Robots make Switzerland more sweet

Swiss chocolate maker Chocolat Frey has benefited tremendously from adopting a brand new high-speed robotic packaging line that can handle 40 different packaging sizes every day. Chocolate is a symbol of Switzerland, and Chocolat Frey, which started as a small family workshop, has now become Switzerland's largest chocolate manufacturer and has become a household name in this country. Despite this, Chocolat Frey still strives to ensure product quality and authentic taste.

Flexible system

The new packaging line is provided by Sigpack Systems AG, Bosch's packaging technology company. On this production line, eight Delta robots put chocolate in a foam box and put the foam box in a carton, reducing the amount of manual work in the Chocolat Frey factory. Because it has become a giant? # 36807; Sigpack Systems packaging robot, Chocolat Frey is very confident to buy a new production line, but also has high expectations for the new production line. The project manager of Chocolat Frey, Andrew Ettlin, explained: “One of the main considerations in choosing Sigpack Systems is that simply modifying the software system to adapt to the new packaging specification will make it possible for us to respond quickly and comfortably to the market. New requirements.” The flexibility of the device allows processing of many different shapes and sizes of chocolate and foam boxes.

Well-coordinated and comprehensive design

The design of the robot fully considers the integration of new robot production lines and existing carton packers and carton sealers. In operation, the box moves from a foam box destacker to the robot packaging line. A highly advanced vision system identifies the chocolate and foam boxes and transmits their position information to the robot's motion controller to ensure that each robot accurately grabs the product and places it in the correct position in the foam box. Selecting the correct suction head is this application to the left?#20851; key. Adept Technology, which has been a supplier to Sigpack Systems for 20 years, provided vision systems and motion controllers.

After the foam box is full, it is loaded into the paper tray and placed under a robot module. The carton is supplied by an existing cardboard packing machine. The filled foam box is recognized by the optical processing system and is then safely picked up by the robot and placed in the paper box. There are very stringent requirements for the handling of foam boxes, requiring the use of a special tool developed specifically for filled chocolate foam boxes. The same tool is also used to put liners in the box to seal. This tool, developed by Sigpack engineers, replaces high vacuum with high air volume and incorporates a soft material that allows gripping tools to grip the foam box.

The Delta robot folds a separate lid over the box or folds a lid attached to the box to a closed position and the package is complete. Hand-packing is still needed on products that are rarely needed. Therefore, in determining the layout of the equipment, it is necessary to establish a correct combination and balance between automatic and manual. “It is not economical to use full-automatic packaging for small-volume product specifications,” said Bernard Fenner, vice president of marketing at Sigpack Systems. “A well-balanced, comprehensive design must be a major consideration when purchasing this type of device.”

Source: Primary Packaging