is performed. More specifically, for all ceramic substrates accommodated in the tray, for each ceramic substrate, a dark-colored region formed in contact with the outer edge is formed in the region outside the outer edge including the corners of the sides. By inspecting whether or not there is a possibility that a defective part such as a burr exists on the outer edge near the corner of the ceramic substrate, it is inspected, and the ceramic substrate considered to have a defective part such as a burr Has the effect of extracting.
The subsequent fourth step has the effect of moving the ceramic substrate temporarily determined to be defective in the previous third step to the second tray. By providing this step, there is a problem with the first tray, and there is no problem with the ceramic substrate accommodated in the first tray. Has the effect of eliminating
Further, the fifth step has an effect that the ceramic substrate is imaged by the second imaging device with the second tray as a background to obtain a second image.
The sixth step has an effect that the second image is subjected to arithmetic processing in the image processing unit, and defective portions are extracted again. More specifically, all the ceramic substrates that are provisionally determined to be defective in the third step and moved by the moving device are targeted, and the dark-colored regions formed by contacting the outer edges of the individual ceramic substrates. It is inspected whether there is a possibility that a defective part such as a burr exists on the outer edge near the corner of the ceramic substrate by inspecting whether there is a defective part such as a burr. It has the effect of extracting the substrate.
Further, by setting the ceramic substrate to a darker color tone than the surface on which the storage pockets of the tray are formed, the boundary between the ceramic substrate and the tray in the first or second image is made clear.
In the appearance inspection method according to claim 4, in the third step, the individual ceramic substrates temporarily determined as defective products are transferred to the second tray, and then the second tray is used again as a background. 2, the defective portion is extracted again using the second image in the sixth step, and the position related to the detection area of the dark-colored region detected at the time of image processing of the first image on the ceramic substrate By configuring the ceramic substrate to be finally determined as a defective product only when the information data and the positional information data regarding the detection area of the dark color system area detected during the image processing of the second image match, The provisional determination of the defective product in the third step is not based on the defect of the ceramic substrate itself, and the ceramic substrate is not properly stored in the storage pocket. When the tray itself was caused or the like to have a defect, has the effect of allowing re-examination of the appearance of the ceramic substrate in a state that eliminates the cause.
As a result, the ceramic substrate is erroneously determined to be defective as compared with the case where only the first image is subjected to image processing, and only the result is used as the basis for determining whether the individual ceramic substrate is appropriate or defective. This has the effect of greatly reducing the risk of the occurrence.
Furthermore, the time required for image processing of the second image is greatly reduced by making only the ceramic substrate provisionally determined to be defective in the third step to be subjected to image processing in the sixth step. Has the effect of

According to the appearance inspection apparatus of the first aspect of the present invention, it is possible to prevent a product having no burr on the outer edge of the ceramic substrate to be inspected from being erroneously determined as a defective product, and to perform an appearance inspection. It is possible to suppress a decrease in the yield of the product due to.
That is, when the ceramic substrate is re-inspected (when the second image is captured), since the accommodation state of the ceramic substrate accommodated in the accommodation pocket is changed, more specifically, vibration is generated by the vibration device. Since the storage position of the ceramic substrate in the storage pocket is changed, the dark color region detected at the time of image processing of the first image is used in a case other than a burr on the outer edge of the ceramic substrate. The possibility that the position coordinate data related to the discovery area matches the position coordinate data related to the discovery area of the dark color system area detected during the image processing of the second image is extremely low. For this reason, when an appearance inspection is performed using the invention described in claim 1, it is possible to reduce the possibility that the finally determined defective product determination is an erroneous determination.
Moreover, the maximum number of inspections (number of imaging) performed on one ceramic substrate is two times, and the re-inspection target is the target of image processing in the second image. Since only the defective product is determined in the image processing of the first image, the time required for the appearance inspection can be shortened.
Therefore, there is little possibility that an appropriate ceramic substrate is erroneously determined as a defective product, and it is possible to provide an appearance inspection apparatus that can quickly perform an appearance inspection.

According to the appearance inspection apparatus of the second aspect of the present invention, it is possible to prevent a product having no burr on the outer edge of the ceramic substrate to be inspected from being erroneously determined as a defective product, and to perform an appearance inspection. It is possible to suppress a decrease in the yield of the product due to.
That is, when the ceramic substrate is re-inspected (when the second image is captured), since the accommodation state of the ceramic substrate accommodated in the accommodation pocket is changed, more specifically, the ceramic substrate is mounted. By changing the tray to be placed and stored, the storage position of the ceramic substrate in the storage pocket is also changed, and further, problems caused by the tray at the time of capturing the first image are eliminated. In cases other than the occurrence of burrs, the position coordinate data related to the discovery area of the dark color area detected during the image processing of the first image and the discovery of the dark color area detected during the image processing of the second image The possibility that the position coordinate data relating to the area matches is extremely low. For this reason, when the appearance inspection is performed using the invention described in claim 2, the possibility that the finally determined defective product determination is an erroneous determination can be extremely reduced.
Moreover, the maximum number of inspections (number of imaging) performed on one ceramic substrate is two times, and the re-inspection target is the first image capturing target (the second image capturing target). Since only those that are determined to be defective in the image processing of the image, the time required for the appearance inspection can be shortened.
Therefore, it is possible to provide an appearance inspection apparatus that is less likely to be erroneously determined and that can perform an appearance inspection quickly.

  The invention described in claim 3 captures the invention described in claim 1 as a method invention, and the effect thereof is the same as that of the invention described in claim 1.

  The invention described in claim 4 captures the invention described in claim 2 as a method invention, and the effect thereof is the same as that of the invention described in claim 2.

It is a conceptual diagram which shows an example of the external appearance inspection apparatus which concerns on Example 1 of this invention. (A) is a conceptual diagram which shows the state which mounted the ceramic substrate in the tray of the external appearance inspection apparatus which concerns on Example 1 of this invention, (b) is the elements on larger scale. (A)-(c) is a figure which shows the example of the ceramic substrate by which the defect location was detected by the external appearance inspection apparatus which concerns on Example 1 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement procedure of the external appearance inspection method of the ceramic substrate which concerns on Example 1 of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows an example of the external appearance inspection apparatus which concerns on Example 2 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the operation | movement procedure of the external appearance inspection method of the ceramic substrate which concerns on Example 2 of this invention. It is a system configuration | structure figure of the external appearance inspection system which concerns on Example 3 of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the external appearance inspection program which concerns on Example 3 of this invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows an example of the external appearance inspection apparatus which concerns on Example 4 of this invention.

  Hereinafter, an appearance inspection apparatus, an appearance inspection method, and an appearance inspection system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to Examples 1 to 4.

