Vision OCR Date Recognition System

Application Details

A leading sandwich manufacturer had major problems with their "Best Before" date coding on their packaging.

Their current system had no facility to check if the date codes were correct, legible or present. If any problems were not noticed by dispatch then the following issue could happen:

1. If noticed at dispatch, all batches from the production run would have to be checked and if necessary repacked Thus creating loss of production and packaging waster

2. If not noticed at dispatch, the product could be rejected by the end customer which could lead to a heavy fine and require an expensive batch return to fulfil the end customer requirements

Solution Provided

More Control provided a vision system using OCR technology character verification to read the date code. The user could via a selector switch set the best before date to +3 +4 or +5 days from date of production. The PLC would use this data in conjunction with the RTC to verify what date should be present on the packaging.

The PLC could then perform a compare function using a data string from the vision system and produce an output signal for correct or incorrect codes. The end customer used the incorrect code signals to fire an air blast solenoid to remove the faulty package from the line.

Part Numbers:
Omron FQ2 Vision Sensor
Omron CP1L PLC
Omron PSU 24VDC

Budget Value
£3000

If you have any questions about OCR technology or require a code verification system, contact More Control on 0345 00 00 400.