JP2005132565A - Printing device for medicine dispenser - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To dispense with arranging various types of printers along a carrying route, commonize a casing and a carrier carrying mechanism and rapidly and accurately chute even printed matter without stiffness to a carrier. <P>SOLUTION: The carrier carrying mechanism 20, the printers 30, 40, and 60, and a transfer mechanism 50 are incorporated in the casing 11. The first printer 30 is installed at a position allowing the printed matter to be fallen and chuted, the second printer 40 is installed at a position apart from the carrying route 21, and the printed matter is held by the transfer mechanism 50 and moved to the carrier 22 on the carrying route 21. Also, the third printer 60 is detachably incorporated at a position so as to be advanced to and retreaved from the carrying route 21. In addition, a holding part 52 is formed to held and bend the printed matters when holding the printed matter. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a medicine dispenser printing apparatus used for a medicine dispensing machine that dispenses medicine in a carrier, and more particularly, a medicine dispensing machine printing equipped with a plurality of printers for creating printed materials to be put into a medicine carrier. Relates to the device.

  In a typical medicine dispensing machine (see, for example, Patent Document 1), for example, a carrying device supply device, a medicine dispensing means, a printing device, and a carrying device storage device are provided along a carrying path of the carrying device, and an empty carrying device is conveyed from the carrying device supply device. While the transport device is being transported through the transport path, the medicine is loaded into the transport device by the medicine dispensing means, and the printed material is loaded into the transport device by the printing device. A transporter that also collects the printed matter is stored in a transporter storage device.

  For example, when the medicine to be dispensed is an ampoule-containing injection, the medicine dispensing means is an injection dispensing apparatus, and the printing apparatus is equipped with a plain paper printer or a label printer. A plain paper printer prints a prescription, a dispensing instruction, and the like, and the printed matter is attached to a medicine or a medicine bag. Unlike a plain paper, a label printer prints on an adhesive label in which an adhesive or a release paper is laminated, and the printed matter is used by being attached to an infusion bottle or the like.

Furthermore, in a medicine dispensing machine using a transporter, an identification information carrier may be mounted on the outer surface of the transporter in order to identify the transporter. Such identification information carriers include a barcode label, an IC card, and the like. However, there is a dial (hereinafter referred to as a heat sensitive plate) that can be rewritten by a thermal method as one that can be used not only for these good mechanical readings but also for poor visual readings.
Printing on such a heat sensitive plate is performed by a heat sensitive tray printer different from a plain paper printer or a label printer. At that time, the transporter is stopped and the print head is brought into contact with the heat sensitive plate.

JP 2002-153542 A

As described above, some of the printers having different roles are incorporated in the medicine dispensing machine, and these printers are often built in a single casing and are a printing device that is a unit connected to an injection medicine dispensing device or the like. It is summarized as. In particular, in the prefabricated system in which each unit is predicted to be manufactured and an appropriate unit is connected in accordance with the contents of the order to quickly and flexibly construct a dispensing system, each printer has a single printing device for a medicine dispenser. Equipped to.
However, in such a medicine dispensing machine printing apparatus, the arrangement of the carrier transport mechanism is restricted in order to make the transport path of the transporter continuous with other units. It must be placed in. For this reason, if the printers are arranged along the transport path in order to drop the printed material into the transport path, the transport path becomes long.

  In addition, a tray printer that prints directly on a transporter equipped with a heat sensitive plate performs printing by stopping the transporter. Therefore, a device that stops the transporter and processes a medicine, such as a medicine bagging device, is a medicine dispenser. If it is built in, it is more efficient to install the medicine bagging device etc. than the printing device. However, the medicine dispenser printing device with a built-in tray printer and the medicine that is not built-in. Making the dispenser printing device separately is not preferable because the types of the casing and the transporting device transport mechanism increase. In particular, in the prefabricated system, an increase in the number of components is directly related to an increase in inventory and management burden, so it should be avoided as much as possible.

  Furthermore, plain paper on which prescriptions, dispensing instructions, etc. are printed is easier to deform than sticking labels, etc., i.e., so-called prints with no waist. Careful and slow processing must be performed after the guide members and the like are properly disposed everywhere. This also becomes a limiting factor in printer arrangement and transport speed selection, and should be avoided if possible.

