Product Inspection Equipment

Abstract

To provide an article inspection device that can accurately eject an article at a desired ejection, even when conveying the article at high speed.SOLUTION: The article inspection device is provided with: a conveying part 3 that conveys a tablet W; an inspecting part 4 that inspects the tablet W; an NG air nozzle 72 provided closer to a downstream side in a conveying direction of the tablet W than the inspecting part 4; an OK air nozzle 77 provided at the downstream side in the conveying direction of the inspecting part 4; a whole ejection air nozzle 74 provided at a downstream side in the conveying direction of NG air nozzle 72; an NG sensing sensor 46 arranged at an upstream side in the conveying direction of the NG air nozzle 72 and at the downstream side in the conveying direction of the inspecting part 4; a whole ejection sensing sensor 40 arranged at an upstream side in the conveying direction of the whole ejection air nozzle 74 and at the downstream side in the conveying direction of the NG air nozzle 72; and a control part that controls timing at which the NG air nozzle 72 and the whole ejection air nozzle 74 eject the tablet W, on the basis of sensed results by the NG sensing sensor 46 and the whole ejection sensing sensor 40.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an article inspection device. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent document 1 discloses that in an item inspection device equipped with a rotary conveying device that rotates a rotating plate to align items toward an inspection position and convey them individually, a sorting confirmation sensor is provided downstream of the NG discharge section to confirm whether defective items have been discharged. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2022-040949 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In an article inspection device equipped with a rotary conveying device, it is desirable to rotate the rotating plate at a high speed to convey articles at high speed in order to increase the number of inspections per unit time. However, the faster the article conveying speed, the more difficult it becomes to accurately discharge the article at the desired discharge position. If the article cannot be discharged at the desired discharge position, it may be necessary to stop the conveying device.

[0005] For this reason, it is desirable for an article inspection device equipped with a rotary conveying device to be able to accurately discharge articles at desired discharge positions even when the articles are conveyed at high speed.

[0006] However, in the item inspection device described in Patent Document 1, although a sorting confirmation sensor can be used to confirm whether a defective item has been discharged, no consideration is given to accurately discharging the item at the desired discharge position when the item is transported at high speed, and there is still room for improvement.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and aims to provide an object inspection device that can accurately discharge objects at the desired discharge position even when the objects are transported at high speed. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The item inspection device of the present invention comprises a conveying unit that conveys items to be inspected to an inspection position; an inspection unit that inspects the items at the inspection position; a NG discharge unit that is arranged downstream of the inspection unit in the item conveying direction and discharges the items to a NG item recovery unit in accordance with the inspection results of the inspection unit; an OK discharge unit that is arranged downstream of the inspection unit in the item conveying direction and discharges the items to the OK item recovery unit in accordance with the inspection results of the inspection unit; a total discharge unit that is arranged downstream of the NG discharge unit in the item conveying direction and discharges the items to a total discharge recovery unit; a first item detection sensor that is arranged upstream of the NG discharge unit in the item conveying direction and downstream of the inspection unit in the item conveying direction; a second item detection sensor that is arranged upstream of the total discharge unit in the item conveying direction and downstream of the NG discharge unit in the item conveying direction; and a control unit that controls the timing of discharge of the items by the NG discharge unit and the total discharge unit based on the detection results of the first item detection sensor and the second item detection sensor.

[0009] With this configuration, the object inspection device according to the present invention has a control unit that controls the timing of object discharge by the NG discharge unit and the total discharge unit based on the detection results of a first object detection sensor located upstream of the NG discharge unit in the conveying direction and downstream of the inspection unit in the conveying direction, and a second object detection sensor located upstream of the total discharge unit in the conveying direction and downstream of the NG discharge unit in the conveying direction. This allows for detailed understanding of the object conveyance status, and even if the operation timing of the NG discharge unit and the total discharge unit becomes stricter as the objects being conveyed become faster, the NG discharge unit and the total discharge unit can be operated with accurate discharge timing. As a result, even when objects are conveyed at high speed, the objects can be accurately discharged at the desired discharge position.

[0010] In the article inspection device according to the present invention, the OK discharge section is preferably provided downstream of the full discharge section in the conveying direction of the article.

[0011] With this configuration, in the article inspection device according to the present invention, the OK discharge section is provided downstream of the total discharge section in the conveying direction, so articles other than OK articles can be removed by the NG discharge section and total discharge section before being conveyed to the OK discharge section, thereby preventing articles other than OK articles from being mixed into the OK article recovery section.

[0012] The item inspection device of the present invention further comprises a third item detection sensor arranged downstream of the full discharge section in the item conveying direction, and a gate arranged downstream of the third item detection sensor in the item conveying direction, which constantly blocks the item conveying path and opens the conveying path only when an item that has been determined to be an OK item by the inspection section passes through the conveying path, and it is preferable that the control section controls the timing of opening the gate based on the detection result of the third item detection sensor.

[0013] With this configuration, the article inspection device according to the present invention controls the timing of opening the gate, which opens the conveyance path only when a non-defective article passes through the conveyance path, based on the detection result of the third article detection sensor, so that only non-defective articles can pass downstream in the conveyance direction of the gate, thereby preventing articles other than the non-defective articles from entering the non-defective article recovery section.

[0014] The item inspection device of the present invention preferably further includes a fourth item detection sensor arranged upstream of the OK discharge section in the item transport direction and downstream of the gate in the item transport direction, and the control unit preferably issues a notification to prompt a change in at least one of the discharge timing and the opening timing, or a notification that at least one of the NG discharge section, all discharge sections, and the gate has failed, when an abnormality in item detection occurs multiple times consecutively or multiple times within a certain period of time in any of the first item detection sensor, the second item detection sensor, the third item detection sensor, and the fourth item detection sensor.

[0015] With this configuration, if an abnormality in item detection occurs multiple times in succession in any of the sensors, or multiple times within a certain period of time, the item inspection device of the present invention issues a notification urging the user to change at least one of the discharge timing and opening timing, or notifies the user that at least one of the NG discharge section, all discharge section, and gate is malfunctioning, thereby prompting the user to take appropriate action.

[0016] The item inspection device of the present invention preferably further includes a fourth item detection sensor arranged upstream of the OK discharge section in the item transport direction and downstream of the gate in the item transport direction, and the control unit automatically adjusts at least one of the discharge timing and the opening timing based on the detection status of the item sample for adjustment by the first item detection sensor, the second item detection sensor, the third item detection sensor, and the fourth item detection sensor when the item sample is transported.

[0017] With this configuration, the item inspection device of the present invention automatically adjusts at least one of the discharge timing and the release timing based on the detection status of the item sample for adjustment by the first item detection sensor, the second item detection sensor, the third item detection sensor, and the fourth item detection sensor when the item sample is transported, thereby eliminating the need for the user to make adjustments and increasing convenience. [Effects of the Invention]

[0018] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an article inspection device that can accurately discharge an article at a desired discharge position even when the article is transported at high speed. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0019] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of an article inspection device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a supply unit and a transport unit of an article inspection apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a supply unit and a transport unit of an article inspection device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view showing a single-row regulating guide of an article inspection device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the supply unit and the transport unit of an article inspection device according to one embodiment of the present invention, viewed from a different direction from that shown in FIG. [Figure 6] 6A and 6B are diagrams showing a single-row regulating guide of an article inspection device according to one embodiment of the present invention, where (a) is a plan view and (b) is a side view. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a return mechanism of an article inspection apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing a modified example of the return mechanism of the article inspection device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a guide unit and an inspection unit of an article inspection device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] Figure 10 is a cross-sectional view of a guide portion of an object inspection device according to one embodiment of the present invention, where (a) is a cross-sectional view taken along the arrow (a)-(a) in Figure 9, (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along the arrow (b)-(b) in Figure 9, and (c) is a cross-sectional view taken along the arrow (c)-(c) in Figure 9. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of an article inspection device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is an example of a time chart showing the transition from determining whether a tablet is good or bad to discharging the tablet in an article inspection device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a viewer display screen in an article inspection device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is an example of a time chart illustrating adjustment parameters in an article inspection device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 15] FIG. 15 is an example of a time chart illustrating adjustment parameters in an article inspection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, showing an example in which a detection timing correction time is set in a pattern different from that in FIG. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a diagram showing a viewer display screen corresponding to the first discharge pattern in an object inspection device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 17] FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a viewer display screen corresponding to the second discharge pattern in an article inspection device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 18] FIG. 18 is a diagram showing a viewer display screen corresponding to the third discharge pattern in an article inspection device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 19] FIG. 19 is a diagram showing a modified example of the viewer display screen of an article inspection device according to one embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0020] Hereinafter, an article inspection device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0021] As shown in Figure 1, the item inspection device 1 of this embodiment aligns the items to be inspected and transports them individually while irradiating them with light at a predetermined inspection position, and inspects the quality of the items based on the spectral characteristics of the light that passes through the items as this light is irradiated.

[0022] The items to be inspected are small-diameter items in which the light irradiation area is relatively close to the diameter of the irradiation port that irradiates the item to be inspected, and include items with an outer diameter φ of several mm to several tens of mm that can be transported individually without packaging, bite-sized items, as well as items and molded products of a predetermined shape manufactured using existing manufacturing equipment or manufacturing equipment without inspection functions, and especially items whose shape does not change during transportation.

[0023] Examples of such articles include pharmaceutical preparations such as tablets, capsules, lozenges, and drops, as well as candy and chocolate. The following description will be given taking as an example an article to be inspected a tablet W that is circular in plan view, has a height (thickness) smaller than its diameter, is approximately cylindrical in side view, and has curved both end faces in the thickness direction. The tablet W in this embodiment constitutes an article. Note that the article to be inspected is not limited to a circular shape in plan view, and articles of various shapes such as an oval shape or a polygonal shape can also be used.

[0024] The article inspection device 1 includes a supply unit 2, a conveying unit 3, an inspection unit 4, and a guide unit 5.

[0025] (Supply Department) As shown in Figure 2, supply unit 2 is configured as a vibration-free rotary parts feeder having a rotating, deep-dish-shaped supply container 20 and a circular rotating disk 21 that is rotatably provided inside supply container 20 and rotated by a drive source separate from supply container 20. The rotation direction of rotating disk 21 is the same as rotation direction A of supply container 20 (see Figure 1). Supply unit 2 is supported on a main body frame (not shown) via a base (not shown).

