Medicine dispenser and medicine dispensing program

Abstract

To provide a medicine dispenser capable of supporting use of a variable cassette, and medicine dispensing program.SOLUTION: A medicine dispenser 100: displays a selection screen P1 on which a plurality of selection areas A2 for selecting each of variable cassettes 22 are displayed in same alignment as alignment of the respective variable cassettes 22 in the medicine dispenser 100; receives a selection operation of a selection area A2 in the selection screen P1; assigns medicine information to be dispensed to a variable cassettes 22 corresponding to the selection area A2, and drives the variable cassette 22 according to a drive condition preset corresponding to the medicine information to dispense the medicine corresponding to the medicine information by the variable cassettes 22.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 13

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a medicine dispensing device that automatically dispenses medicines from a plurality of medicine cassettes. [Background technology]

[0002] Generally, a medicine dispensing device is known that includes a plurality of medicine cassettes each containing a predetermined type of medicine, and automatically dispenses the medicine contained in each medicine cassette. Also known is a medicine dispensing device that includes a variable cassette that can dispense any type of medicine by changing the driving conditions according to the shape of the medicine (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 5812228 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In a medicine dispensing device equipped with unspecified cassettes capable of dispensing any type of medicine, a user may perform an operation to select an unspecified cassette to which a medicine to be dispensed is to be allocated from among a plurality of unspecified cassettes. Then, the user fills the unspecified cassette with the medicine to be dispensed after the allocation.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a medicine dispensing device and a medicine dispensing program that can support the use of unspecified cassettes. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The drug dispensing device of the present invention is a drug dispensing device equipped with a plurality of drug cassettes capable of dispensing any type of drug, and comprises a display processing unit that displays a selection screen in which a plurality of selection areas for selecting each of the drug cassettes are displayed in the same arrangement as each of the drug cassettes in the drug dispensing device, a reception processing unit that accepts a selection operation of the selection areas on the selection screen, an allocation processing unit that assigns drug information to be dispensed to the drug cassette corresponding to the selection area accepted by the reception processing unit, and a drive processing unit that drives the drug cassette in accordance with preset drive conditions corresponding to the drug information assigned by the allocation processing unit, and brings the drug cassette into a state in which the drug corresponding to the drug information can be dispensed.

[0007] The drug dispensing program of the present invention is a drug dispensing program for causing a processor controlling a drug dispensing device provided with a plurality of drug cassettes capable of dispensing any type of drug to execute the following steps: a display step of displaying a selection screen in which a plurality of selection areas for selecting each of the drug cassettes are displayed in the same arrangement as the arrangement of each of the drug cassettes in the drug dispensing device; a reception step of receiving a selection operation of the selection areas on the selection screen; an assignment step of assigning drug information to be dispensed to the drug cassette corresponding to the selection area received in the reception step; and a drive step of driving the drug cassette in accordance with preset driving conditions corresponding to the drug information assigned by the assignment step, so as to bring the drug cassette into a state in which the drug corresponding to the drug information can be dispensed.

[0008] According to the present invention, since the selection areas are displayed on the selection screen in the same arrangement as the drug cassettes in the drug dispensing device, the user can intuitively select a desired unspecified cassette from the plurality of unspecified cassettes on the selection screen. Even after the drug information is assigned to the unspecified cassette, the user can intuitively identify the unspecified cassette arranged at the position selected on the selection screen and perform the task of filling the drug corresponding to the drug information. Therefore, the drug dispensing device and the drug dispensing program can support the use of the unspecified cassette, and can provide effects such as improving work efficiency and suppressing human error. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, there are provided a medicine dispensing device and a medicine dispensing program capable of supporting the use of unspecified cassettes. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is an external view of a medicine dispensing device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of the medicine dispensing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a perspective view for explaining a configuration of a fixed cassette of the medicine dispensing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a perspective view for explaining a configuration of an unspecified cassette of the medicine dispensing device according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a perspective view for explaining a configuration of an unspecified cassette of the medicine dispensing device according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a perspective view for explaining a configuration of an unspecified cassette of the medicine dispensing device according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a perspective view for explaining a configuration of a mounting portion for an unspecified cassette of the medicine dispensing device according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8]FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a result of packaging tablets in the medicine dispensing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing one example of allocation information used in the medicine dispensing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of driving correspondence information used in the medicine dispensing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a flowchart for explaining one example of procedures of a medicine dispensing process and a packaging control process executed in the medicine dispensing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is an external view showing another example of the medicine dispensing device according to the embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a selection screen displayed on the medicine dispensing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is an external view showing another example of the medicine dispensing device according to the embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. [Figure 15] FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of a main part of an unspecified cassette of the medicine dispensing device according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram of a recovery unit of the medicine dispensing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 17] FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram of a recovery unit of the medicine dispensing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 18] FIG. 18 is a flowchart for explaining another example of the procedure of the medicine dispensing process and the packaging control process executed in the medicine dispensing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 19] FIG. 19 is a schematic diagram of a recovery unit of the medicine dispensing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 20] FIG. 20 is a schematic diagram of a recovery unit of the medicine dispensing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings to facilitate understanding of the present invention. Note that the following embodiment is an example of the present invention and is not intended to limit the technical scope of the present invention.

[0012] [First embodiment] First, a schematic configuration of a medicine dispensing apparatus 100 according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figs. 1 and 2.

[0013] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the medicine dispensing apparatus 100 includes a prescription control unit 1, a tablet supplying unit 2, a powdered medicine supplying unit 3, a manual dispensing unit 4, a packaging unit 5, a packaging control unit 6, a barcode reader 7, and the like.

[0014] The prescription control unit 1, the tablet supply unit 2, the powdered medicine supply unit 3, the manual preparation unit 4, the packaging unit 5, and the packaging control unit 6 are connected by an internal bus N1. Furthermore, the prescription control unit 1 and the barcode reader 7 are capable of wireless communication according to a communication standard such as wireless LAN or Bluetooth (registered trademark). The medicine dispensing device 100 is controlled by the prescription control unit 1 and the packaging control unit 6, and the medicines such as tablets and powdered medicines supplied from the tablet supply unit 2, the powdered medicine supply unit 3, and the manual preparation unit 4 are packaged by the packaging unit 5 in packaging units such as the time of administration, and dispensed.

[0015] [Tablet supply unit 2] The tablet supply unit 2 includes: It is equipped with a plurality of fixed cassettes 21 capable of dispensing a predetermined specific type of tablet one tablet (unit amount), and a plurality of variable cassettes 22 (an example of a medicine cassette) capable of dispensing any type of tablet one tablet (unit amount) by changing the driving conditions.

[0016] 1, a total of 54 fixed cassettes 21 are provided, each being 6 vertically and 9 horizontally, and a total of four unspecified cassettes 22 are provided below the fixed cassettes 21, each being 1 vertically and 4 horizontally. The tablets that can be dispensed by the fixed cassettes 21 and the unspecified cassettes 22 include solid medicines in various shapes, such as disk-shaped, spherical, or capsule-shaped.

[0017] In addition, as another embodiment, it is also conceivable that the tablet supply unit 2 does not have the fixed cassette 21, but has only the plurality of unspecified cassettes 22. Specifically, it is conceivable that the unspecified cassette 22 is provided instead of the fixed cassette 21. Also, as shown in Fig. 12, it is conceivable that a plurality of storage shelves 20 on which medicines to be filled into the unspecified cassette 22 are placed are formed above the unspecified cassette 22. In this case, it is also conceivable that the control unit 11 described later provided in the prescription control unit 1 can register the types of medicines placed on the storage shelves 20, and can display the types of medicines corresponding to each of the storage shelves 20 on the monitor 13 in the same area as the placement location of the medicines.

[0018] Each of the fixed cassettes 21 is configured to be detachably attached to each of the mounting parts 211 provided in the tablet supply unit 2. Each of the mounting parts 211 includes a first driving part 23 that drives the fixed cassette 21 individually. Each of the first driving parts 23 includes a driving motor 231 and an RFID reader / writer 232. The driving motor 231 supplies driving force to a driving mechanism of the fixed cassette 21. The RFID reader / writer 232 is an information reading means that reads and writes information from an RFID tag (not shown) provided in the fixed cassette 21 by using a wireless communication technology of RFID (Radio Frequency Identification).

[0019] The installation locations of the RFID tag (not shown) and the RFID reader / writer 232 need only be determined relatively within a range in which the RFID reader / writer 232 can read and write information from and to the RFID tag (not shown) when the fixed cassette 21 is attached to the mounting section 211.

[0020] The RFID tag (not shown) is a non-volatile recording medium that stores cassette identification information for identifying each of the fixed cassettes 21, and the cassette identification information is written by the prescription control unit 1 during initial setting of the medicine dispensing device 100.

[0021] Each of the unspecified cassettes 22 is configured to be detachable from each of the mounting parts 221 provided in the tablet supply unit 2. Note that, as another embodiment, a configuration in which each of the unspecified cassettes 22 is removable from the mounting parts 221 is also considered. Each of the mounting parts 221 includes a second drive unit 24 that drives the unspecified cassettes 22 individually.

[0022] Each of the second driving units 24 includes driving motors 241 to 244 and an RFID reader / writer 245. The driving motors 241 to 244 supply driving force to a driving mechanism of the unspecified cassette 22. The RFID reader / writer 245 is an information reading unit that reads and writes information from an RFID tag 26 (see FIG. 6) provided on the unspecified cassette 22 by using RFID wireless communication technology.

[0023] The installation locations of the RFID tag 26 and the RFID reader / writer 245 may be relatively determined within a range in which the RFID reader / writer 245 can read and write information from and to the RFID tag 26 when the unspecified cassette 22 is attached to the mounting unit 221. Specifically, it is considered that the RFID reader / writer 245 and the RFID tag 26 are arranged in a positional relationship in which the RFID reader / writer 245 of each of the mounting units 221 can communicate only with the RFID tag 26 of the unspecified cassette 22 attached to each of the mounting units 221. That is, the RFID reader / writer 245 and the RFID tag 26 are arranged in a positional relationship in which the RFID reader / writer 245 of the mounting unit 221 cannot communicate with the RFID 26 of the unspecified cassette 22 attached to another mounting unit 221 adjacent to the mounting unit 221. Furthermore, an electromagnetic wave shielding member for shielding electromagnetic waves may be provided between each of the mounting parts 221 .

[0024] The RFID tag 26 is a non-volatile recording medium on which cassette identification information for identifying each of the unspecified cassettes 22 and medicine information assigned to the unspecified cassettes 22 in a medicine dispensing process (see FIG. 11) described later are recorded.

[0025] The drug information is information capable of identifying the type of tablet (drug), such as drug name, drug ID, drug code, JAN code, RSS code, QR code (registered trademark), etc. The JAN code and the RSS code are numerical or character information represented by a one-dimensional code (barcode, GS1 code), and the QR code (registered trademark) is numerical or character information represented by a two-dimensional code.

[0026] Incidentally, the number of the unspecified cassettes 22 and the mounting units 221 do not have to be the same. For example, it is conceivable that a user can select any one of the unspecified cassettes 22 from the number of the unspecified cassettes 22 that is greater than the number of the mounting units 221, and mount it in the mounting unit 221. In particular, a configuration is conceivable in which a plurality of the unspecified cassettes 22 that can be mounted in each mounting unit 221 are provided. This point is similar to the fixed cassette 21 and the mounting units 211.

[0027] [Fixed Cassette 21] Here, an example of the fixed cassette 21 will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Note that the structure of the fixed cassette 21 described here is merely an example, and other structures may be used as long as they have the same function. Note that Fig. 3 is a diagram in which a cover member covering the upper part of the fixed cassette 21 is omitted.

[0028] Since the types of tablets contained in each of the fixed cassettes 21 are predetermined, for example, on the front surface of each of the fixed cassettes 21, drug information of the tablets contained in the fixed cassette 21 is written in advance.

[0029] 3, the fixed cassette 21 includes a tablet storage section 212 in which a large number of tablets are stored, and a tablet discharge section 213 that individually discharges the tablets stored in the tablet storage section 212. The tablet discharge section 213 is provided in a recess formed in approximately the center of the tablet storage section 212, and the tablets in the tablet storage section 212 sequentially descend toward the tablet discharge section 213.

[0030] The tablet discharge section 213 includes a rotor 214 rotatably supported by the housing of the fixed cassette 21, and an inner wall 214A covering the outer periphery of the rotor 214. When the fixed cassette 21 is mounted in the mounting section 211, the rotor 214 is connected to the drive motor 231 of the first drive section 23 via a drive transmission system (not shown) such as various gears. In addition, ribs 21 are provided at predetermined intervals on the outer periphery of the rotor 214. 5 and rib 216 are formed. As a result, gaps 217 surrounded by the ribs 215, 216, and the inner wall 214A are formed intermittently on the outer periphery of the rotor 214. The width of the gaps 217 is determined according to the type of tablet predetermined to be contained in the fixed cassette 21, and corresponds to the width of one of the tablets.

[0031] Further, a gap 218 is formed between the ribs 215 and 216 over the entire outer circumferential surface of the rotor 214. Here, the height of the upper end of each of the ribs 215 and 216 is determined according to the type of tablet that is predetermined as the tablet to be accommodated in the fixed cassette 21. Specifically, the height of the upper end of the rib 215 shown in Fig. 3 corresponds to the height of three tablets, and three tablets are inserted into each of the gaps 217 of the rotor 213. Moreover, the height of the upper end of the rib 216 corresponds to the height of one tablet.

[0032] Meanwhile, a discharge port 219 for discharging tablets from the rotor 214 is formed in the inner wall 214A, and a partition plate 220 inserted into the gap 218 is provided in the discharge port 219. As a result, of the three tablets inserted into the gap 217, the upper two tablets are restricted from falling by the partition plate 220 at the discharge port 219, and only the lower tablet is discharged. Therefore, in the fixed cassette 21, the tablets accommodated in the tablet accommodation section 212 are dispensed one tablet at a time by driving the rotor 214 by the drive motor 231.

[0033] [Variable Cassette 22] Next, an example of the unspecified cassette 22 will be described with reference to Fig. 4 to Fig. 7. Note that the structure of the unspecified cassette 22 described here is merely an example, and other structures may be used as long as any tablets can be dispensed one by one. For example, JP2010-535683A or JP2010-115493A disclose other examples of the unspecified cassette 22.

[0034] As shown in Fig. 4 to Fig. 6, the unspecified cassette 22 includes a tablet storage section 222 in which a large number of tablets are stored, and a first rotor 223 and a second rotor 224 that dispense tablets from the tablet storage section 222. Note that Fig. 4 to Fig. 6 are views in which a cover member that covers the upper part of the unspecified cassette 22 is omitted. In addition, the unspecified cassette 22 may be configured to be capable of dispensing tablets in predetermined unit amounts, and may be configured to be capable of dispensing, for example, multiple tablets at a time, rather than one tablet at a time.

[0035] The first rotor 223 is a disk-shaped member that constitutes the bottom surface of the tablet storage unit 222. The rotation axis of the first rotor 223 is inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the vertical direction, and the upper surface of the first rotor 223 is inclined at the predetermined angle with respect to the horizontal plane. In addition, radial ribs 223A are formed at predetermined intervals on the upper surface of the first rotor 223. The first rotor 223 is rotatably supported by the housing of the unspecified cassette 22, and is connected to a drive gear 223B shown in Figs. 5 and 6.

[0036] The second rotor 224 is a hollow annular member arranged around the first rotor 223 in a plan view, and is an example of a conveying member that conveys the tablets in the tablet housing unit 222 to the dispensing outlet 225 and dispenses them from the dispensing outlet 225. An upper end of the first rotor 223 is located on the same horizontal plane as the second rotor 224. The second rotor 224 is rotatably supported by a housing of the unspecified cassette 22, and a drive gear 224A shown in FIG. 6 is formed on the outer circumferential surface.

[0037] 7, the mounting unit 221 includes a drive gear 221A connected to the drive gear 223B of the first rotor 223 when the unspecified cassette 22 is mounted, and a drive gear 221B connected to the drive gear 224A of the second rotor 224. The drive gear 221A is connected to the drive motor 241 of the second drive unit 24, and the drive gear 221B is connected to the drive motor 242 of the second drive unit 24.

[0038] Furthermore, as shown in Figures 4 and 5, the unspecified cassette 22 is provided with a height regulating member 226 and a width regulating member 227 arranged on the dispensing path of the tablet transported to the dispensing outlet 225 by the second rotating body 224.

[0039] The height regulating member 226 regulates the height size of the tablet that can be transported to the dispensing outlet 225 by the second rotating body 224, and the width regulating member 227 regulates the width size of the tablet that can be transported to the dispensing outlet 225 by the second rotating body 224. As a result, in the unspecified cassette 22, only tablets that fit within the height h1 regulated by the height regulating member 226 and the width w1 regulated by the width regulating member 227 among the tablets placed on the second rotating body 224 are dispensed from the dispensing outlet 225. Therefore, in the unspecified cassette 22, when the height h1 and the width w1 are equal to or greater than the height and width of one tablet and smaller than the height and width of at least two tablets contained in the tablet containing section 222, the tablets can be dispensed one by one. More specifically, in the unspecified cassette 22, if the center of gravity of a tablet is located on the second rotating body 224, there is a possibility that the tablet will remain on the second rotating body 224, so it is considered that the width w1 regulated by the width regulating member 227 is set to be greater than or equal to the width of one tablet and smaller than the width of 1.5 tablets.

[0040] The unspecified cassette 22 includes a height adjustment unit 226A for changing the height h1 regulated by the height regulating member 226, and a width adjustment unit 227A for changing the width w1 regulated by the width regulating member 227. A pinion gear meshed with a rack (gear) formed on an inner peripheral surface of an elongated hole 227B formed in the width regulating member 227 is formed on an outer peripheral surface of the width adjustment unit 227A.

[0041] The height adjustment unit 226A is rotatably supported by a housing of the unspecified cassette 22, and is coupled to a drive gear 226B shown in Fig. 6. The height adjustment unit 226A moves the position of the lower end portion of the height restriction member 226 up and down by being rotationally driven, and changes the height h1 restricted by the height restriction member 226.

[0042] The width adjustment unit 227A is rotatably supported by a housing of the unspecified cassette 22, and is coupled to a drive gear 227C shown in Fig. 6. The width adjustment unit 227A changes the amount of protrusion of the width regulating member 227 toward the tablet accommodating unit 222 side by driving the drive gear 227C to rotate, thereby changing the width w1 regulated by the width regulating member 227. Specifically, the amount of protrusion of the width regulating member 227 toward the tablet accommodating unit 222 side is changed by the relative movement of the width adjustment unit 227A and the elongated hole 227B in the direction of arrow R3 (see Fig. 4) by the rotation of the drive gear 227C.

[0043] 7, the mounting unit 221 includes a driving gear 221C connected to the driving gear 226B when the unspecified cassette 22 is mounted, and a driving gear 221D connected to the driving gear 227C. The driving gear 221C is connected to the driving motor 243 of the second driving unit 24, and the driving gear 221D is connected to the driving motor 244 of the second driving unit 24.

[0044] 6 and 7, the unspecified cassette 22 and the mounting portion 221 include a drive gear 228A and a drive gear 228B that are connected when the unspecified cassette 22 is mounted in the mounting portion 221. The drive gear 228A is connected to an elevating mechanism (not shown) that moves the first rotor 223 up and down, and the drive gear 228B is connected to an elevating mechanism (not shown) that moves the first rotor 223 up and down. The drive motor 228 is connected to the drive gear 228A shown in FIG. 1. As a result, when the drive motor is driven, a driving force is transmitted from the drive gear 228B to the drive gear 228A, and the first rotor 223 can be elevated by the elevation mechanism. Therefore, in the medicine dispensing device 100, the volume inside the tablet storage unit 222 can be changed by elevating the first rotor 223, and the number of tablets that can be stored in the tablet storage unit 222 can be adjusted arbitrarily. Therefore, the unspecified cassette 22 can be used both in applications where a small number of tablets are stored and in applications where a large number of tablets are stored.

[0045] In the unspecified cassette 22, when the first rotor 223 rotates in a rotation direction R1 (see FIGS. 4 and 5), the tablets in the tablet storage unit 222 are discharged from the first rotor 223 to the second rotor 224. In the unspecified cassette 22, when the second rotor 224 rotates in a rotation direction R2 (see FIGS. 4 and 5), the tablets on the second rotor 224 are transported toward the dispensing outlet 225.

[0046] However, among the tablets transported by the second rotor 224, tablets stacked in the height direction come into contact with the height regulating member 226 and are returned to the tablet accommodating section 222. Moreover, among the tablets transported by the second rotor 224, tablets lined up in the width direction come into contact with the width regulating member 227 and are returned to the tablet accommodating section 222.

