JP6869054B2 - Liquid level detection device, liquid level detection method, and filling machine - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an apparatus for detecting the liquid level of a product liquid filled in a container, and more particularly to an apparatus suitable for detecting the liquid level of a product liquid in a container conveyed by a rotating body.

By detecting the liquid level of the container filled with the product liquid and controlling the filling amount of the product liquid, the container can be filled with an appropriate amount of the product liquid. The level of the final filled product liquid is sometimes referred to as the filling line.
To detect the liquid level, Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 propose to detect infrared radiated energy. Further, for example, Patent Documents 3 and 4 propose a liquid level inspection device including a lighting device and a television camera, and Patent Document 5 proposes a liquid level inspection device including a light emitter and a light receiver. There is.

The filling machine that fills the container with the product liquid is a type that fills the product liquid while transporting the container along a linear transport path, and a filling machine that fills the product liquid while transporting the container along the arc-shaped transport path. There is a type to do.
Patent Document 3 and Patent Document 4 relate to the former beverage filling machine.
Further, Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 relate to the latter, that is, a rotary beverage filling machine. This beverage filling machine is also provided in the rotating body and is provided from the filling nozzle corresponding to each of the containers while transporting the container held by each of the plurality of grippers provided in the rotating body rotating at high speed around the axis. Since the product liquid is filled in the container, there are advantages that the production efficiency is high and the occupied area of the filling machine is small.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2006-240658 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2006-240569 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2001-221746 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2001-221747 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2013-75711

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a liquid level level detecting device for detecting a liquid level with high accuracy and easy maintenance in a rotary beverage filling machine.

The present invention is an apparatus for detecting the liquid level of a product liquid filled in a plurality of containers transported along an arcuate transport path, and takes an image of the container including the liquid level from the outside of the container. It includes a unit and a control unit that identifies the liquid level from the image.
The photographing unit in the present invention is provided at a single or a plurality of outer fixed points outside the transport path, and is provided with a camera for photographing the container transported along the transport path from the front and a camera provided inside the transport path and is provided on the back surface of the container. It is characterized by comprising an irradiating body that irradiates the illumination light toward the surface.

It is preferable that the camera in the photographing unit of the present invention captures a specific field of view for each of the plurality of containers to be conveyed.

The irradiator in the present invention includes at least two forms.
The first is a form in which the irradiator is composed of a reflector. In this form, the illumination light radiated to the back surface of the container is reflected from the light source provided outside the transport path toward the inside of the transport path by the reflector which is an irradiator.
The second is a form in which the irradiating body is composed of a light guide body. In this form, the illumination light emitted from the back surface of the container and the illumination light emitted from the light source provided adjacent to the light guide body are emitted from the surface of the light guide body through the light guide body.

When a reflector is used as the irradiating body, the light source in the photographing unit of the present invention can irradiate the illuminating light from between adjacent containers toward the inside of the transport path.
Further, the light source in the photographing unit of the present invention can irradiate white light or near-infrared light. In this light source, the irradiator is effective for both a reflector and a light guide.
The reflector in the photographing unit of the present invention preferably has a white surface that reflects illumination light.

The irradiator in the photographing unit of the present invention can be provided at one or more inner fixed points inside the transport path corresponding to the camera.

The present invention provides a method for detecting the liquid level of a product liquid filled in a plurality of containers transported along an arcuate transport path. This detection method includes a photographing step of taking an image of the container including the liquid level from the outside of the container, and a level specifying step of specifying the liquid level from the image.
In the imaging step of the present invention, the container transported through the transport path is viewed from the front from one or more outer fixed points outside the transport path while irradiating illumination light from the inside of the transport path toward the back surface of the container. It is characterized by taking an image.

The present invention provides a filling machine provided with the liquid level detection device described above. This filling machine includes a rotating body in which a plurality of containers convey an arc-shaped transport path and includes a filling valve corresponding to each of the plurality of containers, and one of the above-mentioned liquid level level detecting devices.

