WO2024048452A1

WO2024048452A1 - Measurement device and selection device

Info

Publication number: WO2024048452A1
Application number: PCT/JP2023/030722
Authority: WO
Inventors: 知幸宮本; 光太郎沖本
Original assignee: 株式会社サタケ
Priority date: 2022-09-01
Filing date: 2023-08-25
Publication date: 2024-03-07
Also published as: JP2024034634A

Abstract

A measurement device according to the present invention is for measuring the state of an object and comprises a transport unit that transports the object, an electromagnetic wave radiation source that radiates electromagnetic waves at the object as transported by the action of the transport unit, a sensor that detects at least one of reflected electromagnetic waves that have been radiated from the electromagnetic wave radiation source and reflected at the object and transmitted electromagnetic waves that have passed through the object, an identification unit that identifies the state of the object on the basis of a signal acquired by the sensor, and a radiation control unit that controls the radiation of the electromagnetic waves from the electromagnetic wave radiation source. The radiation control unit controls the electromagnetic wave radiation source such that there are a first radiation period during which electromagnetic waves are radiated at a first intensity and a second radiation period during which electromagnetic waves are radiated at a second intensity that is greater than the first intensity.

Description

Measuring equipment and sorting equipment

The present disclosure relates to optical measurement techniques.

An optical sorter (hereinafter simply referred to as a sorter) uses light information obtained by an optical sensor when the object to be sorted is irradiated with light from a light source to identify and remove foreign objects and defective products contained in the object to be sorted. has been known for some time (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2010-42326). In this type of sorter, the light information (for example, color gradation value) obtained by an optical sensor is compared with a threshold value, and based on the comparison result, the condition of the object to be sorted (whether it is a good item or a foreign object) is determined. or whether the product is defective) is identified.

In this type of sorting machine, there are demands to improve sorting accuracy and to reduce temperature rise and power consumption due to heat generated by the light source. Moreover, this is common not only to sorting machines but also to measuring devices for measuring the state of objects.

The present disclosure has been made to solve at least part of the above-mentioned problems, and can be realized, for example, as the following form.

According to the first aspect of the present disclosure, a measuring device for measuring the state of an object is provided. This measurement device includes a transfer section configured to transfer an object, an electromagnetic radiation source configured to irradiate an electromagnetic wave to the object being transferred by the action of the transfer section, and an electromagnetic wave irradiation source configured to irradiate the object being transferred. , a sensor configured to detect at least one of a reflected electromagnetic wave reflected by the object and a transmitted electromagnetic wave transmitted through the object, and a sensor configured to identify the state of the object based on a signal acquired by the sensor. and an irradiation control section configured to control irradiation of electromagnetic waves from an electromagnetic wave irradiation source. The irradiation control unit controls the electromagnetic waves so that a first irradiation period in which the electromagnetic waves are irradiated with a first intensity and a second irradiation period in which the electromagnetic waves are irradiated with a second intensity greater than the first intensity appear. The radiation source is configured to control the radiation source.

The "object being transferred by the action of the transfer section" includes, for example, an object being transferred on the transfer section and an object falling from the transfer section. In addition to the first irradiation period and the second irradiation period, the irradiation control unit controls an irradiation period in which electromagnetic waves are irradiated at an intensity other than the first intensity and the second intensity, and/or a non-irradiation period in which electromagnetic waves are not irradiated. The electromagnetic wave irradiation source may be controlled so that the period appears. Further, the electromagnetic wave irradiation source may irradiate at least one of visible light, near-infrared light, and X-rays. When the electromagnetic wave irradiation source irradiates electromagnetic waves in a plurality of wavelength regions, the irradiation control unit controls the electromagnetic wave irradiation source so that a first irradiation period and a second irradiation period appear for at least part of the plurality of wavelength regions. may be controlled. "Intensity" may be, for example, luminous intensity when the "electromagnetic waves" are light, and may be X-ray intensity when the "electromagnetic waves" are X-rays.

According to this measurement device, there is a first irradiation period in which electromagnetic waves are irradiated with a first intensity, and a second irradiation period in which electromagnetic waves are irradiated with a second intensity that is greater than the first intensity. Therefore, compared to a configuration in which the electromagnetic wave irradiation source always irradiates the object with electromagnetic waves at the second intensity, the temperature rise and power consumption due to heat generated by the electromagnetic wave irradiation source can be reduced. In addition, compared to a configuration in which the electromagnetic wave irradiation source does not emit electromagnetic waves except during the second irradiation period in which electromagnetic waves are emitted at the second intensity (hereinafter referred to as a comparative example), the identification accuracy of the state of the object by the identification unit is improved. You can improve. Specifically, in the comparative example, information for identifying the state of the object (reflected electromagnetic waves and transmitted electromagnetic waves at least one) is not obtained. On the other hand, according to the above measurement device, by replacing at least part of the non-irradiation period in the comparative example with the first irradiation period, information for identifying the state of the object can be obtained even during the first irradiation period. can. That is, compared to the comparative example, information for identifying the state of the object can be acquired over a wider range of the object. Therefore, compared to the comparative example, the ability to detect minute defects is improved, and as a result, identification accuracy can be improved. As is clear from the above description, with this measuring device, it is possible to simultaneously reduce the temperature rise and power consumption due to heat generated by the electromagnetic wave irradiation source, and improve the identification accuracy.

