EP0388361A2 - Maschine zum Füllen von Blisterpackungen - Google Patents

Maschine zum Füllen von Blisterpackungen Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0388361A2
EP0388361A2 EP90810185A EP90810185A EP0388361A2 EP 0388361 A2 EP0388361 A2 EP 0388361A2 EP 90810185 A EP90810185 A EP 90810185A EP 90810185 A EP90810185 A EP 90810185A EP 0388361 A2 EP0388361 A2 EP 0388361A2
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
dosage forms
blister
dispensing
blister pack
storage cavity
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
EP90810185A
Other languages
English (en)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP0388361A3 (de
Inventor
Jürg Gentsch
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Novartis Pharma GmbH
Sandoz AG
Original Assignee
Sandoz Erfindungen Verwaltungs GmbH
Sandoz AG
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Sandoz Erfindungen Verwaltungs GmbH, Sandoz AG filed Critical Sandoz Erfindungen Verwaltungs GmbH
Publication of EP0388361A2 publication Critical patent/EP0388361A2/de
Publication of EP0388361A3 publication Critical patent/EP0388361A3/de
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
    • B65B35/00—Supplying, feeding, arranging or orientating articles to be packaged
    • B65B35/10—Feeding, e.g. conveying, single articles
    • B65B35/26—Feeding, e.g. conveying, single articles by rotary conveyors
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65B—MACHINES, APPARATUS OR DEVICES FOR, OR METHODS OF, PACKAGING ARTICLES OR MATERIALS; UNPACKING
    • B65B9/00—Enclosing successive articles, or quantities of material, e.g. liquids or semiliquids, in flat, folded, or tubular webs of flexible sheet material; Subdividing filled flexible tubes to form packages
    • B65B9/02—Enclosing successive articles, or quantities of material between opposed webs
    • B65B9/04—Enclosing successive articles, or quantities of material between opposed webs one or both webs being formed with pockets for the reception of the articles, or of the quantities of material
    • B65B9/045—Enclosing successive articles, or quantities of material between opposed webs one or both webs being formed with pockets for the reception of the articles, or of the quantities of material for single articles, e.g. tablets

