Classifications

• • G—PHYSICS
  • G01—MEASURING; TESTING
  • G01B—MEASURING LENGTH, THICKNESS OR SIMILAR LINEAR DIMENSIONS; MEASURING ANGLES; MEASURING AREAS; MEASURING IRREGULARITIES OF SURFACES OR CONTOURS
  • G01B11/00—Measuring arrangements characterised by the use of optical techniques
  • G01B11/24—Measuring arrangements characterised by the use of optical techniques for measuring contours or curvatures
  • G01B11/25—Measuring arrangements characterised by the use of optical techniques for measuring contours or curvatures by projecting a pattern, e.g. one or more lines, moiré fringes on the object

Definitions

• the laser sensor when the laser sensor is positioned so that it overlaps a range outside the widthwise edge of the belt when viewed in the normal direction of the belt surface, the laser sensor may be positioned so that the widthwise edge of the belt is included in the irradiation range of the laser light.
• the laser sensor may be positioned so that the widthwise edge of the belt is included in the area irradiated by the component of the laser light that travels in a direction normal to the surface of the belt.
• the drive device may be a pulley.
• the belt may be wound around the pulley.
• the end of the pulley in the width direction of the belt may be located outside the end of the belt in the width direction.
• the laser sensor may be positioned so that the range irradiated by the component of the laser light traveling in a direction normal to the surface of the belt is located between the end of the belt in the width direction and the end of the pulley.
• the laser sensor may measure the surface profile of the belt by detecting the laser light reflected or scattered at the portion where the belt contacts the pulley.
• the computing device may generate the surface profile data for the portion where the belt contacts the pulley.
• the laser sensor may measure the shape of the belt surface by irradiating the laser light onto the surface of the belt while the belt is being driven in the traveling direction, and detecting the laser light reflected or scattered at each position along the traveling direction on the surface of the belt.
• the arithmetic device may generate surface shape data along the traveling direction of the belt surface.
• At least one laser sensor may be disposed on each of both ends of the belt in the width direction.
• the laser sensors may be positioned so that the entire width of the belt is included in the irradiation range of the laser light irradiated from at least one laser sensor when viewed in the direction of travel of the belt.
• the arithmetic unit may generate surface profile data for the entire width of the belt by combining the measurement data from each of the multiple laser sensors.
• the multiple laser sensors may be arranged so that the irradiation ranges of the laser light emitted from each of the multiple laser sensors do not overlap when viewed in the width direction of the belt.
• a surface shape measurement method is a method for measuring the shape of the surface of the belt using the surface shape measurement device described in any one of (1) to (12) above.
• the surface shape measurement method includes the steps of irradiating the laser light from the laser sensor onto the surface of the belt, detecting the laser light reflected or scattered by the surface of the belt with the laser sensor, and measuring the shape of the surface of the belt, and generating surface shape data representing the shape of the surface of the belt based on measurement data of the shape of the surface of the belt measured by the laser sensor.
• a belt management method includes managing the belt based on the surface shape data generated by the surface shape measurement method described in (13) above.
• the surface profile measuring device, surface profile measuring method, and belt management method disclosed herein allow the surface profile of a belt to be measured with high accuracy.
• FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a surface profile measuring apparatus according to the present disclosure.
• 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a surface profile measuring device according to the present disclosure.
• 3 is a side view of the configuration example of FIG. 2 as seen in plan on a plane including the traveling direction of the belt.
• 3 is a front view of the configuration example of FIG. 2 as seen in plan view on a plane including the width direction of the belt.
• FIG. 10 is a front view showing the arrangement of laser sensors according to a comparative example.
• FIG. 5B is an enlarged view of the boxed area A in FIG. 5A.
• FIG. 10 is a front view of a laser sensor positioned so that the edge of the belt is included in the irradiation range of the laser light.
• FIG. 10 is a front view of a laser sensor positioned so that at least a portion of the outer shape of the laser sensor overlaps with an edge of the belt in the width direction when viewed from the normal direction of the belt surface.
• FIG. 10 is a front view of a laser sensor positioned so that an irradiating portion of the laser sensor overlaps an edge of the belt in the width direction when viewed from the normal direction of the belt surface.
• 1 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a procedure for a surface shape measuring method according to the present disclosure.
• FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a configuration including three laser sensors.
• FIG. 10 is a front view showing an example of a configuration in which two laser sensors are arranged so that the irradiation ranges of the two laser sensors overlap each other along the width direction.
• FIG. FIG. 10 is a side view showing an example of a configuration in which two laser sensors are arranged so that the irradiation ranges of the two laser sensors are offset in the traveling direction.
• 10 is a graph showing an example of a measurement value of the height of the belt surface by the first sensor when the irradiation range of the first sensor and the irradiation range of the second sensor are separated by 20 mm in the belt traveling direction.
• 10 is a graph showing an example of a measurement value of the height of the belt surface by the second sensor when the irradiation range of the first sensor and the irradiation range of the second sensor are separated by 20 mm in the belt traveling direction.
• 10 is a graph showing an example of a measurement value of the height of the belt surface by the first sensor when the irradiation range of the first sensor and the irradiation range of the second sensor are separated by 45 mm in the belt traveling direction.
• 10 is a graph showing an example of a measurement value of the height of the belt surface by the second sensor when the irradiation range of the first sensor and the irradiation range of the second sensor are separated by 45 mm in the belt traveling direction.
• a surface profile measuring apparatus 10 includes a laser sensor 11 and a computing device 12.
• the surface profile measuring apparatus 10 measures the profile of the surface 31 of a conveyor belt 30 of a belt conveyor by irradiating the surface 31 with laser light 43 that spreads over an irradiation range 45.
• the measurement target of the surface profile measuring apparatus 10 is the belt conveyor.
• the number of laser sensors 11 may be one, or two or more.
• the surface profile measuring apparatus 10 includes one or more laser sensors 11.
• the belt conveyor includes a conveyor belt 30 and pulleys 20.
• the conveyor belt 30 is wound around a pair of pulleys 20.
• the conveyor belt 30 moves in the direction of travel as the pulleys 20 rotate, and moves the objects placed on the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30.
• the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 is the outer surface of the conveyor belt 30 that does not come into contact with the pulleys 20.
• the shape of the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 is also simply referred to as the surface shape.
• Conveyor belt 30 is an example of a belt conveyor that carries and moves transported items in the direction of travel. Conveyor belt 30 is also simply referred to as a belt.
• the traveling direction of the conveyor belt 30 is the direction in which the conveyor belt 30 moves due to the driving force received from the pulleys 20.
• the traveling direction of the conveyor belt 30 corresponds to the direction in which the pair of pulleys 20 are lined up between them.
• the traveling direction of the conveyor belt 30 corresponds to the direction in which the pulleys 20 rotate at the portion where the conveyor belt 30 is wound around them.
• the thickness of the conveyor belt 30 needs to be managed to prevent the conveyor belt 30 from breaking.
• the thickness of the conveyor belt 30 can be calculated from the surface shape measured by the surface shape measuring device 10.
• the surface shape is a shape that includes the irregularities of the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30. For example, a portion of the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 that is recessed from the surrounding area corresponds to a portion where the thickness of the conveyor belt 30 is thinner than the surrounding area. A portion of the conveyor belt 30 where the thickness is zero corresponds to a portion where the conveyor belt 30 has a defect such as a hole.
• the surface profile measuring device 10 includes a laser sensor 11 and a computing device 12.
• the surface profile measuring device 10 measures the surface profile of the conveyor belt 30 by operating the laser sensor 11 and the computing device 12 in cooperation with each other.
• the laser sensor 11 and the computing device 12 may be connected via a network such as a LAN (Local Area Network) and configured to be able to transmit and receive information obtained by measurement, i.e., measurement data, to and from each other.
• LAN Local Area Network
• the laser sensor 11 includes an irradiating unit 41 and a light receiving unit 42. Strictly speaking, the irradiating unit 41 and the light receiving unit 42 are positioned slightly offset from the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30, which is the object to be measured, but they can be considered to be positioned in the same place.
