JP3974015B2 - Item inspection system - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an article inspection system that inspects on a transport line and sorts defective products, such as a foreign matter detector using X-rays, a metal detector using a magnetic field, and a weight sorter using a scale.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, in an article inspection system including an inspection apparatus that inspects inspected objects sequentially conveyed on a conveyance line and a sorting apparatus at a subsequent stage, an exclusion signal that the inspection apparatus determines to be NG and is output An article inspection system for determining whether or not an object to be inspected as NG has been eliminated on a sorting apparatus that excludes an object to be inspected as NG from the transport line, and confirming a sorting operation. is there.
Prior art document information related to the invention of this application includes the following.
[0003]
[Patent Document 1]
Patent publication (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-322634)
[0004]
In the weight sorting apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 6 described in Patent Document 1 above, the weight of the inspection object W carried onto the weighing conveyor 121 is calculated by the weight calculation means 123 based on the weighing signal from the weighing instrument 122. The weight determination means 126 determines whether the weight is a positive amount. Upon receiving the determination result indicating excess or deficiency, the sorting drive unit 127 holds one of the sorting machines (flipper gates) 103a and 103b in a closed state until receiving the determination result of the next article. It is determined whether or not an excess / deficiency determination product passes between the light emitters / receivers 105a and 105b according to the determination result after receiving the determination result indicating excess / deficiency until the determination result of the next article is received. To confirm the sorting operation. In FIG. 6, reference numerals 124 and 125 denote projectors / receivers provided on the carry-in side, and 130 denotes timing calculation means.
[0005]
In this weight sorting apparatus 100, the inspection object W determined to be NG passing through the exclusion path is detected by sensors (projectors / receivers 105a and 105b) provided in the defective product side passage of the sorter 103b. It was determined whether or not the inspection object W correctly passed between the light projecting and receiving devices 105a and 105b in a predetermined period, and the selection operation of the inspection object W determined as NG was confirmed.
[0006]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the weight sorting apparatus started in the above-mentioned Patent Publication, the sensor provided in the defective product side passage of the sorting apparatus determines whether or not it has passed correctly in a predetermined period, and confirms the sorting operation. For example, when a shielding curtain that shields X-ray leakage is present on the conveyance path of the inspection object, such as an X-ray inspection apparatus, the inspection object is caught by the shielding curtain, and the conveyance time is delayed. The inspection object may not pass within a predetermined period.
[0007]
Also, in an inspection system in which the conveyor of the inspection device and the conveyor of the sorter are configured separately, and the inspection object needs to transfer the inspection object from the conveyor to the conveyor, the inspection apparatus may tilt or jump when the conveyor is connected. If the sorting operation is performed in a state where the sorting operation is performed, the sensor for confirming the sorting may not be able to detect the inspection object even though the sorting operation is correctly performed, and an erroneous determination is made in the confirmation of the sorting operation. There was a thing.
[0008]
Furthermore, there is a method in which the NG product is blown away in the exclusion direction by air injection, but the NG product jumps over the optical path of the sensor, and there are cases where it cannot be detected.
[0009]
The present invention has been made in view of the above situation, and an object of the present invention is to provide an article inspection system capable of surely confirming a sorting operation even when there is a delay in transporting an object to be inspected.
[0010]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
Next, means for solving the above problems will be described with reference to the drawings corresponding to the embodiments.
In the article inspection system 1 according to claim 1 of the present invention, the inspection apparatus 3 that inspects the inspected object W that is sequentially conveyed on the conveyance line 2, and the determination result of the inspection apparatus 3 is determined to be NG. In the article inspection system 1 including the sorting device 4 that removes the inspection object W determined to be NG from the transport line 2 based on the exclusion signal output to the sorting signal, the sorting device sorts according to the judgment result. The image pickup means 5 for picking up an area including the transport side area 7a and the exclusion side area 7b at the timing when the operation is finished, and the coverage of the transfer side area 7a and the exclusion side area 7b imaged by the image pickup means 5 And image processing means 6 for determining that the sorting operation has been uncertainly performed based on the presence / absence state of the inspection object W and the presence / absence state of the exclusion signal .
[0011]
In the article inspection system 1, the sorting operation is confirmed by the imaging means 5, and it becomes possible to simultaneously image the defective product side passage and the non-defective product side passage, so that the sorting operation can be confirmed reliably. Since the image processing means 6 for judging that the sorting operation in the monitoring image captured by the imaging means 5 has been performed uncertainly is provided, when the sorting operation is defective, the uncertainty of the sorting operation can be determined from the monitoring image. As a result, an alarm can be output.
Further, in the article inspection system 1, image processing for determining that the selection operation in the monitoring image captured by the imaging unit 5 has been performed uncertainly is carried in the presence / absence state of the exclusion signal and the timing of exclusion. Since the determination is made based on the presence / absence state of the inspection object W in the side area 7a and the exclusion side area 7b, it is possible to confirm the sorting operation more reliably.