An appearance inspection apparatus and an appearance inspection method according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of an appearance inspection apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.
The appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment is an inspection apparatus for inspecting the appearance of a ceramic substrate 4 that is divided from a strip-shaped ceramic sheet and separated into individual pieces and extracts defective products with high accuracy. As shown in FIG. 1, the configuration mainly includes a tray 2 in which a plurality of concave storage pockets 3 for individually storing individual ceramic substrates 4 are formed, and for transporting the tray 2. The transfer device 5 and the ceramic substrate 4 placed on the tray 2 vibrate indirectly with the imaging devices 6a and 6b for taking an image against the background of the tray 2 and the ceramic substrate 4 placed on the tray 2. And an image processing unit 8 for receiving and processing images captured by the imaging devices 6a and 6b. Note that the image processing unit 8 may be provided with an output unit 15 such as a monitor.

More specifically, in the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment, the tray 2 in which the individual ceramic substrates 4 are individually stored is moved in the moving direction of the tray 2 by the transport device 5 including a belt conveyor or the like. First, an image of the ceramic substrate 4 with the tray 2 in the background is taken as a first image, and then the ceramic substrate 4 is placed and accommodated. The tray 2 is further transported by the transport device 5 and moved to the vibration device 7, and the vibration is indirectly applied to the ceramic substrate 4 placed and accommodated on the tray 2 by the vibration device 7. Thereafter, the ceramic substrate 4 placed and stored in the tray 2 is again transported by the transport device 5 and moved below the image pickup device 6b provided on the downstream side of the vibration device 7, and here Thus, the image of the ceramic substrate 4 with the tray 2 in the background again is picked up as the second image by the image pickup device 6b.
In addition, the first image captured by the imaging device 6a is sent to the image processing unit 8, and in the image processing unit 8, whether there is a defective portion that is detected as a dark color region at the outer edge of all the ceramic substrates 4. Whether or not it is inspected by an arithmetic processing, a defective product is temporarily determined based on the result.
Further, in the second image picked up by the image pickup device 6b, the calculation of the first image is performed only on the ceramic substrate 4 on which the provisional determination of the defective product is made as a result of the calculation processing of the first image. The processing result and the second image calculation processing result are collated and compared to finally determine whether or not the ceramic substrate 4 is defective.

Here, an inspection region of the appearance of the ceramic substrate 4 will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 2A is a conceptual diagram showing a state in which a ceramic substrate is placed on the tray of the appearance inspection apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2B is a partially enlarged view thereof. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected about the part same as what was described in FIG. 1, and the description about the structure is abbreviate | omitted.
As shown in FIG. 2, for example, storage trays 3 having a rectangular planar shape and a concave cross section are regularly formed vertically and horizontally on the tray 2, and are individually separated into individual storage pockets 3. A ceramic substrate 4 is accommodated.
In the imaging device 6a or 6b shown in FIG. 1, an image in a state as shown in FIG. 2A is taken as the first or second image. In particular, in the first image, for example, an identification code is given to each storage pocket 3, and the ceramic substrate 4 accommodated in each storage pocket 3 is identified by the identification code until the result of the appearance inspection is determined. It is configured. This identification code is a concept including characters, symbols, and numbers.
More specifically, although not clearly shown in FIG. 2A, for example, the number “1” is assigned as an identification code to the ceramic substrate 4 accommodated in the storage pocket 3 at the upper right of the tray 2. An identification code is given to the left of the page and so that the number increases as it goes downward. That is, in the tray 2 in FIG. 2A, the identification code of the ceramic substrate 4 accommodated in the storage pocket 3 disposed on the upper left side of the sheet is “5”, and is accommodated in the storage pocket 3 disposed on the lower right side of the sheet. The identification code of the ceramic substrate 4 is “46”, and the identification code of the ceramic substrate 4 accommodated in the storage pocket 3 arranged at the lower left of the drawing is “50”.

Further, FIG. 2B shows an enlarged view of a region surrounded by a broken line in FIG.
In the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment, the ceramic substrate 4 to be inspected is darker than the surface of the tray 2 on which the storage pockets 3 are formed. Thereby, when the first and second images are taken with the tray 2 in the background, the boundary of the ceramic substrate 4 in the first and second images can be clarified. The same applies to the first tray and the second tray according to the second embodiment described below.
When the first image and the second image captured by the imaging devices 6a and 6b shown in FIG. 1 are processed in the image processing unit 8, the individual ceramic substrates 4 are trays 2 constituting the background. The storage pocket 3 is recognized. That is, as shown in FIG. 2B, the ceramic substrate 4 and its surroundings are recognized as the image area 16. At this time, if the ceramic substrate 4 in the image area 16 has an angular shift, it is automatically corrected (see FIG. 3C described later).
Then, this in the image area 16 side _4a 1 to 4A ₄ and the angular _4b 1 _{~4b 4} constituting the outer edge of the ceramic substrate 4 is recognized, all sides 4a, which on this basis, to form an angular _4b 1 _{~4b 4 1} to 4A _4, in the region outside the outer edge of the ceramic substrate 4 including the corner _4b 1 ～4B ₄ is in each view 2 (b), is recognized as the area _a 1 to a ₈ represented by a rectangular dashed line .

Normally, one of the main causes for making the ceramic substrate 4 defective is a protrusion called a burr formed on the outer edge of the ceramic substrate 4, and most of this burr is formed on the corners 4 b ₁ to 4 b of the ceramic substrate 4. because it is formed to 4b ₄ near the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to embodiment 1, as an inspection area _a 1 to a ₈ regions 8 points including and angle _4b 1 _{~4b 4} in the vicinity of the corner _4b 1 _{~4b 4} It is set.
In the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to Example 1, respectively, in the sides _4a 1 to 4A ₄ to form the outer shape of the ceramic substrate 4, the adjacent corners (corner _4b 1, 4b _2, angular _4b 2, _4b 3, While including one corner 4b ₃ , 4b ₄ , one corner 4b ₄ , 4b ₁ ), two independent locations are inspected (inspection areas A ₁ , A ₂ , inspection areas A ₃ , A ₄ , inspection area A ₅ , By setting as A ₆ and inspection areas A ₇ , A ₈ ), it is possible to reduce the probability of erroneous determination when finally determining whether or not the ceramic substrate 4 is defective. Details of this reason will be described later.
The method of setting the inspection area A ₁ to A ₈ is the same in other embodiments described below.

In the inventions described in the first to third embodiments of the present invention, the individual ceramic substrates 4 are in contact with the outer edges (sides 4a _{1 to} 4a ₄ ) of the ceramic substrate 4 in the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ . It is indirectly determined whether or not there is a defective portion such as a burr on the outer edge of the ceramic substrate 4 by inspecting whether or not there is a dark color region formed.

