Powdered medicine supply device and powdered medicine packaging device

Abstract

To provide a powdered medicine supply device and a powdered medicine packaging device capable of simplifying the operation of a transfer robot that conveys a storage container in which a powdered medicine is contained and shortening the time required to convey the storage container.SOLUTION: The powdered medicine supply device includes: a rotating distribution disk for uniformly distributing powdered medicine supplied onto the disk; a storage container buffer which is provided on the distribution disk and transports a plurality of storage containers containing powdered medicine so that they rotate around a circular orbit, and which attaches / detaches the storage containers at predetermined attachment / detachment positions, transports them onto the distribution disk, and releases the powdered medicine from the storage containers onto the distribution disk; a storage container stocker which is rotatably disposed adjacent to the container buffer, and is capable of storing the plurality of storage containers, and in which the containers can be attached and detached at predetermined attachment / detachment positions in a circumferential direction; and a transfer robot capable of holding and transferring the storage containers between a storage container attachment / detachment position of the storage container stocker and a storage container attachment / detachment position of the storage container buffer.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a powder medicine supplying device that supplies powder medicine in small amounts and a powder medicine packaging device that releases powder medicine from the powder medicine supplying device one packet at a time and packages the powder medicine. [Background technology]

[0002] A conventional device of this type is a medicine dispensing device described in Patent Document 1. In this device, a medicine container is taken out of a container storage device provided at a position overlapping with a distribution tray in the vertical direction by a container moving means, and placed on a container placement device having a vibration table, and powdered medicine is discharged from the medicine container by vibration and placed on the distribution tray, and then the powdered medicine is scraped out to a medicine packaging device by a scraping device and packaged. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. WO2015 / 076267 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The medicine dispensing device described in Patent Document 1 uses a robot to transport a cassette from a cassette storage drum to a cassette placement position where powdered medicine is released, but since there are multiple cassette placement positions, the robot must transport the cassette to multiple locations, making the robot's operation complicated. In addition, when the cassette is removed from the cassette storage drum, it is in an upright position, and the cassette is rotated so that it is laid down at the cassette placement position. For this reason, the robot must also rotate the cassette.

[0005] As a result, the cassette transport operation by the robot is complex and it takes a long time to transport the cassette by the robot, so the time required for preparation of the distribution operation to the distribution tray becomes longer the farther the container placement position is, and as a result, there is a risk that the time required to start the powdered medicine distribution operation will also be long.

[0006] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a powder medicine supplying device and a powder medicine packaging device that can simplify the operation of a transfer robot that transports a storage container that contains powder medicine and also shorten the time required to transport the storage container. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the powdered medicine supplying device of the embodiment includes a rotating distribution disk for evenly distributing the powdered medicine supplied onto the disk; a storage container buffer that is provided on the distribution disk and transports a plurality of storage containers that store powdered medicine so as to rotate around a circular orbit, and the storage containers are attached and detached at a predetermined attachment and detachment position, and is transported onto the distribution disk to release the powdered medicine from the storage containers onto the distribution disk; a storage container storage that is rotatably provided at a position adjacent to the storage container buffer and is capable of storing a plurality of the storage containers and from which the storage containers can be attached and detached at a predetermined attachment and detachment position in the circumferential direction; and a transfer robot that is capable of holding and transferring the storage containers between the storage container attachment and detachment position of the storage container storage and the storage container attachment and detachment position of the storage container buffer. has.

[0008] In addition, the powder medicine packaging device of the embodiment includes the powder medicine supplying device, and a packaging device that releases powder medicine one packet at a time from a distribution disk of the powder medicine supplying device and packages the powder medicine. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view showing a powder medicine packaging device according to an embodiment; [Diagram 2] 1A to 1C are a left side view, a front view, and a right side view showing a powdered medicine packaging device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] 2 is a perspective view showing the configuration of a storage container storage, a storage container buffer, and a transfer robot inside the powder medicine packaging device according to the embodiment. FIG. [Figure 4] 1A to 1C are a left side view, a front view, and a right side view showing the configuration of a storage container storage, a storage container buffer, and a transfer robot inside a powder medicine packaging device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] 1 is a plan view showing the configuration of a storage container storage, a storage container buffer, a transfer robot, and a distribution disk inside a powder medicine packaging device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a transfer robot according to the embodiment. [Figure 7] 1A and 1B are perspective and plan views showing the configuration of a storage container storage, a storage container buffer, a distribution disk, and a transfer robot inside a powder medicine packaging device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] 1 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a storage container installation section of a storage container storage facility according to an embodiment; [Figure 9] 1A is a perspective view showing the configuration of a storage container buffer according to an embodiment, and FIG. 1B is a perspective view for explaining a mechanism for releasing powdered medicine from a storage container. [Figure 10] 10 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a relationship between a storage container and a holder of a transfer robot according to the embodiment. FIG. [Figure 11] 13A and 13B are diagrams for explaining a release mechanism for releasing powdered medicine from a storage container according to an embodiment. [Figure 12] 1 is a diagram for explaining the relationship between a storage container storage, a storage container buffer, a distribution disk, and internal partitions inside a powder medicine packaging device according to an embodiment. FIG. [Figure 13] 4 is a diagram for explaining the arrangement of a dehumidifier inside the powder medicine packaging device according to the embodiment. FIG. [Figure 14] 1 is a diagram for explaining the arrangement of a weighing device provided above a storage container buffer inside a powder medicine packaging device according to an embodiment, and a camera for capturing an image of the weighing device. FIG. [Figure 15] 10A and 10B are diagrams for explaining the relationship between the storage container storage facility and the storage containers according to the embodiment. [Figure 16]FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the arrangement of ionizers according to the embodiment. [Figure 17] FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the arrangement of a manual feed hopper according to the embodiment. [Figure 18] 1A to 1C are diagrams for explaining the principle of releasing powdered medicine from inside a storage container according to an embodiment. [Figure 19] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a packaging device according to an embodiment. [Figure 20] 1A to 1C are diagrams for explaining a distribution disk cleaning device according to an embodiment and the arrangement of storage containers in a storage container buffer. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, the powder medicine packaging device according to this embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0011] Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing the powder medicine packing device according to the present embodiment, (a) is a perspective view seen from the upper left, (b) is a perspective view seen from the upper right, and Fig. 2 (a), (b), and (c) are a left side view, a front view, and a right side view, respectively, of the powder medicine packing device.

