JP4394696B2 - Tablet dispensing device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a tablet dispensing device, and more particularly to a tablet dispensing device for taking out a predetermined number of tablets stored in a tablet cassette by a dispensing rotor by driving a driving means such as a motor.

  Conventionally, various devices have been proposed as this type of tablet dispensing device. For example, those disclosed in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 below are known.

In any of the devices described in these publications, only the tablet cassette can be taken out from the support, and tablets can be refilled with the cassette taken out, and the workability thereof is extremely simple.
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 54-102397 Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 3-75106

  However, in any of the above-described conventional tablet dispensing apparatuses, the cassette is positioned in the left-right direction with respect to the support base by the slide of the projection and the groove provided on the support base and the cassette, respectively. For this slide, it was necessary to have a slight gap (play) between the convex portion and the groove portion.

  However, the tablet cassette and the support table are generally integrally formed of plastic or the like, and in consideration of errors during molding, even if errors occur in the tablet cassette and the support table, the convex portion and the groove portion are formed. It is designed to create a gap between the two.

  For this reason, when the convex portion is reduced and the groove portion is widened due to an error during molding, there is a problem that the gap portion between the two becomes too large and the stored tablet cassette is rattled.

  In addition, when the gap portion between the convex portion and the groove portion is large in this way, when the tablet cassette is attached, the gears or connectors that are engaged with each other at the time of storage are inadvertently contacted, and these portions are There was also a risk of damage.

  Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and provides a tablet dispensing apparatus that can accurately store a tablet cassette on a support base while reliably preventing lateral blur. Is an issue.

The present invention includes a tablet cassette 30 including a distribution rotor 33 and configured to discharge tablets one by one as the distribution rotor 33 rotates, and a support base 10 that detachably supports the tablet cassette 30. And a slave gear 35 that is connected to the distribution rotor 33 and protrudes from the lower part of the tablet cassette 30; and a driving means for rotating the distribution rotor 33; A gear 12 that meshes with the dependent gear 35 when the cassette 30 is housed in the support base 10, and the support base 10 is provided with a pair of left and right side plates 14a, 14a that cover both sides of the gear 12, A pair of left and right rotating rollers 41 with an elastic body 42 wound around the outer peripheral surface thereof is provided at the lower part of the tablet cassette 30 so that the tablet cassette 30 is stored in the support 10. Is in a state where the elastic body 42 of each rotary roller 41 is in contact with and press-contacted with each side plate 14a, 14a, and the tablet cassette 30 is moved on the support base 10 to store or support the tablet cassette 30 in the support base 10. when taken out from the base 10, the elastic body 42 of the rotating rollers the side plates 14a, is 14a and the rotating roller 41 in contact, characterized that you have been configured to rotate.

In the tablet dispensing device of the present invention, the elastic body 42 is a ring-shaped rubber member, and a concave groove 41a is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the rotating roller 41, and the ring-shaped rubber member is interposed in the concave groove 41a. It is characterized by being.

  In the tablet dispensing device according to the present invention, an elastic body is wound around the outer peripheral surface of the rotary roller at the lower part of the tablet cassette, so that the tablet cassette is stored in a state where the elastic body of the rotary roller is in contact with and in pressure contact with the gear case. It has the effect that the blur of the tablet cassette can be prevented by the elasticity of the elastic body.

  In addition, since the tablet cassette is corrected to the correct position by the elasticity of the elastic body that rotates in contact with the gear case when moving on the support table, it is possible to prevent inadvertent collision of the meshing gears. The member can be prevented from being damaged, and the elastic body is wound around a rotatable rotating roller. Therefore, when the tablet cassette is stored and taken out, the elastic body comes into contact with the gear case. There is also an effect that it can be smoothly stored and taken out by the rotation of the.

  Moreover, even when the tablet cassette or the like is integrally formed of plastic or the like, the present invention absorbs errors during molding by the elasticity of the elastic body, that is, the position of the rotary rotor of the tablet cassette and the gear case of the support base. Even if a slight deviation (error) occurs at the time of molding, the deviation can be absorbed by the elasticity of the elastic body.

  In the present invention, since the gear is configured so that at least the left and right sides are covered with the gear case of the support base, when the tablet cassette is stored and taken out, the gear is accidentally collided with the gear and the gear is damaged. It has the effect that it can prevent.

  Furthermore, in the present invention, since the rotation roller is provided on the tablet cassette side, the replacement operation of the rotation roller and the like can be performed in a state in which the tablet cassette is detached from the housing, so that the operation is simple. It is.

