CN112123946A

CN112123946A - Conveying device and tablet printing device

Info

Publication number: CN112123946A
Application number: CN202010547198.0A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 中野信行; 松田邦利; 谷口慎也; 西川贵之; 高畑侑弥
Original assignee: Screen Holdings Co Ltd
Current assignee: Screen Holdings Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-06-25
Filing date: 2020-06-16
Publication date: 2020-12-25
Anticipated expiration: 2040-06-16
Also published as: TW202100413A; JP7220628B2; JP2021004107A; CN112123946B; TWI732600B; KR20210000666A; KR102469127B1

Abstract

The invention provides a conveying device, a tablet printing device and a technology capable of inhibiting blockage of granular objects or breakage of the granular objects in the conveying device of the granular objects. The conveying device includes a supply mechanism, a first roller, a first pressing member, and a first elastic member. The supply mechanism supplies a plurality of tablets as granular materials in a horizontal conveyance direction. The first drum rotates about a horizontal axis while receiving the pastilles from the feed mechanism near its upper end. The outer peripheral surface of the first drum has a plurality of concave pockets and convex portions located between the pockets. When the tablet rides on the convex portion, the first pressing member holds the tablet between the tablet and the convex portion. Thereby, the position of the pastilles in the circumferential direction can be adjusted to introduce the pastilles into the bag. As a result, the tablet can be accommodated in each pocket of the first drum while suppressing clogging of the tablet and breakage of the tablet.

Description

Conveying device and tablet printing device

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a conveying device for conveying granular objects and a tablet printing apparatus including the conveying device.

Background

Characters or codes for identifying products are printed on tablets as pharmaceutical products. In addition, boiled candies such as boiled candies may be printed with a mark or an illustration. A printing apparatus for printing an image on such a granular material such as tablets and lozenges by an ink jet method has been known. In particular, in recent years, the types of tablets have been diversified due to the widespread use of general-purpose medicines. Therefore, in order to easily recognize the troche, a technique of printing an image clearly on the troche by an ink jet method has been attracting attention.

In such a printing apparatus, a large number of tablets flow into a hopper for carrying in. The printing apparatus arranges the plurality of tablets flowing in one by one with a predetermined interval in the conveying direction. Then, the plurality of tablets conveyed in an aligned state are printed. In addition, not limited to the printing apparatus, in an inspection apparatus for inspecting tablets or a packaging apparatus for packaging tablets, it is necessary to convey a plurality of tablets while arranging them at predetermined intervals in the conveying direction.

A mechanism for conveying a plurality of tablets while arranging them at predetermined intervals in a conveying direction is described in patent document 1, for example.

[ Prior art documents ]

[ patent document ]

[ patent document 1] Japanese patent laid-open No. 2004-59036

[ patent document 2] Japanese patent laid-open No. Hei 5-85519

Disclosure of Invention

[ problems to be solved by the invention ]

In the structure of patent document 1, a plurality of tablets t fed along the chute 22 are cut into individual tablets t by a plurality of shear blades 31 of the feed roller 3, and are fed to the outer peripheral surface of the input drum 1 (see paragraph 0036, fig. 4, and the like).

In the structure of patent document 2, the lowermost pastille 9a in the chute 50 is held by a stopper 70. Then, the stopper 70 is retreated according to the rotation of the drum 1, whereby the tablets 9a fall and are supplied into the pockets 2 of the drum 1.

However, in the structures of patent documents 1 and 2, there is a concern that: jamming of the tablet or breakage of the tablet occurs as the tablet is pinched between the chute and the shear or stop.

The invention aims to provide a technology capable of inhibiting blockage of granular objects or breakage of the granular objects in a conveying device of the granular objects such as pastilles.

[ means for solving problems ]

In order to solve the above problem, embodiment 1 of the present application is a conveying device that conveys granular objects, and includes: a supply mechanism for supplying a plurality of granular objects along a horizontal conveying direction; a first drum that rotates about an axis parallel to a width direction that is a direction perpendicular to and horizontal to the conveyance direction and that receives the particulate matter supplied from the supply mechanism near an upper end thereof; a first pressing member disposed in the vicinity of a delivery position from the supply mechanism to the first drum; and a first elastic member that presses the first pressing member toward the first roller, and an outer peripheral surface of the first roller includes: a plurality of concave pockets arranged at intervals in a circumferential direction around the shaft; and a convex portion located between the bag portions, wherein the first pressing member has a holding surface for holding the granular material while sandwiching the granular material with the convex portion when the granular material rides on the convex portion.

Embodiment 2 of the present application is the conveyance device according to embodiment 1, wherein the first pressing member further includes an abutment surface that is located closer to the supply mechanism than the holding surface and that is inclined so as to be away from the outer peripheral surface of the first drum as approaching the supply mechanism.

Embodiment 3 of the present application is the conveyance device according to embodiment 2, wherein the holding surface and the abutment surface are connected via a smooth curved surface.

Embodiment 4 of the present application is the conveying device according to any one of embodiments 1 to 3, further including: a second pressing member located on a downstream side of the conveyance path from the first pressing member; and a second elastic member that presses the second pressing member toward the first drum, and the second pressing member has a pressing surface that presses the granular material toward a bag portion in front in a rotation direction when a rear end portion of the granular material rides on a front end portion in the rotation direction of the convex portion.

In embodiment 5 of the present application, the second pressing member further includes a guide surface located on a downstream side of the conveyance path from the pressing surface and approaching the outer peripheral surface of the first drum toward the downstream side of the conveyance path, according to embodiment 4.

Embodiment 6 of the present application is the conveyance device according to any one of embodiments 1 to 5, wherein the first drum has a plurality of suction holes for sucking the particulate matter, and the suction holes are located near a front end portion of a bottom surface of the pocket portion in a rotation direction of the first drum.

Embodiment 7 of the present application is the conveyance device according to embodiment 6, wherein the bag has an inclined surface connecting a bottom surface of the bag and a surface of the convex portion at a rear end portion in a rotation direction of the first drum.

Embodiment 8 of the present application is the conveyance device according to any one of embodiments 1 to 5, wherein the first drum has a plurality of suction holes for sucking the particulate matter, and the suction holes suck the side surfaces of the particulate matter contained in the bag.

In embodiment 9 of the present application, the conveying device according to embodiment 6 is configured such that the bag has an inclined surface that connects a bottom surface of the bag and a surface of the convex portion at least one of a front end portion and a rear end portion in a rotation direction of the first drum.

