Medicine feeding device

Abstract

To feed medicines with different shapes and sizes one by one in a reliable manner.SOLUTION: A medicine feeding device includes: a first rotary body 23; an annular second rotary body 35; a medicine discharge port 73; a medicine guide part 65 for guiding a medicine on the second rotary body 35 to the medicine discharge port 73; a width regulation body 52 for regulating a transfer width of the medicine between the inner peripheral part of the second rotary body 35 and the medicine; and a height regulation body 41 for regulating a transfer height of the medicine between the top face of the second rotary body 35 and the medicine. The height regulation body 41 includes: a height regulation member 42 arranged on the second rotary body 35; an installation member 44 arranged straddling the second rotary body 35 from over the second rotary body 35 to the outside of it; and an actuation receiving member 59 for adjusting the regulation height of the medicine by the height regulation member 42.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a medicine supplying device capable of supplying medicines, such as tablets and capsules, having different shapes and sizes, one by one. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes a drug counting device that counts a large number of drugs. This drug counting device has a central disk member rotated by a first driving means and a circular ring member rotated by a second driving means. The disk member and the circular ring member are arranged on the same rotation axis so that they are planar, and are rotated in opposite directions by the driving means. In addition, a drug guide portion is provided on the outer periphery of the circular ring member so as to extend outward.

[0003] However, in this medicine counting device, many medicines that are not supplied to the medicine guide are transferred in the opposite direction between the disk member and the ring member, so that the medicines that move from the disk member to the ring member collide with the medicines that have already moved onto the ring member, and the medicines that move from the ring member to the disk member collide with the medicines on the disk member.

[0004] On the other hand, Patent Document 2 describes a supplying device that supplies small items in an aligned manner. This supplying device has a disk-shaped first rotating body rotated by a first driving means and an annular second rotating body rotated by a second driving means. The first rotating body has a first rotating shaft arranged to be inclined at a predetermined angle, and the second rotating shaft of the second rotating body arranged to extend vertically. In addition, the first rotating body is configured such that a portion located at the upper end due to the inclination is located at the same height as the inner peripheral part of the second rotating body. Furthermore, a frame wall that surrounds the outer peripheral part of the first rotating body is integrally provided on the inner peripheral part of the second rotating body.

[0005] In the supply device of Patent Document 2, the supply material moves from the upper end to the second rotor by the rotation of the first rotor. Then, a regulating body provided on the second rotor allows only the supply material in a specified position to pass downstream, and the supply material in a different position is dropped from the inner periphery of the second rotor onto the first rotor. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the supplied materials from colliding with each other.

[0006] However, when this supply device is used to supply medicine, two or more supplies may pass through the regulating body at the same time and be supplied to the guide section to the outlet in two radial rows. As a result, there is a problem of clogging at the entrance of the guide section. In addition, when the medicine is a tablet having a non-circular shape in a plan view or a capsule in which a drug is contained in a capsule, even if the medicine is supplied one by one, there is a problem of clogging at the entrance of the guide section or in the guide section depending on the moving posture. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] Republic of China New Patent Announcement No. M308903 [Patent Document 2] Special Publication No. 1-51403 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] An object of the present invention is to provide a medicine supplying device capable of appropriately supplying medicines of different shapes and sizes. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The present invention provides a drug delivery device comprising a first rotor that rotates about a first rotation axis, a second rotor that is annular and rotates about a second rotation axis that extends in a direction different from the first rotation axis, and a drug discharge port provided on the radial outside of the second rotor, wherein a drug supplied to the first rotor is transferred to a moving part of the second rotor by the rotation of the first rotor, and the transferred drug is transported to the drug discharge port by the rotation of the second rotor. The drug delivery device further comprises a drug guiding part that is provided between the moving part of the second rotor and the drug discharge port and guides the drug on the second rotor to the drug discharge port, a width regulating body that is provided between the moving part of the second rotor and the drug guiding part and is positioned radially outside the second rotor relative to an inner peripheral part of the second rotor, and adjustably regulates a drug transport width between the inner peripheral part of the second rotor, and a drug guide part that is provided between the moving part of the second rotor and the drug guiding part and regulates a drug transport width between the moving part of the second rotor and an upper surface of the second rotor. and a height regulating body that regulates the transport height of the drug, wherein the drug guide section has an inner guide extending tangentially from the inner circumference of the second rotating body to the drug discharge outlet, and an outer guide arranged radially outside the second rotating body relative to the inner guide, the outer guide being arranged parallel to the inner guide and configured to be movable in a direction perpendicular to the tangential direction, and the distance from the inner guide to the inner guide being adjustable, and the height regulating body comprises a height regulating member arranged on the second rotating body, a mounting member connected to the height regulating member and arranged spanning from above the second rotating body to the outside of the second rotating body when viewed from the direction in which the first rotating shaft extends, and an actuation receiving member connected to a part of the mounting member located on the outside of the second rotating body, receiving power for moving the height regulating member up and down via the mounting member, and adjusting the regulated height of the drug by the height regulating member. Effect of the Invention

[0010] The medicine supply device of the present invention can appropriately supply medicines of different shapes and sizes. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1]1 is a perspective view showing a medicine counting device using the medicine supply device of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional perspective view of a main part of FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing each rotating body and each regulating body. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a configuration of the medicine supply device. [Diagram 5] 2 is a perspective view of the drug supply device as viewed from a different direction; FIG. [Figure 6A] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of the medicine supply device. [Figure 6B] 11 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the positions of the members of the medicine supplying device are adjusted. FIG. [Figure 7A] FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a configuration of the medicine supply device. [Figure 7B] 13 is a plan view showing a state in which the position of the width restricting body is adjusted. FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a switching valve unit of the medicine counting device. [Figure 9] 1A and 1B show a schematic configuration of a drug detection means for detecting a supplied drug, where (A) is a conceptual diagram and (B) is a perspective view. [Figure 10A] FIG. 4 is a front view showing a state in which medicine is dispensed into a medicine container. [Figure 10B] FIG. 11 is a front view showing the state after dispensing has been completed. [Figure 10C] FIG. 4 is a front view showing a state in which the toner is collected into a collection container. [Figure 11] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a medicine counting device. [Figure 12] 1 shows the state in which tablets, which are medicines, are supplied, with (A) being a plan view and (B) being a cross-sectional view. [Figure 13] 1 shows the state in which capsules, which are medicines, are supplied, with (A) being a plan view and (B) being a cross-sectional view. [Figure 14A] FIG. 13 is a plan view showing a modified example of the medicine supply device. [Figure 14B] FIG. 11 is a plan view showing another modified example of the medicine supplying device. [Figure 15]13A and 13B show modified examples in which ribs are provided on the second rotating body, where (A) is a cross-sectional view of the second rotating body having the rib of the first modified example, (B) is a partial cross-sectional view of the second rotating body having the rib of the second modified example, and (C) is a partial cross-sectional view of the second rotating body having the rib of the third modified example. [Figure 16] 13A and 13B are side views showing a modified example in which a lid is provided on the collection section, in which (A) is a side view showing the state when the lid is closed, and (B) is a side view showing the state when the lid is open. [Figure 17] FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing a modified example in which the first rotating body is larger than the second rotating body. [Figure 18] 13A and 13B show a modified example of a drug counter device equipped with an inspection table, in which (A) is a perspective view seen from diagonally above, and (B) is a perspective view seen from diagonally below. [Figure 19] The images displayed on the monitor are as follows: (A) is an image of the medicine being dispensed into the medicine container taken by the first camera; (B) is an image of the prescription data on the side of the medicine container taken by the second camera; and (C) is an image of the medicine being dispensed by the third camera. [Figure 20] FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing a modified example of the inner guide. [Figure 21] 4 is a front view, partially in section, of a lifting mechanism for a first rotating body; FIG. [Figure 22] FIG. 22 is a partially sectional side view of FIG. 21. [Figure 23] 22(A) is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of a partition wall at the bottom of a first rotor of the lifting movement mechanism in FIG. 21, and (B) is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in (A). [Figure 24] 22 is a cross-sectional view of a sensor hole in an outer wall provided on a second rotor of the lifting movement mechanism of FIG. 21. FIG. [Diagram 25] 22A to 22C are cross-sectional views showing the operation of the lifting and lowering mechanism of FIG. 21. [Figure 26] 13 is a cross-sectional view showing a modified example of the lifting mechanism for the first rotating body. FIG. [Figure 27] 13 is a cross-sectional view showing another modified example of the lifting mechanism for the first rotating body. FIG. [Figure 28] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a drug delivery system. [Figure 29] 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the host system 111 and the counter 110. [Diagram 30] This is a flowchart continuing from Figure 29. [Diagram 31] This is a flowchart continuing from Figure 30. [Diagram 32] This is a flowchart continuing from Figure 31. [Diagram 33] This is a flowchart continuing from Figure 32. [Diagram 34] 13 is a flowchart showing a process when an item is out of stock. [Diagram 35] 13 is a flowchart showing the processing of liquid medication and box medication. [Diagram 36] 13 is a flowchart showing a manual count process. [Figure 37] 2 shows the main menu screen of the counter 110. [Figure 38] 1 shows the prescription scan waiting screen. [Figure 39] The count screen after receiving the prescription is shown. [Diagram 40] A camera image capture screen is shown. [Diagram 41] The count screen when dividing a vial is shown. [Diagram 42] A manual count screen is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0013] 1 shows a medicine counting device using a medicine supplying device according to an embodiment of the present invention. This medicine counting device includes a medicine supplying device, a switching valve unit 76, and a central control unit 83, which is a counting means, and automatically adjusts the mechanism of the medicine supplying device to supply and count various kinds of medicines of different shapes and sizes one by one.

