Process and apparatus for treating containers for storing substances for medical, pharmaceutical or cosmetic applications
First Claim
1. A process for the treatment or processing of containers,which serve for storing substances for medical, pharmaceutical or cosmetic applications or contain such substances, wherein the containers are open at one end and are conveyed automatically, by a conveyor, to processing stations or pass them for the treatment or processing, in whicha plurality of containers are conveyed by the conveyor while the containers are supported by a supporting structure in a regular two-dimensional array, wherein the supporting structure comprises a plurality of openings or receptacles, which define the regular array, and wherein bottoms of the containers are freely accessible at their closed ends from a first side of said supporting structure,wherein one processing station of the processing stations is a freeze-dryer having at least one cooling plane, in which a freeze-drying process is carried out, wherein the container have bottoms that are in direct contact with a respective cooling plane during the freeze-drying process in said freeze-dryer while the containers are supported by the supporting structure or are accommodated in the openings or receptacles of the supporting structure.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
In a process and apparatus for treating or processing containers (2) that are used for storing substances for medical, pharmaceutical or cosmetic applications or contain the same, cylindrical containers open at least at one end are automatically led past or pass through processing stations for treatment or processing by means of a conveying device, while said containers are jointly held by a carrier (25; 134) in a regular two-dimensional arrangement. The carrier comprises a plurality of openings or receptacles (32; 39; 87; 120), which determine the regular arrangement.
According to the invention, the treatment or processing of the containers is performed on or in at least one of the processing stations while the containers are supported by the carrier. This opens up new possibilities for treating or processing the containers, for example when crimping metal lids or during freeze-drying.
31 Citations
16 Claims
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1. A process for the treatment or processing of containers,
which serve for storing substances for medical, pharmaceutical or cosmetic applications or contain such substances, wherein the containers are open at one end and are conveyed automatically, by a conveyor, to processing stations or pass them for the treatment or processing, in which a plurality of containers are conveyed by the conveyor while the containers are supported by a supporting structure in a regular two-dimensional array, wherein the supporting structure comprises a plurality of openings or receptacles, which define the regular array, and wherein bottoms of the containers are freely accessible at their closed ends from a first side of said supporting structure, wherein one processing station of the processing stations is a freeze-dryer having at least one cooling plane, in which a freeze-drying process is carried out, wherein the container have bottoms that are in direct contact with a respective cooling plane during the freeze-drying process in said freeze-dryer while the containers are supported by the supporting structure or are accommodated in the openings or receptacles of the supporting structure.
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16. An apparatus for the treatment or processing of containers, which serve for storing substances for medical, pharmaceutical or cosmetic applications or contain such substances, wherein the containers are open at one end, said apparatus comprising
a conveying device; - and
a plurality of processing stations, wherein the respective containers are treated or processed in or at a respective processing station, wherein one processing station is a freeze-dryer having at least one cooling plane, where a freeze-drying process is carried out; said apparatus being configured for the treatment or processing of the containers such that a plurality of containers are conveyed automatically, by said conveying device, to said processing stations or pass them to be treated or processed while the containers are supported by a supporting structure in a regular two-dimensional array, said supporting structure having a plurality of openings or receptacles, which together defined the regular array, and wherein bottoms of the containers are freely accessible at their closed ends from a first side of said supporting structure, and that the containers have bottoms that are in direct contact with the respective cooling plane during the freeze-drying process in said freeze-dryer while the containers are supported by the supporting structure or are accommodated in the openings or receptacles of the supporting structure.
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Specification