JP6901104B2 - Tablet cassette - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a tablet cassette that forms a driven portion in a tablet feeder for automating dispensing performed in a hospital, a pharmacy, or the like. Specifically, the present invention includes a container portion for accommodating tablets and an alignment plate in the container portion. Regarding the tablet cassette in which the tablets are aligned around the alignment plate and sequentially dropped from the discharge port of the container when the alignment plate is driven by axial rotation, more specifically, the falling drug is placed at the bottom above the discharge port. Regarding the structure of the double fall prevention part (partition part) limited to one.

Tablet feeders that have been widely used in the past (see, for example, Patent Documents 1, 2, 4, and 5) are bases (cassette drive units) that are fixedly arranged in a row on a drawer shelf of a tablet packaging machine for power supply and control. It consists of a tablet cassette that can be attached to and detached from the base to facilitate tablet replenishment work, and a large number of tablets are randomly stored in the tablet cassette, and the base can be operated intermittently or continuously as needed. It is operated to send out tablets one by one from the tablet cassette.
Further, in the stand-alone tablet dividing device (see, for example, Patent Document 3), the above-mentioned tablet cassette can be attached to and detached from the main body portion equipped with a base (cassette drive unit) in addition to a tablet cutting mechanism and the like. There are also some.

Such a tablet cassette has a container portion in which a large number of replenished tablets are stored by opening the upper lid, and an alignment in which a shaft is rotatably provided and the drive portion is driven by a rotary transmission shaft. A partition plate (double) that is provided facing the discharge port formed through the bottom plate of the container portion that defines the lower end portion of the annular gap between the plate and the container portion and the alignment plate, and partitions a part of the upper end side of the annular gap. It is equipped with a fall prevention member). Further, in order to divide the annular gap, which is the alignment point of the tablets, for each tablet, a large number of wing-shaped partition walls protruding into the annular gap are formed on the outer peripheral surface of the alignment plate at an equal pitch, and the adjacent partition walls are formed. The space is a compartment that holds the tablets that have fallen from the top of the sorting board one by one. Then, the partition plate is loosely inserted in the side wall of the container portion above the discharge port and at a height higher than the partition wall so as not to interfere with the partition wall so that the above partition plate can be mounted from the outside of the container portion. A slit-shaped through hole is formed.

Further, when the tablet cassette is mounted on a base or the like (drive unit), the rotation transmission shaft of the alignment plate is engaged with the rotation drive shaft of the drive unit to be rotationally driven.
Then, when the tablet is carried in the annular gap by the rotating alignment plate and reaches just above the discharge port, the drug is dropped from the discharge port and discharged, and the drug above the drug is discharged by the partition plate. Since it is prevented from entering the outlet, double dropping of the tablet is prevented, and the medicines are discharged one by one according to the amount of rotation.

While the container and the aligning board are made of a hard plastic material, the partition plate for preventing double dropping of tablets includes a metal one and a soft material one. The metal partition plate (see, for example, Patent Document 4) is created by punching or bending a thin metal plate, and extends into the standing plate portion for attaching to the container portion from the outside and the internal space of the container portion. It has a horizontal plate that functions as a partition. On the other hand, the partition plate made of a soft material (see, for example, Patent Documents 1, 2 and 5) is made by plastic molding or the like, and is soft and easily deformed even in a flat plate shape so as not to damage the tablet. Further, the partition plate includes a so-called double-sided type in which both ends are attached to the container portion (see, for example, Patent Documents 1, 2 and 5) and a so-called cantilever type in which only one end is attached to the container portion. (See, for example, Patent Document 4).

Drugs handled in such tablet cassettes are tablets, not powdered drugs. As the tablets that are often handled, disk-shaped tablets are typical, but in addition, regular polygonal plate-shaped tablets, cylindrical capsules, and the like are often handled as tablet cassettes.
In addition, a rhombic plate-shaped deformed agent that is different from the so-called fixed shape agent such as circular, spherical, regular polygon, or regular polyhedron, and a spindle-shaped deformed agent with a bulge in the center, so that it can be taken in units of less than one tablet. Half-tablets made by cutting a tablet into two parts may also be handled in a tablet cassette.