[0014] As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the exterior body 10 of the drug counting device includes an exterior body main body 11 located on the upper side and a stand 16 located on the lower side. The exterior body main body 11 is a housing closed on all four sides and the top and bottom, and its front cover 12 is shaped to bulge forward from the stand 16. This front cover 12 is provided with a container attachment part 13 on the left side in the figure for attaching a medicine container 1 to be handed over to a patient and a collection container 2 for storing medicines. In addition, an upper cover 14 is rotatably attached to the rear side of the exterior body main body 11. This upper cover 14 is provided with an insertion port 15 for exposing the inside of a frame 17 described later. The stand 16 is a housing with an upper end opening on which the exterior body main body 11 is placed at the top. This stand 16 is used as necessary to place the exterior body main body 11 at a predetermined height so that the containers 1 and 2 attached to the exterior body main body 11 do not abut on a desk or the like that is a placement surface.

[0015] 3, the medicine supplying device includes a substantially cylindrical frame 17, a disk-shaped first rotor 23, an annular second rotor 35, a height regulating body 41 that regulates the height of the medicine to be supplied, a width regulating body 52 that regulates the transport width of the second rotor 35, and a medicine guiding section 65 consisting of an inner guide 66 and an outer guide 57. In this embodiment, the width regulating body 52 and the outer guide 57 of the medicine guiding section 65 are formed from a single resin molded product.

[0016] As shown in Figs. 3, 4 and 5, the frame 17 has a partition wall 18 that covers the outer periphery of the first rotor 23 and an outer wall 20 that covers the outer periphery of the second rotor 35. These are fixed to the top and bottom of the upper plate of the exterior body main body 11. The partition wall 18 is a substantially cylindrical wall that extends from the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35 to the outer periphery of the first rotor 23 and divides the space between them. A cutout 19 is provided in a part of the lower side of the outer periphery of the partition wall 18 to prevent interference with the rotating bracket 30 that fixes the first drive motor 28 of the first rotor 23. The outer wall 20 is cylindrical to prevent the medicine on the second rotor 35 from falling off. A first cutout 21 is provided in a part of the upper side of the outer periphery of the outer wall 20, and a second cutout 22 is provided in a part of the lower side of the outer periphery. The first cutout 21 is for exposing the second rotor 35 and for arranging the width regulating body 52 and the medicine guide 65. The second cutout 22 is for exposing the gear member 38 of the second rotor 35 from the side. The partition wall 18 and the outer wall 20 of the frame 17 may be integrally provided.

[0017] The first rotor 23 is disk-shaped and is disposed inclined within the partition wall 18 so as to close the bottom of the partition wall 18. That is, as shown in Figs. 6A and 6B, the first rotor shaft 24 of the first rotor 23 is disposed so as to be inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the vertical direction. A plurality of ridges 25 are radially provided on the upper surface of the first rotor 23 to provide resistance (rolling suppression) for moving the medicine. The outer periphery of the first rotor 23 is provided with a slope 26 that slopes downward toward the outside in the radial direction. The slope 26 is disposed at a predetermined inclination angle so that the inner periphery, which is the upper end, is located above the second rotor 35 and the outer periphery, which is the lower end, is located below the inner periphery.

[0018] A gear 27 is connected to the lower end of the first rotating shaft 24 of the first rotating body 23. The gear 27 is meshed with a gear 29 connected to the output shaft of a first driving motor 28, which is the first driving means, so that the first rotating shaft 24 can rotate around the first rotating shaft 24. The first rotating shaft 24 and the first driving motor 28 are attached to a rotating bracket 30. A guide bearing (not shown) is disposed on the side of the rotating bracket 30, and the bearing is engaged with a guide groove of a mounting bracket 31 fixed to the exterior body 11. As shown in Figs. 4 and 5, a gear piece 32 having an arc shape is fixed to the side of the rotating bracket 30. A gear 34 of an angle adjustment motor 33, which is an angle adjustment means, is meshed with the gear piece 32. The rotating bracket 30 can be rotated with respect to the mounting bracket 31 by driving the angle adjustment motor 33. When the rotating bracket 30 is rotated, the first rotating body 23 is rotated together with the first drive motor 28, making it possible to adjust the tilt angle of the first rotating body 23. The tilt angle is adjusted with the upper end portion of the first rotating body 23 as a fulcrum.

[0019] The second rotor 35 is annular and rotatably disposed at the upper end of the partition wall 18 so as to be located above the first rotor 23. As shown in Figs. 6A and 6B, the second rotor 35 is horizontally disposed so that the second rotation axis (not shown) extends vertically. As a result, the second rotation axis of the second rotor 35 extends crossing the first rotation axis 24 of the first rotor 23 in a different direction (not parallel, not the same direction). The angle of these rotation axes can be relatively changed by driving the angle adjustment motor 33 as described above. Moreover, when viewed from the axial direction of the second rotation axis, the second rotor 35 is located outside the first rotor 23, and the first rotor 23 is located within the inner periphery 36. Furthermore, the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35 and the outer periphery of the first rotor 23 are lower than the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35 due to the inclination of the first rotor 23, and a step of a predetermined height is formed between them. This step is largest at the lower end in the vertical direction on the left side in the figure and smallest at the upper end in the vertical direction on the right side in the figure due to the inclination of the first rotor 23. The part where this step is smallest constitutes the transfer section 37 where the medicine supplied to the storage space partitioned by the first rotor 23 and the partition wall 18 moves from the first rotor 23 to the second rotor 35 as the first rotor 23 rotates. The transfer section 37 of this embodiment is configured so that the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35 is located at approximately the same height as the outer periphery of the first rotor 23 with a gap large enough to prevent the medicine from falling off. However, the height setting of the inner circumference 36 of the second rotor 35 and the outer circumference of the first rotor 23 in this moving section 37 may be such that the inner circumference 36 of the second rotor 35 is positioned above or below the outer circumference of the first rotor 23, as long as the drug can be transferred from the first rotor 23 to the second rotor 35.

[0020] 3 and 5, a ring-shaped gear member 38 is fixed to the lower surface of the second rotating body 35. A gear 40 of a second driving motor 39, which is a second driving means, is engaged with the gear member 38 through a second cutout portion 22 of the outer wall 20. The gear member 38 has an outer periphery supported by a support member (not shown). This allows the upper rotating member to rotate about the second rotating shaft without moving along the second rotating shaft.

[0021] The height regulating body 41 is disposed so as to be located downstream in the rotation (drug transport) direction with respect to the moving part 37 of the second rotating body 35. The height regulating body 41 includes a height regulating member 42, a bridging member 44, and an actuation receiving member 45. As shown in Figs. 7A and 7B, the height regulating member 42 is disposed so as to be located above the second rotating body 35. The height regulating member 42 extends from the outer periphery to the inner periphery 36 of the second rotating body 35 and includes a guide surface 43 that is inclined at a predetermined angle along the drug transport direction. The bridging member 44 is connected to the height regulating member 42 and is for arranging the height regulating member 42 on the second rotating body 35 across the width regulating body 52. ​​The actuation receiving member 45 is connected to the bridging member 44 and receives a force for moving the height regulating member 42 up and down via the bridging member 44. A screw hole 46 for receiving the force is provided in the actuation receiving member 45 so as to pass through in the vertical direction.

[0022] A screw member 47 penetrates the screw hole 46 of the height regulating body 41. The screw member 47 is supported by a bracket fixed to the upper plate of the exterior body 11 so as to be rotatable and immovable along the axial direction. A gear 48 is connected to the lower end of the screw member 47. The gear 48 is engaged with a gear 50 of a height adjustment motor 49, which is a height adjustment means. The screw member 47 is rotated by driving the height adjustment motor 49, and the height is adjusted so that the distance between the height regulating body 41 and the upper surface of the second rotating body 35 is approximately the same as the drug height. A drug detection sensor 51 is disposed downstream of the height regulating body 41 as a second drug detection means for detecting a drug that has passed under the height regulating body 41.

[0023] The width restricting body 52 is disposed on the second rotor 35 so as to be located further downstream in the drug transport direction than the height restricting body 41. The width restricting body 52 has a rectangular portion 53 extending in a tangential direction with respect to the outer periphery of the second rotor 35. The rectangular portion 53 is disposed so that the installation member 44 of the height restricting body 41 can be bypassed, and can move linearly without interfering with the installation member 44. In addition, the width restricting body 52 has a width restricting portion 54 continuing on the downstream side of the rectangular portion 53 in the drug transport direction. The width restricting portion 54 has a first curved surface portion 55 having a diameter larger than the diameter of the inner periphery portion 36 of the second rotor 35. As a result, the interval between the inner periphery portion 36 of the second rotor 35 and the first curved surface portion 55 in the circumferential direction is configured to have the narrowest transport width only in a part of the circumferential direction. Here, the transport width means a width (area) through which the drug can pass from the inner periphery portion 36 of the second rotor 35 to the first curved surface portion 55. Furthermore, width restricting portion 54 includes second curved surface portion 56 that is connected to first curved surface portion 55 so that the transport width on the downstream side in the drug transport direction of first curved surface portion 55 gradually widens. Furthermore, width restricting body 52 includes outer guide 57 that constitutes drug guiding portion 65, which is continuous with width restricting portion 54 on the downstream side in the drug transport direction. Outer guide 57 is configured to extend tangentially to second curved surface portion 56 and perpendicularly to rectangular portion 53.

