US 2026/0276524 A1Published application

Particle characterization system and method

AssigneeX Development LLC

InventorsAntonio Raymond Papania-Davis, Weishi Yan

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Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on computer storage media, for characterizing a particulate ingredient of a mixture including a hopper configured to dispense particles along an axis and in freefall through an imaging region, an illumination sub-system including at least one light source arranged at a first location with respect to the axis and configured to illuminate the imaging region, an image capture sub-system including at least one image capture device including a telecentric lens and arranged at a second location with respect to the axis and configured to align a focal plane of the at least one image capture device with the axis within the imaging region, such that when a particle freefalls through the imaging region, the particle is illuminated by the illumination sub-system and the image capture sub-system captures images of at least three silhouettes of the particle within the imaging region.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A method for characterizing a particulate ingredient of a mixture, the method comprising:

receiving image data of a plurality of particles representative of the particulate ingredient of the mixture, wherein the image data comprises sets of frames, and wherein each set of frames includes silhouettes of one or more particles captured within the set of frames;
for each set of frames
identifying, in each frame of the set of frames, a silhouette of at least one particle in the frame;
matching respective silhouettes from each frame of the set of frames that represent a same particle appearing in each frame from different perspectives;
and
for the respective silhouettes corresponding to same particle;
generating a reconstruction of the particle from the respective silhouettes to obtain a reconstructed particle;
and
extracting from the reconstruction of the particle, one or more characteristics of the particle;
generating, from the reconstructed particles of the plurality of particles, a characteristic profile of the plurality of particles;
and
determining, in response to the characteristic profile, an update to a composition of the mixture.

9 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 19/667,259Filed 4 May 2026
Priority: 2 Nov 2023
Published: 17 Sep 2026
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification8 codes

G01N 15/1434
Optical investigation techniques, e.g. flow cytometry: optical arrangements
G01N 15/147
With spatial resolution of the texture or inner structure of the particle: the analysis being performed on a sample stream
G01N 33/0091
Investigating or analysing materials by specific methods not covered by groups G01N1/00 - G01N31/00: powders
G01N 33/383
Concrete; Lime; Mortar; Gypsum; Bricks; Ceramics; Glass: concrete or cement