JP7516888B2 - Refractory wear evaluation device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a fireproof material wear evaluation device.

Conventionally, when evaluating the degree of wear of the refractory lining inside the steel shell of an industrial furnace such as an induction furnace, a person would enter the furnace and measure using a tape measure or the like. However, due to operational reasons, it was sometimes necessary to evaluate the wear of the refractory while the inside of the furnace was still hot, which made it difficult to ensure the safety of the evaluation work. In addition, there was also the problem that the position of the central axis of the furnace, which serves as the measurement standard, became unclear due to the wear of the refractory, making it difficult to accurately evaluate the wear of the refractory.
Patent Document 1 describes a method for evaluating the degree of wear of the refractory material lining the inside of a converter without setting a reference point. Specifically, Patent Document 1 includes a profile meter capable of measuring the distance to an imaging target in a two-dimensional imaging range of each imaging portion, and the profile meter is used to capture images from an advanced position closer to the furnace throat and a retreated position farther from the furnace throat. This makes it possible to measure the surface shape of the refractory material without setting a reference point.

JP 2018-185253 A

However, in Patent Document 1, measurements are taken using a two-dimensional camera, which makes it difficult to obtain sufficiently accurate measurements.

The present invention was made to solve these problems, and aims to provide a fireproofing wear evaluation device that can more accurately evaluate the degree of wear of fireproofing materials while ensuring safety.

The refractory wear evaluation device according to the present invention includes an imaging unit that irradiates light onto the refractory lining the inside of the steel shell of an industrial furnace to obtain data on the reflected light, a three-dimensional image data generation unit that performs a predetermined process on the reflected light data obtained by the imaging unit to generate three-dimensional image data, a plate-shaped measurement standard having a shape that allows calculation of a reference position for calculating the distance to the surface of the refractory lining the industrial furnace, a support unit that movably supports the imaging unit, and an evaluation processing unit that evaluates the wear of the refractory based on the three-dimensional image data, and the support unit moves the imaging unit so that the entire refractory and the measurement standard are included in the imaging range of the imaging unit when the measurement standard is installed in the industrial furnace, and the evaluation processing unit calculates the reference position of the industrial furnace from the shape of the measurement standard based on the three-dimensional image data in which the entire refractory and the measurement standard are included in the imaging range, and calculates the dimension from the calculated reference position to the surface of the refractory.

According to the refractory wear evaluation device of the present invention, the support unit can move the imaging unit so that the entire refractory and the measurement standard are included in the imaging range of the imaging unit when the measurement standard is installed in the industrial furnace. Therefore, safety can be ensured because there is no need for people to enter the furnace when the inside of the furnace is at a high temperature. In addition, the reference position of the industrial furnace can be calculated from the shape of the measurement standard, and the dimension from the calculated reference position to the surface of the refractory can be calculated. Therefore, even if the position of the central axis of the furnace, which is the measurement standard, becomes unclear from the outside due to wear of the refractory, the reference position can be calculated from the shape of the measurement standard. As a result, the calculated reference position can be used to more accurately evaluate the degree of wear of the refractory. Therefore, it is possible to provide a refractory wear evaluation device that can more accurately evaluate the degree of wear of the refractory while ensuring safety.

1 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a refractory wear evaluation device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a plan view illustrating a measurement standard device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

First embodiment
Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the following first embodiment. In addition, the following description and drawings are appropriately simplified for clarity of explanation.

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a refractory wear evaluation device 100 according to the first embodiment. The refractory wear evaluation device 100 is a device for evaluating the degree of wear of the refractory material 202 lined on the inside of the steel shell 201 of the industrial furnace 200. An example of the range in which the refractory material 202 is worn is shown by a dashed line in Figure 1. The industrial furnace 200 is, for example, an induction furnace as shown in Figure 1, and includes a steel shell 201, a refractory material 202, etc. The steel shell 201 includes a yoke portion 201A, a coil portion 201B, etc., and the inside of the steel shell 201 is lined with the refractory material 202. The steel shell 201 has a substantially cylindrical shape. The coil portion 201B is arranged along the inside of the approximately cylindrical yoke portion 201A. In addition, the inside of the coil portion 201B is lined with the refractory material 202 to a predetermined thickness. The bottom of the coil section 201B, surrounded by a cylinder, is also lined with refractory material 202 to a predetermined thickness. As a result, the refractory material 202 forms a melting furnace that contains metals such as copper alloys to be melted. The side opposite the bottom of the melting furnace formed by the refractory material 202 is open, and the end faces of the refractory material 202 and the steel shell 201 on the opening side of the melting furnace are referred to as the open end faces. In the present invention, the industrial furnace is not limited to the induction furnace shown in FIG. 1, and may be any furnace in which the refractory material 202 is formed inside.