  In addition, since the subordinate gear of the lower part of the tablet cassette is locked by a leaf spring, the slave gear may be rotated by the latching of the leaf spring when the tablet cassette is taken out to refill the tablet. In addition, the tablet gear can be prevented from being accidentally dropped due to the rotation of the slave gear, and when the tablet cassette is stored, the slave gear unlocks the slave gear by the gear case. Thus, the subordinate gear meshes with the gear of the support base and has an effect that the subordinate gear can be accurately rotated by the rotation of the gear.

  Furthermore, a concave groove is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the rotating roller, and a ring-shaped rubber member is interposed in the concave groove. Therefore, by interposing a ring-shaped rubber member in the concave groove of the rotating roller, The elastic body can be easily wound around the rotating roller, the manufacturing cost can be reduced, and the elastic body can be easily replaced as needed.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. As shown in FIG. 1, the tablet dispensing apparatus in the present embodiment is stored in a columnar housing 1, fan-shaped support bases 10, which are projecting radially from the housing 1, and each support base 10. It is composed of possible tablet cassettes 30,. The support bases 10,... Project from the housing 1 at other stages.

  Here, the housing 1, the support base 10, and the tablet cassette 30 are each integrally manufactured from a hard plastic.

The support 10 is formed with a tablet passage hole 11 for dropping the tablet at the bottom on the housing side.
The inner surface of the tablet passage hole 11 is provided with a sensor (not shown) as detection means capable of detecting passage of the tablet.

  Further, a gear 12 connected to a rotary motor (not shown) as drive means is provided in front of the tablet passage hole 11 (on the opposite side to the casing).

Further, a gear case 14 projects from the support base 10 so as to cover the side of the gear 12.
As shown in FIG. 2, the gear case 14 includes a pair of left and right side plates 14a, 14a provided to cover both side surfaces of the gear 12, and a front plate 14b slightly extended from one side of the side plate 14a to the other side. It consists of.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the tablet cassette 30 is provided with a distribution rotor 33 inside a cassette body 32 that is openable and closable by a lid 31 at the top.

The cassette body 32 is formed with a discharge hole (not shown) for discharging tablets at the bottom on the rear side, and the distribution rotor 33 is accommodated in the cassette body 32 by rotating. Each tablet is discharged from the discharge hole one by one, and the tablet can be taken out from the tablet passage hole 11 of the support 10.
The tablets taken out in this way are sent to a packaging machine or the like through a tablet passage provided in the casing 1.

  The rotating shaft 33a of the distribution rotor 33 is projected from the lower side of the cassette body 32 and is connected to the dependent gear 35.

  The slave gear 35 protruding from below the cassette body 32 is provided so as to be able to mesh with the gear 12 of the support 10 when the tablet cassette 30 is stored. Then, the dependent gear 35 is configured to rotate depending on the rotation of the gear 12 of the support base 10.

  Further, a leaf spring 37 for locking the rotation of the slave gear 35 is attached to the lower surface of the cassette body 32 as shown in FIG.

  The leaf spring 37 is fixed to the cassette main body 32 by a screw 38 at one end side 37a, and the other end side 37b is a free end. Further, a bent portion 37c is formed between the both ends 37a and 37b. The bent portion 37c is bent toward the housing to engage with the teeth of the dependent gear 35.

  Here, the leaf spring 37 abuts the front plate 14b of the gear case 14 when the free end portion 37b accommodates the tablet cassette 30 on the housing side, and as shown by a one-dot chain line in FIG. It is provided to release the mesh with 35.

In FIG. 3, reference numeral 39 denotes a case rib projecting downward from the lower peripheral edge of the cassette main body 32. The case rib 39 contacts the gear case 14 when the tablet cassette 30 is stored. The contact portion 39a is provided.
The abutting portion 39a is formed with a reinforcing rib 39b projecting forward, so that the strength of the abutting portion 39a with which the gear case 14 abuts is maintained.

  Further, the cassette body 32 is provided with a pair of projecting shafts 40, 40 projecting from both sides on the rear side (the housing side) of the dependent gear 35 from the lower surface.

  As shown in FIG. 4, a rotating roller 41 having a concave groove 41a formed on the outer peripheral surface is rotatably supported on the projecting shaft 40. The concave groove 41a of the rotating roller 41 has a ring-like shape. The rubber member 42 is interposed, whereby the elastic body 42 is wound around the rotating roller 41.

  Here, the rubber member 42 is attached to the rotating roller 41 in a state where the outer peripheral surface protrudes from the outer peripheral surface of the rotating roller 41.

