System and method for associating container defect information to a specific path of manufacturing
First Claim
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1. A system comprising:
- a conveyor operative to convey a metal container having a code stamped into a surface thereof, the code being unique to a path of manufacturing of the metal container;
an inspection zone into which the metal container is conveyed;
an illuminator operative to illuminate the metal container in the inspection zone;
at least one imaging system operative to acquire information on defects and the code; and
,at least one processor operative to process the information on the defects and the code to generate quality status information relating quality of the metal container to the path of manufacturing of the metal container.
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Abstract
This application relates to an apparatus and method for automated inspection of formed metal containers. More specifically, it pertains to the use of machine vision systems to identify and correlate manufacturing defects occurring in formed food and beverage containers to specific manufacturing paths or sources of origin (eg., body makers) used in the container forming process. The disclosed invention is enabled by the placement of a machine-readable code on specific portions of the can body during the forming process and the use of illumination exposure techniques.
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Citations
27 Claims
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1. A system comprising:
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a conveyor operative to convey a metal container having a code stamped into a surface thereof, the code being unique to a path of manufacturing of the metal container; an inspection zone into which the metal container is conveyed; an illuminator operative to illuminate the metal container in the inspection zone; at least one imaging system operative to acquire information on defects and the code; and
,at least one processor operative to process the information on the defects and the code to generate quality status information relating quality of the metal container to the path of manufacturing of the metal container. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A method for inspecting metal containers, the method comprising:
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stamping a code in a surface of a metal container, the code being unique to a path of manufacturing of the metal container; conveying the metal container into an inspection zone; illuminating the metal container in the inspection zone; inspecting the metal container to determine defects in the container; inspecting the metal container to determine the code; and
,accumulating quality status control information based on the defects and the code. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A system for inspecting metal containers, the system comprising:
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means for impressing a code into a surface of a metal container, the code being unique to a path of manufacturing of the metal container; means for conveying the metal container into an inspection zone; means for illuminating the metal container which is in the zone; means for inspecting the metal container to determine defects in the container and to determine the code; and
,means for accumulating quality status control information based on the defects and the code. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
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Specification