Zimmer Group’s gripper technology automates the cleaning of sterile glass vials
20 July 2021
Modern automation technology has for some time now played a key role within the sensitive production areas of the pharmaceutical and medical sectors. The standards for the components, robots and automation systems used within these sectors are some of the most stringent.
For example, automated systems for medical technology must often meet demanding clean room classifications and it goes without saying that the individual components used within these systems must also be suitable for use under these demanding environmental conditions.
When searching for a suitable gripper solution for a newly developed application as part of an automatic packaging line for a pharmaceutical company, Tunisian automation specialist SEA electronics turned to Zimmer Group. This allowed them to take advantage of the company's broad product range which includes a number of cleanroom-certified and cleanroom-compatible components including grippers and swivel units.
Cleaning glass vials automatically
The customers’ automated machine, used to clean glass vials, comprises of a rotary table and eight standard specification pneumatically operated rotary grippers. The vials are filled with sterile water before being passed to a rotary table for cleaning. Next, the vials are located in groups of four and held by a gripper attached to a swivel unit. The gripper then rotates through 180° to empty the vials. The turntable then moves to the second position. Here a second cleaning process is initiated for the vials which are retained by the gripper with the opening pointing downwards.
A washing needle enters the bottles and cleans them with a jet of water. The gripper then moves back to its starting position (180° turn in the opposite direction) before placing the bottles on a conveyor line for the subsequent drying and product filling processes.
Zimmer gripper technology eliminates downtime issues
A series of issues with this original design, including the gripper unit regularly jamming and initiating alarms which would stop the machine, led to increasing levels of unacceptable downtime. Diagnosis of the issue highlighted signs of corrosion and rust on the bearings and inside the cylinder, as a result of humidity being able to ingress within the original gripper. The decision was made to replace the original gripper with a new sealed unit, Zimmer Group’s GPP5004N-21-A pneumatically operated gripper, which is designed to operate within the humid conditions surrounding the washing system.
Zimmer Group’s GPP5000 series grippers, with their robust, hard-coated steel-in-steel profile linear guide have been designed for universal use. Depending on the variant, they boast a number of features including speed, high gripping forces and long gripper jaw lengths therefore offering the right solution for every application. Suitable for virtually all ambient conditions, and with a sealed guide up to IP67 and corrosion protection as standard, this range of grippers are completely at home in the damp ambient conditions within the cleaning machine. The GPP5000 grippers, with their low coefficient of friction and excellent operating characteristics, are able to handle 30 million cycles without maintenance delivering a further benefit for the end user. In addition to the new grippers, a Zimmer MSF44N-D2 flat swivel unit was also integrated to perform the 180º gripper rotation. Even with the weight of the bottles, gripper and jaws, which is a total of approximately 600g, the unit rotates in just 0.2 seconds.
Since the installation of the new Zimmer grippers and swivel unit the machine runs well and has been absolutely trouble-free. Productivity has also significantly improved as there are no longer any unplanned machine stoppages.
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