PRINTS AND VERIFIES DATAMATRIX, BARCODES, FIXED AND VARIABLE DATA ON CARTONS

Antares Vision has been the first company to develop and install a standalone unit for printing and checking Datamatrix and serialization data on cartons.

Integrating a single machine able to perform both printing and verification operations would has a number of advantages such as: 

• Easy integration on the packaging line
• Quick and easy installation
• A unique control for printing and checking
• A compact system incorporating all the necessary components: printers, cameras, reject station, man/machine interface, continuity group

The machine was first developed in 2007, and so far over 100 units have already been installed in Track & Trace installations.

AVAILABLE MODELS

The Print & Check solution is now available in three main versions, to cover virtually all industry needs: 

• STANDARD: To print on formed cartons (both sides)
• ADVANCED: To print on the three sides of formed cartons
• OPEN CARTONS: To print on open or not yet formed cartons 

As we have complete control on all the mechanical, electronics, printing technologies, we can also fit special integration, such as on checkweighers, and we can integrate Custom components, such as labeling modules.

All models print fixed and variable data on cartons through inkjet technique.

The built-in cameras check for the correctness and integrity of the 2D Datamatrix and/or any other bar codes, and characters printed in clear text (OCR/OCV) and then transmit the foregoing data to the higher-level control system in real time.

The system is realized with a conveyor belt for cartons, equipped with telescopic adjustment in order to easily adapt to existing machines.

The structures are totally built in stainless steel in a "Totem" configuration, with the electrical box positioned in the rear side and with the IPC 15"  TS integrated in the front side.

The basic system is equipped with one printing head, based on HP technology with a maximum vertical height of printing of 12,7 mm at a resolution of 600 dpi and manual regulation to centre the printing area.

It is possible to increase the maximum vertical height of printing up to 25,4 mm by introducing a second head per side. In fact, each printer controller can manage up to 4 heads simultaneously.

A reject station is included, based on air blow and optionally with a piston, with relative box to collect rejected boxes. Standard box accepts cartons with "A" dimension up to 120mm. Optional big reject box accepts cartons with "A" dimension up to 140 mm on the standard version of the Print&Check only.

An optional real time device (Code List Manager - CLM), placed in the electrical box, is able to follow the status of 2D codes during the process of packaging, verifying the correctness of the serialization process on cartons, bundles, cases and pallets. CLM receives form all the cameras the read serial code, verifies the congruency with expected values in the local database and subsequently updates the status of each serial code

According to the feedback from the CLM, Print&Check camera will provide a digital signal (good/reject) to the machine PLC.

The systems are equipped with a luminous bar with 3 colors and an emergency button in an ergonomic position.

THE PRINT&CHECK "CLASSIC"

In this model, an adjustable upper belt is used as a contrast in order to manage different carton formats maintaining them in the proper position for a correct print.

A brushless motorization with integrated encoder synchronizes all the devices along the conveyor and guarantees high precision and quality of printing and verification.

A plexiglass protection cover guarantees operators' safety.

THE PRINT&CHECK ADVANCED

The need of several industries to have the maximum freedom in placing data and barcodes such as on the top, has led Antares Vision to develop this new Advanced version.

Thanks to a vacuum system placed on the lower belt, the formed carton is maintained stable for printing without need of an upper belt, allowing thus a third printer to be positioned on the top, and print in any position.

The length of this version is slightly higher than the standard (980 mm).

