EP1973511B9 - System for automatically producing packaging for medical and/or pharmaceutical and/or food supplementing products - Google Patents

Abstract

The packaging (10) has a substrate (14) equipped with one or several preassembled, closed product carriers (16), which contain multiple, individual medicinal products (11) for a defined period of time, and provided with instructions for application and/or the administration time for the patient. Each product carrier contains exclusive products of a special active substance or a special active substance combination in a special dosage. An independent claim is also included for a method for production of packaging.

Description

The invention relates to a system for automatically producing patient-specific packaging for medical and / or pharmaceutical and / or food supplementing products, comprising a transport unit for transporting substrates and the like through the entire system, and at least one device for automatically loading the substrates with medical and / or or pharmaceutical and / or food supplementing products, the device comprising at least one magazine for storing blister strips rolled up on rolls or the like, each magazine having at least one receiving space for the rolls and for each roll in the magazine a feeding device for unwinding the blister belts and feeding the blisters unrolled blister straps is provided to a supply position for the products to be loaded, and a controllable via a controller placement for transporting the products from the provision position to a e delivery position on the substrate.

Furthermore, the invention relates to a method for the automatic production of patient-specific packaging for medical and / or pharmaceutical and / or food supplementing products, comprising the steps of: transporting substrates and the like by a system for automatically producing patient-specific packaging for medical and / or pharmaceutical and / or supplemental products according to any one of claims 1 to 11, loading the substrates with medical and / or pharmaceutical and / or nutritional supplemental products by transporting the products from a placement controlled by a control head from a ready position to a dispensing position on the substrate.

Such methods and systems are used in the pharmaceutical and / or packaging industry to put individual packaging units of products together. Such packaging, for example, adapted to certain courses of therapy. In other words, every package is put together individually.

This requires a high logistical and control engineering effort. Furthermore, in the manufacture of packaging for medical and / or pharmaceutical and / or nutritional supplemental products, there are various, in part, regulatory requirements and requirements, e.g. hygienic, safety-related or other type whose implementation means a considerable effort (for example, creation of clean room conditions, high staff costs, etc.).

It is quite common, especially in hospitals, retirement and nursing homes, etc., to put together the patient-specific packaging units manually, in which the products, namely medicines, etc. lie loosely next to one another. In other words, the products necessary for the respective intake time are then stored together in a shell, a nest or the like. Although this procedure or this principle has the advantage that all products to be taken at the respective time of administration are next to each other, which enables an extremely high packing density and thus relatively small packaging units, since there is only one shell or one nest for each administration time. In addition, even with a single expressing the shell or the nest in this principle, all products contained there can be removed. However, the procedure described also means that the products are released from the packaging or unpacked. In addition to the problem of cross-contamination, this type of production is not only very time-consuming and labor-intensive. The manual assembly of patient-specific products also increases the risk of misadministration, which may lead to undesirable side effects under certain circumstances. Another disadvantage is that automatic control is difficult or impossible to implement.

In order to automate a placement process, basically different types of devices for loading, so-called placement machines, are known from the state of the art, but these are usually designed for fitting electronic components for printed circuit boards or the like. In the pharmaceutical and / or packaging industry, however, it is also desired and increasingly necessary in the production of therapy-specific and / or patient-specific packaging that automation can be realized.

So is out of the WO 2005/102841 A1 a system for automatic placement of packaging units of drugs known. This system is characterized by the fact that the products (capsules, tablets, dragees, etc.) are stored patient-specifically in receiving compartments arranged in rows and columns, wherein in each compartment several products are directly adjacent to each other and each other. The WO 2005/102841 A1 maintains the previously described principle of manual loading with a variety of different products in a single shell or nest for each time of administration and enhances the performance of this principle through its automated performance. The actual device for loading the compartments comprises an output station for each product. Between rolls on which the products are wound as strip blister and the output stations, a cross conveyor is provided, which ensures the transport of the strip blister in the area of the output station. The output stations are associated with ejection units, by means of which the products are pressed out of the strip blisters. In other words, the products are directly mechanically loaded and conveyed unprotected into the receiving compartments. The disadvantage of this system is on the one hand the fact that the risk of cross-contamination is that several identical or different products are pressed into the receiving compartments. On the other hand, there are fundamental hygienic problems, since the mechanical loads required when expressing the products lead to attrition of the products remaining in the device. This further increases the risk of cross-contamination. Another disadvantage is that said plant has a very large footprint, since for each product a squeezing station with associated ejection unit is necessary, which are all arranged in series.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to propose a compact system for automatic placement of substrates, which ensures a gentle for the products and universally feasible assembly. Furthermore, it is an object to propose a method for the automatic production of packaging.

