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INLINE HEAT SEAL VERIFICATION: MILK AND DAIRY

website@sitemodify.com (Website Editor) — Wed, 04 Aug 2021 14:24:31 GMT

How can Snipe help you?

SNIPE is a high-speed and robust inspection system that is retrofitted onto a packaging lines to verify the integrity of bottle seals. Snipe employs precision vision technology and intuitive software. SNIPE is both minimalist and cost-effective.

High-resolution 100% thermal inspection
Compact and accessible
High precision and speed, inspecting up to 300 bottles per minute!
Automated system calibration
Inline rejection system
Real-time/ archived statistics and analysis
Remote operation

Why are Heat Seals significant to the milk and dairy industry?

Many products within the milk and dairy industry require heat seals to ensure the integrity of products since heat seals guarantee safety, quality, freshness and that the product doesn’t degrade or become contaminated.

Yet currently, seal integrity inspections are limited to random sampling with manual spot checks. Although helpful, these checks are very inefficient in terms of resources, cost, and time.

SNIPE ensures problems that arise during the heat seal process are flagged immediately, rather than at the end of the shift or later in the manufacturing process. Thereby reducing the cost to rectify the damage, potential recalls, and negative feedback due to sealing issues.

Are you facing any heat seal issues on your production line that you haven’t found a suitable solution for yet? If so, please get in touch with us to see if we can help you.

WEBINAR: MACHINE LEARNING, BUT WHAT ARE WE TEACHING?

Thu, 22 Jul 2021 13:53:07 GMT

How and why is machine learning changing automated quality control?

If you would like to learn more, please join our second webinar in the series on visual quality inspection.

In this webinar we will be exploring methodologies, advantages and tradeoffs in the use of machine learning towards tools such as automated calibration of what we term intelligent vision machines.

Whether you are on a production line in the pharma, automotive, electronics, food and beverage, medical or military sector this webinar is worth attending.

SPOOKFISH HOSTS FIRST WEBINAR

Tue, 20 Jul 2021 13:46:13 GMT

Unfortunately, COVID-19 has left us even more detached and separated around the world…

However, to reduce the distance between us all, Spookfish has decided to host webinars, in hope that despite the distance between us, we can still form a relationship with any clients or people interested in our company. Our aim is to keep you as informed as we can during these uncertain and daunting times.

During the seminar, we informed the attendee's about SNIPE. SNIPE is a high-speed and robust inspection system that is retrofitted on the packaging line to verify the integrity of bottle seals. Accordingly, Snipe employs precision technology and easy-to-use software, hence, Snipe remains both minimalist and cost-effective.

Furthermore, SNIPE ensures problems that arise during the heat seal process are flagged immediately, rather than at the end of the shift or later in the manufacturing process, thereby reducing the cost to rectify the damage, potential recalls and negative feedback due to sealing issues.

Although this webinar was the first, it will not be the last! Keep an eye out for more information about webinars in the future!

HARLEQUIN: FEVER SCREENING

Tue, 01 Jun 2021 14:12:46 GMT

Over half a million people have been screened with Harlequin!

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a tremendous and lasting impact on how infectious diseases will be perceived and treated. One effect of the pandemic will be the increased need for urgent examination of people with COVID-19 symptoms so they can begin to be isolated, which will reduce potential risk to the general public.

A significant challenge that authorities will face in public spaces is that symptoms may not be obvious to an observer, i.e. someone with a mild fever or a nagging cough may not appear ill, but may be symptomatic. For example, fever is one of the most common symptoms of COVID-19, yet a fever can be “invisible”. This brings about an urgent need for screening machines which are capable of identifying symptoms that are invisible to the human eye to help prevent the potential spread of infection .

Traditional methods of temperature measurement are contact-based and generally require a few minutes to obtain an accurate measurement. Despite instant, non-contact technologies becoming commonplace, not all of them are safe or accurate. The table shows a comparison of a few methodologies for temperature measurement.

Presently, there is an urgent need for a fast, non-contact and precise mechanism for fever screening, whilst ensuring that the person operating the machine remains safe from the risk of infection.

