APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR DETERMINING AND NUMERICALLY DISPLAYING A VOLUME DEPENDENT CHARACTERISTIC OF ANY UNSEPARATED PART OF AN ITEM

• US 20080221829A1
• Filed: 03/05/2008
• Published: 09/11/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/06/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kenneth Wargon
• Original Assignee: Kenneth Wargon
• Inventors: Wargon, Kenneth
• Granted Patent: US 7,809,522 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/156
• CPC Class Codes: B26D 5/00 Arrangements for operating and controlling machines or devices for cutting, cutting-out, stamping-out, punching, perforating, or severing by means other than cutting
• CPC Class Codes: B26D 7/30 for weighing cut product
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 11/00 Measuring arrangements characterised by the use of optical techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 11/245 using a plurality of fixed, simultaneously operating transducers G01B11/2408 - G01B11/2425, G01B11/255 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 17/06 for measuring contours or curvatures

Abstract

An apparatus and method for determining and numerically displaying the volume of an item or any part of the item by passing a manually held sensor member freely movable in both vertical and horizontal directions over and along an item lying on a support surface. The sensor member mounts one or more sensors which generate signals corresponding to the distance from the sensor member to points on the surface of the item corresponding to the height of those points above the support surface. At the same time, a movement detector arrangement generates signals corresponding to displacement of the sensor member along the item which may also include signals corresponding to the vertical movement of the sensor member above the support surface. These signals are processed in a signal processor to enable the calculation of cross sectional areas of each section of the item along the path of movement of the sensor member and to calculate the volume of a part or all of the item. The vertical movement of the sensor member as determined by the movement detector arrangement or sensed by the sensors are used to determine changes in height of the sensor member and compensate therefor in the calculation of the cross sectional areas of successive sections of the item. The calculated volume of part or all of the item may be converted into numeric weight or price values based on an item density or cost per unit factor for the particular type of item on the support surface, whereby numeric weight and cost values may be displayed in a digital display as the sensor member is passed along the item.

Claims

1. An apparatus for generating and displaying numeric values corresponding to the volume of any part of an item comprising:

a support surface for supporting said item;

a hand held sensor member, said sensor member able to be manually held and freely passed over said support surface and item at any selected height thereabove;

a movement detector arrangement which generates signals corresponding to the movement of said sensor member in being passed over said item;

a sensor arrangement on said sensor member generating signals corresponding to the cross sectional area of successive sections of said item passing beneath said sensor member as said sensor member is moved over said item;

a processor receiving said signals generated by said movement detector arrangement and said sensor arrangement and determining from said signals the height of said sensor member above said surface as said sensor member is moved along said item at successive positions thereof, and computing from said signals and said height determinations a volume of at least a segment of said item defined by movement of said sensor member in moving over said item from a reference position to another position; and

,

a display displaying a numeric value corresponding to said volume of any part of said item as computed by said processor.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said sensor member has a knife blade mounted thereto extending along a bottom portion thereof enabling cutting or scoring of said item.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said movement detector arrangement generates signals corresponding to changes in height of said sensor member as said sensor member is passed over said item and wherein said processor determines from said detector signals the height above said surface of said sensor member at successive positions over said item as said sensor member is moved along said item.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said sensor arrangement comprises a series of sensors mounted along said sensor member, each sensor sensing the distance from said sensor to points passing beneath said sensor on said support surface or said item surface as said sensor member is moved along said item and generating signals corresponding to said sensed distances, and said processor computing from said sensor signals the cross sectional areas of successive sections of said item passed over by said sensor member, and wherein said processor determines from sensor signals from sensors located over said support surface the height of said sensor member above said surface as said sensor member is passed over each successive section of said item and said processor compensates in its computations for changes in height of said sensor member determined by signals from said sensors located over said support surface.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein one or more electrically powered cutting blades are mounted to said sensor member which may be selectively activated to cut or score said item.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1 further including a visible light source on said sensor member projecting a fan shaped light line down onto and across said item when activated whereby providing a visual indication of the position of said sensor member along said item.

7. The apparatus according to claim 4 wherein a plurality of visible light sources are mounted along said sensor member interspersed with said sensors, each visible light source projecting light down onto each section of said item when said sensor member is passed over said item.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7 wherein said light sources are included in said sensors.

9. The apparatus according to claim 7 wherein said processor determines which light sources are positioned directly over said item and activates only those visible light sources that project light only onto said item and not onto said support surface.

10. The apparatus according to claim 9 wherein said light sources are included in said sensors.

11. The apparatus according to claim 4 wherein each of said sensors directs wave energy down toward said item upper surface and said support surface and senses reflections therefrom in determining said distances of said points on said upper surface of said item to said support surface.

12. The apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said sensor arrangement comprises a series of sensors arranged along said sensor member sensing the distance corresponding to points on an upper surface of said item above said support surface.

13. The apparatus according to claim 11 wherein said wave energy is electromagnetic radiation.

14. The apparatus according to claim 11 wherein said wave energy is acoustic waves.

15. The apparatus according to claim 11 wherein each sensor comprises an emitter and a receiver offset from each other and wherein said distance determining is carried out by triangulation of emitted and reflected beams of wave energy.

16. A method of displaying a numeric value corresponding to the volume of any part of an item comprising:

disposing said item on a support surface;

moving a manually held sensor member to any vertical or horizontal position above said support surface comprising a reference position with respect to said item;

manually moving said held sensor member from said reference position to pass over and along said item from said reference position to a second displaced position along said item;

generating sensor signals corresponding to the cross-sectional area of each successive section of said item passing beneath said sensor member as said sensor member is moved over and along said sensor to said second position;

detecting the extent and direction of horizontal movement of said sensor member in passing said sensor member over and along successive sections of said item to said second position and generating movement signals corresponding to said movement;

determining the height of said sensor member at each successive position of said sensor member;

processing said generated sensor and movement signals and said height determinations to calculate therefrom the volume of the part of said item passed over by said sensor member;

deriving a numeric value corresponding to the calculated volume of said part of said item; and

,

displaying said numeric value thereby derived.

17. The method according to claim 16 further including initially providing a base reference for determining vertical movement of said sensor member including placing said sensor member on said support surface prior to moving said sensor member along said item.

18. The method according to claim 16 wherein generating said sensor signals includes arranging a series of sensors along said sensor member, each sensor sensing the distance to a point on either said support surface or an upper surface of said item lying directly beneath said sensor as said sensor member is passed along said item and generating corresponding sensor signals and computing from said sensor signals the cross sectional area of successive sections defined by said points on said upper surface of said item passed over by said sensor member.

19. The method according to claim 16 wherein said height of said sensor member is determined from said sensor signals.

20. The method according to claim 16 wherein both said vertical and horizontal movement of said sensor member is detected by motion detectors mounted on said sensor member generating said signals corresponding to said vertical and horizontal movement of said sensor member from said reference position to thereby determine therefrom the height of said sensor member as well as to detect the extend and direction of horizontal movement of said sensor member.

21. The method according to claim 16 wherein said determinations of height are carried out by detecting the extent and direction of vertical movement of said sensor member.

22. The method according to claim 16 further including projecting a fan shaped visible light line across said item from a light source on said sensor member to visibly indicate the position of said sensor member along said item.