• the laser sensor 11 measures the shape of the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 by performing a light cutting method using a laser beam 43.
• the laser sensor 11 is positioned on the surface 31 side of the conveyor belt 30.
• the laser sensor 11 may measure the surface shape of the conveyor belt 30 by irradiating the conveyor belt 30 with laser light 43 from the irradiation unit 41 and detecting the laser light 46 that is reflected or scattered by the conveyor belt 30 and returned with the light receiving unit 42.
• the laser sensor 11 can measure the surface shape of the conveyor belt 30 without contacting the conveyor belt 30 by performing a light cutting method.
• the laser sensor 11 can measure the surface shape of the conveyor belt 30 by calculating the distance to each point on the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 and calculating the height of each point on the surface 31.
• the laser sensor 11 outputs measurement data of the surface shape of the conveyor belt 30 to the computing device 12.
• the laser sensor 11 irradiates the conveyor belt 30 with a line laser beam 43 that extends in the width direction of the conveyor belt 30.
• the line laser beam is irradiated over a radially expanding irradiation range 45.
• the laser sensor 11 is positioned so that the central axis 44 of the irradiation range 45 is aligned with the normal direction of the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30.
• the laser beam 43 is not limited to a line laser beam, and may be a planar laser beam.
• the laser sensor 11 may emit laser light 43 while the pulley 20 is rotating, i.e., while the conveyor belt 30 is moving in the direction of travel. By emitting laser light 43 while the conveyor belt 30 is moving, the laser sensor 11 can measure the surface shape along the direction of travel of the conveyor belt 30.
• the surface shape measuring device 10 further includes a light-shielding cover 14.
• the light-shielding cover 14 is positioned to block the component of the laser light 43 directed outward, so that the laser light 43 irradiated from the laser sensors 11A and 11B onto the irradiation ranges 45A and 45B is not irradiated outside the pulley 20.
• ⁇ is reduced by positioning laser sensor 11 so that it overlaps with widthwise end 32 of conveyor belt 30 when viewed in the normal direction of surface 31 of conveyor belt 30. Reducing ⁇ narrows blind spot range 43S.
• blind spot range 43S is eliminated.
• the measurement accuracy of the surface shape of end 32 of conveyor belt 30 is improved compared to when laser sensor 11 is positioned inside widthwise of conveyor belt 30.
• the laser sensor 11 is positioned so that it can irradiate the laser light 43 onto the portion where the conveyor belt 30 is wound around the pulley 20, i.e., the portion where the conveyor belt 30 contacts the pulley 20.
• the laser sensor 11 is positioned so that the direction of incidence of the laser light 43 onto the conveyor belt 30 passes through the center of the rotation axis 22 of the pulley 20.
• the center of the rotation axis 22 of the pulley 20 is represented by a dashed line in Figure 4.
• the laser sensor 11 is positioned so that it irradiates the pulley 20 with laser light 43 from diagonally above.
• the laser sensor 11 is not limited to the position illustrated in Figures 2 and 3, but may be positioned so that it can irradiate the laser light 43 at the position where the conveyor belt 30 contacts the pulley 20, i.e., at any position between the 6 o'clock and 12 o'clock positions on the pulley 20 in the side view of Figure 3.
• the surface profile measuring device 10 can measure the surface profile of the conveyor belt 30, which is wound around the pulley 20 and in a stable position.
• the laser sensor 11 may be positioned so that the absolute value of the angle between the direction of travel of the laser light 43 incident on the widthwise end 32 of the conveyor belt 30 and the normal direction of the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 is equal to or less than an upper angle limit.
• the upper angle limit may be determined according to the accuracy required for measuring the surface shape of the conveyor belt 30.
• the upper angle limit may be determined according to the setting of the above-mentioned specified distance. For example, if the specified distance is set to ⁇ 50 mm, the upper angle limit may be set to 3°.
• the laser sensor 11 may be positioned so that the angle value falls within an angle range.
• the angle range may be determined according to the accuracy required for measuring the surface shape of the conveyor belt 30.
