TW201725161A - Conveyed object identification control system and conveying device including an imaging device, a conveyed object control device, a conveyed object detecting device, a conveyed object determining device and a system control device - Google Patents

Abstract

This invention provides a conveyed object identification control system and a conveying device that can improve the identification accuracy of a conveyed object realized by image determination in response to increased transportation speed. The conveyed object identification control system includes: (1) an imaging device for continuously capturing images of the conveyed object, (2) a conveyed object control device configured to be capable of switching between a passage state and a control state of a conveyed object passage control region, (3) a conveyed object detecting device for detecting a condition of the conveyed object being arranged in a first detecting area by performing image detection process to the image data of the first detecting area, (4) a conveyed object determining device for determining the conveyed object when the conveyed object detecting device conducts the detection process, and (5) a system control device for switching the passage state and the control state of the conveyed object control device in accordance with the determining result of the conveyed object determining device.

Description

Conveyor identification control system and conveying device

The present invention relates to a transport object discriminating control system and a transporting apparatus, and more particularly to a transporting material discriminating control technique for discriminating and controlling a transporting object moving on a transport path, which is suitable for use in a vibrating transporting apparatus.

In general, in the transport device, it is determined that the transport posture is judged by the inspection of the appearance of the transported material in the middle of transport, and the sorting (excluding) or posture of the transported object is performed based on the judgment result. Control of conveyed objects such as change (flip processing). In particular, in a vibrating conveying device such as a feeder, it is necessary to convey a conveyed object that is supplied in an orderly manner in a conveying direction along the conveying path by vibrating the conveying body, and to arrange the conveying objects by vibration action and conveying path shape. In a predetermined posture, it is necessary to discriminate the posture of the conveyed object on the transport path and control according to the discrimination result.

In the vibrating transport device such as the feeder, there is a system configured as disclosed in Patent Document 1 in the vibrating transport device such as the feeder, that is, between the light projecting portion 61 and the light receiving portion 62 of the transmissive photodetector 6. The long hole 71b opened in the transport panel 71 is formed, and the area opened by the long hole 71b becomes the workpiece detection area LA, and the presence and direction of the workpiece W can be judged based on the existence ratio of the workpiece W in the area LA. Further, in this case, the position of the conveyed object is detected by a separately provided trigger sensor, and the detection signal is used as a trigger signal to discriminate the output of the transmissive photodetector 6.

On the other hand, as another transport object discriminating control system, there is a system as disclosed in Patent Document 2, that is, when the tip end of the workpiece is detected by the trigger sensor 30, the image of the workpiece is captured by the image pickup device 40. The captured image is sent to an image processing device for processing, thereby discriminating the posture or the quality of the workpiece. [Prior Technical Literature] [Patent Literature]

Patent Document 1: Japanese Gazette, JP-A-2013-173611 Patent Document 2: Japanese Gazette, JP-A-2003-281506

However, in the conveyed material discrimination control system described in the above Patent Document 1, there is a problem that the output value of the transmissive photodetector 6 is between the range of the workpiece detecting area LA and the shape of the workpiece W. The relationship is determined. Therefore, if the workpiece of a special contour shape is not applicable as in the example of the figure, and the appearance is only in the presence or absence of a pattern or a mark, the applicable range of the workpiece is extremely narrow, and, in order to apply to different In the workpiece, it is necessary to perform a complicated modification or adjustment operation such as changing the shape of the long hole 71b or changing the threshold value of the output potential of the transmission type photodetector for adjustment and discrimination. In addition, in order to make an accurate judgment using the method, it is necessary to detect a trigger signal by a separately provided sensor to detect the position of the conveyed object.

On the other hand, in the system for determining the image of the workpiece by the processing of the image of the workpiece as shown in the above Patent Document 2, since it can be distinguished by various feature points of the appearance of the workpiece, it is highly adaptable to the shape of the workpiece and can be distinguished. This is an advantage of the posture of various workpieces. However, the problem of shortening the image processing time as pointed out in Patent Document 2 has been easily solved with the improvement of the computer processing capability in recent years, but the image processing time is shortened and the image processing is based on image processing. There is a negative correlation between the judgment accuracy. Therefore, how to improve the judgment accuracy while coping with the high speed of the workpiece conveyance speed is still a big problem. Further, in this method, in order to perform accurate determination at high speed, it is necessary to additionally detect a trigger signal indicating the position of the workpiece.

In particular, in electronic devices, in recent years, large and rapid miniaturization has progressed, and high-speed and high-density supply is required. Therefore, the time allowance for image determination is becoming small. In addition, since high-speed and high-density component supply is performed, if a component having an abnormal posture or a defective component is supplied, the time loss due to the stop of the system or the like becomes larger than before, and thus the phase is required. Higher discrimination accuracy than before.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made in order to solve the above problems, and a problem is that in a transport object discriminating control system that transmits a captured image of a transported object to identify a transported object and controls the result based on the discriminating result, In response to the increase in the speed of conveyance, the accuracy of the conveyance of the conveyed object by image judgment is improved.

In view of the above-described actual circumstances, the transport object discriminating control system of the present invention is characterized in that it includes imaging devices (CM1, CM2) which are continuously positioned at a predetermined portion of the transport path (121) at a predetermined photographing interval (Ts). The conveyance (CA) is photographed; the conveyance control device (OPS, OPR) is configured to be capable of switching between a passing state and a control state, the passing state being that the conveyed object (CA) passes through the conveying path ( 121) a state of a control region (MES, MER) on which the control region (MES, MER) of the transport object (CA) on the transport path (121) is controlled a conveyance detecting device (MPU, RAM) that passes through any of a plurality of captured images (GPX) captured by the imaging device (CM1, CM2) at the shooting interval (Ts) The image data in the first detection area (ME1) is subjected to image detection processing, thereby performing conveyance detection for detecting that the conveyed object (CA) is disposed in the first detection area (ME1) Processing, its The first detection area (ME1) has a range (LD1) and is disposed adjacent to an upstream side of the control area (MES, MER), and the range (LD1) is based on the transport path (121) The relationship between the transport speed (Vs) of the transport object (CA) and the photographing interval (Ts) is set in advance to always include all of the transport objects passing through the transport path (121) ( a range of images of CA); a conveyance determining device (MPU, RAM) that detects that the conveyed object (CA) is disposed in the first detection area by using the conveyed object detecting device (MPU, RAM) In the case of ME1), a conveyance determination process for judging the conveyed matter (CA) based on an image of at least the determination target portion (CAs1 to CAs4) of the conveyed matter (CA); and a system control device (MPU, a RAM) that sets the conveyance control device (OPS, OPR) according to a determination form corresponding to the determination result of the conveyed object (CA) obtained by the conveyed object determining device (MPU, RAM) The pass state and the control state Switch. Here, the above-described control state refers to a state in which the conveyed object is turned over, excluded, or guided to another place.

According to the present invention, it is possible to continuously perform imaging at a predetermined imaging interval by using an imaging device, and by performing image detection processing on image data in the first detection region, it is possible to arrange the image in any of the captured images. The conveyance in the detection area is detected, so that it is not necessary to generate a trigger signal for detecting the position of each conveyance as in the prior art, wherein the first detection area has a relationship in advance based on the relationship between the conveyance speed and the shooting interval. It is set to always include the range of images of all the conveyed objects that pass through the conveying path. Further, by processing the image data of the determination target portion included in the image, it is possible to reliably extract information related to the determination target portion. Therefore, in the case where the transported articles are transported in succession or the like, it is not necessary to consider the omission of the detection of the respective transported objects, and it is not necessary to form a gap or the like between the transported objects in advance, so that high-speed transport or high-density transport of the transported articles is easily achieved, and The overall structure of the conveyance discrimination control system is simply constructed. Further, since it is only necessary to process the image data in the first detection area set in advance among the plurality of captured images that have been continuously captured, it is possible to perform the image for determining the conveyed object at high speed and with high precision. Detection processing.

Preferably, in the present invention, the transport object discriminating control system further includes a transport object passing detecting device (MPU, RAM), and the transporting object passes through the detecting device (MPU, RAM) to use the image capturing device (CM1, CM2). Image detection processing is performed on image data of the conveyed matter (CA) in the second detection area (ME2) in any one of a plurality of captured images (GPX) photographed at the photographing interval (Ts) Thereby detecting the fact that the transport object (CA) is output through the control area (MES) and to the downstream side, wherein the second detection area (ME2) has a range (LD2) and is The downstream side of the control area (MES) is disposed adjacently, and the range (LD2) is based on the transport speed (Vs) of the transported object (CA) on the transport path (121) and the photographing interval (Ts) The relationship between the two is preset to always include a range of images of at least a part of all of the transported objects (CA) passing through the transport path (121); in the system control device (MPU, RAM) As long as the previous conveyance (CA 1) the discrimination form corresponds to the passing state, and the discrimination form of the latter conveyed object (CA2) corresponds to the control state, and the front is detected by the conveyance passing detection means (MPU, RAM) When a conveyance (CA1) passes through the control area (MES) and outputs the situation to the downstream side, switching of the conveyance control device (OPS) from the passage state to the control state is performed.

