JP2922107B2 - Measurement method of surface temperature of inspection object - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for measuring the surface temperature of an object to be inspected, and more particularly, to measuring the surface temperature of the object to be inspected by measuring the surface temperature distribution of the object by radiated electromagnetic waves. On how to do it.

[0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION A gas-tight sealed package containing a retort pouch and a liquid food such as curry and stew and a gas such as air and an inert gas is sealed together. A retort sterilization process has been performed. The present inventors have learned from the results of many experiments that in this rotary retort sterilization treatment, the ratio of the contained gas, that is, the air content greatly affects the efficiency of the sterilization treatment, that is, the sterilization effect. did. That is, when the air content of the air-sealed package is set to 2 to 50%, the sterilizing effect is increased, and when the variation of the air content among a plurality of air-sealed packages becomes -3 to 10%, sterilization failure occurs. It was concluded that the uniformity and the deterioration of the contents due to overheating were reduced. By the way, since the retort pouch container formed of the flexible film is flexible, it is very difficult to adjust or measure the air content compared to a rigid or semi-rigid cup, tray, or the like. . In view of this situation, the present inventors have developed a method and apparatus capable of measuring the air content of an air-tightly sealed package quickly and accurately without contact, particularly for industrial use. A method for measuring the air content of an air-impregnated sealed package characterized by calculating the air content by detecting the temperature distribution on the surface of the air-impregnated sealed package, and an air-tight sealed package. An air content measurement device for an air-tightly sealed package, comprising: a mounting table on which the sample is to be mounted; and a detection unit disposed near the mounting table and configured to detect a temperature distribution on a surface of the air-tightly sealed package. Filed earlier.

[0003] The present inventors have conducted experiments on the measurement of the temperature distribution on the surface of the hermetically sealed package described above with various hermetically sealed packages, and found that letters, patterns, etc. were printed on the surface of the hermetically sealed package. If applied, there is a difference in the radiated electromagnetic waves on the surface of the sealed package between the printed part and the non-printed part, so that it may not be possible to measure the accurate temperature distribution on the surface of the sealed package, I encountered this phenomenon. The present inventors have conducted intensive research focusing on such a phenomenon,
It has been found that the above problem can be effectively solved by bringing a translucent or opaque thin sheet into close contact with the surface of the sealed package. In addition, such means can be applied not only to a sealed package, but also to other containers, and can be applied to fields other than food, such as chemicals and paints, as long as they emit radiated electromagnetic waves. I got the knowledge that I can do it.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is not limited to a hermetically sealed package having characters or patterns printed on its surface, but can be used to measure an accurate temperature distribution on the surface of a test object that emits radiated electromagnetic waves. It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for measuring the surface temperature of an inspection object.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method for measuring the surface temperature of a test object by measuring the surface temperature distribution of the test object with radiated electromagnetic waves. , And a semi-transparent or opaque thin layer sheet is brought into close contact with the surface of the inspection object, thereby measuring the surface temperature of the inspection object. Embodiments of the present invention are as follows. The inspection object is a hermetically sealed package that is packaged by a flexible package. The translucent or opaque thin sheet is stretched in the hole portion of the holding plate having a hole in the center. The thin sheet that can be used in the present invention is not particularly limited as long as it is a translucent or opaque thin sheet, and examples thereof include silicon rubber, a synthetic resin such as polyethylene, and a metal foil such as an aluminum foil. The sheet thickness is 0.01-0.2mm
It is preferred that it is about. Further, when a thin layer sheet is stuck to the hole portion of the holding plate having a hole in the center, it is preferable to use a synthetic resin such as silicone rubber or polyethylene which has a certain degree of elasticity.

[0006]

According to the above construction, the translucent or opaque thin sheet is brought into close contact with the surface of the object to be inspected to determine whether characters, patterns, or the like are printed on the surface of the object. Regardless, the distribution of the surface temperature of the inspection object can be accurately measured. Therefore, for example, in a hermetically sealed package containing a fluid such as a liquid and the like, which have different specific gravities such as gas and water and oil, and are separated by standing,
It is effective when the content of a fluid having a low specific gravity is to be verified by measuring the distribution of the surface temperature of the hermetically sealed package by radiated electromagnetic waves.

