Egg content leak-out inspection device

Abstract

To provide an inspection device and inspection method, which enable content leak-out inspection of eggs in an egg container using a millimeter wave different from microwaves used in conventional techniques.SOLUTION: An egg content leak-out inspection method is provided, comprising a determination step of determining whether or not an egg is defective with leaked out content based on a millimeter wave transmitted through an egg container (P) at least once, and an output step of outputting a determination result obtained in the determination step.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an egg inspection device, and more particularly to a device for detecting hollow eggs in a non-contact manner. [Background technology]

[0002] There is a demand for inspection of eggs (loose contents) with the shell still attached. In particular, detection of lost contents caused by repacking is difficult using image inspection of the top and bottom edges, for example, for eggs with holes on the side and no contents, or eggs that have been neatly cracked in half. For example, horizontal cracks are outside the detection range of the top and bottom, and in the case of a half crack, unless there is an egg on the cracked side, it cannot be detected because the clean inner shell is removed in the image.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a method for inspecting for missing eggs, in which a packed product in which a number of eggs are packed in a line inside a container is transported, and a microwave transmitter and microwave receiver are fixedly positioned relative to the ground with microwaves crossing the row of eggs in a direction connecting diagonally upward and downward horizontally, and whether the contents have fallen out is determined based on the relative ratio between the level of the signal transmitted from the microwave transmitter and the level of the signal received at the microwave receiver.

[0004] Patent Document 2 discloses an apparatus that irradiates an egg with electromagnetic waves (microwaves), receives the electromagnetic waves reflected from the egg, and estimates the total amount of egg yolk and egg white in the eggshell from the reception level in order to detect loss of egg white and egg yolk after packaging, and an apparatus that irradiates an egg with electromagnetic waves (microwaves), receives the electromagnetic waves reflected from the egg, and estimates the total amount of egg yolk and egg white in the eggshell from the ratio of the reception level to the irradiation level. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6011772 [Patent Document 2] JP 2002-131243 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The present disclosure provides an inspection device and an inspection method that enable inspection of eggs contained in egg containers for defects by using millimeter waves, which are different from microwaves used in conventional technology. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The method for inspecting defatted eggs disclosed herein comprises: a determining step of determining whether or not the egg is defective based on millimeter waves that have passed through the egg container (P) at least once; an output step of outputting a result determined in the determination step; may also include The determining step includes: The method may include a first determination step of determining whether or not an egg is defective due to content loss when the intensity of the millimeter waves that have passed through the egg container (P) at least once is within a preset intensity range, and / or a second determination step of determining whether or not an egg is defective due to content loss when the millimeter waves that have passed through the egg container (P) at least once detect a reaction from a preset distance range. may also include The determination step of determining whether an egg is defective due to emptying of the contents may be configured to determine that an egg is defective due to emptying of the contents when the intensity of millimeter waves that have passed through the egg container (P) at least once is within a predetermined intensity range and the reaction is from a predetermined distance range. The at least one passage through the egg container (P) The millimeter waves may be irradiated onto an egg container (P) (in a moving or transported state) and passed through the egg container (P), or the millimeter waves may be reflected and passed through the egg container again.

[0008] The inspection device (A1, A2, A3) for inspecting eggs for voids disclosed herein is as follows: a millimeter wave irradiating unit (31a, 32a) that irradiates millimeter waves onto an egg container (P) (in a moving or stationary state); a millimeter wave receiving unit (31b, 32b) for receiving millimeter waves that have passed through the egg container (P); a determination unit (4) that determines whether or not an egg is defective (empty) based on the millimeter waves received by the millimeter wave receiving units (31b, 32b); an output unit (43) that outputs the result of the determination made by the determination unit (4); The device may include: The determination unit (4) The device may have a first judgment unit that determines whether or not an egg is defective due to content loss when the intensity of millimeter waves that have passed through the egg container (P) at least once is within a preset intensity range, and / or a second judgment unit that determines whether or not an egg is defective due to content loss when the millimeter waves that have passed through the egg container (P) at least once detect a reaction from a preset distance range. The determination unit (4) that determines whether an egg is defective due to emptying of the contents may be configured to determine that an egg is defective due to emptying of the contents when the intensity of the millimeter waves that have passed through the egg container (P) at least once is within a preset intensity range and the reaction is from a preset distance range.