• the angle range may be determined according to the setting of the specified distance described above. For example, if the specified distance is set to 50 mm, the angle range may be set to -3° to +3°.
• the laser sensor 11 When the laser sensor 11 is positioned so that it overlaps a range outside the widthwise end 32 of the conveyor belt 30 when viewed in the normal direction of the conveyor belt 30, the laser sensor 11 may be positioned so that the widthwise end 32 of the conveyor belt 30 is included in the irradiation range 45, as shown in FIG. 6A. By including the widthwise end 32 of the conveyor belt 30 in the irradiation range 45, the laser sensor 11 can measure the surface shape of the widthwise end 32 of the conveyor belt 30.
• the laser sensor 11 When the laser sensor 11 is positioned so as to overlap the widthwise edge 32 of the conveyor belt 30 when viewed normal to the conveyor belt 30, as shown in FIG. 6B , the laser sensor 11 may be positioned so that at least a portion of the outer shape of the laser sensor 11 overlaps the widthwise edge 32 of the conveyor belt 30 when viewed normal to the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 represented by the dashed dotted line. In other words, the position of the laser sensor 11 may be adjusted based on the positional relationship between the widthwise edge 32 of the conveyor belt 30 and the outer shape of the laser sensor 11.
• the position of the laser sensor 11 When the position of the laser sensor 11 is adjusted based on the position of the outer shape of the laser sensor 11, the position of the laser sensor 11 can be adjusted so that the widthwise edge 32 of the conveyor belt 30 is hidden by the laser sensor 11 when the laser sensor 11 overlaps the conveyor belt 30. As a result, the position of the laser sensor 11 can be easily adjusted.
• the irradiation range 45 formed by the laser light 43 spreading in the width direction of the conveyor belt 30 spreads linearly in the width direction of the conveyor belt 30.
• the range of the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 irradiated by that component is a circle of finite size.
• the range of the laser light 43 irradiated by the component of the laser light 43 traveling in the normal direction to the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 is represented by the hatched range.
• the component of the laser light 43 traveling in the normal direction to the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 is incident on the end 32, eliminating the blind spot at the step between the end 32 of the conveyor belt 30 and the pulley 20. As a result, the accuracy of measuring the surface shape at the end 32 of the conveyor belt 30 is improved.
• the laser sensor 11 may be positioned so that the range of the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 irradiated by the component of the laser light 43 traveling in the normal direction to the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 is located between the widthwise end 32 of the conveyor belt 30 and the end 24 of the pulley 20.
• the laser sensor 11 may be positioned so that the component of the laser light 43 traveling in the normal direction to the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 is incident on the pulley 20.
• the surface profile measuring apparatus 10 may execute a surface profile measuring method including the procedure illustrated in FIG. 7.
• the surface profile measuring method may be realized as a surface profile measuring program executed by a processor included in the surface profile measuring apparatus 10.
• the surface profile measuring program may be stored on a non-transitory computer-readable medium.
• the laser sensor 11 irradiates the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 with laser light 43 and detects the laser light 46 reflected or scattered by the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 (step S1).
• the laser sensor 11 measures the surface shape of the conveyor belt 30 based on the detection results of the laser light 46 (step S2).
• the laser sensor 11 may calculate the height of each point on the surface 31 of the conveyor belt 30 and generate measurement data of the surface shape.
• the computing device 12 manages or monitors the conveyor belt 30 based on the surface shape data (step S5). After executing the procedure of step S5, the computing device 12 ends execution of the flowchart in FIG. 7. After executing the procedure of step S5, the computing device 12 may return to the procedure of step S1 and repeat measuring the surface shape of the conveyor belt 30.
• the surface profile measuring apparatus 10 may include three laser sensors 11A, 11B, and 11C.
• the laser sensors 11A and 11B are disposed at both ends of the conveyor belt 30 in the width direction, and can measure the surface profile of the end 32 with high accuracy.
• the laser sensors 11A and 11B may be disposed such that the central axes 44A and 44B of their respective irradiation ranges 45A and 45B are positioned at the end 32 in the width direction of the conveyor belt 30.
