JPS6330565B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method and apparatus which enable containers such as bottles to be accurately filled with liquid to a set point level.

More specifically, when a light beam is irradiated onto the bubbles on the liquid surface, the diffusely reflected light beams from the bubbles are used to detect the level of the liquid filled in the container using the light beams reflected from the bubbles. The present invention relates to a liquid level control method and device that can accurately control the amount of liquid filled.

When filling a bottle with soy sauce, etc., it is necessary to accurately inject the amount of soy sauce, etc. up to a specified value, so the amount of soy sauce, etc. to be filled must be accurately controlled at the set value level of the bottle,
The bottle must be filled with an appropriate amount of soy sauce, etc.

1 and 2 illustrate a conventional method of controlling the liquid level of a liquid such as soy sauce.

In the control method shown in FIG. 1, a light projecting section 52 and a light receiving section 53 composed of a photoelectric conversion element or the like are arranged on both sides of a bottle 51, and a light beam 54 irradiated from the light projecting section 52 is directed to the bottle 51. The light is transmitted through the inside of the light receiving section 53 and is received by the light receiving section 53. The bottles 51 are sequentially filled with liquid,
When the liquid level exceeds the level position of the light beam 54,
This light beam 54 is blocked by the liquid, and the light receiving section 5
3. It is possible to detect that a certain amount of liquid has been filled by attenuating or blocking the amount of light that enters the container.
The filling operation can be stopped and a certain amount of liquid can be poured into the bottle 51. The control method shown in FIG. 2 utilizes the refraction of light rays, and a light emitter 56 and a light receiver 57 are arranged on both sides of the bottle 55 at appropriate opposing angles, and the control method uses light refraction. Ray 58 when filling
When the light passes through the inside of the bottle 55, it is refracted and received by the light receiving section 57. When the bottle 55 is filled with liquid and the liquid level exceeds the level of the light beam 58,
The refractive index of the light ray 58 changes, and the light ray 5
8 is no longer received. If the liquid filling operation is controlled by this, the liquid will be filled in the bottle 55 to the set value level.
can be injected into. In each of the liquid level control methods described above, if bubbles occur on the liquid surface, the light beam will be affected by the bubbles, and since bubbles will inhibit the normal progress of the light beam, it is difficult to accurately fill the liquid at the set value level. It is difficult to stop the liquid, and it is difficult to fill a container such as a bottle with an accurate amount of liquid.

In particular, when the liquid is the above-mentioned soy sauce, the effect of foam becomes noticeable, and the same problem occurs not only when using soy sauce but also when using cola or beer, for example.

In view of the above-mentioned problems when filling containers such as bottles with liquids that generate bubbles such as soy sauce, the present inventor has made the present invention as a result of intensive research to effectively solve the problems. be.

In particular, the present inventor focused on the characteristics of the so-called diffusely reflected light rays caused by the bubbles, in which when the bubbles are irradiated with a light beam, the light rays reflected by the bubbles are reversed by 180 degrees and returned to the light emitting side, and the light rays are reversed along the projection axis. However, the present invention has been made so that the amount of liquid filled can be accurately controlled by making use of the bubbles that conventionally obstruct liquid level control, and by using the diffusely reflected light rays reflected by the bubbles. It is something.

The object of the present invention is to sequentially inject a liquid that generates bubbles on the liquid surface into a container such as a bottle, and then irradiate the container with a light beam from the horizontal direction to remove the bubbles that rise as the liquid is poured. The light is irradiated and reflected by the bubbles.
The light beam reversed by 180 degrees is made to enter a photoelectric conversion element, and the injection operation of the liquid is regulated based on the output from the photoelectric conversion element, thereby controlling the amount of liquid to be filled into the container. A liquid level control method is provided.

