Display method, inspection data processing device, and program

Abstract

The present invention acquires reading results obtained by moving an inspection object relative to a sensor along a scanning direction and scanning the inspection object by the sensor according to a reading order. Which of a first end and a second end having different display regions is used as a starting point to arrange the reading results according to the reading order is determined on the basis of the scanning direction.

Description

Display method, inspection data processing device, and program

[0001] This application claims priority based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2023-108582, filed on June 30, 2023, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

[0002] There are devices that display the results of inspections performed by sensors such as ultrasonic inspection devices as images. For example, Patent Literature 1 discloses a technology for displaying a probe mark indicating the probing position and direction of an ultrasonic probe in an inspection device that can display inspection results, in correspondence with the display direction of the image.

[0003] Japanese Patent Publication No. 4-166141

[0004] When an inspection is performed using a line sensor in such an inspection device, the inspection target area is scanned by the line sensor while the inspection target is moved relative to the line sensor in a certain direction. This results in the scanned image being generated as an inspection result, and the image is displayed on a display device used by the inspector.

[0005] Depending on whether the inspection object is moved relative to the line sensor in a first direction or a second direction (opposite to the first direction), the inspection may be performed from a first end of the inspection area or a second end opposite the first end. The read results are rendered sequentially from the first horizontal end of the display area on the display screen. Therefore, the horizontal orientation of the scanned image differs depending on whether the inspection is performed from the first direction or the second direction. Therefore, when an inspector or other person visually checks the inspection area of ​​the actual inspection object while viewing the scanned image, the horizontal orientation of the scanned image displayed on the display screen may not match the horizontal orientation of the inspection object as seen during visual inspection. This makes it difficult to intuitively grasp the correspondence between the appearance of the scanned image and the appearance of the actual inspection object.

[0006] The present disclosure has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present disclosure is to provide a display method, an inspection data processing device, and a program that can align the correspondence between the appearance of a scanned image and the appearance of an inspection target that is to be visually confirmed.

[0007] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, one aspect of the present disclosure is a display method that includes: acquiring reading results obtained by moving an object to be inspected relative to a sensor along a scanning direction and scanning the object to be inspected with the sensor according to a reading order; and determining, based on the scanning direction, which of a first end and a second end that are different from each other in a display area will be used as a starting point for arranging the reading results according to the reading order.

[0008] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, one aspect of the present disclosure is an inspection data processing device having an acquisition unit that acquires reading results from a sensor by moving an object to be inspected relative to a sensor along a scanning direction and scanning the object to be inspected with the sensor according to a reading order, and a determination unit that determines, based on the scanning direction, which of a first end and a second end that are different from each other of a display area will be used as the starting point for arranging the reading results according to the reading order.

[0009] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, one aspect of the present disclosure is a program that causes a computer to execute the steps of: acquiring, from the sensor, reading results obtained by moving an object to be inspected relative to a sensor along a scanning direction and scanning the object to be inspected with the sensor according to a reading order; and determining, based on the scanning direction, which of a first end and a second end, which are different from each other, of a display area will be used as the starting point for arranging the reading results according to the reading order.

[0010] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to match the correspondence between the appearance of a scanned image and the appearance of an inspection object to be visually confirmed.

[0011] 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of an inspection system 1 in an embodiment. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view schematically illustrating the relationship between an array sensor 20A and an inspection object 40. FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a case where the array sensor 20A scans the inspection object 40. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of an inspection data processing device 10 in an embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a setting screen for inputting direction data. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a configuration for acquiring a signal indicating the conveying direction. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a configuration for acquiring detection results from a detector. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating processing performed by a section determination unit 13 in an embodiment. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the scanning direction and the reading order. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a case where a scanned image GT10 is displayed on a display screen. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a case where a scanned image GT20 is displayed on a display screen. FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of processing performed by the inspection data processing device 10. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a case where a visual inspection is performed by an inspector. FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a case where a visual inspection is performed by an inspector. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a case where a visual inspection is performed by an inspector. 10 is a diagram showing the relationship between the intensity of received ultrasonic waves and the measurement position in the sealing portion 41 when a singular point is provided in the inspection object 40. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing another example of control data stored in the storage unit 17.

[0012] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0013] 1A is a schematic diagram showing an example of the configuration of an inspection system 1 according to an embodiment. The inspection system 1 includes an inspection data processing device 10, an inspection device 20, and a conveyance device 30. The inspection system 1 inspects an inspection target object 40.

[0014] The conveying device 30 conveys the inspection object 40 along a conveying direction. The conveying device 30 is, for example, a belt conveyor. The conveying device 30 conveys the inspection object 40 placed on the belt.

[0015] The inspection object 40 is an object to be inspected by the inspection device 20. The inspection object 40 is, for example, a packaging container. The inspection object 40 has a storage section in which a space for storing contents is formed on the inner periphery by folding a sheet material and joining the periphery. In the example of FIG. 1A , the sheet material is pulled out from one end of the wound roll and folded in the width direction, which is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, so that a first end Tb1 and a second end Tb2 different from the first end Tb1 face each other. The folded sheet material is then joined at a predetermined width at the leading end in the transport direction and at the trailing end a predetermined distance from the leading end. A bag-shaped sheet material having an opening is then cut out. At this stage, the sheet material is formed into a bag shape. In the next stage, the contents are filled into the storage section formed on the inner periphery of the sheet material through the opening by a filling device. After the contents are filled, the opening is joined by a joining device.

[0016] Such an inspection object 40 is transported by a transport device in an upright state with the sealing portion 41 positioned vertically above and the storage portion 42 positioned vertically below the sealing portion 41. The inspection object 40 is transported so that the longitudinal direction of the inspection target area is aligned with the transport direction. The inspection object 40 has been described as being formed into a bag shape by folding a single sheet and joining the first end Tb1 and the second end Tb2 of the sheet. However, the inspection object 40 does not have to be formed by folding a single sheet. For example, the inspection object 40 may be formed by stacking two sheets and joining the opposing peripheral portions of the two sheets.

