Inspection machine memory

Claim 1

In an inspection machine for glass containers wherein glass containers are removed one at a time from a continually moving conveyor, wherein said glass containers are serially indexed through a plurality of inspection stations and wherein said inspection machine includes a bottle defect logic and detection means, having a plurality of output conductors, for generating signals on said output conductors if said inspected glass containers are determined to be defective in one or more aspects at any one of said inspection stations, an improved memory system for said inspection machine which comprises, in combination: a plurality of master-slave type flip-flops, connected in series, said plurality of flip-flops being one more in number than the number of said inspection stations; means for connecting an output conductor from said logic means to each one of said flip-flops except the last one of said plurality of flip-flops; timing means for presenting a first electrical state when said inspection machine is inspecting and a second electrical state when said inspection machine is in its index cycle; electronic clock circuit means, connected to said timing means and each of said flip-flops, for generating a clock pulse, having a rise time faster than the information transfer time through said flip-flops, in response to the transition of said timing means from said second electrical state to said first electrical state; and electronic output circuit means, connected to said clock circuit means and the output of the last one of said flip-flops, for generating a signal when said last flip-flop carries a signal indicating the presence of a defective glass container and when said clock pulse is present.

Claim 7

A method for retaining memory of a defective glass container during the entire cycle of a glass container inspection machine which indexes glass containers through a plurality of inspection stations and generates a defect signal when a glass container fails to pass the inspection performed at any one of said plurality of inspection stations, which comprises the steps of: loading a defect signal from any one of said inspection stations into a master-slave type flip-flop uniquely associated with that one of said inspection stations; presenting a first electrical state when said inspection machine is inspecting; presenting a second electrical state when said inspection machine is in its index cycle; generating a clock pulse, in response to the transition from said second electrical state to said first electrical state, having a rise time faster than the information transfer time through said flip-flop; shifting any information carried by said first mentioned flip-flop into a second master-slave type flip-flop uniquely associated with the next one in sequence of said inspection stations in response to said clock pulse; continuing to shift information relative to a defective glass container in response to successive clock pulses as said glass container is indexed from inspection station to inspection station; shifting any information carried by a flip-flop associated with the last one of said inspection stations into an output master-slave type flip-flop in response to said clock pulse; and rejecting any glass containers causing a signal to be carried by said output flip-flop.

Claim 8

A method for retaining memory of a defective glass container during the entire cycle of a glass container inspection machine which indexes glass containers through a plurality of inspection stations and generates a defect signal when a glass container fails to pass the inspection performed at any one of said plurality of inspection stations, which comprises the steps of: loading a defect signal from any one of said inspection stations into a master-slave type flip-flop uniquely associated with that one of said inspection stations; presenting a first electrical state when said inspection machine is inspecting; presenting a second electrical state when said inspection machine is in its index cycle; generating a clock pulse, in response to the transition from said second electrical state to said first electrical state, having a rise time faster than the information transfer time through said flip-flop; shifting any information carried by said first mentioned flip-flop into a second master-slave type flip-flop uniquely associated with the next one in sequence of said inspection stations in response to said clock pulse; continuing to shift information relative to a defective glass container in response to successive clock pulses as said glass container is indexed from inspection station to inspection station; shifting any information carried by a flip-flop associated with the last one of said inspection stations into an output master-slave type flip-flop in response to said clock pulse; and rejecting any glass containers causing a signal to be carried by said output flip-flop.