Omron Corporation

Masahiro Kawachi

Koji Shimada

Hitoshi Oba

Tatsuya Matsunaga

Hiroyuki Inoue

Hirotaka Nakashima

Naoya Nakashita

Yoshinori Kawai

Yoshihiro Yamashita

Michitoshi Okada

Kohei Tomita

Takeshi Yoshiura

Toshimichi Masaki

Nobuharu Ishikawa

Hajime Takegawa

Kenji Horie

Kizuku Fujita

Satoshi Yoneda

Mitsuharu Mano

Fumiaki Nakamura

A method of displaying sensed displacement is such as to collect single dimension light distribution data using a single dimensional imaging device; transmit the light distribution data to a processor; and display the light distribution data as a line bright wave form on a display using software implemented by the processor.

Displacement sensor having a display data output

In a sensor head, parallel rays or approximately parallel rays are generated by a pair of condenser lenses that reciprocate according to vibrations of a collimate lens and a tuning fork, and go out from a light port. To the light port, a lens holder in which an objective lens is supported is detachably attached. The light from the light port is processed to measurement beams that are condensed by the objective lens to a predetermined position.

Displacement sensor

Sensor controller

To provide a displacement sensor device capable of fast data read-out processing. A sensor device includes: a light-emitting element for irradiating an object to be measured with light at a prescribed angle; an image pickup element for shooting the light-irradiated object to be measured at another angle; a normal measurement area setting device capable of setting a normal measurement area in the visual field of the image pickup element; a receiving-light signal detecting device for detecting a receiving-light signal distribution area of the object to be measured from the set normal measurement area; a following-type measurement area setting device for setting at least one following-type measurement area which includes the detected receiving-light signal distribution area and is narrower than the normal measurement area; a displacement measuring device for measuring a target displacement by measuring the following-type measurement area; and an output device for outputting the measured displacement.

Sensor device

A measurement instrument includes a measurement value acquiring portion for acquiring a measurement value in a predetermined period, and a measurement timing acquiring portion for acquiring measurement timing information. The measurement timing information is a measurement start timing, and the measurement timing information is added to the measurement value acquired in a predetermined period, corresponding to elapsed timing information which is calculated from the measurement period, based on the measurement start timing. In addition, a plurality of the measurement values added by the measurement timing information are digitally outputted collectively. In addition, an identification number of an applicable measurement instrument which number is owned by the measurement instrument is further added to the measurement value.

Digital measurement instrument for acquiring measurement and time values

Joint connector

A sensor controller is disclosed which transmits large-capacity data such as waveform data and image data within a short time (in rapid cycles, for example) and makes possible various collaborative operations using the transmitted data. A control unit includes a programmable logic circuit and a CPU to control the operation of the sensor controller. A unit connector can be used to connect other sensor controllers. An inter-unit path constitutes a signal transmission path between the control unit and the unit connector and includes a sensing data transmission path between the programmable logic circuit and the unit connector. In the case where another sensor controller is connected to the unit connector, the sensing data can be transmitted between the programmable logic circuit of the local sensor controller and the programmable logic circuit of the particular another sensor controller.

A cable includes a first connector half holding a conductor terminal, a second connector half holding a conductor terminal, an electric cord electrically connecting the conductor terminal of the first connector half to the conductor terminal of the second connector half, and a waveform shaping circuit performing waveform shaping of a signal passing through the electric cord, and the first and second connector halves are structured to allow attachment to and detachment from each other.

Sensor cable having easily changeable entire length and allowing accurate and high speed signal transmission even when entire length is made longer, and amplifier-separated type sensor with the cable

A displacement sensor comprising an imaging unit and an image processing unit. The imaging unit comprises a two dimensional imaging device and a drive control unit. The two dimensional imaging device includes a group of light receiving pixels arranged in a matrix so as to correspond to a field of view of a standard imaging unit, a plurality of vertical shift registers corresponding to different columns of the pixels, and a horizontal register for receiving the outputs of the vertical shift registers from top stages thereof, a photosensitive pixel region being defined in a prescribed horizontal band having a sufficiently narrower width than that would be provided by the total number of horizontal lines and interposed between a front optically black pixel region and a back optically black pixel region. The drive control unit controls, according to a commanded electric charge transfer protocol, a feeding of signal electric charges from each light receiving pixel to the vertical shift register of a corresponding column, a vertical transfer of signal electric charges in the vertical shift register of each column, and a horizontal transfer of signal electric charges in the horizontal shift register. The image processing unit comprises electric charge transfer protocol command means for giving an electric charge transfer protocol to the drive control unit of the imaging unit in dependence of a content of the image process.

