JP2013039237A - Tablet splitting apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a tablet splitting apparatus capable of easily and freely attaching and detaching a blade 41 of a cutting mechanism 40.SOLUTION: The tablet splitting apparatus has a falling tablet guide member 31 in which a falling tablet falling channel 32 is carved and formed, a cutting mechanism moving the blade 41 forward and rearward to the cutting position in the middle of the channel 32, and a body part 24 in which an opening 54 is formed, the falling pellet guide member 31 and a supporting member 28 engage with and separate from each other by sliding movement, and the blade 41 and the blade moving forward-and-rearward means 43 also engage with and separate from each other by sliding movement, the sliding directions are parallel and toward the opening 54. Further, a plate-like jig body part 61 of a remover 60 (blade changing jig) capable of engaging with and separating from the supporting member 28 by sliding movement temporarily engages with the supporting member 28 and is inserted and withdrawn to the body part 24 from the opening 54 instead of the falling tablet guide member 31, thereby the blade 41 mounted on the blade moving forward-and-rearward means 43 is caught by the blade holding part 64 and goes out from the body part 24 along with the remover 60.

Description

  The present invention relates to a tablet dividing apparatus for cutting a tablet and dividing it into several tablet fragments.

  As a tablet splitting device that divides a tablet into two pieces, in addition to the conventional tablet splitting machine that presses the cutter down into the tablets received one by one and cuts the tablets, less than one tablet held and contained in one tablet unit The tablet in the tablet dropping path is divided into pieces in the passing direction by cutting the tablet dropping path (tablet passing path) so that it can be automatically supplied to the subsequent packaging device in units of A tablet supply device that discharges to the tablet (see, for example, Patent Document 1), and the received tablet is cut up and down with a cutter blade, and the lower tablet cutting piece is discharged first, but the upper tablet cutting piece is once placed on the cutter. The tablet supply apparatus which delays and discharge | releases with the cutter operation of the next holding is put into practical use (for example, refer patent document 2).

Such a conventional apparatus is incorporated in a tablet container of a tablet packaging machine or below, and a cutter blade provided in a cutting mechanism is held at a cutting position by a holding mechanism. The tablet to be divided is cut.
Moreover, in these conventional tablet dividing apparatuses, apart from ducts that guide tablets from an external tablet feeder or the like to the tablet dividing apparatus, the tablet dropping path (tablet passage path) is formed in a vertical hole in the tablet dividing apparatus. It is vertical, and the tablet falls straight down vertically in a state close to natural fall.

Furthermore, when focusing on the cutting mechanism, a tablet dividing device having two blades of the cutting mechanism has been developed. This tablet dividing apparatus is a tablet dividing apparatus that cuts a tablet with a cutting mechanism having a straight blade and divides the tablet into a plurality of tablet cutting pieces, wherein the two blades are provided facing each other, and the cutting mechanism comprises: The counter gap is expanded and contracted while the counter two blades are kept parallel to perform tablet cutting, and the counter two blades are relatively displaced in the parallel direction when the counter gap is expanded or contracted (Patent Document). 3).
In addition, a blade that uses a cutting blade as a rotating blade has been developed (see Patent Document 4).

In such a tablet dividing device, the tablet to be divided is held in the cutting position by the holding mechanism, and the cutting position of the tablet is cut into the tablet while regulating the position of the tablet, thereby accurately cutting the tablet. To come to fulfill.
If the holding mechanism is adjusted appropriately, the tablet is held at an appropriate cutting position at any time, and the fluctuation of the cutting edge contact portion when the cutting edge of the cutting mechanism hits the intended portion of the tablet is visually observed. It becomes so small that it cannot be confirmed.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-226088 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-226089 JP 2011-083357 A JP 2011-097969 A Japanese Patent Application No. 2010-170968 JP 2011-042955 A

  Here, referring to a recently developed tablet dividing device (see Patent Document 5), a holding mechanism that holds a tablet to be divided in a cutting position and an opposing blade that advances and retreats toward the cutting position are provided. And a cutting mechanism that cuts the tablet by expanding and contracting the opposed gap of the opposed blade, and a cutting operation defining means that defines an operation procedure of the cutting mechanism or an operation procedure of the cutting mechanism and the holding mechanism. In the dividing device, the cutting operation defining means continues holding the tablet by the holding mechanism until the counter blade sandwiches the tablet when the counter gap is reduced during tablet cutting, and the counter blade is used for the tablet. After holding the tablet, the tablet holding by the holding mechanism is released and the tablet is held only by the counter blade. After the tablet holding by the holding mechanism is released, the counter blade is cut into the tablet. Those that became Maseru way have been developed.

In this tablet dividing device (refer to Patent Document 5 Effect column), when the opposing blade cuts into the tablet when cutting the tablet, the tablet is separated from the holding mechanism, so that the tablet is deformed into the tablet by the cutting of the opposing blade. Even if a displacement occurs, a reaction force does not occur on the tablet from the holding mechanism.
In this way, since it has been improved so that the reaction force from the holding mechanism, which is considered to be a factor that fluctuates the cutting state as well as a factor that amplifies the amount of fluctuation, does not occur, the cracks are stable and the amount of variation in the amount of tablet trimming is changed. Is even smaller.

  In addition, (refer to Patent Document 6), a groove-shaped tablet dropping path from the upper end to the lower end for the purpose of reducing the burden of adjustment to adapt to various shaped tablets after improving the division accuracy. A falling tablet guide member formed with a receiving member that temporarily holds the tablet to be divided that has been lowered along the tablet dropping path at a cutting position in the middle of the tablet dropping path by opening and closing the path, and at the cutting position. A tablet dividing device including a cutting mechanism for cutting the tablet, wherein a groove depth defining member covers a portion of the tablet dropping path upstream of the cutting position, a groove bottom of the tablet dropping path, and the groove depth. A thickness adjusting mechanism that expands and contracts a relative distance between the regulation member and the groove bottom facing surface, and obtaining the thickness information of the tablet and operating the thickness adjusting mechanism to adapt the relative distance to the thickness of the tablet. Control device Also tablets dividing apparatus, have been developed.

