Window cleaner for inline optical sensors
AssigneeWedgewood Technology, Inc.
InventorWilliam H. Wynn
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Apparatus for cleaning the interior surface of a window in an inline optical sensors which is subject to contamination and fouling by a product stream in contact therewith. The window surface is wiped by a blade driven by a pneumatic operator, and the amount of air supplied to the operator is adjusted to control the speed at which the blade moves across the window surface. When a cleaning operation is initiated, the blade is wiped across the window surface a predetermined number of times, and measurements utilizing data from the sensor are suspended until the cleaning operation is completed and the data has had time to restabilize.
Claims13
In apparatus for monitoring a product stream:
- an inline optical sensor having a housing with optically transparent generally planar windows on opposite sides thereof, means for continuously passing a fluid product stream through the sensor in contact with sufaces of the windows, means for optically monitoring the entire product stream through the windows to provide data about the product stream, an operator mounted on the housing between the sides on which the windows are located and having an output shaft movable axially between advanced and retracted positions in a direction generally parallel to the window surfaces, and a wiper blade connected to the shaft for wiping engagement with the window surfaces as the shaft moves between the advanced and retracted positions.
In apparatus for monitoring a product stream:
- an optical sensor cell having interior window surfaces on opposite sides thereof, means for passing a product stream through the cell in contact with the window surfaces, a pneumatic operator mounted on the outside of the cell with an output shaft extending into the cell between the window surfaces for movement between axially advanced and retracted positions in a direction generally parallel to said surfaces, a blade holder mounted on the shaft between the windows, flexible wiper blades extending from opposite sides of the blade holder for wiping engagement with the window surfaces, an air source, an electrically operated valve connected between the air source and the operator, means for applying electrical pulses to the valve to actuate the valve to apply air to the operator to move the shaft between the advanced and retracted positions and thereby wipe the blades across the window surfaces in response to the pulses, means for counting the number of pulses applied to the valve, and means for discontinuing the application of pulses to the valve when the count reaches a predetermined number.
In apparatus for monitoring a product stream:
- an optical sensor cell having an optically transparent window, means for optically monitoring a product stream through the window and providing data about the product stream, means for feeding a product stream through the cell in contact with a surface of the window, an operator having an output shaft movable between advanced and retracted positions in a direction generally parallel to the window surface, a wiper blade connected to the shaft for wiping engagement with the window surface as the shaft moves between the advanced and retracted positions, a controller responsive to a starting command for actuating the operator to wipe the blade across the window surface for a predetermined period of time following receipt of the command, and means for inhibiting measurements with the data from the sensor cell during the time the window surface is being wiped.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.