Medicine transport delivery device

Abstract

To provide a medicine transport delivery device which can reduce a labor and time for supplement, by mounting a tablet cassette having a high capacity.SOLUTION: A medicine transport delivery device comprises: a storage part 140 where at least two first storage shelves 200 are arranged so that back faces of them face each other, the storage part being provided on a front side of the medicine transport delivery device relative to the first storage shelves and capable of being drawn toward the front side of the medicine transport delivery device; a high capacity cassette 40 which can be fitted to the storage part and whose shape is different from the cassette; and a shooter part 144 which forms a tablet falling path in a range from the storage part to the medicine transport path. The medicine transport path 210 comprises: an upper part tablet collection mechanism 204 for guiding medicine to a lower part of the first storage shelves and falling the medicine; two transport conveyors 212 which are arranged on a lower part of the upper part tablet collection mechanism in a parallel state; and multiple medicine containers 211 which are fitted to the respective conveyors.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 15

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a medicine delivery and dispensing device including a packaging device. [Background technology]

[0002] There is a widely known tablet packaging machine which includes a container body that holds tablets, a rotor that rotates on an axis inside the container, a rotor shaft, a cassette that rotates in conjunction with the rotor as the shaft is rotated, thereby sequentially discharging tablets from the container, and a packaging device that packages the tablets dispensed from the cassette one by one in accordance with prescription data (see, for example, Patent Document 1, etc.). Among such tablet packaging machines, there are known ones that are provided with a separate manual dispensing mechanism so that tablets for which cassettes are not provided or medications that are difficult to discharge sequentially can also be packaged in the packaging device (see, for example, Patent Document 2, etc.).

[0003] In a configuration using such tablet cassettes, there was a known problem that, when it came to tablets that were consumed in large quantities, the frequency of refilling empty cassettes increased, and the operating time of the tablet packaging machine was reduced by the time taken for refilling. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2023-022428 A [Patent Document 2] WO2018 / 092771 publication Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The present invention has been made to solve such technical problems, and has an object to provide a new medicine delivery and dispensing device that can be equipped with large-capacity tablet cassettes, thereby reducing the effort required for refilling. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, the medicine delivering and dispensing device of the present invention has a transport section capable of gripping and transporting a cassette containing medicines, a first storage shelf capable of storing a plurality of the cassettes by attaching them to a cassette base and capable of dispensing the medicines from the stored cassettes, a second storage shelf capable of storing a plurality of the cassettes, a packaging device for packaging the medicines dispensed from the first storage shelf, and a medicine delivery path connecting the first storage shelf and the packaging device, wherein at least two of the first storage shelves are arranged back to back to each other, are located closer to the front side of the medicine delivering and dispensing device than the first storage shelf and are pullable out towards the front side of the medicine delivering and dispensing device, and further comprises a storage section which is attached to the storage section and has a different shape from the cassettes, and a storage section which is pulled out from the storage section to the front side of the medicine delivering and dispensing device, and and a chute section that forms a tablet drop path toward the drug transport path, the drug transport path having an upper tablet collecting mechanism that guides the drugs below the first storage shelf and drops them therefrom, two transport conveyors arranged parallel to each other below the upper tablet collecting mechanism, and a plurality of drug containers attached to each of the transport conveyors, the chute section is connected so as to be able to dispense drugs held in the large-capacity cassette from the storage section toward each of the two transport conveyors, and is controlled so that the drugs dispensed from the first storage shelf and the drugs dispensed from the storage section are placed in the same drug container, and the packaging device is provided with two or more hoppers to store each of the drugs carried from the two transport conveyors into compartments formed in packaging paper. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the present invention, by making it possible to mount a large-capacity tablet cassette, it is possible to reduce the effort required for refilling. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a medicine delivering and dispensing device. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a side view showing an example of the configuration of the medicine transporting and dispensing device shown in FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a front view showing an example of the configuration of a medicine delivering and dispensing device. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a cassette mounted on the medicine delivery and dispensing device. [Diagram 5] 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of an incoming transport unit and an outgoing transport unit that perform incoming and outgoing transport of cassettes. FIG. [Figure 6] 13A and 13B are diagrams illustrating an example of a cassette receiving operation in the receiving transport section. [Figure 7] 13A and 13B are diagrams illustrating another example of the storing operation of the cassette in the storing transport section. [Figure 8] FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a failure in the storing operation shown in FIG. 6. [Figure 9] 13 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a gap adjustment unit for adjusting the gap between cassettes to be stored; FIG. [Figure 10] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating an example of the operation of the interval adjusting unit illustrated in FIG. [Figure 11] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a transport unit for transporting a cassette. [Figure 12] 13A and 13B are diagrams illustrating an example of a configuration for gripping a cassette in a transport section. [Figure 13] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a second storage shelf in the present invention. [Figure 14] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a first storage shelf according to the present invention. [Figure 15] 1 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a first storage shelf and a storage section. FIG. [Figure 16] 16 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a storage unit and a shooter unit shown in FIG. 15. FIG. [Figure 17] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a packaging device according to the present invention. [Figure 18] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of individually packaged medicine. [Figure 19] 1 is a front view showing an example of a configuration of a packaging device of the present invention. [Figure 20]10 is a diagram showing an example of a correspondence relationship between the positions of medicines to be packaged and the position of the packaging paper at that time. FIG. [Figure 21] 21 is a view similar to FIG. 20, but viewed from the left conveyor unit of the medicine delivery and dispensing device. [Figure 22] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a conveyor device according to the present invention. [Diagram 23] 11A to 11C are diagrams illustrating an example of the operation of a storage unit according to the present invention. [Figure 24] 24 is a diagram showing the operation when the storage section is pulled out from the state shown in FIG. 23. FIG. [Diagram 25] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a large-capacity cassette according to the present invention. [Figure 26] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a large-capacity cassette and a dedicated base according to the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings described below, each direction will be described according to a three-axis orthogonal coordinate system of XYZ as shown in FIG. 1, but the present invention is not limited to such a configuration.

[0010] FIG. 1 shows a perspective view from the upper right corner of a medicine delivery and dispensing device 500 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The medicine conveying and dispensing device 500 is a series of units that are connected and arranged in a line, in order from the +Z direction side, which is the front side where the operator stands, to the -Z direction side, including a front unit 100 having a packaging device 130 at the bottom, a collector shelf 200 that is a first storage shelf capable of storing a plurality of tablet cassettes 20 and dispensing tablets from the tablet cassettes 20, a storage shelf 300 that is a second storage shelf on which the tablet cassettes 20 can be placed, and a power unit 400 that powers the electrical system. The medicine conveying and dispensing device 500 also has a control unit 550 as a central computing unit for controlling each part. The control unit 550 may be located anywhere inside the medicine conveying and dispensing device 500, but in this embodiment, the control unit 550 is described as being located at the top of the main body of the medicine conveying and dispensing device 500. In this embodiment, as the most basic form of the drug delivery and dispensing device 500, a configuration is described in which a collector shelf 200 and a storage shelf 300 are provided in pairs on the left and right sides, but it is also possible to provide multiple collector shelves 200 and multiple storage shelves 300.