Here, a detection example of a defective portion when the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ as shown in FIG. 2B are inspected will be described with reference to FIG.
FIGS. 3A to 3C are diagrams illustrating examples of ceramic substrates in which a defective portion is detected by the appearance inspection apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected about the same part as what was described in FIG. 1 or FIG. 2, and the description about the structure is abbreviate | omitted.
In the ceramic substrate 4 shown in FIG. 3 (a), are burr 17 is formed at the corner 4b ₁ side edge 4a _1, the burr 17 is formed in contact with the side 4a ₁ during inspection of the inspection area _{A 1} Detected as a dark color region.
In the ceramic substrate 4 shown in FIG. 3 (b), and adhered dust 18 on the corner 4b ₃ near the sides 4a _3, the dust 18 is formed in contact with the sides 4a ₃ during inspection of the inspection area _{A 5} Detected as a dark color region.
In the ceramic substrate 4 shown in FIG. 3 (c), the ceramic substrate 4 is accommodated in the storage pocket 3 in a state where the angle is shifted, and the corner 4 b ₁ of the ceramic substrate 4 is formed on the inner surface 3 a of the storage pocket 3. shadow 19 is created between the inner surface 3a and the side 4a ₁ because of close proximity, the shadow 19 is detected as a dark color region formed in contact with the side 4a ₁ during inspection of the inspection area a ₁ Is done.
However, in both cases of FIGS. 3B and 3C, the ceramic substrate 4 does not have a substantial defective portion, so that the inspection results of the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ are not changed as they are. When reflected in the determination of a non-defective product, the ceramic substrate 4 that is not originally a defective product is extracted as a defective product.

As described above, usually, when the appearance inspection of the ceramic substrate 4 using an image processing technique is performed, there are the following three types of causes that are determined as defective products.
(1) When burrs 17 are formed on the outer edge of the ceramic substrate 4 (2) When dust 18 adheres to the outer edge of the ceramic substrate 4 (3) The ceramic substrate is placed on the inner surface 3a of the storage pocket 3 of the tray 2. In the case of (1), the ceramic substrate 4 is clearly a defective product when the shadow is generated between the ceramic substrate 4 and the inner surface of the storage pocket 3 when the 4 is in contact or in proximity. On the other hand, in the case of (2) and (3), it is an error to make a defective product because there is no defective portion in the ceramic substrate 4.
In the cases (2) and (3) described above, the storage state of the ceramic substrate 4 is changed by shifting the storage position of the ceramic substrate 4 in the storage pocket 3 or applying vibration to the ceramic substrate 4 from the outside. Thus, the inspection area (inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ ) where the dark color region is detected is changed, or the dark color region is not detected.
On the other hand, in the case of (1), as long as the ceramic substrate 4 does not rotate and move in the storage pocket 3, even if the storage state of the ceramic substrate 4 in the storage pocket 3 is changed, the dark-colored region is not in the inspection. The detected inspection areas (inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ ) are the same.

Therefore, the inventor pays attention to this point and takes an image with the background of the tray 2 once before and after changing the storage state of the ceramic substrate 4 placed on the tray 2 in the storage pocket 3. The detection areas (inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ ) of the dark color area considered to be defective in the image are compared and collated with each other, and only when the areas where the dark color area is detected match, the ceramic substrate 4 is It has been found that the case of the above (2) and (3) can be easily prevented from being erroneously determined as a defective product by determining it as a defective product.
Further, the inventor does not carry out the detection work of the dark-colored region considered to be a defective portion twice for all the ceramic substrates 4, but is considered to be a defective portion when the first image is processed. Only for the ceramic substrate 4 in which the dark color region is detected, the second image calculation process is performed to detect the dark color region which is considered to be a defective portion, so that an inspection of the ceramic substrate 4 can be performed. Minimized the time required for image processing.
Therefore, the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment has an effect that the appearance of the ceramic substrate 4 can be inspected with high accuracy and speed and defective products can be extracted.

Here, the procedure for extracting defective products from the individual ceramic substrates 4 will be described with a specific example.
Now, 50 ceramic substrates 4 placed and accommodated in the tray 2 as shown in FIG. 2A are imaged by the imaging device 6a against the tray 2, and the first obtained from the imaging device 6a. When the image processing unit 8 performs arithmetic processing on the image areas 16 of the individual ceramic substrates 4 in the image of “2”, “2”, “17”, “23”, “30”, “48” are given as identification codes. It is assumed that a dark color region that is considered to be a defective portion is found in the five ceramic substrates 4 that have been formed.
In addition, about the discovery location of the dark color type | system | group area | region in each ceramic substrate 4 to which the said identification code | symbol was provided, it is as showing in the following Table 1. In addition, the symbols “A ₁ ” to “A ₈ ” shown in Table 1 below indicate the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ omitted. Furthermore, in Table 1 below, “−” means that the calculation processing of the second image was not performed.
Moreover, it is not possible to determine which of the above-mentioned (1) to (3) the cause of the temporary determination as a defective product is based only on the result of the arithmetic processing of the first image in the image processing unit 8. .

Then, after all the ceramic substrates 4 accommodated in the tray 2 are vibrated by the vibration device 7 shown in FIG. 1, the ceramic substrate 4 accommodated in the tray 2 is again used with the tray 2 as a background. An image is captured by 6b, and a second image is obtained from the imaging device 6b.
Further, in this second image, the identification codes “2”, “17”, “23”, “30”, “48” that have been provisionally determined to be defective when the first image is processed. The calculation process was executed again only for each of the ceramic substrates 4 (see the hatched portions in Table 1 above). The calculation result of the second image is also shown in Table 1 above.

As shown in Table 1 above, in the ceramic substrate 4 with the identification code “2”, dark system regions are detected in two areas of the inspection areas A ₁ and A ₅ during the calculation processing of the first image. It is good or provisional decision, then dark color region only in the examination area a ₈ is the arithmetic processing of the second image is detected. In this case, since the detection positions of the dark color areas detected in the first and second images do not match, the ceramic substrate 4 with the identification code “2” is finally determined as a non-defective product.
In the ceramic substrate 4 identification symbol "17" is attached, during processing of the first image, dark-colored area is provisionally determined and defective products are detected in the inspection area A _3, then operation of the second image In the processing, dark areas were detected in the inspection areas A ₃ and A ₆ . In this case, the detection position of the first, dark color area detected in the second image, since the inspection area A ₃ are common, the ceramic substrate 4 to the identification code "17" is attached is finally not Judged as non-defective.
In the ceramic substrate 4 identification symbol "23" is attached, during processing of the first image, dark-colored area is provisionally determined and defective products are detected in the inspection area A _7, then operation of the second image Dark areas were not detected in the process. In this case, since the detection positions of the dark-colored areas detected in the first and second images do not match, the ceramic substrate 4 to which the identification code “23” is attached is finally determined as a non-defective product.
In the ceramic substrate 4 to which the identification code “30” is attached, at the time of the calculation processing of the first image, dark color system areas are detected in two places of the inspection areas A ₁ and A ₂ and are temporarily determined as defective products. dark color region only in the examination area a ₂ is the arithmetic processing of the second image is detected. In this case, the detection position of the first, dark color area detected in the second image, since the inspection area A ₂ are common, the ceramic substrate 4 to the identification code "30" is attached is finally not Judged as non-defective.
In the ceramic substrate 4 identification symbol "48" is attached, during processing of the first image, dark-colored area is provisionally determined and defective products are detected in the inspection area A _8, then operation of the second image dark color regions in the examination area A ₁ in the process is detected. In this case, since the detection positions of the dark color system areas detected in the first and second images do not coincide with each other, the ceramic substrate 4 with the identification code “48” is finally determined to be non-defective.

