JPS6136903B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a sorting device for continuously determining the color and gloss of seaweed, and more specifically, the present invention relates to a sorting device that continuously determines the color and gloss of seaweed. The present invention relates to a continuous determination and sorting device for the color and luster of seaweed, which determines and automatically sorts seaweed according to the determination information.

Nori is classified into several grades based on its color, luster, etc. Traditionally, in the past, the inspectors judged the grade using their naked eyes or senses, and then sorted each piece by hand according to the grade. was. However, such judgment and sorting work requires considerable skill, and there is a limit to the sorting speed, making it impossible to sufficiently subdivide the grades.

Therefore, in the seaweed related industry, there is a continuous color and gloss determination system that can continuously grade seaweed based on its color and gloss without relying on human hands, and automatically sort the seaweed accordingly. The development of a sorting system is strongly desired.

But the problem here, as we all know, is that
Nori comes in the form of a thin sheet, has a large surface area, is lightweight, and has a sagging or curved surface, making it extremely difficult to handle when separated one by one. Due to this difficulty in handling, no equipment has been developed that can continuously determine the color and gloss of seaweed one by one and automatically sort it.

The present invention was made in consideration of the above-mentioned state of the art, and its purpose is to transport seaweed one by one in a flat spread state,
To provide a continuous color/gloss determination sorting device for seaweed, which can judge the grade based on its color/gloss and automatically sort it at high speed according to the grade determination information.

The present invention is capable of achieving these objectives by combining a color/gloss determination device installed on the upstream side of a transport path that transports seaweed in a flat spread state and a sorting device installed on the downstream side. This is a sorting device for continuously determining the color and gloss of seaweed. The device includes a transport conveyor for seaweed, a sorting conveyor disposed above the transport conveyor so as to intersect with each other with a gap therebetween,
At these intersection positions, an upward airflow for transferring seaweed from the transport conveyor side to the sorting conveyor side is created, and the structure includes a transfer mechanism that can freely control the generation and stop of the upward airflow.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained in more detail based on the drawings. FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing an embodiment of the color and gloss continuous determination sorting device of seaweed according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram thereof. The color and gloss continuous determination and sorting device of seaweed according to the present invention includes a color and gloss determination device 1 installed on the upstream side of a transfer path for transporting seaweed in a flat spread state, and a sorting device 10 installed on the downstream side. It consists of a combination.

Here, the color/gloss determination device 1 has a structure in which the surface of the transported seaweed is irradiated with light and the color/gloss of the seaweed is determined based on the reflected light. This color/gloss determination device 1
A conveyor 3 that absorbs and holds the seaweed 2 and transports it, a light irradiation unit 4 that continuously irradiates the transported seaweed 2 with light, and a color difference meter 5 that measures the color tone of the seaweed in the irradiated area. and a gloss meter 6 for measuring the gloss of seaweed using the reflected light. Here, the conveyor 3 is a net-like endless belt 7.
It has a horizontal support 8 that holds the endless belt 7 so that it does not slacken, and is movable in a loop. A large number of suction ports are formed in this horizontal support 8, so that the seaweed 2 can be transferred in a flat and spread state. Further, a measurement box 9 is installed above the conveyor 3,
The light irradiation section 4, color difference meter 5, and gloss meter 6 are housed inside. This measurement box 9 functions to block external light so that it does not affect the determination of the color and luster of seaweed by light.

Next, the sorting device 10 includes a conveyor 11,
The sorting conveyors 12 are disposed above the conveyor 11 so as to intersect with each other at almost right angles with a gap therebetween, and at the intersection point, an upward airflow is created from the side of the conveyor 11 to the side of the sorting conveyor 12. The structure includes a transfer mechanism that can freely control the generation and stop of the upward airflow. In this sorting device 10, the transfer mechanism transfers the seaweed to be sorted from the conveyor 11 to the sorting conveyor 12 by generating and stopping the upward air current, and the sorting conveyor 12 transfers the seaweed to the conveyor 1.
They are transferred to the side of No. 1 and sorted.

The conveyor 11 has first and second main rollers 1
It has a net-like endless belt 15 which is hung between 3 and 14. The rotation of the motor 16 causes the endless belt 15 to move in a loop in the direction indicated by the arrow. In addition, two main rollers 13, 14
A horizontal holder is provided between them so that the endless belt 15 runs without slack. In this embodiment, this horizontal holding body is provided on the upper surface of the plane support plate 24.
This structure has three horizontal holding guide members 25a and 25b extending parallel to the longitudinal direction of the conveyor 11. These three horizontal holding guide members 25
a and 25b are shaped like hollow round pipes, and a suitable gap is formed around the periphery so that the entire lower surface of the endless belt 15 does not come into close contact with the horizontal holding body, and the horizontal level of the endless belt 15 is maintained. fulfill a function. The central horizontal holding guide member 25a has a structure in which a large number of suction ports 26 are bored in its upper surface, and the inside thereof constitutes a part of a suction path and is constantly sucked and exhausted. As a result, the seaweed 2 transported on the endless belt 15 is
It is suctioned and fixed onto the endless belt 15, and is kept in a state where it will not fly away or shift its position.

