CN111721357A

CN111721357A - Material measuring device and material measuring system

Info

Publication number: CN111721357A
Application number: CN202010433969.3A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 呼秀山; 夏阳
Original assignee: Beijing Ruida Instrument Co ltd
Current assignee: Beijing Ruida Instrument Co ltd
Priority date: 2020-05-21
Filing date: 2020-05-21
Publication date: 2020-09-29
Also published as: DE112021002892T5; WO2021233407A1

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a material measuring device, including: the receiving antenna is used for receiving a microwave reflected beam generated after the microwave transmitting beam is reflected, and the materials are measured through the microwave transmitting beam and the microwave reflected beam; and the plurality of microstrip antennas are positioned on one side of the microwave lens, the microwave lens converges the microwave transmitting beams transmitted by each transmitting antenna on the other side of the microwave lens, the angles of the converged microwave transmitting beams are different, and the microwave lens converges the microwave reflecting beams so that the receiving antenna receives the converged microwave reflecting beams. The present disclosure also provides a material measurement system.

Description

Material measuring device and material measuring system

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a material measuring device and a material measuring system.

Background

The measurement of the volume of solid materials stored in a warehouse has been a difficult point, mainly because the materials are piled up in a mountain peak shape due to feeding or piled up in a funnel shape due to discharging. Multiple hills and funnels may occur for bins with multiple feed and discharge points. The conventional method can measure only single point or few point level information. Single point measurements are completely unsatisfactory. In the multi-point measurement, the material shape is usually measured by three to four antennas in the current mode, but the requirement cannot be met.

The usual approach is to use a feedhorn, but feedhorns are bulky and, where the size of the opening is limited, will be limited in number, and therefore are typically only three or four feedhorns. Moreover, in the existing design, each additional beam will cause the gain of a single beam to decrease, which will affect the measurement effect.

In addition, in a measurement environment with a relatively complex environment, the number of antennas is small and the signal is weak in the prior art, so that the prior art is difficult to adapt to the measurement environment, such as difficult to penetrate solid dust and the like.

The above-mentioned problems also exist when the surface of the material is not flat, which is common when the liquid is swirled due to stirring, in the case of level measurement of the liquid.

In addition, the effect of eliminating the measurement interfering substances in the prior art is not ideal.

Disclosure of Invention

In order to solve at least one of the above technical problems, the present disclosure provides a material measuring device and a material measuring system.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a material measuring device includes:

the receiving antenna is used for receiving a microwave reflected beam generated after the microwave transmitting beam is reflected, and the materials are measured through the microwave transmitting beam and the microwave reflected beam; and

the microwave lens converges the microwave transmitting beams transmitted by each transmitting antenna at the other side of the microwave lens, wherein the angles of the converged microwave transmitting beams are different, and the microwave lens converges the microwave reflecting beams so that the receiving antenna receives the converged microwave reflecting beams.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, one transmitting antenna and one receiving antenna constitute one transmitting and receiving antenna unit, and one transmitting antenna and one receiving antenna in one transmitting and receiving antenna unit share one microstrip antenna or two microstrip antennas close to each other.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of microstrip antennas are disposed on a focal plane of the microwave lens.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of microstrip antennas are disposed on one printed circuit board or disposed on a plurality of printed circuit boards.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of microstrip antennas are disposed on one printed circuit board, and angles of the plurality of microstrip antennas are different, or

The plurality of microstrip antennas are disposed on a plurality of printed circuit boards, and angles of the plurality of printed circuit boards are different so that the angles of the plurality of microstrip antennas are different.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the printed circuit board is perpendicular or nearly perpendicular to a microwave transmission beam emitted by a microstrip antenna disposed on the printed circuit board.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, a processing circuit is disposed on the printed circuit board, and the processing circuit obtains a time difference between a transmitting time when the transmitting antenna transmits the microwave transmitting beam and a receiving time when the receiving antenna receives the microwave reflecting beam based on a time-of-flight principle, so as to obtain information of the material measuring point.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the frequency of the microwave transmission beam emitted by the transmission antenna is a continuously adjusted frequency.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the processing circuit obtains a frequency difference between a frequency of a microwave transmitting beam transmitted by the transmitting antenna and a frequency of a microwave reflecting beam received by the receiving antenna at a certain time, so as to obtain information of the material measuring point.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the printed circuit board may be rotated or moved so as to change a transmission angle or a transmission position of a microwave transmission beam transmitted by the microstrip antenna of the printed circuit board.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the rotation or movement of the printed circuit board is periodic.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, a scan surface for measuring a profile of a material is formed by rotation or movement of the printed circuit board.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the microwave lens is one microwave lens or a combined microwave lens formed by a plurality of lenses, and the one microwave lens or the combined microwave lens is used for converging the microwave transmitting beam and the microwave reflecting beam.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the wireless communication device further includes a microwave transceiving processing module, wherein the microwave transceiving processing module includes a transmitting path and a receiving path, the transmitting path is configured to provide a transmitting signal to a transmitting antenna of the plurality of transceiving antenna units, and the receiving path is configured to receive a receiving signal from a receiving antenna of the plurality of transceiving antenna units.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the transmitting path and the receiving path are disposed at different sides of the microwave transceiving processing module.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of transceiving antenna units are independent of each other, and each transceiving antenna unit includes a respective one transmitting antenna and one receiving antenna.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, one or more of the plurality of transmitting antennas and one or more of the plurality of receiving antennas are combined with each other to form the plurality of transceiving antenna units.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the microwave lens further comprises a blowing part, wherein the blowing part is arranged on the other side of the microwave lens and used for keeping the other side of the microwave lens clean.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the microwave measuring device further comprises an angle measuring part for measuring an inclination angle of the material measuring device, so as to obtain an actual angle of the microwave transmitting beam and/or the microwave reflecting beam based on the measured inclination angle.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near one reference plane parallel to and/or passing through an axis of the microwave lens, the plurality of microstrip antennas located in or near the one reference plane are arranged in a straight line or a curved line shape or nearly a straight line or a curved line shape; or

The plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near two or more reference planes, the two or more reference planes being respectively parallel to and/or passing through the axis of the microwave lens, the plurality of microstrip antennas respectively located in or near each of the two or more reference planes being respectively arranged in a straight line or curved line shape or near a straight line or curved line shape.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, in a case where the plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near one reference plane, which is parallel to and passes through an axis of the microwave lens, one transmitting-receiving antenna unit is disposed on or near the axis;

and under the condition that the plurality of microstrip antennas are positioned in or near two or more reference planes, the two or more reference planes are respectively parallel to the axis of the microwave lens and pass through the axis, and a transceiving antenna unit is arranged on or near the axis.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, in a case where the plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near two or more reference planes, angles between adjacent reference planes are equal.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, in a case where the plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near two or more reference planes, the number of microstrip antennas located in or near the respective reference planes is the same or different.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, in the case that the plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near a reference plane, microwave transmitting beams of different angles converged by the microwave lens are located in or near a plane, thereby forming a beam scanning surface to measure a material on a cross section;

