JPH07121722B2 - Tablet container - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention is used by incorporating it into a packaging machine for selecting a required amount of a desired tablet / capsule drug and taking it out and sequentially supplying it to a packaging mechanism when a patient is prescribed according to a prescription in a hospital or the like. The present invention relates to a tablet storage container.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a pharmacy that administers a relatively large number of patients such as hospitals and clinics, the required drugs are prepared in advance, and these drugs are packaged in single doses based on a prescription. However, it is offered several times. This kind of operation has become more and more automated in recent years, but many types of tablets and drugs in capsules (hereinafter simply referred to as tablets) are prepared, and these tablets are selected as required to obtain the required amount. Since it will be taken out, the mechanism becomes complicated for automation.

A known device of this kind is that containers each containing tablets are arranged in multiple stages in multiple stages, and the required containers are selected to dispense a required amount of a drug, and the containers are arranged in multiple stages. It has been proposed that a combination of a horizontally moving conveyer and a vertically conveying conveyer, which can be taken out to a target location, is partially put into practical use.

[0004]

In the conventional device as described above, it is necessary to first arrange the containers containing the tablets in a horizontal arrangement in multiple stages, and therefore the entire structure becomes large and a large installation space is required. And Next, although the structure seems to be simple at first glance, a large number of vertical and horizontal conveyors for transferring tablets are required, and the mechanism is complicated in order to facilitate loading and unloading of the container containing the tablets into and from the arrangement part. It cannot be avoided.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems in view of such a situation, the present invention requires that the containers for storing tablets be stacked in a cylindrical shape with a uniform size and shape and taken out to the inner and lower portions. An object of the present invention is to provide a tablet storage container that is equipped with a tablet take-out mechanism that can deliver a large amount of tablets, can be installed in a small volume, and can be incorporated into a tablet packaging machine to rationalize the apparatus.

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention
The tablet storage container is a tablet storage container that is annularly arranged on a circular support plate in a tablet packing machine, and has a fan-shaped plan view with an appropriate volume and an inclined surface toward the bottom inside. is formed, projecting beak-like tablet extraction unit before the lower portion of the container this, the bottom, a feed belt motor drive for feeding the tablets toward the tablet extraction unit, opened to move the distal end of the feed belt a lid member for opening and closing the drop port, the alignment guide for aligning tablets on the upper side of the belt
A tablet takeout mechanism composed of the parts, and the
When the tablet container is placed on the circular support plate
Is it inserted into the terminal provided on the support board?
Signal for operating the drive unit of the tablet take-out mechanism
It is characterized by having a connector for receiving .

[0007]

The tablet container of the present invention having the above-described structure accommodates the tablets of the required varieties and has a circular support plate.
When placed on top, the connector is mounted on its support board.
The mechanism to insert the tablet into the terminal
Receives an electrical signal to activate the drive of the. Since this tablet container is formed in a fan shape in plan view, if it is arranged in the vicinity of the adjacent one on the support board, it is possible to arrange a large number of tablet containers in an annular arrangement in a small space. . Also, when selected for tablet ejection, each tablet container is equipped with a tablet ejection mechanism,
The required amount of tablets is taken out by being actuated by an electric signal received through the connection part on the support board side.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Next, one embodiment of the tablet container of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a tablet packaging machine to which the tablet container of the present invention is applied,
FIG. 2 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional view of a main part of a support board on which the tablet storage container is mounted, and FIG. 3 is a plan view in which the tablet storage container is mounted on the support board.

As shown in these figures, a tablet packing machine to which the tablet container of the present invention is applied has a circular support around a cylindrical column 2 standing on a base 1. The boards 10 are arranged in multiple layers. Each of these support boards 1
The tablet storage container 3 having a uniform outer size described later on
A large number of 0s are respectively arranged at predetermined positions, and a support mechanism for the distribution wheel 5 and the support board 10 is provided between the mounting position of these tablet storage containers 30 and the support column 2, and an annular tablet discharge space. 3 is provided. This tablet discharge space 3
The lower end of the portion is adapted to guide the tablets to the tablet supply position A of the packaging mechanism (not shown) by the chute 4. The tablet take-out instruction for each tablet container 30 on each support board 10 is related by being selected and instructed by the control mechanism 8 including an attached computer.

