VESSEL INSPECTION DEVICE

Abstract

A vessel inspection device for examining a vessel for damage in a filling region or opening region having a bead or a bulge, which bead or bulge forms an undercut, has a camera, an objective associated with the camera, and a further optical element, which can be adjusted and fixed in place in terms of their distances from and their orientation relative to one another and relative to an image recording axis, and the optical element is a mirror in the form of a ring mirror that widens toward the camera, the longitudinal section of which, containing the image recording axis, has the form of an ellipsis portion that is inclined relative to the image recording axis and displaced radially outward, wherein the ellipsis portion has two semi-axes that deviate from one another, and the device can be moved into an inspection position relative to the vessel to be inspected for inspection of the filling region or opening region of the vessel, during every inspection procedure.

Claims

1. A vessel inspection device for examining a vessel for damage in a filling region or opening region that has a bead or a bulge, forming an undercut, said inspection device comprising: a camera, an objective assigned to the camera, and an optical element, which can be adjusted and fixed in place in terms of their distances from and orientation relative to one another and to an image recording axis, wherein the optical element is a mirror in the form of a ring mirror that widens toward the camera, the longitudinal axis of which, containing the image recording axis, has the form of an ellipsis portion that is inclined relative to the image recording axis and displaced radially outward, wherein the ellipsis portion has two semi-axes that deviate from one another, wherein the ellipsis portion is inclined by an angle relative to the image recording axis in its center, in such a manner that the ellipsis portion lies farther away from the image recording axis, and the center is displaced radially outward from the image recording axis by a distance, and wherein the inspection device can be moved into an inspection position for inspection of the filling region or the opening region of the vessel during every inspection procedure, relative to the vessel to be inspected.

2. The vessel inspection device according to claim 1, wherein a drive is provided to move at least the optical element back and forth relative to the region of interest of the vessel in order to record an image.

3. The vessel inspection device according to claim 1, wherein the optical element, a lighting device, and the camera with the objective lens form a unit that can be displaced as a whole along the image recording axis.

4. The vessel inspection device according to claim 3, wherein the lighting device is set up for illuminating the region of interest behind the undercut either directly or indirectly.

5. The vessel inspection device according to claim 3, wherein the lighting device is affixed at one end of a tubular section, at both ends of the tubular section or along the expanse of the tubular section.

6. The vessel inspection device according to claim 1, wherein the vessel inspection device is set up and suitable for inspecting different vessels, in that the optical element is disposed at one end of a tubular section, which carries the camera with its objective lens at its other end, wherein the camera optics and the optical element are structured so that they can be longitudinally displaced relative to one another and/or inclined relative to the image recording axis, and fixed in place in the desired focus position.

7. The vessel inspection device according to claim 5, wherein the optical element or the camera are accommodated at the end of the tubular section in replaceable and locking manner, while maintaining the focusing position or adjustment position, and wherein the optical element is disposed at the end of the tubular section that lies away from the camera, and a ring provided between the optical element and the end of the tubular section, having at least part of the lighting device, is provided.

8. The vessel inspection device according to claim 1, wherein the vessel to be inspected is disposed or held on a respective processing machine in a non-movable manner, when the inspection device is moved into the inspection position relative to the vessel to be inspected.

9. The vessel inspection device according to claim 1, wherein the camera has an objective lens composed of one or more lenses, and the camera with the objective lens defines the image recording axis along the optical axis of the camera and the objective lens, which axis aligns with the center longitudinal axis of the vessel when it is in the inspection position.

10. The vessel inspection device according to claim 5, wherein the tubular section with the optical element at the end of the tubular section and of the lighting device on the camera and its objective lens are disposed in such a manner that the optical element lies away from the camera at the end of the tubular section, and wherein at least the optical element encloses a cavity, at least in part, which cavity is dimensioned in such a manner that a region of interest on the vessel behind the undercut in the direction of the filling region or the opening region can dip into this cavity, at least by a certain distance, so that the inspection device and the region of interest on the vessel assume the inspection position relative to one another.

11. The vessel inspection device according to claim 8, wherein a teaser wheel or a nippers turntable is provided, in which the vessel to be inspected is firmly disposed on the processing machine in an inspection position.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0033] Further goals, characteristics, advantages, and use possibilities are evident from the following description of exemplary embodiments, which are not to be understood as being restrictive, making reference to the related drawings. In this regard, all the characteristics described and/or shown in the figures form the object being disclosed here, individually or in any desired combination, even independent of their grouping in the claims or their antecedents. The dimensions and proportions of the components shown in the figures are not necessarily to scale, in this regard; they can deviate from what is illustrated here, in the case of embodiments to be implemented.

[0034] The device and method details explained above are presented in context. However, it should be pointed out that in each instance, they are also independent of one another and can also be freely combined with one another.