Infrared (IR) cameras, also commonly known as thermal cameras, measure temperature by capturing the infrared irradiance of any object, including humans. These cameras are suitable for long periods of continuous running, particularly ideal for cases where every individual entering a crowded space needs to be screened .

These cameras are:

FAST: capturing up to 60 frames per second
NON-CONTACT: measurements are taken while the subject is 0.5 m to 1.0 m away
PRECISE: with sensitivities as low as 30 mK (or 0.03°C)

However, thermal cameras come in many forms and models, and not all of them are suitable for fever screening. The WHO has provided clear guidelines as part of the ISO/TR 13154 and BS EN IEC 80601-2-59 standards, to which any device for human febrile screening must adhere.

The past 2 to 15 months have seen the influx of several technologies that use thermal cameras for fever screening. However, not all of these are safe/precise as they do not adhere to the above WHO guidelines, and do not address the complex intricacies of thermography.

Spookfish Innovations have built on their experience with thermography, to put together a compliant and cost-effective fever screening system. The name “Harlequin” was inspired by the fish that bears the same name and shows off colours similar to visual representations of the infrared spectrum.

Harlequin uses computer vision to accurately detect faces in focus, followed by precise localisation of the subject’s inner eye corners (inner canthus), where strong correlation to core body temperature is then measured. The face and eye detection algorithms are powered by the latest machine learning technologies. Furthermore, the system seamlessly integrates with existing access control systems to ensure that anyone suspected with high temperatures are not immediately allowed to enter the premises.

Spookfish’s prior experience in working with the pharmaceutical industry has helped make Harlequin a secure system, with watertight measures in place to ensure that there is no manipulation or leakage of screening data stored on the server. At the same time, screening reports and audit trails can be easily generated with a few clicks.

These systems have already been deployed across many countries including in Europe, Asia and N. America, to ensure the safety of factory workers and persons in spaces with large numbers of people. So far, over half a million people have been screened for an elevated temperature.

SPOOKFISH HEADQUARTERS IS MOVING

website@sitemodify.com (Website Editor) — Thu, 11 Mar 2021 10:14:07 GMT

After 4 wonderful years at our current office, it's time for an upgrade. Looking forward to the next big leap for Spookfish.

Make a note

Next time you visit us in person, send us some samples or equipment for cutting edge work, please ensure you use the right address. We are moving given our continued growth. The new premises offers a dedicated and larger space for our growing number of staff and products we offer to our clients worldwide...

New Address

#70, 4th Cross, 8th Main J.C. Industrial Area,

Kanapura Road, Bangalore 560 062, India

+91 9108 993 345 /343 /341

INNOVATE UK FAST TO SUPPORT BUSINESSES

website@sitemodify.com (Website Editor) — Thu, 11 Mar 2021 10:14:07 GMT

Bristol Firm Designs Fever checking Kiosk

A Bristol-based company has devised mobile symptom-checking technology with support from Innovate UK’s COVID-19 FastTrack funding programme.

Spookfish Innovations’ ‘fever screening kiosk’ was designed for use in public areas. The first kiosks are already in use at Bangalore international airport.

The system operates 24 hours a day and takes into account changes in ambient temperature.

Precise temperature checking

It is more precise than the widely-us

ature guns’ that have been pointed at people’s foreheads during the pandemic.

Instead, Spookfish’s Harlequin thermal imaging technology uses machine learning to ‘read’ a face and find each eye’s inner tear ducts, which are close to a major blood vessel.

Subjects stand within two metres of a screen displaying an infrared image of their head. The process takes 50 milliseconds and temperature matching is achieved in less than 10 milliseconds, precise to 0.25 degrees celsius.

Testing for the symptom, not the virus

Director Jouni Ronkainen said:

"This is not a COVID-19 test. It screens for the main symptom of COVID-19, which is a fever."

"Being fast and precise, it’s designed to deal with a high throughput of people. We have one at a pharmaceutical plant that consistently screens 900 employees in an hour."

