Method and system for monitoring a plant for manufacturing ceramic products

Abstract

A monitoring method and a monitoring system (1) for monitoring a manufacturing plant (2) for manufacturing ceramic products (3), by means of at least one acquisition device (33) arranged at a monitoring station (34) and configured to acquire, at regular time intervals, at least one representation of at least one part of said monitoring station (34); and a processing unit (35) configured to estimate, based on said representation, at least one data item on the quantity and on the format of the ceramic substrates (3, 8) passing through the monitoring station (34).

Description

[0001] "METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR MONITORING A PLANT FOR MANUFACTURING

[0002] CERAMIC PRODUCTS"

[0003] Cross-Reference to Related Applications

[0004] This Patent Appl ication claims priority from Italian Patent Application No . 102024000021176 filed on September 23 , 2024 , the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference .

[0005] Technical Field

[0006] The present invention relates to a method and to a system for monitoring a plant for manufacturing ceramic products ; in particular, substantially flat ceramic products , such as for example ceramic slabs or tiles .

[0007] The present invention is advantageously but not exclusively applied to the monitoring of the productivity and of the ef ficiency of a plant for manufacturing ceramic products ( in particular, ceramic slabs and tiles ) in terms of quanti fication of the productive volume , in terms of surface or number of products manufactured or anyway treated in one or more parts of a production plant of ceramic products .

[0008] Background of the Invention

[0009] In the field of the ceramic industry, it is known to produce ceramic products such as ceramic slabs or tiles , by feeding semi-dry ceramic powder ( i . e . with a moisture content less than 12 % , in particular ranging from 5% to 7 % ) along a given path through a continuous compaction system, or a discontinuous press , which subj ects the ceramic powder to a compaction pressure so as to obtain a band of compacted ceramic powder which is then cut to obtain a plurality of base ceramic articles or ( in the case of discontinuous press ) a base ceramic article , respectively . The various base ceramic articles thereby obtained are then decorated and / or trimmed in specially provided decoration or treatment stations , dried, before and / or after being decorated, and finally fired at temperatures of at least about 1200 ° C so as to obtain finished ceramic products , such as ceramic tiles or slabs . The ceramic products thereby obtained are then examined in a so-called sorting station, where the ceramic products are subj ected to quality control , so as to rej ect possible faulty products or anyway so as to classi fy them, based on their quality, in several product classes , and are sorted based on their format , before being stored in specially provided warehouses or shipped .

[0010] In recent years , the need has been increasingly felt to optimise the production process , reducing production times , material waste and energy consumption . In this background, the need is thus increasingly felt to monitor the status of the production plant , in particular in terms of production volume , but also of rej ects and / or production speed so as to understand where to intervene for improving the performance of the plant , for example by identi fying the most problematic parts of the plant from the point of view of productivity or the number of rej ects and / or energy consumption, possibly as the format of the ceramic products or articles provided varies .

[0011] Currently, such monitoring operations are substantially performed manual ly by operators who correlate di f ferent data, obtained from various instruments , in order to evaluate the productivity of the plant and / or identi fy critical points .

[0012] For example , it is known to provide for photocells in di f ferent points of the plant for manufacturing ceramic products , positioned along the conveyors or directly on board the production machines that perform the various machining operations ( compaction, cutting, decoration, finishing etc ) . Such photocells are capable of detecting the presence or the absence of material in the point of analysis providing a corresponding signal , but they do not manage to provide data on the production volume , i . e . on the number or square meters of material passing in a certain area of the plant , nor on the format of the treated articles or products . In order to obtain data on the production volume , the signals provided by the photocells must be correlated with other data, for example relative to the format of the treated ceramic manufactured articles , which must be provided manually, for example by means of a specially provided control panel ; however, in practice these data are often not provided at all or are provided incorrectly or late with respect to possible production changes , making the estimation on the production volume in actual fact not reliable . Furthermore , in a dusty environment such as that of the ceramic industry, the photocells often risk providing results that are not correct or not always completely reliable also with regard to the presence or absence of material .

[0013] Another solution typically adopted for trying to monitor the productivity and the ef ficiency of the production plant provides for extracting data from the single machines composing it , recording the number of work cycles for each one of such machines . However, even with this , it has drawbacks . In fact , it is applicable only to the most modern machines or anyway those having an operation based on a production cycle logic and, in any case , in order to obtain a quanti fication of the production volume or the number of ceramic articles or products from the extracted data, it is necessary to know a priori the number of products that each machine manages to treat in each production cycle as well as the format of the treated articles or products .

[0014] The obj ect of the present invention is thus to provide a monitoring method and a monitoring system for monitoring a plant for manufacturing ceramic products , which allow overcoming, at least partially, the drawbacks of the prior art , proposing a solution that permits monitoring in a simple , reliable and automatic manner the productivity and the ef ficiency of a plant for manufacturing ceramic products , allowing obtaining an estimation of at least the treated surface and / or of the number of treated ceramic articles or treated ceramic products , as well as of the corresponding format .

[0015] Summary

[0016] In accordance with the present invention, a monitoring method and a monitoring system for monitoring a plant for manufacturing ceramic products are provided, according to what claimed in the appended independent claims , and preferably, in any one of the claims directly or indirectly dependent on the independent claim .

[0017] The claims describe preferred embodiments of the present invention, forming integral part of the present description .

[0018] Brief Description of the Drawings

[0019] In order to better understand the present invention, some embodiments are now described, by way of mere nonlimiting example , with reference to the accompanying drawings , wherein :

[0020] - Figure 1 is a schematic side view of a plant for manufacturing ceramic products having a monitoring system provided according to one of the embodiments of the present invention; and - Figure 2 is a schematic side view of a plant for manufacturing ceramic products having a monitoring system provided according to another embodiment of the present invention .

[0021] Detailed Description

[0022] In the accompanying figures , reference numeral 1 indicates , as a whole , a monitoring system configured to monitor a manufacturing plant 2 for manufacturing ceramic products 3 , such as for example ceramic slabs or tiles .

[0023] In particular, the ceramic products 3 are substantially (but not necessarily) flat manufactured articles , in particular ceramic slabs and / or ceramic tiles of di f ferent formats , for example of large dimensions such as those having a section of 1200 / 1800 x 2400 / 3600mm, or of smaller dimensions having a section from 900 / 1200xl 800 / 2000mm to 400x400mm, etc . having a thickness ranging from 3 to 60 mm .

[0024] With particular reference to Figure 1 , advantageous ly, the manufacturing plant 2 for manufacturing ceramic products 3 comprises : a forming assembly 4 arranged at a forming station 5 and configured to form, in a manner known per se , a band Z of compacted ceramic powder ; a cutting assembly 6 , arranged at a cutting station 7 and configured to cut the band Z of compacted ceramic powder to obtain a plurality of base ceramic articles 8 made of compacted ceramic powder .

[0025] With particular reference to Figure 1 , advantageously but not limitedly, the forming assembly 4 comprises at least one feeding device 9 ( known per se and not described in detail herein, for example , consisting of a plurality of hoppers and) configured to feed ceramic powder CP ; in particular, a controlled quantity of ceramic powder for forming a layer o f ceramic powder CP ; and a compaction device 10 , advantageously but not limitedly of the continuous type , it also known per se and not described in detai l herein, configured to compact the layer of ceramic powder CP so as to obtain the band Z of compacted ceramic powder which, once it is cut , forms the base articles 8 .

[0026] According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , such as for example the one illustrated in Figure 1 , the cutting assembly 6 , known per se and not described in detail herein, comprises at least one transverse cutting tool 11 operatable to rapidly cut the band Z of compacted ceramic powder along a direction that is transverse ( in particular, orthogonal ) to the advancing direction A and at least two more longitudinal cutting tools (not visible in Figure 1 and known per se ) operatable to cut the band Z of ceramic powder along cutting paths that extend parallel to the advancing direction A . More in particular, advantageously but not limitedly, the transverse cutting tool 11 is movable along a direction that is oblique with respect to the transverse direction and to the direction A for rapidly cutting the band Z of compacted ceramic powder so as to manufacture the plurality of ceramic articles .