[0017] The inspection device 20 is an ultrasonic inspection device equipped with an array sensor 20A. FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view schematically showing the relationship between the array sensor 20A and an inspection target 40. The array sensor 20A includes an irradiation unit 20Sa and a receiving unit 20Sb. The irradiation unit 20Sa includes a plurality of irradiation elements 20Sa1. The irradiation elements 20Sa1 are arranged so as to be aligned in a linear direction (arrangement direction). The receiving unit 20Sb includes a plurality of receiving elements 20Sb1. The receiving elements 20Sb1 are arranged so as to be aligned in a linear direction. The irradiation unit 20Sa and the receiving unit 20Sb are arranged to face each other. The irradiation elements 20Sa1 of the irradiation unit 20Sa are arranged so that ultrasonic waves irradiated from the irradiation elements 20Sa1 of the irradiation unit 20Sa are received by the opposing receiving elements 20Sb1 of the receiving unit 20Sb. The joint portion (seal portion 41, described later) of the test object 40 passes between the irradiation unit 20Sa and the receiving unit 20Sb. The joint portion is, for example, the portion where the first end Tb1 and the second end Tb2 are joined together. As the test object 40 is transported through such a joint portion, the receiving unit 20Sb receives the direct ultrasonic wave emitted from the irradiation unit 20Sa, the diffracted wave diffracted around the end of the test object 40, and the transmitted wave that passes through the joint portion. The array sensor 20A transmits information indicating the intensity of the ultrasonic wave received by the receiving unit 20Sb as a read result to the test data processing device 10. Because the receiving unit 20Sb has multiple receiving elements 20Sb1 arranged in a linear direction, the read results obtained from each receiving element 20Sb1 according to a single read timing can be output as a read result for one line. Hereinafter, the read result for one line may be referred to as line data.

[0018] Returning to FIG. 1A , the test data processing device 10 is communicatively connected to the inspection device 20. The test data processing device 10 and the inspection device 20 may be connected wirelessly or via a wired connection, or at least partially wirelessly. The test data processing device 10 receives the read results transmitted from the array sensor 20A of the inspection device 20, generates a scanned image corresponding to the received read results, and outputs the scanned image on a display screen. The test data processing device 10 may have a liquid crystal display device, and may output the scanned image by displaying it on the display screen of the liquid crystal display device. The test data processing device 10 may transmit the scanned image to an external display device and display the scanned image on the external display device. The display screen of the test data processing device 10 is positioned on an extension of the viewing position of an observer (e.g., inspector U) and the position of the inspection target 40. The display screen of the test data processing device 10 is also positioned facing the observer. This allows inspector U to perform a visual inspection by visually comparing the appearance of the actual inspection object 40 with the appearance of the scanned image displayed on the display screen of the inspection data processing device 10 from a predetermined viewing position where the inspection will be carried out.

[0019] FIG. 1C is a schematic diagram showing the case where the array sensor 20A scans the test object 40. The test object 40 has a seal portion 41 and a storage portion 42. The seal portion 41 is a joining portion where the areas of the sheet material to be joined are joined. The seal portion 41 is also a portion where the opening is joined by a joining device after the contents are filled through the opening. Some parts of the periphery of the test object 40 other than the opening are also joined. In this embodiment, a case where the part where the opening is joined is inspected as the test object region Rt will be described, but other joined parts may also be inspected as the test object region.

[0020] The inspection object 40 moves relative to the inspection device 20 by being transported by the transport device 30. The transport direction in which the inspection object 40 is transported is a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the array sensor 20A of the inspection device 20. The longitudinal direction of the array sensor 20A is the direction in which the irradiation elements 20Sa1 and the receiving elements 20Sb1 are respectively arranged. In the example of FIG. 1B , the arrangement direction corresponds to the Y-axis direction, and the transport direction corresponds to the X-axis direction, which is perpendicular to the arrangement direction (Y-axis direction). Furthermore, the longitudinal direction of the sealing portion 41 corresponds to the X-axis direction, and the short-side direction corresponds to the Y-axis direction. The length in the arrangement direction of the array sensor 20A (the length from one end to the other end of the irradiation elements 20Sa1 and the receiving elements 20Sb1 arranged in the arrangement direction) is set to be approximately the same as the length in the width direction of the sealing portion 41 (the short-side direction of the sealing portion 41) or longer than the width of the sealing portion 41. However, the length of the array sensor 20A in the arrangement direction may be set to various lengths depending on the purpose of the inspection. For example, the length of the array sensor 20A in the arrangement direction may be set to be shorter than the length of the seal portion 41 in the width direction.

[0021] Hereinafter, the direction in which the test object 40 is transported relative to the array sensor 20A will be referred to as the scanning direction. In FIG. 1C , the scanning direction is indicated by arrow D. When the test object 40 is transported in the scanning direction (the direction indicated by arrow D), the seal portion 41 passes between the irradiation unit and the receiving unit of the array sensor 20A. At this time, the array sensor 20A sequentially acquires reading results for one line from the first end RE to the second end LE of the test object 40, and sequentially transmits the reading results for one line to the test data processing device 10 in the order in which the reading results are obtained.

[0022] (Regarding the Test Data Processing Device 10) Next, the test data processing device 10 will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the test data processing device 10 in an embodiment. The test data processing device 10 has an acquisition unit 11, a direction determination unit 12, a section determination unit 13, a display control unit 14, an output unit 15, an input unit 16, a storage unit 17, and a control unit 18.

[0023] The acquisition unit 11 acquires various types of information. The acquisition unit 11 has a reading result acquisition unit 111 and a direction data acquisition unit 112. The reading result acquisition unit 111 acquires reading results (line data) output from the inspection device 20. More specifically, the reading result acquisition unit 111 acquires, from the array sensor 20A, reading results obtained by reading the inspection object 40 by the array sensor 20A in accordance with the reading order in response to the inspection object being moved relative to the array sensor 20A in the scanning direction. The reading result acquisition unit 111 writes the acquired line data to the memory unit 17 to store it.

[0024] The direction data acquisition unit 112 acquires direction data, which is information specifying the scanning direction. The direction data acquisition unit 112 stores the acquired direction data by writing it to the storage unit 17. There are several methods for the direction data acquisition unit 112 to acquire direction data. For example, the direction data may be acquired by any of the following methods (1) to (3).

[0025] (1) Method of Receiving Operation Input The direction data acquiring unit 112 acquires direction data based on the operation input to the input device. The input device may be, for example, at least one of a keyboard, a mouse, a touch panel, etc. Such an input device may be provided in the test data processing device 10. Alternatively, such an input device may be connected to an external device of the test data processing device 10. Alternatively, the direction data acquiring unit 112 may acquire direction data by receiving the operation input to an electronic device (such as a display device, smartphone, tablet, etc.) via a communication line. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a setting screen for inputting direction data. The control unit 18 may display such a setting screen on the output unit 15 or an electronic device (such as a display device, smartphone, tablet, etc.) connected to an external device of the test data processing device 10.