[0012] 1 and 2, inside the main body 10 of the powder medicine packaging device, there is provided a powder medicine supplying device 12 at the top, and a packaging device 14 at the bottom for packaging powder medicine discharged from the powder medicine supplying device 12 one by one. Also, 13 is an operating section for operating the powder medicine packaging device, 15 is a vacuum cleaner for cleaning the inside of the powder medicine packaging device, 16 is a door for replacing the storage containers in the storage container storage provided inside all at once, and 17 is a door for replacing the storage containers in the storage container storage one by one. Furthermore, 18 is a door for cleaning the inside of the powder medicine packaging device including the distribution disk.

[0013] 3 to 7, a storage container storage 100, a storage container buffer 200, a transfer robot 300, and a packaging device 400 are provided inside the main body 10 of the powder medicine dispensing and packaging device. Hereinafter, the storage container will be simply called a cassette.

[0014] As shown in Figures 10 and 18, the cassette (container) 20 is a cylindrical container that can store powdered medicine inside, and the powdered medicine stored inside can be released little by little from the bottom by rotating a shaft 22 provided at the top as described below. Such a cassette 20 has a configuration as described in JP 2022-109165 A, as an example.

[0015] The cassette storage 100 is provided so as to be rotatable about a rotating shaft 102 by a timing belt stretched between a driving motor 110 and a driving pulley 112 provided at the bottom of the cassette storage 100. Ten cassette holding sections 104 are formed around the rotating shaft 102. Each of the cassette holding sections 104 can detachably hold a cassette 20 in an upright position in which the powdered medicine can be released from the bottom. The cassette holding sections 104 are formed in three stages in the axial direction of the rotating shaft 102. Therefore, a total of 30 cassette holding sections 104 are formed in the cassette storage 100, and a maximum of 30 cassettes 20 can be stored.

[0016] Each cassette holder 104 is provided with a tray 106 for catching the powdered medicine even if the powdered medicine spills from the cassette 20 installed therein. By providing this tray 106, even if the cassette 20 is subjected to vibration when the cassette 20 is attached or detached from the cassette holder 104, causing the powdered medicine to spill from the cassette 20 or the powdered medicine attached to the cassette 20 to fall, the powdered medicine is caught by the tray 106 and does not fall to the bottom of the cassette storage 100. As a result, even if the powdered medicine spills, it will not fall on the distribution disk 420 described later, so that mixing of medicines different from the medicines to be packaged can be prevented. The three-stage cassette holder 104 provided in the cassette storage 100 can rotate together around the rotation shaft 102.

[0017] Further, an RFID reader 120 is provided near the cassette holding portion 104, and is capable of reading information on an RFID (not shown) attached to the cassette 20. The RFID readers 120 are provided in five consecutive cassette holding portions 104 along the circumferential direction of the cassette storage cabinet 100, and no RFID readers are provided in the other five cassette holding portions 104. Moreover, the RFID readers 120 are provided in the same position in all three stages of the cassette holding portions 104.

[0018] This RFID reader 120 is provided to identify the powdered medicine contained in the cassette 20 held in the cassette holding section 104 when the powdered medicine packaging device is powered on and started up. At the time of startup, the RFID reader 120 reads the RFID information of the cassettes 20 held in the five cassette holding sections 104 arranged along the circumferential direction, and then the cassette storage cabinet 100 is rotated 180 degrees to read the powdered medicine information of the remaining five cassettes 20 (15 in three stages). The RFID reading of the cassettes 20 is performed not only when the powdered medicine packaging device is started up (when the power is turned on), but also when the cassette exchange door 16 of the device main body 10 is opened, a large number of cassettes 20 are exchanged, and the door is closed.

[0019] A cassette buffer 200 is provided at a position adjacent to the cassette storage 100. This cassette buffer 200 is provided rotatably about its rotation axis (202 shown in FIG. 7), and six cassette holding sections 204 are formed at equal intervals around the rotation axis 202. Therefore, each cassette holding section 204 is provided at 60 degree intervals in the circumferential direction, and each cassette holding section 204 holds the cassette 20 in a position that allows the powdered medicine to be released from the bottom, and transports the cassette 20 so that it moves around a circular orbit.

[0020] These cassette holding parts 204 are provided with an RFID reader for reading the RFID of the held cassette 20. Also, under the cassette holding parts 204, similar to the cassette storage 100, a tray 206 for catching spilled (dropped) powdered medicine in case the powdered medicine should spill from the cassette 20 is provided. The tray 206 is provided at a position among the six cassette holding parts 204 of the cassette buffer 200, excluding the position where the powdered medicine is discharged from the cassette 20 (position 210 shown in FIG. 7(b)).

[0021] The configuration for holding the cassettes 20 in the cassette holding unit 104 of the cassette storage 100 and the cassette holding unit 204 of the cassette buffer 200 will be described in detail later. A distribution disk 420 is provided below the cassette buffer 200, overlapping the cassette buffer 200 in the vertical direction, for evenly distributing the powdered medicine discharged from the lower part of the cassette 20 provided in the cassette buffer 200. A continuous groove is formed in the vicinity of the outer periphery of the distribution disk 420 (421 in FIG. 20), and a ring-shaped pile of powdered medicine is formed on the distribution disk 420 by discharging the powdered medicine into the groove while rotating the distribution disk 420.