Embodiment 10 of the present application is the conveying device according to any one of embodiments 1 to 9, further including: a second drum that rotates while adsorbing and holding the particulate matter transferred from the first drum on an outer peripheral surface; and a conveyor for conveying the granular objects transferred from the second roller.

Embodiment 11 of the present application is the conveying device according to embodiment 10, wherein an outer peripheral surface of the second drum includes a material that is more easily elastically deformed than an outer peripheral surface of the first drum.

Embodiment 12 of the present application is the conveying device according to any one of embodiments 1 to 11, wherein the supply mechanism has a guide rail that covers a lower surface or an upper surface of a conveyance path of the particulate matter, the guide rail having a groove extending in a conveyance direction of the particulate matter.

Embodiment 13 of the present application is the conveying device according to any one of embodiments 1 to 12, wherein the granular objects are pastilles.

A 14 th embodiment of the present application is a lozenge printing apparatus comprising: the conveying apparatus according to embodiment 13; and a printing section for printing an image on the surface of the tablet by an ink jet method.

[ Effect of the invention ]

According to embodiments 1 to 14 of the present application, when the granular material rides on the convex portion, the granular material is held by being sandwiched between the first pressing member and the convex portion, and thereby the position of the granular material in the circumferential direction can be adjusted to introduce the granular material into the pocket. Thus, the granular material can be delivered from the supply mechanism to each pocket of the first drum while suppressing clogging of the granular material or breakage of the granular material.

In particular, according to embodiment 2 of the present application, the abutting surface can be used to block a part of the particulate matter supplied from the supply mechanism onto the convex portion of the first drum from falling into the next pocket.

In particular, according to embodiment 3 of the present application, even when the particulate matter has a groove such as a cut line, the particulate matter can be suppressed from being caught at the boundary portion between the holding surface and the abutment surface.

In particular, according to embodiment 4 of the present application, when the rear end portion of the granular material rides up the front end portion of the convex portion, the second pressing member presses the tablet toward the bag portion in the front direction, so that the tablet can be contained in the bag portion.

In particular, according to the 5 th embodiment of the present application, when the granular material housed in the bag portion stands upright, the posture of the granular material can be corrected by the guide surface.

In particular, according to embodiment 6 of the present application, the front end portion of the granular material is brought into contact with the front end surface of the bag portion to position the granular material, and the granular material is adsorbed and held.

In particular, according to embodiment 7 of the present application, the granular material can be smoothly introduced from the convex portion into the bag portion adjacent to the front in the rotational direction.

In particular, according to embodiment 8 of the present application, in the case where the granular objects have annular side surfaces, the granular objects can be positioned in the conveyance direction by holding the side surfaces of the granular objects by suction.

In particular, according to embodiment 9 of the present application, the granular material can be smoothly introduced from the convex portion into the bag portion adjacent to the front or rear in the rotation direction.

In particular, according to embodiment 10 of the present application, the conveyance direction of the particulate matter is reversed by interposing the second drum, so that the particulate matter can be conveyed from the first drum to the conveyor.

In particular, according to embodiment 11 of the present application, the transfer of the particulate matter from the first drum to the second drum and the transfer of the particulate matter from the second drum to the conveyor can be performed satisfactorily.

In particular, according to embodiment 12 of the present application, the posture of the granular substances can be maintained by the guide rail having the groove while the granular substances are supplied. Therefore, clogging or breakage of the particulate matter in the supply mechanism can be suppressed.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a tablet printing apparatus.

Fig. 2 is a partial perspective view of the conveying conveyor.

Fig. 3 is a bottom view of a head.

Fig. 4 is a block diagram showing the connection between the control unit and each unit in the tablet printing apparatus.

Fig. 5 is a partial side view of the first drum.

Fig. 6 is a side view of the pressing mechanism.

Fig. 7 is a diagram illustrating a situation of a first handover location at a certain point in time.

Fig. 8 is a diagram illustrating a first handover location at another point in time.

Fig. 9 is a diagram illustrating a first handover location at another point in time.

Fig. 10 is a diagram illustrating a first handover location at another point in time.

Fig. 11 is a partial side view of the supply conveyor and the second chute.

Fig. 12 is a cross-sectional view of the supply conveyor cut along a plane perpendicular to the conveying direction.

Fig. 13 is a cross-sectional view of the first chute cut along a plane orthogonal to the conveying direction.

Fig. 14 is a partial side view of a first drum of a modification.

[ description of symbols ]

1: pastille printing device

9: pastille

10: feeding mechanism

11: bowl type feeder

12: first chute

13: supply conveyor

14: second chute

15: guide rail

16: guide rail

17: screw with a thread

18: spacer

20: first roller

21: cylinder body

22: retaining ring

23: bag part

24: adsorption hole

25: pressing mechanism

26: first pressing member

27: a first elastic member

28: second pressing member

29: second elastic member

30: second roller

31: cylinder body

32: retaining ring

34: adsorption hole

40: conveying conveyor

41: pulley wheel

42: conveying belt

44: air supply mechanism

50: first camera

60: printing part

61: head part

70: second camera

80: drying mechanism

90: discharge mechanism

91: discharge chute

100: control unit

101: processor with a memory having a plurality of memory cells

102: memory device

103: storage unit

110: material groove

121: columnar part

121 a: through hole

131: pulley wheel

132: supply belt

151: trough

161: rail body

162: arm part

162 a: through hole

163: square block part

221: wall part

230: convex part

231: bottom surface

232: front end face

233: rear inclined plane

234: front inclined plane

261: retaining surface

262: abutting surface

281: pressing protrusion

282: pressing surface

283: guide surface

421: adsorption hole

611: nozzle with a nozzle body

A1: first rotating shaft

A2: second axis of rotation

O1: first shaft

O2: second shaft

P1: first handover location

P2: second hand-over position

P3: third handover location

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

< 1. integral constitution of lozenge printing apparatus

Fig. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a tablet printing apparatus 1 including a conveying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The tablet printing apparatus 1 is an apparatus that prints an image such as a product name, a product code, a company name, a logo, or the like on the surface of each tablet 9 while conveying a plurality of tablets 9 as granular materials. The lozenges 9 may be plain (naked) or coated (FC) or film coated). Tablet 9 may be a capsule including a hard capsule and a soft capsule. The "granules" in the present invention are not limited to tablets as pharmaceutical products, and may be tablets as health food or lozenges such as soda candies.