[0026] This setting screen displays a message in the form of text "Please enter the scan direction," options for specifying direction data, and a confirm button. The operator operates the input device to select one of the options corresponding to the actual layout of the inspection device 20 and the transport device 30 and the direction in which the transport device 30 transports the inspection device 20, and then presses the confirm button. The selected option may be designated, for example, by pressing a radio button Bt. The input device may be, for example, at least one of a keyboard, a mouse, a touch panel, etc. The direction data acquisition unit 112 acquires the input content thus entered as direction data. The operator may be an inspector U or a person in charge of installation and maintenance of the transport device 30, the inspection device 20, the inspection data processing device 10, etc. The layout (layout) of the transport device 30 and the inspection device 20 is determined based on the layout of the inspection room where inspections are performed in a factory, etc. The transport device 30, the inspection device 20, etc. are then installed according to the determined layout. Therefore, once the layout is determined, the scan direction is determined accordingly. Once the layout of the conveying device 30 and the inspection device 20 has been determined, the operator can check the setting screen and input direction data from the input device, taking into account the conveying direction of the conveying device 30. The determined layout is rarely changed frequently, but if it is changed, the direction data can be re-input.

[0027] (2) Method for Obtaining a Signal Indicating the Conveying Direction Fig. 4A is a diagram for explaining a configuration for obtaining a signal indicating the conveying direction. As shown in Fig. 4A, the direction data obtaining unit 112 obtains direction data, for example, from the conveying device 30 or the inspection device 20. The conveying device 30 outputs a signal Y indicating the conveying direction via the inspection device 20 or directly to the inspection data processing device 10. For example, the signal Y may be a signal indicating the rotation direction of the rollers in the conveying device 30 or the traveling direction of the belt.

[0028] (3) Method for Obtaining Detection Results from Detectors FIG. 4B is a diagram illustrating a configuration for obtaining detection results from detectors. As shown in FIG. 4B , in the inspection system 1, a passage detector SR1 is disposed on one side of the conveying device 30 in the conveying direction relative to the inspection device 20, and a passage detector SR2 is disposed on the opposite side. The passage detector SR1 detects whether the inspection object 40 has passed through, and if it detects passage, outputs a signal Z1 indicating the detection result. The passage detector SR2 detects whether the inspection object 40 has passed through, and if it detects passage, outputs a signal Z2 indicating the detection result. After obtaining a signal (signal Z1 or Z2) from either the passage detector SR1 or SR2, the direction data acquisition unit 112 acquires direction data based on whether signal Z1 or Z2 was obtained when the inspection device 20 detects that the inspection object 40 has been scanned. For example, when the direction data acquisition unit 112 detects that the inspection object 40 has been scanned by the inspection device 20 after receiving the signal Z1 from the passing detector SR1, the direction data acquisition unit 112 acquires direction data representing the direction D2. On the other hand, when the direction data acquisition unit 112 detects that the inspection object 40 has been scanned by the inspection device 20 after receiving the signal Z2 from the passing detector SR2, the direction data acquisition unit 112 acquires direction data representing the direction D1. Whether or not the inspection object 40 has been scanned may be determined based on whether or not an inspection section is detected by the section determination unit 13, which will be described later. For example, when the inspection section is detected by the section determination unit 13, it may be detected that the inspection object 40 has been scanned, and when the inspection section is not detected by the section determination unit 13, it may be detected that the inspection object 40 has not been scanned. In this way, the scanning direction can be determined based on the signal obtained from the passing detector SR1 or the passing detector SR2 and the detection that the inspection object 40 has been scanned by the inspection device 20. That is, the scanning direction can be determined according to the order in which the inspection object 40 passes through each of the passing detectors SR1 and SR2. The case where the passing detectors SR1 and SR2 are arranged so as to sandwich the inspection device 20 has been described.However, the passage detector SR1 and the passage detector SR2 do not have to be positioned so as to sandwich the inspection device 20 therebetween, as long as they are placed at different positions along the conveying direction.

[0029] 2 , the direction determination unit 12 determines the scanning direction based on the direction data acquired by the direction data acquisition unit 112. The direction determination unit 12 may acquire the direction data directly from the direction data acquisition unit 112, or may acquire the direction data by reading out the direction data stored in the storage unit 116.

[0030] The section determination unit 13 detects the inspection section based on the result of determining whether the intensity of the received ultrasonic waves transmitted from the array sensor 20A is larger or smaller than a predetermined threshold. That is, the section determination unit 13 identifies the inspection section based on the result of comparing the intensity of the received ultrasonic waves transmitted from the array sensor 20A with the threshold. The inspection section is the section from the time when the first end of the inspection object 40 reaches the array sensor 20A to the time when the second end of the inspection object 40 finishes passing through the array sensor 20A. That is, the section determination unit 13 detects the inspection section by determining whether or not inspection of the inspection object 40 has started and whether or not inspection has ended.

[0031] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the processing performed by the section determination unit 13 in this embodiment. FIG. 5 illustrates the relationship between the intensity of ultrasonic waves received by one of the receiving elements 20Sb1 of the receiving unit 20Sb and the measurement position in the sealing unit 41. The horizontal axis represents the measurement position, and the vertical axis represents the intensity of the received ultrasonic waves. The measurement position indicates the position in the conveying direction of the sealing unit 41. For example, one of the receiving elements 20Sb1 may be the receiving element 20Sb1 located at the center of the arrangement direction of the receiving units 20Sb. The section determination unit 13 determines whether the inspection has started and whether the inspection has ended, for example, based on the intensity of the ultrasonic waves received by the receiving element 20Sb1 of the inspection device 20. For example, before the conveyed inspection object 40 arrives at the array sensor 20A, i.e., before the inspection begins, the ultrasonic waves irradiated from the irradiator 20Sa are directly received by the receiving unit 20Sb without being irradiated onto the inspection object 40. In this case, the intensity of the received ultrasonic waves is approximately equal to the intensity of the irradiated ultrasonic waves (the section before position p1). Meanwhile, when the transported inspection object 40 reaches the array sensor 20A, ultrasonic waves are irradiated onto the seal portion 41 of the inspection object 40, pass through the seal portion 41, and are received by the receiving unit. In this case, the ultrasonic waves that reach the seal portion 41 are attenuated as they pass through the seal portion 41. Therefore, the intensity of the received ultrasonic waves is smaller than the intensity of the irradiated ultrasonic waves (near position p1).

