Abstract: The present disclosure proposes a detachable second apparatus coupled to a first apparatus that determines a first three-dimensional shape of an object and configured to determine an angle of an upper surface of the object. The second apparatus includes a first light source configured to sequentially irradiate first pattern lights having one phase range, a beam splitter and lenses configured to change optical paths of the first pattern lights so that a beam of light corresponding to a respective phase of the phase range spreads, and arrives at each point of a partial region of the upper surface of the object, a communication interface, and a first processor configured to obtain first information on first reflected lights generated by reflecting the first pattern lights from the partial region and determine the angle of the upper surface with respect to the reference plane based on the first information.

Abstract: A conveying device including a frame, a transportation channel, and a branch conveying mechanism, the transportation channel and the branch conveying mechanism are driven by their respective driving units, and the transportation channel is provided with a number of rows of regular rollers, or at least a conveyor belt, or a combination of regular rollers and a conveyor belt, the branch conveying mechanism includes at least one group of irregular rollers, when the irregular roller rotates, the highest point of a top of the roller is higher than an upper surface of an adjacent transportation channel during the rotation, and the lowest place of a top horizontal plane of the roller is lower than the upper surface of the adjacent transportation channel; when the irregular roller does not rotate, the top of the roller substantially stops at the lowest place of the top horizontal plane of the roller during rotation; the transportation channel and the branch conveying mechanism are provided alternately.

Abstract: A conveyor belt assembly (10) for transporting single sheets or stacks of a packaging material is described. It comprises at least one conveyor belt (12a) being arranged over at least two pulleys (20a-20d), wherein at least one of the pulleys (20a-20d) is adapted to drive the conveyor belt (12a) in a conveying direction (15). Furthermore, the conveyor belt assembly (10) comprises a conveying section (22) adapted for transporting the sheets or stacks and a return section (24) adapted to return the conveyor belt (12a) from an end (22b) of the conveying section (22) to a beginning (22a) of the conveying section (22).

Abstract: A document processing system is disclosed. The document processing system includes one or more document guide components defining a path of travel of documents, the path of travel of documents including an intersection portion. The document processing system also includes a component repositioning element at the intersection portion of the path of travel of documents, the component repositioning element arranged to align a document processing component with a portion of the path of travel in which a document resides.

Abstract: The present invention relates generally to equipment utilized to sort agricultural products. Embodiments of the present invention utilize more than one roller bed in succession to progressively separate desired produce products from dirt, rocks, and undesirable biomass. Preferred embodiments comprise: a first pass roller system comprising a series of spaced rows of side-by-side sizing members extending transversely to the apparatus; a second pass roller system comprising a series of spaced rows of side-by-side sizing members extending transversely to the apparatus; a conveyor system for moving material which falls through the first and second pass roller systems to a third pass roller system comprising a series of spaced rows of side-by-side sizing members extending transversely to the apparatus.

Abstract: Manufacturing lines include inspection systems for monitoring the quality of parts produced. Manufacturing lines for making semiconductor devices generally inspect each fabricated part. The information obtained is used to fix manufacturing problems in the semiconductor fab plant. A machine-vision system for inspecting devices includes a flipper mechanism. After being inspected at a first station, a tray-transfer device moves the tray from the first inspection station to a flipper mechanism. The flipper mechanism includes two jaws, a mover, and a rotator. The flipper mechanism turns the devices over and places the devices in a second tray so that another surface of the device can be inspected. A second tray-transfer device moves the second tray from the flipper to a second inspection station. The mover of the flipper mechanism removes the tray from the first inspection surface and places a tray at the second inspection surface.

Abstract: An apparatus for optically analyzing products such as fruit for automatic sorting of the products, includes at least one conveying line (1, 2), a plurality of analysis stations, and a device for driving each product in rotation. The imaging devices (12 to 19) of the different analysis stations are arranged in two lateral series located on each side of the longitudinal vertical plane of each conveying line (1, 2).

