Assessing surface cleanliness of objects

Abstract

In the field of assessing surface cleanliness of objects (2), a device (1) is provided which comprises an inspection station (10) comprising a detection arrangement (11) configured to collect detection information related to the visual appearance of a critical surface area of the object (2). The device (1) further comprises a controlling system (20) configured to perform a process of identifying in the detection information contamination information representative of foreign material on the critical surface area of the object (2), to perform a process of quantifying the contamination information to thereby generate a contamination value, to perform a comparison of the contamination value and a reference representative of an allowable range of a quantity of foreign material on the critical surface area of the object (2), and to initiate operation of the device (1) according to one of two different procedures depending on the outcome of the comparison.

Description

[0001] Assessing surface cleanliness of objects

[0002] FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0003] The invention relates to a device configured to assess surface cleanliness of objects. The invention also relates to a set of devices including a device configured to assess surface cleanliness of objects and a device configured to subject the objects either in unpacked state or packed state to a sterilizing action, wherein operation of the set of devices involves movement of the objects from one device of the set to the other in a handling direction, and wherein the device configured to subject the objects to a sterilizing action is positioned downstream of the device configured to assess surface cleanliness of the objects in the handling direction.

[0004] BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0005] One of the fields in which a device configured to assess surface cleanliness of objects may be practical is the medical field. It is well known that after a medical instrument has been used, the medical instrument is not used again until after the medical instrument has been subjected to a decontamination process of cleaning, disinfecting and sterilizing. In hospitals and medical practices, a so-called CSSD is present, wherein CSSD stands for Central Sterile Services Department, and wherein the CSSD is the place where used medical instruments are subjected to the decontamination process mentioned here before, which process in the CSSD context is usually referred to as reconditioning process. In the process, use is made of devices such as thermal disinfectors and sterilizers. One of the tasks of staff members working at the CSSD is taking a careful look at the medical instruments, one medical instrument after another, for the purpose of inspecting the medical instruments for the presence of foreign material on the medical instruments, i.e. the presence of contamination on the medical instruments, at one or more instances during the decontamination process of the medical instruments. Such an inspection action is aimed at avoiding situations in which the decontamination process which is performed at the CSSD yields unhygienic results in the form of medical instruments on which contamination is still present, even as a burnt-in spot on the medical instruments as a result of the sterilizing action.

[0006] Practice shows that despite the inspection action, it happens that contaminated medical instruments are retrieved from the CSSD. This is very frustrating for medical professionals and staff, because they need to change medical instruments on the spot when a contaminated medical instrument is noted. Even worse, there is a risk that the contamination on a medical instrument goes unnoticed and that the health of patients is jeopardized as a consequence. There are several reasons why despite proper procedures, contaminated medical instruments are put up for reuse from time to time. In the first place, it is impossible for staff members working at the CSSD to perform the task of visually inspecting medical instruments at a continuously high level of focus and concentration. In the second place, it may happen that staff members working at the CSSD simply cannot see a contamination because the contamination is outside of the visual spectrum of the human eye and / or is too small for human beings to be noted. In some practical cases, the risk that a staff member misses contamination on a medical instrument is even further increased when one or more characteristics of the light at their workstation, such as intensity, level and color, are not optimal for the inspection action.

[0007] In the field of ophthalmology, a phenomenon called toxic anterior segment syndrome (TASS) is known, which is an acute, noninfectious inflammation of the anterior segment of the eye. TASS occurs as a complication of anterior segment eye surgery. Research has shown that various contaminants can be implicated as causes of TASS, and that the contaminants are usually from surgical equipment or supplies. For example, it was found that bacterial biofilm contamination of autoclave reservoirs can produce heat stable bacterial toxins continuously and contaminate surgical instruments during autoclaving.

[0008] In general in the medical field, it may happen that if a contaminated medical instrument is supplied to a (steam) sterilizer, the contamination falls apart and the bacteria spread throughout the sterilizer. This results in contamination of clean medical instruments being treated in the sterilizer. Solving this problem requires replacement of the complete interior structure of the sterilizer. Measures aimed at avoiding this problem and the costly solution often involve increased use of disposables, even though such use entails disadvantages such as increased CO2footprint.

