Tablet printing apparatus

• US 10,486,440 B2
• Filed: 06/25/2018
• Issued: 11/26/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/26/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Shibaura Mechatronics Corporation
• Original Assignee: Shibaura Mechatronics Corporation
• Inventors: Hirano, Azusa, Tsuruoka, Yasutsugu, Haijima, Hironori, Kuribayashi, Toru
• Primary Examiner(s): Polk, Sharon A.
• Application Number:
  US16/017,397
• Publication Number:
  US 20180370256A1
• Time in Patent Office: 519 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 3/007 Marking tablets or the like apparatus for printing on tablets or the like B41F17/36
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/007 Conveyor belts or like feeding devices
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/0085 Using suction for maintaining printing material flat on rotatable drums B41J13/226
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/407 for marking on special material
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 21/2036 for retaining the load on the load-carrying surface individual suction grippers B65G17/323

Abstract

According to one embodiment, a tablet printing apparatus performs printing by using an inkjet print head device for a tablet conveyed by a conveying device. The conveying device includes a conveyor belt having a suction hole and configured to convey the tablet while sucking the tablet from the suction hole. The tablet printing apparatus further includes a rectifying board arranged at a distance from the conveyor belt so as to face a surface of the conveyor belt. The rectifying board has a gas permeability to let an airflow flowing toward the suction hole pass therethrough.

Claims

1. A tablet printing apparatus performing printing by using an inkjet print head device for a tablet conveyed by a conveying device, wherein

the conveying device includes

a conveyor belt having a plurality of suction holes and configured to convey the tablet while sucking and holding the tablet by any of the suction holes, and

a rectifying board having a gas permeability and arranged so that an airflow flowing toward any of the suction holes can pass through the rectifying board, and

the rectifying board is arranged opposite to the conveyor belt across the tablet conveyed by the conveyor belt at a distance from the conveyor belt so as to face a surface of the conveyor belt.

2. The tablet printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rectifying board is arranged to face a curved surface of the conveyor belt.

3. The tablet printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rectifying board includes a receiving surface configured to receive a tablet falling from the surface of the conveyor belt.

4. The tablet printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a housing arranged at a distance from the conveyor belt so as to face the surface of the conveyor belt, and configured to house the print head device,

wherein the rectifying board is arranged relative to the housing so as to be located outside the housing.

5. The tablet printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a supply device configured to supply the tablet;

a first printing device configured to perform printing on the tablet supplied by the supply device;

a second printing device configured to perform printing on the tablet supplied by the supply device; and

a collecting device configured to collect the tablet having undergone the printing by either one or both of the first printing device and the second printing device, wherein

the supply device, the first printing device, and the second printing device include the conveyor belt, and

the first printing device and the second printing device include the print head device.

6. The tablet printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rectifying board includes a plurality of through holes, and is arranged horizontally.

7. The tablet printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rectifying board includes a plurality of through holes, and is arranged to be inclined to a horizontal direction.

8. The tablet printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of rectifying boards arranged so as to sandwich a space between an upper surface of the rectifying board and a lower surface of the conveyor belt, the rectifying boards each having a gas permeability and arranged so that an airflow flowing toward any of the suction holes can pass through the rectifying boards.

9. The tablet printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein gas permeability volume of the rectifying board is variable.

10. A tablet printing apparatus performing printing by using an inkjet print head device for a tablet conveyed by a conveying device, wherein

the conveying device includes

a conveyor belt having a plurality of suction holes and configured to convey the tablet while sucking and holding the tablet by any of the suction holes, and

a rectifying board having a gas permeability and arranged so that an airflow flowing toward any of the suction holes can pass through the rectifying board, and

the rectifying board is arranged to face the conveyor belt configured to convey the tablet by sucking the tablet from above.

11. The tablet printing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the rectifying board includes a receiving surface configured to receive a tablet falling from the surface of the conveyor belt.