Abstract: A method of analysing products arranges above a conveyer line three successive analysing stations having, in the first station, two cameras arranged in such a way that their optical axes form a V centred on the products and has a vertex angle in the range between 90° and 130°, and in the other two stations, a camera arranged plumb with the conveyer line. Moreover, the products are driven in rotation during their transport along the analysing stations, in such a way that the cameras each take a number of photographs of complementary faces of the surface of the products, and there are selected from among the photographs taken, by a comparison between the calculated theoretical diameter of a product and a predetermined average diameter, the photographs to be retained so as to obtain a complete analysis of the total surface of the product.

Abstract: An apparatus transfers performs traveling along an inclined path from an upper loading station to a lower unloading station. The apparatus includes a device that includes plural rotary forks which rotate so as to engage and remove from the inclined path performs that are joined together.

Abstract: A device for the selection and elimination of crop ends of rolls of kitchen towel and/or toilet paper, in which the device is supplied by at least one row of finished rolls (12) and by top and tail crop ends (13) cut in sequence from at least one log, and including a structure (14) supporting an upper belt unit (16) and a lower belt unit (15a, 15b), facing each other to receive the rolls (12) and crop ends (13), the lower belt unit (15a, 15b) having a first, belt subunit (15a) and a second belt subunit (15b) separated by an opening (26), upstream the first belt subunit (15a) with a fixed lower surface (32) underneath the upper belt unit (16) to turnover the crop ends (13) and with a contact means (33, 35) being provided a the entrance of opening (26), on the turned crop ends to rotate them into the opening (26), letting the cut and finished rolls (12) pass by.

Abstract: An article transporting, and preferably also color and/or weight sorting, assembly and method, support the articles (.g. apples or like pieces of fruit), and effect precise rotation (e.g. within about 5°) of all apples transported thereby. This allows accurate determination of the apple's color by color sensing equipment (e.g. a color camera). The assembly comprises a support element, and two sets of cones mounted to the support by rotatable shafts, each set comprising first and second cones having a tapered exterior surface, the cones on each shaft facing each other and tapering to an imaginary substantially common midpoint. The cones support an apple essentially without the apple engaging the shaft. The cones may be of soft yieldable plastic or rubber with a first taper of about 25-35° (e.g. about 28°), and optionally one or more steps of different taper.

Abstract: A laned conveyor apparatus includes an infeed roller and an outfeed roller rotatably mounted to a frame in spaced apart relation for movably supporting a flexible product-carrying belt that forms a closed loop about the rollers to define a conveying region having a length and a width. A plurality of elastic separating bands are removably positioned around the rollers and the product-carrying belt and spaced apart at intervals along the width of the conveying region to form lanes along the length of the conveying region. The separating bands contact an outer surface of the product-carrying belt to form a frictional interface with the product-carrying belt that causes the separating bands to move in coordination with movement of the product-carrying belt. A guide mechanism mounted to the frame includes multiple guide features spaced apart at intervals along the width of the conveying region for guiding the separating bands so that the lanes are accurately and precisely positioned in relation to the frame.

Abstract: A device for separating office paper and computer printout from cardboard waste material is provided. The device has two decks, each of which has multiple driving and separating disc rotors. Non-cardboard paper can fall between the disc rotors as the paper flows through the machine. A single counter-rotational disc rotor is provided which inverts cardboard and empties boxes. The drive for each deck of the device is independent and variable speed, allowing for quick reconfiguration between input streams.

Abstract: An installation for inspecting compact discs includes a transfer turntable rotatable stepwise about an axis and mobile along that axis on each step with a plurality of transfer units carried by the transfer turntable which alternately pick up and put down a compact disc to be inspected. A plurality of action stations at the periphery of the transfer turntable include a loading station, at least two inspection stations, at least one reject station and an offloading station.

Abstract: A device for handling empty beverage containers, comprisinga stationary, longitudinally extending, supporting path having a first end and a second end, along which path the containers are caused to move, by means of pushing devices,said pushing devices including a plurality of interlinked, parallel, spaced apart members positioned transversely of the path and having drive devices for moving said members along the path like an endless belt,said supporting path at least over part of its length forming an angle with the horizontal and having container bottom supporting devices along at least part of its lower (longitudinal edge, andexit devices for discharging a specific container from the supporting path at a specific, related location along the said path.