[0011] As shown in FIG. 2, the medicine delivering and dispensing device 500 stores therein a plurality of tablet cassettes 20 for dispensing medicines, and has a transport arm unit 110 which is a transport section capable of gripping and transporting the tablet cassette 20. The collector shelves 200 arranged on the left and right are arranged back to back with the shelf sides facing outward so that the tablet cassettes 20 can be removed by the transport arm unit 110. This is the same for the storage shelf 300. The transport arm units 110 are arranged in a pair, one on each side of the drug transporting and dispensing device 500, and each moves independently of the other in the ±Z and ±Y directions outside the collector shelf 200 and the storage shelf 300, thereby functioning as a transport means that allows tablet cassettes 20 to be transferred between the collector shelf 200, the storage shelf 300 and the front unit 100. The transport arm unit 110 has a catcher unit 112 that operates along a rail unit 111, which is an endless belt stretched in a pair above and below in the Z direction, and in the vertical Y direction, the catcher unit 112 moves a grip unit 113 up and down, allowing the transport arm unit 110 to move freely in the YZ plane. As shown in FIG. 2, an intermediate gear 114 is fixed to the housing in the middle of the rail unit 111, and by pressing the rail unit 111 in the X direction opposite the side where the catcher unit 112 abuts, tension is maintained so that the rail unit 111 extends linearly along the Z direction.

[0012] As shown in FIG. 3, the front unit 100 has a manual distribution section 120 provided for an operator to manually distribute medicine, a packaging device 130 located at the bottom, and a storage section 140 for storing large-capacity cassettes 40. The front unit 100 has an incoming transport section 150 for storing the tablet cassette 20 inside the front unit 100, and an outgoing transport section 160 for discharging the tablet cassette 20 from the front of the front unit 100. Here, the incoming and outgoing conveying sections 150 and 160 are each provided symmetrically in a pair at positions that are linearly symmetrical about the center line of the front unit 100, and a partition wall 101 is provided at the end of the incoming and outgoing conveying section 150 in the +Z direction to prevent the tablet cassettes 20 placed thereon from falling forward.

[0013] The front unit 100 is provided with a touch panel type monitor 102, and the monitor 102 can be used to check and operate the operating state of the medicine delivering and dispensing device 500. In this way, the monitor 102 can be used as both an operating means and a display means of the medicine delivering and dispensing device 500.

[0014] Next, the basic structure and operation of the tablet cassette 20, which is a cassette for storing medicines in this embodiment, will be described. As shown in FIG. 4, the tablet cassette 20 is a medicine containing container that includes a rotor 21, a container body 22 for containing tablets, a handle portion 29, a lid portion 23, and a tablet discharge port 24. The tablet cassette 20 has a base portion 25 that fits into a cassette base 30 provided in plurality on the collector shelf 200, thereby enabling the rotor 21 to rotate and the tablets contained therein to be discharged one by one from the tablet discharge port 24. The handle portion 29 is a curved, thin-plate-like handle, and an operator can easily carry the tablet cassette 20 by gripping the handle portion 29 .

[0015] The cassette base 30 has a transmission drive unit 31 that transmits driving force by engaging with the lower part of the rotor 21 of the tablet cassette 20 from below, and when the transmission drive unit 31 is rotated by a pulse motor, the rotor 21 also rotates in sync. At this time, a large number of wing-shaped partitions 26 are formed at equal pitch on the outer peripheral surface of the rotor 21, and the tablets line up and enter each compartment separated by these partitions 26, so that the tablets are discharged one by one from the tablet discharge port 24 as the rotor 21 rotates. In this way, in tablet cassette 20, the space separated by rotor 21 and partition 26 functions as an alignment plate, and when rotor 21 is rotated on its axis, partition 26 rotates on its axis in accompaniment, thereby enabling tablets to be discharged sequentially from main body 22 of tablet cassette 20.

[0016] An identification member 27 for identifying the type of tablets stored inside is attached to the base 25 of the tablet cassette 20. A commercially available thin flexible RFID tag (Radio Frequency Identifier) ​​is adopted as the identification member 27, and identification information assigned to each tablet cassette 20 is written in advance and stored as data. An identification member sensor 28 is provided on the cassette base 30 side for recognizing the identification member 27 on its upper surface 33, and this configuration makes it possible to identify the tablet cassette 20 fitted in the cassette base 30. The combination of the identification member 27 of the tablet cassette 20 and the medicine stored in the tablet cassette 20 is stored in the control unit 550, and the information can be confirmed via the monitor 102, for example.

[0017] Fig. 5 shows a part of the configuration of the incoming transport section 150 and the outgoing transport section 160 of the front unit 100 shown in Fig. 3. The incoming transport section 150 and the outgoing transport section 160 are provided symmetrically in the front unit 100, but since the structures are similar, the incoming transport section 150 and the outgoing transport section 160 arranged on the +X direction side will be described in particular.

[0018] The outgoing conveying section 160 is attached above the front unit 100 and functions as a belt-type conveying means composed of an outgoing conveying belt 161, which is two endless belts wound along the -Z direction, and a drive roller 162 for driving the outgoing conveying belt 161. The outgoing conveying section 160 is capable of moving the tablet cassette 20 placed on the outgoing conveying belt 161 in the +Z direction by rotating the outgoing conveying belt 161.

[0019] In this embodiment, the outgoing conveying section 160 has an outgoing storage section 164, which is a loading area provided at the end of the outgoing conveying belt 161 on the -Z direction side, which is the upstream side in the conveying direction, an outgoing management sensor 165, and an end position detection sensor 166 attached to the rear end of the outgoing conveying belt 161. When the tablet cassette 20 is placed on the outgoing storage section 164 from the catcher unit 112, the outgoing management sensor 165 detects the presence of the tablet cassette 20, and the outgoing conveying belt 161 is rotated in the +Z direction to convey the tablet cassette 20. In this manner, the delivery storage section 164 is provided within the movable range of the catcher unit 112.

[0020] The output management sensor 165 is a light detection sensor in which the optical axis of the irradiated light is adjusted so as to diagonally cross the output storage section 164. When no tablet cassette 20 is placed in the output storage section 164, the irradiated light is reflected by a reflector 167 provided opposite to the output storage section 164 and returns to the output management sensor 165. On the other hand, when the tablet cassette 20 is placed in the output storage section 164, the tablet cassette 20 blocks the irradiated light somewhere on the optical path, so that the irradiated light cannot be detected, and it can be detected that the tablet cassette 20 is located in the output storage section 164. In this embodiment, the delivery management sensor 165 uses an optical detection sensor that is paired with a reflector 167, but the present invention is not limited to this configuration, and other existing detection means may be used.