[0009] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Referring to the context of the decontamination process of medical instruments, it is an objective of the invention to provide a way of reducing the number of medical instruments which are still contaminated after having been subjected to the decontamination process, probably all the way to zero. In a more general sense, it is an objective of the invention to realize improved and consistent accuracy of the action of inspecting an object for the presence of foreign material on the object. In view thereof, the invention provides a device which is configured to assess surface cleanliness of objects, and which comprises: an inspection station configured to receive an object, wherein the inspection station comprises a detection arrangement configured to subject the object to a detection action during which detection information related to the visual appearance of a critical surface area being at least a portion of a total surface area of the object is collected, and a controlling system configured to control operation of the device, wherein the controlling system is configured to receive the detection information from the detection arrangement, to perform a process of identifying in the detection information contamination information representative of foreign material on the critical surface area of the object, to perform a process of quantifying the contamination information to thereby generate a contamination value, and to perform a comparison of the contamination value and a reference representative of an allowable range of a quantity of foreign material on the critical surface area of the object, and wherein the controlling system is configured to initiate operation of the device according to an object disapproval control procedure when the comparison demonstrates that the quantity of foreign material represented by the contamination value is outside of the allowable range of the quantity of foreign material represented by the reference, and to otherwise initiate operation of the device according to an object approval control procedure after the detection action has ended, the operation of the device according to the object disapproval control procedure and the operation of the device according to the object approval control procedure being different from each other.

[0011] The invention provides a device which is suitable to be used for inspecting a critical surface area of objects for the presence of foreign material, as a replacement for visual inspection of such critical surface area of objects by human beings, whereby improved accuracy of the inspection is obtained. With reference to the above definition of the device, it is noted that main components of the device are the inspection station comprising the detection arrangement, and the controlling system. On the basis of detection information received from the detection arrangement, the controlling system determines if foreign material is present on the critical surface area of an object, and if such is the case, indeed, if the quantity of the foreign material is inside or outside of an allowable range of the quantity of foreign material. In particular, the controlling system is configured to analyze the detection information and to assess whether or not the detection information includes contamination information, and to quantify the contamination information. In this way, a quantity value is generated, which is zero in case the detection information does not include any contamination information, and which differs from zero in case the detection information does include contamination information. The process of determining if the quantity of the foreign material is inside or outside of the allowable range of the quantity of foreign material involves comparing the quantity value to a reference.

[0012] According to one practical possibility existing in the context of the invention, the reference comprises a discrimination value related to an allowable maximum of a quantity of foreign material on the critical surface area of the object. In such a case, the comparison of the contamination value and the reference involves determining whether or not the quantity of foreign material represented by the contamination value is equal to or lower than the allowable maximum of the quantity of foreign material to which the discrimination value is related. In a sophisticated embodiment of the device according to the invention, the discrimination value is adjustable, and the controlling system is configured to communicate with a user interface configured to enable a person to provide the controlling system with input, including input related to the discrimination value on the basis of which the controlling system is made to set the discrimination value. In that way, a person using the device is enabled to adapt the discrimination value to particular requirements of various practical inspection cases. For example, in one practical inspection case, the discrimination value may be set so as to be representative of an allowable maximum of 200 pg of contamination on the critical surface area of an object, or even as low as an allowable maximum of 100 pg of contamination on the critical surface area of an object. Using the device offers the possibility to apply an allowable maximum that is so low that the maximum quantity of contamination which is involved is outside of the detection range of the human eye. Regardless of whether or not the discrimination value is adaptable, using the device offers the possibility to detect contamination which cannot be seen by humans.

[0013] A notable feature of the device according to the invention resides in the fact that the controlling system is configured to initiate one of two different procedures of operation of the device, namely an object disapproval control procedure and an object approval control procedure, depending on the outcome of the comparison of the quantity value and the reference. As defined in the foregoing, the object disapproval control procedure is applicable in case it appears that the quantity of foreign material represented by the contamination value is outside of the allowable range of the quantity of foreign material represented by the reference, while in other cases, the object approval control procedure is applicable. For example, in a practical embodiment, the device comprises an object holding arrangement configured to hold the object in the inspection station, an object input area configured to receive objects from outside of the device, and at least one object output area configured to receive objects from the inspection station and to allow access to the objects from outside of the device, wherein the object holding arrangement is configured to move the object from the object input area to the inspection station, and from the inspection station to the at least one object output area. In particular, it may be so that the device comprises two object output areas, and that operation of the device according to the object disapproval control procedure involves operating the object holding arrangement to move the object from the inspection station to one of the output areas, while operation of the device according to the object approval control procedure involves operating the object holding arrangement to move the object from the inspection station to the other of the output areas. Thus, when the device is operated, objects which appear to be contaminated to an unacceptable extent and objects which appear to be (sufficiently) clean are separated from each other, ending up at different output areas from which the objects can be taken and moved to further suitable destinations. In the case of contaminated objects, a further suitable destination may be a cleaning station, whereas in the case of clean objects, a further suitable destination may be a station where the objects are sterilized, possibly after having been provided with a package first.