Abstract: An apparatus for sorting objects or articles of produce according to preselected visually ascertainable criteria. Each object is singulated and transported between adjacent pairs of plural rollers attached to a conveyor chain so as to be freely rotatable on an axis oriented normal to the conveying path. A rotation control surface along the conveying path causes rotation in the rollers and in the object supported therebetween, increasing the surface of the object accessible for optical scanning. Information obtained during scanning is utilized to unload the objects. Pivotally mounted between each pair of rollers below the object transported therebetween is an elongated discharge plate. Each object is unloaded at an appropriate discharge location by pivoting upwardly the discharge plate therebelow. Pivoting of the discharge plate is caused by the activation of a diverter arm at the discharge location.

Abstract: An apparatus for sorting objects or articles of produce according to preselected visually ascertainable criteria. Each object is singulated and transported between adjacent pairs of plural rollers attached to a conveyor chain so as to be freely rotatable on an axis oriented normal to the conveying path. A rotation control surface along the conveying path causes rotation in the rollers and in the object supported therebetween, increasing the surface of the object accessible for optical scanning. Information obtained during scanning is utilized to unload the objects. Pivotally mounted between each pair of rollers below the object transported therebetween is an elongated discharge plate. Each object is unloaded at an appropriate discharge location by pivoting upwardly the discharge plate therebelow. Pivoting of the discharge plate is caused by the activation of a diverter arm at the discharge location.

Abstract: Apparatus and method are provided for inspecting finish dimensions of and detecting finish defects on containers moving sequentially in a predetermined path. More than one container can be inspected simultaneously. The apparatus includes one or more inspection gauges suspended above the container path. A transport system is provided for aiding in moving containers through the gauges and simultaneously axially rotating the containers about a vertical axis. Rotation of the containers allows the inspection gauges to inspect the entire circumference of the containers at one or more levels on the container simultaneously. Defective containers are detected when the relative separation distance between the gauge plates of the inspection gauge falls outside predetermined limits. If a defective container is detected, a rejection assembly may be activated to physically remove the defective container from the container path.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for grading items such as roots and tubers in which a succession of items are conveyed one after the other in a U-shaped channel of a conveyor. As each item passes a measuring station a grading characteristic of the item is measured and compared with a predetermined value. The items are transferred from the conveyor to addressing stations based on the compared grading characteristics of the items. The grading characteristics of each item is measured by measuring the orthogonal projection of each item onto the conveyor, and the conveyor is formed by successive transverse conveyor elements, each item having an orthogonal projection extending over at least three adjacent conveyor elements. The items are transferred from the conveyor by displacing the at least three conveyor elements either to lift the item off the conveyor or to allow the items to drop below the conveyor. The conveyor can be a linear conveyor or a loop conveyor.

Abstract: An improved shell egg culling system includes a conveying system having sites for conveying shell eggs, an illuminator together with a video camera in conjunction with a computer having a first algorithm and a second algorithm for determining which of the sites contain shell eggs having broken shells and which contain shell eggs having soiled shells, a plurality of bridges in side-by-side relationship which are controlled by the computer to remove shell eggs having broken shells from the conveying system for discarding, and a platform having a plurality of downwardly directed, suction-activated lifters which are controlled by the computer to remove shell eggs having soiled shells from the conveying system for recycling through a washer.

Abstract: A system, such as a reverse vending machine, for handling redeemable beverage containers of the type carrying side-borne, optically readable information codes. Featured in the machine specifically described herein is a scanning station along the sides of which are plural elongate rotary brushes whose bristles engage an endo-fed end for the purpose of both propelling it through the station for further processing, and for spinning it within the station for presentation for reading by an outboard optical scanner of the information code carried on the container.

Abstract: An apparatus for sorting objects according to preselected weight and/or visually ascertainable criteria. Each object is singulated and transported between adjacent pairs of a plurality of roller assemblies attached to a conveyor chain to be freely rotatable on an vertically slidable axis oriented normal to the conveying path. A rotation control surface along the conveying path causes rotation in the roller assemblies and in the object supported therebetween, increasing the surface of the object accessible for optical scanning. Mounted between each pair of roller assemblies is a weighing cradle subtending the object transported therebetween. The weighing cradle elevates and captures the object from its support between roller assembly so that the cradle can engage a load cell for weighing the object. Pivotally mounted between each pair of rollers and subtending the object transported therebetween is an elongated discharge plate.