[0024] A connecting member 58 is connected to the width restricting portion 54 of the width restricting body 52 so as to extend parallel to the rectangular portion 53. An operation receiving member 59 is connected to the connecting member 58 in the same manner as the height restricting body 41. A screw member 61 is inserted through a screw hole 60 of the operation receiving member 59, and the screw member 61 is supported by a bracket fixed to the upper plate of the exterior body main body 11 so as to be rotatable and immovable along the axial direction. A gear 62 is connected to the outer end of the screw member 47, and a gear 64 of a width adjustment motor 63, which is a width adjustment means for moving the width restricting body 52 in the horizontal direction, is engaged with the gear 62. When the width adjustment motor 63 moves the width restricting body 52 outward relative to the second rotating body 35, the transfer width between the width restricting portion 54 and the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35 and the interval between the outer guide 57 and an inner guide 66 described later can be increased. Also, when it is moved inward relative to the second rotor 35, the transport width of the second rotor 35 and the interval between the guides 57, 66 can be narrowed. In this embodiment, the diameter (radius of curvature) of the first curved surface portion 55 of the width regulating portion 54 is set so that the width between the outer guide 57 and the inner guide 66 is approximately twice (2W) the transport width W between the inner circumference portion 36 of the second rotor 35. In this embodiment, the transport width W is configured to be 1 / 2 the width of the drug to be transported. Note that, in a drug having an elliptical or oval shape in a plan view, the drug width means the short side direction. Also, the transport width W is not limited to 1 / 2 the drug width, and is preferably 1 / 2 or more and less than the drug width.

[0025] The medicine guide portion 65 guides the medicine that has passed through the width restriction portion 54 of the width restriction body 52 to the medicine discharge member 73, which is a medicine discharge port, as described later. As shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 7A and B, the medicine guide portion 65 is disposed on the second rotor 35 so as to be located downstream of the width restriction portion 54 of the width restriction body 52 in the medicine transport direction. The inner guide 66 constituting the medicine guide portion 65 is disposed so as to be located parallel to the radially inner side of the second rotor 35 with respect to the outer guide 57, and to extend in the tangential direction with respect to the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35. The inner guide 66 extends to the medicine discharge member 73, and a bracket portion 67 is provided at its end portion to be fixed to the upper plate portion of the exterior body main body 11. The interval between the guides 57 and 66 constituting the medicine guide portion 65 is adjusted to be approximately the same as the medicine width by driving the width adjustment motor 63. The inner guide 66 is provided with an inclined edge 68 that slopes upward at a predetermined angle at an inner end located on the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35, which is on the step between the first rotor 23 and the second rotor 35. The inner surface of the inclined edge 68 forms an inclined surface 69 that slopes downward.

[0026] 8, the medicine counting device includes a detection unit 70 that detects medicines, a shutter 74 that allows or disallows the discharge of medicines to the detection unit 70, and a switching valve unit 76 that distributes the medicines that have passed through the detection unit 70, disposed below a medicine discharge member 73 disposed at the outlet of the medicine guiding unit 65. The medicine discharge member 73 constitutes a medicine discharge port provided radially outside the second rotor 35, and guides the medicines discharged from the medicine guiding unit 65 to the detection unit 70.

[0027] The detection unit 70, which is the first drug detection means, has a pair of housings 70A and 70B in the shape of a regular square tube, as shown in Figs. 9(A) and (B). In the upper housing 70A, a pair of light emitting units 71A and 71B are arranged on the adjacent surface, and a pair of light receiving units 72A and 72B are arranged on the opposing surface. In addition, in the lower housing 70B, a pair of light emitting units 71C and 71D are arranged on the adjacent surface, and a pair of light receiving units 72C and 72D are arranged on the opposing surface. The light emitting unit 71A and the light receiving unit 72A, the light emitting unit 71B and the light receiving unit 72B, the light emitting unit 71C and the light receiving unit 72C, and the light emitting unit 71D and the light receiving unit 72D, which face each other, form a pair of optical sensors (line sensors). Thus, two pairs of optical sensors (four pairs in total) arranged in the two housings 70A and 70B are positioned at a predetermined interval in the axial direction. Moreover, the housings 70A, 70B can be arranged at a phase angle of 45 degrees to each other, thereby making it possible to make the detection directions different. The detection unit 70 configured in this way can be made smaller in plan view (occupied area) than when a regular octagonal housing capable of accommodating all four optical sensors is used.

[0028] As shown in Fig. 8, shutter 74 is disposed inside the outlet side of medicine discharge member 73. This shutter 74 can be rotated by drive motor 75, which is an outlet permission means, from an outlet stop position extending horizontally to an outlet permission position tilted downward. At the outlet stop position, the outlet of medicine discharge member 73 is blocked to prevent the discharge of medicine into detection unit 70. At the outlet permission position, the outlet of medicine discharge member 73 is opened to allow the discharge of medicine into detection unit 70.

[0029] The switching valve unit 76 is disposed below the detection unit 70 so as to be located at the container mounting portion 13 of the exterior body 11. The casing of the switching valve unit 76 has an inverted Y-shaped medicine passage 77 branched into a dispensing portion 78, which is a first passage portion, and a collecting portion 79, which is a second passage portion. At the ends of the dispensing portion 78 and the collecting portion 79, steps 78a, 79a are provided for mounting the medicine container 1 and the collecting container 2. Of these, the step 78a of the dispensing portion 78 located on the left side in the figure is provided in three sets that can mount three types of medicine containers 1 with different diameters (volumes). A switching valve that switches the discharge destination to the dispensing portion 78 or the collecting portion 79 is provided in the medicine passage 77. The switching valve of this embodiment has a pair of swinging members 80A, 80B arranged to extend from the inlet of the medicine passage 77 toward the dispensing portion 78 and the collecting portion 79. The first swinging member 80A on the left side of the figure opens and closes the dispensing section 78, and the second swinging member 80B on the right side of the figure opens and closes the collecting section 79. The swinging members 80A and 80B are provided with elastically deformable elastic parts 81 on their opposing surfaces. The swinging members 80A and 80B are individually swung by driving motors 82A and 82B, which are the driving means. In this embodiment, the swinging members 80A and 80B can be moved to three positions: a medicine dispensing position (first operating position) shown in FIG. 10A, a temporary stop position (second operating position) shown in FIG. 10B, and a medicine collecting position (third operating position) shown in FIG. 10C. At the temporary stop position, the swinging members 80A and 80B are rotated to an angle at which the elastic parts 81 come into contact with each other and are elastically deformed. The swinging members 80A and 80B may be made of an elastically deformable material.

[0030] The medicine counting device including the medicine supply device operates according to commands from a central control unit 83 as shown in FIG. 11, and counts and supplies the required number of medicines according to prescription data. As shown in FIG. 18, the drug countermeasure device is provided with an inspection table. The inspection table is provided with a monitor 88, a first camera 89a that photographs the inside of the drug container 1 from above the opening of the drug container 1 from which the drug has been dispensed, and a second camera 89b that photographs the label on the side of the drug container 1. The monitor 88 displays images captured by the first camera 89a, the second camera 89b, and a third camera 89c that is provided near the drug inlet of the drug countermeasure device and photographs the moving section 37 from the first rotor 23 to the second rotor 35 or the periphery of the height regulating body 41. The first camera 89a may be movable so that it also functions as the third camera 89c, and the third camera may be eliminated.

[0031] Before inserting the medicine, the operator reads the medicine type ID (barcode) printed on the medicine bottle with the barcode reader 86, and only allows insertion of the medicine if this medicine type ID matches the correct medicine indicated in the prescription data. This makes it possible to prevent the wrong medicine from being dispensed. Next, the operator reads the prescription ID (barcode) printed on the medicine container 1 that will receive the medicine, and only allows dispensing of the medicine if this prescription ID matches the prescription ID indicated in the prescription data. This makes it possible to prevent the wrong medicine container 1 from being taken.

[0032] Next, the operator operates the operation panel 84 to adjust the inclination angle of the first rotor 23, to input medicines into the space for medicine input partitioned by the first rotor 23 and the partition wall 18, and to start the counting process by inputting the number of medicines to be prescribed. In the counting process, the central control unit 83 executes a process of automatically adjusting (auto-calibrating) each of the regulating bodies 41, 52 according to the medicine, and then executes a counting process for actually counting. In this counting process, the central control unit 83 serves as a counting means for counting the medicines supplied based on the detection by the detection unit 70.

[0033] The angle adjustment process of the first rotor 23 is performed according to the amount of medicine to be put in and the size and shape of the medicine. That is, when the amount of medicine to be put in is large, the inclination angle of the first rotor 23 is set to a steep gradient (close to vertical) so that the storage space formed between the partition wall 18, the first rotor 23, and the second rotor 35 is wide. In addition, in the case of a spherical medicine that does not move to the second rotor 35 by rolling (rotating) on ​​the upper surface even when the first rotor 23 is rotated, the inclination angle of the first rotor 23 is set to a gentle gradient (close to horizontal). In this way, a large number of medicines are placed on the first rotor 23, and adjustment is made so that the medicines can move to the second rotor 35. Note that this angle adjustment process may be configured to be automatically adjustable by disposing a medicine detection means on the moving part 37 of the second rotor 35. In this case, this angle adjustment process is performed in the first stage of the automatic adjustment process.

