JPS636157A - Apparatus for detecting defect position of fabric and fabriccutting apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention provides a fabric defect position detection method for detecting the defect position of a long piece of fabric that is transported in the longitudinal direction, and a fabric cutting method for cutting the fabric at the defect position. It is related to the device.

[Conventional technology]

Fabric is usually 50mJ! It is woven with one roll having a length of 100 degrees, and multiple rolls are successively joined or separated depending on the subsequent dyeing process.

Such a long fabric may have defects such as scratches and stains during the weaving stage F1 and the subsequent dyeing process.

The disadvantage of such fabrics is that during the pre-shipment inspection stage,
After strict inspection, if the fabric has only minor defects,
The nominal length of the fabric is shipped as the value obtained by subtracting the length corresponding to the number of minor defects from the actual length of the fabric.

On the other hand, if the fabric has a major defect, the fabric is cut at the location of the defect and shipped with the defect located at the end of the fabric.

As mentioned above, if the defect of the fabric is a minor defect, the defect is not removed after inspection, but if it is a major defect, the fabric with the major defect is transferred to another process and the defect is removed. It is necessary to perform a removal process (cutting process).

For this reason, conventionally, in the inspection stage, marks are placed on the fabric at critical points using twine, etc., and in the cutting 1) i stage, the fabric is transported and the fabric is marked at the defective position using the twine as a mark. Transport was stopped and the fabric was cut using a cutting machine.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] As mentioned above, there are disadvantages in attaching marks such as strands to correspond to the defects of the fabric during inspection, and using the strands as landmarks during cutting to stop the fabric at the defect location when cutting. It was not possible to automatically cut the fabric at certain positions. This is because the mark cannot be automatically detected during cutting.

An object of the present invention is to provide a method for detecting the position of a defect in a fabric, which can automatically detect the position of a defect in a fabric.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a fabric cutting device that can automatically detect the position of a defect in a fabric and automatically cut the fabric at the defect position.

[Means for solving problems]

The method for detecting the position of a defect in a fabric according to the first aspect of the invention is to add a fluorescent mark in advance near the position of a defect on a long piece of fabric, and add a fluorescent mark so as to be opposite to the movement locus of the fluorescent mark while the fabric is being transported in a longitudinal direction. The position of the defect on the fabric is detected by detecting the fluorescent mark with the arranged fluorescent mark detector.

Further, the fabric cutting device of the second invention includes a fabric transporting means for longitudinally transporting a long piece of fabric to which a fluorescent mark has been added in advance in the vicinity of a defect position, and a fabric transporting means arranged so as to face the movement locus of the fluorescent mark. a fluorescent mark detector, an i&cutting machine disposed on the downstream side of the fluorescent mark detector in the direction of transport of the fabric; and a fluorescent mark detected by the cutting machine in response to the fluorescent mark detection output of the fluorescent mark detector and a control circuit that stops the operation of the fabric transfer means and operates the cutting machine when the fabric transfer means is located near the fabric transfer means.

[Effect]

According to the fabric defect position detection method of the first invention, a fluorescent mark is added in advance near the defect position of a long fabric, and the fluorescent mark is detected by a fluorescent mark detector while the fabric is being transported in the longitudinal direction. By doing so, the position of a defect in the fabric can be detected automatically. Further, since a fluorescent mark is added to the fabric and the fluorescent mark is detected, the defect position can be automatically detected without being affected by the color pattern of the fabric.

According to the fabric cutting device of the second aspect of the invention, a long piece of fabric to which a fluorescent mark has been added in advance in the vicinity of the defect position is transferred by the fabric transfer means, and in response to generation of fluorescent mark detection output from the fluorescent mark detector. To automatically detect the defect position of the fabric and automatically avfI the fabric in the vicinity of the defect position in order to stop the transfer operation of the fabric by the fabric transfer means and cut the fabric in the vicinity of the defect position by the cutting machine. Can be done. Also,
To automatically cut a fabric in the vicinity of a defective position without being affected by the color pattern of the fabric.