Thereby, the first detection area is disposed adjacent to the upstream side of the control area, and the image data of the second detection area disposed adjacent to the downstream side of the control area is implemented by the conveyed object passing detecting means. The image detecting process can detect that the conveyed object passes through the control area and is output to the downstream side. Therefore, when the conveyed object control device determines that the conveyed object control device is in the passing state based on the predetermined discrimination form (for example, good product) of the conveyed object in the first detection region, the conveyed matter judging device does not obtain the next one. When the conveyed object is the result of the determination of the same predetermined discrimination form (for example, a good product), the conveyed object passing through the detecting means detects the same predetermined discrimination form (for example, a good product) passing through the control area and When the downstream side is output, the conveyance control device can be switched from the passing state to the control state by the system control device. Thereby, even when the conveyed object is conveyed at a high speed and high density, the conveyed object can be controlled at high speed and reliably.

In the system control device (MPU, RAM), in the system control device (MPU, RAM), when the result of the determination of the conveyed object determining device (MPU, RAM) is that the transported object (CA) is in a predetermined discrimination form ( For example, in the case of a good product, the transported object control device (OPS) is in the passing state and the transported object (CA) is passed through, and when the transported matter passes through the detecting device (MPU, RAM), the same as described above is used. It is prescribed that the previous conveyance (CA1) of the discrimination form (for example, a good product) is detected by the control area (MES) and output to the downstream side, and the latter conveyance is not obtained by the conveyance observation means (CA2) In the same discrimination form (for example, good product), the conveyance control device (OPS) is returned to the control state, and the conveyance control device (OPS) is maintained at the other time. State the control state. Thereby, only the conveyed object which is a predetermined determination form (for example, a good product) can be passed through the control area by the conveyed object judging device, and the other conveyed objects are controlled in the control region. Therefore, it is not limited to the case where the conveyed object is determined to be different from the above-described discrimination form (for example, defective), and even if a detection omission or a determination error occurs, the conveyed object other than the predetermined discrimination form (for example, a good product) is in the Since the control area is also controlled, it is possible to surely avoid the fact that the conveyed material of the different discrimination form (for example, defective) is still supplied.

In the present invention, it is preferable that in the transported substance judging device (MPU, RAM), the transported object is not detected by the transported object detecting process of the transported object detecting device (MPU, RAM) When the (CA) is placed in the first detection area (ME1), the conveyed object determination processing performed on the determination target portions (CAs1 to CAs4) of the conveyed object (CA) is not performed. In the present invention, since the image is continuously taken at a predetermined interval without detecting the position of the conveyed object by the origin sensor or the like as described above, there is a possibility that a conveyance is caused by a gap or the like between the conveyed objects. The image is not included in the first detection area of the captured image. Further, in this case, it is not possible to make a determination by the conveyed object determination means in the first detection area. Therefore, the conveyance detection processing for detecting whether the image of the target portion is included in the first detection area is detected, and the conveyance determination processing is performed only when the conveyed object is disposed in the first detection area, otherwise Then, the conveyance determination processing is not performed, whereby the processing outside the first detection area can be omitted, and the unnecessary determination processing can be omitted.

In the present invention, it is preferred that the conveying of one of the conveyed objects is performed for the length LD1 of the first detecting area (ME1) along the conveying direction (F) of the conveying path (121). When the length in the direction (F) is LDS, the imaging interval (period) is Ts, and the transport speed is Vs, when the natural number of n=1 to 10, the value of the following formula is established: , LD1 ≥ LDS + n × α = LDS + n × Ts × Vs. In this way, all the conveyed objects are always detected by the conveyed object detecting device in a state where they are disposed in the first detection area, and are judged by the conveyed object judging device, so that it is possible for any conveyed object. Make judgments reliably. Here, it is more preferable that the range n is in the range of 3 to 7.

Preferably, in the present invention, the length LD2 of the second detection area (ME2) along the conveying direction (F) of the conveying path (121) is the conveying direction of one of the conveying objects ( F) The value above the length LDS. As a result, when the conveyed object is not detected in the second detection area (ME2), it is in a state of being passed through and outputted from the control area. Therefore, it is possible to detect that the conveyed object passes through the control area and outputs the same. In particular, it is preferable that LD2 ≥ LDS + n × α = LDS + n × Ts × Vs (n = 1 to 10). As a result, when one of the conveyed objects is detected in the second detection area by the conveyed material detecting process, it is known that the conveyed object has passed through the control area and is output to the downstream side.

Preferably, in the present invention, the first detection area (ME1), the second detection area (ME2), and the control area (MES) are set as an integrated search area (SAS) for the search. The image detection processing in the area (SAS) performs the conveyance detection processing. Thereby, according to the process of moving the conveyed material from the upstream side to the downstream side, it is possible to detect the conveyed object at any position in the search area including the control area (MES) and both sides thereof, and to perform the position thereof. determine.

Preferably, in the present invention, the transport object discriminating control system further includes a first transporter counting device and a second transporter counting device, and the first transporter counting device will pass the first detecting region (ME1) The number (N) of the transported objects (CA) is counted, and the second transporter counting device will pass the number (M) of the transported objects (CA) of the second detection area (ME2) Or the conveyed matter (CA) that gives the judgment result corresponding to the passing state and is the conveyed object that has passed through the second detecting area (ME2) or the control area (MES) ( The number of CAs (M) is counted. Thereby, the number of the conveyed objects (the number of introductions N) that have entered the control area can be counted by the first conveyed material counting device, and the number of the conveyed objects that have passed through the control area can be counted by the second conveyed material counting device ( Since the number is counted by the number or the number of good products M), the yield, the supply rate, and the like can be obtained.

Preferably, in the present invention, the transport object discriminating control system further includes at least the first detection area (ME1) and the second detection area (ME2) of the plurality of captured images (GPX) A data storage device (MPU, MM) for storing image data in the inside, and a data display device (MPU, DP1) for reading and displaying the past image data stored in the data storage device (MPU, MM) (DP2); the transported object determination device (MPU, RAM) is configured to perform the image detection processing on the past image data stored by the data storage device (MPU, MM) And determining the transported object (CA) based on an image of at least the determination target portion (CAs1 to CAs4) in the first detection area (ME1). Further, as the image data to be stored, image data of the entire search area (SAS) including the control area (MES) is preferable, and is not limited to the first detection area (ME1) and the The image data in the second detection area (ME2) is described. Further, in the point that the transport form of the transported object can be confirmed in a larger range, it is more preferable to capture the image (GPX) or the image data in the predetermined image area (GPY) instead of being limited as above. Range of image data. In this case, it is preferable to further change the setting of the image detection processing executed by the conveyed object determining means (MPU, RAM). In this case, by repeating the image detection processing for the image data and performing the image detection processing (the conveyance detection processing and the conveyed material determination processing) again, it is possible to easily perform the drawing while confirming the determination result. Adjustment work like detection processing.

In the present invention, it is preferable that the conveying path (121) conveys the conveying object by vibrating in a direction along a conveying direction (F) of the conveying object (CA) ( CA) correcting the position of the first detection area (ME1) in the captured image (GPX) when the imaging device (CM1, CM2) is stationary to eliminate the transmission path due to shooting The position of the captured image (GPX) caused by the vibration of (121) changes with respect to the conveyance path (121). According to this configuration, it is possible to eliminate the displacement of the detection area in the image processing area of the captured image due to the vibration of the transport body with respect to the transport path, and therefore, it is possible to prevent the shift of the image processing position due to the misalignment. The conveyance detecting process and the conveyed matter judging process are performed at a fixed position on the conveying path. Therefore, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the control of the conveyed object is poor due to the above-described misalignment, and it is possible to reliably perform the control of the conveyed object in an accurate form. Further, it is preferable to perform the same correction for the control region (MES) or the second detection region (ME2).

In this case, it is preferable that the conveyed object determining device (MPU, RAM) detects a specificity on the conveying path (121) captured in the captured image (GPX) by the image detecting process. The position of the part, and the position of the first detection area (ME1), the second detection area (ME2), or the control area (MES) is corrected according to the position. It is also possible to calculate the amount of misalignment of each region with respect to the conveying path due to the vibration of the conveying path by using the amplitude of the predetermined conveying path and the value of the vibration period at each shooting, and to capture the image according to the amount of the displacement. The position of each of the regions is corrected. However, by detecting the position of the specific portion on the transport path in the captured image by image processing, it is possible to correct the vibration of the actual transport body displayed in the captured image. Therefore, the position of each region can be set reliably and with high precision. As a specific part on the conveyance path, the mark can be displayed using the position displayed on the conveyance path.

Next, the transport device of the present invention is characterized by comprising a transport mechanism (12) having the transport path (121) and the transport object discriminating control system.