According to the liquid level detection device of the present invention, since the illumination is emitted from the back surface of the container, the liquid level can be detected with high accuracy. Moreover, according to the liquid level detection device of the present invention, a camera for photographing the container is provided outside the transport path, and maintenance can be facilitated without worrying about the presence of equipment such as a rotating body.

It is a top view which shows the schematic structure of the rotary beverage filling machine which concerns on embodiment of this invention. A schematic configuration of a photographing unit provided in the beverage filling machine of FIG. 1 is shown, where FIG. 1A is a plan view and FIG. 1B is a side view. It is a side view which shows the state which the container is held in the beverage filling machine of FIG. It is a diagram which shows the control pattern of the flow rate of the product liquid in the beverage filling machine of FIG. It is a figure which shows the switching position of the flow rate in the beverage filling machine of FIG. 1 on a container. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the height from the container mouth and the volume of a container. It is a figure which shows the modification of this embodiment, and shows the liquid level level detection apparatus which includes a light guide body as an irradiation body.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
The present embodiment relates to the rotary beverage filling machine 1 provided with the liquid level level detecting device 30, and proposes the liquid level level detecting device 30 which can detect the liquid level with high accuracy and is easy to maintain.
Hereinafter, the configuration and operation of the beverage filling machine 1 will be described, and then the effects of the beverage filling machine 1 will be described.

[Overall configuration of beverage filling machine 1]
As shown in FIG. 1, the beverage filling machine 1 receives a container 100 continuously conveyed by a conveyor (not shown) from a carry-in star wheel 7 as a rotating body. In the beverage filling machine 1, a plurality of filling valves 10 (see FIG. 3) are arranged around the filler body 5, and the container 100 delivered from the carry-in star wheel 7 extends from the container supply point IN to the container discharge point EX. Beverages are filled in a series of procedures while moving along the arcuate transport path R. The container 100 for which the beverage filling has been completed is delivered to the carry-out star wheel 8 and then transported for the next step of attaching a cap or the like.
Note that FIG. 1 shows the containers 100 thinned out.

As shown in FIG. 1, the beverage filling machine 1 operates the filler body 5, the filling valve 10 shown in FIG. 3, the liquid level detection device 30, the filler body 5, the liquid level detection device 30, and the like. It includes a control unit 50 for controlling.
The filler body 5 includes a transport star wheel 6 that is rotationally driven by a drive source, and a plurality of holders that are provided on the outer periphery of the transport star wheel 6 and hold the container 100. The illustration of the holder is omitted. The filler body 5 is provided with a filling valve 10 corresponding to each of the plurality of holders.

The filler body 5 receives the container 100 continuously carried in from the carry-in star wheel 7 at the container supply point IN, and transports the received container 100 from the transport star wheel 6 to the container discharge point EX. The filler body 5 is filled with the product liquid from the filling valve 10 provided corresponding to each container 100 in the process of transporting the container 100 from the container supply point IN to the container discharge point EX.
The product liquid applied to this embodiment is not limited, and beer containing carbonic acid, beverages such as cola, tea containing no carbonic acid, beverages such as mineral water, and the like can be used. In addition, a beverage product containing a solid substance can also be used as the product liquid of the present embodiment.

The container 100 targeted by the present embodiment is assumed to be transparent because it is necessary to be able to photograph the liquid level of the product liquid filled inside from the outside. Examples of the material of the container 100 corresponding to this include glass and resin. The shape of the container 100 to be applied is arbitrary, and the container 100 can be a bottle with a narrow mouth, a jar with a wide mouth, a jug with a handle, or the like.

[Filling valve 10]
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the beverage filling machine 1 includes a transport star wheel 6 that is rotationally driven in one direction by a drive motor (not shown). The transport star wheel 6 is provided with a large number of filling valves 10 along the circumferential direction on the outer periphery thereof. Each filling valve 10 fills the volume portion inside the container 100 with the product liquid while holding the container 100.

The filling valve 10 is supplied with the product liquid from the liquid tank 9 arranged above the transport star wheel 6 via the liquid supply path P1. The operation of each filling valve 10 is controlled by the control unit 50, and the supply start / stop of the product liquid and the flow rate adjustment are performed. The liquid supply passage P1 is composed of pipes, joints, and the like. The same applies to the ventilation path P2 described later.

