VERYX 2.0, Key Technology’s new digital sorter, featuring a new mechanical layout, next-generation LED illumination, enhanced laser scanner technology, new powerful software-driven by artificial intelligence (AI), and more, will be available at Pack Expo Las Vegas.

“Since its introduction six years ago, VERYX has earned a reputation as the most advanced sorting technology for the food processing industry and has achieved tremendous market success. Over that time, our focus on continuous improvement has led the VERYX family to evolve. Now, VERYX 2.0 presents the next step up in sort performance and process value,” said Carson Brennan, president of Key Technology. “Driven by consumers that demand products of consistently high quality, the food processing industry is working to satisfy more stringent standards while improving profitability. VERYX 2.0 addresses these competing challenges.”

Powerful Features

According to a recent press release, the VERYX 2.0 belt sorters’ architecture houses all utility components within the frame, eliminating the need for an external enclosure. All door seals have been updated to a new, patented design.

Also, a next-generation LED illumination system on VERYX 2.0 delivers higher intensity light with less scatter and reduced shadowing effects, which improves the sorter’s FM and defect detection.

VERYX 2.0 also introduces Key’s enhanced laser scanner technology. New digital receivers produce the highest resolution available while delivering a signal that is more accurate and consistent.

Using AI technology, Key has also enhanced the functionality of its FM Alert™ software for VERYX 2.0. FM Alert is a monitoring tool that sends alerts if a critical FM event occurs and records a time-stamped image of each critical FM object detected by the sorter. It allows an operator to verify the critical FM has been sorted out and enables the processor to understand FM trends and research sources of possible contamination onto the line. AI techniques assist FM Alert in analyzing captured FM images to further improve the accuracy of its record-keeping.

A Suite of Data Analytics Solutions

VERYX 2.0 is available with Key’s powerful new Discovery™ suite of data analytics solutions, which turns the sorter into an IIoT-connected device that collects, analyzes, and shares data while sorting products. Key Discovery harnesses data about the sorting process and about every object flowing through the sorter to reveal patterns and trends that improve sorting and help control upstream and downstream processes. It provides actionable information that helps processors optimize product quality, maximize yield, reduce downtime and minimize labor to increase profitability.

With VERYX 2.0, Key has also enhanced its intelligent Sort-to-Grade® (STG) software. STG can categorize every product defect and the dimensions of every object and automatically makes optimal accept/reject decisions based on the target quality spec defined by the operator. Now, Key STG achieves more accurate dimensional grading of the product by using AI techniques to digitally separate clumps of products into distinct objects for the STG software to evaluate.

Each VERYX sensor views the same object at the same time. This enables Key’s Global View™ software to combine data from multiple sensors and stitch together whole-object views, so the sorter can consider each object in its entirety when making classification and sort decisions. VERYX’s shared line of sight for all its sensors also enables Pixel Fusion™, a unique technology that combines pixel-level input from multiple sensor types to produce higher contrasts for finding even the most difficult-to-detect FM and product defects.

Key’s VERYX 2.0 family includes belt- and chute-fed sorters of various sizes, configurable to address a range of product applications and production capacities. The producer can also equip VERYX 2.0 with cameras, laser sensors, and/or BioPrint® hyperspectral imaging technology to identify the color, size, shape, structural composition, and biological properties of each object.