METHOD FOR TESTING BURNING PERFORMANCE OF DARK-COLORED CIGARETTE USING DARK-COLORED CIGARETTE PAPER

Abstract

A method for testing burning performance of a dark-colored cigarette using a dark-colored cigarette paper is provided. The dark-colored cigarette paper has a grayscale less than 255. The method includes: simulating, by a robotic arm, a cigarette smoking process and environment; acquiring, by a full-vision camera system, an image of a burn line and ash column region of the dark-colored cigarette; and analyzing a burning performance indicator of the dark-colored cigarette according to coordinate information of the burn line and ash column region. The method is based on a surface reflection characteristic of the dark-colored cigarette paper and a principle of optical reflection to light and highlight an edge of the dark-colored cigarette sample by a light source at a certain angle from a side. In this way, the method forms a chromatic aberration to localize the dark-colored cigarette sample, thereby testing the burning performance of the dark-colored cigarette sample.

Claims

1. A method for testing burning performance of a dark-colored cigarette using a dark-colored cigarette paper, wherein the dark-colored cigarette paper has a grayscale less than 255, and the method comprises: simulating, by a robotic arm, a cigarette smoking process and environment; acquiring, by a full-vision camera system, an image of a burn line and ash column region of the dark-colored cigarette; and analyzing a burning performance indicator of the dark-colored cigarette according to coordinate information of the burn line and ash column region; wherein the method comprises the following steps: 1) conducting pre-treatment on a dark-colored cigarette sample in accordance with GB/T 16447 standard before a test begins; 2) putting the dark-colored cigarette sample at a testing position, wherein an axial direction of the dark-colored cigarette sample at the testing position is perpendicular to a camera and a lighting source; the lighting source is a strip light source; and an angle A formed between a direction of light emitted by the strip light source and a direction of light received by the camera is greater than 90 and less than 150; 3) starting a software control system, a lighting system, a camera system, and a robotic arm motion system to acquire an image of the dark-colored cigarette sample before burning; and igniting the dark-colored cigarette sample, and acquiring, by the camera system, a burning image of the dark-colored cigarette sample in real time; 4) stopping acquiring the burning image of the dark-colored cigarette sample when the dark-colored cigarette sample burns to a distance of 3 mm from a tipping paper; 5) conducting a real-time burning calculation on the dark-colored cigarette sample during the test; and acquiring, by the camera, burning states of a plurality of dark-colored cigarettes at a same burning time; and 6) localizing and identifying an axial edge of the dark-colored cigarette sample in real time during the test; comparing grayscales of pixels with adjacent coordinates at an intersection of a chromatic aberration; acquiring the coordinate information of the burn line and ash column region; and analyzing the burning performance indicator of the dark-colored cigarette sample; wherein, in step (6), the axial edge of the dark-colored cigarette sample is localized and identified by: scanning a highlighted edge of the dark-colored cigarette sample from top to bottom through pixel scanning; when the grayscale of a scanned pixel changes, marking the coordinates of the pixel; and localizing the edge of the dark-colored cigarette sample based on the coordinates.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein in step 1), in order to test the burning performance of different dark-colored cigarettes under a specific condition, pre-treatment is conducted according to a set equilibrium condition, or the different dark-colored cigarettes are directly tested, so as to analyze a difference in an impact of different environmental conditions on the test of the burning performance.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein in step 3), the camera system comprises a plurality of cameras evenly distributed in a direction perpendicular to the dark-colored cigarette sample, ensuring complete image acquisition of a curved surface of an ash column of the dark-colored cigarette sample.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein in step 3), the lighting system comprises a plurality of lighting sources; each of the lighting sources is a strip light source and corresponds to a camera; and each pair of lighting source and camera meets a condition that the angle A formed between the direction of the light emitted by the strip light source and the direction of the light received by the camera is greater than 90 and less than 150.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein in step 3), after the dark-colored cigarette sample is ignited, the dark-colored cigarette sample remains in a vertical position without displacement.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein in step 4), during the test, the camera system automatically acquires the burning image of the dark-colored cigarette sample according to a time interval of 2 seconds; and the time interval is customized according to a testing requirement, with an accuracy of 0.1 seconds.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein in step 4), during the test, if the dark-colored cigarette sample is not burned to the distance of 3 mm from the tipping paper and is broken prematurely, an image acquisition requirement is not met, and a retest is conducted on a parallel sample.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein in step 4), image data within different burning lengths or image data within different burning times are acquired.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0031] The patent or application file contains at least one drawing executed in color. Copies of this patent or patent application publication with color drawing(s) will be provided by the Office upon request and payment of the necessary fee.

[0032] FIG. 1 shows positions of a lighting source, a camera, and a cigarette;

[0033] FIG. 2 shows a cigarette testing angle formed between a direction of light emitted by the lighting source and a direction of light received by the camera;

[0034] FIG. 3 shows an image of a burning black cigarette;

[0035] FIG. 4 shows an identification result of an edge of the black cigarette;

[0036] FIG. 5 shows scanning and localization of the edge of the black cigarette; and

[0037] FIG. 6 shows grayscales of commonly used black, dark brown, light brown, and multi-colored cigarette papers.

