Non-destructive inspection of material in container
First Claim
1. An apparatus for non-destructively inspecting materials housed in a container having a crown with an inwardly sloping surface on a bottom wall thereof, said apparatus comprising:
- a conveyor for conveying said container along a conveying path in a conveying direction;
an x-ray beam apparatus having an X-ray beam emitter mounted at a first position adjacent said conveying path for emitting an X-ray beam passing through said container as it is conveyed along said conveying path;
a detector mounted at a second position adjacent said conveying path on a side of said conveying path opposite that of said first position for receiving a portion of the X-ray beam that has passed through said containers and generating there from an image signal representative of the portion; and
wherein said X-ray beam emitter is positioned to direct a portion of the X-ray along a path that substantially parallels a sloping surface of the container.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An apparatus and method for non-destructive inspection of materials housed in containers involves orienting an X-ray beam emitter and detector to direct and detect an X-ray beam at an angle substantially parallel to a sloped surface of the container to be inspected. A first X-ray apparatus is located opposite a second X-ray apparatus, and both the first and second X-ray apparatus are adapted to provide two X-ray beams. This arrangement provides for imaging of the entire area of a sloped portion of the container without any shadow or hidden spots.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. An apparatus for non-destructively inspecting materials housed in a container having a crown with an inwardly sloping surface on a bottom wall thereof, said apparatus comprising:
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a conveyor for conveying said container along a conveying path in a conveying direction;
an x-ray beam apparatus having an X-ray beam emitter mounted at a first position adjacent said conveying path for emitting an X-ray beam passing through said container as it is conveyed along said conveying path;
a detector mounted at a second position adjacent said conveying path on a side of said conveying path opposite that of said first position for receiving a portion of the X-ray beam that has passed through said containers and generating there from an image signal representative of the portion; and
wherein said X-ray beam emitter is positioned to direct a portion of the X-ray along a path that substantially parallels a sloping surface of the container. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A method for the non-destructive inspection of material housed in having an inwardly protruding crown on a bottom wall thereof, said method comprising:
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conveying the containers along a conveying path;
passing at least one X-ray beam through said container as it is conveyed along said conveying path;
receiving a portion of the at least one X-ray beam passed through said container; and
generating a signal representative of the portion of the at least one X-ray beam and therefore of an image representative of said material;
wherein a portion of said at least one X-ray beam is directed along a path that substantially parallels a sloping surface of the inwardly protruding crown. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. An apparatus for non-destructively inspecting materials housed in a container having a inwardly protruding crown on a bottom wall thereof and adapted to travel along a conveying path, said apparatus comprising:
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a first x-ray apparatus having a first X-ray beam emitter mounted at a first x-ray position adjacent the conveying path for emitting an X-ray beam passing through the container;
a first detector assembly mounted adjacent said conveying path on a side of said conveying path opposite that of said first x-ray apparatus for receiving a portion of the X-ray beam that has passed through the container;
a second x-ray apparatus having a second x-ray beam emitter for emitting an X-ray beam passing through the container mounted at a first x-ray position adjacent the conveying path and substantially opposite the first x-ray apparatus; and
a second detector assembly mounted adjacent said conveying path on a side of said conveying path opposite that of said second x-ray apparatus for receiving a portion of the X-ray beam that has passed through the container;
wherein the first and second X-ray apparatus are positioned to direct a portion of the respective X-ray at an angle along a path that substantially parallels the slope of the crown. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification