A cap detection and rejection device for a screw cap process based on machine vision

Abstract

The utility model discloses a kind of cap detection and rejection device based on screw cap process card cover, including rack, conveyer belt, vision detection system, negative pressure adsorption mechanism, blowing rejection mechanism and control system.Vision detection system real-time monitoring screw cap station's bottle cap state;When recognizing that the bottle cap is not screwed in but stuck, control system starts negative pressure adsorption mechanism, and card cover is grabbed by suction cup, and then blowing rejection mechanism blows bottle cap into waste collection box.The utility model can effectively solve the production line shutdown problem caused by card cover in screw cap process, improve production efficiency and product quality.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of filling equipment technology, and in particular to a capping process detection and rejection device based on machine vision. Background Technology

[0002] On filling production lines in the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries, capping machines are key equipment for sealing containers. In actual production, due to reasons such as cap deformation, thread mismatch, or positioning deviation, a very small number of caps may fail to be screwed in properly but remain stuck in the jaws of the capping mechanism. This situation can not only cause the machine to stop at that station, but may also affect the processing of subsequent bottles and even damage the equipment.

[0003] In existing technologies, capping machines are typically equipped with functions to detect and reject defects such as crooked caps, inverted caps, and caps without aluminum foil. Some technologies also use laser rangefinders and capacitive proximity switches to detect abnormal cap heights. However, for caps that are stuck but not screwed in, conventional push-plate rejection devices or simple air-blowing rejection devices are difficult to handle effectively because these stuck caps are still held by the jaws of the capping mechanism and cannot be reached by conventional methods. Utility Model Content

[0004] To address the aforementioned technical problems, a machine vision-based capping process jamming detection and rejection device is provided. The machine vision system monitors the capping station's capping status in real time. When a cap that is not screwed in but is jammed is detected, a negative pressure adsorption mechanism is activated to safely remove it. Then, olefins are blown into the waste collection area. The entire system operates synchronously with the production line, and the rejection operation can be completed without stopping the machine.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, this utility model discloses a capping detection and rejection device based on machine vision for the capping process. It includes a capping station mounted on a frame, with a vision inspection system installed behind the capping station. This system includes an industrial camera, a light source, and an image processing unit. The industrial camera faces directly below the capping head. A negative pressure adsorption mechanism mounted on a support is located on the side of the capping head, including a lifting cylinder fixed to the top of the support. The output end of the lifting cylinder is connected to a telescopic rod, and the end of the telescopic rod is connected to a negative pressure chamber. A suction cup is located at the bottom of the negative pressure chamber, which is connected to an air pump via a hose. A cap rejection mechanism is installed at the bottom of the negative pressure adsorption mechanism. The vision inspection system, the negative pressure adsorption mechanism, and the cap rejection mechanism are electrically connected to the control system.

[0006] Furthermore, the industrial camera is a CCD camera, and the light source is a ring-shaped LED light source.

[0007] Furthermore, the suction cup is made of food-grade silicone material and has a flexible edge structure.

[0008] Furthermore, a pressure sensor is installed inside the negative pressure chamber.

[0009] Furthermore, the bottle cap rejection mechanism includes a rotating cylinder mounted on a bracket. The output shaft of the rotating cylinder passes through the bracket and a rotating plate is sleeved on the end of the output shaft. An L-shaped auxiliary shaft is also fixed on the output shaft and abuts against the end of the rotating plate. A collection bucket located on the side of the frame is provided below the rotating plate.

[0010] Furthermore, a counterweight is provided at the bottom of the rotating plate, and an arc-shaped groove is provided on the surface of the bracket for the reciprocating movement of the L-shaped auxiliary shaft.

[0011] Furthermore, the rotating plate is installed on a side offset from the central axis of the negative pressure adsorption mechanism, and a channel for the bottle to pass through is provided on the bracket below the arc groove.

[0012] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of this utility model are as follows: This utility model discloses a cap jamming detection and rejection device based on machine vision in the capping process. It can accurately identify and reject cap jamming problems that are difficult to handle by conventional methods, improve the operating efficiency of the production line, and combine non-contact detection with flexible rejection to avoid damage to equipment or bottles. It has strong adaptability and can adapt to different specifications of bottle caps by adjusting parameters. The structure is relatively simple and easy to integrate into existing production lines. Attached Figure Description

[0013] The present invention will now be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0014] Figure 1 This is the front view of the present invention.