As shown in fig. 1, the tablet printing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment includes a supply mechanism 10, a first drum 20, a second drum 30, a conveying conveyor 40, a first camera 50, a printing section 60, a second camera 70, a drying mechanism 80, a discharge mechanism 90, and a control section 100.

The supply mechanism 10 is a mechanism that supplies the plurality of tablets 9 loaded in the tablet printing apparatus 1 to the first drum 20. The supply mechanism 10 of the present embodiment includes a bowl feeder (bowl feeder)11, a1 st chute 12, a supply conveyor 13, and a second chute 14.

The bowl feeder 11 has a disk-shaped trough (trough)110 for receiving the plurality of tablets 9. The bowl feeder 11 vibrates the trough 110 to move the plurality of tablets 9, and supplies the tablets to the first chute 12. The first chute 12 extends in an arc shape between the discharge port of the trough 110 and the supply conveyor 13. The first chute 12 has a plurality of conveyance paths. The bowl feeder 11 supplies the tablets 9 to the respective conveyance paths of the first chute 12. Thus, the plurality of tablets 9 are arranged in a plurality of rows. That is, a plurality of rows of tablets 9 aligned in the conveying direction are formed in the width direction (the direction perpendicular to and horizontal to the conveying direction). Then, the aligned tablets 9 are supplied from the first chute 12 to the supply conveyor 13. In fig. 1, only one row of tablets 9 is shown.

The supply conveyor 13 is a mechanism for horizontally and linearly conveying the tablets 9 from the first chute 12 to the second chute 14. The feeding conveyor 13 includes two pulleys (pullies) 131 and an endless feeding belt 132 that is stretched over the two pulleys 131. One of the two pulleys 131 is rotated by power obtained from a motor (not shown). Thereby, the feed belt 132 rotates in the arrow direction in fig. 1. The other pulley 131 is driven to rotate in accordance with the rotation of the feeding belt 132. Further, a partition plate extending along the boundary of the row of tablets 9 is provided above the supply belt 132. The tablets 9 supplied from the first chute 12 are conveyed to the downstream side in the conveying direction by the rotation of the supply belt 132 while being maintained in a state of being arranged in a plurality of rows by the partition plate.

The second chute 14 extends linearly between the supply conveyor 13 and the first drum 20. The second chute 14 has a plurality of conveyance paths. The tablets 9 supplied from the supply conveyor 13 are supplied to the respective conveyance paths of the second chute 14. Then, the tablets 9 in the second chute 14 are pushed by the subsequent tablet 9 conveyed by the supply conveyor 13 and travel to the downstream side in the conveying direction. Then, the tablets 9 are supplied to the first drum 20 from the end portion on the downstream side in the conveying direction of the second chute 14.

The first drum 20 is a mechanism that conveys the plurality of tablets 9 supplied from the second chute 14 while holding the tablets at regular intervals in the conveying direction. The first drum 20 has a substantially cylindrical outer peripheral surface centered on a first axis O1 extending in the width direction. A motor, not shown, is connected to the first drum 20. When the motor is driven, the first drum 20 rotates in the arrow direction in fig. 1 about the first axis O1. The first drum 20 conveys the tablet 9 from the first delivery position P1 near the upper end thereof to the second delivery position P2 near the second drum 30.

As shown in fig. 1, the first drum 20 has a drum main body 21 and a retainer ring 22. The retainer ring 22 is fitted to the outer circumferential surface of the drum main body 21. Specifically, the plurality of retaining rings 22 are disposed at positions in the width direction corresponding to the respective rows of tablets 9. The retaining ring 22 may be formed of a resin such as polyacetal, for example. The outer peripheral surface of each retaining ring 22 has a plurality of concave pockets 23. The plurality of pockets 23 are provided at regular intervals in the circumferential direction around the first axis O1. The holding ring 22 has an adsorption hole 24 for adsorbing the tablet 9 at the bottom of each pocket 23.

The first drum 20 is connected to a suction mechanism not shown. When the suction mechanism is operated, gas is sucked from the inner space of the first drum 20 located in the angular range between the first handover position P1 and the second handover position P2. Thereby, the internal space becomes a negative pressure lower than the atmospheric pressure. The plurality of tablets 9 fed from the second chute 14 are sucked and held by the suction holes 24 of the first drum 20 by the negative pressure.

The tablets 9 supplied from the second chute 14 are housed in the bag portion 23 in units of one and sucked and held by the suction holes 24. As a result, the intervals of the plurality of tablets 9 in the conveying direction become predetermined intervals corresponding to the intervals of the pockets 23. The tablets 9 are sucked and held by the suction holes 24 in the pocket 23, and are conveyed from the first delivery position P1 to the second delivery position P2 by the rotation of the first drum 20. When the tablets 9 pass through the second delivery position P2, the adsorption of the tablets 9 is released by deviating from the angular range of the internal space maintained at the negative pressure. Thereby, the pastilles 9 are handed over from the first drum 20 to the second drum 30.

Further, at the first delivery position P1, the tablet 9 is pushed by the pushing mechanism 25 and is drawn into the pocket 23 of the holding ring 22. This can prevent the tablets 9 from being clogged or broken, and the tablets 9 can be stored in the respective pockets 23 one by one. The details of the pressing mechanism 25 will be described later.

The second drum 30 is a mechanism for conveying the tablets 9 delivered from the first drum 20 to the conveying conveyor 40. The second drum 30 has a substantially cylindrical outer peripheral surface centered on a second axis O2 extending in the width direction. In the present embodiment, the outer diameter of the first drum 20 is substantially the same as the outer diameter of the second drum 30. Wherein, the outer diameter of the first roller 20 and the outer diameter of the second roller 30 can be different. A motor, not shown, is connected to the second drum 30. When the motor is driven, the second drum 30 rotates in the opposite direction to the first drum 20 centering on the second axis O2. The second drum 30 conveys the tablet 9 from the second delivery position P2 in close proximity to the first drum 20 to the third delivery position P3 in close proximity to the conveying conveyor 40. The third handoff position P3 is higher than the first and second handoff positions P1 and P2.

