Crop sorting equipment

Abstract

To provide an agricultural product selecting device that is prevented from failing to take out nonstandard agricultural products, when there is a number of nonstandard agricultural products.SOLUTION: An agricultural product selecting device 1 comprises: conveying means 4 that conveys a plurality of agricultural products 2; selecting means 6 that determines whether qualities of the agricultural products 2 being conveyed by the conveying means 4 are nonstandard or not and recognizes positions of the agricultural products 2 determined to be nonstandard; and adjusting means 9 that adjusts a speed of conveyance by the conveying means 4 in accordance with quantities of the nonstandard agricultural products selected by the selecting means 6, where an extraction section 205 for extracting the nonstandard agricultural products 2 is allocated to the conveying means 4.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a crop sorting device. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, Patent Document 1 describes a "crop sorting device comprising a conveying means for conveying crops in a random state, a photographing means for photographing the crops on the conveying means, a determining means for recognizing the quality and position of the crops based on the images taken by the photographing means, and a discharging means for discharging the crops from the conveying means based on the quality and position determined by the determining means."

[0003] Furthermore, Patent Document 1 states that "the conveying means comprises a chain conveyor arranged in parallel and a plurality of rollers rotatably arranged between the chains, the chain conveyor being stretched between sprockets at both ends and driven by a driving means such as a motor." [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6761569 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In the above Patent Document 1, if the number of substandard agricultural products (defective fruits, substandard fruits) to be disposed of is large, it becomes difficult to dispose of all of the substandard agricultural products.

[0006] Incidentally, paragraph 0009 of the above-mentioned Patent Document 1 states that "the conveying speed can be changed by controlling motor 45." However, Patent Document 1 does not state that the conveying speed is changed depending on the quantity of the non-standard agricultural products, let alone give any indication of such a technical idea.

[0007] In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a crop sorting device that prevents non-standard crops from being missed when there are a large number of non-standard crops. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The agricultural product sorting device according to the present invention comprises a conveying means for conveying a plurality of agricultural products, a selection means for determining whether the quality of the agricultural products conveyed by the conveying means is substandard or not and for recognizing the positions of the substandard agricultural products, and an adjustment means for adjusting the conveying speed of the conveying means in accordance with the number of substandard agricultural products selected by the selection means, the conveying means having the agricultural products directly placed on top thereof and configured to rotate or not rotate the agricultural products, and a removal section for removing the substandard agricultural products is assigned to the conveying means. The taking-out section is provided with a taking-out means for automatically taking out the non-standard agricultural products or an instruction means for indicating the non-standard agricultural products, and the system further includes a management means for assigning whether the taking-out means is to take out the non-standard agricultural products or the instruction means is to indicate the non-standard agricultural products. It is characterized by the presence of

[0009] According to this configuration, when there are many non-standard agricultural products, it is possible to adjust the conveying speed of the conveying means to be slower than when there are few non-standard agricultural products.

[0010] This makes it possible to prevent the non-standard agricultural products from being missed when there are a large number of non-standard agricultural products.

[0012] In addition, the above According to this configuration, it is possible to automatically remove the non-standard agricultural products by the removal means, or to indicate the non-standard agricultural products by the indication means.

[0014] In the above-described farm product sorting device, the adjusting means may be configured to adjust the conveying speed in accordance with the number of the take-out means and the indication means.

[0015] According to this configuration, when there are many non-standard agricultural products, it is possible to prevent the non-standard agricultural products from being missed when being removed.

[0018] In addition, in the above-mentioned agricultural product sorting device, the selection means can be configured to include an exterior photographing means for photographing the exterior of the agricultural product being transported by the transporting means, an interior photographing means for photographing the interior of the agricultural product being transported by the transporting means, a determination means for determining whether the quality of the agricultural product is substandard based on the images taken by the exterior photographing means and the interior photographing means, and a recognition means for recognizing the position of the substandard agricultural product. [Effects of the Invention]

[0019] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a crop sorting device that prevents non-standard crops from being missed when there are a large number of non-standard crops. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0020] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating the configuration of an embodiment of a crop sorting device according to the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating the configuration of an alignment unit. [Figure 3] 2 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an exterior photographing means and an interior photographing means; FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a timing chart for explaining the drive timing of the exterior photographing means and the interior photographing means. [Figure 5] 10A and 10B are diagrams for explaining the indication form of an indication means. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating a configuration of a cleaning unit. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically illustrating another configuration of the cleaning means. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0021] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0022] An embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figures 1 to 5. In the figures, reference numeral 1 denotes the entirety of the agricultural product sorting device.