Accordingly, the two ceramic substrates 4 having the identification numbers “17” and “30” were finally regarded as defective products among the 50 ceramic substrates 4.
Thus, according to the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment, it is possible to provide an appearance inspection apparatus with high work efficiency and high inspection accuracy.
In the image area 16 of the captured individual ceramic substrate 4, the respective sides _4a 1 to 4A ₄ to form the outer edge of the ceramic substrate 4, the inspection area of the four positions that include all of the sides _4a 1 to 4A ₄ as compared with the case of setting the, as shown in FIG. 2 (b), for each side _4a 1 to 4A _4, inspection area _a 1 ~ a total of eight by two places while containing a corner of the ceramic substrate 4 person of setting the a ₈ is, it is possible to reduce the possibility that occur eventually erroneous determination for each of the ceramic substrate 4.

This is clear from the following example.
In the image area 16 shown in FIG. 2B, for example, the inspection areas A ₁ and A ₂ , the inspection areas A ₃ and A ₄ , the inspection areas A ₅ and A ₆ , and the inspection areas A ₇ and A ₈ are displayed. If set to one respective inspection area linked, and, for example, dark color area caused by the shadow 19 such as shown in FIG. 3 (c) in the inspection area a ₁ during processing of the first image is detected However, it is assumed that the ceramic substrate 4 actually has no defective portion.
As a result of vibration applied to the ceramic substrate 4 by the vibration device 7, the corner 4 b ₂ of the ceramic substrate 4 is now close to the inner side surface 3 a of the storage pocket 3, and the corner 4 b ₂ and the inner side surface 3 a of the storage pocket 3 are If a shadow 19 is generated between the _two , the dark color region is detected in the inspection area A2 when the second image is processed.
When it is recognized that the inspection area A ₁ and the inspection area A ₂ and one test area by connecting includes a detection position of the detected dark color region of the first image to processing, first As a result, the ceramic substrate 4 is determined as a defective product even though it does not have a substantial defective portion. And misjudgment occurs.

As described above, by finely subdividing the inspection area set on the outer edge of the ceramic substrate 4 and increasing the number thereof, the probability that the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment causes an erroneous determination can be reduced.
On the other hand, finely subdividing the inspection area and increasing the number bring about a demerit of complicating image calculation processing and reducing the work efficiency of the visual inspection. Therefore, the visual inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment. in, since one factor in the appearance of the ceramic substrate 4 failures are burrs formed at the corner 4b ₁ ~4b ₄ near the ceramic substrate 4, eight the number of inspection areas that are set on the periphery of the ceramic substrate 4 (Inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ ).

Here, the appearance inspection method of the ceramic substrate according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The method for inspecting the appearance of a ceramic substrate according to the first embodiment captures the procedure for inspecting the appearance of a ceramic substrate by the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment as a method invention.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a work procedure of the ceramic substrate appearance inspection method according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The same parts as those described in FIGS. 1 to 3 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description of the configuration is omitted.
As shown in FIG. 4, in the appearance inspection method 20a of the ceramic substrate 4 according to the first embodiment, first, as a preparation process, the individual pieces are individually placed in the storage pocket 3 of the tray 2 as shown in FIGS. After the singulated ceramic substrate 4 is accommodated (step S10), the ceramic substrate 4 together with the tray 2 is transported to the imaging device 6a by the transport device 5 and the tray 2 is used as a background by the imaging device 6a. The first image is captured (step S11). Then, the first image is sent to the image processing unit 8 for arithmetic processing, and the individual ceramic substrates 4 are subjected to the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ in the image area 16 shown in FIG. Whether or not there is a dark color region is inspected, and if any dark color region is found in any _{one of} the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ , it is temporarily determined as a defective product (step S 12). At this time, the ceramic substrate 4 in which no dark color region is found in the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ is determined as a non-defective product.
Thereafter, the tray 2 on which both the ceramic substrate 4 that has been provisionally determined to be defective and the ceramic substrate 4 that has been determined to be non-defective is placed on the vibration device 7 by the conveyance device 5, and the vibration device 7. After the vibration is indirectly applied to the ceramic substrate 4 via the tray 2 (step S13), the ceramic substrate 4 is further transported to the imaging device 6b, and the second image with the tray 2 in the background is captured by the imaging device 6b. Is imaged (step S14).
Then, the second image picked up in step 14 is sent to the image processing unit 8 and processed (step S15). In step S15, image processing is performed only on the ceramic substrate 4 that has been provisionally determined to be defective in step S11.
Furthermore, in the collation / determination step (step S16) after step S15, the calculation processing result of the first image in the previous step S11 and the calculation processing result of the second image in step 14 are compared and referred to. When the discovery area (inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ ) of the dark color system area in the first image and the second image is common, the ceramic substrate 4 is finally determined as a defective product.
Note that the determination result determined in step S15 may be output to the output unit 15 such as a monitor shown in FIG. 1 (step S17).
According to such an appearance inspection method 20a according to the first embodiment, as with the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment described above, the possibility that the ceramic substrate 4 that is originally a good product is erroneously determined as a defective product is greatly increased. In addition to the reduction, the appearance inspection of the ceramic substrate 4 can be efficiently performed.

In the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment, an example in which an imaging apparatus for acquiring the first image and an imaging apparatus for acquiring the second image are provided separately will be described. However, for example, by providing the vibration device 7 below the imaging device 6a and below the transport device 5, the imaging device for acquiring the first image and the second image is provided. It is also possible to use only 6a.
That is, in the inventions according to claims 1 and 3 of the present application, in order to distinguish between the first image and the second image, two imaging devices are provided for convenience. The imaging device 6a that is the second imaging device and the imaging device 6b that is the second imaging device can be carried by a single imaging device such as a CCD camera.
The same applies to the appearance inspection method 20a according to the first embodiment.