[0026] The supply container 20 is formed in a circular shape with an open top and a cross-sectional area that gradually decreases downward from the top, and an annular supply part 22 that serves as a supply path for the tablets W is formed at the open end of the top. The annular supply part 22 conveys the tablets W to the suction position P1 while rotating.

[0027] The rotating disk 21 is configured to rotate about a rotation axis different from the rotation axis of the supply container 20, and is disposed at an incline inside the supply container 20. Specifically, the rotating disk 21 is disposed inside the supply container 20 so that its upper end in the inclined direction faces the upper end of the supply container 20, i.e., the annular supply portion 22, and its lower end in the inclined direction is located below the supply container 20 at a position 180° opposite to the upper end. The rotating disk 21 supplies the tablets W in the supply container 20 to the annular supply portion 22 by rotating.

[0028] 1, tablets W are supplied to the supply container 20 from a tablet input unit 6. The tablet input unit 6 is configured to include a container such as a hopper (not shown) into which tablets W, which are molded products manufactured by existing manufacturing equipment or manufacturing equipment without an inspection function, are input, and a supply chute 61 that supplies the tablets W accumulated in the container to the supply container 20.

[0029] The tablet feeding section 6 may be configured not to have a container such as a hopper, and to feed the tablets W conveyed directly from a process preceding the inspection process from a feed chute 61 to the feed container 20.

[0030] In the supply unit 2, when tablets W are fed from the tablet feed unit 6 into the supply container 20 while the supply container 20 and the rotating disk 21 are rotated in the same direction at the same speed, the tablets W that have fallen to the lowest part of the rotating disk 21 (the lower end side in the inclined direction) move to the highest part of the rotating disk 21 (the upper end side in the inclined direction) as the rotating disk 21 rotates, and are placed on the annular supply unit 22. The rotation speeds of the supply container 20 and the rotating disk 21 do not have to be the same.

[0031] The tablets W placed on the annular supply unit 22 move while being aligned in the circumferential direction as the supply container 20 rotates, and are sent to the suction position P1. The suction position P1 is a position where the tablets W are transferred from the supply unit 2 to the conveying unit 3. The tablets W sent to the suction position P1 are adsorbed by the conveying disk 30 rotating in the conveying unit 3.

[0032] The annular supply section 22 is provided with a return guide 24 and a single-row regulating guide 25. In this embodiment, the return guide 24 and the single-row regulating guide 25 are configured as separate bodies, but they may also be configured as an integrated body.

[0033] The return guide 24 and the one-row regulating guide 25 are fixed to a base (not shown) so as not to rotate, so that the return guide 24 and the one-row regulating guide 25 do not rotate while the supply container 20 rotates.

[0034] 2 and 3, the return guide 24 is provided radially outward from the annular supply unit 22 and is disposed on the side of the annular supply unit 22 opposite the upper end of the rotating disk 21 in the inclined direction in the circumferential direction. Furthermore, the return guide 24 is provided continuously for about a quarter of the circumference of the annular supply unit 22 along the circumferential direction of the annular supply unit 22 so as to surround the annular supply unit 22. The circumferential length of the return guide 24 is not limited to the length shown in this embodiment, and is set to an appropriate optimum length depending on the specifications of the supply unit 2, etc.

[0035] The return guide 24 has an inner peripheral wall 24a formed in an arc shape along the annular supply part 22. The return guide 24 is a guide that uses the inner peripheral wall 24a to restrict the tablets W rising on the rotating disk 21 toward the upper end so that they do not fly out of the supply container 20.

[0036] The single row regulating guide 25 guides the tablets W supplied from the supply unit 2 to the suction position P1, and is provided radially outward of the annular supply unit 22 and adjacent to the return guide 24 in the circumferential direction of the annular supply unit 22. Furthermore, the single row regulating guide 25 is provided continuously for about half a circumference from the suction position P1 in the circumferential direction of the annular supply unit 22 so as to surround the annular supply unit 22. The circumferential length of the single row regulating guide 25 is not limited to the length shown in this embodiment, and is set to an optimum length as appropriate depending on the specifications of the supply unit 2, etc.

[0037] The single-row regulating guide 25 has an inner peripheral wall 25a formed in an arc shape along the annular supply unit 22. The single-row regulating guide 25 regulates the radial width (horizontal direction perpendicular to the circumferential direction) of the annular supply unit 22 to a width such that two tablets W are not aligned radially. For example, the single-row regulating guide 25 is provided so that the radial width of the annular supply unit 22 is approximately the same as the radial width of the tablets W. This allows the tablets W placed on the annular supply unit 22 to be aligned in a single row. Furthermore, the inner peripheral wall 25a is provided so that a tip 25c on the suction position P1 side is located just before the suction position P1. In other words, the inner peripheral wall 25a extends to just before the suction position P1. This prevents the tablets W from being adsorbed to the conveying disc 30 when there is still some distance to the suction position P1, thereby preventing a situation in which the posture of the tablets W deteriorates due to early adsorption just before the suction position P1.

[0038] As shown in Figures 4 to 6, the single-row regulating guide 25 has a protruding portion 25b formed on the upper part of the inner wall 25a on the side of the adsorption position P1, which gradually protrudes radially inward from the inner wall 25a as it approaches the adsorption position P1, while maintaining a predetermined height H0 (see Figure 6(b)) in the vertical direction between it and the annular supply section 22.

[0039] The protruding portion 25b is formed, for example, in a curved shape so as to gradually approach the center of rotation of the rotary disk 21 as it approaches the suction position P1. Note that the protruding portion 25b may have any shape as long as it gradually protrudes radially inward beyond the inner circumferential wall 25a as it approaches the suction position P1, and may be formed, for example, in a linear shape.

[0040] The height H0 of the protruding portion 25b from the annular supply unit 22 is set to a dimension approximately equal to the thickness of a tablet W whose cylindrical axis is parallel to the vertical direction plus a small margin. As a result, as shown in FIGS. 6(a) and 6(b), among the tablets W placed on the annular supply unit 22 from the rotating disk 21, tablets W that are not properly placed on the annular supply unit 22, such as tablets W that stand upright so that their thickness direction is horizontal or tablets W that at least partially overlap tablets W whose thickness direction is perpendicular to the horizontal plane, are removed by the single-row regulating guide 25. In this embodiment, tablets W placed on the annular supply unit 22 with their thickness direction perpendicular to the horizontal plane are defined as tablets W properly placed on the annular supply unit 22. FIGS. 6(a) and 6(b) are schematic diagrams of the arc-shaped single-row regulating guide 25 linearly expanded.

[0041] Specifically, as the tablets W loaded onto the annular supply unit 22 from the rotary disk 21 move along the single-row guide 25 toward the adsorption position P1, the tablets W loaded onto the annular supply unit 22 in the proper state move toward the adsorption position P1 along the inner peripheral wall 25a between the protruding portion 25b and the annular supply unit 22 due to centrifugal force, while the tablets W not loaded onto the annular supply unit 22 in the proper state are pushed radially inward by the protruding portion 25b. The pushed-out tablets W are returned to the supply container 20. The single-row guide 25 functions to push the tablets W radially inward, preventing them from getting stuck or jammed. Since the tablets W move along the inner peripheral wall 25a of the single-row guide 25, it is desirable for friction at the inner peripheral wall 25a to be minimal. Therefore, the single-row guide 25 may be made of, for example, a material with a low coefficient of friction or may be processed to have a low coefficient of friction.

[0042] In this way, the single row regulating guide 25 regulates the tablets W supplied from the supply unit 2 to the suction position P1 in a single row, and regulates the height of the tablets W supplied to the suction position P1 to a predetermined height H0. The single row regulating guide 25 is configured so that its position in the height direction can be adjusted by an adjustment mechanism (not shown) according to the height (thickness) of the inspection object. In other words, the single row regulating guide 25 is configured so that the height H0 of the protruding portion 25b from the annular supply unit 22 can be changed according to the height (thickness) of the inspection object.

[0043] 5, a return mechanism 27 is provided above the suction position P1. The return mechanism 27 is supported on a base (not shown) via a bracket or the like.

[0044] The return mechanism 27 is a mechanism for returning poorly adsorbed tablets W at the adsorption position P1 into the supply container 20, and is configured by an air blow device in this embodiment. Poor adsorption may occur, for example, when multiple tablets W are adsorbed to one adsorption hole 32, when a tablet W is adsorbed with a large gap between it and the adsorption hole 32, or when another tablet W is sandwiched between tablets W adsorbed to the adsorption holes 32.

[0045] As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, the return mechanism 27 returns poorly adsorbed tablets W into the supply container 20 by blowing air from a plurality of air blowing holes 27a that open toward the adsorption position P1. The air pressure of the return mechanism 27 is set to a pressure that can blow away poorly adsorbed tablets W and that does not cause properly adsorbed tablets W to fall out of the adsorption holes 32 of the conveying disk 30. More preferably, it is set to a pressure that can blow away poorly adsorbed tablets W and that does not cause properly adsorbed tablets W to fall out of the adsorption holes 32 or lose their posture significantly. "Normally adsorbed" refers to a state in which the circumferential surface of the cylindrical portion of a tablet W is adsorbed so that the cylindrical axis is parallel to the vertical direction and covers the adsorption holes 32. The return mechanism 27 is also capable of changing the air blowing angle relative to the tablet W and the distance from the tablet W by a variable mechanism (not shown).

[0046] As shown in FIG. 8, the return mechanism 27 may be configured by an air nozzle 28 arranged above the transfer disc 30 in the vicinity of the suction position P1, and an air passage 29 formed inside the transfer disc 30.

[0047] The air nozzle 28 supplies air from above toward the inlet of the air passage 29. The air passage 29 has an inlet provided above the conveying disc 30 and an outlet provided between the suction holes 32 aligned in the circumferential direction of the conveying disc 30. As a result, the return mechanism 27 shown in Fig. 8 can blow away tablets W that have not been properly adsorbed by blowing air from the air nozzle 28 through the air passage 29 toward the outside in the radial direction of the conveying disc 30.

