JP2003172658A - Three-primary-color-led-reflection-type photo-color sensor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To inexpensively provide a LED-reflection-type photo-color sensor of a simple structure capable of achieving compactness, determining a passing object such as a spherical object, an object of a rod-shaped cross section, a ring-shaped object, etc., with the optical quantity of reflected light of light receiving elements from light emitting elements as a discrimination signal under set conditions, and accurately discriminating the color of a surface through the use of LEDs for emitting three colors of red, green, and blue, the three primary colors of light. <P>SOLUTION: A sensor casing 2 is formed in such a way that its center part is located at a path 3 for the passage of an object to be detected and that its peripheral part is located in a space 4 for arranging LED substrates. Detecting holes 5 for the passage of light emitted from the light emitting elements of the LEDs and the reflected light of the light receiving elements are provided for a peripheral wall 3a of the path 3 at angle intervals of 120°. The light emitting elements 7 and the light receiving elements 8 are integrally incorporated to the red, green, and blue LED substrates 6, and the LED substrates 6 are arranged in the space 4 for arranging the LED substrates correspondingly to the detecting holes 5. The amount of reflection of the passing object to be detected 9 detected by the light receiving element 8 is read as an electric signal to discriminate its color in the reflection-type photo-color sensor 1 through the use of the LEDs for emitting three colors of red, green, and blue, the three primary colors of light. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a simple and compact color sensor for accurately discriminating the color of a passing object.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Most of the color identification devices currently used in various industrial fields are equipped with a reflection type detection unit, and a correction circuit that accommodates the shape of the detected object or the deviation of the distance is incorporated. Has been. Therefore, although the usable range is wide, the manufacturing cost is high and the device must be expensive. Therefore, as a built-in device for identifying the color of a play ball in a game machine or the like, a simpler and more accurate color sensor that is difficult to adopt immediately has been desired.

[0003]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of such a conventional situation, and a single detection object having a relatively small volume or a combination of a plurality of detection objects is provided with a three-way light in the course of passing through a passage. An attempt is made to provide a photo color sensor that uses three-color LEDs, which are red, blue, and green, in principle for identification, and reads the electrical signals to identify the colors.

Another object of the present invention is a color game ball of a game machine in which the detection object 9 has a function of displaying a score according to color, and a color-based score display circuit is provided by being installed in the passage of the color play ball. It is another object of the present invention to provide a projection type photo color sensor which is connected and displays the color identification according to claim 1.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a passage 3 of a sensor casing 2 having a central portion formed in a detection object passage 3 and an outer peripheral portion formed in an LED substrate mounting space 4. Detection holes 5 at the same height through which the light emitted from the light emitting element of the LED and the reflected light from the light receiving element pass are provided at intervals of the outer peripheral wall 3a of the LED, and the LE corresponding to the detection holes 5 is provided.
In the D board installation space 4, the LED boards 6 of red, blue, and green in which the light emitting element 7 and the light receiving element 8 are integrally assembled are arranged.

Then, the amount of reflection detected from the passage detection object 9 to the light receiving element 8 is read by an electric signal under preset identification conditions, and the colors are identified by three principles of red, blue, and green. It is a three-color LED reflective photo color sensor.

Further, the detection object 9 is a color game ball of a game machine having a function of displaying a score according to color, and is installed in the passage 3 of the color play ball and is linked to the score display circuit according to color. The three principle color light emitting LED reflective photo color sensor.

[0008]

The operation of the present invention will be described with reference to the case where it is applied to a game machine. In FIG. 3, 11 is a ball game machine main body,
12 is a game board having an operation panel 13 at the bottom, and 14 is a control unit. Further, the color sensor 1 according to the present invention is installed on the play board 12 at the opening of the drop passage of the launched game ball. Reference numeral 15 is a score / cumulative display (lamp).

Now, when the launched color game machine balls enter the passage 3 of the color sensor 1 from the drop passage opening in which the color sensor 1 is installed, they fall into the slit 11 at 120 degree angular intervals during the passage process. Lights of three colors of red, blue and green are emitted from the provided light emitting element 7 to the game machine ball, and the light receiving element 8 receives the amount of reflected light, and the detected amount of electricity is determined under predetermined identification conditions. The color is discriminated by reading with a dynamic signal (change in level of current and voltage).

More specifically, the color game machine ball to be detected at this time may be a single or a plurality of units (three units in the case shown) in the passage 3, and the red LED board 6 serves as a red element. The blue LED substrate 6 is used to identify blue elements and the green LED elements are used to identify green elements, and the combination of these electrical signals is used to identify the color of one or more color game machine balls (FIG. 4). ). Then, a lamp is displayed on the score / accumulation display unit 15 linked with the electric signal.

The number of identification colors is not limited to three, but when the electrical signals of the LED substrate of the three basic colors of light, red, blue and green, are ON and OFF, depending on the combination of those signals. Eight colors (black, white, red, blue, green, pink, sky blue, yellow) can be identified, and the number of identified colors can be further increased by dividing the signal area from ON to OFF into multiple combinations. (It is possible to identify 64 colors by dividing it into two).

[0012]

As described above, in the LED reflection type photosensor according to the present invention, the OF of each of the three detecting portions which emit three-color light, which is the three principles of light, in the process of passing the detection object 9.
The area from F to ON is determined by an electric signal, and when the number of colors of the detection object 9 is small, the signals generated from the three detection unit areas are combined by a combination of signals only from OFF to ON.
When the number of colors is large (more than eight colors), the OFF-ON regions of the signals generated by the three detection unit regions are divided into a plurality of regions,
Color combination can be quickly and accurately determined by combining a plurality of divided signals.

Since the structure is simple, it can be made compact according to the purpose and function and can be provided at a significantly lower cost than the conventional color identification sensors. It goes without saying that the present invention can be used not only in the above-mentioned embodiment for amusement machines but also in various fields for the purpose of distinguishing colors such as spherical, metal-shaped, ring-shaped, and donut-shaped detection objects.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a color sensor according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the same showing an operating state.

FIG. 3 is a front view of a game machine having a color sensor according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a color combination state according to a score of a play ball.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 color sensor 2 sensor casing 3 Detection object passage 3a outer peripheral wall 4 LED board installation space 5 Detection hole 6 6 Red, blue and green LED boards 7 Light emitting element 8 Light receiving element 9 Passage detection object 11 Ball game machine body 12 play board 13 Operation panel 14 Control unit 15 Score / total display (lamp) 16, 17 In / out pin

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. An outer peripheral wall (3a) of a passage (3) of a sensor casing (2) having a detection object passage (3) at the center and an LED substrate installation space (4) at the outer periphery thereof. Detecting holes (5) at the same height through which the light emitted from the light emitting element of the LED and the reflected light from the light receiving element pass are provided at intervals, and in the LED board installation space (4) corresponding to these detecting holes (5). The red, blue, and green LED boards (6) in which the light emitting element (7) and the light receiving element (8) are integrally assembled are arranged, and the passage detection object (9) to the light receiving element (8). Read the amount of reflection detected by the electrical signal under the preset identification condition,
The three principles of color identification, red, blue, and green light emission LE
D reflective photo color sensor (1). 2. The detection object (9) is a color game ball of a game machine having a function of displaying a score by color, and is installed in a passage (3) for the color game ball to provide a score display circuit for each color. The three principle color light emitting LED reflection type photo color sensor (1) according to claim 1, which are linked together.