JP7208462B2 - Container orientation determination device and container transfer device - Google Patents

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a container orientation determination device and a container transport device , and more particularly, a container orientation determination device that determines the orientation of a container having a trunk portion with a polygonal cross-sectional shape whose side surfaces are composed of a plurality of planes, and the container orientation determination device . and a container transport device .

For example, a container having a prismatic body is known as an article having a polygonal cross-sectional shape whose side surfaces are composed of a plurality of flat surfaces. The printed product name, etc. are positioned on the plane.
In order to attach a label to a predetermined position on the prismatic container, it is necessary to recognize the direction of the container in advance. An article orientation determination device has been used that determines the orientation of a container by means of the container (Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Publication No. 7-6789

However, in the case of the configuration of Patent Document 1, since the contactor is brought into contact with the side surface of the article, the article may be damaged by the contactor, and the contactor needs to be replaced, which complicates maintenance. There was a problem that
In addition, in the configuration for determining the orientation of an article by contacting the contactor, it is difficult to determine the orientation of an article moving at high speed. could not be applied to
In view of such problems, the present invention provides an article orientation determination apparatus capable of determining the orientation of an article having a polygonal cross-section without contact, and rapidly determining the orientation of an article having a polygonal cross-section. To provide an article conveying device capable of conveying while

That is, the container orientation determining device according to the invention of claim 1 is provided along the outer circumference of the conveying path of the rotary table for conveying the container, and has a polygonal cross-sectional body portion whose side surfaces are composed of a plurality of planes. A container orientation determination device that determines the orientation of
a line light irradiation means for irradiating the body of the container with a substantially horizontal straight line light from the outside of the rotary table; a photographing means for photographing from a direction different from the direction; a storage means for storing the inclination angle of the line light projected onto the plane of the body of the container in association with the orientation of the container; and the container photographed by the photographing means. determination means for determining the direction of the container corresponding to the inclination angle of the line light projected onto the plane of the barrel portion by reading from the storage means.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a container transporting apparatus comprising: a mounting table for mounting a container having a polygonal cross-sectional body with a plurality of flat side surfaces; and a driving means for rotating the mounting table. and a container orientation determination device that determines the orientation of the container placed on the placement table,
In the container conveying device, the drive means rotates the mounting table to orient the container in a predetermined direction according to the direction of the container determined by the container direction determination device,
The apparatus is characterized by comprising the container orientation determination apparatus according to claim 1 as the container orientation determination apparatus.

According to the first aspect of the invention, the body portion (side surface) of the container having the polygonal cross-sectional body portion whose side surfaces are composed of a plurality of planes is irradiated with line light, and the line light is applied to the container from a different direction. When photographing the side, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the angle of inclination of the line of light projected onto the plane of the body of the container varies depending on the orientation of the container . can determine the orientation of the container . At this time, since it is not necessary to bring the contactor into contact with the container, the container is prevented from being damaged and the contactor need not be replaced. Moreover, since it is non-contact, high-speed processing can be performed.
Further, according to the second aspect of the invention, by determining the direction of the container using the container direction determination device according to the first aspect of the invention, it is possible to transport the container at high speed while determining the direction of the container . .

A plan view of the container inspection device according to the present embodiment. Side view of label inspection device Diagram for explaining the operation of the article orientation determination device Diagram for explaining the operation of the article orientation determination device

1 shows a plan view of a container inspection apparatus 2 for inspecting a container 1 as an article. This is done by image processing.
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the body portion 1a of the container 1 has a polygonal cross-sectional columnar shape whose side surfaces are formed by a plurality of planes P. In this embodiment, the body portion 1a is formed by four planes P It has a substantially square cross-sectional shape. The cross-sectional shape may be a polygon such as a pentagon or a hexagon, and a corner R or a chamfered shape may be formed at the boundary between the planes P and P.
The container 1 is previously filled with a beverage or the like, and a cap 1b is attached to the upper portion thereof. A label 3 such as a shrink label is attached to the body portion 1a. On the label 3, the name of the product and the indication of raw materials are printed so as to match the plane P forming the body portion 1a.
The container inspection apparatus 2 of the present embodiment inspects the misalignment of the printed position of the label 3 with respect to the container 1, the contents of the print, and wrinkles and tearing of the attached label 3. FIG.