  In this tablet dividing device (refer to Patent Document 6 Effect column), if thickness information which is the minimum dimension among the tablet shape information is given to the control device, the control device, the thickness adjusting mechanism, and the groove depth defining member are used thereafter. Automatically adjusts the relative distance between the groove bottom of the tablet drop path and the groove bottom-facing surface of the groove depth regulating member to the thickness of the tablet. The burden of adjustment is reduced. In addition, in this tablet dividing device (see the example of Patent Document 6), the falling tablet guide member is formed of a plate-like body, and the tablet dropping path is engraved on one side thereof, and the cutting mechanism places the blade in the cutting position. The tablet is cut by moving forward and backward.

In this tablet dividing device, the falling tablet guide member is fixed to the support frame by screwing or the like in the housing of the main body, and the blade of the cutting mechanism is directly fixed to the blade advancement / retraction member by screwing or the like. Alternatively, it is fixed indirectly by clamping using a screw fastening force or the like.
By the way, since the blades of the cutting mechanism are consumables, they must be replaced from time to time. However, as the tablet dividing device becomes widespread due to performance improvement, the burden of blade replacement work also increases.
As a direct measure for reducing the work load, it is conceivable to attach and detach the blade with respect to the blade advancement / retraction member by, for example, a method of engaging by sliding like a slider.

However, since the blade of the cutting mechanism is smaller than the falling tablet guide member and is disposed at a position facing the center of the falling tablet guide member or in the vicinity thereof, it is inevitably positioned at the inner back of the housing. For this reason, since other members that obstruct the replacement work are provided in the vicinity thereof, it is not easy to take the blade with a fingertip or the like and to remove it from the housing or to be attached to and detached from the blade advancement / retraction member. For this reason, even if the attachment mode of the blade with respect to the blade advancement / retraction member is improved so as to be detachable, the removal operation and the reattachment operation of the peripheral members are not eliminated, but the replacement operation is not yet easy. Also, holding the blade directly by hand is not desirable because it imposes a mental burden on the operator because it forces the operator to pay close attention to avoid injury.
Therefore, it is a technical problem to realize a tablet dividing device that can easily and easily attach and detach the blade of the cutting mechanism.

  The tablet dividing device of the present invention (Solution means 1) was devised to solve such a problem, and is a drop in which a tablet-shaped tablet dropping path is formed from the upper end to the lower end. A tablet guide member, a receiving member that temporarily holds the tablet to be divided that has come down the tablet dropping path at a cutting position in the middle of the tablet dropping path by opening and closing the path, and a blade advance / retreat member equipped with a cutting blade In a tablet splitting device comprising a cutting mechanism for cutting the tablet by advancing and retreating toward the cutting position, and a housing that houses the falling tablet guide member, the receiving member, and the cutting mechanism inside, An opening through which the falling tablet guide member and the blade can pass is formed in the housing, and the falling tablet guide member and a support member that supports the falling tablet guide member in the housing are engaged by sliding. Or to separate The engaging end portion of the support member is positioned immediately inside the opening, and the falling tablet guide member is slid with respect to the support member while the falling tablet guide member is inserted into the housing from the opening. The blade and the blade advancement / retraction member are engaged or separated by sliding, and the opening is located at the tip of the sliding direction. The blade is inserted into the casing through the opening, and then the blade is slid and engaged with the blade advancement / retraction member.

  Moreover, the tablet dividing device of the present invention (solving means 2) is the tablet dividing device of the above-described solving means 1, wherein the sliding direction of the falling tablet guide member and the sliding direction of the blade are parallel. It is characterized by that.

  Furthermore, the tablet dividing device of the present invention (solving means 3) is the tablet dividing apparatus of the above-mentioned solving means 2, and is engaged with or separated from the supporting member by sliding instead of the falling tablet guide member. A blade replacement jig provided with a plate-shaped jig main body portion that can be held and a blade holding portion that is mounted on the jig main body portion and can hold the blade, and the jig is provided on the support member. When the main body part is engaged, the blade holding part captures the blade mounted on the blade advancing / retracting member, and when the jig main body part is further removed from the support member, the blade is detached from the blade advancing / retracting member. It is characterized by that.

  The tablet dividing device of the present invention is (the solution means 4), which is the tablet dividing device of the above solution means 2, and is engaged with or separated from the supporting member by sliding instead of the falling tablet guide member. A blade replacement jig provided with a plate-shaped jig main body part that can be held and a blade holding part that is attached to the jig main body part and can hold the blade; When the jig body is engaged with the support member and the blade is engaged with the blade advancement / retraction member, and the jig body is further removed from the support member, the blade becomes the blade. It is configured to be detached from the holding portion.

  In such a tablet dividing apparatus of the present invention (solution 1), when removing the cutting blade for replacement or the like, first, if the opening is covered, open the cover and pass through the opening. The falling tablet guide member is pulled out from the housing. Since the falling tablet guide member is engaged with the support member in a state of being separated by sliding, it is easy to pull out the falling tablet guide member from the opening, and a space is opened in the extraction trace, The blade in the housing can be peeked from the opening. Thereafter, the blade is pulled out by using a narrow clamping tool such as radio pliers. Since this is also a sliding type, it can be easily detached from the housing through the opening. There is no need to hold the blade directly by hand.

Also, when attaching the blade, with the falling tablet guide member removed, use a clamping tool to insert the blade into the housing from the opening and attach it to the blade advancement / retraction member, and then place the falling tablet guide member into the housing from the opening. Put it in the support member. Since both are engaged by sliding, it is easy to install in the housing through the opening. Again, it is not necessary to hold the blade directly by hand.
Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to realize a tablet dividing device that can easily and easily attach and detach the cutting blade.

  In the tablet dividing device of the present invention (solution 2), the falling tablet guide member and the blade can be simultaneously inserted and removed by making the sliding direction of the falling tablet guide member and the blade parallel. Furthermore, it is possible to insert and remove the blade replacement jig together with the blade instead of the falling tablet guide member. Therefore, it contributes to further improvement of workability using the blade replacement jig.

Furthermore, in the tablet dividing device of the present invention (solution 3), when the cutting blade is removed for replacement or the like, the falling tablet guide member is pulled out and the blade replacement jig is inserted therein. Pull out. Then, the blade mounted on the blade advancement / retraction member is captured by the blade replacement jig and removed from the blade advancement / retraction member. Moreover, in this case, it is not necessary to hold the blade directly by hand not only during the extraction operation but also after the removal.
Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to realize a tablet dividing device that can more easily and more easily attach and detach the cutting blade.

