Infrared Inspection of EVOH Containers With Inclined Walls
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing inspection systems for objects with inclined walls, such as coffee pods, suffer from positioning inaccuracies and unreliable infrared imaging due to misalignment and incomplete capture of infrared emissions, leading to inconsistent and unreliable quality control.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus and method that includes a conveyor system to align objects with a predetermined orientation, an imaging device capturing infrared rays within a specific wavelength range, a deflecting system to correct infrared ray inclination, and a processor to generate diagnostic images, along with thermal control and filtering to enhance precision and reliability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the conveyor positions the object during feeding, then the object can be transported to the inspection zone, but positioning inaccuracies occur leading to unreliable inspection
Solution Approach 1:
The object is fed along a feed plane to a predetermined inspection position before actual inspection occurs. This preliminary positioning ensures the object is correctly oriented and located in the inspection zone, eliminating positioning inaccuracies during the inspection process itself.
2Device complexity
If the camera captures infrared emissions directly, then the inspection process is simple, but inclined walls cause incomplete capture of emissions
Solution Approach 1:
A deflecting system comprising reflective elements is introduced as an intermediary between the inclined object and the camera. This deflecting system redirects infrared emissions from inclined walls into the camera's field of vision, ensuring complete capture without complicating the overall inspection process.
3Reliability
If the deflecting system redirects inclined infrared rays, then complete object coverage is achieved, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The deflecting system uses reflective elements arranged to redirect infrared rays from inclined surfaces (one dimension) into the camera's axial field of vision (another dimension). This dimensional transformation allows complete object coverage while maintaining a relatively simple system structure.
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
Ensures repeatable and reliable inspection of oxygen-impermeable layers in objects by correcting alignment issues, improving image capture, and reducing measurement noise, thereby enhancing the accuracy of quality assessment.
Implementation Method 1
the object, whose approximate temperature is known, emits rays having a wavelength that is typical of the material (in the specific case of EVOH, the wavelength of the emission is between 2 μm and 5 μm) and captured by the infrared camera
Implementation Method 2
the deflecting system comprises a plurality of reflective elements, configured to reflect the infrared rays
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3A~3B
AI summary
An apparatus (1) for inspecting an object, where the object is made up of a first layer of plastic material and a second layer of EVO or EVOH and has a base wall (A) and a side wall (B) which is inclined relative to the base wall (A), comprises: an inspection zone (10) in which the object can be placed for inspection; a conveyor (12) for feeding the object to the inspection zone (10) along a feed plane (P); an imaging device (14) configured to view the object positioned in the inspection zone (10) and to generate an image (143) of the object; a processor (151), configured to process the image (143), to inspect the second layer. The conveyor (12) is configured to dispose the object in the inspection zone (10) with the base wall (A) positioned according to a predetermined orientation relative to the feed plane (P).