[0014] Examples of the objects to be inspected for contamination by means of the device according to the invention are medical instruments and also for instance tools for use in preparing food products. In the medical context, examples of foreign material include body- related material such as blood and bone, and non-body-related material such as for instance dental cement, wherein it is to be noted that medical instruments often comprise stainless steel and plastic.

[0015] It is practical if the controlling system is configured to communicate with a display and to operate the display to show an image representing at least a portion of the object and any contamination on the at least a portion of the object. In that way, in case the extent to which the critical surface area of the object is contaminated appears to be too high, a person using the device is provided with useful information about where to find the contamination on the object, so that the person can perform a necessary cleaning action on the object in an effective manner.

[0016] The detection arrangement may be of any suitable type. For example, the detection arrangement may comprise at least one of a hyperspectral imaging arrangement, a visible light spectrometry arrangement and an ultraviolet-visible light spectrometry arrangement. In that case, it is practical if the device according to the invention comprises a database including data which have been predetermined in relation to the foreign material by means of the detection arrangement or similar. Said data are thereby representative of presence of the foreign material and are suitable to be used in the process of identifying in the detection information contamination information representative of foreign material on the critical surface area of the object. Further, it is practical if the detection arrangement comprises at least one camera, and if the controlling system comprises a processor configured to receive data from the camera and to generate the contamination value by performing processing actions including a comparison of data received from the camera and data included in the database. For example, the processor is configured to receive pixel data from the camera and to label individual pixels as representing the foreign material, wherein optionally the reference comprises a maximum of the number of pixels representing foreign material. In general, the invention covers various ways of performing the process of collecting detection information related to the visual appearance of the critical surface area of the object, including collecting detection information by means of line-scanning techniques and collecting detection information by means of snapshot techniques.

[0017] As mentioned earlier, in a practical embodiment, the device according to the invention comprises an object holding arrangement configured to hold the object in the inspection station. The object holding arrangement may further be configured to move the object in the inspection station, in which case it is useful if the controlling system is configured to operate the object holding arrangement to realize movement of the object in the inspection station on the basis of which inspection of the critical surface area of the object in the inspection station is enabled. This may be realized in such a way that that there is no need for moving one or more components of the detection arrangement in the inspection process.

[0018] According to a practical option which is applicable to the object holding arrangement, the object holding arrangement comprises a robotic arm configured to pick up the objects, to hold and to move the objects, and to release the objects. In this respect, it may be useful if the object holding arrangement comprises a static holder configured to temporarily hold the object, and if the controlling system is configured to operate the robotic arm to place the object in the static holder, to release the object, to grip the object at another area than prior to the preceding release of the object, and to remove the object from the static holder. Using a static holder as mentioned helps in enabling inspection of the critical surface area of the object in the inspection station.

[0019] On the other hand, the invention covers the possibility that an object is kept stationary throughout the inspection process while one or more components of the detection arrangement are moved. For example, in the practical case that the detection arrangement comprises a camera, the camera may be arranged on a movable rod or the like. This may especially be useful if the critical surface area is at least partially located at an interior position on the object, which is the case if the object is at least partially hollow. The rod or the like may be flexible or rigid, depending on the particulars of the object to be inspected. Practical examples of an object of which it may be desirable to inspect the interior for contamination are an endoscope and a dental handpiece. Generally speaking, in the context of the invention, the critical surface area may at least be partially located at an exterior position on the object and / or may at least be partially located at an interior position on the object in cases that the object comprises an interior space which is accessible from the outside.

