JPH059736B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a system for testing containers, such as glass containers and plastic containers, for the presence of contaminants and hazardous materials. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method of verifying a non-contaminated container by detecting the residue of the product originally filled into the container.

In many industries, including the drinking water industry, products are filled into containers that are returned after use, cleaned, and refilled. Typically, refill containers are made of glass and can be easily cleaned. These containers are cleaned and then inspected for the presence of foreign matter.

Glass containers have the disadvantage of being easily broken and being relatively heavy as their capacity increases.
The use of plastic containers is therefore highly desirable. This is because plastic containers are less likely to break and are lighter than glass containers for the same capacity. However, plastic materials tend to absorb various organic substances which are subsequently desorbed into the product and have a detrimental effect on the quality of the product filled into the container. Existing testing methods are known to be inadequate for testing containers that are absorbing contaminants. Two types of foreign object detection devices are well known to those skilled in the art. One of these inspects the body of the bottle and the other inspects the bottom of the container. In the case of the former device, light is irradiated onto the bottle from the outside while the bottle is being rotated, and the light passing through the bottle is detected by a photoelectric device. A photovoltaic device is used to compare the amount of transmitted light obtained when a foreign object is present in a certain area of the bottle with the amount of transmitted light obtained when there is no foreign object in that area. Typically, the entire body of the bottle is inspected for foreign object detection. US Patent
No. 4376951 (Miyazawa, March 15, 1983) is an example of this detection system, which has a number of photodetectors to determine which bottles contain foreign material. It consists of a photoelectric conversion device and a video signal processing device for continuously comparing and identifying various detection signals of two adjacent points detected by the photoelectric conversion device.

Detection devices that measure the proportion of light transmitted through a container have the disadvantage of not being able to detect the presence of many contaminants that are absorbed on the walls of the container. This is because some contaminants do not affect the light passing through the container.

US Patent No.4551627 (November 5, 1985)
Reich discloses an apparatus for testing residues such as water, oil, and liquid soap in refill drinking water containers. This device is intended to detect liquids such as oil and liquid soap that contaminate the container. In the disclosed apparatus, trace amounts of liquid contaminants are detected and containers containing such residue are removed from the container refill process line. The method for detecting contaminants consists of the following steps: measuring the transmittance of light in the state of coupling between the contaminant to be detected and the wall surface of the container to which the contaminant is attached; Select two optical passbands, one at a relatively high transmittance level with respect to the contaminant to be detected and one at a relatively low transmittance level with respect to the contaminant to be detected. and measuring the amount of light in the two optical passbands as the light passes through the bottom and neck portions of the container, and converting these amounts of light into two respective electrical signals. , the step of comparing one electrical signal for one passband with another electrical signal for another passband. Although this device described by Reigh is suitable for detecting one or two predetermined liquid contaminants that may remain in a container, there are many types of contaminants that may be present. The usefulness of this device is limited in some cases and when contaminants are absorbed into the walls of the container. In addition, the device relies on the permeability of the contaminant being detected, and its physical properties vary significantly depending on the contaminant. This device is typically used to test cleaned glass containers for corrosive residual diluent solvents, and not to test unwashed containers as in the present invention.

US Patent No.4221961 (September 9, 1980,
Peyton discloses an electro-optical detector.
The device is configured in such a way that it is possible to detect particles or liquid within the bottle. The device includes a light source located below the bottom of the bottle, a rotary scanning device head located above the neck of the bottle that receives light transmitted from the light source through the bottom of the bottle, and a particulate matter on the bottom of the bottle. A detector is provided for receiving the light reflected from the surface of the scanning device head to detect only the light reflected from the surface of the scanning device head. The scanning device has a reflective portion and a non-reflective portion. This reflector reflects the light passing through the bottle bottom to form an image of the bottle bottom onto the detector.
If particulate matter is present on the bottom of the bottle, this material will block the light from the light source and cause a reduction in the output of the detector. The non-reflective part is equipped with an infrared detector to detect infrared radiation transmitted through the bottom of the bottle. The light received by the infrared detector is filtered. Therefore, only light having a wavelength at or near one wavelength of the absorption band of the liquid to be detected is transmitted and reaches the infrared detector. If there is a liquid at the bottom of the bottle, the light will be partially absorbed and the AC coupled strength of the infrared detector (ACcoupled) will indicate the presence of that liquid.
(amplitude). This device is typically used to inspect cleaned returnable glass bottles for foreign matter that adheres to the inside surface of the bottle and cannot be removed by a washer.