Hereinafter, an appearance inspection apparatus and an appearance inspection method according to the second embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIG. The visual inspection apparatus according to the second embodiment is based on the same technical idea as the visual inspection apparatus 1a and the visual inspection method 20a according to the first embodiment described above, but means for changing the storage state of the ceramic substrate 4 in the tray. Is different from the appearance inspection apparatus 1a and the appearance inspection method 20a according to the first embodiment.
More specifically, in the appearance inspection apparatus 1a and the appearance inspection method 20a according to the first embodiment, after the first image is captured, the vibration is applied to the ceramic substrate 4 indirectly by the vibration device 7, and the tray 2 is stored. In contrast to the storage state of the ceramic substrate 4 in the pocket 3, in the appearance inspection apparatus according to the second embodiment, the ceramic substrate temporarily determined to be defective after the first image is captured. The means for changing the storage state of the ceramic substrate 4 in the storage pocket 3 by transferring only 4 to another tray is adopted.
For this reason, in the appearance inspection apparatus according to the second embodiment, the vibration device 7 of the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment is replaced with a moving device, and in addition to the first tray 2a as the tray 2, a ceramic substrate is used. A second tray is provided as another tray for transferring 4.

FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of an appearance inspection apparatus according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. The same parts as those described in FIGS. 1 to 3 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description of the configuration is omitted. Here, a description will be given with emphasis on differences from the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment.
As shown in FIG. 5, the appearance inspection apparatus 1b according to the second embodiment includes a first tray 2a in which a plurality of concave storage pockets 3 for individually storing individual ceramic substrates 4 are formed. A second tray provided with a plurality of storage pockets 3 provided on the upstream side or the downstream side in the moving direction of the first tray 2a and for individually storing the ceramic substrates 4 moved from the first tray 2a. 2b, a conveying device 5 for conveying the first tray 2a and the second tray 2b, and an imaging device for imaging the ceramic substrate 4 placed on the first tray 2a against the background of the tray 2 6a and a movement for moving the ceramic substrate 4 tentatively determined as a defective product from the first tray 2a to the second tray 2b after the first image captured by the imaging device 6a is processed. apparatus And an image pickup device 6b for picking up an image of the ceramic substrate 4 moved from the first tray 2a to the second tray 2b against the background of the second tray 2b, and the images are picked up by the image pickup devices 6a and 6b. An image is processed in the image processing unit 8 and a defective product of the ceramic substrate 4 is extracted based on the result.

More specifically, in the appearance inspection apparatus 1b according to the second embodiment, the first tray 2a in which the individual ceramic substrates 4 are individually stored is transferred to the tray 2 by the transport device 5 including a belt conveyor or the like. First, an image of the ceramic substrate 4 with the first tray 2a in the background is captured as a first image when the first substrate 2a is transported under the imaging device 6a provided on the downstream side of the first movement direction. An image is sent to the image processing unit 8 to perform arithmetic processing to perform provisional determination of defective products. Thereafter, the ceramic substrate 4 on which the temporary determination of defective products has been made is performed from the first tray 2a by the moving device 9. The ceramic substrate 4 moved to the second tray 2b and then transferred to the second tray 2b is transported to the imaging device 6b by the transport device 5, and the second tray 2b is set to the background by the imaging device 6b. Image of the ceramic substrate 4 is configured to be captured as a second image.
Further, in the second image captured by the imaging device 6b, all the ceramic substrates 4 (all the ceramic substrates 4 that have been provisionally determined to be defective during the first image calculation process) are targeted again. The calculation processing is performed, and the calculation processing result of the first image and the calculation processing result of the second image are compared and collated to finally determine whether or not the ceramic substrate 4 is defective. It has become.
Note that the first and second trays 2a and 2b of the appearance inspection apparatus 1b according to the second embodiment have the same structure as the tray 2 according to the first embodiment shown in FIG.

Further, the moving device 9 in the appearance inspection apparatus 1b according to the second embodiment includes, for example, an arm portion 9a and a suction portion 9b. The ceramic substrates 4 that are temporarily determined to be defective from the first tray 2a are individually second. The suction portion 9b may be configured to be transportable to the second tray 2b by simultaneously sucking and holding all of the ceramic substrates 4 temporarily determined to be defective from the first tray 2a. You may comprise.
For this reason, in the appearance inspection apparatus 1b according to the second embodiment, it is necessary to configure so that data relating to the provisional determination of a defective product accompanying the arithmetic processing of the first image in the image processing unit 8 can be transmitted to the mobile device 9. There is.
In addition, in the appearance inspection apparatus 1b according to the second embodiment described above, a defective product is determined based on the inspection area setting method in the first and second images and the calculation processing results of the first and second images. Since the procedure is the same as that of the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment, detailed description thereof is omitted here.

In the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment described above, if the storage pocket 3 itself of the tray 2 is defective due to, for example, dark-colored dirt attached or scratched, the ceramics Even if there is no problem with the substrate 4, a dark color system region is detected in the same inspection area during the first and second image processing, and erroneous determination occurs. Such a problem cannot be solved only by applying vibration to the ceramic substrate 4 to change the accommodation state in the storage pocket 3.
Therefore, in the appearance inspection apparatus 1b according to the second embodiment, in order to solve such a problem, in order to prevent erroneous determination when the first tray 2a itself has a defect, the first inspection is performed. A means of replacing a tray used when taking an image is adopted.
Therefore, in addition to the same effects as the visual inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment, the visual inspection apparatus 1b according to the second embodiment generates an erroneous determination due to a defect in the tray 2a itself for placing and housing the ceramic substrate 4. Can be prevented.

Here, an appearance inspection method for the ceramic substrate 4 according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. Here, the description will focus on the differences from the ceramic substrate appearance inspection method 20a according to the first embodiment shown in FIG.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a work procedure of the method for inspecting the appearance of a ceramic substrate according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The same parts as those described in FIGS. 1 to 5 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description of the configuration is omitted.
As shown in FIG. 6, in the appearance inspection method 20b of the ceramic substrate 4 according to the second embodiment, first, as in the case of the appearance inspection method 20a according to the first embodiment, the first tray 2a (FIG. 2 (see (a)), the individual ceramic substrates 4 are accommodated in the storage pockets 3 (step S20), and then placed on the first tray 2a by the transport device 5 and placed on the first tray 2a. Is transported to the imaging device 6a, and the imaging device 6a captures the first image with the tray 2a in the background (step S21).
Then, the first image is sent to the image processing unit 8 for arithmetic processing, and the individual ceramic substrates 4 are subjected to the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ in the image area 16 shown in FIG. to inspect whether there is a dark color region, which dark-colored area is found in one place in any of the inspection areas a ₁ to a ₈ is provisionally determines a defective (step S22). At this time, the ceramic substrate 4 in which no dark color region is found in the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ is determined as a non-defective product.

