Huron Valley Steel Corporation

Benjamin H Aubuchon

Paul Torek

Kalyani Chaganti

Richard B Wolanski

Michael A Hawkins

Kerry Lang

Richard Wolanski

A system has a conveyor for carrying at least two categories of scrap particles positioned at random on a surface of the conveyor, with at least some of the particles comprising metal. The system has a sensor array with a series of analog inductive proximity sensors arranged transversely across the conveyor. An active sensing end face of each sensor lies in a sensing plane, and the sensing plane is generally parallel with the surface of the conveyor. A control system of is configured to sample and quantize analog signals from the series of sensors in the array, and locate and classify a scrap particle on the conveyor passing over the array into one of at least two categories of material based on the quantized signals. A method for sorting the particles is also provided.

System and method for sorting scrap materials

A system and a method of sorting scrap particles includes imaging a moving conveyor containing scrap particles using a vision system to create an image. A computer analyzes the image as a matrix of cells, identifies cells in the matrix containing a particle, and calculates a color input for the particle from a color model by determining color components for each cell associated with the particle. A light beam is directed to the particle on the conveyor downstream of the vision system, and at least one emitted band of light from the particle is isolated and detected at a selected frequency band to provide spectral data for the particle. The computer generates a vector for the particle containing the color input and the spectral data, and classifies the particle into one of at least two classifications of a material as a function of the vector.

Scrap sorting system

Growing community of inventors

Rockwood, MI, United States of America

Benjamin H Aubuchon