[0021] When the tablet cassette 20 is transported in the +Z direction by the outgoing conveyor belt 161 and approaches the terminal position, the terminal position detection sensor 166 detects the tablet cassette 20 directly above and stops the operation of the outgoing conveyor belt 161. 1 and 2, the terminal end portion of the outgoing conveying section 160 protrudes in the +Z direction forward of the front unit 100, so that the operator can remove the tablet cassette 20 placed at this terminal end position. In this manner, the terminal end position is the outgoing position when the tablet cassette 20 is discharged from the outgoing conveying section 160, and the terminal end position detection sensor 166 operates as an outgoing detection section that detects that the tablet cassette 20 has reached the outgoing position.

[0022] The incoming conveying section 150 functions as a belt-type conveying means composed of an incoming conveying belt 151, which is two endless belts wrapped around the rear side of the partition wall 101 along the -Z direction, and a drive roller 152 for driving the incoming conveying belt 151.

[0023] The tablet cassette 20 can be placed on the upstream end of the incoming conveyor belt 151 in the rotation direction, and an incoming detection sensor 157, which is an optical sensor, is provided as detection means for detecting whether the tablet cassette 20 is placed at the upstream end position. In this embodiment, the incoming detection sensor 157 is provided in such a manner that it directs irradiation light diagonally upward to reflect the light on a reflecting plate (not shown) located near the drive roller 162. With this configuration, when the irradiation light from the incoming detection sensor 157 is blocked by the tablet cassette 20 or the like, the incoming detection sensor 157 detects that the tablet cassette 20 is placed at the upstream end position.

[0024] When the incoming detection sensor 157 detects the tablet cassette 20, the incoming conveying section 150 rotates the incoming conveying belt 151 to move the tablet cassette 20 placed on the incoming conveying belt 151 in the -Z direction. The operator places the tablet cassette 20 to be stored on the incoming conveying belt 151 on the back side of the partition wall 101, and moves the tablet cassette 20 into the medicine delivering and dispensing device 500.

[0025] In this embodiment, three interval adjustment means 153 are provided on the downstream side in the movement direction of the incoming conveying section 150, i.e., on the -Z direction side, and when the tablet cassette 20 moving to the -Z direction side passes above the interval adjustment means 153, the movement is restricted by the interval adjustment means 153, thereby appropriately adjusting the interval between two adjacent tablet cassettes 20. The specific operation and configuration of the interval adjustment means 153 will be described later. Furthermore, the number of interval adjustment means 153 to be provided is arbitrary, but it is preferable that there be more than one.

[0026] An incoming storage section 154 for arranging and arranging the tablet cassettes 20 is provided on the -Z direction side of the interval adjustment means 153. Since the incoming storage section 154 is within the movable range of the transport arm unit 110, the tablet cassettes 20 that have reached the incoming storage section 154 are held by the transport arm unit 110 in a state in which they can be transported to the collector shelf 200, the storage shelf 300, or other locations of the medicine transporting and dispensing device 500. An identification member sensor 28 for recognizing the identification member 27 of the tablet cassette 20 is provided below the incoming storage section 154, and the identification information of the tablet cassette 20 moved to the incoming storage section 154 is stored in the control section 550. Note that the incoming storage section 154 may be provided with a plurality of identification member sensors 28, for example, four.

[0027] In the receiving storage section 154, a first direction detection sensor 155 is disposed along the receiving conveyor belt 151 in the Z direction. The first direction detection sensor 155 is a laser-type detection means that is passed in the +Z direction as shown in Figure 6, and the light emitted from the first direction detection sensor 155 passes through the gaps in the tablet cassettes 20, in this case the space between the handle portion 29 and the main body of the tablet cassette 20, making it possible to detect that each tablet cassette 20 placed on the input / output transport section 150 is placed in the correct orientation. Also disposed above the incoming conveyor section 150 are second direction detection sensors 156 for detecting whether or not both ends of the tablet cassette 20 are positioned directly above the incoming conveyor belt 151 . The second direction detection sensor 156 is a laser-type detection means that is arranged at both ends of the conveying path of the input conveying section 150 and passes directly downward, and when the tablet cassette 20 passes directly below it, if the passage is detected simultaneously (both are ON), it can detect that the tablet cassette 20 is moving perpendicular to the conveying direction as shown in Figure 6. Conversely, as shown in Figure 7, if the tablet is placed incorrectly, the light emitted by the first direction detection sensor 155 is blocked by the tablet cassette 20 and turns OFF, making it possible to detect the incorrect placement direction.

[0028] 8, the first direction detection sensor 155 is likely to be blocked by the tablet cassette 20 and turn OFF. On the other hand, even if the first direction detection sensor 155 happens to be tilted only to the extent that it can pass, by arranging a pair of second direction detection sensors 156 on both sides of the incoming conveyor belt 151, it is possible to determine whether or not the tablet cassette 20 is moving parallel to the conveyor direction based on whether or not each of the second direction detection sensors 156 turns ON within a predetermined time interval. Note that, although FIG. 8 is a schematic example of a case where the inclination with respect to the conveying direction is large, in reality, the difference in timing at which the two second direction detection sensors 156 are blocked may not be as large as the inclination shown in the figure.

[0029] As described above, if tablet cassette 20 is placed on incoming conveyor belt 151 with handle portion 29 not facing outward, either first direction detection sensor 155 or second direction detection sensor 156 will be turned OFF, detecting that tablet cassette 20 is not being conveyed in the correct posture. Conversely, when both the first direction detection sensor 155 and the second direction detection sensor 156 are ON, the control unit 550 determines that the tablet cassette 20 placed on the incoming conveyor belt 151 is placed in the correct position.

[0030] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the transport arm units 110 are arranged on both sides of the drug transporting and dispensing device 500 with their respective grip units 113 facing inward, so that when the tablet cassette 20 is transported to the input / output storage section 154 in the correct position with the handle portion 29 facing outward in the input / output transport section 150, the grip unit 113 can grasp and move the handle portion 29 of the tablet cassette 20.

[0031] At this time, in order for the grip unit 113 to accurately grip the handle portion 29, a space is required that allows the grip unit 113 of the transport arm unit 110 to enter the tablet cassettes 20 placed side by side in the receiving and storing section 154. Therefore, in this embodiment, a gap adjusting means 153 is provided for adjusting such a gap while the input conveyor belt 151 conveys the tablet cassette 20.

[0032] As shown in Figure 9, the gap adjustment means 153 has an L-shaped plate-shaped member 1531 which is a regulating means for regulating movement of the tablet cassette 20 in the -Z direction by abutting against the base 25 of the tablet cassette 20, and a gap adjustment sensor 1532 which is a gap adjustment detection unit for detecting that the tablet cassette 20 has reached a predetermined position. Multiple spacing adjustment means 153, three in this embodiment, are arranged side by side in the Z direction between the two incoming conveying belts 151, and as the tablet cassettes 20 pass above each of them, each spacing adjustment means 153 operates to adjust the spacing of the tablet cassettes 20 before they reach the incoming storage section 154 downstream.