In order to handle such deformed agents and half tablets, careful adjustment and troublesome preparations that are not required for standardized agents were required, so tablet cassettes that can be easily handled like standardized agents even with deformed agents and half tablets are available. It has been developed and has been well received.
That is, to elaborate step by step, in the case of a tablet cassette using a partition plate, if it is a standardizing agent, one of them is contained in the partition chamber between the partition walls in the annular gap between the container portion of the tablet cassette and the alignment plate. Even if another tablet comes on top of the tablet that fits in the compartment first, the other tablet rides on the tablet or partition in the compartment and cannot enter the compartment even if it is a part, so the position of the partition plate can be adjusted. Even if it is a little rough, the tablets are reasonably and accurately partitioned up and down, and the tablets are surely dropped and discharged sequentially, so that the partition plate is relatively easy to adjust.

On the other hand, deformed agents and half-tablets with fine or sharp edges are already in the above because the lower and upper parts of the compartment are relatively large and easy to open when they enter the compartment of the annular gap. When another tablet comes later on the compartment in which the tablet is stored, the lower end of the upper tablet may enter the upper space in the compartment, depending on the posture of the upper tablet that came later. In that case, even if there is no partition plate that can partition those tablets up and down with a partition plate, it is limited to a narrow range, so it is troublesome to try and error the appropriate partition plate position by experiment etc. You have to find it by multiplying it, and even if you find it, you usually have to adjust the position of the partition plate strictly. Also, to ensure that when a tablet that has partially entered the compartment hits the divider, the entire tablet goes above the divider and the tablet is completely out of the compartment, the end of the variant. Since it is important to keep the cut surface of the part and the half tablet smooth, it may be necessary to prepare in advance such as sorting the tablets, carefully cutting, and finishing the surface.

In this way, deformed agents and half-tablets are harder to handle than standard-sized agents, so they are rarely subject to full-automatic tablet cassette handling, and are often used for semi-automatic drug-spreading devices and manual handling. However, from the viewpoint that the number of deformed drugs increases as the types of drugs increase, and the number of tablets to be taken should be finely adjusted according to the weight of each patient in order to suppress side effects. While the number of half-tablet prescriptions tends to increase, the demand for automation of dispensing work and improvement of efficiency has increased. It was developed.

Specifically, first (see Patent Document 1), the partition plate is made of a soft member, and the mounting method is changed from screwing to engagement using multiple small holes, etc., making it easier to adjust the height of the partition plate. There is something that I did.
Further (see Patent Document 2), by modifying the double drop prevention member (partition) for preventing the double fall of the tablet from the above-mentioned partition plate to a flat string-shaped or round string-shaped endless belt, a deforming agent or a half Some tablets can be easily handled like standard preparations.

Further (see Patent Document 4), with respect to a metal plate member provided with a horizontal plate portion for partitioning and a vertical plate portion for cantilever, a through hole is formed in the vertical plate portion, and the horizontal plate portion and the vertical plate portion are formed. There is also a partition plate for drug cassettes that is durable, can withstand long-term use, and can also be used for fragile drugs by forming a notch in the connection part with.
Further (see Patent Document 5), by modifying the double drop prevention member (partition portion) for preventing the double fall of the tablet from the above-mentioned partition plate to a combination of a disk-shaped deforming member and a disk-shaped reinforcing member. There are also deformed agents and half tablets that can be easily handled like standard agents.

JP-A-2002-153541 JP 2015-012893 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2015-077322 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2016-22183 Japanese Patent Application No. 2016-147719 (application)

In this way, in the above-mentioned tablet cassette, by devising various measures for the double fall prevention part (partition part, partition plate), not only the fixed form agent but also the deformed agent and the half tablet are doubled without being damaged. It is designed to prevent it from falling.
However, there are some characteristics that can be said to be strong and weak in these improvements. Specifically, in the case of a tablet cassette (see, for example, Patent Documents 1, 2 and 5) in which a easily deformable member is used for the double fall prevention portion (partition member), the member can be selected from various materials having different hardness and softness. While it is relatively easy to secure the damage function and adjust the mounting, it is difficult to use a member with a long life.

On the other hand, in the case of a tablet cassette (see, for example, Patent Document 4) in which a metal member is used for the double fall prevention portion (partition member), it is relatively easy to secure the member life because many members have a high fatigue limit. Since the member is hard and tends to have high rigidity, it is difficult to secure the tablet breaking function with the double-sided support. In addition, if a cantilever support is adopted to reduce the rigidity, even if the through hole or notch formation site is devised (see, for example, Patent Document 4), the repulsive force and the pressing force when passing the tablet have both fluctuations. It is difficult to reduce the size to the level of support, so it is necessary to use different partition members according to the shape and type of tablets.