"The system is already installed in a number of non-public settings in the UK, most visibly at the Worcester Warriors rugby club headquarters and training centre. Another is in a high-security workforce setting."

"The £50,000 grant awarded to Spookfish in Innovate UK’s COVID FastTrack funding programme allowed the company to develop a robust and rugged kiosk version of Harlequin for use in public places."

Jouni added:

"The ‘ruggedised’ version can be deployed anywhere and could be a fever-screening option for when fans are finally allowed into sports stadiums."

"The Innovate UK funding also helped Spookfish develop a web interface that allows multiple systems to be monitored remotely in real-time. That facility is in operation at Worcester Warriors."

"Spookfish was founded in 2015. The company now employs 30 people and uses computer vision technology and machine learning techniques to solve complex problems."

Original Article found at: http://ow.ly/1q7t50CZofS

https://www.ukri.org/our-work/tackling-the-impact-of-covid-19/addressing-technological-challenges/bristol-firm-designs-fever-checking-kiosk/

MICROPS C: GAINING MOMENTUM

website@sitemodify.com (Website Editor) — Thu, 11 Mar 2021 10:14:07 GMT

Is the English Coin Company the Most Efficient Coin sorting Organisation in the World?

A client of Spookfish Innovations

Coins have been around since approximately 600BC, therefore people have been using them for the past two and a half millennia! The large scale classification and sorting of coins has become increasingly mainstream in recent decades, resulting from an increase in global travel of both people and post. However, the recent outbreak of COVID-19 has dented coin circulation it would be difficult to imagine a world without coins being used on a daily basis.

There are three types of coin sorting that Spookfish have dealt with recently that have a need for coin classification and sorting:

Coin Dealers: predominantly find value in rare coins that are in limited circulation for whatever reason. It could be a mistake on the production line (yes they do happen from time to time) or a coin that had a low mintage volume, such as the British 50 pence coin with the ‘Kew Gardens’ design which can easily fetch more than 200x its face value. I recently bought a 50 pence coin with the ‘football offside law’ explained for £5, which I am told is a ‘bargain’.

Half Crown - George VI

Leftover currency companies: these are companies that process large volumes of coins each day. They receive their coins from many places, an airport is a prime example as in a given day this venue will receive ‘charity coins’ from all around the globe. It is fascinating to see how old and rare some of these coins are!
Scrap metal companies: i n that old sofa or car you took to the scrapheap believe it or not there will undoubtedly be some old coins in there, your loss but someone else's gain given the likelihood is a scrap metal dealer will find it.

The English Coin Company (ECC) falls into the first category whereby they sell a host of modern and pre decimal coins from 1860 to present date. Although the ECC, like many other organisations in the world, have access to traditional coin sorting technology, the technology relies on the diameter, thickness or composition of the coins. These machines offer very little when trying to sort the coin based on a feature such as the year of mintage, the mint mark or a design on the coin. Therefore, at Spookfish we have leveraged our ‘Machine Vision’ and ‘Machine Learning’ knowhow to develop a system called Microps C that can achieve exactly that - automated coin classification and sorting using ‘vision’.

In short the ECC are trying to go from this

Box full of Half Crown coins in an unsorted state.

Half Crown coins sorted into unique years, neatly compartmentalised.

Anyone who has worked with coins will appreciate the amount of work to sort coins in large volumes into sorted compartments. Throughout history this task has occurred through the manual and labour intensive power of the human. This is no longer the only option! The Microps C has sorted the pictured half crowns at a rate of approximately 120 coins per minute. The machine does not need to stop for food or drink breaks which allows for it to be a powerful tool in the arsenal of an organisation wanting to sort coins efficiently.

The latest Microps C configuration for 20 bin sorting.

New ParagraphRather impressively Anthony Hickman (Director of ECC) has concluded that “The Microps C is not only much faster than the human sorted but also more accurate!”, which bodes well for the future of automated coin sorting using ‘vision’! This is a great tool for the ECC to ensure a significantly more efficient operation with no extra manpower, allowing the company to take on larger projects with shorter time-scales. This will give them a huge competitive advantage in the UK market and beyond.

See the system in action: