JPH08265738A - Beam irradiation part monitoring device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide a device capable of simultaneously, automatically and continuously confirming conditions inside an irradiation room and beam irradiation conditions. CONSTITUTION: This device is provided with a stroboscopic illuminator 55 for emitting stroboscopic light, a visible light camera 56 for photographing the inside of the irradiation room 50, a monitor 57 for inputting images from the camera 56 through a picture memory 58 and displaying them, a fluorescent camera 60 for photographing fluorescence 59 emitted by an irradiated object 53, an image processor 62 for inputting the video images of the fluorescence 59 from the camera 60 and a display device 63 for inputting a processing result from the processor 62 and displaying it. Thus, the conditions inside the irradiation room 50 are photographed by the visible light camera 56 at the time of stroboscopic light emission, the fluorescence 59 emitted by the irradiated object 53 is photographed by the fluorescent camera 60 when a stroboscope does not emit the light, the conditions inside the irradiation room 50 and the irradiation conditions of beams 52 are simultaneously, automatically and continuously confirmed and safety and operation efficiency are improved.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention monitors a beam irradiation unit applied to a beam irradiation device for irradiating charged particles or electromagnetic waves for the purpose of sterilizing an irradiated object, insecticide, preventing germination of food, hardening treatment of a film and the like. Regarding the device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional beam irradiation apparatus for irradiating charged particles or electromagnetic waves will be described with reference to FIG. Note that FIG.
Shows an electron beam irradiation apparatus which is an example of the above apparatus, and the electron beam irradiation apparatus will be described below.

In FIG. 3, 1 is an electron beam generator for emitting an electron beam 2, 4 is a conveyor provided below the generator 1 for carrying an object 3 to be irradiated with the electron beam 2, and 5 is the same. A fluorescent lamp provided above the conveyor 4 to illuminate the conveyor 4, and a monitoring camera 6 provided above the conveyor 4 to take an image of the conveyor 4.

In the above, the inside of the electron beam generator 1 is kept in vacuum by a vacuum exhaust device (not shown), and the electron beam 2 generated from the electron beam generator 1 is installed in the device 1. The target 3 is irradiated with the electron beam 2 by being emitted from the vacuum to the atmosphere through the thin film. A plurality of the objects 3 to be irradiated are sequentially placed on the conveyor 4 so that a large amount can be continuously irradiated, and the objects 3 to be irradiated are continuously moved to the irradiation position of the electron beam 2 by the operation of the conveyor 4. It shifts.

At this time, it is necessary to confirm the installation state of the irradiation object 3 on the conveyor 4 so that the irradiation of the electron beam 2 can be carried out without trouble, but normally, the room where the irradiation of the electron beam 2 is performed. Then, with the fluorescent lamp 5 installed in the room as a light source, the situation is photographed by using the monitoring camera 6 installed in the room, and this is confirmed by using a monitor (not shown) installed in another room.

When the irradiation target 3 is irradiated with the electron beam 2, fluorescence 7 having a wavelength and intensity determined by the energy of the electron beam 2 and the beam current and the irradiation target 3 emits electrons to the irradiation target 3. It is emitted from the irradiation position of the beam 2.

As a means for confirming the irradiation state (uniformity, intensity, etc.) of the electron beam 2 on the irradiation target 3, a means such as sticking an absorption dose confirmation seal (not shown) on the irradiation target 3 is used. It is unrealistic in terms of cost and the like to provide the means over the entire irradiation surface of the irradiation object 3 with the electron beam 2. Therefore, the fluorescence 7 is observed as a method of continuously grasping the situation.

However, since the fluorescent light 7 has a lower intensity and a shorter wavelength than the light emitted from the fluorescent lamp 5, the fluorescent light 7 is monitored only in a state of being superposed on the light emitted from the fluorescent lamp 5. It cannot be recognized by the camera 6.

Therefore, when confirming the fluorescent light 7, the fluorescent lamp 5 in the irradiation chamber is temporarily turned off, and the monitoring camera 6 confirms the fluorescent lamp 5 in the absence of light. In order to evaluate the intensity distribution of the fluorescent light 7, it was necessary to perform image processing on the image obtained by the monitoring camera 6 by an image processing device (not shown).

[0010]

In the conventional beam irradiation apparatus, as described above, the internal condition of the electron beam irradiation chamber and the fluorescence emitted from the object to be irradiated are turned on / off by turning on / off the indoor fluorescent lamp using the same camera. When taking a picture, the image obtained from the camera is only the internal situation or the emitted fluorescence. Therefore, the internal condition and the electron beam irradiation condition could not be continuously confirmed.