[0035] FIG. 1 illustrates a variant of an inspection device in a lateral schematic sectional view, with a vessel situated in an inspection position, wherein the optical element has a cross-section of an ellipsis portion displaced radially outward and inclined.

[0036] FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate geometrical conditions and particularities of the optical element.

[0037] FIG. 4 illustrates a path/time diagram of a possible movement of the inspection device into/out of the inspection position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0038] The vessel inspection device 10 presented here will be explained using the figures. In this regard, a number of variants is possible, which, although they are not presented in detail in connection with the figures, are disclosed in the remainder of the specification.

[0039] A vessel inspection device 10 illustrated schematically in FIG. 1 serves for examining a vessel, such as a (beverage) can 12 partially illustrated in FIG. 1, with regard to damage in a filling region or opening region 12b having a bead 12a or bulge, which bead or bulge forms an undercut 12c. The inspection device 10 has a camera 14 having an image recording element CCD, an objective lens 16 assigned to the camera 14, and a further optical element in the form of a mirror 20, which will be explained in detail below. These components 14-20 of the inspection device 10 can also be adjusted and fixed in place with regard to their distances from and orientation relative to one another and to an image recording axis BA, as will still be explained in detail below.

[0040] The optical element, in other words the mirror 20, a lighting device 30, and the camera 14 with the objective lens 16 form a unit that can be displaced as a whole along the image recording axis BA.

[0041] The mirror 20 is disposed at one end (on the left in FIG. 1) of a tubular section 22, which section carries the camera 14 with its objective lens 16 at its other end (on the right in FIG. 1), wherein the camera 14 and the optical element 20 are configured so that they can be displaced relative to one another and/or inclined relative to the image recording axis BA, and fixed in place in the desired focus position. The camera 14 is accommodated in the tubular section 22 so as to be displaceable along the image recording axis BA, and in the variant shown here, it can be fixed in place in the desired position and location by means of multiple adjustment and fixation screws 24 disposed distributed over the circumference of the tubular section 22.

[0042] An electrical, pneumatic or hydraulic linear drive 26 is articulated onto the tubular section 22 in order to move the inspection device 10 back and forth for recording an image, relative to the region of interest in the filling region or opening region 12b of the vessel 12.

[0043] The geometrical conditions and particularities of the optical system, in other words of the mirror, will be explained by making reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the mirror 20 has the form of a ring mirror that widens toward the camera 14. This ring mirror has a mirror surface on its inside. This mirror surface has rotation symmetry. Its generatrix is a portion of an ellipsis that has two semi-axes a, b that deviate from one another. The ellipsis is inclined relative to the image recording axis BA, in its center Z, by an angle alpha, in such a manner that the portion EA of the ellipsis lies father away from the image recording axis BA (see FIG. 3). Furthermore, the center Z of the ellipsis, inclined by an angle alpha, is displaced radially outward from the image recording axis BA by a distance h. The portion EA of the ellipsis, positioned relative to the image recording axis BA in this manner, forms the generatrix of the mirror surface of the mirror 20, which surface can be thought of as having been formed by means of rotation of this generatrix about the image recording axis BA. The angle alpha by which the ellipsis, or, to state it more precisely, the portion EA of the ellipse is inclined, and the distance h, by which the ellipsis is displaced radially outward from the image recording axis BA, depend, among other things, on the dimensions of the vessel to be examined, the shape and the dimensions of the filling region or opening region 12b to be inspected, and the undercut 12c. The ring mirror 20 encloses a cavity HR, at least in part, which cavity is dimensioned in such a manner that a region of interest on the vessel 12, behind the undercut 12c in the direction of the filling region or opening region 12b, can dip into this cavity HR at least by a certain distance, so that the inspection device 10 and the region of interest on the vessel 12 assume the inspection position relative to one another.

[0044] The angle alpha, the distance h, as well as the semi-axes a, b are established in such a manner that the focus F1 of the ellipsis, which lies close to the portion EA of the ellipsis, lies behind the undercut to be inspected, and the second focus F2 of the ellipsis lies in the intermediate focus through which the light beams that come from the undercut pass when they are focused on the image recording element CCD by the objective. Details in this regard can be derived from FIG. 1-3.

[0045] In the variant illustrated in FIG. 1, a ring 28 having a lighting device 30 in the form of a plurality of light sources (e.g. LEDs) disposed on the inner circumference of the ring 28 is placed between the mirror 20 and the tubular section 22. This lighting device 30 serves to illuminate the region of interest behind the undercut 12c, either directly or indirectly (by way of the mirror surface). Depending on the structural conditions or the optical properties of the vessel 12 to be inspected (material, reflection properties or absorption properties), the lighting device 30 can also be affixed at both ends of the tubular section 22 or along the expanse of the tubular section 22, in variants not illustrated further here.

