Automated Palletising For Pharmaceutical End Of Line Packaging

An Austrian pharmaceutical manufacturer operates fully automated packaging lines in which pharmaceutical sachets, along with package leaflets, are packed into primary boxes, grouped, and placed into outer cartons. To increase efficiency at the end of the production line, the final palletising process step needed to be automated. A central logistical challenge was that the spatial situation had to remain unchanged compared to the previous manual workstations. The new system could not take up any additional floor space and had to remain freely accessible for the manual feeding of cartons and the removal of pallets via pallet trucks.

Combination Of Case Packer And Cobot Palletising
To meet these spatial and technical requirements, Mohrbach Verpackungsmaschinen GmbH developed a compact system concept, launched on the market as the MCP-SL400 model. The system combines a case packer with robot-assisted palletising. The case packer fully automatically takes over the grouping of the primary boxes and the erecting of the outer cartons. For serialisation, an optical system captures the printed identification QR code on each box. After the data is verified by cameras, the outer carton is filled via side-loading, sealed with hot glue, and labelled. Another camera scans the label and, after a positive check, grants clearance to the downstream palletiser.

Integration Of Fence-Free Robotic Technology
For the palletising process, the design engineers integrated a six-axis HC20DTP cobot from Yaskawa equipped with a vacuum gripper. This robot offers a payload of 20 kilogrammes with a working range of 1,900 millimetres. The choice fell on a collaborative robot as it can work in direct contact with personnel and does not require physical safety fences, thereby ensuring the required accessibility and space savings. The control unit is housed in the base of the case packer to save space. The integrated media routing for Ethernet, inputs and outputs, and compressed air inside the robot arm avoids interfering contours and improves cleanability for the pharmaceutical sector.




Optimised End Of Line Packaging
By implementing the combined system, the pharmaceutical manufacturer was able to completely automate the palletising process without having to expand the existing production area. The compact design and the fence-free robotic technology enable smooth interaction between humans and machines during material feeding and pallet removal. Ralf Weis, Sales Manager at Mohrbach, evaluates the system concept: 'The combination of case packer and cobot palletiser is a mature solution for end of line packaging that offers maximum performance in a minimum of space.' The solution increases process reliability during serialisation and simultaneously offers the necessary flexibility for rapid format changes in everyday production.

Edited by Maria Brueva, Induportals editor - adapted by AI.

www.yaskawa.com