Definitions

  • the invention relates to an apparatus for filling blister packs with solid products. More especially the products to be distributed in blister packs are pharmaceutical dosage forms, e.g. tablets or capsules.
  • the apparatus of the invention is particularly adapted for packaging drugs for use in clinical trials.
  • Blister packs for clinical trials are very frequently of large size and are composed of blisters set out in 1, 2 or more rows.
  • blister packs may be filled with drugs of various types and/or different dosages of the same drug.
  • the packs may contain up to 4 different products which have to be administered to a patient in correct and specific order.
  • Each kind of product is conveniently arranged in blisters marked with a corresponding sign and/or located in sequential order on the dispenser for ease of administration.
  • the present invention avoids these problems by providing an apparatus for filling a blister pack with at least one type of dosage forms; each dosage form being distributed in pre-determined blisters on the blister pack.
  • the present invention provides an apparatus for filling blister packs comprising:
  • the apparatus comprises at least two, more preferably from two to four dispensing units.
  • the dispensing units may be removable from the apparatus.
  • the holder means retains the blister pack in a horizontal plane with the openings of the blisters uppermost, and a dispensing unit is positioned above the plane so that the dosage forms may fall into the blisters by gravity.
  • Each dispensing unit is capable of dispersing one by one a large number of identical dosage forms.
  • the dispensing units are preferably moveable and each blister pack is immobilized while a dosage form is being delivered to it. Either the motion of all the dispensing units is co-ordinated and the blister pack remains fixed in one position during the entire filling operation; or the dispensing units move independently and the blister pack is fixed in one position while a first dosage form is being delivered to it from a first dispensing unit then is moved into a new position and remains in this new position while a second dosage form is being delivered to it from a second dispensing unit and simultane­ously the first dispensing unit fills a new blister pack with the first dosage form. This procedure may be continued for a third and fourth dosage form if necessary.
  • the dispensing units may be fixed whereas the holder means can be moved within the horizontal plane so that the blister pack can be displaced for filling each blister and for moving the blister pack from a dispensing unit to another one.
  • the holder means conveniently comprises a transporting mechanism, for example a conveyor belt, which brings empty blister packs in position to be filled and moves them away once they are filled.
  • a conveyor belt comprises edge rails set at a distance corresponding to the dimensions of the blister pack.
  • the holder means also comprises a rigid plate placed on and transported by a conveyor belt. The rigid plate is formed with a cavity designed to the dimensions of the blister pack so that the pack can be placed therein without clearance. At least one recess may be provided on at least one edge of the cavity to facilitate manual removal of the card.
  • the dispensing unit advantageously comprises a housing incorporating a storage cavity in which the dosage forms to be distributed are kept and a device for releasing the dosage forms one after the other, in co-operation with the storage cavity.
  • This releasing device is suitably connected to electrical or electronic means so that the release of the dosage forms may be automatically effected.
  • the releasing device comprises a cylindrical or frustro-conical slotted rotor rotatably mounted within the housing and communicating both with the storage cavity and with a delivery port in the external wall of the housing.
  • the slots in the rotor are dimensioned so that each slot can receive a single dosage form (e.g. one tablet or one capsule) and the rotor can rotate within the housing while one or more of the slots contains a dosage form.
  • the rotor has at least two slots, the slots being spaced evenly around the perimeter of the rotor.
  • the slots are arranged so that while one slot is open to the storage cavity, another slot is open to the delivery port.
  • the dosage forms are elongated in shape, e.g. rectangular or ellipsoidal tablets or cylindrical capsules, then preferably the long axis of the corresponding slot is arranged so as to lie approximately parallel to the axis of rotation of the rotor.
  • the dispensing unit is arranged so that the axis of rotation of the rotor lies in a horizontal plane, the storage cavity is above the rotor and the delivery port lies below the rotor.
  • a single dosage form is fed by gravity into an upper slot in the rotor, and, after one or more stepwise partial rotations of the rotor, is transported to the delivery port, where it is delivered by gravity into the specific blister of the blister pack which is positioned immediately below the delivery port.
  • the storage cavity advantageously comprises a bore in the housing in which the dosage forms are stacked, preferably communicating with a receptacle e.g. a tank where the dosage forms are stored in bulk.