This object is achieved by a system with device of the type mentioned above in that the device separating means for separating filled with products Blistering sections of the blister strip and the or each placement head for receiving, rotating and dispensing the separated Blisterabschnitte with the products sealed therein to the respective placement position on the substrate during transport of the same is formed by the system. As a result, the products are only indirectly, so just not directly handled. In other words, the release agent provides the ability to "portion" the products in a packaged manner such that they do not need to be unpacked to assemble an individual package. This ensures, on the one hand, that there are no (cross-) contamination hazards. On the other hand, the products are also protected during the manufacturing process of the packaging from direct mechanical damage. Also, the production of such packaging in clean room conditions, which have much lower requirements than clean room conditions, be performed, which reduces the production cost and thus the cost.

Preferably, two receiving positions of a magazine are arranged one above the other, which means that the device can be made even more compact.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the stacked receiving spaces of a magazine are offset from one another laterally. As a result, both roles can be used simultaneously, ie without loss of time.

An expedient embodiment of the invention provides that the magazines are standardized, such that each magazine can be upgraded at any position of the device. Thus, the magazines can be pre-equipped to ensure a short change cycle. Furthermore, can be improved by the possibility of optimized placement of the magazines on the device, the placement times.

An advantageous embodiment provides that the magazines are modular, such that they are interchangeable according to the so-called plug & play principle. This ensures a quick troubleshooting or a quick replacement of magazines.

Advantageously, the rollers are mounted circumferentially in the magazines or the receiving stations, which ensures a simplified and shortened roll change.

In an expedient development of the invention, the placement head has two belt segment drives for pivoting the placement head back and forth in two planes. As a result, very short travel paths of the placement can be realized.

Fig. 1.

eine perspektivische Darstellung einer Vorrichtung zum automatischen Bestücken, die mehrere Magazine zur Bevorratung von auf Rollen aufgerollten Blistergurten sowie einen Bestückkopf umfasst,

Fig. 2

eine schematische Darstellung der Seitenansicht der Vorrichtung gemäß Figur 1,

Fig. 3

eine schematische Darstellung des Bestückkopfes gemäß Figur 2,

Fig. 4

eine Seitenansicht einer weiteren Ausführungsform des Bestückkopfes,

Fig. 5

die Vorderansicht des Bestückkopfes gemäß Figur 4,

Fig. 6

eine perspektivische Darstellung des Bestückkopfes von schräg hinten,

Fig. 7

eine Detailansicht der Riemensegmentantriebe des Bestückkopfes,

Fig. 8

eine Detailansicht des Saugbalkens des Bestückkopfes,

Fig. 9

eine perspektivische Darstellung eines Magazins als Bestandteil der Vorrichtung gemäß Figur 1 mit entfernter Seitenwand,

Fig. 10

eine schematische Darstellung einer Zuführeinrichtung mit Trennmittel als Bestandteil eines Magazins,

Fig. 11

eine Detailansicht eines Gurtvorschubs der Zuführeinrichtung mit fluchtend übereinander angeordneten Aufnahmeplätzen,

Fig. 12

eine schematische Darstellung einer weiteren Ausführungsform des Gurtvorschubs der Zuführeinrichtung mit versetzt zueinander angeordneten Aufnahmeplätzen,

Fig. 13 bis 15

einzelne Schritte des Bestückungsablaufs, und

Fig. 16

eine Draufsicht auf eine Anlage zum automatischen Herstellen von Verpackungen mit einer zuvor dargestellten Vorrichtung zum Bestücken.

The object is achieved by a method of the type mentioned above in that blister sections filled with products are separated from the blister strips provided and these separated blister sections are picked up by the placement head, rotated and applied to the respective placement position on the substrate during transport through the installation. The resulting advantages have already been mentioned above, so that reference is made at this point to avoid repetition of the above statements. Further preferred and / or advantageous and / or expedient features and developments of the invention will become apparent from the dependent claims and the description. Particularly preferred embodiments will be explained in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawing shows:

Fig. 1.

a perspective view of an apparatus for automatic loading, which comprises a plurality of magazines for storing rolled on rolls blister straps and a placement,

Fig. 2

a schematic representation of the side view of the device according to FIG. 1 .

Fig. 3

a schematic representation of the placement according to FIG. 2 .

Fig. 4

a side view of another embodiment of the placement,

Fig. 5

the front view of the placement according to FIG. 4 .