[0007]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an apparatus for measuring an air-tightly sealed package according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, a defective product detecting device 1 for an air-tight sealed package is obtained by filling and sealing a retort pouch together with a gas such as air and an inert gas, for example, a curry, a stew or the like. First conveyor (transport path) 10 for transporting hermetically sealed packages in a lying state
One. In addition, by keeping the standing pouch etc. always in a fixed shape, the position of the gas in each air-tight sealed package is stabilized without variation, and the volume of the gas in the air-tight sealed package is more accurately determined. It is desirable in that the measurement can be performed stably and stably. As such means, in the present invention, in detecting the surface temperature of the air-containing sealed package A with the detector 211 described later of the first conveyor 101, the air-containing sealed package A is pressed by a pressing plate having a hole in the center. . Thereby, the shape of the gas in the air-containing sealed package can be kept constant as described above. In this case, it is preferable that the pressing plate has a shape similar to the shape of the sealed package and the shape of the center hole is circular or elliptical.
As shown in FIG. 3, when the maximum diameter of the hole of the holding plate is a and the maximum diameter in the direction perpendicular to this is b, the size of the hole is b: a = 1: 1 to 2; When the maximum diameter of the upper surface of the hole of the plate is c and the maximum diameter of the lower surface of the hole of the holding plate is d, the hole preferably satisfies c: d = 1: 1-3. Further, as the pressing plate, when the thickness of the sealed package is T and the thickness of the pressing plate is t, t = 0.
It is preferable to set it to be 0.5 to 1T.

[0008] Then, a translucent or opaque thin sheet is attached to the center hole of the holding plate. This makes it possible to make the emissivity of infrared rays on the surface of the sealed package uniform, even if characters or patterns are printed on the surface of the sealed package. At the downstream end of the first conveyor 101, a second conveyor 201 for transporting non-defective air-sealed packages to the next process such as a sterilization process,
A third conveyor 301 for transporting defective air-tightly sealed packages is connected to the first conveyor 101, the second conveyor 201, and the third conveyor 301.
A swinging member 2 for selecting an air-tightly sealed package according to whether or not it has a predetermined air content is disposed in the vicinity of a portion where the air-tight sealed package is connected. By switching the swing member 2, the first conveyor 101 is moved to the second conveyor 201.
Alternatively, it is selectively communicated with the second conveyor 301 to determine whether or not the air-containing sealed package has a predetermined air content, that is, a good product and a defective product. A cool air supply device 103 for cooling the air-sealed hermetically sealed package is provided in the middle of the conveyor path of the conveyor 101. Thus, the portion of the surface of the air-sealed package that comes into contact with the gas in the air-sealed package (hereinafter referred to as the portion that comes into contact with the gas on the surface of the air-sealed package) and the surface of the air-sealed package that are air-sealed By utilizing the difference in heat capacity between the content in the package, that is, the portion in contact with the filling (hereinafter referred to as the portion in contact with the filling on the surface of the air-tightly sealed package), both temperatures can be clearly distinguished. In the adoption of the above cooling means, curry immediately after the filling is cooked,
This is particularly effective when the temperature is high such as stew. In addition, as the cooling means, instead of the cold air supply device, a cold water supply device in which cold water is sprinkled in the form of a shower or a spray into an air-containing sealed package, or a cold water tank or the like in which the air-containing sealed package is immersed in cold water. Can also be adopted.

In addition, a heating means may be employed in place of the cooling means. The use of a heating means is particularly effective when the filling is of a low temperature. As the heating means, a hot air supply device for blowing hot air onto the air-containing sealed package,
There is a hot water supply device in which hot water is sprinkled into the air-containing sealed package in a shower or spray form, or a hot water tank in which the air-containing sealed package is immersed in hot water. In the vicinity of the cold air supply device 103 in the middle of the conveyance path of the first conveyor 101,
A detector 211 for detecting the temperature of the surface of the air-tightly sealed package A by infrared rays emitted from the air-tightly sealed package A on the first conveyor 101 is arranged. The detector 211 is
A circuit 20 for converting the obtained temperature information into thermal image data, a storage unit 30 for storing the thermal image data, a detecting means 40 for detecting the area of a portion within a predetermined temperature range based on the thermal image data, and a detecting means 40 A determination circuit 50 for determining whether or not the obtained area is within a predetermined range, and a control unit 60 for controlling the selection means (oscillating member 2) based on the determination result obtained by the determination circuit 50 are sequentially connected. ing. Detector 211
May detect the temperature distribution image of the entire surface of the air-sealed package A, or may detect the temperature of one or more points on the surface of the air-sealed package A. You may.

Next, an apparatus 1 for detecting a defective product of an air-tightly sealed package.
The operation of will be described. The apparatus 1 for detecting a defective product of the air-tightly sealed package having the above-described configuration includes first the first conveyor 101.
Continuously transports the air-containing sealed package A. When the air-containing sealed package A reaches the position of the cold air supply device 103, the air-containing sealed package A is cooled by the cold air supply device 103. As a result, as shown in FIG. 2, the temperature difference between the portion B of the surface of the air-sealed sealed package that contacts the gas l and the portion C of the surface of the air-sealed sealed package that contacts the filling m can be clarified. Examples of the condition of the cold air include −30 to 30 ° C. Simultaneously with or immediately after the cooling process, the detector 2
11 detects the temperature of the surface of the air-tightly sealed package A by infrared rays radiated from the air-tightly sealed package A on the first conveyor 101. The obtained temperature information is converted to thermal image data by the thermal image data conversion circuit 20 and stored in the storage unit 30. Subsequently, based on the thermal image data, the detection means 40 detects the area of a portion of the surface of the air-sealed sealed package in a predetermined temperature range, that is, a portion B of the surface of the air-sealed sealed package that is in contact with the gas ( In addition, the above-mentioned predetermined temperature range is, specifically, when the temperature of the filler is 70 ° C., 30 to
50 ° C.). Next, the determination circuit 50 determines whether the area is within a predetermined range.