[0033] 9, the plate-like member 1531 is an L-shaped plate-like member supported so as to rotate about a rotation shaft 1533 aligned in the X direction. When the gap adjustment sensor 1532 detects the passage of the tablet cassette 20, the driving source 1534 rotates the plate-like member 1531 about the rotation shaft 1533, so that a tip end 1531a of the plate-like member 1531 comes into contact with the base portion 25, which is the bottom surface of the tablet cassette 20. At this time, since the incoming conveyor belt 151 continues to rotate, the tablet cassette 20 tries to be conveyed in the -Z direction, but the leading end 1531a abuts against the bottom surface and gets caught, thereby restricting the conveyance of the tablet cassette 20.

[0034] FIG. 10 shows a schematic diagram of the operation of such interval adjustment means 153. As shown in FIG. 10(a), a plurality of tablet cassettes that are transported side by side will be referred to as tablet cassettes 20a, 20b, and 20c. First, it is assumed that in an initial state, tablet cassettes 20a, 20b, and 20c are packed tightly together without any adjustment of the gaps on the incoming conveyor belt 151. When the gap adjustment sensor 1532 detects the passage of the first tablet cassette 20a, the plate-like member 1531 rotates a predetermined time after the tablet cassette 20a has passed and comes into contact with the bottom surface of tablet cassette 20b. Since the incoming conveying belt 151 continues to be driven, as shown in Figure 10(b), the tablet cassette 20a will move forward for the period of time that the tip end 1531a abuts and gets caught on the bottom surface of the tablet cassette 20b, and in this way the gap La between tablet cassette 20a and tablet cassette 20b can be adjusted by the contact time of the plate-shaped member 1531. In this embodiment, the plate-like member 1531 is L-shaped and is shaped to abut by fitting into a recess in the bottom surface of the tablet cassette 20, but this is not limited to a configuration, and any structure may be used as long as it abuts against the tablet cassette 20 to regulate and temporarily stop the transport by the input conveyor belt 151.

[0035] When the gap La between the tablet cassettes 20a and 20b is thus opened, the abutting state is released again by the rotation of the plate-like member 1531 as shown in FIG. 10(c), and the tablet cassette 20b moves with the gap La remaining opened. Next, when the gap adjustment sensor 1532 detects that the tablet cassette 20b has reached a predetermined position, the plate member 1531 similarly rotates a predetermined time after the tablet cassette 20c has passed and comes into contact with the bottom surface of the tablet cassette 20b.

[0036] At this time, for example, it is also possible to adjust the gap Lb between tablet cassette 20b and tablet cassette 20c by rotating the plate-shaped member 1531 located most upstream in the conveying direction as shown in Figure 10 (d) and adjusting the time at which it contacts tablet cassette 20c. However, in general, there is a concern that differences in the conveying speed of the entrance conveyor belt 151 and the time required for the plate member 1531 to rotate may result in differences in the intervals.

[0037] Therefore, in this embodiment, each of the multiple lined up plate-like members 1531 may be rotated and inserted into the bottom surfaces of the tablet cassettes 20a, 20b, and 20c as shown in FIG. 10(e). With the plate-shaped member 1531 inserted into each of the tablet cassettes 20a, 20b, 20c in this manner, when the input conveying belt 151 rotates, the conveying of the tablet cassette 20 is restricted as shown in Figure 10(f) when the side wall upstream in the conveying direction at the bottom of each of the tablet cassettes 20a, 20b, 20c abuts against the tip portion 1531a of the plate-shaped member 1531. Therefore, when the input conveying belt 151 continues to rotate, the spacing La, Lb between the tablet cassettes 20a, 20b, 20c is automatically adjusted to a predetermined spacing L1 based on the spacing L2 between the tip ends 1531a when the plate-shaped members 1531 rotate and the width of the tablet cassette 20. In this way, by using multiple spacing adjustment means 153 to regulate the movement of multiple lined up tablet cassettes 20 in the conveying direction, it is possible to automatically adjust the spacing between each tablet cassette 20 without being affected by the drive timing or control of the plate-shaped member 1531.

[0038] As described above, the aligned tablet cassettes 20 are transported to the warehousing storage section 154 located downstream of the interval adjusting means 153 in the transport direction while maintaining the interval L1 at a constant value by the interval adjusting means 153. In the input / output storage section 154, the tablet cassette 20 is placed with the handle portion 29 facing outward and at a distance L1 between them, so that the grip unit 113 of the transport arm unit 110 can enter into this distance L1 to securely grasp the tablet cassette 20.

[0039] The configuration of the transfer arm unit 110 will be described. As already mentioned, the transport arm unit 110 has a catcher unit 112 that operates along the rail unit 111, which is an endless belt stretched in the Z direction, and in the vertical direction, the catcher unit 112 moves the grip unit 113 up and down via a support rod stretched between the upper and lower rail units 111, thereby allowing the transport arm unit 110 to move freely in the YZ plane. FIG. 11 shows the operation of the catcher unit 112 and the grip unit 113.

[0040] As shown in Figure 12, the grip unit 113 has a mounting table 1131 wide enough to hold six tablet cassettes 20, three on the top and three on the bottom, an advancing / retreating mechanism 1133 that moves back and forth in the ±X directions, and an engaging claw 1132 attached to the front of the advancing / retreating mechanism 1133. The mounting table 1131 has a shelf position detection sensor 1134 which emits light in the forward and backward directions shown by dashed lines in Figure 12 to confirm and fine-tune the position of the collector shelf 200 or the storage shelf 300 in addition to the position coordinates of the catcher unit 112 and the grip unit 113, and a cassette detection sensor 1135 which emits light diagonally upward from the mounting table 1131 to detect the presence or absence of a tablet cassette 20 in front of the advancing / retracting mechanism 1133.

[0041] The fitting claws 1132 are arranged in a pair on the left and right sides and are held by the advance / retract mechanism 1133 so as to be rotatable about a connection portion 1136 . The engaging claws 1132 advance and retreat together with the advancing and retreating mechanism 1133, and rotate about a connection part 1136 with the advancing and retreating mechanism 1133 at a position where they can grip the handle portion 29 of the tablet cassette 20, and perform an operation to retract the handle portion 29. The space required for the engaging claws 1132 to fit between the tablet cassettes 20 is the distance L1 described in FIG.

[0042] When the engaging claws 1132 grip the tablet cassette 20 in this manner, a plate-shaped member, the cassette holder 1137, is present in front of the advancing / retreating mechanism 1133. When the engaging claws 1132 act to clamp and surround the handle portion 29 and pull it in, the main body 22 of the tablet cassette 20 abuts against the cassette holder 1137, thereby fixing the position. In such a gripping state, a force that pulls in the fitting claws 1132 acts on the main body 22 via the handle portion 29, and a reaction force that pushes out acts from the cassette holder 1137, so that the posture is stable. Such a cassette holder 1137 may be provided in two places, for example, vertically around the handle portion 29, or may be provided only on one side, for example, only on the upper side.

