In-furnace image capturing device, in-furnace image capturing system, and in-furnace image capturing method

Abstract

To photograph the inside of a continuous heating furnace without removing or disassembling a conveying mechanism, a heater or the like in the continuous heating furnace as a horizontal furnace.SOLUTION: An in-furnace photographing device for photographing the inside of a continuous heating furnace is constructed. The in-furnace image capturing device includes a camera that captures an image of the inside of the furnace, a lighting device that illuminates the inside of the furnace, and a base on which the camera and the lighting device are provided. The base portion is placed on a conveying mechanism provided in the furnace of the continuous heating furnace. A contact range of the base portion, which is a range in contact with the transport mechanism, is formed of a low-friction member.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates generally to techniques for imaging inside a furnace. [Background technology]

[0002] A continuous heating furnace such as a roller hearth kiln is a horizontal furnace. When inspecting the interior of a continuous firing furnace, a removable opening is typically provided in the ceiling or side of the furnace, allowing workers to enter the furnace and inspect it while taking pictures with a camera.

[0003] A known method for photographing the inside of a furnace without requiring workers to enter the furnace is disclosed in Patent Document 1. According to Patent Document 1, a lifting platform with a camera installed is suspended by a guide rope inside a vertical furnace, and the lifting platform moves up and down to photograph the inside of the furnace with the camera. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-284105 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The interior of a continuous firing furnace is narrower in the height direction than a vertical furnace, and therefore the method of photographing the interior of a furnace disclosed in Patent Document 1 cannot be simply applied to photographing the interior of a continuous firing furnace.

[0006] The interior height of a continuous firing furnace is usually high enough for a person to crouch down and enter. A furnace of this height contains a plurality of rollers arranged in the longitudinal direction of the furnace as a conveying mechanism, and a heater used for heating. Furthermore, the interior of a continuous firing furnace generally contains one or more partition walls (typically made of insulating furnace material) arranged along the longitudinal direction of the furnace to divide the interior into a plurality of zones (e.g., a preheating zone, a heating zone, and a cooling zone) in the longitudinal direction. The interior of the furnace is narrower in the vertical direction at the locations where the partition walls are located.

[0007] For these reasons, in order to photograph the inside of a continuous firing furnace, it is necessary to remove or dismantle the rollers, heaters, partitions, etc. inside the furnace to ensure space for people to pass through. Therefore, the workload for photographing the inside of a continuous firing furnace is significant.

[0008] This type of problem can also occur in continuous heating furnaces, such as horizontal furnaces, other than continuous firing furnaces. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] An in-furnace photography device is constructed to photograph the interior of a continuous heating furnace as a horizontal furnace. The in-furnace photography device includes a camera that photographs the interior of the furnace, a lighting device that illuminates the interior of the furnace, and a base on which the camera and lighting device are mounted. The base is placed on a transport mechanism provided inside the continuous heating furnace. The contact area of ​​the base that comes into contact with the transport mechanism is formed from a low-friction material. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to photograph the interior of a continuous heating furnace without removing or dismantling the conveying mechanism, heater, etc. inside the furnace. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a top view of the in-furnace photography device according to the embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a top perspective view of the in-furnace photography device shown in FIG. [Figure 3]FIG. 2 is a top view of the in-core photography device with the camera removed. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a bottom perspective view of the in-core photography device with the camera removed. [Figure 5] 1 is a schematic diagram of an in-furnace photography system according to an embodiment; [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view in the furnace length direction showing a part of the interior of a roller hearth kiln in an embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a base of an in-core imaging device according to a modified example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] An embodiment will be described below. In this embodiment, the continuous heating furnace serving as a horizontal furnace is a roller hearth kiln. The roller hearth kiln has a heater, a roller conveyor (multiple rollers), and one or more partition walls inside the furnace. The partition walls include an upper partition wall (e.g., a partition wall extending vertically downward from the furnace ceiling) located above the conveying surface of the roller conveyor, and a lower partition wall (e.g., a partition wall extending vertically upward from the furnace floor) located below the conveying surface of the roller conveyor (an example of a conveying mechanism). In this embodiment, the interior of the furnace is photographed for inspection. The furnace interior photography device according to this embodiment allows for interior photography for inspection without the need for an operator to enter the furnace.