The liquid tank 9 includes a liquid phase region 9A and a gas phase region 9B in which the product liquid to be supplied to the container 100 via the filling valve 10 is stored. The gas phase region 9B is, for example, a counter gas supplied to the container 100 via the filling valve 10 in a counter step when filling a beer beverage, for example, carbon dioxide (CO ₂ ) gas, nitrogen (N ₂ ) gas, air, or the like. Stores gas selected from

A ventilation path P2 is provided between the gas phase region 9B and the filling valve 10.
The ventilation path P2 supplies carbon dioxide from the gas phase region 9B toward the volume portion of the container 100 during, for example, a counter process, and supplies carbon dioxide discharged from the container 100 when supplying the product liquid. It is used to return towards the gas phase region 9B.

In a series of processes of filling a container 100 with a beverage containing carbon dioxide such as beer, a gassing process of removing the air inside the container 100 and replacing the inside of the container 100 with carbon dioxide gas is performed. A counter process is performed to make the inside pressurized with carbon dioxide, and then beer (product liquid) is filled. After filling a required amount of beer, the state is maintained for a predetermined time (hold processing), and further, a snift treatment is performed to discharge the replacement gas remaining in the head space inside the container 100. The beverage filling machine 1 and the filling valve 10 are provided with elements for performing these processes, but are omitted here.

[Liquid level detection device 30]
As shown in FIG. 1, the liquid level detecting device 30 is provided with a photographing unit 31 which is the main body of the liquid level detecting device 30 in a range where the flow rate of the product liquid is small. The control unit 50 is an element of the liquid level detection device 30, and the liquid level detection device 30 is composed of a photographing unit 31 and a control unit 50.

Next, the configuration of the photographing unit 31 will be described with reference to FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, the photographing unit 31 includes a camera 32 that photographs a predetermined field of view of the container 100 including the liquid level, a light source 33 that emits illumination light that illuminates the photographing range, and illumination emitted from the light source 33. A reflector 35 that reflects light L is provided.

The camera 32 photographs the range of the field of view FV1 from the front, one by one, for each of the plurality of containers 100 that are continuously conveyed at high speed. The captured image is sent from the camera 32 to the control unit 50. The camera 32 is arranged at a fixed point (outer fixed point) outside the transport path R to which the container 100 is transported. Although the present embodiment is premised on shooting a still image with the camera 32, it does not exclude shooting a moving image.

As the camera 32, a digital camera driven at a high speed can be applied. Examples of the photographing element constituting the camera 32 include a CCD (charge-coupled device) and a CMOS (complementary metal Oxide semiconductor).
In order to detect the liquid level with high accuracy, it is preferable to select a high-resolution camera 32 having 1 million pixels or more, preferably 2 million pixels or more. Similarly, the camera 32 preferably has a high shooting speed, and a high-speed camera having a shooting speed of 1000 fps (frame per second) or more, and further 3000 fps or more is applied.

As shown in FIG. 5, the field of view FV1 photographed by the camera 32 is a portion of the neck 103 of the container 100. When the container 100 filled with the product liquid is conveyed to the position corresponding to the camera 32 of the photographing unit 31, the product liquid is expected to reach the range of the field of view FV1.

Next, as shown in FIG. 2, the photographing unit 31 is provided outside the transport path R and includes a light source 33 that emits illumination light L toward the inside of the transport path R.
The photographing unit 31 includes two light sources 33 and 33 with the camera 32 interposed therebetween, and the illumination light L emitted by each of the two light sources 33 and 33 is conveyed between the adjacent containers 100 and 100. It reaches the reflector 35 inside the path R. The two light sources 33 and 33 are preferable forms, and the present invention may use only one light source 33.