Therefore, when installing various printers in the medicine dispenser printing device, it is necessary to devise the arrangement of the printers and the input method of printed matter so that it is not necessary to arrange the various printers along the conveyance path. It becomes a general problem.
In addition, it is a further problem to easily incorporate and remove the tray printer in order to make the housing and the transporting mechanism common.
Furthermore, it is a further technical problem to allow a printed material with no waist to be quickly and accurately loaded into a transporter.

  The medicine dispensing machine printing apparatus of the present invention (Solution means 1, first filing claims 1 and 2) has been invented in order to solve such a problem. A first printer provided where the printed product can be dropped into the transporter, a second printer provided away from the transport path of the transporter transport mechanism, and a gripping part for gripping the printed product. A transfer mechanism capable of moving this to the conveyance path is built in one housing. Furthermore, a third printer that prints directly on the transporter is built in a place where it can advance and retreat to the transport path.

  Further, the medicine dispensing machine printing apparatus of the present invention (Solution means 2, originally filed claims 3 and 4) is the medicine dispensing machine printing apparatus of the above solution means 1, which advances and retreats to and from the transport path. A mounting member capable of detachably mounting a third printer that prints directly is mounted together with the third printer or separately from the third printer.

  Further, the medicine dispensing machine printing apparatus of the present invention (Solution means 3, originally filed claim 5) is the medicine dispensing machine printing apparatus of the above solution means 1, and is sandwiched when the gripping part grips the printed matter. It is said to be bent at.

  In such a medicine dispensing machine printing apparatus according to the present invention (Solution means 1), when a plurality of types of printers are arranged in a casing with reference to a transporter transporting mechanism for transporting a medicine transporter, the first printer Is provided at a place where the printed material can be dropped into the transporter, but the second printer is provided at a position away from the transport path of the transport mechanism, and the printed product is gripped by the transfer mechanism and moved to the transport path. As a result of the loading, even if the second printer is not lined up along the transporting path of the transporter, not only the first printer but also the printed matter of the second printer is properly transported to the transporter.

As a result, restrictions on the arrangement of the printer are eased, and it becomes easy to shorten the transport path of the transporter. In addition, when moving the printed material from the second printer to the transporter, the printed material can be grasped and moved, so that the movement path of the printed material can be freely set and a plurality of printed materials can be moved together. Therefore, the degree of freedom of arrangement of the second printer is further increased, and even a plurality of printed materials can be quickly put into the transporter. In particular, when a third printer that prints directly on the transporter is also built in, such a third printer must be placed where it can advance and retreat to the transporter transport path, so that the second printer is removed from the transporter transport path. The effect of being provided apart is great.
Therefore, according to the present invention, a compact medicine dispenser printing apparatus can be realized while incorporating a plurality of printers.

Moreover, in the medicine dispenser printing apparatus of the present invention (Solution means 2), since the mounting member is provided so that the third printer can be detachably attached, the built-in third printer is incorporated. Regardless of the presence or absence, other members such as a casing can be used in common with the same specifications. In addition, since the casing and the transporter transport mechanism are made compact by providing the second printer away from the transporter transport path, even when the third printer is removed, it is not felt that the apparatus is uselessly large. Further, since the third printer can be easily replaced when the system configuration is changed, there is another advantage that the flexibility of the system is improved.
Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to promote the common use of members for a compact medicine dispenser printing apparatus while incorporating a plurality of printers.

Furthermore, in the medicine dispenser printing apparatus according to the present invention (Solution means 3), the printed material is bent by sandwiching the printed material when the printed material is gripped and moved by the gripping portion. Even if it is a sheet, it is more rigid than when it is not bent, and it becomes difficult to deform, so that the moving speed can be increased. Further, in such a state, since the glide state when the printed material is slid is stabilized, the printed material can be accurately input to the transporter by, for example, inserting it so as to be slid into the transporter.
Therefore, according to the present invention, a medicine dispenser that can be quickly and accurately put into a transporter by a relatively simple method of gripping even if a plurality of printers are built in and is compact and the printed matter is not loose. A printing apparatus for a machine can be realized. .

