JPH10324416A - Device for changing direction of ampoule - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the occurrence of clogging of ampoules and breakdown thereof at a neck part thereof due to the carrying direction of the ampoules with a direction changing device, which has the simple structure, in delivering the ampoules from a carrying conveyor to other carrying conveyor in an am poule storing and supplying device. SOLUTION: An ampoule direction changing device is provided with a rotary roller 100 so as to cross the carrying direction with the predetermined space D between a downstream end of an upstream carrying conveyor 3 at a crossing position of an upstream conveyor and a downstream conveyor crossing each other, and the peripheral surface of the roller is formed with a spiral stage difference 102a as a part for promoting change of the direction of the ampoules. The direction of the ampoules is changed by the mutual work of the rotation of the part for promoting change of the direction of the ampoule provided in the rotary roller 100 and the feeding of the upstream carrying conveyor, and the ampoules are fallen through the space D so as to be smoothly and efficiently delivered to the downstream carrying conveyor 38.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ampoule direction changing device for smoothly transferring ampules on an ampule transfer line such as an ampule storage and supply device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An ampule storage and supply device can store as many types and large quantities of ampules (including vials) as possible, and if specified, can smoothly transport the ampules as quickly as possible and discharge them from a discharge section to a patient. Various proposals have been made to improve the internal capacity so that the storage capacity of the storage unit is increased and payment can be performed quickly. An example is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-229660.

The above-described ampoule storage and supply device stores a large number of ampules in a space as small as possible, and stores the ampules in a shelf that can be pulled out in the front-rear direction so that the ampules can be mechanically and efficiently removed from the storage section. When the ampules are dropped one by one, the ampules are transported on the conveyor that transports the ampules in the front and rear direction under the shelves in each row, and the ampules collected for each shelf in each row are collected at one place. The sheet is discharged from the discharge port by a transfer conveyor orthogonal to the transfer conveyor.

[0004]

[0005] Between the above-mentioned conveyors that are orthogonal to each other, the ampoule that has been sent is broken from the neck or jammed at the intersection thereof.
These problems are dealt with by separating the upstream and downstream conveyors sufficiently in the vertical direction and providing a buffer member between them to prevent cracking.

However, as described above, if the conveyors are too far apart from each other vertically, or if a buffer member is provided, it takes time to transfer the ampules to the downstream conveyor, and if the conveyors are provided close to each other, the ampoule will be placed between them. Also occurs, so that the above measures alone are not sufficient to efficiently and smoothly transport the ampoule to the discharge port.

The present invention is based on the above-mentioned problem in the conventional ampoule conveyor, and converts an ampoule in a predetermined direction between orthogonal conveyors so that the ampoule can be efficiently and smoothly intersected at the intersection of the conveyors. It is an object of the present invention to provide an ampoule direction changing device which enables delivery of an ampoule.

[0007]

According to the present invention, as a means for solving the above-mentioned problems, the present invention is directed to a case where an upstream and a downstream conveyors are provided at the intersection of upstream and downstream conveyors. A rotating roller is provided perpendicular to this conveyor with a predetermined gap from the side end, and a direction change promotion shape portion for promoting the change of the ampoule direction is formed on the peripheral surface of the rotating roller, and a driving unit connected to the rotating roller is provided. The ampoule direction changing device is configured to change the direction of the ampoule with respect to the conveyance direction by the interaction between the rotation of the rotating direction change promotion shape portion and the feed of the upstream conveyance conveyor.

According to the ampoule direction changing apparatus having such a configuration, the ampoule on the upstream conveyor is changed in direction and delivered to the downstream conveyor. Even if the direction of the ampoule that has fallen on the upstream conveyor is the same as the conveying direction, when the ampoule comes into contact with the rotating roller, the direction change promotion shape portion on the circumference of the rotating roller rotates to change the direction of the ampoule. Incline.

