Tablet packing apparatus

• US 6,119,737 A
• Filed: 06/16/1998
• Issued: 09/19/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 06/17/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Yuyama Manufacturing Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Yuyama Manufacturing Company Limited
• Inventors: Hayashi, Hirotaka, Hayashi, Hirofumi, Sugimoto, Kouichi, Yuyama, Shoji, Honda, Shinichi, Kohama, Akitomi, Kodama, Tsuyoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Recla, Henry J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): DEVORE, PETER T
• Application Number:
  US09/097,733
• Time in Patent Office: 826 Days
• Field of Search: 141/170, 141/173, 141/174, 141/100, 141/102, 141/104, 141/105, 141/106, 141/107, 141/83, 141/98, 141/165, 141/171, 53/154, 53/168, 53/54, 53/502, 414/277, 414/280, 414/281, 414/282, 414/283, 221/224, 221/254, 221/258
• US Class Current: 141/104
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 5/103 for packaging pills or tablets
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 47/1478 by means of pick-up devices, the container remaining immobile

Abstract

A tablet packing apparatus of the present invention have a tablet feeding section 2 for feeding tablets, tablet vessel feeding sections 3 for feeding tablet vessels 11, and a tablet packing section 4 for packing tablets fed from the tablet feeding section 2, into a tablet vessel 11 fed from the tablet vessel feeding sections 3. The tablet feeding section comprises a plurality of feeder vessels 36 for storing different types of tablets and a tablet conveyor 27 for conveying the tablets discharged from the feeder vessels 36, to the tablet packing section 4. In the apparatus, the following restoring process is executed. After the apparatus is stopped due to abnormality, the tablets remaining in the guide paths 31 and the tablets conveyor means 27 are conveyed to the tablet packing section 4 by the tablets conveyor means 27 to recover them into the tablet vessel 11 and then the tablet vessel 11 is transferred to the container chamber 6 of the storage shelves 1.

Claims

1. A tablet packing apparatus having a tablet feeding section for feeding tablets, tablet vessel feeding sections for feeding tablet vessels, and a tablet packing section for packing tablets fed from the tablet feeding section, into a tablet vessel fed from the tablet vessel feeding sections, the tablet feeding section comprising:

a plurality of feeder vessels for storing different types of tablets for each feeder vessel and discharging relevant tablets on the basis of prescription data;

tablet conveyor means for conveying the tablets, discharged from the feeder vessels, to the tablet packing section;

feeder shelves which accommodate one or more stacks of the feeder vessels; and

one or more common guide paths which vertically extend in the feeder shelves and into which tablet discharging outlets of the feeder vessels open;

wherein a path shutter which can be closed and opened is provided at the lower end of the one or more common guide paths;

wherein at least two columns of the feeder shelves are disposed in parallel and a common hopper for receiving tablets discharged through the guide paths in the feeder shelves is provided;

wherein the tablet conveyor means comprises at least two conveyor paths which are disposed in parallel below the common hopper and conveyor vessels which are disposed on the conveyor paths so as to be capable of reciprocating; and

wherein the common hopper comprises distributing means capable of feeding any one of the conveyor vessels with tablets.

2. A tablet packing apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the common hopper comprises a hopper shutter which can be closed and opened to retain tablets temporarily.

3. A tablet packing apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the hopper shutter can be closed and opened with a closing/opening switch.

4. A tablet packing apparatus having a tablet feeding section for feeding tablets, tablet vessel feeding sections for feeding tablet vessels, and a tablet packing section for packing tablets fed from the tablet feeding section, into a tablet vessel fed from the tablet vessel feeding sections, the tablet vessel feeding section comprising:

a stock container for storing a plurality of the tablet vessels;

vessel takeout means for taking out a tablet vessel from the stock container; and

tablet vessel conveying means for conveying the tablet vessel taken out by the vessel takeout means;

wherein the vessel takeout means comprises;

vessel lifting members which are shaped like teeth of a comb so as to substantially horizontally project toward the inside of the stock container; and

elevating means for elevating the vessel lifting members to takeout the tablet vessel.

5. A tablet packing apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein the vessel takeout means further comprises removing means for removing the tablet vessels held on the vessel lifting members except one tablet vessel and for returning the tablet vessels into the stock container.

6. A tablet apparatus having a tablet feeding section for feeding tablets, tablet vessel feeding sections for feeding tablet vessels, and a tablet packing section for packing tablets fed from the tablet feeding sections, into a tablet vessel fed from the tablet vessel feeding sections, the tablet packing section comprising:

orientation judging means for judging the orientation of the tablet vessel fed from the tablet vessel feeding sections;

orientation reversing means for reversing the orientation of the tablet vessel; and

controlling means for actuating and controlling the orientation reversing means on the basis of a judgment given by the orientation judging means to cause the opening of the tablet vessel to face upward;

wherein the orientation reversing means comprises a cylinder of which a center part is rotatable supported so that when the cylinder rotates to a receiving position, a first opening of the cylinder is ready to receive the tablet vessel from the tablet vessel feeding sections and a second opening of the cylinder is shut with a shutter plate, and then the cylinder is rotated in a forward or a reverse direction to point the first opening or the second opening downward.

7. A tablet packing apparatus having a tablet feeding section for feeding tablets, tablet vessel feeding sections for feeding tablet vessels, and a tablet packing section for packing tablets, fed from the tablet feeding sections, into a tablet vessel fed from the tablet vessel feeding sections, the tablet packing section comprising:

a rotatable, disc-like, vessel holder section having on the outer circumference thereof a plurality of vessel receiving sections which are capable of holding the tablet vessels, so that any one of the vessel receiving sections can be positioned at a packing position, the vessel receiving sections being capable of holding tablet vessels of different sizes for each vessel receiving section;

size detecting means for detecting the sizes of the tablet vessels; and

controlling means for actuating and controlling the vessel holder section on the basis of a detection signal given by the size detecting means to position, at a packing position, the vessel receiving section corresponding to a desired size of tablet vessel.

