Kraft Foods conserves time of technical team by upgrading to image-based barcode readers

Allergen management is playing an increasingly

important role in the packaged foods industry.

Manufacturers are taking better care to avoid labeling

mix-ups that sometimes lead to expensive recalls and

potential liability concerns. In order to address these

matters, Kraft Foods Canada scans each label after it

has been affixed on the packaging line to ensure that

it matches the package contents. The laser scanners

used in the past to inspect the company’s barbeque

sauce products were subject to read failures, especially

when changing over to a new product with the label

in a different location. A technician had to rush to

the line to adjust the position of the barcode scanner

to re-center the new label into the path of the laser

or the scanner would produce a lot of no-reads.

Kraft solved the problem by switching to Cognex

image-based DataMan® 300 barcode readers that can

read any label within their five inch by five inch field of

view without requiring adjustment. “The outstanding

performance of the DataMan 300 barcode readers saves

the technical team a considerable amount of time while

protecting customers by ensuring the accuracy of our

labels,” said Dave Fortin, Technician for Kraft Foods

Canada, Saint-Laurent, Québec.

Kraft Foods produces biscuits, candy, beverages, cheese,

grocery products and convenient meals under the

Cadbury, Jacobs, Kraft, LU, Maxwell House, Milka,

Nabisco, Oreo, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Tang and

Trident brands in approximately 170 countries. The

company had 2011 revenue of $54.4 billion. Kraft is

the leading packaged goods company in Canada,

tracing it roots to the vision of James Lewis Kraft of

Stevensville, Ontario.

Customer Success Story

“ The outstanding performance of the DataMan 300 barcode readers saves the technical team a considerable amount of time while protecting customers by ensuring the accuracy of our labels. ” Dave Fortin

Technician for Kraft Foods Canada, Saint-Laurent, Québec

Summary

ChallengeThe previous laser scanners used to inspect Kraft’s barbeque sauce products were producing read failures, especially when the product label position changed on various products. To avoid excessive no-reads, a technician had to adjust the position of the barcode scanner to re-center the new label into the path of the laser.

SolutionKraft Foods Canada solved the problem by switching to image-based DataMan® 300 barcode readers from Cognex that can read any label within their five inch by five inch field of view without requiring adjustment.

BenefitsThe image-based reader virtually eliminated read failures, providing 99.9%+ read rates. No adjustment is required so the technical staff has been freed from managing the product changeovers.

Customer Name: Kraft Foods

Industry: Food

Application: 1-D barcode reading

Cognex Product: DataMan barcode readers

Kraft Foods, Canada | DataMan Barcode Readers http://www.cognex.com/300

1

Difficult code reading challengeThe barbeque sauce product line at the Saint-Laurent plant produces 30

different stock keeping units (SKUs) at a rate of up to 265 bottles per

minute. Ensuring that each individual package has the correct label is

critical because some of the products have ingredients such as mustard

and egg that may cause allergic reactions to certain customers. When

the line is changed over to produce a different SKU number, the proper

labels are manually loaded into the filling machine.

However, the possibility exists that the machine operator might load

the wrong labels or that a few wrong labels might be accidentally

mixed in with the correct labels. To address this concern, Kraft

originally used laser-based barcode scanners to read the 1-D barcode

on each label as it passed by on the line and send the results to the

programmable logic controller (PLC) that runs the machine. The PLC

compared the code to the proper value and if the code was wrong

the package was ejected from the line.

The problem with the laser scanners is that they are only capable of

reading codes located within a small field of view. The label design is

market driven so codes may be positioned at any location depending

on the designer’s decision. As a result, when the labels are changed the

code may be in a different position. This required that the position of

the laser scanners be adjusted whenever the product line changed to a

new SKU number, taking a considerable amount of the technical team’s

time. Yet even when the laser scanners were positioned perfectly they

still often failed to read the code.

The technical team was repeatedly called out to make adjustments to the

1-D laser scanners and often struggled to determine why they generated

no-read failures. “My team was frequently called upon to adjust the code

readers,” Fortin said. “These calls made it difficult for us to fulfill other

responsibilities. A considerable amount of time was also required on the

part of the production team to inspect each of the packages that could

not be read by the scanner to make sure it was correct.”

Move to image-based technologyThe basic idea behind image-based technology is that the reader

captures an image and uses a series of algorithms to process the

image to make it easier to read. A typical algorithm searches the

entire image for the code and identifies the position and orientation

of the code for easy reading. Other algorithms handle degradations in

code quality due to differences in material types and surfaces.

The DataMan 300 image-based barcode reader captures an image of the entire label with the necessary resolution to easily read the code regardless of its position and in spite of degradation or print quality.

