Livestock carcass code spraying method and corresponding system

Abstract

A livestock carcass code spraying method comprises the following steps: a livestock carcass detection step: detecting whether a livestock carcass exists at a livestock carcass detection station of a slaughter production line; an automatic code spraying judgment step: if the livestock carcass is detected to exist at the livestock carcass detection station, judging whether the livestock carcass is suitable for executing automatic code spraying, or acquiring setting information about whether the livestock carcass executes automatic code spraying; a code spraying step: if a result of the automatic code spraying judgment step is yes, executing automatic code spraying on the livestock carcass; and a recording step: recording the code spraying execution condition and the code spraying information of the livestock carcass, and generating a livestock carcass code spraying sequence. After the livestock carcass code spraying method and system provided by the invention are adopted, scenes which are not suitable for automatic code spraying equipment can be screened out, normal and continuous work of the automatic code spraying equipment is facilitated, the completion of a code spraying task is not influenced, the code spraying quality is ensured, the meat quality safety is ensured, and manpower required by code spraying is reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a method and system for marking livestock carcasses, mainly used for marking meat. Background Technology

[0002] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of an automated inkjet coding scenario in a slaughterhouse. Pork carcass halves 31, 32, 33, and 34 are hung on track 1 via hooks and move forward along the track at a speed of 0.1–0.2 m / s. The automated inkjet coding device 2 obtains the coding information, quarantine information, and quality inspection information of each pig from the slaughterhouse's traceability information management platform and prints the corresponding patterns onto the pigskin surface.

[0003] Figure 2 For the printing effect on the pigskin surface, the printed patterns include QR codes, numerical codes, quality inspection stamps, animal quarantine stamps, and other auxiliary information such as serial numbers and slaughter line codes.

[0004] However, the automated inkjet printing equipment 2 is not well adapted to the working environment of slaughterhouses, cannot successfully complete automatic inkjet printing, and cannot guarantee printing quality. Below are some common problems encountered in slaughterhouse settings.

[0005] First, there are many different breeds of pigs in China, varying in length, fatness, weight, and other characteristics. Automated coding equipment cannot be adapted to coding all types of pig carcasses, or the cost of adapting to all types would be too high.

[0006] Secondly, there are significant differences in pig slaughtering processes. Some pigs need to be split in half, while others do not, such as the carcass of pigs used for roast pork; some carcasses need to have their heads removed, while others need to have them left on; some heads need to be kept intact, while others need to be split open; and so on. These different processes also affect the operation of automated inkjet printing equipment.

[0007] Furthermore, pig carcass coding is usually done near the spine, but when pig carcasses are hung on the production line, the belly sometimes faces the coding equipment, affecting the operation of the automated coding equipment.

[0008] Furthermore, slaughter lines are not always able to operate at full capacity. Some hooks have pig carcasses attached, while others are empty. If the situation of pig carcasses attached to the hooks cannot be effectively distinguished, it will affect the operation of the automated inkjet printing equipment.

[0009] As mentioned above, how to maintain the normal operation of automated inkjet printing equipment, how to ensure the correctness of the printed coding information on each pig carcass, and how to ensure the correctness of the printed content on each pig carcass have become problems that must be solved. Summary of the Invention

[0010] The purpose of this invention is to provide a method and system for marking livestock carcasses, which can meet the actual working needs of automated marking equipment and facilitate the smooth completion of automatic marking of livestock carcasses.

[0011] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides a method for marking livestock carcasses, the method comprising: a livestock carcass detection step, detecting whether a livestock carcass exists at a livestock carcass detection station in a slaughtering production line; an automatic marking judgment step, if a livestock carcass is detected at the livestock carcass detection station, determining whether the livestock carcass is suitable for automatic marking, or obtaining setting information on whether the livestock carcass is suitable for automatic marking; a marking step, if the result of the automatic marking judgment step is yes, performing automatic marking on the livestock carcass; and a recording step, recording the marking execution status and marking information of the livestock carcass, and generating a livestock carcass marking sequence.