[0013] Fig. 1 is a top view of an in-furnace photography device according to an embodiment. Fig. 2 is an upper perspective view of the in-furnace photography device shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a top view of the in-furnace photography device with the camera removed. In the following description, both or any one of the illumination devices 102U and 102D may be referred to as "illumination device 102."

[0014] The furnace interior photography device 100 includes a camera 110 for photographing the interior of the furnace, a lighting device 102 for illuminating the interior of the furnace, and a base 150 equipped with the camera 110 and the lighting device 102. The base 150 is mounted on rollers installed inside the furnace of the roller hearth kiln and moves longitudinally along the rollers within the furnace. Because the base 150 of the furnace interior photography device 100 moves in contact with the rollers, the space for the furnace interior photography device 100 to move along the longitudinal direction of the furnace is maximized in the height direction compared to the furnace interior space when the rollers are not removed. Therefore, the movement of the base 150 in contact with the rollers contributes to enabling photography of the interior of the furnace without removing or dismantling the rollers, heaters, and other components within the furnace. The movement direction may be either the front-to-rear or left-to-right direction of the furnace interior photography device 100.

[0015] The base 150 has a flat plate 101. In this embodiment, the flat plate 101 is rectangular (for example, approximately 150 mm in length and width), but it may be circular or have another shape. In addition, although the flat plate 101 is an acrylic plate in this embodiment, it may be a metallic or non-metallic plate (for example, made of other resins), and it does not have to be transparent.

[0016] Through holes 105A to 105D are formed at the four corners of the flat plate 101, penetrating the flat plate 101 in the up-down direction. A rope is fixed to one or both of the front through holes 105B and 105C and the rear through holes 105A and 105D (for example, a rope is passed through the through holes 105 and tied to the flat plate 101). In this embodiment, the base 150 is "moved" by being pulled by the rope fixed to the base 150. The material of the rope is not limited and may be, for example, nylon or metal.

[0017] A camera 110 and an illumination device 102 are fixed to the upper surface of a flat plate 101. For the camera 110, for example, a jig 103 is fixed to the flat plate 101 by adhesive or the like, and the camera 110 is fixed by a bolt 104 via the jig 103, resulting in the camera 110 being fixed to the upper surface of the flat plate 101. The illumination devices 102 (102U, 102D) are fixed to the upper surface of the flat plate 101 by adhesive or the like.