  • the bore may be detachably connected to the receptacle, for example by means of a flexible tube.
  • the receptacle is preferably vibrated to assist the feed of dosage forms into the tube and thence into the storage cavity.
  • the dosage forms may be stacked in various ways; for example capsules of essentially cylindrical form may be stacked "side by side", i.e. with their long axes horizontal, or, preferably, "head to tail", with their long axes vertical.
  • delivery of the dosage forms from the bore component of the storage cavity to the rotor slots may involve the direction of the bore changing along its length from vertical to near-horizontal, preferably terminating in a gently downward-sloping part communicating with a rotor slot via an opening in one of the end faces of the rotor.
  • the rotor slot may then have its long axis closer to the axis of rotation of the rotor at its far end than at the end at which the dosage form enters the slot, so that the slot is essentially a prolongation of the bore.
  • the dispensing unit comprises an L-shaped housing (1) fixed to a moveable supporting bar (2) and provided with a delivery port (3) located in the base of the L.
  • the vertical part of the L contains a bore (4) for the supply of capsules, which is curved at its lower end to form a bend (5), fitting the angle of the L.
  • the section of the bore (4) is such that the capsules introduced therein are stacked "head to tail” and are able to fall through the bend (5).
  • the bore is detachably connected by means of a flexible tube (6) to a container in which capsules are stored in bulk.
  • the horizontal part of the L is provided with a cylindrical cavity (7) to receive a cylindrical slotted rotor (0).
  • the rotation axis (9) of the rotor is collinear with the axis of the horizontal part of the L.
  • the rotor is engaged with a drive shaft (10) which is rotably mounted within the housing (1) and connected to a motor (11) external to the housing (1). In operation, the rotor communicates both with the bore (4) and with the delivery port (3).
  • the end face (12) of the rotor adjacent to the bore (4) and to the drive shaft (10) is open whereas the other one is closed.
  • the slots (13) of the rotor are dimensioned so that each slot can receive a single cylindrical capsule and the rotor can rotate within the housing while one or more slots contains a capsule.
  • the slots are 4 in number and are spaced at regular intervals around the perimeter of the rotor.
  • Each slot is arranged so that its long axis (14) is coplanar and substantially parallel with the axis of rotation (9) of the rotor but is closer to this axis at the closed end of the rotor than at its open end (12).
  • the slot in the uppermost position is essentially a prolongation of the bore.
  • a single capsule falls by gravity from the bore into the slot via the open end face of the rotor.
  • the capsule Upon rotation of the rotor, the capsule is transferred opposite the delivery port (3) to be released while it is the turn of the other slots to be fed one by one.
  • the programmable unit (c) controls two separate operations. Firstly it controls the relative motion of the blister pack and the dispensing units so that, when a specific blister is to be filled, the correct dispensing unit is positioned directly above it. Secondly, it controls the operation of the dispensing units so that, when a specific dispensing unit is positioned directly above the correct blister, the dispensing unit is activated to deliver a single dosage form into that blister.
  • the dispensing units can move in two dimensions within a horizontal plane, above a blister pack immobilized in position to be filled.
  • the dispensing units are fixed with respect to each other, and are moved as a single assembly.
  • a single supporting bar (20) in Figure 3b supports four delivery units (21), (22), (23), (24), each with its own operating motor (25), (26), (27), (28), above the blister pack (29), to deliver dosage forms A, B, C and D respectively.
  • the bar (20) may be moved by servo devices (not shown) in both the x and y directions, separately or simultaneously.
  • the blister pack (29) is immobilised in the holder means (30), the first dispensing unit (21) is positioned above the blister at the end of the first row, and the entire dispensing unit assembly is moved in the x axis by means of the bar (20) from right to left along the first row of blisters, depositing dosage form A in the blisters for which it has been programmed.
  • This motion will not be continuous, but rather stepwise, in units corresponding to the spacing between blisters or multiples thereof.
  • dispensing unit (21) reaches the end of the row, the entire assembly is moved along the y axis to the next row of blisters, then is moved from left to right along this row and finally from right to left along the third row, as shown by the solid line.
  • the assembly moves back from left to right along the third row while dispensing unit (22) fills any necessary blisters with dosage form B, then moves from right to left along the middle row and finally left to right along the first row, to return to its original position, dosage forms A and B having now been delivered.