[0012] Furthermore, the method also includes stopping the automatic inkjet printing on the livestock carcass and performing manual inkjet printing on the livestock carcass if the result of the automatic inkjet printing judgment step is negative.

[0013] Furthermore, the method also includes a combined inkjet printing establishment step, in which the device performing automatic inkjet printing and the device performing manual inkjet printing are set as a combined inkjet printing device, and the combined inkjet printing devices work together to print inkjet prints on the livestock carcasses of the slaughtering production line through information interaction.

[0014] Furthermore, the method also includes the following: if automatic inkjet printing on the livestock carcass is stopped, the inkjet printing information corresponding to the automatic inkjet printing is completed by the manual inkjet printing.

[0015] Furthermore, the method also includes an abnormal alarm step, wherein if the automatic inkjet printing judgment step determines to stop automatic inkjet printing, an abnormal inkjet printing alarm is activated, and different alarm signals are generated according to different abnormal categories.

[0016] Furthermore, the livestock carcass detection step also includes a livestock carcass cumulative counting step, which involves cumulatively counting the detected livestock carcasses (count_carcass) to generate a livestock carcass sequence for the slaughtering production line and recording the detected livestock carcass detection information.

[0017] Furthermore, the livestock carcass detection step also includes a hook detection step, which detects the hooks hanging the livestock carcasses on the slaughtering production line, accumulates a count of the detected hooks (count_hook), generates a hook sequence of the slaughtering production line, and records the detected hook detection information, including the detection time (time_hook_detected).

[0018] Furthermore, the livestock carcass detection step also includes the following: the livestock carcass detection information includes the detection time of the livestock carcass, time_carcass_detected; if the interval between the detection time of the hook, time_hook_detected, and time_carcass_detected is greater than or equal to the running time required by the hook, then it is determined that there is a livestock carcass on the hook.

[0019] The present invention also provides a livestock carcass inkjet coding system that applies the above-described livestock carcass inkjet coding method.

[0020] Furthermore, the system also includes: a detection device one, which detects the hook using an infrared switch sensor; a detection device two, which detects the animal carcass and its length using an infrared matrix grating sensor; and a slaughtering line motion encoder, used to detect the movement speed of the slaughtering line.

[0021] By adopting the livestock carcass inkjet coding method and system provided by the present invention, scenarios unsuitable for automatic inkjet coding equipment can be screened out, facilitating the normal and continuous operation of automatic inkjet coding equipment without affecting the completion of inkjet coding tasks, ensuring inkjet coding quality, guaranteeing meat quality and safety, and reducing the manpower required for inkjet coding. Attached Figure Description

[0022] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of an automated inkjet printing scenario in a slaughterhouse. Figure 2 Printing effect on pigskin surface; Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an application scenario of the present invention; Figure 4 This is a system block diagram of the present invention; Figure 5 Diagram of a fully automated pig inkjet printing detection scheme; Figure 6 This is a flowchart of the inkjet printing operation of the present invention; Figure 7 This is a flowchart of the inkjet printing method of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0023] The embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0024] Figure 3This is a schematic diagram illustrating the application scenario of the present invention. Pig carcasses in two parts, 31, 32, 33, 34, and 35, are hung on track 1 via hooks and move forward along the track at a speed of 0.1~0.2 m / s. The automated inkjet printing device 2 obtains the inkjet printing information for each pig from the inkjet printing server at the slaughterhouse and prints the corresponding pattern onto the pigskin surface. Simultaneously, cameras 8 and 6 are installed at the inkjet printing site. Camera 8 identifies and counts the pig carcasses entering the inkjet printing area, while camera 6 identifies the status of the pig carcasses after inkjet printing, including whether inkjet printing has been performed, the quality of the inkjet printing, and further, identifies and records the inkjet printing data. Due to the existence of situations unsuitable for inkjet printing as described in the background art, a manual inkjet printing station is also set up on the slaughter line, where a handheld inkjet printing device 7 is used to re-inkjet print un-inked pig carcasses.