[0047] As a result, in the unspecified cassette 22, tablets having a size corresponding to the height h1 regulated by the height regulating member 226 and the width w1 regulated by the width regulating member 227 are transported to the dispensing outlet 225 in a state where they are lined up one by one in the circumferential direction on the second rotating body 224. Therefore, in the unspecified cassette 22, it is possible to dispense the tablets accommodated in the tablet accommodation unit 222 one by one, and it is possible to control the amount of the tablets dispensed.

[0048] In this way, by using the unspecified cassette 22, the height h1 regulated by the height regulating member 226 and the width w1 regulated by the width regulating member 227 can be changed, making it possible to dispense any type of tablet one tablet at a time.

[0049] 1 and 4, each of the unspecified cassettes 22 is provided with a display unit 25 whose display contents are changeable. Here, the display unit 25 is electronic paper in which display contents are written by energizing the display unit 25 and the display of the display contents is maintained even in a non-energized state.

[0050] Specifically, the unspecified cassette 22 and the mounting section 221 are each provided with a contact-type connector (not shown) that is connected when the unspecified cassette 22 is mounted in the mounting section 221. Here, the display section 25 is connected to the connector on the unspecified cassette 22 side, and the prescription control unit 1 is connected to the connector on the mounting section 221 side. Then, when the unspecified cassette 22 is mounted in the mounting section 221, the display section 25 and the prescription control unit 1 are electrically connected by the connector. This allows the prescription control unit 1 to change the display of each of the display sections 25. The display section 25 is not limited to electronic paper, and may be other display means such as a liquid crystal display. In addition, the display section 25 may be provided in the mounting section 221 in which the unspecified cassette 22 is mounted in correspondence with each of the unspecified cassettes 22.

[0051] Further, as shown in FIG. 6, each of the unspecified cassettes 22 has an RFID tag 26 built therein for storing various information. The RFID tag 26 is a non-volatile recording medium whose stored information can be rewritten by the RFID reader / writer 245, and is used to store the cassette identification information of each of the unspecified cassettes 22 and the drug information assigned to each of the unspecified cassettes 22, as described above. The RFID tag 26 is mounted on a control board provided in each of the unspecified cassettes 22, and the control board also has a function of changing the display of the display unit 25 of the unspecified cassette 22 according to a control signal from the prescription control unit 1. The control board is equipped with an electric circuit that is driven by power supplied via the connector, power supplied from a power storage unit such as a battery mounted on the control board, or power supplied when writing information to the RFID tag 26. In addition, each of the unspecified cassettes 22 may have another recording medium such as an EEPROM that can read and write information via the connector, instead of the RFID tag 26, as another embodiment.

[0052] [Drug supply unit 3] As shown in FIG. 1, the powdered medicine supply unit 3 has two input sections 31, 32, and supplies the powdered medicine input into each of the input sections 31, 32 to the packaging unit 5 in packaging units based on the time of taking the medicine, etc., that are preset by the prescription control unit 1.

[0053] Specifically, the powdered medicine supply unit 3 has two sets of dispensing sections, a dispensing section that spreads the powdered medicine inputted into the input section 31 evenly on a disk and scrapes it out at a predetermined angle corresponding to the package unit, and a dispensing section that spreads the powdered medicine inputted into the input section 32 evenly on a disk and scrapes it out at a predetermined angle corresponding to the package unit. The powdered medicine inputted into the powdered medicine supply unit 3 is previously measured by a weighing device as the total amount of the prescription medicine to be prescribed to the patient.

[0054] [Hand-spreading unit 4] The manual distribution unit 4 includes a manual distribution storage section having a plurality of cells into which tablets are inserted in a package unit such as a preset time of administration, and a manual distribution dispensing section that dispenses the tablets contained in each of the cells to the packaging unit 5 for each cell. In the manual distribution storage section, the plurality of cells are arranged in a matrix. The manual distribution dispensing section may be configured to dispense the tablets contained in the cells by, for example, individually opening and closing the bottom surfaces of the cells of the manual distribution storage section. In the medicine dispensing device 100, the manual distribution unit 4 is used to dispense tablets such as half tablets that are smaller than one tablet, and is well known in the art, so a description thereof will be omitted here. Conventionally, the manual distribution unit 4 has also been used when dispensing any tablet that is not previously contained in the fixed cassette 21, but in the medicine dispensing device 100, any tablet can be dispensed using the variable cassette 22. Of course, the manual distribution unit 4 can also be used to dispense any tablet that is not contained in the fixed cassette 21.

[0055] [Packaging unit 5] The packaging unit 5 stores the medicines supplied from the tablet supply unit 2, the powdered medicine supply unit 3, and the manual dispensing unit 4 in a single packaging paper in a package unit according to the time of administration, etc. For example, the packaging unit 5 packages the medicines in the package unit using a transparent or semi-transparent roll-shaped medicine packaging sheet and seals it by welding or the like. As a result, the medicine packaging sheet in which the medicines are stored in the package unit is discharged from the packaging unit 5.

[0056] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a medicine packaging sheet 51 discharged from the packaging unit 5. As shown in FIG. 8, a plurality of packaging papers 52 in which a plurality of tablets are packaged in the packaging unit are continuously formed on the medicine packaging sheet 51, and a dotted cut line 52A (perforation) is formed between each of the packaging papers 52 for easily separating each of the packaging papers 52. When the prescription data includes powdered medicine, the packaging unit 5 can package the powdered medicine supplied from the powdered medicine supply unit 3 in the packaging paper 52. The packaging unit 5 is provided with a printing unit (not shown) that prints information on each of the packaging papers 52, and prescription information such as the patient's name, the time of taking the medicine, the prescribed medicine, or the prescribed amount can be printed on the surface of each of the packaging papers 52 by the printing unit (not shown).

[0057] [Packaging control unit 6] 2, the packaging control unit 6 includes a control unit 61 and a storage unit 62, and controls the tablet supply unit 2, the powdered medicine supply unit 3, the manual distribution unit 4, the packaging unit 5, etc., to cause the medicine dispensing apparatus 100 to execute a packaging operation. The packaging control unit 6 is built into the medicine dispensing apparatus 100.

[0058] The control unit 61 is a control means having a CPU, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, etc. The control unit 61 executes various processes by the CPU according to various programs stored in advance in storage means such as the ROM, the EEPROM, or the storage unit 62. The RAM and the EEPROM are used as temporary storage memories (work areas) for the various processes executed by the CPU. The control unit 61 may be an integrated circuit such as an ASIC or a DSP.

[0059] The storage unit 62 is a storage means such as a hard disk device or SSD (Solid State Drive) that stores various data. Specifically, a first medicine dispensing program for causing a computer such as the control unit 61 to execute a packaging control process (see the right side of FIG. 11) described below is stored in advance in the storage unit 62. The first medicine dispensing program is recorded in a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD, DVD, or semiconductor memory, and is read from the recording medium by a reading device such as a disk drive (not shown) and installed in the storage unit 12. The present invention can be understood as an invention of the computer-readable recording medium on which the first medicine dispensing program is recorded.

[0060] [Barcode Reader 7] The barcode reader 7 is a portable terminal such as a PDA that reads a code that identifies a medicine and reads a JAN code, an RSS code, or a QR code (registered trademark) written on a tablet container (box, bottle, etc.) or a PTP sheet provided on a medicine shelf in a pharmacy. The barcode reader 7 may be a conventionally known picking assistance device used by a pharmacist or the like to pick medicines. The picking assistance device is used when a pharmacist or the like takes a medicine from a medicine shelf according to a prescription and manually dispenses it, and, for example, reads the medicine from the JAN code written on the container and compares the read medicine with prescription data.

[0061] The information read by the barcode reader 7 is input to the prescription control unit 1 by wireless communication from the barcode reader 7. By using wireless communication in this manner, the barcode reader 7 can be freely carried to the medicine dispensing device 100 or the medicine shelf, etc., and the operation of feeding tablets into the unspecified cassette 22 can be performed at any location. Of course, it is also conceivable that the barcode reader 7 is connected to the prescription control unit 1 by wire. When a plurality of the medicine dispensing devices 100 are provided in a pharmacy, the barcode reader 7 previously associated with each of the medicine dispensing devices 100 is provided individually.

[0062] [Prescription control unit 1] The prescription control unit 1 is a computer that comprehensively controls the medicine dispensing apparatus 100. As shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, the prescription control unit 1 includes a control unit 11, a storage unit 12, a monitor 13, an operation unit 14, a communication IF 15, and the like.

[0063] The control unit 11 is a control means having a CPU, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, etc. The control unit 11 executes various processes by the CPU according to various programs stored in advance in a storage means such as the ROM, the EEPROM, or the storage unit 12. The CPU is a processor that executes various processes, and the RAM and the EEPROM are used as temporary storage memories (work areas) for the various processes executed by the CPU. The control unit 11 may be an integrated circuit such as an ASIC or a DSP.

[0064] The storage unit 12 is a storage means such as a hard disk device or SSD (Solid State Drive) for storing various data. Specifically, the storage unit 12 prestores a second medicine dispensing program for causing a computer such as the control unit 11 to execute a medicine dispensing process (see the left side of FIG. 11) described later.

[0065] Specifically, the control unit 11 includes a display processing unit 111, a reception processing unit 112, and an allocation processing unit 113. The control unit 11 functions as the display processing unit 111, the reception processing unit 112, and the allocation processing unit 113 by executing various processes in accordance with the second medicine dispensing program.

[0066] As will be described later in the medicine dispensing process (see FIG. 11), the display processing unit 111 is capable of displaying a selection screen in which a plurality of selection areas for selecting each of the unspecified cassettes 22 are displayed in the same arrangement as the arrangement of each of the unspecified cassettes 22 in the medicine dispensing device 100. The reception processing unit 112 is capable of accepting a selection operation of the selection areas on the selection screen. The reception processing unit 112 is also capable of accepting an input operation of medicine information to be dispensed. The allocation processing unit 113 is capable of allocating medicine information to be dispensed to the unspecified cassette 22 corresponding to the selection area accepted by the reception processing unit 112.

[0067] The second medicine dispensing program is recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD, DVD, or semiconductor memory, and is read from the recording medium by a reading device such as a disk drive (not shown) and installed in the storage unit 12. The present invention can be understood as an invention of the computer-readable recording medium on which the second medicine dispensing program is recorded. In this embodiment, the first medicine dispensing program and the second medicine dispensing program are examples of medicine dispensing programs for causing the medicine dispensing apparatus 100 to execute various processes.