US Patent No.4087184 (May 2, 1978
Knapp et al. disclose a method and apparatus for testing liquids in transparent containers. This method involves irradiating a liquid with a light source with a constant intensity, and then transmitting an image of the entire volume of the irradiated liquid through a lens onto multiple image projection planes by a bundle of optical fibers, resulting in a series of light conversions with a constant sensitivity. The process consists of monitoring a bundle of optical fibers using a device. Each light converter is
The illumination values of the image of each designated unit volume of the liquid-filled container are converted into voltage signals, each signal being monitored for changes in the signal indicative of particle movement.
Disturbances in the output signal due to lens attenuation are adjusted and
The decision to reuse or discard the bottle is based on a composite signal representing all segmented signals received from the series of optical transducers.

US Patent No.4083691 (April 11, 1978)
McCormack et al. disclose a method for detecting contaminants in water. This method rapidly detects organic contaminants in water using chemical foaming to hasten the release of contaminants into the atmosphere above the sample water.
These pollutants can be detected by conventional air pollution detection tubes. An apparatus for detecting atmospheric contaminants on an aqueous solution by means of a detection tube is also disclosed.

US Patent No.3966332 (June 29, 1976,
Knapp et al. disclose a method and device for testing liquids in transparent containers. The device automatically inspects liquid-filled containers by relative size for particulate contaminants. The method involves irradiating the liquid with a light source of a certain intensity, examining the image of the entire container of the irradiated liquid with a lens through an optical fiber, and using a series of optical sensors with a certain sensitivity. It consists of monitoring a bundle of optical fibers. Each optical sensor converts the irradiance of a designated individual unit cross-sectional area of the bottle image into a voltage signal and monitors each signal as a signal change indicative of particle movement. The disturbed output signal due to lens attenuation is adjusted and the decision to reuse or discard the bottle is based on a composite signal representing all segmented signals received from the series of optical sensors.

US Patent No.4459023 (July 10, 1984,
Reich et al. disclose an electro-optical inspection system for transparent or translucent containers. The electro-optical inspection system disclosed uses a polarized scanning optical beam and a series of polarized optical detectors and logic signal processing equipment. This allows defects on transparent or translucent containers to be detected reliably. All the above devices are
It has the disadvantage of relying on the presence of particles with a minimum size of 5 mm and on the detection of physical characteristics of specific liquid contaminants as a means of indicating possible contamination. In the case of a contaminated plastic bottle, the presence of particles of said size or the presence of a measurable amount of liquid will not reveal the presence of contaminants. The contamination would rather be diffused within the container wall and would not be detected even by use of the optical methods described in the above reference. Other difficulties encountered in possible contamination of plastic containers are:
There are many possible contaminants, and the physical and optical properties of the contaminants are diverse. Therefore, a system capable of detecting contaminants such as pesticides will not be able to detect herbicides or fuels.

The first object of the invention is therefore to make it possible to distinguish contaminated containers from uncontaminated bottles.

A second object of the invention is to provide a new system that is simple in construction and inexpensive to manufacture. This system can easily detect containers that do not contain contaminants with high accuracy. In this way, it can contribute to reducing the labor costs required for bottle inspection.

A third object of the present invention is to provide a novel system operable to distinguish plastic containers having various contaminants absorbed into the walls of said containers from containers containing residues of the original product. It is in.

A fourth object of the invention is to provide a system for identifying containers with residues of the original product filled therein by detecting the presence of residues.

A fifth object of the present invention is to provide a system for identifying containers having sufficient original product residue in the container by detecting the presence of residual components.

These and other objects of the invention include: comparing the physical parameters of the residue in the bottle with the physical parameters of the product originally filled into the container;
This is achieved by the present invention by means of a method and apparatus for identifying contaminated and uncontaminated bottles. If the physical parameters of the residue correlate with those of the product originally filled into the container, the bottles containing the residue are sent to the standard washing machine of the bottling plant. If the physical parameters of the residue do not correlate with those of the product originally filled into the container, the bottle containing the residue should be subjected to further inspection or a special contaminant extraction process or discarded. be done.

The novel features of the invention are set forth in the claims. The nature, principles, and utility of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description, read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The part numbers listed below are the same as the part numbers in the accompanying drawings.

