Patent ID: 6732917
Filing Date: 2004-05-11
Classification: G01N,G03D,G06K,Y10T

Abstract:
A device for the automatic photoelectric measurement of measuring fields contained on an original, the device comprising:a housing having an insertion opening for insertion of the original, said original having a front edge and a rear edge; a transport structure for automatically pulling the original into the housing and for transporting the original along a transport path; a detector of a photoelectric measurement arrangement for providing light of a defined quality to measuring fields contained on the original, for receiving measurement light being remitted or transmitted from the measuring fields pending on the original, and for converting the measurement light into electrical signals representing the colour characteristics of the measuring fields, said photoelectric measurement arrangement being a spectral measurement arrangement, for generating electrical signals representing the spectra of the measured measuring fields on the original; and a controller for cooperating with the transport structure and the spectral measurement arrangement for controlling the pulling in and transport of the original, for converting the electrical signals generated by the spectral measurement arrangement into digital measuring data, and for supplying said digital measuring data to an interface for access by an external computer and further processing; wherein configuration data representing the arrangement of the measuring fields on the original for a plurality of different types of originals is stored in the controller; said controller being designed for determining from generated digital measuring data of pre-defined code fields an original identification code specific for the type of original and defined by colours of the pre-defined code fields, for selecting stored configuration data based on the determined original identification code for the type of original that contains said identification code, and for controlling the measurement of individual measuring fields on the original based on the selected configuration data, wherein the controller determines whether the front edge or the rear edge of the original first enters the insertion opening of the housing, and wherein the controller is designed for determining a positioning code on the original, said positioning code being formed through colours of pre-defined positioning fields, said controller determining the positioning code from digital measuring data generated from said positioning fields, and controlling the measurement of the individual measuring fields of the original using the positioning code.