[0046] One or more LED light rings that emit their light onto a diffuse surface, in each instance, are situated in the lighting device, in order to produce as homogeneous a light as possible on the surface of the vessel. All the LEDs are operated in pulsed manner in one variant. In the variant illustrated in FIG. 1, the light sources emit light both directly onto the cover surface of the filling region or opening region and onto the torus-shaped side surface of the bead or the bulge, and onto the ring-shaped undercut (=rear side/underside of the bead).

[0047] The recorded image then shows three views, the top view from above onto the cover surface of the filling region or opening region, the torus-shaped side surface of the bead or of the bulge, and the ring-shaped undercut (=rear side/underside of the bead): The details of the undercut can only be recorded in that the edge of the ring mirror that faces the vessel 12 is situated correspondingly far behind the bead or the bulge of the filling region or opening region.

[0048] In variants other than the one shown here, it is provided that the light ring emits light that is reflected in the housing, and that a second light ring emits light directly in the direction of the vessel. The entire arrangement moves toward the can and is moved until the rear side of the bead can also be recorded.

[0049] Particularly in order to be able to inspect different vessels, the mirror 20 is disposed at one end of the tubular section 22, and the tubular section 22 carries the camera 14 with its objective lens 16 at its other end. Both the camera optics and the mirror are configured, in other variants, so as to be moved longitudinally relative to one another by means of bayonet closures, micro-threads, or the like. Furthermore, both the camera optics and the mirror can be structured so that they can be inclined relative to the image recording axis BA and fixed in place in the desired focus position. All the optical components (objective lens, camera optics, mirror, lighting device, if applicable) are always fixed relative to one another and are only changed in terms of their position and orientation relative to one another for adjustment purposes, for example.

[0050] Thus, the optical element 20 and/or the camera 14 with the objective lens 16 can be accommodated at the end of the tubular section in lockable and interchangeable manner, while maintaining the focus position or adjustment position.

[0051] In order to obtain the most precise and meaningful inspection result possible, the vessels 12 to be inspected are disposed or held on a respective processing machine in non-movable manner when the inspection device 10 is moved into the inspection position relative to the vessel 12 to be inspected, in each instance.

[0052] The camera and its objective lens define the image recording axis BA along the optical axis of the camera and of the objective lens, which axis aligns with the center longitudinal axis of the vessel 12 to be inspected when it is situated in the inspection position.

[0053] The inspection device 10 described above can be moved into/out of the inspection position at comparatively greater speed than conventional arrangements (for example known from DE 10 2010 032 410 A1), by means of the compact and reliable fixation of the positions and orientations of the components of the inspection device 10 relative to one another and to the vessel 12 to be inspected. While a fixed spatial relationship between the vessel in its inspection position and the camera is absolutely necessary in the case of this arrangement, the arrangement disclosed here provides for mounting the camera on the tubular section in fixed manner, and adjusting it in such a manner that it is always adjusted on the tubular section with regard to the ring mirror (and the lighting). Fixation and positioning of the vessels, which is not always precise in the prior art, can be at least partially compensated by the arrangement presented here.

[0054] The arrangement presented here, with a movable, in other words not permanently spatially fixed camera, is the better solution as compared with a locally fixed camera and a movable mirror, at least in some situations, because here, the adjustment of the camera with regard to the ring mirror is established, while in the case of the movable mirror and the fixed camera, this adjustment must be found again every time the inspection position is approached.

[0055] Furthermore, it is possible, using the arrangement disclosed here, to produce an image of the region of interest, using the camera, when the entire inspection device 10 is in motion, in other words when the ring mirror is moving toward the vessel in order to allow it to dip into the cavity (click in FIG. 4 is the exposure period, in each instance), or when the inspection device 10 is moving away from the vessel, or when the inspection device 10 is standing still relative to the vessel. Image recording always takes place during the time period during which the vessel is surrounded by the ring mirror. If the vessel is recognized as being defective, it is ejected from the production process at a later point in time (for example blown out).

[0056] The variants of the vessel inspection device described above, as well as their structural and operational aspects, merely serve for a better understanding of their structure, their method of operation, and their properties; they do not restrict the disclosure to the exemplary embodiments, for example. The figures are partly schematic, with essential properties and effects being shown dearly magnified, in part, in order to illustrate the functions, principles of action, technical embodiments and characteristics. In this regard, every method of functioning, every principle, every technical embodiment, and every characteristic in the text and in the other figures can be freely and optionally combined with other methods of functioning, principles, technical embodiments, and characteristics that are contained in or evident from this disclosure, so that all possible combinations of the vessel inspection device can be associated. In this regard, combinations of all the individual explanations in the text, in other words in every section of the specification, in the claims, and also combinations of different variants in the text, in the claims, and in the figures are also included. The claims also do not limit the disclosure and thereby the combination possibilities of all the characteristics indicated, with one another. All the characteristics disclosed are explicitly also disclosed here individually and in combination with all the other characteristics.