Infrared Detection of Ceramic Slab Defects
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for detecting surface defects on ceramic slabs after grinding, lapping, and polishing are inefficient and costly, requiring manual visual examination by experienced personnel and cannot be performed in-line without slowing down the production process, leading to increased waste and substandard products.
Innovation Solution
A device comprising a conveyor system with a detection apparatus that uses an infrared light source and high-resolution optical scanning to identify defects on moving ceramic slabs, allowing for precise and accurate identification of scratches, grooves, and other imperfections without interrupting the production line.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If manual visual examination by experienced personnel is used to detect surface defects, then detection accuracy can be maintained, but productivity decreases and production time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the manual visual examination system (human operators) with an automated optical detection system comprising light sources, sensors, and image processing units. This substitution maintains high detection accuracy through electronic imaging and analysis while eliminating the productivity constraints of manual inspection, enabling continuous high-speed operation of the polishing line.
Solution Approach 2:
The detection system creates optical copies (images) of the slab surface using light sources and sensors. These digital representations allow for rapid automated analysis of surface defects without requiring physical contact or slowing down the moving slab, thereby maintaining both high accuracy and productivity.
2Productivity
If in-line defect detection is implemented without slowing down the production line, then productivity is maintained, but measurement precision may deteriorate due to motion blur or insufficient exposure time
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses periodic pulsing of light sources synchronized with the slab motion and corresponding activation of sensors. This periodic action allows for brief but intense illumination periods that capture sharp images of the moving surface, maintaining measurement precision while keeping the overall process continuous and productive.
Solution Approach 2:
The detection system operates continuously alongside the polishing line without interrupting slab movement. Multiple sensors and light sources are arranged to provide continuous coverage along the production line, ensuring that defect detection occurs throughout the entire process without stopping or slowing production.
3Measurement precision
If comprehensive defect detection covering the entire slab surface is performed, then measurement completeness improves, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The detection system divides the large slab surface into multiple detection zones covered by arrays of sensors and light sources. Each sensor captures a portion of the surface, and the individual measurements are digitally combined to create a complete map of the entire slab, achieving comprehensive coverage through systematic segmentation rather than requiring a single complex sensor.
Solution Approach 2:
The detection system uses universal components (standard light sources, common sensor types, generic image processing algorithms) that can detect multiple types of surface defects (scratches, pores, color variations, dimensional irregularities) with a single integrated setup, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining comprehensive detection capability.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables efficient and comprehensive defect detection on entire slabs in real-time, reducing waste and improving product quality by identifying defects automatically and alerting production personnel to anomalies, thus optimizing the cutting process and minimizing second-class products.
Implementation Method 1
uses an infrared light source and high-resolution optical scanning to identify defects on moving ceramic slabs
Implementation Method 2
uses an infrared light source and high-resolution optical scanning to identify defects on moving ceramic slabs
Data Source
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AI summary
A device for the detection of polishing defects on a moving slab comprising: - a support plane on which at least one slab passes along an advancement direction parallel to the support plane; - at least one detection apparatus, wherein the detection apparatus is arranged above the support plane, at a non-zero distance therefrom, wherein the detection apparatus comprises an LED light source configured to emit a light beam in the infra-red range directed along a prevailing emission direction incident upon the support plane to illuminate at least a portion of a visible surface of the slab in transit across the support plane, and a detection sensor configured to detect an image of the visible surface of a slab in transit across the support plane illuminated by the light source.