  • Two further cycles deliver forms C and D from (23) and (24), the filled blister pack is removed and a new empty pack put in its place, and the entire operation is repeated.
  • Short cuts may be taken whenever this will eliminate unnecessary movements and thereby save time. For instance, if in the above example no blisters to the left of blister (31) in the first row, and none to the left of blister (32) in the second row are required to be filled with dosage form (A), then on the first pass, the assembly could be moved directly from the position in which unit (21) is above blister (31) to that in which it is above blister (32), according to the dotted line.
  • dispensing units may be possible for more than one of the dispensing units to deliver dosage forms during a single pass of the assembly over a row of blisters.
  • FIG. 4 In an alternative preferred mode of operation, there are a plurality of separate and independently moveable dispensing units.
  • the blister pack filling station (33) has two such dispensing units (34).
  • the pack filling station is surrounded by a conveyor belt (35) on which are transported several rigid plates (36) for carrying the blister packs.
  • the relative position of the filling station and the belt is such that the dispensing units are operated just above the belt.
  • Each rigid plate is initially in position (A) together with an empty blister pack and then is transported all along the belt to position (B1) where some blisters of the pack are filled with a first dosage form according to the programmed sequence of operation.
  • the rigid plate is moved to position (B2) where the rest of the blisters are filled with a second dosage form. Meanwhile a second plate may be moved into position (B1) to have the selected blisters of its blister pack filled with the first dosage form. Finally the plate returns to position (A) so that the blister pack which is now completely filled can be sealed and replaced manually by a new empty one.
  • the programmable unit may be any conventional computer or microprocessor which is capable of storing in some form of memory device the correct sequence of operations (movements of the dispensing units or the blister pack as well as actuations of the dispensing units) to fill the blisters of the pack in the desired way, and of initiating these operations in the correct sequence by means of electronic signals switching on or off the electric current to the motors or solenoids which directly cause the operations.
  • the entire sequence of operations may be individually programmed into the unit, but preferably the unit, when given only the layout of the blister pack (width and length, number of rows and columns and spacing of blisters) and the desired filling pattern, can itself calculate the optimum sequence of operations to bring about the desired result.
  • the sequence of operations may also include the transportation of the blister pack to and from the dispensing units. Such a sequence may then be stored in the memory of the computer or microprocessor and accessed directly if the apparatus is required to carry out the identical filling pattern on a subsequent occasion.
  • the memory may also be used to store the dimensions and layouts of a number of commonly used blister packs. Thus the changeover from one form of blister pack to another, for the same dosage forms, takes very little time.
  • the programmable unit may also regulate the speed at which the individual operations are carried out. While it is, of course, desirable that the cards be filled as quickly as possible, an upper limit to the speed of operation will be set by the need for the dosage forms to fall by gravity into the blisters, and by the mechanical limitations inherent in rapid intermittent motion. Too rapid filling may lead to dosage forms failing to fall correctly into the blisters. In practice, a time interval between successive deliveries from the same dispensing unit of approx. 200 ms is attainable.
  • a suitable microprocessor is the model ANC-32 supplied by Automelec S.A., Neuchatel, Switzerland.
  • the programmable unit be associated with sensor devices capable of monitoring the filling operation.
  • sensors may be electronic, gravimetric, or optical, the last of these being preferred.
  • each dispensing unit may have mounted upon it two optical sensors. One, (15) in Figure 1, is directed at the blister below the delivery unit whereas the other one (16) is directed at the slot above the delivery port.
  • Each sensor comprises a fibre optic cable one half of the strands of which deliver light from a light source distant from the dispensing unit, and the other half of which are capable of transmitting reflected light back to a photoelectric cell, also distant from the dispensing unit.
  • such a system may be used to ensure firstly, that a blister into which a dispensing unit is programmed to deliver a dosage form is in fact empty; secondly, that a dosage form is in place to be delivered, and finally, that the dosage form has cleared the rotor and has in fact filled the blister. If any of these is not the case, then the programmable unit may be programmed to stop the filling operation and give an alarm to the operator.