[0020] The invention covers an option according to which the objects are offered to the device in trays which are configured to carry more than one object, and according to which inspected objects are placed in such trays. Such trays and / or the objects may be provided with any suitable type of identification marker, although this is not necessary in the context of the invention. One practical example of an identification marker is an RFID tag.

[0021] The invention also relates to a set of devices including a device configured to assess surface cleanliness of objects as defined and described here before and a device configured to subject the objects either in unpacked state or packed state to a sterilizing action, wherein operation of the set of devices involves movement of the objects from one device of the set to the other in a handling direction, and wherein the device configured to subject the objects to a sterilizing action is positioned downstream of the device as defined and described here before in the handling direction.

[0022] The above-described and other aspects of the invention will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to the following detailed description of a device which is configured to perform an assessment of surface cleanliness of objects, and which comprises two object output areas and is configured to automatically output objects to the one of the object output areas which is appropriate in view of the outcome of the assessment.

[0023] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] The invention will now be explained in greater detail with reference to figure 1 , which shows a schedule of components of the above-mentioned device which is configured to perform an assessment of surface cleanliness of objects, and which comprises two object output areas and is configured to automatically output objects to the one of the object output areas which is appropriate in view of the outcome of the assessment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0025] The invention relates to assessing surface cleanliness of objects and provides a device for doing so. Figure 1 shows a schedule of components of the device 1 according to an embodiment of the invention. The functionality of the various components and the way in which the device 1 works is explained in the following, wherein it is assumed that the device 1 is used to handle medical instruments 2, which does not alter the fact that the invention is not restricted to a certain type of objects.

[0026] In the first place, the device 1 comprises an inspection station 10 where an actual detection action of a medical instrument 2 is to be performed. In particular, the inspection station 10 comprises a detection arrangement 11 configured to subject a medical instrument 2 to a detection action during which detection information related to the visual appearance of a critical surface area being at least a portion of a total surface area of the medical instrument 2 is collected. In the present embodiment, the detection arrangement 11 comprises a hyperspectral imaging arrangement 12, i.e. an arrangement which is configured to perform an imaging technique involving the recording of the electromagnetic spectrum for each pixel in an image of a scene, on the basis of which it is possible to find the medical instrument 2 and to identify materials as present at the surface of a medical instrument 2. In the process, use is made of the fact that certain materials have unique spectral features so that these materials can be identified in an image of the medical instrument 2. The hyperspectral imaging arrangement 12 comprises at least one hyperspectral camera 13 and at least one light source 14 such as an LED for emitting light to the medical instrument 2.

[0027] In the second place, the device 1 comprises a controlling system 20 configured to control operation of the device and comprising a processor 21 for processing the detection information. The controlling system 20 is configured to receive the detection information from the hyperspectral imaging arrangement 12 and to perform a process of identifying in the detection information contamination information representative of foreign material on the medical instrument 2. The latter is done by making use of data stored in a database, which data are related to the unique spectral features of materials mentioned earlier. Further, the controlling system 20 is configured to perform a process of quantifying the contamination information to thereby generate a contamination value, and to perform a comparison of the contamination value and a reference representative of an allowable range of a quantity of foreign material on the medical instrument 2.

[0028] For example, for the purpose of determining whether or not blood is present on the surface of the medical instrument 2, the controlling system 20 retrieves data related to blood from the database and assesses whether or not a match can be found in the detection information. Pixels in respect of which a match is found, indeed, are labeled as representing blood. The number of pixels labeled as representing blood are counted, and the total which is found in that way is compared to a reference comprising a maximum of the number of such pixels. The maximum constitutes a discrimination value related to an allowable maximum of a quantity of blood on the medical instrument 2. As soon as the total number of pixels is found to be above the maximum, it is clear that the medical instrument 2 is to be regarded as non- compliant with the cleanliness requirements. As long as the total number of pixels remains below the maximum, the process of receiving and processing detection information can be continued. Finally, when no further detection information becomes available, it can be concluded that the medical instrument 2 is compliant with the cleanliness requirements.