[0034] In the automatic adjustment step of the counting process, the height restricting body 41 is lowered and the width restricting body 52 is moved inward. This prevents the medicine from being discharged even when the rotating bodies 23 and 35 are rotated. In this state, as shown in FIG. 10A, the swinging members 80A and 80B of the switching valve unit 76 are rotated toward the dispensing section 78, the dispensing section 78 is opened, the collecting section 79 is closed, and the rotating bodies 23 and 35 are rotated. Thereafter, the height restricting body 41 is gradually moved upward. Then, when the medicine detection sensor 51 detects the medicine that has passed through the height restricting body 41, the movement of the height restricting body 41 is stopped. Next, the width restricting body 52 is moved outward so as to gradually widen. Then, when the detection section 70 detects the discharge of the medicine, the movement of the width restricting body 52 is stopped.

[0035] It is preferable that the positions of the height restricting body 41 and the width restricting body 52 are stored in advance for each drug. For this purpose, first, the barcode of the medicine bottle containing the medicine to be counted is read by the barcode reader 86 provided in the medicine counting device. In addition, when the medicine detection sensor 51 provided downstream of the height regulator 41 detects that the medicine has passed through the height regulator 41, the regulation height (or position) of the height regulator 41 at this time is stored in the memory 87. At the same time, the third camera 89c photographs the medicine near the height regulator 41. In addition, when the sensor or detection unit 70 provided downstream of the width regulator 52 detects that the medicine has passed through the width regulator 52, the transport width (or position) of the width regulator 52 at this time is stored in the memory 87. In the memory 87, the regulation height of the height regulator 41, the transport width of the width regulator 52, and the medicine read by the barcode reader are linked and stored. The stored information on the restriction height and transport width may be displayed on the monitor 88 so that the operator can check it, and it may be possible to fine-tune it as necessary and overwrite the fine-tuned restriction height and transport width. In this way, the next time before supplying the medicine to the first rotating body 23, the ID (barcode) of the medicine type printed on the medicine bottle is read by the barcode reader 88, and if the restriction height of the height regulating body 41 and the transport width of the width regulating body 52 linked to the medicine corresponding to this ID are stored, they can be immediately adjusted to those values ​​and the medicine counting can be started. Also, if the restriction height of the height regulating body 41 and the transport width of the width regulating body 52 linked to the medicine are not stored, such as in the case of a new medicine, the operation of acquiring these restriction heights and phase widths is performed as described above.

[0036] In the counting step of the counting process, the rotation speed of each rotor 23, 35 is made faster than that in the automatic adjustment step, so that counting can be performed at high speed. Then, when the number of medicines dispensed approaches the set number of medicines, the rotation speed of the second rotor 35 is reduced. This slows down the discharge speed from the medicine guide section 65. When the set number of medicines dispensed is counted, as shown in FIG. 10B, the oscillating member 80A located on the side of the dispensing section 78 is rotated toward the side of the collecting section 79, and both the dispensing section 78 and the collecting section 79 are blocked. In this temporary stop position, the elastic parts 81, 81 are elastically deformed by abutment and are in a pressure contact state. In this state, the dispensed medicine can be temporarily held on the upstream side of the pair of oscillating members 80A, 80B. Next, as shown in FIG. 10C, the oscillating member 80B located on the side of the collecting section 79 is rotated toward the side of the oscillating member, and the side of the collecting section 79 is opened. As a result, the medicine temporarily stored on the upstream side of the pair of swinging members 80A, 80B is pushed out toward the collection part 79 side by the elastic restoration of the elastic part 81 on the dispensing part 78 side. This reliably prevents excess medicine from being dispensed toward the dispensing part 78 side. Finally, the rotation speed of the rotors 23, 35 is increased to discharge all of the medicine within the frame 17 into the collection container 2.

[0037] The central control unit 83 counts based on input signals from four optical sensor groups (eight sensors per group) of the detection unit 70. In the detection unit 70 of this embodiment, the line sensors 71A, 72A to 71D, 72D detect the medicine that falls by its own weight (constant speed) due to discharge from four different directions. As a result, the volume including the shape such as the width and height of the medicine that has passed can be determined based on the input values ​​from the light receiving units 72A to 72D. Specifically, the width of the medicine from four different directions is determined based on the inputs from the light receiving elements of the light receiving units 72A to 72D. Since the light receiving units 72A and 72B of the upper housing 70A and the light receiving units 72C and 72D of the lower housing 70B have different vertical heights, the horizontal cross-sectional shape of the falling medicine can be accurately determined based on the width determined by the light receiving units 72A to 72D in consideration of the detection time difference due to the fall. In addition, by repeatedly executing this determination at predetermined intervals, the horizontal cross-sectional shape for each time can be determined. Then, based on all the horizontal cross-sectional shapes at each time, the volume (three-dimensional shape) including the shape of the falling medicine can be determined. Also, the central control unit 83 stores all medicine information of various different shapes and sizes. Therefore, this medicine information is compared with the determined shape and volume to determine (confirm) the type of medicine being counted. Then, based on this determined medicine information, the number of dispensed medicines is counted. As a result, it is also possible to detect that two medicines have passed together. Therefore, highly accurate counting can be achieved. When the dispensing of the medicine is completed, the opening of the medicine container 1 is directed toward the first camera 89a of the inspection table shown in Fig. 18 to photograph the medicine dispensed into the medicine container 1 as shown in Fig. 19(A), and then the label on the side of the medicine container 1 is directed toward the second camera 89b to photograph the prescription data as shown in Fig. 19(B). Next, the photographed image of Fig. 19(A), the photographed image of Fig. 19(B), and the photographed image of the medicine in the middle of being dispensed as shown in Fig. 19(C) photographed by the third camera are simultaneously displayed on the monitor 88 to inspect whether the medicine has been dispensed according to the prescription data.

[0038] Next, a specific description will be given of the medicine transport operation of the medicine supply device for a disk-shaped tablet X, which is one type of medicine. Note that the transport operation of the disk-shaped tablet X is similar to that of a spherical medicine.

[0039] 12(A) and (B), when the first rotor 23 rotates, the tablet X is placed on its upper surface and rotates, and moves radially outward due to centrifugal force. Then, the tablet X on the first rotor 23 is transferred onto the second rotor 35 at the moving part 37 located at approximately the same height as the second rotor 35.

[0040] The tablets X transferred to the second rotating body 35 are moved toward the medicine guide section 65, and their movement downstream is restricted by the height restricting body 41. For example, tablets X moving in a vertically stacked state are dropped onto the second rotating body 35 or dropped from the inner circumferential section 36 onto the first rotating body 23 when the tablets X located on the upper side come into contact with the guide surface 43 of the height restricting body 41.

[0041] The tablet X that has passed through the height regulator 41 is moved toward the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35 by contacting the first curved surface 55 of the width regulator 52 that regulates the transport width. Since the transport width by the second rotor 35 is 1 / 2 the drug width by the first curved surface 55 of the width regulator 52, only the tablet X that is in contact with the width regulator 52 can pass downstream of the width regulator 52. That is, when the tablets X are transported in two rows aligned in the radial direction, the inner tablet X is pressed by the outer tablet X that is in contact with the width regulator 52 and falls from the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35 onto the first rotor 23. Even if the tablets X are not aligned in the radial direction, the tablet X whose center of gravity is located inside the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35 also falls from the inner periphery 36 onto the first rotor 23. Therefore, the other tablets X that are not in contact with the width regulator 52 are not transported downstream.

[0042] The tablet X that has passed through the first curved surface portion 55 of the width regulating body 52 is transported in a stable state through the area of ​​the second curved surface portion 56 where the transport width is wider. Then, the tablet X is transported between the inner guide 66 and the outer guide 57 of the medicine guide portion 65, moved to the outlet side in an aligned state one by one, and discharged to the detection portion 70. At this time, the tablet X1 protruding inward from the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotor 35 abuts against the end of the inner guide 66, and is guided between the inner guide 66 and the outer guide 57, or is dropped from the inner peripheral portion 36 onto the first rotor 23. Then, only the tablet X that has passed through this medicine guide portion 65 is supplied to the detection portion 70 through the medicine discharge member 73, which is a medicine discharge port.

[0043] Next, a specific description will be given of the drug transport operation of capsules Y, which are different in shape and size from the disk-shaped tablets X. The transport operation of capsules Y is similar to that of tablets having a non-circular shape, such as an oval shape.

[0044] 13(A) and (B), when the first rotor 23 rotates, the capsules Y rotate on the upper surface thereof and move radially outward by centrifugal force. Then, the capsules Y on the first rotor 23 move onto the second rotor 35 at the transfer section 37 located at the same height as the second rotor 35.

[0045] The capsules Y that have been transferred to the second rotating body 35 are moved toward the drug guide section 65, and their movement downstream is restricted by the height regulating body 41. The capsules Y, which are stacked up and down and moving, are dropped onto the second rotating body 35 or dropped from the inner circumference 36 onto the first rotating body 23.

[0046] The capsules Y that have passed through the height regulator 41 come into contact with the first curved surface 55 of the width regulator 52 that regulates the transport width, and are moved toward the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35, and the longitudinal direction (posture) is corrected to extend along the drug transport direction. Only the capsules Y that come into contact with the width regulator 52 pass downstream of the width regulator 52, and the capsules Y that do not come into contact with the width regulator 52 are dropped onto the first rotor 23 from the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35. The capsules Y1 whose posture could not be corrected by coming into contact with the first curved surface 55 cannot maintain balance because the transport width by the second rotor 35 is about 1 / 2 of that of the capsules Y1, and therefore the center of gravity is located inside the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35, and are dropped from the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35 onto the first rotor 23.

