Automatic medicine packing machine with cleaning device

• US 7,818,947 B2
• Filed: 08/21/2009
• Issued: 10/26/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/21/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: JVM Company Limited
• Original Assignee: JVM Company Limited
• Inventors: Kim, Jun Ho
• Primary Examiner(s): Durand; Paul R
• Application Number:
  US12/545,687
• Publication Number:
  US 20100043351A1
• Time in Patent Office: 431 Days
• Field of Search: 535/10, 531/11.R, 531/67, 532/35, 532/37, 532/47, 222/148, 222/150
• US Class Current: 53/167
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 5/103 for packaging pills or tablets
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 55/24 Cleaning of, or removing dust from, containers, wrappers, or packaging ; Preventing of fouling

Abstract

Disclosed is an automatic medicine packing machine having a cleaning device for automatically cleaning dust generated in the packing machine while packing successively various medicines dose by dose. An automatic medicine packing machine includes a plurality of cassettes arranged in an upper portion of a body to receive medicines of various sizes and shapes, a hopper assembly arranged in a lower portion of the body to collect medicines discharged from the cassettes, a hopper mounting unit for mounting the hopper assembly to a lower portion of a frame of the body to be openable, a packing device for packing the medicines collected by the hopper assembly, and a hopper cleaning device for sucking dust generated from the hopper assembly during a medicine packing process to clean an interior of the hopper assembly.

Claims

1. An automatic medicine packing machine comprising:

a body having a frame;

a plurality of cassettes arranged toward an upper portion of the body and configured to receive medicines;

a hopper assembly arranged toward a lower portion of the body and configured to collect medicines discharged from the cassettes, the hopper assembly including an upper hopper disposed in the frame and a lower hopper moveably coupled to the upper hopper, and the lower hopper including a suction hole formed in a sidewall thereof to suck dust, and a suction chamber formed around the lower hopper and airtightly surrounding the suction hole;

a hopper mounting unit configured to mount the hopper assembly to a lower portion of the frame of the body;

a packing device configured to pack the medicines collected by the hopper assembly; and

a hopper cleaning device configured to vacuum dust from the hopper assembly to clean an interior of the hopper assembly.

2. The automatic medicine packing machine as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

a fan configured to supply outside air into the suction chamber mounted toward a first side of the suction chamber; and

a connecting pipe coupling the hopper cleaning device to a second side of the suction chamber to suck the air supplied by the fan together with dust and discharge the supplied air and dust out of the suction chamber.

3. The automatic medicine packing machine as claimed in claim 1, wherein the hopper cleaning device includes a vacuum device in fluid communication with the suction chamber, and a filtering member in fluid communication with the vacuum device and configured to filter sucked air and dust, substantially removing the dust to produce filtered air, the hopper cleaning device being connected to the suction chamber through a return connection pipe to return the filtered air to the suction chamber.

4. An automatic medicine packing machine comprising:

a body having a frame;

a plurality of cassettes arranged toward an upper portion of the body and configured to receive medicines;

a hopper assembly arranged toward a lower portion of the body and configured to collect medicines discharged from the cassettes, the hopper assembly including an upper hopper disposed in the frame, a lower hopper moveably coupled to the upper hopper, and a mesh member detachably inserted in the lower hopper, wherein the mesh member has a shape corresponding to an interior shape of the lower hopper, closely conforming to an inner surface of the lower hopper, the mesh member including a sieve shape having a plurality of through holes configured to permit dust to pass therethrough;

a hopper mounting unit configured to mount the hopper assembly to a lower portion of the frame of the body;

a packing device configured to pack the medicines collected by the hopper assembly; and

a hopper cleaning device configured to vacuum dust from the hopper assembly to clean an interior of the hopper assembly.

5. The automatic medicine packing machine as claimed in claim 4, wherein the plurality of through holes of the mesh member are formed adjacent to a suction hole formed in the lower hopper.

6. An automatic medicine packing machine comprising:

a body having a frame;

a plurality of cassettes arranged toward an upper portion of the body and configured to receive medicines;

a hopper assembly arranged toward a lower portion of the body and configured to collect medicines discharged from the cassettes;

a hopper mounting unit configured to mount the hopper assembly to a lower portion of the frame of the body;

a packing device configured to pack the medicines collected by the hopper assembly; and

a hopper cleaning device configured to vacuum dust from the hopper assembly to clean an interior of the hopper assembly, wherein the hopper cleaning device includes a vacuum pump configured to generate a vacuum, a connection pipe connecting the hopper assembly and the vacuum pump to suck dust, and a filter provided in an intermediate portion of the connection pipe to filter the sucked dust, and wherein the vacuum pump and the filter are separately installed outside of or externally with respect to the automatic medicine packing machine.