When the direction of the ampule is inclined, the ampule is further inclined by the interaction of the feeding by the upstream conveyor, and eventually becomes substantially parallel to the rotating roller.
For this reason, the ampoule enters into a predetermined gap between the rotating roller and the downstream end of the upstream conveyor, and falls, whereby the ampule is smoothly and efficiently transferred to the downstream conveyor.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIGS. 1 and 2 show an ampoule direction changing device A of this embodiment. Ampoule turning device A
Is for smoothly transferring the ampule a from one side of the conveyor such as a belt conveyor intersecting at right angles to the other side. In the illustrated example, the other belt conveyor 38 is provided below the one belt conveyor 37 in a direction perpendicular to the other.

At the downstream end in the feed direction of the belt conveyor 37, an ampoule direction changing device A having a rotating roller 100 is provided adjacently. The rotating roller 100 of the conversion device A is provided between the end of the belt conveyor 37 and the rotating roller 100.
Are provided so as to form a predetermined gap D. The gap D is set to an appropriate value that has a margin slightly larger than the size of the ampule or vial having the largest diameter that can be conveyed. Note that this gap D is not shown in the drawing, but the conversion device A
May be configured so as to be entirely movable in the feed direction of the belt conveyor 37, and the dimensions may be adjusted according to the diameter of the ampule or vial.

The rotating roller 100 has a cylindrical shape whose length is substantially the same as the width of the belt conveyor 37, and has a diameter which is several times the expected maximum ampule diameter. The inside of the roller may be hollow or solid, and a spiral step 102a is provided on the outer periphery. Rotary shafts provided at both ends of this roller are rotatably supported via bearings, and the other pulley 1 is driven by a round belt 103 stretched between a pair of pulleys 104 connected to one side of the rotary shaft.
The roller is rotated in the direction of the arrow in FIG.

FIG. 3A is a perspective view of a roller in which a spiral step 102a is formed on the outer periphery of the rotating roller 100 as a direction change promoting shape portion for promoting the direction change of the ampule. FIG. (B) and (c) show modifications in which a spiral ridge 102b and a spiral groove 102c are provided instead of the spiral step 102a, respectively. Instead of the step 102a, the rotating roller 100 may be provided with either the ridge 102b or the groove 102c. However, an example having a spiral step will be described below.

As shown in the drawing, a guide plate 105 is provided for the rotary roller 100 so as to extend obliquely upward from the back in the feed direction of the belt conveyor 37. The guide plate 105 is for preventing the ampoule a, which has passed over the rotating roller 100, from being caught between the outer plate and the ampoule a. The guide plate 105 is provided over the same width as the width of the rotating roller 100. The upper end extends to near the middle of the gap D.

At appropriate positions near the downstream end of the belt conveyor 37, a plurality of sets of direction change assisting members 106 are attached at appropriate intervals in the width direction of the belt conveyor 37. The appropriate interval is, for example, about 2 to 3 times the diameter of the expected maximum diameter ampule a. Auxiliary member 10
Reference numeral 6 denotes an appropriate height on the belt conveyor 37 so as not to come into contact with the surface of the conveyor, the upper base end of which is rotatably provided in the conveyor feeding direction, and the tip of which is an ampoule a.
A small spring (not shown) is incorporated to change the direction of the ampule a while swinging when hitting, and then return to the vertical state.

The ampoule direction changing device having the above-described structure changes the direction of the ampoule as follows. Belt conveyor 37
When the ampoule a is conveyed by the belt conveyor 37 on the upstream side, the direction of the ampoule a is changed by the direction changing auxiliary member 106 provided near the downstream end. In the ampoule storage / supply device provided with the ampoule direction changing device of this embodiment, which will be described later, the ampoule a is dispensed in the longitudinal direction of the ampoule a in a direction perpendicular to the feeding direction of the belt conveyor 37.