[0048] The base (not shown) on which the supply unit 2 configured as described above is supported is movably supported by a main body frame (not shown). Therefore, the supply unit 2 is configured to be adjustable in position relative to the conveying unit 3. For example, the supply unit 2 is configured to be movable up and down via the base, and to be movable in directions approaching and moving away from the conveying unit 3. As a result, by adjusting the positional relationship between the supply unit 2 and the conveying unit 3, the tablet W can be efficiently adsorbed to the center of the suction hole 32.

[0049] (Transportation section) As shown in Fig. 1, the transport unit 3 includes a circular transport disk 30 that is rotatably and horizontally supported on a main body frame (not shown). The transport disk 30 is driven to rotate by a drive motor 30M (see Fig. 11). The transport disk 30 suction-holds the tablet W and transports it to the inspection position P2 while rotating, and has a plurality of suction holes 32 formed at predetermined intervals around the entire outer periphery 30a.

[0050] A suction device such as a vacuum pump (not shown) is connected to the suction holes 32 of the conveying disk 30, and the tablets W are attracted by the negative pressure generated by the suction device. This allows the conveying disk 30 to rotate and convey the tablets W while attracting them to the suction holes 32.

[0051] At the adsorption position P1, the tablet W is adsorbed and held on the conveying disk 30 in a position where its thickness direction is perpendicular to the horizontal plane, i.e., where its cylindrical axis is parallel to the vertical direction, and is transported circumferentially toward the inspection position P2 as the conveying disk 30 rotates while maintaining that position.

[0052] At this time, ideally, the tablet W should be adsorbed and held on the conveying disk 30 in a position where the cylindrical axis is parallel to the vertical direction at the adsorption position P1, but there is a risk that the position will change when the tablet W is adsorbed onto the conveying disk 30, and the cylindrical axis may not be parallel to the vertical direction.

[0053] In this embodiment, in order to reduce the change in the posture of the tablet W when it is adsorbed onto the conveying disk 30, a posture guide 31 is provided which extends a predetermined length from the adsorption position P1 downstream in the conveying direction.

[0054] 5, the posture guide 31 is formed in an arc shape along the outer peripheral edge 30a of the conveying disk 30, and is disposed below the conveying path of the tablet W conveyed by the conveying disk 30. The posture guide 31 contacts the lower surface of the tablet W from the lower side of the conveying disk 30 to reduce changes in the posture of the tablet W.

[0055] In this embodiment, an example in which the posture guide 31 is provided will be described, but the posture guide 31 does not necessarily have to be provided.

[0056] Here, the conveying direction in the conveying unit 3 means the direction in which the tablet W adsorbed at the adsorption position P1 moves, i.e., the direction in which the tablet W adsorbed on the conveying disc 30 rotates. Therefore, the downstream side in the conveying direction means the downstream side in the direction in which the tablet W adsorbed on the conveying disc 30 moves, and the upstream side in the conveying direction means the upstream side in the direction in which the tablet W adsorbed on the conveying disc 30 moves.

[0057] In this embodiment, the path along which the tablet W adsorbed at the adsorption position P1 travels is referred to as the transport path.

[0058] 1, around the conveying disk 30, a suction position P1, an inspection position P2, an NG discharge position P3, a full discharge position P4, and an OK discharge position P5 are arranged in this order from the upstream side in the conveying direction along the conveying path of the tablets W. An inspection unit 4, which will be described later, is arranged at the inspection position P2.

[0059] At the NG discharge position P3, there are arranged an NG recovery box 71 as an NG product recovery section that recovers tablets W discharged at the NG discharge position P3, and an NG air nozzle 72 as an NG discharge section that blows air to discharge tablets W into the NG recovery box 71 at the NG discharge position P3.

[0060] The NG air nozzle 72 is provided downstream of the inspection unit 4 in the conveying direction of the tablets W, and discharges the tablets W into the NG recovery box 71 by blowing out air according to the inspection result of the inspection unit 4.

[0061] At the total discharge position P4, there are arranged a total discharge recovery box 73 as a total discharge recovery section that recovers the tablets W discharged at the total discharge position P4, and a total discharge air nozzle 74 as a total discharge section that blows out air to discharge the tablets W into the total discharge recovery box 73 at the total discharge position P4.

[0062] The total discharge air nozzle 74 is provided downstream of the NG air nozzle 72 in the conveying direction of the tablets W, and discharges the tablets W to be totally discharged into the total discharge collection box 73 by blowing out air.

[0063] The total discharge collection box 73 is used to collect tablets W that could not be inspected properly or failed to be discharged, such as tablets W that were not properly inspected or failed to be discharged when the item inspection device 1 starts operating, after a recovery operation following an emergency stop, or tablets W that failed to be discharged.

[0064] A total discharge detection sensor 40 serving as a second object detection sensor is disposed on the upstream side in the conveying direction of the total discharge collection box 73. When a tablet W is detected by the total discharge detection sensor 40, the total discharge air nozzle 74 blows air onto the tablet W at the timing when the detected tablet W reaches the total discharge position P4.

[0065] The timing at which the tablet W reaches the full discharge position P4 can be measured based on the rotation angle of the conveying disk 30 detected by using a rotary encoder, for example, and the detection timing of the full discharge detection sensor 40.

[0066] In addition, downstream of the full discharge air nozzle 74 in the conveying direction, a removal failure detection sensor 41 is arranged as a third object detection sensor for monitoring whether the tablets W that should be fully discharged have been discharged into the full discharge collection box 73.

[0067] Furthermore, a NG contamination prevention gate 75 is disposed downstream in the conveying direction of the rejection failure detection sensor 41. The NG contamination prevention gate 75 is driven by an actuator such as an air cylinder, and is positioned on the conveying path so as to block the conveying path of the tablets W when in the OFF state, constantly blocking the conveying path. The NG contamination prevention gate 75 is controlled to the ON state and opens the conveying path only when a tablet W determined to be a OK product by the inspection unit 4 passes through the conveying path. In this way, the NG contamination prevention gate 75 functions to allow only OK tablets W to pass. Therefore, if a tablet W other than an OK product is conveyed to the NG contamination prevention gate 75, the tablet W is forcibly discharged outside the conveying system by the NG contamination prevention gate 75 in the OFF state. The tablets W discharged by the NG contamination prevention gate 75 are collected in a total discharge collection box 73 outside the conveying system. This prevents NG tablets W from being mistakenly collected in the OK collection box 76 as OK tablets W and proceeding to the next process.

[0068] At the OK discharge position P5, there are arranged an OK collection box 76 as an OK product collection section that collects the tablets W discharged at the OK discharge position P5, and an OK air nozzle 77 as an OK discharge section that blows air to discharge the tablets W into the OK collection box 76 at the OK discharge position P5.

[0069] The OK air nozzle 77 is provided downstream of the inspection unit 4 in the conveying direction of the tablets W, more specifically, downstream of the full discharge air nozzle 74 in the conveying direction of the tablets W, and discharges the tablets W into the OK collection box 76 by blowing out air according to the inspection result of the inspection unit 4. Note that the OK air nozzle 77 may be driven continuously to blow out air at all times, rather than being driven intermittently to blow out air at the timing of discharging the tablets W. In this case, early wear of the drive system can be suppressed. Furthermore, in this embodiment, an example using the OK air nozzle 77 has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a gate such as the NG contamination prevention gate 75 may be used instead of the OK air nozzle 77.

[0070] The conveying disk 30 conveys the tablet W to be inspected from the suction position P1 through the inspection position P2 to either the NG discharge position P3, the full discharge position P4 or the OK discharge position P5, and discharges it into the NG collection box 71, the full discharge collection box 73 or the OK collection box 76 at either the NG discharge position P3, the full discharge position P4 or the OK discharge position P5.

[0071] On the downstream side of the OK discharge position P5 in the conveying direction, there is disposed an OK discharge error recovery box 78. The OK discharge error recovery box 78 recovers tablets W that have failed to be discharged to the OK recovery box 76 at the OK discharge position P5.

[0072] (Inspection Department) The inspection unit 4 is attached at an inspection position P2 to a main body frame that supports the conveying disk 30. The inspection unit 4 inspects the tablets W by irradiating light L onto the tablets W at the inspection position P2, and more specifically, determines whether the quality of the tablets W is good or bad.

[0073] A tablet detection sensor 44 is disposed upstream in the conveying direction of the inspection unit 4. When a tablet W is detected by the tablet detection sensor 44, the inspection unit 4 irradiates light L onto the tablet W at the timing when the detected tablet W reaches the inspection position P2. The timing when the tablet W reaches the inspection position P2 can be measured based on the rotation angle of the conveying disk 30 and the detection timing of the tablet detection sensor 44.

[0074] As shown in Fig. 9, the inspection unit 4 is configured to be able to measure the spectral characteristics of the tablets W transported by the transport disk 30 in a non-contact manner using an optical sensor made up of a light irradiation unit 42 and a light detection unit 43. Based on the measured spectral characteristics, the inspection unit 4 judges the quality of the tablets W, whether they are within a standard range, and whether they are good or bad (OK product or NG product). In this embodiment, tablets W within the standard range are considered to be "OK product," and tablets W outside the standard range are considered to be "NG product."

[0075] The tablets W determined to be "OK products" by the pass / fail judgment of the inspection unit 4 are discharged into an OK collection box 76 when they reach an OK discharge position P5. An OK detection sensor 45 is disposed upstream of the OK discharge position P5 in the conveying direction as a fourth object detection sensor that detects the tablets W conveyed toward the OK discharge position P5. The OK air nozzle 77 blows air when the tablets W reach the OK discharge position P5, based on the detection timing of the OK detection sensor 45 and the rotation angle of the conveying disk 30.

[0076] A tablet W determined to be an "NG product" by the pass / fail judgment of the inspection unit 4 is discharged into a NG collection box 71 when it reaches a NG discharge position P3. An NG detection sensor 46 is disposed upstream of the NG discharge position P3 in the conveying direction and downstream of the inspection position P2 in the conveying direction as a first object detection sensor that detects the tablet W being conveyed toward the NG discharge position P3. The NG air nozzle 72 blows air when the tablet W reaches the NG discharge position P3, based on the detection timing of the NG detection sensor 46 and the rotation angle of the conveying disk 30.