As shown in FIG. 1, the fireproof material wear evaluation device 100 includes a 3D optical scanner 101 as an imaging unit, a 3D optical scanner processing device 102 as a 3D image data generating unit, a measurement standard 103, a holding unit 104, a robot arm 105 as a support unit, and a processing device 106 as an evaluation processing unit.

The 3D optical scanner 101, supported by the robot arm 105, irradiates light onto the refractory material 202 lining the inside of the steel shell 201 of the industrial furnace 200, and acquires data on the reflected light. Specifically, the 3D optical scanner 101 irradiates, for example, a line-shaped laser light while scanning the surface of the refractory material 202, and acquires data on a plurality of reflected lights by capturing the reflected light from the refractory material 202 with a camera. Note that the laser light irradiated by the 3D optical scanner 101 to the measurement object including the refractory material 202 is not limited to a line-shaped laser light, and may be, for example, light modulated to have a specific pattern (e.g., a pattern such as a striped pattern).

The 3D optical scanner processing device 102 performs a predetermined process on the multiple reflected light data acquired by the 3D optical scanner 101 to generate three-dimensional image data. For example, when the 3D optical scanner 101 irradiates the fireproof material 202 with a line-shaped laser beam, the 3D optical scanner processing device 102 calculates the distance to the measurement object (e.g., the fireproof material 202) from the reflected light data using trigonometry. Since the 3D optical scanner 101 acquires the reflected light data while scanning the surface of the fireproof material 202, the 3D optical scanner processing device 102 calculates the distance to the measurement object for the entire surface of the measurement object including the fireproof material 202. As a result, the 3D optical scanner processing device 102 generates three-dimensional image data of the measurement object including the fireproof material 202.

The measurement standard device 103 has a shape that allows calculation of a reference position for measuring a distance to the surface of the refractory material 202 lining the industrial furnace 200. FIG. 2 shows an example of the measurement standard device 103. In the example shown in FIG. 2, the measurement standard device 103 has a plurality of plate-shaped members 103A, 103B, 103C, and 103D having an annular sector shape in a plan view. In addition, the shape of the outer periphery of each of the members 103A, 103B, 103C, and 103D is a plate-shaped member having the same outer edge as an arc of a circle centered on the central axis of the industrial furnace 200. The members 103A and 103B are shaped line-symmetrical to each other, and the members 103C and 103D are shaped line-symmetrical to each other.
When the refractory wear evaluation device 100 evaluates the degree of wear of the refractory 202, the measurement standard device 103 is placed on the open end face of the refractory 202 and on the open end face of the shell 201. The shape of the inner circumference side (inner edge shape) of the measurement standard device 103 is substantially the same as the shape of the opening of the refractory 202 (melting furnace). As a result, when the measurement standard device 103 is placed on the industrial furnace 200, the measurement standard device 103 can be positioned by aligning the edge of the inner circumference side of the measurement standard device 103 with the opening of the melting furnace.
Moreover, the members 103A, 103B, 103C, and 103D are installed in this order in a clockwise direction on the industrial furnace 200. When the members 103A, 103B, 103C, and 103D are installed on the industrial furnace 200, the gap between the members 103C and 103D is larger than the gaps between the other members. As a result, a relatively large portion, such as an outlet port of the industrial furnace 200, which protrudes above the open end faces of the refractory material 202 and the shell 201 can be located between the members 103C and 103D.
2, and may have any shape that allows the reference position to be calculated according to the shape of the industrial furnace 200. Furthermore, the positioning of the measurement standard device 103 when it is installed on the industrial furnace 200 is not limited to the above-mentioned example. For example, the surface of the measurement standard device 103 facing the industrial furnace 200 may be provided with projections and recesses that can fit into the installation surface on the industrial furnace 200, thereby positioning the measurement standard device 103 when it is installed on the industrial furnace 200.

