At PACK EXPO Las Vegas in fall 2019, Syntegon’s Pack 102 horizontal flow wrapper with three Fanuc robots was demonstrated loading meal kits.
Advances in vision systems offer packagers one of the biggest opportunities for improving productivity. Many packaging applications make use of 2D machine vision, where grayscale or color imaging creates a two-dimensional map that allows for easy detection of anomalies or variations in part contrast. As this type of vision increasingly becomes cheaper and faster, its use in packaging continues to grow, particularly in functions associated with inspection, barcode reading, surface marking detection, and basic positional verification.
Now, with innovations in 3D vision, broader applications are becoming possible. Whereas with 2D applications, where objects being scanned must be on a flat surface and of a consistent size and shape, 3D vision gives insight into product depth and height and can therefore be used for random situations, where items are located haphazardly or stacked in a bin with varying orientation.
One example that capitalizes on both 2D and 3D vision is Syntegon’s horizontal flow-wrapper, the Pack 102, with three Fanuc robots, designed for small- to medium-sized bakeries and other food companies. At PACK EXPO Las Vegas in fall 2019, the system was demonstrated loading meal kits. Explains Syntegon, each robotic platform detects and prioritizes six independent production flows simultaneously and in sequence, operating from one HMI on the flow wrapper.
Using 2D vision and dual conveyor tracking, the first robot, a Fanuc SR-6iA four-axis SCARA robot, detects and prioritizes products from two low-friction flat-belt conveyors. The second robot, a Fanuc M-1iA delta robot, precisely detects product location from two side-by-side indexing conveyors using 2D vision. The final robot, the LR Mate 200iD six-axis articulating robot, picks product from two different bulk bins using 3D vision and places the assortment into the product infeed of the Pack 102.
Theegarten-Pactec’s Vision Picker robot system uses camera recognition to feed the company’s wrapping machines with delicate chocolate figures.Another newly developed system allowing for productivity increases through vision is Theegarten-Pactec’s Vision Picker, a robot system with camera recognition designed to feed its wrapping machines with delicate chocolate figures. According to the company, in the past, its machines had to work with chocolate molds holding a fixed number of products. These were placed by a robot in the feed chain of the packaging machine by means of a multiple tool.
The Vision Picker, it says, eliminates complex handling of the molds. Using an integrated image processing system, individual products are now detected within the disordered product flow. Each product is individually sucked in by the robot and placed in the correct position in the infeed chain of the packaging machine. Says Theegarten-Pactec, with the Vision Picker, “different product formats can be packed even more flexibly and therefore more quickly and cost effectively.”
Coupled with its CWM2 wrapper, the robot can feed product at 400/min; configured with its high-performance machines, the robot can operate at a rate of more than 1,000 products/min.
When getting started with robotics, a question often arises as to which standard(s) apply to a machine. Or stated differently, “Is this a robotic system that does packaging, or a packaging machine that includes a robot?”
PMMI, the Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies recommends that machinery users apply the ANSI B155.1 standard for packaging and processing systems to the packaging system as a whole, and make use of the type-C standards, which deal with detailed safety requirements for a particular machine or group of machines, as guidance to meet the requirements of B155.1. By applying the B155.1 as the base standard and drawing on the specific applicable requirements of R15.06 (a U.S. national adoption of the international standard ISO 10218-1 and -2), machinery users can achieve the best of both worlds—packaging and processing machinery with automation.
Knowing how to apply the industry standards can assist in developing productive, safe, and effective solutions. PMMI can assist. Contact Tom Egan, Vice President of Industry Services for PMMI, the Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies at [email protected].
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Cutting-edge packaging technologies are transforming the medical device sector in PMMI’s “Innovation in Medical Device” report, featuring advanced materials, smart solutions, and evolving regulations. Editors share insights from nearly 300 PACK EXPO booth visits—each product deemed new and truly innovative—alongside video demonstrations of the equipment and materials on display.