[0077] Here, for example, if the posture and position of the tablet W being inspected in the inspection unit 4 are not maintained at the optimal posture and position during inspection, or if there is variation between tablets, the accuracy of inspection in the inspection unit 4 will decrease.

[0078] In this embodiment, in order to improve the accuracy of inspection in the inspection unit 4, a guide unit 5 is provided that stabilizes the posture and position of each tablet W transported to the inspection unit 4 and transports each tablet W to the inspection unit 4 always in the same position and posture, preferably in the normal suction position and normal posture described below.

[0079] (Guide part) As shown in FIG. 1, the guide section 5 is provided between the suction position P1 and the inspection position P2 along the conveyance path of the tablet W, and guides the tablet W conveyed to the inspection position P2.

[0080] The guide section 5 is configured to include a first guide 11, a second guide 12, and a third guide 13. The first guide 11, the second guide 12, and the third guide 13 are supported non-rotatably by a main body frame (not shown).

[0081] In this embodiment, a first guide 11, a second guide 12, and a third guide 13 are arranged in this order from the upstream side in the conveying direction along the conveying path of the tablets W. The first guide 11, the second guide 12, and the third guide 13 are all formed in an arc shape so as to follow the conveying path of the tablets W in a plan view.

[0082] As shown in Figure 5, the first guide 11 has a first upper guide piece 51 that contacts the tablet W from above, and a first lower guide piece 52 that is arranged opposite the first upper guide piece 51 across the transport path of the tablet W.

[0083] As shown in Fig. 9, a guide surface 51a that comes into contact with the tablet W is formed on the conveying path side of the first upper guide piece 51. A guide surface 52a is formed on the conveying path side of the first lower guide piece 52. Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram in which the circular conveying disk 30 and the arc-shaped first guide 11, second guide 12, and third guide 13 are linearly developed.

[0084] In the first guide 11, the upstream end in the conveying direction is the entrance 11A of the first guide 11, and the downstream end in the conveying direction is the exit 11B of the first guide 11. In the second guide 12, the upstream end in the conveying direction is the entrance 12A of the second guide 12, and the downstream end in the conveying direction is the exit 12B of the second guide 12.

[0085] The guide surface 51a and the guide surface 52a are inclined so that the distance between them becomes narrower from the upstream side in the conveying direction of the tablet W to the downstream side in the conveying direction.

[0086] In other words, the guide surfaces 51a and 52a are inclined so as to gradually approach the conveying path from the upstream side to the downstream side in the conveying direction. Furthermore, the guide surfaces 51a and 52a are gently curved from the upstream side to the downstream side in the conveying direction. Therefore, the guide surfaces 51a and 52a are formed so that the inclination becomes gentler toward the downstream side in the conveying direction.

[0087] Therefore, the first guide 11 is configured so that the entrance 11A is wide in the vertical direction and the exit 11B is narrower in the vertical direction than the entrance 11A. The second guide 12 is also configured so that the entrance 12A is wide in the vertical direction and the exit 12B is narrower in the vertical direction than the entrance 12A.

[0088] In this embodiment, the width H1 in the vertical direction of the entrance 11A of the first guide 11 and the width H3 in the vertical direction of the entrance 12A of the second guide 12 are set to be the same width.

[0089] Furthermore, the vertical width H2 of the outlet 11B of the first guide 11 and the vertical width H4 of the outlet 12B of the second guide 12 are set to be the same width. The widths H2 and H4 are set to be slightly larger than the thickness of the tablet W, i.e., the length of the tablet W in the axial direction of the cylindrical shape.

[0090] The vertical width of the entrance and exit of each guide can be changed by adjusting the positions of the upper and lower guide pieces, and can be changed as appropriate depending on the type and dimensions of the object to be inspected.

[0091] In this embodiment, the outlet 11B of the first guide 11 is located lower than the outlet 12B of the second guide 12. Specifically, the outlet 11B of the first guide 11 is arranged so that the center of the outlet 11B in the up-down direction is located lower than the center line O connecting the centers of the suction holes 32. In other words, the outlet 11B is arranged at a position biased downward with respect to the center line O.

[0092] Since the outlet 11B of the first guide 11 is positioned in this manner, when the tablet W is guided by the first guide 11, it moves downstream in the conveying direction while coming into contact with the guide surface 51a of the first upper guide piece 51.

[0093] As a result, the tablet W guided by the first guide 11 is gradually pushed down by the first upper guide piece 51 as it moves downstream in the conveying direction, and when it passes through the exit 11B, it is pushed down until its center in the vertical direction is shifted downward from the center line O.

[0094] The first lower guide piece 52 prevents the tablet W pushed down by the first upper guide piece 51 from going too far downward, and also prevents the tablet W from becoming significantly out of position at the outlet 11B, such as being tilted relative to the center line O.

[0095] As shown in Figure 5, the second guide 12 has a second lower guide piece 53 that contacts the tablet W from below, and a second upper guide piece 54 that is arranged opposite the second lower guide piece 53 across the transport path of the tablet W.

[0096] 9, a guide surface 53a that comes into contact with the tablet W is formed on the conveying path side of the second lower guide piece 53. A guide surface 54a is formed on the conveying path side of the second upper guide piece 54.

[0097] The guide surface 53a and the guide surface 54a are inclined so that the distance between them becomes narrower from the upstream side in the conveying direction of the tablet W to the downstream side in the conveying direction.

[0098] In other words, the guide surfaces 53a and 54a are inclined so as to gradually approach the conveying path from the upstream side to the downstream side in the conveying direction. Furthermore, the guide surfaces 53a and 54a are gently curved from the upstream side to the downstream side in the conveying direction. Therefore, the guide surfaces 53a and 54a are formed so that the inclination becomes gentler toward the downstream side in the conveying direction.

[0099] In this embodiment, the outlet 12B of the second guide 12 is disposed above the outlet 11B of the first guide 11, and the center of the outlet 12B in the vertical direction is positioned above the center line O. In other words, the outlet 12B is disposed so that the center of the outlet 12B in the vertical direction is positioned above the center line O by half the difference between the thickness of the tablet W and the width H4 of the outlet 12B in the vertical direction.

[0100] Since the outlet 12B of the second guide 12 is positioned in this manner, when the tablet W is guided by the second guide 12, it moves downstream in the conveying direction while coming into contact with the guide surface 53a of the second lower guide piece 53.

[0101] As a result, the tablet W guided by the second guide 12 is gradually pushed up by the second lower guide piece 53 as it moves downstream in the conveying direction, and when it passes through the exit 12B, it is pushed up to the correct adsorption position where the center of the tablet W in the vertical direction coincides with the center line O.

[0102] At the normal suction position, the tablet W is suctioned to the suction hole 32 without any gap between it and the suction hole 32 or without any gap large enough to cause the tablet W to lose its posture. Therefore, when the tablet W is suctioned at the normal suction position, the posture of the tablet W is easily stabilized and the tablet W is easily maintained in that position.

[0103] Furthermore, the tablet W is controlled to a normal posture when it passes through the second guide 12. The normal posture refers to the posture of the tablet W when the cylindrical axis of the tablet W is parallel to the vertical direction. To more reliably achieve the normal posture, for example, the guide surface 53a on the downstream side of the second lower guide piece 53 in the conveying direction may be formed horizontally.

[0104] The second upper guide piece 54 prevents the tablet W pushed up by the second lower guide piece 53 from going too far upward, and prevents the tablet W from becoming significantly out of position at the outlet 12B, such as being tilted with respect to the center line O.

[0105] In this embodiment, the position where the center of the tablet W in the vertical direction coincides with the center line O is defined as the normal suction position, and therefore the arrangement of the outlets 11B and 12B is set as described above, but if the normal suction position differs from that of this embodiment, the arrangement of the outlets 11B and 12B will also be changed accordingly. In this case, the arrangement of the outlets 11B and 12B should be such that the tablet W is pushed down below the normal suction position when passing through the outlet 11B, and the pushed-down tablet W can be pushed up to the normal suction position when passing through the outlet 12B.

[0106] The curves of the guide surfaces 51a, 52a, 53a, and 54a described above are curved shapes whose curvature decreases from the upstream side in the conveying direction to the downstream side in the conveying direction, for example. The guide surfaces 51a, 52a, 53a, and 54a described above do not have to be completely curved surfaces, and may have a shape that is equivalent to a curved surface, formed by continuously forming a plurality of flat surfaces at different angles.

[0107] As shown in FIG. 5, the third guide 13 is composed of a single guide piece that is disposed on the inspection position P2 side of the first guide 11 and the second guide 12 and below the conveying path of the tablets W.

[0108] 9, a guide surface 13a that contacts the tablet W from below on the upstream side in the conveying direction of the tablet W is formed on the conveying path side of the third guide 13. The guide surface 13a is inclined so as to gradually move away from the tablet W toward the downstream side in the conveying direction of the tablet W.

[0109] The third guide 13 is arranged so that the height of the upstream end of the guide surface 13a in the conveying direction matches the height of the downstream end of the guide surface 53a of the second lower guide piece 53. This allows the tablet W that has passed through the outlet 12B of the second guide 12 to move to the third guide 13 while maintaining the normal adsorption position and normal posture.

[0110] The tablet W that has moved to the third guide 13 gradually moves away from the guide surface 13a as it moves downstream in the conveying direction, so that the tablet W is likely to maintain the regular suction position and regular posture. The tablet W that has passed through the third guide 13 is conveyed to the inspection unit 4 while maintaining the regular suction position and regular posture.

[0111] If the third guide 13 were not provided, the tablet W would suddenly lose support from below after passing through the exit 12B of the second guide 12. If the tablet W is adsorbed to the suction holes 32 of the conveying disc 30 with a gap biased toward the downstream side in the conveying direction, for example, when the tablet W suddenly loses support from the second guide 12, the tablet W will rotate in the traveling direction in an attempt to eliminate the biased gap.

[0112] In this embodiment, as described above, the tablet W is guided by the third guide 13 without suddenly losing support after passing through the exit 12B of the second guide 12, and therefore the tablet W is prevented from rotating in the traveling direction. Furthermore, even after that, the support of the tablet W is gradually released by the third guide 13, so the support is not suddenly lost.