The holding portion 104 serves to prevent the measurement standard 103 installed on the industrial furnace 200 from moving.

The robot arm 105 movably supports the 3D optical scanner 101. Specifically, the robot arm 105 includes a base portion 105A, a plurality of arm portions 105B, a plurality of rotation shaft portions 105C, and a gripping portion 105D capable of gripping the 3D optical scanner 101. The robot arm 105 is operable about two or more rotation shafts.
The robot arm 105 is controlled by a control unit (not shown) to move the 3D optical scanner 101 such that the entire refractory material 202 and the measurement standard device 103 are included in the shooting range R (the range indicated by the dashed line in FIG. 1 ) of the 3D optical scanner 101, with the measurement standard device 103 installed on the industrial furnace 200. By moving the 3D optical scanner 101 by the robot arm 105, the 3D optical scanner 101 can scan the surface of the refractory material 202.
In this embodiment 1, the robot arm 105 is exemplified as a support unit according to the present invention, but the support unit according to the present invention may also be a loader (Cartesian robot) capable of operating along two or more mutually perpendicular axes.

The processing device 106 includes, for example, 3D-CAD software, and evaluates the degree of wear of the refractory material 202 based on the three-dimensional image data generated by the 3D optical scanner processing device 102. Specifically, the processing device 106 calculates the position (reference position) of the central axis of the industrial furnace 200 from the shape (outer edge shape) of the outer periphery of the measurement standard 103 based on the three-dimensional image data in which the entire refractory material 202 and the measurement standard 103 are included in the shooting range R. The processing device 106 also calculates the dimension from the calculated central axis to the surface of the refractory material 202 based on the three-dimensional image data. The processing device 106 then evaluates the degree of wear of the refractory material 202 based on the extent to which the calculated dimension has increased from the initial value of the dimension from the central axis to the surface of the refractory material 202.

According to the refractory wear evaluation device 100 according to the first embodiment described above, the 3D optical scanner 101 can be moved by the robot arm 105 so that the entire refractory material 202 and the measurement standard 103 are included in the shooting range R of the 3D optical scanner 101 with the measurement standard 103 installed in the industrial furnace 200. Therefore, since there is no need for a person to enter the furnace when the inside of the industrial furnace 200 is at a high temperature, safety can be ensured. In addition, the position of the central axis of the industrial furnace 200 (reference position) can be calculated from the outer edge shape of the measurement standard 103, and the dimension from the calculated central axis to the surface of the refractory material 202 can be calculated. Therefore, even if the position of the central axis of the industrial furnace 200, which is the measurement standard, becomes unclear from the outside due to wear of the refractory material 202, the position of the central axis (reference position) can be calculated from the outer edge shape of the measurement standard 103. As a result, the degree of wear of the refractory material 202 can be more accurately evaluated using the calculated position of the central axis. Therefore, it is possible to provide a fireproof material wear evaluation device 100 that can more accurately evaluate the degree of wear of the fireproof material 202 while ensuring safety.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

100 Refractory material wear evaluation device 101 3D optical scanner (photographing unit)
102 3D optical scanner processing device (3D image data generating unit)
103 Measurement standard 105 Robot arm (support)
106 Processing device (evaluation processing unit)
200 Industrial furnace 201 Steel shell 201A Yoke part 201B Coil part 202 Refractory material

Claims (1)

an imaging unit that irradiates light onto the refractory material lining the inside of the steel shell of the industrial furnace and acquires data on the reflected light;
a three-dimensional image data generating unit that performs a predetermined process on the reflected light data acquired by the imaging unit to generate three-dimensional image data;
a plate-shaped measuring standard having a shape capable of calculating a reference position for calculating a distance to a surface of the refractory material lining the industrial furnace;
A support section that movably supports the imaging section;
an evaluation processing unit that evaluates wear of the refractory material based on the three-dimensional image data;
Equipped with
The support unit moves the photographing unit so that the entire refractory material and the measurement standard are included in the photographing range of the photographing unit in a state where the measurement standard is installed in the industrial furnace,
The evaluation processing unit calculates the reference position of the industrial furnace from the shape of the measurement standard based on the three-dimensional image data in which the entire refractory material and the measurement standard are included in the shooting range, and calculates the dimension from the calculated reference position to the surface of the refractory material.
Refractory wear evaluation device.

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