To fully understand the present invention, it is important to understand the difference between the physical behavior of resin-containing materials such as polyethylene, PET, acrylonitrile styrene copolymers, polycarbonate, and the physical behavior of glass. be. Glass is impervious to penetration by most substances. Unlike glass, contaminants can migrate into the walls of containers made from resin-containing materials. Contaminants that migrate into the walls of the container will desorb into the product when the container is refilled. Many contaminants, even in trivial concentrations, will adversely affect the taste or aroma of the product being consumed. A large number of types and concentrations of contaminants will be present in the container. Currently existing detection methods cannot characterize residue quickly enough for practical use. If some contaminants migrate into the walls of the container, there will be no visually detectable physical characteristics. Existing detector systems are therefore inadequate to detect such contamination.

FIG. 1 shows a simple diagram of a system 11 for identifying contaminated and uncontaminated bottles. Bottles returned by the customer are transported to a residue sampler 13 where a residue sample is obtained from the bottle. The residue sample is transported to residue analyzer 15. This residue analyzer measures the physical response of a residue sample. The sample signal corresponding to the physical response from the sample is sent to a parameter comparator 17.
This parameter comparator compares the sample signal with the corresponding value stored in memory 19 for the product originally filled into the container. Parameter comparator 1
7 sends a discard signal to the discard mechanism 21 if the sample signal does not correlate with the stored product parameters. The disposal mechanism 21 discards the bottle in response to the disposal signal.

FIG. 2 shows a more detailed diagram of the system 11 embodying the method for identifying contaminated and uncontaminated bottles according to the invention. Bottles 21 returned by customers are cleaned and refilled in the first conveyor system 23 of the bottling plant.
be placed on top. The bottles are conveyed to the first bottle rotation section 25 where they are turned over to remove any large amounts of residue. A large amount of residue is dropped into the waste receiving container 27 and disposed of. The bottles are then conveyed to a second bottle rotation section 29. The bottles are now rotated again so that the opening necks of the bottles are oriented upwards and placed on the individual container transport mechanisms 31. The transport mechanism 31 may be a standard pocket chain type transport system. The bottle is then transported to a position below the water syringe 33.
A determined volume of distilled water is then poured into the bottle. The bottles advance to the third bottle rotation section 35. Third
There is a shallow water bowl (cuvette) under the bottle rotation section 35.
A transport system 37 for a shaped sample pan 39 is arranged. This sample dish transport system 37 consists of a plurality of glass shallow water bowl-shaped sample dishes that are individually arranged on the transport system and the position of each sample dish can be confirmed. The bottle then passes through the fourth bottle rotation section 4
1 and placed on the conveyor system 43. The position of each bottle on the conveyor system 43 corresponds to the sample pan 39 on the shallow water basin-like sample pan system 37.
corresponds to the position of

Sample pan 39 containing the diluted residue sample is transported to residue analyzer 45 . This residue analyzer 45
measures one or more physical properties of the diluted residue and provides input to analyzer logic system 47. Analyzer logic system 47 compares the physical property readings to the product and properties originally filled in the container. If the physical properties of the diluted residue do not correlate with the physical properties of the original product within the limits established for the properties, then the bottle containing the residue is contaminated. A discard signal is generated by the analyzer logic system 47. This waste signal is received by the logic system of the waste mechanism 49, which removes the contaminated bottles from the conveyor system 43. Contaminated bottles are either discarded or transported to a second testing step or contaminant extraction section (not shown).

After the shallow basin-shaped sample dish 39 passes through the residue analyzer 45, the sample dish is transferred to a sample dish washer where it is thoroughly cleaned to remove all residue from the sample dish. The sample dish 39 shaped like a shallow water bowl is circulated and used by the sample dish transport system 37.

FIG. 3 shows a simplified diagram of a system 12 having the same purpose and configuration as system 11 except that a residue sampler 13 is not required. The residue is measured by the residue analyzer 15 without being removed from the original container. Measurements of the physical response can be performed in the original container and are a method of measurement that does not destroy the container. Other components of system 12 serve the same functions as components of system 11.