In the tablet dividing device of the present invention (solution 4), when attaching the cutting blade, the falling tablet guide member is pulled out, and the blade to be attached is held in advance there. Pull out the blade replacement jig after inserting it. Then, the blade held by the blade replacement jig is attached to the blade advancement / retraction member. In addition, in this case, it is not necessary to hold the blade directly by hand, not only during insertion work but also before installation.
Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to realize a tablet dividing device that can more easily and more easily attach and detach the cutting blade.

About Example 1 of this invention, the structure of a tablet division | segmentation apparatus is shown, (a) is an external appearance perspective view, (b) is a right view, (c) is an external appearance perspective view of the place which opened the lid | cover, (d) is. It is an external appearance perspective view of the place which removed the blade with the remover (blade replacement jig). (A) is an external perspective view of a falling tablet guide member and a receiving member, (b) is an external perspective view of a holding mechanism, and (c) is a place where the holding mechanism is removed from or attached to the main body. FIG. 4D is an external perspective view of the holding mechanism and the cutting mechanism attached to the main body. (A) is a front view of the front blade, (b) is a right side view of the front blade, (c) is a plan view of the front blade, and (d) is an external perspective view of the front blade. (A) is an external perspective view of the periphery of the blade holding portion of the remover (blade replacement jig), and (b) to (d) are front views of the external appearance of the periphery of the blade holding portion of the remover and the cross section of the blade edge portion of the front blade. is there. (A) is an external perspective view of the periphery of the blade holding portion of the setter (blade replacement jig), and (b) to (d) are front views of the external appearance of the periphery of the blade holding portion of the setter and the cross section of the blade edge portion of the front blade. is there.

About the tablet dividing device of such this invention, the specific form for implementing this is demonstrated by the following Example 1. FIG.
The first embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 embodies all the above-described solving means 1 to 4 (claims 1 to 4 at the beginning of the application).
For illustration purposes, for the sake of simplicity, details such as fasteners such as bolts, drive sources such as electric motors, transmission members such as gears, electric circuits such as motor drivers, electronic circuits such as controllers, etc. The illustration is omitted, and what is necessary for the explanation of the invention and related ones are mainly shown.

  A specific configuration of Example 1 of the tablet dividing device of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1A is an external perspective view of the tablet splitting device 20, FIG. 1B is a right side view of the tablet splitting device 20, and FIG. 1C is an external perspective view of the tablet splitting device 20 with the lid 51 open. ) Is an external perspective view of the remover 60 with the blade 41 removed from the main body 24.

2A is an external perspective view of the falling tablet guide member 31 equipped with the receiving member 34. FIG. 2B is a perspective view of the falling tablet guide member 31 equipped with a fixed cover plate 36 and a groove depth regulating member 37. An external perspective view of the holding mechanism 30, (c) is an external perspective view of the holding mechanism 30 removed from the main body portion 24 or being attached to the main body portion 24, and (d) is a holding state attached to the main body portion 24. 2 is an external perspective view of a mechanism 30 and a cutting mechanism 40. FIG.
3A is a front view of the front blade 41, FIG. 3B is a right side view of the front blade 41, FIG. 3C is a plan view of the front blade 41, and FIG. 3D is an external perspective view of the front blade 41. FIG.

4A is an external perspective view of the blade holding portion 64 of the remover 60 (blade replacement jig) and its surroundings, and FIGS. 4B to 4D are the blade holding portion 64 of the remover 60 and the surroundings thereof. It is a front view which concerns on an external appearance and the cross section of the blade edge | tip part 41a of the front blade 41. FIG.
FIG. 5A is an external perspective view of the blade holding portion 74 of the setter 70 (blade replacement jig) and its surroundings, and FIGS. 5B to 5D are the blade holding portion 74 of the setter 70 and its surroundings. It is a front view which concerns on an external appearance and the cross section of the blade edge | tip part 41a of the front blade 41. FIG.

  The tablet dividing device 20 (see FIGS. 1A and 1B) includes a tablet cassette 21, an operation unit 22, a control device 23, a main body unit 24, a receiver 25, and a basic unit that performs the tablet dividing function alone. The relay unit 26, the tablet feeder base unit 27, the support member 28, the holding mechanism 30, the cutting mechanism 40, and a power supply unit (not shown) are provided, of which the control device 23, the relay unit 26, the support member 28, and the holding mechanism 30 are provided. The cutting mechanism 40 and the power supply unit are housed in the housing of the main body 24, and the operation unit 22 and the tablet feeder base unit 27 are fixedly mounted on the main body 24 so that the operation surface and the cassette mounting surface are provided in the housing. Exposed on the outside.

Further, the tablet cassette 21 is detachably attached to the tablet feeder base 27, and the receiver 25 is detachably inserted from the front opening at the bottom of the main body 24.
Furthermore, a remover 60 (see FIG. 1 (d) and FIG. 4) and a setter 70 (see FIG. 5) are also provided as blade replacement jigs that are used exclusively or shared with other tablet dividing devices. It is made separately from the main body 24 and is used only when the opposed blades 41 and 42 are exchanged.

In the main body 24 (see FIG. 1B), the tablet feeder base 27 is fixedly disposed on the uppermost lid 51, and the support member 28 is in a vertical posture at the center in the front-rear direction in the housing. The relay portion 26 is also fixedly disposed in the housing and in front of the lower portion of the support member 28, and the receiver 25 can be taken in and out of the housing below the relay portion 26.
Further, in the central portion of the housing of the main body 24, the holding mechanism 30 and the cutting mechanism 40 are attached to the support member 28 or another support member (see FIGS. 1B and 1C), and the holding mechanism is included. Reference numeral 30 denotes the same vertical attitude as the support member 28, and the cutting mechanism 40 takes a horizontal attitude perpendicular to the holding mechanism 30.