The circular support discs 10 are stacked in multiple stages via radial thrust bearings 14 which are sequentially fitted and mounted on the cylindrical support columns 2 at predetermined intervals, and through a rotatable double cylinder 11. Are arranged in concentric circles, and a stacking space is formed in each stage except the uppermost stage with a space slightly higher than the height of the tablet container 30.
Then, each support board 10 is provided with a two-step difference that sequentially descends from the attachment base (inner diameter side) to the outside so that the tablet container 30 is placed at the lowest position. In addition, in the step portion 12 near the base of the support board 10, a tablet takeout passage 13 communicating with the annular tablet discharge space 3 formed by the double cylinder 11 is provided at each corresponding position of each tablet storage container 30, Each is projected obliquely downward. Further, terminals 15 for connecting a control power source to a predetermined tablet container 30 are provided on the side surface of each step portion 12. The terminal 15 for connecting the control power source is (rear
As described above, each tablet container 30 can be identified. The distribution wheel 5 attached to the column 2 and each of the terminals 15 are electrically connected to the distribution wheel 5 at a preset position, which is distributed in advance, through the current collecting brush 6 (however, this is not a limitation). Not). In addition, each support board 10
Is a portion rotatably supported with respect to the column 2,
A ball stopper (not limited to this) is provided on one of the column 2 side and each of the support boards 10, and a notch for engaging with the ball stopper and positioned is provided on the other side, so that the ball is rotated. After that, it can be returned to a fixed position and stopped.

Next, each circular support plate 1 of the tablet packaging machine
Since the tablet container 30 of the present invention placed on the No. 0 has a unified structure, one specific example will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 to 8.

The tablet container 30 is made of synthetic resin and has a fan shape in plan view with its upper part opened.
A tablet take-out portion 31 formed in a beak shape is provided so as to project from the lower portion to the front (the side where the width becomes narrower) from the lower portion to the bottom portion with an inclined surface. A delivery belt 34, which is driven at a low speed by a small motor 35, is provided around the bottom of the drive pulley 36 and the driven pulley 36 'so that the upper surface of the belt moves toward the tablet extracting portion 31. Has been. In the tablet take-out section 31, a tablet alignment guide section 38 is formed so that the tablets placed on the delivery belt 34 and delivered are aligned and delivered in a line. Further, on the lowermost end of the tablet take-out portion 31, there is formed an opening portion, that is, a dropping opening 32, through which the tablets can be dropped one by one from the end of the delivery belt 34.
On the other hand, for example, the lid piece 37 which is opened and closed by the rotary solenoid 37 'is provided so as to be opened only when the tablet is taken out. Such a motor 35, a delivery belt 34 operated by the motor 35, a tablet alignment guide portion 38, a lid piece 37 of the outlet 32, and a rotary solenoid 37 'for operating the same constitute a tablet delivery mechanism 33. . In addition, a counting sensor (not shown) is attached near the outlet 32 of the tablet take-out unit 31, and the lid piece 37 is closed so as to close the lid piece 37 when the commanded quantity of tablets is taken out. It is attached.

In the tablet container 30 having such a structure, the terminal 1 in which the connector 39 for transmitting a control signal to the tablet delivery mechanism 33 is provided on the step portion 12 of the support board 10.
5 and the terminal pin are connected.
It is preferable that the terminal pins at the connecting portion between the connector 39 and the terminal 15 are in a unique combination for each tablet container, because they can be arranged in unique positions and errors can be avoided. Of course, the present invention is not limited to the above specific example, and other methods may be adopted.

Further, the tablet container 30 has a cover 40 fitted in an opening 30 'in the upper part thereof, and a grip is provided on a side face which faces outward so that the container can be mounted at a fixed position on the support board 10 or carried by a handle. 41 is integrally formed.

Each tablet container 30 constructed in this way
Since the outer shape has a uniform size in the above-described configuration, is a number which is equally divided on the circular support board 10 and arranged in a ring shape without any waste. In FIG. 1 and FIG. As shown, the circular support plates 10 are used for the number of arrangement steps. Then, these tablet storage containers 30 are attached to each support board 1
In order to arrange it at a predetermined position of 0, each tablet container 3
A specific loading place is determined at 0, and the tablet container 30 containing a drug (tablet) of a predetermined type is placed at the position. In order to mount the tablet container 10 at a predetermined position on the circular support board 10, a handle 41 is provided.
By moving it straight toward the center of the support board 10, the connector 39 provided at the front end of the container.
Difference but the terminal 15 provided on the stepped portion 12 of the supporting plate 10
Is set to board are joined by included to.