According to the second aspect of the present disclosure, in the first aspect, the irradiation control section determines whether the first irradiation period and the second irradiation period appear within each scanning period of the sensor. The electromagnetic wave irradiation source is configured to be controlled so that the first irradiation period appears, but the second irradiation period does not appear. According to this embodiment, the second irradiation period does not continue for a long time. Therefore, the temperature rise due to heat generation of the electromagnetic wave irradiation source can be reduced more efficiently.

According to the third aspect of the present disclosure, in the first or second aspect, the irradiation control unit is configured to control the electromagnetic wave irradiation source so that there is no non-irradiation period in which the electromagnetic wave irradiation source does not irradiate electromagnetic waves. be done. In other words, there is no non-irradiation period between the first irradiation period and the second irradiation period. In other words, the electromagnetic radiation source always emits electromagnetic waves. According to this form, information for identifying the state of the object can always be obtained. Therefore, minute defects can be detected more reliably, and the identification accuracy by the identification section can be further improved.

According to the fourth aspect of the present disclosure, in any one of the first to third aspects, the electromagnetic wave irradiation source is a first irradiation source that differs in at least one of the wavelength region of the electromagnetic wave to irradiate and the installation position. A second radiation source is included. The second irradiation period includes a third irradiation period during which the first irradiation source irradiates electromagnetic waves at a second intensity, and a fourth irradiation period during which the second irradiation source irradiates electromagnetic waves at a second intensity. ,including. The irradiation control unit is configured to control the electromagnetic wave irradiation source so that the third irradiation period and the fourth irradiation period do not overlap and appear alternately.

In this specification, the third irradiation period and the fourth irradiation period "alternately" refer to the third irradiation period and the fourth irradiation period when the third irradiation period and the fourth irradiation period are at least partially focused. Reference is made to the appearance of an irradiation period and a fourth irradiation period. Therefore, another irradiation period may be interposed between the third irradiation period and the fourth irradiation period. For example, an irradiation period may be interposed between the third irradiation period and the fourth irradiation period in which electromagnetic waves are irradiated with a third intensity that is greater than the first intensity and smaller than the second intensity. . Alternatively, the first irradiation period and the non-irradiation period may be interposed between the third irradiation period and the fourth irradiation period. Alternatively, the irradiation period during which the first irradiation source irradiates the electromagnetic wave at the second intensity and the second irradiation source irradiates the electromagnetic wave at the second intensity is the third irradiation period and the fourth irradiation period. There may be an intervention between the two. The second intensity of the first irradiation source and the second intensity of the second irradiation source may be the same or different.

According to the fourth embodiment, at least one of reflected electromagnetic waves and transmitted electromagnetic waves can be detected for each of the electromagnetic waves irradiated from the first irradiation source and the second irradiation source, which have different wavelength ranges and at least one of different installation positions. Therefore, the types of states that can be identified by the identification unit can be increased. Moreover, since the third irradiation period and the fourth irradiation period do not overlap, during these irradiation periods, the electromagnetic waves of the second intensity irradiated from each of the first irradiation source and the second irradiation source interfere with each other. do not. Furthermore, since the third irradiation period and the fourth irradiation period appear alternately, at least one of the reflected electromagnetic waves and the transmitted electromagnetic waves with sufficient resolution is transmitted during both the third irradiation period and the fourth irradiation period. Can be obtained. Therefore, it is possible to ensure good accuracy in identifying the state of the object.

According to the fifth aspect of the present disclosure, in the fourth aspect, the irradiation control unit is configured such that the first irradiation source irradiates the electromagnetic wave at the first intensity, and the second irradiation source irradiates the electromagnetic wave at the first intensity. The electromagnetic wave irradiation source is configured to be controlled such that the period in which the electromagnetic wave is irradiated is interposed between the third irradiation period and the fourth irradiation period. The first intensity of the first irradiation source and the first intensity of the second irradiation source may be the same or different. According to this form, the electromagnetic waves are transmitted to the sensor in a state where the electromagnetic waves irradiated from the first irradiation source at the second intensity and the electromagnetic waves irradiated from the second irradiation source at the second intensity interfere with each other. Detection can be easily suppressed. Therefore, reflected electromagnetic waves and/or transmitted electromagnetic waves can be detected more accurately, and the accuracy of identifying the state of the object can be improved.

According to the sixth aspect of the present disclosure, in the fourth or fifth aspect, the first irradiation source is arranged on the first side with respect to the transfer path of the object, and the second irradiation source is arranged on the first side with respect to the transfer path of the object. is placed on a second side opposite to the side of the . The sensor includes a first sensor located on the first side and a second sensor located on the second side. The second intensity in the third irradiation period and the second intensity in the fourth irradiation period are set to the same level. According to this form, it is possible to obtain four types of electromagnetic waves: reflected electromagnetic waves and transmitted electromagnetic waves based on the electromagnetic waves irradiated from the first irradiation source, and reflected electromagnetic waves and transmitted electromagnetic waves based on the electromagnetic waves irradiated from the second irradiation source. be. Therefore, the types of states of objects that can be identified can be increased. Moreover, since the second intensity in the third irradiation period and the second intensity in the fourth irradiation period are at the same level, the electromagnetic waves with the same intensity on the first side and the second side information can be obtained and, as a result, equivalent identification performance can be obtained on the first side and the second side. Therefore, defects appearing only on one side of the object can be identified with high accuracy.