[0047] The capsules Y that have passed through the first curved surface portion 55 of the width regulating body 52 are transported in a stable state through the area of ​​the second curved surface portion 56 where the transport width has been widened. Then, they are transported between the inner guide 66 and the outer guide 57 of the medicine guiding portion 65, moved to the outlet side in an aligned state one by one, and discharged to the detection portion 70. At this time, the capsules Y2 whose posture could not be completely corrected are abutted against the end of the inner guide 66, and are guided between the inner guide 66 and the outer guide 57, or dropped from the inner circumference portion 36 onto the first rotor 23. Then, only the capsules Y that have passed through this medicine guiding portion 65 are supplied to the detection portion 70 through the medicine discharge member 73, which is a medicine discharge port.

[0048] Since the capsule Y is not flat like the disk-shaped tablet X, it comes into point or line contact with the second rotor 35 and is easy to rotate when moving on the second rotor 35. Therefore, after passing through the width regulating body 52, a tablet that is not flat like the capsule Y may change direction on the second rotor 35 before reaching the tablet guide section 65, and may be dropped onto the first rotor 23. Therefore, as shown in Figs. 15(A) to (C), it is preferable to provide an annular rib 35a protruding upward on the inner peripheral edge of the second rotor 35. The rib 35a may have a triangular radial cross section with an inner circumferential surface flush with the inner circumferential surface of the second rotor 35, a pointed upper end, and a linearly inclined outer circumferential surface, as shown in Fig. 15(A), an outer circumferential surface concavely curved and inclined, or a rectangular radial cross section with an inner circumferential surface flush with the inner circumferential surface of the second rotor 35, a flat upper end, and a vertical outer circumferential surface, as shown in Fig. 15(C). By providing such a rib 35a, a non-flat tablet is difficult to rotate on the second rotor 35 because it comes into contact with the upper surface of the second rotor 35 at two points, the rib 35a, as shown in Fig. 15(A), and is prevented from dropping onto the first rotor 23.

[0049] In this way, in the medicine supply device of the present invention, the height regulator 41 and the width regulator 52 can align the medicines one by one and supply them to the medicine guide 65, so that they can be reliably passed through the medicine guide 65 one by one and supplied to the outside from the medicine discharge member 73 without causing problems such as clogging. In addition, since the multiple medicines to be transported are not blocked by the regulators 41, 52 and the medicine guide 65 but are dropped onto the first rotor 23, clogging at the regulators 41, 52 can be reliably prevented, and multiple medicines can be prevented from colliding with each other. Therefore, cracking and chipping of the medicine can be reliably prevented. In particular, since the width regulator 52 regulates the transport width of the second rotor 35 to 1 / 2 the width of the medicine, a medicine that is non-circular in plan view cannot pass through unless its longitudinal direction extends along the medicine transport direction. Therefore, clogging at the entrance of the medicine guide 65 can be reliably prevented.

[0050] In addition, since the height of the height restrictor 41 and the width of the second rotor 35 are adjustable, it is possible to supply a variety of medicines with different shapes and sizes. Furthermore, the width restrictor 52 and the outer guide 57 of the medicine guide section 65 are integrally provided and can be adjusted simultaneously, which improves the workability of the adjustment and reduces the number of parts. Moreover, in this embodiment, the restrictors 41 and 52 are automatically adjustable, so the operator does not need to make any adjustments, and the convenience of use is greatly improved.

[0051] Furthermore, since the inner guide 66 of the medicine guiding section 65 is provided with an inclined edge 68 inclined upward, it is possible to reliably prevent the medicine, which is transported while protruding inward from the inner circumferential section 36 of the second rotor 35, from clogging the inlet of the medicine guiding section 65. This configuration is particularly effective when a medicine that is non-circular in plan view is transported at a slight incline, because it can correct the posture or drop onto the first rotor 23. Furthermore, since the inclination angle of the first rotation shaft 24 of the first rotor 23 is adjustable, the medicine can be reliably transported to the transport section 37 by the rotation of the first rotor 23, and then moved onto the second rotor 35.

[0052] The medicine counting device using the medicine supply device can reliably discharge medicines of different shapes and sizes one by one to the outside, detect the medicines by the detection unit 70, and reliably count them by the central control unit 83. Therefore, a predetermined number of medicines can be reliably dispensed and prescribed to a patient. In addition, the switching valve unit 76 arranged on the container attachment unit 13 has a dispensing unit 78 in which the medicine container 1 to be handed over to the patient is disposed, and a collecting unit 79 in which the collection container 2 is disposed, so that the workability of prescription can be improved. Moreover, when the number of medicines to be prescribed is counted, the oscillating members 80A and 80B, which are switching valves, operate both the dispensing unit 78 and the collecting unit 79 to a temporary stop position where they are closed, so that it is possible to prevent medicines exceeding a predetermined number from being dispensed to the medicine container 1. In addition, when the collection position for the collection container 2 is later set, the elastic portion 81 elastically restores, so that the medicines held on the upstream side of the pair of oscillating members 80A and 80B can be pushed out to the collecting unit 79, so that it is possible to reliably prevent excessive dispensing to the medicine container 1 through the dispensing unit 78.

[0053] Furthermore, if the third camera 89c is provided on the device body together with the height regulating body 41, the movement of the height regulating body 41 is hindered. For this reason, it is preferable to provide the third camera on the cover body, as shown in Fig. 18(a), rather than on the device body. Similarly, by providing the height regulating body 41 on the cover body, rather than on the device body, it is possible to prevent the height regulating body 41 and the width regulating body 52 from colliding with each other and being damaged when the height regulating body 41 is moved radially outward of the second rotator 35 to clean the first rotator 23 and the second rotator 35.

[0054] <Other embodiments> The medicine counting device of the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible. In particular, the medicine supply device can be modified in various ways.

[0055] For example, in the embodiment, the height restriction member 41 is adjustable on the second rotor 35, and the width restriction member 52 is adjustable on the transport width of the second rotor 35, but they may be fixed and not adjustable. Even in this case, as long as the medicine has a height that allows it to pass between the second rotor 35 and the height restriction member 41 and a width that allows it to pass through the transport width of the second rotor 35 restricted by the width restriction member 52, even medicines with different shapes and sizes can be transported and supplied. This increases the versatility of supplying medicines.

[0056] In the above embodiment, the width of the transport by the second rotor 35 can be changed by the width regulator 52, but the width regulator 52 may not be provided. Even in this case, if the medicine is circular in plan view, it can be transported and supplied with medicines of different shapes and sizes, such as spherical and disk-shaped medicines. In this case, the medicines that have passed through the height regulator 41 are supplied to the inlet of the medicine guide 65 in two rows in the radial direction. However, since the medicine guide 65 has a pair of guides 57, 66 spaced at approximately the same interval as the medicine width, the medicines located on the side of the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35 come into contact with the inner guide 66 and fall from the inner periphery 36 of the second rotor 35 onto the first rotor 23. This prevents the medicines from clogging the inlet of the medicine guide 65, and ensures that they are discharged to the outside one by one.

[0057] Furthermore, although the height restricting body 41 is adjustable by linear movement in the vertical direction and the width restricting body 52 is adjustable by linear movement in the horizontal direction, they may be adjustable by rotation as shown in Fig. 14A. Moreover, the width restricting body 52 is provided integrally with the outer guide 57 constituting the medicine guide section 65, but as shown in Fig. 14B, they may be provided separately and individually adjustable. In this case, the width restricting body 52 excluding the outer guide 57 may be made of an elastically deformable material and may be partially movable to adjust the transport width.

[0058] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the first rotor 23 is arranged so as to be inclined at a predetermined angle, and the second rotor 35 is arranged horizontally, but the first rotor 23 may be arranged horizontally and the second rotor 35 may be arranged so as to be inclined at a predetermined angle. Of course, both the first rotor 23 and the second rotor 35 may be arranged so as to be inclined at a predetermined angle. That is, it is only necessary that the rotation axes of the first rotor 23 and the second rotor 35 intersect at an angle at which the drug can move.

[0059] In the above embodiment, the first rotor 23 and the second rotor 35 are configured to rotate in the same direction, but they may rotate in opposite directions. Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the partition wall 18 is fixed and cannot rotate, but it may be configured to be rotatable. In this case, the partition wall 18 may rotate integrally with the second rotor 35, or may rotate separately on the same axis. Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the inner guide 66 of the medicine guide section 65 is disposed so as to be located at the edge of the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotor 35, but it may be disposed so as to be located radially outward from the edge of the inner peripheral portion 36 as long as the medicine with a misaligned center of gravity can be dropped from the inner peripheral portion 36 onto the first rotor 23.

[0060] In the above embodiment, the first rotor 23 and the second rotor 35 are fixed in the axial direction, and the heights of the first rotor 23 and the second rotor 35 are set to be approximately the same in the moving section 37 where the drug moves from the first rotor 23 to the second rotor 35. However, the first rotor 23 may be moved in the axial direction to adjust the amount of drug transferred. When there is a large amount of drug, the first rotor 23 is moved downward, and the drug forms a mass on the first rotor 23 and moves to the moving section 37, and the drug at the top of the mass of drug is transferred to the second rotor 35. When the amount of drug decreases and there is no drug on the second rotor 35, the first rotor 23 is moved upward so as to approach the second rotor 35, making it easier for the drug to move from the first rotor 23 to the second rotor 35.