[0027] According to other advantageous but non-limiting embodiments not illustrated, the cutting assembly 6 comprises a plurality of longitudinal cutting tools , each operatable to cut the band Z of compacted ceramic powder along cutting paths that extend parallel to the advancing direction A so as to obtain base ceramic articles 8 having at least one main dimension less than the width of the band Z of compacted ceramic powder .

[0028] With particular reference to Figure 2 , according to other advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the forming assembly 4 is advantageously of the discontinuous type and comprises : a feeding device 12 ( known per se and not further described herein) , configured to feed ceramic powder CP at a feeding station 13 of a discontinuous compaction device 14 ( commonly known as discontinuous press ) , comprising in turn a mould 15 , an operating assembly configured to operate the mould 15 so as to impress , in use , a defined compaction pressure on a layer of ceramic powder CP . Advantageously but not limitedly, the mould 15 comprises , in turn, at least one lower hal f-mould 15a and an upper hal f-mould 15b arranged facing each other and mutually movable towards and away from each other, in particular along a vertical direction, so as to define between them a compaction chamber intended to receive the layer of ceramic powder to be compacted . Even more advantageously but not limitedly, in this case , the forming assembly 4 also comprises a distribution device 16 operatable by the operating assembly (not illustrated and known per se ) to trans fer a ( dosed) quantity of ceramic powder from the feeding station 13 towards the compaction chamber defining the above-mentioned layer of ceramic powder CP to be compacted .

[0029] Advantageously but not limitedly, the distribution device 16 comprises ( in particular, consists of ) a distribution grid carried by a trolley (not visible in Figure 2 ) , operatable by the above-mentioned operating assembly, and the feeding assembly 12 comprises a hopper with a discharge opening that is adj ustable for varying the quantity of ceramic powder to be fed on the distribution device 16 . According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments ( such as the one illustrated in Figure 2 ) , in this case , the forming assembly 4 , and in particular the compaction device 14 also comprises an expulsion device 17 ( known per se and not further described herein, for example a pusher ) operatable by the operating assembly to expel the base article 8 obtained by compacting such layer of ceramic powder CP .

[0030] In the present discussion, the expression "base ceramic article 8" or more simply "article 8" refers to a substantially (but not necessarily) flat article made of compacted ceramic material ; namely, to an intermediate article not yet subj ected to firing and intended, after the decoration, finishing and firing operations , to form ( in particular, to become ) a ceramic product 3 . More in particular, when the forming assembly 4 is of the continuous type as described above , the expression "base ceramic article 8" or more simply "article 8" refers to a portion of the band Z of compacted ceramic powder , whereas when the forming assembly 4 is of the discontinuous type , it refers directly to what obtained following the operation of the compaction device 14 .

[0031] Advantageously, the manufacturing plant 2 for manufacturing ceramic products 3 also comprises : a conveyor assembly 18 configured to transport the band Z of compacted ceramic powder, the plurality of base ceramic articles 8 , and the ceramic products 3 , when the forming assembly 4 is continuous , or the base ceramic articles 8 and the ceramic products 3 , when the forming assembly is discontinuous , along a given path P in an advancing direction A to a sorting station 19 , through various machining stations , among which at least one treatment station 20 , a drying station 21 , at which the base ceramic articles 8 are subj ected to a treatment inside a dryer 22 ( known per se and not described in detail herein) configured to dry the base ceramic articles 8 , and a firing station 23 , at which a firing kiln 24 ( known per se and not described in detail herein ) is provided configured to fire the base ceramic articles 8 , possibly already decorated and / or trimmed, at a firing temperature of at least about 1200 ° C so as to obtain the above-mentioned ceramic products 3 .

[0032] Advantageously but not limitedly, the conveyor assembly 18 comprises a plurality of conveyors 18 ' located in succession along the given path P .

[0033] Advantageously but not limitedly, the manufacturing plant 2 further comprises a control assembly CU ( schematically il lustrated in the accompanying figures ) and configured to control the operation of the various components of the manufacturing plant 2 .

[0034] According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , such as for example the ones illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 , the manufacturing plant 2 further comprises , a plurality of decoration assemblies 26 ( only schematically illustrated in the accompanying figures ) , arranged in succession along the given path P , downstream of said forming station 5 , and each configured to apply a certain decoration on the upper surface of the base ceramic article 8 and a control unit (which, according to some advantageous but nonlimiting embodiments , coincides with the above-mentioned control assembly CU, or is comprised in the above-mentioned control assembly CU, and is ) configured to command the operation of the various decoration assemblies 26 .

[0035] According to some embodiments not illustrated, at least one of such decoration assemblies 26 comprises ( in particular, consists of ) at least one digital printer 27 ( in particular, a plurality of digital printers 27 ) , for example ( each comprising) an inkj et printing head . Alternatively or additionally, such decoration as semblies 26 comprise ( in particular, consi st of ) at least one deposit assembly ( only schematically illustrated in the accompanying figures ) , for example , comprising a digital printer 27 configured to apply on the upper surface of the base ceramic article 8 a layer of glue and a digital application machine 28 configured to apply in a controlled manner at least one layer of granular material on the glue so as to form the above-mentioned decoration .

[0036] According to stil l other advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the manufacturing plant 2 further comprises a covering and / or enamelling unit 29 , advantageously but not limitedly, downstream of the drying station 21 along the given path P and configured to apply a water-based covering material , in particular an engobe , on the base ceramic article 8 .

[0037] According to other advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , such as for example the one illustrated in Figure 1 , when the forming assembly 4 is of the continuous type , the manufacturing plant 2 also comprises at least one trimming assembly 25 ( only schematically illustrated in the accompanying figures ) advantageously but not limitedly downstream of the forming assembly 4 along the given path P and configured to trim ( in particular, deburr ) the base ceramic articles 8 , so as to eliminate the possible portions in excess remained during the cutting operations , the so- called "burrs" .

[0038] Alternatively, according to other advantageous but nonlimiting embodiments , such as , for example , the one illustrated in Figure 2 , when the forming assembly 4 is of the discontinuous type , the manufacturing plant 2 also comprises a trimming assembly 25 downstream of the kiln, for trimming the edges of the ceramic products 3 .

[0039] According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the manufacturing plant 2 further provides for the above-mentioned sorting station 19 , at which the ceramic products 3 are controlled and / or sorted to form shipping groups or groups of base ceramic articles 8 intended to be shipped .

[0040] According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the manufacturing system further comprises a control station 30 , advantageously but not limitedly downstream of the firing kiln 24 and upstream of the sorting station 19 along the given path P, at which the ceramic products 3 are analysed and classi fied, based on a series of quality parameters : for example on the presence of defects in the shape and / or the decoration, and thus on the quality, but also based on the actual tone , on the dimensions and geometric features , thus gauge and flatness etc . More in particular, when referring to the dimensions , reference is made to the so-called "gauge" , i . e . to the real dimensions of the ceramic products 3 which, the format being the same , could slightly di f fer from one another in dimensional terms as the production cycles vary; whereas , when referring to the "quality" , reference is made to the possible number of defect that , i f within a tolerance limit considered acceptable , can involve the division of the ceramic products 3 into di f ferent quality classes . The analysis of the ceramic products 3 at the control station 30 can be performed in an automatic manner, for example by means of a specially provided viewing system 31 ( only schematically i llustrated in the accompanying figures and known per se thus not described in detail ) , or by means of visual inspection by highly specialised operators .