〔Example〕

An embodiment of the method for detecting the position of a defect in a fabric according to the first invention will be described based on FIG. This method of detecting the position of defects in fabric is as follows:
As shown in FIG. 1, the defective position i! of the long fabric 3! A fluorescent mark l is added in advance near the fabric 3 using an inkjet method or a spray marker method during an inspection stage, etc., and the fabric 3 is cut in the longitudinal direction (in the direction of arrow A), for example, in the cutting process at the defect position 2 of the fabric 3. ), by detecting the fluorescent mark 1 with the fluorescent mark detector 4 placed so as to face the movement trajectory of the fluorescent mark 1, the defect position 2 of the fabric 3 is detected, and the fabric 3 is cut at the defect position 2. do.

According to this fabric defect position detection method, a fluorescent mark l is added in advance near the defect position 2 of the long fabric 3, and
Since the defect position 2 of the fabric 3 is detected by detecting the fluorescent mark 1 with the fluorescent mark detector 4 while the fabric 3 is being transported in the longitudinal direction, the defect position 2 of the fabric 3 can be automatically detected.

In addition, since the fluorescent mark 1 is added to the fabric 3 and the fluorescent mark 1 is detected by the fluorescent mark detector 4, the fabric 3 is automatically detected without being affected by the color pattern of the fabric 3.
The defect position 2 can be detected, and furthermore, the fabric 3 can be automatically cut at the defect position 2.

In addition, if the fabric 3 with the fluorescent mark l added to the defect position 2 is not fed individually, but is fed continuously by joining multiple pieces in the longitudinal direction, it is necessary to cut the fabric 3 only at the defect position 2. First, it is also necessary to cut the fabric 3 at its seams. In such a case, the seam of the fabric 3 can be marked by using a fluorescent thread as the joining thread that joins the fabrics 3, or by adding a fluorescent mark to the seam using an inkjet method or a spray marker method as in defect position 2. Cutting can also be done at these points.

In addition, if the defect of the fabric 3 is a minor defect, there is no need to cut the fabric 1. In this case, count the number of defects per 1 roll of fabric and calculate the result of counting the defects for each 1 roll of fabric. It will be displayed on the display.

Next, an embodiment of the fabric cutting device of the second invention will be described based on FIGS. 1 to 12. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, this fabric cutting device cuts the defect position 2 in advance.
a fabric transfer means 5 for transferring in the longitudinal direction (in the direction of arrow A) a long fabric 3 with a fluorescent mark l added at a position near the fabric;
a fluorescent mark detector 4 disposed to face the moving trajectory of the fluorescent mark 1; a cutting machine 6 disposed on the downstream side of the fluorescent mark detector 4 in the transport direction of the fabric 3;
Control for stopping the operation of the fabric transport means 5 and activating the cutting machine 6 when the fluorescent mark 1 is located near the cutting machine 6 in response to the fluorescent mark extraction output of the fluorescent mark detector 4; It is equipped with a circuit 7.

This will be explained in more detail below.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, this fabric cutting device cuts the fabric in the vicinity of defect position 2 in advance in the inspection stage, that is, in the vicinity of defect position ii! Fluorescent mark 1 is added to the side position of 2, and 8! The loaded fabric 3 is transferred in the direction of arrow A by a driving roll and a driven roll 9, which are fabric transfer means 5, and the final fabric 3 is wound up by a winding device 10. Feed stand l set in position
A fluorescent mark detector 4 is placed on the fabric 3 so as to face the movement locus of the fluorescent mark l provided on the fabric 3, and a fluorescent mark detector 4 is placed on the feed table l.
A cutting machine 6 is placed between the fluorescent mark detector 4 and the winding device 10 on the paper.

Then, when the fabric 3 is transferred by the fabric transfer means 5 and the driven roll 9 and wound up by the take-up bag ff1lO, when the fluorescent mark detector 4 detects the fluorescent mark l, the fluorescent mark 1 is Cutting 1) The operation of the fabric transfer means 5 and the winding device 10 is stopped at the timing located directly below the fabric 3, and the cutting machine 6 is operated to cut the fabric 3. After cutting, the core of the winding device 10 is replaced and the fabric transfer means 5 and the winding device 10 are operated to start winding the portion of the fabric 3 after the cut point again. 13 and 14 are drive motors.

