claimsbot – Page 3445 – All The Claims

1461114009-ecc38de7-f191-4fb8-9dc5-bde2da07b053

1. A tension fluctuation absorbing device comprising:
a tension fluctuation detection means equipped with:
a dancer roll on which a material paper is wound,
a pinionrack mechanism which supports said dancer roll so that said dancer roll can roll in a direction that is substantially perpendicular to an axial line of said dancer roll, said pinionrack mechanism comprising pinions that are installed on respective ends of said dancer roll and racks that engage with said pinions, and
a pistoncylinder mechanism which drives said dancer roll so as to balance a tension that acts on said dancer roll via said material paper on an upstream side of said dancer roll and said material paper on a downstream side of said dancer roll,
so that said tension fluctuation detection means detects fluctuations in tension generated in said material paper via a movement of said dancer roll from a balance reference position thereof, and

a tension adjustment means that is installed in the vicinity of said tension fluctuation detection means on an upstream side of said tension fluctuation detection means and is equipped with:
a driving roll which feeds out said material paper,
a rotational speed adjustment means which is used to adjust a rotational speed of said driving roll, and
pressing rolls which are installed adjacent to said driving roll,
so that said tension adjustment means adjusts a tension generated in said material paper by increasing or decreasing a feed-out speed of said material paper based upon fluctuations in tension detected by said tension fluctuation detection means, while applying a specified nip pressure to said material paper that passes between said driving roll and said pressing rolls, wherein

said tension fluctuation detection means is further equipped with guide rolls which are respectively installed on said upstream side and on said downstream side of said dancer roll so that a direction of extension of said material paper on said upstream side of said dancer roll and a direction of extension of said material paper on said downstream side of said dancer roll are substantially parallel to a direction in which said racks extend,
a driving force of said pistoncylinder mechanism is adjustable based upon a tension that acts on said dancer roll via said material paper on said upstream side and on said downstream side, and
said pressing rolls comprise a plurality of rolls which have axial lengths that are shorter than axial length of said driving roll and which are arranged substantially in a straight line along said axial length of said driving roll.
2. A single-faced cardboard sheet manufacturing apparatus equipped with a single-facer that manufactures a single-faced cardboard sheet by gluing together a liner material paper and a core material paper in a specified corrugated form, while feeding out said liner material paper and core material paper, said single-faced cardboard sheet manufacturing apparatus further comprising a tension fluctuation detection means and a tension adjustment means, wherein
said tension fluctuation detection means is provided in the vicinity of said single-facer on an upstream side of said single-facer and is used to detect fluctuations in tension generated in said liner material paper andor core material paper, said tension fluctuation detection means comprising:
a dancer roll on which said liner material paper andor core material paper are wound,
a pinionrack mechanism which supports said dancer roll so that said dancer roll can roll in a direction that is substantially perpendicular to an axial line of said dancer roll, said pinionrack mechanism comprising pinions that are installed on respective ends of said dancer roll and racks that engage with said pinions,
a pistoncylinder mechanism which drives said dancer roll so as to balance a tension that acts on said dancer roll via said liner material paper andor core material paper on an upstream side of said dancer roll and via said liner material paper andor core material paper on a downstream side of said dancer roll, and
guide rolls which are respectively installed on said upstream side and on said downstream side of said dancer roll so that a direction of extension of said liner material paper andor core material paper on said upstream side of said dancer roll and a direction of extension of said liner material paper andor core material paper on said downstream side of said dancer roll are both substantially parallel to a direction of extension of said racks; and