under the condition that the plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near more than two reference planes, the microwave transmitting beams of the microstrip antennas located in or near each reference plane are converged into microwave transmitting beams respectively located at different angles of one plane by the microwave lens, so that a plurality of beam scanning surfaces are formed, and materials with a plurality of cross sections are measured.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the microwave antenna further comprises a housing, and the housing and the microwave lens form a closed space for accommodating the microstrip antenna.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, at least one of the plurality of microwave transmit beams transmitted by the plurality of transmit antennas is a vertical microwave transmit beam that is parallel to or passes through the axis of the microwave lens.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, when measuring a material in a shape of an inclined plane, material information required to be measured by the vertical microwave transmitting beam is determined according to one or more non-vertical microwave transmitting beams other than the vertical microwave transmitting beam.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, material information that needs to be measured by the vertical microwave transmit beam is determined based on an angular difference between the non-vertical microwave transmit beam and the vertical microwave transmit beam.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the angle difference between the plurality of microwave transmission beams transmitted by the plurality of transmission antennas is equal or unequal, and is 0.5-1.5 times the beam opening angle of the microwave transmission beam.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the microwave irradiation apparatus further includes a storage unit for storing information of the plurality of microwave reflected beams.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, a time difference between a transmitting time when the transmitting antenna transmits the microwave transmitting beam and a receiving time when the receiving antenna receives the microwave reflecting beam is obtained based on a time-of-flight principle, so as to obtain information of a material measuring point.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the measuring device further includes an arithmetic unit that obtains information of the material measuring point from the time difference.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the frequency of the microwave transmitting beam transmitted by the transmitting antenna is a continuously adjusted frequency, and the frequency difference between the frequency of the microwave transmitting beam transmitted by the transmitting antenna and the frequency of the microwave reflecting beam received by the receiving antenna is obtained by comparing the frequency of the microwave transmitting beam transmitted by the transmitting antenna and the frequency of the microwave reflecting beam received by the receiving antenna at a certain time, so as to obtain the information of the material measuring point.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the material measuring device further includes an arithmetic unit that obtains information of the material measuring point from the frequency difference.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the microwave oven further includes a display part that updates information of the displayed material in real time according to information of each microwave reflection beam.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the number of microwave transmission beams is at least 3.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of transceiving antenna units repeatedly transmits a microwave transmission beam and receives a microwave reflection beam so as to perform real-time measurement on the material measuring point.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a material measuring device includes:

one or more microstrip antennas forming one or more transceiving antenna units, wherein the transceiving antenna units comprise a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna, the transmitting antenna is used for generating a microwave transmitting beam, the receiving antenna is used for receiving a microwave reflecting beam generated after the microwave transmitting beam is reflected, and the material is measured through the microwave transmitting beam and the microwave reflecting beam; and

a microwave lens, wherein the microstrip antenna is located at one side of the microwave lens, the microwave lens converges the microwave transmitting beam emitted by each transmitting antenna at the other side of the microwave lens, the angle of each converged microwave transmitting beam is different, and the microwave lens converges the microwave reflecting beam, so that the receiving antenna receives the converged microwave reflecting beam,

the one or more microstrip antennas are movable microstrip antennas, and the material is measured through movement of the microstrip antennas.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the microstrip antenna is disposed on a focal plane of the microwave lens.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the microstrip antenna moves along the focal plane.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the microstrip antenna is disposed on one printed circuit board or on a plurality of printed circuit boards, and the printed circuit boards are movable.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the microstrip antenna is disposed on one printed circuit board, and the angle of the microstrip antenna is different, or

The microstrip antenna is disposed on a plurality of printed circuit boards, and angles of the plurality of printed circuit boards are different so that the angles of the microstrip antenna are different.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the mobile terminal further includes a microwave transceiving processing module, where the microwave transceiving processing module includes a transmitting path and a receiving path, the transmitting path is configured to provide a transmitting signal to a transmitting antenna in the transceiving antenna unit, and the receiving path is configured to receive a receiving signal from a receiving antenna in the transceiving antenna unit.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna are microstrip antennas independent of each other.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the microstrip antenna moves in or near one reference plane, which is parallel to and/or passes through the axis of the microwave lens; or

The microstrip antenna moves in or near two or more reference planes that are respectively parallel to and/or pass through the axis of the microwave lens.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, in case the microstrip antenna is moved in or near one reference plane, which is parallel to and passes through the axis of the microwave lens, the microstrip antenna takes measurements at least on or near the axis;

in the case where the microstrip antenna is moved in or near two or more reference planes, which are respectively parallel to and pass through the axis of the microwave lens, the microstrip antenna makes measurements at least on or near the axis.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, in case the microstrip antenna moves in or near two or more reference planes, angles between adjacent reference planes are equal.

In accordance with at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, in the case where the microstrip antenna moves in or near two or more reference planes, the pitches at which the microstrip antenna moves are different.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, in the case that the microstrip antenna moves in or near a reference plane, microwave transmitting beams of different angles converged by the microwave lens are located in or near a plane, thereby forming a beam scanning surface to measure a material on a cross section;

under the condition that the microstrip antenna moves in or near more than two reference planes, the microwave transmitting beams of the microstrip antenna positioned in or near each reference plane are converged into microwave transmitting beams positioned at different angles of one plane by the microwave lens, so that a plurality of beam scanning surfaces are formed, and the materials with a plurality of sections are measured.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the transmitting antenna transmits at least a vertical microwave transmitting beam, which is parallel to or passes through the axis of the microwave lens.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the transmitting antenna transmits a plurality of microwave transmitting beams during the movement, the angle difference between the plurality of microwave transmitting beams is equal or unequal, and is 0.5 to 1.5 times of the beam opening angle of the microwave transmitting beams.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the transceiving antenna unit repeatedly transmits a microwave transmission beam and receives a microwave reflection beam so as to perform real-time measurement on a material measuring point.

According to yet another aspect of the present disclosure, a material measurement system for measuring solid or liquid material includes:

the accommodating body is used for accommodating the solid material or the liquid material, and is provided with a feed port for feeding the material and a discharge port for discharging the material; and

the material measuring device is installed above the opening formed on the containing body, and the material measuring device measures the material at multiple angles through microwave transmitting beams with different angles.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the number of the material measuring devices is two or more, and the two or more material measuring devices are respectively disposed above the openings of the accommodating body at different positions.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, two or more material measuring devices are used to measure material on one cross section, or material on multiple cross sections.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near one reference plane parallel to and/or passing through an axis of the microwave lens, the plurality of microstrip antennas located in or near the one reference plane are arranged in a straight or curved shape or nearly a straight or curved shape,

wherein the reference plane passes through the projection point of the feed inlet on the material or passes through the vicinity of the projection point.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near two or more reference planes, which are respectively parallel to and/or pass through an axis of the microwave lens, the plurality of microstrip antennas respectively located in or near each of the two or more reference planes are respectively arranged in a straight line or a curved line shape or nearly a straight line or a curved line shape,

wherein the more than two reference planes pass through the projection point of the feed inlet on the material or pass through the vicinity of the projection point.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of microstrip antennas are circularly polarized microstrip antennas, and polarization directions of the transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna are opposite, so that a microwave reflected beam reflected again by the material after a microwave transmitted beam of the transmitting antenna is reflected by the wall surface of the accommodating body is not received by the receiving antenna.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the material measuring device further comprises a processing portion, and the processing portion obtains at least one of a shape, a volume, a mass and an average height of the material at least according to the material information measured by the material measuring device.

According to yet another aspect of the present disclosure, a material measurement system for measuring a vortex of a liquid or solid material, comprises:

a container for containing the liquid or solid material;

the stirrer is used for stirring the liquid or solid material; and

the material measuring device as described above, which is installed above an opening formed on the containing body, measures the vortex at a plurality of angles by emitting beams of microwaves at different angles.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, two or more of the material measuring devices are used to measure the vortex on one cross section, or to measure the vortex on a plurality of cross sections.

wherein said one reference plane passes through or near the agitator shaft of said agitator.

wherein the two or more reference planes pass through or near the agitator shaft of the agitator.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the distance that should be measured by the second microwave emission beam emitted vertically downward among the converged microwave emission beams is calculated based on the measured distance of the first microwave emission beam perpendicular to the angle of the vortex among the converged microwave emission beams.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, if the angle between the first microwave transmitting beam and the second microwave transmitting beam is set to θ, the distance measured by the first microwave transmitting beam is D1, and the distance to be measured by the second microwave transmitting beam is D2, then D2 is D1/cos θ.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, in case that the energy of the first microwave transmission beam is greater than the energy of the microwave transmission beams on the adjacent two sides, the first microwave transmission beam is regarded as being perpendicular to the angle of the vortex.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the number of the microstrip antennas is 10 or more.

According to yet another aspect of the present disclosure, a material measurement system for measuring a material includes:

a containing body for containing the material; and

the material measuring device as described above, which is installed above an opening formed on the containing body, measures the material at multiple angles by emitting beams of microwaves at different angles,

the plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near two or more reference planes which are respectively parallel to the axis of the microwave lens and/or pass through the axis, and the plurality of microstrip antennas respectively located in or near each of the two or more reference planes are respectively arranged in a straight line or a curved line shape or a shape close to the straight line or the curved line shape, so that when the plurality of microstrip antennas located in one reference plane are interfered by an interferent in the material measuring system, the interferent is excluded from interference by measuring the microstrip antennas located in other reference planes.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the number of microstrip antennas at the other reference plane is less than the number of microstrip antennas at the one reference plane.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the number of the reference planes is two, and the two reference planes are perpendicular to each other.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the interferent is a stirring fan for stirring the liquid, the microstrip antenna in the one reference plane is used for measuring a vortex formed when the liquid is stirred, and the microstrip antenna in the other reference plane is used for eliminating the interference of the interferent.

According to still another aspect of the present disclosure, a material measurement system for measuring material conveyed by a conveyor belt, includes:

a conveyor belt for conveying the material in a conveying direction;

the material measuring device is arranged above the conveyor belt and measures the material at multiple angles through microwave transmitting beams with different angles.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near one reference plane, the one reference plane is perpendicular or nearly perpendicular to the conveying direction, the plurality of microstrip antennas located in or near the one reference plane are arranged in a straight line or a curved line shape or nearly a straight line or a curved line shape, and the plurality of microstrip antennas are used for measuring the cross-sectional area of the material.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the transfer speed of the material is measured by the doppler effect of the microstrip antenna, so as to obtain the volume flow rate of the material according to the cross-sectional area and the transfer speed of the material.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of microstrip antennas are located on at least a first reference plane and a second reference plane respectively, the first reference plane is parallel or approximately parallel to the second reference plane and is perpendicular to the conveying direction, the conveying speed of the material is obtained through the cross-sectional areas of the material measured by the plurality of microstrip antennas of the first reference plane and the plurality of microstrip antennas of the second reference plane respectively, and the volume flow rate of the material is obtained according to the cross-sectional area and the conveying speed of the material.

According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, the plurality of microstrip antennas are located on at least a first reference plane and a second reference plane respectively, the first reference plane is perpendicular or nearly perpendicular to the second reference plane, and the first reference plane is perpendicular to the conveying direction, and the volume flow rate of the material is obtained through the cross-sectional area of the material measured by the plurality of microstrip antennas of the first reference plane and the conveying speed of the material measured by the plurality of microstrip antennas of the second reference plane.

Drawings

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the disclosure and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the disclosure and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the disclosure.

Fig. 1 is a schematic view of a material measurement device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of a distribution of transmitting antennas and receiving antennas according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of a distribution of transmitting antennas and receiving antennas according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of a distribution of transmitting antennas and receiving antennas according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of a distribution of transmitting antennas and receiving antennas according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram of a microwave lens according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram of a distribution of transmit-receive antenna units according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram of a microwave transceiving processing module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram of a microwave transceiving processing module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 10 is a schematic diagram of a microwave transceiving processing module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 11 is a schematic diagram of a microwave transceiving processing module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 12 is a schematic diagram of a microwave transceiving processing module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 13 is a schematic view of a material measurement device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 14 is a schematic view of a material measurement system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 15 is a schematic view of a material measurement system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 16 is a flow chart of a material measurement method according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 17 is a flow chart of a material measurement method according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 18 is a schematic view of a material measurement system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 19 is a schematic illustration of vortex measurement according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 20 is a schematic illustration of vortex measurement according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 21 is a schematic diagram of interferent rejection, according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 22 is a schematic illustration of conveyor belt material according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 23 is a schematic illustration of conveyor belt material according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

The present disclosure will be described in further detail with reference to the drawings and embodiments. It is to be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are for purposes of illustration only and are not to be construed as limitations of the present disclosure. It should be further noted that, for the convenience of description, only the portions relevant to the present disclosure are shown in the drawings.

It should be noted that the embodiments and features of the embodiments in the present disclosure may be combined with each other without conflict. Technical solutions of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings in conjunction with embodiments.

Unless otherwise indicated, the illustrated exemplary embodiments/examples are to be understood as providing exemplary features of various details of some ways in which the technical concepts of the present disclosure may be practiced. Accordingly, unless otherwise indicated, features of the various embodiments may be additionally combined, separated, interchanged, and/or rearranged without departing from the technical concept of the present disclosure.

The use of cross-hatching and/or shading in the drawings is generally used to clarify the boundaries between adjacent components. As such, unless otherwise noted, the presence or absence of cross-hatching or shading does not convey or indicate any preference or requirement for a particular material, material property, size, proportion, commonality between the illustrated components and/or any other characteristic, attribute, property, etc., of a component. Further, in the drawings, the size and relative sizes of components may be exaggerated for clarity and/or descriptive purposes. While example embodiments may be practiced differently, the specific process sequence may be performed in a different order than that described. For example, two processes described consecutively may be performed substantially simultaneously or in reverse order to that described. In addition, like reference numerals denote like parts.

When an element is referred to as being "on" or "on," "connected to" or "coupled to" another element, it can be directly on, connected or coupled to the other element or intervening elements may be present. However, when an element is referred to as being "directly on," "directly connected to" or "directly coupled to" another element, there are no intervening elements present. For purposes of this disclosure, the term "connected" may refer to physically, electrically, etc., and may or may not have intermediate components.

For descriptive purposes, the present disclosure may use spatially relative terms such as "below … …," below … …, "" below … …, "" below, "" above … …, "" above, "" … …, "" higher, "and" side (e.g., as in "side wall") to describe one component's relationship to another (other) component as illustrated in the figures. Spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use, operation, and/or manufacture in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as "below" or "beneath" other elements or features would then be oriented "above" the other elements or features. Thus, the exemplary term "below … …" can encompass both an orientation of "above" and "below". Further, the devices may be otherwise positioned (e.g., rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments and is not intended to be limiting. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Furthermore, when the terms "comprises" and/or "comprising" and variations thereof are used in this specification, the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components and/or groups thereof are stated but does not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components and/or groups thereof. It is also noted that, as used herein, the terms "substantially," "about," and other similar terms are used as approximate terms and not as degree terms, and as such, are used to interpret inherent deviations in measured values, calculated values, and/or provided values that would be recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art.

According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a material measurement device is provided.

FIG. 1 illustrates a material measurement device 10 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in fig. 1, the material measuring apparatus 10 may include a microstrip antenna 100 and a microwave lens 200. The microwave antenna also comprises a shell, and the shell and the microwave lens form a closed space for accommodating the microstrip antenna.

The number of the microstrip antennas 100 is plural, for example, the number of the microstrip antennas may be 5 or more, 10 or more, and the like, thereby forming a plurality of transceiving antenna units.

Each transmit-receive antenna unit includes a transmit antenna 110 and a receive antenna 120.

Fig. 2 to 5 show examples of a transmitting antenna and a receiving antenna.

In fig. 2, the transmitting antenna 110 and the receiving antenna 120 of each transceiving antenna unit share one microstrip antenna 100. In this example, the transmission and reception may be combined into one path by a coupler, so that

n transmission antennas

110a, 110b, … …, 110n and

n reception antennas

120a, 120b, … …, 120n may be configured by n microstrip antennas.

In fig. 3, one microstrip antenna 100 is used for each transmitting antenna and each receiving antenna, and the adjacent transmitting antenna and receiving antenna form a transceiving antenna unit, for example, the transmitting antenna 110a and the receiving antenna 120a form a transceiving antenna unit, the transmitting antenna 110b and the receiving antenna 120b form a transceiving antenna unit, … …, and the transmitting antenna 110n and the receiving antenna 120n form a transceiving unit. The transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna in one transceiving antenna unit are two adjacent microstrip antennas.

In fig. 4, one microstrip antenna 100 is used for each transmitting antenna and each receiving antenna, and two adjacent transmitting antennas and two adjacent receiving antennas constitute one transceiving antenna unit. For example, the transmitting antenna 110a and the adjacent receiving antenna 120a form a transmitting and receiving antenna unit, the receiving antenna 120a also forms a transmitting and receiving antenna unit with the adjacent transmitting antenna 110b, and the transmitting antenna 110b and the receiving antenna 120b form a transmitting and receiving antenna unit, … …. Thus, the transceiving antenna elements of different beams may share a transmit antenna or a receive antenna, and one transmit antenna or receive antenna may be in the transceiving antenna elements of two or more beams.

In this manner, the transmitting antennas and the receiving antennas are in an alternating form. For example, in the case where four transmission antennas and three reception antennas are alternately arranged, six transceiving antenna units may be configured and six beams may be processed. When the number of the transmission antennas is n and the number of the reception antennas is n +1, 2n beams may be implemented, and when the number of the transmission antennas is n +1 and the number of the reception antennas is n, 2n beams may also be implemented.

In fig. 5, one microstrip antenna 100 is used for each transmitting antenna and each receiving antenna, and the microstrip antennas 100 are close to each other, so that the transmitting antennas and the receiving antennas can be combined two by two, and the number of processing beams is the number of transmitting antennas multiplied by the number of receiving antennas.

The transmitting antenna 110 is used to generate and direct a microwave transmission beam towards the microwave lens 200. The receiving antenna 120 is configured to receive a microwave reflected beam generated after the microwave transmitting beam is reflected, and measure the material based on the microwave transmitting beam and the microwave reflected beam.

The microstrip antennas 100 are all located on the same side of the microwave lens 200, such as the upper side of the microwave lens 200 shown in fig. 1.

The transmitting antenna 110 transmits diverging microwave beams toward the microwave lens 200, which are converged by the microwave lens 200 to form each microwave beam in parallel or nearly parallel at the other side of the microwave lens 200. The angles of the plurality of microwave transmitting beams formed at the other side of the microwave lens 200 are different from each other.

When the microwave radiation beam converged by the microwave lens 200 reaches the material 300, it will be reflected by the material 300 to form a primary reflected microwave radiation beam, each microwave radiation beam is incident into the microwave lens 200 and converged by the microwave lens 200 to be received by the receiving antenna located at one side of the microwave lens 200.

At least one of the plurality of microwave transmit beams emitted by the plurality of transmit antennas is a vertical microwave transmit beam that is parallel to or passes through the axis of the microwave lens.

When the material in the shape of the inclined plane is measured, the material information required to be measured by the vertical microwave transmitting beams is determined according to other one or more non-vertical microwave transmitting beams besides the vertical microwave transmitting beams.

The material information to be measured by the vertical microwave transmit beam is determined based on the angular difference between the non-vertical microwave transmit beam and the vertical microwave transmit beam.

The angle difference between the microwave transmitting beams transmitted by the plurality of transmitting antennas is equal or unequal and is 0.5-1.5 times of the beam opening angle of the microwave transmitting beams.

The microwave lens 200 is provided to be penetrated by microwaves and may change the direction of the microwaves.

The microwave lens 200 may be made of ceramic or plastic, and the dielectric constant thereof may be uniform or non-uniform. In the present disclosure, the microwave lens 200 may have a dielectric constant greater than 1, may be penetrated by microwaves, and may be made of a material having a small loss, such as ceramic or plastic.

Fig. 6 illustrates several forms of the microwave lens 200, and the form illustrated in fig. 6 is merely an example, and the present disclosure is not limited to the form illustrated in fig. 6. For example, the microwave lens 200 may have a convex lens structure with a thick middle and a thin outer side, the microwave lens 200 may have a concave lens structure with a thick outer side and a thin middle, the microwave lens 200 may have a structure with one surface being a curved surface and the other surface being a flat surface, and the microwave lens 200 may have a structure with both surfaces being curved surfaces. The curved surface can be a spherical surface or an elliptic spherical surface, and can also be a form of combining a plurality of curved surfaces. The microwave lens 200 may be in the form of a solid lens or a hollow lens.

In addition, the microwave lens 200 may include one microwave lens, or may be a combination of two or more microwave lenses. The purpose of a microwave lens and a microwave lens combination is to converge the microwave transmitting beam and the microwave reflecting beam.

In a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, a plurality of microstrip antennas 100 are disposed on the focal plane of the microwave lens 200.

When a microwave beam is emitted at one side of the microwave lens 200 at one microstrip antenna 100, a converged microwave beam may be formed at the other side of the microwave lens 200 by the microwave lens 200.

For example, as shown in fig. 1, the left and right microstrip antennas 100 may form a converged microwave beam through the microwave lens 200, and the middle microstrip antenna 100 may also form a converged microwave beam through the microwave lens 200.

Ideally each of the converging microwave beams is a parallel beam, but in practice there may be a spread of small angle, preferably less than 15 °.

The microwave beams emitted from the microstrip antenna 100 at the corresponding positions of the microwave lenses 200 can be converged by the microwave lenses 200, the position of each microwave lens 200 can be referred to as the focal point of the microwave lens, and the plane formed by the focal points can be referred to as the focal plane of the microwave lens.

In addition, the microwave lens 200 may be disposed such that the focal plane of the microwave lens is a plane or a curved surface. By disposing the microstrip antenna 100 on the focal plane of the microwave lens 200, the energy of the microwave reflected beam received by the receiving antenna can be maximized.

Preferably, the transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna, which are one transceiving antenna unit, are located at or near one focal point of the microwave lens 200. Each transceiver antenna element thus arranged at the focus of the microwave lens 200 can cooperate to process a transmit beam and a reflected beam, which are opposite and parallel, close or coincident.

As described above, the focal plane of the microwave lens 200 may have a planar shape or a curved shape.

When the focal plane of the microwave lens 200 is a planar shape, the plurality of microstrip antennas 100 may be disposed in or near a reference plane perpendicular to the cross section (plane perpendicular to the optical axis) of the microwave lens 200. Such that the plurality of microstrip antennas 100 will be in a straight line or substantially in a straight line. Wherein the reference plane is preferably parallel to or passes through the axis of the microwave lens 200 (which axis lies in the reference plane).

When the focal plane of the microwave lens 200 is a curved surface shape, the plurality of microstrip antennas 100 may be disposed in or near a reference plane perpendicular to the cross section (a plane perpendicular to the optical axis) of the microwave lens 200. Such that the plurality of microstrip antennas 100 will lie on a curve or substantially on a curve. Wherein the reference plane is preferably parallel to or passes through the axis of the microwave lens 200 (which axis lies in the reference plane).

While the microstrip antenna 100 is described above as being arranged in or substantially in a straight line/curve, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the plurality of microstrip antennas 100 may also be arranged in more than two straight lines/curves or substantially straight lines/curves.

At this time, the plurality of microstrip antennas 100 may be disposed in or near two or more reference planes perpendicular to the cross section (plane perpendicular to the optical axis) of the microwave lens 200 such that the plurality of microstrip antennas 100 are arranged in two or more linear shapes when the focal plane of the microwave lens 200 is a planar shape and the plurality of microstrip antennas 100 are arranged in two or more curved shapes when the focal plane of the microwave lens 200 is a curved shape. Preferably, each of the two or more reference planes passes through the axis of the microwave lens 200, and more preferably, angles between adjacent ones of the two or more reference planes are equal to each other. For example, when two straight lines/curved lines are formed, reference planes on which the two straight lines/curved lines are located are perpendicular to each other, and when four straight lines/curved lines are formed, angles between adjacent reference planes among four reference planes on which the four straight lines/curved lines are located are 45 °, respectively.

In the case where a plurality of microstrip antennas 100 are located in or near two or more reference planes, the number of microstrip antennas 100 located in or near the respective reference planes may be the same or different, that is, the number of microstrip antennas located in different straight lines/curved lines may be different. In a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, a central transceiver antenna unit is provided on or near the axis of the lens.

In the case where a plurality of microstrip antennas 100 are located in or near a reference plane, microwave transmission beams of different angles converged by the microwave lens 200 are located in or near a plane, thereby forming a beam scanning plane to measure a section of the material.

