System for producing personal care formulations

Abstract

A system 100 for producing personal care formulations comprises a vessel 102 for receiving ingredients 104, a homogenizer 106, and a control unit 108 in communication with the vessel 102; wherein the

Description

16 07 25 Technical field The present disclosure relates to production of personal care formulations. More 5 particularly, the present disclosure relates to a system, method and computer program for producing personal care formulations. Background Personal care formulations include hair care products such as shampoos and conditioners, and skincare products such as moisturisers, creams and serums. 10 It is known to produce personal care formulations in-bulk in a factory or warehouse setting, where the finished formulations may also be bottled or packaged before distribution. Summary According to a first aspect there is provided a cosmetic personal care formulation bulk production system located in a factory, according to claim 1. 15 Some optional features are provided in accordance with the dependent claims. Brief description of Figures Figure 1 schematically shows a system according to an example; Figure 2 schematically shows homogenization parameters according to some examples; 20 Figure 3 schematically shows a circuit for controlling a system, according to some examples. Detailed description As mentioned above, it is known to produce personal care formulations in-bulk in a factory or warehouse site. Typically, a site will be set-up for producing a number of different 25 products and formulations, potentially for a number of different customers. Overall, recipes for hundreds, perhaps thousands, of formulations may be reguired. Known processes for manufacturing a given formulation reguire a relatively large amount of manual input. For example, via controllers, an operator may manually control parameters such as speed of mixing; duration; temperature; etc. These different parameters 30 may be controlled in real-time via a plurality of knobs or dials on an exterior of a mixing 16 07 25 vessel in which a formulation is being produced. The operator may then follow a recipe (for example from a physical instruction manual) to produce a formulation. A simplified example of a recipe is as follows: 1. Insert product A into mixer and add X litres of water. 5 2. Mix at 700 RPM for ten minutes at forty degrees 3. Add product B 4. Increase speed to 1400 RPM for ten minutes. 5. Allow formulation to cool for 1 hour. 6. End 10 Such a process is prone to operator error. For example, an operator may use an incorrect recipe or part of an incorrect recipe, or become distracted and leave one of the stages running for an incorrect period of time. This may lead to production of a formulation which does not meet a required specification and which cannot be used, with associated wastage of product and wastage of resources such as energy. 15 One way to remove responsibility from shop-floor operators would be to implement a Distributed Control System (DCS) into the site. A DCS would enable remote control and monitoring of processes. However, a DCS is typically very expensive, and could cost millions of pounds to implement on site. Moreover, a DCS is typically expensive to maintain and is also not completely free from operator error. 20 One object of the present disclosure is to overcome or at least mitigate these problems. To this end, the present disclosure provides a “sweet spot” between the relatively cheap but error prone manual methods, and the less error prone but very expensive DLC. In attempting to overcome or mitigate these problems, the present disclosure identifies that there is a degree of commonality between many (or most) recipes for 25 producing a range of personal care formulations. By breaking down recipe steps into a series of blocks or sub-steps, then most (or all) recipes can be re-created from one or more or a combination or sequence of those sub-steps. In examples, a pre-programmed control unit is provided for controlling a homogenizer of a mixing vessel. For example, say there are six sub-block programmes, each programme 30 related to a set of parameters for a formulation mixing process (e.g. one or more of mixing speed; duration; temperature). An associated control unit may then have six buttons, each button associated with a respective sub-block. An instruction manual for an operator may 16 07 25 then be significantly simplified. For example, an instruction for producing a formulation may be as follows: 1. Insert product A and add X litres of water. 2. Actuate button 3. 5 3. End. As will be appreciated, this automation may be much more convenient and simple for an operative to use, and may significantly reduce user error. Some examples will now be explained in more detail with respect to Figure 1, which schematically shows a system 100. The system 100 may be for the purpose of producing 10 personal care formulations including hair care products such as shampoos and conditioners, and / or skincare products such as moisturisers, creams and serums etc. The system 100 may be located at a location such as a factory or warehouse, for example. It will also be appreciated that the location may comprise a plurality of such systems, but for conciseness only one such system 100 is shown in Figure 1. 