The world is colorful, which is why we have the captivating "The sunrise over the river is redder than fire, and the spring river is greener than blue," the mouthwatering "Bamboo shoots are just sprouting like calf horns, and fern buds are just growing like a child's fist," and the ability to express our feelings with "Azure sky, yellow leaves on the ground, autumn colors stretching to the waves, and cold mist rising from the waves."
Color not only beautifies the world and enriches our souls, but its use also tangibly makes our lives more convenient. The application of color subtly passes through our world every day; if we observe carefully, we can discover its subtle traces. From the toothpaste and cosmetics we pick up, to the bag of cookies we buy when we're hungry, to the tissue we casually pull out…
It turns out that there's a colored block on the edge of the packaging of these items, either blue, purple, black, or red. So what is the purpose of this small colored block? The answer is in the picture below.
This is a packaging machine. When a color mark sensor detects a color block, it sends a command to the machine to cut the toothpaste, packaging bags, and other items to the appropriate size. Similarly, by combining it with different mechanical equipment, it can achieve functions such as automatic positioning, length determination, color identification, cutting, deviation correction, and counting. With the rapid development of flexible packaging for food, pharmaceuticals, and daily necessities in China, the demand for such sensors is increasing daily. As a sensing, detection, and automation solutions expert, what solutions and products does Banner Engineering offer to meet various color detection needs? And how does it identify various colors such as green and red?
Color mark sensors, in principle, do not detect color. Instead, they detect color marks by measuring the difference in the amount of light reflected and absorbed by the color mark compared to the surrounding materials. A threshold is set between the intensity of the light reflected from the mark and the intensity of the light reflected from the background to distinguish whether the detected light mark is a color mark or the background.
Banner's color mark sensor features a high-speed output frequency of 10kHz, high color detection sensitivity, and can distinguish 16 color levels for each grayscale, with a high IP67 protection rating. It has a fixed focal length of 10mm and can adapt to detection at distances of 10±3mm. It incorporates red, green, and blue light sources, which are automatically selected during teaching to achieve optimal detection results.
Fiber optic sensors are widely used because they have features such as ultra-small detection head size, small light spot, explosion-proof, strong anti-interference ability, and high temperature resistance and corrosion resistance of glass optical fiber. If the color of the object being measured and the color of the fiber optic light source are properly matched, and coaxial optical fiber is used, they can also be used to distinguish colors.
For example, in this fiber optic amplifier, the yellow-green number on the right is the set switch threshold, and the red number on the left is the real-time incident light intensity. Different colors being measured absorb light emitted by the fiber optic amplifier differently, resulting in different intensities of the returned light. Therefore, as long as the target color differs significantly from the background color, a suitable switch threshold can be set to achieve stable detection. This principle is similar to that of a color mark sensor, except that when using fiber optics to detect color, we need to select the color of the light source ourselves.
Compared to color mark sensors, optical fibers also have the advantage of high-speed detection, with a response time as fast as 10 microseconds. Furthermore, when combined with different coaxial optical fibers and optical fiber amplifiers, the detection distance becomes more flexible.
The rugged Banner Q3X multi-function laser contrast sensor features a fast 250-microsecond response time, a detection range of up to 300 mm, bipolar PNP and NPN outputs, and excellent ambient light immunity. It has a nickel-plated die-cast housing with an IP69K protection rating. Its display shows the actual signal strength, representing the ratio of the incoming light intensity to the set action threshold; 100 is the output state switching point.
The Q4X, which has a similar appearance to the Q3X, is a laser rangefinder sensor. Because it includes a special detection mode—dual-mode—it has the ability to detect changes in distance and color simultaneously, and can also be used to identify colors.
The previous products detected color by measuring the grayscale value of the target color and using the difference in grayscale values between the target and background colors to set an appropriate threshold for differentiation. However, the QC50 sensor detects color by measuring the reflectance ratio of the three primary colors that make up an object's color. This results in superior color recognition capabilities, high reliability in detecting similar colors and hues, and the ability to reliably distinguish between similar colors and their intensity. The QC50 has three output channels, allowing for the setting and recognition of three colors.
Color iVu offers color tools such as color area, color comparison, and average color grayscale. The color area tool calculates the area based on the selected color and counts the areas of spots that meet the criteria. The color comparison tool verifies the matching degree between the colors within the ROI and the taught colors. The color grayscale tool outputs the RGBI or HSI values of the image within the ROI. The image below shows the detection results page after using the color grayscale tool to analyze colors.
Subtle differences between colors and variations in the shade of the same color will manifest as differences in RGB and HSI data detection results. From this, Banner understands what kind of black you want and what kind of white you see. The iVu product offers greater flexibility in use, adapting to different detection distances and fields of view when paired with lenses of varying focal lengths. Combined with the programming capabilities of various tools, its applications are even broader, ranging from food packaging and automotive to the pharmaceutical industry – a diverse range of applications where iVu truly shines.
In addition to the sensor products mentioned above, Banner also offers vision products such as EVP and BVI, which can process color images to meet more complex and challenging detection needs.
In this exciting era of rapid advancements in intelligence and ever-expanding application scenarios for sensors, Banner Engineering will develop more and better sensors to serve this colorful world and depict its vibrant beauty.
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