[0025] Figure 4 This is a system block diagram of the present invention. The main controller obtains inkjet printing information from the inkjet printing server and sends it to the first inkjet printing device and the second inkjet printing device. The first inkjet printing device and the second inkjet printing device cooperate to complete the inkjet printing task of pig carcasses in the slaughtering production line. Figure 3 The first inkjet printing device is an automated inkjet printing device 2, and the second inkjet printing device is a handheld inkjet printing device 7. The inkjet printing server communicates with the slaughter production management server to obtain slaughter production plan information and actual production information to complete the inkjet printing task. The main controller also interacts with the PLC controller to obtain the PLC controller's status information and detection data, including detection data signals from detection device one and detection device two, as well as pulse signals from the slaughter line motion encoder. Simultaneously, it obtains the real-time status information of the automated inkjet printing device 2, such as the start and end of the inkjet printing stroke, moving speed, inkjet printing stroke length, etc. The main controller sends the obtained information to the first and second inkjet printing devices for controlling the inkjet printing. In addition, the inkjet printing server is also connected to camera one and camera two, which correspond to... Figure 3 The camera shown is 8 (camera 1) and 6 (camera 2).

[0026] Figure 5 This is a diagram of a fully automated pig coding detection scheme. The pig carcass, in two parts 3, is hung on a track 1 via hooks 5 and moves forward along the track at a speed of 0.1~0.2 m / s. Hooks 5 are connected to rollers that roll along track 1, which in turn drive the hooks 5 forward. On both sides of the hooks 5 are a detection device: an infrared switch sensor transmitter 50 and an infrared switch sensor receiver 51. This device detects the hooks. When a hook 5 passes the infrared sensor, it blocks the infrared light emitted by the transmitter 50, preventing the receiver 51 from receiving the infrared light. This indicates the presence of a pig carcass and initiates the fully automated coding process. However, if no pig carcass is attached to the hook, a false alarm will occur, and the fully automated coding process will be incorrectly initiated.

[0027] A detection device 2 is installed in the head area of ​​the lower end of the pig carcass, consisting of an infrared matrix grating sensor transmitter 40 and an infrared matrix grating sensor receiver 41. By detecting the area blocked by infrared light 42, the length of the pig carcass is determined, thereby determining the combination or length of the inkjet pattern, determining the marking stroke or marking area of ​​the automated inkjet printing equipment 2, and determining the clamping position of the pig carcass to avoid the pig carcass clamping component of the automated inkjet printing equipment failing to clamp the correct part.

[0028] Along the production line, detection device two is installed in front, and detection device one is installed behind. This allows detection device two to first determine the pig carcass and its length, confirming that a pig is hooked on hook 5. Thus, when detection device one detects a hook, it can confirm that a pig carcass is hanging on hook 5, preventing the automated inkjet printer 2 from running aimlessly and avoiding misprints. Misprints not only waste ink but, more importantly, lead to information errors in the traceability code, causing problems with statistical data and affecting the delivery of pork products and the issuance of paperless meat quality inspection certificates and animal product quarantine certificates. The installation distance between detection device two and detection device one should be consistent with the spacing of the hooks on the production line. A 6-second running time is generally sufficient to complete the detection and information exchange.