  Furthermore, the top plate portion at the upper end of the housing of the main body 24 is a lid 51 that can be opened and closed, and is closed in a normal state in which the tablet is divided (see FIGS. 1A and 1B), but is opposed. When the blades 41 and 42 are exchanged, the opening 54 is exposed when the lock 52 is released and the lid 51 is rotated backward about the hinge 53 (FIG. 1 (c), ( d)). The opening 54 occupies most of the upper end surface of the main body 24, and can pass individually through the falling tablet guide member 31 of the holding mechanism 30 and the opposing blades 41 and 42 of the cutting mechanism 40 described later. Needless to say, the falling tablet guide member 31 and the opposed blades 41 and 42 are collectively wide enough to be put into and out of the housing of the main body 24 through the opening 54.

  The support member 28 (see FIGS. 1B to 1D) is composed of two columnar members, both of which are erected in a vertical posture and extend from the inner bottom of the housing of the main body 24 to the upper portion. When the lid 51 is opened (see FIGS. 1C and 1D), the upper end of the support member 28 is directly below the opening 54. It has come to be exposed. The convex portion 28a is provided for any one of the concave portion 38 of the falling tablet guide member 31 of the holding mechanism 30, which will be described later, the concave portion 62 of the jig main body portion 61 of the remover 60, and the concave portion 72 of the jig main body portion 71 of the setter 70. It is a sliding engagement part that engages or separates by sliding, and is formed from the upper end to the lower end of the support member 28 or near the lower end. The support member 28 having such a convex portion 28 a has an engagement end portion located immediately inside the opening 54.

  The tablet feeder base portion 27 and the tablet cassette 21 attached thereto (see FIGS. 1A and 1B) are for automatically supplying the tablets 10 in sequence, and the tablet feeder is controlled according to the control of the control device 23. When the drive motor of the base part 27 is operated, the tablets 10 are discharged one by one from the tablet cassette 21 mounted on the base plate, and the tablets 10 are discharged upstream of the tablet dropping path 32 of the holding mechanism 30 via a guide such as an introduction port or a duct. It feeds into the path from the upper end (see FIGS. 1C and 2D).

  The holding mechanism 30 (see FIGS. 1B to 1D and FIG. 2) is a divided object that has fallen from the tablet cassette 21 via the tablet feeder base portion 27 and the guide and has entered the upstream portion of the tablet dropping path 32. The tablet 10 is temporarily held at the cutting position 33 by the receiving member 34, and the cutting mechanism 40 (see FIGS. 1B to 1D and FIG. 2) slits the tablet 10 at the cutting position 33. It is cut at 35 and divided into two tablet cutting pieces 11 and 11 (see FIG. 2 (d)). The relay unit 26 (see FIG. 1B) includes a collection guide and a buffer buffer, and sends the tablet trimming pieces 11 dropped from the downstream portion of the tablet dropping path 32 of the holding mechanism 30 to the receiver 25. It is like that.

The receiver 25 (see FIGS. 1A to 1C) is a rectangular box-shaped or square-plate shaped container that receives and stores the tablet trimming pieces 11, 11 formed by dividing the tablet 10.
The receiver 25 and the relay part 26 for guiding the tablet cutting pieces 11 and 11 may be a unit that can be separated from the main body part 24. In this example, however, the receiver 25 and the relay part 26 are integrated to facilitate transportation of the apparatus. Yes. Although the operation unit 22 and the control device 23 may be separated, in this example, the operation unit 22 and the control device 23 are also integrated with the main body 24 in order to facilitate transportation of the device.

  The holding mechanism 30 (see FIGS. 1B to 1D and FIG. 2) stops the tablet 10 to be divided at the cutting position 33 in the middle of the tablet dropping path 32 in preparation for cutting by the cutting mechanism 40 as described above. In addition to the above, in order to release the tablet holding by the holding mechanism 30 in cooperation with the cutting mechanism 40, a plate-like falling tablet arranged between the tablet feeder base portion 27 and the relay portion 26 A guide member 31 and a pair of receiving members 34 made of a movable member capable of swinging the lower end portion around the upper end portion are provided. The receiving member 34 is accommodated in the tablet dropping path 32 and attached to the falling tablet guide member 31 in order to open and close the tablet dropping path 32.

  Further, the holding mechanism 30 (see FIG. 2) defines a groove depth that enters the upstream portion of the tablet dropping path 32 and covers it in order to adjust the posture and orientation of the tablet 10 that falls on the upstream portion of the tablet dropping path 32. A member 37 (see FIG. 2B) and a thickness adjusting mechanism (not shown) that moves the member 37 to adjust the thickness of the tablet dropping path 32 are provided. Furthermore, in order to prevent the tablet cutting pieces 11, 11 from spilling from the downstream part of the tablet dropping path 32, a fixed cover plate 36 is provided to cover the lower half surface / front surface of the falling tablet guide member 31 (see FIG. 2 (b) to (d), the fixed cover plate 36 is displayed as a transparent member together with the tablet dropping path 32 in a transparent state.

The falling tablet guide member 31 (see FIGS. 2A and 2B) is a vertically thick plate, and the lower end of the concave portion 38 on both the left and right end faces the upper end of the convex portion 28a of the support member 28 as described above. When it is inserted into the main body 24 through the opening 54 (see FIG. 2C), it engages with the support member 28 by sliding, and in a vertical state substantially parallel to the front plate and the rear back surface of the main body 24. The main body 24 is fixed in an upright state (see FIGS. 1B and 1C).
That is, the falling tablet guide member 31 is slidably engaged with or separated from the support member 28 that supports the falling tablet guide member 31 in the housing of the main body 24, and the falling tablet guide member 31 is separated from the opening 54. The falling tablet guide member 31 can be slid and engaged with the support member 28 while being inserted into the housing of the main body 24.

A tablet dropping path 32 that guides the falling tablet 10 is formed on the front-facing surface of both surfaces (front and back surfaces, front and back surfaces) of the falling tablet guide member 31 (see FIG. 2A).
The tablet dropping path 32 (see FIG. 2A) is formed in a groove shape by engraving or pressing the surface of the falling tablet guide member 31, and continues from the upper end to the lower end of the falling tablet guide member 31. In the cutting position 33 set in the middle of the tablet dropping path 32, a slit 35 for passing the cutting edge of the cutting mechanism 40 is formed through the falling tablet guide member 31.