[0009] The millimeter wave irradiating units (31a, 32a) may irradiate the egg containers (P) from above (vertically above, diagonally above), below, or from the side. The number of millimeter wave irradiators may be set according to the number and arrangement of the eggs (E) arranged in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction of the egg containers (P). The irradiation width from the millimeter wave irradiation unit may be set to include all eggs (E) arranged in a direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the egg container (P) as the detection range. In this case, the determination unit (4) may determine that any of the plurality of eggs includes a hollow egg.

[0010] The millimeter wave irradiating unit (31a, 32a) and the millimeter wave receiving unit (31b, 32b) may be configured as a millimeter wave radar sensor (3; 31, 32) incorporating them. The millimeter wave radar sensor (3) may be configured to irradiate millimeter waves from above the egg container (P) while it is being transported, and to receive the millimeter waves reflected by a reflecting portion (5) provided below the egg container (P). The reflecting portion (5a) may be a belt conveyor member of the transport device (7c) (the surface of which may be coated with a reflective material, or the belt material may be provided with a reflective material). The reflecting portion (5b) may be provided inside the conveying device (7c) or may be a metal roll over which the belt is stretched. The reflecting unit (5) may be provided below, at a predetermined distance, the first conveying unit (7a) and the second conveying unit (7b) that constitute the conveying device (7). The millimeter wave radar sensor (3) and the reflecting unit (5) are disposed to face each other. A millimeter wave radar sensor is a sensor that uses radar in the frequency band of, for example, 30 GHz to 300 GHz, which is 10 to 100 times that of microwaves.

[0011] The determination unit (4) may, for example, determine whether the egg is completely empty (egg yolk, egg white) (0%) to about half the content remaining (40% to 60%), or whether the egg is completely empty (0%) to only a small amount of the content remaining (about 20%), depending on the strength and detection distance of the received millimeter waves, or only the radio wave strength, or only the detection distance.

[0012] The inspection apparatus (A1, A2, A3) a first detection unit (8) that detects an egg container (P); A second detection unit (9) for detecting an egg seat position (Pb) of the egg container (P); The device may further include: The determination unit (4) may determine whether or not an egg is defective (empty) based on the detection result of the first detection unit (8) and / or the detection result of the second detection unit (9) and the intensity and detection distance of the millimeter waves received by the millimeter wave receiving units (31b, 32b), or based only on the radio wave intensity, or based only on the detection distance. The determination unit (4) may make a judgment taking into consideration the detection result of the first detection unit (8) and / or the detection response speed of the second detection unit (9) and the detection response speed of the millimeter wave radar sensor (3) or the millimeter wave receiving units (31 b, 32 b) (taking into consideration the difference (delay) between the response speeds).

[0013] The inspection apparatus (A1, A2, A3) The device may further include a storage unit (41) for storing millimeter waves (radio field intensity and detection distance) received by the millimeter wave receiving units (31b, 32b). The memory unit (41) may store the detection result of the first detection unit (8) and / or the detection result of the second detection unit (9).

[0014] The first detection unit (8) and the second detection unit (9) may be composed of, for example, a light-emitting / receiving photoelectric sensor (such as an infrared sensor), a proximity sensor (such as an electrostatic sensor), or an imaging detector (such as an area sensor or a line sensor).

[0015] The determination unit (4) may be configured by a combination of hardware such as one or more processors and a memory for storing an instruction program, a control program, etc. The determination unit (4) may be configured by a combination of an information processing device, a dedicated circuit, firmware, etc.

[0016] The output unit (43) may be composed of a monitor that displays the determination results such as each detection result, a printer that prints them, a communication device that sends them to an external device, a recording device that records them in a storage medium, or the like.