[0032] The section determination unit 13 stores a threshold value Th in advance. The section determination unit 13 determines whether an inspection has started or ended by determining whether the intensity of the received ultrasound waves is greater than or equal to the threshold value Th. For example, the section determination unit 13 determines that an inspection has started when the intensity of the received ultrasound waves changes from a state exceeding the threshold value Th to a state equal to or less than the threshold value Th. On the other hand, the section determination unit 13 determines that an inspection has ended when the intensity of the received ultrasound waves changes from a state equal to or less than the threshold value Th to a state exceeding the threshold value Th. This allows the section determination unit 13 to detect the period from the start of the inspection (position p1) to the end of the inspection (position p2) as the inspection section. When detecting the inspection section, the section determination unit 13 may use the detection results of any one receiving element 20Sb1 or may use the detection results of multiple receiving elements 20Sb1.

[0033] The section determination unit 13 may determine whether the inspection has started based on the intensity of the transmitted wave received by the inspection device 20, and may determine that the inspection has ended when a preset time has elapsed since it was determined that the inspection has started. The preset time may be determined based on the longitudinal length of the sealing portion 41 and the conveying speed of the conveying device 30.

[0034] The section determination unit 13 may determine the start and end of the inspection based on, for example, the detection results of the passing detectors SR1 and SR2. The passing detectors SR1 and SR2 are disposed at different positions in the conveying direction of the conveyance by the conveying device 30, as in the example of FIG. 4B . The section determination unit 13 determines that the inspection has started when either the passing detector SR1 or the passing detector SR2 detects that the inspection target 40 has arrived. The section determination unit 13 determines that the inspection has ended when the other passing detector SR1 or the passing detector SR2 detects that the inspection target 40 has transitioned from a detected state to an undetected state.

[0035] The section determination unit 13 may determine the start and end of the inspection based on, for example, a preset time. In this case, for example, if the conveying speed of the conveying device 30 is a predetermined conveying speed and multiple inspection objects 40 are placed on the conveying device 30 at regular intervals, the start and end of the inspection will occur at regular intervals. Such a set time is determined in advance based on the regular time. Then, if the inspection is started so that the start timing of counting the set time coincides with the timing when a certain inspection object 40 reaches the array sensor 20A, the section determination unit 13 can sequentially detect the start and end of the inspection each time the set time arrives.

[0036] Returning to FIG. 2 , the display control unit 14 generates a scan image based on the read results for each line obtained from the array sensor 20A. The read results for generating the scan image are, for example, read results belonging to the inspection section identified by the section determination unit 13. The display control unit 14 determines, based on the scan direction, which end of the display area the read results will be arranged from in a read order: a first end determined based on the scan direction, or a second end different from the first end. That is, the display control unit 14 determines, based on the scan direction, which of the first and second ends of the display area, which are different from each other, will be the starting point from which the read results will be arranged in a read order. The display control unit 14 may also determine, based on the scan direction, whether the starting point for arranging the read results in a read order is one of the first and second ends of the display area, and whether the ending point for arranging the read results in a read order is the other of the first and second ends of the display area.

[0037] The display control unit 14 acquires direction data, which is information specifying the scanning direction, and determines from which end of the display area, the first end or the second end, the reading results should be arranged in accordance with the reading order, based on the acquired direction data. The display control unit 14 may acquire the direction data from the direction data acquisition unit 112 or by reading out the direction data stored in the storage unit 17.

[0038] Based on the determined result, the display control unit 14 generates a scan image by arranging the reading results (line data) for each line in order from either the first or second end of the display area, and displays the generated scan image in the display area of ​​the display device by the output unit 15.

[0039] The display control unit 14 stores a predetermined inspection reference value, determines the magnitude relationship between this reference value and the intensity of the received ultrasonic waves for each position in the seal portion 41, and generates a scan image with different display modes depending on the determination result. Such a scan image may, for example, be an image that represents the ultrasonic wave intensity distribution using colors. For example, the scan image may show inspection points in the line data where the received ultrasonic wave intensity is Va or greater in red (R), inspection points where the received intensity is less than Va but greater than Vb in green (G), and inspection points where the received intensity is less than Vb in blue (B). For example, in the seal portion 41, positions of the bonded portion that meet the inspection reference are shown in green (G), and positions that do not meet the inspection reference are shown in blue (B). This makes it possible to generate and output scan images that show positions in the seal portion 41 that meet the inspection reference and positions that do not meet the inspection reference. This makes it possible to understand the inspection results based on the scan image. For example, during inspection, the bond condition of the seal portion 41 is inspected. The bonding condition may be peeling, holes, scratches, trapped foreign matter, wrinkles, an inappropriate seal width, double bonding, etc. The inspection result of these bonding conditions can be obtained by determining whether the strength of the received ultrasonic waves is greater or smaller than a threshold value, and whether the inspection standard is met. For example, for positions that meet the inspection standard, the bonding condition is indicated by a judgment result of "good," and for positions that do not meet the inspection standard, a scanned image can be output in which the bonding condition is indicated by a judgment result of "poor."

[0040] Next, using Figures 6A, 6B, 7A, and 7B, we will explain the correspondence between the appearance of the scanned image and the appearance of the test object to be visually confirmed. Figures 6A and 6B are diagrams showing the relationship between the scanning direction and the reading order. In both Figures 6A and 6B, when viewed from the front, the first end RE of the test object 40 is on the right side and the second end LE is on the left side. That is, the left and right orientations of the test object 40 in the horizontal direction are the same. In Figure 6A, the scanning direction is direction D1, so when the test object 40 is transported relative to the array sensor 20A, the second end LE, the center MD, and the first end RE of the test object 40 are scanned in this order. In contrast, in Figure 6B, the scanning direction is direction D2, which is the opposite direction to direction D1. Therefore, when the test object 40 is transported relative to the array sensor 20A, the first end RE, the center MD, and the second end LE of the test object 40 are scanned in this order. In this way, even if the left and right orientations of the object to be inspected 40 in the horizontal direction are the same, if the transport direction is different, the order in which the object to be inspected 40 is read will differ, as it will determine which end of the inspection area is read from.