said tension adjustment means is provided in the vicinity of said tension fluctuation detection means on an upstream side of said tension fluctuation detection means and is used to adjust said tension generated in said liner material paper andor core material paper in the vicinity of said single-facer by increasing or reducing a feed-out speed of said liner material paper andor core material paper to said single-facer based upon fluctuations in tension detected by said tension fluctuation detection means, said tension adjustment means comprising:
a driving roll which feeds out said liner material paper andor core material paper,
a rotational speed adjustment means which is used to adjust a rotational speed of said driving roll, and
pressing rolls which are installed adjacent to said driving roll,
so that said tension adjustment means applies a specified nip pressure to said liner material paper andor core material paper that pass between said driving roll and said pressing rolls.
4. The single-faced cardboard sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 2 or 3, further comprising a paper splicing device provided on said upstream side of said tension adjustment means, said paper splicing device comprising:
a pressing contact mechanism which effects paper splicing by causing pressing contact between said material paper on a material paper roll that is in operation and said material paper on a material paper roll that is in reserve,
an accumulator roll unit which is disposed on a downstream side of said pressing contact mechanism and which is equipped with a plurality of accumulator rolls and a plurality of supporting rolls, and
a roll moving means which causes said plurality of accumulator rolls to move between an ordinary operating position and a paper-splicing position,
so that said paper splicing device forms a plurality of strips of accumulated material paper when said plurality of accumulator rolls are in said paper-splicing position.
5. The single-face cardboard sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said single-facer comprising:
a first stepped driving roll which has wave-form step parts formed in an outer circumferential surface thereof, and
a second stepped driving roll which has wave-form step parts formed in an outer circumferential surface thereof and engage with said wave-form step parts of said first stepped driving roll, said second stepped driving roll being disposed so that said core material paper is formed into a corrugated shape as a result of being caused to pass between said second stepped driving roll and said first stepped driving roll by rotation of said first stepped driving roll
a first guide roll provided on said first stepped driving roll so as to be on an advancing side of a direction of rotation of said first stepped driving roll with respect to said second stepped driving roll, said first guide roll, in cooperation with said first stepped driving roll, guiding said liner material paper in a configuration in which said liner material paper is superimposed on said core material paper along an outer circumferential surface of said first stepped driving roll, and
a second guide roll also provided on said first stepped driving roll so as to be on an advancing side of a direction of rotation of said first stepped driving roll with respect to said first guide roll, said second guide roll, in cooperation with said first stepped driving roll, guiding said liner material paper and said core material paper along said outer circumferential surface of said first stepped driving roll,
wherein rotational speed of said second guide roll is set at a greater value than rotational speed of said first stepped driving roll so that said liner material paper is pressed against said outer circumferential surface of said first stepped driving roll in a state in which said core material paper is clamped between said liner material paper and said outer circumferential surface of said first stepped driving roll as a result of application of a specified tension to said liner material paper between said first guide roll and said second guide roll.
6. A double-faced cardboard sheet manufacturing apparatus equipped with a double-facer that manufactures a double-faced cardboard sheet by gluing together a single-faced cardboard sheet and a back liner, said single-faced cardboard sheet comprising a liner and a core that is formed into a specified corrugated form, wherein said double-faced cardboard sheet manufacturing apparatus comprises a tension fluctuation detection means and a tension adjustment means, and wherein:
said tension fluctuation detection means provided in the vicinity of said double-facer and on an upstream side of said double-facer and used to detect fluctuations in tension generated in said back liner and, said tension fluctuation detection means comprising:
a dancer roll on which said back liner is wound,
a pinionrack mechanism which supports said dancer roll so that said dancer roll can roll in a direction that is substantially perpendicular to an axial line of said dancer roll, said pinionrack mechanism comprising pinions that are installed on respective ends of said dancer roll and racks that engage with said pinions,
a pistoncylinder mechanism which drives said dancer roll so as to balance a tension that acts on said dancer roll via said back liner on an upstream side of said dancer roll and via said back liner on a downstream side of said dancer roll, and
guide rolls which are respectively installed on said upstream side and on said downstream side of said dancer roll so that a direction of extension of said back liner on said upstream side of said dancer roll and a direction of extension of said back liner on said downstream side of said dancer roll are both substantially parallel to the direction of extension of said racks; and

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

1. A method of assigning a location to an item in a computer comprising a memory, the method comprising:
accessing in the memory a venue map of a first venue associated with a first merchant, which venue map comprises a map spatial unit and an associated map label;
wherein, the map spatial unit comprises one or more dimensioned units in a coordinate system in the map and the map label comprises text;