[0029] In figure 1 , a user interface 22 which is configured to enable a person to provide the controlling system 20 with input is depicted. Communication between the user interface 22 and the controlling system 20 is indicated by means of a dashed line. One example of input from a person is input on the basis of which the controlling system 20 is made to set the pixel maximum. Further, in figure 1 , a display 23 is depicted, and communication between the display 23 and the controlling system 20 is indicated by means of another dashed line. Advantageously, the controlling system 20 is configured to operate the display 23 to show an image representing at least a portion of the medical instrument 2 and any contamination on the at least a portion of the medical instrument 2 so that a person using the device 1 may know which zone(s) of the medical instrument 2 need extra attention.

[0030] Depending on whether it is found that the medical instrument 2 is to be regarded as non-compliant with the cleanliness requirements or it is found that the medical instrument 2 is to be regarded as compliant with the cleanliness requirements, the way in which the device 1 is to further handle the medical instrument 2 is determined. In particular, the controlling system 20 is configured to initiate operation of the device 1 according to an object disapproval procedure in the case that the medical instrument 2 is to be regarded as non- compliant with the cleanliness requirements, and the controlling system 20 is configured to initiate operation of the device 1 according to an object approval procedure in the case that the medical instrument 2 is to be regarded as compliant with the cleanliness requirements, which is another procedure than the object disapproval procedure. In the present example, which one of the procedures is applied determines a final position of the medical instrument 2 in the device 1 , i.e. a position where the medical instrument 2 can be taken out of the device 1 . The fact is that besides an object input area 30, the device 1 comprises a first object output area 31 for receiving disapproved inspected medical instruments 2, and a second object output area 32 for receiving approved inspected medical instruments 2. Operating the device 1 according to the object disapproval procedure is aimed at placing the inspected medical instruments 2 at the first object output area 31 , while operating the device 1 according to the object approval procedure is aimed at placing the inspected medical instruments 2 at the second object output area 32.

[0031] For the purpose of transporting the medical instruments 2 through the device 1 , the device is equipped with an object holding arrangement 40. In the present example, the object holding arrangement 40 comprises a robotic arm 41 by means of which the medical instruments 2 can be picked up, held and moved, and released. In particular, in the present example, the robotic arm 41 can be operated by means of the controlling system 20 to pick up a medical instrument 2 at the object input area 30, to move the medical instrument 2 from the object input area 30 to the inspection station 10, to move the medical instrument 2 in the inspection station 10 as may be necessary to collect the relevant detection information by means of the hyperspectral imaging arrangement 12, and to move the medical instrument 2 from the inspection station 10 to the appropriate one of the object output areas 31 , 32. The object holding arrangement 40 further comprises a static holder 42 which is functional to assist the robotic arm 41 in engaging on the medical instrument 2 at different areas on the medical instrument 2 so as to avoid that areas are missed in the process of collecting detection information, probably also in flipping over the medical instrument 2 so as to facilitate collecting detection information from a front side and a back side of the medical instrument 2 in a similar way involving similar positioning and movements of the robotic arm 41.

[0032] It is practical if both the robotic arm 41 and the static holder 42 are arranged in a housing of the device 1 , wherein the object input area 30 is provided at an entrance position on the housing, and wherein the object output areas 31 , 32 are provided at respective exit positions on the housing. It is further practical if a number of medical instruments 2 is input to the device 1 at the same time, by making use of a tray 3 in which the medical instruments 2 are held, which tray 3 is placed in the object input area 30. In that case, the robotic arm 41 is operated to take the medical instruments 2 from the tray 3 one after another, wherein a second medical instrument 2 is taken from the tray 3 only after a first medical instrument 2 has been moved to the appropriate one of the object output areas 31 , 32, etc. Likewise, trays 3 can be used at the object output areas 31 , 32 for receiving the medical instruments 2. As soon as a tray 3 is full, the tray 3 can be moved and an empty tray 3 can be put in place for receiving medical instruments 2. At the object input area 30, this is the other way around: as soon as a tray 3 is empty, the tray 3 can be moved and a tray 3 filled with one or more medical instruments 2 can be put in place for enabling the robotic arm 41 to pick up the respective medical instruments 2.

[0033] In practical cases, the critical surface area may comprise the entire exterior of the medical instruments 2 for the presence of foreign material on the medical instruments 2. At least in such cases, use of the robotic arm 41 and the static holder 42 helps in ensuring that the medical instruments 2 can be moved in the inspection station 10 as necessary for collecting detection information from the critical surface area of the medical instruments 2, i.e. as necessary for the hyperspectral camera 13 to get a complete view of the critical surface area of the medical instruments 2. In this respect, it is noted that this should not be understood so as to mean that other options do not exist in the context of the invention. The static holder 42 is not essential, and alternatives to the robotic arm 41 such as an arrangement including a conveyor belt or the like can be used. In any case, it is practical if the device 1 comprises means to move the medical instruments 2 in such a way that there is no need for moving any component of the hyperspectral imaging arrangement 12.