As the light source 33, a planar light source that emits planar light may be used, or a large number of point-like light sources may be arranged. Further, the illumination light L from the light source 33 may be continuous light or pulsed light.
As the illumination light L emitted by the light source 33, white light or near-infrared light (wavelength of about 700 to 2500 nm) can be used. Since white light is difficult to transmit depending on the color of the product liquid, for example, when the product liquid is black, it is preferable to use near infrared light. Near-infrared light more preferably has a wavelength of 800 to 900 nm.
As a light source that emits illumination light L, in addition to LEDs (light emitting diodes) that consume less power, halogen lamps, semiconductor lasers, fluorescent lamps, incandescent lamps, and HID lamps (High-Intensity Discharge lamps) are used. You can also.

Further, the photographing unit 31 includes a reflector 35 that reflects the illumination light L emitted from the light source 33. The reflector 35 is placed at a fixed point (inner fixed point) inside the transport path R, and directs the illumination light L that has passed between the adjacent containers 100 and 100 toward the container 100 to be photographed by the camera 32. reflect. That is, the container 100 to be photographed is irradiated with the illumination light L reflected on the back side with respect to the camera 32. Light sources 33, 33 provided on both sides of the camera 32 have an optical axis of the camera 32 as shown in FIG. 2 so that the illumination light L reflected from the reflector 35 is collected in the container 100 to be irradiated. It is arranged so as to be tilted with respect to it.

The material constituting the reflector 35 is arbitrary, but it is preferable that the illumination light L is uniformly reflected on the container 100 in order to detect the liquid level h1 with high accuracy.

For that purpose, it is preferable that the reflective surface, which is the surface facing the container 100, is white. For example, the reflective surface of the reflector 35 can be coated with a film of PTFE (Polytetrafluoroethylene), a sheet of PTFE can be attached, or the reflector 35 can be made of a plate-shaped PTFE. Further, the reflector 35 can be constructed from a ceramic material exhibiting white color, for example, an alumina (Al ₂ O _{3) sintered body.} Further, in order to make the reflective surface white, a white paint can be applied to the reflective surface.

The reflector 35 is not limited to a white reflecting surface, and a metal plate, for example, a reflector 35 obtained by polishing the surface of stainless steel to a mirror surface can also be used.

Although the reflector 35 is a flat plate in the present embodiment, it is not limited to a specific shape, and an arc surface in which the reflecting surface is dented inward in order to facilitate collecting the illumination light L in the container 100. It can also be.

[Control unit 50]
The control unit 50 controls the rotation of the transport star wheel 6 constituting the filler body 5 and the opening degree of the filling valve 10. The control of the opening degree of the filling valve 10 corresponds to the control of the filling state of the product liquid in the present invention. In the present embodiment, the filling is stopped by closing the filling valve 10 and the opening degree of the filling valve 10 is controlled. By changing, the filling flow rate of the product liquid is switched. The filling flow rate referred to here is a flow rate per unit time, and the unit corresponds to mL / sec.

As shown in FIG. 5, the control unit 50 receives image information including the liquid level level captured by the camera 32 from the photographing unit 31, analyzes the received image information, and obtains the liquid level h1. The control unit 50 controls the closing time of the filling valve 10 by comparing the specified liquid level h1 with the target final taste line height h0. The control unit 50 holds information regarding the final taste line height h0. The specific control method will be described later.
Here, the final taste line height h0 is a target liquid level at which the container 100 is filled with an appropriate amount of the product liquid. The liquid level is specified by the distance V in the vertical direction from the final taste line height h0 in an upright state in which the container port 101 of the container 100 faces upward.
In FIG. 5, hc indicates the timing at which the filling flow rate of the product liquid is switched from the large flow rate to the small flow rate. Further, in FIG. 5, H indicates a horizontal direction.

The control unit 50 instructs the camera 32 to take a picture of the container 100 passing through the liquid level detection device 30.
The control unit 50 recognizes the position of each container 100 that is transported while being held by the transport star wheel 6. That is, it can be recognized that the container 100 is at the container supply point IN at the time when the container 100 is delivered to the transport star wheel 6 at the container supply point IN. Even after that, the control unit 50 continuously recognizes the position of being transported as the transport star wheel 6 rotates, and when it reaches the container discharge point EX, it can recognize that the container 100 is at the container discharge point EX.