Particularly, the object of the present invention is that the light rays are diffusely reflected by the bubbles, and when the liquid is injected, the bubbles further rise, the light rays are removed from the bubbles, and the light rays are irradiated onto the liquid, causing the bubbles to be reflected. The light beam enters the photoelectric conversion element only while the light beam is irradiated to the photoelectric conversion element, and at the same time as the light beam entering the photoelectric conversion element ends, a liquid filling stop circuit is activated to prevent the transition from foam to liquid. The present invention provides a method for controlling the level of liquid to be filled into a container, in which the injection of liquid is stopped at a set value level according to a signal change from the photoelectric conversion element.

Therefore, the object of the present invention is to utilize diffusely reflected light rays reflected by the bubbles when filling a container with a specified amount of liquid that generates bubbles on the surface of the liquid. The problems of conventional control methods can be solved all at once, and a considerable amount of the light reflected from the bubbles becomes diffusely reflected by the bubbles, regardless of the state of the bubbles, so it is expected that the device will operate reliably. To provide a method for controlling the liquid level of a liquid to be filled into a container, which enables the container to be accurately filled with a prescribed amount of liquid.

Further, the object of the present invention is to arrange a light source and a condensing lens while maintaining a constant height level with respect to a container such as a bottle, and to focus the light rays from the light source with the condensing lens. The device is configured to irradiate the bubbles in the container, and the diffusely reflected light from the bubbles enters a photoelectric conversion element, and the output from the photoelectric conversion element shuts off a supply circuit that fills the container with liquid. By providing a liquid level control device and matching the height of the light beam emitted by the light source and the condensing lens with respect to the container with the liquid level lens of a specified value of the liquid to be filled in the container, an accurate amount of liquid can be obtained. To provide a liquid level control device for a liquid to be filled in a container capable of being filled with liquid.

Particularly, the object of the present invention is that the light source, the condensing lens, and the photoelectric conversion element are installed outside the container, and the container is made of a transparent or translucent material so as to be translucent. If the container is made of an opaque material, there is provided a liquid level control device that allows light to pass through the container and irradiate the bubbles in the container, and if the container is made of an opaque material, A liquid level control device for filling a liquid in a container is provided, in which an optical lens and a photoelectric conversion element are installed so as to be located inside the container, and the light beam can be directly irradiated onto the bubbles in the container.

Therefore, the object of the present invention is that it can be constructed with extremely few parts such as a light source, a condensing lens, and a photoelectric conversion element, and can be formed with a simple structure, and that the container has a light-transmitting property. Regardless of whether it is opaque or not, it is possible to control the amount of liquid filled by using the diffusely reflected light rays from the bubbles, such as containers that allow light to pass through, such as bottles, and containers that do not allow light to pass through, such as cans. To provide a liquid level control device for a liquid to be filled into a container, which can reliably control the liquid level even in a container and can regulate the amount of liquid filled in any container.

Furthermore, it is an object of the present invention to provide various liquid level control devices in which the installation position of the photoelectric conversion element is arbitrarily determined, and the photoelectric conversion element is directly buried inside the condenser lens, Alternatively, a reflector installed in front of the condensing lens can change the course of the diffusely reflected light rays caused by the bubbles, allowing the photoelectric conversion element to be installed at a position different from the light projection axis, or a reflector placed in front of the condensing lens The photoelectric conversion element can be installed at any position without being limited to a specific position by installing a reflector in the container, and the shape and size of the container,
Various liquid level control devices are provided in which a photoelectric conversion element can be installed at an appropriate position depending on the arrangement relationship between the photoelectric converter and the condensing lens.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 3 shows a filling device 1 to which a control device 20 according to the present invention is attached and which sequentially injects a liquid, such as soy sauce, which generates bubbles on the liquid surface into containers 10.

Side plates 3, 3 are set up on the base 2, and rollers 3a, 3a are rotatably supported at the tips of the side plates 3, and a lower table 5 is installed to extend to the side of the column 4.
Place and support it at a. Support rods 6,
6, and the lower ends of the rods 6, 6 have rollers 6.
a, 6a are attached and brought into sliding contact with the upper surfaces of the lifters 7, 7. A large diameter gear 8 is integrally formed at the lower end of the column 4, and a small diameter gear 11 is fixed to the drive shaft of the motor 9 by meshing with this gear 8.

