Panasonic LX-101-P Digital Color Mark / Color Sensor

LX-101-P belongs to the LX-100 Series Built-in Amplifier Digital Color Mark Sensor

LX: Series for color mark / color detection sensors

101: Model with standard 10 mm sensing distance

P: PNP open collector output (LX-101 features NPN output)

No suffix -Z: Cable type; suffix -Z stands for M12 connector type (LX-101-P-Z)

2. Core Electrical Specifications

3. 5-Core Cable Color Definition (Wiring Diagram)
4. Brown (+): DC 12~24 V power positive
5. Blue (-): 0 V power ground
6. Black: OUT1 main PNP output
7. White: OUT2 inverted PNP output
8. Pink: External teach input (10 kΩ impedance; triggered by high level 4 V ~ VCC)
9. Two Detection Modes

4.1 Mark Mode (Print Tracking & Sealing Positioning)

Applications: Color marks for packaging printing, hot stamping, contrast marks on transparent films

Teaching: 2-point auto teaching / full auto teaching to distinguish base color and mark

High-speed response, suitable for high-speed bag making, printing and slitting machines

4.2 Color Recognition Mode (Material Color Sorting)

Applications: Distinguish workpieces in red/yellow/blue/black/white and other colors

Single-point teaching with adjustable color tolerance for multi-color sorting

5. Built-in Practical Functions
6. Digital Fine Threshold Adjustment: 4-digit real-time reflectance value display for precise fine-tuning
7. Delay Timer: 9 adjustable gears from 1 ms to 500 ms, switchable between ON delay and OFF delay
8. ECO Energy-saving Mode: Lower power consumption and reduced heat generation
9. External Teach Input: Connect external buttons for automatic calibration, supporting one-click product switching on automated production lines
10. Anti-high-brightness Design: Stable operation under ambient incandescent illumination ≤3000 lx
11. Cross-Series Model Comparison

7. Standard Accessories & Installation

Standard supply: 2 pcs M4×30 mounting screws with washers

Optional accessory: MS-LX-1 standard mounting bracket

Matching cables for connector type: CN-24B-C2 straight 2 m cable, CN-24BL-C2 elbow 2 m cable

8. Typical Application Scenarios
9. Packaging Industry: Color mark tracking and positioning for bag making machines, laminators and printing machines
10. Food & Daily Chemicals: Filling & tail sealing, label presence detection, packaging color difference sorting
11. Lithium Battery & Electronics: Color differentiation of electrode sheets, adhesive tape mark detection
12. Logistics Sorting: Separate identification of workpieces with different colors
13. Model Selection Tips to Avoid Mistakes
14. Output Matching: Select LX-101-P for PLC with PNP input; select LX-101 for NPN input
15. Choose M12 connector version LX-101-P-Z for limited installation space for convenient cable replacement
16. Prioritize Mark Mode for high-speed printing machines for faster response
17. Sensing distance must be controlled within 7~13 mm; beyond this range, the light spot expands and accuracy drops

Full Breakdown of Application Fields for Panasonic LX-101-P (RGB Digital Color Mark Sensor with PNP Output)

Core strengths of LX-101-P: High-speed color mark tracking, high-precision color difference discrimination, IP67 dustproof & waterproof, standard 10 mm sensing distance, 45 μs high-speed Mark Mode. It is applicable to ten mainstream industries including packaging, printing, 3C electronics, lithium batteries, medical devices, food, daily chemicals, paper products, rubber & plastic, and logistics sorting. Equipment and detection purposes by industry are listed below:

1. Packaging Machinery Industry (Most Widely Used)

1.1 Bag Making & Flexible Packaging Equipment

High-speed 3-side / 4-side seal bag making machines: Detect printed color marks on film rolls to control sealing, fixed-length cutting and synchronous tracking; eliminate false detection of low-contrast marks on transparent films and aluminum composite films

Vertical / horizontal granular powder packaging machines (snacks, seasonings, grains): Bag length positioning, sealing alignment, counting trigger

Vacuum packaging machines & fresh meat packaging: Distinguish base color and positioning color blocks to prevent cutting offset