accessing in the memory a merchandizing plan, which merchandizing plan comprises a set of merchandizing plan item unique identifiers and a set of merchandizing plan group identifiers and wherein the merchandizing plan associates at least one merchandizing plan item unique identifier and at least one merchandizing plan group identifier;
accessing in the memory an item catalog of items in the first venue, which item catalog comprises a set of item catalog unique identifiers and a set of item catalog categories;
wherein, when the item catalog comprises an item catalog unique identifier for a first item which does not have a corresponding entry in the merchandizing plan, determining an item proxy location for the first item.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining an item proxy location for the first item further comprises:
determining that the first item is in each of a first set of merchandizing plans for a set of venues other than the first venue,
obtaining the item catalog category of the first item;
obtaining the item catalog categories of all of the items in the first set of merchandizing plans for the set of venues other than the first venue;
weighting the merchandizing plans in the first set of merchandizing plans according to the number of times the item catalog category of the first item occurs in the item catalog categories of all of the items in the first set of merchandizing plans;
ranking the weighted merchandizing plans in first set of merchandizing plans;
selecting a top ranked merchandizing plan in the first set of ranked weighted merchandizing plans, which top ranked merchandizing plan is present at the first venue;
selecting an item from the top ranked merchandizing plan; and
assigning the location of the selected item as the item proxy location.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein selecting an item from the top ranked merchandizing plan comprises accessing a popularity index of items available at the first venue, identifying the most popular of the other items in the merchandizing plan and selecting the location of such most popular item as the item proxy location.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein the popularity index comprises a set of popularity index item unique identifiers, a set of date-time records recording when items in the set of popularity index item unique identifiers were obtained at the venue.
5. The method of claim 2, further comprising assigning a first location error to the assigned first proxy location.
6. The method of claim 5, wherein assigning a first location error to the assigned first proxy location comprises determining the size of the selected merchandizing plan and assigning the size of the selected merchandizing plan as the size of the first location error.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining an item proxy location for the first item further comprises:
determining that the first item is not in a merchandizing plan for a set of venues other than the first venue and assigning the item proxy location based on at least one of a department and a store associated with the first item.
8. The method of claim 7, further comprising assigning a first location error to the assigned proxy location.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein assigning a first location error to the assigned proxy location comprises determining the size of the selected merchandizing plan and assigning the size of the selected merchandizing plan as the size of the first location error.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein determining an item proxy location for the first item further comprises:
obtaining the location of all items across all venues associated with the first merchant;
identifying clusters of items in each of the venues;
identifying clusters of items which recur most often across the venues;
for a cluster of items comprising the first item which recurs most frequently across the venues, selecting a second item in the set of items in the cluster comprising the first item, which second item is in a merchandizing plan associated with the first venue; and
assigning the location of the second item as the item proxy location.
11. The method of claim 10, wherein identifying clusters of items in each of the venues comprises storing each location in the set of all items as a vector and performing cosine similarity measurement with a threshold, which threshold defines whether items are in a cluster of items.
12. The method of claim 10, wherein selecting the second item in the set of items in the cluster comprising the first item comprises accessing a popularity index of items available at the first venue, identifying the most popular of the items in the cluster comprising the first item, which identified most popular item is in a merchandizing plan associated with the first venue, and selecting such identified most popular item as the second item.
13. The method of claim 10, further comprising assigning a first location error to the assigned item proxy location.
14. The method of claim 13, wherein assigning the first location error to the assigned proxy location further comprises determining a difference between the item locations of the first and second items and assigning the first location error to the assigned proxy location based on such difference.
15. A computing apparatus for assigning a location to an item, the apparatus comprising a processor and a memory storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, configure the apparatus to:
access in the memory a venue map of a first venue associated with a first merchant, which venue map comprises a map spatial unit and an associated map label;
wherein, the map spatial unit comprises one or more dimensioned units in a coordinate system in the map and the map label comprises text;
access in the memory a merchandizing plan, which merchandizing plan comprises a set of merchandizing plan item unique identifiers and a set of merchandizing plan group identifiers and wherein the merchandizing plan associates at least one merchandizing plan item unique identifier and at least one merchandizing plan group identifier;
access in the memory an item catalog of items in the first venue, which item catalog comprises a set of item catalog unique identifiers and a set of item catalog categories;
wherein, when the item catalog comprises an item catalog unique identifier for a first item which does not have a corresponding entry in the merchandizing plan, determine an item proxy location for the first item.
16. The computing apparatus of claim 15, wherein the instructions further configure the apparatus to:
determine that the first item is in each of a first set of merchandizing plans for a set of venues other than the first venue,
obtain the item catalog category of the first item;
obtain the item catalog categories of all of the items in the first set of merchandizing plans for the set of venues other than the first venue;
weight the merchandizing plans in the first set of merchandizing plans according to the number of times the item catalog category of the first item occurs in the item catalog categories of all of the items in the first set of merchandizing plans;
rank the weighted merchandizing plans in first set of merchandizing plans;
select a top ranked merchandizing plan in the first set of ranked weighted merchandizing plans, which top ranked merchandizing plan is present at the first venue;
select an item from the top ranked merchandizing plan; and
assign the location of the selected item as the item proxy location.
17. The computing apparatus of claim 15, wherein the instructions further configure the apparatus to:
obtain the location of all items across all venues associated with the first merchant;
identify clusters of items in each of the venues;
identify clusters of items which recur most often across the venues;
for a cluster of items comprising the first item which recurs most frequently across the venues, select a second item in the set of items in the cluster comprising the first item, which second item is in a merchandizing plan associated with the first venue; and
assign the location of the second item as the item proxy location.
18. A non-transient computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed by a processor, configure the processor to:
access in the memory a venue map of a first venue associated with a first merchant, which venue map comprises a map spatial unit and an associated map label;
wherein, the map spatial unit comprises one or more dimensioned units in a coordinate system in the map and the map label comprises text;
access in the memory a merchandizing plan, which merchandizing plan comprises a set of merchandizing plan item unique identifiers and a set of merchandizing plan group identifiers and wherein the merchandizing plan associates at least one merchandizing plan item unique identifier and at least one merchandizing plan group identifier;
access in the memory an item catalog of items in the first venue, which item catalog comprises a set of item catalog unique identifiers and a set of item catalog categories;
wherein, when the item catalog comprises an item catalog unique identifier for a first item which does not have a corresponding entry in the merchandizing plan, determine an item proxy location for the first item.
19. The non-transient computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the instructions further configure the processor to:
determine that the first item is in each of a first set of merchandizing plans for a set of venues other than the first venue,
obtain the item catalog category of the first item;
obtain the item catalog categories of all of the items in the first set of merchandizing plans for the set of venues other than the first venue;
weight the merchandizing plans in the first set of merchandizing plans according to the number of times the item catalog category of the first item occurs in the item catalog categories of all of the items in the first set of merchandizing plans;
rank the weighted merchandizing plans in first set of merchandizing plans;
select a top ranked merchandizing plan in the first set of ranked weighted merchandizing plans, which top ranked merchandizing plan is present at the first venue;
select an item from the top ranked merchandizing plan; and
assign the location of the selected item as the item proxy location.
20. The non-transient computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the instructions further configure the processor to:
obtain the location of all items across all venues associated with the first merchant;
identify clusters of items in each of the venues;
identify clusters of items which recur most often across the venues;
for a cluster of items comprising the first item which recurs most frequently across the venues, select a second item in the set of items in the cluster comprising the first item, which second item is in a merchandizing plan associated with the first venue; and
assign the location of the second item as the item proxy location.