Abstract: A device for the automatic and rapid inspection of ears of corn to select ears having a predetermined length wherein the kernels meet selection standards and the ear has uniform characteristics which length will be trimmed from the ear to provide cut lengths of corn for subsequent treatment. The device includes a first conveyor and inspection area for segregating ears as to conditions of acceptability and determination of quality for ultimate use including trimming of certain of the ears into predetermined lengths with a second transport station arranged to receive the ears and to sort them for subsequent use and to convey the ears of predetermined quality to a trimming device wherein the ear of corn is cut into at least one acceptable length.

Abstract: A can seam inspection apparatus. The apparatus has a pathway for a can and the pathway having an inlet and a pair of outlets. There is one outlet for can with a defective seam and another outlet for acceptable cans. A releasable holding device holds the cans as the cans move along the pathway. This holding device is rotated as they move along the pathway. The cans rotate with the holding device. The holding device can be released adjacent the inlet and the outlet. The can is inspected, preferably by a roller moving around the seam, as the can rotates. If the can is found defective then the inspection apparatus includes mechanisms to open the first outlet to allow rejection of the can. If the can is acceptable the can rolls over the first outlet to the second outlet. The equipment operates at high speed and with excellent accuracy. It can operate effectively in hostile environments.

Abstract: An off-loading conveyor including a support structure mounting an endless chain to extend along a conveying path. Roller carriages including roller mounts and laterally extending elements are pivotally mounted to the chain on either side thereof. The laterally extending elements and the laterally extending rollers define cavities for receipt of conveyed product units. The roller carriages and associated rollers are positionable in a first, conveying position and a second, off-loading position. The roller carriages rotate downwardly about axes extending laterally of the chain to achieve the second, off-loading position. Control members pivotally mounted to the chain selectively control rotation of the roller carriages from the first to the second positions upon actuation by a solenoid cam mechanism.

Abstract: A product discrimination system using an off-loading conveyor with rotatably mounted bow tie rollers to convey product units past a sensing station. The sensing station includes four receptors arranged along the conveying path for sensing the physical attributes of products. Between the receptors are friction surfaces which contact the rollers to rotate same and, in turn, rotate the product units on the conveyor. During sensing, the product units are stationary. Ahead of the sensing station, an elongate friction surface is positioned to rotate the rollers. The four views of each product unit may be independently analyzed or may be compared. A ratio of the greatest and the least of the readings may be used to grade product units. The greatest or least may be used independently to grade or may both be discarded and an average taken of the remaining readings to determine an average of an attribute.

Abstract: The conveying and off-loading apparatus, used in machines for the automatic selection and distribution of products, comprises a conveyor for transporting individual products from examination stations to discharge stations along a path, including an elongate flexible closed-loop belt and a plurality of rollers distributed on the conveyor. The rollers have axes extending transversely to the longitudinal extension of the conveyor, and adjacent rollers define between one another elongated holders for individual products. Forks rotatably support the rollers on the chain and are adapted to allow small vertical oscillations of the rollers, as the weight of the product and its holder is lifted from the chain and transferred to a level section of the ramp associated with a weighing device at an examination station. The forks are mounted along the chain and oscillate about an axis parallel to the path. The rollers are selectively tiltable for off-loading a product from the conveyor at one of the discharge stations.

Abstract: This invention relates to an orienting apparatus for orienting round or approximately round articles, for instance fruit, comprising two parallel rollers extending obliquely upwardly and rotating in the same direction, and a chain with conveying elements, arranged above the rollers and extending obliquely upwardly, each conveying element having a holder formed with an annular cup in which a ball is mounted. The ball is freely rotatably mounted on a horizontal bearing pin in the holder so that a quick orientation of the articles can be accomplished.