FIG. 4 illustrates how the residue analyzer is introduced into the container to be analyzed. The bottles are transported by a conveyor system and if the analyzer requires water for analysis, a water injector 33
(which is similar to that shown in FIG. 2). A sufficient amount of hot water is injected into each vial from water injector 33 to dissolve the required amount of residue and provide sufficient volume for the analyzer. The bottles containing hot water are collected or conveyed to the bottle shaker/mixer 54 in order to sufficiently dissolve the residue to the required concentration. The bottle containing the residue is then conveyed to a residue analyzer 15 similar to that shown in FIG. The rest of the system operates similarly to the system of FIG.

Product Residue Analyzer A number of techniques or combinations thereof can be utilized to identify residue in a container as the product originally filled into the container. Typically, these techniques detect product characteristics or product components that can be used to distinguish the product from contaminants. Various techniques that can be implemented in the residue analyzer 15 utilized in the method of the present invention are described below.

A. Direct detection method A substance is emitted by the sample, reflected,
It can be characterized by measuring the amount and characteristics of electromagnetic radiation that is transmitted and refracted. Various methods utilized for the analysis of chemical components using electromagnetic radiation are as follows.

(1) Emission spectroscopy Emission spectroscopy is used to determine the structure of a compound from the wavelength composition of its emission spectrum. The sample is generally thermally excited in an arc until it emits its characteristic radiation. Detectors are used to measure the relative amount of radiation at characteristic wavelengths. Although this method is typically used for solid or metal analysis, the analytical instrument can also be used to characterize liquids.

(2) Multiparameter luminescence analysis When many substances undergo electromagnetic excitation,
They tend to emit at characteristic wavelengths. The amount and spectrum of emitted radiation are related to the molecular structure of the sample. A multi-channel fluorometer can be used to collect luminescence intensity, excitation and emission wavelength data from the unknown residue in the container. This expansive signature can be compared to the standard signature of an uncontaminated residue using computer pattern recognition.

(3) Infrared spectroscopy The frequency and amount of infrared radiation absorbed by a sample are characterized by the various molecular structures in the sample. For organic compounds, the infrared spectrum is very characteristic and actually gives a fingerprint of the compound.

(4) Near-infrared spectroscopy This technique is the same as the infrared spectrometry described above, except that an unknown sample is irradiated with monochromatic light in the near-infrared range from 1100 nm to 2500 nm. This near-infrared spectrum produces multiple overlapping signals in the infrared spectrum. These overlapping signals can be analyzed with the aid of computer-processed multiple linear regression analysis to yield clearer sample identification.

(5) Ultraviolet/visible light (colorimetric) absorption spectroscopy The concentration of ultraviolet or visible light absorbing substances in a mixture can be easily measured. With ultraviolet/visible spectrophotometry, absorbing components in a sample can be characterized by their absorption versus wavelength pattern (spectral signature). Standard spectral features can be created from the rest of the product. Computerized pattern recognition techniques can be used to classify residues as contaminants or products. These determinations can be accomplished with an effective colorimeter. The colorimeter determines the percentage absorption of light of a predetermined and characterized wavelength in order to establish a specific color of a sample or sample solution. Visible light is generated by a white light source and ultraviolet light is generated from an ultraviolet light source.

More specifically, spectral characteristics can be determined by selecting a range of distinguishing wavelengths for the product using optical filters. When selecting the identification wavelength range, at least one discrete and preselected identification wavelength is required; from 3 to 8 discrete and preselected identification wavelengths depending on the spectral characteristics of the actual product. It is desirable to use This specific color information can be used to sort samples and discard contaminated containers in the product filling line. A system using this technique is shown in FIG. Colorimetric absorption spectroscopy is one of the preferred embodiments of the invention.

(6) Raman spectroscopy Raman spectroscopy is based on changes in the wavelength of monochromatic light scattered by a sample. Changes in wavelength indicate the molecular structure of the sample. In some cases, the Raman spectrum will be the same as the infrared spectrum, but in many cases additional information can be obtained. This technique will be used in conjunction with infrared spectroscopy to provide more effective residue identification.

(7) Other optical measurements The molecular structure of a sample component can be characterized by the effect it has on light passing through the sample. The following are among the physical effects that can be measured: Refractive index of sample concentration Light scattering of suspended stations Optical rotation of polarization and refractive index of the sample Turbidity of the sample Density of the sample All of the above Physical effects can be detected by commercially available photodetectors. The particular method used will depend on the product originally filled into the container and will depend on the key product ingredients. Desirably, one or more methods can be used to improve the reliability of the residue detector.

