Cognex In-Sight cameras identify defective bottles

VIP-Juicemaker has implemented the Imprint Verifier machine-vision system from Orbis, which uses Cognex In-Sight cameras to ensure error-proof production, at its new soft-drink production line.

At the Kuopio plant in Finland, VIP-Juicemaker wanted to improve the utilised capacity of product lines by replacing the lines and introducing more automation, particularly machine-vision systems.

The company's proprietary brands constitute 20 per cent of production, with the remainder consisting of several private label products for stores.

The plant produces 250 different products in total, which means that a single production line can handle several beverages and packages within a single day.

With this high throughput, VIP-Juicemaker wanted to eliminate unnecessary production breaks and errors to maximise production line output.

In the first introduction phase, the company worked with Orbis Oy to bring smart cameras onto the new soft-drink production line.

Specifically designed for the food industry, Imprint Verifier checks for capless and empty bottles at the beginning of the production line to ensure that they are removed.

It is important to identify and remove the defective bottles at this stage to avoid any of the sugar-containing juice or soft drinks spilling onto the production line, cases or pallets; a spill may contaminate intact packages causing unnecessary product loss, as well as using valuable time for the clean-up process.

Further along the production process, a second In-Sight camera monitors the labelling machine to ensure that only correctly labelled bottles are placed on the pallets and ultimately reach the customers.

The In-Sight cameras enable the consistent and dependable verification of markings, readability checks and packaging quality inspection.

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