7. An automatic medicine packing machine comprising:

a body having a frame;

a plurality of cassettes arranged toward an upper portion of the body and configured to receive medicines;

a hopper assembly arranged toward a lower portion of the body and configured to collect medicines discharged from the cassettes;

a hopper mounting unit configured to mount the hopper assembly to a lower portion of the frame of the body;

a packing device configured to pack the medicines collected by the hopper assembly; and

a hopper cleaning device configured to vacuum dust from the hopper assembly to clean an interior of the hopper assembly, wherein the hopper cleaning device includes a vacuum pump configured to generate a vacuum and a connection pipe connecting the hopper assembly and the vacuum pump to suck dust, and wherein the connection pipe is connected to a lower portion of the hopper assembly to suck dust.

8. An automatic medicine packing machine comprising:

a body having a frame;

a plurality of cassettes arranged toward an upper portion of the body and configured to receive medicines;

a hopper assembly arranged toward a lower portion of the body and configured to collect medicines discharged from the cassettes;

a hopper mounting unit configured to mount the hopper assembly to a lower portion of the frame of the body wherein the hopper mounting unit includes a support member supporting the hopper assembly and pivotably coupled to a lower region of the frame to pivot about a pivot axis, and a regulating member coupled to the lower region of the frame and configured to regulate a rotating angle of the support member;

a packing device configured to pack the medicines collected by the hopper assembly; and

a hopper cleaning device configured to vacuum dust from the hopper assembly to clean an interior of the hopper assembly.

9. An automatic medicine packing machine comprising:

a body;

a plurality of cassettes arranged toward an upper portion of the body to receive medicines;

a hopper arranged toward a lower portion of the body to collect medicines discharged from the cassettes;

a packing device configured to pack the medicines collected by the hopper; and

a cleaning device receiving and discharging dust generated in the automatic medicine packing machine to an external environment or space, the cleaning device including an upper duct coupled to an upper portion of the automatic medicine packing machine, a lower duct coupled to a lower portion of the automatic medicine packing machine, and a connection duct connecting the upper and lower ducts to a vacuum generating device to suck dust from the automatic medicine packing machine.

10. The automatic medicine packing machine as claimed in claim 9, wherein the cleaning device includes an intermediate duct connecting the upper duct and the lower duct, and the connection duct connects the vacuum generating device and at least one of the intermediate duct, the upper duct and the lower duct.

11. The automatic medicine packing machine as claimed in claim 9, wherein the upper duct includes an upper inner duct having one or more upper suction holes and arranged in the automatic medicine packing machine, and an upper outer duct in fluid communication with the upper inner duct and arranged outside of or externally with respect to the automatic medicine packing machine.

12. The automatic medicine packing machine as claimed in claim 11, further comprising:

an upper cover, wherein the upper inner duct and the upper outer duct are connected to each other through laterally opposing openings in the upper cover, and wherein the upper inner duct extends in a substantially horizontal direction at a rear lower end of the cassettes, the upper suction holes formed in the upper inner duct being formed along a length of the upper inner duct at intervals.

13. The automatic medicine packing machine as claimed in claim 9, wherein the lower duct includes a lower inner duct arranged in the automatic medicine packing machine and having at least one lower suction hole, and a lower outer duct in fluid communication with the lower inner duct and arranged outside of the automatic medicine packing machine.

14. The automatic medicine packing machine as claimed in claim 13, further comprising:

a lower cover, wherein the lower inner duct and the lower outer duct are connected to each other through laterally opposing openings in the lower cover, and wherein the lower inner duct is arranged such that the lower suction hole is located adjacent to a side of the hopper.

15. The automatic medicine packing machine as claimed in claim 9, further comprising:

a filtering member configured to substantially filter dust and coupled to the vacuum generating device.

16. The automatic medicine packing machine as claimed in claim 9, wherein the connection duct extends from a plurality of automatic medicine packing machines to a common vacuum generating device.

17. A hopper assembly configured to be used with an automatic medicine packing machine, the hopper assembly comprising:

an upper hopper member configured to be coupled to the automatic medicine packing machine;

a lower hopper member pivotably coupled to the upper hopper member and including a suction hole formed in a sidewall thereof to suck dust, and a suction chamber formed around the lower hopper and sealingly surrounding the suction hole;

a mesh member detachably inserted in the lower hopper;

a vacuum generating device in fluid communication with the suction chamber; and

a hopper mounting unit including a support member and a regulating member, the support member coupled to the upper hopper member and configured to be pivotably coupled to the automatic medicine packing machine toward a first end of the support member, the regulating member configured to be fixedly connected to the automatic medicine packing machine, the support member being slidably coupled to the regulating member toward a second end of the support member, the regulating member regulating a rotating angle of the support member via limiting the sliding range of the second end of the support member.