[0023] This agricultural product sorting device 1 judges the quality (for example, color, size, presence or absence of damage and decay, and state of damage and decay) of agricultural products 2 such as potatoes and mandarins, and determines that the quality is below standard. The crops 2 can be removed by the device.

[0024] This farm product sorting device 1 is equipped with a supplying means 3, a conveying means 4, an aligning means 5, a selecting means 6, a taking-out means 7, an indicating means 8, an adjusting means 9, etc. These are controlled by a control means (not shown).

[0025] Supply means 3 is provided in supply section 201 upstream of conveying means 4, and stores, for example, agricultural products 2 before sorting. Supply means 3 is, for example, a container.

[0026] Conveying means 4 conveys the plurality of crops 2 supplied from supplying means 3, and is, for example, a roller conveyor.

[0027] The conveying means 4 includes a pair of left and right drive sprockets 41, a pair of left and right driven sprockets 42, a pair of left and right chains 43, a plurality of rollers 44, a motor 45, and the like.

[0028] The pair of left and right drive sprockets 41 are provided downstream in the conveying direction of crops 2. The pair of left and right driven sprockets 42 are provided upstream in the conveying direction of crops 2.

[0029] A pair of left and right chains 43 are wound around a drive sprocket 41 and a driven sprocket 42, and are arranged to face each other in parallel and spaced apart in the lateral direction.

[0030] The rollers 44 are rotatably provided between the pair of opposing left and right chains 43, and the longitudinal direction of each roller 44 is aligned along a direction (width direction) perpendicular to the conveying direction.

[0031] The motor 45 rotates the chain 43 by rotating the drive sprocket 41 fixed to its output shaft (not shown).

[0032] On rollers 44 of such conveying means 4, a supply section 201, an alignment section 202, a rotation direction switching section 203, a measurement section 204, and a removal section 205 are allocated from upstream to downstream in the conveying direction of crop 2.

[0033] The alignment means 5 is provided in the alignment section 202 upstream of the conveying means 4, and separates the crops 2 randomly supplied from the supply means 3 in the conveying direction and aligns them in a line in a direction (horizontal direction) perpendicular to the conveying direction.

[0034] As shown in FIG. 2, the aligning means 5 includes a spreading roller conveyor 51 and a partitioning means 52.

[0035] The spreading roller conveyor 51 receives a plurality of agricultural products 2 from the supply means 3 and sends the plurality of agricultural products 2 toward the conveying means 4 while scattering them back and forth and left and right, and has basically the same configuration as the roller conveyor as the conveying means 4.

[0036] The outer size of the chain 511 of this spreading roller conveyor 51 is significantly shorter than that of the roller conveyor as the conveying means 4, but the outer size of the rollers 512 of the spreading roller conveyor 51 and the spacing between each roller 512 are the same as those of the roller conveyor as the conveying means 4.

[0037] The spreading roller conveyor 51 is adjusted so as to send the plurality of crops 2 toward the conveying means 4 at half the conveying speed of the roller conveyor serving as the conveying means 4. Note that the speed of the spreading roller conveyor 51 is limited to half the conveying speed of the roller conveyor serving as the conveying means 4. It is not limited to this, but can be set arbitrarily to, for example, 1 / 4, 1 / 8, etc.

[0038] The partition means 52 is provided above the conveying surface of the conveying means 4 and is used to arrange the agricultural products 2 conveyed from the spreading roller conveyor 51 between the rollers 44 of each virtual pair when two adjacent rollers 44 are considered as a virtual pair on the roller conveyor serving as the conveying means 4.