As shown in fig. 1, the second drum 30 has a drum body 31 and a retainer ring 32. The retainer ring 32 is fitted to the outer circumferential surface of the drum main body 31. The retaining ring 32 has a plurality of suction holes 34 on the outer peripheral surface. The second drum 30 is connected to a suction mechanism, not shown. When the suction mechanism is operated, gas is sucked from the inner space of the second drum 30 located in the angular range between the second handover position P2 and the third handover position P3. Thereby, the internal space becomes a negative pressure lower than the atmospheric pressure. The plurality of tablets 9 transferred from the first drum 20 are sucked and held by the suction holes 34 of the holding ring 32 by the negative pressure.

The tablet 9 sucked and held by the suction hole 34 is conveyed from the second delivery position P2 to the third delivery position P3 by the rotation of the second drum 30. When the tablets 9 pass through the third transfer position P3, the adsorption of the tablets 9 is released by deviating from the angular range of the internal space maintained at the negative pressure. Thereby, the tablets 9 are transferred from the second drum 30 to the conveying conveyor 40.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the plurality of tablets 9 supplied from the supply mechanism 10 are conveyed to the conveying conveyor 40 via the two rollers, the first roller 20 and the second roller 30. The first drum 20 holds the plurality of tablets 9 with a space therebetween in the transport direction. The second drum 30 conveys the tablets 9 to the conveying conveyor 40 while maintaining the interval in the conveying direction. At this time, the conveying direction (rotation direction) of the tablets 9 is reversed by the first drum 20 and the second drum 30. Thus, the tablets 9 can be conveyed from the second drum 30 to the conveying conveyor 40 according to the running direction of the conveying conveyor 40.

In addition, the retaining ring 32 of the second roller 30 comprises a material that is more easily elastically deformable than the retaining ring 22 of the first roller 20. That is, the outer circumferential surface of the second drum 30 includes a material that is more easily elastically deformed than the outer circumferential surface of the first drum 20. The holding ring 32 of the second drum 30 is made of a material that is more easily elastically deformed than a later-described conveying belt 42 of the conveying conveyor 40. Specifically, the retaining ring 32 of the second drum 30 contains silicone, for example. Accordingly, when the tablets 9 are transferred from the first drum 20 to the second drum 30 and the tablets 9 are transferred from the second drum 30 to the conveying conveyor 40, the elastic force of the retaining ring 32 acts, so that the tablets 9 are prevented from dropping or breaking, and the success rate of transfer can be improved.

The conveying conveyor 40 is a mechanism that conveys the plurality of tablets 9 delivered from the second drum 30 while adsorbing and holding the tablets. The conveying conveyor 40 includes a pair of pulleys 41 and an endless conveying belt 42 stretched between the pair of pulleys 41. One of the pair of pulleys 41 is rotated by power obtained from an unillustrated motor. Thereby, the carrier belt 42 rotates in the arrow direction in fig. 1. The other of the pair of pulleys 41 is driven to rotate in accordance with the rotation of the conveyor belt 42.

Fig. 2 is a partial perspective view of the conveying conveyor 40. As shown in fig. 2, a plurality of suction holes 421 are provided in the outer circumferential surface of the conveying belt 42. The plurality of suction holes 421 are arranged at equal intervals in the conveyance direction and the width direction. The conveying conveyor 40 has a suction mechanism (not shown) for sucking gas from the space inside the conveying belt 42. When the suction mechanism is operated, the inner space of the conveyor belt 42 becomes a negative pressure lower than the atmospheric pressure. The plurality of tablets 9 are sucked and held by the suction holes 421 in units of one tablet by the negative pressure.

As described above, the plurality of tablets 9 are held on the surface of the conveying belt 42 in a state of being aligned in the conveying direction and the width direction. Then, the conveying conveyor 40 conveys the plurality of tablets 9 by rotating the conveying belt 42. A plurality of tablets 9 are conveyed in the horizontal direction below the four heads 61 described later.

As shown in fig. 1, the conveying conveyor 40 has an air blowing mechanism 44. The air blowing mechanism 44 is provided inside the conveyor belt 42 and at a position facing a discharge chute 91, which will be described later, with the conveyor belt 42 interposed therebetween. The air blowing mechanism 44 blows air only to the suction holes 421 facing the discharge chute 91 among the suction holes 421 of the conveyor belt 42. Then, the adsorption hole 421 becomes a positive pressure higher than the atmospheric pressure. Thereby, the adsorption of the tablets 9 at the adsorption holes 421 is released, and the tablets 9 are passed from the conveying belt 42 through the discharge chute 91 and delivered to the discharge conveyor.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the conveying device that conveys tablets 9 includes the supply mechanism 10, the first drum 20, the second drum 30, and the conveying conveyor 40.

The first camera 50 is a processing section for imaging the tablet 9 before printing. The first camera 50 is located downstream of the third delivery position P3 in the conveyance path and upstream of the printing section 60 in the conveyance path. The first camera 50 may be a line sensor in which image sensors such as a Charge Coupled Device (CCD) and a Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) are arranged in the width direction. The first camera 50 images a plurality of tablets 9 conveyed by the conveyor belt 42. The image obtained by the shooting is transmitted from the first camera 50 to the control unit 100 described later. The control unit 100 detects the presence or absence of the tablet 9, the position of the tablet 9, and the posture of the tablet 9 at each suction hole 421 based on the image obtained from the first camera 50. Further, the control unit 100 may check whether or not each of the tablets 9 has a defect such as a defect based on the image obtained from the first camera 50.

The printing unit 60 is a processing unit that prints an image on the surface of the pastilles 9 conveyed by the conveyor belt 42 by an ink jet method. As shown in fig. 1, the printing portion 60 of the present embodiment includes four heads 61. The four heads 61 are positioned above the conveyor belt 42 and arranged in a row along the conveying direction of the tablets 9. The four heads 61 eject ink droplets of different colors (for example, cyan, magenta, yellow, and black colors) toward the pastilles 9. Then, a multicolor image is recorded on the front or back surface of the tablet 9 by superimposing monochromatic images formed of these respective colors. Further, edible ink manufactured from materials approved by the japanese pharmacopoeia, food hygiene law, and the like can be used as the ink ejected from each head 61.