15 The system 100 comprises a vessel 102. The vessel 102 may also be referred to as a tank or a container. The vessel 102 is arranged to receive one or more ingredients to be mixed in the vessel. To this end, the vessel may also be referred to as a mixing vessel, or simply a mixer. The ingredients may comprise one or more liquids such as water, soaps, dyes, oils, melted fats, alcohols etc. The ingredients may comprise one or more dry 20 ingredients, such as powders or granules. Together, the ingredients can be mixed or homogenized in the vessel 102 to produce a formulation, shown schematically at 104. In some examples the system 100 comprises an agitator 114 located in the vessel 102. In some examples, the agitator 114 comprises one or more rotatable blades. Where two (or more) blades are provided, the blades may be arranged to counter-rotate. The 25 agitator 114 may also be referred to as a stirrer. The agitator 114 is used to circulate the ingredients around the vessel 102, and to guide the ingredients towards a homogenizer which is schematically shown at 106. The homogenizer 106 is arranged to apply a high-speed shearing action to the ingredients, so as to homogenize or mix the ingredients and produce the homogenized 30 formulation 104. For example, the homogenizer 106 may homogenize two or more ingredients such that two (or more) ingredients are permanently distributed together. For example, the homogenizer 106 may be arranged to create an emulsion, such as an oil in water emulsion. The homogenizer 106 may also be arranged to homogenize ingredients to 16 07 25 produce an aqueous solution. Therefore, the homogenizer 106 may be configured to produce (by way of non-limiting example) one or more: emulsions; serums; oils; balms; surfactant washes; conditioners etc. In some examples, the homogenizer 106 is placed at or near a base of the vessel 102. In other examples, the homogenizer 106 is a “top-entry” 5 homogenizer. In another example the homogenizer 106 is located externally from the mixing vessel 102, and the ingredients are piped to the homogenizer 106 before being piped back to the vessel 102. Examples of suitable homogenizers are those produced by Silverson® (www.silverson.co.uk). A control unit is schematically shown at 108. The control unit 108 is arranged to 10 control parameters of the homogenizer 106, as explained in more detail below. In examples, the control unit 108 comprises a memory 116 and a processor 118. In some examples, the memory 116 and processor 118 are comprised in a programmable logic controller (PLC) 120. For example, a suitable PLC may be a Mitsubishi FX3S PLC CPU (central processing unit). In some examples, the PLC 120 communicates with an inverter of the homogenizer 15 106, to control parameters of the homogenizer 106 (see also inverter 328 in Figure 3). The control unit 108 comprises a plurality of input zones shown schematically at 110. In some examples, five or more input zones are provided. In the example of Figure 1, six input zones are provided which are labelled 1 to 6. Each input zone is associated with a respective preset homogenization programme. Accordingly, actuation of one of the input zones 110 will 20 cause a corresponding respective homogenization programme to be carried-out. For example actuating input zone “1” will cause a first pre-set programme to be carried out, actuating input zone “2” will cause a second pre-set programme to be carried out, and so on. For example, each input zone 110 may comprise an actuator such as a physical button. Or, each input zone 110 may comprise a zone on a touchscreen display, in some examples. 25 According to some examples, the pre-set programmes may only be altered by accessing the PLC and updating the software thereon. Therefore, for example a shop-floor operative cannot alter the parameters of the pre-set programmes via the control unit 108. As mentioned above, this may reduce user error. According to some examples, each pre-set programme comprises at least one 30 operational parameter of the homogenizer. According to some examples, the at least one parameter comprises a homogenization duration e.g. 10 minutes, 20 minutes etc. According to some examples, the at least one parameter comprises a frequency of the electrical supply to the homogenizer 106. For example, the frequency may be expressed 35 in hertz (Hz). 16 07 25 According to some examples, the at least one parameter comprises a speed of rotation of the homogenizer 108 or of a component (e.g. shaft) of the homogenizer. The speed of rotation may be expressed in revolutions per minute (RPM). According to some examples, the operational speed of the homogenizer is 5 dependent on the frequency of the electrical supply (Hz). Therefore, by varying the frequency of the electrical supply to the homogenizer the speed of the homogenizer can be varied. Or, it may be considered that by varying the frequency of the electrical signal to the inverter 328 (see Figure 3), the speed of the homogenizer 106 may be controlled. This enables variable speed control of the homogenizer. For example, such speed control may 10 enable one or more of: variation of speed between pre-set programmes; variation of speed within a pre-set programme. In examples, this enables a certain speed of the homogenizer to be achieved at certain point(s) within a process. Therefore, it may be considered in some examples that varying the frequency of the electrical signal to the inverter 328 enables provision of a variable speed drive homogenizer. Where frequency or speed is varied, it may 15 be considered that the frequency or speed is varied according to a frequency profile or a speed profile. According to some