1461114000-4bb1b829-ce94-4c82-ab63-d7d5085ffd54

1-18. (canceled)
19. A method for process control during printing, comprising the steps of:
recording a digital image of a substrate detail comprising a portion of a printing substrate;
determining a frequency distribution of gray values of image points of the recorded digital image;
defining, from a central range of the frequency distribution of gray values, the minimum frequency of the frequency distribution of gray values as a limiting value GG of the gray values; and
calculating a half-tone value R of the substrate detail, said step of calculating including counting the image points in the digital image which lie on one side of the limiting value GG as covered and counting the image points in the digital image which lie on the other side of the limiting value GG as free.
20. The method of claim 19, wherein said step of calculating comprises calculating the half-tone value R according to the formula:
R=(N1Nges)*100,
wherein, N1 is the number of image points which are counted as covered, and Nges is the overall number of image points.
21. The method of claim 19, wherein said step of defining comprises using a compensation curve adapted to the frequency distribution in the central range of the gray value.
22. The method of claim 19, wherein said step of defining further comprises selecting a range as the central range of the gray value so that a center of the range forms the minimum frequency which lies between respective frequency maxima in the lower half and in the upper half of the frequency distribution of gray values, wherein the width of the range corresponds to the difference between a gray value of the minimum frequency and a gray value of the one of the two maxima that is closer to the minimum frequency.
23. The method of claim 19, further comprising the steps of:
defining a unit cell of the digital image such that a side length of the unit cell is an integral multiple of the smallest line pattern spacing of the raster dots of the substrate in the coordinate directions of the digital image;
circumscribing each image point of the digital image which is at least half the side length of the unit cell away from the edge of the digital image with one of the unit cells; and
calculating a local half-tone value ri for each circumscribed image point using the limiting value GG and also using the gray values of the image points which lie within the respective unit cell.
24. The method of claim 23, further comprising the step of calculating a half-tone value variance R2 of the substrate detail using the local half-tone values ri and the half-tone value R of the substrate detail, according to the formula
\u03c3
R
2

=
\u2211

i
=
1

\u2062
(
r
i

–
R

)

