Knowledge of glass production has existed since antiquity. It was not until the further development into the form of stable crown glass in the 12th century, however, that it became possible to bring light into buildings fully independently of the weather. Demand increased with developments such as this, as did the prices.

To nevertheless bring products to market economically, they are today manufactured using highly automated methods. The same for glass panes. The problem here is that, as a transparent material, glass can be detected by sensors only with difficulty in automated processes – and usually only at close range. To reliably detect glass as well as other transparent materials such as cling film, even from larger distances, ipf electronic offers the OR270478 retro-reflective sensor. The solution functions with extremely short-wave, polarized UV light and, unlike conventional sensors, detects transparent objects without problem.

Feedback is supplied via an exclusive-OR switching output. The connection is made via a 4-pin M8 connector.