[0113] The above-mentioned first upper guide piece 51, first lower guide piece 52, second lower guide piece 53, second upper guide piece 54 and third guide 13 are configured so that their respective mounting positions can be adjusted by an adjustment mechanism 50 (see FIG. 11). The adjustment mechanism 50 is configured, for example, by a linear motion mechanism such as a rack and pinion mechanism or a ball screw, driven by a motor or the like. Note that the above-mentioned guide pieces and guides may also be configured so that their mounting positions can be manually adjusted.

[0114] Next, the cross sections of the guide surfaces of the first guide 11, the second guide 12, and the third guide 13 will be described with reference to Fig. 10. Fig. 10(a) shows the cross section of the first guide 11, Fig. 10(b) shows the cross section of the second guide 12, and Fig. 10(c) shows the cross section of the third guide 13.

[0115] As shown in Fig. 10(a), the guide surface 51a of the first upper guide piece 51 has a cross section perpendicular to the conveyance path of the tablet W formed in a V-groove shape with a V-groove recessed inward into the first upper guide piece 51. Therefore, the guide surface 51a can guide the tablet W while contacting the tablet W at one point or two or more points. Furthermore, when the tablet W has a curved surface as in this embodiment, the V-groove-shaped guide surface 51a contacts the tablet W so as to follow the curved surface.

[0116] In this embodiment, the guide surface 51a is preferably disposed so that the apex of the V-groove, which is the deepest part of the V-groove of the guide surface 51a, coincides with the axis of the cylindrical tablet W.

[0117] The guide surface 52a of the first lower guide piece 52 has a cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the conveyance path of the tablet W formed in a V-groove recessed inward of the first lower guide piece 52. This allows the guide surface 52a to come into contact with the tablet W at one point or at two or more points. Furthermore, when the tablet W has a curved surface as in this embodiment, the V-groove-shaped guide surface 52a can come into contact with the tablet W so as to follow the curved surface.

[0118] In this embodiment, the guide surface 52a is preferably disposed so that the apex of the V-shaped groove of the guide surface 52a coincides with the axis of the cylindrical tablet W.

[0119] 10(b), the guide surface 53a of the second lower guide piece 53 has a cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the conveying path of the tablet W formed in a V-groove shape recessed inward of the second lower guide piece 53. Therefore, the guide surface 53a can guide the tablet W while contacting the tablet W at one or more points. Furthermore, when the tablet W has a curved surface as in this embodiment, the V-groove-shaped guide surface 53a contacts the tablet W so as to follow the curved surface.

[0120] In this embodiment, the guide surface 53a is preferably disposed so that the apex of the V-shaped groove of the guide surface 53a coincides with the axis of the cylindrical tablet W.

[0121] The guide surface 54a of the second upper guide piece 54 is formed in a flat shape, and is formed so that its horizontal width is smaller than that of the second lower guide piece 53 in the horizontal direction.

[0122] In this embodiment, the guide surface 54a is disposed radially outward of the conveying disk 30 relative to the cylindrical axis of the tablet W. In this manner, the guide surface 54a is configured to be able to come into contact with the tablet W at a position farther from the suction hole 32 of the conveying disk 30 than the cylindrical axis of the tablet W, and therefore rotation of the tablet W can be minimized.

[0123] For example, when the tablet W adsorbed to the suction hole 32 tries to tilt so that the side of the tablet W farthest from the suction hole 32 (the right side in Figure 10) moves upward, that is, when the tablet W tries to rotate counterclockwise in Figure 10, the rotation is suppressed by the guide surface 54a.

[0124] As shown in FIG. 10(c), the guide surface 13a of the third guide 13 is formed in a flat shape, and is formed so that its horizontal width is smaller than that of the second lower guide piece 53.

[0125] In this embodiment, the guide surface 13a is disposed so that the center of the horizontal width coincides with the cylindrical axis of the tablet W. This allows the guide surface 13a to come into contact with the vicinity of the center of the lower surface of the tablet W on the upstream side of the third guide 13 in the conveying direction.

[0126] In this embodiment, the first guide 11, the second guide 12, and the third guide 13 are each configured as separate bodies. The first guide 11, the second guide 12, and the third guide 13 may be integrally formed, or two guides adjacent to each other in the conveying direction may be integrally formed. Alternatively, the first upper guide piece 51 and the second upper guide piece 54 may be integrally formed, and the first lower guide piece 52, the second lower guide piece 53, and the third guide 13 may be integrally formed.

[0127] Furthermore, in this embodiment, a guide for pushing the conveyed tablet W downward may be provided immediately before the NG discharge position P3. In this case, the suction position of the tablet W is shifted downward from the center of the suction hole 32, so that the suction force of the tablet W to the suction hole 32 is reduced, and the suction of the tablet W can be reliably released without increasing the air pressure of the NG air nozzle 72.

[0128] (Electrical configuration) Next, the electrical configuration of the article inspection device 1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

[0129] As shown in FIG. 11, the article inspection device 1 according to this embodiment includes a control unit 100 that performs overall control of the article inspection device 1.

[0130] The control unit 100 is configured by a computer unit that includes at least a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), an input port, and an output port.

[0131] The control unit 100 is connected to various sensors such as the tablet detection sensor 44, NG detection sensor 46, full discharge detection sensor 40, removal failure detection sensor 41, and OK detection sensor 45 described above.

[0132] In addition to the above-mentioned inspection unit 4, return mechanism 27, NG air nozzle 72, total discharge air nozzle 74, NG contamination prevention gate 75, OK air nozzle 77, drive motor 30M and adjustment mechanism 50, various devices such as a display unit 120 are connected to the control unit 100.

[0133] The control unit 100 has a memory unit 101 that stores the pass / fail judgment results of the inspection unit 4 as measurement data for each tablet W. The control unit 100 assigns identification information that can individually identify the tablets W, for example, a management number, to each of the above-mentioned measurement data in a consecutive manner, and then stores each measurement data in the memory unit 101. When this measurement data is stored, management of each tablet W begins.

[0134] In this embodiment, the control unit 100 manages each tablet W as described above by storing in the memory unit 101, in addition to the judgment results of the inspection unit 4, information such as the discharge results indicating where the tablet W was discharged, linked to each measurement data.

[0135] Furthermore, each measurement data stored in the storage unit 101 can be read out in response to an operation on the display unit 120, which will be described later. This makes it possible to track the measurement data of each tablet W by its management number.

[0136] The memory unit 101 is also configured to store, for each inspection object, the attachment positions of the first upper guide piece 51, the first lower guide piece 52, the second lower guide piece 53, the second upper guide piece 54, and the third guide 13. The control unit 100 stores, for example, the optimal attachment positions of the above-mentioned guide pieces and the third guide 13 designated by the user for each inspection object in the memory unit 101. Note that the memory unit 101 may previously store attachment positions of the above-mentioned guide pieces and the third guide 13 determined as optimal attachment positions for each inspection object.

[0137] The display unit 120 is configured, for example, by a touch panel display. The display unit 120 has a display function for displaying various information in addition to a viewer display screen (described later), and also functions as an input unit for accepting operations from the user. Examples of user operations include various setting operations, driving operations, and selection operations.

[0138] Various setting operations on the display unit 120 include, for example, input operations for inputting the shape and dimensions of the object to be inspected, and setting operations for setting the mounting positions of the first upper guide piece 51, the first lower guide piece 52, the second lower guide piece 53, the second upper guide piece 54 and the third guide 13.

[0139] Therefore, the display unit 120 functions as an input unit through which the user inputs the shape, dimensions, etc. of the inspection target. The information on the inspection target that can be input is not limited to the shape and dimensions. Furthermore, the display unit 120 is configured to be able to accept setting operations for setting the mounting positions of the first upper guide piece 51, the first lower guide piece 52, the second lower guide piece 53, the second upper guide piece 54, and the third guide 13.

[0140] Furthermore, the display unit 120 is configured to display instructions of a first guide 11, a second guide 12, and a third guide 13 that are suited to the shape, dimensions, etc. of the inspection object input by the user. This allows the user to be notified of guides for the optimum shape and dimensions according to the inspection object.

[0141] In addition, the display unit 120 is configured to display recommended values ​​for the installation positions of the first upper guide piece 51, the first lower guide piece 52, the second lower guide piece 53, the second upper guide piece 54 and the third guide 13.

[0142] The control unit 100 is configured to control the timing of discharging the tablet W by the NG air nozzle 72 based on the detection result of the NG detection sensor 46. That is, when the NG detection sensor 46 detects a tablet W determined to be an NG product by the inspection unit 4, the control unit 100 controls the NG air nozzle 72 so that air is blown out at the timing when the tablet W reaches the NG discharge position P3.

[0143] The control unit 100 is configured to control the timing of discharging the tablets W by the total discharge air nozzle 74 based on the detection result of the total discharge detection sensor 40. That is, when the total discharge detection sensor 40 detects a tablet W that should be fully discharged, such as a tablet W that has failed to be NG discharged, the control unit 100 controls the total discharge air nozzle 74 so that air is blown out at the timing when the tablet W reaches the total discharge position P4.

[0144] The control unit 100 controls the timing of opening the conveying path by the NG contamination prevention gate 75 based on the detection result of the removal failure detection sensor 41. That is, when a non-defective tablet W is detected by the removal failure detection sensor 41, the control unit 100 controls the NG contamination prevention gate 75 so that the NG contamination prevention gate 75 moves to a position where the conveying path is opened at the timing when the tablet W passes through the NG contamination prevention gate 75.

[0145] The control unit 100 controls the timing of discharging the tablet W by the OK air nozzle 77 based on the detection result of the OK detection sensor 45. That is, when the tablet W determined to be an OK product by the inspection unit 4 is detected by the OK detection sensor 45, the control unit 100 controls the OK air nozzle 77 so that air is blown out at the timing when the tablet W reaches the OK discharge position P5.

[0146] The control unit 100 issues a notification to urge a change in at least one of the discharge timing and the opening timing when an abnormality in the object detection occurs multiple times in succession in any of the NG detection sensor 46, the full discharge detection sensor 40, the removal failure detection sensor 41, and the OK detection sensor 45. The notification is issued, for example, via the display unit 120.

