SICK Glare Puts the Gloss On High-Performance Detection

Sick Glare was developed initially with European pharmaceutical and medical device packaging manufacturers to meet tougher anti-tampering and counterfeit regulations. The sensor also enables reliable detection of a wide range of finishes, labels and coatings in industries from pharmaceutical through to packaging, timber, metal machining and food and drink.

High-gloss materials or finishes can cause conventional optical sensors to fail, explains David Hannaby, Product Manager at Sick for Presence Detection:

“The innovative detection concept of Glare turns a weakness of most sensors into a strong function for manufacturers and machine builders. Instead of sensors being dazzled by glare, it uses glare to do the sensing to achieve a highly-reliable process for detecting and assessing the gloss properties of shiny materials.  It can easily be configured to discriminate between different degrees of gloss to obtain precisely the required results.”

The SICK Glare is a compact (42.5 X 44 X 43.4mm wxhxl), all-in-one IP67 unit. It delivers robust presence detection and exceptional gloss optical property and discrimination performance even with high ambient light levels, deep colour, transparent tape, text and shiny or holographic finishes.

Primarily designed to detect and discriminate between gloss levels on flat surfaces, the SICK Glare is able to cope with ±5^o misalignment and variation, adding to its effectiveness – a function which other gloss sensors cannot match; the detection rate is highly resistant to vibration, too.

The SICK Glare comprises a central strip of eight LED emitters surrounded by two receiver lines, which enable its unique misalignment and tilting tolerance and vibration resistant performance, backed by the patented Delta-S sensor technology.

Installation and configuration are easy with the integral three button pad, allowing simple teach-in on the spot with typical objects, and several operating modes; a security key prevents operative override to eliminate ‘false nuisance’ readings. Alarm levels can be set to indicate contamination, declining standards and other parameters.

Light levels and sensing modes are adjustable to suit the application. The integrated I/O link facilitates integration with PLC and servo motor control and allows remote diagnostics and programming/reprogramming.  SICK Glare settings and programming are remotely held on PLC, enabling rapid switch-in if the sensor needs replacing.