JPS5848438B2 - Vacuum closure device for vials - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] The present invention relates to a vacuum closure device for vials and the like.

When using injectable drugs such as vials, when water is injected to form an aqueous solution, gas is generated and internal pressure rises. It is necessary to keep it in a vacuum state.

Conventional vacuum closure devices for vials include a method in which a rubber stopper is attached and removed by clamping it with an opening/closing claw, and a method in which a large number of vials are processed in a batch method in a freeze dryer.

The former uses a mechanical opening/closing claw such as a cam mechanism to hold a rubber stopper in a vacuum box, removes the rubber stopper, vacuums the inside of the bottle, and then attaches the rubber stopper. Since the mechanism is complicated, there is a risk that foreign substances such as oil and dirt may get into the bottle during operation of the mechanism, which is unfavorable from the viewpoint of quality control of chemicals.Also, since the mechanism is a cam mechanism, the clamping force of the rubber stopper may be reduced. There was a drawback that the adjustment device was not easy to use.

In the latter case, a storage chamber equipped with a movable shelf that can be slid freely on a vertical axis is connected to the vacuum exhaust system, and a long rubber stopper is used as a rubber stopper for the vial.After filling the drug, the long rubber stopper is closed. Place the bottles side by side on a movable shelf with the bottom ends lightly inserted into the mouths of the bottles, close the door of the storage chamber and perform vacuum treatment, then operate the hydraulic cylinder to raise the lowest movable shelf to remove the bottom shelf. This is the most commonly used method at present, in which the bottles placed on the shelf are capped, the bottom two shelves are then lifted up through the bottom shelf, and the bottles on each shelf are successively capped.

However, with this device, it takes a considerable amount of time to fill the bottle with chemicals and close the cap, which not only raises the risk of foreign matter getting into the bottle, but also requires continuous flow because it is a batch system. It had drawbacks such as not being compatible with the process and making it difficult to save labor.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned drawbacks and provides a vacuum closure device for vials, etc., which has an extremely low possibility of foreign matter entering the bottle, has a simple device mechanism, and is suitable for continuous processing.

In the present invention, a vial refers to a vial filled with an injectable drug, regardless of the shape and size of the bottle.The present invention will be described below based on drawings of embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a front view showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the main part of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 3, a fixed column 12 is established in the center of the base 11, and a rotating column 15 is provided via a thrust bearing 13 and a rotary bearing 14 fitted to the fixed column 12.

A table 16 integrated with the base 11 is provided, and on the table,
As shown in FIG. 2, there are provided a main wheel 17 that rotates the bottle G together with the rotating column 15, a supply wheel 18 that supplies the bottle to the wheel 17, and a take-out wheel 19 that takes out the bottle from the wheel 17.

Each of the wheels 17.18 and 19 is formed with a pocket 26 into which a bottle is inserted, and arcuate guides 20, 21.22 are provided along the outer periphery of the pocket 26.

The wheels 17, 18, 19 are engaged with each other by gears 23, 24, 25 provided below the table, and rotate in the directions of the arrows in FIG. 2, respectively.

Therefore, the bottles supplied to the supply wheel 18 on the table are fitted one by one into the pockets 26 of the main wheel 17, rotated, and taken out from the take-out wheel 19.

The gear 23 is a reduction mechanism (inside the case 64) by the moke 27.
Driven through.

A cylindrical cam 28 is fixed to the fixed column 12, and a frame 29 that rotates together with the rotating column 15 is provided radially outside the cam in correspondence with the pocket 26 of the main wheel 17.

A first cam follower 32 supported by a first cam groove 30 of a cylindrical cam 28 and a frame 29 is provided, and a second cam follower 33 supported by a second cam groove 31 and the frame 29 is provided.

The shielding chamber 34 is connected to the first cam follower 30 via a spring 37 and supported by a bearing 35 under the frame 29.

A spindle 39 is inserted through the center of the shielding chamber 34, the upper part of the spindle is supported by a bearing 36 on the frame 29, and connected to the second cam follower 31 via a spring 38.