[0017] The inspection device (1) can be applied to egg containers before sealing, egg containers after sealing, labeled egg containers, labeled egg containers, molded containers, transparent resin containers, eggs with stickers, etc. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0018] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of an inspection device for gutted eggs according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 2]FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of an inspection device for gutted eggs according to the second embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of an inspection device for gutted eggs according to the third embodiment. [Figure 4A] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of determining whether an egg is normal based on time-series data in an embodiment. [Figure 4B] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of defective egg determination based on time-series data in an embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a detection device for multiple packs. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0019] (Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 shows an example of an inspection device 1 for hollow eggs. The inspection device A1 for hollow eggs includes a millimeter wave radar sensor 3 (first sensor 31, second sensor 32), a determination unit 4, a storage unit 41, an output unit 43, a first detection unit 8, a second detection unit 9, etc. These will be described in detail below.

[0020] The millimeter wave radar sensor 3 has first and second sensors 31, 32. Since two rows of eggs E are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction of the egg containers P, two sensors are arranged. First sensor 31 includes a first millimeter wave irradiator 31a that irradiates millimeter waves onto egg containers P moving on transport conveyors 7a, 7b, and a first millimeter wave receiver 31b that receives millimeter waves that have passed through egg containers P twice. The second sensor 32 includes a second millimeter wave irradiator 32a that irradiates millimeter waves to the egg container P in a moving or stationary state, and a second millimeter wave receiver 32b that receives millimeter waves that have passed through the egg container P twice.

[0021] In this embodiment, the reflector 5 is provided. The reflector 5 is made of metal. The reflector 5 is provided below, at a predetermined distance, two conveyors, a first conveyor 7a and a second conveyor 7b, which constitute the conveyor device 7. The millimeter wave radar sensor 3 and the reflector 5 are disposed to face each other. The millimeter waves irradiated from the first and second millimeter wave irradiating units 31a, 32a are each irradiated to the egg in the egg container P, and the millimeter waves that pass through the egg container P and the egg E are reflected back by the reflecting unit 5, pass through the egg container P again, and are received by the first and second millimeter wave receiving units 31b, 32b, respectively. The intensity of the millimeter waves decreases when they pass through a normal egg. On the other hand, the intensity of the millimeter waves does not decrease as much when they pass through a hollow egg. Using this physical property, it is possible to determine whether an egg is normal or hollow.

[0022] The storage unit 41 stores (the intensities of) millimeter waves received by the first and second millimeter wave receiving units 31b and 32b as time-series data.

[0023] The first detection unit 8 detects the egg container P. The second detection unit 9 detects the egg seat position Pb of the egg container P. In this embodiment, the first detection units 8, 9 are composed of photoelectric sensors (such as infrared sensors) having light projecting units 8a, 9a and light receiving units 8b, 9b. The storage unit 41 stores the detection results of the first detection unit 8 and / or the detection results of the second detection unit 9, which will be described later, as time-series data.

[0024] The judgment unit 4 judges whether or not an egg is defective (empty) when the intensity of each millimeter wave received by the first and second millimeter wave receiving units 31b, 32b is within a preset intensity range and / or the response is from a preset distance range. For example, depending on the intensity and detection distance of the received millimeter waves, or only the radio wave intensity, or only the detection distance, the judgment unit 4 can determine whether the egg is in a range from completely empty (0%) of contents (egg yolk, egg white) to about half the contents remaining (40% to 60%), or whether the egg is in a range from completely empty (0%) to only a small amount of contents remaining (about 20%).

[0025] In this embodiment, the judgment unit 4 judges whether or not an egg is defective (empty) based on the detection result (detection ON) of the first detection unit 8 and / or the detection result (detection ON) of the second detection unit 9, and the intensity of the millimeter waves received by the first and second millimeter wave receiving units 31b, 32b (detection ON). Furthermore, judgment unit 4 takes into consideration the detection result of first detection unit 8 and / or the detection response speed of second detection unit 9, and the detection response speed of millimeter-wave radar sensor 3, and offsets the difference in response speed (delay) to make a judgment. The difference in the detection response speed of the millimeter-wave radar sensor and the photoelectric sensor is obtained in advance and this difference is offset. If the detection results of the three are ON, it is determined that the egg is hollow, and if the first and second detection units 8, 9 are ON and the millimeter-wave radar sensor is OFF, it is determined that the egg is normal. Alternatively, the second detection unit 9 may be omitted, and only the first detection unit 8 may be used. In this case, if the millimeter wave radar sensor maintains the OFF state while the first detection unit 9 is ON for detection, it can be determined that the egg is normal.