[0147] Examples of "item detection abnormalities" include when the NG detection sensor 46, the full discharge detection sensor 40, and the failed removal detection sensor 41 detect tablet W at an abnormal timing, such as when the tablet W is detected at a timing other than when the item monitoring signal described below is being output, or when the OK detection sensor 45 fails to detect tablet W while the item monitoring signal described below is being output.

[0148] In addition, the control unit 100 may be configured to issue a notification urging a change in at least one of the aforementioned discharge timing and opening timing when an abnormality in item detection occurs multiple times within a certain period of time in any of the NG detection sensor 46, full discharge detection sensor 40, removal failure detection sensor 41, and OK detection sensor 45.

[0149] Furthermore, the control unit 100 may be configured to notify that at least one of the NG air nozzle 72, the total discharge air nozzle 74, and the NG mixing prevention gate 75 is malfunctioning when an abnormality in object detection occurs multiple times in succession or when an abnormality in object detection occurs multiple times within a certain period of time in any of the NG detection sensor 46, the total discharge detection sensor 40, the removal failure detection sensor 41, and the OK detection sensor 45. In this case, the notification is made via the display unit 120, for example.

[0150] The control unit 100 may be configured to be able to execute both the notification urging a change in the various timings and the notification of a malfunction, and in this case, it is preferable to set the number of occurrences of an abnormality in item detection as a trigger for issuing a notification differently between issuing a notification urging a change in the various timings and issuing a notification of a malfunction. For example, a notification urging a change in the various timings may be issued when an abnormality in item detection occurs two times in a row or two times within a certain period of time, and a notification of a malfunction may be issued when an abnormality in item detection occurs three times in a row or three times within a certain period of time. In this way, the number of occurrences of an abnormality in item detection as a trigger for issuing a notification of a malfunction is set higher than the number of occurrences of an abnormality in item detection as a trigger for issuing a notification urging a change in the various timings.

[0151] Furthermore, the control unit 100 controls the drive motor 30M to stop driving the drive motor 30M when the drive torque of the drive motor 30M of the transfer disk 30 becomes equal to or greater than a predetermined value. In addition, the control unit 100 may control the drive motor 30M to stop when, for example, an abnormality is detected in the air pressure of each air nozzle or an abnormality is detected in the installation of each discharge device and passing device.

[0152] The above-mentioned predetermined value is the lower limit of the drive torque of the drive motor 30M at which it can be determined that the tablet W is caught in the first guide 11 or the second guide 12, or that the tablet W is caught between the conveying disk 30 and the first guide 11 or the second guide 12, and is, for example, experimentally determined in advance and stored in the ROM of the control unit 100. Note that the above-mentioned predetermined value may be set based on an external signal, for example, based on an input from the user.

[0153] In addition, the control unit 100 is configured to be able to control the adjustment operation of the adjustment mechanism 50 so that the first upper guide piece 51, the first lower guide piece 52, the second lower guide piece 53, the second upper guide piece 54 and the third guide 13 are attached to the mounting positions stored in the memory unit 101 for each inspection object.

[0154] For example, when a user inputs the item to be inspected via the display unit 120, the adjustment mechanism 50 automatically adjusts the first upper guide piece 51, the first lower guide piece 52, the second lower guide piece 53, the second upper guide piece 54 and the third guide 13 to the optimal mounting positions according to the shape and dimensions of the item to be inspected.

[0155] (Time chart) Next, with reference to FIG. 12, the transition from determining whether each tablet W is good or bad to discharging it will be described.

[0156] Fig. 12 is a time chart showing the chronological order from the pass / fail judgment to the discharge of tablets a to t, with work codes "a" to "t" assigned to each tablet W. Fig. 12 shows that tablets a to t are transported in the order of tablets a to t.

[0157] In Fig. 12, the conveying pitch indicates the time interval between conveyance of the tablets W inspected sequentially, and the judgment timing indicates the timing at which the pass / fail judgment is made in the inspection unit 4. The judgment result indicates the result of the pass / fail judgment made at each judgment timing. Furthermore, "a" to "t" displayed in conjunction with the ON display of each sensor, each air nozzle, and the NG contamination prevention gate 75 correspond to tablets a to t.

[0158] 12, tablet a is judged to be an NG product by the inspection unit 4, and then detected by the NG detection sensor 46, and then the NG air nozzle 72 operates to discharge tablet a into the NG collection box 71. That is, this is an example in which tablet a is normally discharged into the NG collection box 71 by the NG air nozzle 72 without any failure in the NG discharge by the NG air nozzle 72.

[0159] Tablet b is judged to be an OK product in the pass / fail judgment by the inspection unit 4, and is therefore detected by the NG detection sensor 46, but the NG air nozzle 72 does not operate and is instead detected by the full discharge detection sensor 40. Thereafter, tablet b is detected by the rejection failure detection sensor 41 without the full discharge air nozzle 74 also operating. Next, tablet b passes through the conveyance path opened by the operation of the NG contamination prevention gate 75, and after being detected by the OK detection sensor 45, the OK air nozzle 77 operates and the tablet is discharged into the OK collection box 76. In other words, this is an example in which tablet b is normally discharged into the OK collection box 76 by the OK air nozzle 77 without being discharged to any destination other than the OK collection box 76 during conveyance.

[0160] After tablet d is determined to be an NG product in the pass / fail judgment of the inspection unit 4, it is detected by the NG detection sensor 46. Thereafter, the NG air nozzle 72 operates but tablet d is not discharged, and after being detected by the full discharge detection sensor 40, the full discharge air nozzle 74 operates and tablet d is discharged into the full discharge collection box 73. In other words, this is an example in which tablet d is not discharged into the NG collection box 71 because the NG air nozzle 72 failed to discharge tablet d, and tablet d is instead discharged into the full discharge collection box 73 by the full discharge air nozzle 74.

[0161] After tablet e is determined to be an NG product in the pass / fail judgment of the inspection unit 4, it is detected by the NG detection sensor 46. Thereafter, tablet e is detected by the full discharge detection sensor 40 without being discharged even though the NG air nozzle 72 is operated. Next, tablet e is detected by the rejection failure detection sensor 41 even though the full discharge air nozzle 74 is operated but is not discharged, and is then discharged into the full discharge collection box 73 by the NG contamination prevention gate 75, which is in the off state, i.e., blocking the conveyance path. In other words, this is an example in which tablet e was discharged into the full discharge collection box 73 by the NG contamination prevention gate 75 because the NG discharge by the NG air nozzle 72 failed and also the discharge by the full discharge air nozzle 74 failed.

[0162] Tablet f was judged to be an OK product in the pass / fail judgment by the inspection unit 4, so it was detected by the NG detection sensor 46, but the NG air nozzle 72 did not operate and it was detected by the full discharge detection sensor 40. Thereafter, tablet f was detected by the rejection failure detection sensor 41 without the full discharge air nozzle 74 also operating. Next, tablet f was unable to pass through the NG contamination prevention gate 75 because the NG contamination prevention gate 75 did not operate at the timing to allow tablet f to pass, and was instead discharged by the NG contamination prevention gate 75 into the full discharge collection box 73. In other words, this is an example in which tablet f was discharged into the full discharge collection box 73 despite being judged to be an OK product.

[0163] Tablet f was originally supposed to be detected by the rejection failure detection sensor 41 without being obstructed by the NG contamination prevention gate 75, and then detected by the OK detection sensor 45 as shown by the dashed line in the figure, and then the OK air nozzle 77 would operate and the tablet would be discharged into the OK collection box 76. In such a case, for example, by adjusting the operation timing of the NG contamination prevention gate 75, the tablet can be allowed to pass through the NG contamination prevention gate 75.

[0164] (Viewer display screen) Next, a viewer display screen 200 that can be displayed on the display unit 120 will be described with reference to FIG.

[0165] The viewer display screen 200 is configured to be switched from a menu screen when the user selects a viewer selection icon on, for example, a menu screen displayed on the display unit 120. The display procedure for the viewer display screen 200 is not limited to the procedure described above.

[0166] The viewer display screen 200 is provided with a signal list area 201 , a signal on / off status display area 202 , a display signal selection area 203 , a delivery item list display area 204 , and a detailed information display area 205 .

[0167] The signal list area 201 is an area that displays a list of signals related to the operation of the NG air nozzle 72 and total discharge air nozzle 74 as discharge equipment, and the NG contamination prevention gate 75 as passing equipment, divided into the NG air nozzle 72 (shown as "NG" in the figure), the total discharge air nozzle 74 (shown as "total discharge" in the figure), and the NG contamination prevention gate 75 (shown as "gate" in the figure).

[0168] That is, in the signal list area 201, the item monitoring signal, item detection signal, discharge standby control signal, and discharge equipment control signal are displayed in a list for the NG air nozzle 72 and the all-discharge air nozzle 74, and the item monitoring signal, item detection signal, passage standby control signal, and passage equipment control signal are displayed in a list for the NG mixing prevention gate 75, with the on / off state of each of these signals being displayed in the signal on / off state display area 202. The NG air nozzle 72 and the all-discharge air nozzle 74 constitute a predetermined discharge section.

[0169] The on / off state of each signal is displayed graphically in the signal on / off state display area 202. Specifically, the on state of each signal is displayed in a manner that makes it clearly distinguishable from the off state, such as by hatching or solid display in the drawing.

[0170] The on / off states of each signal are arranged in chronological order, with the timing when the inspection result (pass / fail judgment result) of the inspection unit 4 is input to the control unit 100 being set as time 0, and the graph is displayed from the on time to the off time. Therefore, the on / off states of each signal are displayed with different lengths of graph display depending on the length of the on state. For example, in the area marked "NG" in Figure 13, the on time of the item detection signal is longer than that of the item monitoring signal.

[0171] The "item monitoring signal" is a signal that is output, i.e., is in an ON state, during the time (hereinafter referred to as the "monitoring time") when it is expected that the tablets W will pass through the sensor corresponding to the discharge device or the passing device. The sensor corresponding to the discharge device or the passing device corresponds to the NG detection sensor 46 in the case of the NG air nozzle 72, the total discharge detection sensor 40 in the case of the total discharge air nozzle 74, and the exclusion failure detection sensor 41 in the case of the NG mixing prevention gate 75. The NG detection sensor 46 and the total discharge detection sensor 40 constitute a predetermined item detection sensor.