[0041] More advantageously but not limitedly, such control station 30 also comprises a marking device 32 configured to lay, based on what detected by the viewing system 31 (when the analysis is performed in an automatic manner ) or by the operator (when the analysis is performed in a manual manner ) , an information sign, for example a QR code or a label , on the ceramic products 3 or, possibly, i f the control station 30 is after a sorting and reorganisation station also on a group of ceramic products 3 , possibly already located in specially provided boxes and packages . More advantageously but not limitedly, when provided for, such information sign provides , for each ceramic product 3 ( or i f the control station 30 is upstream of the kiln 24 , for each base ceramic article 8 or, i f the control station 30 is downstream of a sorting and reorganisation station, on each group of ceramic products 3 ) data on each one of the controlled quality parameters ; in particular it gives each substrate certain values of each one of the analysed quality parameters .

[0042] It is understood that according to other advantageous but non-limiting embodiments not illustrated, the manufacturing plant 2 could comprise any number of intermediate stations between the forming station 5 and the sorting station 19 .

[0043] It is specified that in the following of the present discussion, the term "ceramic substrate 3 , 8" will be used to refer, in general , to the material comprising ( in particular consisting of ) ceramic material that is treated or that goes through a certain machining station of the manufacturing plant 2 . In other words , advantageously but not limitedly, in the present discussion, when the forming assembly 4 is continuous , the expression "ceramic substrate" is used to refer both to one or more base articles 8 , obtained by cutting such band Z of compacted ceramic powder and subj ected to the various treatment operations ( such as for example decoration, drying, finishing etc . ) , and to the band Z of compacted ceramic powder , as well as to one or more ceramic products 3 , obtained following the firing, and possibly grouped and / or packed together ; whereas , when the forming assembly 4 is of the discontinuous type , the expression "ceramic substrate" is used to refer both to the base articles 8 obtained directly from the mould 15 and subj ected to the various treatment operations ( such as for example decoration, drying, finishing etc . ) and to the ceramic products 3 obtained by firing such base articles 8 and possibly grouped and / or packed together .

[0044] Advantageously, the monitoring system 1 of the present invention comprises at least one acquisition device 33 that is arranged at a monitoring station 34 along the given path P, is configured to acquire , at given time intervals , advantageously but not necessarily adj ustable , at least one representation of at least one part of the respective monitoring station 34 ( in particular, a representation of a flow of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing at the respective monitoring station 34 ) .

[0045] In detail , advantageously but not limitedly, the monitoring system 1 is configured to acquire at least one representation of at least one part of the respective monitoring station 34 at given time intervals , the duration ( extension) of which is a function of the advancing speed with which the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 pass at the respective monitoring station 34 ; still more in detail , such given time intervals are less than the time necessary for each single ceramic substrate 3 , 8 for going through a respective monitoring station 34 . In this manner, it is ensured that each ceramic substrate 3 , 8 is captured by at least one acquisition device 33 of the monitoring system 1 .

[0046] With particular reference to the accompanying figures , more advantageously but not limitedly, the monitoring system 1 comprises a plurality of acquisition devices 33 , each arranged at a respective monitoring station 34 along the above-mentioned given path P and each configured to acquire at least one representation of the corresponding monitoring station 34 in a manner independent of the others ; more advantageously but not limitedly, each one of such acquisition devices 33 is arranged externally with respect to the manufacturing plant 2 for manufacturing ceramic products 3 but is configured to be able to acquire at least one representation of at least one part ( in particular, of at least one part of a machining station) of such manufacturing plant 2 for manufacturing ceramic products 3 , as it will be better clari fied in the following, so as to permit the monitoring thereof .

[0047] Advantageously but not limitedly, the monitoring system 1 comprises a number of acquisition devices 33 equal to the number of operating stations , so as to allow monitoring the entire manufacturing plant 2 , as it will be better described in the following .

[0048] More in detail , in this case ( i . e . when the monitoring system 1 provides for a number of acquisition devices 33 equal to the number of operating stations of the manufacturing plant 2 ) , advantageously but not necessarily, these acquisition devices 33 are each arranged for acquiring data on one of the operating stations mentioned above , i . e . on one of the above-mentioned forming station 5 , cutting station 7 , treatment station 20 , sorting station 19 , drying station 21 and firing station 23 described above .

[0049] Alternatively or additionally, according to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , when the monitoring system 1 provides for a plurality of acquisition devices 33 , these acquisition devices 33 are in communication with one another and / or with one s ingle processing unit 35 , that can also be in a remote position and that even more advantageously but not limitedly can coincide with the above- mentioned control assembly CU of the manufacturing plant 2 .

[0050] Advantageously, the monitoring system 1 of the present invention further comprises the above-mentioned processing unit 35 ( only schematically illustrated in the accompanying figures ) which is configured to estimate , based on the representation acquired by the acquisition device 33 , at least one data item on the quantity ( in particular, at least on the surface ) and on the format ( in particular, at least on the plan shape and possibly also on the thickness ) of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing though the monitoring station 34 at each time interval and, more advantageously but not limitedly, to send a corresponding signal to the control assembly CU, which, more advantageously but not limitedly, is configured to estimate data at least on the productivity of the manufacturing plant 2 based on the signals received from the processing unit 35 . With the expression "data on the productivity" , advantageously but not limitedly, reference is made to at least the number of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing in each monitoring station 34 and to the square meters of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing in each monitoring station 34 .

[0051] In detail , according to some preferred particularly advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the processing unit 35 is integrated ( in particular, is comprised; i . e . is in one single body) with the acquisition device 33 ; in other words , each acquisition device 33 comprises a processing unit of its own not visible in the accompanying figures .

[0052] Alternatively or additionally, according to some particularly advantageous non-limiting embodiments , when the monitoring system 1 comprises more acquisition devices 33 and more monitoring stations 34 , such as for example the ones illustrated in the accompanying figures , the processing unit 35 is separated from the acquisition device 32 (more advantageously but not limitedly, is located in a remote position) and is configured to receive the representation acquired by each acquisition device 33 and process it ( in particular, analyse it , as it will be better clari fied in the following) so as to obtain the above-mentioned data on the quantity and on the format of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing at the monitoring station 34 . In this latter case , advantageously but not limitedly, such processing unit 35 is in communication ( or more advantageously coincides ) with the control assembly CU of the manufacturing plant 2 .

[0053] According to still another advantageous but nonlimiting embodiment not illustrated, each acquisition device 33 has an integrated processing unit of its own and the monitoring system 1 also comprises a further processing unit 35 , that can also be located in a remote position, which is in communication with all of the processing units integrated in the various acquisition devices 33 .

[0054] Advantageously but not limitedly, the processing unit 35 (both whether it is integrated in the acquisition device 33 , and whether it is external to it and whether or not it corresponds to the control assembly CU) is configured to estimate at least the surface ( in square meters ) of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 and / or the number of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 that are processed ( i . e . passing) in the corresponding monitoring station 34 .

[0055] In other words , the data / data item on the quantity of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 comprise ( s ) ( in particular, are / is ) the processed surface , i . e . the square meters of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 processed at the given time interval and / or the number of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passed through the relative monitoring station 34 in such time interval .

[0056] More advantageously but not limitedly, the processing unit 35 estimates the above-mentioned at least one data item on the quantity of processed ceramic substrates 3 , 8 ( in particular, on the square meters of processed ceramic substrates 3 , 8 ) by aggregating the data recorded at successive time interval s of the above-mentioned given time intervals .

[0057] In detail , advantageously but not limitedly, the processing unit 35 is configured to analyse each representation acquired by each acquisition device 33 and to extract from such representation an indication of the number of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 contained in each representation and / or of the square meters of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 contained in each representation .

