Equipment specialist TurboFil Packaging Machines has introduced an assembly and vial filling machine for unidose liquid nasal devices. These devices are increasingly seen as an attractive alternative to injections for the self-administration or emergency administration of accurate drug dosages.
Available in automatic or semi-automatic setups, the UDS Rotary Vial Filling & Assembly Workstation offers an array of station separation and inspection options.
For automatic operation, a racetrack format with vibratory product feeding enables speeds up to 80-100 pieces per minute. For semi-automatic settings, the system utilises an operator-loaded indexing star wheel with pucks, producing up to 30 pieces per minute. After using an air jet and vacuum system to clean each vial, the machine checks for cracks with a 360-degree high-resolution camera inspection.
Vials are filled via a precision valve-less ceramic piston filler, at a station incorporating a no container/no fill sensor. A stopper is then inserted using a pick-and-place module featuring a burping tube to allow air escape during placement. Next, nasal actuators are introduced either via a secondary starwheel (semi-automatic version) or in-line via pick and place (automatic).
In either setup, the actuators are inspected to make sure cannulae are present and straight, then automatically placed around the vials, which are pressed into place with an automatic tamping device. Finally, the machine ejects finished unidose delivery systems into a collection bin. Options are available to further automate the starwheel system with automatic component placement.
The machine is both precise and flexible, and its dosing prowess has an accuracy tolerance of +/-0.5 percent on a fill volume of 100-125μl. Stopper position can be determined down to 0.3 millimeters, ensuring device specifications are met. Additional inspection options are also available, including a post-fill station to verifies fill volume, piston height and unwanted fluid between piston ribs. Other optional stations can check for vial rim cracks following stopper tamping, as well as canula presence and straightness prior to actuator placement.
It’s controlled via a 7” touchscreen HMI with recipe control and the ability to turn on or off any station or inspection as required for the particular application.