[0172] The "item detection signal" is a signal that is output when a sensor corresponding to a discharging device or a passing device detects a tablet W, that is, a signal that is in an ON state while the sensor is detecting the tablet W.

[0173] The "discharge standby control signal" is a signal that is output when discharge standby control is executed, which is started when the tablet W detected by the sensor corresponding to the discharge device is a tablet to be discharged by the discharge device corresponding to the sensor, i.e., is in an ON state while the discharge standby control is being executed. For example, when the tablet W detected by the NG detection sensor 46 is a tablet to be discharged by the NG air nozzle 72, i.e., an NG tablet W, the discharge standby control signal is output and the discharge standby control is executed.

[0174] The "passage standby control signal" is a signal that is output when the passage standby control is executed, which is started when the tablet W detected by the sensor corresponding to the passing device is a tablet that passes through the passing device corresponding to the sensor, that is, a signal that is in an ON state while the passage standby control is executed. For example, when the tablet W detected by the rejection failure detection sensor 41 is a tablet that passes through the NG contamination prevention gate 75, that is, a OK tablet W, the passage standby control signal is output and the passage standby control is executed.

[0175] The "discharge device control signal" is a signal that is output when discharge device control is executed, which starts after a predetermined time (hereinafter referred to as "discharge standby time") has elapsed since the start of execution of discharge standby control, i.e., a signal that is in an ON state while discharge device control is being executed. In other words, the discharge device control signal is a signal for operating the discharge device. For example, when the discharge standby time has elapsed since the start of execution of discharge standby control of the NG air nozzle 72, a discharge device control signal is output to the NG air nozzle 72, and in response to the input of the discharge device control signal, the NG air nozzle 72 operates, i.e., it blows out air.

[0176] The "passing equipment control signal" is a signal that is output when passing equipment control is executed, which starts after a predetermined time (hereinafter referred to as "passing standby time") has elapsed since the start of execution of passing standby control, that is, a signal that is in an ON state while passing equipment control is being executed. In other words, the passing equipment control signal is a signal for operating a passing equipment. For example, when the passing standby time has elapsed since the start of execution of passing standby control of the NG mixing prevention gate 75, a passing equipment control signal is output to the NG mixing prevention gate 75, and upon receiving the input of the passing equipment control signal, the NG mixing prevention gate 75 operates, that is, it performs an operation to open the conveying path.

[0177] The display signal selection area 203 is an area where, when one of the listed signals is selected, information about the selected signal is displayed. In the example of Fig. 13, an object detection signal is selected from the signals related to the NG air nozzle 72. By selecting the signal to be adjusted in the display signal selection area 203, the user can call up an adjustment screen for the adjustment parameters, which will be described later.

[0178] The transported item list display area 204 displays a list of control numbers, which are identification information of the tablets W that have been transported and passed the quality check by the inspection unit 4. In the example of Fig. 13, control numbers "11111111" to "44444444" are displayed.

[0179] Here, the memory unit 101 of the control unit 100 stores the history of the on / off states of the item monitoring signal, item detection signal, discharge standby control signal, and discharge equipment control signal corresponding to each discharge equipment (hereinafter referred to as "signal history"), as well as the signal history of the item monitoring signal, item detection signal, passage standby control signal, and passing equipment control signal corresponding to each passing equipment, for each tablet W, i.e., for each management number.

[0180] Therefore, by selecting one of the control numbers displayed in the delivery item list display area 204, the user can display the signal history of the tablet W identified by the selected control number among the signal histories of the multiple tablets W stored in the storage unit 101 in the signal on / off state display area 202. In this way, the display unit 120, which allows the user to select the signal history, constitutes a selection unit.

[0181] The detailed information display area 205 displays detailed information about the tablet W corresponding to the control number selected from the list of control numbers displayed in the delivery item list display area 204. For example, in the example of Fig. 13, the detailed information about the tablet W with the control number "11111111" displays that the result of the pass / fail judgment was NG, that it was discharged by the NG air nozzle 72, and that the control time was "0-280" msec.

[0182] For example, if a situation occurs in which tablets W are not normally discharged, the user can easily identify the cause of the tablets W not being normally discharged by opening the viewer display screen 200 and checking the signal history of each tablet W. Once the user has identified the cause of the tablets W not being normally discharged, the user can adjust the setting adjustment parameters to, for example, change the output timing of each signal, thereby eliminating the cause.

[0183] (adjustment parameters) Next, the above-mentioned setting adjustment parameters will be described with reference to FIG.

[0184] 14, time t0 is the timing when the tablet W is inspected by the inspection unit 4 at the inspection position P2, and the inspection result (the result of the pass / fail judgment) is input to the control unit 100. In this embodiment, the control unit 100 counts various times, which will be described later, with this timing of time t0 as time 0.

[0185] Subsequently, at time t1, when a tablet W is detected by a sensor corresponding to the discharging device, the article detection signal is turned on. After that, at time t2, the article monitoring signal is turned on and the discharge standby control signal is turned on.

[0186] Next, at time t3, the article monitoring signal turns off, and then at time t4, the article detection signal turns off. After that, at time t5, the discharge standby control signal turns off and the discharge device control signal turns on, causing the discharge device to operate.

[0187] Thereafter, at time t6 while the discharge device is operating, the tablet W reaches the discharge position. Then, at time t7, the discharge device control signal is turned off.

[0188] Here, a method for setting the on / off timing of the article monitoring signal, the discharge standby control signal, and the discharge device control signal by the control unit 100 will be described.

[0189] First, the control unit 100 determines time 0 (time t0 in the example of FIG. 14) as described above, and then sets the time (time t2 in the example of FIG. 14) at which the tablet W is predicted to pass the sensor corresponding to the discharge device based on the time (time t6 in the example of FIG. 14) at which the tablet W reaches the discharge position. In this embodiment, the time difference between the time at which the tablet W is predicted to pass the sensor corresponding to the discharge device and the time at which the tablet W reaches the discharge position is referred to as the "detection timing correction time."

[0190] The control unit 100 sets the timing at which the article monitoring signal turns on based on the detection timing correction time. That is, the control unit 100 sets the time at which the article monitoring signal turns on to the time that is earlier than the time at which the tablet W reaches the discharge position by the detection timing correction time.

[0191] The detection timing correction time is an adjustment parameter whose length can be changed by the user, and the setting can be changed by the user via a setting screen that is read out by selecting the signal to be adjusted in the display signal selection area 203 of the display unit 120. The display unit 120 that accepts such setting changes (adjustments) constitutes an input unit.

[0192] Therefore, the user can change the timing at which the article surveillance signal turns on by adjusting the length of the detection timing correction time.

[0193] In this embodiment, the detection timing correction time is determined based on the discharge position as described above, but this is not limiting, and for example, the detection timing correction time may be determined based on the tablet detection position as shown in Fig. 15. That is, in the example shown in Fig. 15, the time at which the tablet W is predicted to pass the sensor corresponding to the discharge device (time t2 in the example of Fig. 15) is set based on the time at which the tablet W reaches the tablet detection position (time t1 in the example of Fig. 15).

[0194] When both the item monitoring signal and the item detection signal are turned on (time t2 in the example of Figure 14), the control unit 100 refers to the measurement data of the tablet W identified by the management number stored in the memory unit 101, and if the judgment result of the tablet W matches the tablet to be discharged by the discharge device, turns on the discharge standby control signal.

[0195] For example, if the tablet W detected by the NG detection sensor 46 is an NG product when the item monitoring signal of the NG detection sensor 46 is in the ON state, the NG product tablet W matches the target to be discharged by the NG air nozzle 72, so the discharge standby control signal is turned ON.

[0196] In contrast, if the tablet W detected by the NG detection sensor 46 is an OK product when the item monitoring signal of the NG detection sensor 46 is in the ON state, the OK product tablet W does not match the target to be discharged by the NG air nozzle 72, so the discharge standby control signal does not become ON.

[0197] After the control unit 100 sets the discharge standby control signal to the ON state, after the discharge standby time (from time t2 to time t5 in the example of FIG. 14) has elapsed, it sets the discharge standby control signal to the OFF state and sets the discharge equipment control signal to the ON state. While the discharge equipment control signal is in the ON state, the discharge equipment is operating. In this embodiment, the duration of the discharge equipment control signal in the ON state (from time t5 to time t7 in the example of FIG. 14) is referred to as the "discharge operation time."

[0198] The aforementioned discharge waiting time and discharge operation time are adjustment parameters whose length can be changed by the user, and the user can change the settings via a setting screen that is read out by selecting the signal to be adjusted in the display signal selection area 203 of the display unit 120.

[0199] Therefore, the user can change the on / off timing of the discharge device control signal by adjusting the discharge standby time and the discharge operation time. Note that the discharge device control signal turns off when the discharge operation time expires.

[0200] In this manner, in this embodiment, the detection timing correction time, discharge standby time, and discharge operation time are set as adjustment parameters for the on / off timing of the article monitoring signal, discharge device control signal, and discharge standby control signal.

[0201] Furthermore, for the passing equipment, i.e., the NG contamination prevention gate 75, the "discharge standby control signal" in Figure 14 should be read as "passing standby control signal," the "discharge equipment control signal" as "passing equipment control signal," the "discharge position" as "passing position," the "discharge standby time" as "passing standby time," and the "discharge operation time" as "passing operation time."

[0202] (Adjustment example) Next, with reference to the first to third discharge patterns in FIGS. 16 to 18, examples of adjustment of the article monitor signal, discharge device control signal, and discharge standby control signal in each pattern will be described.

[0203] The first discharge pattern shown in Figure 16 is a discharge pattern when discharging an NG tablet W, in which the NG air nozzle 72 is unable to discharge the NG tablet W because the air blowing time of the NG air nozzle 72 is short, and the NG tablet W is discharged by the full discharge air nozzle 74.

[0204] In this case, the user selects the discharge equipment control signal related to the NG air nozzle 72 and adjusts it so that the discharge standby time is shorter and the discharge operation time is longer, thereby accelerating the timing at which the discharge equipment control signal is switched to the ON state and delaying the timing at which it is switched to the OFF state. This makes it possible to lengthen the time for which air is blown out from the NG air nozzle 72 while keeping the timing at which the tablets W are discharged unchanged.