[0068] It is also conceivable that the medicine dispensing apparatus 100 does not have the packaging control unit 6, and the prescription control unit 1 also functions as the packaging control unit 6. Specifically, it is conceivable that a medicine dispensing program in which the first medicine dispensing program and the second medicine dispensing program are integrated is stored in the storage unit 12, and the control unit 11 executes a medicine dispensing process and a packaging control process described below in accordance with the medicine dispensing program. The present invention can also be regarded as an invention of the computer-readable recording medium on which the medicine dispensing program is recorded.

[0069] The storage unit 12 also stores various databases, such as a medicine master, a patient master, a cassette master, and a pharmacy master. The control unit 11 can update the various databases stored in the storage unit 12 based on data read by a reading device, such as a disk drive (not shown), from a recording medium, such as a CD, a DVD, or a semiconductor memory. The control unit 11 can also change the contents of the various databases in response to a user operation on the operation unit 14.

[0070] The medicine master includes information on each medicine, such as medicine ID, medicine code, medicine name, JAN code (or RSS code), medicine bottle code, classification (dosage form: powder, tablet, liquid medicine, external medicine, etc.), tablet size (height and width), specific gravity, medicine type (ordinary medicine, poison, narcotic, powerful medicine, antipsychotic, therapeutic drug, etc.), compounding change, excipient drug, and cautions. The patient master includes information on the patient, such as patient ID, name, sex, age, medical history, prescription drug history, family information, medical department, ward, and room. The pharmacy master includes information on the pharmacy, such as pharmacy name, pharmacist name, and pharmacist ID. The cassette master is information indicating the correspondence between cassette identification information of each of the fixed cassettes 21 and the medicine information assigned to each of the fixed cassettes 21. The cassette master is registered by the control unit 11 in response to a user operation of the operation unit 14 in the initial setting of the medicine dispensing device 100, for example.

[0071] Further, the storage unit 12 stores allocation information 121 indicating an allocation state between the unspecified cassette 22 and the medicine information, and drive correspondence information 122 indicating a correspondence relationship between the medicine information and a drive condition of the unspecified cassette 22. The allocation information 121 and the drive correspondence information 122 are used in a medicine dispensing process executed by the control unit 11, which will be described later.

[0072] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the allocation information 121, and FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the drive correspondence information 122. As shown in FIG.

[0073] As shown in FIG. 9, in the allocation information 121, a medicine ID indicating the type of tablet currently allocated to each of the unspecified cassettes 22 is stored as medicine information. Of course, medicine information such as a tablet name, a medicine code, a JAN code (or an RSS code) or the like may be stored instead of the medicine ID. Also, here, it is assumed that cassette numbers "C1" to "C4" are set in advance as the cassette identification information for the four unspecified cassettes 22 arranged in order from left to right in the tablet supply unit 2. The cassette identification information is also stored in the RFID tag 26 of each of the unspecified cassettes 22. In the allocation information 121, the unspecified cassettes 22 to which medicine information is not currently allocated are stored as being unassigned. Specifically, the allocation information 121 shown in Fig. 9 indicates that among the unspecified cassettes 22, cassette number "C1" is assigned drug information of drug ID "M1", cassette number "C3" is assigned drug information of drug ID "M2", and cassette numbers "C2" and "C4" are assigned no drug information. Note that the data structure of the allocation information 121 shown in Fig. 9 is merely an example, and the allocation information 121 may be stored in the storage unit 12 as, for example, one item of the drug master. In this case, the cassette identification information of the unspecified cassettes 22 assigned to each drug included in the drug master is stored in association with the respective drugs.

[0074] 10, driving conditions that are preset in correspondence with each piece of medicine information are stored in the driving correspondence information 122. The driving conditions include three types of conditions: pre-driving conditions related to adjustment of the unspecified cassette 22 before starting dispensing of tablets from the unspecified cassette 22, driving conditions related to drive control during dispensing of tablets from the unspecified cassette 22, and driving stop conditions related to drive control when dispensing of tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 is stopped.

[0075] Specifically, in the example of the drive correspondence information 122 shown in Fig. 10, information on each item of the height of the dispensing path, the width of the dispensing path, the dispensing speed, the first slowdown, the second slowdown, and the reverse rotation operation is stored as the drive conditions corresponding to each tablet with the drug ID of "M1", "M2", "M3", and "M4". Note that the drive conditions are merely an example, and for example, if the unspecified cassette 22 dispenses tablets one by one by vibration, the vibration frequency or amplitude of the vibration may be determined as the drive condition.

[0076] The height of the dispensing path and the width of the dispensing path are examples of the pre-driving conditions, and are the values ​​of the height h1 and the width w1 (see Figure 5) that are preset as values ​​that allow the second rotating body 224 of the unspecified cassette 22 to dispense tablets one by one from the dispensing outlet 225.

[0077] The dispensing speed is an example of the driving condition, and is a rotation speed of the second rotating body 224 suitable for each medicine information when dispensing tablets from the unspecified cassette 22. For example, if the size of the tablet is small, and the rotation speed of the drive motor 242 is fast, the tablet is likely to be dispensed in excess before the drive motor 242 stops. On the other hand, if the size of the tablet is large, even if the rotation speed of the drive motor 242 is fast, the tablet is not dispensed in excess before the drive motor 242 stops. Therefore, for example, the tablet dispensing speed set as the driving condition, that is, the tablet conveying speed by the second rotating body 224, may differ depending on the size of the tablet. Specifically, the dispensing speed when the size of the tablet is large may be set to a value faster than the dispensing speed when the size of the tablet is small. 10, may be stored in the form of the rotation speed of the second rotating body 224 or the rotation speed of the drive motor 242. Furthermore, it is also conceivable that not only the rotation speed of the second rotating body 224 but also the rotation speed of the first rotating body 223 is set as the drive condition.

[0078] The first slowdown and the second slowdown are examples of the drive stop condition, and are information regarding the execution timing of the slowdown for gradually decelerating the rotation speed of the second rotating body 224 when dispensing of tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 is stopped. The first slowdown specifies the timing for decelerating the rotation speed of the second rotating body 224 to a predetermined first rotation speed. The second slowdown specifies the timing for decelerating the rotation speed of the second rotating body 224 from the first rotation speed to a slower second rotation speed. For example, if the shape of the tablets contained in the unspecified cassette 22 is round and easy to roll, there is a risk that the tablets will roll and be dispensed after the drive of the second rotating body 224 is stopped. Therefore, for tablets that are easy to roll, such as spherical, the start timings of the first slowdown and the second slowdown are set earlier. In this embodiment, the start timings of the first slowdown and the second slowdown are set according to the remaining number of tablets to be dispensed from the unspecified cassette 22. This prevents excessive dispensing of tablets when dispensing of tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 is stopped. On the other hand, for tablets having a shape that is difficult to roll when the driving of the second rotating body 224 is stopped, the start timings of the first slowdown and the second slowdown are set late, so that delays in dispensing time due to unnecessary slowdowns are suppressed.

[0079] In this embodiment, the case where the start timings of the first slowdown and the second slowdown are set as the drive stop condition will be described, but it is also conceivable that the deceleration of the rotational speed of the second rotating body 224 is set as the drive stop condition. For example, for tablets that are easy to roll, such as spherical tablets, if the second rotating body 224 is suddenly stopped, there is a risk that the tablets will continue to roll thereafter and be dispensed in excess. Therefore, for tablets that are easy to roll, it is conceivable to set the deceleration to a small value.

[0080] The reverse rotation operation item is an example of the drive stop condition, and is information on whether or not to execute a reverse rotation operation for switching the tablet conveying direction by the second rotating body 224 to the reverse direction when dispensing of tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 is stopped. For example, if the drive of the second rotating body 224 is simply stopped, the reverse rotation operation is set to "Yes" for tablets with a shape that is easy to roll, such as a spherical shape, which may cause tablets remaining on the second rotating body 224 to roll and be dispensed in excess. This prevents tablets from being dispensed in excess when dispensing of tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 is stopped. Note that, for tablets with a shape that is difficult to roll when the drive of the second rotating body 224 is stopped, the reverse rotation operation is set to "No", and the unnecessary reverse rotation operation is not executed.

[0081] It should be noted that the data structure of the drive correspondence information 122 shown in FIG. 10 is merely an example, and the drive conditions defined in the drive correspondence information 122 may be stored in the memory unit 12, for example, as one item of the drug master.

[0082] In the present embodiment, the driving correspondence information 122 includes the items of height of the dispensing path, width of the dispensing path, dispensing speed, first slowdown, second slowdown, and reverse rotation operation as driving conditions (see FIG. 10) corresponding to each of the medicine information. On the other hand, another embodiment is also considered in which the medicine dispensing device 100 uses any one or more of the items of height of the dispensing path, width of the dispensing path, dispensing speed, first slowdown, second slowdown, and reverse rotation operation as the driving conditions. That is, in the medicine dispensing device 100, any one or more of the pre-driving condition, the driving condition, and the driving stop condition are pre-set as the driving conditions corresponding to each of the medicine information. In addition, a number of conditions, such as the pre-driving condition, the driving condition during operation, and the driving stop condition, are set in advance as the driving conditions corresponding to each drug information, and the drug dispensing device 100 may be configured to be able to select one or more of the conditions, such as the pre-driving condition, the driving condition during operation, and the driving stop condition, as the driving condition to be used.

[0083] The monitor 13 is a display means such as a liquid crystal monitor that displays various information and operation screens in accordance with control instructions from the control unit 11. For example, the monitor 13 displays various information such as a prescription data input screen, a prescription data selection screen, and an unspecified cassette 22 selection screen.

[0084] The operation unit 14 is an operation means such as a keyboard, a mouse, and a touch panel that accepts user operations, and inputs operation signals corresponding to user operations to the control unit 11. The operation unit 14 is a touch panel that accepts various operation inputs, such as an input operation of prescription data on the input screen displayed on the monitor 13, a selection operation of prescription data on the selection screen, a selection operation of an unspecified cassette 22 on the selection screen, and an issuing operation of prescription data that requests the start of packaging of the prescription data.

[0085] The communication IF 15 is a communication interface for connecting the medicine dispensing device 100 to a communication network N3 such as a LAN, and executes data communication with a higher-level system such as a prescription input terminal 200 connected via the communication network N3. The prescription input terminal 200 is, for example, an electronic medical record system installed in a hospital or a geriatric care facility, or a dispensing management system installed in a pharmacy inside or outside the hospital. The communication IF 15 also includes a wireless communication interface such as a wireless communication card that performs wireless data communication with various wireless communication devices such as the barcode reader 7.

[0086] Then, the communication IF 15 acquires prescription data from the prescription input terminal 200 and inputs the prescription data to the control unit 11. For example, the communication IF 15 monitors whether or not the prescription data is stored in a predetermined storage area of ​​a storage means provided in the prescription input terminal 200, and when the prescription data is stored in the predetermined storage area, reads the prescription data from the predetermined storage area. Of course, the communication IF 15 may receive the prescription data transmitted from the prescription input terminal 200.

[0087] [Medicine dispensing process and packaging control process] An example of the procedure of the medicine dispensing process executed by the control unit 11 of the prescription control unit 1 and the packaging control process executed by the control unit 61 of the packaging control unit 6 in the medicine dispensing device 100 will be described below with reference to Fig. 11. Here, the processing procedures (steps) executed by the control unit 11 are referred to as steps S1, S2, ..., and the processing procedures (steps) executed by the control unit 61 are referred to as steps S21, S22, .... It is also possible that a series of processing that obtains the same processing results as the medicine dispensing process and the packaging control process by either one of the control unit 11 and the control unit 61 may be executed.

[0088] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S1) First, in step S1, the control unit 11 judges whether or not a prescription data issuance request has been made. Specifically, the control unit 11 judges that a prescription data issuance request has been made when an issuance operation for issuing preregistered prescription data has been performed on the operation unit 14. The prescription data is acquired from a higher-level system such as the prescription input terminal 200.

[0089] Here, if there is no request for issuing the prescription data (No side of S1), the control unit 11 shifts the process to the step S11. On the other hand, if the control unit 11 determines that there is a request for issuing the prescription data (Yes side of S1), the control unit 11 shifts the process to step S2. Note that, in another embodiment, when the control unit 11 receives the prescription data from a higher-level system such as the prescription input terminal 200, it may determine that there is a request for issuing the prescription data without requiring the issuing operation and shift the process to step S2.

[0090] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S2) Next, in step S2, the control unit 11 judges whether or not there are fixed cassettes 21 corresponding to all the medicine information input as medicine information indicating tablets to be dispensed by the prescription data. Specifically, the control unit 11 judges whether or not tablets not included in each of the fixed cassettes 21 are included as prescription medicines in the prescription data based on the cassette master stored in the storage unit 12. The cassette master is updated by the control unit 11 based on medicine information read from an RFID tag (not shown) provided in each of the fixed cassettes 21 by a reading device such as the RFID reader / writer 232 provided in each of the mounting units 211. The control unit 11 can also display an editing screen for editing the cassette master on the monitor 13 and update the cassette master in response to a user operation of the operation unit 14 on the editing screen.

[0091] Here, if it is determined that the fixed cassette 21 corresponding to the drug information to be dispensed does not exist (No side of S2), that is, if the prescription drug included in the prescription data includes a type of tablet that is not contained in the fixed cassette 21, the control unit 11 transitions the processing to step S3.

[0092] On the other hand, when it is determined that the fixed cassettes 21 corresponding to all of the medicine information to be dispensed exist (Yes side of S2), that is, when all types of tablets included as prescription drugs in the prescription data are stored in the fixed cassettes 21, the control unit 11 shifts the process to step S7. In this case, in step S7, a request to start a packaging operation similar to the conventional one is sent to the control unit 61 using each of the fixed cassettes 21, and the control unit 61 executes a process for executing the packaging operation.

[0093] In addition, in a configuration in which the medicine dispensing device 100 does not include the fixed cassette 21, the processing of step S2 can be omitted, and the control unit 11 can shift the processing to step S3 when it determines in step S1 that a request for issuance of the prescription data has been made.

[0094] It is also conceivable that the storage unit 12 stores pre-set non-allocation drug information as drug information for which allocation to the unspecified cassette 22 is not to be executed. Then, when the fixed cassette 21 corresponding to the drug information to be dispensed does not exist and the drug information to be dispensed corresponds to the non-allocation drug information, the control unit 11 may display on the monitor 13 a message indicating that the manual distribution unit 4 should be used without executing allocation to the unspecified cassette 22. For example, if a tablet to which colored powder is likely to adhere in the unspecified cassette 22 is set as the non-allocation drug information, it is possible to prevent the colored powder from adhering to the tablet to be accommodated in the unspecified cassette 22 next. It is also conceivable that the monitor 13 may display a message indicating that the manual distribution unit 4 should be used for drugs having shapes that are not suitable for dispensing from the unspecified cassette 22. It is also conceivable that the control unit 11 may determine whether the drug information to be dispensed corresponds to the non-allocation drug information without determining whether the fixed cassette 21 corresponding to the drug information to be dispensed exists as another embodiment. In this case, another embodiment can be considered in which the control unit 11 displays on the monitor 13 a message indicating that the manual distribution unit 4 should be used without performing allocation to the unspecified cassette 22 when the drug information to be dispensed corresponds to the non-allocation drug information.

[0095] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S3) In step S3, the control unit 11 assigns, among the medicine information to be dispensed that is input by the prescription data, medicine information for which the corresponding fixed cassette 21 does not exist, to the unallocated unspecified cassette 22. When the prescription data includes a plurality of pieces of medicine information for which the corresponding fixed cassette 21 does not exist, the control unit 11 executes the assignment of the unspecified cassette 22 for each of the medicine information.

[0096] Specifically, the control unit 11 executes a process of identifying the unspecified cassettes 22 that are currently communicable (controllable) among the unspecified cassettes 22. For example, the control unit 11 determines that the unspecified cassettes 22 from which the RFID reader / writer 245 has succeeded in reading information from the RFID tag 26 are in a communicable state.

[0097] Then, the control unit 11 judges whether or not the current medicine information is assigned to each of the unspecified cassettes 22 with which communication is currently possible, based on the assignment information 121 (see FIG. 9), and assigns the medicine information to be dispensed to the unspecified cassettes 22 that are not assigned. At this time, when the control unit 11 determines the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information is assigned, it updates the contents of the assignment information 121 according to the assignment result. The unspecified cassettes 22 assigned to the medicine information in this manner are capable of communicating with the control unit 11, and the control unit 11 can write information to the electronic paper 25. Note that the control unit 11 may set each of the unspecified cassettes 22 as a candidate for an assignment target without judging whether or not communication is possible with each of the unspecified cassettes 22.

[0098] Here, it is considered that there are a plurality of candidates for the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information is to be assigned. In this case, the control unit 11 may determine whether or not the medicine information is assigned based on a preset priority order among the unspecified cassettes 22, and assign the medicine information to the unspecified cassette 22 that is initially determined to be unassigned. The control unit 11 may also determine whether or not the medicine information is assigned to the unspecified cassettes 22 in ascending order of the number of times they have been used, so that the number of times each of the unspecified cassettes 22 is equal, and assign the medicine information to the unspecified cassette 22 that is initially determined to be unassigned. Furthermore, the control unit 11 may also select the unspecified cassette 22 whose previously assigned medicine information is the same as or has a tablet size close to that of the medicine information to be assigned this time. If there is no unspecified cassette 22 that is unassigned, the control unit 11 notifies the user of this by displaying the fact on the monitor 13.

[0099] In step S3, the control unit 11 controls the RFID reader / writer 245 to record the medicine information assigned to the unspecified cassette 22 in the RFID tag 26 of each of the unspecified cassettes 22 to which the medicine information is assigned. At this time, the control unit 11 may also record various information such as the amount of tablets dispensed indicated by the medicine information, the patient name, the allocation date and time, the name of the pharmacist in charge, and prescription identification information, together with the medicine information, based on the prescription data.

[0100] On the other hand, another embodiment may be considered in which the medicine information is not recorded in the RFID tag 26 of the unspecified cassette 22. Specifically, it is considered that the cassette identification information is pre-recorded in the RFID tag 26, and the RFID reader / writer 245 is an RFID reader that can only read information. Even in this case, the control unit 11 can recognize the medicine information assigned to the unspecified cassette 22 based on the cassette identification information read from the RFID tag 26 and the assignment information (see FIG. 9).

[0101] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S11) On the other hand, if a request for issuing the prescription data has not been made, in the next step S11, the control unit 11 judges whether or not a request operation has been made to start manual input of prescription data using the operation unit 14. For example, the control unit 11 judges that the request operation has been made when a prescription input start key displayed on the display screen of the monitor 13 has been operated. Here, if it is judged that the request operation has been made (S11: Yes), the process proceeds to step S12, and if it is judged that the request operation has not been made (S11: No), the process returns to the step S1.

[0102] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S12) In step S12, the control unit 11 displays an input screen for inputting the prescription data on the monitor 13, and accepts the input of the prescription data in response to a user operation on the operation unit 14. Note that this reception process is executed by the reception processing unit 112 of the control unit 11.

[0103] The prescription data input here includes information on one drug to be dispensed, and the dosage and usage of the drug information. That is, in steps S12 to S15, processing is performed individually for each piece of drug information. The drug information may be read by the barcode reader 7 from a tablet container or a PTP sheet. Once the prescription data is input, processing proceeds to step S13.

[0104] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S13) In step S13, the control unit 11 causes the monitor 13 to display a selection screen P1 for selecting a cassette to be used for dispensing the drug to be dispensed corresponding to the drug information from the plurality of the fixed cassettes 21 and the unspecified cassettes 22. Note that this display processing is executed by the display processing unit 111. Here, Fig. 13 is a diagram showing an example of the selection screen P1.

[0105] In the selection screen P1 shown in FIG. 13, the specific areas A1 corresponding to each of the fixed cassettes 21 and the selection areas A2 corresponding to each of the unspecified cassettes 22 are displayed in the same arrangement as the arrangement of each of the fixed cassettes 21 and the unspecified cassettes 22 when the medicine dispensing apparatus 100 is viewed from the front. Specifically, a total of 54 specific areas A1 corresponding to the fixed cassettes 21 are displayed, which are 6 vertically and 9 horizontally, and below them, a total of four selection areas A2 corresponding to the unspecified cassettes 22 are displayed, which are 1 vertically and 4 horizontally. The selection areas A2 are larger in size than the specific areas A1. In addition, in each of the specific areas A1, drug information such as the drug name of the drug contained in the fixed cassette 21 corresponding to each of the specific areas A1 is displayed. In addition, the control unit 11 may display information for identifying the drug currently to be allocated, such as the drug name of the drug corresponding to the drug information input in the step S12, on the selection screen P1.