The sorting conveyor 12 is connected to the endless belt 1 of the transport conveyor 11 from the top surface of the pedestal (not shown).
A plurality of conveyors 5 are suspended in the longitudinal direction of the conveyor 11 with a slight gap between them and the upper surface of the conveyor 11 . Now, this sorting conveyor 12 has a structure in which a net-like endless belt 31 is stretched between two rollers 30, and although it is not shown, one roller is connected to a sudden start/stop motor via a forward/reverse clutch. be combined. The endless belt 31 is structured so that it can be instantaneously rotated in either forward or reverse direction from a stopped state by the operation of the clutch.

The transfer mechanism is located at the intersection of the conveyor 11 and the sorting conveyor 12, and as shown in FIG. It is composed of a compressed air supply path 36 communicating with the blow-up port 35, an electromagnetic valve 37 provided in the middle thereof, and a compressed air source such as an air compressor (not shown). and,
By turning on and off the electromagnetic valve 37, the blow-up flow (upward flow) of compressed air is started and stopped at a substantially central position directly below the sorting conveyor.

Further, a gear-shaped rotor 40 is attached to the rotating shaft of the second main roller 14 in the conveyor 11, and a light emitting element 4 is mounted so as to sandwich the gear-shaped portion.
1 and a light-receiving element 42 are located facing each other and constitute a moving distance detection system for the endless belt 15. Light emitting element 4
1 to the light receiving element 42 is blocked by the gear-shaped portion of the rotor 40, the moving distance of the endless belt 15 can be determined regardless of fluctuations in the rotational speed of the motor 16. It can be detected accurately.

The operation of the seaweed color and gloss continuous determination sorting device having such a configuration is as follows. The seaweed 2 to be sorted is first transported by the conveyor 3 of the color/gloss determination device 1, and when it reaches at least directly below the measurement box 9, it has already been sucked downward and spread flat. Here, light is irradiated onto a substantially constant area of the surface of the seaweed by the light irradiation unit 4, and the color tone thereof is measured by a color difference meter 5, and the gloss is measured by a gloss meter 6. Regarding the measurement results, it is also possible to process the results by, for example, measuring the seaweed from end to end, calculating the average values of color tone and gloss using a microcomputer, etc., and grading the seaweed based on the results. The seaweed for which the determination result has been determined in this way is sent to the sorting device 10 on the downstream side in a flat, spread-out state. At this time, the endless belt 15 has a net-like breathable structure as described above, and as shown in detail in FIG. The seaweed 2 that is moved while being held horizontally and is placed on it is attracted by the suction port 26 formed in the horizontal holding guide member 25a in the center, so that it does not float up or down. The object is transported while being held in a fixed position. Based on the determination signal from the color/gloss determination device 1 located upstream of this device, it is determined which sorting conveyor is to be driven for the transported nori, and the nori is sorted into the corresponding sorting conveyor. When the transfer mechanism reaches the bottom of the transport conveyor, the transfer mechanism is activated. That is, the electromagnetic valve 37 opens and compressed air is injected upward from the blow-up port 35, and the rising airflow transfers the seaweed from the transport conveyor 11 side to the sorting conveyor 12 side. The situation is shown in Figure 4. First, the center portion of the seaweed 2 is pushed up by the blow-up of compressed air from the blow-up port 35. At this time, since gaps exist in most of the lower surface of the endless belt 15, the ends of the seaweed 2 do not come into close contact with the endless belt 15, and the seaweed 2 moves smoothly upward. Since it is blown up in the center, it moves straight upward without losing its posture. Then, the central part of the seaweed 2 comes into contact with the bottom surface of the endless belt 31 of the sorting conveyor 12,
Thereafter, the peripheral portions are also successively pressed against the lower surface of the endless belt 31. At this time, since the endless belt 31 is made of a material with good air permeability and has a gap formed behind it, almost the entire lower surface of the seaweed 2 is quickly pressed against the lower surface of the endless belt 31. When in such a state,
As mentioned above, the forward/reverse clutch operates, and the endless belt 31 rapidly rotates in one direction (a specific direction according to the determination signal), and the nori that is in close contact with the endless belt 31 moves in a fixed direction as shown by the imaginary line. blown away. This is how the seaweed is sorted.