[0058] Still in more detail , as it will be better explained in the following with reference to the various embodiments of the acquisition device 33 , the processing unit 35 is configured to analyse the ( in particular, each) representation to ( in particular, so as to ) recognise ( isolate ) the outlines of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 , by means of specially provided target obj ect tracking algorithms and / or models ( in particular algorithms ) for distinguishing and isolating the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 from the background of the representation, for example U-Net and Mask R-CNN models , or models based on convolutive neural networks CNN for the recognition and classi fication of the geometries .

[0059] Even more advantageously but not limitedly, the processing unit 35 comprises an incremental counter configured to record, at each given time interval , a value indicative of the number of recognised ceramic substrates 3 , 8 and / or the square meters of recognised ceramic substrates 3 , 8 by means of the above-mentioned analysis of the representation acquired in each time interval and to increase such value at each time interval , based on what estimated by the analysis of the respective acquired representation and of a previous calculated and stored value . In detail , advantageously but not limitedly, the processing unit 35 comprises a writable memory configured to contain data on the number of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 and / or the square meters of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 recorded at each time interval in each monitoring station 34 , and the processing unit 35 is configured to determine an overall number of processed ceramic substrates 3 , 8 and / or overall square meters of proces sed ceramic substrates 3 , 8 in a certain monitoring station 34 , based on the data detected at the previous time interval at the same monitoring station 34 and / or on the data detected at the immediately previous monitoring station 34 , along the above-mentioned given path P, or on the number of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 and / or square meters of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 recognised at each given time interval .

[0060] In this manner , by aggregating the data it is possible to calculate the processed square meters , for example , every hour, and send the corresponding signals to the control assembly CU, which, for example , based on such signals can estimate productivity data, useful for example for the ef ficiency evaluations of the manufacturing plant 2 and / or for possible optimisation analyses of the operation of the various components of the manufacturing plant 2 . The processing unit 35 is further configured to also estimate at least the shape in section ( in particular, at least the length and the width in plan, along a plan parallel to the advancing plan ) of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 that are processed ( i . e . passing) in the monitoring station 34 ; more advantageously but not limitedly, at the given time interval by means of comparison with sample images , in particular by means of geometric matching with stored sample images , possibly by means of the aid of arti ficial intelligence algorithms suitably trained by providing at least a plurality of images and examples of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 of various formats .

[0061] According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the processing unit 35 is also configured to compare the representations obtained from the ( in particular, from each) acquisition device 33 with one another at successive time intervals and to determine , by di f ference : a change in the format of the ceramic substrate 3 , 8 passing in the monitoring station 34 and / or an interruption in the passing of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 and / or an irregularity in the passing of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 and / or a change in the type of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing in the monitoring station 34 and to generate a corresponding signal .

[0062] More advantageously but not limitedly, the processing unit 35 is configured to perform, at each time interval , a comparison between the representation obtained at the nth time interval with the representation obtained (with the same acquisition device 33 ) at the n- lth interval to detect the di f ferences thereof and, based on the types of di f ferences detected, send a format change signal , when the processing unit identi fies ceramic substrates 3 , 8 having di f ferent plan shape and / or thickness and / or to send an irregularity signal when the number of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 identi fied at successive time intervals varies , in particular falls below a certain threshold value , and / or to send an interruption signal of the passing, when ceramic substrates 3 , 8 are not detected for a number of intervals exceeding a certain limit value .

[0063] Alternatively or additionally, the processing unit 35 is configured to perform, at each time interval , a geometric comparison between the representation obtained at the nth time interval and the representation obtained (with the same acquisition device 33 ) at the n- lth interval so as to detect , by superimposition of the images , variations in the lengths of the various sides and / or the total of the surface detected and to emit a change signal of the type of passing ceramic substrate 3 , 8 , when such variations exceed a certain threshold value , for example when the di f ference of length exceeds ±2 mm .

[0064] Alternatively or additionally, the processing unit 35 is configured to detect possible periods of interruption of the passing of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 , recording the number of representations within which, by means of the above- mentioned analysi s techniques , no ceramic substrate 3 , 8 is recognised and generating an interruption signal in the passing of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 , when such number of representations devoid of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 is greater than a certain limit value . In other words , advantageously but not limitedly, the processing unit 35 analyses , for example by means of one of the algorithms and / or methods mentioned above , each representation acquired at each given time interval ; i f such analysis leads to the recognition of at least one ceramic substrate 3 , 8 , then the processing unit 35 records the number of recognised ceramic substrates 3 , 8 and / or the surface square meters of recognised ceramic substrates 3 , 8 to estimate one of the data mentioned above ; i f instead, such analysis does not lead to the recognition of any ceramic substrate 3 , 8 , then the processing unit 35 starts counting the representations ( and thus the given time intervals ) devoid of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 and compares the data item obtained from such counting with a stored limit value , when the value obtained from such counting exceeds a limit value it generates an interruption signal in the passing of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 .

[0065] Alternatively or additionally, advantageously but not limitedly, when the processing unit 35 (by means of the above-mentioned analysis of the representation) recognises at least one ceramic substrate 3 , 8 , it records the number of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 recorded and / or the square meters of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 recognised in each representation of a certain monitoring station 34 ( therefore , at each given time interval ) , and compares such data item with the number of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 and / or square meters of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 recorded following the analysis of the representation acquired at the previous interval and, when such number is di f ferent , it transmits an irregularity signal to the above-mentioned control assembly CU .

[0066] Advantageously but not limitedly, the control assembly CU, based on the signals received from the processing unit 35 of the , or of each, acquisition device 33 ( or, when more processing units 35 are provided - one for each acquisition device 33 - based on the data received from each processing unit 35 ) is configured to perform an estimation of the productivity of the manufacturing plant 2 , i . e . to evaluate the square meters that the manufacturing plant 2 is capable of processing in the time unit ( for example every hour ) ; and / or to graphically process a representation of the production flow of one or more monitoring stations 34 , for example , by processing a representation of the number and / or the square meters of ceramic substrate 3 , 8 treated over time in one or more monitoring stations 34 for providing data about possible periods of inactivity of the manufacturing plant 2 .

[0067] Alternatively or additionally, the control assembly CU, based on the signals received from the processing unit 35 of the , or of each, acquisition device 33 ( or, when more processing units 35 are provided - one for each acquisition device 33 - based on the data received from each processing unit 35 ) is also configured to identi fy possible critical points of the manufacturing plant 2 for manufacturing ceramic products 3 , for example from the point of view of the productivity, thus of the machining stations of the above- mentioned plant 2 at which there is a fall in productivity or a high number of rej ects etc .

[0068] Additionally, advantageously but not limitedly, the control assembly CU is also configured to perform an estimation of the energy consumption of each machining station, putting the productivity data estimated by the processing unit 35 in relation with the energy / fuel fed to the various components of the manufacturing plant 2 .

[0069] According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , such control assembly CU is conf igured to periodically receive from each processing unit 35 of each acquisition device 33 data, in particular at least the above- mentioned data on the quantity ( in particular, at least on the surface ) and on the format ( in particular, at least on the plan shape and possibly also on the thickness ) of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing through the monitoring station 34 at each time interval . In detail , it is configured to receive such data from each processing unit 35 of each acquisition device 33 with a predetermined timing adj ustable for example every minute . Furthermore , even more advantageously but not limitedly, the control assembly CU comprises a memory for storing such data and the possible signals generated by the processing unit 35 of each acquisition device 33 over time , so as to allow later analyses of such data . For example , advantageously but not limitedly, the control assembly CU, as a function of such data, can estimate the partial increase in square meters of processed ceramic substrates 3 , 8 in a given work shi ft in a given monitoring station 34 , or the ratio between the increase in energy consumption and the increase in the processed ceramic substrates 3 , 8 etc .

