US3676958A - Vibratory cleaner - Google Patents

Vibratory cleaner Download PDF

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Publication number
US3676958A
US3676958A US88052A US3676958DA US3676958A US 3676958 A US3676958 A US 3676958A US 88052 A US88052 A US 88052A US 3676958D A US3676958D A US 3676958DA US 3676958 A US3676958 A US 3676958A
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United States
Prior art keywords
ramp
capsules
cleaning agent
capsule
bowl
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Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Lifetime
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US88052A
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English (en)
Inventor
Carl C Garland
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Parke Davis and Co LLC
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Parke Davis and Co LLC
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Publication date
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    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B24—GRINDING; POLISHING
    • B24B—MACHINES, DEVICES, OR PROCESSES FOR GRINDING OR POLISHING; DRESSING OR CONDITIONING OF ABRADING SURFACES; FEEDING OF GRINDING, POLISHING, OR LAPPING AGENTS
    • B24B31/00—Machines or devices designed for polishing or abrading surfaces on work by means of tumbling apparatus or other apparatus in which the work and/or the abrasive material is loose; Accessories therefor
    • B24B31/06—Machines or devices designed for polishing or abrading surfaces on work by means of tumbling apparatus or other apparatus in which the work and/or the abrasive material is loose; Accessories therefor involving oscillating or vibrating containers