1.2 Labeling & Sleeve Labeling Equipment

Flat labeling machines, round bottle labeling machines, double-sided synchronous labeling machines: Detect color marks on label base films with servo synchronous control to ensure high positioning accuracy within ±0.3 mm during labeling

Heat shrink sleeve labeling machines (beverage bottles, mineral water bottles, daily chemical bottles): Position sleeve film color marks to synchronize cutter and film feeding

Adhesive label slitting & rewinding machines: Position roll slitting and trigger deviation correction

1.3 Hose & Tube Packaging

Cosmetic, toothpaste and ointment tail sealing machines: Detect printed alignment marks on hose bodies for precise tail sealing and hose end cutting

Plastic pipe extrusion printing lines: Position printed color marks and fixed-length cutting of pipes

1.4 Carton & Color Box Packaging

Automatic folder gluers & color box folding machines: Detect color box alignment marks to synchronize folding edge, glue spraying and cutting

Automatic carton sealers: Distinguish carton base color from sealing tape to avoid false counting triggers

2. Printing & Paper Processing Industry
3. Web printing machines, gravure & flexo printers: Detect printing registration marks (eye marks) for multi-color registration deviation correction and winding tension synchronization
4. Adhesive label & bill printing machines: Roll slitting and die-cut positioning, high-speed web mark tracking
5. Paper cup, paper bowl and paper tube production lines: Printed pattern alignment and fixed-length cutting control
6. Book binding & laminating machines: Identify paper positioning marks to avoid lamination offset
7. Food & Daily Chemical Industry
8. Filling lines (beverages, sauces, care products): Bottle label positioning and synchronous trigger for filling stations
9. Daily chemical hose production lines (facial cleansers, hand cream): Hose body printing alignment and tail sealing positioning
10. Cap inspection equipment: Distinguish base colors of colored caps from anti-counterfeit marks to trigger defective product rejection
11. Mask & cosmetic aluminum foil bag packaging: Color mark tracking cutting and counting for mask bags
12. Medical Device Industry (Compliant & Stable Detection)
13. Medicine bag & blister packaging machines: Position color marks on pharmaceutical packaging to prevent tablet damage during cutting
14. Medical hose & ointment tube sealing machines: Detect alignment marks for sterile packaging
15. Infusion bag & medical consumable packaging lines: Web synchronization and finished product counting
16. 3C & Consumer Electronics Manufacturing
17. Mobile phone / tablet protective film slitting machines: Position color marks on protective film rolls and synchronize die-cutting
18. Label attaching stations (battery labels, shell barcode labels): Color mark compensation positioning for high-speed labeling
19. Flexible FPC and film roll processing: Identify film alignment marks for slitting and winding deviation correction
20. Plastic housing color difference sorting: Separate defective black/white / colored housings for automatic diversion
21. Lithium Battery & New Energy Industry
22. Electrode slitting & winding equipment: Detect colored positioning marks on electrode edges to control winding length
23. Lithium battery coating & blue film packaging machines: Track cutting of insulating film color marks and alignment of cell coating
24. Battery label attaching production lines: Synchronize labeling via roll color marks
25. Rubber, Plastic & Film Extrusion Industry
26. PE/PET transparent film & aluminum composite film slitting and rewinding: Deviation correction and fixed-length cutting via printed film roll marks
27. Plastic sheet extrusion production lines: Position printed sheet marks and synchronized cutting
28. Logistics Sorting & Automated Assembly Lines
29. Conveyor material color sorting: Automatic diversion of multi-color workpieces and packages in red/blue/white/black
30. Line product presence & missing label inspection: Identify colored marks on packaging to trigger alarm and rejection for missing labels
31. Automated warehouse conveying lines: Position identification of colored carriers
32. Textile & Label Webbing Industry
33. Printed webbing & elastic band production lines: Fixed-length cutting via webbing color marks
34. Garment care label & woven label slitting machines: Synchronized cutting via roll mark tracking
35. Supporting for Other General Automation Equipment
36. Small non-standard automation equipment: Material color differentiation and positioning mark trigger for PLC output
37. Pipe extrusion & wire harness processing: Identification of colored tape marks on wire harnesses
38. Equipment for humid and dusty working conditions: IP67 protection, applicable to lightly sprayed and dusty workshops