In the present invention, it is preferable that the transport device further includes an excitation mechanism for vibrating the transport path (121) and an excitation control device (CL12), and the excitation control device (CL12) transmits and transports according to the use. The object determination device (MPU, RAM) controls the driving form of the excitation mechanism by determining the determination form corresponding to the determination result of the conveyance (CA). The driving form of the control target includes a stop of driving of the excitation mechanism, a change in the drive frequency of the excitation mechanism, and a change in the drive voltage. Thereby, it is possible to adjust the conveyance form of the conveyed object (the conveyance speed, the stability of the conveyance posture, etc.). (invention effect)

According to the present invention, it is possible to obtain a transport object discriminating control system that controls the transported object by the processing of the captured image of the transported object and controls the transported object based on the determination form corresponding to the determination result, thereby achieving a speed increase in response to the transport speed. It is an excellent effect of improving the discrimination accuracy of the component judged by the image.

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. First, the overall structure of an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 1 . Fig. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing the configuration of a drive control system of the transport device 10 and a transport object discrimination control system of the transport device 10.

The conveying device 10 is a vibrating conveying device including a parts feeder 11 and a linear feeder 12, wherein the feeder 11 is provided with a bowl-shaped conveying body 110 provided with a spiral conveying path 111, and a linear feeder 12 includes a transport body 120 having a linear transport path 121, and the transport path 121 is provided with an inlet configured to receive a transported object from an exit of the transport path 111 of the feeder 11. In the conveyed material discrimination control system of the present embodiment, the conveyed material CA on the transport path 121 of the transport body 120 of the linear feeder 12 is detected and determined based on the captured image GPX. Further, in the present invention, the configuration of the vibrating transport device is not limited to the various transport devices that transport the transport CA along the transport path. Further, even the vibrating conveyor is not limited to the combination of the feeder 11 and the linear feeder 12, and can be used in other types of conveying apparatuses such as a circulating feeder. Further, even in the case of the above combination, the conveyance CA on the conveyance path 121 of the linear feeder 12 is not limited to be detected, and the conveyed material CA on the conveyance path 111 of the feeder 11 may be detected.

The feeder 11 is driven and controlled by the controller CL11. Further, the linear feeder 12 is driven and controlled by the controller CL12. The controllers CL11 and CL12 AC drive the feeder 11 and the excitation mechanism of the linear feeder 12 (including an electromagnetic driving body or a piezoelectric driving body) and vibrate the conveying bodies 110 and 120 to form the conveying paths 111 and 121. The conveyed material CA moves the form in a predetermined conveying direction F. Further, the controllers CL11, CL12 are connected to the detection processing unit DTU via an input/output circuit (I/O) which is the main body of the conveyance discrimination control system and has an image processing function.

In addition, when the controllers CL11 and CL12 perform predetermined operation input (debug operation) on the arithmetic processing unit MPU, which will be described later, which executes an operation program to be described later via a mouse or the like, the operation input devices SP1 and SP2, etc., according to the above-described operation program. The drive conveyor 10 is stopped. At this time, according to the above-described operation program, for example, the image detection processing in the detection processing unit DTU is also stopped. The details of the operation of the debugging operation and the operation of the corresponding operation will be described later.

The detection processing unit DTU has a core processing structure of an arithmetic processing unit MPU (micro processing unit) such as a personal computer. In the illustrated example, the arithmetic processing unit MPU includes central processing units CPU1, CPU2, cache memory CCM, and memory control. MCL, chipset CHS, etc. Further, image processing circuits GP1 and GP2 respectively connected to the cameras CM1 and CM2 as imaging devices and used for image processing are provided in the detection processing unit DTU. The image processing circuits GP1, GP2 are connected to the image processing memories GM1, GM2, respectively. The outputs of the image processing circuits GP1 and GP2 are also connected to the arithmetic processing unit MPU, and after processing the image data of the captured image GPX read from the cameras CM1 and CM2, an appropriate processed image (for example, described later) The image data in the image area GPY is transferred to the arithmetic processing unit MPU. An operation program of the conveyed material discrimination control system is stored in advance in the main storage device MM. When the detection processing unit DTU is activated, the above-described action program is read and executed by the arithmetic processing unit MPU. In addition, image data of the captured image GPX or the image area GPY which is the target of the image detection processing described later by the arithmetic processing unit MPU is stored in the main storage device MM.

Further, the detection processing unit DTU is connected to the display devices DP1, DP2 such as a liquid crystal monitor or the operation input devices SP1, SP2 via an input/output circuit (I/O). The display device DP1, DP2, the image data of the captured image GPX or the image area GPY processed by the arithmetic processing unit MPU, and the result of the image detection processing, that is, the result of the conveyed object detection processing or the conveyed object determination processing, etc. , display in the specified display form. Further, the display function is not limited to the case of transporting the transported object, and as described later, it also functions when the past data is read and reproduced. In addition, by operating the operation input devices SP1 and SP2 while viewing the screens of the display devices DP1 and DP2, processing conditions such as various operation commands and setting values can be input to the arithmetic processing unit MPU.

Next, an example of a basic detection method and a determination method of the conveyed material CA in the transport device 10 using the above-described transport object discrimination control system according to the present embodiment will be described. Fig. 2 is an explanatory view showing the shape of the conveyed material CA and the conveyance posture on the conveyance path 121 in the present embodiment. In the illustrated example, the conveyance CA is an electronic device (for example, a chip resistor, a chip inductor, a chip capacitor, or the like) having a substantially cubic shape (for example, a shape obtained by rounding eight corners of a cube). The conveyed material CA is conveyed in a conveyance path 121 having mutually perpendicular conveying surfaces 121a and 121b in a posture in which the longitudinal axis (spindle) faces the conveying direction F. A metal terminal portion CAa is exposed at both front and rear ends of the conveyed material CA, and a white surface CAb made of an insulating material and a black surface CAc as a direction identification mark are exposed on the side surface portion between the front and rear ends. The normal conveyance posture of the conveyed material CA is a posture in which the front end surface CAt5 is directed toward the transport destination (downstream side, left side in the drawing) and the rear end surface CAt6 is directed toward the transport source (upstream side, right side of the figure). Among the four side faces CAs1 to CAs4, the white surface CAb is located on the transport destination side, and the side surface CAs1 of the black surface CAc on the transport source side faces upward, and the side surface CAs2 of the white surface CAb as a whole faces the transport path 121. The posture of the side of the open side.

In addition, in FIGS. 2 and 3, an image is shown in which the conveying surface 121a of the conveying path 121 is a relatively steep surface, the conveying surface 121b is a relatively gentle surface, and the cameras CM1, CM2 are from the lower side of the figure. The image on the front side (that is, the front upper side of the transport surface 121b) is obliquely photographed. Therefore, in the transporting object CA, the side surface (the side surface disposed on the side of the transport surface 121a) disposed on the upper side of the transport path 121 is an upward facing surface (hereinafter, simply referred to as "upper side surface"), and is arranged in the figure. The side surface on the lower side (the side surface disposed on the side of the transport surface 121b) is a side surface (hereinafter, simply referred to as a "side side surface"). For the conveyance CA at the left end in Fig. 2, the upper side is the side CAs1 and the side side is the side CAs2.

(a) to (c) of FIG. 3 are explanatory diagrams for explaining a setting example of a detection area for determining whether or not the conveyance posture of the conveyed material CA shown in FIG. 2 is a normal posture. The captured image GPX captured by the cameras CM1, CM2 is appropriately processed by the above-described image processing circuits GP1, GP2, and, as shown in (a) of FIG. 3, is only included in the transport path 121 and transported. The image data in the image width GPW is read in the necessary range in the direction perpendicular to the direction F, that is, in the image width GPW. Further, the range along the transport direction F in the captured image GPX may be limited to the range of the image length GPL as shown and the image data may be read. By thus limiting the image area GPY actually read from the captured image GPX and transferred to the arithmetic processing unit MPU, the reading speed and the transfer speed can be improved. The image area GPY of the present embodiment has a long rectangular area along the transport direction F as shown in FIG. 3(a).

In the present embodiment, the conveyed matter CA is detected and determined by image detection processing performed by a detection processing component (component) embedded in the above-described operation program. This image detection processing is not performed on the entire area of the image area GPY shown in (a) of FIG. 3, but only in a limited area of the image area GPY. In the present embodiment, the search area SAS is set in the image area GPY. The search area SAS includes a control area MES for sorting the conveyance CA. The control area MES is an area for sorting processing of the conveyed material CA in the case of the illustrated example, and is used to pass the conveyed material CA from the conveyance path 121 or from the conveyance path 121, thereby conveying The object CA is sorted and only the region where the desired transporter CA is sent to the downstream side is sent. Regarding the sorting processing of the conveyed material CA, only the image data in the above-described search area SAS becomes the target of the above-described image detecting processing.

As shown in FIG. 3(b), the search area SAS further includes a first detection area ME1 and a second detection area ME2, wherein the first detection area ME1 is adjacent to the upstream side of the control area MES, and the second detection area ME2 Adjacent to the downstream side of the control area MES. Here, the control area MES is an area on the transport path 121 that can remove the transported object CA by the exclusion air outlet OPS formed at the center position CLN. Further, the first detection area ME1 is the inside of the search area SAS, and is a region in which the conveyed material CA conveyed from the upstream side is not excluded by the exclusion of the air outlet OPS. Further, the second detection area ME2 is the inside of the search area SAS, and is an area where the conveyed material CA is not excluded by the exhaust port OPS when it is output to the downstream side through the control area MES.