According to a seventh aspect of the present disclosure, a sorting device is provided. This sorting device includes a measuring device of any one of the first to sixth forms, and a sorting section configured to sort objects based on the identification result of the identifying section. According to this sorting device, effects similar to those of the first to sixth embodiments can be obtained. For example, sorting accuracy can be improved while reducing temperature rise and power consumption due to heat generated by the electromagnetic wave irradiation source.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of a measuring device according to a first embodiment. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between one object and the scan number of a sensor. 5 is a timing chart showing an example of a lighting pattern of a light source according to the first embodiment. 7 is a timing chart showing an example of a lighting pattern of a light source as a comparative example. 7 is a timing chart showing an example of a lighting pattern of a light source according to a second embodiment. 7 is a timing chart showing an example of a lighting pattern of a light source according to a third embodiment. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of a sorting device according to a fourth embodiment.

A. First embodiment:
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of a measuring device 10 according to the first embodiment. The measuring device 10 is a device for measuring the state (in other words, the quality) of the object 90. In the following, the quality of rice grains (more specifically, brown rice or polished rice) as an example of the target object 90 (regular grains, immature grains, colored grains, foreign substances (for example, pebbles, mud, glass pieces) is measured by the measuring device 10. etc.)) will be explained as something to be measured. However, the object 90 is not limited to rice grains, and may be any granular object. For example, the object 90 may be rice, wheat grains, legumes (soybeans, chickpeas, edamame, etc.), resins (pellets, etc.), rubber pieces, or the like.

As shown in FIG. 1, the measuring device 10 includes a first light source unit 20, a second light source unit 30, a first sensor 51, a second sensor 52, a storage tank 71, and a feeder 72. , a chute 73, a discharge gutter 74, and a controller 80. The controller 80 controls the overall operation of the measuring device 10. The controller 80 also functions as an identification section 81 and an irradiation control section 82. The functions of the controller 80 may be realized by the CPU executing a predetermined program, or may be realized by a dedicated circuit. The functions of the identification section 81 and the irradiation control section 82 may be realized by one integrated device, or may be realized by separate devices. Details of the functions of the controller 80 will be described later.

The storage tank 71 temporarily stores the object 90. The feeder 72 supplies the object 90 stored in the storage tank 71 onto a chute 73, which is an example of a transfer section for transferring the object. The object 90 supplied onto the chute 73 slides downward on the chute 73, falls from the lower end of the chute 73, and is guided to the discharge gutter 74. The chute 73 has a predetermined width that allows a large number of objects 90 to fall at the same time. Instead of the chute 73, a conveyor may be used as the transfer section.

Each of the first light source unit 20 and the second light source unit 30 irradiates light onto the object 90 that has slipped off the chute 73 (that is, the object 90 that is falling from the chute 73). This irradiation location is located between the chute 73 and the discharge gutter 74. Note that in an alternative embodiment, the object 90 sliding on the chute 73 may be irradiated with light. Further, when a conveyor is used instead of the chute 73, light may be irradiated onto the object 90 being transferred on the conveyor or the object 90 falling from the conveyor.

In this embodiment, each of the first light source unit 20 and the second light source unit 30 is a light source unit for emitting visible light. The first light source unit 20 is arranged on one side (also called the front side) with respect to the transport path of the object 90 (in other words, the falling trajectory from the chute 73). On the other hand, the second light source unit 30 is arranged on the other side (also called the rear side) with respect to the transport path of the object 90.

The first light source unit 20 disposed on the front side includes a front red light source 21 that emits front red light 24 , a front green light source 22 that emits front green light 25 , and a front blue light 26 . A front-side blue light source 23 that emits light is provided. The second light source unit 30 disposed on the rear side emits light in the same wavelength range as the first light source unit 20. Specifically, the second light source unit 30 includes a rear red light source 31 that emits rear red light 34 , a rear green light source 32 that emits rear green light 35 , and a rear green light source 32 that emits rear blue light 36 . The rear side blue light source 33 is provided. In this embodiment, each of the first light source unit 20 and the second light source unit 30 is a line light source in which a plurality of LEDs are arranged in the width direction of the chute 73. The specifications (for example, number, light emission format, wavelength range, etc.) of the first light source unit 20 and the second light source unit 30 are not particularly limited. Furthermore, the layout of the light sources 21 to 23 is not particularly limited. For example, the light sources 21 to 23 may be arranged so that the LEDs of each color extend parallel to the width direction of the chute 73 (that is, three lines for each color are formed). Alternatively, in the light sources 21 to 23, LEDs of each color may be arranged alternately along the width direction of the chute 73 (that is, three colors of LEDs form one line). The same applies to the light sources 31 to 33.

Each of the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52 is an optical sensor, and can individually detect red light, green light, and blue light. Although each of the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52 is a color CCD sensor in this embodiment, it may be another type of color sensor such as a color CMOS sensor. In this embodiment, each of the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52 is a line sensor in which a plurality of light receiving elements are arranged in the width direction of the chute 73, but may be an area sensor. The specifications of the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52 are not particularly limited, and can be arbitrarily determined according to the specifications of the first light source unit 20 and the second light source unit 30. The first sensor 51 is placed on the front side, and the second sensor 52 is placed on the rear side.

The first sensor 51 on the front side receives the front red light 24 and the front green light 25 emitted from the front red light source 21, the front green light source 22, and the front blue light source 23, respectively, and reflected by the object 90. and front side blue light 26 can be detected. The first sensor 51 further detects the rear red light 34, the rear green light 35, and the rear red light 34, the rear green light 35 and the rear Side blue light 36 can be detected.

The second sensor 52 on the rear side detects the rear red light 34 and the rear green light 35 emitted from the rear red light source 31, the rear green light source 32, and the rear blue light source 33, respectively, and reflected by the object 90. and rear side blue light 36 can be detected. The second sensor 52 further detects the front red light 24, the front green light 25, and the front Side blue light 26 can be detected.

Below, the reflected light reflected by the target object 90 and/or the transmitted light transmitted through the target object 90 detected by the first sensor 51 and/or the second sensor 52 will be associated with the target object 90. It is also called the reflected light.

As is well known, the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52 perform multiple scans on one object 90. In other words, the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52 detect light associated with one object 90 in each of the plurality of scanning periods. A scanning period is the time from the start to the end of one scan. By combining the images obtained in each scan, an entire image of the one object 90 is obtained. When the optical sensor is a CCD sensor, the "scanning period" can be defined as the time from when the light receiving element starts accumulating electric charge until it finishes accumulating electric charge. When the optical sensor is a CMOS sensor, the "scanning period" can be defined as the time from when the light receiving element starts accumulating charges until outputting the accumulated charges.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between one object 90 and the scan numbers (numbers indicating the number of scans) of the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52. As shown in FIG. 2, in this embodiment, image data is acquired by scanning one object 90 eight times (in order to simplify the explanation, the number of times is less than the actual number). be done. The numbers 1 to 8 shown in FIG. 2 indicate the scan numbers from which image data of the corresponding area is acquired. For example, an area marked with "1" indicates that image data is acquired by the first scan.

The outputs from the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52, that is, analog signals representing the intensity of the detected light, are converted into digital signals by an AC/DC converter (not shown). This digital signal (in other words, the gradation value corresponding to the analog signal) is input to the controller 80. The controller 80 identifies the state of the target object 90 based on the input light detection result (that is, the image) as a process performed by the identification unit 81 . Specifically, the identification unit 81 determines whether the object 90 is a good product (sized grain) or a defective product (for example, immature grain, colored grain) by comparing the gradation value of the image and the threshold value. particles) and/or foreign objects. This identification is performed for each object 90.

Irradiation of visible light from the first light source unit 20 and the second light source unit 30 is controlled by the irradiation control section 82 of the controller 80. The irradiation control unit 82 turns on the front red light source 21, the front green light source 22, the front blue light source 23, the rear red light source 31, the rear green light source 32, and the rear blue light source 33 according to predetermined rules. Control the pattern. FIG. 3 is a timing chart showing an example of a lighting pattern of the first light source unit 20 and the second light source unit 30. In FIG. 3, the scanning periods of the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52 are associated with the lighting patterns of the first light source unit 20 and the second light source unit 30. In FIG. 3, "R" represents red, "G" represents green, and "B" represents blue. Further, "scan number" corresponds to the scan number shown in FIG.

The irradiation control unit 82 is configured to be able to change the intensity (also referred to as luminous intensity, which represents the brightness of the light source) of the light emitted from each of the light sources 21 to 23 and 31 to 33. In this embodiment, the irradiation control unit 82 changes the luminous intensity by changing the voltage applied to the LEDs of the light sources 21 to 23 and 31 to 33. The pulse shape shown in FIG. 3 represents the level of the voltage (forward voltage) applied to the LED. Specifically, "OFF" represents the level of voltage zero, "ON (V1)" represents the level of voltage V1, and "ON (V2)" represents the level of voltage V2 (V2>V1). represents. LEDs emit light when a voltage higher than a predetermined value (also called VF) is applied, and when the voltage is higher than a predetermined value, the LED has the characteristic that as the voltage increases, the current increases and the luminous intensity increases. are doing. Voltages V1 and V2 are set to values greater than this predetermined value. That is, each of the voltages V1 and V2 is set so that the LED emits light. Since V2>V1, the luminous intensity of the LED when voltage V2 is applied is greater than the luminous intensity of the LED when voltage V1 is applied. In the following description, the luminous intensity of the light source when the voltage V1 is applied is referred to as a first luminous intensity, and the luminous intensity of the light source when the voltage V2 is applied is referred to as a second luminous intensity. Further, a period in which light is irradiated with a first luminous intensity is referred to as a first period, and a period in which light is irradiated with a second luminous intensity is referred to as a second period.

As shown in FIG. 3, the irradiation control unit 82 controls each of the light sources 21 to 23 and 31 to 33 so that a first irradiation period and a second irradiation period appear. In particular, in this embodiment, the irradiation control section 82 always applies the voltage V1 or V2 to the light sources 21-23, 31-33. That is, the light sources 21 to 23 and 31 to 33 always emit light (there is no period during which no light is emitted).

Further, the irradiation control unit 82 determines whether the first irradiation period and the second irradiation period appear within each scanning period, or the first irradiation period appears but the second irradiation period does not appear. Each of the light sources 21 to 23 and 31 to 33 is controlled so as not to In the example shown in FIG. 3, one application of voltage V2 (one irradiation of light of the second luminous intensity) starts and ends within one scanning period. However, the second irradiation period may be set to cross the boundaries of a plurality of scanning periods, or may be set to be longer than one scanning period. In addition, in the example shown in FIG. 3, the number of times the voltage V2 is applied within one scanning period (that is, the number of periods in which the voltage V2 is continuously applied) is one, but the voltage V2 is applied multiple times. may be applied. For example, the voltages may be changed in the order of V1, V2, V1, V2, and V1 within one scanning period.

As shown in FIG. 3, the front-side red light source 21 is turned on so that a first irradiation period and a second irradiation period appear in each of all scanning periods. Each of the front green light source 22 and the front blue light source 23 is turned on so that a first irradiation period and a second irradiation period appear in each of all scanning periods. The rear red light source 31 has a first irradiation period and a second irradiation period in each of the scan periods having an odd number of scan numbers, and a first irradiation period and a second irradiation period in each of the scan periods having an even number of scan numbers. The period appears, but the second irradiation period is lit so that it does not appear. Each of the rear green light source 32 and the rear blue light source 33 is turned on so that a first irradiation period and a second irradiation period appear in each of all scanning periods.

In this embodiment, the second irradiation period for red light is set longer than the second irradiation period for each of green light and blue light. However, the second irradiation period of each color of light can be set as appropriate depending on the desired brightness of the image to be acquired. For example, the second irradiation period of each color of light may be the same.

In this embodiment, the second irradiation period starts at a timing delayed from the start of the corresponding scan period (the scan period in which the second irradiation period is set). Moreover, the second irradiation period ends at a timing earlier than the end of the corresponding scanning period. According to one or both of these, the light of the second luminous intensity (relatively high luminous intensity) of any scanning period does not mix into the adjacent scanning period as noise.

According to the lighting pattern shown in FIG. 3, in the scan period having an odd scan number, the first sensor 51 on the front side acquires RGB reflection and transmission images. A reflection-transmission image is an image based on a detection result of light that is a combination of reflected light and transmitted light. For example, regarding red light, there is the front red light 24 emitted from the front red light source 21 and reflected by the object 90, and the rear red light 34 emitted from the rear red light source 31 and transmitted through the object 90. An image is obtained based on the combined light detection results. Similarly, in the scanning period having an odd scanning number, the second sensor 52 on the rear side also acquires RGB reflection and transmission images.

On the other hand, in the scanning period having an even scanning number, the front-side first sensor 51 detects a red reflected image (more precisely, the light of the first luminous intensity from the rear-side red light source 31 (contains some components that have passed through), and reflection-transmission images of green and blue are obtained. A reflected image is an image based on the detection result of reflected light. Similarly, in a scanning period having an even scanning number, the rear second sensor 52 transmits a red transmitted image (more precisely, the light of the first luminous intensity from the rear red light source 31 is transmitted to the target object. 90), green and blue reflection-transmission images are obtained. The transmitted image is an image based on the detection result of transmitted light. Note that if you want to remove the red components mixed into the reflected image and/or the red components mixed into the transmitted image, the rear red light source 31 is turned off during the scanning periods with even scan numbers. (It is not necessary to apply voltage to the rear red light source 31).

The identification unit 81 identifies the state (quality) of the object 90 based on the various red, green, and blue images thus obtained on the front side and the rear side, respectively. The type of image used for identification is determined for each type of state to be identified. The controller 80 may increase the types of images used for the identification process by the identification unit 81 by performing calculation processing based on the images acquired by the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52. Such a calculation can be performed, for example, based on image data acquired in two adjacent scanning periods. For example, from the gradation value of the red reflection/transmission image acquired by the first sensor 51 in the scanning period with the scanning number 2N-1 (N is a natural number), the first sensor 51 in the scanning period with the scanning number 2N A red transmission image can be obtained by subtracting the tone values of the red reflection image obtained by . Further, from the gradation value of the red reflection/transmission image acquired by the second sensor 52 in the scanning period with the scanning number 2N-1, the red color acquired by the second sensor 52 in the scanning period with the scanning number 2N By subtracting the tone values of the transmitted image, a red reflected image can be obtained.