The container inspection device 2 includes a turntable 11 as an article conveying device for conveying the container 1, an article orientation determination device 12 provided along the conveying path of the container 1 by the turntable 11, and the article orientation determination device. 12, and a control means 14 for controlling them.
As shown in FIG. 2, on the outer circumference of the rotary table 11, mounting tables 15 for mounting the containers 1 at regular intervals are provided, and above the mounting tables 15, the containers 1 are supported from above. and a top locator 16 that
A supply wheel 17 for supplying the containers 1 to the rotary table 11 and a discharge wheel 18 for taking out the containers 1 from the rotary table 11 are provided at positions adjacent to the rotary table 11. The supply wheel 17 and the discharge wheel 18 are provided. Grippers (not shown) are provided at equal intervals on the outer periphery of the container 1, and the container 1 is supplied and taken out via the grippers.
Since the supply and removal of the container 1 using the supply wheel 17 and the discharge wheel 18 are conventionally known, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 2 shows a sectional view at the orientation determination position (B in FIG. 1) by the article orientation determination device 12 in the container inspection device 2. As shown in FIG.
The rotary table 11 has first and second plates 21 and 22 which are rotated by driving means (not shown). are provided on the second plate 22 of each.
The mounting table 15 is provided rotatably with respect to a cylindrical holding member 23 fixed to the first plate 21, and the container 1 is mounted in the center of a mounting surface formed on the upper surface thereof. It's like
A drive shaft 24 is connected to the mounting table 15 so as to be rotatable inside the holding member 23. The drive shaft 24 protrudes from the lower surface of the first plate 21 and has a pulley at its lower end. 24a is provided.
A servo motor 25 is provided on the lower surface of the first plate 21 for each mounting table 15 and connected to a pulley 24a provided on the drive shaft 24 via a belt 26. As shown in FIG.
The servomotor 25 is controlled by the control means 14, so that the mounting table 15 can be rotated to direct the container 1 in any desired direction.

The top locator 16 is held below the second plate 22 by a cylindrical holding member 31 fixed to the second plate 22 and is provided so as to be vertically movable by a lifting means 32 .
A recess that fits with the cap 1b of the container 1 is formed in the lower surface of the top locator 16. When the top locator 16 is moved to the lowered position by the lifting means 32, the recess fits into the cap 1b. By doing so, the central axis of the container 1 is aligned with the center of rotation of the top locator 16 .
The lifting means 32 includes a lifting rod 33 connected to the top locator 16 and rotatably housed inside the holding member 31, and a holding member 34 provided at the upper end of the lifting rod 33. and a cam 36 for moving the cam follower 35 up and down.
The lifting rod 33 is composed of a first tubular member 33a connected to the top locator 16 and a second tubular member 33b connected to the holding member 34 of the cam follower 35. A stepped shape is formed between the two tubular members 33b.
A spring 37 is elastically mounted between the stepped shape formed on the first and second tubular members 33a and 33b and the stepped shape formed inside the holding member 31, and the spring 37 moves the lift rod. 33 is always urged downward.
The cam follower 35 abuts against the cam 36 from below, and the cam 36 moves the cam follower 35 downward against the biasing force of the spring 37, thereby moving the top locator 16 downward. It is designed to move.
The lifting rod 33 is rotatably provided inside the holding member 31. With the top locator 16 fitted to the cap 1b of the container 1, the mounting table 15 on which the container 1 is mounted can be moved. As it rotates, friction forces allow the top locator 16 to rotate.

The article orientation determination device 12 includes a line light irradiation means 41 for irradiating the side surface of the body portion 1a of the container 1 with a linear light L, and for photographing the line light L projected onto the plane P of the container 1. Photographing means 42 such as a CCD camera, and determination means for determining the orientation of the container 1 by recognizing the inclination angle of the line light L projected onto the plane P of the container 1 from the image photographed by the photographing means 42. 43.
The line light irradiation means 41 and the photographing means 42 are provided on the outer periphery of the rotary table 11, and in a plan view shown in FIG. It is provided so as to face the center of the table 11 .
On the other hand, in the side view shown in FIG. 2, the line light irradiation means 41 is set to irradiate the line light L from above the container 1 mounted on the mounting table 15 at an angle of 45°. Reference numeral 42 is designed to photograph horizontally from the same height as the container 1 .
In other words, the irradiation direction of the line light L by the line light irradiation means 41 and the photographing direction by the photographing means 42 are different from each other, and are set to intersect in the vicinity of the plane P of the container 1. .

The line light irradiating means 41 irradiates the body portion 1a of the container 1 positioned obliquely downward with the linear line light L directed in the horizontal direction. The line light L is projected.
At this time, the line light L projected onto the plane P is projected at different angles of inclination by the photographing means 42 according to the orientation of the container 1 placed on the placement table 15 .
The image photographed by the photographing means 42 is image-processed by the judging means 43, and the judging means 43 judges the orientation of the container 1 from the inclination angle of the line light L projected onto the plane P. .
For this purpose, while gradually rotating the orientation of the container 1 in advance, the container 1 is irradiated with the line light L, and the inclination angle of the line light L projected onto the plane P of the container 1 is measured at that time. 1 and the inclination angle are associated with each other and stored in the storage means.
Thus, when the judging means 43 recognizes the inclination angle of the line light L from the image photographed by the photographing means 42, the orientation of the container 1 corresponding thereto is read out from the storage means, and this is used as the orientation of the container 1. It is designed to judge.