However, in order to properly use such a partition member (double fall prevention part), a large number of partition members having slightly different shapes, etc. are required, such as checking the compatibility between the tablet and the partition member and managing the inventory of parts. Since there is a burden on the above, it is desirable to reduce the burden as well.
Therefore, it is a technical issue to realize a tablet cassette in which the fluctuation of the repulsive force and the pressing force at the time of passing the tablet is small so that the applicable range can be expanded even if the partition member is cantilevered.

The tablet cassette of the present invention (Solution 1) was devised to solve such a problem.
A container portion capable of accommodating a large number of tablets, an alignment plate provided in the container portion in a state in which the axis can be rotated, and a large number of the container portion and the alignment plate formed on the outer peripheral surface of the alignment plate. It is provided with a vane-shaped partition wall that divides the annular gaps of the above into a large number of compartments at equal pitches, and a discharge port is formed in a part of the bottom portion of the container portion that forms the lower surface of the annular gaps. In a tablet cassette in which tablets that have entered the compartment by rotating the axis of the board are sequentially dropped from the discharge port.
A plurality of elastic bodies having a fixed end portion for fixing to the container portion and a swinging end portion for loosely inserting above (directly above or beside) the discharge port to partition the tablet into upper and lower parts. The double fall prevention member is provided, and these double fall prevention members are mounted on the container portion in a state where the respective rocking end portions are connected in the circumferential direction of the annular gap. It is characterized by that.

Further, the tablet cassette of the present invention (Solution 2) is the tablet cassette of the above-mentioned Solution 1, and the adjacent ones (a pair or a plurality of adjacent pairs) of the plurality of double fall prevention members are each adjacent. It is characterized in that it is mounted on the container portion in a state where the fixed end portion of the above is on the remote side and each swinging end portion is on the close side.

Further, the tablet cassette of the present invention (solution 3) is the tablet cassette of the solution 2, and the pair of swinging ends on the close side are located directly above the discharge port. It is characterized by being.

Further, the tablet cassette of the present invention (solution 4) is the tablet cassette of the solution 3, wherein a part of the pair of swinging ends is positioned up and down. ..

Further, the tablet cassette of the present invention (Solution 5) is the tablet cassette of the above-mentioned solutions 1 to 4, and includes the above-mentioned plurality of holding members having a plurality of holding portions capable of fixing the fixed end portions. The double fall prevention member is attached to and detached from the container portion by attaching and detaching the holding member.

In such a tablet cassette of the present invention (Solution 1), a plurality of double fall prevention members are provided, and the swinging ends thereof are connected above the discharge port to form a tablet. The role of partitioning the tablet up and down at the time of passing is divided into a plurality of members according to the passing situation (passing position / passing time). Therefore, since the sharing range of each double fall prevention member is narrowed, the fluctuation of the repulsive force and the pressing force at the time of passing the tablet is reduced accordingly.
Therefore, according to the present invention, even if the partition member is cantilevered, it is possible to realize a tablet cassette in which the fluctuation of the repulsive force and the pressing force at the time of passing the tablet is small. Then, it becomes possible to share a wide variety of shapes and types of tablets as compared with the case where the double fall prevention member is single.

Further, in the tablet cassette of the present invention (Solution 2), the cantilever-supporting partition member has a pressing force / repulsive force against the tablet as the contact portion with the passing tablet is closer to the fixed end portion. Where the pressure and repulsion force against the tablet tends to decrease as the contact portion becomes larger and closer to the rocking end, the rocking ends of a pair of adjacent double fall prevention members are close to each other. By moving it to the side, only one double fall prevention member acts near the fixed end where the pressing force and repulsive force are large, and an excessive increase in pressing force and repulsive force is avoided. In a place near the swing end where the pressing force / repulsive force is small, both double fall prevention members act to avoid insufficient pressing force / repulsive force.
Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to realize a tablet cassette in which the fluctuation of the repulsive force and the pressing force at the time of passing the tablet is smaller.

Further, in the tablet cassette of the present invention (Solution 3), a pair of swinging ends having no insufficient pressing force and repulsive force are located directly above the discharge port, which is undesired. Double fall is accurately prevented.

