Shredded Metal Sorting via 3D Surface Wrinkle Analysis

Solution Overview

Problem

Existing methods for sorting shredded metal pieces based on additive metal content percentage are complex and inefficient, requiring multiple measured values and complicated computation processes, making it difficult to process a large number of pieces concurrently.

Innovation Solution

A sorting device and method that utilizes an acquisition unit to acquire surface information, an image processing unit to calculate the wrinkle percentage on the shredded piece surface, and a sorting unit to sort the pieces based on this percentage, leveraging the correlation between additive metal content and surface wrinkles.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If multiple measured values and complicated computation processing are used to determine additive metal content, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity and processing time increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveadditive metal content detection accuracyVSAvoidsensor configuration complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The invention extracts only the essential surface shape information from the shredded piece, ignoring other unnecessary measured values. By focusing solely on surface wrinkles and their characteristics, the system achieves adequate measurement precision without requiring multiple sensors or complex multi-parameter measurements.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The invention replaces complex computational processing with a simpler image-based analysis approach. Instead of using multiple measured values requiring complicated computation, the system uses surface image acquisition and wrinkle pattern recognition, which requires less computational overhead while maintaining sufficient accuracy for sorting purposes.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

2Measurement precision

If multiple measured values and complicated computation processing are used to determine additive metal content, then measurement precision is improved, but productivity decreases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveadditive metal content detection accuracyVSAvoidshredded piece sorting efficiency

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The invention extracts only the essential surface shape information from the shredded piece, ignoring other unnecessary measured values. By focusing solely on surface wrinkles and their characteristics, the system achieves adequate measurement precision without requiring multiple sensors or complex multi-parameter measurements.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The invention replaces complex computational processing with a simpler image-based analysis approach. Instead of using multiple measured values requiring complicated computation, the system uses surface image acquisition and wrinkle pattern recognition, which requires less computational overhead while maintaining sufficient accuracy for sorting purposes.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

3Device complexity

If a simple detection method is used to identify additive metal content, then device complexity is reduced, but measurement precision deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesensor configuration simplicityVSAvoidadditive metal content detection accuracy

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The invention uses surface wrinkle patterns as a visual indicator (analogous to color change) of additive metal content. Different wrinkle patterns and densities correspond to different metal compositions, allowing simple image-based detection to provide sufficient measurement precision for sorting without complex instrumentation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #32Color changes

Solution Approach 2:

The invention changes the detection parameter from direct metal composition analysis to surface wrinkle characteristic analysis. This parameter transformation allows simple imaging devices to effectively detect additive metal content indirectly through wrinkle patterns, maintaining adequate precision while simplifying the detection system.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentEP3517933B1Sorting device and sorting method

Publication Date: 2026.04.22 EARTHTECHNICA CO LTD

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Figure 3(a)~3(b)

AI summary

Provided is a sorting device (1) that sorts a shredded piece in accordance with an additive metal content percentage in the shredded piece, the sorting device (1) having the following configuration. The sorting device (1) includes a three-dimensional camera (52), an image processing unit (24), and a sorting unit (15). The three-dimensional camera (52) acquires surface information that is information about a surface shape of a shredded piece. The image processing unit (24) calculates a wrinkle percentage that is the percentage of a portion where wrinkle is generated among a shredded piece surface, based on the surface information acquired by the three-dimensional camera (52). The sorting unit (15) sorts the shredded piece based on the wrinkle percentage detected by the image processing unit (24).