3 and 4 show how the line light L is projected onto the side surface of the container 1 when the line light irradiation means 41 irradiates the line light L onto the container 1 placed on the mounting table 15. FIG. It is a diagram for explaining how the inclination angle of the line light L changes at that time.
3 and 4, (a) is an image photographed by the photographing means 42, (b) is a view of the container 1 viewed from above, and (c) is a view of the container 1 viewed from the side. showing.
FIG. 3 shows a state in which one plane P constituting the side surface of the container 1 faces the line light irradiation means 41. As shown in FIG. In this case, when the container 1 is irradiated with the line light L obliquely from above as shown in FIG. 3(c), the line light L is projected only on the one plane P as shown in FIG. 3(b). be.
As a result, as shown in FIG. 3A, the line light L projected onto the one plane P is photographed by the photographing means 42 as a straight line directed substantially horizontally.
Then, the determination means 43 performs image processing on the image photographed by the photographing means 42 to recognize that the inclination angle of the line light L is 0°. It is determined that the orientation of the container 1 at a given time is 0° where the plane P of the container 1 faces the line light irradiation means 41 .

On the other hand, FIG. 4 shows a state in which the container 1 is horizontally rotated by 45° with respect to FIG. is shown.
When the container 1 is irradiated obliquely with the line light L from above, the line light L is projected onto two planes P as shown in FIG. The light is projected in a straight line oriented obliquely downward in the same direction as the irradiation direction of the light irradiation means 41 .
When this is photographed by the photographing means 42, as shown in FIG. 4A, the line light L is photographed as two straight lines having a substantially inverted V shape. The inclination angle of any one of the line lights L is recognized, and it is determined from the storage means that the orientation of the corresponding container 1 is 45°.

The label inspection device 13 includes four first to fourth cameras 44A to 44D provided at positions downstream of the article orientation determination device 12 on the rotary table 11, and the first to fourth cameras 44A. 44D, and a judgment means 45 connected to 44D.
In FIG. 1, in the inspection range D provided with the first to fourth cameras 44A to 44D, four planes P constituting the body portion 1a of the container 1 are sequentially photographed. The mounting table 15 is rotated so that each plane P faces the first to fourth cameras 44A to 44D in order.
In the direction correction section C adjacent to the upstream side of the inspection range D, the direction of the container 1 determined by the article direction determination device 12 is adjusted so that one plane P of the container 1 faces the first camera 44A. Accordingly, the control means 14 rotates the mounting table 15 so that the plane P of the container 1 faces the first camera 44A.
Thereafter, while the container 1 is moving from the first camera 44A to the second camera 44B, the control means 14 rotates the mounting table 15 by 90° so that another plane P faces the second camera 44B, and then sequentially By rotating the mounting table 15 by 90°, the other plane P faces the third and fourth cameras 44C and 44D.
The images of the container 1 photographed by the first to fourth cameras 44A to 44D are transmitted to the determination means 45, and the determination means 45 uses conventionally known image recognition technology to identify the label 3 attached to the container 1. , and the wrinkles and burrs of the label 3 are inspected.
If even one of the four planes P is found to be abnormal, the judging means 45 judges that the container 1 is defective, and rejects the container 1 judged to be defective in a post-process (not shown). It's like
In addition to the label inspection device 13, means for inspecting the attached state of the cap 1b and the content of the filled beverage may be provided along the conveying path of the rotary table 11. FIG.
In this embodiment, the four planes P forming the body portion 1a of the container 1 are photographed for inspection. The entire circumference of the body portion 1a of the container 1 can also be inspected by photographing.

First, the container 1 is conveyed by the supply wheel 17. At this time, the supply wheel 17 holds the container 1 in a random orientation. there is
At the receiving position A where the rotary table 11 and the supply wheel 17 are adjacent to each other, the container 1 held by the supply wheel 17 is placed on the placement table 15. It abuts on the container 1 from above.
By supporting the container 1 from above and below by the top locator 16 and the mounting table 15, the container 1 can be held on the mounting table 15 even if the rotary table 11 is rotated at high speed, and the label Processing in the inspection device 13 can be performed at high speed.
The direction of the container 1 placed on the placement table 15 at the receiving position A is also random.