[0029] Figure 6 This is a flowchart of the inkjet printing operation of the present invention. To illustrate potential problems in the inkjet printing operation, the following is combined with... Figure 6 The following explanation is provided. Detection device 1 sequentially detects the passage of hooks A, B, C, D, E, and F. Detection device 2 sequentially detects the passage of carcasses A, B, C, and D, which are hooked onto hooks B, C, E, and F respectively. Hooks A and D do not have carcasses attached, for various reasons such as worker negligence, being too busy, or the carcass falling off during transit. However, carcass B is not suitable for automatic inkjet printing. Therefore, the operator controls the automatic inkjet printing equipment to pause printing, or the main controller controls the printing to pause, and the subsequent handheld inkjet printing device 7 performs manual printing. Thus, the main controller controls the automatic inkjet printing device 2 to perform the printing operation: printing A, B, and C. The corresponding traceability code sequence is traceability code A, traceability code C, and traceability code D. The traceability code of the handheld inkjet printing device 7 is traceability code B. In this way, the carcass sequence and the traceability code sequence are in one-to-one correspondence, avoiding information confusion caused by inkjet printing.

[0030] As mentioned above, to avoid misprinting of traceability codes and to ensure consistency between the pig carcass, traceability codes, meat quality inspection certificates, and animal product quarantine certificates, the coding process must ensure that each pig carcass is coded sequentially. To guarantee the accuracy of the information, the following information is recorded for each test result from testing device two: 1) Detection Count 2: The cumulative count of pig carcasses detected during the shift, count_carcass; 2) Detection result two: Calculated carcass length (length_carcass); 3) Detection time 2: The time when the current detection is completed, time_carcass_detected.

[0031] For each test result from testing device one, record the following information: 1) Detection Count 1: The cumulative count of hooks detected during the current shift, count_hook; 2) Detection time 1: The time when the current detection is completed, time_hook_detected.

[0032] The following information is recorded for the detection results of the cutting line motion encoder: 1) Is the slaughtering line running? If the slaughtering line is continuously detected to be running for a period of time, such as for more than 3 seconds, then it is determined that the slaughtering line is running. 2) Slaughter line operating speed: The current operating speed of the slaughter line after it is detected to be running; 3) Slaughter line pauses operation: If no slaughter line operation is detected for more than 2 consecutive seconds, the slaughter line is paused; if slaughter line operation is detected for more than 2 consecutive seconds after the pause, the slaughter line is resumed operation. 4) Slaughter line downtime period: When the slaughter line is downtime, record the downtime; when the slaughter line resumes operation, record the resumed operation time; the time between the two times is the downtime period.

[0033] Once the above information is obtained, it can be determined whether a pig carcass is currently hanging on the hook.

[0034] First, the pig carcass detection procedure. The pig carcass is detected by detection device two. After detection, the cumulative count of the pig carcass is incremented by one, the length of the pig carcass is determined, and the detection time (time_carcass_detected) is recorded.

[0035] Next, the hook detection step. Detection device one performs hook detection. When a hook is detected passing by, the cumulative count of detected hooks is incremented by one, and the detection time is recorded as time_hook_detected.

[0036] Next, the hook-and-pig detection step. If a pig carcass is detected in the carcass detection step and the hook is detected in the hook detection step, and (time_hook_detected - time_carcass_detected) is greater than or equal to the time required for the hook to travel from detection device two to detection device one, then it can be determined that a pig carcass is hanging on the hook. Otherwise, it is determined that the hook is unloaded and no coding is required.

[0037] Next, the automatic coding judgment step. If a pig carcass is hanging on the hook and is suitable for coding, and neither the main controller nor the PLC controller has initiated automatic coding, the coding machine has not triggered a fault alarm, and the remaining ink in the coding machine's cartridge meets the coding requirements, then automatic coding can be started; otherwise, automatic coding is paused. After automatic coding is completed, the pig carcass is marked as automatically coded, and the coding time and the traceability code printed on the pig carcass are recorded. If automatic coding is paused, the pig carcass is marked as not coded, the traceability code is recorded, and the information is pushed to the handheld coding device 7. After receiving the coding task, the handheld coding device 7 issues an operation reminder. After receiving the reminder, the staff uses the handheld coding device to perform the coding operation, completes the coding task, marks the pig carcass as manually coded, and records the manual coding time.