8. A tablet packing apparatus having a tablet feeding section for feeding tablets, tablet vessel feeding sections for feeding tablet vessels, and a tablet packing section for packing tablets fed from the tablet feeding sections, into a tablet vessel fed from the tablet vessel feeding sections, the tablet packing apparatus further comprising:

storage shelves having a plurality of container chambers for individually storing a tablet vessel packed with tablets and having display means for displaying relevant data out of prescription data upon the storage of a tablet vessel into one of the container chambers;

gripping means for gripping a tablet vessel packed with tablets;

packed vessel delivering means for delivering the tablet vessel from the packing position to a container chamber in the storage shelves with the travel of the gripping means;

vessel detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of a tablet vessel in each container chamber in the storage shelves; and

controlling means for actuating and controlling the packed vessel delivering means on the basis of a detection signal provided by the vessel detecting means to deliver a tablet vessel to a vacant container chamber from which the tablet vessel could be taken out most easily.

9. A tablet packing apparatus having a tablet feeding section for feeding tablets, tablet vessel feeding sections for feeding tablet vessels, and a tablet packing section for packing tablets fed from the tablet feeding sections, into a tablet vessel fed from the tablet vessel feeding sections, the tablet packing apparatus further comprising:

storage shelves having a plurality of container chambers for individually storing a tablet vessel packed with tablets and having display means for displaying relevant data out of prescription data upon the storage of a tablet vessel into one of the container chambers;

gripping means for gripping a tablet vessel packed with tablets;

packed vessel delivering means for delivering the tablet vessel from the packing position to a container chamber in the storage shelves with the travel of the gripping means;

vessel detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of a tablet vessel in each container chamber in the storage shelves; and

controlling means for actuating and controlling the packed vessel delivering means on the basis of a detection signal provided by the vessel detecting means to deliver a tablet vessel to a vacant container chamber to which the tablet vessel could be delivered in the shortest period of time.

10. A tablet packing apparatus in which a given number of tablets are packed into each tablet vessel of a type at a packing position, the tablet packing apparatus comprising:

stock containers for storing tablet vessels of which the sizes are different for each stock container;

vessel takeout means for taking out a tablet vessel from the stock containers;

tablet vessel feeding means for conveying the tablet vessel taken out by the vessel takeout means;

storage shelves having a plurality of container chambers for individually storing a tablet vessel packed with tablets;

packed vessel delivering means which has gripping means for gripping a tablet vessel and which delivers the tablet vessel from the tablet packing position to a container chamber in the storage shelves with the travel of the gripping means; and

controlling means for causing the vessel takeout means and the tablet vessel feeding means to supply from a stock container a tablet vessel having the same size as the tablet vessel which has been just delivered to a container chamber in the storage shelves by the packed vessel delivering means.

11. A tablet packing apparatus in which a given number of tablets are packed into each tablet vessel of a type at a packing position, the tablet packing apparatus comprising:

stock containers for storing tablet vessels of which the sizes are different for each stock container;

vessel takeout means for taking out a tablet vessel from the stock containers;

tablet vessel feeding means for conveying the tablet vessel taken out by the vessel takeout means;

size detecting means for detecting the size of the tablet vessel delivered by the tablet vessel feeding means;

proper vessel judging means for judging whether the tablet vessel has a desired size or not by the comparison between a first size data of tablet vessel according to prescription data and a second size data of the tablet vessel detected by the size detecting means; and

alarm means for alarming an operator in the case that the tablet vessel has been judged not to have the desired size on the basis of judgment signal from the proper vessel judging means.

12. A tablet packing apparatus as claimed in claim 11, further comprising eliminating means for eliminating the tablet vessel which has been judged not to have a desired size by the proper vessel judging means.

13. A tablet packing apparatus as claimed in claim 12, further comprising controlling means for actuating and controlling the vessel takeout means and the tablet vessel feeding means to feed a tablet vessel of a desired size from one of the stock containers in the case that the eliminating means has eliminated a tablet vessel.

14. A tablet packing apparatus having a tablet feeding section for feeding tablets, tablet vessel feeding sections for feeding tablet vessels, and a tablet packing section for packing tablets fed from the tablet feeding sections, into a tablet vessel fed from the tablet vessel feeding sections,

wherein the tablet feeding section comprises a plurality of feeder vessels for storing different types of tablets, guide paths for holding tablets discharged from the tablet feeding section, and conveyor means for conveying the tablets held in the guide paths to the tablet packing section, and

wherein the tablet packing apparatus further comprises:

storage shelves having a plurality of container chambers for individually storing a tablet vessel packed with tablets at the tablet packing section;

control means for executing a restoring process, wherein, after the apparatus is stopped due to an abnormality, the tablets remaining in the guide paths and the conveyor means are conveyed to the tablet packing section by the conveyor means to recover them into the tablet vessel and then the tablet vessel is transferred to the container chamber of the storage shelves; and

a display section for indicating that the tablet vessel, in which recovered tablets are packed, is transferred to the container chamber of the storage shelves.

15. A tablet packing apparatus as claimed in claim 14, wherein the display section distinctly indicates which feeder vessel is the feeder vessel from which the recovered tablets were discharged.

16. A tablet packing apparatus as claimed in claim 14, wherein it is selectable whether the remaining tablet packing process is resumed based on previous processing data without executing the restoring process, or whether the previous processing data is cleared to execute the restoring process.