In the above-described image detection processing, it is searched in the search area SAS whether or not an image having an edge shape corresponding to an image of a transport object CA registered in advance (hereinafter simply referred to as "reference image") is present (hereinafter simply referred to as "Detect image"). When there is a detection image, the position of the area occupied by the detection image is determined as the conveyed object detection area WDS. This is the conveyance detection process. The conveyance detecting process is only required to detect the presence and position of the conveyed material CA, and it is not necessary to detect the posture or the defect of the conveyed material CA. Therefore, the degree of matching between the pattern shape such as the shape of the transported product CA or the average brightness inside the outer shape is obtained. And compare it with a predetermined threshold to determine the presence or absence of detection. Further, at the time of detection, the position of the pattern shape in the search area SAS is calculated, and the conveyed object detection area WDS is determined as described above. In addition, in the conveyance detection processing, the degree of matching of the pattern shape such as the outer shape may be used as the determination element. However, the degree of matching such as the average brightness inside the outer shape is also used as the determination element, and the conveyance can be improved. CA detection accuracy. For example, when the brightness of the conveyed material CA is darkened as a whole due to the relationship between the illumination direction and the component posture, it may be difficult to distinguish the difference from the background of the image, and thus it is easy to cause detection omission, but by setting the threshold of the average brightness. Lower to reduce detection omissions.

In the above-described transported object detection processing, when the transported object detection area WDS exists in the first detection area ME1, the transported object determination processing described below is continued. Further, when the transported object detection area WDS exists in the control area MES and the second detection area ME2, the detection is performed as usual, and the time when the transported object detection area WDS in the control area MES and the second detection area ME2 does not exist is present. The conveyance that outputs the conveyed material through the detection signal is subjected to detection processing. Further, as will be described later, when a state in which one of the transport objects CA is disposed in the first detection area ME1 is captured as a plurality of captured images GPX, the transported object detection processing is performed every time and the transported object detection area is derived. WDS, but the following conveyance judgment processing may be performed only once (for example, first time).

The conveyed material determination process is carried out as follows. First, the conveyance detecting area WDS determined as described above is used as a reference, and the positioning of the first determination area GWA and the second determination area GWB is performed as shown in (c) of FIG. 3, and whether or not the side surface CAs1 is detected based on the brightness thereof. ~CAs4 corresponds. For example, the first determination area GWA is disposed on the upper side of the conveyance CA, and the second determination area GWB is disposed on the lateral side of the conveyance CA. In the present embodiment, when the upper side surface is the side surface CAs1 and the side side surface is the side surface CAs2, the conveyed material CA is conveyed in a normal posture. At this time, the first determination area GWA includes the elongated determination assisting area GWA1 extending in the transport direction F, the determination assisting area GWA2 disposed on the upstream side, and the judging auxiliary area GWA3 disposed on the downstream side to detect the side surface CAs1. . It is determined that the auxiliary region GWA1 detects the boundary between the white surface CAb and the black surface CAc of the side surface CAs1 by the edge detection processing in the transport direction F, and determines the positions of the auxiliary regions GWA2 and GWA3 by using the detected edge as the boundary position. Make corrections. Then, by comparing the brightness of the determination auxiliary areas GWA2 and GWA3 that have been subjected to the position correction with a predetermined threshold value, it is determined whether or not the respective brightness matches the conveyed material CA in the normal posture. In the illustrated example, when it is determined that the auxiliary area GWA2 detects the white surface CAb and the determination auxiliary area GWA3 detects the black surface CAc, the conveyed object CA is determined to be a good product in a normal posture. In addition, the discrimination form (good or bad discrimination) of the conveyed material CA is not limited to the posture, and may be a good defect such as a shape or a size.

The second determination area GWB determines whether or not the side surface side is the side surface CAs2 (all the side surfaces of the white surface CAb). In this case, the determination can also be made based on the fact that the brightness of the second determination area GWB is higher than a predetermined threshold or the like. Further, by judging both the first determination area GWA and the second determination area GWB, it is possible to make the acquisition information obtained from the image data of the determination target redundant, and therefore, it is possible to avoid the brightness of the image or the like. The misjudgment caused by the deviation can improve the discrimination accuracy.

On the other hand, in the image area GPY, at a position different from the search area SAS (in the illustrated example, a position on the upstream side of the search area SAS), a determination is made to determine whether or not to perform the inversion processing. The regions GV1 and GV2, wherein the above-described inversion processing is processing for inverting the conveyed material CA. The first determination area GV1 and the second determination area GV2 are disposed at positions where the upper side of the conveyed object CA passes. In the first determination region GV1, when the upper side surface of the transport object CA is not the side surface CAs1 including the black surface CAc, that is, the upper side surface of the transport object CA is the side surfaces CAs2 to CAs4 of the white surface CAb as a whole (for example, ratio When the predetermined threshold is bright, the determination result "NG" is output, and when the terminal portion CAa or the side surface CAs1 is included (for example, when it is darker than a predetermined threshold value), the determination result "PASS" is output. Further, the second determination area GV2 is an area narrower than the first determination area GV1 in the conveyance direction F. When the edge is detected by the scanning in the conveyance direction F in the second determination region GV2, the boundary of the conveyed material CA immediately after the conveyance is considered, and the determination result is still set to "PASS". Further, only when the determination result is "NG", the airflow is ejected from the inversion air outlet OPR, and the upper side of the conveyance CA is turned over so as to be the other side surface. By performing the processing as described above, the posture of the conveyed material CA can be changed only when the upper side surface is disposed in the first determination region GV1 and the upper side surface is the side surfaces CAs2 to CAs4.

In the present embodiment, the cameras CM1 and CM2 continuously perform shooting at predetermined shooting intervals set in advance, and the captured image GPX or the image data in the image region GPY is passed through the image processing circuit GP1 for each shooting interval. The GP 2 is transferred to the above-described arithmetic processing unit MPU. In the arithmetic processing unit MPU, the image data in the search area SAS in the transferred image data is processed by the arithmetic processing memory RAM as described above, and detected and determined. However, in the present embodiment, the trigger sensor is not separately provided, or a predetermined shape pattern of the transport object CA in the predetermined area is searched from the image data of the transport object CA and occurs when the shape pattern is detected. The internal triggering is performed continuously by introducing an external trigger indicating a predetermined photographing interval or a trigger signal of a fixed period from the arithmetic processing unit MPU to the cameras CM1 and CM2, and continuously photographing at a predetermined photographing interval. Therefore, at least the determination target portion of all the conveyed materials CA to be conveyed on the conveyance path 121 (in the present embodiment, the surface portion of the side faces CAs1 to CAs4 other than the terminal portion CAa is equivalent to the conveyance. When the entire appearance of the CA is detected without any omission, it is necessary to include the above-described determination target portion of all the transport objects CA in the first detection area ME1 in any of the captured image GPX or the image area GPY.

Further, in the present embodiment, in the search area SAS, in order to determine the transported object detection area WDS, the transported object detection processing is performed, and in the transported object detection processing, in the first detection area ME1, the entire transported object CA is used. When it is included in this area, it is considered that the conveyed material is detected. Therefore, in order to detect the position of the conveyed material CA in the first detection area ME1, it is necessary to set the state in which all the objects CA are contained in the first detection area ME1 in any image data. .

Therefore, when the shooting interval (period) is set to Ts "sec", the length of the conveyed material CA in the conveying direction F is set to LDS "mm", and the conveying speed of the conveyed material CA is set to Vs "mm/sec", The range LD1 in the transport direction F of the first detection area ME1 is set as shown in the following formula (1) so that the images of all the transport objects CA are necessarily included in the first detection area ME1 of arbitrary image data. LD1 ≥ LDS + α = LDS + Ts × Vs (1) For example, when the transporter CA has a length LDS of 0.6 "mm" in the transport direction F, a transport speed Vs of 50 "mm/sec", and a photographing interval Ts When it is 1 "msec", LDS = 0.6 "mm", α = 0.05 "mm", and LD1 ≥ 0.65 "mm". Further, when the shooting interval Ts is set to 0.5 "msec", LDS = 0.6 "mm", α = 0.025 "mm", and thus LD1 ≥ 0.625 "mm".

Actually, since the conveyance speed of the conveyed material CA varies depending on the place or time, it is preferable to set the whole or a part of the conveyed material CA twice or more, preferably three times or more. Like the shooting of materials. In general, in order to perform imaging of image data of n (n is a natural number) or more, LD1 is set such that the following formula (2) is established. LD1 ≥ LDS + n × α = LDS + n × Ts × Vs (2) In the case of the present embodiment, n is set to a range of 3 to 7. This is because when n is small, the possibility of occurrence of photographing omission of the conveyed material CA due to the deviation of the conveyance speed becomes large, and conversely, when n becomes large, the load of image processing increases. In general, the natural number n is preferably in the range of 1 to 10. Further, in the present embodiment, the image processing time is generally about 150 μsec to 300 μsec. Further, the imaging interval Ts is about 500 to 840 "μsec".

