Application Spotlight Vial Cap Inspection

They say, timing is everything. This catch-phrase has never been more true than for todays production lines, where eliminating errors and processing products at break-neck speed means more dollars for your company. Balluffs UltraFrame self-contained thru-beam and Sharpshooter vision families in combination is one example of how sensors can work together to speed up the production line while improving product quality with automated error proofing. Benefits of Combing UltraFrame with Sharpshooter n High performance and adaptability at an economical price n Simple to install, setup and run n Top notch diagnostic capability

Vial Inspection

Correct Cap Presence

Pass Fail

In this application, a C-shaped UltraFrame thru-beam sensor and a Sharpshooter vision sensor are used to inspect the medical vials after the capping process. As the vials pass through the beam of the UltraFrame, its output triggers the Sharpshooter upstream to take a picture of the vial and initiate inspection. This is done by using the built-in trigger input on the Sharpshooter. A backlight is necessary in creating higher contrast for the image, which helps the Sharpshooter inspect attributes with a higher degree of reliability.

During inspection, the Sharpshooter simultaneously verifies that the cap is present and is the correct cap. Live images taken during inspection are compared to a known good image that is stored in the memory of the sensor. The sensor compares the two images and determines pass/fail of the vial currently being inspected. The 360 Pattern Match Tool is used to locate the vial within the region of interest then moves the inspection tool to align with the vials position. If the Brightness Tool detects the cap is present and is correct, the vial passes on to packaging. If the Brightness tool does not detect the cap, the vial is rejected.

Part Number
BGL 50A-005-S49 BVS OI-3-051-E BAE LX-VS-HR100

Description
50mm, PNP, Pinpoint Red LED, UltraFrame sensor 8mm lens, PNP, Advanced series Sharpshooter 100x100mm, red LED, Backlight 1 2 3
Output logic is used to activate output 1 for pass and output 2 for fail.

In other applications using a similar setup the Sharpshooter verifies other product attributes such as liquid fill level in the vials. The output logic can then be used to determine which attribute failed and a different output is activated for each failure. This way the control system can direct the vial to separate reject stations, depending on the failure.

www.balluff.com/Medical
Balluff, Inc. n 8125 Holton Drive Florence, KY 41042 n 1-800-543-8390 n www.balluff.com

PS_039 Vial Cap Inspection 2009-09