[0018] From one perspective, the camera 110 is an omnidirectional camera. For example, the camera 110 has a wide-angle lens 111U for capturing images of one side and a wide-angle lens (not shown) for capturing images of the opposite side. The camera 110 is preferably a spherical camera, but may also be a semi-spherical camera. The camera 110 is thin, for example, having a thickness of approximately 25 mm. The longitudinal direction of the camera 110 is perpendicular to the height direction of the furnace. For example, the longitudinal direction of the camera 110 may be parallel to the direction of movement of the base 150. This configuration contributes to reducing the height of the furnace interior imaging device 100 and therefore contributes to enabling imaging of the furnace interior without removing or dismantling rollers, heaters, and the like inside the furnace. In other words, this configuration contributes to enabling imaging of the furnace interior without removing or dismantling rollers, partitions, and the like, regardless of whether the base 150 contacts the rollers or whether the base 150 has a low-friction member (described later). From this perspective, the following expression is possible, for example. <Example of expression> An in-furnace photography device for photographing the inside of a continuous heating furnace as a horizontal furnace, a camera for photographing the inside of the furnace; a lighting device for illuminating the inside of the furnace; a base provided with the camera and the lighting device; Equipped with The base is flat, the camera is an omnidirectional camera, The longitudinal direction of the omnidirectional camera is perpendicular to the height direction of the furnace. Furnace interior photography device. From another perspective, regardless of whether the base 150 contacts the rollers or whether the base 150 has a low-friction member (described later), the following lighting may be applied. That is, the illuminance of the lighting at a position a predetermined distance away from the lighting device 102 or the illuminance of the light reflected onto the camera 110 inside the furnace may be limited to a predetermined illuminance or less. This reduces the possibility of the illuminance of the light reflected onto the camera 110 from the inner wall of the furnace being too high, resulting in a failed image capture. Note that the illuminance may be limited by controlling the lighting device (light source) itself. Alternatively or additionally, for example, a member may be provided to reduce the illuminance of the lighting at a position a predetermined distance away from the lighting device 102 and / or the illuminance of the light entering the camera 110. An example of such a member may be a colored or colorless member with a predetermined transmittance (e.g., a film or a plastic plate). From this perspective, the following expression is possible, for example. <Example of expression> An in-furnace photography device for photographing the inside of a continuous heating furnace as a horizontal furnace, a camera for photographing the inside of the furnace; a lighting device for illuminating the inside of the furnace; a base provided with the camera and the lighting device; Equipped with The illuminance of the lighting at a position a predetermined distance away from the lighting device or the illuminance of the reflected light to the camera inside the furnace is limited to a predetermined illuminance or less. Furnace interior photography device. <Another example of expression> An in-furnace photography device for photographing the inside of a continuous heating furnace as a horizontal furnace, a camera for photographing the inside of the furnace; a lighting device for illuminating the inside of the furnace; a base provided with the camera and the lighting device; a member for reducing the illuminance of lighting at a position a predetermined distance away from the lighting device and / or the illuminance of light entering the camera; An in-furnace photography device equipped with: The wavelength range of light amplified by camera 110 may be a wavelength range that corresponds to the type of furnace. For example, camera 110 may be an ultraviolet camera. Furthermore, the image captured by camera 110 is video capture, but it may also be still image capture.

[0019] In a plan view (top view), the camera 110 and the lighting device 102 are accommodated within the range of the base 150 (the range of the flat plate 101 in this embodiment). The base 150 (flat plate 101) has an opening 200 at a position opposite the lens of the camera 110. With this configuration, it is possible to photograph the inside of the furnace without the camera 110 (and the lighting device 102) protruding from the base 150 in a plan view. Furthermore, because the camera 110 and the lighting device 102 are accommodated within the range of the base 150 in a plan view, even if the base 150 is tilted (for example, even if the base 150 is tilted forward so that the edge of the flat plate 101 in the direction of movement enters the gap between the rollers), it is expected that the camera 110 and the lighting device 102 will not be damaged by hitting the rollers or the like. The shape of the opening 200 may be circular as shown in the figure, or may be a shape other than circular. Aperture 200 may be large enough that the entire area of ​​aperture 200 completely encompasses wide-angle lens 111 in plan view.

[0020] The camera 110 may be disposed at the center of the base 150 (flat plate 101). Specifically, the camera 110 is fixed to the flat plate 101 so that the height (longitudinal direction) of the camera 110 is parallel to the front-rear direction of the flat plate 101 and is located at the center of the width of the flat plate 101 along the left-right direction. The lighting device 102 includes a first lighting device 102U that illuminates one side of the furnace interior and a second lighting device that illuminates the other side of the furnace interior, and the first lighting device 102U and the second lighting device 102D are disposed symmetrically on the left and right sides of the longitudinal direction of the camera 110. This configuration contributes to the miniaturization of the furnace interior photography device 100 in a plan view. The first lighting device 102U and the second lighting device 102D may be disposed at any position (e.g., the center) in the front-rear direction of the base 150. Furthermore, "one side of the furnace interior" may be above the conveying surface, and more specifically, for example, the ceiling side of the furnace interior and / or the furnace interior surface above the conveying surface. "The other side of the furnace interior" may be below the conveying surface, and more specifically, for example, the floor side of the furnace interior and / or the furnace interior surface below the conveying surface. Furthermore, there may be more or less than two lighting devices 102. The illumination range of one or more lighting devices 102 fixed to the base 150 is preferably a range that covers the imaging range of the camera 110 (for example, 360 degrees around the furnace interior imaging device 100).