[0205] The second discharge pattern shown in Figure 17 is a discharge pattern when all tablets W are discharged, in which the air blowing time of the all-out discharge air nozzle 74 is short, so the tablets W cannot be discharged by the all-out discharge air nozzle 74, and the tablets W are discharged by the NG contamination prevention gate 75.

[0206] In this case, the user selects the discharge equipment control signal related to the all-discharge air nozzle 74 and adjusts it so that the discharge standby time is shorter and the discharge operation time is longer, thereby accelerating the timing at which the discharge equipment control signal is switched to the ON state and delaying the timing at which it is switched to the OFF state. This makes it possible to lengthen the air blowing time of the all-discharge air nozzle 74 while keeping the discharge timing of the tablets W the same.

[0207] The third discharge pattern shown in Figure 18 is a discharge pattern when discharging an NG tablet W, in which the timing of the on state of the item monitoring signal does not match the timing of the on state of the item detection signal, i.e., the timing of the item monitoring time does not match the timing of the detection of the tablet W by the NG detection sensor 46, so the NG tablet W cannot be discharged by the NG air nozzle 72 and the NG tablet W is discharged by the full discharge air nozzle 74.

[0208] In this case, the user selects the item monitoring signal associated with the NG air nozzle 72 and adjusts it to shorten the detection timing correction time, thereby delaying the ON timing of the item monitoring signal to the timing indicated by the dashed line in the figure, thereby matching the ON timing of the item monitoring signal with the ON timing of the item detection signal.

[0209] An example of such adjustment of the adjustment parameters is when a user transports an inspection sample as an item sample for adjustment and observes the transport status and discharge status of the inspection sample.

[0210] In addition, the item inspection device 1 according to this embodiment may have a function of displaying recommended adjustment values ​​for the adjustment parameters on the display unit 120 when it detects that the discharge timing or opening timing at each discharge device or passing device is inappropriate.

[0211] Furthermore, the product inspection device 1 according to this embodiment may have a function of automatically adjusting the adjustment parameters to recommended adjustment values ​​in accordance with the detection status of the inspection product sample at each sensor when the inspection product sample for adjustment is transported, and setting the adjustment parameters to the recommended adjustment values. In this case, by transporting the inspection product sample for adjustment, the discharge timing and release timing of each discharge device and passing device are automatically adjusted.

[0212] In this embodiment, as described above, examples of adjusting each signal related to the discharge equipment have been described, but the detection timing correction time, passage waiting time, and passage operation time can also be adjusted as adjustment parameters for each signal related to the passing equipment.

[0213] (Action and effect) As described above, the article inspection device according to this embodiment controls the timing of discharging the tablets W by the NG air nozzle 72 and the all-discharge air nozzle 74 based on the detection results of the NG detection sensor 46, which is disposed upstream of the NG air nozzle 72 in the conveying direction and downstream of the inspection unit 4 in the conveying direction, and the all-discharge detection sensor 40, which is disposed upstream of the all-discharge air nozzle 74 in the conveying direction and downstream of the NG air nozzle 72 in the conveying direction. This makes it possible to grasp the conveyance status of the tablets W in detail, and even if the operation timing of the NG air nozzle 72 and the all-discharge air nozzle 74 becomes stricter as the tablets W, which are conveyed while rotating, are conveyed at higher speeds, the NG air nozzle 72 and the all-discharge air nozzle 74 can be operated at accurate discharge timing. As a result, even if the tablets W are conveyed at high speed, the tablets W can be accurately discharged at the desired discharge position.

[0214] Furthermore, in the article inspection device according to this embodiment, the OK air nozzle 77 is provided downstream in the conveying direction from the total discharge air nozzle 74, so that tablets W other than OK products can be removed by the NG air nozzle 72 and the total discharge air nozzle 74 before being conveyed to the OK air nozzle 77. This makes it possible to prevent tablets W other than OK products from being mixed into the OK collection box 76.

[0215] Furthermore, the article inspection device according to this embodiment controls the timing of opening the NG contamination prevention gate 75, which opens the conveying path only when a non-defective tablet W passes through the conveying path, based on the detection result of the rejection failure detection sensor 41, so that only the non-defective tablets W can pass downstream in the conveying direction of the NG contamination prevention gate 75. This makes it possible to prevent tablets W other than the non-defective tablets from being mixed into the non-defective collection box 76. Furthermore, since the NG contamination prevention gate 75 blocks the conveying path except when a non-defective tablet W passes through the conveying path, even if the NG air nozzle 72 and the full discharge air nozzle 74 fail to discharge the non-defective tablet W, the NG contamination prevention gate 75 can reliably discharge the non-defective tablet W.

[0216] Furthermore, when an abnormality in item detection occurs multiple times consecutively or multiple times within a certain period of time in any of the NG detection sensor 46, the total discharge detection sensor 40, the rejection failure detection sensor 41, and the OK detection sensor 45, the item inspection device of this embodiment issues a notification urging the user to change at least one of the discharge timing and the opening timing, or notifies the user that at least one of the NG air nozzle 72, the total discharge air nozzle 74, and the NG contamination prevention gate 75 is malfunctioning, thereby prompting the user to take appropriate action.

[0217] In addition, the item inspection device of this embodiment automatically adjusts at least one of the discharge timing and the opening timing based on the detection status of the inspection item sample for adjustment by the NG detection sensor 46, the full discharge detection sensor 40, the removal failure detection sensor 41, and the OK detection sensor 45 when the inspection item sample for adjustment is transported, thereby eliminating the need for the user to make adjustments and increasing convenience.

[0218] (Variation) In the article inspection device according to this embodiment, the timing when the inspection result (pass / fail judgment result) of the inspection unit 4 is input to the control unit 100 is set to time 0, and the on-time and off-time of each of the article monitoring signal, article detection signal, discharge standby control signal, and discharge equipment control signal may be displayed corresponding to each signal, as shown in Fig. 19. Similarly, the on-time and off-time of each of the passage standby control signal and passing equipment control signal may be displayed corresponding to each signal.

[0219] In this case, the timing when the inspection result of the inspection unit 4 is input to the control unit 100 is set as time 0, and the on-time and off-time of each signal are displayed on the display unit 120, so that the user can recognize the detailed timing of the on-off state of each signal. This allows the user to make fine adjustments to the discharge timing by referring to the on-time and off-time of each signal, for example.

[0220] Furthermore, the display items on the viewer display screen 200 shown in FIG. 13 may be configured to be rearrangeable and repositionable, or may be configured to display only the display items selected by the user.

[0221] While an embodiment of the present invention has been disclosed, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that modifications may be made thereto without departing from the scope of the present invention, and it is intended that all such modifications and equivalents be included in the following claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0222] 1. Item inspection equipment 2 Supply section 3. Conveyor 4. Inspection Department 5 Guide section 6 Tablet dispenser 30 Transfer disc 32 suction holes 40 Total discharge detection sensor (second item detection sensor, predetermined item detection sensor) 41 Removal failure detection sensor (third object detection sensor) 45 OK detection sensor (fourth object detection sensor) 46 NG detection sensor (first object detection sensor, predetermined object detection sensor) 71 NG collection box (NG product collection section) 72 NG air nozzle (NG discharge part, designated discharge part) 73 Total discharge collection box (total discharge collection section) 74 Total discharge air nozzle (total discharge part, specified discharge part) 75 NG contamination prevention gate (gate) 76 OK Collection Box (OK Item Collection Department) 77 OK air nozzle (OK discharge part) 100 control section 101 Storage section 120 Display section (input section, selection section) 200 Viewer display screen 201 Signal List Area 202 Signal on / off status display area 203 Display signal selection area 204 Delivery item list display area 205 Detailed information display area P1 Adsorption position P2 Inspection position P3 NG discharge position P4 All discharge positions P5 OK discharge position W Tablet (item)

Claims

1. a conveying section (3) for conveying an object (W) to be inspected to an inspection position (P2); an inspection unit (4) that inspects the item at the inspection position; an NG discharge section (72) that is provided downstream of the inspection section in the conveyance direction of the article and discharges the article to an NG product recovery section (71) according to the inspection result of the inspection section; an OK discharge section (77) that is provided downstream of the inspection section in the conveyance direction of the article and that discharges the article to an OK article recovery section (76) according to the inspection result of the inspection section; a total discharge section (74) that is provided downstream of the NG discharge section in the conveying direction of the articles and discharges the articles to a total discharge recovery section (73); a first object detection sensor (46) disposed upstream of the NG discharge section in the object conveying direction and downstream of the inspection section in the object conveying direction; a second object detection sensor (40) arranged upstream of the full discharge section in the object conveying direction and downstream of the NG discharge section in the object conveying direction; An object inspection device comprising: a control unit (100) that controls the timing of ejection of the object by the NG ejection unit and the full ejection unit based on the detection results of the first object detection sensor and the second object detection sensor.

2. 2. The object inspection device according to claim 1, wherein the OK discharge section is provided downstream of the full discharge section in the conveying direction of the object.

3. a third object detection sensor (41) disposed downstream of the full discharge section in the conveying direction of the object; a gate (75) that is provided downstream of the third object detection sensor in the object conveying direction, that constantly blocks the object conveying path, and that opens the conveying path only when an object that has been determined to be an OK item by the inspection unit passes through the conveying path; 3. The article inspection device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the timing of opening the gate based on the detection result of the third article detection sensor.

4. Further provided is a fourth object detection sensor (45) arranged upstream of the OK discharge section in the object conveying direction and downstream of the gate in the object conveying direction, The object inspection device of claim 3, characterized in that the control unit issues a notification urging a change in at least one of the discharge timing and the opening timing, or a notification that at least one of the NG discharge unit, the total discharge unit, and the gate is malfunctioning, when an object detection abnormality occurs multiple times in succession or multiple times within a certain period of time in any of the first object detection sensor, the second object detection sensor, the third object detection sensor, and the fourth object detection sensor.

5. Further provided is a fourth object detection sensor (45) arranged upstream of the OK discharge section in the object conveying direction and downstream of the gate in the object conveying direction, The object inspection device described in claim 3, characterized in that the control unit automatically adjusts at least one of the discharge timing and the opening timing based on the detection status of the object sample for adjustment by the first object detection sensor, the second object detection sensor, the third object detection sensor, and the fourth object detection sensor when the object sample is transported.

Images