The shielding chamber 34 has a cup shape with only the bottom open.
It has a ring-shaped rubber packing 40 on its lower edge, and this rubber packing 40 comes into contact with the shoulder of the bottle G when the shielding chamber 34 is lowered, and the shielding chamber 34 surrounds the mouth of the bottle and isolates it from the outside.

A suction head 41 is provided at the lower end of the spindle 39.

The suction head 41 has a tapered side surface 42 on its inside, and an air passage 43 is formed from the inside thereof to the upper end of the spindle 39, passing through the spindle 39.

As shown in an enlarged view in FIG. 5, the comb stopper C has a circular collar at the top and a tapered insertion section at the bottom.

The inner diameter of the tapered side surface 42 on the inside of the suction head 41 has an inner diameter larger than the outer diameter of the rubber stopper, and an inner diameter at the back that is smaller than the outer diameter of the rubber stopper. The comb plug is formed so that the side surface of the comb plug comes into close contact with the inner surface of the suction head 41 when contracted.

That is, since the rubber stopper is made of a soft material, when the rubber stopper is sucked, it is held in the shape of being held between the upper circular brim and the tapered side surface 42.

Therefore, the rubber stopper is held not only by vacuum suction but also by the elasticity of the rubber biting into the tapered side surface.

In the sliding valve 44 that controls vacuum suction, a fixed member 45 on the upper side and a rotating member 46 on the lower side are in close contact with each other on the sliding surfaces, and as shown in FIG. Arc-shaped grooves 47, 48 are cut in the rotary member 46, and through holes 49, 50 are bored in the rotary member 46 in correspondence with the pockets 26 of the main wheel 17.

The inner groove 47 of the fixing member 45 communicates with the first evacuation pump, and the outer groove 48 communicates with the second evacuation pump.

The inner holes 49 of the rotating member 46 communicate with the corresponding shielding chambers 34 through flexible pipes 51, and the outer holes 50 communicate with the upper ends of the air passages 43 of the respective spindles 39 through flexible pipes 52. It's communicating.

In FIG. 4, 65, 66 and 67 are grooves and holes for opening the exhaust system to atmospheric pressure after the vacuum suction stroke is completed.

FIG. 13 shows an airtight sealing device for the sliding valve 44.

When there is a movable part such as a sliding valve, it is extremely difficult and important to maintain the exhaust system at a high vacuum by preventing air leakage from the gap between the movable part and the fixed part.

On the other hand, in the embodiment of the present invention, the fixing member 4
5 is provided with a pressurized grease cap 53 and a small hole 69 extending from the grease cap 53 to the sliding surface 68.
The grease cap 53 is filled and press-fitted with vacuum grease to form a layer of vacuum grease on the entire surface of the sliding surface 68, and vacuum grease reservoirs 70 and 71 are provided around the inner and outer peripheries of the sliding surface 68. By forming this, vacuum sealing is performed.

With this configuration, vacuum grease can be constantly replenished, so there is no risk of evaporation and depletion due to vacuum exhaust, and the configuration is simple, with just one pressurized grease cap. There are effects that can be achieved.

FIG. 6 shows the vertical displacement of the shielding chamber 34 controlled by the first cam groove 30 of the cam 28 and the suction controlled by the second cam groove 31 of the cam 28 with respect to the rotational angular position of the rotating column 15. The vertical displacement of the head 41 and the exhaust state of the first and second pipes 51, 52 controlled by the sliding valve 44 are illustrated.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment including the pre-process will be explained with reference to FIGS. 7 to 12.

After filling the vial with powdered medicine, the parts feeder 57 places one rubber stopper C on each bottle mouth (Figure 7).
After the rubber stopper C is lightly temporarily closed (FIG. 8) by the rotating roller 58 to the extent that it does not fall off, the rubber stopper C is fed to the supply wheel 18 of the present invention.

Here, first, the shielding chamber 34 is lowered, and the packing 40 comes into contact with the shoulder of the bottle to press down the bottle, and also isolates the shielding chamber 56 from the outside.

At this time, even when the bottle is not at the center position of the shielding chamber 34, the bottle is automatically corrected to the center position.

Next, at the same time as the rubber stopper suction head 41 descends, the second exhaust system of the sliding valve is opened to suction and clamp the rubber stopper (Fig. 9), and then the suction head 41 rises to open the bottle mouth. (Figure 10).