[0015] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the negative pressure adsorption mechanism and the bottle cap rejection mechanism of this utility model.

[0016] In the diagram: 1 is the capping head; 2 is the vision inspection system; 3 is the support; 31 is the arc-shaped groove; 4 is the negative pressure adsorption mechanism; 41 is the lifting cylinder; 42 is the telescopic rod; 43 is the negative pressure chamber; 44 is the suction cup; 5 is the bottle cap rejection mechanism; 51 is the rotary cylinder; 52 is the output shaft; 521 is the L-shaped auxiliary shaft; 53 is the rotating plate; and 6 is the collection bucket. Detailed Implementation

[0017] The technical solutions of the present utility model will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings of the embodiments. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present utility model, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present utility model, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the protection scope of the present utility model.

[0018] One embodiment of this utility model is as follows: Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, a vision inspection system 2 is installed behind the capping station, including an industrial camera, a light source, and an image processing unit. The industrial camera faces directly below the capping head 1. A negative pressure adsorption mechanism 4 is installed on the side of the capping head 1 and mounted on a bracket 3. This mechanism includes a lifting cylinder 41 fixed to the top of the bracket 3 and controlled by a solenoid valve. The output end of the lifting cylinder 41 is connected to a telescopic rod 42, and the end of the telescopic rod 42 is connected to a negative pressure chamber 43. A suction cup 44 is installed at the bottom of the negative pressure chamber 43, which is connected to an air pump via a hose. A bottle cap rejection mechanism 5 is installed at the bottom of the negative pressure adsorption mechanism 4. Existing rejection devices mostly use mechanical push plates or simple air blowing, which cannot effectively handle bottle caps that are still stuck. This solution combines visual positioning with negative pressure adsorption. The cap removal mechanism precisely removes the cap. First, the negative pressure adsorption mechanism fixes the cap, then adsorbs and grasps it, reaching the adsorption state. An adjustable rotating plate transfers the cap to a collection bin, preventing secondary blockage. The vision detection system 2, negative pressure adsorption mechanism 4, and cap removal mechanism 5 are electrically connected to the control system. The control system uses a PLC to receive signals from the vision system and control the sequential actions of the cylinder, air pump, and solenoid valve. Precise timing control ensures accurate removal. The control system combines a PLC with an industrial computer to achieve precise synchronization between visual recognition and mechanical action. The control method is a conventional technique in this field and is not a protected technical solution; therefore, its specific details are not elaborated upon.

[0019] The industrial camera is a high-resolution CCD camera equipped with a ring LED light source to eliminate shadows. The image processing unit has a built-in image recognition model trained based on deep learning algorithms, which can distinguish between normal screw cap and snap cap states. Compared with traditional laser ranging or capacitance detection, the recognition is more accurate. By adjusting the vision algorithm and suction cup, it can adapt to bottle caps of different sizes.

[0020] The suction cup 44 is made of food-grade silicone material and has a flexible edge structure. The flexible suction cup can adapt to bottle caps of different sizes. The negative pressure system and the cylinder telescopic rod work together to first adsorb and fix the cap before removing it. The visual inspection is non-contact, and the negative pressure adsorption is the least intervention method, which minimizes the impact on the production line. The flexible rejection will not damage the equipment.

[0021] A pressure sensor is installed inside the negative pressure chamber 43 to detect whether the bottle cap has been successfully adsorbed.

[0022] The bottle cap rejection mechanism 5 includes a rotating cylinder 51 mounted on a bracket 3. The output shaft 52 of the rotating cylinder 51 passes through the bracket 3 and a rotating plate 53 is sleeved on the end of the output shaft 52. An L-shaped auxiliary shaft 521 is also fixed on the output shaft 52 and abuts against the end of the rotating plate 53. A collection bucket 6 located on the side of the bracket 3 is provided below the rotating plate 53 for collecting rejected bottle caps.

[0023] A counterweight 531 is provided at the bottom of the rotating plate 53, and an arc groove 31 is provided on the surface of the bracket 3 for the reciprocating movement of the L-shaped auxiliary shaft 521. The rotating plate 53 is installed on the side that is offset from the central axis of the negative pressure adsorption mechanism 4. A channel for the bottle to pass through is provided on the bracket 3 below the arc groove 31. The subsequent process is provided with a bottle rejection station for the bottle cap to be removed, so as to ensure the continuous operation of the entire capping process and not affect the production line.

