JP7537119B2 - Hulling device and hulling control system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a rice hulling device and a rice hulling control system that can control the rice huller according to the quality of the hulled rice.

Conventionally, in rice hullers that use the difference in peripheral speed between the main and sub rolls to hull rice, uneven wear occurs between the main and sub rolls, so the rubber rolls of the main and sub rolls are usually replaced manually. This is a cumbersome task, and various methods have been proposed to eliminate the need for manual rubber roll replacement.

For example, in the methods disclosed in Patent Documents 1 to 3, a variable speed motor is directly connected to each of the main shaft and the sub-shaft, and the main shaft and sub-shaft are switched independently at regular intervals.

In addition, the method disclosed in Patent Documents 4 and 5 involves loosely fitting large and small pulleys alternately to the rotating shafts of the main and sub rolls, and fitting a clutch to the middle of the large and small pulleys on each rotating shaft so that it can slide back and forth along the rotating shaft, allowing switching between high and low speeds with a single touch.

Furthermore, the method disclosed in Patent Document 6 does not have a structure in which the clutch slides back and forth along the rotation shaft, but rather uses a belt clutch mechanism or an idler pulley to switch the rotation speed of the main and sub rolls, which has the advantage of being highly durable.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 62-29064 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 3-137945 JP 2001-38230 A Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 3-106452 JP 2006-312151 A JP 2009-72765 A

However, the conventional rice hullers disclosed in the above Patent Documents 1 to 6 switched the rotation speed of the main and sub-shaft rolls after a certain period of time had elapsed, regardless of the quality of the hulled rice, and therefore were unable to continuously maintain the quality of the hulled rice, including the husking rate, in the best possible condition.

In view of the above problems, the present invention aims to provide a rice hulling device and a rice hulling control system that can appropriately control the rice huller according to the quality condition of the hulled rice.

The invention according to claim 1 of the present application is a rice hulling device comprising: a rice huller in which rice hulling is performed using a hulling roll; a hulled rice discriminator capable of inspecting the hulled rice discharged from the rice huller; and a hulling control unit capable of controlling the rice huller according to the inspection results of the hulled rice by the hulled rice discriminator, the hulling control unit being equipped with a rotation speed changing means for changing the rotation speed of the hulling roll in the rice huller according to the inspection results of the hulled rice.

The invention according to claim 2 of the present application is a rice husking device according to claim 1, in which the husking rolls are composed of a main husking roll that rotates at a predetermined rotational speed and a secondary husking roll that rotates at a slower speed than the main husking roll, and the rotational speed changing means changes the rotational speed of the secondary husking roll so that it rotates faster than the rotational speed of the main husking roll.

The invention according to claim 3 of the present application is a hulling device according to claim 1 or claim 2, in which the inspection items for the ground rice include at least the husking rate, and the husking control unit changes the rotation speed of the husking roll by the rotation speed changing means when the husking rate falls below a predetermined value.

The invention according to claim 4 of the present application is a hulling device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, in which the inspection items for the smashed rice include at least the broken rice rate, and the hulling control unit changes the rotation speed of the hulling roll by the rotation speed changing means when the increase rate of the broken rice rate reaches or exceeds a predetermined value.

The invention according to claim 5 of the present application is a rice hulling device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, in which the shrunk rice discriminator has a flow-down trough that aligns the shrunk rice and allows it to flow down, a light source that irradiates light onto the shrunk rice discharged from the flow-down trough, and a camera means that can receive reflected light and transmitted light from the shrunk rice irradiated with light from the light source, and the light source is provided with a first lighting means that is provided on the camera means side of the shrunk rice and is capable of irradiating the shrunk rice with red light, and a second lighting means that is provided on the side of the shrunk rice away from the camera means and is capable of irradiating the shrunk rice with green light.

The invention according to claim 6 of the present application is a rice hulling device according to claim 5, in which, as a result of light reception by the camera means, if the amount of light received of the green component is higher than a predetermined green component threshold, the discharged ground rice is determined to be brown rice, and if the amount of light received of the green component is lower than the predetermined green component threshold and the amount of light received of the red component is higher than a predetermined red component threshold, the discharged ground rice is determined to be unhulled rice.

The invention according to claim 7 of the present application is a rice hulling device according to claim 5 or 6, in which the light source further comprises a third illumination means arranged on an extension line connecting the camera means and the ground rice, capable of irradiating blue light onto the background of the ground rice, and if the amount of blue light received by the camera means is outside a predetermined range, the object discharged from the flow-down trough is determined to be a foreign object other than the ground rice.

The invention according to claim 8 of the present application is a rice hulling device according to any one of claims 5 to 7, in which the camera means is capable of capturing an image of the ground rice in addition to receiving the reflected light and the transmitted light.

The invention according to claim 9 of the present application is a rice hulling device according to any one of claims 5 to 8, in which the flow-down trough extends at least to the observation area of the camera means that irradiates light onto the shrunk rice, and is capable of transmitting light from the light source.

The invention according to claim 10 of the present application is a rice hulling device having a rice hulling device in which rice hulling is performed by a hulling roll, a hulled rice judgment means capable of judging the quality of the hulled rice discharged from the rice hulling device, and a hulling control unit capable of controlling the rice hulling device according to the judgment result of the hulled rice by the hulled rice judgment means, and a monitoring device connected to the rice hulling device by wire or wirelessly and capable of receiving and displaying the judgment result of the hulled rice, characterized in that the rotation speed of the hulling roll in the rice hulling device can be changed according to the judgment result of the hulled rice displayed and output by the monitoring device.

The invention according to claim 11 of the present application is a rice hulling control system according to claim 10, in which the rice hulling device is provided with an abnormality detection means capable of detecting an abnormality in the rice hulling device, and the monitoring device is provided with an abnormality determination means capable of determining multiple types of abnormalities based on detection information from the abnormality detection means, and an abnormality display means capable of displaying and outputting the determination results by the abnormality determination means.

The invention according to claim 12 of the present application is the rice hulling control system according to claim 11, in which the monitoring device is provided with an abnormality handling instruction display means capable of displaying and outputting check contents according to the priority in response to the judgment result by the abnormality judgment means.

According to the invention of claim 1, the hulled rice discharged from the rice huller is constantly inspected by a hulled rice discriminator, and the rotation speed of the hulling roll is appropriately changed according to the inspection results of the hulled rice, so that the quality of the hulled rice can be stably maintained in a good condition.

According to the invention of claim 2, the dehusking roll is composed of a main dehusking roll that rotates at a predetermined rotational speed and a secondary dehusking roll that rotates at a slower speed than the main dehusking roll, and the rotational speed of the secondary dehusking roll is changed so that it rotates faster than the rotational speed of the main dehusking roll depending on the inspection results of the fallen rice by the fallen rice discriminator. This makes it possible to apply an appropriate peripheral speed difference between the main dehusking roll and the secondary dehusking roll to the supplied grain, thereby making it possible to continuously ensure a good and stable dehusking rate.

According to the invention of claim 3, the inspection items for the fallen rice in the fallen rice discriminator are configured to include at least the husking rate, and when the husking rate falls below a predetermined value, the rotation speed of the husking roll is changed, so that it is possible to ensure a continuously good and stable husking rate.

According to the invention of claim 4, the inspection items for the fallen rice in the fallen rice discriminator are configured to include at least the broken rice rate, and when the increase rate of the broken rice rate reaches or exceeds a predetermined value, the rotation speed of the husking roll is changed, making it possible to continuously reduce the broken rice rate.