[0034] It follows from the foregoing that by using the device 1 according to the invention, an automated method comprising a first main step of determining whether one or more defined types of contamination are present on a critical surface area of an object 2, and if so, if this is in allowable quantity, or not, and a second main step of further handling the object 2 in dependence on the findings is carried out. The use of a detection arrangement 11 which may comprise a hyperspectral imaging arrangement 12 or another suitable type of spectrometry arrangement allows for performing the first main step with consistent high accuracy, wherein it is possible to detect a quantity of contamination which is not discernable by the human eye if so desired. Further, disapproved objects 2 can be kept separated from approved objects 2, all the way to an output area 31 , 32. All in all, by using the device 1 according to the invention, high standards of hygiene and safety of use of objects 2 can be complied with, which is very beneficial in fields such as the medical field and the field of processing food. For example, the device 1 is suitable to be used in a CSSD, such as at a position which is suitable for inspecting medical instruments which are to be subjected to a sterilizing action, either in unpacked state or packed state.

[0035] It will be clear to a person skilled in the art that the scope of the invention is not limited to the examples discussed in the foregoing, but that several amendments and modifications thereof are possible without deviating from the scope of the invention as defined in the attached claims. It is intended that the invention be construed as including all such amendments and modifications insofar they come within the scope of the claims or the equivalents thereof. While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the figures and the description, such illustration and description are to be considered illustrative or exemplary only, and not restrictive. The invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. The drawings are schematic, wherein details which are not required for understanding the invention may have been omitted, and not necessarily to scale.

[0036] Notable aspects of the invention are summarized as follows. In the field of assessing surface cleanliness of objects 2, a device 1 is provided which comprises an inspection station 10 configured to receive an object 2, wherein the inspection station 10 comprises a detection arrangement 11 configured to subject the object 2 to a detection action during which detection information related to the visual appearance of a critical surface area being at least a portion of a total surface area of the object 2 is collected. The device 1 further comprises a controlling system 20 configured to control operation of the device 1 , wherein the controlling system 20 is configured to receive the detection information from the detection arrangement 11 , to perform a process of identifying in the detection information contamination information representative of foreign material on the critical surface area of the object 2, to perform a process of quantifying the contamination information to thereby generate a contamination value, to perform a comparison of the contamination value and a reference representative of an allowable range of a quantity of foreign material on the critical surface area of the object 2, and to initiate operation of the device 1 according to one of two different procedures depending on the outcome of the comparison.

Claims

CLAIMS1 . Device (1) configured to assess surface cleanliness of objects (2), comprising: an inspection station (10) configured to receive an object (2), wherein the inspection station (10) comprises a detection arrangement (11) configured to subject the object (2) to a detection action during which detection information related to the visual appearance of a critical surface area being at least a portion of a total surface area of the object (2) is collected, and a controlling system (20) configured to control operation of the device (1), wherein the controlling system (20) is configured to receive the detection information from the detection arrangement (11), to perform a process of identifying in the detection information contamination information representative of foreign material on the critical surface area of the object (2), to perform a process of quantifying the contamination information to thereby generate a contamination value, and to perform a comparison of the contamination value and a reference representative of an allowable range of a quantity of foreign material on the critical surface area of the object (2), and wherein the controlling system (20) is configured to initiate operation of the device (1) according to an object disapproval control procedure when the comparison demonstrates that the quantity of foreign material represented by the contamination value is outside of the allowable range of the quantity of foreign material represented by the reference, and to otherwise initiate operation of the device (1) according to an object approval control procedure after the detection action has ended, the operation of the device (1) according to the object disapproval control procedure and the operation of the device (1) according to the object approval control procedure being different from each other.

2. Device (1) as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the reference comprises a discrimination value related to an allowable maximum of a quantity of foreign material on the object (2), and wherein the comparison of the contamination value and the reference involves determining whether or not the quantity of foreign material represented by the contamination value is equal to or lower than the allowable maximum of the quantity of foreign material to which the discrimination value is related.