Thereafter, the ceramic substrate 4 temporarily determined to be defective is individually or collectively moved to the second tray 2b provided in the vicinity of the first tray 2a by the moving device 9 (step S23). The ceramic substrate 4 moved to the tray 2b is transported by the transport device 5 to the imaging device 6b.
Then, the second image is acquired by capturing an image of the ceramic substrate 4 tentatively determined as a defective product with the second tray 2b in the background by the imaging device 6b (step S24).
Then, the second image picked up in step 24 is sent to the image processing unit 8 for arithmetic processing (step S25). Note that in this step S25, images of all the ceramic substrates 4 placed on the second tray 2b are subject to arithmetic processing, but these are all provisionally determined to be defective in step S21. Step S24 in the appearance inspection method 20b according to the second embodiment and step S14 in the appearance inspection method 20a according to the first embodiment are substantially the same.
Further, in the collation / determination step (step S26) after step S25, the calculation processing result of the first image in the previous step S21 and the calculation processing result of the second image in step 25 are compared and collated. When the discovery area (inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ ) of the dark color system area in the first image and the second image is common, the ceramic substrate 4 is finally determined as a defective product.
Note that the determination result determined in step S25 may be output to the output unit 15 such as a monitor shown in FIG. 2 (step S27).
According to the appearance inspection method 20b according to the second embodiment, in addition to the same effect as the appearance inspection method 20a according to the first embodiment, an error of the ceramic substrate 4 due to the defect of the first tray 2a itself can be obtained. It has the effect that determination can be prevented.

In the appearance inspection apparatus 1b according to the second embodiment, an example in which an imaging apparatus for acquiring the first image and an imaging apparatus for acquiring the second image are provided separately will be described. However, for example, the process of transferring from the first tray 2a to the second tray 2b is performed in another lane, and the ceramic substrate 4 transferred to the second tray 2b is again placed under the imaging device 6a. If the image pickup apparatus 6a is configured to convey the first image and the second image, the image pickup apparatus 6a alone can be used as the image pickup apparatus for acquiring the first image and the second image.
In other words, in the inventions according to claims 2 and 4 of the present application, for the sake of distinction between the first image and the second image, two imaging devices are provided for convenience. An imaging device 6a and an imaging device 6b, which is a second imaging device, can be handled by a single imaging device such as a CCD camera. The same applies to the appearance inspection method 20b according to the second embodiment.
Further, in the appearance inspection apparatus 1b and the appearance inspection method 20b according to the second embodiment, the case where the moving device 9 is provided has been described as an example. However, the moving device 9 is not necessarily provided, and the first tray is not necessarily provided. The movement work from 2a to the second tray 2b may be performed manually, for example.

In the inventions according to the first and second embodiments described above, the inner side surface 3a of the storage pocket 3 is directed toward the bottom surface in the vertical section of the tray 2, the first tray 2a, and the second tray 2b. By configuring so as to reduce the diameter (see FIGS. 1 and 5), when the ceramic substrate 4 comes close to the inner side surface 3a of the storage pocket 3, it is possible to make it difficult to create a shadow 19 in the gap.
In this case, the inner side surface 3a of the storage pocket 3 does not necessarily need to form an inclined surface as shown in FIGS. 1 and 5 and forms a convex curved surface from the bottom surface of the storage pocket 3 toward the opening. You may comprise as follows. Also in this case, when the ceramic substrate 4 comes close to the inner side surface 3a of the storage pocket 3, the shadow 19 can be made difficult to be formed in the gap.

Finally, an appearance inspection system and an appearance inspection program according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The appearance inspection methods 20a and 20b according to the above-described first and second embodiments can also be understood as an appearance inspection system or an appearance inspection program.
FIG. 7 is a system configuration diagram of an appearance inspection system according to the third embodiment of the present invention. The same parts as those described in FIGS. 1 to 3 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description of the configuration is omitted.
In general, the appearance inspection system 10 according to the third embodiment temporarily stores calculation processing results in the imaging unit 11, the calculation processing unit 13, the collation / determination unit 14, the output unit 15, and the calculation processing unit 13. The first memory 12a and the second memory 12b.
The imaging unit 11 in the appearance inspection system according to the third embodiment is the imaging devices 6a and 6b according to the first and second embodiments, and images the tray 2, the first tray 2a, or the second tray 2b as a background. This is for acquiring the electronic data of the first image or the second image.
The electronic data of the first and second images input from the imaging unit 11 is sent to the arithmetic processing unit 13 as indicated by arrows in FIG.

In the arithmetic processing unit 13, as described in the first embodiment, the image area 16 is recognized for each ceramic substrate 4, and the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ are respectively included in the image area 16. Recognized, a search is made as to whether or not there is a dark-colored region in the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ that means the presence of a defective portion of the ceramic substrate 4.
When the dark area is present in the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ during the first image calculation process, information on the identification code of the ceramic substrate 4 and the dark area discovery area ( the first memory 12a as the inspection area a ₁ to a ₈₎ and is together data, also during processing of the second image, the presence of dark-colored area was observed in the inspection area a ₁ to a ₈ In this case, the identification code of the ceramic substrate 4 and information (inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ ) regarding the discovery area of the dark color system area are stored together as data in the second memory 12b.

Note that after the first image is captured by the imaging unit 11 (imaging device 6a), the second image is captured by the tray 2 or the first image after the second image is captured by the imaging unit 11 (imaging device 6b). The ceramic substrate 4 placed and stored on the tray 2a is changed in its storage state. More specifically, in the case of the first embodiment, the vibration is applied to the tray 2 by the vibration device 7, and in the case of the second embodiment, the ceramic substrate 4 tentatively determined as a defective product is moved to the first tray 2 a by the moving device 9. To the second tray 2b.
In particular, in the case of the second embodiment, when the first tray 2a is moved to the second tray 2b, the identification code of the ceramic substrate 4 placed on the first tray 2a may be used as it is. When the ceramic substrate 4 tentatively determined to be defective is placed on the second tray 2b, a new identification code is given separately from the previous identification code, and both the old and new identification codes are used together with the dark color system. Information regarding the area discovery area (inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ ) may be stored in the second memory 12b. In this case, if the data of the ceramic substrate 4 stored in the first memory 12a and the data of the ceramic substrate 4 stored in the second memory 12b can be reliably combined, the identification code for the ceramic substrate 4 can be obtained. There is no particular problem with the method of granting.

Then, the collation / determination unit 14 reads position information data related to the discovery area of the dark color region of the ceramic substrate 4 that is provisionally determined to be defective from each of the first memory 12a and the second memory 12b. Then, these are collated with each other, and those in which the data relating to the discovery area of the dark color system region match each ceramic substrate 4 are determined as defective products.
Further, the determination result in the collation / determination unit 14 may be output to the output unit 15 and confirmed.
In addition, although the 1st memory 12a and the 2nd memory 12b were described separately for convenience, these may store the data which should be stored in each as one memory.

Here, the description regarding the appearance inspection system 10 according to the third embodiment will be stopped, and the appearance inspection program according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The visual inspection system 10 described above with reference to FIG. 7 is a system invention. However, the system shown in FIG. 7 is regarded as a general-purpose computer, and the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. 8 is performed as a program for operating the system. Thinking about doing it.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the flow of the appearance inspection program according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 8, the portions enclosed by dotted lines indicate the components of the appearance inspection system 10 of FIG. 7, and the same components as those shown in FIG. 7 are given the same reference numerals.
The first process in the appearance inspection program 21 according to the third embodiment is the first image capturing process shown in step S1. In step S1, an image of the ceramic substrate 4 with the background of the tray 2 and the first tray 2a is obtained as electronic data.