[0012]
The article inspection system 1 according to a second aspect is the article inspection system 1 according to the first aspect, wherein the image processing means 6 includes the inspection object W in both the transport side area 7a and the exclusion side area 7b. Abnormal when there is no inspection signal, when there is the inspection object W in the exclusion side area 7b without the exclusion signal, and when there is no inspection object W in the exclusion side area 7b with the exclusion signal It is characterized by judging.
[0013]
The article inspection system 1 according to a third aspect is the article inspection system 1 according to the first aspect, wherein the image processing means 6 includes the inspection object W in both the transport side area 7a and the exclusion side area 7b. When there is no inspection signal, when there is no inspection object W in the conveyance side area 7a without the rejection signal, and when there is the inspection object W in the conveyance side area 7a with the exclusion signal It is characterized by judging.
[0014]
The article inspection system 1 according to a fourth aspect is the article inspection system 1 according to the first aspect, further comprising a recording unit 9 that records the monitoring image captured by the imaging unit 5 as needed.
[0015]
Since the article inspection system 1 includes the recording unit 9 that records the monitoring image captured by the imaging unit 5 as needed, it is possible to confirm the state of the sorting operation again after the manufacture is finished, and the sorting operation becomes defective. It becomes possible to investigate the cause.
[0016]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of an article inspection system according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
1 is a side view showing a configuration of an embodiment of an article inspection system according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view of the article inspection system shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is an image process of the article inspection system shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is an operation explanatory diagram showing an example of image processing in (a) and (b), and FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an article inspection procedure.
[0017]
The article inspection system 1 according to this embodiment has, as its basic configuration, a conveyance line 2 similar to the conventional one, an inspection apparatus 3 that inspects an inspection object W that is sequentially conveyed on the conveyance line 2, and this inspection. The apparatus 3 includes a sorting device 4 that excludes the inspection object W determined as NG from the transport line 2 based on the exclusion signal that is determined to be NG and is output. In addition, the inspection object W is excluded. An image pickup means (video device) 5 for monitoring timing and an image processing means 6 for judging that the selection operation has been performed uncertainly from the monitoring image picked up by the image pickup means 5 are provided. .
[0018]
The conveyance line 2 can be a belt conveyor or the like that includes a driving roller at least one of both ends, a plurality of support rollers arranged in parallel between them, and an endless belt is stretched between these rollers to form a peripheral circuit. 1 and FIG. 2, a transport path 2a that moves to the right is formed on the upper surface, and the inspection object W placed on the transport path 2a is transported to the sorting device 4 disposed downstream in the transport direction. It can be supplied.
[0019]
Examples of the inspection device 3 include a foreign matter detector using X-rays (X-ray inspection device), a metal detector using a magnetic field, and a weight sorter using a scale. In the present embodiment, a case where the inspection apparatus 3 is an X-ray inspection apparatus will be described as an example. The X-ray inspection apparatus performs internal fluoroscopy without destroying the inspection object W, and can detect the presence or absence of a foreign matter (a specific detection target or the like) contained therein.
[0020]
For example, the sorting device 4 may be an air sprayer or a flipper gate. In the present embodiment, a case where the sorting device 4 is a device that drives the flipper gate 4a will be described as an example. The sorting apparatus 4 drives the flipper gate 4a to remove the inspected object W from which foreign matter has been detected to the side of the sorting apparatus 4 (downward in FIG. 2), and the inspected object W from which no foreign matter has been detected. Are carried out to a subsequent line (not shown) (right side in FIG. 2).
[0021]
The imaging means 5 has an imaging range 7 shown in FIG. The imaging range 7 includes a conveyance-side area 7a downstream from the flipper gate 4a shown in FIG. 4 and an exclusion-side area 7b that is an exclusion direction of the flipper gate 4a. As this imaging means 5, a CCD camera can be suitably used. Image data obtained by the imaging means 5 is input to the image processing means 6.
[0022]
As the image processing means 6, for example, a microcomputer can be suitably used. The image processing means 6 inputs the image data sent from the image pickup means 5 and executes various arithmetic processes on this image data to determine whether or not the sorting operation has been performed reliably. That is, the image processing means 6 has performed the sorting operation uncertainly depending on the presence / absence of the inspection object W in the transport side area 7a and the exclusion side area 7b at the timing when the inspection object W is excluded by the selection device 4. Judge that.
[0023]
The presence / absence of the inspection object W at this time is an image such as a change in the area, dispersion, or difference image of the conveyance-side area 7a and the exclusion-side area 7b set in advance in the image at the timing when the inspection object W is excluded. Judgment is made using a processing technique.