However, even if the ampoule a is dispensed in such a direction, when the ampoule a falls on the belt conveyor, the longitudinal direction of the ampoule may be oriented in the feeding direction of the belt conveyor due to the movement of the belt conveyor. In such a case, the tip of the ampoule a or the constricted shoulder is connected to the direction changing assisting member 10.
6 and its direction changes slightly obliquely to the feed direction. When the ampule a contacts the rotating roller 100 in this state, the direction is further changed at the step 102a of the rotating roller because the rotating roller 100 is rotating,
The ampoule a is inclined laterally and interacts with the feed of the belt conveyor 37 to be completely lateral. For this reason, the ampoule a falls from the gap D, and the lower belt conveyor 38
Will be transferred to

Since the direction change assisting members 106 are provided at a pitch several times larger than the diameter of the ampoule, the longitudinal direction of the ampule is completely oriented in the feeding direction and the drop position is between the direction changing assisting members 106. The vehicle may pass without touching the direction change assisting member 106 at all, but in this case, the direction may be changed only by the rotating roller 100. When the ampoule a is sent at right angles to the feed direction, the direction may be left as it is, and
6 only tilts and does not change direction.

The ampoule turning device of the above embodiment is
For example, it is provided in an ampoule storage and supply device shown in FIG. Although this supply device itself is not an object of the present invention,
In order to easily understand how to use the ampoule direction changing device of the above embodiment, a brief description will be given below.

As shown in FIG. 4 and FIG.
It is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped box shape, and a hollow housing portion 3 for housing the drawer unit 2 is provided inside the upper portion thereof. The front surface of the unit housing portion 3 is divided into a plurality of openings 5 by a partition plate 4, and the drawer units 2 are slidably attached to the respective openings 5. The drawer unit 2 includes a front plate 6 that covers the opening 5 and a front plate 6 that covers the opening 5.
And a hollow holding frame 7 extending rearward from the front.

The upper and lower surfaces of the holding frame 7 come into contact with guide rollers 8 and 9 attached to the apparatus main body 1, and the guide unit 8 guides the drawer unit 2 out of the opening 5 in the front-rear direction. It has become. Cassette support plates 10 and 11 projecting in the left-right direction are attached to upper portions of both sides of the holding frame 7. A plurality of grooves 12 are formed on the lower surface of each of the cassette support plates 10 and 11 along the sliding direction of the drawer unit, and a container storage cassette 13 is attached to each of the grooves 12.

Each of the container storage cassettes 13 includes a storage case 14 for storing the ampules a in a vertically aligned state,
And a cap 15 fitted to the upper end of the case 14.
To be slidably fitted to. Further, the storage case 14 has a container outlet 16 at the lower end, and is inserted above the outlet 16 so that the storage case 14 has a fulcrum shaft as a fulcrum.
Is divided into two halves.

A cam roller 21 for dispensing containers is attached to a fulcrum shaft inside the storage case 14, and a drive motor (not shown) is provided inside the holding frame 7 of the drawer unit 2 in accordance with the position of the fulcrum shaft. ) Is installed. In the above structure, the cam roller 21 and the driving motor constitute a dispensing unit, and when the cam roller 21 is rotated in a certain direction by the driving motor, the ampules a stored in the cassette 13 are dropped from the dispensing port 16 in order.

The cam roller 21 has a part of the peripheral surface formed in a concave surface, and a part of the peripheral surface excluding the concave surface is formed in a cylindrical surface, and the lowermost ampoule a is formed between the concave surface and the spacer.
Is passed downward, and the cylindrical surface stops the drop of the next ampule a during the passage, so that one ampule a is surely dispensed for each rotation of the cam roller 21.

The ampoule dispensed by the dispensing means is conveyed by the conveying means 36 to the discharge port. The transfer means 36 mainly includes a transfer conveyor 37 and a transfer conveyor 38 provided orthogonal to the transfer conveyor 37.

In the transfer means 36, when the ampules a are dispensed from the cassettes 13, they are transferred by a belt conveyor 37 in the front-rear direction to a belt conveyor 38 in the left-right direction. The ampule a is transported to the receiving box 40 attached to the container. This receiving box 40
Is provided with a buffer member (not shown) such as a sponge for cushioning the impact when the ampule a falls.

