Secured cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system

• US 6,363,687 B1
• Filed: 03/06/2000
• Issued: 04/02/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/06/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Luciano Packaging Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Luciano Packaging Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Smith, Richard L., Luciano, Robert A., Luciano, Lawrence W.
• Primary Examiner(s): KIM, EUGENE LEE
• Application Number:
  US09/519,196
• Time in Patent Office: 757 Days
• Field of Search: 535/01, 53/55, 531/68, 534/37, 534/11, 531/312, 534/93, 539/00, 534/95, 414/740, 414/739
• US Class Current: 53/55
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 37/08 by rotary feeders
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 5/103 for packaging pills or tablets
• 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 57/20 Applications of counting devices for controlling the feed of articles other applications B65B65/08
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 53/90 Capsules

Abstract

The present invention tablet filler device system includes a plurality of individually secured cells with a tablet hopper and drum functionally adapted to regulate and orient gravity outflow of tablets, a gravity feed chute connected to and downstream from the hopper to singularly align and feed tablets, and a rotatable starwheel having slots to receive tablets from the feed chute to move tablets to a container filling substation. There is also a tablet inspection mechanism located on the feed chute to discern quality characteristics of tablets moving down the feed chute in accordance with a predetermined standard, and a tablet ejector to eject unacceptable tablets. A stepper drive motor with a counter capability for driving the starwheel in a step fashion for controlled release of tablets is included, and an optional counting verification sensor. The cells are interconnected for computer controlled automatic order filling for a variety of tablet types and container sizes.

Claims

1. A secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system which comprises:

I.] A plurality of individually secured cells, each cell having;

(a) a master security enclosure having solid walls and an access door with a locking mechanism, having an inlet for feeding empty bottles and having an outlet for removing filled, capped bottles;

(b) conveyor means for conveying bottles through said inlet of said master security enclosure and through a plurality of operation stations within said master security enclosure and through said outlet;

(c) a first operation station being a tablet filling station having a tablet hopper arrangement consisting of at least one hopper with all of said at least one hopper being for a single type of tablet for a single type of tablet, said tablet filling station including at least one tablet filler, said hopper arrangement being connected to said at least one tablet filler, said at least one tablet filler having an egress located above said bottle conveyor means;

(d) a second operation station being an automated cap feeder located downstream from said tablet filler along said conveyance means for applying a secured cap to a bottle after it has been filled;

(e) a plurality of controllers, at least one controller being connected to said conveyance means, at least one controller being connected to said tablet hopper arrangement and at least one controller being connected to said cap feeder;

II.] a master conveyor means connected to the individual conveyor means of each of said plurality of secured cells, said master conveyor means being connected to said conveyor means of said individual cells downstream from each outlet of said individual cells for accumulation of all tablet-filled bottles exiting said individual cells for order consolidation;

III.] an order verification means located at said master conveyance means;

IV.] a print and label application means located downstream from said order verification means on said master conveyance means; and

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V.] a master computer control system having a central computer which is interconnected with said plurality of controllers, said central computer having sufficient software to be programmable and being functionally connected and adapted to control coordinated operation each of said plurality of individually secured cells, and said individually secured cell conveyor means and all of said controllers and all of said operation stations, and said master conveyor means so as to sequentially move a plurality of bottles through said each inlet of each individually secured cell, fill said bottles with a predetermined number of tablets and cap said bottles and subsequently move said bottles through the outlet of each individually secured cell, said master computer control system also having sufficient software and being functionally connected to said order verification means and said print and label application means so as to identify each bottle from each of said plurality of individually secured cell, to match each said bottle to an order, to verify the match of the order and to print an appropriate order label and apply it to each said bottle.

2. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 1 wherein each of said individually secured cells of said system further includes:

(f) a third operation station being a clamping insert insertion device for filling bottles with an impact-protection clamping insert after said bottles are filled with tablets, said device being located between said first operation station and said second operation station and being functionally connected to said computer control system.

3. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 1 wherein each of said individually secured cells of said system, further includes:

(g) a fourth operation station being a bottle printer having means to apply predetermined indicia to bottles passing therethrough.

4. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 1 wherein each of said individually secured cell conveyor means includes a first conveyor at said inlet, a second conveyor continuous to said first conveyor and running from said first conveyor, past said tablet filler and past said cap feeder, and a third conveyor contiguous to said second conveyor and passing through said outlet.

5. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 4 wherein each of said individually secured cell first conveyor and said second conveyor are at least in part next to each other in an off-set manner relative to direction of travel and a bottle transfer device is located adjacent said first conveyor to move bottles from said first conveyor to said second conveyor.

6. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 5 wherein each of said individually secured cell second conveyor and said third conveyor are at least in part next to each other in an off-set manner relative to direction of travel and a bottle transfer device is located adjacent said first conveyor to move bottles from said second conveyor to said third conveyor.

7. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 1 wherein each of said individually secured cell tablet filling station includes:

(i) a tablet hopper for filling with randomly positioned tablets of a predetermined size and shape, said tablet hopper having a base with an outlet for gravity outflow of tablets;

(ii) an agitating drum functionally connected to said outlet and adapted to regulate and orient gravity outflow of tablets from said hopper;

(iii) a feed chute connected to and downstream from said hopper for receiving tablets therefrom and adapted to singularly align and feed tablets in a fixed orientation by gravity feed, said feed chute being sufficiently non-horizontal to permit gravity flow of tablets therethrough;

(iv) a rotatable starwheel having a plurality of slots adapted to receive tablets individually from said feed chute so as to move tablets from said feed chute to a filling outlet for gravity feed to a container filling substation located below said filling outlet;

(v) a container filling substation located below said filling outlet of said starwheel;

(vi) tablet inspection means located on at least one of said feed chute or said rotatable starwheel and having sufficient discrimination capabilities to discern quality characteristics of tablets moving down said feed chute in accordance with a predetermined standard including means to identify unacceptable tablets and communicate with a tablet ejector for ejection of unacceptable tablets;

(vii) a tablet ejector in communication with said tablet inspection means adapted to eject unacceptable tablets from said feed chute in response to signals from said tablet inspection means; and

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(viii) a stepper drive motor with a counter means for driving said starwheel in a step fashion for controlled release of tablets via said filling outlet and for counting tablets released from said filling outlet of said starwheel.

8. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 1 wherein said central computer of said computer control system is connected to said stepper motor of each of said individually secured cells to start and stop said motor to operate said starwheel so as to fill a container with a predetermined number of tablets.

9. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 7 wherein said tablet inspection means includes a camera and a computer connected to both said camera and said tablet ejector, said computer containing sufficient software to receive feedback data from said camera, compare feedback data from said camera with predetermined standards, recognize each tablet inspected which does not meet said predetermined standards as unacceptable by sending ejection signals to said tablet ejector so as to activate and eject each unacceptable tablet.

10. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 7 wherein each of said individually secured cell container filling substation includes:

a closed staging chamber connected to said filling outlet of said starwheel for hold up of released tablets until a predetermined number of tablets have been released to fill a container, said staging chamber having a shutter base adapted to open and close in coordination with positioning thereunder of sequential containers to be filled.

11. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 7 wherein said container filling substation includes a tablet count verification sensor.

12. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 7 wherein each of said individually secured cell container filling substation includes a diving nozzle for insertion into and extraction from necks of containers to be filled.

13. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 7 wherein each of said individually secured cell container filling substation includes an RF reader for identifying and tracking each container as it proceeds through said container filling substation.

14. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 1 wherein, in each of said individually secured cells, there is a plurality of feed chutes connected to said hopper.

15. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 14 wherein for each of said plurality of feed chutes there are separate items (d) through (h).

16. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 1 which further comprises:

VI.] a plurality of bottle receiving puck carriers adapted to receive and hold individual bottles prior to entering said individually secured cells and adapted to operate within said conveyance means of each individually secured cell and to operate within said master conveyance means;

VII.] a closed loop puck carrier return system having means to separate finished bottles at a downstream end of said master conveyance means and having return means to return said puck carriers to a starting position upstream from said individually secured cells for receiving new bottles and passing through said system in a cyclical fashion.

17. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 16 wherein each puck carrier has a unique identification indicator thereon and said system includes readers located at least at each of said individually secured cells and at said order verification means, said readers being functionally connected to said master central computer system to identify and track each bottle within the system and to match each bottle to an order for proper printing and labelling.

18. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 16 wherein said puck carrier return system includes at least one pre-bottle filling, pre-individually secured cell preparation station having an unscrambler, a cleaner, a desiccant filler and a puck loader.

19. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 16 wherein said puck carrier return system includes a plurality of pre-bottle filling, pre-individually secured cell preparation stations having an unscrambler, a cleaner, a desiccant filler and a puck loader.

