Ultrasonic Medium Conveyance with Position-Sensitive Multi-Feed Detection
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing medium conveying apparatuses inaccurately detect multi-feed when dealing with media like documents with adhered photographs, leading to unnecessary disabling of the multi-feed detection function, which compromises user convenience.
Innovation Solution
A medium conveying apparatus equipped with ultrasonic sensors to detect transmission information and thickness information at multiple positions, adjusting determination sensitivity based on these measurements to accurately identify multi-feed occurrences, and executing appropriate corrective actions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If multi-feed detection function is enabled to improve detection accuracy, then multi-feed detection accuracy is improved, but false positives occur when photographs are adhered to documents
Solution Approach 1:
The document is divided into multiple measurement positions along the conveyance direction. Ultrasonic sensors measure thickness at multiple segmented positions (e.g., first position and second position) rather than a single point, allowing the system to detect multi-feed occurrences at specific locations while ignoring adhered photographs at other locations.
Solution Approach 2:
The detection system applies local quality by evaluating thickness measurements at different positions independently. The determination module judges multi-feed occurrence based on local thickness variations at each measurement position, enabling accurate detection of actual multi-feed while tolerating local thickness changes from adhered photographs.
2Ease of operation
If multi-feed detection function is disabled to avoid false positives with adhered photographs, then user convenience is improved, but multi-feed detection capability is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The ultrasonic thickness measurement system serves multiple functions: it detects both adhered photographs (by measuring thickness at multiple positions) and actual multi-feed occurrences (by comparing thickness variations across positions). This multi-functionality eliminates the need for users to disable the detection function while maintaining accuracy for both cases.
3Measurement precision
If thickness measurement is performed at multiple positions to improve detection accuracy, then multi-feed detection accuracy is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system replaces complex mechanical multi-feed detection mechanisms with ultrasonic thickness measurement. By using ultrasonic sensors to measure document thickness at multiple positions and comparing these measurements, the system achieves accurate multi-feed detection without requiring complex mechanical structures or multiple physical sensors.
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
Enhances the accuracy of multi-feed detection, reducing false positives and improving user convenience by allowing the apparatus to handle media with adhered items without disabling the multi-feed detection function.
Implementation Method 1
an ultrasonic sensor to detect transmission information of ultrasonic waves transmitted through the medium or thickness information of the medium
Data Source
AI summary
Provided are a medium conveying apparatus, a control method, and a control program to enable determining whether multi-feed of the medium has occurred with higher accuracy. A medium conveying apparatus includes a conveying module to convey a medium, a detection module to detect transmission information of ultrasonic waves transmitted through the medium or thickness information of the medium at a plurality of positions in the medium conveyed by the conveying module, a determination module to determine whether multi-feed of the medium has occurred, by comparing a value based on the transmission information or the thickness information with a threshold, for each of the plurality of positions, and a control module to execute an abnormality process when it is determined that multi-feed of the medium has occurred. The determination module changes a determination sensitivity of whether multi-feed of the medium has occurred, according to a position in the medium at which the transmission information or the thickness information has been detected by the detection module.