Fig. 6

a perspective view of the placement of obliquely from behind,

Fig. 7

a detailed view of the belt segment drives the placement head,

Fig. 8

a detailed view of the suction bar of the placement,

Fig. 9

a perspective view of a magazine as part of the device according to FIG. 1 with the side wall removed,

Fig. 10

a schematic representation of a feeder with release agent as part of a magazine,

Fig. 11

a detailed view of a belt feed of the feeder with aligned superimposed receiving spaces,

Fig. 12

a schematic representation of another embodiment of the belt feed of the feeder with staggered receiving locations,

Fig. 13 to 15

individual steps of the assembly process, and

Fig. 16

a plan view of a plant for the automatic production of packaging with a previously shown apparatus for loading.

The device shown in the figures and the system are used for the automatic production of patient-specific packaging containing pharmaceutical and / or medical and / or food supplementing products.

In the FIG. 1 is a device 10 for loading of substrates 11, which are supplied to the device 10 in an input region 12, guided in the transport direction T through the device 10 and discharged in an exit region 13 from the device 10 is shown. Such a device 10 comprises at least one magazine 14, but preferably a plurality of juxtaposed magazines 14. In the embodiment shown, the device 10 has four such Magazine 14 on. All magazines 14 are preferably arranged on one side of the device 10 with respect to the transport direction T. In other words, all magazines 14 are arranged side by side. Optionally, however, the magazines 14 can also be arranged on both sides in the transport direction T of the substrates 11 through the device 10. The magazines 14 are designed for storing or receiving rolls 15, the rolls 15 carrying at least partially rolled-up, preferably single-web blister straps 16. Each magazine 14 has at least one receiving station 17, optionally also a plurality of receiving stations 17 for one or more rollers 15. Preferred and in FIG. 1 However, two receiving stations 17 in each magazine 14 are also shown. Each receiving station 17 or each roller 15 is assigned a feed device 18. The feeders 18, which will be described in more detail later, serve to unroll the blister straps 16 and feed the unrolled blister straps 16 to a ready position 19 for the products to be loaded.

Furthermore, the device 10 has a placement head 20, which is designed as a pendulum-arm handling device. The placement head 20 is designed to pick up the products to be loaded from the provision position 19, to transport them to the respective placement position above the substrate 11 and to deposit them on the substrate 11. The movements of the placement head 20 can be controlled and / or regulated by means of a control 21 indicated only schematically. In addition to the controller 21 for the placement head 20, the device 10 has a further only schematically indicated control 22 for the magazines 14 or more precisely the feeders 18. The controllers 21, 22 can be operatively connected, networked or even designed as a common integral controller.

The device 10 further comprises separating means 23 for separating product-filled blister sections 24 from the blister strip 16. The blister sections 24 may have different lengths. For example, a blister portion 24 may have at least a single singulated product. In other words, such a blister portion 24 is selected such that a single closed nest 25 with a product singulated therein is separated from the blister strip 16. As packaging for medical and / or pharmaceutical and / or food supplementing products commonly include at least one weekly supply, larger or smaller packaging units are of course possible, the maximum length of a blister portion 24 to be separated is usually tailored to separate a maximum of seven filled nests 25 from the blister strip 16. However, it is expressly pointed out that the lengths of the blister sections 24 and thus the number of products to be separated are freely selectable.

The placement head 20 is designed for receiving, rotating and discharging the blister sections 24 separated from the blister strip 16 with the products sealed and singulated therein. In other words, the placement head 20 has a plurality of axes of movement that enable the placement head 20 to reach each point or position on the substrate 11 to be loaded next to each provision position 19 in the apparatus 10 and the blister portions 24 in the plane of the substrate 11 in any orientation. Therefore, the placement head 20 is at least 4-axis movable. In the illustrated embodiments, the placement head 20 has exactly four axes of movement. In addition to two pivoting movements respectively for reciprocating the placement head 20 in one plane, namely the XZ plane on the one hand and the YZ plane on the other hand, the placement head 20 or a suction bar 39 described below is additionally perpendicular to the Z in the Z direction Substrate 11 movable up and down (up and down) and rotatable about the RZ axis (see in particular FIGS. 1 and 3 to 5 ).

For the pivoting movements of the placement head 20 two belt segment drives 26, 27 assigned. The vertical movement in the Z direction and the rotational movement about the RZ axis are realized by means of suitable drive motors 28, 29. From the FIG. 6 The arrangement of the individual drives and motors, which will be described in more detail below, can be particularly clearly seen. All movements of the placement head 20 are optional overlay. In other words, the two pivoting movements, the linear movement and the rotational movement at the same time, so synchronously execute.

