Automated inspection technology is integrated with a cylindrical container print decorator machine to optimize the decoration process by making critical process and machine information properly and immediately available for corrective adjustments to the process. With this information, a high speed decoration machine operator will be made directly aware of the portions or subsystems of the decorator machine not functioning properly. The information directly facilitates, and can even recommend, corrective adjustments that are necessary to the decorator to better optimize printing functions. It is possible to use this information to optimize the operation of the decorator. It is possible to use this information by way of a properly configured control system, after specific augmentation capabilities are added to the decorator machine, to automatically close the loops with specific decorator printing machine parts or subsystems to dramatically improve the decorating process even while the machine is printing.

The present invention provide a full-servo label inspection machine and a control method thereof; the machine includes a frame, the frame is provided with an unrolling mechanism, a rolling mechanism, a visual inspection mechanism, a label removal mechanism, and a label replacement mechanism. In the label removal mechanism, when the paper pressing roller is at the label removal position, it presses the material to be inspected downwards to form an angle of less than 180 with the rear end of a label removal plate. After a defective label on the material to be inspected passes the label removal plate, a front end of the defective label curls up and eventually sticks onto the label removal paper. The present invention allows fully automation of the removal and replacement of labels, achieving high inspection efficiency and accuracy.

An inspection system according to the present invention includes: an abnormality detector that performs automatic inspection for detecting an abnormality on the basis of a read image obtained by causing a reader to read an image that is formed on a recording medium by executing a print job; and a hardware processor that, when the abnormality is detected in the automatic inspection, causes the reader to perform specific shading operation involving cleaning the reader after stopping the print job but before restarting the print job, wherein the specific shading operation is performed in a shorter time than normal shading operation involving cleaning the reader, the normal shading operation being performed except when the abnormality is detected in the automatic inspection.

A printed object management apparatus (10) is provided with: a line sensor (11); a spectrophotometer (12); an area camera (13); a print quality-inspecting unit (10A) for inspecting the quality of the overall pattern of a printed object (9) on the basis of data input from the line sensor (11); a print density controlling unit (10B) for controlling, on the basis of data input from the spectrophotometer (12), the amount of ink supplied so that the ink density equals the reference density; and an inter-color registering unit (10C) for detecting register marks printed on the printed object (9) on the basis of data input from the area camera (13) and aligning the patterns between the various colors. The apparatus is configured so as to support the line sensor (11), the spectrophotometer (12) and the area camera (13) on a single scanning head (10b).

The disclosure relates to a method for processing an object, in which a printed image is printed onto the object by a digital printing facility and the object is then further processed in at least one work station. The at least one work station being controlled by an electric control unit, where at least one control character is applied to the object by the digital printing facility, the control character being detected in or upstream of the work station by at least one sensor and transmitted to the electric control unit, which controls the at least one work station depending on the control character transmitted.

The present invention relates to a print quality inspection apparatus comprising: an illuminator (35 or 35A-35C) for irradiating light onto a printout (1) provided with a motion thread (1b) ; a camera (34 or 34A) for capturing an image of the printout; and a print quality inspection unit (10) for inspecting the print quality of the printout (1) on the basis of image data captured by the camera (34 or 34A). The camera (34) captures images of printouts (1) for each RGB color, and the print quality inspection unit (10) performs a print quality inspection having a scope that includes the motion thread (1b) on the basis of image data of a color of the same hue as the color of the motion thread (1b), or the illuminator (35A-35C) emits a color of the same hue as the color of the motion thread (1b), and the monochrome camera (34A) captures a monochrome image.

Monitoring device (50, 52) for monitoring a plurality of containers (10) which have been printed with at least one first image element (B1-B8) by a direct printing machine (20), having a transport device (40) which supplies and/or discharges the printed containers (10) to be monitored along a predefined transport path, in particular individually and successively, to the monitoring device (50, 52), wherein the monitoring device (50, 52) monitors the printed containers (10) at least with respect to the first image element (B1-B8) applied by the direct printing machine (20), and has a memory device (53) which stores the at least one set of first image elements (B1-B8) to be monitored. According to the invention, for each container (10) to be monitored, the monitoring device (50, 52) carries out monitoring taking into account at least one image element (B1-B8) uniquely assigned to this container (10) to be monitored from the set of first image elements (B1-B8) to be monitored.

A feedback information generation method for a solder inspection apparatus includes: receiving an input of information on the number of buffers which are disposed between the solder inspection apparatus and a screen printer for printing solder on printed circuit boards and are configured to support the printed circuit boards to be introduced into the solder inspection apparatus so as to put the printed circuit boards on standby; generating feedback information by using the input information and an inspection result of the printed circuit boards by the solder inspection apparatus; and transmitting the feedback information to the screen printer. Feedback information may be generated in consideration of the number of buffers, thereby preventing the feedback information from being excessively generated as well as ensuring the accuracy of the feedback information.

The application concerns a method of authenticating an object, the object comprising an identification substance including at least one amorphous phase, at least one crystalline phase and at least one complex metallic phase. The method includes the steps of: subjecting the identification substance of a candidate object to XRD analysis to determine an XRD signature thereof; comparing the XRD signature of the candidate object to a reference XRD signature, and concluding to the authenticity of the object when its XRD signature substantially matches the reference XRD signature.

To perform an image inspection even when an image formation device performs image processing or image editing. An image inspection device according to one aspect of the present invention includes: an image reader that reads a sheet formed with an image formed by an image former to acquire a read image; a document image acquisition portion that acquires a document image; an inspection target region specifier that specifies a print region in a recording material based on an image formation condition for a document image and specifies an inspection region in the read image based on the specified print region; and an image inspector that compares an image in an inspection region with an image in an inspection-region comparable region corresponding to the inspection region in the document image.