The unique light scattering is of particular interest for applications in plastic soft drink containers. US
Patent No.4548500 (October 22, 1985,
Wyatt discloses a process and apparatus for immobilizing and characterizing small particles based on the measurement of certain optical observables or other electromagnetic radiation that each particle produces as soon as it passes through a beam of light. ing. A highly coherent beam of preferably monochromatic, vertically polarized light passes through a spherically arranged detector. Alternatively, a receiver with a fiber optic device for transmitting the incident light to a set of detectors is used. A sample containing small particles traverses the beam at the center of a spherically arranged detector. The selected observables calculated from the detected scattered radiation are then used to recall a special figure from the computer.

The aforementioned theory is based on US Patent No. 4490042 (1984
Wyatt (12, 25, 2013), a monochromatic light beam is irradiated to an integer-fold dilution of wine or a diluted liquid, the generated light scattering pattern is measured, and the standard pattern is compared with the pattern created by this diluted liquid. The characteristics of the wine were determined by using the difference between the two patterns as a quantitative measure. A version of this method is shown in which a number of measurements are taken at a set of selected angles over a period of time, and the intensity is measured several times at each selected angle. In this method, the average value of the intensity so measured at each selected angle is determined, and the average value of the numerical set and the variation of each detected value from the average value characterize the beverage. used for

The above theory can be utilized in the method of the present invention to characterize products and compare product residues. In another preferred embodiment of the invention, integer dilutions of the residue are diluted with filtered deionized water, placed in a shallow basin-like sample dish, and diametrically irradiated with a narrow, vertically polarized laser beam. is irradiated along the An array of detectors or a rotating single detector measures the scattered light intensity as a function of the scattering angle, generally the laser plane.
Polarizing filters are also utilized to read scattered light in a plane perpendicular to the laser's plane of polarization. This scattering change is digitally recorded and compared to the stored scattering pattern for the original product contained in the bottle. If the reading of the diluted residue is not essentially the same as the stored reading of the original product, the residue is considered a contaminant. Contaminated containers may be treated with special solvents to extract any contaminants that may be present, or they may be discarded.

(8) Flame Ionization Detector The flame ionization detector consists of a small hydrogen flame burned in excess air, which is surrounded by an electrostatic field. Organic compounds injected into the flame are burned. During the combustion
The ionized debris is collected and produces an electrical current proportional to the number of carbon atoms in the sample. This phenomenon allows identification of the sample.

(9) X-ray fluorescence X-ray fluorescence causes excitation of a sample by emitting light from a substance with short-wavelength, intense X-rays. X-rays essentially emitted from an excited element are
It has a wavelength that characterizes the element and an intensity that is proportional to the number of excited elements.

(10) Laser-induced decomposition spectroscopy
Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) LIBS uses commercial lasers to deliver pulses of light lasting less than one microsecond. High-intensity light focused onto a tiny area of the sample breaks down the material into its elemental components.
The resulting plasma is analyzed by atomic emission spectroscopy.

(11) Electrical conductivity A simple device may be used to measure the electrical conductivity of the residue sample.

(12) Gas chromatography Gas chromatography using appropriate detectors can be used to analyze product residue and/or microorganisms, including mold and yeast, that indicate the presence of the product.

(13) Mass spectrometry In a mass spectrometer, molecules are bombarded with a beam of high-energy molecules. The molecules are ionized and broken into many pieces.
Some of them are cations. Each type of ion has a specific mass ratio of charges. These ions can be isolated using one of a number of available techniques, such as a homogeneous magnetic field.
separated according to their mass. By measuring the current induced in the electrodes, the charge of each ion is determined. Generally, each molecular structure produces a specific, unique mass spectrum. Detection of uncontaminated residue can be accomplished by tuning the mass spectral leak detector to unique residue compositions. The peak response indicates uncontaminated residue.

(14) Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) Atomic nuclei are considered to be charged particles with spin. The spin of a charged particle creates a magnetic moment along the spin axis. If a material is irradiated with radiant energy at a constant frequency in a magnetic field of varying strength, then absorption occurs at a certain value of the magnetic field strength and a signal is observed. A typical absorption spectrum shows a number of absorption peaks that indicate the molecular structure of the compound. A microprocessor controlling the nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer collects spectral data for computer analysis.