The problem is that a plurality of cameras are used,
Even in the case of separating the respective confirmation divisions for the confirmation of the internal condition and the confirmation of the emitted fluorescence, it was not possible to perform this automatically because it was necessary to turn on / off the indoor fluorescent lamp when confirming both. The present invention is intended to solve the above problems.

[0012]

A beam irradiation unit monitoring apparatus according to the present invention is a stroboscopic illuminator for emitting stroboscopic light provided in an irradiation chamber where a beam is emitted from an object to be irradiated conveyed by a conveyor. , A visible light camera that uses the light emitted from the illuminator to capture an image of the interior of the lighting room, an image memory that stores and stores images captured by the camera, a monitor that inputs and displays images from the memory, and the illuminated area Fluorescent camera that shoots fluorescence emitted from objects when the strobe illuminator is not emitting light, and commands to the strobe illuminator, visible light camera, and fluorescent camera by inputting a synchronization signal from the visible light camera. A system controller that outputs signals, an image processing device that inputs and processes the image captured by the fluorescent camera, and an image processing result from the image processing device. It is characterized by comprising a display device which to display.

[0013]

In the above, when the first synchronization signal is input from the visible light camera, the system controller outputs a command signal delayed for a fixed time until the next synchronization signal is input to the strobe illuminator and the visible light camera. , The strobe illuminator emits light, and the visible light camera shoots the interior of the lighting room.

The system controller does not output the command signal when the second synchronization signal is input, but
When the synchronization signal for the second time is input, a command signal to the stroboscopic illuminator and the visible light camera is output again, and light emission from the stroboscopic illuminator and photographing by the visible light camera are performed in the same manner as above.

The image photographed by the visible light camera is input to the image memory and is stored in the image memory from the time the system controller inputs the second synchronization signal to the time the fourth synchronization signal is input. , Displayed on the monitor.

The operation of each device from the time when the first synchronization signal is input to the time when the third synchronization signal is input to the system controller is repeatedly performed after the time when the third synchronization signal is input, and the image monitor displays an image taken in the irradiation chamber. Continue to display.

On the other hand, the system controller outputs a command signal to the fluorescence camera each time a synchronization signal is input, and the fluorescence camera photographs the fluorescence emitted from the object to be irradiated each time, and the fluorescence signal is emitted. The camera outputs a fluorescent image to the image processing apparatus, and the image processing apparatus performs image processing on the image and displays the fluorescence intensity distribution and the like on the display device.

As described above, the situation in the irradiation room is photographed by the visible light camera when the strobe emits light, and the fluorescence emitted by the object to be illuminated is photographed when the strobe is not emitting light. Can be confirmed simultaneously, automatically, and continuously.

[0019]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 shows a beam irradiation unit monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The apparatus of this embodiment shown in FIG.
An electron beam generator 51 provided in the electron beam irradiation chamber 50 for emitting an electron beam 52, and the generator 5
The present invention is applied to an electron beam irradiation apparatus provided with a conveyor 54 which is arranged below the apparatus 1 and continuously conveys an irradiation object 53 to an electron beam irradiation position. The operation of this irradiation apparatus is the same as that of a conventional apparatus. Since it is the same, the description is omitted.

In the beam irradiation unit monitoring apparatus of the present embodiment shown in FIG. 1, in the electron beam irradiation chamber 50, a stroboscopic illuminator 55 used as a light source for confirming the situation in the electron beam irradiation chamber 50, Visible light camera 5 that observes the inside of the irradiation room using the light emitted from the strobe illuminator 55.
6, and a fluorescence camera 60 for measuring the fluorescence 59 emitted from the irradiation object 53 irradiated with the electron beam 52 when the strobe light is not emitted in synchronization with the strobe illuminator 55. There is.

Outside the electron beam irradiation chamber 50, a monitor 57 for displaying an image obtained by the visible light camera 56 and an image obtained by the visible light camera 56 from the strobe illuminator 55. An image memory 58 for displaying on the monitor 57 even when there is no light emission, a system controller 61 for synchronizing the light emission timing of the strobe illuminator 55 and the vertical synchronization signals of the visible light camera 56 and the fluorescent camera 60, An image processing device 62 for processing an image from the fluorescent camera 60 and a CRT 63 for displaying a result processed by the image processing device 62 are provided.

In the beam irradiation unit monitoring apparatus of this embodiment, each component operates at the operation timing shown in FIG. 2, and the operation of each component will be described below with reference to FIG.

The vertical synchronizing signal obtained from the visible light camera 56 is input to the fluorescent camera 60 capable of supporting the external synchronizing system via the system controller 61, and the vertical synchronizing signals of both cameras 56, 60 have the same timing. .

The light emission timing of the strobe illuminator 55 connected to the system controller 61 occurs after a certain time delay from the vertical synchronizing signal input to the system controller 61, and the vertical synchronizing signal next to this vertical synchronizing signal is generated. After being input, the vertical synchronizing signal is similarly input and delayed for a certain period of time. After each light emission timing, the strobe illuminator 55 emits strobe light for a certain period of time.

It should be noted that the strobe light emission must be cut off by the input of the next vertical synchronizing signal so that there will be no hindrance to the monitoring of fluorescent light 59, which will be described later, during this time, the irradiation chamber 50
The inside of the irradiation room can be observed by the visible light camera 56 because there is sufficient light inside.

Therefore, the system controller 61 opens the shutter (not shown) of the visible light camera 56 at the same time as the light emission timing of the strobe illuminator 55. As a result, the visible light camera 56 can capture an image for observing the condition of the irradiation room.

Since the image can be captured only half of the frequency of inputting the vertical synchronizing signal, the image is monitored by the monitor 57.
The captured image is input from the visible light camera 56 to the image memory 58 for output to the image, and the captured image held in the image memory 58 is continuously used to artificially display on the monitor 57. To synthesize. Normally, the vertical synchronizing signal is input at 60 Hz, which does not interfere with normal monitoring purposes.

On the other hand, except when the strobe light is emitted, the irradiation chamber 50
Since the inside is dark, the fluorescence 59 emitted when the electron beam 52 is applied to the irradiation object 53 can be observed by the fluorescence camera 60. Therefore, the shutter (not shown) of the fluorescent camera 60 is opened simultaneously with the input of the vertical synchronizing signal.

As a result, the fluorescence camera 60 causes the fluorescence 5 emitted from the object 53 to be irradiated with the irradiation of the electron beam 52.
9 images can be captured. By inputting the image into the image processing device 62 and performing image processing, the fluorescence intensity distribution and the like can be displayed on the CRT 63.

Since the apparatus of this embodiment is configured as described above, all the operations can be automatically performed, and the irradiation chamber monitoring status and the fluorescence monitoring can be simultaneously performed.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the beam irradiation unit monitoring device has been specifically described by taking the electron beam as an example, but the invention is not limited to the electron beam irradiation device. In a charged particle beam such as an ion beam and a laser beam, fluorescence similarly emits from the beam irradiation position.
Applicable.

[0032]

The beam irradiation unit monitoring device of the present invention includes a strobe illuminator for emitting strobe light, a visible light camera for photographing the irradiation chamber, and a monitor for inputting and displaying an image from the camera via an image memory. By providing a fluorescence camera that captures the fluorescence emitted by the object to be irradiated, an image processing device that inputs an image of the fluorescence from the camera, and a display device that inputs and displays the processing result from the device, the irradiation chamber The situation of is photographed by the visible light camera when the strobe emits light, and the fluorescence emitted by the irradiated object is photographed by the fluorescence camera when the strobe is not emitting light, and the irradiation room situation and the beam irradiation situation are simultaneously, automatically and continuously. It will be possible to confirm the above and improve safety and work efficiency.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a beam irradiation unit monitoring device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of operation timing of each component according to the above embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a conventional device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 50 Electron Beam Irradiation Chamber 51 Electron Beam Generator 52 Electron Beam 53 Irradiation Object 54 Conveyor 55 Strobe Illuminator 56 Visible Light Camera 57 Monitor 58 Image Memory 59 Fluorescence 60 Fluorescence Camera 61 System Controller 62 Image Processing Device 63 CRT

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Tomohiro Harada 4-6-22 Kannon Shinmachi, Nishi-ku, Hiroshima Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. Hiroshima Research Institute (72) Inventor Hideaki Sekido 10 Oe-cho, Minato-ku, Nagoya Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. Ceremony Company Nagoya Aerospace Systems Works

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A strobe illuminator for emitting strobe light, which is provided in an irradiation chamber where a beam is emitted from an object to be irradiated conveyed by a conveyor, and the interior of the illumination chamber is made by utilizing the light emission of the illuminator. A visible light camera for shooting, an image memory for inputting and storing images shot by the camera,
A monitor that inputs and displays an image from the same memory, a fluorescence camera that captures fluorescence emitted from the irradiation target when the strobe illuminator is not emitting light, and a synchronization signal is input from the visible light camera to input the synchronization signal. A system controller that outputs command signals to a strobe illuminator, a visible light camera, and a fluorescent camera, an image processing device that inputs and processes an image captured by the fluorescent camera, and an image processing result is input from the image processing device. A beam irradiation unit monitoring device, which is provided with a display device for displaying.