According to the invention of claim 5, based on the knowledge obtained in the verification experiment of the present invention that unhulled rice has poor transmittance of green light and high reflectance of red light compared to brown rice, a first lighting means capable of irradiating red light onto the ground rice mixed with unhulled rice and a second lighting means capable of irradiating green light are installed, and the reflected light and transmitted light of each are received by a camera means. This makes it possible to significantly improve the accuracy of distinguishing between unhulled rice and brown rice compared to the conventional technology, and makes it possible to control the rice huller at the appropriate timing.

According to the invention of claim 6, if the amount of light received by the camera means is higher than a predetermined green component threshold, the ground rice discharged is determined to be brown rice, and if the amount of light received by the green component is lower than the predetermined green component threshold and the amount of light received by the red component is higher than a predetermined red component threshold, the ground rice discharged from the flow-down trough is determined to be unhulled rice. This makes it possible to quickly determine the type of ground rice without performing complex discrimination processing.

According to the invention of claim 7, a third illumination means capable of irradiating blue light against the background is provided at a position on an extension line connecting the camera means and the fallen rice, so that if the amount of blue light received falls outside a predetermined range, it becomes possible to quickly determine that a foreign object other than fallen rice has been discharged from the flow down pipe.

According to the invention of claim 8, in addition to receiving reflected light and transmitted light, a camera means is used that can capture images of fallen rice, making it possible to identify broken rice and cracked rice by performing image analysis on the images.

According to the invention of claim 9, by extending the flow-down trough to the observation area of the camera means and forming it from a transparent material such as glass, the fallen rice grains are less likely to experience air resistance and the grains' positions are more stable than in the conventional case where the fallen rice is discharged from the lower end of the flow-down trough, making it possible to improve the accuracy of identifying fallen rice.

According to the invention of claim 10, the hulling device and a monitoring device that is connected to the hulling device by wire or wirelessly and can receive and display the results of the judgment of the shrunk rice make it possible to change the rotation speed of the hulling roll in the huller according to the judgment results of the shrunk rice that are displayed on the monitoring device. With this configuration, it becomes possible to always appropriately control the hulling device, and to appropriately control the quality of the shrunk rice.

According to the invention of claim 11, the rice hulling device is further provided with an abnormality detection means capable of detecting an abnormality, and the monitoring device is configured to display and output the results of the abnormality determination, so that it is possible to grasp the occurrence of an abnormality in the rice hulling device at an early stage and take appropriate measures to deal with the abnormality.

According to the invention of claim 12, the specific check contents according to the priority are displayed on the monitoring device in response to the result of the abnormality determination means, so that abnormal conditions can be adjusted or repaired promptly.

1 is a side view showing one embodiment of a rice huller in a rice hulling apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing one embodiment of a hulling roll drive device in a rice huller. FIG. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing a detailed structure of a belt clutch mechanism of the first drive system. 5A and 5B are schematic diagrams showing the operating states of a first drive system and a second drive system, in which FIG. 5A is a schematic diagram showing the operating states of a new roll and FIG. 5B is a schematic diagram showing the operating states of a worn roll. 4 is a schematic side view showing a chain and sprocket transmission mechanism that rotates the support member. FIG. 6 is a schematic explanatory diagram showing the connection between the chain and the sprockets as viewed in the direction of the arrow A in FIG. 5 . FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing one embodiment of a slumped rice detector in a rice huller of the present invention. FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic side view showing a manner in which the fallen rice discriminating machine discriminates fallen rice. Graph (a) shows the relationship between the light reflectance and the wavelength of light for unhulled rice and brown rice, and graph (b) shows the relationship between the light transmittance and the wavelength of light. 4 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of a method for distinguishing between unhulled rice and brown rice in the rice hulling device of the present invention. 11 is a table showing experimental results for the rice hulling device of the present invention. 4A to 4C are diagrams illustrating an embodiment of a control mode in the rice hulling device of the present invention. FIG. 11 is a schematic side view showing another embodiment of the fallen rice discriminating apparatus for discriminating fallen rice. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an overview of a monitoring control system in another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a display mode of a monitoring control PC in another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of types of failure prediction and a response process in another embodiment of the present invention.

The rice hulling device of the present invention is mainly composed of a rice huller 1 and a hulled rice discriminator 70, and this embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(Rice huller)
Fig. 1 is a side view showing the whole of the husking roll drive device of the rice huller 1, and Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the husking roll drive device. In Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, the rice huller 1 has a main husking roll 3 rotatably supported on a roll shaft 5 at the bottom inside the machine frame 2, and a sub-husking roll 4 rotatably supported on a roll shaft 6 and adjustable in distance from the main husking roll 3, which are arranged so as to rotate inwardly and at different speeds.

A drive motor 7 (described later) is provided in the center of the machine frame 2, and a drive motor 8 is provided on the side of the machine frame 2. Meanwhile, a first large diameter pulley 9 is attached to the axially outer side of the one roll shaft 5, and a first small diameter pulley 10 is attached to the axially outer side of the other roll shaft 6. The first large diameter pulley 9, the first small diameter pulley 10, the drive pulley 11 of the drive motor 7, and the first idler pulley 12 provided at the bottom of the machine frame 2 are connected by an endless belt 13 to form a first drive system.

The endless belt 13 for the first drive system is wound around the first large diameter pulley 9 on its back surface and around the first small diameter pulley 10 on its belly surface so that the first large diameter pulley 9 and the first small diameter pulley 10 rotate inward relative to each other, and in FIG. 1, the endless belt 13 is formed to rotate counterclockwise.

Furthermore, a substantially V-shaped support rod member 16 is disposed on the first large diameter pulley 9 in the first drive system, which rotates around the roll shaft 5 to trace a rotational path on the outer circumference of the first large diameter pulley 9. By rotating the support rod member 16, a belt clutch mechanism 15 is formed that turns on and off the power of the endless belt 13 to the first large diameter pulley 9. Reference numerals 14a and 14b denote a pair of tension clutch pulleys attached to the tip of the support rod member 16. The position of the belt clutch mechanism 15 indicated by solid lines in Figures 1 and 2 is the power-on state (the position where the endless belt 13 is wound around the first large diameter pulley 9).

The first idler pulley 12 of the first drive system can be rotated around the fulcrum 12b to the dashed line position (symbol 12a) by the extension and contraction of the movable shaft of the air cylinder 17, and the belt clutch mechanism 15 of the first drive system can be rotated around the roll shaft 5 to the dashed line position (power-off state (position to prevent the endless belt 13 from being wound around the large diameter pulley 9)) by the rotary actuator 30a shown in FIG. 3.

A second small diameter pulley 19 is attached to the inside of the roll shaft 5 and roll shaft 6 in the axial direction close to the first large diameter pulley 9, and a second large diameter pulley 20 is attached to the inside of the roll shaft 5 and roll shaft 6 in the axial direction close to the first small diameter pulley 9. The second small diameter pulley 19, the second large diameter pulley 20, the drive pulley 21 of the drive motor 8, and the second idler pulley 22 and the third idler pulley 23 provided at the bottom of the machine frame 2 are connected by an endless belt 24 to form a second drive system.

The endless belt 24 for the second drive system is wound around the second small diameter pulley 19 on its belly side and around the second large diameter pulley 20 on its back side so that the second small diameter pulley 19 and the second large diameter pulley 20 rotate inwardly relative to each other, and in FIG. 1, the endless belt 24 is formed to rotate clockwise.