[0022] The cassette buffer 200 is formed with a cassette loading / unloading position 208 where the cassettes 20 transferred by a transfer robot (to be described later) are loaded into the cassette holding portions 204 and where the cassettes 20 are detached from the cassette buffer 200 by the transfer robot.

[0023] Meanwhile, the cassette storage 100 is also formed with a cassette attachment / detachment section 108 through which the cassette 20 is attached to the cassette holding section 104 and detached from the cassette holding section 104 by a transfer robot.

[0024] Here, the lateral (horizontal) positional relationship between the cassette storage 100, the cassette buffer 200, and the distribution disk 420 will be described in detail. Since the cassette buffer 200 needs to release and distribute powdered medicine from the cassette 20 inside the cassette buffer 200 to the distribution disk 420, the cassette buffer 200 and the distribution disk 420 are provided with a partial overlap in the vertical direction as described above. Specifically, as shown in Fig. 5(b), Fig. 7(b), and Fig. 20(a), the release position 210 from the cassette 20 of the cassette buffer 200 is positioned at the top of the outer circumferential groove 421 of the distribution disk 420. Preferably, the position 210 where the straight line C connecting the rotation center 422 of the distribution disk 420 and the rotation center (rotation axis) 202 of the cassette buffer 200 intersects with the rotation trajectory of the cassette 20 of the rotating cassette buffer 200 is set as the position where the powdered medicine is released from the cassette 20.

[0025] The cassette mounting / detaching position 208 of the cassette buffer 200 and the powdered medicine discharge position 210 are positions rotated by 120 degrees. Therefore, since the cassette 20 at the cassette mounting / detaching position 208 can be replaced while the powdered medicine is being discharged from the cassette 20 at the powdered medicine discharge position 210, no extra time is spent on replacing the cassette 20. In other words, when the cassette 20 that has finished discharging the powdered medicine at the discharge position 210 is moved to the position (cassette mounting / detaching position) 208 where it is detached by the transfer robot 300, another cassette 20 is located at the discharge position 210. Therefore, during the cassette 20 mounting / detaching operation by the transfer robot 300, it is possible to discharge the powdered medicine from another cassette 20 or a cleaning agent as described later, and the cassette 20 replacement operation and the powdered medicine (or cleaning agent) discharge operation from the cassette 20 can be performed in parallel, which can be performed efficiently.

[0026] In addition, the cassette 20 is attached to and detached from the cassette storage 100 by a transfer robot 300, which will be described later, and therefore the cassette 20 is frequently vibrated. Even if the powdered medicine attached to the cassette 20 in the cassette storage 100 falls due to this vibration, the cassette storage 100 is provided at a position that does not overlap with the distribution disk 420 in the vertical direction so that the fallen powdered medicine does not fall directly onto the distribution disk 420.

[0027] As will be described later in detail, a partition (wall surface) 150 is provided between the cassette storage 100 and the distribution disk 420 to separate them so that the powdered medicine that falls from the cassette storage 100 does not fall directly, but does not float and reach the distribution disk 420. In addition, this partition 150 also has the effect of preventing the powdered medicine discharged from the cassette 20 in the cassette buffer 200 onto the distribution disk 420 from scattering and passing through to the cassette storage 100 side.

[0028] In this way, by arranging the distribution disk 420 and the cassette storage 100 at positions where they do not overlap vertically, powdered medicine that falls from the cassette 20 in the cassette storage 100 does not fall onto the distribution disk 420, and mixing of medicines different from the medicines to be packaged can be prevented as much as possible. In addition, a partition (wall surface) 150 is provided between the cassette storage 100 and the storage compartment of the distribution disk 420 to separate them, so mixing of medicines can be further prevented.

[0029] In addition, the distribution disk 420 and the cassette buffer 200 overlap in the vertical direction, so that the overlapping portion allows the powdered medicine to be discharged from the cassette 20 in the cassette buffer 200 to the distribution disk 420. In addition, the cassette attachment / detachment position 208 of the cassette buffer 200 is provided at a position that does not overlap with the distribution disk 420, so that even if the powdered medicine should spill at this position, it will not fall directly onto the distribution disk 420, and it is possible to prevent different medicines from being mixed into the medicines to be packaged.

[0030] A transfer robot 300 as shown in Fig. 7 is provided near the cassette storage 100 and the cassette buffer 200. This transfer robot 300 mainly holds and transfers the cassette 20 between the cassette storage 100 and the cassette buffer 200. This transfer robot 300 has a vertical arm 302 fixed to a housing (not shown). This vertical arm 302 is provided with a Z-axis actuator 306 that moves a movable unit 304 in the up and down direction (Z direction) along the vertical arm 302. Note that Fig. 6(a) shows both a state in which the movable unit 304 is located at the upper position and a state in which it is located at the lower position.

[0031] 6, the movable unit 304 is provided with an X-axis actuator 308 capable of moving the slider 307 in the X direction relative to the movable unit 304. The movable unit 304 is further provided with a θ-axis actuator 310 that rotates the slider 307 in the θ direction around a rotation axis (rotation center) 312 (see FIG. 7(b)). A holder 320 that holds and moves the cassette 20 is provided at the tip of the slider 307.

[0032] With this configuration, the holder 320 is moved up and down by the Z-axis actuator 306, rotated by the θ-axis actuator 310, and linearly driven in the X-axis direction by the X-axis actuator 308. As a result, the holder 320 of the transfer robot 300 moves up and down by the Z-axis actuator 306, rotates around the θ-axis as the rotation center, and moves linearly along the X-axis. The linear movement along the X-axis can be stated as the holder 320 moving in a direction toward or away from the θ-axis which is the rotation axis 312 of the transfer robot 300.