  A specific configuration of the medicine dispensing machine printing apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows the overall structure of a medicine dispenser printing apparatus 10, wherein (a) is a perspective view and (b) and (c) are front views. 2A and 2B show the structure of the gripping part 52, where FIG. 2A is a perspective view of the gripping part 52 only, FIG. 2B is a front view, and FIG. 2C is a gripping part 52 that grips the printed matter 43. FIG. 3A and 3B show the structure of the detachable attachment portion 70, where FIG. 3A is a perspective view of the mechanism portion, and FIG. 3B is a connection diagram of the communication cable. In these drawings, for simplification and the like, a housing panel, a fastener such as a base, a frame, and a bolt, a coupling tool such as a hinge, a drive source such as an electric motor, a transmission member such as a timing belt, and a motor An electrical circuit such as a driver, an electronic circuit such as a controller, etc. are omitted in the drawing, and are schematically illustrated mainly with respect to what is necessary for explaining the invention and related ones.

The medicine dispenser printing apparatus 10 (see FIG. 1) includes a box-shaped housing 11, in which a transporter transport mechanism 20, a first printer 30, a second printer 40, and a transfer mechanism 50 are provided. A third printer 60 is built in.
The housing 11 is formed in a box shape by attaching a panel to an appropriate frame (not shown), and the side surface connected to other units may be omitted, but if the side surface is not released, the side surface (left and right in the figure) At the lower part of the side), a carrying-out port 12 and a carrying-in port 13 are formed.

  The transporter transport mechanism 20 is composed of, for example, a belt conveyor similar to the horizontal transfer mechanism and the tray transport mechanism described in Patent Document 1, and the transport path 21 connects the transporter transport port 12 and the transporter transport port 13 so that the transport path 21 is connected. Provided on the inner bottom. When the transporter 22 is sent from the transporter entrance 13, the transporter 22 is transported along the transport path 21 and sent out from the transporter entrance 13. The drive motor (not shown) can stop and restart the conveyance at any time as necessary. As long as the transporter 22 is capable of transporting medicines and printed materials whose upper surface is released and can be transported, even a shallow box-shaped tray as described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-212208 is deeper than that. It may be a box-like box, and it may or may not be provided with a hook for easy handling.

  The first printer 30 includes a printer main body 31 composed of the label printer described above and a paper discharge section 32 made of a drop guide member such as a chute. The label for printing, which is a printed matter, is discharged from the printer main body 31. When the paper is discharged from the opening, it slides down the paper discharge unit 32 and is loaded into the transporter 22 on the transport path 21. The label for sticking is suitable for the drop-in because the adhesive and release paper are laminated on the paper material and the paper label 32 is slid down stably even if the paper discharge unit 32 has a simple configuration.

  The second printer 40 is mainly composed of the printer main body 41 composed of the plain paper printer described above, and a commercially available general-purpose printer is usually adopted as it is, but the paper discharge unit 42 remains as an off-the-shelf / standard product. In the case where it is difficult to grip the printed matter, the paper discharge unit 42 is slightly modified, or a guide or the like is added to the paper discharge unit 42 so that the printed matter of the plain paper can be held and taken out anyway. It has become. The printer main body 41 may be an ink jet printer, a laser printer, a thermal printer, or the like as long as it can print a prescription, a dispensing instruction, etc. on plain paper, and may be monochrome or color. Although only one unit is illustrated, a plurality of units may be provided and used separately. Since the printed matter of the second printer 40 is transferred by the next transfer mechanism 50, the printer main body 41 avoids other printers and is away from the transport path 21 of the transporter transport mechanism 20, for example, the upper stage portion of the housing 11 Built in.

  The transfer mechanism 50 includes a gripping portion 52 for gripping a printed material and a multidimensional moving portion 51 for moving the printed matter from the paper discharge portion 42 of the second printer 40 to a position on the conveyance path 21. . The multidimensional moving part 51 may employ, for example, a general-purpose robot arm, or may be configured by combining an appropriate lifting mechanism and a horizontal moving mechanism. Such a multi-dimensional moving unit 51 is built in one corner or the like of the housing 11 (in the illustrated example, the right back corner), avoiding each printer and the transporter transport mechanism 20.