20. A secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system which comprises:

(a) a master security enclosure having solid walls and an access door with a locking mechanism, having an inlet for feeding empty bottles and having an outlet for removing filled, capped bottles;

(b) conveyor means for conveying bottles through said inlet of said master security enclosure and through a plurality of operation stations within said master security enclosure and through said outlet;

(c) a first operation station being a tablet filling station having a tablet hopper arrangement consisting of at least one hopper with all of said at least one hopper being for a single type of tablet for a single type of tablet, said tablet filling station including at least one tablet filler, said hopper arrangement being connected to said at least one tablet filler, said at least one from said feed chute so as to move tablets from said feed chute to a filling outlet for gravity feed to a container filling substation located below said filling outlet;

(i) a tablet hopper for filling with randomly positioned tablets of a predetermined size and shape, said tablet hopper having a base with an outlet for gravity outflow of tablets;

(ii) an agitating drum functionally connected to said outlet and adapted to regulate and orient gravity outflow of tablets from said hopper;

(iii) a feed chute connected to and downstream from said hopper for receiving tablets therefrom and adapted to singularly align and feed tablets in a fixed orientation by gravity feed, said feed chute being sufficiently non-horizontal to permit gravity flow of tablets therethrough;

(iv) a rotatable starwheel having a plurality of slots adapted to receive tablets individually response to signals from said tablet inspection means; and

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(v) a container filling substation located below said filling outlet of said starwheel;

(vi) tablet inspection means located on at least on of said feed chute or said rotatable starwheel and having sufficient discrimination capabilities to discern quality characteristics of tablets moving down said feed chute in accordance with a predetermined standard including means to identify unacceptable tablets and communicate with a tablet ejector for ejection of unacceptable tablets;

(vii) a tablet ejector in communication with said tablet inspection means adapted to eject unacceptable tablets from said feed chute in tablet filler having an egress located above said bottle conveyor means, said tablet filling station including;

(viii) a stepper drive motor with a counter means for driving said starwheel in a step fashion for controlled release of tablets via said filing outlet and for counting tablets released from said filling outlet of said starwheel;

(d) a second operation station being an automated cap feeder located downstream from said tablet filler along said conveyance means for applying a secured cap to a bottle after it has been filled;

(e) a computer control system including a central computer and its controllers, at least one controller being connected to said conveyance means, at least one controller being connected to said tablet hopper arrangement and at least one controller being connected to said cap feeder, said computer control system central computer and controllers being interconnected and said central computer having sufficient software to be programmable and adapted to control coordinated operation of said conveyor means and all of said operation stations so as to sequentially move a plurality of bottles through said inlet, fill said bottles with a predetermined number of tablets and cap said bottles and subsequently move said bottles through said outlet.

21. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 20 wherein said system further comprises:

(f) a third operation station being a clamping inset insertion device for filling bottles with an impact-protection clamping insert after said bottles are filled with tablets, said device being located between said first operation station and said second operation station and being functionally connected to said computer control system.

22. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 20 wherein said system further comprises:

(g) a fourth operation station being a bottle printer having means to apply predetermined indicia to bottles passing therethrough.

23. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 20 wherein said conveyor means includes a first conveyor at said inlet, a second conveyor continuous to said first conveyor and running from said first conveyor, past said tablet filler and past said cap feeder, and a third conveyor contiguous to said second conveyor and passing through said outlet.

24. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 23 wherein said first conveyor and said second conveyor are at least in part next to each other in an off-set manner relative to direction of travel and a bottle transfer device is located adjacent said first conveyor to move bottles from said first conveyor to said second conveyor.

25. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 24 wherein said second conveyor and said third conveyor are at least in part next to each other in an off-set manner relative to direction of travel and a bottle transfer device is located adjacent to said first conveyor to move bottles from said second conveyor to said third conveyor.

26. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 20 wherein said central computer of said computer control system is connected to said stepper motor to start and stop said motor to operate said starwheel so as to fill a container with a predetermined number of tablets.

27. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 20 wherein said tablet inspection means includes a camera and a computer connected to both said camera and said tablet ejector, said computer containing sufficient software to receive feedback data from said camera, compare feedback data from said camera with predetermined standards, recognize each tablet inspected which does not meet said predetermined standards as unacceptable by sending ejection signals to said tablet ejector so as to activate and eject each unacceptable tablet.

28. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 20 wherein said container filling substation includes:

a closed staging chamber connected to said filling outlet of said starwheel for hold up of released tablets until a predetermined number of tablets have been released to fill a container, said staging chamber having a shutter base adapted to open and close in coordination with positioning thereunder of sequential containers to be filled.

29. The secured multi-cell, rapid fill automated tablet order filling system of claim 20 wherein said container filling substation includes a tablet count verification sensor.