Abstract: A sorting machine for separating substandard items from a continuous stream of products is disclosed wherein the ejector that removes the detected substandard items includes an ejector finger and an actuator. The ejector finger includes a flexible elongate base member fixedly attached with respect to the product stream and a contactor normally withdrawn from the product stream when standard products are in the stream and for entering the product stream to eject a detected substandard item. The actuator flexes the flexible elongate base member to move the ejector contactor so that it enters the product stream for ejecting each detected substandard item. The flexible elongate base member make the ejector more resistant to wear from environmental conditions. A flexible sorting machine ejector mounting mechanism is also disclosed which removes costly mounting mechanisms.

Abstract: A photo-optical detector for use in a multichromatic sorting machine, each detector including at least two separate photodiode materials responsive to a different spectral range and a multipeak optical filter having transmission response characteristics that are respectively defined in a frequency spectrum of the respective spectral ranges of the materials. The sorting machine using such detectors can be selectively programmed using the various resulting signals from the detectors after appropriate amplification and threshold detection to cause resulting ejection mechanism activation.

Abstract: In a bichromatic sorting machine, a polygon pattern of trip level boundaries is established for a master channel programmable memory that is representative of orthogonally plotting detected products in each of two reflectivity spectral bands. The rate of products passing through the master channel that is rejected as being non-acceptable by producing a reflectivity value outside of the polygon pattern compared to total products sorted is used as the basis for normalizing all channel results. When the actual rate in the master channel varies from the desired rate, the boundaries of its polygon are concentrically adjusted back to the desired rate, thereby also adjusting the similar polygon patterns for each of the other or slave channels. Multiple machines can also be normalized to the same rate in similar fashion. The master channel or the master machine can be selectable, a concept that is also applicable to monochromatic sorting machines, as well.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are disclosed for detecting and ejecting articles of different weights in a product and article stream, by varying the dwell and delay time in accordance with the color classification of the products and articles being sorted. The ejector dwell and delay times are determined by the weight of the products and articles, which can be identified by the percentage reflectivity of color wavelengths of interest.

Abstract: Apparatus and method for measuring the reflectivity of a product for use in optical sorting machines that is insensitive to product size and orientation. The percentage reflectivity of a product passing a background is corrected by a frame fill factor, which is representative of the percentage of the viewing frame occupied by the product being sorted.

Abstract: A sorting machine for separating substandard items from a continuous stream of products is disclosed wherein the ejector that removes the detected substandard items includes an ejector finger of monolithic structure and homogeneous material and an actuator. The ejector finger includes a base fixedly attached with respect to the product stream, a contactor normally withdrawn from the product stream when standard products are in the stream and for entering the product stream to eject a detected substandard item, and a hinge of reduced dimension connecting the ejector finger base to the ejector finger contactor. The hinge is biased to normally withdraw the ejector finger contactor from the product stream. The actuator flexes the ejector hinge to move the ejector contactor so that it enters the product stream for ejecting each detected substandard item. The monolithic structure and homogeneous material are resistant to wear from environmental conditions.

Abstract: A dynamic trip level setting apparatus is described for changing the comparison ratio with which products are optically sorted using first and second reflectance color values. The reflectance ratio for each image sorted is supplied to a RAM to update the RAM's memory. The dynamic values in the RAM are periodically employed to update a color sensitivity factor supplied to a battery-backed RAM. The battery-backed RAM value is employed in a logic device employing an algorithm and produces a variable output against which the ratio of "breaker" products (neither above a first color acceptance level nor below a second color reject level) is compared to produce a reject signal when the comparison results in an output indicating reject is appropriate.

Abstract: A background for an electro-optical sorting machine viewing station where fungible products pass during the sorting operation and are distinguished by being standard or substandard in one or more spectral ranges comprises a translucent light diffuser or frosted light diffuser and one or more variable intensity lamps for changing the color or hue quality in the spectral ranges. A bichromatic machine is equipped with two lamps, one for each spectral range, preferably orthogonally aligned to each other for beam splitting operation in conjunction with an optical beamsplitter, that separates the longer spectral range wavelengths from the shorter spectral range wavelengths.