An upper table 12 is installed horizontally at the upper end of the column 4, and U-shaped installation portions 12 are provided at both ends.
a, 12a, and the control device 2 is provided in this part.
Attach 0,20. In the center of column 4,
A main supply pipe 13 passes through the main supply pipe 13, and the upper part of this pipe 13 is connected to a distributor 15 via a rotary joint 14. A pedestal 6b in which a plurality of liquid supply pipes 16, 16 are branched from the distributor 15, bent downward and passed through the upper table 12, and the nozzles 16a, 16a at the tips are provided on the upper part of the support rod 6; 6b. A container 10 such as a bottle is placed on the pedestal 6b.

When the motor 9 is driven, the large diameter gear 8 in mesh with the small diameter gear 11 rotates, and as a result, the lower table 5 is supported by the rollers 3a, and the column 4 is rotated around the Y axis. Rotate.
When the lower table 5 rotates, the support rod 6 passing through the table 5 rotates together with the table 5 while the roller 6a rolls on the lifter 7.
As the roller 6a rolls along the lifter 7, the support rod 6 moves up and down, and the action of the lifter 7 moves the container 10 on the pedestal 6b up and down.

As the column 4 rotates, the upper table 12 also rotates integrally, and the liquid supply pipes 16, 16 rotate independently from the main supply pipe 13 by the rotary joint 14.

As a result, the container 10 also rotates around the Y-axis in accordance with the Uram 4 rotating by the drive of the motor 9, and moves up and down with each rotation, so that the nozzle at the tip of the liquid supply pipe 16 is in an ascending state. 16a is inserted into container 10. After a liquid such as soy sauce is injected from the nozzle 16a at a constant pressure to fill the container 10 with a specified amount of liquid, the container 10 is lowered and sent from the filling device 1 to the next process.

In this case, the rising state of the container 10 is detected by the limit switch 21, a signal from the limit switch 21 is received by the controller 22, an actuation signal is transmitted from the controller 22 to the control device 20, and the control device 20 starts operating.

When the liquid level of the liquid injected into the container 10 reaches a set value, a signal is transmitted from the control device 20 to the controller 22 as described later, and the liquid supply pipe 1
A control valve 23 with an interposed valve 6 is actuated by a solenoid 24 to stop the injection of liquid.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of part A of FIG. 3. A light source 26 is provided inside the case 25 of the control device 20.
and a condensing lens 27 are arranged, the condensing lens 27 is fitted and fixed to the front opening of the case 25, and a photoelectric conversion element 28, such as a phototransistor, is embedded inside the condensing lens 27.

A lead wire 29 connects the photoelectric conversion element 28 and the controller 22 .

The optical axis of the light beam emitted from the light source 26 and focused by the lens 27, that is, the X axis in the drawing, is made to coincide with the set value of the liquid level S of the liquid L filled in the container 10 in advance, A specified amount of liquid L is in the container 10.
The liquid level height of the liquid L is set to match the X-axis when the liquid L is filled.

In this case, the control device 20 is not placed on the extension of the center line N of the container 10 as shown in FIG. When the light does not reach the axis, the light is reflected by the container 10 and travels in a direction different from the light projection axis, and the setting is made so that the reflected light does not return to the control device 20.

FIG. 5 is a time chart showing the progress of filling the container 10 with the liquid L.

When the container 10 rises as described above and reaches a predetermined position, this is detected by the limit switch 21 and the control valve 23 is opened (A in FIG. 5).
point), and the liquid L begins to be injected into the container 10 from the nozzle 16a. When the liquid L is continuously filled into the container 10, the liquid level S gradually rises, and the bubbles F generated on the liquid level S rise accordingly. During this time, at the same time as the limit switch 21 is activated, a light beam is emitted from the light source 26 and focused by the lens 27, and the control device 20 starts to operate.