Next, the control circuit 7 will be explained in detail based on FIGS. 3 and 4. As shown in FIG. 3, this control circuit 7 receives a fluorescent mark detector 4 and a switch 12 as inputs, and operates a driving motor 13 of the fabric transport means 5, a driving motor 14 of the winding device 10, and a cutting machine. [It controls 6, a timer 15° and a flip-flop 16. It is composed of a motor drive circuit 17° and a cutting machine drive circuit 18.

The operation will be explained. First, as shown in FIG. 4(A), when the switch 12 is turned on and a cent signal is applied to the flip-flop 16, the Q output of the flip-flop 16 becomes high level as shown in FIG. 4(B), and the motor drive The circuit 17 operates as shown in FIG.
．． +4 is rotated to transfer and wind up the fabric 3.

When there is a fluorescent mark l while the fabric 3 is being transferred and wound up and the fluorescent mark detector 4 generates a fluorescent mark detection output as shown in FIG. 4(C), the fall of this fluorescent mark detection output Timer 15 starts and the 41st i! G (D
) for a time T. During this time T, the fluorescent mark 1 is moved from the position directly under the fluorescent mark detector 4 to the cutter 6.
This is the time required to transport the fabric 3 to a position directly below the .

When the output of the timer circuit 15 falls as shown in FIG. 4(D), the flip-flop 16 is reset by this fall, and the Q output becomes low level as shown in FIG. 4(B), causing the motor to The drive circuit 17 stops the drive motors 13 and 14 as shown in FIG. 4(F). In addition, since the Q output of the flip-flop 16 becomes high level,
The cutting machine drive circuit 18 operates as shown in FIG. 4(E), and the fabric 3 is cut in the vicinity of the defect position 2.

Next, regarding the fluorescent mark detector 4, FIGS.
The explanation will be based on 2E.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, this fluorescent mark detector 4 detects the fluorescent mark 1 formed on the fabric 3 being transported in the direction of arrow A. Ultraviolet lamps 22A and 22B, such as black light blue discharge lamps, which irradiate ultraviolet rays (indicated by arrows B and B3) to the fabric 3 being sent to the First and second optical sensors 23A, 23B arranged to detect the light (indicated by arrows B2 and B4) from the fabric 3, and a difference detecting the output difference between the first and second optical sensors 23A, 23B. A dynamic amplifier 24D, a bandpass filter 26 that removes the lighting frequency components and DC components of the ultraviolet lamps 22A and 22B from the output of the differential amplifier 24D, and a threshold value that compares the output of the bandpass filter 26 with the threshold value. A circuit 25 is provided.

The pigeon house and the ultraviolet lamps 22A and 22B are arranged so that their tube axes are perpendicular to the direction of transport of the fabric 3 (direction to the arrow) and lined up one after the other with respect to the direction of transfer of the fabric 3, as shown in FIG. and optical sensor 23A.

23B is arranged so as to sandwich the ultraviolet lamps 22A and 23B, and the interval between them is 10 to 20 cm.
They face each other with an interval of 0 to 30 meters. In FIG. 6, numeral 33 indicates a case in which the ultraviolet lamps 22A, 22B and the optical sensors 23A, 23B are attached.

The lighting frequency of the ultraviolet lamps 22A and 22B is 100 times or more the frequency corresponding to the width of the fluorescent mark 1, and is usually set to about 1 to 30 kHz.
In this example, it is set to 30 kl (z).

The bandpass filter 26 includes ultraviolet lamps 22A and 22B.
a low-pass filter 27 that removes the lighting frequency component of
It is composed of a bypass filter 28 that removes a direct current component (due to the fabric 3 emitting fluorescence), and as shown in FIG.
For the frequency f corresponding to the time of incidence on (1/10
) r to 1Of and pass 100% in the frequency range from (1
/100) It has a frequency characteristic that cuts off in the frequency range below E and above 100f, and the low-pass filter 2
The cutoff frequency of the bypass filter 28 is set to 10f, and the cutoff frequency of the bypass filter 28 is set to (1/10)t.

Figure 8 shows the spectral distribution of each party, where curve C1 shows the spectral distribution of an ultraviolet lamp, curve C2 shows the spectral distribution of fluorescence (visible light) emitted from fluorescent mark l, and curve C
3 shows the sensitivity distribution of the optical sensor 23, νC1 is the center wavelength of ultraviolet light, and νc2 is the center wavelength of fluorescence.