[0033] Next, the operation of the transfer robot 300 to receive (hold) the cassette 20 from the cassette storage 100 and transfer it to the cassette buffer 200 will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0034] First, the movable unit 304 of the transfer robot 300 is moved up and down (in the Z-axis direction) to the height where the cassettes 20 containing the powdered medicine to be packaged are stored in the three-stage cassette holding section 104 of the cassette storage 100. At this time, the cassette storage 100 is rotated to move the cassettes 20 containing the powdered medicine to be packaged to the cassette attachment / detachment position 108.

[0035] 7(b), a cassette loading / unloading position 108 of the cassette storage 100 is formed on a straight line A connecting the rotation center 102 of the cassette storage 100 and the rotation center 312 of the transfer robot 300. In addition, a cassette loading / unloading position 208 of the cassette buffer 200 is formed on a straight line B connecting the rotation center 202 of the cassette buffer 200 and the rotation center 312 of the transfer robot 300.

[0036] In addition, the distance between the rotation center 312 of the transfer robot 300 and the cassette loading / unloading position 108 of the cassette storage cabinet 100 is configured to be equal to the distance between the rotation center 312 of the transfer robot 300 and the cassette loading / unloading position 208 of the cassette buffer 200.

[0037] Therefore, the θ-axis actuator 310 of the transfer robot 300 is rotated to a position where the slider 307 of the transfer robot 300 overlaps with the line A. When the slider 307 is moved in the X-axis direction in this state, the holder 320 is moved to the cassette loading / unloading position 108 of the cassette storage cabinet 100. Of course, these movements can be made simultaneously within a range where the holder 320 is not interfered with by other members.

[0038] Thereafter, the slider 307 is moved in the X-axis direction in the reverse direction while the cassette 20 is being held by the transfer robot 300. This allows the cassette 20 to be removed from the cassette storage 100.

[0039] Furthermore, after the transfer robot 300 removes the cassette 20 from the cassette storage 100, the θ-axis actuator 310 is rotated to rotate the cassette 20 towards the cassette buffer 200, whereby the cassette 20 is moved to the position of the cassette loading / unloading section 208 of the cassette buffer 200. Here, the distance between the rotation center 312 of the transfer robot 300 and the cassette loading / unloading position 108 of the cassette storage 100 and the distance between the rotation center 312 of the transfer robot 300 and the cassette loading / unloading position 208 of the cassette buffer 200 are configured to be equal, and therefore the movement of the slider 307 in the X-axis direction is always the same distance.

[0040] In this way, the movement of the cassettes 20 in the cassette storage 100 and the cassette buffer 200 by the transfer robot 300 always rotates at the same angle in the θ-axis direction, and also always moves the same distance in the X-axis direction. Furthermore, because the movement by the transfer robot 300 only requires linear movement of a fixed distance in the X-axis direction and rotation of a fixed angle in the θ-axis direction, movement control by the transfer robot is simple, and the movement distance is short, so the movement time is short. As a result, the time required to complete preparation for the packaging operation can also be shortened.

[0041] Here, the cassette holding section 104 of the cassette storage 100 and the structure for holding the cassette 20 in the cassette holding section 104 will be described with reference to Fig. 15. The cassette holding section 104 is provided with a cassette holder 116 formed in a semicircular shape and having approximately the same diameter as the cylindrical section of the cassette 20. The upper part of the cassette holding section 104 is provided with a pair of recesses 108 into which a pair of protrusions 24 formed on the lid section 23 of the cassette 20 protruding downward are fitted. Furthermore, a permanent magnet 114 is embedded between the pair of recesses 108 of the cassette holding section 104 for magnetically attracting the magnetic body 26 provided between the protrusions 24 of the cassette 20.

[0042] When the cassette 20 is to be held by the cassette holding part 104, the transfer robot 300 moves the cassette 20 so that the cylindrical part of the cassette 20 enters between the cassette holders 116. When the holding part 320 of the transfer robot 300 moves slightly downward after the cylindrical part of the cassette 20 moves between the cassette holders 116, the cassette 20 moves downward due to its own weight, and the protruding part 24 of the cassette 20 fits into the recessed part 108 of the cassette holding part 104. Then, the magnetic body 26 of the cassette 20 is attracted by the permanent magnet 114 of the cassette holding part 104, and the cassette 20 is fixed to the cassette holding part 104. Thereafter, the transfer robot 300 retreats from the cassette holding part 104, and the cassette 20 is held by the cassette holding part 104.

[0043] As shown in FIG. 7(a) and FIG. 9(a), the configuration of the cassette holding section 204 of the cassette buffer 200 is similar to that of the cassette holding section 104 of the cassette storage cabinet 100, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted.

[0044] On the other hand, the transfer mechanism of the cassette 20 by the transfer robot 300 is configured as shown in Fig. 10. That is, a held member 28 is provided on the cylindrical portion of the cassette 20. A pair of square holes 29 are formed in this held member 28. The square holes 29 are formed so that the lower hole is wider and the upper hole is narrower. In contrast, a pair of hooks 322 are formed to protrude from the tip of the holding portion 320 of the transfer robot 300. The tips of the pair of hooks 322 protrude upward and the bases are recessed.

[0045] The transfer robot 300 holds the cassette 20 in the process shown in FIG. 10. First, as shown in FIG. 10(a), the slider 307 of the transfer robot 300 is moved in the X-axis direction to insert a pair of hooks 322 provided at the tip of the holding part 320 into the square hole 29 of the held member 28 of the cassette 20 (FIG. 10(b)). Then, when the movable unit 304 of the transfer robot 300 is raised in the Z-axis direction, the holding part 320 also rises, and the recesses at the bases of the hooks 322 are inserted into the narrow portion at the top of the square hole 29 (FIG. 10(c)). As a result, the held member 28 of the cassette 20, i.e., the cassette 20, is securely held by the holding part 320 of the transfer robot 300 (FIG. 10(d)).

