Consumer Product Packaging Equipment Automation

Competition is increasing as manufacturing technology progresses. In order to stay on top of the game, consumer product manufacturers must make products of higher quality, more cheaply, and more quickly than ever before. Increasing labor costs and worker safety issues have added to the demand for automation on the factory floor. Machine vision is used to improve consumer product packaging equipment automation by both manufacturers and their equipment suppliers.

Primary Equipment Applications

• Material handling
• Identify parts and inspect for quality and product integrity
• Guide robotic pick and place of product or package 
• Automated assembly equipment
• Verify part orientation in vibratory bowl feeders
• Guide robotic assembly
• Sort based on color or shape
• Verify Assemblies
• Identification (OCV & 2-D Data Matrix)
• Inspection stations
• Gauge or measure 
• Filling
• Inspect for container flaws
• Find package position/orientation
• Detect missing or underfilled product  
• Sealing
• Inspect closure (right type, no defects, good print quality)
• Inspect seal integrity
• Verify tamper evident band and safety seal presence 
• Labeling and marking
• Inspect for label correctness, placement, wrinkles, and tears
• Read/verify date/lot or bar codes
• Verify print graphic quality  
• Secondary packaging and palletizing
  • Verify carton/case fill in cartoners and case packers
  • Inspect flap seals
  • Read/verify date/lot or bar codes
  • Verify package graphic quality
  • Inspect overwrap (product orientation, correct UPC showing)
  • Guide robotic palletizers