For example, when the part of the fabric 3 other than the fluorescent mark addition part that is moving in the direction of arrow A is located below the ultraviolet lamp 22A and the optical sensor 23A as shown in FIG. 9, the light from the ultraviolet lamp 22A The ultraviolet rays are simply reflected by the portions of the fabric 3 other than the fluorescent mark attachment portions and incident on the optical sensor 23A.

- On the other hand, as shown in FIG.
is located near the bottom of the ultraviolet lamp 22A and the optical sensor 23A, the ultraviolet rays from the ultraviolet lamp 22 are reflected by the fluorescent mark 1 and enter the optical sensor 23A, and the fluorescence emitted from the fluorescent mark 1 is reflected by the optical sensor 23A. It will be incident.

The same applies to the ultraviolet lamp 22B and the optical sensor 23B.

Next, for example, as shown in FIG. Commercial frequency such as mercury lamp <50Hz or 60Hz
) The operation in the case where illuminating lights 30 and 31 are arranged will be described. The light from these illumination lights 30 and 31 is the waveform arrow D! .

As shown by D2, it is reflected from the surface of the fabric 3 and is detected by the optical sensor 2.
3A and 23B, or passes through the fabric 3 and enters the optical sensors 23A and 23B.

At this time, the output of the optical sensor 23A is as shown in FIG.
At the same time, the fluorescence from the source enters the optical sensor 23^, and the disturbance light such as the reflected light and transmitted light enters the optical sensor 23A, and the driving power frequency of the ultraviolet lamp 22A is changed to the voltage of the double-wave rectified waveform of the AC signal at the commercial frequency. (For example, a voltage with a waveform superimposed on a voltage with a waveform similar to a double-wave rectified waveform of >30kHz will appear.) On the other hand, no fluorescence is generated in the front and rear portions of the fluorescent mark 1 on the fabric 3, and the voltage of the optical sensor 23A is Only the voltage caused by the disturbance light appears as the output.

Further, the output of the optical sensor 23B is as shown in FIG. At the same time, the disturbance light such as the reflected light and transmitted light enters the optical sensor 23B, and the ultraviolet lamp 2
A voltage with a waveform that is close to the double-wave rectified waveform of the driving power supply frequency (for example, 30 kHz) of 2B (for example, 30 kHz) appears. First, only the voltage caused by the disturbance light appears in the output of the optical sensor 23B.

However, since the optical sensor 23A and the optical sensor 23B are arranged side by side in the feeding direction of the fabric 3,
The timing at which fluorescent mark 1 is positioned near the bottom is off,
- On the other hand, the voltage caused by the disturbance light changes in the same way in both cases, so there is no deviation.

Therefore, if the difference between the two is taken by the differential amplifier 24D, the output will be only the component due to the fluorescence from the fluorescent mark 1, as shown in FIG. 1), and the component due to the disturbance light will be removed.

When the output of the differential amplifier 24D is passed through the low-pass filter 27, the lighting frequency components of the ultraviolet lamps 22A and 22B are removed, and when it is further passed through the bypass filter 28 to remove the DC component, as shown in Fig. 1) (E). The waveform becomes
By comparing this with the threshold value VTR in the threshold circuit 25, an output as shown in 1)ull] (F) is obtained.

Note that in the explanation of Figure 1), the effect of disturbance light is removed by the differential amplifier 24D when the fabric 3 does not emit fluorescence, but when the fabric 3 does not emit fluorescence, The influence of low-pass filter 27
Even if the fabric 3 emits fluorescence and disturbance light is added, the influence of the fluorescence of the fabric 3 and the disturbance light is removed by the differential IJI amplification 524D and the low-pass filter 27.

According to the fabric cutting device of this embodiment, the long fabric 3 to which a fluorescent mark l has been added in advance near the defect position 2 is transferred by the fabric transfer means 5, and the fluorescent mark detection output from the fluorescent mark detector 4 is The fabric 3 by the fabric transfer means 5 in response to the occurrence
In order to cut the fabric 3 near the defect position 2 by the cutting machine 6 by stopping the transport operation of the fabric 3, the fabric 3 is automatically detected in the vicinity of the defect position 2 by automatically detecting the defect position 2 of the fabric 3 can do. Further, the fabric 3 can be automatically cut in the vicinity of the defect position 2 without being affected by the color pattern of the fabric 3.