[0021] A low-friction member, which will be described later, is attached to the base 150 (flat plate 101). For example, double-sided tape 121 (121R and 121L) is attached to the left and right ends of the flat plate 101. The double-sided tape 121 may be attached to at least the entire or part of the left and right ends of the lower surface of the flat plate 101, but may also be attached so as to go around the flat plate 101 one or more times in the front-to-rear direction.

[0022] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the bottom of the in-core imaging device 100 with the camera 110 removed.

[0023] Low-friction members 400 that are long in the front-to-rear direction are attached to double-sided tapes 121R and 121L that are attached to all or part of the left and right edges of the underside of the flat plate 101. The upper surface of each of the low-friction members 400R and 400L contacts the underside of the flat plate 101, and the lower surface of each of the low-friction members 400R and 400L is a surface that has a contact area that comes into contact with the rollers (transport surface). Because the contact area is within the range of the surface of the low-friction members 400R and 400L, the base 150 can easily move by coming into contact with the rollers. Furthermore, the low-friction members can prevent contamination inside the furnace due to contact with the rollers.

[0024] Each of the low-friction members 400R and 400L is provided so as to be replaceable (detachable) with respect to the flat plate 101. For example, the low-friction member 400 can be peeled off from the double-sided tape 121, and a new low-friction member 400 can be attached to the double-sided tape 121. In this way, even if the low-friction member 400 deteriorates due to friction with the roller, it can be replaced with a new low-friction member 400. This makes it possible to maintain low friction, i.e., easy movement of the base 150.

[0025] Furthermore, at least the lower end of the surface of the low-friction member 400 facing in the direction of movement is chamfered. As shown in FIG. 4, the lower end of the front surface and the lower end of the rear surface of the low-friction member 400 are rounded so that the movement direction can be either the front or rear direction. Specifically, the right-side low-friction member 400R has a rounded surface 401FR on the front surface and a rounded surface 401RR on the rear surface. Similarly, the left-side low-friction member 400L has a rounded surface 401FL on the front surface and a rounded surface 401RL on the rear surface. This reduces the interference with the movement of the base 150 even if the lower end of the surface facing in the direction of movement collides with the roller, thereby maintaining smooth movement. Note that a chamfer other than a rounded chamfer may be used as the chamfer.

[0026] Low-friction members 400R and 400L are fixed to the left and right ends of flat plate 101, and therefore do not block the shooting range of camera 110 or the illumination range of lighting devices 102R and 102L. In particular, an opening 409 penetrating in the vertical direction is provided in flat plate 101 in an area corresponding to the illumination cover of second illumination device 102D that illuminates the lower side of flat plate 101, thereby avoiding blocking of the illumination from the illumination cover, but low-friction member 400 is provided in a position that does not overlap opening 409.

[0027] In this embodiment, the low-friction member exists as a member separate from the flat plate 101, but the flat plate 101 itself (the entire flat plate 101) may be a low-friction member. In that case, the lower end of the surface of the flat plate 101 on the movement direction side may be chamfered (for example, rounded).

[0028] The "low-friction member" may be a member whose coefficient of friction is equal to or less than a predetermined value, or a member whose friction force estimated to be generated in relation to the roller material is equal to or less than a predetermined value. The "low-friction member" may also be called a sliding member, which is a member with high slidability.

[0029] The low-friction member may be a wheel, the outer periphery of which may be covered with a resin such as rubber.

[0030] The low-friction member may also be a low-wear member. If the low-friction member is a low-wear member, the friction between the low-wear member and the roller can reduce wear (deterioration) of the low-wear member and / or the roller.

[0031] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an in-furnace photography system according to an embodiment.