An orientation determination position B by the article orientation determination device 12 is set downstream of the receiving position A, the line light irradiation means 41 irradiates the container 1 with the line light L from obliquely above, and the photographing means The line light L projected onto the body portion 1a of the container 1 is photographed.
Then, the judging means 43 recognizes the inclination angle of the line light L from the image photographed by the photographing means 42, reads out the orientation of the container 1 corresponding to the inclination angle stored in the storage means, and raises it. It is determined as the orientation of the container 1 placed on the placement table 15 .

When the orientation of the container 1 is determined in this manner, the placement table 15 is rotated in accordance with the determined orientation of the container 1 in the direction correction section C located downstream of the orientation determination position B, and the One of the four planes P forming the side surface of the container 1 faces the outer periphery of the rotary table 11 .
Specifically, the orientation of the container 1 determined by the article orientation determination device 12 is in the range of 0° to 45°, and the control means 14 controls the servo motor so that the orientation of the container 1 is 0°. 25 is controlled to rotate the mounting table 15 so that one of the planes P faces the outside of the rotary table 11 .

When one plane P of the container 1 faces outward in the direction correction section C, the container 1 then passes through the inspection section D, and the label 3 attached to the container 1 is inspected by the label inspection device 13. done.
In this inspection section D, the container 1 passes through the first to fourth cameras 44A to 44D constituting the label inspection device 13, and the mounting table 15 rotates by 90° between each camera. , four planes P forming the body portion 1a of the container 1 are photographed.
Then, the determination means 45 connected to the first to fourth cameras 44A to 44D inspects the label 3 based on the images captured by the first to fourth cameras 44A to 44D, and detects the labels on all the four planes P. Only the container 1 in which no abnormality was found in 3 is judged to be a non-defective product.
Thereafter, when the container 1 is positioned at the transfer position E where the rotary table 11 and the discharge wheel 18 are adjacent to each other, the top locator 16 is retracted upward, and the container 1 is discharged from the mounting table 15 of the rotary table 11. It is adapted to be delivered to the wheel 18 .

By using the article orientation determination device 12 according to the embodiment, the orientation of the container 1 can be determined without contact by irradiating the side surface of the container 1 conveyed in random orientations with the line light L. .
Therefore, the label 3 attached to the container 1 is not damaged, and since it is non-contact, it can be processed at high speed, and maintenance such as replacement of the contactor is unnecessary.
Further, in this embodiment, since the rotary table 11 is used as the article conveying device, the container 1 can be conveyed at high speed while the article orientation determination device 12 can perform high speed processing. Specifically, by supporting the container 1 from above and below by the mounting table 15 and the top locator 16, the container 1 can be conveyed at high speed.
Here, as a method of determining the direction of an article, a method of photographing the article from directly above is conceivable. Therefore, the goods cannot be processed at high speed.

In the above-described embodiment, the label 3 attached to the container 1 having the body portion 1a with a square cross section as the article is inspected. Orientation can be determined.
For example, when applied to a capper that attaches a cap with a nozzle to a container having a polygonal cross section, the orientation of the container 1 is determined when the orientation of the plane P of the container 1 and the orientation of the nozzle are matched. It is conceivable to apply the technology to

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 container 1a trunk 2 container inspection device 11 rotary table (article conveying device)
REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 12 Article Orientation Determining Device 41 Line Light Irradiating Means 42 Photographing Means 43 Judging Means L Line Light P Plane

Claims (3)

A container direction determination device for determining the orientation of a container provided along the outer circumference of the transport path of a rotary table for transporting the container and having a body portion with a polygonal cross-sectional shape whose side surface is composed of a plurality of planes,
a line light irradiation means for irradiating the body of the container with a substantially horizontal straight line light from the outside of the rotary table; a photographing means for photographing from a direction different from the direction; a storage means for storing the inclination angle of the line light projected onto the plane of the body of the container in association with the orientation of the container; and the container photographed by the photographing means. determining means for determining the direction of the container corresponding to the inclination angle of the line light projected onto the plane of the body of the container by reading from the storage means. A mounting table for mounting a container having a polygonal cross-sectional trunk part with a plurality of flat sides, a driving means for rotating the mounting table, and a container mounted on the mounting table. A container orientation determination device that determines the orientation,
In the container conveying device, the drive means rotates the mounting table to orient the container in a predetermined direction according to the direction of the container determined by the container direction determination device,
A container conveying apparatus comprising the container direction determining device according to claim 1 as the container direction determining device. The mounting tables are provided at equal intervals along the outer periphery of the rotary table that is rotatably provided, and a top locator for supporting the upper part of the container is provided above each mounting table,
3. The container conveying apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said photographing means photographs the container being conveyed while being supported from above and below by said placing table and top locator.

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