The portion upstream of the cutting position 33 in the tablet dropping path 32 is relatively thin because it is sufficient to pass the tablets 10 before being divided one by one, but the downstream portion of the tablet dropping path 32 is directly below the cutting position 33. More specifically, the width is widened immediately below the central slit 35 at the cutting position 33 (see FIG. 2A).
The receiving member 34 is provided in a wide path directly below the cutting position 33, and in this example, a pair of members facing each other is provided, and the receiving member 34 swings according to the control of the control device 23. The tablet dropping path 32 is opened and closed immediately below the cutting position 33.

  The tablet dividing device 20 of this example is for dividing the disc-shaped tablet 10 into two equally left and right, and the receiving member 34 is divided at the upstream part of the tablet dropping path 32 when dividing the tablet. Since the target tablet 10 is temporarily held at the cutting position 33 in the middle of the tablet dropping path 32 by opening and closing the path, the slit 35 is formed vertically at the center of the cutting position 33 and the pair of receiving members 34. Are arranged symmetrically about the slit 35 (see FIG. 2A). When the tablet 10 is temporarily held at the cutting position 33, the pair of receiving members 34 are V-shaped by bringing the lower ends close to each other, and close the tablet dropping path 32 just below the cutting position 33 and the slit 35 (see FIG. 2 (b)), when dropping the tablet trimming pieces 11 and 11 obtained by dividing the tablet 10, they are simultaneously swung to the open side (see FIG. 2 (d)).

  The cutting mechanism 40 (see FIGS. 1B, 1C, 2C, and 2D) includes a front blade 41 that advances and retreats toward the cutting position 33 and a rear blade 42 that is behind. Counter-cutting blades 41 and 42 are provided, and the opposing gap between the counter-cutting blades 41 and 42 is expanded and contracted, and the tablet 10 at the cutting position 33 is sandwiched from the front and the back, and then further cut, so that it is cut equally to the left and right. The tablet cutting pieces 11 and 11 are formed. The front blade 41 is attached to a high-rigidity rod / sleeve fitting type portal support mechanism (not shown) and is supported in front of the slit 35 at the cutting position 33 by a front blade advance / retreat member 43 that reciprocates. Under the control of the control device 23, it advances and retreats toward the rear slit 35. The back blade 42 is supported by a back blade advance / retreat member 44 that reciprocates on the back surface of the falling tablet guide member 31, and moves forward toward the tablet 10 at the cutting position 33 while passing through the slit 35 according to the control of the control device 23. It is going to advance and retreat.

  The front blade 41 (see FIG. 3) includes a blade edge portion 41a for cutting into the tablet 10 and a blade base portion 41b for mounting the blade edge portion 41a on the front blade advance / retreat member 43. The latter blade base portion 41b is provided with convex portions 41d extending in the vertical direction and having tapered portions 41c formed at the lower end thereof at both left and right ends. The lower ends of the convex portions 41d are used as upper ends of the concave portions of the front blade advancement / retraction member 43. In addition, when the front blade 41 is lowered straight in the same posture, the front blade 41 and the front blade advance / retreat member 43 are engaged by sliding. Further, on the assumption that the front blade advance / retreat member 43 is fixed, if the front blade 41 engaged with the front blade 41 is lifted straight in the same posture, the front blade 41 and the front blade advance / retreat member 43 slide. Separated.

Further, (see FIG. 3), the blade base portion 41b of the front blade 41 is formed with a concave portion 41e extending vertically in a portion exposed in a state where the front blade advancement / retraction member 43 is mounted. When the convex portion 66 of the blade holding portion 64 of the remover 60 (blade replacement jig) and the convex portion 76 of the blade holding portion 74 of the setter 70 (blade replacement jig), which are described in detail in FIG. They are connected and separated by sliding.
Although the detailed description and illustration which will be repeated are omitted, the back blade 42 has the same structure, and is connected to or separated from the back blade advancement / retraction member 44 and is a blade replacement jig. The remover 60 and the setter 70 are also coupled and separated by sliding.

  Further, the sliding direction of the back blade 42 with respect to the back blade advancement / retraction member 44 and the sliding direction with respect to the front blade advancement / retraction member 43 are parallel to the sliding direction of the falling tablet guide member 31 with respect to the support member 28. An opening 54 is located at the tip of the three sliding directions. The front blade 41 alone, the back blade 42 alone, the opposed blades 41 and 42 together, the remover 60 or the setter 70 instead of the falling tablet guide member 31 and the opposed blades 41 and 42 together, the opening 54 The blades 41 and 42 are slid with respect to the front blade advance / retreat members 43 and 44 after being inserted into the casing of the main body 24 from the front. The reverse separation can also be performed from the opening 54.

  The remover 60 (see FIG. 4 and FIG. 1D) is used to take out the opposing blades 41 and 42 mounted on the front blade advance / retreat member 43 and the back blade advance / retreat member 44 in the housing of the main body 24 from the main body 24. And a blade-shaped jig body 61 having the same width as that of the falling tablet guide member 31 and a blade holding part 64 attached thereto. The blade holding portion 64 that can hold the blade is only shown on the surface side of the jig main body 61 for taking out the front blade 41 on the front side. Some are mounted on the back side of the main body 61. Since the concave portions 62 similar to the concave portions 38 of the dropping tablet guide member 31 described above are formed on the left and right end surfaces of the jig main body portion 61, the jig main body portion 61 is supported instead of the falling tablet guide member 31. The member 28 can be slidably engaged or separated.

  Further, when the jig body 61 is inserted into the jig body 61 from the opening 54 and engaged with the support member 28, the cutting edge of the front blade 41 is inserted into the body 24 from which the falling tablet guide member 31 has been extracted. In order to avoid the contact, a cut 63 is formed in a portion that contacts the cutting edge portion of 41a or the back blade 42. Further, the blade holding portion 64 on the surface side of the jig main body portion 61 has a blade base portion 41b of the front blade 41 attached to the front blade advance / retreat member 43 when the jig main body portion 61 is engaged with the support member 28. It has a portal-like fixing member 65 which is disposed at the fitting position and is fixed to the jig main body 61, and a thin wire-like elastic member 67 attached therein. The same applies to the blade holding part 64 on the back side.