[0043] In this state, the advancing / retracting mechanism 1133 draws in the tablet cassette 20 together with the engaging claws 1132 , and places the tablet cassette 20 on the placement table 1131 . As mentioned above, the mounting table 1131 can hold up to six tablet cassettes 20 in the same manner, so by moving the catcher unit 112 with the tablet cassette 20 placed on the mounting table 1131, the catcher unit 112 can transport the tablet cassette 20 from the front unit 100 to the collector shelf 200 or the storage shelf 300. At this time, an identification member sensor 28 for reading the identification member 27 of the tablet cassette 20 is placed on the mounting table 1131, and can read the identification member 27 of the tablet cassette 20 transported to the storage shelf 300. Therefore, the control unit 550 stores the YZ coordinates in the storage shelf 300 on which the tablet cassette 20 is mounted by the transport arm unit 110 in association with the identification information of the medicine stored in the identification member 27. In this way, by linking and storing the identification information of the medicine by the identification member 27 with the YZ coordinates, the control unit 550 can instruct the transport arm unit 110 of the necessary YZ coordinates when retrieving the necessary medicine according to the prescription data.

[0044] As shown in FIG. 13, the storage shelf 300 is a shelf having a shelf main body 302 and a base plate 301. In this embodiment, in order to uniquely determine the position at which the tablet cassette 20 is arranged on the storage shelf 300, 12 flat base plates 301 that fit with the base portion 25 are arranged in one row and 10 vertical rows, but for simplicity, only a part of them is shown in the figure. The tablet cassette 20 placed on the storage shelf 300 is held in a state where it is fitted with the base plate 301, but this configuration is not limited to this. In addition, the base plate 301 is a simple plate-like member and does not need to have a mechanism that is particularly linked to the operation of the tablet cassette 20.

[0045] As already shown and described in FIG. 4, a cassette base 30 for fitting the tablet cassette 20 is arranged on the collector shelf 200, and the tablet cassette 20 arranged on the collector shelf 200 can eject the medicine stored inside the tablet cassette 20 one tablet at a time via the cassette base 30.

[0046] As shown in Fig. 14, the collector shelf 200 has a shelf body 202 in which the cassette bases 30 are arranged side by side, and a tablet drop path 201 which is a space formed between the shelf body 202 and an opening / closing plate 203 on the back side of the shelf body 202. Note that the cross-sectional view of the part indicated by the line A-A' in Fig. 14(a) corresponds to Fig. 14(b). Here, as shown in FIG. 14(b), the collector shelf 200 is formed so that the tablet drop path 201 and the tablet discharge port 24 communicate with each other by fitting the tablet cassette 20 and the cassette base 30 together. In this embodiment, the collector shelf 200 is configured such that eight cassette bases 30 are provided in each row in the horizontal direction and two shelves are provided in the vertical direction, but the number of shelves and the like can be changed as appropriate.

[0047] The tablet drop path 201 is formed between a shelf main body 202 and an opening / closing plate 203, and a shutter mechanism 204 is provided at the lower end portion. The shutter mechanism 204 is normally kept in a closed state and functions as a shutter that blocks the falling path of the tablets discharged from the tablet cassette 20 so that they fall at the correct timing.

[0048] As shown in FIG. 15, below the shutter mechanism 204, there are provided a funnel-shaped hopper portion 205 and a conveyor device 210 which rotates in the direction of the arrow A in the figure. The conveyor device 210 is known as a medicine transport section having a structure including a plurality of tablet containers 211 and a conveyor 212 composed of rollers and belts for moving the tablet containers 211 . The tablets that have fallen from the tablet drop path 201 through the hopper section 205 into the tablet container 211 are carried in the +Z direction by the conveyor device 210, and are finally transported from the input hopper 70 arranged at the bottom of the front unit 100 to the packaging device 130. In this way, the collector shelf 200 is composed of the tablet drop path 201, the shutter mechanism 204, the hopper section 205, and the conveyor device 210, and is provided with a drug transport path connecting the collector shelf 200 and the packaging device 130.

[0049] In this embodiment, a manual distribution section 120 is provided in front of the hopper 70. The manual distribution section 120 has a manual distribution tray 121, a slide tray 122 arranged below the manual distribution tray 121, a six-row first conveyor 123 that moves tablets toward the +X direction in Fig. 15, and a second conveyor 124 that moves tablets that have dropped from the +X direction end of the first conveyor 123 in the -Z direction and guides them to the hopper 70. In this manner, the first conveyor 123 and the second conveyor 124 function as a front double row conveyor for transporting tablets toward one of the hoppers 70 as a unit. With this configuration and the operation described below, the manual distribution unit 120 can sequentially feed tablets manually distributed onto the manual distribution tray 121 into the hopper 70 in a predetermined order.

[0050] In this embodiment, above the hopper 70 and toward the front of the conveyor 212, a storage section 140 for storing large-capacity cassettes 40 is provided. In the storage section 140, two large-capacity cassettes 40 can be arranged side by side, one above the other, and further, a pair of storage sections 140 is provided on each of the left and right sides of the front unit 100, similar to the collector shelf 200, etc. Therefore, a total of four large-capacity cassettes 40 can be arranged in the front unit 200.

[0051] As shown in FIG. 16, the storage section 140 is provided with a dedicated base B for the large-capacity cassette 40, and the large-capacity cassette 40 is attached to the dedicated base B and held so that the tablets stored therein can be ejected. Tablets discharged from the discharge outlet 141 of the large-capacity cassette 40 fall through a tablet drop path 142 similar to the tablet drop path 201 of the collector shelf 200, are stopped by a shutter mechanism 143, and then are fed from the large-capacity shooter section 144 into the drug container 211 of the conveyor device 210, and then fall sequentially from the conveyor device 210 into the hopper 70.

[0052] The tablets that have fallen into the hopper 70 are packaged in packaging paper 131 by a packaging device 130 as shown in FIG. The packaging device 130 is provided with, in order along a feed path for the packing paper 131, a packing strip feed section 132 which holds a roll of packing paper 131 and applies appropriate tension to send it out in sequence starting from the tip, a printer 133 which prints on the packing paper 131, a vertical seal section 134 which has a heating element extending in the width direction of the packing paper 131, i.e., in the front-to-depth direction in Figure 20 in this embodiment, and heats and fuses the seal section 131a of the packing paper 131, two hoppers 70 on the left and right which move up and down to insert and remove the tip of the packing paper 131 which has been folded in half, a horizontal seal section 135 which has a heating element extending laterally and heats and fuses the packing paper 131, a roller section 136 which pulls the packing paper 131, and a cutter 137 which perforates and cuts the packing paper 131.