Definitions

  • ABSTRACT Apparatus and means are provided for cleaning pharmaceutical capsules by vibration in mixing contact with granular cleaning agent while moving the capsules away from the cleaning zone free of cleaning agent.
  • feeder bowl means or mechanical vibrators for conveying small objects and for cleaning the same by batchwise addition and removal of cleaning agent.
  • the prior an apparatus is, however, inconvenient to operate and in many cases inefficient.
  • FIG. 1 is a top view of a preferred cleaning apparatus according to the invention
  • FIGS. 2 and 3 are views of the apparatus taken on lines 2-3 and 3-3 of FIG. 1;
  • FIG. 4 is an illustration of the changing profile of the layer or bed of cleaning agent along the path taken during the operation of the apparatus according to the invention
  • FIG. 5 is a view in perspective of the apparatus.
  • FIG. 6 is a side view of the means for controlling the supply of cleaning agent.
  • the vibrator bowl 10 illustrated has a generally flat circular floor 11 around the central portion of which is a housing 12. Rising from the floor 11 around the edge of the housing 12 is a ramp 13 leading upward to the top of the bowl for delivery of capsules to the outside of the bowl.
  • a Vibron feeder Model No. PBD l 8A, Burger & Associates, Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.A.
  • the apparatus is arranged for supplying the housing with granular or particulate cleaning agent 34 from a suitable supply hopper 30 by way of a trap 31 mounted on the top edge of the housing 12.
  • the hopper having a capacity of 30 pounds includes means for shaking the hopper in the form of an air-driven vibrator (Vibrolator, Model UCV, size l9, Martin Engineering Co., Neponset, Illinois, USA.) center mounted on the hopper sidewall.
  • an air-driven vibrator Vibrolator, Model UCV, size l9, Martin Engineering Co., Neponset, Illinois, USA.
  • Cleaning agent contained in the supply hopper 30 is loaded by gravity through a circular throat 30a downward to an opening formed in a telescopically fitting delivery sleeve 30b which is in direct contact with a bed of cleaning agent 34 filling a lower portion of the trap 31 to a height within the trap defined by the threshold 32.
  • the position of the delivery sleeve 30b in the throat 30a, as illustrated in FIG. 6, is adjustable in a preferred form by clamp means 30c for variation of clearance above the threshold 32.
  • the flow can be va ried within wide limits and in a typical case, for example, with a work flow of 600 capsules per minute, the flow rate conveniently is about 8-10 pounds per hour.
  • Table salt is commonly used as a cleaning agent and other mate rials may also be used such as stearates, talc, silicones, cornstarch and the like.
  • the feeder bowl itself and the associated apparatus are preferably fabricated with stainless steel, the construction permitting periodic dismantling and washing.
  • the floor area within the housing 12 is generally circular being partly divided by the housing baffle 40 which is adjacent an exit opening or doorway 14, as illustrated in FIG. 2.
  • the floor 11 extends through the doorway 14 to a passageway leading counter-clockwise around the outside of the housing wall.
  • a barrier 41 preferably in the form of a rod or strip at floor level disposed across the path of transit through the passageway.
  • the barrier 41 comprises two or more strips spaced apart to increase the extent of their baffie effect.
  • the floor continues to a point beyond the baffle 41 at which point it merges with the ramp 13.
  • the ramp serves gradually to convey the capsules both up and away from the bowl floor 11 and from the area of the baffle.
  • the ramp continues, in a substantially constant slope, to a point where the passageway is uncovered or open at the top.
  • a second baffle 41a is located in combination with which retaining bars 42 are provided for controlling conveyed material held back by the baffle 41a.
  • the conveying surface of the ramp instead of being imperforate, is purposely apertured throughout the remainder of the ramp with an evenly spaced distribution of holes 13a of size sufficient for the surface to support capsules but larger than the grains or particles of cleaning agent so that the latter particles reaching this portion of the ramp will begin to be sifted through the conveying surface.
  • the holes are 0.156 inch in diameter first distributed apart on 5 inch centers for a short distance to a point preceding the front of baffle 41 (on the floor below) and then distributed on 3/16 inch centers (about 63 percent average void in the surface) to the end of the ramp.
  • the apparatus of the invention includes discharge means comprising a discharge reservoir 35, adjustably and removably mounted on the outer wall of the bowl.
  • the reservoir in use is located flush upon the wall in a position enclosing a discharge opening 36 in the wall at the level of the ramp 13.
  • the reservoir is self-unloading by means of a side-mounted discharge tube 37.
  • the capsules to be processed and cleaned are dropped or placed into the housing in any suitable way either singly or in batches.
  • the loading of the bowl can take place immediately after the capsules are filled as part of the same production operation.
  • the supply hopper 30 is filled with cleaning agent in sufficient quantity to maintain cleaning for an indefinite period.
  • the flow is adjusted for steady operation at a constant rate sufficient to establish and maintain the presence of cleaning agent on the floor l l and at the baffles 41 and 41a.
  • the vibrator means is set in motion to cause the capsules and the cleaning agent to be agitated within the housing so that complete contact of the capsules and cleaning agent is maintained.
  • the capsules and cleaning agent are caused to flow in circular fashion, as illustrated in FIG. 1, in the direction of the dotted arrows and to contact baffle 40 which serves to guide the flow out of the housing by way of the opening 14 (FIG. 2).
  • the capsules and cleaning agent then move, still in counterclockwise direction, along the outer passage to the area of the bafiles 41.
  • the capsules and cleaning agent in this area tend to be held back by the baffles and so are built up in a relatively thick bed through which the capsules are caused to be moved so that they are subjected to cleansing, polishing and scrubbing action on all sides.
  • the mentioned buildup is caused not only by the continuous input through the doorway 14 but also by the constant sifting of cleaning agent from above through the overhead portion of the ramp.
  • the cleaning agent serves to pick up any powder from the capsule exterior and to improve the appearance of the capsule surface.
  • This also has the advantage of providing means not only for augmenting the supply of cleaning agent to the first-mentioned cleaning bed located below the ramp on the underlying floor but also for returning cleaning agent to the floor at a strategic point so that it can eventually be discharged.
  • various configurations and arrangements of one or more cleaning beds can be employed. In general, it is preferred to have at least two such beds in series. In a case where the passageway is open at the top so that the bed is exposed, as illustrated in FIG. 1, horizontal retaining rods or bars 42 or other retaining means should be used to keep capsules from escaping at the top.
  • the cleaning agent passing onto the perforated portion of the ramp is screened out or sifted, as indicated, leaving the processed capsules on the ramp where they move in a steady stream to the end of the ramp for delivery at the exit 43 into a suitable receiver.
  • the cleaning agent meanwhile falls to the floor where it contacts capsules entering the housing opening 14 and merges with the capsules into the bed established by the floor baffles 41.
  • the sifted cleaning material is launched on a course which repeats its previous path around the outer passageway of the bowl. However, with each cycle the material tends to move closer and closer to the outer wall.
  • the cleaning agent on continued exposure picks up foreign material, powder, moisture, etc., and becomes spent with use, it is important for purposes of the invention to selectively recycle fresh and partly used cleaning agent and to remove the same prior to overexposure.
  • the same is accomplished by means of the discharge opening 36 and reservoir 35 located along the circumference of the bowl. Whereas the opening 36 is too small to accommodate entry by a capsule moving along the circumference, it does permit the granular cleaning agent to pass and to be collected in the reservoir for discharge from the exit tube 37.
  • the flow capacity through opening 36 and tube 37 is in excess of operating requirements and the actual rate of flow is selected by adjusting the extent of blockage by the reservoir threshold 35a at the discharge opening.
  • a capsule cleaner comprising a vibratory feeder bowl including a floor and a circular ramp leading from the floor upward around the bowl edges for conveying capsules and particulate capsule cleaning agent on a path following the ramp to a point of exit at an upper edge of the bowl, control means for supplying the cleaning agent to a distribution point in the bowl for mixing with capsules in the bowl, the ramp comprising an extensive transversely flat conveying surface with spaced apertures therein of size sufficient to support the capsules but larger than the cleaning agent whereby reusable cleaning agent conveyed with capsules from the floor onto the ramp is sifted through the conveying surface and returned for further mixing with capsules in the bowl,
  • a capsule cleaner according to claim 1 including baffle means adapted to cause the cleaning agent conveyed with capsules to build up locally in the form of a bed sufiiciently large to cover a plurality of capsules in which bed capsules are subjected to a scrubbing action.
  • a capsule cleaner according to claim 6 wherein the ramp surface at a predetermined distance above the barrier strip is apertured whereby the length and height of the bed built up by the barrier strip is limited.
  • a capsule cleaner according to claim 7 including means for retaining capsules within the bed built up behind the baffle means.