In the air-tightly sealed package, the area of the surface of the air-tightly sealed package that comes into contact with the gas has a correlation with the volume of the gas in the air-tightly sealed package, that is, the air content. Therefore, by determining whether the area of the portion of the surface of the gas-tight sealed package that contacts the gas is within a predetermined range, whether the volume of gas in the gas-tight sealed package is within an appropriate range is determined. Can be easily determined. The specific relationship between the area of the portion of the surface of the gas-sealed sealed package that contacts the gas and the volume of the gas in the gas-sealed sealed package is determined in advance in the gas-sealed sealed package. It can be easily known by changing only the volume of the gas in various ways and examining how the area of the portion of the surface of the air-containing sealed package in contact with the gas changes. In the above determination, when the area is in the predetermined range, the air-tightly sealed package A is determined to be a non-defective product having the gas content of the predetermined range, while the area is not in the predetermined range. In such a case, it is determined that the air-impregnated hermetically sealed package is a defective product having too much or too little air content. Based on the determination result of the determination circuit 50, the control circuit 60
Controls the swinging member 2 between the time when the temperature of the surface of the air-tightly sealed package A is detected by the detector 211 and the time when the air-tightly sealed package A reaches the end of the first conveyor 101. . The swinging member 2 selectively communicates the first conveyor 101 with the second conveyor 201 or the third conveyor 301 based on the control signal. As a result, a good product of the air-sealed package A is sent to the second conveyor 201, and a defective product of the air-sealed package A is sent to the third conveyor 301.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the detector may be located downstream of the cool air supply device. Further, as another embodiment of the present invention, instead of the determination circuit for determining whether or not the area obtained by the detection means is within a predetermined range, the area obtained by the detection means in the air-containing sealed package is used. And a determination circuit for determining whether or not the volume of gas in the gas-containing sealed package obtained by the calculation circuit is within a predetermined range. As yet another embodiment of the present invention, when there is a large temperature difference between the packing and the room temperature, the above-mentioned cooling means and heating means are not provided. In this case as well, after a certain period of time has elapsed after the filling of the contents, a temperature difference between the portion of the surface of the air-containing sealed package that comes into contact with the gas and the contents, that is, the portion that comes into contact with the filling, appears, and the detector detects the air content. The rate can be measured.

[0013]

According to the present invention, it is determined that characters or patterns are printed on the surface of the inspection object only by bringing the translucent or opaque thin sheet into close contact with the surface of the inspection object. Regardless, the distribution of the surface temperature of the inspection object can be accurately measured. Therefore, for example, in a hermetically sealed package containing a fluid such as a liquid and the like and a gas having different specific gravities, such as water and oil, and separated by standing,
This is effective when the content of the fluid having a low specific gravity is to be verified by measuring the distribution of the surface temperature of the hermetically sealed package using the radiated electromagnetic waves. Also, by pressing the hermetically sealed package with a presser plate having a hole in the center in the measurement, the measurement can be performed more accurately.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration explanatory view of a measuring device for an air-containing hermetically sealed package according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the air-tightly sealed package.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a holding plate.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List A Air-sealed sealed package 1 Defective product detection device for air-sealed sealed package 2 Oscillating member 20 Circuit for converting temperature information into thermal image data 30 Storage unit for storing thermal image data 40 Detecting means 50 Judgment circuit 60 Control circuit 101 First Conveyor 103 Cold Air Supply Device 201 Second Conveyor 211 Detector 301 Third Conveyor

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A method for measuring the surface temperature distribution of an object to be inspected by radiating electromagnetic waves to measure the surface temperature of the object to be inspected, wherein the surface of the sealed package is pressed by a holding plate having a hole in the center. A method for measuring the surface temperature of an object to be inspected, wherein a translucent or opaque thin sheet is adhered to the surface of the object to be inspected. 2. The method for measuring the surface temperature of an inspection object according to claim 1, wherein the inspection object is a sealed package wrapped by a flexible package. 3. The method for measuring the surface temperature of an object to be inspected according to claim 1, wherein a translucent or opaque thin sheet is stretched in a hole portion of the holding plate having a hole in the center.