[0041] Next, Figures 7A and 7B are diagrams showing a case where a scanned image of the inspection target 40 scanned as shown in Figures 6A and 6B is displayed on a display screen. In both Figures 7A and 7B, when viewed from the front, the first edge Ed1 of the display screen is on the left and the second edge Ed2 is on the right. That is, the left and right orientations of the display screen in the horizontal direction are the same. Also, both Figures 7A and 7B show a case where a scanned image is displayed such that the line data that is read first starts from the first edge Ed1 of the display screen, and the line data that is read later starts from the second edge Ed2.

[0042] FIG. 7A illustrates a case in which a scan image GT10 is displayed on the display screen DS10 when the scanning direction is direction D1, as shown in FIG. 6A . When the scanning direction is direction D1, the display control unit 14 places the line data from the second edge LE at the first edge Ed1 of the display screen, and generates a scan image in which the line data up to the first edge RE is arranged in order to line up toward the second edge Ed2 of the display screen according to the reading order. Therefore, if a seal defect E exists near the second edge LE of the inspection area as shown in FIG. 6A , the seal defect E is displayed as an image GE near the first edge Ed1 of the display screen on the display screen DS10 as a scan image GT10. In this case, the horizontal left-right orientation of the seal defect E is the same as the horizontal left-right orientation of the image GE on the display screen DS10. In this case, if an inspector is viewing the inspection object 40 in the same way as when viewing Figure 6A from the front, when he or she views the scan image GT10 on the display screen DS10, the correspondence between the appearance of the inspection object being visually confirmed and the appearance of the scan image GT10 is consistent.

[0043] On the other hand, FIG. 7B illustrates a case where a scan image GT20 is displayed on the display screen DS20 when the scanning direction is direction D2, as shown in FIG. 6B . When the scanning direction is direction D2, conventionally, a scan image is generated in which the line data at the first edge RE is arranged at the first edge Ed1 of the display screen, and the line data up to the second edge LE is arranged in order to line up at the second edge Ed2 of the display screen according to the reading order. In this case, if a seal defect E exists near the second edge LE of the inspection area as shown in FIG. 6B , the seal defect E is displayed as an image GE near the second edge Ed2 of the display screen on the display screen DS20. Furthermore, in this case, the horizontal left-right orientation of the seal defect E is different from the horizontal left-right orientation of the image GE on the display screen DS20. In this case, if an inspector were to view the inspection object 40 in the same way as when viewing Figure 6B from the front, when he or she views the scan image GT20 on the display screen, there would be no correspondence between the appearance of the inspection object being visually confirmed and the appearance of the scan image GT20.

[0044] In this way, if the appearance of the inspection object and the scanned image do not match, it is difficult to grasp the correspondence when trying to identify the defective part in the actual seal part 41 based on the scanned image showing the inspection result that indicates a defect. This can make it difficult for the inspector to visually confirm.

[0045] In response to this, the display control unit 14 displays the scan image on the display screen so that, when an inspector visually confirms the appearance of the scan image and the appearance of the inspection object to be visually confirmed, the correspondence between these appearances is consistent. For example, when the scanning direction is direction D1, the display control unit 14 generates a scan image in which the line data from the second end LE is positioned at the first end Ed1 of the display screen, and the line data up to the first end RE is arranged in order to be lined up on the second end Ed2 of the display screen according to the reading order. In this case, the scan image is displayed as shown in FIG. 7A . Furthermore, when the scanning direction is direction D2, the display control unit 14 generates a scan image in which the line data from the first end RE is positioned at the second end Ed2 of the display screen, and the line data up to the second end LE is arranged in order to be lined up on the first end Ed1 of the display screen according to the reading order. In this case, the scan image is displayed as shown in FIG. 7A . Therefore, even if the scanning direction is direction D2 and the appearance of the inspection object 40 visually recognized by the inspector is as shown in FIG. 6B , the appearance of the inspection object 40 to be visually confirmed can be displayed so that the correspondence between the appearance of the inspection object 40 and the appearance of the scanned image is consistent. This makes it possible to match the appearance of the inspection object with the appearance of the scanned image regardless of the scanning direction from which the image is read. This makes it easy for the inspector to understand the correspondence between the appearance of the actual inspection object 40 and the appearance of the scanned image. This reduces the burden placed on the inspector in visual confirmation.

[0046] Returning to Fig. 2, the output unit 15 outputs the scanned image generated by the display control unit 14. When the output unit 15 includes a liquid crystal display provided in the test data processing device 10, the output unit may output the scanned image by rendering the scanned image on the liquid crystal display. The output unit 15 may output the scanned image to a display device connected externally to the test data processing device 10, thereby displaying the scanned image on a display screen of the display device. Furthermore, the number of display devices to which the output unit 15 can output may be one or more.

[0047] The input unit 16 accepts input of various data. The input unit 16 may be configured to accept input of data based on operation content input from an input device. The input device may be, for example, at least one of a keyboard, a mouse, a touch panel, etc. Furthermore, the input unit 16 may be configured to accept input of various data output from another device instead of an input device.

[0048] The storage unit 17 stores various data, such as the data acquired by the acquisition unit 11.

[0049] The control unit 18 controls each unit of the test data processing device 10 .

[0050] (Processing Flow Performed by the Inspection Data Processing Device 10) Next, the processing flow performed by the inspection data processing device 10 will be described with reference to FIG. 8 . FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the processing flow performed by the inspection data processing device 10. As shown in FIG. 1A , a case will be described in which an inspector U performs a visual inspection at a predetermined viewing position where the inspection is performed, and the display screen of the inspection data processing device 10 is located on an extension of the viewing position and the position of the inspection object to be visually inspected. In addition, a case will be described in which the inspection object is sequentially transported along the transport direction by a transport device, and the inspector U performs a visual inspection by visually checking the appearance of the inspection object 40 that arrives between the inspector U's viewing position and the position where the display screen is provided, and the scanned image displayed on the display screen.

[0051] First, the direction data acquisition unit 112 of the inspection data processing device 10 acquires direction data (step S1) and stores it in the memory unit 17. This direction data can be direction data received by any one of the above methods (1) to (3). The transport device 30 transports the inspection object 40 to the array sensor 20A along the transport direction. The inspection object 40 is transported to the array sensor 20A so that the longitudinal direction of the inspection target area of ​​the inspection object 40 is aligned with the transport direction. The transport direction is the above-mentioned direction D1 or direction D2. As the seal portion 41 of the inspection object 40 is transported between the irradiation unit 20Sa and the receiving unit 20Sb, the array sensor 20A sequentially generates line data corresponding to the intensity of the ultrasonic waves received by the receiving unit 20Sb and outputs the line data to the inspection data processing device 10. The reading result acquisition unit 111 of the inspection data processing device 10 sequentially acquires the line data and stores the acquired line data in the memory unit 17 (step S2).