[0046] 7, the holding and transfer of the cassette 20 by the transfer robot 300 will be described. The cassette mounting / removal position 108 is formed on a straight line A connecting the rotation center 102 of the cassette storage 100 and the rotation center 312 of the transfer robot 300. Therefore, when the transfer robot 300 mounts or removes the cassette 20, the holding part 320 of the transfer robot 300 is moved in the X-axis direction toward the position of the rotation center 102 of the cassette storage 100 while being positioned on the straight line A, so that the hook 322 of the holding part 320 is inserted into the square hole 29 formed in the held member 28 of the cassette 20 (FIG. 10(b)). In this state, when the holding part 320 of the transfer robot 300 is raised in the Z-axis direction, the cassette 20 is reliably held by the transfer robot 300 from the state held by the cassette holding part 104 (state of FIG. 10(c)), and transfer is possible.

[0047] Although the holding and transfer of the cassette 20 in the cassette storage 100 by the transfer robot 300 has been described above, the same applies to the transfer of the cassette 20 in the cassette buffer 200 by the transfer robot 300. In FIG. 7(b), a cassette loading / unloading position 208 for the cassette buffer 200 is formed on a straight line B that connects the rotation center 202 of the cassette buffer 200 and the rotation center 312 of the transfer robot 300.

[0048] Then, the transfer robot 300 rotates the θ-axis actuator 310 of the transfer robot 300 to rotate the holder 320 to the position of line B for the cassette 20 removed (removed) from the cassette loading / unloading position 108 of the cassette storage 100. In parallel with this rotation, the holder 320 is moved in the Z-axis direction and lowered to the cassette loading / unloading position 208 of the cassette buffer 200. Thereafter, the slider 307 is moved in the X-axis direction, so that the cassette 20 held by the holder 320 is moved to the cassette loading / unloading position 208 of the cassette buffer 200. Thereafter, the holder 320 of the transfer robot 300 is lowered, so that the cassette 20 is held by the cassette holder 204 of the cassette buffer 200.

[0049] In this way, the transfer robot 300 transfers the cassette 20 from the cassette loading / unloading position 108 provided at a predetermined position in the circumferential direction of the cassette storage 100 to the cassette loading / unloading position 208 of the cassette buffer 200 provided adjacent to the cassette storage 100. The cassette storage 100 and the cassette buffer 200 are provided adjacent to each other, and the distance from the rotation center of the transfer robot 300 to the cassette holding part of the cassette storage 100 is equal to the distance from the rotation center of the transfer robot 300 to the cassette holding part of the cassette buffer 200. Therefore, the rotation angle of the θ-axis actuator 310 of the transfer robot 300 required to transfer the cassette 20 is always constant. In addition, the moving distance of the cassette holding part 320 in the X-axis direction is also constant. Therefore, the control for transferring the cassette 20 is simple and the moving time is short.

[0050] With the held member 28 of the cassette 20, i.e., the cassette 20, held by the holding portion 320 of the transfer robot 300, the θ-axis actuator 310 of the transfer robot 300 is rotated. By such holding and transfer, the cassette 20 can be transferred from the cassette storage 100 to the cassette buffer 200 while being held in a position that allows the powdered medicine to be released from the bottom.

[0051] Then, by rotating the cassette buffer 200 that received the cassette 20 clockwise by 120 degrees, the cassette 20 transferred from the cassette storage 100 is moved to the discharge position 210 shown in Fig. 7(b) within the cassette buffer 200. By discharging the powdered medicine from the cassette 20 in this state, the powdered medicine is discharged into the groove (421 in Fig. 20) provided on the outer periphery of the distribution disk 420.

[0052] Next, a mechanism for discharging powdered medicine from the cassette 20 in the cassette buffer 200 will be described. As shown in Fig. 7(a), the cassette buffer 200 is provided with six cassette holding units 204, and the cassette holding units 204 are rotated by a rotation drive mechanism 220 provided at the top of the cassette buffer 200. Also, a discharge mechanism 240 for discharging powdered medicine from the cassette 20 is provided at the top of the cassette buffer 200. Then, the powdered medicine in the cassette 20 is discharged by driving the discharge mechanism 240.

[0053] The powdered medicine discharge mechanism 240 is shown in detail in Figures 9 and 11. In Figure 11, 242 is a motor for rotating the shaft 22 of the cassette 20. The rotational driving force of this motor 242 is transmitted to a shaft 248 of a coupling 246 that fits onto the shaft 22 of the cassette 20 via a timing belt 244. Meanwhile, a bracket 250 on which the motor 242, the coupling 246, the shaft 248, etc. are mounted is moved up and down as a whole by a motor 252, a timing belt 254, etc.

[0054] With this configuration, when the cassette 20 containing the powdered medicine to be discharged is moved to the powdered medicine discharge position 210 of the cassette buffer 200, the motor 252 rotates to lower the coupling 246, and the coupling 246 engages with the shaft 22 of the cassette 20. The motor 242 then rotates to rotate the shaft 22 of the cassette 20, and the powdered medicine contained in the cassette 20 is discharged little by little from the bottom of the cassette 20 to the distribution disk 420.

[0055] Next, the principle of the powdered medicine discharge mechanism of the cassette 20 will be explained with reference to FIG. 18. In FIG. 18, (a) is a cross-sectional view of the cassette 20 showing a state in which the shutter 62 at the bottom of the cassette 20 is closed, and (b) is a cross-sectional view of the cassette 20 showing a state in which the shutter 62 is open. The cassette 20 has a cylindrical main body 60, an inverted cone section 64 provided at the bottom of the main body 60, and a shutter 62 that prevents the powdered medicine from falling from the opening at the bottom of the inverted cone section 64. A rotary drive shaft 65 is provided from the main body 60 to the inverted cone section 64. A screw 68 is formed on the outer diameter of the part of the rotary drive shaft 65 that corresponds to the inverted cone section 64, and the powdered medicine stored inside the main body 60 is discharged little by little from the opening at the bottom by rotating the rotary drive shaft 65. The upper part 22 of the rotary drive shaft 65 protrudes upward from the main body 60 and is driven to rotate by a coupling 246 shown in FIG. 9.