With the rubber stopper open, the first exhaust system of the sliding valve is opened and the shielding chamber 56 is maintained at a predetermined degree of vacuum for a predetermined period of time, and then the suction head 41 is lowered and the rubber stopper is inserted into the vial mouth. Completely cap the tube (Figure 11).

Next, after both the first and second exhaust systems are opened to atmospheric pressure by the sliding valve, the shielding chamber 34 and the suction head 4 are opened.
1 rises together (FIG. 12), and the stoppered vial is sent to the take-out wheel 19.

In the above embodiment, the lower end of the shielding chamber contacts the shoulder of the vial to isolate the opening of the vial from the outside air. It may also be configured so that the mouth of the bottle is shielded by contacting the periphery of the body of the bottle.

According to the present invention, the upper part of the object to be processed is always covered with a shielded chamber, and the rubber stopper is simply moved up and down by suction head, so there is no risk of foreign matter getting into the bottle during vacuum processing. Moreover, since the powder medicine is supplied to the apparatus of the present invention in a temporarily capped state after being filled with the powder medicine, there is no risk of foreign matter being mixed in during this time.

Further, according to the present invention, since the steps proceed sequentially and continuously, it is suitable for combining with other steps before and after to achieve a fully automated series, which has the effect of saving labor.

Further, according to the present invention, a tapered side surface is provided on the inner surface of the lower end of the suction head, and the inner diameter at the back of the tapered side surface is smaller than the outer diameter of the rubber stopper, so that the elasticity of the rubber is reduced during suction. Therefore, the outer diameter of the rubber stopper is held in a slightly contracted state and bitten into the tapered side surface, and the elastic restoring force contributes to the holding of the rubber stopper.

Generally, in order to sufficiently adsorb the rubber stopper, the pressure in the second exhaust system is usually lower than the pressure in the first exhaust system, that is, in a high vacuum, but according to the present invention, For the reasons mentioned above, after adsorption, the upper side of the rubber stopper (air passage 43
side) and the lower side (shielding chamber 34 side), or even if the pressure difference is 0, the rubber stopper can maintain its suction.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing the main part of FIG. FIG. 4 shows a plan view of the groove structure of the sliding valve 44 of the above embodiment. FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the relationship between the suction head and the rubber stopper of the above embodiment, and FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the cam 28 and the sliding valve 44 of the above embodiment. 7 to 12 are longitudinal cross-sectional views showing the method of capping the vial in the above embodiment over time. FIG. 13 is a sectional view showing an airtight sealing device for the sliding valve 44 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 16...table, 34...shielded room,
39...Spindle, 40...Rubber packing, 41...Suction head, 42...
- Tapered side surface, 43... air passage.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A table on which a vial container is placed; a device for temporarily plugging the mouth of the container on the table with a soft rubber stopper having a circular collar at the top and an insertion section at the bottom; a shielding chamber formed on a cup and displacing in the vertical direction and having an opening at the bottom that is closed by a spindle; a spindle passing through the center of the shielding chamber and displacing in the downward direction; and the shielding at the lower end of the spindle. The recess is provided in the room and has a thickness approximately equal to the circular brim of the rubber stopper, and the inner diameter of the entrance on the inner surface of the recess is larger than the outer diameter of the brim of the rubber stopper, and the inner diameter of the inlet is larger than the outer diameter of the brim of the rubber stopper. a tapered rubber plug suction head having an inner diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the collar portion; and a first valve device that communicates the bottom of the recess of the rubber plug suction head with a vacuum pump via a first valve device. The vacuum evacuation system and the above shielding chamber are
a second vacuum evacuation system communicating with the vacuum pump via a valve device, the rubber stopper suction head communicating with the first vacuum evacuation system to suction and hold the rubber stopper, and a lower opening. When the pressures of the first evacuation system and the second evacuation system become almost the same in a state where the shielded chamber closed by the container is communicated with the second evacuation system, - A vacuum closure device for a vial bottle, wherein the rubber stopper is held by the outer peripheral surface of the circular collar of the rubber stopper pressing against the inner surface of the recess of the rubber stopper suction head.