[0026] The judgment unit 4 may be realized, for example, by cooperation between hardware such as a processor and memory and a program that describes the control content, or may be realized by a combination of a dedicated circuit and firmware, or may be realized by a cloud-based or on-premise server or a general-purpose computer.

[0027] The output unit 43 outputs the result of the determination made by the determination unit 4. In this embodiment, the output unit 43 is configured as a communication device that sends a signal to an external device such as a control device of the egg processing system. For example, the output unit 43 may instruct a discharge unit that discharges an egg container P containing an egg determined to be a hollow egg from the transport conveyor to discharge the egg container P. In addition, the output unit 43 may also send warning information to an alarm sound device, an alarm lamp device, or a mobile terminal.

[0028] (Example) Figures 4A and 4B show an example of a time chart of an example of embodiment 1. Figure 4A shows the determination of a normal egg. Figure 4B shows the determination of a hollow egg (defective egg). (a) shows the response delay of the millimeter wave radar sensor compared to the photoelectric sensor, and (b) shows the result of correcting the response delay. In the boxed area of ​​Figure 4B(b), all three results are detection ON, and in this case it is determined that a defective egg is present. Alternatively, there may be no second detection unit 9, and only the first detection unit 8 may be used. In this case, it may be determined that a defective egg is present if the millimeter wave radar sensor is ON even once when the first detection unit 9 is detection ON.

[0029] (Embodiment 2) FIG. 2 shows an example of an inspection device A2 for hollow eggs. Elements with the same reference numerals as those in the first embodiment have the same functions, and the description thereof will be omitted. The inspection device A2 for hollow eggs differs from that of embodiment 1 in the configuration of the reflecting unit 5. In embodiment 2, the surface 5a of the endless belt of the transport conveyor may be coated with a reflecting agent, the reflecting unit 5b may be incorporated inside the transport device, or a metallic reflecting unit 5c may be disposed below a belt made of a non-reflective material. If the millimeter wave radar sensor and the egg container P are installed physically separated from each other, a cylindrical millimeter wave absorbing sheet can be placed between the millimeter wave radar sensor and the egg container P to focus the millimeter wave irradiation on the eggs. To ensure a stable response of the millimeter wave radar sensor, it is better to provide a certain distance between the inspection object and the millimeter wave radar sensor. Also, since the millimeter wave radar sensor emits millimeter waves at a certain spread angle, the detection performance is stabilized by placing a cylindrical millimeter wave absorbing sheet between the inspection object and the sensor, and irradiating the millimeter waves only to the inspection object through the inside of the cylinder.

[0030] (Embodiment 3) An example of an inspection device A3 for hollow eggs is shown in Figure 3. In the third embodiment, the millimeter wave emitting units (31a, 32a) and the millimeter wave receiving units (31b, 32b) of the millimeter wave radar sensor 3 are separate modules. In this embodiment, the millimeter wave emitting units (31a, 32a) are disposed above the egg container P, and the millimeter wave receiving units (31b, 32b) are disposed below the egg container P.

[0031] (Another embodiment) (1) Millimeter waves have the ability to penetrate paper and plastic, so eggs can be detected even in egg containers that are transparent resin containers, molded containers, labeled containers, containers with stickers, or containers with stickers attached to the eggs. (2) A single sensor may be configured to irradiate two rows of eggs with millimeter waves simultaneously. (3) Detection is not limited to egg containers in a transporting state, but can also be performed on egg containers in a stationary state.

[0032] (Multi-pack inspection equipment) <Challenges> In order to steadily provide safe, high-quality eggs at a low price, egg processing is being automated to reduce the labor required. However, there are still tasks that have not yet been automated, such as product inspection. For example, overlapping caused by double peeling of the containers (packs, etc.) that hold the eggs can cause blockages in the subsequent sealing process. Additionally, cracks and dirt, which are issues specific to eggs, are inspected in the sorting process and removed from the product, but there is a possibility that serious defects may occur in the finished eggs as they go through the various processes, so there is also a demand for final inspection while still in the container.