Abstract: A sorting machine is disclosed based on a procedure utilizing standard length pulses initiated by the sensing of the leading edge of a sensed product and rejecting a defective product based on sensing where its trailing edge is or should be if covered up by a successive overlapping product. Such detection allows for rejecting products that are either too long or too short. The detection of the trailing edge location also is employed for the activation of a reject mechanism operated on a fixed delay from the occurrence of a defect signal for whatever reason produced from the sensing of a product in the product stream.

Abstract: A slide conveyor for an optical sorting machine is disclosed wherein the conveyor is gently twisted over its length by about 85 degrees. The conveyor is channel-like in that it has two sides converging at its U-shaped bottom at an acute angle. The angle has a radius much smaller than the radius of the convex flat side, but slightly larger than the radius of the smallest edge angle radius of the slightly convex, disc-like products being conveyed. At the upper end, the centerline of the bottom angle is vertical and at its lower end, positioned just above the viewing station of the optical sorter, the centerline is about 5 degrees above horizontal. The conveyor slopes at a grade of about 75 degrees. The conveyor both singulates and orients the products conveyed.

Abstract: A sorting machine is disclosed in which the viewing window is electro-optically observed using an array of photodetectors, each observing a photo site or pixel of the viewing window. Such detection allows for normalizing by photo site viewing to individually account for background and photodetector sensitivity differences from photo site to photo site. Such detection also provides for detecting a series of defects existing for each photo side and, thus, rejecting products that have a larger than acceptable number of successively detected defective photo sites. Also disclosed is a circuit for rejecting a defective product based on sensing where its trailing edge is or should be if covered up by a successive overlapping product. Such detection also allows for rejecting products that are either too long or too short. All of this is done by digital processing resulting from the digitizing permitted by photo site detection.

Abstract: A sorting machine for separating substandard items from a continuous flow of fungible items is disclosed wherein the ejector means for removing the detected substandard items includes an air blast nozzle having a built-in end means for creating a pressure differential in the blast to keep particle dust from rising and quickly causing the optical window in front of the detector sensor or sensors to coat and become opaque. The pressure means is preferably a tab or other surface at a right angle to the nozzle or parallel to the product flow, its direction being on the opposite side of the nozzle from the window. By minimizing dust build-up on the window, down time of the sorting machine for window cleaning is minimized.

Abstract: An iterative and continuous normalizer for ensuring that the ejector rate of the slave channels in a fungible product sorter are operating at the same rate as a channel selected as the master channel. A distributed trip level value applied to a master channel comparator results in a rate of ejection of non-standard products that are counted to a predetermined count, at which time a master channel counter output is produced. In similar fashion, a slave channel output is produced; however, the comparator in the slave channel operates to an adjusted trip level value, which is the distributed trip level value adjusted by a multiplying factor. This multiplying factor is produced by a multiplier controlled by an up/down counter, in turn controlled up or down by whether the slave channel counter output or master channel counter output arrives first.

Abstract: An apparatus for measuring the reflectivity of a product for use in optical sorting machines that is tolerant of background and product trajectory variations. The apparatus computes the percent of the viewing frame filled by the product at any instant as well as the reflectivity of the background when no product is present. The reflectivity at selected wavelengths from selected perspectives is computed for a product as the product passes a viewing frame by correcting for frame fill and background factors. Given an estimate of product velocity, product size may also be estimated.

Abstract: A normalizer for a machine sorting individual items from a stream flowing in a channel having a background with reflectivity characteristics substantially identical to reflectivity characteristics of acceptable items. A photodetector produces an output which is amplified in three stages of amplification, dc coupled together, the second stage having an input adjustment for producing a zero voltage output for channel background reflectivity only. The output used for sorting purposes includes both positive and negative peaks. However, to prevent such peaks from greatly influencing normalizing action, the output of the second stage is applied through a limiter, which substantially clips both the positive and the negative peaks, to an integrator, which produces an average reference input voltage to the operational amplifier.