B. Detection of reaction products Determination of chemical components by measurement of reaction products is
Basically, it involves two steps. First, the desired chemical reaction takes place. Measurements of the reaction products are then performed as a means of determining the presence and amount of specific constituents in the product. In the latter step, some of the techniques outlined above can be utilized. Typical analytical instruments used to measure reaction products are: Impregnated tape equipment
Devices) Photometer equipment (colorimeters and nephelometers) Electrolytic conductance meters (electrolytic
Conductance Meter) and Electrochemical Devices Determining the concentration of sugar in the residue is of particular interest for soft drink applications. Analyzing test samples for the presence of sugars is common in many technical fields unrelated to the present invention. In most cases, these assays can be characterized as oxidizing systems (indicators), and when reduced, this oxidizing system can be detected as a color change or a change in the ultraviolet wavelength that is absorbed or reflected by this system. Generate new reaction conditions that result in possible responses. A group of indicator compounds, loosely known in the art as benzidine-type indicators, have been developed. These benzidine type indicators are benzidine, o-tolidine, 3,3',5,
Contains 5'tetramethylbenzidine, 2,7 diaminofluorene, etc. These compounds contain hydrogen peroxide and the enzyme peroxidase.
peroxidase). In the glucose/glucose oxidase system, glucose is oxidized to gluconic acid by the contaminant constituents of H ₂ O ₂ . The resulting formation of hydrogen peroxide promoting the associated indicator is a process that results in the formation of an observable color or other detectable reaction. To summarize the state of the art for detecting sugars, sugar-sensitive chemistry began to emerge in the analytical world in the mid-nineteenth century with the advent of Fehling's solution and Tollens' reagents.
Most pure chemical systems that have emerged since then have been largely replaced by biochemical systems, particularly those consisting of sugar oxidases, peroxidases, and hydrogen peroxide-sensitive indicators of the benzidine type.

The sugar indicating method described above can be easily incorporated into the residue analyzer 15. The necessary oxidation reaction will take place in a bottle or container or shallow basin-like sample dish 39 shown in FIG.

The signal depending on the color of the sugar indicator is e.g.
It can be produced by a colorimeter such as that described in Patent 4519710 (Luce et al. May 28, 1985). Such colorimeter consists of an optical radiation source, a flow cell partitioned into a plurality of chambers through which the solution to be monitored can flow, and a photodetector device sensitive to the radiation transmitted through the solution in the chambers of the flow cell. Become. The radiation source may be monochromatic or emit radiation over a broad optical spectrum and is used in conjunction with individual bandpass filters mounted on each flow cell chamber. The photodetector device produces an electrical output proportional to the intensity of radiation transmitted through the solution. An electrical circuit responsive to the output of the photodetector device maintains the radiation intensity emitted by the source at an essentially constant value.

In addition to sugar indicators, the methodology described above could be used with appropriate PH indicators to characterize residues by PH.

The above techniques are characterized by the measurement of physical responses by the sample to be analyzed. All techniques have been embodied in commercially useful devices. These devices have been described in the prior art for measuring the physical response of a sample to a stimulus and for converting that response into a (usually digital) form that can be processed by a computer. None of the documents, nor any device or combination of components, resembles that of the present invention in arrangement or method of operation. Although specific embodiments of the invention are shown and described in detail to illustrate the application of the principles of the invention,
It should be understood that the invention may be embodied in other ways without departing from its principles.

Disposal mechanism The disposal mechanism 21 shown in FIG.
Patent No.4295558 (October 20, 1981)
Any commercially available broken bottle disposal system may be used, such as that described by Heckmann. The device is installed to make a rotary movement for transporting containers either along a main transport path for containers to be reused or a branch path for containers to be removed, inspected and disposed of. Contains two conveyor wheels. US Patent No.3746165 and
The specification of 3727068 describes a bottle inspection mechanism in which dirty bottles are discarded individually. Bottles moving in single file pass through an optical inspection unit, and when a dirty bottle is detected, a pair of scissors with two prongs are moved at high speed in the path of the bottles, reducing the flow of bottles. The interrupted and soiled bottle is secured with the prongs of a pair of scissors. The compressed air actuated ram removes bottles in an angular orientation well suited to the normal flow of bottles. The ram and scissors are trapped after the dirty bottle is discarded, thus allowing the bottle to move upstream again. US Pat.
3349906, 3601616, 3629595, 3764784 and
3651937.

