If a new pharmaceutical product has to be packaged on the machine, a defined number of machine parts and settings need to be changed and the machine must be checked to ensure that it is clear of any product or material residues. This process is called a “format change.”
Theresa Toldo demonstrates how Lion is used to carry out a format change. She puts on a special set of goggles that recognize the machine and represent all the relevant information about the necessary work steps directly at the corresponding positions in the machine. Which screw must be adjusted, and how? Which values have to be taken into account?
The Hololens goggles can do things that generally only highly qualified and trained experts can perform. The goggles guide the developer through the complete process by providing precise instructions. The big advantage of this solution is that although resetting processes are still needed, they are now carried out efficiently and flawlessly. The solution safeguards the quality assurance that is so important for pharmaceutical production.
For Toldo, the reconfiguration process is easy. The goggles enable her to look directly into the machine to see which work steps must be carried out in which sequence. That also includes the documentation of the process, but thanks to the camera of the Hololens this is especially easy to do. The work that has been accomplished is photographed at certain locations, and the photographs are automatically integrated into the documentation. Thanks to Lion, the previously necessary cross-checking against paper-based checklists is now a thing of the past.