Further, in the tablet cassette of the present invention (Solution 4), a part of the pair of swinging ends directly above the discharge port is positioned vertically, so that the double fall prevention member is provided. Since both members act on the passing tablet at the same time directly above the discharge port, which is an adjacent location, the pressing force and repulsive force against the tablet passing above the discharge port are greatly enhanced beyond avoiding the shortage. Unwanted double drops are more accurately prevented.

Further, in the tablet cassette of the present invention (solution 5), even if a plurality of double fall prevention members are provided, they are attached to the holding member and collectively attached to and detached from the container portion by attaching / detaching the holding member. By making it possible, the mounting work and position adjustment of each member can be diversified, and the work such as member replacement can be performed easily and quickly.

Regarding Example 1 of the present invention, the structure of a partition plate as a double fall prevention member and the structure of a tablet cassette to which the partition plate is mounted are shown, and (a) is a front view of a sheet metal punching member before bending. (B) is a plan view and a front view of the partition plate, (c) is a perspective view of the partition plate viewed from the upper right to the lower left, (d) is a right side view of a partial cross section of the tablet cassette equipped with the partition plate, (e). ) Is a partial cross-sectional plan view of the tablet cassette. The operation of the tablet cassette to which the partition plate is attached is shown, (a) is a right side view of a partial cross section of the tablet cassette, and (b) and (c) are enlarged rear views of the partition plate and the like. Both (a) and (b) are partial cross-sectional plan views of the tablet cassette. Both (a) and (b) are partial cross-sectional plan views of the tablet cassette. Both (a) and (b) are partial cross-sectional plan views of the tablet cassette.

A specific embodiment for carrying out such a tablet cassette of the present invention will be described with reference to Example 1 below.
Example 1 shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 embodies all of the above-mentioned solutions 1 to 5 (claims 1 to 5 at the time of filing).
For the sake of simplicity, the illustrations of drive sources such as electric motors, transmission members such as gears, and bases (cassette drive units) with electric circuits such as motor drivers are omitted. The ones necessary for the explanation of the invention and the related ones are mainly shown. Further, as for the upper lid of the tablet cassette, a known product having a simple structure is sufficient, so the illustration is omitted.

The specific configuration of Example 1 of the tablet cassette of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1A and 1B show the structure of the tablet cassette 40, of which FIGS. 1A to 1C show the structure of the partition plate 10 (double drop prevention member), and FIGS. 1D to 1E show the structure of the tablet cassette 40. The structure of the tablet cassette 40 in which the two partition plates 10a and 10b are mounted by using the holding member 20 is shown.

Specifically, FIG. 1A is a surface view of the sheet metal punching member 8 before bending, and FIG. 1B is a partition plate 10 formed by bending the sheet metal punching member 8. It is a plan view of the arrow D and the front view of the arrow C, and FIG. 1 (c) is a perspective view of the arrow E looking down on the partition plate 10 from the upper right to the lower left. Further, FIG. 1 (d) is a partial cross-sectional right side view of a tablet cassette 40 having a partition plate 10 attached to the tablet cassette 40, and FIG. 1 (e) is a partial cross-sectional right side view of the tablet cassette 40. It is a partial sectional plan view. In FIG. 1, the partition plate 10 is provided with a scattered dot pattern for the sake of clarity.

First, the partition plate 10 (10a, 10b) attached to the tablet cassette 40 as a double drop prevention member will be described. The partition plate 10 is, for example, punched from a thin flat metal plate with a press machine or the like to perform sheet metal punching. An elastic body that is easily manufactured by creating a punching member 8 (see FIG. 1A), bending it at substantially right angles at the bending portions 8a and 8b, and performing deburring, edge rounding, and the like. It is a plate member (see FIGS. 1 (b) and 1 (c)), and two (10a and 10b) are mounted on the tablet cassette 40 described later (see FIGS. 1 (d) and 1 (e)). The partition plate 10b shown in detail in FIGS. 1 (a) to 1 (c) and the partition plate 10a shown only in the mounted state in FIG. 1 (e) are bent in opposite directions at the bending portions 8a and 8b. As a result, it is made of a sheet metal punching member 8 having the same shape, and has a symmetrical shape inverted in both end directions in the longitudinal direction.