Based on FIGS. 3 to 5 the structure of the placement head 20 is described in detail. The placement head 20 is formed in the described embodiments of a pendulum arm 30, which consists of two parallel and spaced apart arms 31, 32 or triangular plates, carriers or the like (see in particular FIGS. 4 and 5 ). The two arms 31, 32 are secured at their upwardly facing free ends to a common pivot plate 33. This pivot plate 33 is articulated via corresponding bearing blocks 34, 35 or the like to a frame 36 or the like, which is fixedly connected to the machine frame or is part of the machine frame. On the opposite side of the pivot plate 33, the arms 31, 32 are connected to each other via a top plate 37 or the like. In other words, the top plate 37 is pivotally connected to the downwardly directed free ends of the arms 31, 32 via hinge elements 38, such as ball joints or the like. On the top plate 37, a suction bar 39 is arranged, which will be described in detail below. Furthermore, a parallel rod 40 is optionally arranged on the top plate 37. The parallel rod 40 is hinged to the top plate 37 via the above-mentioned hinge elements 38 with the free end directed downwards. The other upwardly directed free end of the parallel bar 40 is secured to the frame 36 via a ball joint 41 or the like. In this case, the two arms 31, 32 are fixed on opposite sides of the top plate 37, while the parallel rod 40 is fixed to one side of the top plate 37, which extends transversely to the aforementioned sides. The parallel rod 40 is preferably hollow, in particular for the formation or reception of supply lines or the like. This unit, which essentially comprises the arms 31, 32 or the arms 31, 32 and the parallel rod 40, can also be referred to as compensating linkage 42.

Within this balance linkage 42, an intermediate shaft 43 or the like is arranged. The intermediate shaft 43 is fixedly secured with an upward end to a lifting slide 44 or the like, wherein the lifting slide 44 is disposed above the pivot plate 33 and associated with the machine frame. In other words, the lifting slide 44 is movable up and down along suitable guides 45 vertically to the substrate 11 to be loaded in the Z direction. Alternatively, the frame 36 could also be designed to be movable upwards and downwards and guided in such a way that they could be moved up and down To allow vertical movement of the suction bar 39 in the Z direction. With its other downwardly directed free end, the intermediate shaft 43 is mounted in the region of the top plate 37. As a bearing 46 can serve as a combined rotary and linear bearings, for example. In the region of the bearing 46, the intermediate shaft 43 via the bearing 46 or within the bearing 46 with a shaft 47 in operative connection or directly connected thereto. The shaft 47 in turn is connected to the previously mentioned suction bar 39 and secured thereto. The shaft 47 may also be an extension of the intermediate shaft 43. The suction bar 39 itself has several, preferably seven nozzles or suction cups 48 or the like.

The intermediate shaft 43 is formed in the embodiment shown of three segments, namely a fastening segment 49, a balancing segment 50 and a retaining segment 51. The fastening segment 49 is preferably attached directly to the lifting slide 44 and thus serves to transmit the vertical movement in the Z direction on the suction bar , The balancing segment 50 serves to compensate for the oscillating or pivoting movement described by the pendulum arm 30. The holding element 51 establishes the connection to the actual suction bar 39 and ensures that the suction bar 39 is aligned with its surface 53 facing the substrate 11 permanently and independently of the pivoting movement in the XZ plane and the YZ plane parallel to the substrate 11. In other words, the suction cups 48 are always aligned vertically to the substrate 11. The three segments 49 to 51 are preferably connected to each other via cardan joints 52 or the like. Alternatively, rubber joints or the like may be provided.

The placement head 20 or more precisely the suction bar 39 is connected to a not explicitly shown vacuum system of conventional type. For this purpose, the suction bar 39 is connected to at least one, but preferably a plurality of vacuum lines. In the described embodiment, four preferably individually controllable suction lines are provided, which are introduced in the region of the lifting slide 44 via a suitable (multiple) rotary inlet 54 or the like in the intermediate shaft 43. This targeted activation for sucking the Blisterabschnitte 24 of different lengths is possible. In other words, individual suction cups 48 or groups of suction cups 48 can be activated. The intermediate shaft 43 is for receiving and guiding the vacuum lines in all segments 49 to 51 preferably tubular, so hollow. Alternatively, the intermediate shaft 43 may be provided with vacuum holes or the like. In other embodiments, the segments 49 to 51 may also be formed differently with respect to the vacuum lines. In order to guide the vacuum lines via the connection points between the individual segments 49 to 51, the cardan joints 52 are formed as universal joints with a hollow spider. In the event that rubber joints are used, they have correspondingly vacuum holes. The intermediate shaft 43 is further associated directly with the drive 29, which acts as a rotary motor for rotating the intermediate shaft 43 about the RZ axis and is drivable in both directions of rotation.