[0061] In the above embodiment, the distance of the second rotor 35 between the moving part 37, through which the medicine moves from the first rotor 23 to the second rotor 35, and the height regulating body 41 is constant, but this distance may be variable. This is possible by changing the inclination direction of the first rotor 23. When there are many medicines, if the distance from the moving part 37 to the height regulating body 41 is short, many medicines will get stuck or fall at the height regulating body 41, and it will take time to discharge them, so the position of the moving part 37 is moved away from the height regulating body 41 so that the distance from the moving part 37 to the height regulating body 41 is long. When there are few medicines, if the distance from the moving part 37 to the height regulating body 41 is long, it will take time to reach the height regulating body 41, so the position of the moving part 37 is moved closer to the height regulating body 41 so that the distance from the moving part 37 to the height regulating body 41 is short.

[0062] 16(A), an open end of the recovery section 79, which is the second passage section of the medicine passage 77, may be provided with an openable lid 84, which is biased in a direction to close the open end by a spring 85, and when the lid 84 is pressed by the mouth of the recovery container 2, the lid 84 opens and the mouth of the recovery container 2 can be positioned below the open end of the recovery section 79. In this way, medicine can be stored in the recovery section 79 closed by the lid 84, and the stored medicine can be collected in the recovery container 2 at once. In addition, if a holding mechanism for holding the medicine container 1 is provided in the medicine supply device and the holding mechanism is made to hold the medicine container 1, the medicine dispensed from the dispensing section 78 may be dispensed into the medicine container 1 without having to hold the medicine container 1 by hand.

[0063] The operator visually checks whether all the medicines supplied onto the first rotating body 23 have been dispensed. However, even if some medicines remain undispensed, the operator may determine that all the medicines have been dispensed. In this case, if a different medicine is supplied to the first rotating body 23 to count the next medicine, different types of medicines may be mixed together, which may not only cause a counting error but also cause the wrong medicine to be supplied to the patient, resulting in a medical accident. Therefore, after the counting of the medicine is completed, the second rotor 35 is rotated inversely for a predetermined time before the next medicine is supplied. As a result, even if medicine remains on the second rotor 35, especially between the inner guide 66 and the outer guide 57, the medicine falls onto the first rotor 23 by the width regulator 52. After this, the outer guide 57 is moved inward to the maximum extent to close the tablet guide section 65, and the height regulator 41 is raised to the maximum extent. The height regulator 41 may be raised before the outer guide 57 is moved. Next, the first rotor 23 and the second rotor 35 are rotated forward. As a result, the medicine on the first rotor 23 moves onto the second rotor 35 and passes through the height regulator 41, but falls onto the first rotor 23 by the width regulator 52, and this is repeated. Here, when it is detected that the medicine has passed through the height regulator 41 or the width regulator 52, it is possible to inform the user that there is medicine remaining that has not been dispensed by emitting an alarm or the like. The timing for reversing the second rotor 35 is preferably after the lid 84 of the recovery section 79 of the second passage described above has been changed from open to closed and the drug stored in the recovery section 79 has been recovered, for example.

[0064] In the above embodiment, the first rotating body 23 is formed smaller than the second rotating body 35 and is arranged within the projected area of ​​the inner circumference of the second rotating body 35, but as shown in Figure 17, it is also possible to make the first rotating body 23 larger than the second rotating body 35 and configure it so that a portion of the outer circumference opposite the moving portion 37 of the first rotating body 23 is positioned outside the outer circumference of the second rotating body 35.

[0065] In the above embodiment, an audit function is provided to check the drug type ID and prescription ID, but an inventory support function may be provided to check only the drug type ID and record the drug type ID and the drug count. The inventory support function allows the pharmacy to periodically check the stock of drugs used at the pharmacy outside of business hours. Also, the device may have a counting function that simply counts the quantity of medicine without checking either the drug type ID or the prescription ID.

[0066] If the tip of the inner guide 66 in the embodiment (the tip on the upstream side in the rotation direction of the second rotor) is located higher than the upper surface of the second rotor 35, the medicine transported on the second rotor 35 may collide with the tip of the inner guide 66 and be damaged. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 20, it is preferable that the tip of the inner guide 66 is located inside the inner peripheral edge of the second rotor 35 and is located lower than the upper surface of the second rotor 35. Note that FIG. 20 shows that the second rotor rotates in a clockwise direction in the figure, unlike the embodiment. It is also preferable to provide a protruding portion 66a from the lower end of the inner guide 66 toward the inner peripheral edge of the second rotor 35 to fill the gap between the lower end of the inner guide 66 and the inner peripheral edge of the second rotor 35. This prevents the medicine that hits the inclined surface 69 and is returned to the second rotor 35 from falling through the gap between the lower end of the inner guide 66 and the inner peripheral edge of the second rotor 35.

[0067] <Lifting mechanism for first rotor> In the embodiment, the first rotor 23 is fixed in position in the vertical direction relative to the second rotor 35. In this case, the capacity of the drug supply space on the first rotor 23 is limited. Therefore, the first rotor 23 may be provided so as to be movable up and down relative to the second rotor 35. The mechanism for moving the first rotor 23 up and down will be described below.

[0068] 21 and 22 show an embodiment in which the first rotor 23 is provided so as to be movable up and down in parallel with the second rotation axis (not shown) of the second rotor 35 relative to the second rotor 35. The first rotor 23 is supported by a bracket 91 at the upper end of a rectangular cylindrical movable frame 90 together with a first drive motor 28. A pair of rollers 92 as cam followers are provided on the outer surfaces of both side walls at the lower end of the movable frame 90. A protrusion 93 extending in the vertical direction is formed on the outer surfaces of the other both side walls of the movable frame 90 on which the rollers 92 are not provided. The movable frame 90 is accommodated inside a rectangular cylindrical fixed frame 95 fixed to a base plate 94 of the device main body. A guide protrusion 96 with which the protrusion 93 of the movable frame 90 slidably engages is formed on the inner surface of the fixed frame 95 so as to extend in the vertical direction. Notches 97 are formed downward from the upper ends of both side surfaces of the fixed frame 95 , and the shafts of the rollers 92 fit into these notches 97 so that the rollers 92 are positioned outside the notches 97 .

[0069] A cam cylinder 99 having a cam surface 98 formed on its upper end is rotatably mounted on a base plate 94 of the device body. A roller 92 of a movable frame 90 is rollably mounted on the cam surface 98. The cam surface 98 is made up of a first inclined surface 98a that rises at an inclination of about 20° from the lowest first point P1, a second inclined surface 98b that descends at an inclination of about 60° from the highest second point P2 of the first inclined surface 98a, a third inclined surface 98c that rises at an inclination of about 20° from a third point P3 of the second inclined surface 98b, and a fourth inclined surface 98d that descends at an inclination of about 60° from the highest fourth point P4 of the third inclined surface 98c to the first point P1. When the rollers 92 of the movable frame 90 are located at the first point P1 and the third point P3, which are the lowest, the first rotating body 23 supported by the movable frame 90 is at the lowest position, and when the rollers 92 are located at the second point P2 and the fourth point P4, which are the highest, the first rotating body 23 is at the highest position. The cam cylinder 99 has a drive shaft 100 that protrudes downward from the base plate 94. A worm gear 101 is provided on the drive shaft 100, and the worm gear 101 is connected to an elevation motor 104 via a worm 102 and a drive gear 103. When the cam cylinder 99 rotates by driving the lifting motor 104, the rollers 92 of the movable frame 90 roll along the cam surface 98 of the cam cylinder 99, causing the movable frame 90 to gently move upward from the bottom first point P1 and third point P3 to the top second point P2 and fourth point P4, and then to rapidly move downward from the top second point P2 and fourth point P4. Note that a rack and pinion mechanism may also be used in place of such a cam mechanism.

[0070] The lower end of the cylindrical partition wall 18 is attached to the upper end of the fixed frame 95. The partition wall 18 is composed of an elliptical lower part 18a and an approximately conical upper part 18b. The lower part 18a of the partition wall 18 is an elliptical cylinder in which the inclined first rotor 23 is accommodated with a minimum gap. The upper end of the lower part 18a is an elliptical shape inclined along the outer periphery of the first rotor 23 located at the uppermost position and is connected to the lower end of the upper part 18b. The part of the lower part of the upper part 18b facing the highest position of the inclined first rotor 23 coincides with the upper end of the lower part 18a, and the part facing the lowest position of the inclined first rotor 23 extends obliquely upward so as to move outward from the upper end of the lower part 18a. The upper end of the upper part 18b is circular in shape so as to fit along the inner periphery of the second rotor 35.

[0071] As shown in Fig. 23(A), a tablet rise suppression surface 105 that slopes upward from the lower end to approach the first rotor 23 and a tablet drop guide surface 106 that slopes downward from the upper end to approach the first rotor 23 are formed on the inner surface of the portion of the upper part 18b of the partition wall 18 facing the lowest position of the inclined first rotor 23. The tablet rise suppression surface 105 moves the tablets that have accumulated on the outer periphery as the first rotor 23 rotates toward the center of the first rotor 23, thereby suppressing these tablets from climbing onto the second rotor 35 above and joining with the tablets being transported on the second rotor 35 to block the gap between the inner guide 66 and the outer guide 57. Downstream of the inner guide 66 of the second rotor 35, there is no longer any need to suppress the ascent of the tablet; rather, the tablet must be allowed to rise toward the tablet transfer section 37 from the first rotor 23 to the second rotor 35, so the inclination of the tablet ascent suppression surface 105 is gentler, as shown in Figure 23 (B).