Further, a catch fitting (not shown) made of a permanent magnet is attached to the housing 1, and a magnet plate (not shown) is provided on the back of the tablet cassette 30 at a position facing the catch fitting. Is installed.
The structure of the catch fitting is substantially the same as that described in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 54-10239.

  Since the tablet dispensing device of the present embodiment has the above-described configuration, the tablet cassette 30 can be taken out and the lid 31 can be opened to refill the tablet. At this time, the dependent gear 35 of the tablet cassette 30 is a leaf spring. Since it is locked by 37, the distribution rotor 33 does not rotate carelessly and the tablet is not discharged from the discharge hole.

After the refilling operation, the tablet cassette 30 is placed on the upper surface of the support base 10 and stored on the housing side.
At this time, the rubber member 42 of the rotation roller 41 of the tablet cassette 30 can be smoothly accommodated while rotating in contact with the gear case 14.

  Further, when the tablet cassette 30 is housed in this way, the free end 37b of the leaf spring 37 comes into contact with the front plate 14b of the gear case 14, and the locking of the dependent gear 35 by the leaf spring 37 is released.

The subordinate gear 35 meshes with the gear 12 of the support base 10 while the tablet cassette 30 moving on the support base 10 is corrected to an accurate position by the elasticity of the rubber member 42.
After the gears 12 and 35 are engaged with each other in this way, by rotating the gear 12 of the support 10, the subordinate gear 35 also rotates accurately, and the tablet is discharged from the discharge hole one by one by the distribution rotor 33. It becomes.
The tablet cassette 30 stored in this manner is in a state where the rubber member 42 of the rotating roller 41 is in contact with and in pressure contact with the side plates 14a and 14a of the gear case 14, so that the elastic property of the rubber member 42 causes the tablet cassette 30 to move in the left-right direction. Can prevent blurring.

  Further, the movement of the tablet cassette 30 toward the front side is prevented by the magnetic attachment between the magnet plate provided on the back surface and the catch fitting provided on the housing 1.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the support base 10 and the tablet cassette 30 can be easily manufactured by integral molding, respectively, and errors in the positions of the side plates 14a, 14a of the support base 10 or the protruding shaft 40 of the tablet cassette 30 at the time of molding ( Even if the displacement occurs, there is an advantage that it can be accurately absorbed by the elasticity of the rubber member.

  Moreover, since the tablet cassette 30 is corrected to an accurate position by the elasticity of the rubber member 42 even when moving on the support base 10, the teeth of the subordinate gear 35 and the gear 12 at the time of meshing accidentally collide with each other. This has the advantage that these members can be prevented from being damaged.

Further, by interposing the ring-shaped rubber member 42 in the concave groove 41a of the rotating roller 41, the elastic body 42 can be wound around the rotating roller 41 very easily, and the rubber member 42 is appropriately removed as necessary. Replacement and the like can be easily performed.
In particular, the rotating roller 41 is attached to the side of the tablet cassette 30 that can be removed from the casing 1 as appropriate. Therefore, when the rubber member 42 is replaced, the tablet cassette 30 can be removed to perform the replacement operation very easily.

  Furthermore, since the housing 1 has a cylindrical shape and fan-shaped support bases 10 project radially from the housing 1, it is possible to arrange a large number of support bases 10 in the housing 1 in a certain space. This is particularly useful in a narrow space.

  The tablet dispensing device of the above embodiment has the above-described configuration and has the above-described advantages. However, in the tablet dispensing device according to the present invention, the gear 12 protruding from the support base 10 is at least provided by the gear case 14 of the support base 10. The left and right sides are covered, and at the lower part of the tablet cassette 30, at least a pair of left and right rotating rollers 41 that rotate while contacting the gear case 14 when the tablet cassette 30 is stored or taken out protrudes, and the rotating rollers 41 are elastic on the outer peripheral surface. If the body 42 is wound, it is within the intended scope of the present invention.

  In other words, the rotating roller 41 is not limited to one that is rotatably attached to the projecting shaft 40 that is protruded from the lower surface of the cassette main body 32 on both sides at the rear side of the dependent gear 35. Even if four rollers 41 are provided on the front, rear, left, and right, they are within the intended scope of the present invention.

Further, the rotating roller 41 is not limited to the one that can be rotatably attached to the protruding shaft 40. For example, the rotating roller 41 can be pivoted to the bottom of the tablet cassette 30 in the left-right direction and urged inward. It can also be mounted rotatably.
That is, one end of an arm is attached to the protruding shaft at the bottom of the tablet cassette, and an urging means such as a spring for urging the arm inward is provided in the tablet cassette. It is also possible to adopt a configuration for attaching a rotating roller as in the embodiment, and by adopting this configuration, the lateral movement of the tablet cassette 30 is prevented not only by the elasticity of the rubber member 42 but also by the urging force of the urging means. Has the advantage that can be.