As the liquid level S rises, the bubbles F reach the X axis (same B
point), the light beam passes through the transparent or translucent container 10, is reflected by the bubbles F, is reversed by 180 degrees, and returns to the same axis as the projection axis, becoming a diffusely reflected light beam T by the bubbles. Since the shape of the bubble F is spherical, the diffusely reflected light T by the bubbles reliably returns in large quantities in the direction of the projection axis, and the surface gloss is very good, so even if the filling status and type of liquid L is different, the bubble F Regardless of the state of the light source 26, the light beam emitted from the control device 2
It returns to 0 and becomes the diffusely reflected light ray T by the bubbles. The light beam T diffusely reflected by the bubbles enters the photoelectric conversion element 28, the element 28 begins to output a corresponding output, and the control device 20 transmits a detection signal.

This signal is transmitted (l in Figure 5) while the liquid level S continues to rise and the light beam is irradiated to the bubbles F. As the liquid level S continues to rise, the bubbles F are emitted from the optical axis (X-axis). When the liquid surface S and the optical axis coincide (point C),
Since the light beam passes through the liquid L and continues straight, the detection signal is interrupted. As a result, from the foam F to the liquid L
At the same time, the electromagnetic device 24 closes the control valve 23 via the controller 22, and the change in the signal of the photoelectric conversion element 28 accompanying the transition from the foam F to the liquid L causes the electromagnetic device 24 to close the control valve 23. The filling of liquid L can be stopped at the value level.

As described above, the filling operation of the liquid L into the container 10 is completed. After this, the container 10 is lowered as described above and sent to the next process, and another container 10 is continuously filled and injected with the liquid L in the same manner as described above. do.

The control device 20a shown in FIG. 7 is used when filling an opaque container 10a (for example, a can) with a specified amount of liquid L.

The case 25a of the device 20a is formed watertight, and a light source 26a and a condensing lens 27a are disposed coaxially therein, and a transparent plate 30 is provided in the opening through which the light beam passes.
Attach. The installation position of the control device 20a is when the container 10a is raised in the same manner as described above. Container 10a
Set it so that it is inserted inside the . A switching valve 31 is connected to the controller 22', and a control valve 23 is connected to this valve 31 via a cylinder 32.

When the liquid L is sequentially injected from the liquid supply pipe 16, approximately half of the case 25a is buried in the liquid L, and the light source 2
The light beam emitted from 6a and focused by the lens 27a is directly irradiated onto the bubble F and reflected, and the diffusely reflected light beam Ta by the bubble is reflected by the condenser lens 27a.
The light enters the photoelectric conversion element 28a inside. When the irradiation of the light beam shifts from the bubbles F to the liquid surface S as the liquid L rises, a signal change from the photoelectric conversion element 28a is transmitted to the controller 22', and the controller 22' operates the cylinder 32 via the switching valve 31. Then, the control valve 23 closes and the injection of the liquid L is instantly stopped.

By arranging the control device 20a inside the container 10a in this manner, the liquid level can be controlled using the foam F without any problem even if the container 10a is made of an opaque material.

FIGS. 8 to 11 show various embodiments in which the photoelectric conversion elements are arranged at different positions from the control devices 20 and 20a.

In the control device 20b shown in FIG. 8, a reflector 33 such as a reflector, a half mirror, or a hall mirror is installed at an angle in front of the condensing lens 27b, and the diffusely reflected light Tb from the bubbles F is The reflector 33 changes the course of the light Tb to the direction perpendicular to the projection axis, and the condenser lens 34 focuses the diffusely reflected light Tb caused by the bubbles to enter the photoelectric conversion element 28b.

The control device 20c shown in FIG.
After converging the diffusely reflected light Tc due to the bubbles from the condenser lens 35, it is made incident on the photoelectric conversion element 28c.

The control device 20d shown in FIG. 10 has a through hole 36 formed in the center of a condensing lens 27d, and a condenser lens 37 is integrally fixed to this hole 36. A photoelectric conversion element 28d is arranged at. The diffusely reflected light Td from the bubbles F is returned coaxially with the light projection axis, is focused by the condenser lens 37, and enters the photoelectric conversion element 28d.

