Patent ID: 6629611
Filing Date: 2003-10-07
Classification: B07C,Y10S

Abstract:
A granular object sorting apparatus comprising:a transfer means for transferring granular objects to be sorted; an illuminating means for irradiating light to said granular objects released from said transfer means; a light receiving means for receiving light from the granular objects having received irradiating light of said illuminating means, said transfer means, said illuminating means and said light receiving means being arranged at a point along a falling locus of the granular objects released from said transfer means; a determination means for determining as to whether each of the granular objects is to be ejected or not based on a received light signal from said light receiving means, and outputting an ejection signal for the object to be ejected; a driver circuit for outputting a driving signal based on said ejection signal from said determination means; and an ejection means for ejecting the granular objects to be ejected, said ejection means including a reciprocating rod which is borne in a substantially frictionless state and which linearly projects out or retracts in an axial direction and a reciprocating means for causing the reciprocating rod to retract or project out by said driving signal from said driver circuit, said reciprocating rod having at a foremost end portion thereof a slanted surface inclining towards a projecting direction of the reciprocating rod from an upstream side of the falling locus, said slanted surface being adapted to hit the granular objects in the falling locus during a projecting-out operation of the reciprocating rod and said driver circuit being arranged to output the driving signal to the reciprocating means so that, when the granular objects to be ejected by a given ejection means are determined as contiguous, the projecting-out operation of the reciprocating rod is caused correspondingly to a leading granular object to be ejected and, after an ejection of a succeeding granular object or objects to be ejected, a retracting operation takes place.