[0053] With this configuration, the packet paper 131 is filled with medications such as tablets or powdered medicine in sections of a specified length as shown in Figure 18, and is discharged in a continuous manner to the downstream discharge outlet 139 with the seal portions 131a shown in shaded areas fused by heat. Packaging paper 131 is folded in half with its upper end open and is pulled out from packaging strip feeder 132. Here, packaging strip feeder 132 is a packaging strip holder that feeds out packaging paper 131 wound up in a roll, for example, in a reel shape. The packet paper 131 sent out from the packaging belt supply section 132 is printed by the printer 133, moves to the bottom of the hopper 70, and is sealed at the front and rear in the conveying direction by the vertical seal section 134. After that, the medicine is poured into the packet by the hopper 70, the top is sealed, and the packet is cut or perforated by the cutter 137 before being discharged.

[0054] Since the amount of tablets that falls into the hopper 70 is equivalent to one packet, one packet of medicines is enclosed inside each of the packaging papers 131.

[0055] When hopper 70 detects that tablets have been placed into packaging paper 131, horizontal seal section 135 seals the top of packaging paper 131, and roller section 136 pulls in packaging paper 131 a predetermined amount, so that packaging paper 131 is transported the length of one packet. By repeating this operation, the packaging paper 131 is conveyed to the discharge port 139 as a series of medicine bags, each of which contains one packet of medicine.

[0056] Packaging device 130 is a packaging device capable of packaging various medicines including tablets into individual packets in packaging paper 131 by using the configuration of each part as described above. In this embodiment, the configuration of the packaging device 130 is described only in terms of a type in which the packaging paper 131 is transported horizontally, but any other configuration may be used as long as the packaging machine is capable of dividing the packaging paper into sections of a predetermined width and sealing medicine in the divided chambers, and is not limited to this configuration.

[0057] Now, the drug transport path in this embodiment will be described in detail. In this embodiment, as described in Fig. 15, at least two collector shelves 200 are arranged back to back, and two conveyor devices 210 serving as drug transport paths are arranged parallel to each other below each collector shelf 200. When it is necessary to distinguish between them, the one arranged on the left side facing the front unit 100 is referred to as conveyor device 210a, and the one arranged on the right side is referred to as conveyor device 210b. In addition, the conveyor device 210 is equipped with a plurality of tablet containers 211 . The packaging device 130 is provided with two hoppers 70 for storing each of the medicines conveyed from the two conveyor devices 210 into the compartments formed in the packaging paper 131.

[0058] Here, when it is necessary to distinguish between the two hoppers 70, the hopper 70 on the upstream side, i.e., the hopper 70 on the left side in Figures 17 and 19, will be described as the first hopper 70a, and the hopper 70 on the right side will be described as the second hopper 70b.

[0059] In the drug transport and dispensing device 500, the collector shelves 200 are arranged back-to-back with one another across the center, and due to the configuration in which each has an independent transport arm unit 110 transporting the tablet cassettes 20, it is difficult to exchange tablet cassettes 20 between the collector shelves 200 arranged on the left and right or between the storage shelves 300. However, if tablet cassettes 20 for the same drug are placed on each side, the number of drug types that can be loaded into the device as a whole will be reduced, which is undesirable. Therefore, by providing the first hopper 70a and the second hopper 70b in this manner, tablets can be independently fed into the same packing paper 131 from each of the left and right collector shelves 200, thereby ensuring the number of drugs that can be handled by the entire device, while allowing each to supplement any missing drugs and package them in the packaging device 130.

[0060] As shown in FIG. 19, the first hopper 70a and the second hopper 70b are disposed at a distance d that is the distance of one packet of the packaging paper 131, which is 80 mm in this embodiment. Packing paper 131 is pulled in by roller portion 136 a predetermined distance, which is the distance for one packet, and in this embodiment is set to 80 mm. With this configuration, if the position where the first hopper 70a is inserted is the first input position 71 and the position where the second hopper 70b is inserted is the second input position 72, a section of the packaging paper 131 moves to the first input position 71, tablets are input from the first hopper 70a, then the paper is pulled by the next roller unit 136 to move into the space of gap d between the first hopper 70a and the second hopper 70b, and then the paper is pulled by the next roller unit 136 to input tablets into the second hopper 70b, and so on, moving a predetermined distance at a time.

[0061] In addition, the first hopper 70a and the second hopper 70b can each be moved up and down independently by independent drive sources 73a, 73b, and when the tablets are added, they are inserted between the partitioned packaging paper 131, allowing the tablets to be safely placed within the partition. At this time, it is possible that after a tablet is fed at the first feeding position 71 on the upstream side, a different tablet is fed again at the second feeding position 72. That is, when the second hopper 70b is inserted while tablets are already inside, it is preferable that the tip of the second hopper 70b moves up and down so as not to collide with the tablets. Therefore, in this embodiment, the second hopper 70b, which is downstream in the direction of movement of the packaging paper 131, is controlled by the drive source 73b so that the amount of descent during vertical movement is smaller than the amount of descent of the first hopper 70a. With this configuration, the second hopper 70b can be safely inserted into a compartment in which tablets have already been placed.

[0062] Now, by keeping the amount of retraction of the roller portion 136 constant and matching the timing of this retraction with the timing of the movement of the tablet container 211 of the conveyor device 210, it is possible to make the tablets in the tablet container 211 of the conveyor device 210 correspond to the tablets entering a section of the packaging paper 131 as shown in the schematic diagram of Figure 20. In Fig. 20, the positions of tablet containers 211 or shutter mechanisms 204 corresponding to sections B, C, D, E, F, and G into which packing paper 131 is divided at a certain moment are indicated by respective symbols. Also, Fig. 20(a) is a schematic side view of front unit 100 of medicine transporting and dispensing device 500, and Fig. 20(b) is a schematic diagram showing the sections divided into sections by the distance of one packet of packing paper 131 in packaging device 130 and their approximate positions.

[0063] Furthermore, since the correspondence between these components differs, for example, between conveyor device 210a positioned on the left and conveyor device 210b positioned on the right, Figure 20 shows the relationship with tablet container 211 in conveyor device 210b positioned on the right, and Figure 21 shows the relationship with tablet container 211 in conveyor device 210a positioned on the left.

[0064] At this time, tablets also fall from the large-capacity cassette 40 installed in the storage section 140 through the shutter mechanism 143 onto the conveyor devices 210a and 210b, as shown in section "B" in FIG. In this embodiment, the tablets held by the shutter mechanism 143 fall from a large-capacity shooter section 144 that extends downward at an angle of 45 degrees in sync with the retraction of the packaging paper 131, so that the tablets are dropped into a designated tablet container 211 at the right time. In this way, the timing of dispensing from tablet cassette 20 installed on collector shelf 200 via hopper unit 205 and the timing of dispensing from large-capacity cassette 40 installed in storage unit 140 via large-capacity shooter unit 144 are controlled by the operation of control unit 550 so that they enter the same compartment (for example, the compartment indicated as compartment B) of packaging paper 131. In addition, this timing is controlled to be different depending on whether storage unit 140 is located on the left or right side of medicine transporting and dispensing device 500.