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Basic Packing Technique (AREA)
  • Containers And Plastic Fillers For Packaging (AREA)
  • Medical Preparation Storing Or Oral Administration Devices (AREA)
EP19900810185 1989-03-13 1990-03-12 Maschine zum Füllen von Blisterpackungen Withdrawn EP0388361A3 (de)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB898905712A GB8905712D0 (en) 1989-03-13 1989-03-13 Apparatus for filing blister packs
GB8905712 1989-03-13

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0388361A2 true EP0388361A2 (de) 1990-09-19
EP0388361A3 EP0388361A3 (de) 1990-11-07

Family

ID=10653224

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP19900810185 Withdrawn EP0388361A3 (de) 1989-03-13 1990-03-12 Maschine zum Füllen von Blisterpackungen

Country Status (3)

Country Link
EP (1) EP0388361A3 (de)
JP (1) JPH02296606A (de)
GB (1) GB8905712D0 (de)

Cited By (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO1996018539A1 (en) * 1994-12-16 1996-06-20 I.M.A. Industria Macchine Automatiche S.P.A. System for feeding articles to blisters of a blister band
EP0803440A1 (de) * 1996-04-27 1997-10-29 UHLMANN PAC-SYSTEME GmbH & Co. KG Verfahren und Vorrichtung zum Nachfüllen von Füllgut in Näpfe einer Folienbahn
WO2002044027A1 (en) * 2000-11-30 2002-06-06 Mckesson Automation, Inc. Medicine feeder
WO2004065221A1 (de) * 2003-01-23 2004-08-05 Iwk Verpackungstechnik Gmbh Blister-verpackungsmaschine
EP1787909A2 (de) * 2000-03-31 2007-05-23 MTS Medication Technologies, Inc Automatische Maschine zum Verpacken von festen pharmazeutischen Produkten
EP1988024A1 (de) * 2007-05-04 2008-11-05 CFS Bühl GmbH Verpackungsmaschine mit Fremdkörperdetektion

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
TW552382B (en) * 2001-06-18 2003-09-11 Showa Dendo Kk Evaporator, manufacturing method of the same, header for evaporator and refrigeration system

Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4655026A (en) * 1985-12-11 1987-04-07 Wigoda Luis T Pill dispensing machine
GB2184086A (en) * 1985-07-29 1987-06-17 Frederick William Jefferies Blister pack apparatus and feeder apparatus

Patent Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB2184086A (en) * 1985-07-29 1987-06-17 Frederick William Jefferies Blister pack apparatus and feeder apparatus
US4655026A (en) * 1985-12-11 1987-04-07 Wigoda Luis T Pill dispensing machine

Cited By (12)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO1996018539A1 (en) * 1994-12-16 1996-06-20 I.M.A. Industria Macchine Automatiche S.P.A. System for feeding articles to blisters of a blister band
US5802804A (en) * 1994-12-16 1998-09-08 I.M.A. Industria Macchine Automatiche S.P.A. System for feeding articles to blisters of a blister band
EP0803440A1 (de) * 1996-04-27 1997-10-29 UHLMANN PAC-SYSTEME GmbH & Co. KG Verfahren und Vorrichtung zum Nachfüllen von Füllgut in Näpfe einer Folienbahn
EP1787909A2 (de) * 2000-03-31 2007-05-23 MTS Medication Technologies, Inc Automatische Maschine zum Verpacken von festen pharmazeutischen Produkten
EP1787909A3 (de) * 2000-03-31 2007-12-19 MTS Medication Technologies, Inc Automatische Maschine zum Verpacken von festen pharmazeutischen Produkten
WO2002044027A1 (en) * 2000-11-30 2002-06-06 Mckesson Automation, Inc. Medicine feeder
US6497342B2 (en) 2000-11-30 2002-12-24 Mckesson Automated Healthcare, Inc. Medicine feeder
WO2004065221A1 (de) * 2003-01-23 2004-08-05 Iwk Verpackungstechnik Gmbh Blister-verpackungsmaschine
US7104035B2 (en) 2003-01-23 2006-09-12 Iwk Verpackungstechnik Gmbh Blister packaging machine
EP1988024A1 (de) * 2007-05-04 2008-11-05 CFS Bühl GmbH Verpackungsmaschine mit Fremdkörperdetektion
WO2008135255A1 (en) * 2007-05-04 2008-11-13 CFS Bühl GmbH Packaging machine with foreign substance detection
US9139320B2 (en) 2007-05-04 2015-09-22 Gea Cfs Buhl Gmbh Packaging machine with foreign substance detection

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
EP0388361A3 (de) 1990-11-07
GB8905712D0 (en) 1989-04-26
JPH02296606A (ja) 1990-12-07

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