Further, in the case of the present embodiment, as described above, the trigger signal for detecting that the transport object CA reaches the first detection area ME1 is not used, and therefore, the transport object CA or its determination target portion CAs1 to CAs4 may occur. Initially, it is not completely disposed in the first detection area ME1 of a certain captured image GPX or image area GPY. Therefore, when the image detection processing in the first detection area ME1 is performed, whether or not the image of at least the determination target portions CAs1 to CAs4 of the conveyed material CA is included in the first detection area ME1 is detected. Object detection processing. When the conveyed object is detected under the predetermined condition by the conveyance detecting process, that is, when the entire conveyed material CA is included in the first detection area ME1 in the above example, the conveyed object determining process is performed. Otherwise, the conveyance judgment process is not performed. In addition, when the same conveyed material CA is detected a plurality of times in the first detection area ME1, the conveyed object determination processing is performed only once (for example, the first time), and the conveyed object determination processing can be omitted for the other time.

On the other hand, in the control area MES and the second detection area ME2, only the above-described conveyed object detection processing is performed, and the above-described conveyed object determination processing is not performed. Further, after the conveyed material passing detection process is performed and the conveyed material CA is detected in the control area MES and the second detection area ME2, the conveyed object is regarded as being detected at the time when the conveyed object CA is no longer detected. The CA has passed through the control area MES and is output to the downstream side, and the above-described conveyed object is outputted through the detection signal. Further, the second detection area ME2 may be the same as the length LDS of the conveyed material CA. However, when the length is equal to or greater than the length, for example, a length exceeding LDS + n × α (n = 1) is set, the conveyance CA can be used. The conveyed matter is outputted by the detection signal at the time when the whole is detected in the second detection area ME2. Further, when the conveyance passing detection is performed when at least a part of the conveyed material CA is separated from the second detection area ME2, the range LD2 in the transport direction F of the second detection area ME2 needs to be set in advance so that the conveyed material CA is leaving. The value of the second detection area ME2 before leaving the control area MES.

(a) to (f) of FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 are for explaining that the captured image GPX captured by the camera CM1 or the image data in the image region GPY obtained from the captured image GPX is transported in a predetermined form. A step-by-step diagram of the manner in which the conveyance CA is controlled and processed. FIG. 4 shows a case where a plurality of transport materials CA are transported away from each other by an interval of about LDS. In this case, the conveyance CA1 enters the search area SAS (first detection area ME1) as shown in (a) of FIG. 4, and then, as shown in (b) of FIG. 4, when the conveyance CA1 as a whole enters the search area SAS (At the first detection area ME1), the position of the conveyed object detection area WDS is determined by the conveyed material detecting process. Then, based on the determined position of the transported object detection area WDS, the above-described transported object determination processing by the use determination areas GWA and GWB is performed. When it is determined that the conveyed material CA1 is a good product in the conveyed material determination processing, the airflow from the exhausting air outlet OPS is stopped as long as the preceding defective product is not disposed in the control area MES.

Then, as shown in (c) to (e) of FIG. 4, the conveyed object CA1 is slowly moved every time the image is taken, and is transferred from the first detection area ME1 to the control area MES, and then, from the control area. The MES is transferred to the second detection area ME2. At this time, the conveyed matter detecting process is performed on each of the captured image data, and the position of the conveyed object detecting region WDS is determined each time. Here, the airflow from the exhaust air outlet OPS to the transport object CA1 is stopped before the transport object CA1 is transferred from the first detection area ME1 to the control area MES, and the transport object CA1 is moved from the control area MES to the second detection area. ME2 is restored after the transfer.

In the above-described period, as shown in FIG. 4(e), when the next conveyed material CA2 enters the search area SAS (first detection area ME1), as shown in FIG. 4(f), similarly to the above-described transported object CA1, When the conveyed material CA2 as a whole enters the search area SAS (first detection area ME1), the conveyed object CA2 is detected by the conveyed object detecting process, and the position of the conveyed object detecting area WDS is determined. Then, the conveyed object determination processing is performed in the same manner as described above after the conveyed object detecting process. If the result of the determination is a defective product, the airflow ejected from the exhaust port OPS is not stopped and is taken over, and the conveyance CA2 is removed from the conveyance path 121 by the airflow when the conveyance CA2 enters the control area MES.

Fig. 5 shows a case where a plurality of conveyed materials CA are transported in a high-density arrangement (i.e., at a small interval which is next to each other or less than half of the length LDS). In this case, the conveyance CA1 enters the search area SAS (first detection area ME1) as shown in (a) of FIG. 5, and then, as shown in (b) of FIG. 5, when the conveyance CA1 as a whole enters the search area SAS (At the first detection area ME1), the position of the conveyed object detection area WDS is determined by the conveyed material detecting process. Then, based on the determined position of the transported object detection area WDS, the above-described transported object determination processing by the use determination areas GWA and GWB is performed. When it is determined that the conveyed material CA1 is a good product in the conveyed material determination processing, the airflow from the exhausting air outlet OPS is stopped as long as the defective defective product is not disposed in the control area MES.

In the case of FIG. 5, before the transporter CA1 enters the control area MES, the next transport object CA2 enters the first detection area ME1, but the range LD1 of the first detection area ME1 is less than twice the transport length LDS, therefore, As shown in (c) and (d) of FIG. 5, if the conveyance CA1 does not enter the control area MES, the entirety of the next conveyance CA2 does not enter the first detection area ME1 and is detected by the conveyance detection process. The conveyance detecting area WDS is taken out to determine its position. When the next conveyance CA2 is detected and the judgment result is obtained, the previous conveyance CA1 is already in the control area MES, and therefore the air flow from the exclusion air outlet OPS is in a stopped state. In the illustrated case, the result of the determination of the next conveyed material CA2 is a defective product, but since the previous conveyed matter CA1 is not output from the control area MES, the airflow cannot be recovered. The timing at which the airflow is restored is the time after the last conveyance CA1 is output from the control region MES, for example, the timing shown in (e) of FIG. 5 or (f) of FIG. At this time, since the next conveyed material CA2 is still disposed in the control area MES, the conveyed material CA2 is excluded from the conveyance path 121 by the action of the air flow.

Further, when the next conveyed material CA3 enters the first detection area ME1 and is detected in the same manner as described above and the position of the transported object detection area WDS is determined, the transported object determination processing is performed in the same manner as described above. At this time, if the conveyed material CA3 is a good product, the airflow is stopped before the conveyed material CA3 enters the control area MES. Here, the airflow continues to be generated as long as the good product is not judged, but in the state in which the airflow is generated, the stop of the airflow enters the control area MES in the target conveyed object, that is, the transported product CA as a good product. Previously carried out. Therefore, in the first detection area ME1, it is only necessary to stop the airflow when the conveyed object detection processing and the conveyed object determination processing confirm that the conveyed material CA is a good product. On the other hand, when the airflow is switched from the stopped state to the restored state, it is necessary to perform the output of the transported object CA, which is the cause of the stoppage of the airflow, from the control region MES. The time at which the transported object CA is outputted from the control area MES is determined by the above-described transported object passing detection processing (transported material passing detection signal), and therefore, it is only necessary to set the airflow to be restored based on the detection or signal.

Further, in the display devices DP1, DP2 and the like shown in FIG. 1, the image data in the image region GPY can be displayed in an appropriately formed image display column, and the above-described search region SAS can be displayed by a ruled line or the like. Or each of the first detection area ME1, the second detection area ME2, and the control area MES. Here, in addition to the above, or in addition to the above, the conveyed object detection area WDS for the conveyed object detection processing, the determination areas GWA and GWB for the conveyed object determination processing, and the jet for inversion can be displayed by the ruled line or the like. The port OPR performs at least one of the determination areas GV1 and GV2 of the conveyed material determination process for control. In some cases, the determination result may be identified by a display form such as a display color or a line type such as a ruled line. For example, when the conveyed object determination processing is judged as "OK" (the discrimination form is good), the ruled line or the like is set to the first display form (for example, green display). In addition, when it is judged as "NG" by the conveyed material determination process (the discrimination form is a defective product), the ruled line or the like is displayed in the second display form (for example, displayed in red). In addition, each display form is not limited to the color of the above-described example, and may be a line type, a thickness, or the like such as a solid line, a dotted line, a broken line, or a dotted line, and is not particularly limited as long as it can be distinguished from each other.

In the present embodiment, the conveyed material CA conveyed on the transport path 121 that is vibrated by the vibrating conveyor 10 is used as an inspection target, and the cameras CM1 and CM2 are placed at a place where the vibration is not performed (on the pedestal). In the image data of the captured image GPX or the image area GPY, the transport path 121 that oscillates back and forth in the transport direction F and has a predetermined amplitude is disposed in the vibration when photographed based on the image data. The phase changes and the position after displacement occurs. Therefore, when it is desired to detect and judge the appearance of the conveyed object CA at a fixed position based on the conveyance path 121, it is necessary to make the position of the search area SAS or each of the detection areas ME1, ME2 in the image according to the timing of shooting. The vibration of the conveying body 120 is synchronously moved with the same amplitude. For example, the carrier 120 is provided with a vibration having an amplitude of 0.1 mm and a vibration frequency of 300 Hz.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, in order to make the position of the search area SAS or each of the detection areas ME1, ME2 correspond to the vibration position of the transport body 120 when the captured image GPX or the image area GPY is captured, it is set to the transport body. The position correction mark on 120 (not shown) is used as a reference for correction. The position correction mark is not particularly limited as long as it can detect the position easily and reliably, and is formed into a single color that can be reliably recognized as a blob in the image and can stably detect the position of the center of gravity thereof. Grayscale marking improves the detection accuracy of its position. In addition, the position correction mark is not a mark that is purposefully set, and may be a portion that is originally present in the transport device and can be detected by image processing, for example, a ridge line or a corner formed on the transport body 120. , bolt heads, jets, etc. However, it is preferable to have a mark existing at a position that is not blocked by the conveyed material CA.