[0056] Next, cleaning of the distribution disk 420 will be described. After the powdered medicine is discharged from the cassette 20 onto the distribution disk 420 and then discharged from the distribution disk 420 by the scraping device 424 and packaged, there is a possibility that a small amount of powdered medicine remains on the distribution disk 420. In this type of powdered medicine packaging device, it is necessary to prevent different types of medicine from being mixed together. For this reason, after the powdered medicine is discharged from the distribution disk 420, baking soda, which functions as a cleaning agent, is sprinkled on the distribution disk 420 to clean the distribution disk.

[0057] In this embodiment, the cassettes 20 containing the cleaning agent are always held in cassette holding portions 204 at specific positions in the cassette buffer 200. As an example, the cassettes 20 are held in two of the six cassette holding portions 204 in the cassette buffer 200. A specific example will be described with reference to FIG.

[0058] In FIG. 20, the cassette exchange position 208 and the powdered medicine discharge position 210 are set at positions with an angle of 120 degrees. For example, the positions of the cassette holding section 204 are tentatively named a to f. In this case, the cassette 20 containing the cleaning agent is held in the cassette holding sections c and d. By arranging in this manner, the cassette 20 containing the powdered medicine to be distributed is held in the holding section a at the cassette exchange position 208. Then, in order to discharge the powdered medicine, the cassette buffer 200 is rotated 120 degrees until the cassette a is at the position of the powdered medicine discharge position 210.

[0059] Then, in order to replace the cassette 20 a that has finished discharging the powdered medicine from the cassette 20 a, the cassette buffer 200 is rotated by another 240 degrees, and the cassette 20 a is rotated to the cassette exchange position 208. Thereafter, the transfer robot 300 uses the time during which the cassette 20 a is removed from the cassette buffer 200 and a new cassette 20 is mounted at the cassette exchange position 208 to discharge the cleaning agent held in the cassette holding portion 204 c to the distribution disk 420, thereby shortening the time. In this case, the cassettes 20 for cleaning may be held at positions c and d. That is, when the cassette 20 a is in the cassette mounting / removal position, the cassette 20 c is in the powdered medicine discharging position 210, and when the cassette 20 b is in the cassette mounting / removal position 208, the cassette 20 d is in the powdered medicine discharging position 210.

[0060] In this way, by constantly holding the cassette 20 for cleaning the distribution disk 420 at a specific position in the cassette buffer 200, it is not necessary to transport the cassette 20 containing the cleaning agent by the transport robot 300 each time to clean the distribution disk 420, which saves time and is efficient. Also, when the cleaning agent in the cassette 20 c or d is being discharged onto the distribution disk 420, the cassette 20 a or b can be replaced (removed), which is even more efficient.

[0061] 435 shown in FIG. 20(a) is a dust collector for cleaning the distribution disk 420. The cleaning agent discharged to the distribution disk 420 is discharged to the drop hopper 426 by the scraping device 424 and is sucked in the drop hopper 426 by a suction mechanism (not shown). The dust collector 435 is configured as shown in FIG. 20(b). This dust collector 435 is described in, for example, JP 2017-190180 A, and during cleaning, the dust collection head 30 rotates to lightly contact the outer circumferential groove of the distribution disk 420. Then, by sucking air from a suction port (not shown), the cleaning agent remaining on the distribution disk 420 is sucked together with the powdered agent to clean it. Note that cleaning with a cleaning agent is not necessarily required, and cleaning of the distribution disk 420, the drop hopper 426, and the scraping device 424 by air suction may be performed without scattering the cleaning agent.

[0062] Normally, after the powdered medicine is released onto the distribution disk 420 and the powdered medicine is scraped off from the distribution disk 420 and packaged, the scraping device 424 is cleaned with a cleaning device as described in JP 2022-132785 A. Furthermore, as described in JP 2019-202801 A, the drop hopper 426 is cleaned by blowing air onto it and sucking air into it. In addition, after cleaning the drop hopper 426, the distribution disk 420 is cleaned by a dust collector 435.

[0063] In particular, after packaging special medicines such as powerful drugs, it is necessary to ensure that no residue of the powerful drug remains, so after packaging the medicine, a cleaning agent such as baking soda is sprayed onto the distribution disk 420 from a cassette 20 containing a cleaning agent such as baking soda that is held in a cassette buffer 420. The cleaning agent is scraped off by a scraping device 424, dropped into a drop hopper 426, and must be contained in a packaging paper 428 of the packaging device 400 for disposal. This is because, although most of the cleaning agent is cleaning agent, it contains a very small amount of powerful drug, and must be collected reliably. After that, the drop hopper 426 is washed with air, and the distribution disk 420 is cleaned by a dust collector 435.

[0064] Next, the partition (wall) 150 formed between the storage space of the distribution disk 420 and the cassette storage 100 will be described with reference to FIG. 12. In this type of medicine packaging device, it is important that medicines other than the prescribed (packaged) medicines are not mixed in. In order to prevent this mixing of medicines, the cassette storage 100 and the distribution disk 420 are arranged in positions that do not overlap in the vertical direction, so that even if powdered medicine spills (drops) from the cassette storage 100, it is configured not to mix in the distribution disk 420, as described above. Furthermore, it is possible that the powdered medicine discharged to the distribution disk 420 will fly up, pass through the cassette storage 100 side, and adhere to the cassette 20 in the cassette storage 100. In this way, in order to prevent the powdered medicine once released onto the distribution disc 420 from adhering to the cassette 20 in the cassette storage 100 and becoming mixed into the distribution disc 420 when other powdered medicines are distributed, a partition (wall) 150 is formed between the distribution disc 420 and the cassette storage 100 in the powdered medicine packaging device of this embodiment.