[0038] Based on the above description, the hook sequence can be used as the smallest unit of management. The status of each hook includes: serial number, whether a pig carcass is hooked, whether it is coded, coding time, coding content, whether the coding is abnormal, etc. With the hook status sequence, information such as the pig carcass sequence and coding sequence can be obtained.

[0039] The consistency of accurate coding and information queues such as pig carcass and traceability codes is also closely related to the operational status of the slaughter line. If the slaughter line pauses and restarts, it can cause numerous problems. First, if the slaughter line pauses immediately after the detection device 2 detects a pig carcass, the time interval (time_hook_detected - time_carcass_detected) will be very long, and many unexpected situations may occur, leading to inaccurate judgments in the hook-and-pig detection and automatic coding steps. Second, if the detection device 1 detects a hook, the automatic coding step determines it's suitable for coding, and starts automatic coding, a pause in the production line could cause the automated coding device 2 to continue moving forward with the pig carcass.

[0040] To improve marking accuracy and reduce data corruption, a slaughter line operation detection step is needed to determine if the slaughter line is operating normally. The first method is to check the slaughter line's motion encoder results to see if it is running and not paused; if so, the slaughter line is considered normal. The second method is to check if a pig carcass is detected passing through the carcass detection step over a relatively long period, such as 5 minutes; if so, the slaughter line is considered normal. The third method is to check if a hook is detected passing through the hook detection step over a relatively long period, such as 5 minutes; if so, the slaughter line is considered normal. Therefore, a slaughter line operation detection step can be added to the preceding steps. If the slaughter line is not operating normally, the aforementioned judgment steps need to comprehensively consider the slaughter line's operational status to make a decision.

[0041] In the automatic coding judgment step, if the automatic coding is paused, a prompt for manual coding should be made. This can be achieved through the alarm device of the PLC controller.

[0042] Automatic inkjet printing requires automatic inkjet printing condition detection, such as whether a suitable pig carcass is hanging on the hook, whether the main controller or PLC controller has started or stopped automatic inkjet printing, whether the inkjet printer has triggered a fault alarm, and whether the ink cartridge in the inkjet printer has enough ink remaining to meet the printing requirements, etc. In general, automatic inkjet printing condition detection mainly includes three categories: pig carcass detection, PLC self-detection, and inkjet printer detection. When an abnormality is detected, different alarm signals can be given depending on the severity and urgency of the abnormality.

[0043] To ensure the correct execution of the complete pig carcass inkjet printing process, a combination of automated inkjet printing device 2 and handheld inkjet printing device 7 needs to be established before inkjet printing. When automated inkjet printing device 2 cannot perform the inkjet printing task, the unprinted pig carcass information is pushed to handheld inkjet printing device 7, which then completes the inkjet printing. Alternatively, initially, after the combination of automated inkjet printing device 2 and handheld inkjet printing device 7 is established, the main controller transmits all inkjet printing information to both devices. If automated inkjet printing device 2 misses an inkjet print, handheld inkjet printing device 7 detects the missed inkjet print and promptly initiates manual inkjet printing.

[0044] Figure 7This is a flowchart of the inkjet printing method of the present invention. First, inkjet printing is started, including self-testing, data loading, and warm-up of the automatic inkjet printing equipment. Then, the system checks if the combined inkjet printing equipment is online. Here, the automatic inkjet printing equipment is the master device, and the handheld inkjet printing equipment is the slave device. After configuration, the master device checks if the paired device is online upon startup. If online, both devices execute together; if offline, the fully automatic inkjet printing equipment can execute the inkjet printing task independently. Next, the system begins hook detection, pig carcass detection, and slaughter line movement detection; these three detection tasks are executed simultaneously. Then, a hook-on-pig judgment is performed, i.e., whether a pig carcass is hooked. If yes, automatic inkjet printing is performed; if no, it indicates the hook is unloaded and not suitable for inkjet printing, and the hook detection, pig carcass detection, and slaughter line movement detection continue. Next, an automatic inkjet printing judgment is performed. If yes, automatic inkjet printing is performed and recorded; if no, a prompt is given and manual inkjet printing is performed and recorded, or the process is skipped. The conditions for automatic inkjet printing are determined according to actual needs. As mentioned above, the automatic inkjet printing condition detection mainly includes three categories: pig carcass detection, PLC self-detection, and inkjet printer detection.