3. Device (1) as claimed in claim 2, wherein the discrimination value is adjustable, and wherein the controlling system (20) is configured to communicate with a user interface (22)configured to enable a person to provide the controlling system (20) with input, including input related to the discrimination value on the basis of which the controlling system (20) is made to set the discrimination value.

4. Device (1) as claimed in any of claims 1-3, wherein the controlling system (20) is configured to communicate with a display (23) and to operate the display (23) to show an image representing at least a portion of the object (2) and any contamination on the at least a portion of the object (2).

5. Device (1) as claimed in any of claims 1-4, wherein the detection arrangement (11) comprises at least one of a hyperspectral imaging arrangement (12), a visible light spectrometry arrangement and an ultraviolet-visible light spectrometry arrangement.

6. Device (1) as claimed in claim 5, comprising a database including data which have been predetermined in relation to the foreign material by means of the detection arrangement (11) or similar, and which are thereby representative of presence of the foreign material.

7. Device (1) as claimed in claim 6, wherein the detection arrangement (11) comprises at least one camera (13), and wherein the controlling system (20) comprises a processor (21) configured to receive data from the camera (13) and to generate the contamination value by performing processing actions including a comparison of data received from the camera (13) and data included in the database.

8. Device (1) as claimed in claim 7, wherein the processor (21) is configured to receive pixel data from the camera (13) and to label individual pixels as representing the foreign material.

9. Device (1) as claimed in claim 8, wherein the reference comprises a maximum of the number of pixels representing foreign material.

10. Device (1) as claimed in any of claims 1-9, comprising an object holding arrangement (40) configured to hold the object (2) in the inspection station (10).11 . Device (1 ) as claimed in claim 10, wherein the object holding arrangement (40) is configured to move the object (2) in the inspection station (10).

12. Device (1) as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the controlling system (20) is configured to operate the object holding arrangement (40) to realize movement of the object (2) in the inspection station (10) on the basis of which inspection of the critical surface area of the object (2) in the inspection station (10) is enabled.

13. Device (1) as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the controlling system (20) is configured to operate the object holding arrangement (40) to realize movement of the object (2) in the inspection station (10) on the basis of which inspection of the critical surface area of the object (2) in the inspection station (10) is enabled without needing to move one or more components of the detection arrangement (11).

14. Device (1) as claimed in any of claims 10-13, comprising an object input area (30) configured to receive objects (2) from outside of the device (1) and at least one object output area (31 , 32) configured to receive objects (2) from the inspection station (10) and to allow access to the objects (2) from outside of the device (1), wherein the object holding arrangement (40) is configured to move the object (2) from the object input area (30) to the inspection station (10), and from the inspection station (10) to the at least one object output area (31 , 32).

15. Device (1) as claimed in claim 14, comprising two object output areas (31 , 32), wherein operation of the device (1) according to the object disapproval control procedure involves operating the object holding arrangement (40) to move the object (2) from the inspection station (10) to one (31) of the output areas (31 , 32), and wherein operation of the device (1) according to the object approval control procedure involves operating the object holding arrangement (40) to move the object (2) from the inspection station (10) to the other (32) of the output areas (31 , 32).

16. Device (1) as claimed in any of claims 10-15, wherein the object holding arrangement (40) comprises a robotic arm (41) configured to pick up the objects (2), to hold and to move the objects (2), and to release the objects (2).

17. Device (1) as claimed in claim 16, wherein the object holding arrangement (40) comprises a static holder (42) configured to temporarily hold the object (2), and wherein the controlling system (20) is configured to operate the robotic arm (41) to place the object (2) in the static holder (42), to release the object (2), to grip the object (2) at another area than prior to the preceding release of the object (2), and to remove the object (2) from the static holder (42).

18. Set of devices including a device (1) configured to assess surface cleanliness of objects (2) as claimed in any of claims 1-17 and a device configured to subject the objects (2) either in unpacked state or packed state to a sterilizing action, wherein operation of the set of devices involves movement of the objects (2) from one device of the set to the other in a handling direction, and wherein the device configured to subject the objects to a sterilizing action is positioned downstream of the device (1) as claimed in any of claims 1-17 in the handling direction.

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