JPH0343583B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (a) Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to a bottle opening inspection device that irradiates the opening of a bottle with a light beam and uses the reflected light to inspect for breakage and the like.

(b) Conventional technology Conventionally, in bottle inspection equipment, a light beam is irradiated from a light source onto the mouth of a bottle, and a one-dimensional scanning camera receives the reflected light and converts it into an electrical signal, and this signal pattern is detected by a one-dimensional scanning camera. The quality of the bottle is determined by comparing the signal pattern of the bottle with the signal pattern of the bottle of good quality.

If the light source used in this inspection device is one that emits light from a single point, such as a light bulb, an image of the light source will be reflected, so a diffuser plate is installed or a long incandescent light is used in the direction of movement of the bottles. .

(c) Problems to be Solved by the Invention However, if a long light source is used, for example, an inspection device that rotates and moves the bottle while capturing images of the entire circumference of the bottle mouth at multiple locations will have problems. However, there is a problem that the reflected images do not match depending on the imaging position. That is, a phenomenon occurs in which the reflected image becomes asymmetrical at the ends of the light source and becomes symmetrical at the center.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4a, an unnecessary reflected image B appears. In other words, although the light emitted from a predetermined portion of the elongated light source produces the desired reflected image A, the light rays emitted from the sides also irradiate the bottle opening a, producing an unnecessary reflected image B. become.

For this reason, even if the bottle is a good bottle, it may not match the preset signal pattern of good bottles and may be determined to be a defective bottle, resulting in a problem of low inspection accuracy.

This invention has been made in view of the above problems, and is a bottle that prevents the occurrence of disturbance light (unnecessary reflected light) that affects inspection accuracy caused by a long light source, and eliminates the cause of inspection errors. The purpose is to provide a mouth inspection device.

(d) Means and operation for solving the problem The bottle opening inspection device of the present invention includes a conveying means on which a plurality of bottles are placed and conveying the bottles along a conveying path, and a conveying means for conveying the bottles along a conveying path. a rotating means for rotating the bottles; a light source for irradiating light onto the mouth of the bottle during rotation; and one-dimensional imaging for receiving reflected light irradiated on the mouth of the bottle at a plurality of locations at predetermined intervals. means, the imaging means converts the reflected light into an electrical signal, and compares this signal pattern with a preset signal pattern of the bottle spout of a non-defective bottle to determine the quality of the bottle. In, the light source is
The light source itself consists of a single light source that is long in the direction of movement of the bottle, and includes a first light source that irradiates the top of the bottle mouth with light from above, and a second light source that irradiates the top side of the bottle mouth with light from the side.
In order to limit the light irradiated to the top surface of the bottle mouth and the upper side surface of the bottle mouth to a predetermined range of a part of the first and second light sources, , a plurality of light shielding plates each consisting of an upper plate part and a side plate part are provided at a predetermined interval in the moving direction between the second light sources in a direction orthogonal to the moving direction, and a plurality of sections are set, and each of these sections is An imaging means is provided in each section, and each reflected light obtained by the light irradiation from the first and second light sources is processed by one imaging means for each section.

In this bottle mouth inspection device, excess light from a long light source above the bottle mouth to the top of the bottle mouth is blocked by the light shielding plate top plate, and excess light from the top side of the bottle mouth is blocked by the light shielding plate side plate. It will be done. This eliminates unnecessary reflected light that causes inspection errors.

(e) Embodiments The present invention will be described in detail below based on embodiments shown in the drawings.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, 1 is an inspection device for beer bottles 2, which irradiates a bottle mouth 2a with a beam of light and detects cracks, stains, etc. by the reflected light. This inspection device 1 includes a conveyance means 4 provided along a conveyance path 3 for beer bottles 2, a rotation means 5, two types of light sources 6a and 6b, a one-dimensional scanning camera 7, and a light shielding plate 8.

The conveying means 4 is a belt conveyor installed at the lower part of the conveying path 3, and consists of an endless belt 4b suspended between a pair of U-shaped support frames 4a, 4a, and a plurality of belts on this endless belt 4b. Beer bottles 2 are placed at regular intervals, and the beer bottles 2 are sequentially transferred along the conveyance path 3.

