Logic control of an anthropomorphic robotic system for vial loading in aseptic filling machines

Over the past decades, the adoption of automatic machines has introduced a true revolution in the pharmaceutical sector, significantly optimizing production, packaging and quality control processes. To ensure that processed products comply with strict marketing requirements, the pharmaceutical industry must adhere to rigorous rules of precision and accuracy in manufacturing processes. The synergistic use of anthropomorphic robots together with standard technologies in automatic machines allows complex operations to be carried out in aseptic environments, minimizing human intervention. The purpose of a pharmaceutical filling machine is to process pharmaceutical products by receiving empty product units and subjecting them to an automated series of operations. The ultimate goal is to output the product units filled with the drug, ready for customer use. In this specific context, the thesis project focused on the analysis and control design of a workstation for the new Injecta10, a pharmaceutical filling machine under development by IMA Group. The newly developed workstation is characterized by the integration of a tilting system actuated by an electric axis, an anthropomorphic robot and a rotating platform driven by a second electric axis. The new Injecta10 system is required to achieve performance levels intermediate between those of the previous Injecta6 and Injecta36 models. To meet this requirement, the Injecta10 integrates the feeding module derived from the former Injecta6 with a newly developed filling module, characterized by a significantly reduced cycle time compared to earlier versions. Consequently, specific design considerations were necessary to ensure that the overall system satisfies the targeted performance specifications. All these aspects are addressed within this thesis project, which focuses on the development of a structured and organized control software architecture for the new machine.