  Further, in the present invention, an appropriate method can be adopted as a method of winding the elastic body 42 on the outer peripheral surface of the rotating roller 41. A method of interposing a ring-shaped rubber member 42 in the concave groove 41a is preferable.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the magnetic movement between the magnetic plate provided on the back surface of the tablet cassette 30 and the catch fitting provided on the housing 1 as described in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 54-102397 is performed. The movement of the tablet cassette 30 is prevented by the locking means provided on the upper surface of the support base and the bottom surface of the tablet cassette as described in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 3-75106, for example. It is also possible.

  However, in the present invention, it is necessary to employ a locking means such as that described in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 3-75106 because the elastic body 41 of the rotating roller 41 has already prevented blurring in the left-right direction. However, when the locking means is provided, the structure of the bottom of the tablet cassette and the surface of the support base is complicated, so that the tablet cassette is provided by the magnets provided on the casing 1 and the tablet cassette 30 as in the above embodiment. It is preferable to prevent the 30 from moving forward.

  In the above embodiment, the gear case 14 includes a pair of left and right side plates 14a, 14a provided to cover both side surfaces of the gear 12, and a front plate 14b slightly extending from one side of the side plate 14a to the other side. In the present invention, the gear case 14 is within the range intended by the present invention as long as a pair of left and right gear cases 14 are provided to cover the left and right sides of the gear 12.

In addition, the gear case 14 may be provided with an upper plate that covers not only the side plates 14 a that cover both sides of the gear 12 but also the upper surface of the gear 12.
That is, an upper plate that covers the upper surface of the gear 12 is provided, and the upper plate is allowed to move to the rear side of the rotation shaft 33a of the distribution rotor 33 of the tablet cassette 30 (the meshing position of the gear 12 and the dependent gear 35). (For example, a groove portion through which the rotary shaft 33a can be inserted is provided in the upper plate, or the upper plate is provided to the rear side of the moving position of the rotary shaft 33a).
By adopting this configuration, there is an advantage that dust, dust, and the like are less likely to enter the gear 12 of the support base 10, and that dust and the like can be prevented from entering the driving means and the like inside the support base 10.

The side view which shows the outline of the tablet distribution apparatus in one Embodiment of this invention. The principal part enlarged front view of the support stand of the embodiment. The bottom view of the tablet cassette of the embodiment. The principal part expansion end view at the time of tablet cassette storage of the embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Housing 10 ... Support stand 11 ... Tablet passage hole
12 ... Gear 14 ... Gear case 14a ... Side plate
14b… Front plate 30… Tablet cassette 31… Lid
32… Cassetter body 33… Distributing rotor 33a… Rotating shaft
35 ... Subordinate gear 37 ... Plate spring 37a ... One end
37b… the other end (free end) 37c… bent part 38… screw
39… Case rib 39a… Abutting part 40… Projection shaft
41 ... Rotating roller 41a ... Concave groove 42 ... Rubber member (elastic body)

Claims (2)

A tablet cassette (30) configured to have a distribution rotor (33) and configured to discharge tablets one by one as the distribution rotor (33) rotates, and to detachably support the tablet cassette (30) A support base (10), a slave gear (35) connected to the distribution rotor (33) and projecting from a lower portion of the tablet cassette (30), and a driving means for rotating the distribution rotor (33) And a gear (12) that projects from the support base (10) and meshes with the subordinate gear (35) when the tablet cassette (30) is stored in the support base (10),
A pair of left and right side plates (14a, 14a) covering both sides of the gear (12) project from the support base (10), and an elastic body (42) is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the lower portion of the tablet cassette (30). A pair of left and right rotating rollers (41) around which is wound,
When the tablet cassette (30) is stored in the support base (10), the elastic body (42) of each rotating roller (41) comes into contact with and press-contacts each side plate (14a, 14a), and the tablet cassette When the tablet cassette (30) is stored on the support base (10) or taken out from the support base (10) by moving the (30) on the support base (10), the elastic body (42) of each rotating roller. There the side plates (14a, 14a) and the tablet dispensing device in contact with each rotating roller (41) is characterized that you have been configured to rotate. The elastic body (42) is a ring-shaped rubber member, and a concave groove (41a) is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the rotating roller (41), and the ring-shaped rubber member is interposed in the concave groove (41a). tablet dispensing device according to claim 1, wherein the are.

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