[0033] The multiple pack inspection device detects overlaps (multiple packs) caused by double peeling of containers (packs, etc.) that contain eggs, for example, before the process of closing the lid. This makes it possible to detect multiple packs and prevent clogging problems in the subsequent sealing process, etc. Multiple packs can be detected and rejected as defective before the process of closing the lid.

[0034] Multi-pack inspection equipment: a sensor for detecting a lid portion of an egg carton that is moving or stationary and that is not yet sealed; The apparatus may further include a determination unit that determines whether one or two overlapping sheets are present based on the detection results of the sensor (for example, the attenuation of light such as infrared light, or the attenuation of ultrasonic waves). The sensor may be, for example, an ultrasonic sensor, an infrared sensor, an ultraviolet sensor, or the like.

[0035] FIG. 5 shows an example of a multi-pack inspection device D. For example, when the lid of the egg carton P is open and horizontal, the ultrasonic sensor has a transmitter 204 arranged on the underside of the lid Pf and a receiver 205 arranged facing the upper side of the lid Pf. The storage unit 201 stores (the intensity of) the ultrasonic waves received by the receiving unit 205 as time-series data. The output unit 203 outputs the result of the determination made by the determination unit 200 .

[0036] When the lid Pf of an egg pack P passes between the transmitting unit 204 and the receiving unit 205 of the ultrasonic sensor, the ultrasonic waves are blocked by the lid Pf of the egg pack P, and the ultrasonic waves that reach the receiving unit 205 are attenuated. The amount of attenuation differs between when there is one egg pack P and when there are two or more overlapping egg packs P. This difference in attenuation makes it possible to detect whether there is one sheet or two or more overlapping sheets. The determination unit 200 determines the difference in the amount of attenuation of the ultrasonic waves and can detect multiple egg cartons P as abnormal.

[0037] The type of egg carton P can be distinguished by the difference in attenuation whether it is a resin carton or a molded paper carton. The inspection of the multi-pack of eggs is not limited to after the eggs are packed in. It may be performed when the pack supplying device supplies the empty packs to the packaging device. If it is performed before the eggs are packed in, it is easy to carry out any reworking work. Similarly, multiple in-pack labels can also be a problem. After labels are inserted into egg cartons, it is difficult to detect multiple labels even by visual inspection by a human. In the label insertion device, the transmitter and receiver of an ultrasonic sensor are placed opposite each other at the position where the label is waiting to be inserted after peeling, or in the path where the label is sent to the waiting position, and multiple feeding can be detected from the difference in the amount of ultrasonic attenuation caused by the label.

[0038] The judgment unit 200 may be realized, for example, by cooperation between hardware such as a processor and memory and a program that describes the control content, or may be realized by a combination of a dedicated circuit and firmware, or may be realized by a cloud-type or on-premise server or a general-purpose computer.

[0039] The output unit 203 is configured as a communication device that sends information to an external device such as a control device of the egg processing system. For example, it may instruct an egg pack P determined to be a multiple pack to be discharged from the transport conveyor to discharge the egg pack P. It may also send warning information to an alarm sound device, an alarm lamp device, or a mobile terminal. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] A1 Egg inspection device for loose eggs 3. Millimeter wave radar sensor 31 First Millimeter Wave Radar Sensor 32 Second millimeter wave radar sensor 4 Judgment section 41 Storage section 43 Output section P egg container D. Multi-pack inspection equipment 200 Judgment section 201 Storage section 203 Output section 204 Transmission Department 205 Receiving unit

Claims

1. a determining step of determining whether or not the egg is defective due to emptying of the contents based on the millimeter waves that have passed through the egg container (P) at least once; an output step of outputting a result determined in the determination step; A method for inspecting for defatted eggs, including:

2. a millimeter wave irradiation unit that irradiates the egg container (P) with millimeter waves; a millimeter wave receiving unit that receives millimeter waves that have passed through the egg container (P); A determination unit that determines whether or not an egg is defective based on the millimeter waves received by the millimeter wave receiving unit; an output unit that outputs a result determined by the determination unit; This is an inspection device for eggs that have been devoid of contents.

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