Furthermore, a substantially V-shaped support rod member 27 is disposed on the second large diameter pulley 20 in the second drive system, which rotates around the roll shaft 6 to trace a rotational path on the outer circumference of the second large diameter pulley 20. By rotating the support rod member 27, a belt clutch mechanism 26 is formed that turns on and off the power of the endless belt 24 to the second large diameter pulley 20. Reference numerals 25a and 25b denote a pair of tension clutch pulleys attached to the tip of the support rod member 27. The position of the belt clutch mechanism 26 shown in Figures 1 and 2 as indicated by solid lines indicates the power-off state.

The second idler pulley 22 of the second drive system is configured to be able to rotate around a fulcrum 22b to the dashed line position (symbol 22a) by the expansion and contraction of the movable shaft of the air cylinder 28, the third idler pulley 23 is configured to be able to rotate around a fulcrum to the dashed line position (symbol 23a) by the expansion and contraction of the movable shaft of the air cylinder 29, and the belt clutch mechanism 26 of the second drive system is configured to be able to rotate around the roll shaft 6 to the dashed line position (power-on state) by an air cylinder (not shown) or a rotary actuator 30b shown in FIG. 3.

Figure 3 is a perspective view showing the detailed structure of the belt clutch mechanism 15 of the first drive system. A first small diameter pulley 10 and a first large diameter pulley 9 are axially attached to the roll shaft 5 of the main dehulling roll 3, and a substantially V-shaped support member 16 is provided to sandwich the boss end faces 9a, 9a of the first large diameter pulley 9. The outer diameter of the first large diameter pulley 9 is approximately 220 mm, and the outer diameter of the first small diameter pulley 10 is approximately 160 mm.

The support rod member 16 has a base end 16a pivotally mounted to the roll shaft 5 via a bearing 35, and a generally V-shaped arm 16b extending from the base end 16a toward the outer periphery of the first large diameter pulley 9 is formed, with the interior angle (α) between the arm parts 16b being approximately 60°. Rotatable tension clutch pulleys 14a, 14b are attached to the tip ends 16c, 16c of the support rod member 16. As a result, even if the first large diameter pulley 9 has an outer diameter of approximately 220 mm, when the belt clutch mechanism 15 is in the power-off state (dotted line in Figure 1), the endless belt 13 is reliably prevented from wrapping around the first large diameter pulley 9, and the power is reliably turned on and off.

Furthermore, the support member 16 is configured to have a rotary actuator 30 attached via a mount 34, and the vanes in the rotary actuator 30 slide due to the air pressure supplied from the air pipe 31, causing the support member 16 to rotate in the circumferential direction around the roll shaft 5. For this rotary actuator 30, a commercially available one such as model RAK300 manufactured by Koganei Corporation can be used.

The belt clutch mechanism 26 of the second drive system is similar in configuration to that shown in FIG. 3, except that the attachment direction of the support member 27 is different. The reference numeral 32 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 denotes a supply port for supplying grain provided at the top of the machine frame 2, and a vibrating feeder that can adjust the grain flow rate is provided directly below the supply port 32, as well as a chute for supplying grain between the pair of main husking rolls 3 and secondary husking rolls 4, both of which are installed inside the machine frame 2.

Reference numeral 33 denotes an air pressure control device provided on the side of the machine frame 2, which is equipped with solenoid valves, logic relays, breakers, terminal blocks, etc. (none of which are shown) to supply high-pressure air supplied from an air supply source such as a compressor (not shown) to each of the air cylinders 17, 28, 29 and the rotary actuator 30. Reference numeral 18 denotes a roll gap adjustment means for adjusting the roll gap to achieve the set husking rate.

The operating procedure of the husking roll drive device of the present invention will be explained below with reference to Figure 4.

When new rubber rolls are installed on the main husking roll 3 and the secondary husking roll 4, the position of the belt clutch mechanism 15 is adjusted and the endless belt 13 is tensioned by the first idler pulley 12 in order to start the husking operation using the first drive system.

That is, in order to turn on the power to the first large diameter pulley 9 of the endless belt 13, the rotary actuator 30a is controlled, and the tension clutch pulleys 14a and 14b of the belt clutch mechanism 15 are rotated and adjusted to the position shown by the solid line in FIG. 4(a). Next, the movable shaft of the air cylinder 17 is extended to move the first idler pulley 12 to the position shown by the solid line in FIG. 4(a), and tensioning of the endless belt 13 is performed. Meanwhile, the belt clutch mechanism 26 is not operated, and the power to the second large diameter pulley 20 of the endless belt 24 is maintained in the "off" state.

In this state, when the power is turned on to the rice huller 1 and the first drive motor 7 starts to operate (drive motor 8 is stopped), the driving force of the drive motor 7 is transmitted to the first large diameter pulley 9 and the first small diameter pulley 10 via the endless belt 13 of the first drive system, and the main husking roll 3 rotates at high speed and the secondary husking roll 4 rotates at low speed, rotating inwardly toward each other. The grain supplied from the supply port 32 is then subjected to the husking action due to the difference in peripheral speed between the main husking roll 3 and the secondary husking roll 4 and the pressing force thereof.

In this way, if the husking operation is continued with the first drive system in the driven state, the main husking roll 3 and the secondary husking roll 4 will gradually wear out. The main husking roll 3, which rotates at high speed, has a larger cumulative contact area with the rice grains than the secondary husking roll 4, which rotates at low speed, and therefore wears out earlier. As a result, the outer diameter of the main husking roll 3 becomes smaller, and the difference in peripheral speed between the main husking roll 3 and the secondary husking roll 4 decreases. When the difference in peripheral speed decreases, the grains supplied from the supply port 32 are less susceptible to the husking action caused by the difference in peripheral speed, which affects the husking rate of the husked rice and the quality of the rice grains. Therefore, in this embodiment, the drive means can be switched from the first drive system to the second drive system by control by the husking control unit (not shown) described later.

When switching the drive means from the first drive system to the second drive system by the control of the hulling control unit described above, first, the drive of the first drive motor 7 is stopped, then, the position of the first idler pulley is rotated upward by operating the air cylinder 17 to slacken the endless belt 13, and the rotary actuator 30a is controlled to turn off the power of the endless belt 13 to the first large diameter pulley 9 of the belt clutch mechanism 15, and the tension clutch pulleys 14a, 14b of the belt clutch mechanism 15 are rotated and adjusted to the position of the dashed line in Figure 4 (b) (rotated approximately 175° counterclockwise).

Furthermore, to start the second drive system, the position of the belt clutch mechanism 26 is adjusted and the endless belt 24 is tensioned by the second idler pulley 22 and the third idler pulley 23. That is, the rotary actuator 30b is controlled to turn the power of the endless belt 24 to the second large diameter pulley 20 into the "ON" state, and the tension clutch pulleys 25a, 25b of the belt clutch mechanism 26 are rotated (rotated about 175° counterclockwise) to the solid line position in FIG. 4(b). Next, the movable shafts of the air cylinders 28, 29 are extended to move the second idler pulley 22 and the third idler pulley 23 to the solid line position in FIG. 4(b), and the endless belt 24 is tensioned.

In this state, when the second drive motor 8 starts to drive (drive motor 7 is stopped), the driving force of the drive motor 8 is transmitted to the second large diameter pulley 20 and the second small diameter pulley 19 via the endless belt 24 of the second drive system, and in the opposite direction to the above, the secondary husking roll 4 rotates at high speed and the main husking roll 3 rotates at low speed, and they rotate inwardly to undergo the husking action.

As described above, by repeatedly switching the motor, belt clutch mechanism, and idler pulley, the husk removal process can be continued.