[0039] As shown in FIG. 2, the partitioning means 52 includes a pair of left and right upstream sprockets 521, a pair of left and right downstream sprockets 522, a pair of left and right chains 523 as ring-shaped members, a partitioning member 524, and the like.

[0040] The pair of left and right upstream sprockets 521 and the pair of left and right downstream sprockets 522 are arranged to face each other and spaced apart in the conveying direction. The upstream sprockets 521 or the downstream sprockets 522 are rotated by a motor (not shown).

[0041] A pair of left and right chains 523 are wound around a pair of left and right upstream sprockets 521 and a pair of left and right downstream sprockets 522, and are arranged to face each other in parallel and spaced apart in the lateral direction.

[0042] The partition members 524 are attached to the chain 523 at a plurality of locations spaced apart in the circumferential direction so as to protrude radially outward.

[0043] The spacing between the partition members 524 is set to a dimension that sandwiches two adjacent rollers 44 in the roller conveyor serving as the transport means 4.

[0044] The selection means 6 is provided in the measurement section 204 above the transport means 4, and determines whether the quality of the crops 2 transported by the transport means 4 is substandard, and recognizes the location of the substandard crops 2.

[0045] As shown in FIG. 3, the selection means 6 includes an exterior photographing means 61, an interior photographing means 62, a determination means 63, a recognition means 64, and the like.

[0046] The exterior photographing means 61 is composed of a first light source 61a and a first light receiving unit 61b. The first light source 61a may be, for example, a known white LED that emits visible light. The first light receiving unit 61b photographs the visible light emitted from the first light source 61a and reflected from the conveying means 4, and may be, for example, a known CCD camera or CMOS camera.

[0047] This external photographing means 61 is positioned on the upstream side of the conveying direction (also called the external quality judgment section) in the measurement section 204 above the conveying means 4, and photographs the entire upstream area of the measurement section 204 to photograph the external appearance of the agricultural products 2 being conveyed by the conveying means 4, and transmits the photographed image to the judgment means 63.

[0048] The internal imaging means 62 is composed of second and third light sources 62a and 62c, and second and third light receiving sections 62b and 62d.

[0049] The second and third light sources 62a and 62c may be, for example, known near-infrared LEDs that emit near-infrared light. The second and third light receiving units 62b and 62d may be, for example, known CCD cameras or CMOS cameras. The second light receiving unit 62b receives light that has passed through the agricultural produce 2 directly above the second light source 62a (see the dashed line in Figure 3) and light that has passed through the conveying means 4 or upstream and downstream. The third light receiving unit 62d, like the second light receiving unit 62b, photographs near-infrared light reflected by the agricultural produce 2 placed on the conveying means 4 or other agricultural produce 2 placed upstream or downstream.

[0050] This internal photographing means 62 is positioned downstream in the conveying direction (also called the internal quality judgment section) in the measurement section 204 above the conveying means 4, and photographs the entire downstream area of the measurement section 204 to photograph the inside of the agricultural product 2 being conveyed by the conveying means 4, and transmits the photographed image to the judgment means 63.

[0051] The entire area includes the entire length range in the conveying direction (X direction) on the upstream and downstream sides of the measurement section 204, and the entire width range in the direction (Y direction) perpendicular to the conveying direction.

[0052] Determination means 63 determines whether the quality of crop 2 is below standard based on the images taken by exterior photographing means 61 and interior photographing means 62.

[0053] Specifically, the judgment means 63 judges whether the quality (color, size, presence or absence of scratches, size of scratches, etc.) of the photographed agricultural product 2 is substandard based on the image taken by the exterior photographing means 61, and also judges whether the quality (state of decay) is substandard based on the image taken by the internal photographing means 62.

[0054] As for the method for determining whether the quality of the crop 2 is out of standard, a known method can be used, and therefore a detailed description thereof will be omitted here.

[0055] The recognition means 64 is positioned downstream in the conveying direction (internal quality judgment section) in the measurement section 204 above the conveying means 4, and by photographing the entire downstream area of the measurement section 204, it recognizes the position (XY coordinates) of the crop 2 that has been judged to be out of standard by the judgment means 63 and tracks the crop 2.