The vertical movement of the suction bar 39 in the Z-direction is realized by the drive 28 which is fixed to the machine frame (see in particular FIGS. 6 and 7 ). The belt segment drive 27 for swinging back and forth in the YZ plane is also associated with the machine frame. In this case, the drive movement of the belt segment drive 27 can be transferred via suitable and customary means to a circular segment-shaped section 65, which in turn is firmly connected to the pivot plate 33. The belt segment drive 26 for swinging back and forth in the XZ plane, however, in particular arranged to achieve a compact design on the pivot plate 33. In this case, the drive movement of the belt segment drive 26 can be transferred via suitable and customary means to a circular segment-shaped section 66, which is formed from an extension of an arm, here the arm 32. Characterized in that the arm 32 is connected to the arm 31 via the pivot plate 33, the pivotal movement in the XZ plane is transmitted to the arm 31. In this case, the frame 36, which may be formed as a U-beam or the like in addition to the rectangular, provided with a passage 67 form such or provided with sufficient clearance to the pivot plate 33 that free pivoting is ensured in both mentioned levels , The drives, in particular the belt segment drives 26, 27, are in operative connection with the suction bar 39 via the compensating linkage 42 and the intermediate shaft 43 such that the suction bar 39 with its suction cups 48 is always the same regardless of the pivot position of the belt segment drives 26, 27 in the direction of the substrate 11 is aligned. Of course, the drives 28, 29 via the intermediate shaft 43 with the suction bar 39 in direct operative connection. Instead of the belt segment drives 26, 27 shown and described, it is also possible to implement other conventional types of drive, in particular for generating pivoting movements. The compensating linkage 42 may also be replaced by suitable known solutions, such as a linear actuator or a delta robot or the like.

In addition to the placement head 20, the magazines 14 with their feeders 18 are of central importance. In the FIG. 9 is a single magazine 14 in an open manner, that is shown without the front side wall. As already mentioned above, each magazine 14 preferably comprises two receiving locations 17. This means that two rollers 15 are then arranged in a magazine 14. In the in FIG. 9 In the variant shown, the receiving places 17 are arranged one above the other, in such a way that the receiving places 17 or more precisely the rollers 15 arranged therein are aligned in alignment. This means that the blister strips 16 unrolled from the rollers 15 are arranged above or below each other. An alternative arrangement is the FIG. 12 can be seen in which the stacked receiving seats 17 are laterally offset from each other. In other words, the blister straps 16 unrolled by the rollers 15 are then juxtaposed in the ready position 19. The size of the lateral offset may vary, but is preferably at least the width of the blister straps 16 to be processed.

Each receiving station 17 is associated with a feed device 18, which is essentially formed by a feed motor 55 and a measuring means for controlling the advance of the blister strip 16. The measuring means may comprise a plurality of measuring elements, for example a sensor 56 for advancing the blister strip 16 and / or a sensor 57 for the end of the blister strip 16. Optionally, the feed device 18 may additionally have a roll-off motor 58, which in particular helps to roll heavy rolls 15 can be. By a speed difference of Abroligeschwindigkeil one hand and feed speed, a blister loop 59 may be formed. In the area of this blister loop 59, a further sensor 60 may be arranged, the information for a not explicitly shown control unit for Blisterschlairfe 59 receives and passes. Each magazine 14 is a release agent 23rd

The separating means 23 may be formed from one or more separating elements, for example separating knives 61. In the in FIGS. 9 to 12 shown embodiments, each magazine 14 is assigned a common for both recording slots 17 separating knife 61. The guillotine-type separating knife 61 is preferably arranged above the blister strips 16 to be separated. Below the blister straps 16, the separating blade 61 is assigned a corresponding counter-layer 62. In further embodiments, not shown, each feed device 18 may be associated with separate separating blades 61. This means that each blister strip 16 is then separated from its own separating knife 61. This can be helpful, in particular, for the case in which the blister straps 16 of a magazine 14 lie side by side in the ready position 19. The or each separating knife 61 is controlled and actuated by pneumatic, hydraulic or otherwise conventional manner.