  The gripping portion 52 (see FIG. 2) is for bending the printed material 43 from above and below when the printed material 43 of the second printer 40 is gripped. For this purpose, the gripping tool base 53 and a pair attached to the gripping tool base 53 are provided. The upper gripping tool 54 and the lower gripping tool 55 are provided. When the grippers 54 and 55 are driven by a DC motor or the like (not shown) mounted on the back of the gripper base 53, the grippers 54 and 55 move relative to each other up and down so that they can be sandwiched. In addition, the grippers 54 and 55 all have a shape in which the “K” character of Hiragana is rotated 90 ° counterclockwise, or the “V” character of the alphabet is extended horizontally to ease the inclination. It is bent into a shape like that. On both opposing surfaces, several sets of extendable clamps 56 are provided so as to face each other, and each clamp 56 is biased in the protruding direction by an elastic body such as a coil spring. Whether it is a single sheet or a plurality of sheets, the sheet is sandwiched from above and below with an appropriate force and bent into the same shape as the gripping tools 54 and 55.

  The third printer 60 (see FIG. 1 (a)) is the thermal tray printer described above, a print head 62 that directly performs printing such as erasing and writing by contacting the thermal plate of the transporter 22, and a transporter. The print head 62 is retracted from the conveyance path 21 for passing 22 (see FIG. 1B), and the print head 62 is advanced onto the conveyance path 21 for printing (see FIG. 1C). Part 61. If necessary to stabilize the contact state between the print head 62 and the transporter 22, a stopper 63 that presses the transporter 22 from the opposite side is also provided on the transport path 21 (see FIG. 1C). .

  In order to make the mounting of the third printer 60 detachable, a detachable mounting portion 70 is also built in the housing 11 (see FIG. 3A). The detachable mounting portion 70 is, for example, a support plate 71. The slide holder 72 and the outlet 73 are fixedly attached to each other, and when the upper end protruding portion of the advance / retreat drive unit 61 is engaged with the tip of the slide holder 72 and pushed in, the advance / retreat drive unit 61 slides to the support plate 71 at the back. At this time, it is latched by an appropriate hook or notch that can be easily released, and power supply through the outlet 73 is also established.

Further, in order to receive a print command and print information from the external controller 80 (see FIG. 3B), the network cable 74 is communicably connected to the controller 80. The connection is also made, for example, by USB or IEEE1394. The connector 75 is detachably established with a connector 75 that can be inserted and removed in accordance with the standard.
Other printers 30 and 40 may be detachable with the same mounting portion, so that not only repair / replacement of the printer but also paper replenishment can be performed easily.

  The use mode and operation of the medicine dispenser printing apparatus of this embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 4 shows several system configurations of a medicine dispensing machine incorporating the medicine dispensing machine printing apparatus 10, (a) is a perspective view of the first configuration example, (b) is a perspective view of the second configuration example, c) is a plan view of a third configuration example. Hereinafter, it demonstrates in the order.

  The medicine dispensing machine of the first configuration example (see the perspective view of FIG. 4A) is a straight line connecting the transport device supply device 81, the medicine dispensing device printing device 10, the injection medicine dispensing device 82, and the transport device storage device 84. The conveyance path 21 extends from the transport device supply device 81 at one end (right end in the drawing) to the transport device storage device 84 at the other end (left end in the drawing) through the printing device 10 and the injection drug dispensing device 82. ing. The transporter supply device 81 and the transporter storage device 84 are, for example, the tray supply device and the tray storage device described in Patent Document 1, and the transporter supply device 81 can send out the transporters one by one onto the transport path 21. It suffices that the transport device storage device 84 can store the transport device 22 that has been sequentially transported on the transport path 21. The injection dispensing device 82 stocks various types of injections separately, discharges the required number according to the control of the controller, and puts it into the transporter 22 on the transport path 21, for example, Patent Document 1 Various medicine dispensing means described in the above may be used.