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

	ADVANCED	CLASSIC
FUNCTIONAL CHARACTERISTICS
Maximum speed (cartons/min.)	400	400
Maximum conveyor speed (m/min)	50
N. of printable sides	3 (upper and sides)	2 sides
Carton dimensions	A = 30 - 120 mm B = 16 - 100 mm H = 65 - 200 mm	A= 25-120 B=15-110 H=65-200
Ejection system	Compressed Air Piston for large formats (optional) Active control of the successful reject
Interfaces	15" touch screen Stop, Reset, Start and Emergency push buttons 3 colours machine state indicators 2D Datamatrix manual reader (Datalogic) for reconciling and production order entry All printing and inspection devices are controlled from the 15" screen
Data integrity	UPS with up to 30 min operating, to allow data saving
PRINTING CHARACTERISTICS
Max n. of printing heads	8	4
Height of printing  per head (mm)	12,5
Printing technology	HP
Inks	Antares Vision Pharma Black
Max resolution	600 DPI
Print contrast	up to 90%
Datamatrix quality grade	up to A, B typical
INSPECTION CONTROLS
Maximum n. cameras  on board	3	2
Standard controls	Datamatrix reading and verification All linear and bidimensional barcodes
Other controls	HRC for date, lot, serial number verification even on different areas
	On line Datamatrix quality grade
Other controls to be integrated	Datasheet presence and correctness Sealing presence "Bollino" presence and correctness All other Antares Vision standard controls
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
Dimensions (LxDxH)	980 x 983 x 2041	700 x 917 x 1860
Connections	Ethernet 10/100/1000 Up to 10+10 I/O for interfacing the line
Power supply	230 VAC
Compressed air for vacuum and air rejection systems	6-8 bars

THE PRINTING TECHNOLOGY

The printing module - based on a jet printing .engine module - is fully integrated in the Panel Control and is based on HP technology.

This module is universally recognized as very flexible, controllable and extremely practical, with an excellent performance vs price ratio.

Having the ability to control print jobs from set up, all the way to output, the jet.engine delivers solutions without the hassle and expense of purchasing a bulky, complicated printing system.

The very foundation of inkjet's printing solutions is HP thermal inkjet technology (TIJ).

Having led the way in TIJ for more than two decades in the industrial market, HP designed a highly cost  effective, invaluable solution for specialty printing needs.

The highly controlled ink drop placement allows for smaller images/characters to be printed with more precision, higher resolution and at faster output times. Rugged enough for harsh manufacturing settings, while still defined enough for delicate printing, this inexpensive technology is applicable in numerous industries and media.

Main technical characteristics:

• Very high contrast even at high printing speeds
• Use of ink without solvent - water based - print is to be made on an area free from varnish.
• Use of standard cartridges from Hewlett-Packard with a resolution of 600 dpi
• Use of special ink formulated to suite to most common carton surfaces.
• Excellent quality of print even at high speed up to 60 m/min
• No need of maintenance and assistance
• A clean solution for surrounding area
• Maximum height of print of 12,7 mm with possibility to increase by adding more heads (up to  4 heads each controller unit)
• Class B printing (typical), depending on paper quality and kind of carton.

THE INSPECTION TECHNOLOGY

All inspection components have been developed specifically to fulfill the requirements of Track&Trace projects and are able to decode all kind of industrial bar codes (mono and bi-dimensional) and simultaneously read alphanumeric data on 4 lines.

The image processing system is embedded, very compact and with low power consumption, with an optical head specifically designed to integrate lens and LED illuminator realized with a special light diffuser.

The choice of Vision Box is aimed at reaching the maximum performance and reliability in the simultaneous reading of variable data and data matrix and accepts hi-resolution cameras in order to fulfill all the requirements of the authorities' regulations.

The Vision Box main features are: 

• Processor: DSP Texas Instrument 1 GHz
• FPGA Altera for HW pre-processing
• 64 MBytes Dynamic RAM - 4 MBytes Flash
• 10 bit A/D converter
• IP55 container with fixing holes
• Embedded switching power supply
• Connection interfaces: 100 Mb/s Ethernet, RS232 and RS485
• Communication Protocols: TCP-IP, UDP
• 2 CameraLink input
• Distance between optical head and processor: up to 5 meters
• Sensor: progressive CCD BW 1024x768 
• 3 digital Inputs and 4 digital Outputs - 24Vdc PNP Optoisolated
• Lens mount: "C" or "NF" mount
• Adjustable Gain 0-36 dB
• CE compliance

open PDF