[0052] The section determination unit 13, for example, refers to the line data stored in the memory unit 17, detects the inspection section, and captures the line data belonging to the detected inspection section as the reading result for one inspection object 40. When the inspection start position is detected, the section determination unit 13 captures the line data belonging to the inspection section until the inspection end position is detected.

[0053] Next, the control unit 18 of the test data processing device 10 determines whether or not the acquisition of the read results has been completed (step S3). For example, when the section determination unit 13 detects the test start position (position p1) and the test end position (position p2), it determines that the acquisition of the read results has been completed (step S3: YES) and proceeds to step S4. On the other hand, when the control unit 18 detects the test start position but not the test end position, it determines that the acquisition of the read results has not been completed (step S3: NO) and proceeds to step S2, where it obtains the read results and writes them to the memory unit 17.

[0054] When the reading result has been acquired, the direction determination unit 12 of the test data processing device 10 determines, based on the direction data, whether the direction D1 shown in Fig. 6A is displayed. The display control unit 14 determines, based on the result of the determination by the direction determination unit 12 and the scanning direction, whether to arrange the line data in order from the first end (e.g., the first end Ed1) of the display area (step S4).

[0055] If the direction data indicates direction D1, the display control unit 14 determines to arrange the line data in accordance with the reading order, starting from the first end Ed1 of the display area and lining up in order toward the second end Ed2 (step S4: YES). The display control unit 14 then generates a scan image in which the line data is arranged in order from the first end Ed1 (step S5). Here, for example, a scan image GT25 as shown in FIG. 9A is generated. That is, even when inspector U1 visually recognizes the inspection object 40 and the scan image GT25, it is possible to match the appearance of the inspection object 40 with the appearance of the scan image GT25. Note that when the arrangement of the line data in the display area is predetermined to start from the first end Ed1, depending on the scanning direction (e.g., direction D2), a scan image cannot be generated until all line data belonging to one inspection section has been stored in the storage unit 17. However, when determining whether to start arranging line data from the first end Ed1 or the second end Ed2 depending on the scanning direction, there is no need to store all of the line data belonging to one inspection section in the storage unit 17. Therefore, it is possible to sequentially arrange line data in the display area as they are obtained, without waiting for all of the line data belonging to one inspection section to be stored in the storage unit 17.

[0056] On the other hand, if the direction data indicates direction D2, the display control unit 14 determines to arrange the line data in the reading order, starting from the second end Ed2 of the display area and lining up in order toward the first end Ed1 (step S4: NO), and generates a scanned image in which the line data are arranged in order from the second end Ed2 (step S6). Here, even if the scanning direction is direction D2, a scanned image GT26 is generated in which the line data are arranged in the reading order, starting from the second end Ed2 of the display area, as shown in FIG. 9B . Therefore, as shown in the combination of FIGS. 6B and 7B , the correspondence between the appearance of the inspection object 40 and the scanned image is consistent. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 9B , even when inspector U1 visually views the inspection object 40 and the scanned image GT26, the correspondence between the appearance of the inspection object 40 and the scanned image can be consistent.

[0057] The output unit 15 outputs the scan image generated by the display control unit 14 by displaying it on the display screen (step S7). In this way, by generating a scan image according to the scanning direction and outputting the scan image, it is possible to align the correspondence between the appearance of the inspection object 40 and the appearance of the scan image.

[0058] In the above embodiment, the case where the display control unit 14 determines the order in which line data is arranged according to the scanning direction has been described, but the order in which line data is arranged may also be determined taking into account not only the scanning direction but also other factors.

[0059] (Example 1) In the width direction, which is a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction of the conveying device 30, the appearance of the inspection object 40 differs depending on whether the inspector's viewing position is the first end or the second end opposite the first end. That is, when the inspector visually inspects the inspection object 40 placed on the conveying device 30, the surface that is visible varies depending on whether it is the front or back side of the inspection object 40. In such a case, the order in which the line data is arranged may be changed depending on whether the inspector is viewing the inspection object 40 and the display screen from the first end (e.g., the left side) or the second end (e.g., the right side) in the conveying direction. That is, if the inspector is viewing the back side of the inspection object 40 being conveyed, the scanned image may be displayed in a manner appropriate for viewing the back side.

[0060] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating a case where a visual inspection is performed by an inspector. FIG. 10A illustrates a case where inspector U1's viewing position is on the first end side (left side in the conveying direction) in the width direction, which is perpendicular to the conveying direction of the conveying device 30. FIG. 10A illustrates a case where the inspection object 40 is transported and scanned along direction D1, with the surface of the inspection object 40 visible from inspector U1's viewing position. In this case, the scan image generated, for example, in step S5 or step S6 described above is output to the output unit 15 as is, without being flipped left and right in the horizontal direction. This allows the correspondence between the appearance of the inspection object 40 and the appearance of the scan image GT30 to be aligned, as shown in FIG. 10A.

[0061] On the other hand, FIG. 10B illustrates a case where inspector U2's viewing position is on the second end side (the right side in the conveying direction) in the width direction, which is perpendicular to the conveying direction of the conveying device 30. In FIG. 10B , the inspection object 40 is transported and scanned along direction D1, and the back side of the inspection object 40 is visible when viewed from inspector U2's viewing position. In this case, the scanned image generated in step S5 or step S6 described above is flipped left and right in the horizontal direction and output to the output unit 15. This allows the correspondence between the appearance of the inspection object 40 and the appearance of the scanned image GT31 to be consistent, even if inspector U2's viewing position is on the opposite side of inspector U1 across the conveying device 30, as shown in FIG. 10B . The flipping here refers to the process of swapping the left and right sides of the image so that the scanned image generated in step S5 or step S6 is line-symmetric in the horizontal direction.

[0062] When displaying a scanned image depending on whether the inspector's viewing position is the first end or the second end relative to the transport device 30, for example, viewing position information is stored in the memory unit 17. The viewing position information is information indicating whether the inspector's viewing position is the first end or the second end opposite the first end in the width direction, which is a direction perpendicular to the transport direction of the transport device 30. In other words, the viewing position information is information indicating whether the inspector's viewing position is the first end or the second end opposite the first end in the width direction, which is a direction perpendicular to the transport direction of the transport device 30. Then, the display control unit 14 displays the scanned image displayed in the display area based on the scanning direction and the viewing position information so that the scanned image corresponds to the appearance of the joint portion of the inspection object 40 transported by the transport device 30. That is, based on the scan direction and the viewing position information, the display control unit 14 determines a starting point for arranging the reading results in the reading order so that the scan image displayed in the display area corresponds to the appearance of the joint of the inspection target 40 transported by the transport device 30. For example, after generating a scan image in step S5 or step S6, if the viewing position information represents the first end side, the display control unit 14 outputs the generated scan image as is. On the other hand, if the viewing position information represents the second end side, the display control unit 14 outputs the generated scan image with the left-right orientation reversed.

