Abstract: A comprehensive container inspection system includes axial container examining features, side wall inspection features and a controllable diverter for routing the containers to one of at least two sorting paths. Each stage of the inspection system is adapted to process moving containers, a continuous line of moving containers being processed and controllably diverted without stoppages. In an axial inspection area, containers are carried through rim, energy absorption and base inspection areas by means of side rollers bridging a gap in endless belt conveyor sections. In a side wall inspection area, containers are continuously rolled before a video detector operable to record and analyze images including at least three of the rolling bottles.

Abstract: An article inspection system especially useful for containers having threaded ends includes a video camera, digitizer and data processor operable to analyze a video image collected through a lens system. The lens system has several alternatives, in each case including a wide aspect object lens, wider than the end of the article being inspected, with a refracting and/or reflecting light ray path operable to produce a two dimensional image including both the end of the article and the sides of the article adjacent the end. The optics produce a distorted image in which the sides of the article appear folded upwardly into the two dimensional image such that a two dimensional data array adequately represents the image of the end and the adjacent sides.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for inspecting the sidewalls of containers on a continuously-moving conveyor includes recording instantaneous upper and lower angularly-spaced images of the bottles as they pass. Data on the images is stored as numeric data indicating the grey shade of each pixel in a matrix of pixels, which matrix is examined for edges and then divided based on detected edges into inspection windows. The windows are subject to separate criteria between typically scuffed areas and open areas. The occurrence of pixels in at least three grey ranges reflecting clear glass, opaque glass, and scuffed glass, together with the correlation of such occurrences between angularly-spaced views and upper and lower views, is processed to detect defects. A memory stores a status indication in a queue representing the acceptability of the bottles being examined, which are then segregated by a downstream reject kicker mechanism.