According to the measurement device 10 described above, the object 90 is irradiated with light at a first luminous intensity during the first irradiation period, and the object 90 is irradiated with light at a second luminous intensity greater than the first luminous intensity. There is a second irradiation period in which irradiation is performed. Therefore, compared to a configuration in which the object 90 is always irradiated with light at the second luminous intensity (voltage V2 is always applied), or the object 90 is irradiated with light over the entire corresponding scanning period. Compared to a configuration in which light is emitted at the second luminous intensity, temperature rise and power consumption due to heat generated by the light sources 21 to 23 and 31 to 33 can be reduced. Furthermore, since the first irradiation period and the second irradiation period exist in the scanning period during which the voltage V2 is applied, the second irradiation period does not continue for a long time. Therefore, the temperature rise due to heat generated by the light sources 21 to 23 and 31 to 33 can be reduced more efficiently. In particular, in the above example, one application of voltage V2 starts and ends within one scanning period, so the period during which voltage V2 is continuously applied is shorter, and such an effect is It becomes even more noticeable.

In addition, the identification accuracy of the state of the target object 90 by the identification unit 81 is improved compared to the configuration (comparative example shown in FIG. 4) in which no light is irradiated except during the second irradiation period in which light is irradiated at the second luminous intensity. can. Specifically, in the comparative example, for the part of the object 90 that passed through the detection area of the sensor during the period when no light was irradiated (the voltage was zero), the Optical information is not acquired. On the other hand, according to the measurement device 10 described above, optical information for identifying the state of the object 90 can be acquired not only during the second irradiation period but also during the first irradiation period. That is, compared to the comparative example, optical information for identifying the state of the object 90 can be acquired over a wider range. Therefore, compared to the comparative example, the ability to detect minute defects is improved, and as a result, identification accuracy can be improved. Any one of the light sources 21 to 23 and 31 to 33, or any combination of two or more of them, is a non-limiting example of the "electromagnetic wave irradiation source" in the claims.

Further, according to the measuring device 10, the light sources 21 to 23 and 31 to 33 always emit light, so that information for identifying the state of the object 90 can always be obtained. Therefore, minute defects can be detected more reliably, and the identification accuracy by the identification section 81 can be further improved. However, a part of the first irradiation period in which the voltage V1 is applied may be replaced with a non-irradiation period in which no voltage is applied (light is not irradiated).

Furthermore, according to the measuring device 10, the same level of voltages V1 and V2 are applied to the front side light sources 21 to 23 and the rear side light sources 31 to 33 (irradiation with the same level of luminous intensity is performed). . Therefore, it is possible to obtain the same identification performance on the front side and the rear side. Therefore, defects appearing only on one side of the object 90 can be identified with high accuracy. However, the front side voltage V1 and/or voltage V2 and the rear side voltage V1 and/or voltage V2 may be set to different levels depending on the characteristics of the image to be obtained. Voltage V1 and/or voltage V2 may be set to different levels for each color of light to be detected.

B. Second embodiment:
The second embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. In the second embodiment, only the lighting pattern of the first light source unit 20 and the second light source unit 30 (more specifically, the lighting pattern of the front side red light source 21 and the rear side red light source 31) is different from that of the first embodiment. The second embodiment is different from the first embodiment, and the other points are the same as the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 5, in the second embodiment, the voltage V2 is applied only to the front red light source 21, and the voltage V2 is applied to the rear red light source 31 in the scanning period having an odd scan number. (voltage V1 is applied throughout the scanning period). On the other hand, in a scan period having an even scan number, the voltage V2 is applied only to the rear red light source 31, and the voltage V2 is not applied to the front red light source 21 (the voltage V1 is applied throughout the scan period). is applied).

That is, in the second embodiment, the second irradiation period of the front red light source 21 and the second irradiation period of the rear red light source 31 do not overlap and appear alternately. In other words, there is a period in which voltage V2 is applied to the front red light source 21 and voltage V2 is not applied to the rear red light source 31, and a period in which voltage V2 is applied to the rear red light source 31 and voltage V2 is applied to the front red light source 21. A period in which is not applied and a period in which is not applied do not overlap and appear alternately. According to this configuration, the lights of the second luminous intensity emitted from each of the front red light source 21 and the rear red light source 31 do not interfere with each other. In addition, since the second irradiation period of the front side red light source 21 and the second irradiation period of the rear side red light source 31 appear alternately, in any second irradiation period, a reflected image with sufficient resolution and Transparent images can be obtained. Therefore, the accuracy of identifying the state of the object 90 can be ensured favorably.

In the example of FIG. 5, between the period in which the voltage V2 is applied to the front red light source 21 and the period in which the voltage V2 is applied to the rear red light source 31, the front red light source 21 and the rear red light source 21 There is a period in which the voltage V1 is applied to both of the red light sources 31. Therefore, the light emitted from the front red light source 21 at the second luminous intensity and the light emitted from the rear red light source 31 at the second luminous intensity interfere with each other, and the light is transmitted to the first sensor 51. And/or detection by the second sensor 52 can be easily suppressed. Therefore, reflected light and/or transmitted light can be detected more accurately, and the accuracy of identifying the state of the object 90 can be improved.