[0065] In FIG. 12, (a) shows the state in which the internal cleaning door 18 of the main body 10 is opened to show the internal mechanism. The internal cleaning door 18 allows the distribution disk 420 to be cleaned from the outside using a vacuum cleaner 15 by opening the door, and a cleaning hose can be inserted into the area of ​​the distribution disk 420. In FIG. 12(a), the part hatched light black is a partition (wall surface) 150 for blocking the space between the distribution disk 420 and the cassette storage 100. Also, FIG. 12(b) is a cross-sectional view of the powdered medicine packaging device main body 10 cut at the position indicated by the arrow cc in FIG. 12(c), and the thick line portion 150 is a partition (wall surface). In FIG. 12(b), a partition wall 150 is provided between the distribution disk 420 and the cassette storage 100 and between the distribution disk 420 and the cassette buffer 200, except for the powdered medicine discharge position 210 of the cassette buffer 200. By providing partitions (wall surfaces) between the distribution disc 420 and the cassette storage 100, and between the storage compartment of the distribution disc 420 and the cassette buffer 200 in this manner, contamination of medicines can be further prevented.

[0066] 12(a) and (b) show a static eliminator (ionizer) 170, which discharges ions generated by the static eliminator in the area of ​​the distribution disk 420 to eliminate the charge on the powdered medicine scattered near the distribution disk 420 and prevent the scattered powdered medicine from adhering to the inside of the device due to static electricity. As shown in FIG. 16, the ionizer 170 can rotate around a rotating shaft 171 provided on the partition wall 150, and the direction of the emission surface can be changed. FIG. 16(a) shows a state in which the ion emission surface is rotated to face the inside of the device and the static elimination area 172 is discharged. FIG. 16(b) shows the ionizer 170 rotated so that the ion emission surface faces the front side.

[0067] Furthermore, FIG. 13 shows the arrangement of the dehumidifier 176, which is provided on the cassette storage 100 side of the partition (wall) 150 shown in FIG. 12. This is to prevent the powdered medicine in the cassette 20 from being altered by humidity or from adhering to each other and becoming so-called lumps by dehumidifying the cassette storage 100 and the cassette buffer 200 area. If the powdered medicine becomes lumps, it will not be possible to release small amounts at a time when releasing from the cassette 20, and there is a concern that it will be released in a lump. In order to prevent this and to keep the powdered medicine in the cassette dry, the dehumidifier 176 is provided. The air dried by the dehumidifier 176 is blown in the direction of the cassette storage 100 along the flow of the dry air described by the arrow 177, so as to keep the cassette storage 100 particularly dry. The water generated by the dehumidifier 176 is discharged to a drain bottle (not shown) by a drain tube 178 as shown in FIG. 13.

[0068] Next, the cassette weighing section 260 provided at the top of the cassette buffer 200 will be described with reference to Figs. 3 and 5. In Figs. 3(a) and 5(a), 260 is a cassette weighing section, which is formed at the top of the cassette buffer 200. The cassette weighing section 260 is located at a position just above the cassette attachment / detachment position 208 of the cassette buffer 200 where the cassette 20 to be weighed is placed. For this reason, the cassette 20 that has finished discharging the powdered medicine in the cassette buffer 200 is taken out (detached) from the cassette buffer 200 by the holding section 320 of the transfer robot 300, and the cassette 20 is raised by the Z-axis actuator 306 of the transfer robot 300 and transferred by the X-axis actuator 308, so that it can be moved to the cassette holding section 262 of the cassette weighing section 260.

[0069] 14, a camera 266 is provided near the cassette weighing unit 260, and the weighed value of the cassette 20 weighed by the cassette weighing unit 260 is captured by the camera 266. The weight weighed by the cassette weighing unit 260 is subtracted from the pre-stored weight before the powdered medicine is released (the measured value after the previous release from the cassette 20 is stored in association with the RFID identification number of the cassette) to obtain the weight of the released powdered medicine.

[0070] On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4, the powdered medicine released from the cassette 20 in the cassette buffer 200 to the distribution disk 420 is weighed by a weighing device 430 provided at the bottom of the distribution disk 420, and the release of the powdered medicine from the cassette 20 is stopped when the weight of the powdered medicine prescribed in the prescription is reached.

[0071] Immediately after the powdered medicines are discharged from the cassette 20 to the distribution disk 420, the powdered medicines distributed to the distribution disk 420 are packaged one by one in the packaging paper of the packaging device via a hopper (not shown) by the scraping device 424 shown in Fig. 3. The configuration for packaging the powdered medicines in the packaging paper via the scraping device 424 and the drop hopper 426 will be described later.

[0072] Meanwhile, in parallel with the operation of discharging the powdered medicine from the distribution disk 420 by the scraping device 424, the transfer robot 300 takes out the cassette 20 from the cassette buffer 200 and moves the cassette 20 to the cassette holding section 262 of the cassette weighing section 260. Then, the weight of the powdered medicine discharged to the distribution disk 420 and measured by the weighing device 430 is compared with the weight of the powdered medicine measured by the cassette weighing section 260 and removed from the cassette 20. If the difference between the weight of the powdered medicine weighed by the weighing device 430 and the weight of the powdered medicine measured by the cassette weighing section 260 and removed from the cassette 20 is within a predetermined value as a result of this comparison, the packaged powdered medicine is discharged outside the machine as being correct.

[0073] If the weight measurement value does not fall within a predetermined range, a warning is issued to the operator and the powdered medicine packaged is collected. The weight of the powdered medicine remaining in the cassette 20 is measured by the cassette weighing unit 260 in this manner, and the measurement value of the cassette weighing unit 260 is photographed by the camera 266 and stored in order to confirm the measurement value later. It is preferable that an image of the powdered medicine weighed by the weighing device 430 is also photographed by the camera and stored.