[0070] Advantageously but not limitedly, the monitoring system 1 further comprises a sensor ( known per se and not described in detail herein) , for example an encoder connected to the conveyor assembly 18 , configured to detect the motion of the conveyor assembly 18 at least at the ( in particular, at each) monitoring station 34 and configured to process a ( digital or electronic ) signal related ( in particular , proportional ) to the speed and / or the position o f the conveyor assembly 18 and the corresponding acquisition device 33 is configured to acquire the above-mentioned representation of at least one part of the monitoring station 34 with an acquisition frequency as a function of the received signal . This permits obtaining greater precision in the synchronisation of the acquisition system 1 with the movement of the conveyor assembly 18 and adapting the acqui sition frequency, varying the speed of the conveyor assembly 18 thus of the advancing of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 , in an automatic manner and / or at least keeping it into account in the processing step .

[0071] In other words , advantageously but not limitedly, the given acquisition time intervals of each acquisition device 33 of the monitoring system 1 are adj ustable based on the advancing speed of the conveyor assembly 18 , which more advantageously but not limitedly, is estimated ( i . e . monitored) by means of the above-mentioned sensor ; more in detail , the processing unit 35 (both whether it is integrated in each acquisition device 33 and whether it is a single unit for all of the acquisition devices 33 ) is configured to receive the above-mentioned ( electric or digital ) signal related ( in particular, proportional ) to the speed and / or the position of the conveyor assembly 18 and to determine ( in particular, adj ust ) based on such signal the duration of the given time intervals which determine the acquisition frequency of each acquisition device 33 .

[0072] According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the monitoring system 1 also comprises a plurality of photocells (not visible in the accompanying figures ) configured to detect the passage of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 at the monitoring station 34 . In this case , the processing unit 35 processes the above-mentioned data on the quantity and on the shape of the passing ceramic substrates 2 , 8 also as a function of what detected by such photocells , increasing the reliability of the monitoring system 1 .

[0073] According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the ( in particular, each) acquisition device 33 comprises ( in particular, consists of ) at least one viewing system 37 configured to acquire at least one two-dimensional image of at least one part of the corresponding monitoring station 34 . Advantageously but not limitedly, such viewing system 37 comprises a plurality of photoelectric sensors , each comprising ( in particular, consisting of ) CCD ( Charge- Coupled Device ) image sensors arranged in succession between them and / or CMOS ( Complementary metal-oxide semiconductor ) image sensors . Alternatively or additionally, the viewing system 37 comprises ( in particular, consists of ) one or more smart cameras , linear cameras , or bars of photocells , or matrix cameras or of other type or a scanner ( in particular, 2D reading sensors ) .

[0074] In detail , according to some advantageous but nonlimiting embodiments , when the viewing system 37 provides for a continuous acquisition, line by line , of the corresponding part of the monitoring station 34 , for example by means of a linear camera or a bar of photocells , and the above-mentioned representation, in particular, the two- dimensional representation, is constructed by combining the various lines acquired at each time interval , based on the above-mentioned ( electric or digital ) signal related ( in particular, proportional ) to the speed and / or the position of the conveyor assembly 18 at the relative monitoring station 34 .

[0075] Alternatively or in combination, advantageously but not limitedly, when the viewing system 37 is configured to acquire at least one two-dimensional image of at least one part of the corresponding monitoring station 34 , for example when the viewing system 37 comprises a matrix camera, with one single acquisition operation it is possible to acquire the above-mentioned representation of at least one part of the monitoring station 34 , i . e . the above-mentioned two- dimensional representation, and, in this case , the processing unit 35 is configured to command ( in particular, to operate ) the viewing system 37 based on what detected by the above-mentioned photocells configured to detect the passage of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 at the monitoring station 34 , in particular, at least by the photocell configured to detect the passage of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 at the monitoring station 34 in which the relative viewing system 37 is present .

[0076] Advantageously but not limitedly, once the above- mentioned two-dimensional image has been processed or acquired, the processing unit 35 analyses the two- dimensional image obtained from ( in particular, from each) viewing system 37 to obtain the above-mentioned data on quantity and format of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing in the monitoring station 34 .

[0077] More advantageously but not limitedly, in this case , the processing unit 35 is configured to analyse the ( in particular, each) two-dimensional image so as to estimate the above-mentioned data on quantity and format of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 by means of at least one first target obj ect tracking algorithm chosen from the group of algorithms comprising : image segmentation algorithms for isolating the background from the obj ect of interest , in particular dividing the image in pixels and establishing for each pixel whether this belongs to the background or to the obj ect of interest , such as for example U-Net or Mask R-CNN models ; algorithms for tracking complex obj ects through machine learning, such as for example the algorithm of the Convolutive Neural Networks ( CNN) ; background subtraction algorithms capable of distinguishing the fixed background from what is in motion; algorithms for identi fying and tracking characteristic points of the target obj ect ; tracking algorithms based on geometric or mathematical models . According to stil l other advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the processing unit 35 is configured to analyse the ( in particular, each) two-dimensional image obtained from the ( in particular, from each) viewing system 37 , possibly after correcting it , for example correcting lighting and / or eliminating the noise , ( also ) using a second arti ficial intelligence algorithm, capable of distinguishing the ceramic substrate 3 , 8 from the rest ( i . e . from the background) . In this case, the processing unit 35 is configured to train the second arti ficial intelligence algorithm providing at least a plurality of images representative of di f ferent stations of the given path P within which the background is identified and separated from the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 .

[0078] Alternatively or additionally, advantageously but not limitedly, in this case , the processing unit 35 is configured to analyse the ( in particular, each) two-dimensional image obtained from the ( in particular , from each) viewing system 37 converting the dimensions of the representation from pixels to millimetres by means of known parameters of the viewing system 37 deriving from its calibration .

[0079] Alternatively or additionally, according to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the acquisition device 33 comprises ( in particular, consists of ) : an emitter (not visible in the accompanying figures ) arranged and configured to emit a beam of light rays , more advantageously but not limitedly having a wavelength ranging from about 700nm to about 900nm, onto the monitoring station 34 so as to generate a ref lected beam and a receiver (not visible in the accompanying figures , for example a CCD sensor or a CMOS sensor ) configured to receive , at each time interval , a reflected beam, and to reconstruct at least one profile of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing through the monitoring station 34 at each time interval . In this case , advantageously but not limitedly, the above-mentioned at least one representation used by the processing unit 35 for detecting the above-mentioned data at least on quantity and format of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 comprises ( in particular, coincides with) the reconstructed profile . According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the emitter is configured to emit the above-mentioned beam of light rays , advantageously but not limitedly of the laser type with di f ferent colours , so that this intercepts the conveyor assembly 18 along a strip that is transverse , in particular orthogonal , to the advancing direction A; and the receiver comprises ( in particular, consists of ) an optical sensor, for example a CCD sensor or a CMOS sensor, configured to capture the reflected beam and to estimate , through triangulation techniques ( i . e . through a comparison between the inclination angle of the emitted light beam and the reflected light beam) the distance of each reflection point from the receiver so as to reconstruct a three-dimensional profile of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing along the monitoring station 34 at each time interval .

[0080] More advantageously but not limitedly, the beam of light rays , after intercepting the conveyor assembly 18 ( in particular, the ceramic substrate 3 , 8 ) and before reaching the receiver, is intercepted and "collected" by a lens so that the receiver can detect variations in the depth of the reflected beam so as to obtain a detailed image of the surface of the conveyor 18 ( in particular, the ceramic substrate 3 , 8 ) intercepted by the emitted beam of light rays .

[0081] More in detail , according to some advantageous but non- limiting embodiments , in this case , the laser emitter and receiver are integrated in a laser profilometer 36 ( known per se and not described in detail herein) .

[0082] According to other advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the emitter is configured to emit a light pulse of laser light or LED light or infrared light ; and the receiver comprises a counter for estimating the time between the emission of the light pulse and the acquisition of the reflected beam and thus ( knowing the speed of light propagation) for determining the distance of the reflection point from the emitter and is configured to reconstruct a profile ( in this case three-dimensional ) of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing in the monitoring station 34 at each time interval based on such distance . In this manner, it is possible to reconstruct a three-dimensional representation of the above-mentioned at least one part of the monitoring station 34 .