[0065] In this way, the packaging device 130 has a pair of conveyor devices 210a and 210b, each of which has a corresponding first hopper 70a and second hopper 70b. Also, the control unit 550 controls the opening and closing of the shutter mechanism 204 and the shutter mechanism 143 and the operation of the drug container 211 so that tablets are fed into the drug container 211 of the pair of conveyor devices 210a and 210b.

[0066] In this manner, if the same drug container 211 is configured to contain multiple types of tablets from two different types of cassettes, the tablet cassette 20 and the large-capacity cassette 40, it is preferable that the drug container 211 be cleaned so that the amount of tablet residue inside is reduced. Therefore, in this embodiment, an ionizer 147 is provided downstream of the large-capacity shooter section 144 to remove static electricity so as to facilitate removal of tablet residues in the drug container 211. With this configuration, it is possible to prevent erroneous mixing of different drugs, known as contamination, even in drug container 211 in which a large amount of tablets are poured and therefore residues due to static electricity are likely to remain.

[0067] Now, by having two hoppers corresponding to the two drug transport paths in this manner, a single packaging device 130 in the drug transport and dispensing device 500 can quickly process tablets flowing from the two drug transport paths. In addition, since the conveyor device 210a and the conveyor device 210b are provided, and the first hopper 70a and the second hopper 70b are provided, each of them functions as a buffer for the other, resulting in high redundancy. This has the effect of minimizing the downtime of the medicine transport and dispensing device 500 itself by allowing the other to continue operating even in a situation where one of the two transport arm units 110 stops, or when the tablet cassette 20 mounted on the collector shelf 200 becomes unable to dispense tablets due to a "jam" or shortage.

[0068] Now, the structure of such conveyor devices 210a and 210b will be described. As shown in Figure 22, both conveyor devices 210a, 210b have belt conveyor sections 212a, 212b, which are transport conveyors that are rotatable around central axes Oa, Ob on the front side of the shelf main body section 202, and tablet containers 211 that are attached to the belt conveyor sections 212a, 212b and rotate endlessly to transport the tablets inside in the +Z direction. In addition, a central portion 213 is disposed between the belt conveyor portions 212a and 212b, which is a central member fixed to the housing of the medicine transporting and dispensing device 500. The central portion 213 is provided with detection sensors 214a and 214b on both sides thereof for determining whether the belt conveyor portions 212a and 212b are in a rotating state or a closed state. The central portion 213 is located in the center of the belt conveyor portions 212a and 212b and is composed of a wall surface extending along the Z direction and a eave-shaped wall surface protruding from the wall surface, and is also a cover member formed to cover the upper and sides of each of the belt conveyor portions 212a and 212b.

[0069] The belt conveyor sections 212a, 212b each rotate around a central axis Oa, Ob, similar to the rotation axis of the shelf main body section 202, and regulating plates 215a, 215b are each provided at linearly symmetrical positions on either side of the central section 213 so that the rotation does not exceed 45 degrees. These regulating plates 215a, 215b are regulating plates that regulate the belt conveyor parts 212a, 212b to prevent them from rotating excessively beyond a certain angle, and when the belt conveyor parts 212a, 212b rotate beyond a predetermined angle, they abut against the belt conveyor parts 212a, 212b to regulate their movement.

[0070] The detection sensors 214a, 214b are both photointerrupter type sensors, and when the belt conveyor sections 212a, 212b are in a closed state parallel to the wall surface of the central section 213, a protrusion 216 provided on the belt conveyor sections 212a, 212b is inserted into the detection sensors 214a, 214b, thereby functioning as a closed detection sensor that can detect the closed state.

[0071] In such conveyor devices 210a and 210b, when providing the storage section 140 in the front unit 100, an operator needs to place the large-capacity cassette 40 in the storage section 140. On the other hand, as shown in Figures 20 and 21, the conveyor devices 210a, 210b are located rearward of the first hopper 70a and the second hopper 70b, and therefore have a large-capacity shooter section 144 for transporting tablets from the front of the front unit 100 to the rear of the first hopper 70a and the second hopper 70b. The large-capacity shooter section 144 is an inclined tunnel with a lower surface inclined at 45 degrees toward the rear of the front unit 100, and forms part of the tablet drop path. As shown in FIG. 24, the left and right storage sections 140 can be pulled out independently forward together with the bottom plate 146 by slide rails 145, and the operator pulls out the storage section 140 forward and then installs the large-capacity cassette 40 by fitting it into the dedicated base B from above.

[0072] In this embodiment, the large-capacity cassette 40 has a tablet storage space 41 therein capable of storing a large number of tablets, as shown in Figure 25(a), and the tablets flow downward under the force of gravity, and can flow through a through-hole 42 opened below the tablet storage space 41 into a lower space 43 on the side where rotors 44, 45 are located.

[0073] Two rotors 44, 45 of the same shape are arranged below the large-capacity cassette 40 and are rotatably installed on the bottom 49, which is the lower end portion of the large-capacity cassette 40. The rotation axes of both rotors 44, 45 are oriented in the vertical direction Y when the large-capacity cassette 40 is attached to the dedicated base B (hereinafter, sometimes simply referred to as the cassette attached state), and the rotation axes 44a, 45a of both rotors 44, 45 are installed on the bottom 49 of the large-capacity cassette 40 in a state where they vertically penetrate the bottom 49. The bottom 49 is provided with a power distribution mechanism 46 which engages with the drive shaft D on the dedicated base B side and rotates the rotors 44, 45 in synchronization with the rotation of the drive shaft D. Note that Fig. 25(b) shows a cross section of the large-capacity cassette 40 shown in Fig. 25(a) as viewed from above, and Fig. 25(c) shows a view of the bottom 49 as viewed from below. With this configuration, the large-capacity cassette 40 is capable of discharging tablets stored therein through a first discharge outlet 47 and a second discharge outlet 48 which are tablet discharge outlets provided below the rotors 44, 45, respectively.

[0074] The dedicated base B has two tablet drop openings E1 and E2 as shown in FIG. When the large-capacity cassette 40 is attached, the tablet drop port E1 is disposed so as to be located directly below the first discharge port 47, and the other tablet drop port E2 is disposed so as to be located directly below the second discharge port 48. Both of the tablet drop ports E1 and E2 have a larger opening cross-sectional area than the first discharge port 47 and the second discharge port 48. Therefore, the tablets that have passed through the first discharge port 47 and the second discharge port 48 are discharged to the lower side of the feeder base B through the tablet drop ports E1 and E2.

[0075] The second discharge port 48 has the same shape as the first discharge port 47, and both discharge ports are arranged symmetrically on the left and right sides of the large-capacity cassette 40. The second tablet drop port E2 has the same shape as the first tablet drop port E1, and both tablet drop ports E1, E2 are arranged symmetrically on the dedicated base B.

[0076] The lower sides of the tablet drop openings E1, E2 are connected to a shutter mechanism 143 when the large-capacity cassette 40 is located at the rear side as shown in FIG.