[0032] The in-furnace photography system comprises an in-furnace photography device 100 and a winding device 502 that is provided at one of the entrance and exit of the roller hearth kiln 1 and winds up a rope 501 fixed to the in-furnace photography device 100.

[0033] The in-furnace photography device 100 is placed on a roller conveyor from one of the entrance and exit of the roller hearth kiln 1. A rope 501 fixed to the in-furnace photography device 100 is reeled in by a reeling device 502 until the in-furnace photography device 100, which is placed on the roller conveyor and photographing the inside of the furnace, reaches the other of the entrance and exit of the roller hearth kiln 1. The rope 501 may be pulled manually. The automatic reeling speed of the reeling device 502 may be a speed that allows the clarity of the images captured by the camera 110 to be maintained, for example, a speed of 1 to 10 m / min. An arrow 503 indicates the direction of movement.

[0034] FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view in the furnace length direction showing part of the interior of the roller hearth kiln 1.

[0035] The furnace interior 7 is equipped with a plurality of rollers 2 constituting a roller conveyor and a heater 8. As described above, the furnace interior 7 also has one or more partition walls 6 arranged along the longitudinal direction of the furnace and dividing the furnace interior 7 into a plurality of zones (e.g., a preheating zone, a heating zone, and a cooling zone) in the longitudinal direction. The partition walls 6 are typically made of insulating furnace material. The partition walls include the above-mentioned upper partition wall 6U and lower partition wall 6D. A pair of the upper partition wall 6U and the lower partition wall 6D is located at the same position along the longitudinal direction of the furnace. The pair of the upper partition wall 6U and the lower partition wall 6D can divide the furnace interior 7 into different zones.

[0036] Since the in-furnace photography device 100 moves in contact with the rollers 2, as described above, the space in which the in-furnace photography device 100 moves along the longitudinal direction of the furnace is secured to the maximum extent in the height direction from the furnace space when the rollers 2 are not removed.

[0037] In the furnace interior 7, the furnace space is narrowest in the height direction at the position where the partition wall 6 is located. However, in this embodiment, the height (height from the contact area) of the furnace interior photography device 100 is less than the distance between the lower end of the upper partition wall 6U and the conveying surface due to the following configuration. That is, the camera 110 is fixed to the flat plate 101 so that the longitudinal direction of the camera 110 is perpendicular to the height direction of the furnace, and the height of each of the lighting devices 102U and 102D above the flat plate 101 is equal to or smaller than the height of the camera 110 above the flat plate 101. Therefore, the furnace interior photography device 100, which is in contact with the conveying surface, can pass between the conveying surface and the upper partition wall 6U. That is, furnace interior photography is possible without removing or dismantling the rollers 2, the upper partition wall 6U, etc.

[0038] Furthermore, in the conveyor rollers, there are gaps between the rollers 2. Through the gaps between the rollers 2, the camera 110 (an omnidirectional camera in this embodiment) can photograph the floor surface inside the furnace.

[0039] Furthermore, the video captured by the camera 110 may be displayed in any of the following ways. Data of the video captured by the camera 110 is recorded in a memory (built-in memory or portable memory) in the camera 110. The camera 110 is removed from the in-furnace photography device 100 that has left the furnace. The video represented by the data recorded in the memory of the camera 110 is displayed on a display screen provided on the camera 110. Alternatively, the data recorded in the memory of the camera 110 is imported into an information processing device such as a personal computer, and the captured video represented by the data is displayed on a display screen of the information processing device (or a display screen of a terminal connected to the information processing device so as to be able to communicate with the information processing device). The image data captured by the camera 110 is transmitted to an information processing device such as a personal computer via wired or wireless communication, for example, in real time along with the image captured inside the furnace. The image data is displayed in real time along with the image captured inside the furnace on the display screen of the information processing device (or the display screen of a terminal communicably connected to the information processing device).

[0040] Although one embodiment has been described above, this is merely an example for explaining the present invention, and the scope of the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. The present invention can be implemented in various other forms.