[0083] More in detail , according to some advantageous but nonlimiting embodiments , in this case , the laser emitter and receiver are integrated in a ToF - Time of Flight - camera ( known per se and not described in detail herein ) .

[0084] It is understood that any other acquisition system of known type could be used, alternatively or additionally to those described above , as long as it is capable of ensuring the acquisition o f a representation, whether it be an image and / or a reconstruction ( 3d or 3D profile type ) , having a resolution in the order of pixel per centimetre ; more advantageously but not limitedly having a resolution in the order of pixel per millimetre so as to allow the processing unit 35 , by means of the above-mentioned analysis of the representation acquired at each given time interval , to process the above-mentioned data on the quantity and on the format of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 .

[0085] According to some particularly advantageous but nonlimiting embodiments , when the manufacturing plant 2 to be monitored compri ses the above-mentioned control station 30 at which the above-mentioned information sign is made on the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 based on at least one of the above- mentioned quality parameters , the monitoring system 1 comprises at least one acquisition device 33 ( of the above- mentioned plurality of acquisition devices 33 ) arranged at a monitoring station 34 , downstream of the control station 30 along the given path P ; more advantageously but not limitedly at the above-mentioned sorting station 18 . In this case , advantageously but not necessarily, the acquisition device 33 compri ses at least one reader ( known per se and not described in detail herein ) configured to read said information sign and the processing unit 35 is configured to determine the quantity of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 ( in particular, the number or the surface of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 ) that share a same value of at least one of the above- mentioned quality parameters , thus belonging to a same quality class .

[0086] According to another aspect of the present invention, a monitoring method for monitoring a manufacturing plant 2 for manufacturing ceramic products 3 is proposed, advantageously but not limitedly implemented in accordance with one of the embodiments described above .

[0087] Advantageously, the monitoring method comprises the following steps : an advancing step , during which the conveyor assembly 18 moves the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 along the above-mentioned given path P from the forming station 5 to the sorting station 19 , passing through at least the above- mentioned treatment stations 20 , drying stations 21 and firing stations 23 ; an acquisition step, which is ( at least partially) simultaneous with the advancing step and during which an acquis ition device 33 ( advantageously but not limitedly manufactured in accordance with one of the embodiments described above and) arranged at a respective monitoring station 34 along the given path P , acquires , at given time intervals , at least one representation of at least one part of the monitoring station 34 ; in particular, a representation of the flow of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing in such monitoring station 34 ; and at least one processing step, ( at least partially) subsequent to the acquisition step and during which a processing unit 35 (which, as is better explained above in relation to the monitoring system 1 , can be in a remote position with respect to the acquisition device 33 or can be comprised in the acquisition device 33 ) estimates , based on the above-mentioned representation, at least one data item on the quantity ( in particular, at least on the surface of ceramic substrate 3 , 8 ) and on the format ( in particular, at least on the plan shape and possibly also on the thickness ) of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing along the monitoring station 34 at each time interval .

[0088] More advantageously but not limitedly, during such processing step, the processing unit 35 , after estimating at least one data item on the quantity and / or the format of the substrates 3 , 8 ( advantageously as indicated above in relation to the monitoring system 1 ) sends a corresponding signal to the control assembly CU, which, advantageously but not limitedly, estimates data at least on the productivity of the manufacturing plant 2 based on the received signals , as is better explained above in relation to the monitoring system 1 . Advantageously but not limitedly, the method also comprises a detection step of the speed during which a sensor ( known per se and not described in detail herein ; more advantageously but not limitedly an encoder connected to the conveyor assembly 18 ) detects the motion of the conveyor assembly 18 at least at the monitoring station 34 and processes a ( digital or an electric ) signal related ( in particular, proportional ) to the speed and / or the position of the conveyor assembly 18 . In this case , during the acquisition step, the acquisition device 33 acquires the above-mentioned representation of at least one part of the monitoring station 34 with an acquisition frequency as a function of the received signal . This permits adapting the acquisition frequency in an automatic manner to speed variations of the conveyor assembly 18 thus of the advancing of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 so as to keep it into account at least in the processing step .

[0089] As already explained above in relation to the monitoring system 1 , according to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the above-mentioned acquisition step provides for a plurality o f acquisition devices 33 , each arranged at a respective monitoring station 34 , at multiple critical points or points of interest along the above-mentioned given path P, to acquire , possibly simultaneously, multiple representations , each one of the corresponding monitoring station 34 in an independent manner of the other ones and during the processing step, one (when the processing unit 35 is in a remote position with respect to the acquisition devices 33 ) or more (when the processing unit 35 is comprised in the acquisition device 33 ) processing unit ( s ) 35 analyse ( s ) the various representations in an independent manner, using one of the techniques described above , to determine the above-mentioned data on quantity and format of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 pass ing along each monitoring station 34 .

[0090] According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , during the processing step, the processing unit 35 compares the representations obtained from the acquisition device 33 with one another in successive time intervals so as to determine a change in the type of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing in the monitoring station 34 and / or a change in the format of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing in the monitoring station 34 and / or an interruption in the passing of ceramic substrates and / or an irregularity in the passing of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 and generates a corresponding signal , advantageously as explained above in relation to the monitoring system 1 .

[0091] According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , during the acquisition step at least one viewing system 37 , which is comprised in the acquisition device 33 , acquires at least one two-dimensional image of at least one part of the monitoring station 34 . In this case , the above- mentioned representation coincides with such two-dimensional image and the processing step comprises an image analysis sub-step, during which the acquired two-dimensional image is analysed by means of at least one first target obj ect tracking algorithm chosen from the group of algorithms comprising : image segmentation algorithms for isolating the background from the obj ect of interest , dividing the image in pixels and establishing for each pixel whether this belongs to the background or to the obj ect of interest , such as for example U-Net or Mask R-CNN models , algorithms for tracking complex obj ects through machine learning, such as for example the algorithm of the Convolutive Neural Networks ( CNN) , background subtraction algorithms capable of distinguishing the fixed background from what is in motion, algorithms for identi fying and tracking characteristic points of the target obj ect , tracking algorithms based on geometric or mathematical models .

[0092] More advantageously but not limitedly, in this case , the processing step comprises an estimation sub-step, which is ( at least partially) subsequent to the image analysis sub-step and during which the processing unit 35 , based on what obtained in such image analysis sub-step, determines the above-mentioned data on the quantity and on the format of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing through the monitoring station 34 at each time interval . More in particular, during the estimation sub-step, the processing unit 35 determines at least the surface and / or the number of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 and the plan shape of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing through the monitoring station 34 at each time interval , as is better explained above in relation to the monitoring system 1 and not repeated herein in full for sake of brevity .

[0093] According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the algorithm used in the analysi s sub-step comprises ( in particular, coincides with) a second arti ficial intell igence algorithm . In this case , the method provides for a training step , which is prior to the analysis sub-step and during which the second arti ficial intelligence algorithm is trained with a plurality of images representative of di f ferent stations of the given path P within which the background is identified and separated from the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 .

[0094] More advantageously but not limitedly, in this case , the processing step comprising a manipulation sub-step, at least partially prior to the image analysis sub-step and during which each acquired two-dimensional image is manipulated, advantageously by the above-mentioned processing unit 35 , for improving the quality thereof ; in particular, at least in terms of brightness , noise etc .

[0095] Alternatively or additionally, the processing step comprising a conversion sub-step, at least partially prior to the image analysis sub-step and during which each acquired two-dimensional image is analysed, advantageously by the above-mentioned processing unit 35 , for converting the dimensions of the representation from pixels to millimetres by means of known parameters of the viewing system 37 deriving from its calibration .

