The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Apr. 17, 2001
Filed:
Aug. 28, 1998
YKK Corporation, Tokyo, JP;
Abstract
Disclosed are a method and an apparatus for easily, sensitively and reliably detecting the presence of a magnetic substance in a non-magnetic product, and even a minuted magnetized material such as a broken needle erroneously included in a sewn product. Magnetic sensors as a sensing unit are disposed at a prescribed position between a pair of opposed magnetic shielding members made of a soft magnetic material as a magnetic flux converging unit. A non-magnetic product including a magnetic substance is passed through between the pair of magnetic shielding members. A magnetic flux generated by the magnetic substance mingled in the product is converged to the magnetic shielding members, while shutting off a magnetic field due to external disturbance, and residual magnetization of the magnetic substance is detected by the magnetic sensors. Preferably, each of the magnetic shielding members has a curved surface projecting inwardly in the form curved along the conveyance direction of the non-magnetic product, and a plurality of magnetic sensors are disposed on each of the curved surfaces at intervals of a prescribed size in the lateral direction thereof.