[0038] FIGS. 7A-7J show test images of cigarette samples shown in Table 1-1.

[0039] FIGS. 8A-8J show test images of cigarette samples shown in Table 1-2.

[0040] FIGS. 9A-9J show test images of cigarette samples shown in Table 2-1.

[0041] FIGS. 10A-10J show test images of cigarette samples shown in Table 2-2.

[0042] FIGS. 11A-11J show test images of cigarette samples shown in Table 3-1.

[0043] FIGS. 12A-12J show test images of cigarette samples shown in Table 3-2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0044] The following will explain the present disclosure based on specific embodiments, but the implementations of the present disclosure are not limited herein. In the embodiments, the test method without specified conditions usually follows conventional conditions and the conditions in the manual. Unless otherwise specified, the general devices, materials, reagents, etc. recommended by the manufacturer can be acquired through commercial channels. The raw materials used in the following embodiments and comparative examples are commercially available raw materials.

Embodiment 1

[0045] In this embodiment, taking a black cigarette sample with a circumference of 22.0 mm (using a cigarette paper with a grayscale of 79.08, shown in FIG. 6) as an example, the method of the present disclosure is used to test the crack rate and the grayscale of the ash column during the burning process of the black cigarette sample.

[0046] The method includes the following steps. [0047] 1) Pre-treatment is conducted on a dark-colored cigarette sample in accordance with GB/T 16447 standard before a test begins. [0048] 2) The dark-colored cigarette sample is put at a testing position, where an axial direction of the dark-colored cigarette sample at the testing position is perpendicular to a camera and a lighting source; the lighting source is a strip light source; and an angle A formed between a direction of light emitted by the strip light source and a direction of light received by the camera is greater than 90 and less than 150. [0049] 3) A software control system, a lighting system, a camera system, and a robotic arm motion system are started to acquire an image of the dark-colored cigarette sample before burning. The dark-colored cigarette sample is ignited, and a burning image of the dark-colored cigarette sample is acquired by the camera system in real time. [0050] 4) The acquisition of the burning image of the dark-colored cigarette sample is stopped when the dark-colored cigarette sample burns to a distance of 3 mm from a tipping paper. [0051] 5) A real-time burning calculation is conducted on the dark-colored cigarette sample during the test, and burning states of a plurality of dark-colored cigarettes at a same burning time are acquired by the camera. [0052] 6) An axial edge of the dark-colored cigarette sample is localized and identified in real time during the test. Grayscales of pixels with adjacent coordinates at an intersection of a chromatic aberration are compared. The coordinate information of the burn line and ash column region are acquired, and the burning performance indicator of the dark-colored cigarette sample is analyzed.

[0053] In step (6), the axial edge of the dark-colored cigarette sample is localized and identified by: scanning a highlighted edge of the dark-colored cigarette sample from top to bottom through pixel scanning; when the grayscale of a scanned pixel changes, marking the coordinates of the pixel; and localizing the edge of the dark-colored cigarette sample based on the coordinates.

[0054] Specifically, the system controls the light source to illuminate the camera's field of view, and the camera captures images. When the angle between the direction of the light emitted by the strip light source and the direction of the light received by the camera lens is greater than 90 and less than 150, the axial edge of the black cigarette sample reflects more light. The remaining curved part of the black cigarette sample reflect the surface reflected light into a space not accessible for the camera's field of view, with only some weak scattered light entering the camera's field of view. However, compared to the concentrated bright light at the edge, the weak scattered light can be ignored by controlling the lens aperture and exposure parameters of the camera. Specifically, the incident light is shown in FIG. 2.

[0055] In step 6), during image processing, the black cigarette sample is first localized. By using the above lighting method, after the image is grayed into a grayscale image, the highlighted part at the edge of the black cigarette sample produces a significant chromatic aberration from the environmental background, as shown in FIG. 3. The software recognition result is marked with a green line, as shown in FIG. 4.

[0056] Based on the chromatic aberration, the black cigarette sample is localized. Specifically, based on a region of interest (ROI) in the image, the highlighted edge of the black cigarette sample is scanned from top to bottom through pixel scanning, as shown in FIG. 5. When the grayscale of a scanned pixel changes, the coordinates of the pixel are marked. Based on the coordinates, the edge of the black cigarette sample is localized. Subsequently, various quality indicators of the black cigarette sample are detected and quantified using a same image processing algorithm as a conventional cigarette.

[0057] The tested crack rate and grayscale of the black cigarette sample are as follows:

[0058] Table 1-1 shows the tested crack rate of the black cigarette sample. A larger crack rate indicates a larger crack area of the ash column. The tested value is consistent with the actual observed value with the naked eye.

TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1-1 Black cigarette sample (circumference 22.0 mm) data table-Crack rate Serial numbers (SN) & tested values of cigarettes (Unit: %) SN 1 2 3 4 5 Test FIG. 7A FIG. 7B FIG. 7C FIG. 7D FIG. 7E image Tested 4.93 5.54 6.86 7.82 9.30 value SN 6 7 8 9 10 Test FIG. 7F FIG. 7G FIG. 7H FIG. 71 FIG. 7J image Tested 10.12 11.63 13.45 15.36 20.91 value

[0059] Table 1-2 shows the tested grayscale of the black cigarette sample. A larger grayscale indicates a whiter cigarette. However, during the test, due to the influence of sparks from the burning cone, when the cigarette is smoked, the sparks light and the overall whiteness of the cigarette is improved. Therefore, in order to ensure more accurate characterization of the grayness, it is recommended to remove the sparks part of the burning cone from the acquired analysis image. The tested value of the grayscale of the black cigarette paper is consistent with the actual observed value with the naked eye.

TABLE-US-00002 TABLE 1-2 Black cigarette sample (circumference 22.0 mm) data table-Grayscale Serial numbers (SN) & tested values of cigarettes (unit: %) SN 1 2 3 4 5 Test FIG. 8A FIG. 8B FIG. 8C FIG. 8D FIG. 8E image Tested 101.99 111.55 115.9231 121.3239 122.97 value SN 6 7 8 9 10 Test FIG. 8F FIG. 8G FIG. 8H FIG. 8I FIG. 8J image Tested 126.54 130.89 131.03 134.70 138.16 value

Embodiment 2

[0060] In this embodiment, taking a brown cigarette sample with a circumference of 22.0 mm (using a cigarette paper with a grayscale of 150.84, shown in FIG. 6) as an example, the method of the present disclosure is used to test the crack rate and the grayscale of the ash column during the burning process of the black cigarette sample. The test method is the same as that in Embodiment 1.

[0061] The tested crack rate and grayscale of the brown cigarette sample (with a circumference of 22.0 mm) are as follows:

[0062] Table 2-1 shows the tested crack rate of the brown cigarette sample. A larger crack rate indicates a larger crack area of the ash column. The tested value is consistent with the actual observed value with the naked eye.

TABLE-US-00003 TABLE 2-1 Brown cigarette sample (circumference 22.0 mm) data table-Crack rate Serial numbers (SN) & tested values of cigarettes (unit: %) SN 1 2 3 4 5 Test FIG. 9A FIG. 9B FIG. 9C FIG. 9D FIG. 9E image Tested 5.91 7.03 9.73 11.02 11.88 value SN 6 7 8 9 10 Test FIG. 9F FIG. 9G FIG. 9H FIG. 9I FIG. 9J image Tested 12.26 16.17 16.97 25.19 27.04 value

[0063] Table 2-2 shows the tested grayscale of the brown cigarette sample. A larger grayscale indicates a whiter cigarette. The tested value of the grayscale of the brown cigarette paper is consistent with the actual observed value with the naked eye.

TABLE-US-00004 TABLE 2-2 Brown cigarette sample (circumference 22.0 mm) data table-Grayscale Serial numbers (SN) & tested values of cigarettes SN 1 2 3 4 5 Test FIG. 10A FIG. 10B FIG. 10C FIG. 10D FIG. 10E image Tested 108.44 113.46 114.13 122.99 125.20 value SN 6 7 8 9 10 Test FIG. 10F FIG. 10G FIG. 10H FIG. 10I FIG. 10J image Tested 128.54 131.41 133.43 136.24 141.47 value

Embodiment 3

[0064] In this embodiment, taking a brown cigarette sample with a circumference of 24.5 mm (using a cigarette paper with a grayscale of 110.01, shown in FIG. 6) as an example, the method of the present disclosure is used to test the crack rate and the grayscale of the ash column during the burning process of the black cigarette sample. The test method is the same as that in Embodiment 1.

[0065] The tested crack rate and grayscale of the brown cigarette sample (with a circumference of 24.5 mm) are as follows:

[0066] Table 3-1 shows the tested crack rate of the brown cigarette sample. A larger crack rate indicates a larger crack area of the ash column. The tested value is consistent with the actual observed value with the naked eye.

TABLE-US-00005 TABLE 3-1 Brown cigarette sample (circumference 24.5 mm) data table-Crack rate Serial numbers (SN) & tested values of cigarettes SN 1 2 3 4 5 Test FIG. 11A FIG. 11B FIG. 11C FIG. 11D FIG. 11E image Tested 3.69 5.06 7.51 9.39 12.09 value SN 6 7 8 9 10 Test FIG. 11F FIG. 11G FIG. 11H FIG. 11I FIG. 11J image Tested 14.33 16.12 17.66 18.74 19.55 value

[0067] Table 3-2 shows the tested grayscale of the brown cigarette sample. A larger grayscale indicates a whiter cigarette. The tested value of the grayscale of the brown cigarette paper is consistent with the actual observed value with the naked eye.

TABLE-US-00006 TABLE 3-2 Brown cigarette sample (circumference 24.5 mm) data table-Grayscale Serial numbers (SN) & tested values of cigarettes SN 1 2 3 4 5 Test FIG. 12A FIG. 12B FIG. 12C FIG. 12D FIG. 12E image Tested 109.43 112.13 116.69 119.31 123.69 value SN 6 7 8 9 10 Test FIG. 12F FIG. 12G FIG. 12H FIG. 12I FIG. 12J image Tested 126.49 129.13 131.87 133.23 137.72 value