In the present embodiment, for the above-described position correction, the position of the search area SAS or each of the detection areas ME1, ME2 with respect to the conveyance path 121 is independent of the phase timing of the vibration at the time of shooting, but is always relative to the phase timing of the vibration at the time of shooting. The conveying path 121 is at the same position. Therefore, since each of the detection areas ME1 and ME2 is set to have a fixed positional relationship with, for example, the following positions, when the removal force or the reversing force acts on the conveyed material CA as a result of the conveyed material determination process, it is possible to always The "timing" is used to mean that the "lower position" refers to the position of the exhaust gas from the transport hole CA for removing the bad posture from the exhaust port OPS, or the air outlet OPR from the inversion. The position of the inversion gas for injecting the CA posture of the conveyance to correct the bad posture is blown.

FIG. 6 shows an example of the configuration of an aligning device for the conveyed material CA formed on the transport body 120 of the transport device 10. In the example shown in the figure, the width or height of the conveyance path 121 is set such that the upstream side portion (not shown) is oriented in the longitudinal direction of the conveyed material CA toward the conveyance direction F (the posture shown in FIG. 2). Limits and so on and control. Further, as shown in the figure, on the downstream side of the restriction portion, an inversion air outlet OPR1 that forms a first inversion position, an inversion air outlet OPR2 that forms a second inversion position, and a third portion are arranged along the conveyance path 121. The flip position is flipped with the air outlet OPR3. With these inverting positions, the posture of the conveyed material CA around the axis of the conveying direction F is corrected. Further, on the downstream side, a sorting position in which the above-described exclusion air outlet OPS is provided is formed. In the image data of the captured image GPX or the image area GPY described above, the above-described most inverting air ejection opening OPR3 and the exclusion air ejection opening OPS are displayed. Here, in the present embodiment, the camera CM2 images the first inversion position having the inversion air outlet OPR1 and the second inversion position having the inversion air outlet OPR2, and the camera CM1 is in the third position with the inversion air outlet OPR3. The flip position and the sorting position with the exclusion air outlet OPS are taken. However, in the present invention, an image data may include only any one of the control positions, and may include two or more arbitrary number of control positions.

In the present embodiment, at the sorting position, the image in the search area SAS having the length LSS in the transport direction F becomes the processing target, and at the invert position, only the image in the area is determined as the processing target. In this way, at the position having the search area SAS, the image range to be the processing target is enlarged, and the conveyance detecting process can detect the time point when the conveyed material CA enters the control area MES in the first detection area ME1, and By the conveyance detection processing, the time point at which the conveyed material CA is output from the control area MES can be detected in the control area MES or the second detection area ME2, and therefore, it is possible to have high speed and reliability for the conveyed material CA conveyed at a high density. This is an advantage of distinguishing and controlling.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a process different from the above-described conveyed object determination processing for the inverting position of the inverting air outlet OPR. In this process, as shown in FIG. 7(a), the above-described conveyance detection processing is performed in the search area SAR, and the conveyed object detection area WDR is determined, and then the conveyed object detection area WDR is used as a reference, as shown in FIG. In the middle (b), the conveyance determination processing is performed using the same determination areas GV1 and GV2 as described above. That is, the same processing as the processing (the processing of the present invention) performed on the sorting position in the above embodiment is also performed for the inverting position. The first detection area ME1 is set inside the search area SAR, and the first detection area ME1 is disposed adjacent to the upstream side of the control area (overturn area) MER to which the inversion of the air outlet OPR is applied Location. When the conveyed object detection area WDR detected in the first detection area ME1 is determined, the conveyed object determination processing is performed in the determination areas GV1 and GV2 set based on the position of the conveyed object detection area WDR. The range LD1 in the transport direction F of the first detection area ME1 is set to a predetermined value with respect to the length LDR of the transport object CA as described above. Further, in the inverting position, similarly to the above-described embodiment, the second detection area ME2 may be provided, or the airflow for inversion may be always generated and the airflow may be stopped only when the quality determination is completed.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a method of counting the number of the conveyed materials CA entering the first detection area ME1 and the number of the conveyed substances CA passing through the second detection area ME2 in the sorting position. As shown in FIG. 8(a), in the present embodiment, the counting position CT1 of the conveying direction F is set in the first detecting area ME1, and when the conveying object CA reaches the counting position CT1, or a part of the conveying object CA exceeds When the position CT1 is counted, as shown in (b) of FIG. 8, it is set to add "1" to the number N to be introduced. The counting position CT1 may be within the range LD1 of the first detection area ME1, but is preferably set to be in the control area MES (biased on the downstream side). Further, the counting position CT2 of the conveying direction F is set in the second detecting area ME2, and when the conveying object CA reaches the counting position CT2, or a part of the conveying object CA exceeds the counting position CT2, as shown in FIG. 8(b) The setting shown is to add "1" to the pass number M. The counting position CT2 may be within the range LD2 of the second detection area ME2, but is preferably set to the opposite side (the downstream side) of the control area MES.

In addition, when counting by the counting position CT2 as described above, the number M of passages of the conveyed material CA conveyed through the control area MES can be counted, but the number of passes M is not necessarily limited to the state of passing the control area MES. In the case of the conveyed object of the identification form (good product), even if it is a conveyed object that is determined to be in a discriminating form (defective) corresponding to the controlled (excluded) state, there is a case where it is mistakenly passed due to a control (excluding) error or the like. The possibility of inconsistency with the number of good products. Therefore, only when the conveyed object judged to be good in the first detection area ME1 passes through the above-described counting position CT2, the number of good products M is obtained. Thereby, the above counting error can be avoided. At this time, instead of the above-described counting position CT2, an additional count may be set at the central position CLN of the control region MES or at the upstream side thereof (within the control region MES) or at the boundary line between the first detection region ME1 and the control region MES. Position and count using the additional count position. In this way, since the counting can be performed immediately after the determination of the conveyed object determination processing, it is possible to easily count only the number of good products. Further, in the present embodiment, the transported object determination processing is performed only in the first detection area ME1, but it is also possible to reach a position on the downstream side of the first detection area ME1, for example, a central position CLN in the control area MES or The conveyed matter determination process is performed before the above-described other counting position on the upstream side. In this manner, the number M of good products can be counted using the determination result of the position closer to the upstream side with respect to the other counting position.

Further, in the transport device 10 of the present embodiment which is transported by vibration, the transported object CA is repeatedly moved upward and upward in the transport body 120 that reciprocates obliquely upward with respect to the transport direction F, thereby being transported. Therefore, the conveyed material CA repeats the reciprocating motion with respect to the transport body 120 and advances, and therefore there is a possibility that one transported object CA passes the count positions CT1, CT2 twice or more due to the reverse crossing of the above-described counting positions CT1, CT2. The situation. Therefore, in order to eliminate the counting error caused by the situation, as shown in (c) of FIG. 8, when the conveyed object CA crosses the above-described counting positions CT1, CT2 in the reverse direction, the number of introductions N and the number of passes M are subtracted. "1". Further, by dividing the number of passes (or the number of good products) M by the number N of introductions, the yield or the supply rate M/N can be obtained.

In the present embodiment, various setting values such as the type and size of the conveyed material CA, the quality posture of the product, the reference image data, the threshold value of the brightness of the conveyed object detection process, and the threshold value of the brightness of the conveyed material determination process, and the like are set. The various materials for detecting and judging the conveyed material CA are stored in the main storage device MM or the like, and are appropriately read and used at the time of each processing. In addition, the setting values and the like described below are also treated in the same manner, that is, the setting values of the imaging timings of the cameras CM1 and CM2, and the setting of the image reading conditions when the captured image GPX or the image area GPY is read. The value, the setting value of the position correction form of each setting area caused by the vibration of the conveyance path 121, the setting value of the state of the various setting screens or the display screen, the state of the control of the inversion position or the sorting position, that is, the jet of the airflow, for example. Set values such as time points or pressure values.

In the present embodiment, the following image file can be selectively read and displayed, and the "lower image file" refers to a past captured image GPX or image area to be stored in the main storage device MM. The GPY continuously stores image files in time series. Moreover, means are also provided which are useful to perform various operational processes for the selected image file.

The image file stored in the main storage device MM is automatically recorded by the arithmetic processing device MPU with the image data of the plurality of captured images GPX or image regions GPY read in the operation mode. Regarding the storage of the image file, it is possible to save all the image data when there is a vacant capacity in the main storage device MM. However, when there is no vacant capacity in the main storage device MM, it is preferable to match the latest predetermined period. Image files of parts (for example, 1 hour, etc.) or the latest predetermined number of sheets (for example, 1000 sheets, etc.) are always saved.