Abstract: The invention is a device for sorting food products such as vegetables or fruit in accordance with their size, weight, and color or the presence of defects on them. In accordance with the device of the invention, a conveyor in the form of a plurality of rotatable rollers is employed for supporting the articles to be inspected and sorted. The articles are passed through an inspection zone where the articles are scanned in accordance with the sorting criteria of the apparatus. The articles are then sorted in accordance with in response to the determinations made at the inspection zone.

Abstract: A method of checking eggs for flaws and blemishes, such as blood, dirt, cracks, a leak or aberrant form, in which the eggs, while located on a conveyor roller track, pass an inspection station, where the unwanted eggs are determined as such, with the information of the respective eggs being stored in a tracking memory (shift register), after which the unwanted eggs are discharged separately, whereby more in particular for a fast detection of flaws and blemishes, the eggs for for a short period be lifted off either of two bearing rollers of the conveyor roller track, and brought into contact with other rollers being driven at high peripheral speed, during which period the egg is sensed by a detector, which transmits the result of the sensing to the memory.

Abstract: An apparatus for the manipulation of products, comprising a conveyor for conveying a plurality of products in a prescribed path, a locator for emitting light at the position of a specific product out of the plurality of products being conveyed in a detection zone on the path of the conveyor a video sensor and a microcomputer for receiving the light and, based on the received light, issuing a position coodinate signal indicating the position of the specific product in the detection zone, a conveyor speed detector for detecting the speed of the conveyor and issuing a travel speed signal corresponding to the speed, a microcomputer for issuing a current position coordinate signal indicating the position of the specific product in a separation zone of the conveyor situated downstream relative to the detection zone based on the position coordinate signal issued by the video sensor and microcomputer and the travel speed signal issued by the conveyor speed detector, and a removing device for giving necessary treatmen

Abstract: Objects to be inspected are transferred successively in one direction on a conveyor and irradiated by a light source and photosensed by a single optical image sensor only, such as a video camera. The optical image sensor is so arranged that it simultaneously photosenses a plurality of the successively transferred inspected objects, and the conveyor is so constructed that during the period in which the objects pass through the visual field of the optical image sensor, the objects are rotated so that their entire round inspected surfaces are all respectively photosensed by the optical image sensor.

Abstract: By a method of and an apparatus for determining the degree of freshness of fish or other pieces of meat a pair of electrodes of an electrode assembly are brought into contact with the pieces of food, and the degree of freshness is determined electrically by determining the phase angle of the impedance which the tissue of the piece of food in question represents by inducing an alternating current into the tissue of the piece of food and by determining the delay of the voltage produced by the current in relation to the current.

Abstract: An image processing technique for detecting and measuring the size of bruises on fruit, such as apples, is disclosed. A line scan camera is employed to obtain a gray level image of each piece of fruit as it is rotated in front of the camera. The image is digitized, and transferred to a computer which performs a plurality of steps on the image to determine the sizes of any bruises on the fruit from the gray level data. The image data is filtered to remove interference due to pixel-to-pixel variations in the camera, background noise, etc., and is then thresholded to obtain a binary image representation. Clusters of zeros in the resulting binary image that are representative of potential bruises are analyzed to determine their size and shape. If the shape of the cluster is nearly circular, it is determined to be a bruise. From this information, the amount of bruise area on the fruit may be determined, and the fruit graded accordingly.

Abstract: Rollers for use with singulators for orienting articles, typically fruit, prior to optical sensing, for example, of the fruit's surfaces, wherein fruit having diverse diameters, irregular shapes and bumpy surfaces are properly oriented by contacting a pair of symmetrically disposed truncated conical surfaces sloping uniformly inwardly to a point short of center to form a sheave portion, as well as a deep pocket within each roller and between adjacent rollers, and wherein spacing between rollers remains constant notwithstanding the diverse diameters of the fruit. A drive belt is engageable within the sheave portion of the roller for controlling speed and direction of rotation of the rollers.