[0072] The operation of the lifting and moving mechanism of the first rotor 23 will be described. When the lifting and moving mechanism of the first rotor 23 is operated, a drug detection sensor 51 is used to detect the drug transported on the second rotor 35. The drug detection sensor 51 is provided on the outer wall 20 around the second rotor 35. A recess 107 having a size that prevents the tablet from entering is provided on the inner surface of the outer wall 20, a hole 108 is provided at the bottom of the recess 107, and a lens 109 that transmits light from the drug detection sensor 51 is embedded in the hole 108. This prevents the tablet from coming into contact with the lens 109, and therefore prevents the tablet from coming into contact with the lens 109 and damaging the lens 109 while being transported on the second rotor 35.

[0073] When the medicine is supplied to the first rotor 23, the first rotor 23 is at the lowest position. When the first rotor 23 and the second rotor 35 rotate, the tablets on the first rotor 23 accumulate on the outer periphery and rise up, and then move from the first rotor 23 to the second rotor 35 via the moving part 37, and are transported on the second rotor 35 and discharged as described above. As the medicine is discharged in sequence, the rise of the medicine on the first rotor 23 decreases, so that the medicine cannot move from the first rotor 23 to the second rotor 35 via the moving part 37, and there is no medicine being transported on the second rotor 35. Then, the medicine detection sensor 51 no longer detects the medicine being transported on the second rotor 35, so the first rotor 23 is moved upward to approach the second rotor 35. As a result, the medicine on the first rotor 23 moves from the first rotor 23 to the second rotor 35 via the moving part 37, and the medicine detection sensor 51 detects the medicine being transported on the second rotor 35, so the rise of the first rotor 23 is stopped. This allows the medicine to continue being discharged. By repeating this, all the medicine on the first rotor 23 can be discharged. When a drug is to be supplied onto the first rotor 23, the first rotor 23 is moved downward so as to be separated from the second rotor 35 in order to secure a storage space therefor.

[0074] The mechanism for raising and lowering the second rotor 35 is not limited to that in the above embodiment, but may raise and lower the first rotor 23 in parallel to its first rotation shaft 24 as shown in FIG. Also, as shown in FIG. 27, the first rotor 23 may be moved up and down along an arc S centered on a point O in a plane formed by the first rotor 24 of the first rotor 23 and the second rotor 35 (not shown). In this case, the point O, which is the center of the arc, is arbitrary, but it is preferable to configure the first rotor 23 so that the highest position is on the center side of the arc. As a result, when the first rotor 23 is moved downward along the arc, the inclination of the first rotor 23 becomes larger. In general, the more medicines are filled on the first rotor 23, the more likely the upper surface of the medicine group is to be horizontal. If the upper surface of the medicine group is horizontal, the upper surface of the medicine group above the lowest position of the first rotor 23 reaches the inner guide 66 of the second rotor 35 and mixes with the medicines transported in a single row by the inner guide, causing a problem of medicine clogging. However, as shown in Fig. 27, when the inclination of the first rotor 23 that has moved downward is large, it is difficult to make the upper surface of the group of pills horizontal even if a large amount of pills is poured onto the first rotor 23. As a result, in the vicinity of the inner guide 66, the upper surface of the group of pills on the first rotor 23 becomes lower than the second rotor 35, and the above-mentioned problem of mixing with the pills transported on the second rotor 35 and causing clogging can be avoided.

[0075] <Drug delivery system> A medicine supply system in which the counting operation of the medicine counting device of the present invention (hereinafter simply referred to as counter 110) is processed in conjunction with prescription data will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG. 28, the flowcharts of FIGS. 29-36, and the screen diagrams of FIGS. 37-43. Multiple counters 110 are installed in a large pharmacy and are connected to the pharmacy's host system 111111 along with other drug supply devices and drug packaging devices. A pharmacist who performs audits etc. is stationed on the host system 111111 side, and an operator (drug technician) who operates the counter 110 is stationed on the counter 110 side.

[0076] The host system 111 is a system that dispenses necessary medicines based on the prescription data of the patient and supplies them to the patient. As shown in Fig. 28, the host system 111 includes a control unit 112 that exchanges data with the counter 110, other medicine supply devices, and medicine packaging devices, an audit unit 113 that checks the medicines to be supplied to the patient against the prescription data, a prescription printer 114 that prints prescriptions according to the prescription data, a label printer 115 that prints labels to be affixed to vials according to the prescription data, a prescription master 116 that stores the prescription data, and the like.

[0077] The counter 110 is equipped with a control unit 117 that controls the operation of the counter 110 and exchanges data with a control unit 112 of the host system 111, a barcode reader 118 that reads barcodes on prescriptions, original drug bottles, and vials, a tray photography camera 119 (similar to the third camera 89c in the above embodiment) that photographs drugs on the tray of the counter 110 (meaning the drug storage area mainly composed of the first rotor 23, second rotor 35, and partition wall 18 in the above embodiment), and a vial / prescription photography camera 120 that photographs the vial and prescription supplied by the patient. The counter 110 also includes a drug master 121 that stores the names, shapes, sizes, etc. of various drugs, a vial master 122 that stores the sizes of vials and the numbers of various drugs contained therein, an image data master 123 that saves images captured by the tray photographing camera 119 and the vial / prescription photographing camera 120, a communication data master 124 that stores communication data such as data transmitted and data received with the control unit 112 of the host system 111, and a touch panel type operation display panel 125.

[0078] Power on and login actions As shown in FIG. 29, when an operator on the counter 110 side turns on the power of the counter 110 (S101), the control unit 117 starts an application, waits for login from the host system 111 side, starts a web service host (S102), and initializes the counter 110 (S103). On the other hand, on the host system 11 side, when the pharmacist logs in to the host system 111 based on the power-on of the counter 110 (S201), the control unit 112 on the host system 111 side performs user authentication (S202) and transmits a login request to the counter 110 side (S203). As a result, when the counter 110 side receives the login request from the host system 111 side (S104), it transmits a login response to the host system 111 side (S105). When the host system 111 side receives the login response from the counter 110 side, it recognizes the login (S204). In this way, the counter 110 side cannot perform counting processing linked to the prescription unless it receives a login request from the host system 111 side.

[0079] After logging in, the menu screen shown in Fig. 37 is displayed on the operation display screen of the counter 110. The menu screen is configured with a touch panel, and includes a Counting for Rx button for performing counting processing linked to a prescription (Rx), a Counting for manual button for performing counting processing of the required amount of medicine without linking with a prescription, a Master Maintenance button for adding and modifying medicines in the medicine master 121, and an Advanced Setting button for performing environment settings and the like.

[0080] Counter-based drug prescription processing When the operator on the counter 110 side touches the prescription counting process button, a prescription scan standby screen shown in FIG. 38 is displayed (S106). Furthermore, when the operator issues a prescription issuing instruction to the host system 111, the control unit 112 of the host system 111 receives the prescription issuing instruction (S206), performs a prescription issuing process, and performs a printing process with the prescription printer 114 (S207). The prescription scan standby screen of the counter 110 instructs the operator to scan the prescription as shown in Fig. 38, so the operator receives the issued prescription and scans it with the barcode reader 118 of the counter 110. When the scan is performed (S107), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs a prescription reading process (S108) and displays the count screen shown in Fig. 39 (S109). Next, the control unit transmits an Rx data request to the host system 111 in order to receive detailed prescription information from the host system 111 (S110). When the host system 111 receives an Rx data request from the counter 110 (S208), it transmits an Rx data response together with the prescription data (S209). When the counter 110 receives the Rx data response (S111), it saves the received data in the communication data master 124 (S112), and displays the prescription data (prescription number (Rx), patient name (Patient), drug code and name, and requested amount (Request)) on the count screen as shown in the figure (S113), and searches the drug master 121 for an image of the drug corresponding to the prescription data and displays it on the count screen (S114).

[0081] Next, the control unit 117 of the counter 110 searches the medicine master 121 for the size of the medicine corresponding to the prescription, and adjusts the tray size of the counter 110 based on the size of the medicine (S115). The tray size is the height regulated by the height regulating member 41 and the width of the second rotor 35 regulated by the width regulating member 52, as described above. Since the count screen instructs the operator to scan a stock bottle as shown in FIG. 39, the operator takes out a stock bottle corresponding to the name of the medicine in the prescription data and scans it with the barcode reader 118 of the counter 110. When the scan is performed (S116), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs a stock bottle barcode reading process (S117) and checks whether the medicine in the stock bottle is a medicine to be counted (S118). If the result is correct, the control unit 117 displays "OK" in the stock bottle check (Check a Stock Bottle) item in the Check column of the count screen in FIG. 39, and displays a message to input the medicine (S119). When the message "OK" is displayed and an instruction to insert medicine is displayed, the operator inserts the medicine from the original bottle into the tray of the counter 110.

[0082] Next, the control unit 117 of the counter 110 instructs the host system 111 to issue a label (S120). When the control unit 112 of the host system 111 receives the label issue instruction from the counter 110 (S210), the control unit 112 issues a blank label with prescription data printed thereon by the label printer 115 (S211). The operator at the counter receives the issued label and attaches it to a vial. The control unit 117 of the counter 110 instructs the count screen to scan the label (S121). This causes the operator to scan the label attached to the vial with the barcode reader 118 of the counter 110. Once scanned (S122), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs label barcode reading processing (S123) and checks whether the prescription displayed on the label is a prescription to be counted (S124). If correct, "OK" is displayed in the label check (Check a Vial Label) item in the Check column on the count screen in Figure 39.