The control device 20e shown in FIG. 11 has a reflector 38, such as a reflector or a half-mirror hall mirror, installed behind a condenser lens 27e, and the light emitted from the light source 26e is directed to the reflector 38.
8, is focused by a condenser lens 27e, and is irradiated onto the bubbles F in the container 10e. Below the reflector 38 is a condenser lens 40 and a photoelectric conversion element 28.
e and the diffusely reflected light rays from bubble F.
After Te is reflected by the reflector 38 and its course is reversed,
Light enters the photoelectric conversion element 28e through the lens 40.

All of the above parts, namely the condenser lens 27e, the reflector 38, the light source 26e, and the condenser lens 4
0 and the photoelectric conversion element 28e are attached inside the case 39 of the control device 20e.

With this configuration, all the parts can be housed in the case 39 of the control device 20e, making it possible to form the device into a unit, which is advantageous in terms of handling, assembly, etc.

The above control devices 20b, 20c, 20d, 20
In e, since the devices 20b to 20e are located outside the respective containers 10b, 10c, 10d, and 10e, the containers 10b to 10e need to be molded from a translucent material.

As described above, each of the photoelectric conversion elements 28b to 2
8e, it is possible to omit the complicated work of embedding a photoelectric conversion element inside the condensing lens as in the control devices 20 and 20a, and it is possible to omit the complicated work of embedding the photoelectric conversion element inside the condensing lens, as in the case of the control devices 20 and 20a. The photoelectric conversion element can be placed at an advantageous position depending on the positional relationship with the light source. In addition, the photoelectric conversion element uses a reflector to direct the reflected light from bubbles on the incident optical axis as shown in FIGS. 4, 7, 9, and 10, or from bubbles as shown in FIGS. 8 and 11. It is sufficient if it is on the extension line of the reflected optical axis.

In the above explanation, the liquid to be filled in each container may be any liquid as long as bubbles are generated on the liquid surface.
For example, the liquid level of any liquid such as soy sauce, beer, cola, etc. can be controlled using the device of the present invention.

As is clear from the above description, according to the present invention, the level of the liquid is controlled by using bubbles of the liquid filled in the container. Therefore, in the conventional liquid level control method, the control device The conventional problem of not being able to accurately stop liquid filling at the set value level due to the influence of bubbles generated on the liquid surface has been overcome. It can be solved all at once.

Furthermore, according to the method of the present invention, any bubbles are spherical in shape and have good surface gloss;
Even if the filling status and type of liquid are different, you can expect diffusely reflected light rays due to a large amount of bubbles.
The light reflected by the bubbles can reliably enter the photoelectric conversion element, and reliable operation of the device can be achieved.

In particular, according to the present invention, a light beam is irradiated onto the bubbles from a certain height level, the bubbles rise as liquid is injected, the light beam irradiation is transferred from the bubbles to the liquid, and the light beams are diffusely reflected by the bubbles. Since the liquid supply circuit is cut off when light no longer enters the photoelectric conversion element, filling of the liquid is stopped at the specified level without being affected by the height (thickness) of the bubbles on the liquid surface. The container can be filled with a specified amount of liquid.