Provided is a displacement sensor which allows at least part of the data used from the time of obtaining an image until the time of computing the displacement can be readily verified. In a displacement sensor for automatically extracting a coordinate of a measuring point from an image obtained by using an imaging device according to a prescribed measuring point extraction algorithm, and computing a desired displacement from the automatically extracted measuring point coordinate, the sensor is further provided with the function to edit data used from the time of obtaining the image until the time of computing the displacement for use as display data for an image monitor.

An optical displacement sensor takes in a plurality of images of a target object by projecting a slit beam of light and using a two-dimensional image taking element by changing the image taking conditions each time. Parameters defining these conditions affecting the brightness of the obtained image are varied. From each of these images including an image of a portion of the sectional contour line of the target object, a segmented image satisfying a specified maximum brightness condition is extracted and a synthesized image is generated by gathering such segmented images. The target object is inspected from such synthesized image.

Optical displacement sensor

A mechanism to produce projection images A- G representing a model extraction region and an image sensing region is incorporated in an image sensing unit of an image processing apparatus. A control unit receives an image from image sensing unit to calculate density deviation within the model extraction region. The calculated result is output to a level display unit . When the operator determines the position of image sensing unit so that projection images A, B and C representing the model extraction region are projected distinctly on the pattern of the subject to be registered and a high level value is displayed by level display unit and depresses a teach button switch , image data within the current model extraction region is registered as the model image.

Model registration method and image processing apparatus

In a displacement sensor ( ) comprising a sensor head ( ) and a controller ( ) either integrally or separately, the sensor head comprises a measurement light emitting optical system ( ), an image acquiring optical system ( ) and a two dimensional imaging device ( ). The controller can control the imaging condition associated with the brightness of the image in the form of a video signal both under a measurement mode and an observation mode. Under the measurement mode, with a light source ( ) for measurement turned on, the imaging condition is adjusted in such a manner that a measurement light radiated light image ( ) can be imaged at an appropriate brightness but a surrounding part ( ) of the measurement object is substantially darker than the appropriate brightness, and a desired displacement is computed according the video signal obtained by the two dimensional imaging device ( ). Under the observation mode, the imaging condition is adjusted in such a manner that the measurement position and the surrounding part of the measurement object can be imaged both at an appropriate brightness, and an image of the measurement position of the surface of the measurement object and the surrounding region ( ) is displayed on the screen of an image monitor ( ) according the video signal obtained by the two dimensional imaging device ( ).

Provided is a visual displacement sensor which comprises a laser diode ( ) for impinging a line beam onto an object to be measured at a prescribed angle, a two-dimensional CCD ( ) for monitoring the object to be measured, on which the line beam is impinged, from a different angle, measurement object range defining means for defining one or more than one measurement object range (K , K ) within a field of view of the two-dimensional CCD, measurement point coordinate determining means for determining one or more than one measurement point coordinate (A ) contained in the defined measurement object range according to an image captured by the two-dimensional CCD, and displacement measuring means for measuring a desired displacement according to the determined one or more than one measurement point coordinate.

Visual displacement sensor

An improved image pickup device or method and an improved image processing device or method which directly projects a region specifying image on an object to specify and focus the object within a predetermined region without employing any image display unit so as to take an image of the object and judge the quality of the taken image. An image pickup device (,) includes an image pickup means (,) for taking an image of an object (,) which is focused through a lens (,), and a projecting means (,) for projecting an image (,) of a predetermined shape on the object. An image processing device (,) compares the image taken by the image pickup device (,) with a predetermined image stored beforehand to produce a result of such comparison.

Growing community of inventors

Kyoto, Japan

Masahiro Kawachi