[0024] The working principle of this embodiment is as follows: Bottles are conveyed by a conveyor belt to the area below the capping head. The capping head descends, the gripper grabs the cap and rotates it to complete the capping. The bottles then enter the inspection station along with the conveyor belt. The vision inspection system takes pictures of the caps under each capping head, and the image processing unit analyzes the images to determine whether the caps are properly tightened. If a cap is identified as stuck (i.e., the cap is not screwed in but is stuck in the gripper), its position is recorded, and a rejection procedure is triggered. After receiving the stuck cap signal, the control system controls the lifting cylinder of the negative pressure adsorption mechanism to extend the telescopic rod, aligning the suction cup with the stuck cap. The air pump starts to generate negative pressure, and the suction cup adsorbs the stuck cap. The pressure sensor in the negative pressure chamber detects that the negative pressure has reached the set value, indicating successful adsorption. After successful adsorption, the telescopic rod retracts, pulling the stuck cap out of the bottle mouth. When the stuck cap is brought to the top, the rotating cylinder moves, causing the rotating plate to rotate counterclockwise. The negative pressure chamber is depressurized, releasing the cap and transferring it from the surface of the rotating plate to the collection bucket. The negative pressure adsorption mechanism resets, ready for the next operation.

[0025] Several points need to be clarified: First, in the description of this application, it should be noted that, unless otherwise specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," and "linkage" should be interpreted broadly, and can refer to mechanical or electrical connections, or internal connections between two components, or direct connections. Terms such as "upper," "lower," "left," and "right" are only used to indicate relative positional relationships, and the relative positional relationships may change when the absolute position of the described objects changes. Second, in this document, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are only used to distinguish one entity from another entity, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities.

[0026] The above examples are merely illustrative of this utility model and do not constitute a limitation on the scope of protection of this utility model. All designs that are the same as or similar to this utility model are within the scope of protection of this utility model.

Claims

1. A machine vision-based capping process for detecting and rejecting stuck caps, comprising a capping station mounted on a frame, characterized in that, A vision inspection system (2) is installed behind the capping station, including an industrial camera, a light source and an image processing unit. The industrial camera faces the bottom of the capping head (1). A negative pressure adsorption mechanism (4) is installed on the side of the capping head (1) on the support (3), including a lifting cylinder (41) fixed on the top of the support (3). The output end of the lifting cylinder (41) is connected to the telescopic rod (42). The end of the telescopic rod (42) is connected to the negative pressure chamber (43). A suction cup (44) is installed at the bottom of the negative pressure chamber (43). The negative pressure chamber (43) is connected to the air pump through a hose. A bottle cap rejection mechanism (5) is installed at the bottom of the negative pressure adsorption mechanism (4). The vision inspection system (2), the negative pressure adsorption mechanism (4), the bottle cap rejection mechanism (5) are electrically connected to the control system.

2. The cap-screwing process jamming detection and rejection device based on machine vision according to claim 1, characterized in that, The industrial camera is a CCD camera, and the light source is a ring-shaped LED light source.

3. A cap-scratching detection and rejection device based on machine vision for the capping process according to claim 1, characterized in that, The suction cup (44) is made of food-grade silicone material and has a flexible edge structure.

4. A cap-scratching detection and rejection device based on machine vision in the capping process according to claim 1, characterized in that, A pressure sensor is installed inside the negative pressure chamber (43).

5. A cap-scratching detection and rejection device based on machine vision in the capping process according to claim 1, characterized in that, The bottle cap rejection mechanism (5) includes a rotating cylinder (51) mounted on a bracket (3). The output shaft (52) of the rotating cylinder (51) passes through the bracket (3) and a rotating plate (53) is sleeved on the end of the output shaft (52). An L-shaped auxiliary shaft (521) is also fixed on the output shaft (52) and abuts against the end of the rotating plate (53). A collection bucket (6) located on the side of the bracket (3) is provided below the rotating plate (53).

6. A machine vision-based capping process jam detection and rejection device according to claim 5, characterized in that, The bottom of the rotating plate (53) is provided with a counterweight (531), and the surface of the bracket (3) is provided with an arc groove (31) for the reciprocating movement of the L-shaped auxiliary shaft (521).

7. A machine vision-based cap-screwing process device for detecting and rejecting cap jams according to claim 6, characterized in that, The rotating plate (53) is installed on one side away from the central axis of the negative pressure adsorption mechanism (4), and a channel for the bottle to pass through is opened on the bracket (3) below the arc groove (31).

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