Fig. 3 is a bottom view of one head 61. In fig. 3, the conveyor belt 42 and the plurality of tablets 9 held by the conveyor belt 42 are indicated by two-dot chain lines. As shown in fig. 3 in an enlarged manner, a plurality of nozzles 611 capable of ejecting ink droplets are provided on the lower surface of the head 61. In the present embodiment, a plurality of nozzles 611 are two-dimensionally arranged on the lower surface of the head 61 in the conveyance direction and the width direction. The nozzles 611 are arranged in staggered positions in the width direction. As described above, when the plurality of nozzles 611 are two-dimensionally arranged, the positions of the nozzles 611 in the width direction can be made close to each other. The plurality of nozzles 611 may be arranged in a row along the width direction.

The ink droplets discharged from the nozzles 611 may be discharged by a so-called piezoelectric method, in which the ink inside the nozzles 611 is pressurized and discharged by applying a voltage to a piezoelectric element to deform the piezoelectric element. Here, the ink droplet ejection method may be a so-called thermal method in which ink in the nozzle 611 is thermally expanded by energizing a heater to eject ink droplets.

The second camera 70 is a processing section for photographing the printed tablets 9. The second camera 70 is located downstream of the printing unit 60 and upstream of the drying mechanism 80 in the conveyance path. The second camera 70 may be a line sensor in which image sensors such as CCDs and CMOSs are arranged in the width direction, for example. The second camera 70 photographs the plurality of tablets 9 conveyed by the conveyor belt 42. The image obtained by the shooting is sent from the second camera 70 to the control unit 100 described later. The control section 100 checks whether or not the image printed on the tablet 9 is good based on the image obtained from the second camera 70.

The drying mechanism 80 is a mechanism for drying the ink adhering to the pastille 9. The drying mechanism 80 is located downstream of the second camera 70 in the conveyance path and upstream of a discharge chute 91 described later in the conveyance path. The drying mechanism 80 may use, for example, a hot air supply mechanism that blows heated gas (hot air) toward the tablet 9 conveyed by the conveyor belt 42. The ink adhering to the pastille 9 is dried by hot air and fixed to the front or back surface of the pastille 9.

The discharge mechanism 90 is a mechanism for discharging the plurality of tablets 9 from the conveying conveyor 40 to the outside of the tablet printing apparatus 1. The discharge mechanism 90 includes a discharge chute 91 shown in fig. 1 and a discharge conveyor not shown. The discharge chute 91 is located downstream of the drying mechanism 80 in the conveyance path. When the tablets 9 sucked by the suction holes 421 reach a position facing the discharge chute 91, the suction of the tablets 9 is released by the air blowing mechanism 44. Thereby, the tablets 9 fall from the suction holes 421 of the conveying belt 42 to the upper surface of the discharge conveyor through the discharge chute 91. The dropped tablets 9 are then discharged to the outside of the tablet printing apparatus 1 by a discharge conveyor.

The control unit 100 is a mechanism for controlling the operation of each unit in the tablet printing apparatus 1. Fig. 4 is a block diagram showing the connection between the control unit 100 and each unit in the tablet printing apparatus 1. As conceptually shown in fig. 4, the control Unit 100 includes a computer having a processor 101 such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Memory 102 such as a Random Access Memory (RAM), and a storage Unit 103 such as a hard disk drive. A computer program CP for executing a printing process is installed in the storage unit 103.

As shown in fig. 4, the control unit 100 is communicably connected to the bowl feeder 11, the supply conveyor 13, the first roller 20, the second roller 30, the transport conveyor 40, the first camera 50, the printing unit 60, the second camera 70, the drying mechanism 80, and the discharge mechanism 90 by wire or wireless. The control unit 100 temporarily reads the computer program CP or data stored in the storage unit 103 into the memory 102, and controls the operation of each unit by performing arithmetic processing by the processor 101 based on the computer program CP. Thereby, the plurality of tablets 9 are conveyed and the printing process is performed on each of the tablets 9.

< 2 > about the shape of the outer peripheral surface of the first drum

Next, the detailed shape of the outer peripheral surface of the first drum 20 will be described. Fig. 5 is a partial side view of the first drum 20. As shown in fig. 5, the holding ring 22 of the first drum 20 has a plurality of pockets 23 and a plurality of convex portions 230. The plurality of pockets 23 are provided at regular intervals in the circumferential direction on the outer circumferential surface of the retaining ring 22. The convex portion 230 is located between the adjacent bag portions 23. The length of the pocket 23 in the circumferential direction is greater than one and less than two tablets 9 to be conveyed. Therefore, only one tablet 9 can be accommodated in one pocket portion 23.

As shown in fig. 5, the bag portion 23 of the present embodiment has a bottom surface 231, a front end surface 232, and a rear inclined surface 233. The bottom surface 231 is a surface constituting the bottom of the pocket portion 23. The bottom surface 231 extends substantially in a plane along the rotation direction of the first drum 20. The distal end surface 232 is located at the distal end portion (end portion on the downstream side in the conveying direction) of the bag portion 23. The front end surface 232 extends substantially perpendicularly to the circumferential direction centered on the first axis O1. The rear inclined surface 233 is located at the rear end (end on the upstream side in the conveying direction) of the bag 23. The rear inclined surface 233 is an inclined surface connecting the bottom surface 231 and the outer surface of the rear convex portion 230. The rear inclined surface 233 serves to guide the tablets 9 supplied from the second chute 14 to the bag portion 23.

Each suction hole 24 of the first drum 20 is located in the vicinity of the front end portion of the bottom surface 231 of the pocket portion 23 in the rotation direction of the first drum 20. Accordingly, the leading end portion of the tablet 9 is brought into contact with the leading end surface 232 of the pocket portion 23 to position the tablet 9, and the tablet 9 is held by suction. Therefore, the tablets 9 can be arranged at a constant interval with high accuracy in the conveying direction.

< 3. about pressing mechanism

The tablet printing apparatus 1 has a pressing mechanism 25 between the second chute 14 and the first roller 20. The pressing mechanism 25 is provided for each row of tablets 9. Each pressing mechanism 25 presses the tablets 9 supplied from the second chute 14 toward the first drum 20 at the first delivery position P1. Thereby, one tablet 9 is stored in each of the plurality of pockets 23 of the first drum 20.

Fig. 6 is a side view of the pressing mechanism 25. As shown in fig. 6, the pressing mechanism 25 includes a first pressing member 26, a first elastic member 27, a second pressing member 28, and a second elastic member 29.