The reliability of the identification method incorporated into system 11 will depend on the technique of analyzing the sample as well as the physical characteristics of the product originally filled into the container. Reliability may be increased by selecting more than one technique (redundant systems) to characterize or "fingerprint" the original product.
For example, soft drinks contain sensitive emulsions to be characterized by the light scattering method described above. In addition, most soft drinks are sweetened with sucrose or fructose, which can be easily detected using commercially available indicators.

In FIG. 5, another embodiment of a system for identifying contaminated and uncontaminated bottles 100 with overlapping characteristics is shown. A residue sample from a bottle entering the system before cleaning is processed by a residue sampler 101 on a shallow basin-shaped sample dish. The shallow water bowl-shaped sample dish is transported to a first detector 103 that utilizes one of the detection techniques listed above. For example, the first detector 103 can utilize a passage measurement device using the above-mentioned unique light scattering technique.
In this device data (typical data of the intensity of light scattered through different angles measured from the incident beam) is generated by a first detector 103. This data is compared in a first parameter comparator 105 with reference data stored in a first memory device 107 (first reference signal in FIG. 5). The comparison of this data is then
analyzed by a correlation signal analyzer 109 of
A comparison is made with a correlation factor range stored in memory device 111.
If the response of the residue sample is within the empirically established correlation factors for a particular device and a particular product, then the vial from which the sample was taken is accepted as uncontaminated. If the sample response is outside the range, the vial is presumed to be contaminated and a discard signal is issued. The shallow water bowl-shaped sample dish is then transported to the second detector 113.
The second detector is, for example, a sugar analyzer. In such analyzers, reagents are added to the sample and then tested by a colorimeter. A signal indicating the intensity of the reference beam transmitted through the sample is transmitted to a second parameter comparator 115. A second parameter comparator compares the detector signal with a second reference signal stored in memory device 117. These two signals are
It is analyzed by a second correlation signal analyzer 119 using criteria defined in a second correlation factor range stored in memory 121 . first analyzer 10
3, if the physical response of the residue sample from the second detector 113 falls outside the correlation factor range, the bottle from which the residue sample was taken is discarded.
The shallow water bowl-shaped sample dish is transported to a sample dish washer 123. Although specific examples are cited in the description of FIG.
Or it can also be used in 113.