• the laser sensor 11C is disposed at the center of the conveyor belt 30 in the width direction, and can measure the surface profile of the center of the conveyor belt 30 in the width direction with high accuracy.
• the laser sensor 11C may be disposed such that the central axis 44C of the irradiation range 45C of the laser sensor 11C is positioned at the center of the conveyor belt 30 in the width direction.
• the widthwise ends 32 of the conveyor belt 30 are areas prone to breakage such as edge cuts, and are areas where management or monitoring is particularly required. Furthermore, the center of the conveyor belt 30 tends to become thinner due to wear caused by the heaviest load of transported goods, and is an area where management or monitoring is particularly required. Therefore, with this configuration example, areas where management or monitoring is particularly required can be measured with high accuracy, regardless of the widthwise length of the conveyor belt 30.
• the number of laser sensors 11 may be four or more. By increasing the number of laser sensors 11, the surface shape can be measured across the entire width of the conveyor belt 30, regardless of the width length of the conveyor belt 30.
• multiple laser sensors 11A and 11B may be arranged so that irradiation areas 45A and 45B overlap in the width direction of the conveyor belt 30, but as shown in the side view of FIG. 9B, multiple laser sensors 11A and 11B do not overlap in the traveling direction of the conveyor belt 30.
• multiple laser sensors 11 may be arranged spaced apart so that the irradiation areas 45 of the laser light 43 do not overlap in the traveling direction of the conveyor belt 30.
• the area where irradiation areas 45A and 45B overlap in the width direction of the conveyor belt 30 is represented as Q.
• the area where irradiation areas 45A and 45B are separated in the traveling direction of the conveyor belt 30 is represented as P.
• laser sensor 11A is referred to as the first sensor.
• Laser sensor 11B is referred to as the second sensor.
• the first sensor i.e., laser sensor 11A
• the second sensor i.e., laser sensor 11B
• the measurement data obtained by the first and second sensors measuring the surface shape of the conveyor belt 30, which has a flat surface 31 is shown in the graphs of Figures 10A and 10B.
• the graph in Figure 10A represents the measurement data obtained by the first sensor.
• the graph in Figure 10B represents the measurement data obtained by the second sensor.
• the horizontal axis of the graphs in Figures 10A and 10B represents the position in the width direction of the conveyor belt 30.
• the vertical axis represents the measured height of the surface 31 at each position.
• the range in which irradiation ranges 45A and 45B overlap in the width direction is indicated by Q.
• the effect of irradiation areas 45A and 45B overlapping with each other in the width direction appears as a step-like change in the surface height measurement data between the range represented as Q and other ranges.
• the step-like change in the surface height measurement data indicates that interference of laser light 43 occurs in the range where irradiation areas 45A and 45B overlap, i.e., the range represented as Q.
• the horizontal axis of the graphs in Figures 11A and 11B represents the position in the width direction of the conveyor belt 30.
• the vertical axis represents the measured height of the surface 31 at each position.
• the range in which irradiation ranges 45A and 45B overlap in the width direction is represented as Q.
• the first sensor i.e., laser sensor 11A
• the second sensor i.e., laser sensor 11B
• the distance required for separation in the direction of travel of the conveyor belt 30 is determined according to the specifications of the laser sensor 11.
• the surface shape measuring device 10 is equipped with three or more laser sensors 11, by separating two adjacent laser sensors 11 in the width direction of the conveyor belt 30 in the direction of travel of the conveyor belt 30, the effect of overlapping irradiation ranges 45 in the width direction of the conveyor belt 30 is eliminated or reduced.
• the calculation device 12 When the multiple laser sensors 11 are positioned offset in the direction of travel of the conveyor belt 30, the calculation device 12 generates surface shape data taking into account the position of each laser sensor 11 in the direction of travel.

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• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Length Measuring Devices By Optical Means (AREA)

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Citations (8)

• 2024
  • 2024-10-11 WO PCT/JP2024/036546 patent/WO2025173307A1/ja active Pending
  • 2024-10-11 JP JP2025521554A patent/JP7806972B2/ja active Active

Patent Citations (8)

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