In addition, this embodiment does not use a clutch that slides back and forth along the rotation axis of the husking roll as in the conventional system, so it is easy to alternate between switching from the high-speed side to the low-speed side and vice versa in response to deformations such as thermal expansion of the rotation axis, and because it does not use fine parts such as a "sliding top" that slides along the rotation axis, it has excellent durability even when the belt clutch mechanism and idler pulley are repeatedly switched over and over again. Also, since it does not use a configuration in which a drive motor is directly connected to the rotation axis of the husking roll as in the conventional system, it does not require a large amount of rotational drive force.

Next, another embodiment of the actuator that rotates the support members 16 and 27 will be described with reference to Figures 5 and 6.

Figure 5 is a schematic side view showing the chain-sprocket transmission mechanism that rotates the support members 16 and 27, and Figure 6 is a schematic explanatory diagram showing the connection between the chain and the sprocket when viewed from the direction of the arrow A in Figure 5.

In Figures 5 and 6, a first sprocket 50 is fixed to the base end 16a of the support member 16 of the belt clutch mechanism 15 of the first drive system with bolts, nuts, etc. (not shown), and a second sprocket 51 is fixed to the base end 27a of the support member 27 of the belt clutch mechanism 26 of the second drive system with bolts, nuts, etc. (not shown).

Below the first sprocket 50, a relay double sprocket 53 is rotatably attached to a rotating shaft 52 pivotally attached to the machine frame 2, while below the second sprocket 51, a synchronous double sprocket 55 is rotatably attached to a rotating shaft 54 pivotally attached to the machine frame 2. In addition, the machine frame 2 is provided with a number of tension sprockets 56, 57 at appropriate locations to correspond to the double sprockets 53, 55.

The first sprocket 50, the second sprocket 51 and the intermediate double sprocket 53 each have a diameter of 116 mm and 27 teeth, while the synchronous double sprocket 55 has a diameter of 226 mm and 54 teeth, resulting in a speed ratio of 1:2. In other words, when the synchronous double sprocket 55 is rotated 90°, the first sprocket 50, the second sprocket 51 and the intermediate double sprocket 53 are rotated 180°.

With respect to the above sprocket arrangement, a differential chain 58 is wound between one sprocket 55a of the synchronous double sprocket 55, one sprocket 53a of the intermediate double sprocket 53, and the tension sprocket 57, a differential chain 59 is wound between the other sprocket 55b of the synchronous double sprocket 55, the second sprocket 51, and the tension sprocket 56, and a transmission chain 60 that transmits power at a speed ratio of 1:1 is wound between the other sprocket 53b of the intermediate double sprocket 53 and the first sprocket 50.

A rod-type air cylinder 61, in which a movable rod extends and retracts in a straight line, can be used as the actuator for rotating the synchronous double sprocket 55. The rod-type air cylinder 61 has a cylinder portion 61a fixed to the machine frame 2 via a base 62, and a tip portion 61c of the movable rod portion 61b pivotally attached to the synchronous double sprocket 55 via a pivot pin 63. The synchronous double sprocket 55 can be rotated in accordance with the sliding movement of the movable rod portion 61b. For example, if the stroke of the movable rod portion 61b is about 100 mm, the synchronous double sprocket 55 can be rotated by about 90°.

The operation of the chain-sprocket transmission mechanism will be explained with reference to Figures 4, 5, and 6.

When new rubber rolls are installed on the main husking roll 3 and the sub husking roll 4, the belt clutch mechanisms 15, 26 are adjusted in position simultaneously to start the husking operation by the first drive system. That is, when the movable rod portion 61b of the rod-type air cylinder 61 is extended (see FIG. 5), the synchronous double sprocket 55 is rotated about 90° clockwise, and accordingly, in the first drive system, the intermediate double sprocket 53, the first sprocket 50, and the base end portion 16a are rotated about 180° clockwise via the differential chain 58 and the transmission chain 60.

Then, the tension clutch pulleys 14a and 14b are moved to a position where the endless belt 13 is wound around the first large diameter pulley 9, and the power to the first large diameter pulley 9 is turned "ON". Meanwhile, in the second drive system, the base end 27a is rotated approximately 180° clockwise via the differential chain 59. Then, the tension clutch pulleys 25a and 25b are moved to a position where the endless belt 24 does not wind around the second large diameter pulley 20, and the power to the second large diameter pulley 20 is turned "OFF" (FIG. 4(a), the state of FIG. 1).

In this state, when the power is turned on to the rice huller 1 and the first drive motor 7 starts to operate (drive motor 8 is stopped), the driving force of the drive motor 7 is transmitted to the first large diameter pulley 9 and the first small diameter pulley 10 via the endless belt 13 of the first drive system, and the main husking roll 3 rotates at high speed and the secondary husking roll 4 rotates at low speed, rotating inwardly toward each other. The grain supplied from the supply port 32 is then subjected to the husking action due to the difference in peripheral speed between the main husking roll 3 and the secondary husking roll 4 and the pressing force thereof.

In this way, as the husking operation continues with the first drive system in the driven state, the main husking roll 3 and the secondary husking roll 4 gradually wear, as described above, and the peripheral speed difference decreases. When the peripheral speed difference decreases, the grains supplied from the supply port 32 are less susceptible to the husking action caused by the peripheral speed difference, which affects the husking rate of the husked rice and the quality of the rice grains. Therefore, it is possible to switch the drive means from the first drive system to the second drive system by control from the husking control unit (not shown) described later.

When switching from the first drive system to the second drive system by the control of the hulling control unit described above, first, the drive of the first drive motor 7 is stopped, and then the movable rod portion 61b of the rod-type air cylinder 61 is contracted (see FIG. 5). The synchronous double sprocket 55 is rotated about 90° counterclockwise. Accordingly, in the first drive system, the relay double sprocket 53, the first sprocket 50, and the base end portion 16a are rotated about 180° counterclockwise via the differential chain 58 and the transmission chain 60, and the power to the first large diameter pulley 9 of the endless belt 13 is turned "off". In the second drive system, the base end portion 27a is rotated about 180° counterclockwise via the differential chain 59, and the power to the second large diameter pulley 20 of the endless belt 24 is turned "on" (state of FIG. 5 and FIG. 4(b)).

In this state, when the second drive motor 8 starts to drive (drive motor 7 is stopped), the driving force of the drive motor 8 is transmitted to the second large diameter pulley 20 and the second small diameter pulley 19 via the endless belt 24 of the second drive system, and in the opposite direction to the above, the secondary husking roll 4 rotates at high speed and the main husking roll 3 rotates at low speed, and they rotate inwardly to undergo the husking action.

As described above, the motor, belt clutch mechanism, and idler pulley are repeatedly switched to continue the dehusking operation. By using such a rod-type air cylinder and chain sprocket transmission mechanism, it is possible to synchronize the belt clutch mechanisms of the first and second drive systems with a single air cylinder. Also, compared to using multiple rotary actuators, solenoid valves and logic relays for synchronization are not required, and the simple configuration makes it possible to reduce manufacturing costs.

(Rice grinding detector)
Next, the sunk rice discriminator 70 attached to the rice huller 1 in the rice hulling apparatus will be described below. Fig. 7 shows a schematic cross-sectional view of the sunk rice discriminator 70 attached to the rice huller 1 described above. The sunk rice discriminator 70 is provided with a sunk rice hopper 71 at the top of the machine body for receiving sunk rice discharged from the rice huller 1, a vibration supply mechanism consisting of a vibration device 72 and a vibration trough 73, and a flow-down supply mechanism consisting of an inclined flow-down trough 74.