The rotating means 5 includes a receiving member 5a fixed to one side of the conveyance path 3, and a running member 5b provided on the other side of the conveyance path 3. The receiving member 5a is fixed to a supporting member 5c standing upright on the side of the conveyance path 3 in two stages, upper and lower, and is made of rubber or the like having a predetermined frictional resistance.
The sides of the two sides are in contact with each other. The running member 5b is suspended around a plurality of pulleys 5d that are pivotally supported on the side of the conveyance path 3, is made of a V-belt made of rubber or the like having a predetermined frictional resistance, and is opposed to the receiving member 5a. They are provided in two stages, upper and lower, and the beer bottle 2 is held between them and the receiving member 5a. The pulley 5d is key-fitted to a pin 5f that is rotatably supported on the pedestal 5e, and a driving means (not shown) such as an electric motor is connected to one of the pins 5f via a joint 5g. ing.
The traveling member 5b is driven by this driving means, and the traveling speed is set to be higher than the transporting speed of the transporting means 4, for example, twice the speed, and the beer bottle 2 is moved by the transporting means 4. At the same time as being transferred, the receiving member 5a and the traveling member 5b
It rotates while being held between the two.

The light sources 6a and 6b are provided at the upper part of the conveyance path 3 via bases 9a and 9b, and are each composed of a single incandescent lamp that is long in the direction of movement of the beer bottle 2. The first light source 6a is the bottle opening 2a.
The second light source 6b is located slightly diagonally below the bottle mouth 2a, and each emits a light beam toward the bottle mouth 2a.

The one-dimensional scanning camera 7 is mounted on the base 9b.
The kitchens are installed at a predetermined interval and are located approximately right next to the bottle mouth 2a. Although not shown, each scanning camera 7 is equipped with a one-dimensional image pickup device (one-dimensional image pickup means) in which a large number of CCD elements (charge-coupled devices) are arranged in a line in the vertical direction. It receives the reflected light and converts it into an electrical signal.

Further, five light shielding plates 8 are provided for the four scanning cameras 7 at the upper part of the conveyance path 3, that is, between each scanning camera 7 and at both side ends, and are spaced at a predetermined interval (approximately 60 mm). It is located there. This light shielding plate 8
is for shielding unnecessary light rays so that unnecessary reflected light is not supplied to each scanning camera 7, and is fixed vertically across both bases 9a and 9b. Furthermore, the light shielding plate 8 is composed of an upper plate part 8a and a side plate part 8b, and is formed so that the end surface is close to the bottle mouth 2a and bottle neck 2b of the beer bottle 2, and has a clearance L of, for example, 10 mm or less. There is.

Next, the operation of this inspection device 1 will be explained. As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of beer bottles 2 are transported along a transport path 3. This beer bottle 2 is placed on an endless belt 4b, and this endless belt 4
It is transferred as b moves. When this beer bottle 2 approaches the scanning camera 7, it is inserted between the receiving member 5a and the traveling member 5b of the rotating means 5, and both members 5a,
5b. The running member 5b rotates on its own axis while being moved by the endless belt 4b and rotates in front of the scanning camera 7.

On the other hand, two types of light sources 6a and 6b respectively irradiate the bottle mouth 2a of the rotating beer bottle 2 with light beams, and the reflected light from the bottle mouth 2a is supplied to each scanning camera 7. become.

At this time, unnecessary reflected light is not supplied to each scanning camera 7, that is, each light source 6
Of the light emitted from the light shielding plates 8a and 6b, the light rays emitted from the side between the two light shielding plates 8 are blocked by the light shielding plate 8, as shown in FIG. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4b, only the desired reflected image A is clearly displayed on the bottle mouth 2a.

Subsequently, each scanning camera 7 takes an image of 1/4 of the entire circumference of the bottle mouth 2a, converts it into an electric signal, and compares it with a preset signal pattern of a good bottle.

If the beer bottle 2 inspected is a good product, the inspection signal pattern and the set signal pattern match. On the other hand, if it is a defective product with stains or cracks, the two signal patterns do not match, and pass/fail is determined. .

Here, the distance between the light shielding plates 8 is set to 60 mm, which is obtained by dividing the length corresponding to the entire circumference of the base of the beer bottle 2 into four equal parts according to the number of cameras; It changes depending on the type of camera and the number of cameras.

Although this embodiment has been described with respect to the beer bottle 2, the present invention can also be applied to other bottles.

Moreover, the conveying means 4 is not limited to a belt conveyor, and the traveling member 5b of the rotating means 5 is not limited to a V-belt either.

Furthermore, although four scanning cameras 7 each having one one-dimensional imaging device are provided, one scanning camera 7 having four one-dimensional imaging devices may be provided, and moreover, eight cameras 7 or eight imaging devices may be provided. A plurality of elements may be used, and in short, the one-dimensional imaging means may receive the reflected light at a plurality of locations horizontally or at predetermined intervals.

Furthermore, the light source is not limited to an incandescent lamp, and the light source is not limited to two types, upward and obliquely downward, but may be three or more types.

(f) Effects of the invention According to this invention, two elongated light sources are arranged in the direction of movement of the bottle, one illuminates the top of the bottle and the other illuminates the side of the bottle, and the movement of the bottle is improved. A plurality of light-shielding plates each consisting of an upper plate part and a side plate part and perpendicular to the direction of movement are provided at predetermined intervals in the direction of movement, and a plurality of divisions are set; and an imaging means is provided for each of these divisions; By processing the light from the first and second light sources with one imaging device for each section, the light from the first and second elongated light sources is processed in a predetermined portion in front of each imaging device. Unnecessary images such as the reflected image B in Figure 4a are removed, and problems such as reflected images at both end positions of the long light source are not unevenly generated, and the Since the same reflected image can be obtained in
Accurate measurements can be made.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show an embodiment of the invention, and FIG.
A cross-sectional view of the bottle inspection device, Figure 2 is a schematic plan view of the same, Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the main parts, Figures 4 a and b
1 is an enlarged front view of a bottle mouth showing a conventional example and a reflected image according to the present invention. 1: Inspection device, 2: Beer bottle, 2a: Bottle opening, 2
b: Bottle neck, 3: Conveyance path, 4: Conveyance means, 4a: Support frame, 4b: Endless belt, 5: Rotation means, 5a:
Reception member, 5b: Running member, 5c: Supporting member, 5
d: pulley, 5e: pedestal, 5f: pin, 5g: joint, 6a, 6b: light source, 7: one-dimensional scanning camera,
8: Light shielding plate, 8a: Upper plate part, 8b: Side plate part, 9
a, 9b: base.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A transport means on which a plurality of bottles are placed and transports the bottles along a transport path, a rotation means for rotating the bottles during the movement, and a means for rotating the bottles during the rotation. It is equipped with a light source that irradiates light onto the mouth of a bottle, and a one-dimensional imaging means that receives reflected light irradiated from the mouth of the bottle at a plurality of locations at predetermined intervals, and this imaging means converts the reflected light into an electrical signal. and compares this signal pattern with a preset signal pattern of a bottle spout of a non-defective bottle to determine the quality of the bottle. It consists of a single light source that is long in the direction of movement of the bottle, and consists of a first light source that irradiates light from above on the top of the bottle mouth, and a second light source that irradiates light from the side on the top side of the bottle mouth. In addition, in order to limit the light irradiated to the top surface of the bottle mouth and the side surface of the upper part of the bottle mouth to a predetermined range of a part of the first and second light sources, a light source is provided between the vicinity of the bottle mouth and the first and second light sources. A plurality of light shielding plates, each consisting of an upper plate part and a side plate part, are provided in a direction orthogonal to the movement direction at predetermined intervals in the movement direction to set a plurality of sections, and an imaging means is provided for each of these sections, and the A bottle mouth inspection device characterized in that each reflected light obtained by light irradiation from the first and second light sources is processed by one imaging means for each section.