  Then, when the controller 80 starts control of the dispensing process according to the prescription and the dispensing instruction, each unit (81 to 84) operates according to the control, and the empty transporter 22 is moved from the transporter supply device 81 onto the transport path 21. When the carry-out device 22 is delivered to the medicine dispenser printing apparatus 10, an appropriate printed material is input in accordance with the instruction. Specifically, first, when there is an instruction to print an attached label, the attached label is printed by the first printer 30 and dropped into the transporter 22.

  When there is a print instruction such as a prescription, a dispensing instruction, or an explanatory note, necessary items are printed on plain paper by the second printer 40, and the printed matter 43 is conveyed to the conveyance path 21 by the transfer mechanism 50. It is put into the transporter 22. At that time, the printed matter 43 is sandwiched between the gripping portions 52 and slightly bent, so even if it is gripped horizontally or obliquely in a cantilever state, it does not cause undesired deformations such as the release end portion hanging down and is stable. Move in state. Then, when it is obliquely separated at a position above the transporter 22, it enters the transporter 22 so as to glide. In this way, the printed matter 43 is surely loaded into the transporter 22 regardless of whether it is a single sheet or a plurality of sheets.

Further, in parallel with the printed matter input processing, the carrier identification information is also printed on the heat sensitive plate of the carrier 22 by the third printer 60. The printing is performed while the transport of the transporter 22 is stopped, and numbers, alphabets, and the like are overwritten so as to be easy to read visually.
Then, the transporter 22 is transported to the injection drug dispensing device 82, where the desired injection is automatically discharged from the injection drug dispensing device 82 and put into the transporter 22.
When all the related printed materials are added in addition to the injection to be dispensed, the transporter 22 is sent to the transporter storage device 84 and stored.
Such processing is repeated, and in the medicine dispensing machine of the first configuration example, the automatic dispensing of injections is performed one after another.

  Next, the medicine dispensing machine of the second configuration example (see the perspective view of FIG. 4B) is the above-described medicine dispensing machine in which a bagging device 83 is installed at the injection medicine dispensing apparatus 82. In place of the injection drug delivery device 82, a bagging device 83 is inserted and connected between the medicine dispenser printing device 10 and the container storage device 84, and the injection drug delivery device 82 is detached from the transport path 21 and packed. For example, the device 83 is connected to the device 83 from the rear side or the rear side, and the dispensed injection is accommodated in the sub-tray or the like as it is, and is sent to the bagging device 83.

  The bagging device 83 includes, for example, a bagging unit described in Patent Document 1, and after the injection medicine received from the injection medicine dispensing device 82 is packed in a transparent bag that can be easily visually inspected, for example, the transporter 22. It is supposed to be thrown into. During the bagging period, the transporter 22 that has carried the printed matter is kept in the bagging device 83 in order to wait for the injection of the bagging injection, so that the transporter 22 by the third printer 60 in the meantime. The third printer 60 is moved from the medicine dispenser printing device 10 to the bagging device 83 so that the identification information can be printed.

  In this case, the medicine dispenser printing device 10 does not have the third printer 60, but the detachable attachment portion 70 is provided not only in the bagging device 83 but also in the medicine dispenser printing device 10, and therefore remains. It is easy not only to transfer the third printer 60 from the medicine dispenser printing device 10 to another unit such as the bagging device 83, but also to return the third printer 60 to the medicine dispenser printing device 10 at any time. It can be carried out. Furthermore, not only in the unit rearrangement but also in the construction of a new system, the desired medicine dispenser printing apparatus 10 can be procured immediately by selecting whether or not the third printer 60 is to be mounted.

  Finally, the medicine dispensing machine according to the third configuration example (see the plan view of FIG. 4C) is used to dispense the injection medicine 21 through the transport path 21 in the medicine dispensing machine according to the first configuration example described above (FIG. 4A). The device 82 is folded in a U-turn shape. The transport device storage device 84 is relocated immediately behind and behind the transport device supply device 81, and an appropriate transport unit is interposed between the transport device storage device 84 and the injection medicine dispensing device 82 to connect the return path portion of the transport path 21. It is inserted and connected.

  In this case, the transfer mechanism 50 can extend the gripping portion 52 not only to the forward path portion of the transport path 21 passing through the medicine dispenser printing apparatus 10 but also to the return path portion of the transport path 21 passing through the back transport unit. The printed matter 43 of the second printer 40 may be put into the transporter 22 in the medicine dispenser printing apparatus 10 or may be passed once and put in the transport unit at the back. The charging order can be arbitrarily selected.

