color sensor

I have an application where sometimes there is a splice in the film that is red. The film can be any other color but none are red. I would like to detect this splice so I can reject the product that gets it. And possibly the one after and before it just to be sure it didnt get cut.

I need help in finding a sensor that will work. I may also be able to use another sensor for thickness if one is tunable enough to tell the dif between a singe layer and the splice which is usually about 3-4 layers thick.

Thanks for any info

NI Vision

National Instruments has a LABView based Vision system. It uses cameras to capture images, and you program various checks on the image, Including geometric and color (As well as many many others, it's very in depth.)

I was sent to a class to learn about it. It was a day long and they just touched the basics, but It is very fun to play with .

It is quite expensive though (Not something non-industrial would use). We were going to use it to check for things being present on various production lines, but decided against it for now.


Incase your interested, it's something to look into:

http://www.ni.com/vision/vbai

Rsdoran's suggestion is probably a lot cheaper and easier. I wish I had a Vision Build AI system to play with though... that would make slow days so much more fun

There are many color sensors out there. I am getting ready to install two from Sick but I don’t have the numbers but can post tomorrow if you like.

I would look at a simple sensor before going to a vision system.



IMO

Bob O

Hi plcnewbie.

What you're are looking for, in my opinion, is a print mark detector.
They are relatively cheap, in comparison with camera systems, and they are working fine.

Have a look here: http://www.mysick.com/partnerPortal/eCat.aspx?c=1&go=Finder&Cat=Row&At=Fa&Cult=English&Category=Produktfinder

One can also get teachable detectors.

BR
Zimbo

Rockwell also having colur sensors

Another option

http://www.bannerengineering.com/products/subfam.php?subi_id=1125

Never used one but I have always had good luck with banner

I had a similar application where I wanted to detect a red color on a product. After spending a lot of time looking at vision, color sensors, etc. the Banner representative gave me a photoeye

http://www.bannerengineering.com/products/subfam.php?subi_id=57
and said to try it. They come in several different colors of beams and each color has the ability to recoginize that color. In other words, the red beam saw red color, the green beam saw green color. At first I did not believe him but since he let me try one FREE I couldn't resist. After putting it in service and teaching it, I found that this was the absolute best thing in the world for my application. Very inexpensive (about $50), standard mountings, teach mode, and easy wiring. This thing blew away all the color sensors I had, and I tried at least 4 other color sensors (at about $300 each).

Just to let everyone know, I do not work for Banner or any other electrical distributor, but I was very impressed with the salesman (very helpful and correct - which is rare) and the ease of use of this product. Contact your Banner rep and see if they can help.

I've used the banner color sensers they are easy to setup and reliable as well as rugged I've found they tend to handle harsher environments than the sick photoeyes. The Sick products I typically have to replace every 3 to 6 months where I've had Banner photoeyes that last up to 3 years between problems. This is mostly due to our high washdown. Although Omron are proving just as reliable particularly their barrel sensers

i was testing bunch of color sensors about year and a half ago and samples provided by Sick
couldn't measure up to the rest of the pack. they ware bigger, costed much more and performed significantly worse than Baumer or Banner for example.

if you can get close to target (about 1") baumer or banner will be perfect. I ended up choosing QC50 from banner because it was way cheaper than Baumer (baumer had 4 instead of three outputs but
otherwise they are very similar).

for longer range (up to 3-4" or so) there are couple of sensors but if budget is limited
fiber+amplifier combo seam to be the best option.

for even greater range only some sort of vision system will do. full blown vision systems
are quite a bit more expensive but there are scaled down versions which are perfect for
simple color and/or shape recognition like LightPix (AE10 or AE20) or Omron ZFV-C (seam to cost twice as much as Lightpix)

I've used SunX color sensors with success:

http://www.sunx-ramco.com/

On the thickness issue, is this item ever captured in a roller such that an LVDT (linear variable displacement transducer) can be set up to make a thickness measurement?

In regards to my earlier post, I had a chance to find the exact page of the color sensor:

http://www.ramcoinnovations.com/SunxPDFFiles/FZ_10.pdf

>>O.T.>> Customer service!!!!!

brucechase said:

...but I was very impressed with the salesman (very helpful and correct - which is rare)....

Click to expand...

This is why I talk very highly of a few vendors, Banner, Redlion, etc. if someone helps me with my application and makes me look better to my boss(es) then they get my orders…

So many companies have lost sight of the service part of ‘customer service’, the ones that are here and help on this site (and other sites) also get my money, AB, Mike and Dan (Redlion), Ron Beaufort, Peter Nachtwey, AutomationDirect, etc, they know how to service their customers and get my vote

So yes, Banner has several sensors that will do the color detection and I have a few of their camera systems and they are very good

Thanks guys, you gave me some real good info here