Furthermore, according to the fabric cutting device, the first and second optical sensors 2 are arranged in front and behind with respect to the transport direction of the fabric 3.
3A and 23B is detected by a differential amplifier 24D, and the output of the differential amplifier 24D is subjected to signal processing. Even if a disturbance component is superimposed on the output of the sensors 23A, 23B, this disturbance component is canceled out by taking the difference in the output of the first and second photosensors 23A, 23B, and is caused by the fluorescence of the fluorescent mark l. Only the component remains, and the fluorescent mark 1 can be detected without being affected by the disturbance component.

In addition, ultraviolet lamps 22A and 22B that light at high frequency
A differential amplifier 24D is used to irradiate the fabric 3 with ultraviolet rays from
The fluorescence from the fluorescent mark l in the output of the optical sensor 23
UV lamp 2 for the frequency corresponding to the time of incidence on the
The lighting frequencies of the ultraviolet lamps 22A and 22B are sufficiently layered, and the lighting frequency components of the ultraviolet lamps 22A and 22B can be removed, and after removing the DC component, the threshold value VT is
By comparing with R, even if the fabric 3 has fluorescent characteristics, if there is a difference in the amount of fluorescence between the fluorescent mark l and the fabric 3, the fluorescent mark l can be reliably detected without changing the threshold value VTR.

Further, ultraviolet lamps 22A and 22B in the fabric 3
If the parts facing the optical sensors 423A and 23B shake, the output level of the differential amplifier 240 will change due to this shaking, which may cause malfunction. lamp 22
Since the portions facing A, 22B and the optical sensors 23A, 23B are moved on a flat plate, shaking of the fabric 3 can be prevented, and malfunctions can be prevented.

Note that if the sensitivity distribution of the optical sensors 23A and 23B partially overlaps with the spectral distribution of ultraviolet rays, the optical sensor 23
If a filter for removing ultraviolet rays is placed in front of the light receiving parts of A and 23B, components of ultraviolet rays can be removed from the optical sensors 23A and 23.
It never appears in the output of B.

Further, in the fluorescent mark detector 4, the optical sensor 23A,
For 23B, ultraviolet lamp 22A.

22B were provided respectively, but as shown in FIG.
It is also possible to arrange the UV lamp 22 so that its tube axis is parallel to the transport direction of the fabric 3, and use one UV lamp 22 for both the optical sensors 23A and 23B.

In addition to the above-mentioned fluorescent mark detector 4, a first
3 and 14 are also conceivable. This fluorescent mark detector does not simply detect the level using the threshold circuit 25 as shown in FIGS. 5 to 12, but instead performs advanced signal processing using the circuit blocks described below. This is what I decided to do.

That is, the bypass filter 28 shown in FIG. 14(A)
By comparing the output with the threshold value VTR in the threshold circuit 41, the waveform is shaped to obtain a signal as shown in FIG. 14. Create a pulse with a width of time TA as shown in Figure 14 (D). This time TA is determined by the arrangement interval of the optical sensors 23A, 23B and the transport speed of the fabric 3.

Further, the output of the bypass filter 28 is inverted as shown in FIG. 14(B) by an inverting circuit 43, and the output of this inverting circuit 43 is compared with a threshold value VTF+ in a threshold circuit 44 to shape the waveform. A signal as shown in FIG. 14(E) is obtained.

Then, the output of the timing circuit 42 and the threshold other circuit 44
is added to the AND circuit 45, and the configuration is such that an output as shown in FIG. 14(F) is obtained from the AND circuit 45.

The speed converter 46 changes the time TA of the output pulse of the timing circuit 42 in accordance with the transport speed of the fabric 3. The other configurations are the same as those in FIGS. 5 to 12.