examples, each pre-set programme comprises pre-set values of each of duration; frequency (Hz); and revolutions per minute (RPM). Some example parameter values for the pre-set programmes are shown in Figure 2, 20 which schematically shows values for a first mixer or homogenizer 108, and a second mixer or homogenizer 208. For example, homogenizer 108 may be associated with vessel 102 from Figure 1, and homogenizer 208 may be associated with a second, separate vessel (not shown). By way of explanation, programme 1 of “Mixer 1” is referred to. For example, 25 programme 1 would be started by actuating input zone “1” of control unit 108, after the ingredients have been placed in the vessel 102. The homogenizer 108 has a maximum energy rating of 8.6 kilowatt hour (kWh) in this example, as shown in Figure 2. According to programme 1, the run-time or duration of the cycle is ten minutes. In an example, the maximum frequency of the control unit 108 (and / or inverter 328) is 30 50Hz. According to programme 1, the homogenizer 108 is run at 25% of its maximum frequency (i.e. 12.5Hz). Over a ten-minute cycle, this results in a total of 7,500 Hz. In an example, a maximum rated speed of the homogenizer 108 is 1740 RPM. According to programme 1, the homogenizer 108 is run at 25% of its maximum speed (i.e. at 435 RPM). Over a ten-minute cycle, this results in a total of 4,350 revolutions. 16 07 25 In an example, a parameter of a pre-set homogenization programme comprises an energy level of the homogenizer 108. In an example, the maximum electrical energy of the homogenizer is 8.6 kilowatt hour (kWh). According to programme 1, the homogenizer 108 is run at 25% of its maximum energy i.e. at 2.15 kWh. Over a ten-minute cycle, this results in 5 an energy usage of 0.358kWh. That is, in some examples the energy level is a product of the power rating of the homogenizer in kW and the duration of mixing or homogenizing in hours. Similar principles also apply to programmes 2 to 6 of “Mixer 1” 108, as well as programmes 1 to 6 of “Mixer 2” 208, as shown in Figure 2. Whilst for conciseness these 10 further examples are not discussed in detail, it will be appreciated that one or more parameters (energy; duration; frequency; RPM) may be different between each programme. It will also be appreciated that, in some examples, separate control units may comprise a different set of programmes (i.e. programmes 1 to 6 on “Mixer 2” may be different from programmes 1 to 6 on “Mixer 1”). 15 In some examples, each pre-set homogenization programme is arranged to impart a certain energy intensity to the formulation 104. In some examples, the energy intensity is for a certain volume of the formulation (e.g. kW / m3). In some examples, the control unit 108 is configured to receive a signal that is indicative of the volume of the vessel 102 or of a volume of formulation 104 within the 20 vessel. Using the information of the size of the vessel 102 or of the volume of formulation 104, the control unit 108 can then select a pre-set homogenization programme, or prompt a user to select a particular pre-set homogenization programme, so that the selected homogenization programme meets a predefined energy level which takes into account the 25 volume of the vessel or of the volume of the formulation 104. This pre-defined energy level may be measured in kilowatts per cubic metre (kW / m3). This enables small-scale laboratory data (e.g. where an optimum energy level is determined for homogenizing a formulation in a small laboratory vessel such as a cup or beaker) to be scaled-up for producing much larger quantities in a factory setting. In some examples, the vessel 102 comprises weighing scales, 30 enabling the formulation 104 to be weighed so that the volume of formulation 104 can be calculated. According to some examples, the control unit 108 comprises at least one output indicator 112 for indicating information to an operative or user. For example, the at least one output indicator 112 may comprise a light emitting diode (LED) or the like. 16 07 25 According to some examples, the at least one output indicator 112 comprises a plurality of output indicators, each output indicator associated with a respective one of the plurality of input zones 110. For example, each output indicator 112 may be positioned adjacent (e.g. above or below) a respective one of the plurality of input zones 110. 5 According to some examples the at least one output indicator 112 is arranged to indicate that a homogenization programme is in progress. For example, solid illumination of an LED may indicate that a programme is in progress. In some examples the at least one output indicator 112 is arranged to indicate that a homogenization programme has completed. For example, a flashing LED may indicate that a homogenization programme 10 has completed. According to some examples, the at least one output indicator 112 is arranged to prompt an operator to actuate a particular one of the input zones. For example, an output indicator adjacent input zone “3” may be fired, to prompt an operator to select programme 3. The production of some formulations may require a combination of pre-set 15 programmes to be used. To this end, in some examples the at least one output indicator 112 is arranged to prompt an operative to actuate a sequence of the input zones 110 at certain times. For example, where programme 3 is first required followed by programme 6, then the output indicator 112 associated with programme “3” may initially be