[0041] For example, the base 150 of the in-furnace imaging device 100 may have the configuration illustrated in FIG. 7. That is, the base 150 may include stacked flat plates, for example, a lower flat plate 101D (an example of a first flat-plate-like member) having a contact area, and an upper flat plate 101U (an example of a second flat-plate-like member) that is provided with the camera 110 and the lighting device 102 and is positioned above the lower flat plate. The lower end of the surface (e.g., the front and / or rear surface) of the lower flat plate 101D in the movement direction may be chamfered (e.g., R-chamfered). The lower flat plate 101D may be provided replaceably on the upper flat plate 101U. In this way, if the lower flat plate 101D deteriorates due to friction with the rollers 2, low friction can be maintained by replacing the lower flat plate 101D. [Explanation of symbols]

[0042] 100...in-furnace imaging device, 110...camera, 102...lighting device, 150...base

Claims

1. An in-furnace photography device for photographing the inside of a continuous heating furnace as a horizontal furnace, a camera for photographing the inside of the furnace; a lighting device for illuminating the inside of the furnace; a base unit equipped with the camera and the lighting device, the base unit being mounted on a conveying mechanism provided within the continuous heating furnace and moving within the furnace; Equipped with a contact area of ​​the base portion that comes into contact with the transport mechanism is formed of a low-friction material; Furnace interior photography device.

2. The low-friction member is replaceably provided on the base. The in-furnace imaging device according to claim 1 .

3. The base is flat, the camera is an omnidirectional camera, The longitudinal direction of the omnidirectional camera is perpendicular to the height direction of the furnace. The in-furnace imaging device according to claim 1 .

4. The furnace interior has one or more partition walls arranged along the longitudinal direction of the furnace and dividing the furnace interior into a plurality of zones in the longitudinal direction, Each of the one or more partition walls extends downward from a ceiling side of the furnace interior, a height from the contact area is less than a distance between a lower end of each of the one or more partition walls and the transport mechanism; The in-furnace imaging device according to claim 3.

5. the omnidirectional camera and the lighting device are accommodated within the range of the base in a plan view, the base portion has an opening at a position facing the lens of the omnidirectional camera, The in-furnace imaging device according to claim 3.

6. the omnidirectional camera is disposed at the center of the base; The lighting device includes a first lighting device that illuminates one side of the furnace interior and a second lighting device that illuminates the other side of the furnace interior, the first lighting device and the second lighting device are arranged symmetrically around the omnidirectional camera; The in-furnace imaging device according to claim 5.

7. The base portion is a first flat plate-like member having the contact area; a second flat plate-like member provided with the camera and the lighting device and positioned above the first flat plate-like member; Equipped with The in-furnace imaging device according to claim 1 .

8. At least a lower end of a surface of the low-friction member having the contact range on the movement direction side is chamfered. The in-furnace imaging device according to claim 1 .

9. The illuminance of the lighting at a position a predetermined distance away from the lighting device and / or the illuminance of the reflected light to the camera inside the furnace is limited to a predetermined illuminance or less. The in-furnace imaging device according to claim 1 .

10. a member for reducing the illuminance of the lighting at a position a predetermined distance away from the lighting device and / or the illuminance of the light entering the camera; The in-furnace imaging device according to claim 1 .

11. The in-furnace photography device according to any one of claims 1 to 10, a winding device that is provided at the entrance or exit of the continuous heating furnace and winds up a rope fixed to the in-furnace photography device; An in-furnace photography system equipped with

12. The in-furnace photography device according to any one of claims 1 to 10 is placed on the transport mechanism from one of the entrance and exit of the continuous heating furnace, Pulling a rope fixed to the furnace interior photography device from the other opening of the entrance or exit of the continuous heating furnace until the furnace interior photography device, which is placed on the transport mechanism and photographing the inside of the furnace, reaches the other opening of the entrance or exit of the continuous heating furnace; How to photograph inside the furnace.

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