TABLET FEEDER AND PHARMACY SYSTEM

• US 20150197391A1
• Filed: 01/21/2015
• Published: 07/16/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/21/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yuyama Manufacturing Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Yuyama Manufacturing Company Limited
• Inventors: YUYAMA, Shoji, KOIKE, Naoki, IMAI, Takafumi, KUMANO, Yoshinori, MAEDA, Akira, MITANI, Mitsuhiro
• Granted Patent: US 9,790,017 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 5/103 for packaging pills or tablets
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 83/04 for dispensing annular, disc-shaped, or spherical or like small articles, e.g. tablets or pills
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/18 Recessed drawers
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/62 in which the articles are stored in compartments in fixed receptacles
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0092 for assembling and dispensing of pharmaceutical articles medical dispensers for private use, A61J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/13 delivered from dispensers

Abstract

A tablet feeder comprises a device body, a plurality of tablet cassettes disposed on one face of the device body 1 in a vertical direction, each tablet cassette accommodating a plurality of tablets by kind, and a plurality of chutes disposed on one face of the device body 1 in a vertical direction and shifted in a horizontal direction, the chutes temporarily storing the tablets dispensed from the tablet cassette and having the dispensing portion at the downward portion thereof, the dispensing portion being capable of dispensing the tablets to a bottomed cylindrical tablet container.

Claims

1. A tablet feeder comprising:

a device body;

a plurality of tablet cassettes disposed on one face of the device body in a vertical direction, each tablet cassette accommodating a plurality of tablets by kind;

a plurality of chutes disposed on one face of the device body in a vertical direction and shifted in a horizontal direction, the chutes temporarily storing the tablets dispensed from the tablet cassette and having the dispensing portion at the downward portion thereof, the dispensing portion being capable of dispensing the tablets to a bottomed cylindrical tablet container.

2. The tablet feeder according to claim 1 further comprising a passage member for guiding the tablets dispensed from the tablet cassette to the other face side positioned at the opposite side to the one face, wherein the chutes are arranged at the other face of the device body in a vertical direction and capable of storing the tablets dispensed from the tablet cassette through the passage member.

3. The tablet feeder according to claim 2, wherein the tablet cassettes are further disposed on the opposite side to the one face of the device body in a vertical direction;

the chutes are disposed adjacent to the tablet cassettes arranged at the same face of the device body in a vertical direction.

4. The tablet feeder according to claim 2, wherein the tablet cassettes and chutes are respectively disposed on one and the other area separated in a horizontal direction of one and the other face of the device body.

5. The tablet feeder according to claim 2, wherein the passage member is formed so that the passage section in which the tablets move makes its cross-sectional area wider from the tablet cassettes toward the chutes.

6. The tablet feeder according to claim 2, wherein the passage member has a detection sensor for detecting the clog of tablets in the passage member.

7. The tablet feeder according to claim 1, wherein the each cassette is detachably attached to the device body independently from the attachment of the each corresponding chute to the device body, the corresponding chute keeps the condition of the attachment to the device body, the chute has an inlet and an outlet, the inlet is adjacent to the tablet cassette, the outlet extends from the one face of the device body.

8. The tablet feeder according to claim 1, wherein the chute extends in a downward direction away from the one face of the device body, the lower portion of the chute is provided so as to overlap the upper portion of the second chute provided at the lower side of the first chute, the second chute acts so as to guide a tablet container in which tables are dispensed from the first chute.

9. The tablet feeder according to claim 1, wherein the chute has an opening for dispensing tablets, each opening degree is adjustable depending on the size of the opening end of the tablet container where tablets are dispensed.

10. The tablet feeder according to claim 1, wherein the chute has a gate member which can open and close the opening, the tablets are dispensed through the opening of the chute when the opening is opened.

11. The tablet feeder according to claim 1, wherein the chute has a chute body and a cover which is detachable to the chute body.

12. The tablet feeder according to claim 11, wherein the chute has a lock mechanism to lock the cover in the condition that the cover is attached to the chute body.

13. The tablet feeder according to claim 1, further comprising a first control member to control a plurality of chutes so as to dispense tablets by driving one of the cassettes in which an appropriate number of tablets are accommodated, when the tablet which should be dispensed to the chute is included in the next prescription data, the first control member temporarily stops to dispense tablets from the tablet cassette until tablets are dispensed from the chute.

14. The tablet feeder according to claim 1, further comprising a display member displaying a standby prescription number.

15. The tablet feeder according to claim 14, wherein the display member is provided on the face except the one face, the other face or the bottom face of the device body so as to be able to change the direction of the display face.

16. A pharmacy system comprising;

a tablet feeder including a device body, a plurality of tablet cassettes provided on the one face of the device body in a vertical direction, and a plurality of chutes disposed on one face of the device body in a vertical direction and shifted in a horizontal direction, the chutes temporarily storing the tablets dispensed from the tablet cassette and having the dispensing portion at the downward portion thereof, the dispensing portion being capable of dispensing the tablets to a bottomed cylindrical tablet container;

a tablet delivery area extending from one end side to one direction of the other end side, wherein

the tablet feeder is disposed so that one face or the other face thereof is positioned at the straight line extending from the other direction crossing the one direction with respect to the tablet delivery area.

17. A pharmacy system comprising;

a tablet feeder including a device body, a plurality of tablet cassettes respectively provided on the one face and the other face of the device body in a vertical direction, and a plurality of chutes disposed on the face opposed to the face on which the tablet cassettes are provided in a vertical direction and shifted in a horizontal direction, the chutes temporarily storing the tablets dispensed from the tablet cassette and having the dispensing portion at the downward portion thereof, the dispensing portion being capable of dispensing the tablets to a bottomed cylindrical tablet container;

a tablet delivery area extending from one end side to one direction of the other end side, wherein

the tablet feeder is disposed so that one face or the other face thereof is positioned at the straight line extending from the other direction crossing the one direction with respect to the tablet delivery area.

18. A pharmacy system comprising;

a tablet feeder including a device body, a plurality of tablet cassettes provided on the one face of the device body in a vertical direction, and a plurality of chutes disposed on one face of the device body in a vertical direction and shifted in a horizontal direction, the chutes temporarily storing the tablets dispensed from the tablet cassette and having the dispensing portion at the downward portion thereof, the dispensing portion being capable of dispensing the tablets to a bottomed cylindrical tablet container;

a tablet delivery area extending from one end side to one direction of the other end side, wherein

the two tablet feeders are provided so that one face of one of them and the other opposite face of the other of them are back to back, the one face or the other opposite face are positioned on the straight line extending to the other direction crossing the one direction.