Abstract: Several conveyor rollers of singulators are made to rotate by a fruit orientation belt causing fruit carried thereon to rotate in accordance with movement of the belt such that the rotational axes of the fruit, typically lemons, orient themselves along their stem axes, or substantially perpendicularly to the direction of travel of the singulators. Downstream, the rollers contact a rotating spin-accelerating belt to substantially increase speed of rotation of the rollers and oriented fruit thereon in order to permit optical scanning devices to scan a much larger percentage of the fruit surface areas. Fruit rotate in the same direction of rotation during orientation and spin-acceleration, the latter occurring for only a very short duration.

Abstract: An apparatus is provided to rapidly and automatically scan the UPC, or bar code, from a series of containers and maintain tallies of the brands and types of containers processed. The containers are fed in end-to-end orientation onto the upper end of the trough between an inclined pair of parallel rollers. Both rollers are rotated in the same direction, causing each container to spin as it slides down the length of the rollers. The inclination of the rollers causes the containers to accelerate, increasing the spacing between containers as they reach the lower end of the rollers. A number of scanners are positioned above the lower end of the rollers to read the UPC from each container.

Abstract: An apparatus is provided to rapidly and automatically scan the UPC, or bar code, from a series of containers and maintain talleys of the brands and types of containers processed. A guide is placed diagonally across the top of the conveyor to catch and direct any containers moving along the conveyor. Continued motion of the conveyor beneath the containers at an angle relative to the guide causes each container to rotate as it slides along the guide toward the edge of the conveyor. One or more UPC scanners are positioned to read the UPC from each container as it slides along the guide. Because of the rotation of the containers, the entire sidewall of each container is exposed to the scanners. Any containers that are not successfully read by the scanners are rejected for subsequent manual processing.

Abstract: A bar screen for the separation by size of lump goods, such as wood chips, according to its thickness, and comprising parallel bars (1-5) provided with flights (6), where the bars are mutually movable.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for grading generally spherical articles, and specifically fruit such a oranges, which do not orient along a predetermined axis when rotated on a roller conveyor comprises a pair of side scan cameras disposed on opposite sides of the fruit. An overhead camera provides plural data signals representative of the surface quality of the fruit. The side scan cameras provide data indicative of the surface quality of side portions of the fruit. A processor and processing algorithm computes a surface quality indication based upon the data from the overhead camera and modifies the surface quality indication depending upon the data provided by the side scan cameras.

Abstract: A product transporting apparatus for transporting solid products of generally similar shape and/or size successively from a take-in station towards a take-out station, which has first and second rotary drums rotatable in the opposite directions to each other. The first and second rotary drums are of identical construction each having at least one circumferential row of tubular receptacles protruding radially outwardly from the outer periphery of the respective drum and circumferentially equally spaced from each other. The products can be successively supplied onto the first rotary drum and held by suction in position on the tubular receptacles then communicated with a vacuum source at the take-in station, which are in turn transported, during the rotation of the drums, to the transfer station where they are released from the receptacles on the first drum then communicated with a compressed air source, onto the respective tubular receptacles on the second rotary drum then communicated with the vacuum source.

Abstract: An apparatus (10) for automatically feeding and measuring circular discs (12) includes a gauging station (15). The latter includes a pair of opposed capacitive displacement measuring probes (27 and 28). The probes are connected to a thickness measuring test set (66), adapted to provide a capacitance-derived measurement of the thickness of each advancing disc (12) at either one or a plurality of spaced measurement points (142) extending across the major surfaces thereof. Precise control must be maintained over the speed at which each disc is passed between the capacitive probes (27, 28) in a non-contacting manner. This is accomplished through the use of a controllably driven drive wheel (98), and a cooperative arcuate feed channel section (74), which includes an outer arcuate sidewall ramp insert (92).

Abstract: Image processing apparatus for detecting a bounded region of an image includes a scanning device such as a T.V. camera, to scan the image via a raster scan to produce a signal indicative of image intensity at a plurality of picture points and comparators to compare the image intensity at each of the picture points with that of a neighboring point in each of at least two directions to derive therefrom a difference value and thereby detect a positive-going or negative-going boundary. Picture points are labelled as corresponding to region boundaries whenever the difference values exceed a predetermined threshold value. The region boundaries are then expanded by labelling further picture points as region boundaries. All boundaries in a particular direction are expanded in the same direction irrespective of whether they are negative-going or positive-going.