The rollers 15 within the magazines 14 and 17 in the receiving stations are stored for easy change. Here is a peripheral bearing of the rollers 15, e.g. on suitable bearing pin 63 is preferred. Other types of storage, such as journal on which the rollers 15 are mounted centrally, can also be used. Each roller 15 may be stored in each magazine 14. This means that a freely selectable assignment of the rollers 15 to the magazines 14 can take place. In particular, the magazines 14 are standardized, so that each magazine 14 can be upgraded at any position on the device 10. In addition to the standardized design of magazines 14, these are also modular. Thereby, in a simple manner, e.g. a change of magazines 14 are made by means of the plug and play principle.

The sequence of steps for the separation of individual Blisterabschnitte 24 from a blister strip 16 is based on the FIGS. 13 to 15 briefly explained:
When inserting a new roll 15 which carries a specific product, the corresponding position on the device 10 is first assigned by means of a code, which is eg directly on the roller 15. The blister strip 16 is then removed from the roll 15 donated. The positioning of the blister strip 16 likewise preferably takes place by means of markings on the blister strip 16 which are suitable for the optical recognition. As markings, pictorial representations, centering marks, holes, notches or the like can be used. The blister strip 16 may be pre-dispensed by a variable length or number of products. That is, should the placement head 20 pick up a single singulated and packaged product at the ready position 19, the blister strip 16 is pre-dispensed exactly the length of a product. If it is desired to load a blister section 24 with a plurality of singulated and packaged products, the blister strip 16 is pre-dispensed by the desired number of products. In the example of FIGS. 13 to 15 the blister strip 16 is pre-dispensed in a length bearing seven products. As soon as the blister section 24 to be separated is in the ready position 19, the blister section 24 to be separated is fixed by the descending suction bar 39. Preferably, in parallel, the separation process is initiated. This means that the severing blade 61 separates the blister section 24 from the blister strip 16 while the blister section 24 awaiting placement is fixed. The time of separation can vary and in particular also take place after fixation. The separation takes place between the nests 25, which are also called tablet yards. The separating cuts optionally run along provided perforations or the like or without perforation across the blister strip 16. The separated blister section 24 is then picked up by the placement head 20, possibly rotated and deposited on the substrate 11. After placing the blister section 24 on the substrate 11, it is visually checked whether the correct blister section 24 has been deposited at the correct position of the substrate 11.

With reference to the FIG. 16 An overall concept for the automatic production of patient-specific packaging is described. The composition of the individual components of the system 70 can of course vary, in particular also in the number and sequence of the components. One of the central components is the apparatus 10 for loading the substrates 11. Other essential components are a transport unit 71 and a gluing station 72. By means of the transport unit 71, the substrates 11 can be transported in the transport direction T through the apparatus 10 and through upstream and downstream components , The transport unit 71 can in the usual way as a belt conveyor or be formed. However, a design as an endless circulating vacuum chain is preferred. The gluing station 72 is arranged in the transport direction T in front of the apparatus 10 for loading and serves to apply adhesive melt or the like to the substrates 11 at the positions at which blister sections 24 are positioned. The gluing station 72 could under certain circumstances also be dispensed with if the blister sections 24 are fixed by the packaging itself, for example by clamping the blister sections 24 between the substrate 11 and a cover element or the like assigned to the substrate 11.

Optionally, the system 70 can be supplemented to increase the degree of automation by other components, as in the rest, in the FIG. 16 is shown. The transport unit 71 may be assigned on the input side a feed 73 for the ordered and singulated feeding of the substrates 11. The feeder 73 is designed for the automatic feeding of different substrates 11, that is, for example, so-called wallets with two panels low or high, additional panels or the like. The wallets or the like are pre-perforated in the area of the nests 25 with a standardized perforation. Several substrates 11 can be composed of different wallets, panels or the like and are preferably already pre-printed. The feeder 73 can be arranged in alignment with the transport unit 71 or, as shown, as a cross conveyor. Associated with or downstream of the feeder 73 is an inspection unit (not explicitly shown) by means of which the position and orientation of the substrates 11 on the transport unit 71 are controlled. Following the transport flow of the substrates 11 in the transport direction T, behind the device 10, usually several of the devices 10 are arranged one behind the other, another (not shown) inspection unit for controlling the placement quality (eg position of the blister sections 24 on the substrate 11, correct selection and assignment of blister sections 24, etc.). Optionally, the devices 10 may also be equipped with optical inspection units. Subsequently, in the embodiment shown, at least one further gluing station 74 is arranged. This gluing station 74 can be used to join hot glue or the like for connecting the assembled substrate 11 to the cover element or the like already mentioned above. The cover elements or the like can be supplied via a further feeder 75, such as a magazine or the like of the transport unit 71. The cover elements can be printed on a patient-specific basis, in particular by printing information on the drug, date of taking, time of taking, type of intake, company logo, etc. The holes or recesses for the nests 25 in the cover elements are provided by suitable means which can be assigned to the feeder 75 punched a fixed grid, with different punching patterns can be realized. The holes can also be pre-cut. The feeder 75 may also serve to discharge the loaded substrates 11 from the plant 70. The feed 75 is preferably arranged transversely to the transport unit 71. In the transport direction T behind the gluing station 74, a further processing unit 76 is arranged. The processing unit 76 may comprise means for connecting the assembled substrates 11 with additional panels, for folding the substrates 11 or the units formed from substrate 11 and additional panel, for printing, punching or the like of variable data and for optical control. By means of suitable codings on the blister sections 24, the substrates 11, the cover elements, etc., the patient-specific assembly can be 100% controlled. In addition, all variable data can be controlled o-line by means of cameras or the like.