The first pressing member 26 is supported to be rotatable about a first rotation axis a1 extending in the width direction. The front end of the first pressing member 26 is located between the end on the downstream side in the conveyance direction of the second chute 14 and the outer peripheral surface of the first drum 20. The first pressing member 26 may be formed of a resin such as polyacetal, for example.

The first elastic member 27 is a member for pressing the first pressing member 26 toward the first roller 20. The first elastic member 27 may use, for example, a coil spring. The lower end of the first elastic member 27 is connected to the first pressing member 26. The upper end of the first elastic member 27 is connected to a frame whose position is fixed. Therefore, when the front end portion of the first pressing member 26 is displaced upward, a downward pressing force is generated at the front end portion of the first pressing member 26 by contraction of the first elastic member 27. The first elastic member 27 may be an elastic member other than a coil spring (e.g., a torsion spring, a leaf spring, or the like).

As shown in fig. 6, the front end portion of the first pressing member 26 has a holding surface 261 and an abutment surface 262. The holding surface 261 is a lower surface of the distal end portion of the first pressing member 26. The holding surface 261 faces the outer peripheral surface of the first drum 20 in the vertical direction. In a state where the distal end portion of the first pressing member 26 is not displaced upward, the vertical interval between the holding surface 261 and the convex portion 230 is smaller than the thickness of the tablet 9 to be conveyed.

The abutment surface 262 is located on the upstream side (the second chute 14 side) of the conveyance path from the holding surface 261. The abutment surface 262 is expanded obliquely upward from the upstream end of the holding surface 261. Specifically, the contact surface 262 is inclined so as to gradually move away from the outer peripheral surface of the first drum 20 as it approaches the second chute 14. The inclination angle of the abutment surface 262 with respect to the circumferential direction around the first axis O1 is smaller than the inclination angle of the rear inclined surface 233 of the pocket 23. The upstream end of the abutment surface 262 is close to the downstream end of the second chute 14. The holding surface 261 and the contact surface 262 are connected via a smooth curved surface. Therefore, even when the troche 9 has a groove such as a cut line, the troche 9 is prevented from being caught at the boundary portion between the holding surface 261 and the contact surface 262.

The second pressing member 28 is located on the downstream side of the conveyance path with respect to the first pressing member 26. The second pressing member 28 is supported to be rotatable about a second rotation axis a2 extending in the width direction. The distal end of the second pressing member 28 is disposed at a position adjacent to the downstream side of the distal end of the first pressing member 26. The second pressing member 28 may be formed of a resin such as polyacetal, for example.

The second elastic member 29 is a member for pressing the second pressing member 28 toward the first roller 20. The second elastic member 29 may use, for example, a coil spring. The lower end of the second elastic member 29 is connected to the second pressing member 28. The upper end of the second elastic member 29 is connected to a frame whose position is fixed. Therefore, when the front end portion of the second pressing member 28 is displaced upward, a downward pressing force is generated at the front end portion of the second pressing member 28 by contraction of the second elastic member 29. The second elastic member 29 may be an elastic member other than a coil spring (e.g., a torsion spring, a leaf spring, or the like).

As shown in fig. 6, the front end portion of the second pressing member 28 has a pressing protrusion 281 protruding downward. The pressing protrusion 281 has a pressing surface 282 at a lower end portion. The pressing surface 282 is disposed at a position close to the downstream side of the holding surface 261 of the first pressing member 26. In a state where the distal end portion of the second pressing member 28 is not displaced upward, the vertical interval between the pressing surface 282 and the convex portion 230 is smaller than the thickness of the tablet 9 to be conveyed.

As shown in fig. 6, the second pressing member 28 has a guide surface 283. The guide surface 283 is located on the downstream side of the conveyance path from the pressing protrusion 281. The guide surface 283 is inclined so as to gradually approach the outer peripheral surface of the first drum 20 toward the downstream side of the conveyance path. The end portion on the downstream side of the guide surface 283 is located in the vicinity of the second rotation axis a 2.

Fig. 7 is a diagram showing a state of the first delivery position P1 at a certain point in time when a plurality of tablets 9 are continuously conveyed. As shown in fig. 7, there are the following cases: some of the tablets 9 fed from the second chute 14 are fed onto the convex portion 230 without being directly accommodated in the bag portion 23. At this time, the troche 9 abuts against the abutment surface 262 of the first pressing member 26. The tablets 9 are thereby stopped until the next pocket portion 23 of the first drum 20 reaches the first delivery position P1. Then, by the rotation of the first drum 20, when the next pocket portion 23 reaches the first delivery position P1, the tablet 9 held back falls into the pocket portion 23. Thus, the tablet 9 can be normally housed in the bag portion 23.

Fig. 8 is a diagram illustrating the first handover position P1 at another point in time. The pressing force of the first pressing member 26 by the first elastic member 27 is set to a force at which the tablet 9 is not broken. Therefore, there are cases where: as shown in fig. 8, the first pressing member 26 is pressed by the tablet 9 and displaced upward. In this case, the tablet 9 is sandwiched between the holding surface 261 of the first pressing member 26 and the convex portion 230 of the first drum 20. That is, tablet 9 is held between holding surface 261 of first pressing member 26 and convex portion 230 by the pressing force of first pressing member 26 by first elastic member 27. Thereby, the tablets 9 are stopped at the position of the conveying path and do not move to the downstream side. Then, by the rotation of the first drum 20, when the next pocket portion 23 reaches the first delivery position P1, the tablet 9 that has been stopped falls into the pocket portion 23. Thus, the tablet 9 can be normally housed in the bag portion 23.

Fig. 9 is a diagram illustrating a situation of the first handover position P1 at another point in time. When the tip end portion (downstream end portion) of the tablet 9 is housed in the bag portion 23 and the rear end portion (upstream end portion) of the tablet 9 rides over the tip end portion of the convex portion 230, there are cases where: the tablet 9 pushes up the first pressing member 26 while maintaining the above-described posture, and is conveyed to below the second pressing member 28. In this case, the pressing projection 281 of the second pressing member 28 is temporarily displaced upward by being pressed by the tablet 9. Then, when the rear end of the troche 9 comes to the pressing protrusion 281, the pressing protrusion 281 descends again by the elastic force of the second elastic member 29. Then, the tablets 9 are pressed by the pressing surface 282 of the pressing protrusion 281 and pushed into the bag portion 23 in the front (downstream side in the conveying direction) as indicated by a broken line arrow in fig. 9. At this time, the tablet 9 smoothly moves into the bag portion 23 along the rear inclined surface 233 of the bag portion 23. Thus, the tablet 9 can be normally housed in the bag portion 23.

Fig. 10 is a diagram illustrating the first handover position P1 at another point in time. There are the following cases: a part of the tablets 9 is held in an abnormal posture in the pocket portion 23. For example, there are cases where: as shown in fig. 10, a part of the tablets 9 is sucked and held by the suction holes 24 in an upright posture. The tablets 9 are conveyed downstream by the rotation of the first drum 20, and are corrected to a normal posture by the gradually approaching guide surface 283. As a result, the tablet 9 can be accommodated in the bag portion 23 in a normal posture.

As described above, in the tablet printing apparatus 1, even in the case where the tablets 9 do not enter the pocket portion 23 of the first drum 20 directly from the second chute 14, the tablets 9 can be introduced into the pocket portion 23 by adjusting the position of the tablets 9 on the outer circumferential surface of the first drum 20 in the circumferential direction by the pressing mechanism 25. This can prevent the tablets 9 from being clogged or broken, and can normally store the tablets 9 in the pockets 23 of the first drum 20.

< 4. about the supply means

Fig. 11 is a partial side view of the supply conveyor 13 and the second chute 14. As shown in fig. 11, in the present embodiment, the upper surface of the second chute 14 on which the ingot feeder 9 is placed is disposed at a position slightly lower than the upper surface of the supply belt 132 of the supply conveyor 13. The height difference between the upper surface of the supply belt 132 and the upper surface of the second chute 14 is smaller than the height of the tablets 9 to be conveyed. As described above, if the upper surface of the second chute 14 is slightly lower than the upper surface of the supply belt 132, the tablets 9 are less likely to be jammed when the tablets 9 move from the supply belt 132 to the second chute 14. Therefore, the tablets 9 can be smoothly conveyed.

Fig. 12 is a cross-sectional view of the supply conveyor 13 cut along a plane perpendicular to the conveying direction. As shown in fig. 11 and 12, the supply mechanism 10 of the present embodiment includes a guide rail 15 above the supply conveyor 13 and the second chute 14. The guide rail 15 covers the upper surface of the conveying path of the tablets 9 formed by the supply conveyor 13 and the second chute 14. The lower surface of the guide rail 15 has a groove 151 recessed toward the upper side. The grooves 151 extend along the conveying direction of the tablets 9.

The tablet 9 does not contact the guide rail 15 when being conveyed in a normal posture. However, when the posture of the lozenge 9 is inclined, a part of the lozenge 9 comes into contact with the edge of the groove 151 of the guide rail 15. This can suppress the tablet 9 from being excessively tilted in posture.

When a plurality of tablets 9 are continuously conveyed, there are cases where: some tablets 9 are inclined in posture, and the tablets 9 are clogged (bridged), and the subsequent tablets 9 are not conveyed. However, by providing such a guide rail 15, it is possible to convey a plurality of tablets 9 while suppressing excessive inclination of the posture of the tablets 9. Therefore, the tablets 9 can be prevented from being clogged or broken in each of the supply conveyor 13 and the second chute 14.

Further, a guide rail 15 may be provided on the lower surface side of the conveyance path of the tablet 9. In this case, the upper surface of the guide rail 15 may be provided with a groove which is recessed downward and extends in the conveying direction of the tablet 9.

Fig. 13 is a cross-sectional view of the first chute 12 cut along a plane orthogonal to the conveying direction. As shown in fig. 13, the supply mechanism 10 of the present embodiment also includes a guide rail 16 above the first chute 12. The rail main body 161 of the guide rail 16 of fig. 13 is a quadrangular prism shape extending along the conveying direction of the tablets 9. The rail main body 161 of the guide rail 16 may have the same shape as the guide rail 15 of the supply conveyor 13 and the second chute 14.

The guide rail 16 of the first chute 12 includes a rail main body 161, an arm portion 162 extending from the rail main body 161, and a block portion 163 fixed to an upper end of the arm portion 162. The arm portion 162 is provided with a through hole 162a through which the screw 17 passes. The through hole 162a is an elongated hole having a length in the vertical direction longer than the shaft of the screw 17. On the other hand, the first chute 12 has a columnar portion 121 extending upward from a position between the respective conveyance paths. The columnar portion 121 is provided with a through hole 121a through which the screw 17 passes.

When the guide rail 16 is provided above the first chute 12, a spacer 18 shown by a two-dot chain line in fig. 13 is disposed on the upper end surface of the columnar portion 121, and a block portion 163 is disposed above the spacer 18. Then, the screw 17 is inserted into the through hole 162a of the arm portion 162 and the through hole 121a of the columnar portion 121, and the nut is fastened to the tip of the screw 17. Thus, the rail main body 161 of the guide rail 16 can be set to a predetermined height with high accuracy. When the type of the tablet 9 to be conveyed is changed, the height of the rail main body 161 can be changed by using the spacers 18 having different heights. When the type of tablet 9 is changed, each part must be temporarily disassembled and cleaned. In the assembly operation after the cleaning, the height of the guide rail 16 may be changed by using the spacer 18.

The guide rails 15 on the upper portions of the supply conveyor 13 and the second chute 14 may be configured to be able to change their heights using the spacers 18 in the same manner.

< 5. modification

Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment.

< 5-1 > about adsorption pores

Fig. 14 is a partial side view of a first drum 20 according to a modification. In the above embodiment, the suction hole 24 is provided in the bottom 231 of the pocket portion 23 provided in the holding ring 22. In contrast, the retaining ring 22 of fig. 14 has a wall portion 221 adjacent to the pocket portion 23 in the width direction. Further, the wall 221 is provided with an adsorption hole 24. The suction hole 24 is open in the width direction toward the bag portion 23 side. In this example, the suction holes 24 hold the tablets 9 by sucking the side surfaces of the tablets 9 accommodated in the pockets 23.

When the side surface of the troche 9 is annular, the side surface of the troche 9 is sucked by the suction holes 24, and thus the troche 9 can be held while being positioned at a fixed position with respect to the suction holes 24. Therefore, as in the above-described embodiment, it is not necessary to position the troche 9 by bringing the tip portion of the troche 9 into contact with the tip surface of the bag portion 23. Therefore, as shown in fig. 14, a front inclined surface 234 may be provided at the front end of the bag portion 23.