2
n
–
1
,
wherein n is the number of image points for which a local half-tone value ri has been calculated.
25. The method of claim 23, further comprising the step of generating a gray value image for a graphical representation of the local variation of the half-tone value from the local half-tone values ri of the image points and the half-tone value R of the substrate detail, wherein a gray value Gi at every image point in the gray value image is a measure of the deviation of the local half-tone values ri of the respective image point from the half-tone value R of the substrate detail.
26. The method of claim 25, characterized in that the gray value Gi is calculated as claimed in the formula
Gi=GM\u2212\u03be\xb7(ri\u2212R),
wherein GM is the mean gray value of the gray value image which is to be generated and is a scaling factor.
27. The method of claim 19, wherein said step of recording a digital image comprises generating the digital image from a large number of individual images of the detail of the printing substrate, wherein gray values for every image point are averaged.
28. An apparatus for image acquisition on a printing substrate, comprising:
an electronic camera module;
an imaging objective which is arranged between said camera module and the printing substrate to be imaged; and
an illumination device for illuminating the printing substrate, said illumination device comprising a bright field light source and a dark field light source, each of said bright field light source and said dark field light source being independently activatable and said each of said bright field light source and said dark field light source having an independently adjustable light intensity.
29. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein said each of said bright field light source and said dark field light source comprise a light-emitting diode and a light conductor.
30. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein at least one of said bright field light source and said dark field light source comprises a plurality of different colored light-emitting diodes, wherein each of said plurality of different colored light-emitting diodes is independently activatable and each of said plurality of different colored light-emitting diodes has an independently adjustable light intensity.
31. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein at least one of said light conductors in said bright field light source and said dark field light source comprises one of a diffuser or a roughened surface at a light exit surface thereof.
32. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein at least one of said light conductors in said bright field light source and said dark field light source is a rod or bar made from transparent plastic.
33. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein said dark field light source comprises a tube-shaped light conductor made from transparent plastic arranged coaxially with respect to said imaging objective.
34. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein said light conductor of said dark field light source comprises a beveled surface section at which the light is deflected towards an exit surface of said light conductor of said dark field light source.
35. The apparatus of claim 28, further comprising a partially transparent mirror arranged in the beam path between the substrate and said imaging objective said transparent mirror coupling in the light of said bright field light source.
36. The apparatus of claim 28, further comprising a housing in which said camera module, said imaging objective, and said illumination device are arranged.