  A convex portion 66 is formed on the fixing member 65, and the convex portion 66 slides with the concave portion 41 e of the blade base portion 41 b of the front blade 41 when the jig main body portion 61 is engaged with the support member 28. Is engaged. The elastic member 67 has an upper end fixed to the fixing member 65 and a lower end serving as a movable end 68. The movable end 68 is bent back at an acute angle so that the front of the notch 63 is slanted. Crossing. Therefore, when the remover 60 is engaged with the support member 28, the blade holding part 64 captures the front blade 41 attached to the front blade advance / retreat member 43, and when the remover 60 is further removed from the support member 28, the front blade 41 is moved to the front blade. The advancing / retracting member 43 is detached.

  More specifically, when the remover 60 is inserted into the support member 28 from which the falling tablet guide member 31 has been removed, the remover 60 and the front blade 41 move relative to each other, and the blade edge 41a faces the cut 63 (see FIG. 4B). ) When the blade edge portion 41 a comes into contact with the movable end portion 68, the elastic member 67 is temporarily deformed so that the movable end portion 68 escapes (see FIG. 4C), and further, the blade edge portion 41 a enters deep into the notch 63. Then, when the movable end 68 is passed, the elastic member 67 returns to its original shape, and the movable end 68 is hooked on the blade edge 41a to stop the blade edge 41a from coming off (see FIG. 4D). Then, when the remover 60 is extracted from the support member 28, the front blade 41 is captured by the blade holding portion 64, so that the front blade 41 is separated by sliding from the front blade advance / retreat member 43, and the remover 60 The front blade 41 can also be removed together (see FIG. 1D). The same applies to the back blade 42.

  The setter 70 (see FIG. 5) is a blade replacement jig for mounting new counter blades 41 and 42 to the front blade advance / retreat member 43 and the back blade advance / retreat member 44 in the housing of the main body 24, and is also a falling tablet. A plate-shaped jig body 71 having the same width as the guide member 31 and a blade holding part 74 attached thereto are provided. The blade holding portion 74 that can hold the blade is shown only on the surface of the jig main body 71 for feeding the front front blade 41, but at the same time, a jig for feeding the back blade 42 is used. Some are mounted on the back side of the main body 71. Since the concave part 72 similar to the concave part 38 of the dropping tablet guide member 31 described above is formed on the left and right end faces of the jig body part 71, the jig body part 71 is supported instead of the falling tablet guide member 31. The member 28 can be slidably engaged or separated.

  The jig main body 71 stores the blade tip 41 a when the front blade 41 to be attached is held in advance, and the front blade 41 is attached to the front blade advancement / retraction member 43 to remove the blade from the blade holding portion 74. A notch 73 is formed in the corresponding part so that the blade edge portion 41a can be smoothly removed when being detached. Further, the blade holding portion 74 on the surface side of the jig main body 71 is arranged in a place where the blade base portion 41 b is fitted when the front blade 41 is held, and is fixed to the jig main body 71. , And a wire-like thin elastic member 77 attached therein. Among these members, the jig main body 71 and the fixing member 75 may be the same as the jig main body 61 and the fixing member 65 of the remover 60, and the elastic member 77 may be made of the same material as the elastic member 67. The bent shape of the elastic member 77 is different from that of the elastic member 67. The same applies to the blade holding portion 74 on the back side.

  The fixed member 75 is also formed with a convex portion 76 similar to the convex portion 66, and when the front blade 41 is held, the convex portion 66 is engaged with the concave portion 41 e of the blade base portion 41 b of the front blade 41 by sliding. In addition, when the front blade 41 is handed over to the front blade advance / retreat member 43, the convex portion 66 is separated from the concave portion 41e of the blade base portion 41b of the front blade 41 by sliding. The elastic member 77 has an upper end fixed to the fixing member 75 and a lower end serving as a movable end 78. The movable end 78 is bent at an obtuse angle and obliquely in front of the notch 73. Crossing. The inclination of the movable end portion 78 with respect to the notch 73 is, for example, a lower right portion and is opposite to the above-described upward rise of the movable end portion 68, and the elastic member 77 has a weak latching force. Therefore, when the front blade 41 is held by the blade holding portion 74 and the jig main body portion 71 is engaged with the support member 28, the front blade 41 is engaged with and attached to the front blade advance / retreat member 43, and the jig main body portion 71 is further mounted. When the blade is removed from the support member 28, the front blade 41 is detached from the blade holding portion 74.

  More specifically, at the lower end of the elastic member 77, the leading end 79 further beyond the movable end 78 bent to lightly hold the blade edge 41a is bent in the opposite direction to the movable end 78. Since the tip 79 is lowered to the left and crosses the front of the notch 73, when the front blade 41 to be attached is held in the blade holding portion 74 in advance, the blade edge portion 41a is brought close to the notch 73 (FIG. 5D). (See FIG. 5 (c)), and it can be easily held (see FIG. 5 (b)). When the setter 70 holding the front blade 41 on the blade holding portion 74 (see FIG. 5B) is inserted into the support member 28 from which the falling tablet guide member 31 has been removed, the convexity of the blade base portion 41b of the front blade 41 is obtained. The portion 41 d is slidably engaged with the front blade advance / retreat member 43 so that the front blade 41 is attached to the front blade advance / retreat member 43.

  In addition, when the setter 70 is started to be pulled out, the setter 70 that is moved by an external force and the front blade 41 that is held to the front blade advance / retreat member 43 by the frictional force of the sliding portion move relative to each other, and the blade edge portion 41a is moved to the movable end portion 78. , The elastic member 77 is temporarily deformed, and the movable end portion 78 escapes (see FIG. 5C). Further, when the blade edge portion 41a comes out of the cut 73, the blade edge portion 41a is moved to the movable end portion 78. Then, the elastic member 77 returns to its original shape after passing through the leading edge 79 (see FIG. 5D). When the remover 70 is extracted from the support member 28, the front blade 41 is attached to the front blade advance / retreat member 43 and remains in the main body 24. The same applies to the back blade 42.

  Although the detailed illustration is omitted (see FIG. 1B), the control device 23 is an electronic control device composed of, for example, a programmable microprocessor system or a sequencer so as to accurately perform the sequential supply and cutting of the tablets 10. In order to cooperate the tablet feeder base 27, the holding mechanism 30 and the cutting mechanism 40, operation control of each electric motor or the like is performed. In addition, the position of the groove depth defining member 37 is adapted to the thickness of the tablet 10 in accordance with the fall state of the tablet 10 that has been acquired in advance or has fallen into the tablet 10.

  The use mode and operation of the tablet dividing apparatus of Example 1 will be described with reference to the drawings. 1A shows the tablet dividing device 20 with the lid 51 closed and the tablet cassette 21 mounted thereon, and FIG. 2D shows a holding mechanism 30 that drops and discharges the tablet cutting pieces 11 obtained by cutting the tablets 10. A cutting mechanism 40 is shown.

  1 (c) shows the tablet dividing device 20 with the lid 51 opened to expose the falling tablet guide member 31, and FIG. 2 (c) shows the tablet dividing device 20 with the holding mechanism 30 removed. 4 (b) to 4 (d) show how the remover 60 captures the front blade 41 in time series, and FIG. 1 (d) shows that the remover 60 is removed and the front blade 41 is removed from the tablet dividing device 20. FIGS. 5B to 5D show in time series how the setter 70 delivers the front blade 41 to the front blade advancement / retraction member 43.

  Prior to tablet cutting, the lid 51 of the main body 24 is closed and fixed with a lock 52, and then a tablet cassette 21 containing a large number of tablets 10 to be cut and divided is mounted on the tablet feeder base 27, and the receiver 25 is It is inserted into the main body 24 (see FIG. 1A). When the tablet dividing device 20 is operated by turning on the power or the like, the tablet dividing device 20 is first in an initial state, and the groove bottom of the tablet dropping path 32 of the falling tablet guide member 31 and the groove of the groove depth regulating member 37 are set. If it is possible to adjust the gap with the bottom-facing surface to the thickness of the tablet 10, it is automatically performed. If not, it is performed in accordance with a manual adjustment command given by the operation unit 22. In the holding mechanism 30, the receiving member 34 immediately below is closed in a state where the cutting position 33 is empty. In the cutting mechanism 40, the opposing blades 41 and 42 are opened back and forth, and the tablet 10 is placed in the cutting position 33. Ready to accept.

In this state, when the operation unit 22 is operated to cause the tablet dividing device 20 to start the cutting process, the drive motor of the tablet feeder base unit 27 is activated, and one tablet 10 is dropped and discharged from the tablet cassette 21 driven thereby. Is done.
Then, the tablet 10 is dropped into the tablet dropping path 32 of the holding mechanism 30 through the inlet and guide of the tablet feeder base portion 27, and is first guided to the upstream portion of the tablet dropping path 32 toward the cutting position 33. When the cutting position 33 is reached, it stops by abutting on the receiving member 34, positioned between the two receiving members 34, and held on the slit 35.

Further, in this state, the front blade advance / retreat member 43 and the back blade advance / retreat member 44 of the cutting mechanism 40 are operated to cut the opposing blades 41 and 42 into the tablet 10 from the front and rear, whereby the tablet 10 is cut and two tablets are cut. Divided into cut pieces 11 and 11. Then, the receiving member 34 swings and opens, whereby the closing of the tablet dropping path 32 is released (see FIG. 2D), so that the tablet cutting pieces 11 and 11 pass through the downstream portion of the tablet dropping path 32. Then, it is dropped and discharged and accommodated in the receiver 25.
In the meantime, the receiving member 34 swings and closes, the opposing blades 41 and 42 are both retracted, the state of the holding mechanism 30 and the cutting mechanism 40 returns to the initial state, and it is necessary to further cut the tablet 10. If so, the above operation is repeated.

  Thus, when the tablet 10 is cut and divided one after another, the cutting edges of the opposed blades 41 and 42 will eventually be consumed, and the time to replace the opposed blades 41 and 42 will come. In order to replace the opposed blades 41 and 42, the holding mechanism 30 is first removed (see FIGS. 1C and 2C), and then the remover 60 is inserted and removed to cut the old opposed blades 41 and 42 into the cutting mechanism. 40 (see FIGS. 4 (b) to (d) and FIG. 1 (d)), and then the setter 70 is inserted and removed, and new opposing blades 41 and 42 are attached to the cutting mechanism 40 (FIGS. 5 (b) to (b)). d)), and by finally returning the holding mechanism 30 (see FIGS. 1A and 1B), it can be performed easily.

  More specifically, the operator in charge of blade replacement manually stops the automatic operation such as the tablet insertion operation from the tablet cassette 21 to the main body 24 or the tablet cutting by the cutting mechanism 40 by operating the operation unit 22 or the like. Then, the tablet cassette 21 is removed from the tablet feeder base 27, the lock 52 is released, the lid 51 is opened, and the opening 54 of the main body 24 is exposed (see FIG. 1C). Furthermore, when the holding mechanism 30 is pulled out by manually pulling the upper end of the falling tablet guide member 31 from the opening 54 (see FIG. 2C), preparations for replacing the opposed blades 41 and 42 are made.

  Then, the operator holds the empty remover 60 and inserts the jig main body 61 of the remover 60 into the support member 28 after pulling out the falling tablet guide member 31. Then, since the opposing blades 41 and 42 are captured by the blade holding portion 64 of the remover 60 (see FIGS. 4B to 4D), when the operator pulls out the remover 60 from the opening 54, together with the remover 60. The opposing blades 41 and 42 also come out of the main body 24 (see FIG. 1 (d)). When the old counter blades 41 and 42 are removed from the tablet dividing device 20 in this way, the old counter blades 41 and 42 are recovered in a safe state attached to the remover 60, and the appropriate next process such as regeneration processing or disposal disposal. I leave it to.

  Then, the jig body of the setter 70 with respect to the support member 28 after the operator pulls out the jig body portion 61 by holding the setter 70 in which the new opposing blades 41 and 42 are held in the blade holding portion 74 in advance. Insert the part 71. Then, since the opposing blades 41 and 42 are mounted on the front blade advance / retreat member 43 and the back blade advance / retreat member 44 while being held by the blade holding portion 74 (see FIG. 5B), the operator opens the setter 70. When extracted from 54, the opposing blades 41 and 42 are detached from the blade holding portion 74 (see FIGS. 5C to 5D), and the main body portion remains attached to the front blade advance / retreat member 43 and the back blade advance / retreat member 44. 24, and only the setter 70 comes out of the main body 24.

