Syntegon has expanded its AIM 5 inspection range with the fully integrated syringe inspection line that features a de-nester and a re-nester, as well as comes with an Artificial Intelligence (AI) function by default. “When drugs are administered intravenously, any contamination or particle in the product is unacceptable,” said Dr. José Zanardi, responsible for vision inspection development and applications at Syntegon. “Our innovative and fully integrated inspection line handles syringes with utmost care and uses AI to further increase inspection accuracy.”

Earlier this year, Syntegon installed the first fully validated AI-equipped visual inspection system on the market. The company is now offering its AI capabilities on the integrated AIM 5 syringe line with selectable AI by default. It’s available for the inspection of the flange, the stopper, and the cylinder. Syntegon’s AI vision system is designed to increase detection rates and decrease the number of false rejects, especially in difficult products like highly viscous parenteral solutions with air bubbles, which are sometimes hard to differentiate from harmful particles.

The line is designed for especially gentle handling: the robotic de-nester removes the syringes from the nest and places them precisely in a single infeed lane, while the re-nester gently puts them back into the nest after inspection. No glass-to-glass contact occurs during the entire process, ensuring maximum product protection at all times, according to the company. With the integration of the de-nester and re-nester, the line features a significantly reduced footprint. It can also be operated via a single Human Machine Interface (HMI).

The inspection line achieves an output of up to 18,000 inspected syringes per hour, and is based on the AIM 5 series from Syntegon. Its modular design consists of a pre-inspection, a pre-spin and a main inspection module. Visual particle inspection is performed using the proven Static Division (SD) technology. A high-voltage leak detection (HVLD) module can be integrated for CCI testing.