When the plurality of microstrip antennas 100 are located on a straight line/curve, microwave transmitting beams transmitted by the microstrip antennas 100 form converged microwave transmitting beams at different angles after being converged by the microwave lens 200, so that the converged microwave transmitting beams at different angles can form a microwave beam surface, the surface forms a measuring tangent plane, when the beam surface is in contact with the surface of a material, the microwave transmitting beams are reflected by the surface of the material, and distance information of a plurality of measuring points on the surface of the material is obtained by receiving microwave reflection signals received by the antennas, so that a section structure of the material can be obtained.

In the case where the plurality of microstrip antennas 100 are located in or near two or more reference planes, the microwave transmission beams of the microstrip antennas 100 located in or near each reference plane are converged into microwave transmission beams respectively located at different angles of one plane by the microwave lens 200, thereby forming a plurality of beam scanning planes to measure a plurality of sections of the material.

That is, the microstrip antennas 100 are disposed on two or more straight lines/curved lines, and the microstrip antennas 100 on each straight line/curved line respectively form a microwave beam plane, so that two or more measurement tangent planes are formed by the formed two or more microwave beam planes, and when the two or more beam planes can measure the three-dimensional surface information of the object. Preferably, the two or more microwave beam planes may intersect with each other, so that a plurality of different-angle cross-sectional structures of the material can be obtained to obtain three-dimensional surface information of the material.

In fig. 7, the arrangement shape of the microstrip antennas is shown in the case where the microwave lens is circular in cross section, where the microstrip antennas may be arranged in a straight line/curve, two microstrip antennas may be arranged in a straight line/curve that perpendicularly crosses, and four microstrip antennas may be arranged in a similar circular ring shape (when the focal plane is in a curved shape, different circular rings may be at different heights).

The microstrip antenna in the present disclosure may be an antenna formed on a Printed Circuit Board (PCB). The plurality of microstrip antennas may or may not be formed on one printed circuit board. Preferably, a plurality of transceiving antenna elements of the same microwave transceiving processing module described below are disposed on one printed circuit board.

The shape of the printed circuit board may be set according to the arrangement shape of the microstrip antenna, and may be, for example, a straight shape (when the focal plane is a plane) or a curved shape (when the focal plane is a curved plane). Each of the transceiving antenna units may be disposed on one printed circuit board, and a plurality of transceiving antenna units may be disposed on one printed circuit board. The printed circuit boards separated from each other may be angled so as to form a curved shape (focal plane is a curved plane).

The plurality of microstrip antennas are disposed on one printed circuit board and angles of the plurality of microstrip antennas are different, or the plurality of microstrip antennas are disposed on a plurality of printed circuit boards and angles of the plurality of printed circuit boards are different so that the angles of the plurality of microstrip antennas are different. The printed circuit board is perpendicular or nearly perpendicular to the microwave transmission beam emitted by the microstrip antenna disposed on the printed circuit board.

The printed circuit board can be rotated or moved so as to change the emission angle or the emission position of the microwave emission beam emitted by the microstrip antenna of the printed circuit board. The rotation or movement of the printed circuit board is periodic. The scanning surface for measuring the profile of the material is formed by the rotation or movement of the printed circuit board.

According to a further embodiment of the present disclosure, the material measuring apparatus 10 further includes a microwave transceiving processing module, and the microwave transceiving processing module obtains a time difference between the transmitting time when the transmitting antenna transmits the microwave transmitting beam and the receiving time when the receiving antenna receives the microwave reflecting beam based on the time-of-flight principle, so as to obtain the information of the material measuring point.

The frequency of the microwave transmission beam emitted by the transmitting antenna is a continuously adjusted frequency. The frequency difference between the frequency of the microwave transmitting beam transmitted by the transmitting antenna and the frequency of the microwave reflecting beam received by the receiving antenna is obtained by comparing the frequency of the microwave transmitting beam transmitted by the transmitting antenna and the frequency of the microwave reflecting beam received by the receiving antenna at a certain moment, so that the information of the material measuring point is obtained.

As shown in fig. 8, the microwave transceiving processing module 130 can be used at least for providing a transmitting signal for controlling the transmitting antenna and receiving a receiving signal from the receiving antenna. For example, in the case where the transmitting antenna 110 is independent from the receiving antenna 120, the microwave transceiving processing module 130 provides a transmitting signal to the transmitting antenna 110 and receives a receiving signal from the receiving antenna 120. When the transceiving antenna units share one microwave antenna, a form of a microwave antenna + a microwave coupler may be adopted, the microwave coupler may mix a receiving signal and a transmitting signal together, the microwave transceiving processing module 130 provides the transmitting signal to the microwave coupler, the microwave antenna transmits a microwave beam as the transmitting antenna, and when receiving the signal, the microwave antenna receives the microwave beam as the receiving antenna and provides the receiving signal to the microwave transceiving processing module 130 through the microwave coupler.

In the preferred embodiment of the present disclosure, the microwave transceiving module is a multi-transceiving module, that is, one module includes a plurality of transmitting paths and a plurality of receiving paths. As shown in fig. 9, the receiving path and the transmitting path are not disposed on the same side of the microwave transceiving module, so that the isolation between the receiving and transmitting of the microwave transceiving module can be increased.

As an example of the present disclosure, fig. 10 shows a case where the transmission antenna and the reception antenna are separate antennas and the transmission antenna and the reception antenna correspond one-to-one. Here, the microwave transceiving processing module may be located on the same side of the printed circuit board as the transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna, and provide the transmitting antenna with the transmitting signal through the transmitting path and the receiving path on different sides and receive the receiving signal from the receiving antenna through the microwave transceiving processing module.

In fig. 10, a pair of transceiving channels corresponds to a fixed transceiving antenna unit. In fig. 11 is shown a case where one transmitting antenna and/or receiving antenna may be in two transceiving antenna elements. The transmitting antennas and the receiving antennas are alternately arranged. The detailed description of the antenna can be seen in relation to fig. 4. The microwave transceiving processing module controls the combination relationship of the transmitting path and the receiving path, so that beam multiplication can be realized. By combining more beams, finer beam angles can be formed, which can be more accurate for material measurements.

Fig. 12 shows that a plurality of transceiving antenna units are located in a multi-transmission and multi-reception microwave transceiving processing module, when a plurality of transmitting antennas and a plurality of receiving antennas are close to each other, the transmitting antennas and the receiving antennas can be combined with each other, and through the control of the microwave transceiving processing module, beams of the number of the transmitting antennas multiplied by the number of the receiving antennas can be obtained. Of course, the closer the transmitting antenna is to the receiving antenna, the better the beam performance, and the farther the distance is, the worse the beam performance.

Further, in the case where a plurality of transmitting antennas and a plurality of receiving antennas are combined to constitute a transmitting and receiving antenna unit so as to handle more beams. In fig. 13, the transmitting antenna 110a is used to transmit a microwave beam, and the microwave transmission beam transmitted according to the transmitting antenna 110a may be received by the receiving antenna 120a, but a reflected microwave beam generated according to the microwave transmission beam of the transmitting antenna 110a may be received by the receiving antenna 120b in a common area (shown in hatched lines in fig. 13) of the microwave beam of the receiving antenna 120b corresponding to the transmitting antenna 110a, since the microwave transmission beam and the reflected microwave beam have a spread angle as described above.

When the transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna are respective microstrip antennas, the transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna may employ circularly polarized antennas, and the polarization directions of the transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna are opposite. For example, when the transmitting antenna is polarized in the right-hand direction, the receiving antenna is polarized in the left-hand direction, and when the transmitting antenna is polarized in the left-hand direction, the receiving antenna is polarized in the right-hand direction. Because the material measuring device forms a plurality of microwave beams, a measuring surface is formed, so that the microwave transmitting beam transmitted by the material measuring device can directly reach the wall surface of the bin body, and the microwave beam reaching the wall surface of the bin body is a false signal after being received by the receiving antenna. If these spurious signals are adulterated, the shape of the material measured will be a spurious shape.

