Online inspection machines employed in the pharmaceuticals industry are
subject to frequent wash-downs; consequently the motors used in these
systems must deliver rated torque across the entire speed range without
any forced air cooling. Here's a good example of fully enclosed motors at
work
The German company, Seidenader Maschinenbau, builds online inspection
systems for the pharmaceuticals industry. One of these - the 'P1' - is a
machine with its own imaging system that can detect even the smallest
defects and particles in pharmaceutical containers such as fluid-filled
ampoules, cylinder ampoules and vials. It detects particles in the
injection solutions within these containers, and differentiates them from
scratches or smudges on the containers.
The glass packaging is gently transported into an inspection carousel at
speeds of up to 400 units per minute. The carousel is driven by a Lenze
1.5kW three-phase helical worm geared motor, model GSS04, located at the
foot of the machine - strictly separated from the actual inspection
process. The stacked modular design of the P1 allows good access to all
components and ensures a clean division between the drive elements and
the pharmaceutical products.
Ampoules running around the edge of the carousel are set spinning by a
Lenze SDS motor with a surface drive to the outside of the ampoule
holder. These SDS asynchronous motors have smooth, easy-to-clean surfaces
and a non-ventilated enclosure suitable for wash-down, making them
suitable for this type of application. Once the ampoules are up to speed
(between 1,500 and 6,000rpm), they are abruptly stopped. The injection
solutions within them, however, continue to rotate while the container is
stationary. An inspection camera tracks the ampoules on the rotating
carousel and takes six pictures which are compared. If, for instance,
objects within the ampoule are seen to change position, the ampoules are
deemed defective and rejected. Scratches and dust on the container
surface show up on all the pictures in the same position, and so can be
ignored.
The process of tracking the ampoule on the carousel is currently achieved
by means of complicated mechanics. Seidenader is working on a new and
improved design that will use servo technology and cam simulation
software to achieve the movement more accurately and without mechanical
wear.
By using two of three inspection stations on one carousel, both light and
heavy particles can be found at different rotation speeds. The drive
technology allows data on the braking times and the spinning speeds to be
stored together with the product configurations, and many relevant
parameters are available at the press of a button when changing batches.
The rotation and braking parameters are stored in the servo drives and
can be automatically and individually set up for each product.
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