Medicine packing device

• US 8,209,942 B2
• Filed: 01/05/2011
• Issued: 07/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/02/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yuyama Manufacturing Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Yuyama Manufacturing Company Limited
• Inventors: Kodama, Tsuyoshi, Yoshina, Katsunori, Yamashita, Koji
• Primary Examiner(s): Desai, Hemant M
• Assistant Examiner(s): Weeks, Gloria R
• Application Number:
  US12/985,273
• Publication Number:
  US 20110154780A1
• Time in Patent Office: 545 Days
• Field of Search: 532/37, 53244-249, 532/60, 209/707, 221/263, 221/289, 221/292, 221/295
• US Class Current: 53/247
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 1/36 by volumetric devices or methods checking volume of filled material B65B1/48
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 5/103 for packaging pills or tablets

Abstract

There is provided a medicine packing device, which prevents a free end of a bottom plate of a tablet dispensing measure from tilting due to its own weight. A bottom plate 43 is provided at a lower opening of a tablet dispensing measure 42. The bottom plate 43 includes a pin 44 at its base end. A leading end of the bottom plate is a free end. When the tablet dispensing measure 42 reaches corresponding stepped portions 37a to 37d by a movement of a tablet dispensing member 36, an opening protrusion 144b of a fixed plate 37 is fitted to an opening recess 43c of the bottom plate 43 and thus the bottom plate 43 pivots about the pin 44 from a closed position to an open position. If the bottom plate 43 moves to the open position, then tablets in the tablet dispensing measure 42 drop.

Claims

1. A medicine packing device, comprising:

a tablet receiving part including a plurality of tablet receiving measures defined in a plurality of rows in forward and backward directions and in a plurality of columns in a transverse direction, each of the tablet receiving measures receiving tablets for one pack;

a tablet dispensing part for removing tablets from a lower opening of the tablet receiving measure and dispensing the removed tablets one pack at a time; and

a packing part for packing the tablets dispensed by the tablet dispensing part one pack at a time,

wherein the tablet dispensing part comprises;

an opening and closing mechanism disposed below the tablet receiving part to open and close the lower opening of the tablet receiving measure;

a tablet dispensing member disposed below the opening and closing mechanism and including a plurality of tablet dispensing measures defined in a plurality of rows and in a plurality of columns to correspond to the tablet receiving measures, each of the tablet dispensing measures receiving the tablets dropped from the lower opening of the tablet receiving measure opened by the opening and closing mechanism, the tablet dispensing member being movable in a column direction of the tablet dispensing measures;

bottom plates provided at a lower opening of each of the tablet dispensing measures, the bottom plate being movable to a closed position where the bottom plate closes the lower opening of the tablet dispensing measure to hold the tablets in the tablet dispensing measure, the bottom plate further being movable to an open position where the bottom plate opens the lower opening of the tablet dispensing measure to drop the tablets to the packing part, an upper surface of the bottom plate being processed for enhancing a surface roughness;

a fixed plate disposed below the tablet dispensing member; and

a drive device for moving the tablet dispensing member in the column direction of the tablet dispensing measure,

wherein when the tablet dispensing measure reaches a leading end of the fixed plate by a movement of the tablet dispensing member caused by the drive device, the bottom plate is moved from the closed position to the open position.

2. The medicine packing device of claim 1, wherein the upper surface of the bottom plate includes a swelled portion swelled upward in a central portion thereof and a plurality of rib portions formed on the swelled portion so as to be processed for enhancing the surface roughness.

3. The medicine packing device of claim 1, wherein the upper surface of the bottom plate includes a plurality of swelled portions of a half-elliptical sphere shape so as to be processed for enhancing the surface roughness.

4. The medicine packing device of claim 1, wherein the upper surface of the bottom plate includes irregular concavo-convex portions so as to be processed for enhancing the surface roughness.

5. The medicine packing device of claim 1, wherein the bottom plate includes a shaft part rotatably connected to the tablet dispensing member at a base end thereof and a leading end of the bottom plate is a free end,

wherein the fixed plate includes a plurality of stepped portions at the leading end thereof, and

wherein when the tablet dispensing measure reaches the corresponding stepped portion by the movement of the tablet dispensing member caused by the drive device, the bottom plate is pivoted about the shaft part from the closed position to the open position.

6. The medicine packing device of claim 5, wherein the upper surface of the bottom plate includes a swelled portion swelled upward in a central portion thereof and a plurality of rib portions formed on the swelled portion so as to be processed for enhancing the surface roughness.

7. The medicine packing device of claim 5, wherein the upper surface of the bottom plate includes a plurality of swelled portions of a half-elliptical sphere shape so as to be processed for enhancing the surface roughness.

8. The medicine packing device of claim 5, wherein the upper surface of the bottom plate includes irregular concavo-convex portions so as to be processed for enhancing the surface roughness.

9. The medicine packing device of claim 1, wherein the opening and closing mechanism includes a pair of shutters formed with a plurality of tablet passing apertures corresponding to the tablet receiving measures, the shutters moving to a closed position where upper surfaces thereof form bottom portions of the tablet receiving measures and to an open position where the tablet passing apertures communicate with the tablet receiving measures to open the lower openings of the tablet receiving measures, and

wherein upper surfaces of closing portions of the shutters are processed for enhancing a surface roughness.

10. The medicine packing device of claim 9, wherein the upper surfaces of the closing portions of the shutters include a plurality of swelled portions of a flat elliptical sphere shape so as to be processed for enhancing the surface roughness.

11. The medicine packing device of claim 9, wherein the upper surfaces of the closing portions of the shutters include a plurality of cuboid protrusions so as to be processed for enhancing the surface roughness.

12. The medicine packing device of claim 9, wherein the upper surfaces of the closing portions of the shutters include irregular concavo-convex portions so as to be processed for enhancing the surface roughness.

13. The medicine packing device of claim 5, wherein the opening and closing mechanism includes a pair of shutters formed with a plurality of tablet passing apertures corresponding to the tablet receiving measures, the shutters moving to a closed position where upper surfaces thereof form bottom portions of the tablet receiving measures and to an open position where the tablet passing apertures communicate with the tablet receiving measures to open the lower openings of the tablet receiving measures, and

wherein upper surfaces of closing portions of the shutters are processed for enhancing a surface roughness.

14. The medicine packing device of claim 13, wherein the upper surfaces of the closing portions of the shutters include a plurality of swelled portions of a flat elliptical sphere shape so as to be processed for enhancing the surface roughness.

15. The medicine packing device of claim 13, wherein the upper surfaces of the closing portions of the shutters include a plurality of cuboid protrusions so as to be processed for enhancing the surface roughness.

16. The medicine packing device of claim 13, wherein the upper surfaces of the closing portions of the shutters include irregular concavo-convex portions so as to be processed for enhancing the surface roughness.