The DataMan 300 also provides built-in Ethernet which makes it easy to communicate with a PLC and the plant network

Customer Success Story

Palmieri recommended the Cognex DataMan 300 image-based

barcode reader because its 800 x 600 pixel image resolution provides

a five inch by five inch field of view which is sufficient enough to

capture an image of the entire label with the necessary resolution

to easily read the code regardless of its position and in spite of

degradation or print quality. “The DataMan 300 also provides built-in

Ethernet which makes it easy to communicate with a PLC and the

plant network at a very affordable price,” Palmieri said.

The DataMan 300 uses a new 1DMax+™ algorithm, which incorporates

Hotbars™ technology designed to handle difficult linear barcode-reading

applications on high speed lines.

Kraft Foods, Canada | DataMan Barcode Readers http://www.cognex.com/300

2

The 2DMax+™ algorithm is also an upgrade from existing 2DMax

technology offering tremendous enhancements in handling damaged

codes at high line rates and poorly marked or extremely damaged codes.

The DataMan 300 series offers the flexibility of integrated and

controllable modular lighting and optics. The user can purchase just

one model and choose the appropriate lens for their required working

distance and field of view. The controllable, field changeable lighting

modules allow the user to create the best possible lighting for their

part, ensuring optimal read rates.

Near perfect code reading accuracyFortin started by replacing a laser scanner with a DataMan 300

barcode reader in one scan location on the barbeque sauce line.

From the moment it was installed, the image-based reader virtually

eliminated read failures, providing 99.9%+ read rates. Kraft made the

decision to replace the three other barcode readers on the barbeque

line with the DataMan 300. Four barcode readers are required on

the line because it has four spurs. Since then the company has also

replaced the laser scanners on three additional lines with the

DataMan 300. Read performance has continued to be outstanding

with 99.9%+ accuracy. No adjustment is required so the technical

staff has been freed from the need to adjust the position of the

reader during changeovers.

Fortin is able to do the installation and setup of the DataMan 300

code readers himself. He uses pan-and-tilt brackets that he buys

with each code reader to mount the readers in place. He connects

the reader to a personal computer and adjusts the light and focus

Customer Success Story

DataMan Barcode Readers

The benefits of image-based readers combined with the ease-of-use and cost of laser scanners, featuring:

• Highest read rates• No moving parts• Performance feedback• Industrial connectivity

© Copyright 2013, Cognex Corporation. All information in this document is subject to change without notice. All Rights Reserved. DataMan and Cognex are registered trademarks of Cognex Corporation. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.Lit. No. VCS01-2013-02

AmericasUnited States, East +1 508 650 3000United States, West +1 650 969 8412United States, South +1 615 844 6158United States, Detroit +1 248 668 5100United States, Chicago +1 630 649 6300Canada +1 905 634 2726Mexico +52 81 5030 7258Central America +52 81 5030 7258South America +1 909 247 0445Brazil +55 47 8804 0140

EuropeAustria +43 1 23060 3430Belgium +32 2 8080 692France +33 1 4777 1550Germany +49 721 6639 0Hungary +36 1 501 0650Ireland +353 1 825 4420Italy +39 02 6747 1200Netherlands +31 208 080 377Poland +48 71 776 0752Spain +34 93 445 67 78Sweden +46 21 14 55 88Switzerland +41 71 313 06 05 Turkey +90 212 371 8561United Kingdom +44 1327 856 040

AsiaChina +86 21 5050 9922India +9120 4014 7840Japan +81 3 5977 5400Korea +82 2 539 9047Singapore +65 632 55 700Taiwan +886 3 578 0060

www.cognex.comCorporate HeadquartersOne Vision Drive Natick, MA 01760 USATel: +1 508 650 3000 Fax: +1 508 650 3344

“ DataMan 300 barcode readers have significantly improved the efficiency of packaging lines at Kraft Foods Canada,” said Fortin. ”

on the camera. He connects the reader to a PLC via an Ethernet

connection. The camera supports all popular PLC communications

protocols. A photodetector in the inspection station provides a signal

to the PLC that a bottle is in the station ready for inspection. The

PLC instructs the barcode reader to capture an image and the barcode

reader sends the code to the PLC. If the code does not match the

product that is currently being run on the line, the PLC transfers the

bottle to a reject conveyor. Fortin can install a DataMan camera in

about two hours.

“DataMan 300 barcode readers have significantly improved the

efficiency of packaging lines at Kraft Foods Canada,” Fortin

concluded. “In the past our technical team had to spend a

considerable amount of time adjusting laser scanners on various

packaging lines. The production staff also had to spend time dealing

with the many bottles with good labels that the laser scanners were

not able to read. The new image-based barcode readers have solved

these problems by providing near-perfect read rates. They are also

economical to purchase and easy to install and maintain.”

3