fired to prompt the operative to select programme 3. Then, once programme 3 has completed, the output 20 indicator 112 associated with programme “6” may be fired, to prompt the operative to initiate programme 6. According to some examples, the system comprises heating and / or cooling means, shown schematically at 122. For example, heating means may comprise a heater. For example, cooling means may comprise a refrigeration unit. The heating and / or cooling 25 means 122 is configured to control a temperature within the vessel 102, for example during a pre-set homogenization programme. The heating and / or cooling means 122 may also be used to control a rate of temperature increase or decrease in the vessel 102 during a pre-set homogenization programme. According to some examples, the system comprises a digital library which is 30 schematically shown at 124. In some examples the digital library 124 is stored in PLC 120. In some examples the digital library is stored remotely from PLC 120, and is in communication with PLC 120. According to examples the digital library 124 stores information of a plurality of recipes for a plurality of respective personal care formulations. In examples, the digital library also stores a mapping between each recipe and at least one of 35 the plurality of input zones. In some examples, at least some of the recipes are mapped to 16 07 25 an input zone. For example, “Recipe A” may be mapped to programme 3 and therefore input zone “3”. In some examples, at least some of the recipes are mapped to a combination or sequence of input zones. For example, “Recipe B” may be mapped to a sequence of programme 2 followed by programme 6, and therefore input zone “2” followed by input zone 5 “6”. As mentioned above, in some examples each recipe may be based on small scale laboratory data and then scaled-up for use in the system 100. In some examples, the plurality of recipes comprises 500 or more recipes. In some examples, the plurality of recipes comprises a range of 500 to 5,000 recipes. According to some examples, the plurality of recipes comprises over 5,000 recipes. It can thus be 10 appreciated that reducing the broad number of recipe parameters to a smaller sub-set (e.g. five or six) pre-set homogenization programmes or sequence of programmes, can vastly simplify the process of producing a cosmetic formulation and also reduce the opportunity for operator error. According to some examples, the control unit 108 is a free-standing unit. According 15 to other examples, the control unit 108 is attached to an exterior of the vessel 102. According to some examples, the system 100 is configured so that the pre-set programmes or parameters thereof cannot be altered without an appropriate security token, such as a password, being provided. For example, this means that the ability to set or alter programmes or parameters can be limited to certain individuals such as managers. 20 According to some examples, an emergency override switch or button is provided on control unit 108. This gives an operator the ability to stop or override a pre-set homogenization programme in an emergency situation. Figure 3 is a circuit diagram that schematically shows an example circuit for the system 100. Features in common with Figure 1 are provided with an equivalent reference 25 numeral, but pre-faced with a 3 rather than a 1. The schematic diagram of Figure 3 shows a circuit 350. The circuit 350 comprises a plurality of input zones 310. For example, the input zones 310 may comprise physical buttons. In the example of Figure 3 there are five input zones. Of course, a different number of input zones may be provided in other examples. A stop button 326 is also provided. The input zones 310 and the stop button 326 feed into the 30 process logic control (PLC) 320. The PLC 320 is in communication with a motor drive inverter 328 of the homogenizer. It will be appreciated that in addition to the physical system 100, the present invention also includes a computer-implemented method for producing a personal care formulation. In examples the method comprises storing, in a digital library 124, information of 16 07 25 a plurality of recipes for a plurality of respective personal care formulations. The method also comprises storing a mapping between each recipe and one or more input zones 110 on a control unit 108, the control unit 108 storing a pre-set homogenization programme associated with each input zone. In response to detection of actuation of one or more of the 5 input zones 110, the method comprises causing a homogenizer 106 of a vessel 102 to carry out the pre-set homogenization programme of the selected one or more input zones 110. The present invention may also include a computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform the abovedescribed method. 10 It will be understood that the examples described herein are illustrative examples of embodiments of the invention. Further embodiments and examples are envisaged. Any feature described in relation to any one example or embodiment may be used alone or in combination with other features. In addition, any feature described in relation to any one example or embodiment may also be used in combination with one or more features of any 15 other of the examples or embodiments, or any combination of any other of the examples or embodiments. Furthermore, equivalents and modifications not described herein may also be employed within the scope of the invention, which is defined in the claims.