Optionally, additional components, such as, for example, a further gluing station in the region of the processing unit 76, can of course be assigned to the system 70. Each component may also be associated with a means for discharging the products (e.g., empty substrates 11, glued substrates 11, assembled substrates 11 1, etc.). This can be done in any process section in case of faulty or otherwise undesirable products a discharge from the process. Not shown is further a control unit for the system, which may be formed as a single parent unit. However, there is also the possibility that the individual components have separate units, which are in operative connection via a common control.

In summary, it is again found that the placement head 20 is formed with its suction bar 39 such that the blister sections 24 can be picked up from the stationary supply position 19 and supplied to the substrate 11. Of the The advantage is that the bridge-type dispensing stations known from the above-mentioned WO publication can be avoided, as a result of which the throughput time of a substrate 11 through the device 10 or the system 70 can be shortened and a shortened system 70 can be realized overall.

In the following, further embodiments will be described, each considered alone or may further form the invention together with further embodiments. Starting from the device 10 for automatic loading of substrates 11 as part of a system 70 for the automatic production of patient-specific packaging for medical and / or pharmaceutical and / or food supplementing products, comprising at least one magazine 14 for storing blister strips 16 rolled up on rolls 15 or the like wherein each magazine 14 has at least one receiving space 17 for the rollers 15 and for each roller 15 in the magazine 14, a feeder 18 for unrolling the blister straps 16 and feeding the unrolled blister straps 16 is provided to a supply position 19 for the products to be loaded, and a via a controller 21 controllable placement head 20 for transporting the products from the supply position 19 to a dispensing position on the substrate 11, which is characterized in that the device 10 separating means 23 for separating blistered portions filled with products 24 of the blister strip 16 and the placement head 20 is adapted to receive, rotate and deliver the separated blister sections 24 with the products sealed therein, the following features are suitable for furthering the invention either alone or in combination with one another. In detail:

A further embodiment is characterized in that the device 10 has a plurality of juxtaposed magazines 14.

A further embodiment is characterized in that two receiving places 17 of a magazine 14 are arranged one above the other.

A further embodiment is characterized in that the two receiving places 17 are arranged one above the other in alignment.

A further embodiment is characterized in that the stacked receiving spaces 17 of a magazine 14 are laterally offset from each other, at least by the width of the blister belts 16 to be processed.

Another embodiment is characterized in that each receiving space 17 and thus each blister strip 16 is assigned a separate separating element.

A further embodiment is characterized in that the magazines 14 are standardized, such that each magazine 14 can be upgraded at any position of the device 10.

A further embodiment is characterized in that the magazines 14 are of modular design, such that they are exchangeable according to the so-called plug & play principle.

Another embodiment is characterized in that all the magazines 14 are arranged on one side of the device 10.

A further embodiment is characterized in that the belt segment drives 26, 27 are assigned a common compensating linkage 42.

A further embodiment is characterized in that the compensating linkage 42 is associated with an intermediate shaft 43.

Another embodiment is characterized in that the intermediate shaft 43 is formed of three segments 49, 50, 51, wherein the segments 49 to 51 are connected to each other by means of universal joints 52 or the like.

A further embodiment is characterized in that the intermediate shaft 43 is designed for connection to a vacuum unit.

A further embodiment is characterized in that the placement head 20 on the one hand and the feed device 18 on the other hand have separate controls 21, 22.

Another embodiment is characterized in that the controls 21, 22 are in operative connection with each other or are networked with each other.