[0056] The recognition means 64 is composed of a fourth light source 64a and a fourth light receiving unit 64b. The fourth light source 64a may be, for example, a known white LED that emits visible light. The fourth light receiving unit 64b photographs the visible light emitted from the fourth light source 64a and reflected from the conveying means 4, and may be, for example, a known CCD camera or CMOS camera.

[0057] The first to fourth light sources 61a, 62a, 62c, 64a and the first to fourth light receiving units 61b, 62b, 62d, 64b are attached to a frame 65. The emission timings of the first to fourth light sources 61a, 62a, 62c, 64a are set to be offset from one another to prevent mutual interference, as shown in Figures 4(a) to 4(d), for example.

[0058] The removal means 7 is located upstream in the conveying direction (also called the automatic removal section) in the removal section 205 above the conveying means 4, and automatically removes non-standard agricultural products 2 from the conveying means 4, and can be constituted by, for example, a robot.

[0059] The removal means 7 is configured to receive information regarding the position (XY coordinates) of the non-standard produce 2, and remove the non-standard produce 2 transported by the transport means 4 based on the received information.

[0060] The removed non-standard agricultural products 2 can be stored in a collection box (not shown), for example. The robot may be a hand-held robot or an articulated robot.

[0061] The indication means 8 is arranged downstream in the conveying direction in the removal section 205 above the conveying means 4 (also called the indication section or manual removal section), and indicates non-standard agricultural products 2, and can be, for example, a projector.

[0062] This indication means 8 receives information regarding the position (XY coordinates) of the non-standard crop 2 from the recognition means 64, and based on this received information, as shown in Figure 5, for example, it irradiates visible light onto the non-standard crop 2 being transported by the transport means 4, and by sequentially shifting the irradiation position of the visible light in accordance with the movement of the crop 2, it is possible to track the crop 2.

[0063] Incidentally, whether the non-standard agricultural products 2 selected by the selection means 6 are to be removed by the removal means 7 or instructed by the instruction means 8 can be determined by a control means (measured as a determination means in the claims) not shown.

[0064] Further, downstream of removal section 205 where indication means 8 is provided, visible light is irradiated onto non-standard crops 2, so that workers can manually remove non-standard crops 2.

[0065] The adjusting means 9 adjusts the conveying speed of the conveying means 4 taking into consideration the number of non-standard crops 2 selected by the selecting means 6 and the removal capacity of the removing means 7 .

[0066] Specifically, adjustment means 9 adjusts the conveying speed of chain 43 by controlling the driving force of motor 45 of conveying means 4, thereby adjusting the conveying speed of crop 2. The conveying speed of chain 43 is recognized by an encoder (not shown) provided on drive sprocket 41.

[0067] The adjusting means 9 slows down the conveying speed of the conveying means 4 when there is a large number of non-standard crops 2 .

[0068] Next, the operation of the above-described farm product selection device 1 will be described.

[0069] First, in the supply section 201, unsorted agricultural products 2 contained in a container serving as a supply means 3 are randomly supplied onto the diffusion roller conveyor 51 of the alignment means 5 located upstream of the alignment section 202 (first diffusion section).

[0070] On spreading roller conveyor 51, crops 2 supplied in the random state are sent downstream of alignment section 202 (second spreading section) while being scattered back and forth and left and right.

[0071] When crops 2 sent downstream of alignment section 202 are fed onto a roller conveyor serving as transport means 4 , each crop 2 is aligned by partition means 52 of alignment means 5 .

[0072] Specifically, downstream of the alignment section 202, when two adjacent rollers 44 in the roller conveyor serving as the conveying means 4 are considered as a virtual pair, one crop 2 or multiple crops 2 are arranged in a row in the direction of the central axis of the rollers 44 between the rollers 44 of each virtual pair, and the two rollers 44 that make up the virtual pair are sandwiched by a partition member 524.

[0073] Then, during the process in which crop 2 passes through rotation direction switching section 203 and then through the upstream side of measurement section 204 (appearance quality determination section), appearance photographing means 61 photographs the appearance of crop 2 .