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Detergent Compositions (AREA)
  • Cleaning By Liquid Or Steam (AREA)
  • Cleaning In General (AREA)
  • Washing And Drying Of Tableware (AREA)
US88052A 1970-11-09 1970-11-09 Vibratory cleaner Expired - Lifetime US3676958A (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US8805270A 1970-11-09 1970-11-09

Publications (1)

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US3676958A true US3676958A (en) 1972-07-18

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Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US88052A Expired - Lifetime US3676958A (en) 1970-11-09 1970-11-09 Vibratory cleaner

Country Status (4)

Country Link
US (1) US3676958A (it)
JP (1) JPS5422633Y2 (it)
DE (1) DE2152778C3 (it)
IT (1) IT942227B (it)

Cited By (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3948002A (en) * 1974-07-11 1976-04-06 Kabushiki Kaisha Shikishima Tipton Vibratory finishing apparatus
US4201017A (en) * 1976-09-16 1980-05-06 William Boulton Limited Methods and apparatus for the treatment of products
US4803811A (en) * 1985-07-09 1989-02-14 Siemens Aktiengesellschaft Lapping device for surface enhancement of bulk material
US20070074405A1 (en) * 2004-07-06 2007-04-05 Nottingham John R Electric knife adapted for safely carving pumpkins and other fruits and vegetables
US20160288420A1 (en) * 2015-04-02 2016-10-06 Xerox Corporation Ultrasonic removal methods of three-dimensionally printed parts
EP1399105B2 (de) † 2001-06-13 2018-09-05 Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co.KG Verfahren zur reinigung von hartgelatinekapseln
CN109590890A (zh) * 2018-11-29 2019-04-09 绍兴文理学院 一种便于移动的胶囊抛光机

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN111702561B (zh) * 2020-06-09 2021-09-07 石家庄新世纪胶囊有限公司 一种空心胶囊抛光工艺及胶囊抛光装置

Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3161993A (en) * 1963-11-12 1964-12-22 Roto Finish Co Finishing apparatus and method
US3187473A (en) * 1959-11-16 1965-06-08 Prab Conveyors Method of surface finishing articles
US3407542A (en) * 1964-06-29 1968-10-29 Southwestern Eng Co Automatic unloader for finishing mills
US3423884A (en) * 1966-01-12 1969-01-28 Roto Finish Co Finishing apparatus having a plurality of compartments
US3553900A (en) * 1965-02-23 1971-01-12 Sweco Inc Vibratory finishing apparatus and method

Patent Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3187473A (en) * 1959-11-16 1965-06-08 Prab Conveyors Method of surface finishing articles
US3161993A (en) * 1963-11-12 1964-12-22 Roto Finish Co Finishing apparatus and method
US3407542A (en) * 1964-06-29 1968-10-29 Southwestern Eng Co Automatic unloader for finishing mills
US3553900A (en) * 1965-02-23 1971-01-12 Sweco Inc Vibratory finishing apparatus and method
US3423884A (en) * 1966-01-12 1969-01-28 Roto Finish Co Finishing apparatus having a plurality of compartments

Cited By (9)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3948002A (en) * 1974-07-11 1976-04-06 Kabushiki Kaisha Shikishima Tipton Vibratory finishing apparatus
US4201017A (en) * 1976-09-16 1980-05-06 William Boulton Limited Methods and apparatus for the treatment of products
US4803811A (en) * 1985-07-09 1989-02-14 Siemens Aktiengesellschaft Lapping device for surface enhancement of bulk material
EP1399105B2 (de) † 2001-06-13 2018-09-05 Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co.KG Verfahren zur reinigung von hartgelatinekapseln
US20070074405A1 (en) * 2004-07-06 2007-04-05 Nottingham John R Electric knife adapted for safely carving pumpkins and other fruits and vegetables
US20160288420A1 (en) * 2015-04-02 2016-10-06 Xerox Corporation Ultrasonic removal methods of three-dimensionally printed parts
US10906244B2 (en) * 2015-04-02 2021-02-02 Xerox Corporation Ultrasonic removal methods of three-dimensionally printed parts
CN109590890A (zh) * 2018-11-29 2019-04-09 绍兴文理学院 一种便于移动的胶囊抛光机
CN109590890B (zh) * 2018-11-29 2020-10-02 绍兴文理学院 一种便于移动的胶囊抛光机

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
JPS5277490U (it) 1977-06-09
DE2152778B2 (de) 1974-04-25
IT942227B (it) 1973-03-20
JPS5422633Y2 (it) 1979-08-06
DE2152778A1 (de) 1972-05-10
DE2152778C3 (de) 1974-11-21

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