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

1. A pellet-shaped article inspection unit configured for use with a conveyer mechanism structured to convey a plurality of pellet-shaped articles along a predetermined path, the article inspection unit comprising:
a first camera unit positioned adjacent a first side of the conveyer mechanism, the first camera unit being configured to sense a first predetermined characteristic of the plurality of pellet-shaped articles; and
a removal mechanism, downstream from the first camera unit, structured to remove at least a selected one of the plurality of pellet-shaped articles from at least a selected portion of the conveyer mechanism depending on whether the first predetermined characteristic is sensed by the first camera unit.
2. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 1, further comprising a controller in communication with the first camera unit and the removal mechanism, the controller providing a signal to the removal mechanism in accordance with the first predetermined characteristic sensed by the first camera unit.
3. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 2, further comprising a second camera unit positioned adjacent a second side of the conveyer mechanism, the second camera unit being configured to sense a second predetermined characteristic of the plurality of pellet-shaped articles.
4. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 3, wherein the first camera unit senses a first side of the pellet-shaped article for the first predetermined characteristic and the second camera unit senses a second side of the pellet-shaped article for the second predetermined characteristic.
5. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 4, wherein the first predetermined characteristic is the same as the second predetermined characteristic.
6. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 4, wherein the first and second sides are first and second sides of a tablet.
7. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 3, wherein each of the first and second camera units includes a ring light having an opening therethrough, a lens extending through the opening, and a blackwhite CCD coupled to the lens.
8. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 3, wherein the first camera unit is positioned transverse to and on an upper side of the conveyer mechanism to sense a first side of the pellet-shaped article and the second camera unit is positioned transverse to and on an inner side of the conveyer mechanism to sense a second side of the pellet-shaped article through a throughhole.
9. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 3, wherein the controller signals the removal mechanism in accordance with the predetermined characteristic sensed by at least one of the first and second camera units.
10. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 3, wherein the first predetermined characteristic sensed by the first camera unit is the same as the second predetermined characteristic sensed by the second camera unit.
11. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 3, wherein each of the first and second camera units senses a plurality of pellet-shaped articles simultaneously.
12. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 11, wherein each of the first and second camera units sense at least four pellet-shaped articles simultaneously.
13. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 1, wherein the first predetermined characteristic is at least one of a predetermined color and a predetermined indicia.
14. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 1, wherein the first predetermined characteristic includes a predetermined color and a predetermined indicia.
15. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 1, wherein the removal mechanism is a blower.
16. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 15, wherein the blower includes a plurality of blower nozzles that is equal to a number of pockets in each carrier bar.
17. A pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus comprising:
a conveyer mechanism structured to convey a plurality of pellet-shaped articles along a predetermined path; and
a first camera unit positioned on an inner side of the conveyer mechanism, the first camera unit being configured to sense a first side of the plurality of pellet-shaped articles for a first predetermined characteristic,
wherein the conveyer mechanism has at least one throughhole configured to allow the first camera unit to sense the first side of the pellet-shaped article that is visible through the throughhole.
18. The pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the conveyer mechanism includes a plurality of carrier bars each having a plurality of pockets for receiving a plurality of pellet-shaped articles, each pocket having one said throughhole configured to allow the first camera unit to sense the first side of the pellet-shaped article that is visible through the throughhole.
19. The pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus according to claim 18, further comprising a removal mechanism, downstream from the first camera unit, structured to remove at least a selected one of the plurality of pellet-shaped articles from at least a selected one of the plurality of carrier bars depending on whether the first predetermined characteristic is sensed by the first camera unit.
20. The pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus according to claim 19, further comprising a controller in communication with the first camera unit and the removal mechanism, the controller providing a signal to the removal mechanism in accordance with the first predetermined characteristic sensed by the first camera unit.
21. The pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus according to claim 20, further comprising a second camera unit positioned transverse to the carrier bars on an upper side of the conveyer mechanism, the second camera unit being configured to sense a second side of the pellet-shaped articles for a second predetermined characteristic.
22. The pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the first predetermined characteristic is the same as the second predetermined characteristic.
23. The pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the first and second sides are first and second sides of a tablet.
24. The pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus according to claim 21, wherein each of the first and second camera units includes a ring light having an opening therethrough, a lens extending through the opening, and a blackwhite or color CCD coupled to the lens.
25. The pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the controller signals the removal mechanism in accordance with the predetermined characteristic sensed by at least one of the first and second camera units.
26. The pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the throughhole is configured to allow the removal mechanism to pass therethrough to thereby remove the selected pellet-shaped article from that pocket in the carrier bar.
27. The pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the removal mechanism is a blower.
28. The pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the first side includes first and second ends of a caplet.
29. The pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the first predetermined characteristic is at least one of a predetermined color and a predetermined indicia.
30. The pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the first predetermined characteristic includes a predetermined color and a predetermined indicia.
31. The pellet-shaped article conveying apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the first camera unit is configured to sense the first predetermined characteristic and a second predetermined characteristic.
32. A conveyer apparatus comprising:
a conveyer mechanism including a plurality of carrier bars, each carrier bar being structured to convey a plurality of pellet-shaped articles along a predetermined path;