[0106] Incidentally, the number of the specific area A1 and the selection area A2 displayed on the selection screen P1 in FIG. 13 is the maximum number to be displayed. For example, the display of the specific area A1 and the selection area A2 corresponding to the mounting unit 211 and the mounting unit 221 in which the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 is not mounted may be omitted. Also, it is considered that a specific pattern such as a display frame may be displayed instead of the specific area A1 or the selection area A2 even when the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 is not mounted. That is, the specific area A1 and the selection area A2 may be displayed in the same arrangement as the arrangement of the mounting unit 211 and the mounting unit 221. In this case, it is considered that the control unit 11 does not display the drug information and does not accept a selection operation for the specific area A1 or the selection area A2 corresponding to the mounting unit 211 or the mounting unit 221 in which the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 is not mounted.

[0107] Moreover, the control unit 11 displays the selection area A2 corresponding to the unspecified cassette 22 and the specific area A1 corresponding to the fixed cassette 21 in a distinguishable manner by displaying an encircling line L1 around the selection area A2 corresponding to the unspecified cassette 22 on the selection screen P1. The manner in which the unspecified cassette 22 (selection area A2) and the fixed cassette 21 (specific area A1) can be distinguished is not limited to the encircling line L1, and may be distinguished by, for example, a difference in background color or size. Information for distinguishing between the unspecified cassette 22 and the fixed cassette 21 may be displayed in association with the selection area A2 and the specific area A1. Furthermore, information indicating whether the cassette type is the unspecified cassette 22 or the fixed cassette 21 may be displayed in the individual display areas corresponding to the unspecified cassette 22 and the fixed cassette 21 on the selection screen P1.

[0108] Meanwhile, the selection screen P1 may not display the specific area A1 corresponding to the fixed cassette 21, and only the selection area A2 corresponding to the unspecified cassette 22 may be displayed. That is, the configuration may be such that the unspecified cassette 22 is always selected when the prescription data is manually input. The control unit 11 may be capable of switching between a first display state in which both the selection area A2 and the specific area A1 are displayed on the selection screen P1 and a second display state in which only the selection area A2 is displayed, in response to a user operation. Furthermore, the control unit 11 may display both the selection area A2 and the specific area A1 when the fixed cassette 21 capable of dispensing the drug of the drug information inputted in the step S12 exists, and may display only the selection area A2 when the fixed cassette 21 capable of dispensing the drug of the drug information inputted in the step S12 does not exist. The control unit 11 may omit the steps S13 to S15 when the fixed cassette 21 capable of dispensing the drug of the drug information inputted in the step S12 exists. That is, when the specified cassette 21 capable of dispensing the drug corresponding to the drug information input in step S12 exists, the specified cassette 21 may be automatically selected as the cassette to be used for dispensing the drug. In this case, it is also conceivable that the control unit 11 accepts the selection of any of the unspecified cassettes 22 by a user operation and assigns the drug information to the selected unspecified cassette 22.

[0109] In addition, when the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 from which the drug of the drug information input in the step S12 can be dispensed exists, the control unit 11 may highlight and display the specific area A1 or the selection area A2 corresponding to the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 on the selection screen P1. For example, it may be possible to change the character color or background color of the specific area A1 or the selection area A2 corresponding to the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 to a predetermined color such as red. This allows the user to easily understand whether or not the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 from which the drug corresponding to the drug information can be dispensed exists. The manner of highlighting is not limited to a difference in display color as long as it is a manner in which the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 can be distinguished from other fixed cassettes 21 or unspecified cassettes 22.

[0110] The control unit 11 also displays, in each of the selection areas A2, an allocation state indicating an allocation status of drug information to each of the selection areas A2. Specifically, "unassigned" is displayed in the selection area A2 corresponding to the unspecified cassette 22 to which drug information has not been assigned. The selection area A2 may be blank to indicate that drug information has not been assigned. Furthermore, it is also conceivable that the state is displayed in a manner that can be distinguished by color, such as blue for an assigned area of ​​the selection area A2 and red for an unassigned area. Furthermore, the selection area A2 corresponding to the unspecified cassette 22 to which drug information has been assigned displays a drug name or the like corresponding to the assigned drug information, thereby indicating that drug information has already been assigned and the type of the assigned drug. Of course, "allocated" may be displayed in the selection area A2 corresponding to the assigned unspecified cassette 22.

[0111] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S14) In step S14, the control unit 11 accepts a selection operation of the selection area A2 or the specific area A1 on the selection screen P1. The reception process is executed by the reception processing unit 112. Specifically, when the operation unit 14 is a touch panel provided on the monitor 13, the control unit 11 accepts a touch operation of the selection area A2 or the specific area A1 on the monitor 13 as a selection operation of the selection area A2. When the operation unit 14 is a mouse, the control unit 11 accepts a movement and click operation of the mouse pointer to the selection area A2 or the specific area A1 on the monitor 13 as a selection operation of the selection area A2 or the specific area A1. In addition, in the selection screen P1, it is possible to select not only the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information is not currently assigned, but also the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information has already been assigned. On the other hand, it is also possible to select only the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information is not currently assigned as another embodiment.

[0112] Incidentally, in the medicine dispensing apparatus 100, the control unit 11 can assign the medicine information of the same medicine as that of a medicine corresponding to any one of the plurality of the fixed cassettes 21 to the unfixed cassette 22 and set it as a parent-child cassette. In this case, medicine is dispensed preferentially from any one of the fixed cassette 21 and the unfixed cassette 22 that is determined in advance. The control unit 11 can also assign the same medicine information to the plurality of the unfixed cassettes 22 in response to a user operation and set the plurality of the unfixed cassettes 22 as parent-child cassettes. In addition, in the medicine dispensing apparatus 100, it is considered that a plurality of the fixed cassettes 21 capable of dispensing the same medicine are arranged as parent-child cassettes, and in this case, it is considered that a medicine is dispensed preferentially from one of the plurality of the fixed cassettes 21 that is determined in advance in a prescription unit, or the fixed cassettes 21 are switched in order to dispense the medicine.

[0113] In this embodiment, a case will be described in which the input operation of the drug information to be dispensed is accepted in step S12 before the selection of the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 is accepted in step S14. However, in other embodiments, the input operation of the drug information to be dispensed may be accepted after the selection of the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 is accepted.

[0114] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S15) In step S15, when the unspecified cassette 22 is selected in step S14, the control unit 11 assigns the medicine information input in step S12 to the unspecified cassette 22 selected in step S14, and moves the process to step S16. This assignment process is executed by the assignment processing unit 113. Specifically, the control unit 11 updates the contents of the assignment information 121, and associates the medicine information with the unspecified cassette 22. For example, if other medicine information has already been assigned to the unspecified cassette 22, If the specified cassette 21 is selected in step S14, the drug information input in step S12 is assigned in place of the specified drug information. Note that if the specified cassette 21 is selected in step S14, step S15 is omitted.

[0115] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S16) In step S16, the control unit 11 judges whether a request operation for terminating the manual input of the prescription data has been performed. For example, the control unit 11 judges that the request operation has been performed when a prescription input end key displayed on the display screen of the monitor 13 has been operated. Here, if it is judged that the request operation has been performed (S16: Yes), the process proceeds to step S4. On the other hand, if the request operation has not been performed and, for example, a prescription input continuation key displayed on the display screen of the monitor 13 has been operated (S16: No), the process returns to the step S12 and the same process is repeatedly executed. This makes it possible to input the prescription data for a plurality of pieces of drug information and to assign the unspecified cassette 22.

[0116] In the present embodiment, the processing of steps S12 to S16 is repeatedly executed according to the number of the medicine information. However, in another embodiment, the prescription data for a plurality of the medicine information may be input in step S12. In this case, the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 corresponding to each of the medicine information is selected in the selection screen P1. Specifically, the control unit 11 may display a list of a plurality of the medicine information together with the selection screen P1, and alternately accept the selection of the medicine information to be allocated and the selection of the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 to be allocated. In particular, the control unit 11 may display, in a distinguishable manner, medicine information in which the fixed cassette 21 capable of dispensing the medicine corresponding to the medicine information exists and medicine information in which the fixed cassette 21 does not exist and the unspecified cassette 22 needs to be allocated in the list of the plurality of the medicine information. For example, in the list of the medicine information, the display color or background color of the medicine information may be changed depending on whether or not the unspecified cassette 22 needs to be allocated. Note that, among the plurality of pieces of medicine information, the medicine information to be assigned may be displayed in order on the selection screen P1, and the user may select the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information is to be assigned.

[0117] The control unit 11 may be capable of allocating the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 to other medicine information not input in the step S12 on the selection screen P1. For example, the control unit 11 displays a medicine addition button on the selection screen P1, and when the medicine addition button is selected by the user, displays an additional medicine information input field for inputting medicine information, dosage, and usage. Then, when the user selects a specific area A1 or a selection area A2 for selecting the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 with this information input, the control unit 11 allocates the medicine information input in the additional medicine information input field to the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 corresponding to the specific area A1 or the selection area A2 selected on the selection screen P1. After that, the medicine corresponding to the medicine information input in the additional medicine information input field is packaged according to the dosage and usage input in the additional medicine information input field. With this, while the selection screen P1 is displayed, the user can continuously execute the operation of inputting multiple pieces of drug information and the operation of selecting the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22. In addition, in consideration of a case where the drug information, etc. is input by mistake in the step S12, the control unit 11 can also correct the input drug information, etc. while the selection screen P1 is displayed.

[0118] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S4) In step S4, the control unit 11 specifies the driving conditions corresponding to the medicine information of the dispensing target based on the driving correspondence information 122 (see FIG. 10), and transmits the driving conditions and cassette identification information of the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information is assigned to the control unit 61. As a result, the control unit 61 drives the unspecified cassette 22 in accordance with the driving conditions. The control unit 11 when driving the unspecified cassette 22 in accordance with the driving conditions by executing the process of step S4 in this manner may be regarded as a drive processing unit.

[0119] In addition, another embodiment is also conceivable in which the control unit 11 displays the cassette identification information of each of the unspecified cassettes 22 and the setting contents of the driving conditions corresponding to each of the unspecified cassettes 22 on the monitor 13, and changes the setting contents of the driving conditions in response to a user operation on the operation unit 14. The change contents of the driving conditions are notified from the control unit 11 to the control unit 61. This makes it possible to change the driving conditions of the unspecified cassette 22 when dispensing tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 by an arbitrary operation input by the user. Moreover, the user can check the setting contents of the driving conditions corresponding to the medicine information of the drug to be dispensed by referring to the monitor 13.