According to such a lighting pattern, a red reflected image and a transmitted image can be obtained by the front red light source 21 and the rear red light source 31. The controller 80 may increase the types of images used for the identification process by the identification unit 81 by performing calculation processing based on the images acquired by the first sensor 51 and the second sensor 52. For example, the gradation value of the red reflection image acquired by the first sensor 51 in the scan period with the scan number 2N-1 (N is a natural number) and the tone value of the red reflection image acquired by the first sensor 51 in the scan period with the scan number 2N A red reflection-transmission image may be acquired by adding the gradation values of the acquired red transmission image.

The front red light source 21 and the rear red light source 31 are non-limiting examples of the "first irradiation source" and the "second irradiation source" in the claims. Further, the second irradiation period of the front side red light source 21 and the second irradiation period of the rear side red light source 31 are non-existences of the "third irradiation period" and the "fourth irradiation period" in the claims. This is a limited example.

C. Third embodiment:
The third embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. The third embodiment differs from the second embodiment only in the lighting patterns of the first light source unit 20 and the second light source unit 30, and is otherwise the same as the second embodiment. As shown in FIG. 6, in the third embodiment, during the 3M-2 (M is a natural number) scanning period, the voltage V2 is applied only to the front red light source 21 and the rear red light source 31, and the other No voltage V2 is applied to the light source (voltage V1 is applied throughout the scanning period). 3M-In the first scanning period, the voltage V2 is applied only to the front green light source 22 and the rear green light source 32, and the voltage V2 is not applied to the other light sources (the voltage is applied throughout the scanning period). V1 is applied). During the 3M scanning period, voltage V2 is applied only to the front blue light source 23 and rear blue light source 33, and voltage V2 is not applied to the other light sources (voltage V1 is applied throughout the scanning period). ).

That is, in the third embodiment, the second irradiation period of the

red light sources

21 and 31, the second irradiation period of the

green light sources

22 and 32, and the second irradiation period of the blue

light sources

23 and 33 overlap. No, and they appear alternately. In other words, the second irradiation periods do not overlap and appear alternately between light sources that emit light in different wavelength ranges. For this reason, it is possible to easily prevent the light from being detected by the first sensor 51 and/or the second sensor 52 in a state where the lights in different wavelength ranges (both have the second luminous intensity) interfere with each other. .

One or both of the

red light sources

21 and 31 can be a non-limiting example of a "first irradiation source" or a "second irradiation source" in the claims. Similarly, one or both of the

green light sources

22, 32 can be a non-limiting example of a "first illumination source" or a "second illumination source" in the claims. Similarly, one or both of the blue

light sources

23, 33 can be a non-limiting example of a "first illumination source" or a "second illumination source" in the claims.

D. Fourth embodiment:
The fourth embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 7, a sorting device 110 according to the fourth embodiment differs from the first embodiment only in that it includes a sorting section 160 in addition to the measuring device 10 according to the first embodiment. The sorting section 160 injects air 163 toward the object 90 that has been identified as a defective product (rice grains other than sized rice grains) by the identification section 81 to separate the object 90 . Specifically, the sorting unit 160 includes a plurality of nozzles 161 and a number of valves 162 corresponding to the number of nozzles 161 (in this embodiment, the number is the same as the number of nozzles 161, but the number may be different from the number of nozzles 161). It is equipped with. The plurality of nozzles 161 are arranged in the width direction of the chute 73.

The plurality of nozzles 161 are connected to a compressor (not shown) via a plurality of valves 162, respectively. By selectively opening the plurality of valves 162 in response to a control signal from the controller 80, the plurality of nozzles 161 selectively inject air 163 toward the object 90 that has been identified as a defective product or a foreign object. . The object 90 identified as a defective product or a foreign object is blown away by the air 163, deviates from the falling trajectory from the chute 73, and is guided to the defective product discharge gutter 175 (shown as the object 91 in FIG. 7). On the other hand, the air 163 is not injected to the object 90 that has been identified as a good product (sorted). Therefore, the object 90 identified as a good product (sorted) is guided to the good product discharge gutter 174 without changing its falling trajectory (shown as the object 92 in FIG. 7).

Note that, instead of the configuration in which the air 163 is injected toward the object 90 after falling from the chute 73, the air 163 is injected toward the object 90 sliding on the chute 73 to transfer the object 90. You may change the route. Moreover, a belt conveyor may be used as the transfer means instead of the chute 73. In this case, air may be injected from one end of the belt conveyor toward the falling object. Alternatively, air may be injected toward the object being conveyed on the belt conveyor.

The irradiation control unit 82 may control the light sources 21 to 23 and 31 to 33 using any of the lighting patterns shown in FIGS. 3, 5, and 6. According to this sorting device 110, the same effects as in the first to third embodiments can be obtained. Therefore, it is possible to improve sorting accuracy while reducing temperature rise and power consumption due to heat generated by the light sources 21 to 23 and 31 to 33.

Although the embodiments have been described above, the embodiments described above are for facilitating understanding of the present teachings, and do not limit the present invention. The present invention may be modified and improved without departing from its spirit, and the present invention includes equivalents thereof. In addition, any combination or omission of each component described in the claims and the specification may be used within the scope of solving at least part of the above-mentioned problems or achieving at least part of the effect. It is possible.