The lower part of the fallen rice discriminator 70 is equipped with an optical inspection unit 75 arranged opposite the falling trajectory of the fallen rice at the lower end of the flow down chute 74 (dotted line r in Figure 7), and an ejector unit 76 that distinguishes between brown rice and husks in the fallen rice based on the inspection results of the optical inspection unit 75 and removes only the husks from the fallen rice.

Below the ejector section 76, there is provided a brown rice collection hopper 77 that collects brown rice below the falling trajectory, and a rice husk recovery hopper 78 that recovers rice husks that have been removed from the falling trajectory. Furthermore, the brown rice collection hopper 77 is provided with a brown rice discharge section 79 equipped with a transport mechanism that discharges brown rice outside the machine, and the rice husk recovery hopper 78 is provided with a rice husk discharge section 80 that can transfer the rice husks to the rice huller 1 for re-hulling. The rice husk discharge section 80 may be provided with a lifting machine 81 that can return the rice husks to the husking roll type rice huller 1.

Next, FIG. 8 is a schematic side view showing how the fallen rice discriminator discriminates fallen rice. The following explanation will be given with reference to FIG. 8.

As described above, the fallen rice discriminator 70 is equipped with an optical inspection unit 75 arranged below the downflow conduit 74, and an ejector unit 76 below the optical inspection unit 75. The optical inspection unit 75 is provided with a full-color camera 751 (camera means) on one side (front side) facing the downflow trajectory r of the fallen rice downstream of the downflow conduit 74, and further, a background 752 is provided on the other side of the downflow trajectory r of the optical axis k of the full-color camera 751.

In addition, the optical inspection section 75 is provided with first lighting means 753a, 753b for illuminating the fallen rice on the side of the full-color camera 751 from the trajectory r of the fallen rice, second lighting means 754a, 754b for illuminating the fallen rice on the side away from the full-color camera 751 from the trajectory r of the fallen rice, and a third lighting means 755 for illuminating the background 752. The intersection of the trajectory r and the optical axis k is the observation area o by the full-color camera 751.

The above-mentioned first lighting means 753a, 753b, second lighting means 754a, 754b, and third lighting means 755 each have a monochromatic light source, and in this embodiment, as the most suitable example, the first lighting means 753a, 753b use a light source made of a red LED element, the second lighting means 754a, 754b use a light source made of a green LED element, and the third lighting means 755 use a light source made of a blue LED element. Note that the LED elements used may be monochromatic LED elements or RGB LED elements.

To explain in more detail, when the first illumination means 753a, 753b irradiates the ground rice, which is the object to be sorted, with red light, the reflected light is received by the red light receiving element of the full-color camera 751, and when the second illumination means 754a, 754b irradiates the ground rice, which is the object to be sorted, with green light, the transmitted light is received by the green light receiving element of the full-color camera 751. Furthermore, when the third illumination means 755 irradiates the background 752 with blue light, it is possible to determine whether the object to be sorted has passed through the observation area o, and whether any foreign object other than the ground rice has passed through, based on the amount of blue light received by the full-color camera 751.

The above-mentioned preferred embodiment is supported by the following reasons. That is, based on the results of a verification experiment of the present invention, Fig. 9(a) shows the relationship between the wavelength of light and the reflectance of brown rice and unhulled rice, and Fig. 9(b) shows the relationship between the wavelength of light and the transmittance. For brown rice and unhulled rice in the ground rice, which is the object of sorting, there is no significant difference in the transmittance of light for either green or red.

On the other hand, when looking at the reflectance of light, it can be seen that the difference in reflectance between brown rice and unhulled rice is greater for red than for green. Therefore, based on the optical characteristics described above, it is preferable to use a light source made of a red LED element for the first lighting means 753a, 753b, which aims to receive reflected light into the full-color camera 751, making it possible to more accurately distinguish the type of ground rice being sorted.

If a white light source such as a fluorescent lamp were used for each of the first lighting means 753a, 753b, the second lighting means 754a, 754b, and the third lighting means 755, the full-color camera 751 would capture information that combines both reflected and transmitted light components, making it difficult to detect the characteristic amount (characteristic amount of received light), which could reduce the accuracy of discrimination.

In this embodiment, as a preferred example, the first lighting means 753a and 753b are set to red, the second lighting means 754a and 754b to green, and the third lighting means 755 to blue, but this is not necessarily limited to this, and the combinations in Table 1 below are also possible.

Next, a method for distinguishing between unhulled and brown rice in the above-mentioned ground rice discriminator 70 will be described. As described above, by using monochromatic light sources for each of the first lighting means 753a, 753b, the second lighting means 754a, 754b, and the third lighting means 755, it is possible to more accurately distinguish between unhulled and brown rice, and further, it is also possible to distinguish between foreign objects other than unhulled and brown rice.

In other words, when brown rice passes through the observation area o, as shown in Figures 9(a) and (b), brown rice has better optical transparency and lower reflectivity than unhulled rice, so the amount of light received by the light receiving element of the red component (reflected component) of the full-color camera 751 is low, and the amount of light received by the light receiving element of the green component (transmitted component) of the full-color camera 751 is high.

On the other hand, when unhulled rice passes through the observation area o, unhulled rice has poor optical transparency and high reflectivity compared to brown rice, so the amount of light received by the light receiving element of the red component (reflected component) of the full-color camera 751 is high, and the amount of light received by the light receiving element of the green component (transmitted component) of the full-color camera 751 is low. Note that the amount of light received by the blue component of the full-color camera 751 is approximately constant, since there is no significant difference in size between brown rice and unhulled rice. This is shown in Table 2.

Figure 10 shows a flow for carrying out the above-mentioned discrimination method. In step 1, it is determined whether or not ground rice has passed through the observation area o based on the amount of blue light received by the full-color camera 751. In step 2, it is confirmed whether the amount of green light received by the full-color camera 751 is higher or lower than a predetermined green component threshold, and it is determined whether highly transparent brown rice has passed through, or whether other unhulled rice or foreign matter has passed through. Next, in step 3, it is confirmed whether the amount of red light received by the full-color camera 751 is higher or lower than a predetermined red component threshold, and it is determined whether or not unhulled rice or other foreign matter has passed through.

In addition, in steps 2 and 3 above, the ratio between the amount of light received of the red component, which is the reflected component, and the amount of light received of the green component, which is the transmitted component (for example, the value of "reflected component/transmitted component") may be calculated, and if this value is greater than a predetermined threshold, it is determined to be unhulled, and if it is less than the predetermined threshold, it is determined to be brown rice.

The above describes the configuration of the optical inspection unit 75 for inspecting and distinguishing between unhulled rice and brown rice, but the optical inspection unit 75 of the present invention is further provided with a camera 756 (camera means) as shown in FIG. 8, which is configured to take an image of brown rice that passes through the observation area o of the optical inspection unit 75 and inspect whether it is broken, immature, or cracked rice through image analysis. Specifically, it is possible to determine whether the brown rice is immature or not based on the color components of the brown rice that passes through, and it is also possible to determine whether it is broken or cracked by obtaining the shape and dimensional values in conjunction with the color components through image analysis.

(Husker control section)
Next, a description will be given below of the hulling control unit in the hulling device of the present invention, which can control the above-mentioned huller 1 and sunk rice discriminator 70. The hulling control unit is connected by a signal line to control at least the huller 1 and the sunk rice discriminator 70, and in this embodiment, is installed in the huller 1 or the sunk rice discriminator 70 together with a setting input means (not shown).