a first camera unit positioned adjacent a first side of the conveyer mechanism, the first camera unit being configured to sense a first predetermined characteristic of the plurality of pellet-shaped articles; and
a removal mechanism, downstream from the first camera unit, structured to remove at least a selected one of the plurality of pellet-shaped articles from at least a selected one of the plurality of carrier bars depending on whether the first predetermined characteristic is sensed by the first camera unit.
33. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 32, further comprising a controller in communication with the first camera unit and the removal mechanism, the controller providing a signal to the removal mechanism in accordance with the first predetermined characteristic sensed by the first camera unit.
34. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 33, further comprising a second camera unit positioned adjacent a second side of the conveyer mechanism, the second camera unit being configured to sense a second predetermined characteristic of the plurality of pellet-shaped articles.
35. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 34, wherein the first camera unit senses a first side of the pellet-shaped article for the first predetermined characteristic and the second camera unit senses a second side of the pellet-shaped article for the second predetermined characteristic.
36. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 35, wherein the first predetermined characteristic is the same as the second predetermined characteristic.
37. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 35, wherein the first and second sides are first and second sides of a tablet.
38. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 34, wherein each of the first and second camera units includes a ring light having an opening therethrough, a lens extending through the opening, and a blackwhite or color CCD coupled to the lens.
39. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 34, wherein the first camera unit is positioned transverse to the carrier bars on an upper side of the conveyer mechanism to sense a first side of the pellet-shaped article and the second camera unit is positioned transverse to the carrier bars on an inner side of the conveyer mechanism to sense a second side of the pellet-shaped article through the throughhole.
40. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 34, wherein the controller signals the removal mechanism in accordance with the predetermined characteristic sensed by at least one of the first and second camera units.
41. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 34, wherein the first predetermined characteristic sensed by the first camera unit is the same as the second predetermined characteristic sensed by the second camera unit.
42. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 34, wherein each of the first and second camera units senses a plurality of pellet-shaped articles simultaneously.
43. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 42, wherein each of the first and second camera units sense up to four pellet-shaped articles simultaneously.
44. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 32, wherein the first predetermined characteristic is at least one of a predetermined color and a predetermined indicia.
45. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 32, wherein the first predetermined characteristic includes a predetermined color and a predetermined indicia.
46. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 32, wherein the removal mechanism is a blower.
47. The conveyer apparatus according to claim 46, wherein the blower includes a plurality of blower nozzles that is equal to a number of pockets in each carrier bar.
48. A pellet-shaped article inspection unit configured for use with a conveyer mechanism including a plurality of carrier bars, each carrier bar being structured to convey at least one pellet-shaped article along a predetermined path, the article inspection unit comprising:
a first camera unit positioned adjacent a first side of the conveyer mechanism, the first camera unit being configured to sense a first predetermined characteristic of the pellet-shaped article and a second predetermined characteristic of the of pellet-shaped article, the first and second predetermined characteristics being different from one another; and
a removal mechanism, downstream from the first camera unit, structured to remove the pellet-shaped article from at least a selected one of the plurality of carrier bars depending on whether at least one of the first and second predetermined characteristics is sensed by the first camera unit.
49. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 48, further comprising a controller in communication with the first camera unit and the removal mechanism, the controller providing a signal to the removal mechanism in accordance with the first and second predetermined characteristics sensed by the first camera unit.
50. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 49, further comprising a second camera unit positioned adjacent a second side of the conveyer mechanism, the second camera unit being configured to sense a third predetermined characteristic of the pellet-shaped article.
51. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 50, wherein the first camera unit senses a first side of the pellet-shaped article for the first and second predetermined characteristics and the second camera unit senses a second side of the pellet-shaped article for the third predetermined characteristic.
52. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 51, wherein the third predetermined characteristic is the same as one of the first and second predetermined characteristics.
53. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 51, wherein the first and second sides are first and second sides of a tablet.
54. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 50, wherein each of the first and second camera units includes a ring light having an opening therethrough, a lens extending through the opening, and a blackwhite CCD coupled to the lens.
55. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 50, wherein the first camera unit is positioned transverse to the carrier bars on an upper side of the conveyer mechanism to sense a first side of the pellet-shaped article and the second camera unit is positioned transverse to the carrier bars on an inner side of the conveyer mechanism to sense a second side of the pellet-shaped article through a throughhole of each of the carrier bars.
56. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 50, wherein the controller signals the removal mechanism in accordance with the predetermined characteristic sensed by at least one of the first and second camera units.
57. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 50, wherein each of the first and second camera units senses a plurality of pellet-shaped articles simultaneously.
58. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 57, wherein each of the first and second camera units sense up to four pellet-shaped articles simultaneously.
59. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 48, wherein the first predetermined characteristic is one of a predetermined color and a predetermined indicia and the second predetermined characteristic is the other of the predetermined color and the predetermined indicia.
60. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 48, wherein the removal mechanism is a blower.
61. The pellet-shaped article inspection unit according to claim 60, wherein the blower includes a plurality of blower nozzles that is equal to a number of pockets in each carrier bar.
62. A method of inspecting pellet-shaped articles structured for use with a conveyer mechanism including a plurality of carrier bars, each carrier bar structured to convey a plurality of pellet-shaped articles along a predetermined path, the method comprising:
sensing at least one side of the plurality of pellet-shaped articles for a predetermined characteristic; and
removing at least a selected one of the plurality of pellet-shaped articles from at least a selected one of the plurality of carrier bars depending on whether the predetermined characteristic is sensed.
63. The method according to claim 62, further comprising sensing a first side of the pellet-shaped article for a first predetermined characteristic and sensing a second side of the pellet-shaped article for a second predetermined characteristic.
64. A carrier bar for a conveyer mechanism that conveys a plurality of pellet-shaped articles along a predetermined path past an inspection unit having at least one camera unit and a removal mechanism, the carrier bar comprising:
a plurality of pockets for receiving a plurality of pellet-shaped articles, each of the pockets having a throughhole configured to allow (1) the at least one camera unit to view the pellet-shaped article, and (2) the removal mechanism to remove the pellet-shaped article from that pocket in the carrier bar.
65. The carrier bar according to claim 64, wherein the plurality of pockets are staggered along a length of the carrier bar.
66. The carrier bar according to claim 64, wherein edges of the carrier bar are scalloped.
67. The carrier bar according to claim 64, wherein the throughhole substantially matches a shape of the pellet-shaped articles.
68. The carrier bar according to claim 64, wherein each pocket includes an article-retaining flange that extends inwardly from an exterior wall of the pocket and wherein an inner peripheral surface of the flange defines the throughhole.
69. The carrier bar according to claim 64, wherein the plurality of pockets and throughholes thereof are positioned within a thickness of the carrier bars.
70. A carrier bar assembly comprising:
a first carrier bar and a second carrier bar, each of the first and second carrier bars including:
a main body including an upper surface; and
a plurality of pockets formed in the upper surface, each of the pockets being configured to receive a pellet-shaped article;
wherein the pockets of the first carrier bar are staggered with respect to adjacent pockets of the second carrier bar, and
wherein each pocket of the first and second carrier bars includes a throughhole configured to allow a camera unit to sense a side of the pellet-shaped article that is visible through the throughhole.
71. The carrier bar assembly according to claim 70, wherein the throughhole is configured to allow a removal mechanism to remove the pellet-shaped article from that pocket in the carrier bar.
72. The carrier bar assembly according to claim 70, wherein the first and second carrier bars have scalloped edges.
73. The carrier bar assembly according to claim 70, wherein the throughhole substantially matches a shape of the pellet-shaped articles.
74. The carrier bar assembly according to claim 70, wherein each pocket includes an article-retaining flange that extends inwardly from an exterior wall of the pocket and wherein an inner peripheral surface of the flange defines the throughhole.
75. The carrier bar assembly according to claim 70, wherein the plurality of pockets and throughholes thereof are positioned within a thickness of the carrier bars.
76. A carrier bar assembly comprising:
at least first and second adjacent carrier bars, each of the first and second carrier bars including an upper surface including at least one scalloped edge, the scalloped edge of the first carrier bar being cooperable with the scalloped edge of the second carrier bar to form a substantially continuous surface; and
a plurality of pockets formed in the upper surface, each of the pockets being configured to receive a pellet-shaped article;
wherein each pocket of the first and second carrier bars includes a throughhole configured to allow a camera unit to sense a side of the pellet-shaped article that is visible through the throughhole.
77. The carrier bar assembly according to claim 76, wherein the pockets of the first carrier bar are staggered with respect to adjacent pockets of the second carrier bar.
78. The carrier bar assembly according to claim 76, wherein the throughhole is configured to allow a removal mechanism to remove the pellet-shaped article from that pocket in the carrier bar.
79. The carrier bar assembly according to claim 76, wherein the throughhole substantially matches a shape of the pellet-shaped articles.
80. The carrier bar assembly according to claim 76, wherein each pocket includes an article-retaining flange that extends inwardly from an exterior wall of the pocket and wherein an inner peripheral surface of the flange defines the throughhole.
81. The carrier bar assembly according to claim 76, wherein the plurality of pockets and throughholes thereof are positioned within a thickness of the carrier bars.
82. A camera unit for sensing a plurality of pellet-shaped articles on a conveyer mechanism comprising:
a ring light having an opening therethrough;
a lens extending through the opening; and
a blackwhite or color CCD coupled to the lens.
83. The camera unit according to claim 82, wherein the lens includes a filter.
84. The camera unit according to claim 82, wherein the camera unit is mountable to a mounting bracket that is adjustable relative to the conveyer mechanism.
85. An apparatus for inspecting a predetermined characteristic of a pellet shaped article, comprising:
a conveyer loop to convey at least one row of articles along a transport path;
an inspection unit to compare the predetermined characteristic against a given standard; and
a reject system to forcibly eject from the conveyer selected ones of the articles which are acceptable, and to passively allow rejected ones of the articles to be removed from the conveyer.
86. A method for inspecting a predetermined characteristic of a pellet shaped article, comprising:
conveying at least one row of articles along a transport path;
comparing the predetermined characteristic against a given standard;
actively accepting selected ones of the articles which are acceptable by forcing them away from the transport path; and
passively allowing rejected ones of the articles to be removed from the transport path.
87. A laser drilling system for pellet-shaped articles comprising:
a laser; and
a controller to allow the laser to create at least one laser drilled hole in the articles having a diameter spanning a range from about 50 micrometers to about 6 mm.
88. The laser drilling system of claim 87, wherein the range is about 50 micrometers to 1 mm for relatively large holes, and about 1 mm to about 6 mm for relatively larger holes.
89. A laser drilling system for pellet-shaped articles comprising:
a laser to create a laser beam;
a deflector to deflect the laser beam; and
a controller to allow the deflector to split the laser beam into a plurality of axially spaced rows.
90. An apparatus for conveying pellet-shaped articles comprising:
a conveyer to transport a plurality of articles; and
a laser drilling system according to claim 87.
91. A pharmaceutical article comprising:
a main body with a medicament surrounded by a coating; and
at least one hole provided through the main body to allow the medicament to pass through the coating, wherein the at least one hole has a diameter of over 800 micrometers.
92. The article of claim 91, wherein the diameter is between about 3-6 mm.
93. A method for making a pharmaceutical article, such as tablets and caplets, comprising providing a laser drilled hole in the article which is greater than 800 micrometers.
94. The method of claim 93, wherein the diameter is about 1 mm-6 mm.
95. The method of claim 93, wherein the hole is created using a laser with a beam having a nominal diameter of about 400-800 micrometers.
96. The method of claim 95, wherein the laser beam from the laser is redirected in a plurality of positions on the article to circumscribe a pattern defining and forming the hole.