The control unit 50 acquires the image taken by the camera 32 and analyzes the image to obtain the current liquid level h1. This identification is based on the shade of the image, but it is important to note the presence of bubbles that accumulate on the surface of the product liquid and the continuous filling of the product liquid. In other words, when detecting the shading of a captured image, if the shading is detected from above the captured image, it may be affected by bubbles and the product liquid to be filled, and the liquid level may not be detected accurately. .. For example, in the case of a carbonated drink in which bubbles are likely to be generated, the control unit 50 may recognize the upper surface of the bubbles as the liquid level. Therefore, especially in a carbonated soft drink that easily foams, when detecting the shade of an image, the shade is discriminated in order from the bottom of the captured image.

The control unit 50 holds height-volume information which is information in which the distance of the container 100 from the container port 101 and the volume of the head space of the container 100 are associated with each other. An example of height-volume information is shown in FIG. The distance from the container opening 101 is referred to as height in the present application.

The present inventors investigated the relationship between the height from the container opening 101 and the volume occupying this height from the container opening 101 for a large number of containers 100. As a result, it was found that the volume of each container 100 investigated by the present inventors varies, and that the variation is larger as the body portion 105 having a larger diameter of the container 100 and smaller as the neck portion 103 having a smaller diameter. did. For example, the broken line and the alternate long and short dash line in FIG. 6 show variations. Therefore, even if the height-volume information is adopted, it is preferable to use the height-volume information of the portion where the variation in volume is small.

Here, it has been described that the variation in the volume of the neck portion 103 is small as an example, but the portion with a small variation and the portion with a large variation may differ depending on the specifications such as the type and shape of the container 100. Therefore, it is preferable to individually specify the height-volume information for the container 100 to be filled and use the portion having a small variation in the information.

The control unit 50 collates the final taste line height h0 and the liquid level h1 detected by the liquid level level detecting device 30 with the height-volume information, and thereafter stops the filling valve 10 until it is closed. Find ts. This stop time ts is obtained on the premise that the product liquid reaches the final taste line height h0 when filling is continued for the stop time ts at the current filling flow rate of the product liquid. A more specific setting of the stop time ts will be described with reference to FIG.

In FIG. 5, the camera 32 has a visual field FV1 in a region where the filling flow rate of the product liquid is small, and when the liquid level h1 is photographed in this visual field FV1, the control unit 50 sets the liquid level h1 at the present time. It is recognized as the liquid level h1 of. After this, the product liquid may be filled by the volume between the liquid level h1 and the final taste line height h0. It is assumed that the filling flow rate of this small flow rate is constant at Q.

The control unit 50 collates the final taste line height h0 and the current liquid level h1 with the height-volume information to determine the volume V of the product liquid to be filled before reaching the final taste line height h0. Ask. For example, assuming that the final taste line height h0 and the current liquid level h1 are as shown in FIG. 6 and the volumes of the containers corresponding to each are V0 and V1 (mL), the volume V of the product liquid to be filled ( mL) is V1-V0. Since the filling flow rate of the product liquid is Q (mL / sec), the stop time ts (sec) until the volume V is satisfied is calculated by the following formula (1). The control unit 50 closes the filling valve 10 based on the obtained stop time ts.
Stop time ts = (V1-V0) / Q ... Equation (1)

[Operation of beverage filling machine 1]
Next, the filling pattern of the product liquid of the beverage filling machine 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. This filling pattern is an example of a case where a carbonated drink that easily foams during filling is used as the product liquid.
The beverage filling machine 1 fills the container 100 with the product liquid in the order of medium flow rate, large flow rate, and small flow rate. The medium flow rate, the large flow rate, and the small flow rate are executed by adjusting the opening degree of the filling valve 10. The medium flow rate, large flow rate, and small flow rate referred to here are only relative relationships and do not specify a specific flow rate. In FIG. 4, the upper three diagrams show the control of the filling valve 10, and the lower one diagram shows the filling flow rate.