In the hulling control unit of this embodiment, the output signal from the optical inspection unit 75 is input, and analysis is performed to determine the quality state of the hulled rice as described above. Based on the results of the quality state determination, the hulling control unit executes control to switch the drive means for the huller 1 from the first drive system to the second drive system using the rotation speed change means. In other words, the main hulling roll 3 and the auxiliary hulling roll 4 are controlled to switch from the high-speed side to the low-speed side and vice versa.

As mentioned above, the rice fed into the rice huller 1 is subjected to the husking action due to the difference in circumferential speed between the main husking roll 3 and the auxiliary husking roll 4 and the pressing force. On the other hand, the main husking roll 3, which rotates at high speed, has a larger cumulative contact area with the rice compared to the auxiliary husking roll 4, which rotates at low speed, so it wears out earlier, and as a result, the outer diameter of the main husking roll 3 becomes smaller. If this happens, the difference in circumferential speed between the main husking roll 3 and the auxiliary husking roll 4 will decrease, leading to a decrease in the husking rate and an increase in the rate of broken rice. However, by controlling the above-mentioned rice husking control unit, it is possible to automatically improve the quality of the husked rice, such as decreasing the husking rate and increasing the rate of broken rice.

Figure 11 shows an example of experimental results when the rotation speed of the main husking roll 3 and the secondary husking roll 4 are controlled by the husking control unit. Raw materials with broken rice rates of 4.5%, 6%, and 7% were fed into the husker 1, and the effects of switching control of the rotation speed at a specified time on the husking rate and the increase rate of broken rice before and after the switch were investigated.

The experimental results showed that after the rotation speed was switched, the dehusking rate and the increase in the number of broken rice increased by 2.15% for raw materials with a broken rice rate of 4.5%, while the increase in the number of broken rice decreased by 2.23%. In addition, for raw materials with a broken rice rate of 6%, the dehusking rate increased by 0.34%, while the increase in the number of broken rice decreased by 0.14%. Furthermore, for raw materials with a broken rice rate of 7%, the dehusking rate increased by 0.66%, while the increase in the number of broken rice decreased by 0.67%, showing favorable results.

The timing for switching the rotation speed of the main husking roll 3 and the secondary husking roll 4 can be set using the setting input means of the husking control unit described above, and it is possible to input and set predetermined thresholds for the husking rate and the increase rate of broken rice, and automatically execute control for switching the rotation speed. With this configuration, it is possible to always control the rice husker 1 in an optimal state so that the quality of the husked rice, including the husking rate, can be continuously maintained in the best possible state.

Figure 12 shows an example of a control mode by the hulling control unit. In the case of a roll-type rice huller 1 such as that of this embodiment, the appropriate range of hulling rate is approximately 85 to 95%, but if the hulling rate is determined to be 85% or less based on the detection results of the optical inspection unit 75, (1) as roll rotation speed control, the rotation speed of the main hulling roll 3 and the auxiliary hulling roll 4 is switched to control the hulling rate to approach 85 to 95%.

If the dehusking rate does not fall within the appropriate range described above after a certain period of time has elapsed after performing the roll rotation speed control described above, (2) as roll gap control, the roll gap adjustment means described above is operated to control the dehusking rate to approach 85-95%.

If the above-mentioned appropriate husking rate range is not achieved even after a certain period of time has elapsed after implementing the roll gap control described above, then there is a risk that the grain flow rate may be excessive. Therefore, (3) as a flow rate adjustment control, a vibrating feeder that can adjust the grain flow rate directly below the supply port 32 is controlled to throttle the grain flow rate.

If the husking rate is not within the appropriate range of 85-95% even after the above-mentioned controls (1) to (3) have been taken, an abnormality is determined and a warning is issued to the device manager or operator.

As shown in Figure 12 with an *, in addition to the above controls (1) to (3), when the peripheral speed difference between the rolls falls below a predetermined value (e.g., 1%), it is also possible to control the roll rotation speed so as to switch the rotation speed of the main husking roll 3 and the secondary husking roll 4. By adding such a control configuration, it is possible to further maintain the quality of the husked rice at a good level.

Other embodiments
Although one embodiment of the rice hulling device of the present invention has been described above, various modifications are possible. For example, in the above embodiment, the optical inspection unit 75 is provided with a full-color camera 751 having light receiving elements of each color as a camera means, and a photographing camera 756, but this is not necessarily limited to this form, and it is also possible to omit the installation of the full-color camera 751 by processing the image captured by the photographing camera 756 and extracting the respective color components of red, green, and blue.

In addition, in the above embodiment, a full-color camera 751 equipped with light receiving elements of each color is provided as the camera means, but it is of course also possible to provide single-color light receiving sensors corresponding to red, green, and blue, respectively.

Figure 13 is a schematic side view showing another embodiment of the fallen rice discrimination mode in the fallen rice discriminator, in which the flow-down conduit 15 is formed in a long shape and a transparent material 741 such as glass is provided on a part of the bottom surface near the observation area o. As a result, compared to the conventional method in which fallen rice is discharged from the bottom end of the flow-down conduit 74 and flows down in a free-fall (free-fly) state, the fallen rice grains are less likely to experience air resistance and the grains are more stable in position, making it possible to improve the accuracy of discriminating fallen rice. Note that instead of providing the transparent material 741 described above, a slit-shaped space may be provided, and the flow-down conduit 74 may also be configured as a belt conveyor.

As shown in FIG. 12, it is also possible to use a centrifugal (impeller) dehuller instead of the roll-type rice huller 1. In the case of a centrifugal (impeller) dehuller, the appropriate dehulling rate is generally in the range of 90-95%, but if the dehulling rate obtained from the detection result of the optical inspection unit 75 is 90% or less, (1) the rotation speed of the centrifugal dehuller is controlled as the rotation speed control, so that the dehulling rate approaches the appropriate dehulling rate of 90-95%. If the appropriate dehulling rate is not achieved even after a certain period of time has elapsed since the rotation speed control, this time there is a risk of the grain flow rate being excessive, so (2) flow rate adjustment control is performed to reduce the grain flow rate. If the appropriate dehulling rate is not achieved even after the controls (1) and (2) are performed, an abnormality is determined and a warning is issued to the manager or operator of the device.

(Monitoring Control System 200)
In the above-described embodiment, the control mode of the hulling control unit within each hulling device, as shown in the block diagram of Figure 12, was explained in detail. However, it is also possible to connect multiple hulling devices, sorting devices that sort the ground rice discharged from the hulling devices, weighing instruments, etc., via a network, monitor the processing status of various devices collectively, and control each device as necessary.

For example, FIG. 14 shows a schematic diagram of a monitoring control system 200 in which multiple hullers, sorters, weighing machines, etc. are connected to a network and managed collectively by a monitoring control PC 100. That is, the weighing machine (hulled rice) 94 in this embodiment is equipped with a weighing device as well as a device for identifying the raw rice, and it is possible to collect quality data such as the weight per lot, moisture content, the proportion of immature rice, cracked rice, and broken rice, and the average length and thickness of the rice.

The collected quality data from the weighing machine (rice) 94 is transmitted to the network server 101 by wire or wirelessly, and the data can be displayed on the monitoring control PC 100 as raw material information (for each lot) before being fed into the rice huller, together with information on the field, variety, taste, etc., as shown in FIG. 15 (1), making it possible to monitor the data.