A large number of tablet storage containers 3 stacked in a cylindrical shape
In order to take out the 0 tablet, the operator operates the control mechanism 8 of the packaging machine provided on the base 1 according to the prescription, and operates a computer, for example, to load it at a predetermined address on each support board 10. The required items (tablet type / quantity, tablet type,
By inputting the number of times of withdrawal, etc. from the keyboard, the tablet delivery mechanism 33 in the tablet container 30 at the instructed address is operated as set based on the instructed data to take out the tablet.

The tablet storage container 30 at the address receiving the instruction signal
At the same time as the motor 35 of the attached tablet feeding mechanism 33 is activated, the rotary solenoid 37 'is actuated to displace the lid piece 37 from the closed position to the open position, the drop opening 32 is opened, and the delivery belt 34 is provided to the inner bottom of the container 30 The tablets in (1) are sequentially aligned by the alignment guide section 38 of the tablet extracting section 31 and are sent to the outlet 32 and discharged. The tablets discharged from the outlet 32 are counted by the counting sensor, and when the instructed number is discharged, the rotary solenoid 37 'is immediately reversed to close the outlet 32 with the lid piece 37, and at the same time the motor 35 is discharged. Is also stopped, the driving of the delivery belt 34 is stopped, and the taking out of tablets is completed. The delivery belt 34 of the tablet delivery mechanism 33
For example, as shown in FIG. 8, it is preferable to use a tablet having protrusions provided on the surface at an appropriate pitch so that tablets taken out from the container can be positively sent out.

The tablets taken out from the tablet container 30 as instructed are passed through the passage 32 and opened directly below the passage 13.
(Refer to FIG. 2), it is sent into the discharge space 3, falls through the space 3 as it is, passes through the chute 4, and is collected at the tablet supply position A of the packaging mechanism of the packaging machine and put in a standby state at that position. It is put into the divided continuous packaging bag, and then packaged by a well-known means.

In order to replenish the tablets, the circular support plate 10 having the required steps is rotated to move the target tablet container 30 to the operation surface side (front side), and the desired tablets are placed on the support plate 10. The storage container 30 is removed, and the tablet storage container 3 is removed.
It is sufficient to replenish the inside of the 0 with a predetermined tablet. After the replenishment, the support board 10 is rotated to return to the original position, so that the home position can be restored. When removing the tablet container 30,
As described above, the terminal 15 on the support board 10 side and the connector provided on the front surface of the container can be inserted and removed to easily connect and disconnect the power supply to the tablet delivery mechanism 33, so that the tablet delivery mechanism 33 can be operated without any trouble in handling.

[0020]

As described above, according to the tablet container of the present invention, the shape of the entire container is unified and each tablet is equipped with a tablet take-out mechanism. Since the connector provided in this container is inserted and set in the terminal for connecting the control power source provided on the side of the support board, it is easy to handle. Also,
It can be arranged in a ring shape at a predetermined position in close contact with each other in shape, and the installation space of the tablet container, which requires the largest installation area, can be reduced, which contributes to downsizing of the tablet packing machine. Moreover, since the structure is simple and the drive mechanism is incorporated in the container, there are advantages such as easy repair.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a supply device to which the tablet container of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional view of a main part of a support board on which a tablet container is mounted.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a state where a tablet container is mounted on a support board.

FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view of a specific example of a tablet container.

5 is a right side view of a part of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a left side view of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of FIG.

FIG. 8 is a partially exploded perspective view showing a tablet taking-out portion of the tablet container.

[Explanation of symbols]

2 Support 3 Tablet discharge space 4 Chute 5 Distribution wheel 6 Brush 10 Tablet container support plate 11 Double cylinder 12 Step 13 Tablet extraction passage 15 Control power connection terminal 30 Tablet container 31 Tablet extractor 32 Drop 33 Tablet delivery mechanism 34 Delivery belt 35 Motor 36 Drive pulley 36'Drive pulley 37 Lid piece 37'Rotary solenoid 38 Alignment guide section 39 Connector 40 Cover

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A tablet storage container arranged in an annular shape on a circular support plate in a tablet packaging machine, the container having an appropriate volume in a plan view fan shape and having an inclined surface toward the bottom inside. is formed, projecting beak-like tablet extraction unit before the lower portion of the container this, the bottom, a feed belt motor drive for feeding the tablets toward the tablet extraction unit, opened to move the distal end of the feed belt a lid member for opening and closing the drop port, and a tablet takeout mechanism composed of the alignment guide unit <br/> aligning the tablets above the belt, and the lock
When the agent container is placed on the circular support plate,
From the terminal that is inserted into the terminal provided on the support board
An electric signal for operating the drive unit of the tablet ejection mechanism
A tablet container comprising a connector for receiving .