[0045] It should be noted that automatic laser marking of pork carcasses has also emerged, and the method described in this invention can also be implemented by laser marking, or by other future marking technologies, which are also claimed in this invention. Furthermore, since the embodiments use pork as an example, it can be seen that the method is also applicable to marking of cattle, sheep, and poultry after slaughter.

[0046] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of the present invention, but the scope of protection of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in the present invention should be included within the scope of protection of the present invention. The scope of protection of the present invention should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for inkjet printing on livestock carcasses, characterized in that, The method includes: a livestock carcass inspection step, detecting whether a livestock carcass exists at the livestock carcass inspection station of the slaughtering production line; an automatic inkjet coding judgment step, if a livestock carcass is detected at the livestock carcass inspection station, determining whether the livestock carcass is suitable for automatic inkjet coding, or obtaining setting information on whether the livestock carcass is suitable for automatic inkjet coding; an inkjet coding step, if the result of the automatic inkjet coding judgment step is yes, performing automatic inkjet coding on the livestock carcass; and a recording step, recording the inkjet coding execution status and inkjet coding information of the livestock carcass, and generating a livestock carcass inkjet coding sequence.

2. The livestock carcass inkjet printing method as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes, if the result of the automatic coding judgment step is negative, stopping the automatic coding of the livestock carcass and performing manual coding on the livestock carcass.

3. The livestock carcass inkjet printing method as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The method further includes a combined inkjet printing establishment step, in which the device performing automatic inkjet printing and the device performing manual inkjet printing are set as a combined inkjet printing device, and the combined inkjet printing devices work together to print inkjet prints on the livestock carcasses of the slaughtering production line through information interaction.

4. The livestock carcass inkjet printing method as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The method further includes, in the coding step, if automatic coding of the livestock carcass is stopped, the coding information corresponding to the automatic coding is completed by the manual coding.

5. The livestock carcass inkjet printing method as described in claim 4, characterized in that, The method further includes an abnormal alarm step, wherein if the automatic inkjet printing judgment step determines to stop automatic inkjet printing, an abnormal inkjet printing alarm is activated, and different alarm signals are generated according to different abnormal categories.

6. The livestock carcass inkjet printing method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The livestock carcass detection step further includes a livestock carcass cumulative counting step, which involves cumulatively counting the detected livestock carcasses (count_carcass) to generate a livestock carcass sequence for the slaughtering production line and recording the detected livestock carcass detection information.

7. The livestock carcass inkjet printing method as described in claim 6, characterized in that, The livestock carcass detection step further includes a hook detection step, which detects the hooks hanging on the slaughtering production line, accumulates a count of the detected hooks (count_hook), generates a hook sequence for the slaughtering production line, and records the detected hook detection information, including the detection time (time_hook_detected).

8. The livestock carcass inkjet printing method as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The livestock carcass detection step further includes the livestock carcass detection information including the detection time of the livestock carcass, time_carcass_detected. If the interval between the detection time of the hook, time_hook_detected and time_carcass_detected is greater than or equal to the running time required by the hook, it is determined that there is a livestock carcass on the hook.

9. A livestock carcass inkjet printing system that applies the livestock carcass inkjet printing method as described in any one of claims 1 to 8.

10. The livestock carcass inkjet printing system as described in claim 9, characterized in that, The system also includes: a detection device 1, which detects the hook using an infrared switch sensor; a detection device 2, which detects the animal carcass and its length using an infrared matrix grating sensor; and a slaughtering line motion encoder, used to detect the movement speed of the slaughtering line.

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