The rice weighed by the weighing machine (rice) 94 is fed into the rice hulling device, and as in the previous embodiment, the rice hulling operation is performed by the rice huller 1, and the unhulled rice is selected by the ejector unit 76 of the hulled rice discriminator 70. Furthermore, at the discharge outlet of the rice hulling device, a hulling image processing sensor 90 is provided that can photograph the hulled rice discharged from the hulling device and determine the hulling rate, broken rice rate, etc. The quality data of the hulled rice acquired by the hulling image processing sensor 90 is configured to be transmitted to the network server 101 by wire or wirelessly.

In addition, the rice hulling device is provided with multiple sensors that detect the current value and roll pressure of the rice huller 1, the rotation speed and rotation difference rate of the main husking roll 3 and the auxiliary husking roll 4, the flow rate of rice, the temperature of the roll shaft, and vibration in the rice huller 1, and is configured to transmit operational data such as the operating status of the rice hulling device to the network server 101 via wired or wireless connection. By configuring it in this way, the monitoring control PC 100 can display and monitor the operating status of the rice hulling device in real time, such as the roll usage time and processing amount, current value, roll pressure, roll rotation speed switching time, main and auxiliary shaft rotation speed and temperature, each roll diameter, and vibration magnitude, as shown in FIG. 15 (2).

The quality data of the husked rice acquired by the above-mentioned husking image processing sensor 90 can also be monitored by the monitoring control PC 100 via the network server 101. For example, as shown in FIG. 15 (3), it is possible to monitor the quality data after husking in real time, such as the husking rate and broken rice rate for each lot. Based on information such as the operation data of the husking device and the quality data after husking, it is also possible for the monitoring control PC 100 to control the operation of the husking device as necessary. For example, by appropriately remotely controlling the rotation speed and pressing force of the main husking roll 3 and the secondary husking roll 4, it is possible to improve the husking rate and broken rice rate.

Then, the hulled rice discharged from the hulling device is fed into a sorting device to sort the hulled rice and obtain brown rice. The sorting device is equipped with a partition image processing sensor 91 that can take an overhead image of the brown rice, the mixed rice of unhulled and brown rice, and the unhulled rice flowing through the sorting device while being sorted, and can move a movable partition plate to the boundary between them. In addition, it is equipped with a layer thickness sensor 92 that can measure the layer thickness of the brown rice, the mixed rice of unhulled and brown rice, and the unhulled rice flowing through the sorting device, and the layer thickness sensor 92 and the partition image processing sensor 91 are connected to the sorting control unit. The operation data and quality data obtained by the sorting control unit are fed back to the hulling control unit of the hulling device (FB in the figure) and are also fed forward to the weighing machine (brown rice) 95 (FF in the figure), and are simultaneously configured to transmit the operation data and quality data to the network server 101 by wire or wirelessly.

The operation data and quality data transmitted from the sorting control unit to the network server 101 can be monitored by the monitoring control PC 100, and for example, as shown in FIG. 15 (4), the processing volume for each lot and the rate of rice husking can be displayed in real time. In addition, based on the quality data fed back from the sorting control unit to the husking control unit (shown as FB), for example, it is possible to automatically control the rotation speed and pressing force of the main husking roll 3 and the secondary husking roll 4 in the husking device to an appropriate state, and if necessary, the husking device can be remotely controlled by operating instructions in the monitoring control PC 100.

The brown rice selected by the sorting device is then sent to a grading sensor 93 to determine the grade, and is then weighed in a weighing machine (brown rice) 95 for collection. The grading sensor 93 and weighing machine (brown rice) 95 are also connected to the network by wire or wirelessly, and various quality data is collected in a network server 101. With this configuration, the monitoring control PC 100 can centrally manage and control a series of quality data from the input of rice, hulling, sorting, grading, and collection of brown rice, as well as operation data of each device, and furthermore, yield management and monetary balance, via the network.

For example, as shown in FIG. 15 (5), in addition to the total processing volume and yield, the monitoring control PC 100 can compile data such as the purchase price of rice, the sales price of brown rice and immature rice, operating hours, electricity usage, and labor costs, and display the financial balance for each lot. By configuring the monitoring control PC 100 so that the various information described above can be confirmed, it becomes possible to optimize various controls while grasping the final balance situation, in addition to setting, adjusting, and repairing the rice hulling device.

In addition, in this embodiment, it is possible to predict failures of each device based on information obtained from each device and each sensor. For example, if the husking rate in Figure 15 (3) is 90% or more, but the processing volume in *2 is decreasing, or the rice inclusion rate in *3 is increasing, an abnormality is determined and an alert is displayed on the monitoring control PC 100, making it possible to take the necessary checks and measures. In this way, in this embodiment, failures can be predicted based on each quality data and operation data collected in the network server 101, and Figure 16 shows the configuration for checking the causes of malfunctions for each abnormality detection item, such as abnormal rotation speed, abnormal bearing temperature, abnormal vibration, abnormal husking rate, abnormal increase in broken rice rate, and abnormal yield.

Figure 1) The first factor to check for abnormal rotation speed is whether or not there is belt slippage in the rotating belts of the main husking roll 3 and the auxiliary husking roll 4, and whether or not there is an abnormality in the peripheral speed switching between the main husking roll 3 and the auxiliary husking roll 4. If there are no abnormalities in these, the next factor to check (second check) is whether or not there is an abnormality in the pulley.

Next, as shown in Figure 2), causes of abnormal bearing temperature may include an insufficient amount of rice being fed into the rice huller 1, or an abnormality in the bearings around the shafts of each husking roll, and these should be checked first (first check). The next cause to be checked (second check) is a high peripheral speed difference rate between the main husking roll 3 and the secondary husking roll 4.

Figure 3) The first thing to check for causes of abnormal vibration is whether or not there is any divergence in at least one of the main husking rolls 3 and the auxiliary husking rolls 4, or whether or not there is any abnormality in the bearings around the shafts of each husking roll. If there are no abnormalities in these, the next thing to check (second check) is whether or not the stand that secures the rice huller 1 has become weak.

Figure 4) Factors that should be checked first (first check) for abnormalities in the husking rate include whether or not there is belt slippage in the rotating belts of the main husking roll 3 and the auxiliary husking roll 4, whether or not the peripheral speed difference rate between the main husking roll 3 and the auxiliary husking roll 4 is low, whether or not there is abnormal wear in each husking roll, and checking when each husking roll should be replaced. If there are no abnormalities in these, factors that should be checked next (second check) include excessive input of rice grains into the rice huller 1, high moisture content of rice grains, and large amount of immature rice mixed in.

Figure 5) Factors that should be checked first (first check) for abnormalities in the rise of broken rice include the state of cracking of the raw material and the presence or absence of diversification or roll marks in at least one of the main husking rolls 3 and the secondary husking rolls 4. If there are no abnormalities in these, factors that should be checked next (second check) include an excessive amount of rice being fed into the rice huller 1 and an inappropriate chute position in the chute that supplies grain between the main husking rolls 3 and the secondary husking rolls 4.

Figure 6) The factors that should be checked first (first check) for yield anomalies include the state of cracks in the raw materials and whether there is a large amount of shiina or immature rice mixed in. If there are no abnormalities in these, the next factors to be checked (second check) include an abnormality in the ejector unit 76 and an abnormality in the volume or speed of the air discharged from the ejector unit 76.

Above, the process of dealing with abnormality detection 1) to 6) exemplified in FIG. 16 has been described. Such abnormality detection information may be displayed as an alert (e.g., a pop-up display such as "Abnormal vibration detected!!") on the monitoring control PC 100 based on quality data and device operation data aggregated to the network server 101 from each device and various sensors provided separately. Furthermore, in addition to the above-mentioned alert display according to the type of abnormality, an abnormality handling instruction display (e.g., display of specific check items, display of inspection/repair locations, specific operation instructions related to operation control, etc.) may be displayed on the monitoring control PC 100. In this way, the operation manager of each device can perform the necessary checks, inspections, and repairs, as well as control the operation of each device by remote operation using the monitoring control PC 100.