Figure 5 shows more detailed control operations of this device.
This will be explained using FIG. The seaweed passed through the color/gloss determination device 1 and determined there is directly transferred to the sorting device 1.
0. Now, color gloss determination device 1
Assume that the determination result of the seaweed 2 immediately below is that it is to be sorted by the sorting conveyor 12a. At this time, it takes a certain period of time T for the seaweed 2 located right below the measurement box 9 of the color/gloss determination device 1 to reach right below the sorting conveyor 12a.
As previously mentioned, a clock pulse proportional to the conveyor speed is generated by the endless belt travel distance detection system in conjunction with the second main roller 14 of the transport conveyor 11. The endless belt 1 is connected between the clock pulse generated from the light receiving element 42 and the next clock pulse.
5 is moved by a distance d, and the distance from the color/gloss determination device 1 to the sorting conveyor 12a is D, the target sorting conveyor position is reached at D/d clock pulses. become. Therefore, if the judgment signal is shifted by D/d clock pulses and output using a shift register or the like, the shift register signal S can be generated from the shift register just when it reaches the corresponding sorting conveyor 12a. I can do it. This shift register signal S causes the first
The timer is activated to generate a first timer signal _T1 having a variable pulse width. On the other hand, an optical sensor 43 is provided in front of each sorting conveyor, so that the passage of the seaweed 2 can be detected and the position of the seaweed can be confirmed. and,
The first timer signal _T1 is synchronized with the end of the photo signal P indicating the presence and passage of seaweed to ensure that the seaweed has passed and to ensure that the position of the seaweed is at the center of the sorting conveyor 12a. match. Then, the second timer is activated by the synchronization signal, and the sorting operation is performed within the period of the second timer signal _T2 . That is, operating the solenoid valve 37 for blowing up compressed air,
Operate the forward/reverse clutch. In this way, the seaweed determined by the color/gloss determination device 1 is sorted by driving a desired sorting conveyor in accordance with the determination signal.

Although the most preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the nori color/gloss determination/sorting device having such a structure, and can be applied in various ways within the scope of the claims. Needless to say, changes are possible. In this example,
The system configuration is such that the color/gloss determination device and the sorting device are completely separated. This is advantageous because there is a high degree of freedom in system configuration, and if the number of grades to be sorted increases, an optimal system can be constructed by adding more sorting devices. Of course, it is also possible to adopt a configuration in which the color/gloss determination device section and the sorting device section are combined into a single conveyor.

Since the present invention is a sorting device for continuously determining the color and luster of seaweed configured as described above, the color and luster of the seaweed is measured by the color and luster determination device, and its grade is determined one by one. This method has the excellent effect of automatically and continuously sorting seaweed at high speed and accuracy, and without damaging the seaweed.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing an embodiment of the nori color/gloss continuous determination sorting device according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram thereof, FIG. An explanatory diagram showing the transfer status of seaweed from the transport conveyor side to the sorting conveyor side, FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of the control operation of this apparatus, and FIG. 6 is a time chart of the operation. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Color gloss determination device, 2... Seaweed, 3... Conveyor, 4... Light irradiation part, 5... Color difference meter, 6...
... Gloss meter, 10 ... Sorting device, 11 ... Conveyor conveyor, 12 ... Sorting conveyor, 35 ... Compressed air blow-off port, 36 ... Compressed air supply path, 3
7... Solenoid valve, 40... Gear-shaped rotor, 41
...Light emitting element, 42... Light receiving element.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. Consisting of a combination of a color/gloss determination device installed on the upstream side of a transfer path for transporting seaweed in a flat spread state and a sorting device installed downstream, the color/gloss determination device The sorting device has a structure in which the surface of the transported seaweed is irradiated with light and the reflected light is used to determine the color and gloss of the seaweed. Sorting conveyors arranged to intersect with each other, and a transfer mechanism that creates an upward airflow for transferring seaweed from the transport conveyor side to the sorting conveyor side at the intersection of these conveyors, and can freely control the generation and stop of the upward airflow. A sorting device for continuously determining the color and gloss of seaweed, characterized by having a structure comprising: 2. The color/gloss determination device consists of a transport conveyor that transports the seaweed while adsorbing it, a light irradiation unit that continuously irradiates the transported seaweed with light, and a color difference system that measures the color tone of the seaweed in the irradiated area. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, comprising a gloss meter and a gloss meter for measuring the gloss of seaweed using the reflected light. 3. The device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a plurality of sorting conveyors are arranged in parallel in the longitudinal direction of the conveyor. 4. A patent claim in which the sorting conveyor is equipped with an endless belt and has a structure that can be started and stopped in either the forward or reverse direction, and is configured to distribute the transferred seaweed to be sorted to both sides of the conveyor. The device according to item 1, item 2, or item 3. 5. The endless belt used in the conveyor of the sorting device has a ventilated structure, and the transfer mechanism includes a compressed air blow-off port located below the breathable endless belt, and a compressed air blow-off port that communicates with the blow-off port. Claim 1, which includes an air supply path and an electromagnetic valve provided in the middle thereof;
Apparatus according to clause 2, 3 or 4.