Abstract: Successive pairs of rollers in a plurality of juxtaposed continuous feed chain conveyors receive articles, such as fruits and vegetables at an upstream portion of a sorting conveyor system and by movement of the rollers between inclined walls, position the articles in succession so as to pass the same through color sortors and, then, below pneumatic rollers to deposit them into successive cups of a sorting conveyor system. Excess articles on the feed conveyors are released near the downstream end of the feed conveyors and are returned to their upstream end for reprocessing. Adjustable synchronizing linkage tie the two systems together and permit the relative adjustment of the positions of the cups with respect to the positions of the rollers. Spinning of the rollers is accomplished by the rollers riding in the through assemblies for the upper flights of the feed conveyors. Rails lift the rollers when they are not to spin. The color sortor examines the articles as they are spun by the rollers.

Abstract: A device for inspecting the external appearance of solid medicine having a solid medicine supplying section, a first drum-shaped conveying section for conveying solid medicines supplied by the solid medicine supplying section, at equal intervals so that one surface of each piece of solid medicine is observed. A second drum-shaped conveying section receives the solid medicine from the first drum-shaped conveying section and conveys the solid medicine at equal intervals so that the opposite surface of each solid medicine is observed. First and second observing units are provided adjacent to said first and second drum-shaped conveying sections for observing both surfaces of each piece of solid medicine respectively. A third observing unit is employed for observing the thickness of each piece of solid medicine conveyed by the first and second drum-shaped conveying sections at least before the piece of solid medicine reaches the second observing unit.

Abstract: An apparatus for sorting articles based upon the presence of defects on the surface thereof is characterized by a roller conveyor carrying a random array of articles in transverse channels defined between adjacent rollers. As the conveyor is advanced through a viewed area the articles are simultaneously rotated such that electrical images are formed of the portions of the surface of each article within a viewing zone defined in each channel during a given time frame. The viewing zones advance a predetermined distance through the viewed are in synchronization with the scanning of the electrical images. A characteristic signal for the portion of the electrical image corresponding to each article is developed and output to a processor. The processor generates a classification signal representative of the acceptability of each article based upon the percentage of total surface of area or number of defects on the surface each article.

Abstract: The machine calibrates round, oblong or spherical objects and in particular fruit and vegetables. It comprises a series of spaced-apart rollers which define cavities for receiving the objects. In these cavities, the objects rotate and place their equatorial plane in a vertical position. Calibrating rollers, oriented in a longitudinal direction or slightly inclined relative to the axis of the conveyor and at heights from the latter which decrease in the direction of conveyance of the conveyor, discharge the objects and cause them to drop through a minimum height onto a discharging conveyor placed thereunder.

Abstract: A visual inspection apparatus wherein a plurality of rollers conveying articles to be inspected are driven linearly at one rate of speed and the rollers are rotated at a pre-selected rate of rotation, infinitely variable at an inspection station, by frictional contact with a loop moving at a controlled rate of speed.

Abstract: A surface flaw detector includes a light source capable of generating a laser beam, a material conveyance means provided for conveying a material to be examined in the direction transverse to the axis of the material and designed to let the material rotate on its axis at a fixed position or along the direction of conveyance, means for scanning the laser beam on the surface and in the axial direction of the material which is rotating on its own axis, optical means adapted to transmit the light reflected from the surface of the material to form a stationary optic image of the scanning means, light receiving means provided at the image forming position, and processing means adapted to discriminate the flaw signal upon receiving the output from the light receiving means.

Abstract: Non-destructive testing apparatus for rollers and the like of magnetic material comprises a pair of rotating spin rails having intermediate sections of magnetic material. Feeding apparatus deposits rollers on the spin rails and moves them successively past the magnetic sections. A magnet produces flux through the magnetic sections and a roller rotating thereon. Variable reluctance sensing apparatus senses changes in the flux. An eddy current test probe is positioned adjacent the magnetic sections. Variable reluctance and eddy current test circuits produce flaw output signals which control apparatus for segregating the rollers. Advantageously the feeding apparatus intermittently deposits successive rollers on the spin rails and intermittently moves the rollers along the rails in end-to-end relationship.