[0120] In addition, in step S4, if the driving conditions corresponding to the medicine information are not stored in the driving correspondence information 122, the control unit 11 may execute a process for setting the driving conditions in response to a user operation, and then shift the process to step S5. This allows tablets corresponding to the medicine information not stored in the driving correspondence information 122 to be dispensed using the unspecified cassette 22.

[0121] Incidentally, in the medicine dispensing apparatus 100, it is considered that each of the mounting units 221 is provided with a cassette lock unit capable of locking the removal of each of the unspecified cassettes 22. For example, the cassette lock unit includes a drive unit such as a solenoid or a motor, and a restriction unit that is driven by the drive unit to restrict the removal of the unspecified cassette 22. Here, an example of the attachment / detachment control of the unspecified cassette 22 in the case where the cassette lock unit is provided in the mounting unit 221 will be described. The control unit 61 can individually control whether or not each of the unspecified cassettes 22 is locked by controlling the drive unit of the cassette lock unit of each of the mounting units 221 based on a control instruction from the control unit 11. Specifically, when medicine information is assigned to the unspecified cassette 22 in the step S3 or the step S15, the control unit 11 transmits a lock instruction for the unspecified cassette 22 to the control unit 61. As a result, the control unit 61 drives the cassette lock unit of the mounting unit 221 in which the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information is assigned is mounted, thereby restricting removal of the unspecified cassette 22. The transmission of the drive condition in step S4 may also serve as the lock instruction. Thereafter, when a specific operation for identifying the unspecified cassette 22 to be refilled with medicines is performed, the control unit 11 transmits an instruction to unlock the unspecified cassette 22 to the control unit 61. As a result, the control unit 61 drives the cassette lock unit of the mounting unit 221 in which the unspecified cassette 22 to which the input medicine information is assigned is mounted, thereby releasing the restriction on removal of the unspecified cassette 22. That is, when the unspecified cassette 22 to be refilled with medicines is selected, the unspecified cassette 22 can be removed, and the unspecified cassette 22 can be refilled with medicines. With this configuration, erroneous refilling of medicines to the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information is assigned is suppressed, and the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information is not assigned can be freely attached and detached. The specified operation is, for example, reading drug information indicating the same drug as the drug information assigned to the unspecified cassette 22 by the barcode reader 7, or inputting the drug information using the operation unit 14.In addition, a predetermined operation unit such as an operation button may be provided corresponding to each of the mounting sections 221, and when an operation such as a long press operation is performed on the predetermined operation unit, the control unit 61 may release the lock of the unspecified cassette 22 in the mounting section 221.

[0122] (Packaging control unit 6 side: step S21) Meanwhile, in the packaging control unit 6, the control unit 61 determines in step S21 whether or not the driving conditions have been received from the control unit 11. Here, if the driving conditions have been received (Yes side of S21), the control unit 61 shifts the process to step S22, and while the driving conditions have not been received (No side of S21), the control unit 61 shifts the process to step S23. The control unit 61 stores the driving conditions received from the control unit 11 in the memory unit 62 in association with the cassette identification information of the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information is assigned.

[0123] (Packaging control unit 6 side: step S22) In step S22, the control unit 61 drives the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information is assigned according to the drive conditions, and makes the unspecified cassette 22 ready to dispense medicines corresponding to the medicine information. Specifically, the unspecified cassette 22 corresponding to the cassette identification information received together with the drive conditions is driven according to the preliminary drive conditions among the drive conditions, and the height and width of the dispensing path are changed. In this way, in the medicine dispensing device 100, when the drive conditions include the preliminary drive conditions, the control unit 61 drives the unspecified cassette 22 according to the preliminary drive conditions (height and width of the dispensing path), and then executes dispensing of tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 (S24).

[0124] Specifically, the control unit 61 controls the height adjustment unit 226A and the width adjustment unit 227A according to the drive conditions to change the type of tablets that can be dispensed one tablet at a time from the unspecified cassette 22 to the tablets indicated by the medicine information assigned in the step S3 or S15. First, the control unit 61 drives the drive motor 233 and the drive motor 234 to return the positions of the height restriction member 226 and the width restriction member 227 to their initial states. Then, the control unit 61 drives the height adjustment unit 226A by the drive motor 233 to change the height h1 restricted by the height restriction member 226 of the unspecified cassette 22 to the height of the dispensing path determined by the drive conditions. In addition, the control unit 61 drives the width adjustment unit 227A by the drive motor 234 to change the width w1 restricted by the width restriction member 227 of the unspecified cassette 22 to the width of the dispensing path determined by the drive conditions. Of course, if the current states of the height regulating member 226 and the width regulating member 227 can be detected, the control unit 61 may drive the drive motor 233 and the drive motor 234 based on the detection result.

[0125] When the height h1 and width w1 of the dispensing path are changed in accordance with the drive conditions in this manner, the tablets indicated by the medicine information assigned in step S3 or S15 can be dispensed one tablet at a time in the unspecified cassette 22, and the amount of tablets dispensed can be controlled. Here, the control unit 61 when executing the process of step S22 (drive control step) is an example of a drive processing unit.

[0126] It is also possible that the unspecified cassette 22 is not mounted in the mounting unit 221 when the medicine information is assigned to the unspecified cassette 22. In this case, the unspecified cassette 22 cannot be driven in accordance with the advance driving condition in step S22. Therefore, the control unit 61 stores in the storage unit 62 flag information indicating whether the driving condition received from the control unit 11 is reflected in the unspecified cassette 22 and updates it as needed. The control unit 61 then refers to the flag information at the start of a packaging operation in step S24 described later, and if the driving condition is not reflected in the unspecified cassette 22 used in the packaging operation, drives the unspecified cassette 22 in accordance with the advance driving condition before executing the packaging operation, and changes the height h1 and width w1 of the dispensing path.

[0127] Also, as another embodiment, a configuration in which the driving conditions do not include the pre-driving conditions and the height h1 and width w1 of the dispensing path can be arbitrarily adjusted by manually operating the height adjustment unit 226A and the width adjustment unit 227A of the unspecified cassette 22. In this case, the user adjusts the height h1 and width w1 of the dispensing path of the unspecified cassette 22, and then mounts the unspecified cassette 22 in the mounting part 221 of the tablet supply unit 2. Note that the height adjustment unit 226A and the width adjustment unit 227A can be configured to be operable by a rotation operation using a tool such as a screwdriver.

[0128] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S5) Next, in step S5, the control unit 11 causes the display unit 25 of the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information has been assigned in step S3 or S15 to display the medicine information assigned to the unspecified cassette 22. That is, the control unit 11 displays, in each of the unspecified cassettes 22, the allocation state of the medicine information to the unspecified cassette 22.

[0129] For example, the control unit 11 extracts information of preset display items from the prescription data and displays it on the display unit 25. Specifically, the display unit 25 displays the drug name (drug ID), dispensed amount, and JAN code (barcode) of the tablets assigned to the unspecified cassette 22. Note that the display unit 25 may display various information such as the patient's name, the date and time of assignment, or the person in charge of assignment.

[0130] Here, since the display unit 25 is electronic paper, the display state of the display unit 25 is maintained even if the unspecified cassette 22 is removed from the mounting unit 221 after the medicine information is displayed in step S5. Therefore, even if the user moves the unspecified cassette 22 to a medicine shelf, for example, the user can check the medicine information to be input into the unspecified cassette 22 from the display on the display unit 25. This makes it possible to suppress human error by the user when inputting tablets into the unspecified cassette 22. Furthermore, the control unit 11 is configured such that removal of the unspecified cassette 22 is prohibited by a lock mechanism provided in the mounting unit 221 until the medicine information is displayed on the display unit 25 of the unspecified cassette 22. It is also possible that the control unit 11 executes the step 5 on the condition that the adjustment of the height of the dispensing path and the width of the dispensing path in the unspecified cassette 22 is completed in accordance with the pre-driving condition in the unspecified cassette 22.

[0131] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S6) Thereafter, in step S6, the control unit 11 judges whether or not a filling completion operation indicating that the filling of the unspecified cassette 22 with tablets has been completed has been performed on the operation unit 14. Specifically, when the medicine information is assigned to the unspecified cassette 22 in step S3 or S15 and the medicine information is displayed on the display unit 25 of the unspecified cassette 22, the user removes the unspecified cassette 22 from the tablet supply unit 2. Then, the user puts a required number of tablets into the unspecified cassette 22 while referring to a prescription corresponding to the prescription data or the medicine information displayed on the display unit 25. Thereafter, the user mounts the unspecified cassette 22 on the tablet supply unit 2 and performs the filling completion operation on the operation unit 14. For example, the filling completion operation is an operation of pressing a filling completion operation button provided on the medicine dispensing device 100, an operation of mounting the unspecified cassette 22 to the mounting unit 221, or the like. In addition, if multiple pieces of drug information are assigned to multiple unspecified cassettes 22 in step S3 or S15, in step S6, it is determined whether the operation of filling all of the unspecified cassettes 22 corresponding to each piece of drug information has been completed.

[0132] Here, the control unit 11 keeps the process on standby at step S6 until the filling completion operation is performed (No side of S6). On the other hand, when it is determined that the filling completion operation has been performed (Yes side of S6), the control unit 11 shifts the process to step S7.

[0133] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S7) In step S7, the control unit 11 transmits a request to start a packaging operation based on the prescription data to the control unit 61. In step S7, when a user performs an operation to request the start of a packaging operation, the request to start the packaging operation may be transmitted to the control unit 61. The request to start the packaging operation is an example of a dispensing start request.

[0134] In particular, for the packaging operation of tablets not present in the fixed cassette 21 among the tablets indicated by the medicine information included in the prescription data as tablets to be dispensed, the control unit 11 transmits a start request, for example, in the following procedure.

[0135] First, the control unit 11 reads out the cassette identification information of the unspecified cassette 22 from the RFID tag 26 of the unspecified cassette 22 mounted in each of the mounting units 221, and identifies the unspecified cassette 22 currently mounted in each of the mounting units 221. As a result, the control unit 11 can identify the unspecified cassette 22 mounted in each of the mounting units 221, so that the user can mount each of the unspecified cassettes 22 in any of the mounting units 221. For example, even if a plurality of pieces of medicine information are assigned to a plurality of the unspecified cassettes 22 in step S3 or S15, and the unspecified cassettes 22 are removed and then mounted in a swapped mounting location, the control unit 11 can determine the mounting unit 221 in which each of the unspecified cassettes 22 is mounted.