The subsequent step S2 is an arithmetic processing step. In this process, for each ceramic substrate 4 in the first image obtained in step S 1, first, the image area 16 is recognized, and further, the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ are recognized in the image area 16. The individual inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ are searched for whether there is a dark color region. When a dark color region is found in the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ , the ceramic substrate 4 is provisionally determined to be defective, and information regarding the dark color region discovery area is included together with the identification code of the ceramic substrate 4. 1 is temporarily stored in the memory 12a.
Then, step S3 after step S2 is a process in which the accommodation state in the storage pocket 3 is changed with respect to the tray 2 and the ceramic substrate 4 placed on the first tray 2a. More specifically, vibration is applied from the outside of the tray 2 by the vibration device 7 (see FIG. 1), or the ceramic substrate 4 is moved from the first tray 2a to the second tray 2b by the moving device 9, for example. Moved (see FIG. 5).

Further, in step S4, the ceramic substrate 4 after the vibration is applied is picked up by taking an image of the second image by the image pickup device 6b with the tray 2 in the background to obtain electronic data, or from the first tray 2a. In this step, the ceramic substrate 4 moved to the second tray 2b is picked up by a second image by the image pickup device 6b with the second tray 2b in the background to obtain electronic data.
Subsequent step S5 is a process in which the second image obtained in step 4 is subjected to arithmetic processing to inspect whether there is a dark color region on the outer edge of the ceramic substrate 4. In this step S5, only the ceramic substrate 4 that has been provisionally determined to be defective in the previous step S3 is subject to the arithmetic processing. In addition, the inspection result obtained in step 5 is temporarily stored in the second memory 12b together with the identification code of the ceramic substrate 4.
In step S6, data relating to the ceramic substrate 4 that has been provisionally determined to be defective is read out from the first memory 12a and the second memory 12b, and these are compared and collated with each other to find a dark color region. This is a step of finally determining the ceramic substrate 4 as a defective product when the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ are common.
A step of outputting the calculation result of step S6 to the output unit 15 may be provided as step S7 after step S6.

According to the appearance inspection system 10 and the appearance inspection program 21 according to the third embodiment, the same effects as those of the appearance inspection method 20a and the appearance inspection method 20b according to the first or second embodiment can be expected.
In addition, in the appearance inspection system 10 and the appearance inspection program 21 according to the third embodiment, the case where the imaging unit 11 is configured by the two imaging devices 6a and 6b is described as an example. A single image pickup device for picking up the image may be used.

An appearance inspection apparatus according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 9 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of an appearance inspection apparatus according to Embodiment 4 of the present invention. The same parts as those described in FIGS. 1 to 8 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description of the configuration is omitted.
The appearance inspection apparatus 1c according to the fourth embodiment is equivalent to the appearance inspection apparatus 1a by using only one imaging device without using the transport device 5 in the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment. It has an effect.
As illustrated in FIG. 9, in the appearance inspection apparatus 1 c according to the fourth embodiment, a tray 2 in which a ceramic substrate 4 is accommodated in a storage pocket 3 is placed on a placement table 24, and an imaging device 6 is vertically above the tray 2. The first image and the second image picked up by the image pickup device 6 are sent to the image processing unit 8, where all the ceramic substrates 4 are detected as dark color regions at the outer edge thereof. Whether or not there is a part is inspected by arithmetic processing, and based on the result, a defective product is temporarily determined.

The calculation processing result in the image processing unit 8 may be output to the output unit 15 connected to the image processing unit 8.
Furthermore, the appearance inspection apparatus 1c according to the fourth embodiment includes the mounting table 24 including the vibration applying unit 23. After completing the imaging of the first image by the imaging device 6 on the mounting table 24, the vibration applying unit 23 performs the operation. It is configured such that vibration is indirectly applied to the ceramic substrate 4 accommodated in the tray 2 by applying vibration to the mounting table 24.
Then, after applying vibration to the ceramic substrate 4, the second image is acquired by imaging again the ceramic substrate 4 accommodated in the tray 2 by the imaging device 6 against the background of the tray 2.
Note that the procedure for performing the temporary determination of defective products of the ceramic substrate 4 by performing arithmetic processing on the first and second images is as described in the first embodiment.
Further, in the appearance inspection apparatus 1c according to the fourth embodiment, the tray 2 containing the ceramic substrate 4 may be transported to the mounting table 24 using, for example, moving means 22a and 22b such as a robot arm, You may do it manually.

The appearance inspection apparatus 1c according to the fourth embodiment has the same effect as the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment.
Further, in comparison with the appearance inspection apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment, in the appearance inspection apparatus 1c according to the fourth embodiment, it is not always necessary to provide the transport device 5, and moreover, only one imaging device 6 can be provided. Therefore, the appearance inspection apparatus 1c can be made compact.
Note that the appearance inspection method according to the fourth embodiment is the same as the appearance inspection method 20a according to the first embodiment, and therefore, the description of the configuration, operation, and effect is omitted here.

Further, in the appearance inspection apparatus 1c according to the above-described fourth embodiment, the first tray 2a and the second tray 2b of the appearance inspection apparatus 1b according to the second embodiment are mounted on the mounting table 24, and one unit The imaging device 6 may be configured to capture the first image and the second image. In this case, the movement of the ceramic substrate 4 from the first tray 2a to the second tray 2b may be performed using a transfer device such as a robot arm or manually.
According to the appearance inspection apparatus according to the modified example of Example 4 as described above, the same effects as those of the appearance inspection apparatus 1b according to Example 2 can be exhibited. Further, it is not necessary to provide the transport device 5 as compared with the appearance inspection apparatus 1b according to the second embodiment, and the imaging apparatus 6 can be only one, so that the appearance inspection apparatus can be made compact.
Note that the appearance inspection method according to the modification of the fourth embodiment is the same as the appearance inspection method 20b according to the second embodiment, and therefore, the description of the configuration, operation, and effect is omitted here.

Further, the appearance inspection apparatuses 1a to 1c described in the first, second, and fourth embodiments described above, the appearance inspection methods 20a and 20b according to the first and second embodiments, the appearance inspection system 10 and the appearance inspection according to the third embodiment. In the program 21, an example in which the operation of detecting the presence / absence of a dark color system region is performed in all of the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ in the image area 16 of the ceramic substrate 4 to be inspected at the time of the arithmetic processing of the second image. In the second image calculation process, only the inspection areas A _{1 to} A ₈ in which the dark color area has been confirmed during the first image calculation process may be the target of the calculation process.
In this case, there is an effect that the time required for the second image calculation process can be reduced and the time required for the appearance inspection work can be reduced.