[0024]
Here, in the image processing method based on the area, the inspection object W is binarized and extracted based on the density difference from the back surface (belt conveyance surface), and the number of pixels is obtained to determine the presence or absence. Further, the image processing method based on the dispersion has a low density dispersion value only on the back surface (belt conveyance surface), and the density dispersion value becomes high when the inspection object W exists, so the presence / absence is determined based on the difference between these values. The image processing method based on the difference image does not change the difference image between the back surfaces (belt conveyance surface), but uses the fact that the difference image between the back surface (belt conveyance surface) and the inspection object W is large. The presence or absence of the inspection object W is determined.
[0025]
Further, the article inspection system 1 may include a recording unit (image recording apparatus) 9 for recording the monitoring image captured by the imaging unit 5 at any time in the imaging unit 5 or the image processing unit 6. The article inspection system 1 includes the recording unit 9 as described above, so that it is possible to confirm the state of the sorting operation again after the end of manufacture or after the end of the article inspection. As a result, the cause of the defective sorting operation can be investigated.
[0026]
Furthermore, it is preferable that the article inspection system 1 is connected to the image processing unit 6 with a determination unit 10 for alarm output. The determination unit 10 determines whether or not an output to the alarm is necessary from the determination result input from the image processing unit 6 and outputs an alarm as necessary.
[0027]
Next, operation | movement of the article inspection system 1 comprised in this way is demonstrated with reference to FIG.
The article inspection system 1 sorts the inspected object W that has been inspected by the inspection apparatus 3 by driving and controlling the flipper gate 4a of the sorting apparatus 4 provided at the subsequent stage of the transport line 2. The inspection apparatus 3 inspects the inspection object W carried into the conveyance line 2 and outputs an exclusion signal or a conveyance signal of the inspection object W to the image processing means 6 from the inspection result.
[0028]
The inspection apparatus 3 detects that the inspection object W has started to be carried into the transport line 2, and after a predetermined time has elapsed, that is, after the inspection object W has reached a position where X-ray irradiation is received, During the period of X-ray irradiation, the presence / absence of foreign matter in the inspection object W is determined (ST1 in FIG. 5), and based on the determination result, an exclusion signal or a conveyance signal is output to the sorting device 4 and the image processing means 6. (ST2).
[0029]
Upon receiving the determination result from the inspection device 3, the sorting device 4 drives the flipper gate 4a based on the determination result (ST3). That is, for the determination result of “no foreign matter”, as shown in FIG. 4A, the flipper gate 4a does not enter the conveyance path of the inspection object W and is parallel to the side wall of the sorting device 4. The standby state is maintained. As a result, the inspection object W is transported to the transport side area 7a (ST4). On the other hand, with respect to the determination result of “existing foreign matter”, as shown in FIG. 4B, the flipper gate 4a advances to the conveyance path of the inspection object W and excludes the inspection object W to the exclusion side region 7b. (ST5).
[0030]
The image processing unit 6 determines based on the image data from the imaging unit 5 whether or not the sorting selection according to the determination result of the inspection device 3 has been performed reliably. That is, when a determination signal is sent from the inspection device 3 to the sorting device 4 and the image processing means 6, the sorting device 4 first deactivates the flipper gate 4a after a predetermined time after the inspection object W reaches the sorting position. Or make it work.
[0031]
As a result, when the determination signal is “no foreign matter” (no exclusion signal), the flipper gate 4a is deactivated, and the inspection object W is transported to the transport side region 7a. On the other hand, when the determination signal is “existence of foreign matter” (exclusion signal exists), the flipper gate 4a is in an operating state, and the inspection object W is transported to the exclusion side region 7b.
[0032]
Therefore, the sorting device 4 ends the sorting operation after a predetermined time from the time when the determination signal is sent from the inspection device 3, and distributes the inspection object W to either the transport side region 7a or the exclusion side region 7b. The image processing means 6 time-counts this sorting operation end time from the time when the determination signal is sent from the inspection device 3, and performs image processing on the image data sent from the imaging means 5 at that time (ST6). That is, the image processing means 6 determines that the sorting operation has been performed uncertainly depending on the presence / absence of the inspection object W in the transport side area 7a and the exclusion side area 7b at the timing of exclusion. Presence / absence of the object W to be inspected by the image processing means 6 is performed by using the image processing technique such as dispersion described above.
[0033]
This determination is performed as follows, for example. First, in ST7, after a predetermined time is counted from when the determination signal is sent from the inspection apparatus 3, it is determined whether or not there are inspection objects in both the transport side area 7a and the exclusion side area 7b. If there is no object to be inspected in both the regions 7a and 7b (in the case of “None” in ST7), it is determined that there is an abnormality (ST12).