Thus, since the new counter blades 41 and 42 are attached, the operator then attaches the holding mechanism 30 to the support member 28 (see FIG. 2C), and attaches the holding mechanism 30 in the main body 24. Return to a predetermined position (see FIGS. 2D and 1C), close the lid 51, apply the lock 52, and return the tablet cassette 21 to the tablet feeder base 27 (see FIG. 1A).
This completes the blade replacement operation, so that the tablet cutting can be resumed.

[Others]
In the above embodiment, the opposed blades 41 and 42 are not moved when the blade is replaced. However, when the blade is replaced, the opposed gap between the opposed blades 41 and 42 is narrowed by operating the operation unit 22 or the like. In this case, the blade replacement jigs 60 and 70 can be made thinner and the cutting mechanism 40 can be densely mounted, so that the main body 24 can be downsized.
In the above-described embodiment, the cutting mechanism 40 is configured to cut the tablet 10 by advancing and retreating the pair of opposed blade edges. However, a single blade may be used if cutting is possible.
Furthermore, in the said Example, although the tablet 10 was equally divided | segmented, an uneven division | segmentation may be sufficient.

  Moreover, the operation part 22 provided in the said Example is not essential, For example, if the tablet 10 is thrown into the upper end of a tablet dropping path | route, you may make it start a series of operation | movement according to it. If there is no inconvenience in discharging the tablet cutting pieces 11, 11, the receiver 25 and the relay unit 26 are not essential, and if the automatic sequential supply of the tablets 10 is not necessary, the tablet feeder base unit 27 and the tablet cassette 21 are not essential. . The drive member of the receiving member 34 is not necessarily provided explicitly by an electric type or a fluid drive type, and may be incorporated in a transmission unit of a holding mechanism or a cutting mechanism, for example, a manual handle pushing operation Alternatively, it may be driven by a rotating operation.

  The tablet dividing device of the present invention may be used in a stand-alone manner as in the above-described embodiment, or may be incorporated in an automatic dispensing machine such as a tablet packaging machine in a mode in which the base portion of the tablet feeder is replaced with an expanded function ( For example, refer to Example 2 of Patent Document 5), a tablet dropping path extending downward from a single tablet feeder, and a tablet collecting path after the tablet dropping paths of a plurality of tablet feeders merge downward (see FIG. For example, see Patent Documents 1 and 2).

10 ... tablets, 11 ... tablet fragments,
20 ... Tablet splitting device,
21 ... Tablet cassette, 22 ... Operating section,
23 ... Control device, 24 ... Main unit (housing), 25 ... Receiver, 26 ... Relay unit,
27 ... Tablet feeder base part, 28 ... Support member, 28a ... Convex part (sliding engagement part),
30 ... holding mechanism,
31 ... Falling tablet guide member, 32 ... Tablet dropping path, 33 ... Cutting position, 34 ... Receiving member,
35 ... slit, 36 ... fixed cover plate, 37 ... groove depth regulating member, 38 ... recess (sliding engagement portion),
40 ... Cutting mechanism,
41 ... Front blade (opposite blade), 41a ... Cutting edge, 41b ... Blade base,
41c ... taper part, 41d ... convex part (sliding engagement part), 41e ... concave part (sliding engagement part),
42 ... back blade (opposite blade), 43 ... front blade advance / retreat member, 44 ... back blade advance / retreat member,
51 ... Lid, 52 ... Lock, 53 ... Hinge, 54 ... Opening,
60 ... Remover (blade replacement jig)
61 ... Jig body part, 62 ... Concave part (sliding engagement part),
63 ... Incision, 64 ... Blade holding part, 65 ... Fixing member,
66 ... convex part (sliding engagement part), 67 ... elastic member, 68 ... movable end part (strong latching part),
70: Setter (blade replacement jig)
71 ... Jig body part, 72 ... Concave part (sliding engagement part),
73 ... Incision, 74 ... Blade holding part, 75 ... Fixing member, 76 ... Convex part (sliding engagement part),
77 ... elastic member, 78 ... movable end (weakly hooking part), 79 ... the most advanced

Claims (4)

  A falling tablet guide member formed of a plate-like body and having a groove-shaped tablet dropping path formed from the upper end to the lower end, and a tablet to be divided that has moved down the tablet dropping path are routed to a cutting position in the middle of the tablet dropping path A receiving member that is temporarily held by opening and closing; a cutting mechanism that cuts the tablet by moving a blade advancement / retraction member equipped with a cutting blade toward and toward the cutting position; the falling tablet guide member; and the receiving In the tablet splitting device including a member and a casing for accommodating the cutting mechanism therein, an opening through which the falling tablet guide member and the blade can pass is formed in the casing, and the falling tablet guide member And a support member that supports it in the housing are slidably engaged or separated, and an engagement end portion of the support member is located immediately inside the opening, Open the falling tablet guide member. The falling tablet guide member is slidably engaged with the support member while being inserted into the casing from the above, and the blade and the blade advance / retreat member are engaged or separated by sliding. The opening is positioned at the tip of the sliding direction, and the blade is inserted into the housing through the opening and then the blade is slid against the blade advancement / retraction member. A tablet dividing device characterized in that the tablet dividing device is adapted to be made to operate.   The tablet dividing device according to claim 1, wherein a sliding direction of the falling tablet guide member and a sliding direction of the blade are parallel to each other.   Instead of the falling tablet guide member, a plate-like jig body part that can be slidably engaged with or separated from the support member, and a jig body part that is mounted on the jig body part to hold the blade. A blade replacement jig provided with a blade holding section, and when the jig main body is engaged with the support member, the blade holding section captures the blade mounted on the blade advancement / retraction member; The tablet dividing device according to claim 2, wherein when the jig main body is removed from the support member, the blade is detached from the blade advance / retreat member.   Instead of the falling tablet guide member, a plate-like jig body part that can be slidably engaged with or separated from the support member, and a jig body part that is mounted on the jig body part to hold the blade. A blade replacement jig having a blade holding portion that can be engaged, and when the blade is held by the blade holding portion and the jig main body portion is engaged with the support member, the blade is engaged with the blade advancement / retraction member. 3. The tablet dividing device according to claim 2, wherein the blade is detached from the blade holding portion when the jig body portion is further attached and further removed from the support member.

Images