The partition plate 10 (see FIGS. 1 (b) and 1 (c)) is provided with a fixed end portion 11, a swinging end portion 12, and a central flexible portion 13 connecting both ends thereof. Of these, the fixed end portion 11 and the swinging end portion 12 are substantially parallel to each other, and the central flexible portion 13 is substantially orthogonal to the both end portions 11 and 12 at the bending portions 8a and 8b. An elongated hole 15 is formed through the fixed end portion 11, so that the fixed end portion 11 can be fixed to the holding member 20 by the head of the set screw 21 having the threaded portion inserted through the elongated hole 15. (See Fig. 1 (e)). On the other hand, the swinging end portion 12 is not fixed and is supported by the fixed end portion 11 via the central flexible portion 13. Since the central flexible portion 13 is an elongated plate member that easily bends in the thickness direction (A), the swing end portion 12 swings flexibly when pushed in that direction (A).

Further, in the partition plate 10 (see FIGS. 1B and 1C), a notch 14 is formed in a portion of the bending portion 8a between the swinging end portion 12 and the central flexible portion 13 near the fixed end portion 11. Therefore, the portion of the swinging end portion 12 along the notch 14 is likely to bend in the direction (D) substantially orthogonal to the central flexible portion 13.
Moreover, since the tip portion of the swinging end portion 12 that is separated from the fixed end portion 11 is separated from the central flexible portion 13 at a place where there is no bending portion 8a, that portion is also referred to as the central flexible portion 13. It is easy to bend in the direction (D) that is almost orthogonal to each other.

The holding member 20 (see FIGS. 1 (d) and 1 (e)) holds the partition plate 10 and is attached to and detached from the container portion 41 of the tablet cassette 40 (see Patent Documents 2 and 5). Not only one 10 but also a pair (plurality) of partition plates 10a and 10b are held. Specifically, the screw portion of the set screw 21 is passed through the elongated hole 15 of the partition plate 10 and the fixed end portion 11 is stopped and held by the head of the set screw 21. The holding portion of the partition plate 10a and the partition plate 10b are held. The holding portions of the holding member 20 are separated from each other near both ends of the holding member 20, and the swinging ends 12 and 12 of the pair of longitudinally inverted partition plates 10a and 10b are directed toward the center of the holding member 20. Both partition plates 10a and 10b are held in a state where the tip portions of the swinging end portions 12 and 12 are positioned vertically.

When such a holding member 20 is attached to the container portion 41, the fixed end portion 11 of the partition plate 10a and the fixed end portion 11 of the partition plate 10b are fixed to the container portion 41 via the holding member 20 and are in an inverted state. In a state where the partition plates 10a and 10b adjacent to each other have their fixed ends 11 and 11 on the remote side and the swinging ends 12 and 12 on the close side, the swinging ends 12 and 12 are further annularized. It is attached to the container portion 41 in a state of being connected in the circumferential direction of the gap 48. Such partition plates 10a and 10b are collectively attached to and detached from the container portion 41 by attaching and detaching the holding member 20.

The configuration of the tablet cassette 40 on which the holding member 20 and the partition plates 10a and 10b are mounted and the mounting state of the partition plates 10a and 10b will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 (d) is a right side view of a part of the tablet cassette 40 to which the partition plate 10 is attached in a vertical cross section as viewed from the arrow B, and FIG. 1 (e) crosses a part of the tablet cassette 40. It is a plan view of the D arrow view in a plane.

The tablet cassette 40 (see FIGS. 1 (d) and 1 (e)) may be a generally known product. Briefly, the tablet cassette 40 has a container portion 41 having an internal space for randomly accommodating tablets, and the center of the vertical axis thereof. It is provided with an alignment plate 45 provided so as to be rotatable, and is used in a state of being mounted on a base (not shown), and the alignment plate 45 is rotationally driven at the time of tablet ejection.
Since the lower portion of the internal space of the container portion 41 has a short cylindrical shape and the lower portion of the alignment plate 45 is arranged concentrically there, the tablet cassette 40 has both 41 and 45. It has an annular gap 48 between the two.