[0074] The order of the release of the powdered medicine from the distribution disk 420 after distribution to the distribution disk 420 and the measurement of the weight of the powdered medicine remaining in the cassette by the cassette weighing unit 260 can be changed by the application program of the powdered medicine packaging device. For example, if it is desired to shorten the packaging time of the powdered medicine, the powdered medicine scraping operation can be performed immediately after the release of the powdered medicine to the distribution disk 420 is completed. Also, in order to avoid the occurrence of incompletely packaged medicines without prioritizing the packaging time, the weight of the powdered medicine remaining in the cassette 20 can be measured after release to the distribution disk 420 and before scraping.

[0075] 17 is a diagram for explaining the outline of the mechanism for discharging powdered medicine from the drawer-type hopper 500. When it becomes necessary to pack powdered medicine that is not stored in the cassette storage 100, the drawer-type hopper 500 is pulled out, the powdered medicine weighed by an external weighing device by a pharmacist is stored in the hopper 500, and the drawer is pushed into the inside of the powdered medicine packing device, causing an electromagnetic feeder provided near the hopper to vibrate, and the powdered medicine stored in the hopper is supplied to the distribution disk 420 by the vibration.

[0076] Next, the packaging device 400 that packages the powdered medicine distributed to the distribution disk 420 will be described with reference to FIG. 19. In FIG. 19, 420 is a distribution disk that distributes the powdered medicine evenly on the outer circumference from the cassette 20 in the cassette buffer 200. The weight of the powdered medicine distributed to this distribution disk 420 is measured by a weighing device 430 shown in FIG. 4. Specifically, the weight when no powdered medicine is discharged to the distribution disk 420 is set as the weight of the tare, and reset to zero, and the weight of the powdered medicine supplied to the distribution disk 420 thereafter is measured. When the weight of the powdered medicine specified in the prescription is discharged to the distribution disk 420, the discharge of the powdered medicine from the cassette 20 is stopped.

[0077] Thereafter, the powdered medicine distributed to the distribution disk 420 is scraped out one packet at a time by a scraping device 424, and inserted between two folded continuous wrapping papers 482 via a hopper 426. The powdered medicine placed between the wrapping papers 482 is packaged one packet at a time by a packaging unit 480 consisting of a heat sealing device, a perforation creating device, etc. Then, the powdered medicine is cut along the perforations, or discharged outside the machine as a continuous package.

[0078] As described above, according to the embodiments of the present invention, it is possible to provide a powder medicine supplying device and a powder medicine packaging device that can simplify the operation of a transfer robot that transports powder medicine storage containers and also shorten the time required to transport powder medicine storage containers.

[0079] Although the embodiments and modifications of the present invention have been described, these embodiments and modifications are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These new embodiments and modifications can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. These embodiments and modifications are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the scope of the invention and its equivalents described in the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0080] 20···Cassette (container) 100···Cassette storage 108···Cassette attachment / detachment position 150···Bulkhead (wall) 170...Electrifier 176...Dehumidifier 200···Cassette buffer (container buffer) 208: Cassette attachment / detachment position 210: Powdered medicine ejection position 300: Transfer robot 312: Rotation center of transfer robot 400....Packaging device 420....Distribution disk

Claims

1. a rotating distribution disk for evenly distributing the powder dispensed onto the disk; A container buffer is provided on the distribution disk, and transports a plurality of containers containing powdered medicines around a circular track, and the containers are attached and detached at a predetermined attachment and detachment position, and is transported onto the distribution disk to release the powdered medicine from the containers to the distribution disk; a container storage facility that is rotatably provided at a position adjacent to the container buffer, capable of storing a plurality of the containers, and that allows the containers to be attached and detached at predetermined attachment and detachment positions in a circumferential direction; a transfer robot capable of holding and transferring the container between a container mounting / dismounting position of the container storage facility and a container mounting / dismounting position of the container buffer; A powdered medicine supplying device having:

2. The storage container storage facility stores the storage container in a position in which the powdered medicine can be released from the lower portion, and when the storage container is transferred by the transfer robot, the storage container is held in a position in which the powdered medicine can be released from the lower portion, and when the storage container is attached to the storage container buffer, the storage container is attached to the storage container buffer in a position in which the powdered medicine can be released from the lower portion, and when the powdered medicine is released from the storage container, the powdered medicine is released from the lower portion of the storage container.

2. The powdered medicine delivery device of claim 1.

3. the transfer robot transfers the storage container by holding and rotating the storage container between a cassette loading / unloading position of the storage container storage and a cassette loading / unloading position of the storage container buffer; a distance between the rotation center of the transfer robot and the cassette loading / unloading position of the storage container storage and a distance between the rotation center of the transfer robot and the cassette loading / unloading position of the storage container buffer are equal to each other; 2. The powdered medicine delivery device of claim 1.

4. The cassette mounting and dismounting position of the container buffer is provided at a position that does not overlap with the distribution disk in the vertical direction.

3. The powdered medicine delivery device of claim 2.

5. The container buffer transfers the container received from the transfer robot to a powdered medicine release position on the distribution disk by rotating the container buffer, and releases the powdered medicine from the container.

5. The powdered medicine delivery device of claim 4.

6. Between the storage container storage and the distribution disk, a partition is formed to prevent powdered medicine scattered from the powdered medicine discharged from the storage container to the distribution disk from passing through.

5. The powdered medicine delivery device of claim 4.

7. A dehumidifier is provided in the device on the storage container storage side of the partition wall.

7. The powdered medicine delivery device of claim 6.

8. The device further includes a static eliminator that is rotatably provided in the device on the distribution disk side of the partition and has an ion emission surface whose direction is changeable.

7. The powdered medicine delivery device of claim 6.

9. A powder medicine supplying device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, A packaging device that releases powdered medicine one packet at a time from the distribution disk of the powdered medicine supply device and packages the powdered medicine; A powder medicine packaging device having the same.

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