Ophthalmic Lens Production Line with Detection and Coding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current production lines for contact lenses are inflexible and require downtime for changing molds, leading to inefficiencies and potential errors in packaging, as they cannot produce different lens types without interrupting production.
Innovation Solution
A modular production line with a lens detection station and inkjet printing for unique lens identification codes, allowing for on-the-fly mold changes and ensuring accurate packaging by identifying and correcting for lens types during the manufacturing process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If traditional production lines use fixed mold configurations, then production stability is maintained, but flexibility to change lens types is lost and downtime occurs during mold changes
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by detecting and identifying lens types at the detection station before packaging occurs. This allows the system to prepare and apply correct identification codes in advance, enabling continuous production without downtime when changing between lens types.
Solution Approach 2:
The detection station provides feedback about the actual lens type being produced, which is then used by the identification code application system to apply the correct code. This closed-loop feedback mechanism ensures accuracy while maintaining continuous production flow.
2Productivity
If mold changes are performed without interruption, then production continuity is maintained, but errors in packaging may occur due to mismatched lens types and identification codes
Solution Approach 1:
The lens detection station performs detection and identification of the lens type as a preliminary action before the packaging and code application processes. This ensures that the correct identification code is selected and applied in advance, preventing packaging errors while maintaining continuous production.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses feedback from the detection station to verify the actual lens type being produced, which then guides the identification code application process. This feedback mechanism ensures that the correct code is applied to each lens type, maintaining reliability during continuous production.
3Manufacturing precision
If manual verification of lens types is performed, then packaging accuracy is improved, but production speed decreases and labor costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system replaces manual verification with an automated detection station that uses optical or sensing mechanisms to identify lens types. This substitution maintains high accuracy in lens type identification while significantly increasing production speed and eliminating manual labor.
Solution Approach 2:
The detection station enables the production line to automatically identify and verify lens types without human intervention. The system serves itself by detecting the lens type and triggering the appropriate identification code application, maintaining precision while maximizing productivity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution enables continuous production of various contact lens types without downtime, ensuring accurate packaging and reducing errors by using unique identification codes to verify lens types, thus enhancing production efficiency and flexibility.
Implementation Method 1
The manufacturing module comprises molds for the manufacture of the contact lenses and a printing station, in particular an inkjet printing station, which applies the unique lens identification code to one or both of the molds
Implementation Method 2
a lens detection station which reads the lens identification code and detects the type of contact lens
Implementation Method 3
the lens forming material enclosed in the mold cavity is polymerized and/or crosslinked to form the contact lens
Data Source
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AI summary
A production line (PL) for the production of ophthalmic lenses (7) comprises - a manufacturing module (MM), - an inspection module (IM), and - a packaging module (PP) in which the lenses identified by the inspection module (IM) as being acceptable are packed into primary packages. The manufacturing module (MM) comprises a plurality of manufacturing stations (300, 301, 302, 310, 320, 321, 322, 330, 331, 340, 341, 342, 350, 351, 352). At least one of these manufacturing stations (310; 320, 321, 322, 330, 331) is configured to apply a lens identification code (70, 71, 72) to the respective lens. The lens identification code (70, 71, 72) includes information indicative of the type of the respective lens. Either the inspection module (IM) or the packaging module (PP) includes a lens detection station (502, 604) configured to read the lens identification code (70, 71, 72) applied to the respective lens and to detect the type of the lens from the lens identification code (70, 71, 72) read from the respective lens in order to determine whether the type of lens detected actually is the type of lens which is expected to be detected by the lens detection station (502, 604) at that time.