Further, a discharge port 43, which is a vertical through hole through which tablets can pass, is formed in a portion of the bottom plate of the container portion 41 that corresponds to the lower end portion of the annular gap 48, and a discharge port 43 among the side plates of the container portion 41. A slit 42 is formed as a through hole for free insertion of the partition plate, which is a horizontal through hole through which the swinging ends 12 and 12 of the partition plates 10a and 10b can enter.
Further, a large number of blade-shaped partition walls 46 are formed in a radial arrangement at equal pitches on the outer peripheral surface of the lower portion of the alignment board 45, and the annular gaps 48 are divided into a large number of compartments 49 arranged in an annular shape. In each compartment 49, one tablet can be stored.

Then, when the partition plates 10a and 10b are attached to such a tablet cassette 40, the holding member 20 holding the partition plates 10a and 10b as described above is moved from the front to the back, that is, in the direction C, and the partition plates 10a are moved. , 10b The swinging ends 12 and 12 are inserted into the slit 42, and then the holding member 20 is fixed to the container 41 with screws or engagements (not shown). Then, the leading portion of the swinging ends 12, 12 of the partition plates 10a and 10b enters the annular gap 48 of the tablet cassette 40, is located above the discharge port 43, and lies there. A part of the annular gap 48 is vertically divided so as to face the discharge port 43.

In this way, when the holding member 20 holding the partition plates 10a and 10b is attached to the container portion 41 of the tablet cassette 40, the partition plates 10a and 10b have any swinging end portions 12 and 12, respectively. Is also loosely inserted into the annular gap 48 through the slit 42 in the sideways state and the horizontal state. Moreover, in the loosely inserted state, the upper and lower portions of the swinging ends 12 and 12 are located substantially directly above the discharge port 43, and thus, as will be described in detail later, tablets that are vertically overlapped there. When they are carried, the swinging end portion 12 of the partition plate 10b precedes them and partitions them up and down, and the swinging end portion 12 of the partition plate 10a subsequently partitions them up and down.

The usage mode and operation of the tablet cassette 40 of the first embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.

First, a situation will be described when the tablets 4 and 4 that have been transferred in an overlapping manner are partitioned up and down by the partition plates 10a and 10b.
2A and 2B show a situation when the upper and lower tablets 4 and 4 are partitioned into upper and lower parts, in which FIG. 2A is a right side view of a partial cross section of the tablet cassette 40 as viewed by arrow B, and FIGS. It is an enlarged rear view of the tablet cassette 40 with respect to the partition portion (12, 12) above the discharge port 43. In FIG. 2, the tablet 4 is provided with a scattered spot pattern for the sake of clarity.

Tablets 4 such as capsules shown in the container 41 of the tablet cassette 40 equipped with the partition plates 10a and 10b (Note that the tablets 4a and 4b are the same as the tablets 4, but the following among a large number of tablets 4 When the tablets (which are of particular interest in the explanation of) are randomly contained (see FIG. 2 (a)), many of the many tablets 4 on the lower side fall into the compartment 49 of the annular gap 48 one by one. In the tablet 4 (including tablets 4a and 4b) that entered the compartment 49, most of the tablets 4 (including tablets 4a but excluding tablets 4b) were in a state where the lower end was attached to the inner bottom of the container portion 41. It is individually housed in each compartment 49 in a stable posture. Then, when the alignment plate 45 is axially rotated for the sequential discharge of the tablets, it circulates in the annular gap 48 together with the partition wall 46, and sequentially moves one by one with the swinging end portion 12 of the partition plate 10b and the container. It proceeds toward the discharge port 43 of the unit 41.

Then (see FIG. 2B), the upper end of the tablet 4a that is contained in the compartment 49 and is circulating and moving approaches the portion of the partition plate 10b that is closer to the fixed end portion 11 of the swinging end portion 12.
Then, when the circulating movement of the tablet 4a progresses and the tablet 4 comes under the rocking end portion 12, only the tablet 4a inevitably passes under the rocking end portion 12 when the tablet 4a is alone. However, even when another tablet 4 is overlapped on the tablet 4a (see FIG. 2C), the portion of the swinging end portion 12 of the partition plate 10b on the notch 14 side is the lowest tablet 4a. Since it breaks into the tablet 4 above it, only the bottom tablet 4a also passes under the swinging end portion 12.