As shown in FIG. 6, a detector 41 for detecting the drop of the ampule a such as a photoelectric sensor or a proximity switch is provided below the payout port 16 of each cassette 13. The falling of the chemical solution container is detected by the signal, and based on the detection, each of the belt conveyors 37 and 38 is detected.
Is controlled. Above the receiving box 40, there is provided a printing device 42 for dumping the data sheet B into the receiving box 40.

In the above-mentioned example, an injection liquid container such as an ampoule or a vial is shown as the ampule a. However, a container having another shape can be similarly stored.

When the ampule a is stored in each cassette 13 in the ampoule storing / supplying device having the above-described configuration, the cassette 13 is attached to the drawer unit 2 and the drawer unit 2 is pushed into the inside of the apparatus main body 1. In addition, the control device stores in advance the type (chemical liquid name) of the ampule a stored in each cassette 13 in association with each cassette 13 or each motor. In this state, when the user operates the keys on the operation panel to specify the chemical solution and the quantity, the motor of the cassette 13 for storing the container of the designated chemical solution is operated, and the ampoule a is dispensed by the designated quantity. When the ampule a is dispensed from the cassette 13 in this way, the belt conveyors 37 and 38 of the conveying means 36 are operated by the signal of the detector 41, and the ampule a is conveyed to the receiving box 40. Thereafter, by operating the operation panel in order according to the contents of the injection note, required ampules a can be sequentially dispensed from the cassette 13 and collected in the receiving box 40.

When the ampule a is collected in the receiving box 40, a data sheet B describing the patient name and the like corresponding to the collected container is dumped from the printing apparatus 42 onto the receiving box 40. For this reason, depending on the contents described in the data sheet B, the transfer destination of the ampoule a to the nurse center or the treatment room,
The patient name, dosage, etc. can be confirmed.

[0031]

As described above in detail, the ampoule direction changing device of the present invention has a predetermined gap between the upstream conveyor and the upstream conveyor at the intersection of the upstream conveyor and the downstream conveyor. Since the ampule direction change promotion shape portion is formed on the peripheral surface of the rotating roller, the direction of the ampoule sent by the upstream conveyor is changed to the rotation of the ampule direction change promotion shape portion of the rotation roller and the upstream side. It can be converted by the interaction of the feeding of the conveyor and can be dropped from the predetermined gap, so that the ampoule can be efficiently and smoothly transported without the ampule being clogged at the intersection of the conveyor or breaking from the neck. Is obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of an ampoule turning device according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the above.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a rotating roller.

FIG. 4 is a front view of an ampule storage and supply device.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the above.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional side view of the above.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged sectional view of the vicinity of a receiving box.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Apparatus main body 2 Pull-out unit 37 Conveyor 38 Conveyor 100 Rotary roller 102a Step 105 Guide plate 106 Direction change assisting member a Ampule A Ampule direction change device

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A rotating roller orthogonal to the upstream conveyor and a downstream end of the upstream conveyor at a crossing position of the upstream and downstream conveyors provided to intersect with each other for conveying the ampoule. A rotation-promoting shape portion for promoting the change of the direction of the ampule is formed on the peripheral surface of the rotating roller, and the rotation of the direction-changing promoting shape portion which is rotated by the driving portion connected to the rotating roller and the feed of the upstream side conveyor are provided. An ampoule direction changing device that changes the direction of the ampoule with respect to the transport direction by the interaction of. 2. The ampoule direction changing device according to claim 1, wherein the direction change promoting shape portion is a spiral step portion inclined in the rotation direction of the rotating roller. 3. The ampoule direction changing device according to claim 1, wherein a guide plate for preventing the ampule from biting is provided above the rotating roller. 4. The ampoule turning device according to claim 1, further comprising an ampoule turning assist member provided near the downstream end of the upstream conveyor.