Claims

16 07 251. A cosmetic personal care formulation bulk production system located in a factory, comprising:a plurality of mixing tanks and a plurality of respective control units,5 each of the plurality of mixing tanks configured to receive two or more ingredients ofa formulation, each mixing tank comprising an agitator located in the mixing tank for circulating the ingredients around the mixing tank, the agitator comprising one or more rotatable blades configured to guide the ingredients towards a homogenizer, the homogenizer for homogenizing the two or more ingredients by applying a high-speed10 shearing action to the ingredients to create an emulsion or an aqueous solution in which the two or more ingredients are permanently distributed together;each of the plurality of control units are in communication with a homogenizer of a respective mixing tank, each control unit storing information of a plurality of pre-set homogenization programmes for the homogenizer;15 each control unit comprising a plurality of input zones, each input zone associatedwith a respective one of the plurality of pre-set homogenization programmes, so that actuation of an input zone causes the respective one of the pre-set homogenization programmes to be performed, and each control unit comprising at least one output indicator for indicating information to an operative, the at least one output indicator arranged to20 prompt an operative to actuate a sequence of the input zones at certain times, wherein the system comprises a digital library comprising a plurality of recipes for a plurality of personal care formulations, and a mapping between each recipe and at least one of the one or more input zones, wherein each recipe is based on small scale laboratory data, and scaled-up for use in the system; and25 each control unit is configured to receive a signal comprising information that isindicative of a volume of the respective mixing tank or a volume of formulation within the respective mixing tank and to cause, dependent on the signal, a selected pre-set homogenization programme to be carried out or prompt a user to select a particular pre-set homogenization programme so that the selected homogenization programme causes the30 homogenizer of the respective mixing tank to operate at a predefined energy level which takes into account the volume of the respective mixing tank or the volume of formulation within the respective mixing tank so that a certain energy intensity is imparted to the formulation, and wherein the energy level comprises a product of a power rating of the homogenizer of the respective mixing tank and a duration of homogenizing.16 07 252. A system according to claim 1, wherein each pre-set homogenization programme is configured to homogenize the two or more ingredients for a predetermined duration.5 3. A system according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein each pre-set homogenizationprogramme is configured to cause the homogenizer to operate at a predetermined frequency (Hz) or predetermined frequency profile.

4. A system according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein each pre-set homogenization10 programme is configured to cause the homogenizer to operate at a predetermined number of revolutions per minute or predetermined profile of number of revolutions per minute.

5. A system according to any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the at least one output indicator comprises a plurality of output indicators, each output indicator associated with a respective 15 one of the plurality of input zones.

6. A system according to any of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the at least one output indicator is arranged to one or more of: indicate that a homogenization programme is in progress;indicate that a homogenization programme has completed.

207. A system according to any of claims 1 to 6, wherein the at least one output indicator is arranged to prompt an operator to actuate one of the input zones.

8. A system according to any of claims 1 to 7, wherein the system comprises heating25 and / or cooling means for controlling a temperature or a rate of temperature increase or decrease in each of the plurality of mixing tanks during a pre-set homogenization programme.16 07 259. A system according to any preceding claim, wherein each recipe is mapped to an input zone or a combination of input zones. .

10. A system according to any preceding claim, wherein the plurality of recipes comprise 5 over 500 recipes.

11. A system according to any of claims 1 to 10, wherein the plurality of input zones comprises a plurality of physical buttons.10 12. A system according to any of claims 1 to 11, wherein each of the plurality of controlunits are a free-standing unit or are attached to an exterior of a respective mixing tank.

13. A system according to any of claims 1 to 12, wherein the two or more ingredients comprise one or more liquids and / or one or more dry ingredients.1514. A system according to any of claims 1 to 13, comprising an inverter in electrical communication with the homogenizer of a respective mixing tank.

15. A system according to any of claims 1 to 14, comprising an emergency override 20 which enables an operative to halt a pre-set homogenization programme that is in progress.

16. A system according to any of claims 1 to 15, wherein a first control unit of the plurality of control units store information of a plurality of pre-set homogenization programmes that is different to a second control unit of the plurality of control units.

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