With this configuration, by appropriately setting the time TA of the output pulse of the timing circuit 42, the fluorescent mark 1 on the fabric 3 passes near the bottom of the optical sensor 23A, and then passes near the bottom of the optical sensor 23B. The fluorescent mark detection signal is output only when a positive polarity signal appears in the differential amplifier 24D and a negative polarity signal appears within the time TA. become,
It is possible to prevent a fluorescent mark detection signal from being erroneously output due to power supply noise (single noise) such as a surge.

In addition, in order to be able to detect the fluorescent mark 1 even when the fluorescent mark 1 on the fabric 3 emits fluorescence, the fluorescent mark detector 4 turns on the ultraviolet lamps 22A and 22B at high frequency and also uses the differential amplifier 24D. The output of the filter is passed through the bandpass filter 26 and then subjected to signal processing, but from the viewpoint of only removing the influence of ambient light,
It is not necessary to operate the ultraviolet lamps 22A, 22B at high frequency and pass the output of the differential amplifier 240 through the bandpass filter 26; in other words, the ultraviolet lamps 22A,
22B may be turned on at a commercial frequency, and the signal may be simply processed without passing through the bandpass filter 26.

In addition, although the above embodiment shows an example of a fabric cutting device that cuts the fabric 3 at the defect position 2, if a plurality of fabrics 3 are consecutively joined, it is necessary to cut at the joints as well. . In this case, by attaching a fluorescent mark to the seam or using a fluorescent thread as a joining thread, it is possible to automatically cut the seam.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the fabric defect position detection method of the present invention, a fluorescent mark is added in advance near the defect position of a long fabric, and the fluorescent mark is detected by a fluorescent mark detector while the fabric is being transported in the longitudinal direction. Since the position of the defect in the fabric is detected by the method, the position of the defect in the fabric can be automatically detected.

Further, since a fluorescent mark is added to the fabric and the fluorescent mark is detected, the defect position can be automatically detected without being affected by the color pattern of the fabric.

According to the fabric cutting device of the second aspect of the invention, a long piece of fabric to which a fluorescent mark has been added in advance in the vicinity of the defect position is transferred by the fabric transfer means, and in response to generation of fluorescent mark detection output from the fluorescent mark detector. To automatically detect the defect position of the fabric and automatically cut the fabric in the vicinity of the defect position in order to stop the fabric transfer operation by the fabric transfer means and cut the fabric in the vicinity of the defect position by the cutting machine. Can be done. In addition, the fabric can be automatically cut in the vicinity of the defect location without being affected by the color pattern of the fabric.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram for explaining an embodiment of the fabric defect detection method of the first invention, FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the fabric cutting device of the second invention, and FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control circuit, FIG. 4 is a timing diagram of each part, FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an example of the specific configuration of the fluorescent mark detector, and FIG. A schematic diagram showing the positional relationship, Figure 7 is a frequency characteristic diagram of the bandpass filter, Figure 8 is a diagram showing the spectral distribution of ultraviolet rays and fluorescence, and the sensitivity distribution of the optical sensor, Figures 9 and 10.
The figure is a schematic diagram showing the state of light incident on the optical sensor, 1st)
12 is a schematic diagram showing a modification of FIG. 6, FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing another example of the fluorescent mark detector, and FIG. 14 is a diagram showing each part of the fluorescent mark detector. FIG. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Fluorescent mark, 2... Defect position, 3... Fabric, 4... Fluorescent mark detector, 5... Fabric transport means,
6...Cutting machine

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) A fluorescent mark is added in advance near the defect position of a long piece of fabric, and a fluorescent mark detector placed so as to face the movement locus of the fluorescent mark while the fabric is being transported in the longitudinal direction detects the fluorescent mark. A method for detecting the position of a defect in a fabric by detecting the position of a defect in the fabric. (2) A fabric transport means for longitudinally transporting a long piece of fabric to which a fluorescent mark has been added in the vicinity of the defect position; a fluorescent mark detector disposed to face the movement locus of the fluorescent mark; a cutting machine disposed downstream of the mark detector in the direction of transport of the fabric; and a cutting machine that cuts the fabric when the fluorescent mark is located near the cutting machine in response to the fluorescent mark detection output of the fluorescent mark detector A fabric cutting device comprising a control circuit that stops the operation of the transfer means and operates the cutting machine.