< 5-2. other modifications

The shapes of the first pressing member, the second pressing member, the guide rail, and the like are not limited to those shown in the drawings of the present application. The shapes of these members may be appropriately modified within a range not departing from the gist of the present invention.

In the embodiment, the printing unit 60 is provided with four heads 61. However, the number of the heads 61 included in the printing section 60 may be 1 to 3, or 5 or more.

In the above embodiment, the tablet printing apparatus 1 for printing an image on the tablet 9 is described. However, the conveying device of the present invention may be used in an inspection device for inspecting tablets 9 or a packaging device for packaging tablets 9.

In addition, the respective elements appearing in the above-described embodiments or modified examples may be appropriately combined within a range in which contradiction does not occur.

< 6. embodiment of other aspects

Further, focusing on the fact that the suction holes are located in the vicinity of the front end portion of the bottom surface of each bag portion, for example, the following examples can be extracted from the above-described embodiments.

"a conveying device for conveying granular objects, the conveying device comprising a first roller,

the first roller rotates around an axis parallel to the horizontal width direction,

the outer peripheral surface of the first roller is provided with

A plurality of concave pockets arranged at intervals in a circumferential direction around the shaft; and

a plurality of adsorption holes for adsorbing the granular substances,

the adsorption hole is located near a front end portion of the bottom surface of the bag portion in the rotation direction of the first drum. "

According to the embodiment, the front end portion of the pellet is brought into contact with the front end face of the bag portion to position the pellet, and the pellet is adsorbed and held. This can suppress clogging of the particulate matter and breakage of the particulate matter. In addition, each element appearing in the embodiment or the modification may be combined in the embodiment.

In addition, focusing on the aspect of conveying tablets from the feeding mechanism to the conveying conveyor via the first drum and the second drum, for example, the following examples can be extracted from the above-described embodiments.

"a conveying device which conveys a granular object, the conveying device comprising:

a supply mechanism for supplying a plurality of granular objects along a horizontal conveying direction;

a first drum that rotates about an axis parallel to a width direction that is a direction perpendicular to and horizontal to the conveyance direction and that receives the particulate matter supplied from the supply mechanism near an upper end thereof;

a second drum that rotates while adsorbing and holding the particulate matter transferred from the first drum on an outer peripheral surface; and

and a conveyor for conveying the granular objects transferred from the second roller. "

According to the embodiment, the second drum is interposed to reverse the direction of conveyance of the granular material, so that the granular material can be conveyed from the first drum to the conveyor. This allows smooth delivery of the granular material. As a result, clogging of the particulate matter and breakage of the particulate matter can be suppressed. In addition, each element appearing in the embodiment or the modification may be combined in the embodiment.

In addition, focusing on the guide rail of the supply mechanism, for example, the following examples can be extracted from the above-described embodiments.

"a conveying device for conveying granular objects, and the conveying device comprises a supply mechanism,

the supply mechanism supplies a plurality of granular objects along a horizontal conveying path,

the feeding mechanism is provided with a guide rail,

the guide rail covers a lower surface or an upper surface of the conveying path,

the guide rail has a groove extending in the conveying direction of the granular objects. "

According to the embodiment, the posture of the pellets can be maintained by the guide rail having the groove while the pellets are supplied. Therefore, clogging or breakage of the particulate matter in the supply mechanism can be suppressed. In addition, each element appearing in the embodiment or the modification may be combined in the embodiment.

Claims

1. A conveying device which conveys granular objects, comprising:

a first pressing member disposed in the vicinity of a delivery position from the supply mechanism to the first drum; and

a first elastic member that presses the first pressing member toward the first roller, and

the outer peripheral surface of the first roller is provided with

a convex portion located between the pocket portions,

the first pressing member has a holding surface,

the holding surface holds the granular material by sandwiching the granular material between the holding surface and the convex portion when the granular material rides on the convex portion.

2. The handling device according to claim 1,

the first pressing member further has an abutment surface,

the contact surface is located closer to the supply mechanism than the holding surface, and is inclined so as to be away from the outer peripheral surface of the first drum as the contact surface approaches the supply mechanism.

3. The handling device according to claim 2,

the holding surface and the contact surface are connected via a smooth curved surface.

4. The conveying device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising:

a second pressing member located on a downstream side of the conveyance path from the first pressing member; and

a second elastic member that presses the second pressing member toward the first roller, and

the second pressing member has a pressing surface,

the pressing surface presses the granular material toward the bag portion in the front direction of rotation when the rear end portion of the granular material rides on the front end portion of the convex portion in the direction of rotation.

5. The handling device according to claim 4,

the second pressing member also has a guide surface,

the guide surface is located on a downstream side of the conveyance path from the pressing surface, and approaches the outer peripheral surface of the first drum as the guide surface moves downstream of the conveyance path.

6. The handling device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,

the first drum has a plurality of adsorption holes adsorbing the pellets,

the adsorption hole is located near a front end portion of the bottom surface of the bag portion in the rotation direction of the first drum.

7. The handling device according to claim 6,

the bag part is provided with an inclined surface,

the rear end of the inclined surface in the rotation direction of the first drum connects the bottom surface of the pocket with the surface of the convex portion.

8. The handling device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,

the first drum has a plurality of adsorption holes adsorbing the pellets,

the adsorption hole adsorbs the side surface of the granular material contained in the bag part.

9. The handling device according to claim 6,

the bag part is provided with an inclined surface,

the inclined surface connects a bottom surface of the pocket and a surface of the convex portion at least one of a front end portion and a rear end portion in a rotation direction of the first drum.

10. The conveying device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, further comprising:

and a conveyor for conveying the granular objects transferred from the second roller.

11. The handling device according to claim 10,

the outer circumferential surface of the second roller is made of a material that is more easily elastically deformed than the outer circumferential surface of the first roller.

12. The handling device according to any one of claims 1 to 11,

the feeding mechanism is provided with a guide rail,

the guide rail covers the lower surface or the upper surface of the conveying path of the granular objects,

the guide rail has a groove extending in the conveying direction of the granular objects.

13. The handling device according to any one of claims 1 to 12,

the particulates are pastilles.

14. A pastille printing apparatus comprising:

the conveying device according to claim 13; and

and a printing section for printing an image on the surface of the pastille by an ink jet method.