At the beginning of filling, since foaming is likely to occur, filling is performed at a medium flow rate, but when a certain amount of product liquid is filled, foaming is suppressed, so the flow rate is switched to a large flow rate. When the predetermined switching time T1 has elapsed since the start of the medium flow rate filling, the control unit 50 changes the opening degree of the filling valve 10 from the opening degree corresponding to the medium flow rate up to that point to the large flow rate. Switch to opening.
When the switching time T2 has elapsed since the start of the large flow rate filling, the control unit 50 changes the opening degree of the filling valve 10 from the opening degree corresponding to the large flow rate filling up to that point to the opening degree corresponding to the small flow rate filling. Switch.

After switching to the small flow rate filling, the container 100 is conveyed to a position where the camera 32 can take a picture. When the control unit 50 recognizes that the container 100 is transported to the position, the control unit 50 instructs the camera 32 to take a picture of the container 100.

When the container 100 is photographed by the camera 32, the illumination light L emitted from the pair of light sources 33, 33 is reflected by the surface of the reflector 35 and is irradiated to the back surface of the container 100 to be imaged. Therefore, the camera 32 can accurately detect the liquid level inside the container 100.

The image information regarding the captured visual field FV1 is sent from the camera 32 to the control unit 50, and the control unit 50 that receives the image information has the final taste line height h0 and the acquired current liquid level h1 by the above procedure. The stop time ts is obtained by collating with the height-volume information possessed in advance.
The control unit 50 controls the filling valve 10 so as to close the filling valve 10 when the stop time ts has elapsed. For this control, for example, a timer that controls the opening and closing of the filling valve 10 is used, and the timer is set so as to close the filling valve 10 when the stop time ts has elapsed. This completes the filling of the product liquid into one container 100.

[Effect of beverage filling machine 1]
As described above, in the beverage filling machine 1, the illumination light L emitted from the light source 33 is reflected by the surface of the reflector 35 and is irradiated to the camera 32 from the back side of the container 100 to be photographed. Therefore, the camera 32 can accurately detect the liquid level inside the container 100.
Further, in the beverage filling machine 1, the camera 32 and the light sources 33, 33 are provided outside the transport path R among the elements of the photographing unit 31, and the presence of other devices such as the transport star wheel 6 is a concern. Maintenance can be done easily without doing anything. Therefore, according to the beverage filling machine 1, it is possible to shorten the production stop time and shorten the maintenance process.
Further, since the camera 32 and the light sources 33 and 33 are provided outside the transport path R, it is not necessary to assume that the product liquid will reach this region, so that the required level of waterproofness can be low. Therefore, the beverage filling machine 1 has a low cost of the camera 32 and the light sources 33 and 33.

The liquid level detection device 30 of the present embodiment irradiates the illumination light L from between the containers 100 and 100 adjacent to the light sources 33 and 33 toward the inside of the transport path R. Therefore, according to the liquid level detection device 30, the illumination light L can be delivered toward the reflector 35 while the light sources 33 and 33 are outside the transport path R.

Further, the liquid level detection device 30 continuously photographs a specific field of view FV1 for a plurality of containers 100 transported only by one camera 32 provided at a fixed point, and detects each liquid level h1. Then, since the liquid level detection device 30 controls the timing of closing the filling valve 10 corresponding to each container 100 based on the detected liquid level level h1, a camera corresponding to each of a large number of containers 100 is provided. It contributes to the cost reduction of the beverage filling machine 1 as compared with the above.
In particular, since the liquid level detecting device 30 is provided only at the inner fixed point corresponding to the camera 32, the reflector 35 further contributes to the cost reduction of the beverage filling machine 1.

Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the configuration described in the embodiment can be selected or changed as appropriate without departing from the gist of the present invention.

For example, the present embodiment shows an example of the reflector 35 that reflects the received illumination light L toward the back surface of the container 100 as the illuminator of the present invention, but the present invention uses the light guide as the illuminator. be able to. An example thereof is shown in FIG. 7A. In the illumination light L, the illumination light L emitted from the light source 33 provided adjacent to the light guide body 36 passes through the light guide body 36 and is connected to the light guide body 36. The back surface of the container 100 is irradiated from the surface.