Although some assemblies of the individual components of the invention may be found in the above-cited patents, these references also do not imply that any device or combination of components in arrangement or method of operation is of the invention. It is different from Although specific embodiments of the invention have been shown and described in detail to illustrate the application of the principles of the invention, the invention may be embodied in other ways without departing from the principles of the invention. I can do it.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system embodying a method for identifying guided and uncontaminated containers according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a more detailed diagram of one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of another system according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of another system according to the invention. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of another embodiment using two or more detector systems.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A method for identifying contaminated and non-contaminated containers from a population of containers once filled with a product to be consumed, comprising: generating at least one type of physical response from a sample of the product; recording at least one physical response from a sample of the product; establishing a correlation factor range between the physical response of the product sample and the physical response of the contaminated residue; generating at least one type of physical response from the residue, comparing the physical response of the product with the physical response of the residue, and discarding the container if the physical response of the residue is not within a correlation factor range; whereby the presence of a known relatively small amount of product is used to indicate that the container was not contaminated, and wherein the presence of a known relatively small amount of product is used to indicate that the container is not contaminated; A method characterized by reducing the problem and thereby avoiding complex analytical systems for detecting large numbers of unknown contaminants. 2. The physical response step includes: directing electromagnetic energy to the residue, measuring the nature and amount of electromagnetic energy interacting with the residue sample, and displaying the nature and amount of the measured electromagnetic energy. A method according to claim 1, comprising transmitting a signal. 3. The electromagnetic energy is thermal excitation,
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of measuring comprises measuring the relative amount and wavelength of radiation emitted by the sample. 4. The method of claim 2, wherein said step of measuring comprises measuring the relative amount and wavelength of radiation emitted by said sample. 5. The method of claim 2, wherein the electromagnetic energy is ultraviolet radiation and the measuring step comprises measuring the relative amount and wavelength of radiation absorbed by the sample. 6. The electromagnetic energy is visible light,
3. The method of claim 2, wherein said step of measuring comprises measuring the relative amount and wavelength of radiation absorbed by said sample. 7. The method of claim 2, wherein the electromagnetic energy is infrared radiation and the measuring step comprises measuring the relative amount and wavelength of radiation absorbed by the sample. 8. Claim 2, wherein the electromagnetic energy is coherent radiation, and the measuring step comprises measuring the relative amount of scattering and scattering angle of the radiation scattered through the sample. Method described. 9. Claim 2, wherein the electromagnetic energy is monochromatic light in the near-infrared region, and the measuring step comprises measuring the relative amount and wavelength of the near-infrared rays absorbed by the sample. Method described. 10 The step of generating a physical response comprises: combining said residue with a reagent indicative of said material of said product; detecting the presence or absence of a reaction between said reagent and said material of said product; and detecting the presence or absence of a reaction between said reagent and said material of said product. 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting a signal indicating the absence or absence of the signal. 11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the material is a sugar and the reagent is a sugar indicator. 12. The step of generating a physical response comprises placing the residue sample in a magnetic field of varying strength, irradiating the sample with radiation in the radio frequency range, and producing a signal representative of the value of the magnetic field strength at which the energy is absorbed. 2. A method according to claim 1, comprising communicating. 13. The step of generating a physical response comprises: ionizing the residual sample, separating the ions according to mass, and transmitting a signal representative of the number of ions of a particular mass in the sample. The method described in Scope 1. 14. A method for distinguishing between contaminated and non-contaminated containers from a population of containers once filled with a product to be consumed, the method comprising: generating at least one physical response from a sample of the product; recording at least one said physical response; establishing a correlation factor range between said physical response of a sample of the product and said physical response of a contaminated residue sample; said residue from each of said population of containers; taking a sample, generating at least one type of physical response from the residue sample, comparing the physical response of the residue sample with the physical response of the product sample, the physical response of the residue falling within a correlation factor range; A method comprising the steps of discarding the container if the container is not present. 15. The method according to claim 14, further comprising the step of associating the sample taken out with the container from which the sample was taken out, after the step of taking out the sample. 16 A method for distinguishing between contaminated and uncontaminated containers from a population of containers once filled with a product to be consumed, the method comprising: generating a physical response of the contaminated residue sample to a stimulus identical to the first stimulus and recording the first series of reference physical responses; establishing a first correlation factor range between a reference physical response and generating a second set of reference physical responses generated by a second stimulus from the sample of the product; , recording the second series of reference physical responses, and comparing the physical response of the contaminated residue sample to a stimulus identical to the second series with the second series of reference physical responses; establishing a second correlation factor range between: removing a residue sample from each of said population of vessels and producing a first physical response of the sample to a stimulus of said residue sample that is identical to said first stimulus; generating a second physical response of the sample to a stimulus of the residue sample that is identical to the second stimulus; and if the first physical response of the sample is not within the first correlation factor range, discard the container and compare the second physical response of the sample with the first physical response. comparing the product sample to a second set of reference physical responses, and discarding the container if the second physical response of the sample is not within a second correlation factor range; A method characterized by: 17. A method for distinguishing between contaminated and uncontaminated containers from a population of containers once filled with a product to be consumed, the method comprising: generating at least one physical response from a sample of the product; recording at least one physical response; establishing a correlation factor range between the physical response of a sample of the product and the physical response of the contaminated residue; and at least one physical response from the residue in each container. generating a physical response of the product, comparing the physical response of the product with the physical response of the residue, and discarding the container if the physical response of the residue does not correlate with the physical response of the product. whereby the presence of a known relatively small amount of product is used to indicate that the container was not contaminated, and wherein the presence of a known relatively small amount of product is used to indicate that the container is not contaminated; The process of generating a physical response, which reduces the problem by directing electromagnetic energy from an ultraviolet and/or white light source to the residue, avoids complex analytical systems that detect large numbers of unknown contaminants, and generates a physical response. measuring the nature and amount of electromagnetic energy interacting with said sample and transmitting a signal representing said nature and said amount of the measured electromagnetic energy, said electromagnetic energy being visible light and/or ultraviolet radiation, the measuring step comprising collecting color information about the sample in at least one discrete preselected identification wavelength range, the discrete preselected identification wavelength ranges comprising ultraviolet radiation and ultraviolet radiation; /or a method characterized in that it is in the visible light range. 18. The method of claim 17, wherein the color information from the physical response of the sample is generated using three to eight discrete preselected discriminative wavelength ranges.