In addition, a medicine confirmation device 85 is attached to the rear transport unit using the empty space. The medicine confirmation device 85 includes an imaging device such as a CCD camera, an image processing device such as a DSP, and a recognition device such as an MPU. The medicine confirmation device 85 includes a transport device 21 that is transported to the transport device storage device 84 on the transport path 21. The inside is taken from above, the image is processed, and the ampoule shape and drug name are recognized.
By using the recognition result, it is possible to easily and quickly carry out the dispensing audit of the automatically dispensed medicine.

[Others]
5 is a modification of the above-described one. FIG. 5A shows a state in which the gripping tools 54 and 55 are opened, and FIG. 5B shows the gripping tools 54 and 55. A state in the middle of opening and closing, (c) is a state in which the grippers 54 and 55 are closed.
In this gripping part 52, the upper gripping tool 54 and the lower gripping tool 55 also serve as the gripping element 56, and the printed matter 43 is directly sandwiched between the gripping tool 54 and the gripping tool 55. The upper gripping tool 54 is attached to the vertically movable member 57 via an elastic member 58 such as rubber in order to absorb the thickness change of the printed matter 43 due to the difference in the number of sheets.

1 shows an overall structure of a medicine dispenser printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, where (a) is a perspective view and (b) and (c) are front views. The structure of a holding part is shown, (a) is a perspective view, (b) is a front view, (c) is a perspective view of a printed matter holding state. The structure of a detachable attachment part is shown, (a) is a perspective view, (b) is a communication cable connection diagram. 2 shows several system configurations of a medicine dispensing machine incorporating a medicine dispensing machine printing apparatus, wherein (a) is a perspective view of a first configuration example, (b) is a perspective view of a second configuration example, and (c) is a third configuration diagram. It is a top view of an example of composition. The other structural example regarding a holding part is shown, (a)-(c) are all front views.

Explanation of symbols

10. Printing device for medicine dispensing machine,
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Housing | casing, 12 ... Carrying device exit, 13 ... Carrying device entrance
20 ... Transporter transport mechanism,
21 ... Conveying path (belt conveyor), 22 ... Transporter (tray, box),
30 ... first printer,
31 ... Printer body (label printing), 32 ... Paper discharge part (chute, drop-in part),
40. Second printer,
41 ... Printer main body (single-cut printing), 42 ... discharge section, 43 ... printed matter,
50. Transfer mechanism,
51 ... Multidimensional moving part (robot arm),
52 ... Gripping part (robot hand), 53 ... Gripping tool base,
54 ... Upper gripping tool (opening / closing plate), 55 ... Lower gripping tool (opening / closing plate), 56 ... Clamp,
60 ... Third printer,
61 ... Advance / retreat drive unit, 62 ... Print head (carrying machine direct printing), 63 ... Stopper,
70: Removable attachment part,
71 ... support plate, 72 ... slide holder, 73 ... outlet,
74 ... Network cable, 75 ... Connector (hot plug)
80 ... Controller,
81 ... Transporter supply device, 82 ... Injection medicine dispensing device, 83 ... Bagging device,
84: Carrying container storage device, 85 ... Drug confirmation device (imaging, image processing, recognition)

Claims (5)

  A transporter transport mechanism for transporting a medicine transporter; a first printer provided where the printed material can be dropped into the transporter; a second printer provided away from the transport path of the transporter transport mechanism; A printing apparatus for a medicine dispenser, which has a gripping portion for gripping the printed matter and a transfer mechanism capable of moving the gripping portion to the transport path in a single housing.   3. The medicine dispenser printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a third printer that prints directly on the transporter is built in a place where it can advance and retreat to and from the transport path.   3. The printing apparatus for a medicine dispenser according to claim 2, further comprising an attachment member that allows the third printer to be detachably attached.   2. The medicine dispenser printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an attachment member capable of detachably attaching a third printer that advances and retreats to and from the conveyance path and prints directly on the transporter.   5. The medicine dispenser printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the gripping part is sandwiched and bent when gripping the printed matter.

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