Starting from a plant 70 for the automatic production of packaging for medical and / or pharmaceutical and / or food supplementing products, as described above, a further embodiment is characterized in that the transport unit 71 in the input area, a supply 73 for automatically feeding substrates 11, such as Wallets, is associated with the transport unit 71.

A further embodiment is characterized in that the transport unit 71 in the region of each processing station are assigned means for discharging the substrates 11.

A further embodiment is characterized in that it has a higher-level control unit for controlling and / or regulating all components of the system 70.

A further embodiment is characterized in that the transport unit 71 comprises a vacuum chain.

Claims (14)

1. System (70) for automatically manufacturing patient-individual packages for medical and/or pharmaceutical and/or food-supplementing products, comprising a transport unit (71) for transporting substrates (11) and the like through the whole system (70) as well as at least one apparatus (10) for automatically mounting substrates (11) with medical and/or pharmaceutical and/or food-supplementing products, wherein the apparatus (10) comprises at least one magazine (14) for storing blister strips (16) rolled up on rolls (15) or the like, each magazine (14) having at least one holding position (17) for the rolls (15), and a delivery device (18) for unrolling the blister strips (16) and delivering the unrolled blister strips (16) to a supply position (19) for the products to be mounted being provided for each roll (15) in the magazine (14), and a mounting head (20) which can be controlled by a control system (21) for transporting the products from the supply position (19) to a dispensing position on the substrate (11), characterised in that the apparatus (10) has separating means (23) for separating product-filled blister sections (24) from the blister strip (16), and the or each mounting head (20) is designed to receive, rotate and dispense the separated blister sections (24) with the products sealed therein to the respective mounting position on the substrate (11) when transporting the same through the system (70).
2. System according to claim 1, characterised in that the system (70) comprises at least two apparatuses.
3. System according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the system (70) comprises at least one gluing station (72) for applying hot-melt adhesive or the like to the substrates (11).
4. System according to any of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that the mounting head (20) is movable on at least four axes.
5. System according to claim 4, characterised in that the mounting head (20) has two belt segment drives (26, 27) for pivoting the mounting head (20) back and forth in two planes (XZ plane, YZ plane).
6. System according to claim 5, characterised in that, in addition to the belt segment drives (26, 27), there are provided a drive (28) for moving the mounting head (20) up and down perpendicularly (Z direction) to the substrate (11) and a drive (29) for rotating (RZ axis) the mounting head (20).
7. System according to any of claims 1 to 6, characterised in that associated with the mounting head (20) is a suction bar (39) for receiving a blister section (24) of variable length.
8. System according to claim 7, characterised in that the suction bar (39) is functionally connected to the differential rod assembly (42) and the intermediate shaft (43) in such a way that the suction bar (39) with its surface (53) facing towards the substrate (11) is always oriented parallel to the substrate (11), regardless of the pivot position of the belt segment drives (26, 27).
9. System according to any one of claims 3 to 8, characterised in that upstream of the gluing station (73) in the direction of transport T of the substrates (11) is arranged a means for monitoring the position of the substrates (11) on the transport unit (71).
10. System according to any of claims 1 to 9, characterised in that immediately behind the or each mounting apparatus (10) in the direction of transport T is arranged a means for monitoring mounting with respect to position and/or content.
11. System according to any of claims 1 to 10, characterised in that the transport unit (71) is assigned means for stamping and/or breaking out and/or printing and/or folding the fitted substrates (11).
12. Method for automatically manufacturing patient-individual packages for medical and/or pharmaceutical and/or food-supplementing products, comprising the steps:

    - transporting the substrates (11) and the like through a system (70) for automatically manufacturing patient-individual packages for medical and/or pharmaceutical and/or food-supplementing products according to any one of the claims 1 to 11,

    - mounting the substrates (11) with medical and/or pharmaceutical and/or food-supplementing products,

    - in that the products are transported by a mounting head (20) controlled by a control system (21) from a supply position (19) to a dispensing position on the substrate (11),

    characterised in that product-filled blister sections (24) are separated from supplied blister strips (16) and these separated blister sections (24) are received and rotated by the mounting head (20) and dispensed to the respective mounting position on the substrate (11) when transporting the same through the system (70).
13. Method according to claim 12, characterised in that mounting of the substrate (11) is performed by multiple apparatuses (10) arranged one behind the other and having the mounting head (20).
14. Method according to claim 12 or 13, characterised in that before mounting the blister sections (24) hot-melt adhesive or the like is applied to the substrate (11).

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