The monitoring control PC 100 and the network server 101 can be placed in a facility where each device, including the rice hulling device, is installed and can be connected to each device, including the rice hulling device, by wire or wirelessly. However, the connection between each device, including the rice hulling device, and the network server 101, and the network server 101 and the monitoring control PC 100 can also be made via a public communication line, making it possible to monitor and control the operation data and quality data of each device, including the rice hulling device, from a remote location. Furthermore, it is also possible to use a fifth-generation mobile communication system, so-called 5G, which is capable of high-speed, large-capacity communication, as the public communication line. For example, as shown in FIG. 14, it is possible to perform monitoring and control using a tablet communication terminal 100a.

Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the above-mentioned embodiments of the invention are intended to facilitate understanding of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention. The present invention may be modified or improved without departing from its spirit, and the present invention includes equivalents thereof. Furthermore, the components described in the claims and specification may be combined or omitted to the extent that at least part of the above-mentioned problems can be solved or at least part of the effects can be achieved.

1 Rice huller 2 Machine frame 3 Main husking roll 4 Sub-husking roll 5 Roll shaft 6 Roll shaft 7 Drive motor 8 Drive motor 9 First large diameter pulley 10 First small diameter pulley 11 Drive pulley 12 First idler pulley 13 Endless belt 14 Tension clutch pulley 15 Belt clutch mechanism 16 Support member 17 Air cylinder 18 Roll gap adjustment means 19 Second small diameter pulley 20 Second large diameter pulley 21 Drive pulley 22 Second idler pulley 23 Third idler pulley 24 Endless belt 25 Tension clutch pulley 26 Belt clutch mechanism 27 Support member 28 Air cylinder 29 Air cylinder 30 Rotary actuator 31 Air piping 32 Supply port 33 Air pressure control device 34 Mount 35 Bearing 50 First sprocket 51 Second sprocket 52 Rotating shaft 53 Intermediate double sprocket 54 Rotating shaft 55 Synchronizing double sprocket 56, tensioning sprocket 57, tensioning sprocket 58, differential chain 59, differential chain 60, transmission chain 61, rod type air cylinder 62, base 63, pivot pin 70, fallen rice discriminator 71, fallen rice hopper 72, vibration device 73, vibration trough 74, flow trough 741, transparent material 75, optical inspection unit 751, full color camera (camera means)
752 Background 753a, 753b First lighting means 754a, 754b Second lighting means 755 Third lighting means 756 Shooting camera (camera means)
76 Ejector section 77 Brown rice collection hopper 78 Rice recovery hopper 79 Brown rice discharge section 80 Rice discharge section 81 Grain lifter 90 Husking image processing sensor 91 Partition image processing sensor 92 Layer thickness sensor 93 Grade determination sensor 94 Weighing machine (rice)
95 Weighing machine (brown rice)
100 Monitoring control PC
100a Tablet type communication terminal 101 Network server 200 Monitoring control system

Claims (11)

The present invention has a rice huller in which rice hulling is performed by a husking roll, a husked rice discriminator capable of inspecting husked rice discharged from the rice huller, and a husking control unit capable of controlling the rice huller in accordance with the inspection result of the husked rice by the husked rice discriminator,
The hulling control unit includes a rotation speed changing means for changing the rotation speed of the hulling roll in the huller according to the inspection result of the hulled rice ,
The said fallen rice discriminator is
A flow-down trough that aligns the fallen rice and flows it down;
A light source that irradiates light onto the rice discharged from the flow-down trough;
A camera means capable of receiving reflected light and transmitted light from the ground rice irradiated with light from the light source,
The light emitting source is
a first illumination means provided on the side of the camera means of the fallen rice and capable of irradiating the fallen rice with light of a red component;
and a second illumination means provided on a side of the fallen rice away from the camera means and capable of irradiating the fallen rice with light of a green component.
A rice hulling device characterized by the above. The husking roll comprises a main husking roll rotating at a predetermined rotation speed and a sub-husking roll rotating at a slower speed than the main husking roll,
The rice hulling device according to claim 1, wherein the rotation speed changing means changes the rotation speed of the secondary husking roll so that the secondary husking roll rotates faster than the rotation speed of the primary husking roll. The inspection items of the said ground rice include at least the husking rate,
The hulling device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the hulling control unit changes the rotation speed of the hulling roll by the rotation speed changing means when the hulling rate falls below a predetermined value. The inspection items of the said fallen rice include at least the broken rice rate,
The hulling device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the hulling control unit changes the rotation speed of the hulling roll by the rotation speed changing means when the increase rate of the broken rice rate becomes equal to or greater than a predetermined value. As a result of receiving light from the camera means,
When the amount of light of the green component received is higher than a predetermined green component threshold, the discharged ground rice is determined to be brown rice,
A rice huller as described in claim 4, wherein when the amount of light of the green component received is lower than the predetermined green component threshold and the amount of light of the red component received is higher than a predetermined red component threshold, the discharged ground rice is determined to be unhulled rice . The light source further includes a third illumination means that is provided on an extension line connecting the camera means and the fallen rice and is capable of irradiating a background of the fallen rice with light of a blue component,
If the amount of light received by the camera means is outside a predetermined range, it is determined that the object discharged from the flow-down trough is a foreign object other than the ground rice.
A rice hulling apparatus according to claim 4 or claim 5. 7. The rice hulling device according to claim 4 , wherein the camera means is capable of taking an image of the ground rice in addition to receiving the reflected light and the transmitted light. 8. A rice hulling device as described in any one of claims 4 to 7 , wherein the flow-down trough extends at least to an observation area of the camera means which irradiates light onto the shrunk rice and is capable of transmitting light from the light source . A rice hulling device having a rice hulling device in which rice hulling is performed by a hulling roll, a hulled rice determination means capable of determining the quality of hulled rice discharged from the rice hulling device, and a hulling control unit capable of controlling the rice hulling device in accordance with the determination result of the hulled rice by the hulled rice determination means;
A monitoring device that is connected to the rice hulling device by wire or wirelessly and can receive and display the judgment result of the hulled rice,
The fallen rice discrimination means includes:
A flow-down trough that aligns the fallen rice and flows it down;
A light source that irradiates light onto the rice discharged from the flow-down trough;
A camera means capable of receiving reflected light and transmitted light from the ground rice irradiated with light from the light source,
The light emitting source is
a first illumination means provided on the side of the camera means of the fallen rice and capable of irradiating the fallen rice with light of a red component;
and a second illumination means provided on a side of the fallen rice away from the camera means and capable of irradiating the fallen rice with light of a green component,
The rotation speed of the hulling roll in the hulling device can be changed according to the judgment result of the hulled rice displayed and output on the monitoring device.
A rice hulling control system characterized by the above. The rice hulling device is provided with an abnormality detection means capable of detecting an abnormality in the rice hulling device,
The monitoring device includes an abnormality determination means capable of determining a plurality of types of abnormality based on the detection information from the abnormality detection means, and an abnormality display means capable of displaying and outputting the determination result by the abnormality determination means.
The hulling control system according to claim 9 . The rice hulling control system according to claim 10, wherein the monitoring device is provided with an abnormality handling instruction display means capable of displaying and outputting check contents according to priority in response to the judgment result by the abnormality judgment means.

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