[0083] When the label check is "OK", the operator instructs the counter 110 to start photographing the tray image on the count screen. When the control unit 117 of the counter 110 receives the instruction to start photographing the tray image (S125), it operates the counter 110 (S126), photographs the tray image (S127), and displays the photographed tray image on the left side (Live) of the camera image capture screen in FIG. 40 (S128). The counter 110 continues to operate until the drug sensor 51 detects that the drug on the first rotor 23 moves to the second rotor 35, is transported on the second rotor 35, and reaches the height regulating body 41. The tray image is an image of the drug stopped at the height regulating body 41 in real time. The operator checks that the drug in the tray image displayed on the camera image capture screen is the same as the image of the prescribed drug (S129), and if the operator cannot confirm the marking of the drug, the counter 110 will retry its operation, and this will be repeated until it can be confirmed. At this time, the confirmation of the medicine and instructions to retry are given by a pharmacist in the inspection department 113 of the host system 111. Once the image has been confirmed (S129), "OK" is displayed in the Capture Tray item in the Check column of the count screen in Fig. 39, and the tray image as shown on the right side of Fig. 40 (Still picture) is saved in the image data master 123 (S130).

[0084] When the tray image becomes "OK", the operator sets the vial in the dispensing unit 78 of the counter 110. When the control unit 117 of the counter 110 detects the setting of the vial (S131), it performs a counting process (S132). When the counting ends, the control unit 117 of the counter 110 displays the counted value in the center of the count screen and displays "OK" in the count item of the check column. When the count becomes "OK", the count screen instructs the operator to scan the stock bottle from which the medicine remaining on the tray is to be collected, so the stock bottle into which the medicine has been put is scanned by the barcode reader 118 of the counter 110. When the scan is performed (S133), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs a stock bottle barcode reading process (S134), checks whether the stock bottle is correct (S135), and performs a medicine collection process if it is correct (S136).

[0085] It is optional to recount the medicines counted by the counter 110 and contained in the vial for safety, but when the operator instructs recounting (S137) and detects the setting of the vial (S138), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs recounting processing (S139). When the recounting is completed, the operator attaches a cap to the vial, and places the vial and prescription under the vial / prescription photographing camera 120 with the vial placed on the prescription. Then, the operator instructs to photograph the vial / prescription on the count screen. When an instruction to photograph the vial / prescription is given (S140), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs vial / prescription photographing processing (S141), and displays the photographed image of the vial / prescription in the second row of the photo column on the count screen (S142). Note that if the vial label or the contents of the prescription cannot be confirmed from the photographed image, the vial / prescription photographing processing can be retried. When the pharmacist at the host system 111 confirms that the series of operations is complete (S143), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 creates prescription completion data (S144) and transmits the prescription completion data to the host system 111 (S145). The control unit 112 of the host system 111 receives the prescription completion data (S212) and stops the series of operations.

[0086] Splitting vials The control unit 117 of the counter 110 selects the size of the vial based on the prescription data, but if the prescribed amount cannot be contained in one vial, multiple vials (in the example of FIG. 41, three 40DRs) are displayed in the Split Vial column, as shown on the screen of FIG. 41, and it is displayed that 40 drugs are contained in two vials and 20 drugs are contained in the remaining vial, so the specified amount is counted and contained in each vial accordingly.

[0087] Processing when stockout occurs During the counting process, if the tray runs out of medicines, i.e., the tablet detection sensor no longer detects medicines, before a predetermined amount of medicines is counted up, a stock-out state occurs, in which case it is necessary to add medicines to the tray. As shown in Fig. 34, when it is determined that a stockout has occurred (S151), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 temporarily stops discharging and counting medicines (S152) and issues an instruction to scan a new original bottle. The operator takes out a new original bottle that corresponds to the medicine name in the prescription data and scans it with the barcode reader 118 of the counter 110. After scanning (S153), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs a new original bottle barcode reading process (S154) and checks whether the medicine in the new original bottle is a medicine to be counted (S118). The counting process is then continued (S132).

[0088] Processing of liquid and boxed medicine prescriptions other than tablets Liquid medication bottles or boxed medications supplied in boxes cannot be counted by the counter 110. However, the counter 110 allows for auditing in conjunction with prescriptions. When a liquid medication or box is prescribed, the operator places the liquid medication bottle or box under vial / prescription photographing camera 120. The operator then gives instructions to photograph the liquid medication bottle / box on the count screen. As shown in FIG. 35, when an instruction to photograph the liquid medication bottle / box is given (S161), control unit 117 of counter 110 performs processing to photograph the liquid medication bottle / box (S162), and displays the photographed image of the liquid medication bottle / box in the second row of the photo column on the count screen (S163). Note that if the contents of the label on the liquid medication bottle or box cannot be confirmed from the photographed image, the liquid medication bottle / box photographing process can be attempted again (S164). Next, the operator places the prescription for the liquid medication or box medication under the vial / prescription photography camera 120. Then, the operator issues an instruction to photograph the prescription on the count screen. When an instruction to photograph the prescription is issued (S165), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs prescription photography processing (S166) and displays the photographed image of the prescription in the third row of the photo column on the count screen (S167). Note that if the contents of the prescription cannot be confirmed from the photographed image, the prescription photography processing can be retried (S168). After the series of operations is completed, the process is the same as that from step S143 onwards.

[0089] Manual Counting The medicine counting device of the present invention can also perform manual counting processing, which simply counts medicines without linking them to prescription data. To perform this manual counting process, the operator touches the manual counting process button on the menu screen of Fig. 37. When a manual counting instruction is given (S171), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 displays the manual dispensing screen shown in Fig. 42 (S172). The operator specifies the required count number using the numeric keypad on the screen, removes the original bottles to be counted, and either scans them with the barcode reader 118 of the counter 110 or manually enters the NDC into the screen. When scanning is performed (S174), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs a process of reading the original bottle barcode (S175). When an NDC is manually input (S176), the control unit 117 searches the medicine master 121 to identify the medicine (S177). Next, the control unit 117 of the counter 110 adjusts the tray size of the counter 110, i.e., the regulating height by the height regulating member 41 and the transport width of the second rotating body 35 by the width regulating member 52, based on the size of the medicine (S178). Next, the control unit 117 of the counter 110 displays a message to input medicine into the tray (S179), and when a count instruction is received (S180), the control unit 117 performs the counting process (S181) and ends the counting process (S182). In manual counting, the number to count can be specified by selecting "all" or "specify count value." If "all" is selected, the process will end once all medications placed on the tray have been counted. If "specify count value" is selected, the entered quantity will be counted. In this case, if the entered quantity is not reached, the stock-out process described above will be carried out. This stock-out process requires scanning the NDC code of the original bottle to check whether it is the same as the medication being counted.

[0090] In the above embodiment, the medicine supplying device is used as a medicine counting device, but the present invention can also be applied to a medicine packaging device that stores various types of medicine in cassettes and packages specific medicines according to a prescription. [Explanation of symbols]

[0091] 1. Medicine container 2. Collection container 18…Partition wall 23…First rotating body 24…First rotating shaft 28...First drive motor (first drive means) 33...Angle adjustment motor (angle adjustment means) 35…Second rotating body 35a…Rib 36…Inner circumference 37…Mobile section 39...Second drive motor (second drive means) 41...Height regulation body 49...Height adjustment motor (height adjustment means) 51...medicine detection sensor (second drug detection means) 52...Width regulation body 57…Outer guide 63...Width adjustment motor (width adjustment means) 65…Medicine Information Section 66…Inner guide 68...Beveled edge 69…Slope surface 70...detection unit (first drug detection means) 71A~71D…Light emitting part 72A~72D…Light receiving section 73...Drug discharge member (drug discharge port) 74...Shutter 75...Drive motor (discharge permission means) 76...Switching valve unit 77...Medicine aisle 78...Discharge section (first passage section) 79...Collection section (second passage section) 80A, 80B... Swinging member (switching valve) 81...Elastic part 82A, 82B... Drive motor (drive means) 83...Central control unit (counting means) 86...Barcode reader 87…Memory X, X1: Tablets (medicine) Y, Y1, Y2…Capsules (medicine)

Claims

[Claim 1] a first rotating body that rotates about a first rotation axis; a second rotating body having an annular shape that rotates about a second rotation axis that extends in a direction different from that of the first rotation axis; A medicine outlet provided on the radially outer side of the second rotor; Equipped with The medicine supplied to the first rotor is transferred to the moving portion of the second rotor by the rotation of the first rotor, and the transferred medicine is transported to the medicine outlet by the rotation of the second rotor; and a medicine guide portion provided between the moving portion of the second rotating body and the medicine outlet, the medicine guide portion guiding the medicine on the second rotating body to the medicine outlet; a width regulating body provided between the moving portion of the second rotor and the drug guiding portion, disposed radially outward of the second rotor relative to the inner circumferential portion of the second rotor, and adjustably regulating a drug transport width between the inner circumferential portion of the second rotor and the moving portion; a height regulating body for regulating the transport height of the medicine between the upper surface of the second rotating body and the height regulating body; Equipped with The medicine guide unit includes: An inner guide extending in a tangential direction from an inner circumferential portion of the second rotor to the medicine outlet; an outer guide disposed radially outward of the second rotor with respect to the inner guide; having The height regulating body is a height regulating member disposed on the second rotating body and provided between the moving unit and the medicine guiding unit; a bridge member connected to the height regulating member and arranged to straddle from above the second rotating body to an outside of the second rotating body when viewed from a direction in which the first rotating shaft extends; an actuation receiving member that is connected to a portion of the installation member that is located outside the second rotor, receives power for vertically moving the height regulating member via the installation member, and adjusts the regulating height of the medicine by the height regulating member; A drug delivery device comprising:

Images