[0074] 3, on the upstream side of measurement section 204 (appearance quality judgment section), rollers 44 are rotated, causing crop 2 to rotate in the opposite direction to the rotation of rollers 44, allowing the entire circumference of crop 2 to be continuously photographed by appearance photographing means 61. Based on the images photographed by appearance photographing means 61, determination means 63 determines whether the quality of crop 2 (color, size, presence or absence of scratches, size of scratches, etc.) is substandard, and counts the number of such substandard crops 2 present on the upstream side of measurement section 204 (appearance quality judgment section). Furthermore, recognition means 64 recognizes the position (XY coordinates) of crop 2 determined to be substandard, and tracks such crop 2.

[0075] If the number counted by determining means 63, that is, the number of non-standard crops 2 captured in the images taken by exterior photographing means 61, is large, the speed at which crops 2 are transported by transport means 4 is slowed down.

[0076] Specifically, if the number of non-standard agricultural products 2 is 0 to 5, the conveying speed can be 12 m / min, if it is 6 to 10, the conveying speed can be 10 m / min, if it is 11 to 15, the conveying speed can be 7 m / min, and if it is 16 to 20, the conveying speed can be 4 m / min.

[0077] Thereafter, as crop 2 passes through the downstream side of measurement section 204 (internal quality determination section), internal photographing means 62 photographs the inside of crop 2. In this downstream side of measurement section 204 (internal quality determination section), rollers 44 are made non-rotating, allowing internal photographing means 62 to clearly photograph the internal state of crop 2.

[0078] Based on this internally captured image, the judgment means 63 judges whether the quality (state of decay) of the crop 2 is substandard or not, and the recognition means 9 recognizes the position (XY coordinates) of the crop 2 that has been judged to be substandard, and tracks the crop 2.

[0079] Next, upstream of the removal section 205 (automatic removal section), the removal means 7 receives information regarding the position (XY coordinates) of the non-standard agricultural produce 2 from the recognition means 64, and automatically removes the non-standard agricultural produce 2 based on this received information and stores it in a collection box not shown.

[0080] Then, downstream of the removal section 205 (manual removal section), the instruction means 8 receives information regarding the position (XY coordinates) of the non-standard agricultural product 2 from the recognition means 64, and based on this received information, irradiates visible light onto the non-standard agricultural product 2 being transported by the transport means 4, and tracks the agricultural product 2 by sequentially shifting the irradiation position of the visible light in accordance with the movement of the agricultural product 2, for example, as shown in Figure 5.

[0081] As a result, visible light is irradiated onto non-standard produce 2 downstream of removal section 205 where indication means 8 is provided, making it easier for workers to manually remove non-standard produce 2.

[0082] In other words, downstream of this removal section 205, in the event that a non-standard agricultural product is missed being removed upstream, a worker can manually remove the non-standard agricultural product 2 that was missed.

[0083] As described above, according to an embodiment of the present invention, when there are many non-standard crops 2, it is possible to adjust the transport speed of the crops 2 to be slower than when there are few non-standard crops 2.

[0084] As a result, even if there are many non-standard agricultural products 2, the non-standard agricultural products 2 are not missed. As a result, the reliability of the crop sorting device 1 can be improved.

[0085] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but can be modified as appropriate within the scope of the claims and the equivalents thereof.

[0086] (1) The configuration of the farm product sorting device 1 described in the above embodiment is not particularly limited except for the configuration related to the features of the present invention, and can be modified as appropriate.

[0087] (2) For example, Fig. 6 shows another embodiment of the present invention. The crop sorting device 1 of this embodiment is further provided with cleaning means 10. The other configurations are basically the same as those of the embodiment shown in Fig. 1.

[0088] The cleaning means 10 cleans the rollers 44 of the conveying means 4, and is provided downstream of the conveying means 4 in the conveying direction, as shown in FIG.

[0089] The cleaning means 10 includes a cleaning roller 101 and power transmission means for rotating the cleaning roller 101 (a driving sprocket 102, a driven sprocket 103, and a chain 104).