In the state where the captured image GPX or the image area GPY recorded in the past is displayed as described above, the above-described conveyed object detection processing and the above-described conveyed object determination processing can be performed again on the image data by an appropriate operation. The image detection processing is composed. As one of the control functions of the display state, for a plurality of captured images GPX or image regions GPY stored in the same image file, it is possible to switch to other image data shot forward and backward one by one by an appropriate operation. Further, it is also possible to continuously display a plurality of captured images GPX or image regions GPY in the same image file, and at the same time, perform image detection processing for the displayed image data.

Next, the flow of the overall operation program of the present embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 9 . Fig. 9 is a schematic flow chart showing the processing executed by the arithmetic processing unit MPU of the above-described detection processing unit DTU in accordance with the operation program. When the operation program is started, first, the image capturing and image detecting processing described above is started, and the conveying device 10 (the feeder 11 and the linear feeder 12) is started by the controllers CL11 and CL12. Then, when the debug setting in response to the aforementioned debugging operation is set to "OFF", image detection processing is performed on the captured image GPX or the image area GPY, and when the final determination result is "OK", as long as no debugging is performed By operation, the image detection processing of the next captured image GPX or the image area GPY is directly performed. For example, at the sorting position, the airflow is always flowed from the exclusion air outlet OPS, but when the judgment result is "OK", the airflow with the air outlet OPS is stopped, and the control is passed in all the good products. The airflow is restored after the regional MES. Thereby, the defective conveyed material CA is excluded from the conveyance path 121. Further, at the inverting position, the airflow from the inverting air outlet OPR is always stopped, but when the final determination result is "NG (defective)", the airflow is ejected from the inverting air outlet OPR and is in the conveying path 121. Flip on. Further, at the inverting position, the airflow can always flow out from the inverting air outlet OPR by using the configuration shown in Fig. 7, and the airflow can be stopped only when a good product is detected.

In this way, by controlling the conveyed material CA on the conveyance path 121, it is possible to supply the downstream side to the state in which only the good products are arranged. In this case as well, the determination of the next captured image GPX or the image area GPY is directly performed as long as the debugging operation is not performed.

When the debugging operation is performed in the above process to turn the debug setting to "ON", the drive is deactivated from the above process (rootine), and the image pickup processing is stopped. Then, when an appropriate operation is performed in this state, the image file can be selected as described above. At this time, the image file selected for display is an image file containing a plurality of captured images GPX or image regions GPY recorded in the previous operation mode. When the image file is directly selected and an appropriate operation is performed, the mode is shifted to the re-execution mode. In this mode, as described above, the display, detection, and determination of the image can be performed again based on the image file in which the executed control operation is recorded. In other words, when a problem occurs in the control of the conveyed material CA of the transport device 10, in order to solve the problem, the image detection processing is performed again based on the past image data, thereby finding the problem of the image detection processing. Where. When the problem is clarified, the setting content (set value) of the detection or determination is changed according to the problem, and the image detection processing is performed on the past image data again, whereby the result of the adjustment and improvement work can be confirmed. Then, when an appropriate recovery operation is performed, the debug setting is restored to "OFF", the image detection processing is started again, and the transport device 10 is started to be driven again. In addition, the screen of the display device returns to the display screen of the operation mode.

In the present embodiment described above, the images are continuously imaged by the cameras CM1 and CM2 at a predetermined imaging interval, and the image detection processing is performed on the image data in the first detection area ME1 having the range LD1. Therefore, it is possible to detect the conveyed object CA disposed in the first detection area ME1 in an arbitrary captured image, and therefore it is not necessary to generate a trigger signal for detecting the position of each conveyed object as in the prior art, wherein the above range LD1 is The range of all the conveyed objects that pass through the conveyance path 121 is always set in accordance with the relationship between the conveyance speed Vs of the conveyed object and the imaging interval Ts. Further, by processing the image data of the determination target portions CAs1 to CAs4 included in the image, it is possible to reliably extract information related to the determination target portion. Therefore, in the case where the conveyed material CA is transported in succession or the like, it is not necessary to consider the omission of the detection of each of the transported objects CA, and it is not necessary to form a gap or the like between the transported objects in advance, so that high-speed transport or high-density transport of the transported object becomes easy. Moreover, the overall structure of the conveyed material discrimination control system can be easily constructed. In addition, since it is only necessary to process the image data in the first detection area ME1 set in advance in the plurality of captured images that have been continuously captured, the image for determining the conveyance CA can be performed at high speed and with high precision. Like detection processing.

Further, the first detection area ME1 is disposed adjacent to the upstream side of the control area MES, and the image of the second detection area ME2 disposed adjacent to the downstream side of the control area MES by the conveyance passing detecting means is disposed. The data is subjected to image detection processing so that the conveyance CA can be detected by passing through the control area MES and outputting to the downstream side. Therefore, when the conveyance control device determines the conveyance control device as the passing state based on the predetermined discrimination form (for example, good product) of the conveyed material CA of the first detection region ME1, the conveyed matter judging device does not obtain the lower portion. When one of the transported objects is the same as the predetermined determination form (for example, a good product), the transported matter passing through the detection device detects that the transported matter of the same predetermined discrimination form (for example, good product) has passed through the control region. When outputting to the downstream side, the conveyance control device can be switched from the passing state to the control state. Thereby, even when the conveyed object is conveyed at a high speed and high density, the conveyed object can be controlled (sorted) at high speed and reliably.

Further, only the conveyed material CA which is a predetermined determination form (for example, a good product) can be passed from the control area MES by the conveyed object determining device, and the other transported matter CA is controlled in the control area MES (excluding ). Therefore, it is not limited to the case where the conveyed material CA is determined to be different from the above-described discrimination form (for example, defective), and even if a detection omission or a determination error occurs, the above-described predetermined discrimination form (for example, a good product) is transported. Since the CA is also controlled in the control area MES, it is possible to surely avoid the fact that the transported object CA of the different discrimination form (for example, defective) is still supplied.

In the present embodiment, as described above, since the yield rate at the sorting position of the conveyed material CA can be obtained by the counting device that is provided with the conveyed material CA, the efficiency of the arrangement on the upstream side or the supply destination can be obtained. The supply efficiency is estimated. Therefore, when the above-described yield rate is lower than a certain ratio, it is also possible to automatically issue commands to the controllers CL11 and CL12 and stop driving the conveying device 10. In addition, as a method of driving and controlling the transport device 10 based on the determination result, the driving force (voltage, current, etc.) and amplitude of the excitation mechanism may be changed in such a manner that the transport speed or another transport mode is changed. Method of controlling the frequency, etc.

Further, the transport object discriminating control system and the transporting device of the present invention are not limited to the above-described illustrated examples, and various modifications may be added without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the sorting method at the sorting position excludes the transported matter CA from the transport path 121 by the blowing of the airflow, but is represented by a method for sorting the transported matter CA, The processing content or the range of each detection area is not particularly limited, and various conventional techniques for detecting or judging such as a mechanical exclusion device can be employed. Further, as a method of controlling the conveyed object, not only the exclusion but also various methods such as inversion and distribution can be set.

10‧‧‧Conveyor
11‧‧‧Feeder
110‧‧‧Conveyor
111‧‧‧Transportation
12‧‧‧Line Feeder
120‧‧‧ transport body
121‧‧‧Transportation
121a, 121b‧‧‧ conveying surface
CL11, CL12‧‧‧ controller
CLN‧‧‧Central location
CM1, CM2‧‧‧ camera
DP1, DP2‧‧‧ display device
SP1, SP2‧‧‧ operation input device
GPX‧‧‧Photographing
I/O‧‧‧Input and output circuits
DTU‧‧‧Detection Processing Unit
MPU‧‧‧ arithmetic processing device
CPU1, CPU2‧‧‧ central processing unit
CCM‧‧‧Cache Memory
MCL‧‧‧ memory controller
CHS‧‧‧ chipset
RAM‧‧‧Memory processing memory
MM‧‧‧ primary storage device
GM1, GM2‧‧‧ image processing memory
GP1, GP2‧‧‧ image processing circuit
GPY‧‧‧Image area
OPS, OPR, OPR1~OPR3‧‧‧ jet
CA, CA1~CA3‧‧‧Transportation
CAa‧‧‧ Terminals
CAb‧‧‧ white noodles
CAc‧‧‧ black noodles
CAt5‧‧‧ front face
CAt6‧‧‧ rear end face
CAs1~CAs4‧‧‧ side
CT1, CT2‧‧‧ count position
F‧‧‧Transport direction
GWA, GWB‧‧‧judging area
GWA1~GWA3‧‧‧Judgement auxiliary area
GPL‧‧‧ image length
GPW‧‧‧ image width
GV1, GV2‧‧‧ judgment area
ME1‧‧‧ first detection area
ME2‧‧‧Second test area
MES, MER‧‧‧ control area
SAS‧‧ Search area
WDR, WDS‧‧‧Conveyor inspection area

Fig. 1 is a schematic block diagram showing the overall configuration of an embodiment of a transport object discriminating control system and a transporting apparatus according to the present invention. Fig. 2 is an external explanatory view showing an example of the appearance of the conveyed material on the conveying path and the arrangement form of the conveying object. (a) to (c) of FIG. 3 are explanatory diagrams for explaining a method of detecting and judging a conveyed object by image processing. (a) to (f) of Fig. 4 are explanatory diagrams showing the steps of the processing procedure for each of the objects in the embodiment. (a) to (f) of Fig. 5 are explanatory diagrams showing the steps of the processing steps for a plurality of continuous conveyances in the embodiment. Fig. 6 is a block diagram showing the arrangement of the conveyed objects in the embodiment. (a) and (b) of FIG. 7 are explanatory views showing examples of detection and determination methods of other control positions in the other embodiments. (a) to (c) of Fig. 8 are explanatory views showing a method of counting the conveyed matter at the sorting position in the embodiment. Fig. 9 is a schematic flow chart showing the outline of the control procedure of the entire operation program of the embodiment.