For example, any of the lighting patterns shown in FIGS. 3, 5, and 6 are only non-limiting examples, and the voltage V1 is applied to at least one of the light sources 21 to 23 and 31 to 33 to achieve the first luminous intensity. Any changes are possible as long as a first irradiation period for irradiating light with a second luminous intensity and a second irradiation period for applying light of a second luminous intensity appear. For example, a non-irradiation period may be added in which no voltage is applied and no light is irradiated. Alternatively, an additional irradiation period may be set in which a voltage lower than voltage V2 and different from voltage V1 is applied. Alternatively, other lighting patterns for each light source may be added. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 5, voltage V2 is applied to each of the light sources 21 to 23 and 31 to 33 between a scan period with an odd scan number and a scan period with an even scan number. A scanning period having a second irradiation period in which light of a second luminous intensity is irradiated (for example, a scanning period with a scanning number of 1 in FIG. 3) may be interposed.

Alternatively, the lighting pattern of the light sources 21 to 23 and 31 to 33 may be set so that only one of the reflected image and the transmitted image is acquired.

Alternatively, one of the front light source and the rear light source may be omitted. Alternatively, one of the first sensor 51 on the front side and the second sensor 52 on the rear side may be omitted.

Alternatively, any electromagnetic wave source may be installed instead of or in addition to the light source that emits visible light. Such electromagnetic radiation sources may include, for example, near-infrared sources and/or X-ray sources. In this case, the near-infrared source and/or the X-ray source may be placed only on one side of the transport path of the object 90, or may be placed on both sides. Furthermore, a sensor that detects near-infrared rays and/or a sensor that detects X-rays may be placed only on one side of the transfer path of the object 90, or may be placed on both sides. Similar to the visible light lighting pattern described above, the irradiation control unit 82 has a first irradiation period in which electromagnetic waves are radiated at a first intensity, and a second irradiation period in which electromagnetic waves are irradiated at a second intensity greater than the first intensity. The electromagnetic wave irradiation source may be controlled so that the following irradiation periods appear.

10...Measuring device 20...First light source unit 21...Front side red light source 22...Front side green light source 23...Front side blue light source 24...Front side red light 25.. .Front green light 26...Front blue light 30...Second light source unit 31...Rear red light source 32...Rear green light source 33...Rear blue light source 34... Rear red light 35...Rear green light 36...Rear blue light 51...First sensor 52...Second sensor 71...Storage tank 72...Feeder 73.. .Chute 74...Discharge gutter 80...Controller 81...Identification unit 82...Irradiation control unit 90...Target 91...Target 92...Target 110...Sorting device 160... Sorting section 161... Nozzle 162... Valve 163... Air 174... Good product discharge gutter 175... Defective product discharge gutter

Claims

A measuring device for measuring the state of an object,
a transfer unit configured to transfer the object;
an electromagnetic wave irradiation source configured to irradiate the object being transferred with electromagnetic waves by the action of the transfer unit;
a sensor configured to detect at least one of reflected electromagnetic waves irradiated from the electromagnetic wave irradiation source and reflected by the target object, and transmitted electromagnetic waves transmitted through the target object;
an identification unit configured to identify a state of the object based on a signal acquired by the sensor;
and an irradiation control unit configured to control irradiation of the electromagnetic waves from the electromagnetic wave irradiation source,
The irradiation control unit has a first irradiation period in which the electromagnetic wave is irradiated with a first intensity, and a second irradiation period in which the electromagnetic wave is irradiated with a second intensity greater than the first intensity. A measuring device configured to control the electromagnetic radiation source so as to control the electromagnetic radiation source.
The measuring device according to claim 1,
The irradiation control unit is configured to control whether the first irradiation period and the second irradiation period appear within each scanning period of the sensor, or the first irradiation period appears but the second irradiation period does not occur. The measuring device is configured to control the electromagnetic wave irradiation source so that the irradiation period does not occur.
The measuring device according to claim 1 or 2,
The irradiation control unit is configured to control the electromagnetic wave irradiation source so that there is no non-irradiation period in which the electromagnetic wave irradiation source does not irradiate the electromagnetic wave.
The measuring device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The electromagnetic wave irradiation source includes a first irradiation source and a second irradiation source that differ in at least one of the wavelength region of the electromagnetic wave to irradiate and the installation position,
The second irradiation period includes a third irradiation period in which the first irradiation source irradiates the electromagnetic wave at the second intensity, and a third irradiation period in which the second irradiation source irradiates the electromagnetic wave at the second intensity. a fourth irradiation period,
The irradiation control unit is configured to control the electromagnetic wave irradiation source so that the third irradiation period and the fourth irradiation period do not overlap and appear alternately.
The measuring device according to claim 4,
The irradiation control unit is configured such that a period during which the first irradiation source irradiates the electromagnetic wave at the first intensity and during which the second irradiation source irradiates the electromagnetic wave at the first intensity is set to The measuring device is configured to control the electromagnetic wave irradiation source so as to intervene between the third irradiation period and the fourth irradiation period.
A sorting device,
A measuring device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
A sorting device comprising: a sorting section configured to sort the object based on the identification result of the identification section.