[0090] The diameter of the cleaning roller 101 is set larger than the diameter of the roller 44 of the conveying means 4, and the cleaning roller 101 is in contact with the roller 44 located in an area of the chain 43 downstream of the drive sprocket 41 in the conveying direction (an area located below the chain 43 in Figure 1).

[0091] The drive sprocket 102 is fixed to the output shaft (not shown) of the motor 45 of the conveying means 4 alongside the drive sprocket 41.

[0092] The driven sprocket 103 is fixed to a central support shaft (not shown) of the cleaning roller 101.

[0093] The chain 104 is wound around the driving sprocket 102 and the driven sprocket 103 .

[0094] While the driving sprocket 41 is being rotated by the motor 45 of the conveying means 4, the driven sprocket 103 is also rotated by the motor 45, which in turn rotates the cleaning roller 101. This allows the cleaning roller 101 to remove dirt adhering to the roller 44.

[0095] The cleaning roller 101 may be configured to press the roller 44 with an appropriate pressure, which increases the cleaning effect of the roller 44.

[0096] (3) For example, Fig. 7 shows another embodiment of the present invention. In the crop sorting device 1 of this embodiment, a cleaning roller 105 is further provided in addition to the cleaning means 10 shown in Fig. 6. The other configurations are basically the same as those of the embodiment shown in Fig. 1.

[0097] 7, this added cleaning roller (hereinafter referred to as the second cleaning roller) 105 is provided in a position facing the existing cleaning roller (hereinafter referred to as the first cleaning roller) 101 across the roller 44. The second cleaning roller 105 is rotationally driven by the first cleaning roller 101 via a chain 106.

[0098] As a result, both the first and second cleaning rollers 101, 105 are in contact with the roller 44, and the cleaning effect of the roller 44 is increased. [Industrial Applicability]

[0099] The present invention can be suitably used in a crop sorting device. [Explanation of symbols]

[0100] 1. Crop sorting device 2. Crops 3 Supply means 4. Means of transportation 41 Drive sprocket 42 driven sprocket 43 Chain 44 Laura 45 motor 5 Alignment Method 6 Selection method 61 Exterior photography methods 61a 1st light source 61b 1st light receiving section 62 Internal photography means 62a 2nd light source 62b 2nd light receiving section 62c 3rd light source 62d Third light receiving unit 63 Judgment means 64 Recognition means 64a 4th light source 64b 4th light receiving section 65 frames 7 Retrieval means 8 Instruction means 9 Adjustment means 201 Supply Section 202 Alignment Section 203 Rotation direction change section 204 Measurement Section 205 Extraction Section

Claims

1. The system comprises a conveying means for conveying a plurality of agricultural products, a selecting means for determining whether the quality of the agricultural products conveyed by the conveying means is substandard or not and for recognizing the positions of the substandard agricultural products, and an adjusting means for adjusting the conveying speed of the conveying means in accordance with the number of substandard agricultural products selected by the selecting means, the conveying means is configured so that the agricultural products can be directly placed on top of it and can rotate or not rotate the agricultural products, and a removal section is assigned to the conveying means for removing the non-standard agricultural products; the removal section is provided with a removal means for automatically removing the non-standard agricultural produce or an indication means for indicating the non-standard agricultural produce, The agricultural product sorting device further comprises a management means for assigning whether the removal means should perform a process of removing the non-standard agricultural products or the instruction means should perform a process of indicating the non-standard agricultural products.

2. The crop sorting device according to claim 1, The agricultural product sorting device is characterized in that the adjusting means adjusts the conveying speed in accordance with the number of the removing means and the indicating means.

3. The crop sorting device according to claim 1 or 2, The selection means is an agricultural product sorting device characterized by comprising: an exterior photographing means for photographing the exterior of the agricultural product being transported by the transporting means; an interior photographing means for photographing the interior of the agricultural product being transported by the transporting means; a determination means for determining whether the quality of the agricultural product is substandard based on the images taken by the exterior photographing means and the interior photographing means; and a recognition means for recognizing the position of the substandard agricultural product.

Images