Thus, in the present disclosure, the transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna may be circularly polarized antennas with opposite polarization directions, and the polarization direction of the microwave beam of the circularly polarized antenna changes after each reflection. For example, when the transmitting antenna is polarized in the right-hand direction, the microwave beam emitted from the transmitting antenna (the leftmost beam in fig. 14) is in the right-hand direction, and when the transmitting antenna touches the wall surface of the silo, the microwave beam reflected from the wall surface of the silo to the surface of the material becomes in the left-hand direction, and when the receiving antenna is reflected from the surface of the material, the microwave beam becomes in the right-hand direction, but since the receiving antenna is polarized in the left-hand direction, the receiving antenna polarized in the left-hand direction cannot receive the microwave beam in the right-hand direction. Thereby avoiding the reflection generated by the bin body.

Compared with the prior art, the antenna has the advantages that the gain can not be reduced on the basis of increasing the antenna, and the antenna also has the characteristics of small size, low cost and the like. When the microstrip antenna is used for measuring materials, a large number of high-gain microstrip antennas can be adopted, so that more accurate material measurement is realized.

According to a second embodiment of the present disclosure, a material measurement system is provided.

The material measuring system comprises the material measuring device 10, a processing unit and a central control unit, and also comprises a power supply unit, a communication unit and a display unit.

As shown in fig. 15, one microwave transceiving processing unit may correspond to one or more transceiving antenna units, and although 3 are shown in the drawing, it is not limited thereto. The material measuring system can comprise a plurality of microwave transceiving processing units.

The microwave transceiving processing module can be a local oscillator or a collection of devices such as a VCO, a mixer, a power amplifier, a low noise amplifier and the like. The device can provide frequency mixing and amplification of a signal source for microwave transmission and a microwave receiving signal to obtain an echo simulation signal of material surface reflection information.

The local oscillator can divide the local oscillator signal into one path to generate a reflection signal of the transceiving antenna unit, and divide the other path to provide the reflection signal to the mixer, and the mixer further receives the reflection signal and mixes the reflection signal to form a mixing signal for determining the distance of the material level. The amplifier is used for amplifying the mixing signal.

The processing unit can be in a form of a digital calculation module, and can perform AD sampling on the mixing signals, perform FFT (fast Fourier transform) and other operations on the sampled digital signals to obtain frequency spectrum information, and calculate and obtain distance information of a contact point between a transmitting beam and a material surface through frequency spectrum analysis.

The plurality of transceiving antenna units can work simultaneously or only one transceiving antenna unit can work at one time, so that the distance between multiple points can be measured simultaneously or the distance between only one point can be measured simultaneously.

One processing unit may correspond to one microwave transceiving processing unit, or may correspond to a plurality of microwave transceiving processing units. That is, one processing unit may calculate the distance of one point, or may calculate the distance of a plurality of points.

And obtaining the time difference between the transmitting time of the transmitting antenna for transmitting the microwave transmitting beam and the receiving time of the receiving antenna for receiving the microwave reflecting beam based on the time flight principle so as to obtain the information of the material measuring point.

The device also comprises an arithmetic unit or a processing unit as an arithmetic unit, and the arithmetic unit obtains the information of the material measuring point according to the time difference.

The frequency of the microwave transmitting beam transmitted by the transmitting antenna is continuously adjusted, and the frequency difference between the frequency of the microwave transmitting beam transmitted by the transmitting antenna and the frequency of the microwave reflecting beam received by the receiving antenna is obtained by comparing the frequency of the microwave transmitting beam transmitted by the transmitting antenna at a certain moment and the frequency of the microwave reflecting beam received by the receiving antenna, so that the information of the material measuring point is obtained. And the arithmetic unit obtains the information of the material measuring point according to the frequency difference.

The central control unit is responsible for controlling each processing unit and the microwave processing module to work, collecting distance calculation results of the processing units, and calculating information such as the shape, the average height and the total volume of the material according to preset bin body information, installation position information of the material measuring device, position information of a material inlet and outlet and angle information of a wave beam corresponding to each transmitting and receiving antenna.

The power supply unit is responsible for providing various voltages for the material measuring system. The communication unit outputs the information of the central control unit and inputs the external setting information. Wherein the communication unit can communicate in a wired mode or in a wireless mode. And the display unit updates the displayed information of the material in real time according to the information of each microwave reflection beam.

According to a further embodiment, the material measuring system further comprises a purging part, wherein the purging part is arranged below the microwave lens, and the microwave lens can be kept clean through compressed air and the like so as to avoid interference of dust and the like.

According to a further embodiment, the material measuring system further comprises an angle measuring part for measuring the tilt angle of the material measuring device in order to derive the actual angle of the microwave transmitting beam and/or the microwave reflecting beam based on the measured tilt angle.

The material measuring device can also be mounted obliquely in order to obtain the best microwave reflection signal. The material measuring device may have an inclination angle, and the inclination angle is measured by a sensor. The tilt angle may also be entered by the customer. After the measured or entered tilt angle, the angle information of all beams can be updated using the angle information to obtain the current actual angle information of all beams. The sensor in which the tilt angle is measured may be a gyroscope or an inclinometer.

The material measuring device further comprises a storage part for storing the information of the plurality of microwave reflection beams.

In the above-described embodiments or examples, the position of the microstrip antenna is fixed. In the present disclosure, however, the microstrip antenna may be moved, and in this case, the number of the microstrip antenna may be one or more.

The following description will be given by taking one example. In this example, the scan plane may be constructed by a moving microstrip antenna. For example, the moving microstrip antenna may move along a guide rail or the like. The measurement is achieved by transmitting and receiving beams at different positions of the focal plane, for example.

Other descriptions of the mobile microstrip antenna are the same as the above embodiments, and are not repeated here.

In the present disclosure, a material measurement method is also provided.

As shown in fig. 16, first, each transceiver antenna unit of the material measuring device is controlled to emit a microwave beam, and microwave reflection signals at a plurality of angles are obtained, each distance value from the material is calculated according to the microwave reflection signals, the shape of the material is obtained according to preset information (such as the shape of the accommodating body, the angle between the microwave beams, the inclination angle of the material measuring device, and the like) and each distance value, and then information such as the volume, the average height, the mass, and the like of the material is obtained according to the shape of the material. And finally providing the obtained information to the display device.

Fig. 16 is a measurement method in the case where all microstrip antennas transmit and receive simultaneously. Fig. 17 shows the measurement method in the case of microstrip antenna transmission and reception, respectively.

As shown in fig. 17, a transmitting antenna in one transceiving antenna unit transmits a microwave beam, then obtains a microwave reflection signal of an angle of the transceiving antenna unit, calculates a distance from a material surface to the transmitting antenna according to the microwave reflection signal, and then determines whether the transmitting antenna unit is the last transceiving antenna unit. If not, the microwave beam continues to be transmitted. If so, obtaining distance values of all angles, obtaining the shape of the material according to preset information (such as the shape of the accommodating body, the angle between microwave beams, the inclination angle of the material measuring device and the like) and all the distance values, and then obtaining information such as the volume, the average height, the mass and the like of the material according to the shape of the material. And finally providing the obtained information to the display device.

According to a third embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided a material measuring system for measuring solid or liquid material, comprising: the container (bin body) is used for containing solid materials or liquid materials and is provided with a feed port for feeding the materials and a discharge port for discharging the materials; and the material measuring device is arranged above the opening formed on the containing body, and the material measuring device measures the material at multiple angles through microwave transmitting beams with different angles.

In some large-sized containers or containers with a plurality of feed inlets/discharge outlets, more than two material measuring devices may be provided, and the more than two material measuring devices are respectively provided above the openings at different positions of the container. Two material measuring devices are shown in fig. 18.

More than two material measuring devices are used for measuring material on a cross section, i.e. the microwave beams of more than two material measuring devices form a measuring section, each occupying at least a part of the measuring section. This allows to obtain a complete profile of the material.

For example, when it is desired to measure the three-dimensional shape of a material, more than two material measuring devices may form intersecting measuring facets, for example, in the case of two material measuring devices, a 90 ° intersection may be provided, and in the case of four, the angle between adjacent measuring facets is 45 °. The angles between adjacent measurement sections may be equal.