[0063] Furthermore, when such viewing position information is used, it can be applied even when there are multiple display devices that display the scanned image.

[0064] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of control data stored in the storage unit 17. The control data in FIG. 11 is data in which display device identification information for identifying a display device is associated with viewing position information. The display device identification information is identification information for individually identifying multiple display devices. In one inspection line (a combination of one conveying device 30 and one array sensor 20A) in the inspection system 1, one display device may be provided, or multiple display devices may be provided. Then, by storing the inspector's viewing position information associated with each display device, it is possible to identify from which viewing position each display device is viewed. Thus, the display control unit 14 can identify the viewing position corresponding to the identification information of the display device to be displayed by referring to the viewing position information, and can determine whether to output the scanned image as is depending on the identified viewing position.

[0065] (Example 2) When an inspector visually inspects the inspection objects 40 transported by the transport device 30 at a viewing position, the multiple inspection objects 40 are sequentially transported and scanned by the transport device 30 with a predetermined surface (e.g., the front surface) visible. However, in some cases, one or more inspection objects 40 may be transported and scanned by the transport device 30 with an unusual surface (e.g., the back surface) visible. In such cases, depending on the method of visual inspection, it may be more consistent between the appearance of the actual inspection object 40 and the appearance of the scanned image by displaying a scan image obtained by scanning with the back surface visible and inverting it, rather than displaying the inspection results obtained with the back surface visible as is. In such cases, it may be possible to detect whether the inspection object 40 transported by the transport device 30 is transported with the front surface or the back surface visible, and determine whether to output the scanned image as is or invert it depending on the detection result. Methods for detecting whether the visible surface of the inspection object 40 transported by the transport device 30 is the front or back include (a) a method of capturing an image of the inspection object 40 being transported, and (b) a method of using the relationship between the measurement position in the sealing portion 41 and the intensity of the received ultrasound.

[0066] (a) Method of Imaging the Transported Inspection Object 40 The inspection object 40 being transported by the transport device 30 is imaged by a camera from a viewing position. Then, based on the captured image, it is determined whether the front or back surface of the inspection object 40 is being imaged. For example, the control unit 18 performs image processing on the captured image to detect whether the captured surface is the front or back surface of the inspection object 40. For example, the control unit 18 may perform image analysis on the features of the front and back surfaces of the inspection object 40 in advance to obtain the features of the front and back surfaces. Then, the feature of the image of the inspection object 40 captured by the camera during inspection may be acquired, and it may be determined whether the acquired feature matches the feature of the front surface or the feature of the back surface. Instead of determining whether the feature matches, it may be determined whether the degree of similarity between the feature and the back surface is equal to or greater than a certain level. The display control unit 14 may then acquire the result of this determination and determine whether the arrangement method determined based on the scanning direction and viewing position information remains unchanged or changes depending on the acquired detection result.

[0067] (b) Method Using the Relationship Between Measurement Position and Intensity of Received Ultrasound Depending on the type of the object 40 to be inspected, a singular point such as a punch hole or a notch may be formed in the seal portion 41. The intensity of the ultrasound received at a portion where such a singular point is formed differs from the intensity of the ultrasound received at a portion where no singular point is formed. Furthermore, the position where the singular point is formed may be a position that is asymmetrical in the left-right direction, which is the conveying direction of the object 40 to be inspected. In other words, the singular point may be formed near a first end or a second end in the left-right direction of the object 40 to be inspected.

[0068] FIG. 12 illustrates the relationship between the intensity of ultrasonic waves received by any one of the receiving elements 20Sb1 of the receiving unit 20Sb and the measurement position in the sealing unit 41 when a singular point is provided on the inspection target 40. The horizontal axis represents the measurement position, and the vertical axis represents the intensity of the received ultrasonic waves. The measurement position indicates the position in the conveyance direction of the sealing unit 41. As any one of the receiving elements 20Sb1 described above, for example, the receiving element 20Sb1 located in the center of the array direction of the receiving unit 20Sb may be used. FIG. 12 illustrates the intensity of ultrasonic waves received when an inspection target 40 having a punched hole as a singular point is scanned with the surface visible. The intensity of the received ultrasonic waves at measurement position ps1, which corresponds to the position of the punched hole, is greater than that in the vicinity. Thus, when the inspection target 40 is scanned with the surface visible, the intensity of the received ultrasonic waves near measurement position ps1 is greater for each inspection target 40 than in the vicinity.

[0069] On the other hand, when any of the inspection objects 40 having such punched holes is scanned with the back surface visible, the intensity of the ultrasonic waves received at measurement position ps2, which is a different position from measurement position ps1, is greater than that at the vicinity thereof. In this case, the display control unit 14 pre-stores at which position (e.g., measurement position ps1) a waveform corresponding to a singular point appears when the front surface of the inspection object 40 is scanned. Then, based on the reading result acquired by the reading result acquisition unit 111, the display control unit 14 determines that the front surface has been scanned if the position where the singular point appears is measurement position ps1. In this case, the display control unit 14 decides to leave the arrangement method determined based on the scanning direction as it is.

[0070] On the other hand, the display control unit 14 determines that the back side has been scanned if the position where the singular point appears is not measurement position ps1 (measurement position ps2) based on the reading result acquired by the reading result acquisition unit 111. In this case, the display control unit 14 determines to output the layout method determined based on the scanning direction with the left and right reversed.

[0071] (Example 3) Visual inspection may be performed while the inspection object 40 is being transported by the transport device 30, or may be performed after the inspection object 40 is unloaded from the transport device 30 and is not being transported. More specifically, the inspection object 40 may be scanned by the inspection device 20, then unloaded from the transport device 30, and stored in a storage location. A display device may be installed in such a storage location, and visual inspection may be performed while viewing the actual inspection object 40 in its stored state and the scanned image displayed on the display screen of the display device. Even when visual inspection is performed in the storage location, the display may be configured to display the appearance of the inspection object 40 and the scanned image in a manner that matches the correspondence between the appearance of the inspection object 40 and the appearance of the scanned image, depending on whether the inspection is performed by visually inspecting the front or back surface of the stored inspection object 40.

