Medicine Packaging Apparatus And Method Of Packaging Medicine

• US 20100043349A1
• Filed: 08/18/2007
• Published: 02/25/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/05/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yuyama Manufacturing Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Yuyama Manufacturing Company Limited
• Inventors: Yuyama, Hiroyuki, Sugimoto, Tomohiro
• Granted Patent: US 8,020,356 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 53/52
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 39/006 Grids for introducing bottles into cases
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 5/103 for packaging pills or tablets
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 57/10 responsive to absence, presence, abnormal feed, or misplacement of articles or materials to be packaged
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 57/14 and operating to control, or stop, the feed of articles or material to be packaged
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 61/025 for applying, e.g. printing, code or date marks on material prior to packaging
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 9/073 the web having intermittent motion B65B9/08 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0092 for assembling and dispensing of pharmaceutical articles medical dispensers for private use, A61J7/00

Abstract

There is provided a medicine packaging apparatus, which is capable of rapidly coping with errors occurring during processes. The medicine packaging apparatus includes: a medicine supply means 1 for supplying a medicine according to prescription data; a medicine standby means 11 for temporarily holding the medicine supplied by the medicine supply means 1 and having the medicine stand by; a printing means 2 for printing relevant data on a packaging paper according to the prescription data; a packaging paper conveyance means for conveying a packaging paper 15; a medicine packaging means 3 for packaging the medicine supplied by the medicine supply means 1 into the packaging paper 15 in a packaging position; and a control means 4 for allowing the packaging paper conveyance means to convey a relevant portion of the packaging paper 15, on which the relevant data is printed by the printing means 2, to the packaging position and allowing the medicine packaging means to package the corresponding medicine standing by in the medicine standby means 11.

Claims

1. A medicine packaging apparatus, comprising:

a medicine supply means for supplying a medicine according to a prescription data;

a medicine standby means for temporarily holding the medicine supplied by the medicine supply means and having the medicine stand by;

a printing means for printing a relevant data on a packaging paper according to the prescription data;

a packaging paper conveyance means for conveying the packaging paper;

a medicine packaging means for packaging the medicine supplied by the medicine supply means into the packaging paper in a packaging position; and

a control means for allowing the packaging paper conveyance means to convey a relevant portion of the packaging paper, on which the relevant data is printed by the printing means, to the packaging position and allowing the medicine packaging means to package the corresponding medicine standing by in the medicine standby means.

2. The medicine packaging apparatus of claim 1, wherein the apparatus further comprises a medicine detecting means for detecting the medicine supplied to the medicine standby means by the medicine supply means, and

wherein the control means determines whether the medicine stands by in the medicine standby means based on a detection signal from the medicine detecting means.

3. The medicine packaging apparatus of claim 1, wherein the medicine standby means includes a passage opening and closing means for opening and closing a medicine passage extending from the medicine supply means to the medicine packaging means at any position.

4. The medicine packaging apparatus of claim 3, wherein the passage opening and closing means is provided in at least two places, one of the places corresponding to one packaging in a printing position of the packaging paper at the printing means, the other of the places corresponding to one packaging in the packaging position of the packaging paper at the medicine packaging means.

5. The medicine packaging apparatus of claim 3, wherein as for the passage opening and closing means, as many as or more than conveyance pitches of the packaging paper from a printing position of the packaging paper at the printing means to the packaging position of the packaging paper at the medicine packaging means are provided.

6. The medicine packaging apparatus of claim 3, wherein the medicine supply means includes:

medicine accommodating portions, each of the medicine accommodating portions configured to accommodate one kind of a medicine; and

a medicine collecting portion configured to collect the medicines supplied from each of the medicine accommodating portions to one place, and

wherein the passage opening and closing means is provided at the medicine collecting portion.

7. The medicine packaging apparatus of claim 6, wherein the apparatus further comprises a medicine detecting means for detecting the medicine supplied to the medicine standby means by the medicine supply means,

wherein the apparatus further comprises a memory means for storing a data correlating to a position information of each of the medicine accommodating portions and a medicine information of the medicine accommodated in each of the medicine accommodating portions, wherein the medicine information includes use-by dates of the medicines accommodated in the medicine accommodating portions, and

wherein the control means allows the printing means to print the use-by date of the medicine on the packaging paper with reference to the data stored in the memory means when the control means determines the medicine standing by in the medicine standby means to be appropriate based on a detection result from the medicine detecting means.

8. The medicine packaging apparatus of claim 6, wherein the apparatus further comprises a memory means for storing a data correlating to a position information of each of the medicine accommodating portions and a medicine information of the medicine accommodated in each of the medicine accommodating portions, wherein the medicine information includes lot numbers inherent to the medicines accommodated in the medicine accommodating portions, and

wherein the control means specifies the medicine accommodating portion accommodating the relevant medicine with reference to the data of the memory means based on the prescription data and begins supply of the medicine while allowing the printing means to print the lot number of the medicine on the packaging paper.

9. The medicine packaging apparatus of claim 7, wherein the memory means further stores an error information, and

wherein the control means allows the printing means to print the error information on the packaging paper when the medicine based on the prescription data is not detected by the medicine detecting means.

12. The medicine packaging apparatus of claim 8, wherein the apparatus further comprises a medicine detecting means for detecting the medicine supplied to the medicine standby means by the medicine supply means,

wherein the memory means further stores an error information, and

wherein the control means allows the printing means to print the error information on the packaging paper when the medicine based on the prescription data is not detected by the medicine detecting means.

10. A method of packaging a medicine, comprising the following steps:

a medicine supplying step for supplying a relevant medicine according to a prescription data;

a medicine standby step for allowing the supplied medicine to temporarily stand by;

a medicine detecting step for detecting the standing by medicine;

a printing step for printing a packaging paper when the medicine based on the prescription data is detected;

a conveying step for conveying the packaging paper; and

a packaging step for supplying the temporarily standing by medicine to a printed portion of the packaging paper and packaging the medicine,

wherein the steps are performed in sequence.

11. The medicine packaging method of claim 10, wherein the conveying step is performed at conveyance pitches corresponding to the number of packaging of the packaging paper from a printing position in which the packaging paper is printed to a packaging position in which the medicine is packaged into the packaging paper, and

wherein the medicine is packaged into the packaging paper after the medicine is sequentially moved to standby positions corresponding to the number of the conveyance pitches by the medicine standby step.