Further, according to the present invention, it can be constructed with extremely few parts such as a photoelectric conversion element, a condensing lens, a light source, etc., the structure is simple and easy to manufacture, and the container is molded from a translucent material. If the container is made of a container or non-transparent material, the control device may be located outside the container as in the above embodiment, and if the container is made of a non-transparent material, the control device may be located inside the container. The liquid level can be reliably controlled regardless of whether the container is translucent or opaque.
Since it can be used for all containers, the versatility of this type of control device can be improved.
Further, according to the present invention, various control devices are provided in which a photoelectric conversion element through which light beams diffusely reflected by bubbles enters is placed at an arbitrary position, so that an advantageous photoelectric conversion element can be quickly adapted to the arrangement of the light source and the condensing lens. The installation position of the photoelectric conversion element can be selected, and even though the diffusely reflected light rays from the bubbles return to the light emitting side along the projection axis, there is no need to limit the photoelectric conversion element to a specific position, and photoelectric conversion can be performed at an appropriate position. It exhibits various features such as being able to arrange elements, and is extremely practical.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 and 2 show conventional control methods, FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway side view showing the first control method, FIG. 2 is a plan sectional view showing the second control method, and FIG. A front sectional view of a liquid filling device equipped with a control device according to the present invention, FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged view of A in FIG.
Figure 6 is a time chart showing the progress of filling, Figure 6 is a cross-sectional plan view showing the positional relationship between the container and the control device, and Figure 7 is a time chart showing the progress of filling.
The figure is a side sectional view showing a control method using a light-opaque container, Figures 8 to 11 show other embodiments, Figure 8 is a control device using a reflector, and Figure 9 is a control method using a reflector. Figure 10 shows a control device with a photoelectric conversion element placed in front of the condensing lens, Figure 11 shows a control device with a photoelectric conversion element placed behind the condensing lens, and Figure 11 shows a control device with a reflector placed behind the condensing lens. It is a control device. In addition, in the drawing, 1 is a filling device, 10, 10a, 1
0b, 10c, 10d, 10e are containers, 20, 2
0a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e are control devices, 26, 26a, 16b, 26c, 26d, 2
6e is a light source, 27, 27a, 27b, 27c, 2
7d, 27e are condensing lenses, 28, 28a, 2
8b, 28c, 28d, 28e are photoelectric conversion elements,
L is liquid, F is foam, T, Ta, Tb, Tc, Td, Te
is the diffusely reflected light ray by the bubbles.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. When filling a container with a liquid that generates bubbles on the surface during injection, a light beam is irradiated horizontally from a height equal to a predetermined filling level of the liquid toward a filling level location in the container. The presence of bubbles at the filling level is detected by receiving the diffusely reflected light beam of the light beam by the bubbles by a photoelectric conversion element provided on the incident optical axis or its extension that does not coincide with the normal line on the surface of the container, and then The liquid level of the liquid to be filled in the container is characterized in that the liquid supply circuit is cut off by a signal change corresponding to the interruption of the diffusely reflected light beam to the photoelectric conversion element when the liquid level rises to the filling level. Control method. 2. A light source, a lens that focuses the light rays from the light source and irradiates them toward the bubbles in the container, and transmits a signal by inputting the diffusely reflected light rays by the bubbles in the container, and also A device for emitting and receiving light comprising a photoelectric conversion element having non-coinciding incident optical axes is arranged so that the optical axes are horizontal and the optical axes are at a height equal to a predetermined filling level of the container, and The photoelectric conversion element has a control valve for liquid supply that is opened while the photoelectric conversion element is receiving the diffusely reflected light from the bubbles in the container, and a control valve that is closed when the diffusely reflected light from the bubbles is interrupted. 1. A liquid level control device for a liquid to be filled into a container, characterized in that a controller is connected to the liquid level to be filled into a container. 3. The liquid level control device for a liquid filled in a container according to claim 2, wherein the optical axis is horizontally shifted from a horizontal center line of the container. 4. In claim 3, the light source, the lens, and the photoelectric conversion element are arranged outside the container, and the light beam is transmitted through the container made of a translucent material to the foam. 1. A liquid level control device for a liquid filled in a container, characterized in that the device is configured to irradiate the liquid. 5. A liquid level control device for a liquid filled in a container according to claim 3, wherein the photoelectric conversion element is embedded inside the lens. 6. In claim 3, a reflector is installed in front of the lens, and the reflector changes the course of the diffusely reflected light beam that is reversed by being reflected by the bubbles, so that the light beam enters the photoelectric conversion element. 1. A liquid level control device for a liquid filled in a container, characterized in that it is configured to emit light. 7. In claim 3, a reflector is installed behind the lens, and the reflector changes the course of the diffusely reflected light ray that is reversed by being reflected by the bubble, so that the light ray enters the photoelectric conversion element. 1. A liquid level control device for a liquid filled in a container, characterized in that it is configured to emit light.