At that time, even if there is a slight deviation in the vertical direction (D) position between the swinging end portion 12 of the partition plate 10b and the upper end of the lower tablet 4a and the lower end of the tablet 4 immediately above it, the partition plate 10b Of the swinging end portion 12, the portion on the notch 14 side is a cantilever beam having the first contact portion with the tablet as a free end, and is thin in the vertical direction (D) and easily bent. Since the first contact portion flexibly moves up and down, the overlapping tablets 4a and 4 can be separated up and down without difficulty. Then, when the tablet 4a and the tablet 4 above it move to the swinging end portion 12 of the partition plate 10a at the rear (B), the upper and lower partitions of the tablets 4a and 4 are taken over from the partition plate 10b to the partition plate 10a. , The lower tablet 4a falls from the discharge port 43, but the upper tablet 4 passes above the discharge port 43, so that an undesired double drop is prevented.

Next, a situation in which the tablets cannot be divided into upper and lower parts will be described with reference to the drawings.
3 (a), (b), 4 (a), 4 (b), 5 (a), and (b) are all planes viewed from the D arrow with a part of the tablet cassette 40 in cross section. It is a figure, and shows the situation when the upper and lower tablets 4 and 4 could not be divided into upper and lower parts in chronological order. After all, the tablet 4 has a scattered spot pattern.

As an example, some of the tablets 4b out of a large number of tablets 4 are caught in the middle of falling into the compartment 49 and stop falling before reaching the inner bottom, and remain in a halfway position (FIG. 2). (A)), the case where the tablet comes toward the partition plate 10b (see FIG. 3 (a)).
In this case, when the tablet 4b comes into contact with the swinging end portion 12 of the partition plate 10b (see FIG. 3B), the tip end portion of the swinging end portion 12 on the notch 14 side is in the vertical direction (D) as described above. Even though it can be flexibly displaced, there is a limit to it, and the deformation that avoids the tablet 4b in the halfway position up and down exceeds the limit, so the side of the rocking end 12 and the tablet 4b The direction (A, C) contact state continues.

Therefore (see FIG. 4A), as the partition plate 10b is pushed by the tablet 4b with which the tip of the swinging end portion 12 is in contact, the low-rigidity central flexible portion 13 is bent in an arcuate shape. , The rocking end portion 12 laterally moves from the inside to the outside (A) of the container portion 41 and separates from the alignment plate 45. Then, the tablet 4b is sandwiched between the swinging end portion 12 of the partition plate 10b and the outer peripheral surface of the alignment plate 45 in the partition chamber 49. At this time, since the central flexible portion 13 is flexibly deformed and the tablet 4b is gently sandwiched, even if the tablet 4b is brittle, there is no risk of breakage.

Then, when the circulation movement of the tablet 4b further progresses (see FIG. 4B) and the tablet 4b comes directly above or very close to the discharge port 43, the tablet 4b is moved to the tip of the swinging end portion 12 of the partition plate 10b. While in contact with the portion, it also contacts the tip of the swinging end portion 12 of the partition plate 10a.
At this time, the pressing force that the tablet 4b receives from the partition plate 10b is weakened because it is far from the fixed end portion 11, but the tablet 4b also receives the pressing force from the partition plate 10a, so that the tablet 4b is reliably held. Therefore, the occurrence of an undesired situation in which the vehicle falls toward the discharge port 43 at an unstable posture or at an uncertain timing is accurately prevented.

Then, the circulation movement of the tablet 4b further progresses (see FIG. 5A), the tablet 4b leaves the swinging end portion 12 of the partition plate 10b, and the swinging end of the partition plate 10a among the plurality of partition plates 10 When the tablet 4b comes into contact with only the portion 12, the tablet 4b continues to be sandwiched by an appropriate pressing force due to the flexible deformation of the central flexible portion 13 of the partition plate 10a.
Then, as the circulation movement further progresses (see FIG. 5B), when the tablet 4b is surely moved away from the upper part of the discharge port 43, the partition plate 10a also separates from the tablet 4b, so that the tablet 4b is stirred by the alignment plate 45. Returned to the environment.

In this way, the partition plates 10a and 10b mounted on the tablet cassette 40 are centrally capable of having a small bending rigidity in the lateral direction (A) when the tablet 4b is sandwiched between the swinging end portion 12 and the alignment plate 45. The flexible portion 13 is deformed in an arc shape, which is also flexibly and greatly deformed, and the tablet 4b is gently sandwiched and continuously passed through. Moreover, at that time, each part functions in a time series in which the partition plate 10b acts in the first half, the partition plates 10a and 10b act together in the middle where the pressing force decreases independently, and the partition plate 10a acts in the latter half. ..
Therefore, even when the tablet 4 is carried in the annular gap 48 at a halfway position, and even if the tablet 4 is considerably fragile, the tablet 4 moves safely without being damaged.