When there is no object to be inspected W (ST9) in the state where there is no rejection signal (in the case of “None” in ST8) (ST9), it is determined that there is an abnormality (ST10), and there is a state where there is an exclusion signal (in ST8) If there is no inspection object W in the exclusion-side area 7b (in the case of “Yes”) (ST11), it is determined that there is an abnormality (ST12). In addition, in this determination, if there is no inspection object W in the transport side area 7a in the absence of the rejection signal, it is determined as abnormal, and the inspection target W is present in the transport side area 7a in the state of the exclusion signal. If there is, it may be determined to be abnormal.
[0034]
When such an abnormality is determined by the image processing means 6 and the determination signal is input to the determination means 10, the determination means 10 outputs an alarm.
[0035]
As described above, according to the article inspection system 1 described above, the sorting operation is confirmed by the imaging unit 5, and the defective product side passage (exclusion side region 7b) and the non-defective product side passage (conveyance side region 7a) can be imaged simultaneously. This makes it possible to confirm the sorting operation with certainty. Since the image processing means 6 for judging that the sorting operation in the monitoring image captured by the imaging means 5 has been performed uncertainly is provided, when the sorting operation is defective, the uncertainty of the sorting operation can be determined from the monitoring image. As a result, an alarm can be output.
[0036]
In addition, the presence or absence of the inspection object W in the transport side region 7a and the exclusion side region 7b at the timing when the image processing for determining that the selection operation in the monitoring image captured by the imaging unit 5 has been performed uncertainly is excluded. Since the state is judged on the plane, it is possible to confirm the sorting operation more reliably.
[0037]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the article inspection system according to claims 1 to 3 of the present invention, since the sorting operation is confirmed by the imaging means, it is possible to simultaneously image the defective product side passage and the non-defective product side passage. Thus, the sorting operation can be confirmed with certainty. In addition, since the image processing means for determining that the sorting operation in the monitoring image captured by the imaging means has been performed uncertainly, when the sorting operation is defective, the uncertainty of the sorting operation can be determined from the monitoring image. Can output an alarm.
Furthermore, in this article inspection system 1, the image processing for determining that the selection operation in the monitoring image captured by the imaging unit has been performed uncertainly is performed on the conveyance side in the presence / absence state of the exclusion signal and the timing of exclusion. Since the determination is made based on the presence / absence state of the inspection object in the region and the exclusion side region, it is possible to further confirm the sorting operation.
[0038]
According to the article inspection system of the fourth aspect, since the recording means for recording the monitoring image captured by the imaging means as needed is provided, the state of the sorting operation can be confirmed again after the completion of the production. The cause of the failure can be investigated.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a side view showing a configuration of an embodiment of an article inspection system according to the present invention.
2 is a plan view of the article inspection system shown in FIG. 1. FIG.
3 is a block diagram of an image processing unit of the article inspection system shown in FIG. 1. FIG.
FIG. 4 is an operation explanatory diagram illustrating an example of image processing in (a) and (b).
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an article inspection procedure.
FIG. 6 is a configuration diagram of a weight selection device for explaining a conventional technique.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Article inspection system 2 ... Conveyance line 3 ... Inspection apparatus 4 ... Sorting device 5 ... Imaging means 6 ... Image processing means 7a ... Conveyance side area 7b ... Exclusion side area 9 ... Recording means W ... Inspection object

Claims (4)

An inspection device (3) for inspecting the inspection object (W) sequentially conveyed on the conveyance line (2), and an exclusion signal output when the determination result of the inspection device (3) is determined to be NG In the article inspection system (1) including the sorting device (4) that excludes the inspection object (W) determined to be NG from the transfer line (2),
An imaging means (5) for imaging a region including the transport side region (7a) and the exclusion side region (7b) at a timing when the sorting operation of the sorting device according to the determination result ends ;
The sorting operation is uncertain depending on the presence / absence state of the inspection object (W) and the presence / absence state of the exclusion signal in the transport side area (7a) and exclusion side area (7b) imaged by the imaging means (5). Image processing means (6) for determining what has been done;
An article inspection system (1) comprising: In the article inspection system (1) according to claim 1,
The image processing means (6)
When there is no inspection object (W) in any of the transport side area (7a) and the exclusion side area (7b),
When there is the inspection object (W) in the exclusion side area (7b) without the exclusion signal, and when there is no inspection object (W) in the exclusion side area (7b) with the exclusion signal An article inspection system (1) characterized in that an abnormality is determined in some cases. In the article inspection system (1) according to claim 1,
The image processing means (6)
When there is no inspection object (W) in any of the transport side area (7a) and the exclusion side area (7b),
When there is no inspection object (W) in the transport side area (7a) without the rejection signal, and when there is the inspection object (W) in the transport side area (7a) with the rejection signal. An article inspection system (1) characterized in that an abnormality is determined in some cases. In the article inspection system (1) according to claim 1,
An article inspection system (1) comprising recording means (9) for recording a monitoring image picked up by the image pickup means (5) as needed.

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