[0077] As already mentioned, in the drug transport and dispensing device 500, the tablet cassettes 20 stored therein are transported from the incoming transport section 150 to the inside, and the tablet cassettes 20 that have been emptied are removed from the outgoing transport section 160. At this time, the capacity of tablet cassette 20 is limited, and especially when tablets are dispensed in large quantities, tablet cassette 20 will be transported frequently via input transport section 150 and output transport section 160, which may result in a burden on the continuous operating time of drug transport and dispensing device 500. Moreover, if the tablet cassette 20 is frequently moved to the incoming transport section 150 or the outgoing transport section 160 in this manner, it is not preferable because it affects the operating time of the transport arm unit 110. In turn, there is a concern that the increased operating time of each of these sections may lead to an increase in downtime of the medicine transporting and dispensing device 500.

[0078] Therefore, in this embodiment, for tablets that are consumed in larger quantities than tablet cassette 20, a large-capacity cassette 40 is installed in storage section 140 of front unit 100, and tablets can be dispensed from storage section 140 toward conveyor devices 210a, 210b by large-capacity shooter section 144, which also contributes to reducing downtime of drug transport and dispensing device 500.

[0079] Furthermore, since two hoppers 70a, 70b are provided corresponding to the conveyor devices 210a, 210b arranged on the left and right sides of the front unit 100, a storage section 140 and a large-capacity shooter section 144 can also be provided on each side of the front unit 100, thereby further reducing the downtime of the drug transport and dispensing device 500.

[0080] <1> The present invention provides a medicine delivering and dispensing device having a transport section capable of gripping and transporting a cassette containing medicines, a first storage shelf capable of storing a plurality of the cassettes by attaching them to a cassette base and capable of dispensing the medicines from the stored cassettes, a second storage shelf capable of storing a plurality of the cassettes, a packaging device for packaging the medicines dispensed from the first storage shelf, and a medicine delivery path connecting the first storage shelf and the packaging device, wherein at least two of the first storage shelves are arranged back to back with each other, a storage section located closer to the front side of the medicine delivering and dispensing device than the first storage shelf and capable of being pulled out toward the front side of the medicine delivering and dispensing device, a large-capacity cassette that can be attached to the storage section and has a different shape from the cassettes, and a locking mechanism that is extended from the storage section toward the medicine delivery path. and a chute section that constitutes a drug drop path, the drug transport path having an upper tablet collecting mechanism that guides the drugs downwardly from the first storage shelf and drops them thereunder, two transport conveyors arranged parallel to each other below the upper tablet collecting mechanism, and a plurality of drug containers attached to each of the transport conveyors, the chute section being connected so as to be able to dispense drugs held in the large-capacity cassette from the storage section toward each of the two transport conveyors, and being controlled so that the drugs dispensed from the first storage shelf and the drugs dispensed from the storage section are placed into the same drug container, and the packaging device is characterized in that it has two or more hoppers for storing each of the drugs carried from the two transport conveyors into compartments formed in packaging paper. With this configuration, for tablets that are consumed in larger quantities than tablet cassette 20, large-capacity cassette 40 can be installed in storage section 140 of front unit 100, and tablets can be dispensed from storage section 140 by large-capacity shooter section 144 towards conveyor devices 210a, 210b, which contributes to reducing downtime of drug transport and dispensing device 500.

[0081] <2> In addition, in the medicine delivery and dispensing device of the present invention, <1> In addition to the configuration described above, the storage unit can be pulled out toward the front together with the bottom surface supporting the storage unit, and the bottom surface can be pulled out to be used as a work table. With this configuration, an operator can easily replace the large-capacity cassette placed in the storage unit.

[0082] <3> In addition, in the drug delivery and dispensing device 500 of the present invention, <1> or <2> In addition to the configuration described above, the storage unit is characterized in that the large-capacity cassettes can be arranged in two levels, one above the other. With this configuration, the number of large-capacity cassettes can be increased while keeping the structure common, and tablets can be dispensed toward the conveyor devices 210a and 210b, which contributes to reducing the downtime of the medicine transporting and dispensing device 500.

[0083] Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and appropriate modifications and variations are possible within the scope of the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0084] 20...Tablet cassette (cassette) 30…Cassette-based 40...Large capacity cassette 70a, 70b…Hopper 73a, 73b...Drive source 110...Transport arm unit (transport unit) 121...Tray mechanism 122…Slide tray 123...First conveyor (front double row conveyor) 124...Second conveyor (front double row conveyor) 130...Packaging equipment 131…Wrapping paper (wrapping paper) 140…Storage section 143...Shutter mechanism 144…Shooter section (large capacity shooter section) 200…Collector shelf (first storage shelf) 201...Tablet drop path (drug transport path) 204...Shutter mechanism (upper tablet collection mechanism) (part of the drug transport path) 210...Conveyor device 211...Tablet containers (medicine containers) 212...Transport conveyor 213...Central member (center) 214...Closed detection sensor 215…Regulation board 300…Storage shelf (second storage shelf) 500...Medicine delivery and dispensing device

Claims

1. a transport unit capable of gripping and transporting a cassette in which medicines are contained; a first storage shelf capable of storing a plurality of the cassettes by attaching the cassettes to a cassette base and capable of dispensing the medicines from the stored cassettes; a second storage shelf capable of storing a plurality of the cassettes; a packaging device for packaging the medicine dispensed from the first storage shelf; A medicine delivery and dispensing device having a medicine delivery path connecting the first storage shelf and the packaging device, At least two of the first storage shelves are arranged back to back with each other, a storage section that is located closer to the front side of the medicine delivering and dispensing device than the first storage shelf and that can be pulled out toward the front side of the medicine delivering and dispensing device; a large-capacity cassette that can be attached to the storage section and has a different shape from the cassette; and a shooter section that forms a tablet drop path from the storage section toward the medicine delivery path, the medicine transport path includes an upper tablet collecting mechanism that guides the medicine to a position below the first storage shelf and drops the medicine therefrom, two transport conveyors that are arranged parallel to each other below the upper tablet collecting mechanism, and a plurality of medicine containers attached to each of the transport conveyors; the shooter unit is connected to the two transport conveyors so as to be capable of dispensing the medicines held in the large-capacity cassette from the storage unit, and is controlled so that the medicines dispensed from the first storage shelf and the medicines dispensed from the storage unit are put into the same medicine container; The packaging device is a drug transport and dispensing device characterized in that it has two or more hoppers for storing each of the drugs transported from the two transport conveyors into compartments formed in the packaging paper.

2. The drug delivery and dispensing device according to claim 1, A medicine delivery and dispensing device characterized in that the storage section can be pulled out toward the front side together with a bottom surface that supports the storage section, and the bottom surface can be pulled out to be used as a workbench.

3. The drug delivery and dispensing device according to claim 2, A medicine delivering and dispensing device characterized in that the storage section is capable of arranging the large-capacity cassettes in two levels, upper and lower.

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