Matching Advantages for Model Selection (Targeting Industry Pain Points)

1. Ultra-fast 45 μs response under Mark Mode, compatible with high-speed rolls and bag making machines (stable detection for production lines above 100 m/min without missed detection)
2. RGB triple light source distinguishes subtle similar light color differences; stably identifies marks on aluminum foils and transparent films undetectable by ordinary monochromatic photoelectric sensors
3. PNP output compatible with most domestic and Japanese PLCs; LX-101-P specially designed for controllers with PNP input
4. IP67 waterproof rating; no extra protection required for food spraying workshops and humid daily chemical workshops
5. External teach terminal supports one-click product specification switching on production lines without manual sensor adjustment

Complete Detection Accuracy Specifications of Panasonic LX-101-P (Official Manual Standard)

1. Optical Positioning Accuracy (Physical Light Spot Determines Minimum Detectable Mark)
2. Standard Sensing Distance: 10 mm (allowable range: 7–13 mm)
3. Spot Size (at standard 10 mm distance): Rectangular spot of 1 mm (width) ×5 mm (length)

Minimum stably detectable mark width: ≥1.2 mm; thin marks thinner than 1 mm tend to be missed

Horizontal positioning accuracy is determined by the narrow 1 mm spot; repetitive tracking error for web processing can be controlled within ±0.1 mm level

2. Signal Color Resolution Accuracy (ADC Sampling Resolution)

Equipped with a 12-bit A/D converter, the full sampling range is divided into 4000 steps, with a color grayscale resolution of 1/4000

Capable of distinguishing extremely subtle color differences; stably identifies marks on light gray, light pink and light yellow base colors undistinguishable by ordinary monochromatic photoelectric sensors

Two switchable detection accuracy modes: FINE / COARSE

FINE Mode (factory default): Lowest color difference recognition threshold for high-precision discrimination of similar colors

COARSE Mode: Resists slight dust and film scratch interference, suitable for high-dust production lines

3. Repeat Positioning Accuracy (Dynamic Web Mark Tracking)

3.1 Response Time (Directly Affects Positioning Error of High-speed Machines)

High-speed Mark Mode: ≤45 μs

Color Recognition Mode: ≤150 μs

3.2 Reference Actual Dynamic Repeat Accuracy (Field Tested by Industry)

Web speed ≤80 m/min: Tracking repeat error ±0.05 ~ ±0.1 mm

Web speed 80~120 m/min: Repeat error ±0.1 ~ ±0.2 mm

Servo electronic compensation is recommended for speed above 120 m/min to offset mechanical lag error

4. Distance Offset Tolerance Accuracy (Floating Installation Distance Compatibility)

Detection range: 10 ±3 mm (7–13 mm)

Every 1 mm distance offset slightly enlarges the spot and moderately reduces color resolution; optimal accuracy range: 9–11 mm

Beyond 13 mm: Spot expands to 2 ×8 mm, minimum recognizable mark must be enlarged to over 2 mm with obvious accuracy degradation

5. Color Recognition Tolerance Accuracy (Color Sorting Mode)

Numeric adjustable tolerance is supported in Color Mode (4-digit display of real-time reflectance value):

Minimum tolerance gear: Sort workpieces with tiny color differences (e.g., black/white plastic housings, caps of different shades)

Wide tolerance gear: Tolerates slight material fading and printing color fluctuation to reduce false rejection

6. Accuracy Limitations & Selection Notes
7. Mark width must be greater than 1 mm, otherwise the spot cannot fully cover the mark and positioning accuracy drops drastically
8. Prioritize Mark Mode for transparent films and aluminum composite films; automatic RGB light selection ensures contrast accuracy
9. Lock sensor installation distance strictly at 10 mm for ultimate positioning accuracy and avoid offset
10. Switch to COARSE Mode for high-dust / humid environments to trade partial color resolution for higher stability