Further, although the specific illustration is omitted, the situation where the lower tablet is properly contained in the compartment 49 but a part of the upper tablet is in the upper part of the compartment 49 is also concise. Explain to.
In such a situation, a tablet that is clearly smaller or thinner than the compartment 49 is stored in the tablet cassette 40 due to the sharing of the tablet cassette 40, or a deformed tablet having an acute angle or a protrusion such as a half tablet is used. It tends to occur when it is stored in the tablet cassette 40.

Then, in such a situation, the upper tablet was sandwiched between the partition plates 10a and 10b and the alignment plate 45 in the same manner as the tablet 4b at the halfway position described immediately before (see FIGS. 3 to 5). It passes above the discharge port 43 as it is. On the other hand, when the lower tablet is carried under the partition plate 10b and above the discharge port 43, it falls downward through the discharge port 43.
Therefore, in this case as well, undesired double dropping of the tablets is accurately prevented, and the tablets are sequentially discharged one by one as the alignment plate 45 rotates.

[Other]
In the above embodiment, the partition plate 10a is installed in the opposite direction to the partition plate 10b, but the partition plate 10a may be installed in the same direction as the partition plate 10b, so that the partition plate 10a is also equipped with the partition plate 10a. As with 10b, buckling of the central flexible portion 13 is less likely to occur.
In the above embodiment, two partition plates 10 are adjacent to each other and there is only one pair of adjacent partitions. However, three or more partition plates 10 may be arranged in a row, and in that case, there are a plurality of adjacent pairs. However, it is possible to select how many pairs have the fixed end on the remote side and the swing end on the close side.
In the above embodiment, the partition plate 10 is fixed to the holding member 20 with a set screw 21, but the fixing method is not limited to screw fixing, and other methods such as engagement may be used.

The tablet cassette of the present invention is not limited to the capsules exemplified in the above examples, and can be applied to various tablets such as half tablets listed in the background technology column.

4,4a, 4b ... Tablets,
8 ... Sheet metal punching member (elastic body), 8a, 8b ... Bending part,
10 ... Partition plate (double fall prevention member),
11 ... fixed end, 12 ... swinging end, 13 ... central flexible part, 14 ... notch, 15 ... slotted hole,
20 ... Holding member, 21 ... Set screw,
40 ... Tablet cassette, 41 ... Container part, 42 ... Slit (through hole for partition plate free insertion),
43 ... Discharge port, 45 ... Alignment board, 46 ... Partition wall, 48 ... Circular gap, 49 ... Partition room

Claims (5)

A container portion capable of accommodating a large number of tablets, an alignment plate provided in the container portion in a state in which the axis can be rotated, and a large number of the container portion and the alignment plate formed on the outer peripheral surface of the alignment plate. It is provided with a vane-shaped partition wall that divides the annular gaps of the above into a large number of compartments at equal pitches, and a discharge port is formed in a part of the bottom portion of the container portion that forms the lower surface of the annular gaps. In a tablet cassette in which tablets that have entered the compartment by rotating the axis of the board are sequentially dropped from the discharge port.
A plurality of double fall prevention members composed of an elastic body having a fixed end portion for fixing to the container portion and a swinging end portion loosely inserted above the discharge port to partition the tablet vertically. The tablet cassette is characterized in that these double fall prevention members are mounted on the container portion in a state where the respective rocking end portions are connected in the circumferential direction of the annular gap. .. Adjacent ones among the plurality of double fall prevention members are mounted on the container portion with their fixed ends on the remote side and their rocking ends on the close side. The tablet cassette according to claim 1, wherein the tablet cassette is provided. The tablet cassette according to claim 2, wherein the pair of rocking ends on the close side are located directly above the discharge port. The tablet cassette according to claim 3, wherein a part of the pair of swinging ends is arranged vertically. A holding member having a plurality of holding portions capable of fixing the fixed end portion is provided, and the plurality of double fall prevention members can be collectively attached to and detached from the container portion by attaching and detaching the holding member. The tablet cassette according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the tablet cassette is characterized by the above.

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