FIG. 7A shows an example of a so-called edge light system in which a light source 33 is provided on one side surface of the light guide body 36, but the present invention adopts a direct type system as shown in FIG. 7B. You can also. In the direct type method, as shown in FIG. 7B, the light source 33 is provided inside the light guide body 36, that is, on the back surface. The illumination light L emitted from the light source 33 is repeatedly diffused inside the light guide body 36, and then is emitted from the surface of the light guide body 36 toward the back surface of the container 100.

Further, in the present embodiment, an example is shown in which the filling flow rate of the product liquid can be switched to three stages of medium flow rate, large flow rate and small flow rate, but the filling flow rate of the product liquid in the present invention is arbitrary, for example, two stages or Allows switching in four stages.

Further, although the present embodiment shows an example in which the number of cameras 32 is singular, the present invention allows a plurality of cameras to be provided to detect a plurality of liquid level levels.

1 Beverage filling machine 5 Filler body 6 Transporting star wheel 7 Carrying in star wheel 8 Carrying out star wheel 9 Liquid tank 9A Liquid phase area 9B Gas phase area 10 Filling valve 30 Liquid level detector 31 Photographing unit 32 Camera 33 Light source 35 Reflector 50 Control unit 100 Container FV1 Viewpoint IN Container supply point EX Container discharge point L Illumination light P1 Liquid supply path P2 Ventilation path R Transport path

Claims (10)

A device that detects the liquid level of the product liquid filled in a plurality of containers transported along an arc-shaped transport path.
An imaging unit that captures an image of the container including the liquid level from the outside of the container.
A control unit for specifying the liquid level from the image is provided.
The photographing unit
A camera provided at one or more outer fixed points outside the transport path and photographing the container transported along the transport path from the front.
An irradiator provided inside the transport path and irradiating the back surface of the container with illumination light.
Bei to give a,
The control unit
The liquid level is specified and the liquid level is specified by performing image analysis on the image taken by the photographing unit based on the shading of the image.
The shading of the image, the liquid level detecting apparatus characterized that you determination in order from the lower side of the captured the image. The camera
A specific field of view is photographed for each of the plurality of containers to be transported.
The liquid level detection device according to claim 1. The illumination light emitted to the back surface of the container is
The illumination light emitted from a light source provided outside the transport path toward the inside is reflected by a reflector which is an irradiator.
The liquid level detection device according to claim 1 or 2. The illumination light emitted to the back surface of the container is
The illumination light emitted from a light source provided adjacent to the irradiating body is emitted from the surface of the light guide body through the light guide body which is the irradiating body.
The liquid level detection device according to claim 1 or 2. The light source is
The illumination light is irradiated from between the adjacent containers toward the inside of the transport path.
The liquid level detection device according to claim 3. The light source is
Irradiate with white light or near infrared light,
The liquid level detection device according to claim 3. The reflector is
The surface that reflects the illumination light is white.
The liquid level detection device according to claim 3. The irradiator
A single or a plurality of inner fixed points on the inner side of the transport path are provided corresponding to the camera.
The liquid level detection device according to any one of claims 1 to 7. It is a method of detecting the liquid level of the product liquid filled in a plurality of containers transported along an arc-shaped transport path.
A photographing step of taking an image of the container including the liquid level from the outside of the container, and
A level specifying step for specifying the liquid level from the image is provided.
In the shooting step
While irradiating illumination light from the inside of the transport path toward the back surface of the container, the image of the container transported along the transport path from the front from a single or a plurality of outer fixed points outside the transport path. shooting,
In the level identification step
The liquid level is specified and the liquid level is specified by performing image analysis on the image taken by the photographing unit based on the shading of the image.
A liquid level detection method, characterized in that the shading of the image is discriminated in order from the bottom of the captured image. A rotating body in which a plurality of containers carry an arcuate transport path and a filling valve corresponding to each of the plurality of containers is provided.
The liquid level detecting device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, which detects the liquid level of the product liquid filled in the container.
A filling machine characterized by that.

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