The BLI system was introduced last year as a clean alternative to methylene blue dye testing, until recently the method of choice for leak testing of blister packs. Methylene blue is effective but is messy, destroys the package being tested and requires human intervention that can lead to errors. Bonfiglioli's BLI provided an alternative in which blister packs could be inserted into a testing chamber using a 'pick and place' mechanism, with sensors analysing the swelling of each blister cell when placed in a vacuum and rejecting faulty leaking blister packs. This vacuum technology can detect cracks in the blister of as little as 3 microns across, more sensitive than MDT, and can identify which blister is leaking. The new version can now be either integrated into the packaging line for 100 per cent in-line leak detection or for automatic sample testing between the existing blister Line and cartoner packing line, said Bonfiglioli. Previously, blisters had to be stacked in the machine - now the packs can be tested as they go down the line. The capacity of the system has also been hiked from 600 blisters per hour to 900 per hour with the new version. External links to companies or organisations mentioned in thisstory: Bonfiglioli
