JPH0629865B2 - Foreign material inspection device for containers - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial application] The present invention is for automatically inspecting a foreign substance mixed in a container made of a light-transmissive material, for example, a transparent plastic container or the like, or a foreign substance attached to the container. Foreign material inspection device for container.

[Prior Art] For example, when a plastic container is formed by blow molding, foreign matter may be mixed into the plastic. That is, when the raw material plastic is heated and melted by using the extruder, the plastic stays in the extruder, and if it is heated more than necessary, it causes burns, discoloration and physical property change. The substance that has changed its physical properties and is discolored becomes a foreign substance and is mixed in the plastic.
When molding is performed with foreign matter mixed in this way,
This causes production of defective products with poor quality and appearance.

In addition, when manufacturing the colored container, if the mixed paints are not mixed uniformly, coloring unevenness occurs, and the quality and appearance are also inferior.

The generation of such defective products lowers the yield of products, and therefore must be detected and dealt with promptly.

From such a viewpoint, in Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. 54-140791, a device for automatically inspecting a bottle for foreign matter on a conveyor using a light source and a CCD camera is proposed.

[Problems to be Solved] However, since the foreign matter inspection apparatus in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 54-140791 described above is configured to rotate while transporting the bottle on the belt conveyor, first, the CCD camera and the bottle are combined. The inspection accuracy is reduced because the intervals are not constant, and multiple CCD cameras must be installed in the bottle transfer direction. Second, high-speed inspection of the bottles is not possible because the bottles cannot be transferred at high speed during inspection. There was a problem such as not.

The present invention has been made in view of the problems as described above, and by supporting the container so that the rotation center axes thereof coincide with each other by the mounting table having the recessed portion and the container pressing means, and allowing the container to rotate about the axis. In addition to maintaining a constant distance between the container and the light receiver to improve inspection accuracy, the container can be rotated at a high speed by supporting the container by sandwiching it from the top and bottom with a mounting table and container pressing means, thus increasing the inspection speed. An object of the present invention is to provide a foreign matter inspection device for a container that can be realized.

Further, the present invention relates to a container foreign matter inspection device in which the mounting table, the supply turret and the delivery turret can be exchanged according to the shape (dimension) of the container so that the container can be reliably supported and transferred.

[Means for Solving Problems] In order to achieve the above object, a container foreign matter inspection apparatus according to the present invention is for inspecting foreign matter mixed in a container of various sizes made of a light-transmitting material or foreign matter attached to the container. A device, a main turret that rotates intermittently, and a supply turret for migrating a container having a contact part that is replaceable so as to match the shape of the container, to the main turret,
A contact turret for delivering the container again from the main turret, which is exchangeably provided so that it can be fitted to the shape of the container, and the concave portion can be selected according to the shape of the bottom of the container. A mounting table replaceably provided on the main turret, rotation means for rotating the mounting table, and a container arranged on the same central axis as the mounting table and rotatably pressing the upper part of the container mounted on the mounting table. An inspection block provided with a holding means on the line for transporting the container, a light source installed on the side of the container that passes a predetermined position of the inspection block, and a position opposed to the light source with the container sandwiched therebetween. The light receiving device and the light receiving information processing means for inspecting the foreign matter based on the light receiving information from the light receiving device.

The "foreign substance inspection" in the present invention is not limited to the detection of foreign substances such as discolored matter and dust mixed in the container, but the concentration of the paint mixed in the container (that is, the degree of coloring), an uneven density inspection,
Alternatively, it includes an inspection of the presence of the label attached to the container.

[Embodiment] An embodiment of the foreign matter inspection apparatus of the present invention will be described below with reference to Figs.
It will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the overall configuration of the apparatus of this embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a front view showing the main parts of the apparatus.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a transfer line, on which a bottle-shaped container (inspection target container) 2 made of transparent plastic, which has been blow molded, is placed on belt conveyors 1a and 1b and continuously transferred. Reference numeral 3 is an inspection block, which is provided in the middle of the transfer line 1. The bottle type container 2 conveyed is inspected on the inspection block 3 for the presence of foreign matter.

The inspection block 3 is provided with a main turret 10, a supply turret 20, a supply auxiliary turret 21, and a delivery turret 22. The main turret 10 is for arranging the bottle type container 2 at a predetermined inspection position, and the supply turret 20 supplies the bottle type container 2 to the main turret 10 from the belt conveyor 1a via the supply auxiliary turret 21. To do. Delivery turret 22
Is for transferring the bottle-shaped container 2 that has been inspected to the belt conveyor 1b in the subsequent stage.

As shown in FIG. 2, the main turret 10 includes a bottom rotating plate 11, an upper plate 12, a container pressing member 13 attached to the upper plate 12, and a cam plate 14 fixed to the ceiling of the inspection block 3. . The upper plate 12 is fixed to the bottom rotary plate 11 via columns 15. The container pressing member 13 is movable in the axial direction (vertical direction in the drawing) and is constantly urged downward by a spring 13a, so that the cam roller 13b attached to the upper end is engaged with the cam plate 14 to drive it vertically. It has become. The container pressing member 13 is attached to the upper plate 12 at six positions at equal intervals in the circumferential direction. The bottom rotary plate 11 is intermittently rotated by the power of the drive source 18. The angle of the intermittent rotation is 60 degrees.

A mounting table 16 is installed on the bottom rotary plate 11 at a position facing the container pressing member 13. The bottle-shaped container 2 is supplied onto the mounting table 16 and is transported to the inspection position with the upper end opening being pressed by the container pressing member 13.

The upper surface 16a of the mounting table 16 is provided with the bottle-shaped container 2 supplied.
Is positioned so as to be axially aligned with the container pressing member 13, it is formed in a concave shape having a size slightly larger than the bottom portion of the container 2. Further, the mounting table 16 is connected to a drive source 17, and is rotated by the power of the drive source 17. The container pressing member 13 also has a lower pressing portion 13d rotatable with respect to the rod 13c. Therefore, the bottle-shaped container 2 supplied on the mounting table 16 can rotate on its axis.

The supply turret 20 performs an intermittent rotation motion in synchronization with the intermittent rotation of the main turret 10. The supply turret 20 is formed with notches 20a corresponding to the shape of the body of the bottle-shaped container 2 at four locations on the periphery. The supply auxiliary turret 21 performs continuous rotary motion in synchronization with the intermittent rotation of the supply turret 20, and supplies the bottle type container 2 on the belt conveyor 1a to the cutout portion 20a. here,
The bottle contact portion 21a of the supply auxiliary turret 21 is formed by a surface having the same curvature as the body portion of the bottle type container 2,
The bottle-shaped container 2 can be reliably transferred by surface contact. In addition, 23 is a timing spiral synchronized with the supply auxiliary turret 21, and the belt conveyor 1a
It is provided in order to smoothly transfer the bottle type container 2 sent by the above to the supply auxiliary turret 21.

The delivery turret 22 performs a continuous rotary motion in synchronization with the intermittent rotation of the main turret 10, and transfers the bottle type container 2 on the mounting table 16 to the belt conveyor 1b at the subsequent stage.
The bottle contact portion 22a of the delivery turret 22 is also formed by a surface having the same curvature as the body portion of the bottle type container 2,
The bottle-shaped container 2 can be reliably transferred by surface contact.

The mounting table 1 in the main turret 10 described above
6, the supply turret 20, the supply auxiliary turret 21, and the delivery turret 22 can be replaced according to the shape of the bottle-shaped container 2 being conveyed. In the figure, 30 is a fluorescent lamp as a light source, which illuminates the bottle-shaped container 2 carried to the inspection position 10 a from the inside of the main turret 10.

Further, 31 and 32 are ITV cameras as light receivers, which sandwich the bottle type container 2 placed at the inspection position 10a,
It is installed at a position facing the fluorescent lamp 30. That is,
The ITV cameras 31 and 32 are adapted to input the image of the bottle-shaped container 2 by receiving the light rays that have passed through the bottle-shaped container 2. In FIG. 2, two ITV cameras 31 and 32 are used to divide the bottle-shaped container 2 from the neck portion to the shoulder portion and the body portion in two, but the present invention is not limited to this. The above ITV camera may be used, or only one with a wide field of view may be used.

Reference numeral 40 denotes a sensor for checking the presence of the bottle type container 2, which is installed near the supply turret 20.
Then, when the bottle-shaped container 2 is not supplied to the cutout portion 20a of the supply turret 20, this is detected and the light receiving information processing means described later is notified.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the light receiving information processing means for detecting a foreign substance based on the light receiving information from the ITV camera. In the drawing, reference numeral 33 is an image processing device, which receives light reception information from the ITV cameras 31 and 32, processes the image of the received light information, and outputs an image signal. Reference numeral 34 is a comparator, which compares the image signal from the image processing device 33 with the reference signal from the reference setting device 35. Here, the image signal of the normal bottle type container 2 is input to the reference setter 35 as a reference signal. The image signal from the image processing device 33 is also output to the display 36, and the image of the bottle-shaped container 2 is displayed on the display 36 so that it can be visually confirmed. A determiner 37 determines whether or not a foreign matter is mixed in the bottle-shaped container 2 based on the comparison result output from the comparator 34.

Next, the operation of the above-described foreign matter inspection device will be described.

Blow-molded transparent plastic bottle-shaped container 2
Are placed on the belt conveyor 1a and continuously conveyed to the rear end of the timing spiral 23. Then, the groove 23a formed in the spiral shape of the timing spiral 23 is guided and goes straight. The bottle type container 2 reaching the tip of the timing spiral 23 is supplied by the supply auxiliary turret 21 which is continuously rotating.
It is inserted in the notch 20 of 0.

The supply turret 20 rotates intermittently, and the bottle type container 2 is placed on the mounting table 16 of the main turret 10 in the third step.
Put on. The main turret 10 is intermittently operated so as to rotate once in six steps. Immediately after the bottle type container 2 starts to rotate together with the mounting table 16, the container pressing member 13 located above the bottle type container 2 descends in conjunction with the cam mechanism of the cam roller 13b and the cam plate 14, and the bottle type container is biased by the spring 13a. 2 is fixed by pressing.

When the main turret 10 continues the intermittent operation and carries the bottle type container 2 to the inspection position 10a, the mounting table 16 rotates to rotate the bottle type container 2 by itself. The rotation of the bottle-shaped container 2 continues for one rotation (360 °), during which the ITV camera 3
1, 32 receive the light beam of the fluorescent lamp 30 that has passed through the bottle-shaped container 2 and output the light reception information. The received light information is converted into an image signal by the image processing device 33 and sent to the comparator 34, where it is compared with the reference signal. The comparison result is sent to the determiner 37, and the presence / absence of foreign matter is determined.

When the bottle type container 2 is not mixed, the image signal thereof has substantially the same waveform as the reference signal (that is, the image signal of the normal bottle type container 2). However, when a foreign substance is mixed in the bottle-shaped container 2, the light from the fluorescent lamp 30 is blocked at a portion where the foreign substance is mixed, and the ITV camera 31 has a black spot pattern.
Since the light enters (32), the image signal also differs from the reference signal. Based on such a difference, the determiner 37 determines whether or not foreign matter is mixed. When it is confirmed by the signal from the sensor 40 that the bottle type container 2 does not exist on the base cup 16 at the inspection position 10a, the above determination is not performed.

On the other hand, the image of the bottle-shaped container 2 is also displayed on the display 36 so that the visual inspection can be performed.

When the bottle-shaped container 2 is rotated once and necessary light reception information is obtained, the main turret 10 is rotated and the next bottle-shaped container 2 is placed at the inspection position. The bottle-shaped container 2 that has completed the inspection is supplied to the delivery turret 22 in the fifth step.
At this time, the cam roller 13b of the container pressing member 13 is engaged with the upper surface of the cam plate 14, and the container pressing member 13 is in the raised position. Therefore, the bottle type container 2 is transferred to the belt conveyor 1b by the delivery turret 22.

The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment. For example, in the above embodiment, the bottle was rotated 360 ° at the inspection position, but if the bottle is rotated at least 180 °, the entire bottle can be transmitted and necessary light reception information can be obtained. The present invention also includes the following modifications and applications.

A container foreign matter inspection device that uses a light source other than a fluorescent lamp.

A container foreign matter inspection device using various optical sensors other than an ITV camera as a light receiver.

A foreign matter inspection device for a container using a known optical signal processing device other than that shown in FIG. 3 as the received light information processing means.

A foreign matter inspection device for a container made of various light-transmissive materials other than a transparent plastic bottle, for example, a semi-transparent container (including a colored one), a glass container, and a container other than a bottle.

A foreign matter inspection device for containers, which is provided with an inspection block to directly inspect bottles placed on a conveyor belt conveyor.

A foreign substance inspection device for a container, which uses a foreign substance attached to a container as a label and detects whether or not the label is attached. In this case, it becomes abnormal when the label is not attached.

A foreign material inspection device for containers, which is intended to inspect the concentration and uniformity of paint mixed in the container.

As described above, according to the present invention, the container is supported by the recess of the mounting table and the container pressing means so that the central axes thereof coincide with each other,
Since it can rotate about the axis, the distance between the container and the light receiver can always be kept constant, and the inspection accuracy can be improved.

Further, since the container is supported by the mounting table and the container pressing means so as to be sandwiched from above and below, even if the container is rotated at a high speed, it does not come off from the mounting table, and the inspection can be speeded up.

Furthermore, the mounting table, supply turret and delivery turret can be replaced according to the shape (dimension) of the container,
Since the container is reliably supported and transferred, a single inspection device can accurately perform foreign matter inspection in containers of various shapes.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the entire structure of a foreign matter inspection apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a front view showing the main parts of the apparatus, and FIG. 3 is a light reception information processing means of the apparatus. It is a block diagram shown. 1: Transport line, 3: Inspection block 10: Main turret, 16: Mounting table 20: Supply turret 21: Supply auxiliary turret 22: Delivery turret, 30: Fluorescent lamp (light source) 31, 32: ITV camera (light receiver) 33 : Image processing device, 34: comparator 35: reference setting device, 36: display 37: judging device

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An apparatus for inspecting a foreign substance mixed in a container of various shapes made of a light-transmitting material or a foreign substance adhering to the container, the inspection block being provided on a line for conveying the container. , A light source installed on the side of the container that passes through the predetermined position of this inspection block, a light receiver installed at a position facing the above light source with the container sandwiched, and a light receiving device for inspecting foreign objects based on light reception information from this light receiving device. And an information processing means, wherein the inspection block further comprises a main turret that rotates intermittently, and a supply turret for transferring a container provided so that the contact portion is replaceable so as to match the shape of the container to the main turret. ,
A contact turret and a delivery turret for delivering the container again from the main turret, which is exchangeably provided so as to match the shape of the container, and the recessed portion can be selected according to the shape of the bottom of the container. A mounting table replaceably provided on the main turret, rotation means for rotating the mounting table, and a container arranged on the same central axis as the mounting table and rotatably pressing the upper part of the container mounted on the mounting table. A container foreign matter inspection device comprising a holding means.