[0096] According to other advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the acquisition step comprises : an emission sub-step, during which an emitter, which is comprised in the ( in particular, in each) acquisition device 33 , emits a beam of light rays , more advantageously but not limitedly having a wavelength ranging from about 700nm to about 900nm, on at least one part of the monitoring station 34 , such beam, once arrived at the monitoring station 34 , generates a reflected beam; a receiving sub-step, which is partially subsequent to the emission sub- step and during which a receiver, which is comprised in the ( in particular, in each) acquisition device 33 , receives , at each time interval , the reflected beam and reconstructs at least one profile of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing through the monitoring station 34 at each time interval . In this case , the processing step also comprises a profile analysis sub-step during which the processing unit 35 , based on such profile , determines the above-mentioned data on the quantity and on the format of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing through the monitoring station 34 at each time interval . Alternatively or additionally, during the emission substep, the emitter emits a light impulse of laser light or of LED light or of infrared light ; and during the above- mentioned receiving sub-step, the receiver estimates the time between the emission of the light pulse and the acquisition of the reflected beam and thus determines , based on the speed of light propagation, the distance of the reflection point from the emitter and reconstructs a profile ( in this case three-dimensional ) of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing in the monitoring station 34 at each time interval based on such distance .

[0097] More advantageously but not limitedly, during the profile analysis sub-step (both two-dimensional and three- dimensional ) , the processing unit 35 determines at least the surface , the number of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 , the plan shape and the thickness of the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing through the monitoring station 34 at each time interval .

[0098] According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , particularly advantageous when the manufacturing plant 2 is provided with a control station 30 , at which the above-mentioned information sign is made on the ceramic substrates 3 , 8 based on a parameter chosen from tone , dimensions , geometric features , presence and quanti fication o f defects , the monitoring method comprises a reading step during which a reader, comprised in the acquisition device 33 and arranged at a monitoring station 34 , downstream of the control station 30 and more advantageously but not limitedly coinciding with at least one part of the sorting station 19 , reads the information sign . In this case , during the processing step, the processing unit 35 determines the quantity of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 ( in particular, the number or the surface of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 ) that share a same value of at least one of the above-mentioned quality parameters , thus belonging to a same quality class .

[0099] According to some advantageous but non-limiting embodiments , the monitoring method described above is carried out with a monitoring system 1 of the type described above , i . e . manufactured in accordance with any one of the embodiments mentioned above .

[0100] The monitoring method and the monitoring system 1 of the present invention have numerous advantages , among which the following are mentioned .

[0101] The monitoring method and the monitoring system 1 of the present invention allow monitoring in a totally automatic manner the productivity of a manufacturing plant 2 for manufacturing ceramic products 3 of any type , with all the connected advantages in terms of improvement of the ef ficiency and minimisation of the errors with respect to the manual monitoring .

[0102] More in particular, the monitoring method and the monitoring system 1 of the present invention allow monitoring one or more points of such manufacturing plant 2 , extrapolating representations of such points and analysing them in an automatic manner , as explained above , in order to obtain at least data on the surface and / or on the number of ceramic substrates 3 , 8 passing in the analysis zone and on their format , in particular in the monitoring station 34 . Furthermore , the monitoring method and the monitoring system 1 of the present invention allow monitoring at least the productivity of the manufacturing plant 2 regardless of the types of machines used, being totally independent of the machines or of the components of the manufacturing plant 2 , in fact the processing unit 35 and the control assembly CU do not require performing the estimations described above of input data by the components of the manufacturing plant .

[0103] Furthermore , by putting in relation or analysing the data obtained by means of the monitoring method and the monitoring system 1 of the present invention, it will be possible , for example by means of the specially provided control assembly CU described above , to identi fy possible critical points of the manufacturing plant 2 for manufacturing ceramic products 3 , for example from the point of view of the productivity, thus of the stations at which there is a fall in productivity or a high number of rej ects , or even from the energy point of view, by putting the obtained data in relation with the consumption of the various components of the manufacturing plant 2 .

[0104] Furthermore , the monitoring system 1 of the present invention being totally independent of the manufacturing plant 2 , is suitable for a quick and simple plug and play installation; it does not require complex configurations and / or installations , nor does it require substantial modi fications to the manufacturing plant 2 for manufacturing ceramic products 3 . Furthermore , it can be easily integrated with other detection systems and / or replaceable without this compromising the productivity of the manufacturing plant 2 .

Claims

CLAIMS1. A monitoring system (1) for monitoring a manufacturing plant (2) for manufacturing ceramic products (3) , said manufacturing plant (2) comprising: at least one forming assembly (4) arranged at a forming station (5) and configured to form a plurality of base ceramic articles (8) ; a kiln (24) for firing said base ceramic articles (8) and obtaining ceramic products (3) , a conveyor assembly (18) configured to transport a plurality of ceramic substrates comprising (in particular, consisting of; more in particular, coinciding with) said base ceramic articles (8) and / or said ceramic products (3) along a given path (P) in an advancing direction (A) from said forming station (5) to a sorting station (19) through at least one treatment station (20) and a firing station (23) , and a control assembly (CU) ; the monitoring system (1) comprises: at least one acquisition device (33) , which is arranged at a monitoring station (34) along said given path (P) , is configured to acquire, at given time intervals, at least one representation of at least one part of said monitoring station (34) ; and a processing unit (35) configured to estimate, based on said representation, at least one data item on the quantity (in particular, at least on the surface of the ceramic substrate (3, 8) ) and on the format (in particular, at least on the plan shape and possibly also on the thickness) of the ceramic substrates (3, 8) passing in said monitoring station (34) at each time interval, and send a corresponding signal to said control assembly (CU) configured to estimate data at least on the productivity of the manufacturing plant (2) based on the received signals; said processing unit (35) being further configured tocompare the representations obtained from said acquisition device (33) with one another at successive time intervals and to determine, by difference: a change in the format of the ceramic substrate (3, 8) passing in said monitoring station (34) and / or an interruption in the passing of ceramic substrates (3, 8) and / or an irregularity in the passing of ceramic substrates and / or a change in the type of ceramic substrates (3, 8) passing in said monitoring station (34) and to generate a corresponding signal and send it to said control assembly (CU) .

2. The monitoring system (1) according to claim 1, wherein said at least one acquisition device (33) comprises (in particular, consists of) at least one viewing system (37) configured to acquire at least one two-dimensional image of said at least one part of said monitoring station (34) ; said at least one representation comprising (in particular, coinciding with) said two-dimensional image.

3. The monitoring system (1) according to claim 2, wherein said processing unit (35) is configured to analyse each two-dimensional image by means of at least one first target object tracking algorithm chosen from the group of algorithms comprising: image segmentation algorithms; algorithms for tracking complex objects through machine learning; background subtraction algorithms; algorithms for identifying and tracking characteristic points of the target object; tracking algorithms based on geometric or mathematical models.

4. The monitoring system (1) according to claim 3, wherein said first algorithm comprises (in particular, coincides with) a second artificial intelligence algorithm and said processing unit (35) is configured to train said second artificial intelligence algorithm by means of aplurality of images representative of different stations of said given path (P) , within which the background is identified and separated from the ceramic substrates.

5. The monitoring system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said at least one acquisition device (33) comprises (in particular, consists of) : an emitter configured to emit a beam of light rays onto said at least one part of said monitoring station (34) and a receiver configured to receive, at each time interval, a beam reflected by said at least one part of said monitoring station (34) and to reconstruct at least one profile of said ceramic substrates (3, 8) passing through said monitoring station (34) at each time interval; said at least one representation comprising (in particular, coinciding with) said profile.