  As described above, the present invention relates to an appearance inspection apparatus, an appearance inspection method, an appearance inspection system, and an appearance inspection program capable of preventing erroneous determination in appearance inspection of a ceramic substrate and improving work efficiency of appearance inspection. And can be used in the field of manufacturing electronic components.

1 a to 1 c ... appearance inspection device 2 ... tray 2a ... first tray 2b ... second tray 3 ... storage pockets 3a ... inner surface 4 ... ceramic substrate 4a ₁ to 4A 4 _... side (outer edge) _4b 1 ~4b ₄ ... Angle 5 ... Conveying device 6a, 6b ... Imaging device 7 ... Vibrating device 8 ... Image processing unit 9 ... Conveying device 9a ... Arm unit 9b ... Adsorption unit 10 ... Appearance inspection system 11 ... Imaging unit 12a ... First memory 12b ... First 2 memory 13 ... arithmetic processing unit 14 ... collation unit / determination unit 15 ... output unit 16 ... image area 17 ... burr 18 ... dust 19 ... shadow 20a, 20b ... appearance inspection method 21 ... appearance inspection program 22a, 22b ... movement means 23 ... vibrating means 24 ... table A ₁ to A 8 _... inspection area

Claims (4)

An appearance inspection device for inspecting the appearance of a ceramic substrate divided and separated from a strip-shaped ceramic sheet,
This visual inspection apparatus includes a tray having a plurality of concave storage pockets for individually storing the ceramic substrates,
A first imaging device for obtaining a first image obtained by imaging the ceramic substrate with the tray as a background;
A vibration device for applying vibration to the tray;
A second imaging device for obtaining a second image obtained by imaging the ceramic substrate against the tray after vibration is applied by the vibration device;
An image processing unit for performing arithmetic processing on the first and second images,
The ceramic substrate is darker than the surface on which the storage pocket of the tray is formed,
In the image processing of the first image, for all the ceramic substrates accommodated in the tray, dark color regions formed in contact with the outer edge are formed in regions outside the outer edge including corners of the sides. If it is inspected and the dark color region is detected, it is temporarily determined as a defective product,
In the image processing of the second image, only the ceramic substrate in which the dark color region is detected in the image processing of the first image is targeted, and the target ceramic substrate is in contact with the outer edge. It is inspected whether there is a dark color region to be formed, and when the dark color region is detected,
The position coordinate data related to the discovery area of the dark color region detected during image processing of the first image, and the position coordinate data related to the discovery area of the dark color region detected during image processing of the second image And the ceramic substrate is determined to be a defective product. An appearance inspection device for inspecting the appearance of a ceramic substrate divided and separated from a strip-shaped ceramic sheet,
The visual inspection apparatus includes a first tray including a plurality of concave storage pockets for individually storing the ceramic substrates;
A second tray having a plurality of concave storage pockets for individually storing the ceramic substrates moved from the first tray;
A first imaging device for obtaining a first image obtained by imaging the ceramic substrate against the first tray;
The ceramic substrate that was temporarily determined to be defective when the first image was image-processed and moved from the first tray to the second tray was imaged against the second tray as a background. A second imaging device for obtaining a second image;
An image processing unit for performing arithmetic processing on the first and second images,
The ceramic substrate is darker than the surface on which the storage pockets of the first and second trays are formed,
In the image processing of the first image, a dark color formed in contact with the outer edge in a region outside the outer edge including corners of all the ceramic substrates accommodated in the first tray. Inspecting whether there is a system area, and if the dark system area is detected, it is temporarily determined as a defective product,
In the image processing of the second image, whether or not there is a dark color region formed in contact with the outer edge for all the ceramic substrates moved from the first tray to the second tray Is inspected and the dark area is detected,
The position coordinate data related to the discovery area of the dark color region detected during image processing of the first image, and the position coordinate data related to the discovery area of the dark color region detected during image processing of the second image And the ceramic substrate is determined to be a defective product. An appearance inspection method for inspecting the appearance of a ceramic substrate divided and separated from a strip-shaped ceramic sheet,
A first step of individually storing the ceramic substrate in a tray having a plurality of concave storage pockets;
After the first step, a second step of obtaining the first image by taking an image of the ceramic substrate with a first imaging device against the tray as a background;
After the second step, a third step is performed in which the first image is subjected to arithmetic processing in an image processing unit to perform provisional determination of a defective product;
After the third step, a fourth step of applying vibration to the ceramic substrate together with the tray by a vibration device;
After the fourth step, a fifth step of obtaining the second image by taking an image of the ceramic substrate with the second imaging device against the tray as a background;
After the fifth step, a sixth step is performed in which the second image is subjected to arithmetic processing in the image processing unit and a defective portion is extracted.
The ceramic substrate is darker than the surface on which the storage pocket of the tray is formed,
In the third step, for all the ceramic substrates accommodated in the tray, whether or not there is a dark color region formed in contact with the outer edge in a region outside the outer edge including the corners of the sides. Is inspected, and if the dark color region is detected, it is temporarily determined as a defective product,
In the sixth step, only the ceramic substrate tentatively determined as a defective product in the third step is a target, and the dark-colored region formed in contact with the outer edge is the target ceramic substrate. If it is inspected for presence and the dark color region is detected,
When the position coordinate data related to the discovery area of the dark color system area stored in the third step matches the position coordinate data related to the discovery area of the dark color system area stored in the sixth step The visual inspection method, wherein the ceramic substrate is determined as a defective product. An appearance inspection method for inspecting the appearance of a ceramic substrate divided and separated from a strip-shaped ceramic sheet,
A first step of individually accommodating the ceramic substrates in a first tray having a plurality of concave storage pockets;
After the first step, a second step of obtaining the first image by taking an image of the ceramic substrate with a first image pickup device against the first tray,
After the second step, a third step is performed in which the first image is subjected to arithmetic processing in an image processing unit to perform provisional determination of a defective product;
After the third step, a fourth step of moving the ceramic substrate that has been provisionally determined to be a defective product in the third step to a second tray having a plurality of concave storage pockets;
After the fourth step, a fifth step of obtaining the second image by imaging the ceramic substrate with a second imaging device against the second tray;
After the fifth step, a sixth step is performed in which the second image is subjected to arithmetic processing in the image processing unit and a defective portion is extracted.
The ceramic substrate is darker than the surface on which the storage pockets of the first and second trays are formed,
In the third step, for all the ceramic substrates accommodated in the first tray, a dark-colored region formed in contact with the outer edge is formed in a region outside the outer edge including corners of the sides. If it is inspected and the dark color region is detected, it is temporarily determined as a defective product,
In the sixth step, all the ceramic substrates accommodated in the second tray are inspected for the presence of a dark color region formed in contact with the outer edge, and the dark color region Is detected,
When the position coordinate data regarding the discovery area of the dark color region acquired in the third step matches the position coordinate data regarding the discovery area of the dark color region acquired in the sixth step The visual inspection method, wherein the ceramic substrate is determined as a defective product.