[0072] In the above-described Example 1, the display control unit 14 determines whether to output the scanned image as is by referring to the visual inspection position information. In Example 3, the display control unit 14 may determine whether to output the scanned image as is by referring to target surface information indicating whether the target surface of the inspection object to be visually inspected by the inspector is the first surface (e.g., the front surface) or the second surface (e.g., the back surface). Such target surface information may be stored in advance in the storage unit 17. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing another example of control data stored in the storage unit 17. The control data in FIG. 13 is data in which display device identification information identifying a display device installed in the storage location is associated with target surface information. The target surface information is predetermined and stored depending on whether the first surface (e.g., the front surface) or the second surface (e.g., the back surface) of the inspection object 40 is to be visually inspected while visually inspecting the display screen of the display device installed in the storage location. By referring to the target surface information, the display control unit 14 can determine whether the visual inspection will be performed on the front surface or the back surface of the inspection object 40 at the storage location. Then, the display control unit 14 can determine whether or not to output the scanned image as is, depending on the specified target surface information.

[0073] In the embodiment described above, the storage unit 17 of the test data processing device 10 is configured by a storage medium such as a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), a flash memory, an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a random access read / write memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), or any combination of these storage media. The storage unit of the test data processing device 10 may be, for example, a non-volatile memory.

[0074] Furthermore, the functional units of the inspection data processing device 10 (the acquisition unit 11, the direction determination unit 12, the section determination unit 13, the display control unit 14, the output unit 15, the input unit 16, and the control unit 18) may be a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and may be realized by executing a program stored in the memory unit 17 of the inspection data processing device 10. In the above-described embodiment, the inspection device 20 is an ultrasonic inspection device. However, the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to application to such devices. They may be applied to any device that scans the inspection object 40 using a sensor, not limited to ultrasonic inspection. For example, the inspection device 20 may be a device that scans the inspection object using X-rays, infrared rays, or near-infrared rays. Alternatively, the inspection device 20 may be a device that acquires an image of the inspection object 40 and performs an inspection.

[0075] All or part of the inspection data processing device 10 in the above-described embodiment may be implemented by a computer. In this case, a program for implementing this function may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium, and the program may be loaded into a computer system and executed. Note that the term "computer system" as used herein includes hardware such as an OS and peripheral devices. Furthermore, "computer-readable recording medium" refers to portable media such as flexible disks, optical magnetic disks, ROMs, and CD-ROMs, as well as storage devices such as hard disks built into a computer system. Furthermore, "computer-readable recording medium" may also include devices that dynamically store programs for a short period of time, such as communication lines used when transmitting programs via networks such as the Internet or telephone lines, or devices that store programs for a fixed period of time, such as volatile memory within a computer system serving as a server or client. The program may be for implementing only part of the above-described functions, or may be capable of implementing the above-described functions in combination with a program already stored in the computer system, or may be implemented using a programmable logic device such as an FPGA.

[0076] Although several embodiments of the present disclosure have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure. These embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the disclosure. These embodiments and their modifications are within the scope and spirit of the disclosure, as well as the disclosure described in the claims and their equivalents.

[0077] The present disclosure may be applied to a display method, an inspection data processing device, and a program.

[0078] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 inspection system 10 inspection data processing device 11 acquisition unit 12 direction determination unit 13 section determination unit 14 display control unit 15 output unit 16 input unit 17 storage unit 18 control unit 20 inspection device 30 transport device 40 inspection object 41 sealing unit 42 storage unit

Claims

1. A display method comprising: acquiring read results obtained by moving an object to be inspected relative to a sensor along a scanning direction while scanning the object to be inspected with the sensor according to a reading order; and determining, based on the scanning direction, which of a first end and a second end, which are different from each other, of a display area should be used as a starting point for arranging the read results according to the reading order.

2. The display method according to claim 1, further comprising: generating a scan image by arranging the read results in order starting from either the first end or the second end of the display area based on the determined result; and displaying the generated scan image in the display area of ​​a display device.

3. The display method according to claim 2, wherein displaying the generated scanned image in the display area includes displaying the scanned image on the display device arranged on an extension of the line between the observer's viewing position and the position of the object to be inspected.

4. The display method according to claim 2, wherein generating the scan image includes: identifying an inspection section in which the object to be inspected has been scanned based on a result of comparing the read result with a threshold; and generating the scan image based on the read results that belong to the identified inspection section among the read results.

5. The display method of claim 3, wherein said determining includes: storing viewing position information in a memory unit, which indicates whether the observer's viewing position is a first end side or a second end side opposite to the first end side in a width direction that is perpendicular to a conveying direction of a conveying device that conveys the object to be inspected; and determining the starting point based on the scanning direction and the viewing position information so that the scanned image displayed in the display area of ​​the display device viewed by the observer corresponds to the appearance of the joint portion of the object to be inspected.

6. The display method according to claim 5, further comprising: acquiring a detection result indicating whether the surface of the object to be inspected that is viewed by the observer is a first surface of the object to be inspected or a second surface opposite to the first surface; and determining whether to leave the arrangement determined based on the scanning direction and the viewing position information as it is or change it according to the acquired detection result.

7. The display method according to claim 1, further comprising: detecting the passage of the inspection object by a first detector and a second detector arranged at different positions along the scanning direction; and determining the scanning direction according to the order in which the inspection object passes by each of the first detector and the second detector.

8. The display method according to claim 1, further comprising: obtaining the reading result by receiving, by the sensor, the irradiated ultrasonic wave.

9. An inspection data processing device having: an acquisition unit that acquires from the sensor reading results obtained by moving an inspection object relative to the sensor in a scanning direction and scanning the inspection object with the sensor in accordance with a reading order; and a determination unit that determines, based on the scanning direction, which of a first end and a second end, which are different from each other, of a display area will be used as the starting point for arranging the reading results in accordance with the reading order.

10. A program that causes a computer to execute the steps of: acquiring from the sensor a reading result obtained by moving an object to be inspected relative to a sensor along a scanning direction and scanning the object to be inspected with the sensor in accordance with a reading order; and determining, based on the scanning direction, which of a first end and a second end, which are different from each other, of a display area will be used as a starting point for arranging the reading results in accordance with the reading order.

Images