Our force sensor technology is designed for leak testing of flexible packaging such as IV bags, pouches, and blister packs. The non-destructive container closure integrity test can be performed manually on laboratory equipment as well as on fully automatic, high-speed inline testing systems with up to 150 samples per minute.
Why force sensor inspection?
The inspection technology is ideally suited for both small and large-volume parenteral preparations in flexible containers.
Working principle of force sensor technology
Sensitive force sensors are used to measure forces applied by the flexible packaging to test for leakages. The force sensor technology measures force decay on flexible containers when either mechanically squeezed or vacuum expansion is applied. Flexible packages with leakages apply different forces than non-leaky packages as the internal pressure of the packages changes differently over time.
There are two different modes for the force sensor leak testing. Force decay on flexible containers that are mechanically squeezed or put into vacuum.
Force sensor – vacuum mode
The chamber is designed to fit the outside dimensions of the test samples. The container is squeezed on the body area which pushes against the foil and transfers the force onto the sensor. The test samples are hermetically sealed inside the vacuum test which is then evacuated. A force sensor measures the expansion force of the flexible sample or each cavity.
This approach is applicable for Flow Wrap packages, IV Bags, Suture Packs and Blisters (cavities are individually tested).
Force sensor – regular mode
The samples are placed horizontally or vertically into a test station. The sample is compressed in-between two opposing plates. One of the plates is fixed and the other is a moving plate, which is attached to a force sensor. The resulting forces are accurately recorded at a given time period. Between the beginning and the end of the testing phase the force level is monitored and an occurring force difference is recorded. Based on the force difference, which is caused by gas or liquid escaping through a potential leakage, a good or bad decisioncan be reached.
This approach is applicable for IV Bags, IV Bags within a secondary bag and Multi-chamber IV Bags.
Advantages of our force sensor leak detection solutions
- Non-destructive leak detection on flexible packages
- Excellent test sensitivity to detect fine leaks down to 1 μm
- Short cycle time (5-6 test cycles/min)
- Accurate and validated measurements
- Automatic loading of the parameter set by using RFID format part recognition