As mentioned above, the microstrip antennas of a material measuring device are located in or near a reference plane, one reference plane being parallel to and/or passing through the axis of the microwave lens, the microstrip antennas located in or near the one reference plane being arranged in a straight or curved shape or close to a straight or curved shape. In the present disclosure, preferably, a reference plane passes through a projected point of the feed port on the material or is located near the projected point.

As described above, the plurality of microstrip antennas of one material measuring device are located in or near two or more reference planes, which are respectively parallel to and/or pass through the axis of the microwave lens, and the plurality of microstrip antennas respectively located in or near each of the two or more reference planes are respectively arranged in a straight line or a curved line shape or a nearly straight line or a curved line shape, and in the present disclosure, preferably, the two or more reference planes pass through or are located near the projected point of the feed port on the material.

The plurality of microstrip antennas are circularly polarized microstrip antennas, and the polarization directions of the transmitting antenna and the receiving antenna are opposite, so that microwave reflected beams reflected by the material again cannot be received by the receiving antenna after the microwave transmitted beams of the transmitting antenna are reflected by the wall surface of the accommodating body.

The material measuring system may further include a processing unit, a central control unit, a power supply unit, a communication unit, and a display unit, where at least one of the shape, the volume, the mass, and the average height of the material is obtained according to material information measured by the material measuring device.

According to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided a material measuring system for measuring a vortex of a liquid or solid material, comprising a container for containing the liquid or solid material; the stirrer is used for stirring the liquid or solid material; and a material measuring device as described above, the material measuring device being installed above the opening formed on the containing body, the material measuring device measuring the vortex at a plurality of angles by emitting beams of microwaves at different angles.

As described in the third embodiment, in this embodiment, the number of the material measuring devices may be two or more, and the two or more material measuring devices are respectively disposed above the openings of the accommodating body at different positions. More than two material measuring devices are used for measuring the vortex on one cross section or measuring the vortex on a plurality of cross sections.

The plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near a reference plane, one reference plane being parallel to and/or passing through the axis of the microwave lens, the plurality of microstrip antennas located in or near a reference plane being arranged in a straight or curved shape or nearly a straight or curved shape, one reference plane passing through or near the agitator shaft of the agitator.

The plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near two or more reference planes, the two or more reference planes being respectively parallel to and/or passing through the axis of the microwave lens, the plurality of microstrip antennas respectively located in or near each of the two or more reference planes being respectively arranged in a straight line or curved line shape or near a straight line or curved line shape, wherein the two or more reference planes pass through or near the agitator shaft of the agitator.

And calculating the distance to be measured by a second microwave transmitting beam vertically transmitted downwards in the converged microwave transmitting beams based on the measured distance of a first microwave transmitting beam vertical to the vortex angle in the converged microwave transmitting beams.

Setting the angle between the first microwave transmitting beam and the second microwave transmitting beam to be theta, the distance measured by the first microwave transmitting beam to be D1, and the distance measured by the second microwave transmitting beam to be D2, then D2 is D1/cos theta.

In the case where the energy of the first microwave transmit beam is greater than the energy of the microwave transmit beams on adjacent sides, the first microwave transmit beam is considered to be perpendicular to the angle of the vortex.

A schematic diagram of the reflected beam energy at the location where each transmitted beam contacts the liquid surface is shown in fig. 19. It can be seen that in the case where the stirrer is stirring to form a vortex, the reflected signal of the beam d emitted vertically downward is weak during stirring, and further decreases with the intensity of stirring.

If the reflected beams of the reflected beams have signals, the distance of each measuring point can be calculated according to the signals, and then the shape of the vortex can be obtained according to the distances of the measuring points of the angles.

However, in the case of liquid materials, as the degree of agitation becomes severe or the interior becomes saturated with steam, the emitted signal will be greatly reduced, even if only one or two emitted beams perpendicular or nearly perpendicular to the liquid surface will have a reflected signal. It is difficult to measure the vortex by the conventional distance calculation method. Also in the case of measuring solid materials, no reflected signal can be measured if the dust is large.

The traditional multi-beam can only reach 3-4 at most, and generally can not realize straight line distribution, so that the situation that the beam is relatively close to being vertical to the surface of the material is difficult to ensure.

To address this, the multi-beam measuring apparatus according to the present disclosure may form more beams, for example, may form more than 10 beams, and the like, and the formed beams may be arranged at an angle of-50 degrees, -40 degrees, -30 degrees, -20 degrees, -10 degrees, 0 degrees, 10 degrees, 20 degrees, 30 degrees, 40 degrees, 50 degrees with respect to the vertical direction, as an example.

Because there are more beams, the vortex shape can be measured as shown in fig. 20.

The maximum point of the change of the reflected signal is found firstly, namely the energy of the beam is greater than that of the beams on two sides. For example, if beam b has energy greater than beam a and greater than beam c, then the angle of beam b is considered to be approximately perpendicular to the vortex plane. The distance D1 of the echo of the beam b is calculated from the return time of the reflected beam (the method of calculating the time may be that of a pulsed radar or that of a frequency modulated continuous wave radar). The angle of the wave beam b is close to and perpendicular to the vortex surface, so that the angle of the wave beam b is the angle of the vortex, and the shape of the vortex can be obtained according to the angle of the vortex and axial symmetry of the vortex, wherein the angle of the vortex is < b and D1. The distance D2 between the receiving and transmitting antenna unit vertically or nearly vertically downwards transmitted by the level measuring device and the vortex is D1/cos ([ minus ] b). So that the beam dependent distance value for the weakest reflected signal is calculated.

Under the condition that the radius of the bin body is known to be R, and the distance between the installation position of the material measuring device and the central axis is known to be k, the average liquid level and the shape of the material can be calculated.

In the case of solid materials, the same manner is used for the above description by taking liquid as an example, and the description thereof is omitted.

According to a fifth embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provided a material measuring system for measuring a material, comprising: the accommodating body is used for accommodating materials; and the material measuring device is installed above the opening formed on the accommodating body, and the material measuring device measures the material in multiple angles through microwave transmitting beams with different angles, wherein a plurality of microstrip antennas are positioned in or near two or more reference planes which are respectively parallel to the axis of the microwave lens and/or pass through the axis, and the microstrip antennas positioned in or near each of the two or more reference planes are respectively arranged in a straight line or a curved line or a nearly straight line or a curved line, so that when the microstrip antennas positioned in one reference plane are interfered by the interferents in the material measuring system, the interferents are measured through the microstrip antennas positioned in other reference planes to eliminate the interference of the interferents.

In this embodiment, the number of microstrip antennas at the other reference plane may be less than the number of microstrip antennas at the one reference plane.

The number of reference planes may be two, and the two reference planes are perpendicular to each other.

The interferent is a stirring fan blade for stirring liquid, the microstrip antenna in one reference plane is used for measuring the vortex formed when the liquid is stirred, and the microstrip antenna in the other reference plane is used for eliminating the interference of the interferent.

FIG. 21 shows a schematic of a material measurement system. As shown in fig. 21, the microstrip antenna is provided in two straight lines/curved lines, and the two straight lines/curved lines intersect each other, and may be, for example, at 90 °. If there are only a plurality of microstrip antennas in a line/curve, the stirring fan will completely shield all the microstrip antennas, which will cause the material measuring system to completely fail. Thus, in fig. 21, another line/curve of microstrip antennas (which may be disposed radially along the cartridge body) is provided that intersects the line/curve of microstrip antennas at an angle such that the other line/curve of microstrip antennas can be used for additional measurements in the event that the line/curve of microstrip antennas is obstructed.

It is preferable in the present disclosure that the number of the plurality of microstrip antennas in one straight line/curved line may be less than the number of the plurality of microstrip antennas in one straight line/curved line.

According to a sixth embodiment of the present disclosure, as shown in fig. 22, there is also provided a material measuring system for measuring a material conveyed by a conveyor belt, including: a conveyor belt for conveying material in a conveying direction; the material measuring device is arranged above the conveyor belt and measures the materials at multiple angles through microwave transmitting beams with different angles. In addition, the presence or absence of the material on the conveyor belt and the amount of the material conveyed can be measured.

The plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near a reference plane, the reference plane is perpendicular or nearly perpendicular to the conveying direction, the plurality of microstrip antennas located in or near the reference plane are arranged in a straight line or a curved line shape or nearly a straight line or a curved line shape, and the plurality of microstrip antennas are used for measuring the cross-sectional area of the material.

The transfer speed of the material is measured by the Doppler effect of the microstrip antenna, so that the volume flow of the material is obtained according to the cross-sectional area and the transfer speed of the material.

The multiple microstrip antennas are at least respectively located on a first reference plane and a second reference plane, the first reference plane is parallel or approximately parallel to the second reference plane and is perpendicular to the conveying direction, the conveying speed of the material is obtained through the cross-sectional areas of the material respectively measured by the multiple microstrip antennas of the first reference plane and the multiple microstrip antennas of the second reference plane, and the volume flow of the material is obtained according to the cross-sectional areas of the material and the conveying speed.

The plurality of microstrip antennas are at least respectively positioned on a first reference plane and a second reference plane, the first reference plane is perpendicular to or approximately perpendicular to the second reference plane, the first reference plane is perpendicular to the conveying direction, and the volume flow of the material is obtained through the cross-sectional area of the material measured by the plurality of microstrip antennas of the first reference plane and the conveying speed of the material measured by the plurality of microstrip antennas of the second reference plane.

When the volume flow or the mass flow of the material conveyed by the conveyor belt needs to be measured, the volume flow or the mass flow can be obtained according to the known sectional shape and conveying speed of the conveyed material.

The measurement can be performed in two ways as shown in fig. 23.

In the left diagram of fig. 23, the measurement is performed by two vertically distributed transmitting and receiving antenna elements.

The first measurement point shown in the left diagram of fig. 23 is a measurement point at which the material is measured by the plurality of transceiver antenna units in the first straight line (which may be perpendicular to the conveying direction), and the cross-sectional shape of the material conveyed by the conveyor belt is measured by the plurality of transceiver antenna units in the first straight line.

The second measurement point shown in the left diagram of fig. 23 is a measurement point where the material is measured by the plurality of transceiver antenna units in the second straight line (which may be parallel to the conveying direction), and the conveying speed of the material conveyed by the conveyor belt is measured by the plurality of transceiver antenna units in the second straight line. The plurality of transmitting and receiving antenna units of the second straight line obtain the transmission speed according to the change of the material form. For example, the conveyance speed can be calculated from the time relationship of the change in height of each measurement point and the distance value of each measurement point. The shape of the material can be confirmed based on the microwave beam, so that the position of the material and the position of the material at the time T2 can be confirmed at the time T1, and the difference between the two measuring point positions is D, so that the material speed is D/(T2-T1).

The cross-sectional area S of the material on the conveyor belt can be known from the scanning surface of the first straight line, and the volume flow rate of the material is equal to S × D/(T2-T1). Knowing the density of the material, the mass flow of the material can be obtained.

In the right diagram of fig. 23, the measurement is performed by two transmitting and receiving antenna elements distributed in parallel.

The first measurement point shown in the right diagram of fig. 23 is a measurement point at which the material is measured by the plurality of transceiver antenna units in the first straight line (which may be perpendicular to the conveying direction), and the cross-sectional shape of the material conveyed by the conveyor belt is measured by the plurality of transceiver antenna units in the first straight line.

The second measurement point shown in the right diagram of fig. 23 is a measurement point where the material is measured by the plurality of transceiver antenna units in the second straight line (which may be perpendicular to the conveying direction), and the cross-sectional shape of the material conveyed by the conveyor belt is measured by the plurality of transceiver antenna units in the second straight line.

By measuring the shape of the first measuring point and the shape of the second measuring point, it is possible to confirm the position of the material at time T1 and the position of the material at time T2, for example, by comparing the shapes, and if the difference between the positions of the two measuring points is D, the material velocity is D/(T2-T1).

By knowing the cross-sectional area S of the belt material, the volumetric flow rate of the material is equal to S × D/(T2-T1). Knowing the density of the material, the mass flow of the material can be obtained.

In summary, according to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the material can be measured more accurately, and the gain is not reduced under the condition of increasing the number of the antennas. Moreover, according to the material measuring device disclosed by the invention, the size can be smaller and the cost is lower.

The present disclosure can effectively realize a plurality of high-gain antennas using a small mounting opening, and the increase in the number of antennas is not limited by the opening. Without reducing the power gain per antenna. And the cost of a single antenna is lower, so that the number of measuring points can be greatly increased. Therefore, the 3D shape of the material in the storage tank can be measured more accurately, and the volume of the material can be measured more accurately.

In the description herein, reference to the description of the terms "one embodiment/mode," "some embodiments/modes," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., means that a particular feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment/mode or example is included in at least one embodiment/mode or example of the application. In this specification, the schematic representations of the terms used above are not necessarily intended to be the same embodiment/mode or example. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in any one or more embodiments/modes or examples. Furthermore, the various embodiments/aspects or examples and features of the various embodiments/aspects or examples described in this specification can be combined and combined by one skilled in the art without conflicting therewith.

Furthermore, the terms "first", "second" and "first" are used for descriptive purposes only and are not to be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one such feature. In the description of the present application, "plurality" means at least two, e.g., two, three, etc., unless specifically limited otherwise.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing embodiments are merely for clarity of illustration of the disclosure and are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure. Other variations or modifications may occur to those skilled in the art, based on the foregoing disclosure, and are still within the scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A material measuring device, comprising:

2. The material measuring device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of microstrip antennas are disposed at a focal plane of the microwave lens.

3. Material measuring device according to claim 1 or 2,

the plurality of microstrip antennas are located in or near one reference plane, the one reference plane is parallel to the axis of the microwave lens and/or passes through the axis, and the plurality of microstrip antennas located in or near the one reference plane are arranged in a straight line or a curved line shape or a nearly straight line or a curved line shape; or

4. A material measuring device, comprising:

the one or more microstrip antennas are movable microstrip antennas, and the materials are measured through the movable microstrip antennas.

5. The material measuring device of claim 4, wherein the microstrip antenna is disposed on and moves across a focal plane of the microwave lens.

6. Material measuring device according to claim 4 or 5,

under the condition that the microstrip antenna moves in or near a reference plane, microwave transmitting beams with different angles converged by the microwave lens are positioned in or near a plane, so that a beam scanning surface is formed to measure materials on a cross section;

7. A material measurement system for measuring solid or liquid material, comprising:

the material measuring device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, which is installed above an opening formed on the containing body, and measures the material at multiple angles by emitting beams of microwaves at different angles.

8. A material measurement system for measuring the swirl of a liquid or solid material, comprising:

a container for containing the liquid or solid material;

the stirrer is used for stirring the liquid or solid material; and

the material measuring device as set forth in any one of claims 1 to 6, which is installed above an opening formed on the containing body, and measures the vortex at a plurality of angles by emitting beams of microwaves at different angles.

9. A material measurement system for measuring a material, comprising:

a containing body for containing the material; and

the material measuring device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, which is installed above an opening formed on the containing body, measures the material at multiple angles by microwave transmitting beams at different angles,

the micro-strip antennas are located in or near two or more reference planes which are parallel to the axis of the microwave lens and/or penetrate through the axis, and the micro-strip antennas located in or near each of the two or more reference planes are arranged in a straight line or a curved line shape or a shape close to the straight line or the curved line shape, so that when the micro-strip antenna in one reference plane is interfered by an interferent in the material measuring system, the interference of the interferent is eliminated by measuring through the micro-strip antennas in other reference planes.

10. A material measurement system for measuring material conveyed by a conveyor belt, comprising:

a conveyor belt for conveying the material in a conveying direction;

the material measuring device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, which is disposed above the conveyor belt, and measures the material at multiple angles by transmitting beams of microwaves at different angles.