6. The monitoring system (1) according to claim 5, wherein: said emitter is arranged and configured so as to emit said beam of light rays so that it intercepts said conveyor assembly along a strip that is transverse, in particular orthogonal, to said advancing direction (A) ; and said receiver comprises (in particular, consists of) an optical sensor configured to capture said reflected beam and to estimate, by means of triangulation techniques, the distance of each reflection point from said receiver so as to reconstruct a three-dimensional profile of said ceramic substrates (3, 8) passing in said monitoring station (34) at each time interval; said at least one representation comprising (in particular, coinciding with) said three- dimensional profile.

7. The monitoring system (1) according to claim 5, wherein: said emitter is configured to emit a laser light beam; and said receiver comprises a counter for estimatingthe time between the emission of said beam of light rays and the acquisition of the reflected beam and is configured to reconstruct a two-dimensional profile of the ceramic substrates (3, 8) passing in said monitoring station (34) at each time interval based on said time; said at least one representation comprising (in particular, coinciding with) said two-dimensional profile.

8. The monitoring system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, comprising a sensor configured to detect the motion of said conveyor assembly (18) at least at said monitoring station (34) and configured to process a signal related (in particular, proportional) to the speed and / or position of the conveyor assembly; said acquisition device (33) being configured to acquire said at least one representation of at least one part of said monitoring station (34) with an acquisition frequency as a function of said signal.

9. The monitoring system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims wherein: said manufacturing plant (2) comprises at least one control station (30) , which is arranged upstream of said sorting station (19) along said given path (P) at which an information sign is made on said substrates based on a parameter chosen at least from the following ones: tone, dimensions, geometric features, presence and quantification of defects; said monitoring station (34) is arranged downstream of said control station (30) along said given path (P) ; said acquisition device (33) comprises a reader configured to read said information sign; and said processing unit (35) is configured to determine, based on what said reader reads, the quantity of ceramicsubstrates (3, 8) (in particular, the number or the surface of ceramic substrates (3, 8) ) that share a same value of at least one of said parameters.

10. The monitoring system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, comprising a plurality of acquisition devices (33) , each arranged at a corresponding monitoring station (34) and each in communication with the remaining acquisition devices (33) and / or with a control unit (which can coincide with said processing unit) , if necessary located in a remote position; in particular, each one of said corresponding monitoring stations (34) comprises (in particular, coincides with) at least one part of at least one of said forming station (5) , said at least one treatment station (20) , said sorting station (19) and said firing station (23) .

11. A monitoring method for monitoring a manufacturing plant (2) for manufacturing ceramic products (3) , said manufacturing plant (2) comprising: at least one forming assembly (4) arranged at a forming station (5) and configured to form a plurality of base articles (8) ; at least one kiln (24) for firing said base articles (8) at a temperature of at least about 1200°C and obtaining ceramic products (3) , a conveyor assembly (18) configured to transport a plurality of ceramic substrates (3, 8) comprising (in particular, consisting of; more in particular, coinciding with) said base ceramic articles (8) and / or said ceramic products (3) along a given path (P) in an advancing direction (A) from said forming station (5) to a sorting station (19) , and a control assembly (CU) ; the monitoring method comprises the following steps: an advancing step, during which said conveyor assembly moves said ceramic substrates (3, 8) along said given path(P) from said forming station (5) to said sorting station (19) , passing through at least one treatment station (20) , a drying station (21) and a firing station (23) ; an acquisition step, which is at least partially simultaneous with said advancing step and during which at least one acquisition device, which is arranged at a corresponding monitoring station (34) along said given path (P) , acquires, at given time intervals, at least one representation of at least one part of said monitoring station (34) ; and at least one processing step, which is at least partially subsequent to said acquisition step and during which a processing unit (35) estimates, based on said representation, at least one data item on the quantity (in particular, at least on the surface) and on the format (in particular, at least on the plan shape and possibly also on the thickness) of the ceramic substrates (3, 8) passing in said monitoring station (34) at each time interval and sends a corresponding signal to said control assembly (CU) , which, based on the received signals, estimates data at least on the productivity of the manufacturing plant (2) ; wherein, during said processing step, said processing unit (35) compares the representations obtained from said acquisition device (33) at successive time intervals so as to determine a change in the type of ceramic substrates (3, 8) passing in said monitoring station (34) and / or a change in the format of the ceramic substrate (3, 8) passing through said monitoring station (34) and / or an interruption in the passing of ceramic substrates (3, 8) and / or an irregularity in the passing of ceramic substrates (3, 8) , generates a corresponding signal and sends it to said control assembly (CU) .

12. The monitoring method according to claim 11, wherein : during said acquisition step, a viewing system, which is comprised in said acquisition device (33) , acquires at least one two-dimensional image of said at least one part of said monitoring station (34) ; said two-dimensional image coinciding with said representation; and said processing step comprises an image analysis substep, during which said two-dimensional image is analysed by means of at least one first target object tracking algorithm chosen from the group of algorithms comprising: image segmentation algorithms; algorithms for tracking complex objects through machine learning; algorithms for identifying and tracking characteristic points of the target object; tracking algorithms based on geometric or mathematical models; and said processing step comprises an estimation sub-step, which is at least partially subsequent to said image analysis sub-step, and during which said processing unit (35) , based on what is obtained in said image analysis sub-step, determines said data on the quantity and on the format of the ceramic substrates (3, 8) passing in said monitoring station (34) at each time interval; in particular, during said estimation sub-step, said processing unit (35) determines at least the surface and the number of ceramic substrates (3, 8) and the plan shape of the ceramic substrates (3, 8) passing in said monitoring station (34) at each time interval.

13. The monitoring method according to claim 12, wherein : said first algorithm used in said analysis sub-step comprises (in particular, coincides with) a secondartificial intelligence algorithm, and said monitoring method comprises at least one training step, which is prior to said analysis sub-step and during which said second artificial intelligence algorithm is trained with a plurality of images representative of different stations of said given path (P) , within which the background is identified and separated from the ceramic substrates .

14. The monitoring method according to any one of the claims from 11 to 13, wherein said acquisition step comprises: an emission sub-step, during which an emitter, which is comprised in said acquisition device (33) emits a beam of light rays onto said at least one part of said monitoring station (34) , said beam, by hitting said part of said monitoring station (34) , generates a reflected beam; a receiving sub-step, which is partially subsequent to the emission sub-step and during which a receiver, which is comprised in said acquisition device, receives, at each time interval, a reflected beam reflected by said at least one part of said monitoring station (34) and reconstructs at least one profile of said substrates passing through said monitoring station (34) at each time interval; said at least one representation comprising (in particular, coinciding with) said profile; said processing step comprises a profile analysis substep, during which said processing unit (35) , based on said profile, determines said data on the quantity and on the format of the ceramic substrates (3, 8) passing in said monitoring station (34) at each time interval; in particular, during said profile analysis sub-step, said processing unit (35) determines at least the surface, the number of ceramic substrates, the plan shape and thethickness of the ceramic substrates (3, 8) passing in said monitoring station (34) at each time interval.

15. The monitoring method according to any one of the claims from 11 to 14 for monitoring a manufacturing plant (2) provided with a control station (30) , which is arranged upstream of said sorting station (19) along said given path (P) at which an information sign is made on said ceramic substrates (3, 8) based on a quality parameter chosen at least from the following ones: tone, dimensions, geometric features, presence and quantification of defects; the monitoring method comprises a reading step, during which a reader, comprised in said at least one acquisition device (33) arranged at a monitoring station (34) which comprises part of (in particular, coincides with) the sorting station, reads said information code / sign; during said processing step, said processing unit (35) determines, based on what said reader reads during said reading step, the quantity of ceramic substrates (3, 8) (in particular, the number or the surface of ceramic substrates (3, 8) ) that share a same value of at least one of said parameters .

16. The monitoring method according to any one of the claims from 11 to 15 carried out with a monitoring system (1) according to any one of the claims from 1 to 10.

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