10‧‧‧Conveyor

11‧‧‧Feeder

110‧‧‧Conveyor

111‧‧‧Transportation

12‧‧‧Line Feeder

120‧‧‧ transport body

121‧‧‧Transportation

CL11, CL12‧‧‧ controller

CM1, CM2‧‧‧ camera

DP1, DP2‧‧‧ display device

SP1, SP2‧‧‧ operation input device

GPX‧‧‧Photographing

I/O‧‧‧Input and output circuits

DTU‧‧‧Detection Processing Unit

MPU‧‧‧ arithmetic processing device

CPU1, CPU2‧‧‧ central processing unit

CCM‧‧‧Cache Memory

MCL‧‧‧ memory controller

CHS‧‧‧ chipset

RAM‧‧‧Memory processing memory

MM‧‧‧ primary storage device

GM1, GM2‧‧‧ image processing memory

GP1, GP2‧‧‧ image processing circuit

GPY‧‧‧Image area

Claims (13)

A transport object discriminating control system comprising: an imaging device (CM1, CM2) for continuously photographing a transported object (CA) at a predetermined photographing interval (Ts) at a predetermined portion of the transport path (121) The conveyance control device (OPS, OPR) is configured to be capable of switching between a passing state and a control state, wherein the passing state means that the conveyed object (CA) passes through a control region on the conveying path (121) ( a state of the MES, MER), the control state is a state in which the control region (MES, MER) of the transport object (CA) on the transport path (121) is controlled; MPU, RAM) is a first detection area (ME1) in any of a plurality of captured images (GPX) captured by the imaging device (CM1, CM2) at the imaging interval (Ts) The image data in the image is subjected to image detection processing, thereby performing a conveyance detection process for detecting that the conveyed object (CA) is disposed in the first detection area (ME1), wherein the Detection area ME1) has a range (LD1) and is disposed adjacent to an upstream side of the control region (MES, MER), and the range (LD1) is based on the transported object (CA) on the transport path (121) The relationship between the transport speed (Vs) and the photographing interval (Ts) is set in advance to always include a range of images of all of the transported objects (CA) passing through the transport path (121); The conveyed material determining device (MPU, RAM) is implemented when the transported object detecting device (MPU, RAM) detects that the transported object (CA) is disposed in the first detection area (ME1) a conveyed matter judging process for judging the transported object (CA) based on an image of at least the target portion (CAs1 to CAs4) of the transported object (CA); and a system control device (MPU, RAM) based on The passing state of the conveyed object control device (OPS, OPR) and the discrimination form corresponding to the judgment result of the conveyed matter (CA) obtained by the conveyed object determining device (MPU, RAM) The control state is switched. The transport object discriminating control system according to claim 1, wherein the transport object discriminating control system further includes a transport object passing detecting device (MPU, RAM), and the transporting object passes through the detecting device (MPU, RAM). The conveyed object (CA) in the second detection area (ME2) in any of a plurality of captured images (GPX) captured by the imaging device (CM1, CM2) at the imaging interval (Ts) The image data is subjected to image detection processing, whereby the conveyed object (CA) is detected by the control area (MES) and output to the downstream side, wherein the second detection area (ME2) Having a range (LD2) disposed adjacent to a downstream side of the control region (MES), the range (LD2) being a transport speed of the transported object (CA) on the transport path (121) ( a relationship between the Vs) and the photographing interval (Ts) is set in advance to include a range of images of at least a part of all the transported objects (CA) that pass through the transport path (121); The system control device (MPU, RAM), in the case where the discrimination form of the previous conveyance (CA1) corresponds to the passage state and the discrimination form of the latter conveyance (CA2) corresponds to the control state, the conveyance is utilized When the detection device (MPU, RAM) detects that the previous conveyed object (CA1) has passed the control region (MES) and outputs the situation to the downstream side, the slave control device (OPS) is performed. The switching of the pass state to the control state. The transport object discriminating control system according to claim 2, wherein in the system control device (MPU, RAM), when the transport object judging device (MPU, RAM) judges that the transport result is the transport When the object (CA) is a predetermined discrimination form, the transported object control device (OPS) is in the passing state and passes the transported object (CA), and when the transported object passes through the detecting device (MPU, RAM) And detecting that the previous conveyance (CA1) of the predetermined discrimination form passes through the control area (MES) and outputs to the downstream side, and the latter conveyance is not obtained by the conveyance observation device ( CA2) is the predetermined determination form, and the conveyed object control device (OPS) is returned to the control state, and the transported object control device (OPS) is maintained at the other time. Control status. The transport object discriminating control system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein in the transport object judging device (MPU, RAM), by the transport object detecting device (MPU, When the transported object detection processing of the RAM does not detect that the transported object (CA) is disposed in the first detection area (ME1), the determination target portion for the transported object (CA) is not implemented. The conveyed matter determination process performed by (CAs1 to CAs4). The transport object discriminating control system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a conveying direction (F) of the first detecting area (ME1) along the conveying path (121) In the upper length LD1, when the length in the transport direction (F) of one of the transported objects is LDS, the photographing interval is Ts, and the transport speed is Vs, n=1 to 10 The natural number has a value of the following formula: LD1 ≥ LDS + n × α = LDS + n × Ts × Vs. The transport object discriminating control system according to claim 2, wherein the second detecting area (ME2) has a length LD2 along a conveying direction (F) of the conveying path (121), It is a value of a length LDS or more in the conveyance direction (F) of the conveyed object. The transport object discriminating control system according to claim 2, wherein the first detection area (ME1), the second detection area (ME2), and the control area (MES) are set to The integrated search area (SAS) performs the conveyance detection processing on the image data in the search area (SAS). The transport object discriminating control system according to claim 2, wherein the transport object discriminating control system further includes a first transporting object counting device and a second transporting material counting device, the first transporting object counting device The device will count the number (N) of the transported objects (CA) passing through the first detection zone (ME1), and the second transporter counting device will pass the second detection zone (ME2) The number (M) of the conveyed matter (CA), or the conveyed matter (CA) which gives a judgment result corresponding to the passing state, and passes through the second detecting area (ME2) Or the number (M) of the transported objects (CA) of the control area (MES) is counted. The transport object discriminating control system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the transport object discriminating control system further includes a data storage device (MPU, MM) and a data display device (MPU, DP1). DP2), the data storage device (MPU, MM) saves image data in at least the first detection area (ME1) of the plurality of captured images (GPX), the data display device ( The MPU, DP1, DP2) read and display the past image data stored in the data storage device (MPU, MM); the transport object determining device (MPU, RAM) is configured to: The image data of the past stored in the data storage device (MPU, MM) can also be subjected to the image detection processing and based on at least the determination target portion (CAs1~) in the first detection area (ME1) The conveyed matter (CA) is judged by the image of CAs4). The transport object discriminating control system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the transport path (121) is in a transport direction along the transport object (CA) (F) Moving in the direction of the round trip to convey the conveyed object (CA), and when the imaging device (CM1, CM2) is stationary, the first detection area in the captured image (GPX) The position of ME1) is corrected to eliminate the positional change with respect to the conveyance path (121) in the captured image (GPX) caused by the vibration of the conveyance path (121) at the time of shooting. The transport object discriminating control system according to claim 2, wherein the transport path (121) is in a direction along a transport direction (F) along the transport object (CA) The transported object (CA) is transmitted while vibrating, and the first detection area (ME1) and the inside of the captured image (GPX) are transmitted while the imaging device (CM1, CM2) is stationary. The position of the second detection area (ME2) is corrected to eliminate the position in the captured image (GPX) relative to the conveying path (121) caused by the vibration of the conveying path (121) at the time of shooting. change. A conveying device comprising: a conveying mechanism (12) having the conveying path (121), and a conveying material discrimination control system according to any one of claims 1 to 3. The transport device according to claim 12, wherein the transport device further includes: an excitation mechanism that vibrates the transport path (121), and an excitation control device (CL12) based on The conveyed material determining device (MPU, RAM) controls the driving form of the exciting mechanism by determining the determination form corresponding to the determination result of the conveyed object (CA).