[0136] Then, the control unit 11 identifies each of the unspecified cassettes 22 that contains tablets indicated by each piece of medicine information based on the prescription data, among the unspecified cassettes 22, based on the allocation information 121. After that, the control unit 11 transmits to the control unit 61, for each piece of medicine information indicated in the prescription data, cassette identification information of the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information is assigned, identification information of the mounting unit 221 to which the unspecified cassette 22 is mounted, and information required for packaging operation such as the amount of tablets to be dispensed.

[0137] (Packaging control unit 6 side: step S23) Meanwhile, in the packaging control unit 6, in step S23, the control section 61 determines whether or not there is a request to start the packaging operation from the control section 11. Here, if the request to start the packaging operation is received (Yes side of S23), the control section 61 shifts the process to step S24, and while the request to start the packaging operation is not received (No side of S23), the control section 61 shifts the process to step S24.

[0138] (Packaging control unit 6 side: step S24) In step S24, the control unit 61 executes a packaging operation in which the tablet supplying unit 2, the powdered medicine supplying unit 3, and the manual packaging unit 4 dispense the necessary medicine in accordance with the request to start the packaging operation, and the packaging unit 5 packages the medicine in units of packages according to the time of administration, etc. Here, the control unit 61 when executing this process is an example of a dispensing execution unit. Note that since the control of the powdered medicine supplying unit 3, the manual packaging unit 4, and the packaging unit 5 is the same as in the conventional case, the description will be omitted here, and only the tablet dispensing operation by the tablet supplying unit 2 will be described.

[0139] The control unit 61 changes the rotation speed of the drive motor 242 of the second drive unit 24 that is driven when dispensing tablets from the unspecified cassette 22, in accordance with the drive conditions corresponding to the medicine information assigned in step S3 or S15 for the tablet supply unit 2. That is, the rotation speed of the second rotor 224 when dispensing the tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 is changed, and the dispensing speed of the tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 is changed in accordance with the type of the tablets.

[0140] Specifically, the control unit 61 drives the drive motor 241 and the drive motor 242 corresponding to the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information to be dispensed is assigned, and rotates the first rotor 223 and the second rotor 224 to dispense tablets. At this time, the control unit 61 drives the drive motor 242 according to a dispensing speed defined as the driving condition corresponding to the medicine information in the drive correspondence information 122. As a result, in the unspecified cassette 22, the dispensing speed of the tablets by the second rotor 224 is changed to a speed suitable for the tablets. In this way, in the medicine dispensing device 100, when the driving condition includes the driving condition, the control unit 61 drives the unspecified cassette 22 according to the driving condition (dispensing speed) to dispense tablets from the unspecified cassette 22.

[0141] If the unspecified cassette 22 does not include the height regulating member 226 and the width regulating member 227, it is also possible to change only the dispensing speed of the tablets from the unspecified cassette 22. The driving speed of the drive motor 241 may be constant or may be changed according to the type of tablets. In the packaging operation, the number of tablets dispensed from the unspecified cassette 22 is counted by a counter having an optical sensor (not shown) provided at the dispensing outlet 225 of the unspecified cassette 22 and input to the control unit 61 as the number of tablets discharged. As a result, the control unit 61 controls the driving of the unspecified cassette 22 based on the number of tablets discharged input from the counter, and dispenses only a preset amount of tablets (prescribed amount) from the unspecified cassette 22.

[0142] Moreover, the control unit 61 executes stop control of dispensing of tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 according to the set values ​​of the first slowdown and the second slowdown defined as the driving condition corresponding to the medicine information in the driving correspondence information 122. Here, the control unit 11 when executing such processing is an example of a driving processing unit. Thus, in the medicine dispensing device 100, when the driving conditions include the driving stop condition, the control unit 61 stops driving of the unspecified cassette 22 according to the first slowdown and the second slowdown which are the driving stop condition when dispensing of the prescribed amount defined in the prescription data is completed.

[0143] Specifically, consider a case where the first slowdown is set to "6 tablets" and the second slowdown is set to "1 tablet" in the drive correspondence information 122. In this case, when the control unit 61 determines that the number of remaining tablets in the dispensing amount reaches "6 tablets" based on the number of tablets counted by the counter using the optical sensor (not shown) provided at the dispensing outlet 225, the control unit 61 decelerates the rotation speed of the drive motor 242 to the first rotation speed. Thereafter, when the control unit 61 determines that the number of remaining tablets in the dispensing amount reaches "1 tablet" based on the number of tablets counted by the counter using the optical sensor (not shown) provided at the dispensing outlet 225, the control unit 61 further decelerates the rotation speed of the drive motor 242 to the second rotation speed. This prevents tablets that are easy to roll from being dispensed in excess from the dispensing outlet 225 when they are placed on the second rotating body 224.

[0144] Moreover, the control unit 61 executes stop control of dispensing of tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 according to the presence or absence of the reverse rotation operation defined as the driving condition corresponding to the medicine information in the driving correspondence information 122. Here, the control unit 11 when executing such processing is an example of a driving processing unit. Thus, in the medicine dispensing device 100, when the driving conditions include the driving stop condition, the control unit 61 drives the unspecified cassette 22 according to the presence or absence of the reverse rotation operation, which is the driving stop condition, when dispensing of the prescribed amount defined in the prescription data is completed, and then stops driving the unspecified cassette 22.

[0145] Specifically, when the reverse rotation operation is set to "Yes" in the drive correspondence information 122, the control unit 61 executes a reverse rotation operation for switching the conveying direction of the second rotor 224 to the reverse direction when stopping the dispensing of tablets from the unspecified cassette 22. For example, when the number of tablets counted by the counter using the optical sensor (not shown) provided at the dispensing outlet 225 reaches the dispensing amount, the control unit 61 rotates the drive motor 242 in reverse for a preset predetermined time. This prevents tablets that tend to roll from being dispensed in excess from the dispensing outlet 225 when they are placed on the second rotor 224. Note that the dispensing outlet 225 may be provided with an opening / closing shutter, which is configured to close when the number of tablets counted by the counter reaches the dispensing amount.

[0146] On the other hand, when the reverse rotation operation is set to "none" in the drive correspondence information 122, the control unit 61 does not execute the unnecessary reverse rotation operation when stopping the dispensing of tablets from the unspecified cassette 22. The timing to start the reverse rotation operation may be when the number of tablets counted by the counter reaches a value that is a predetermined number less than the dispensing amount. When starting the reverse rotation operation at such a timing, the predetermined number corresponding to each of the medicine information may be stored in advance in the drive correspondence information 122. Thereby, for example, the reverse rotation operation can be started before the number of tablets counted by the counter reaches the dispensing amount, and excessive dispensing of tablets from the dispensing outlet 225 can be prevented. Furthermore, after the number of tablets counted by the counter reaches a value that is a predetermined number less than the dispensing amount, the reverse rotation operation can be started every time one tablet is dispensed.

[0147] Incidentally, in the present embodiment, a case has been described in which the height h1 of the height regulating member 226 and the width w1 of the width regulating member 227 of the unspecified cassette 22 are changed in accordance with the driving conditions in step S4. Meanwhile, another embodiment is also considered in which the control unit 61 changes the height h1 of the height regulating member 226 and the width w1 of the width regulating member 227 immediately before the start of the packaging operation in step S7. That is, the reflection of the advance driving conditions in the unspecified cassette 22 may be performed at any timing before the packaging operation is started.

[0148] (Packaging control unit 6 side: step S25) Thereafter, when the packaging operation in step S24 is completed, the control section 61 transmits a packaging operation completion notification to the control section 11 in the following step S25.

[0149] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S8) On the other hand, in the prescription control unit 1, the control unit 11 waits for a notification of the completion of the packaging operation from the control unit 61 (No side of S8). Then, when the notification of the completion of the packaging operation is received (Yes side of S8), the control unit 11 shifts the process to step S9.

[0150] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S9) In the following step S9, the control unit 11 displays the fact that dispensing has been completed on the display unit 25 of the unspecified cassette 22 from which dispensing has been completed. For example, in step S9, it is considered that the words "Dispensing Completed" are displayed on the display unit 25, or the display of the medicine information on the display unit 25 is erased.

[0151] As described above, in the medicine dispensing device 100, the user can automatically dispense any tablets that are not previously stored in each of the fixed cassettes 21 by simply inputting the tablets collectively into the unspecified cassette 22. Therefore, the workload of the user is reduced compared to the conventional case where tablets are input into each of the boxes of the manual distribution unit 4, and input errors by the user are also prevented.

[0152] Moreover, since the medicine dispensing apparatus 100 is provided with a plurality of the unspecified cassettes 22, it is possible to assign different medicine information to each of the unspecified cassettes 22. Therefore, in the medicine dispensing apparatus 100, even if the prescription data includes a plurality of tablets to be dispensed that are not included in the fixed cassette 21, the medicine dispensing apparatus 100 can execute a packaging operation based on the prescription data using a plurality of the unspecified cassettes 22. Moreover, in the medicine dispensing apparatus 100, it is also possible to continuously execute packaging operations based on a plurality of the prescription data using a plurality of the unspecified cassettes 22.

[0153] [Second embodiment] A second embodiment of the present invention will be described below. In this embodiment, the same components as those of the medicine dispensing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment will be described using the same reference numerals.

[0154] After the medicine dispensing device 100 has completed dispensing of the required tablets using the unspecified cassette 22, tablets may remain in the unspecified cassette 22, and a user such as a pharmacist may collect the tablets and return them to a medicine container such as a medicine bottle. In this embodiment, a medicine dispensing device 100A that can easily collect tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 will be described.

[0155] 14 is an external view showing an example of a medicine dispensing apparatus 100A according to this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 14, the medicine dispensing apparatus 100A according to this embodiment differs from the medicine dispensing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment in that the medicine dispensing apparatus 100A according to this embodiment includes a recovery unit 8 arranged below the tablet supply unit 2.

[0156] The recovery unit 8 includes a plurality of recovery ports 71 corresponding to the mounting portions 221, respectively, and a mounting table 72 for mounting a medicine container 73 for accommodating tablets dispensed from the recovery ports 71. In the medicine dispensing device 100A, the tablets accommodated in the unspecified cassettes 22 mounted in the mounting portions 221 can be dispensed from the recovery ports 71. The medicine container 73 is a container such as a medicine bottle, a medicine box, or a medicine bag in which tablets are accommodated.

[0157] 14, each of the recovery ports 71 is disposed directly below the mounting portion 221 to which the recovery port 71 corresponds. In this manner, the recovery port 71 and the mounting portion 221 are disposed side by side in the vertical direction, so that the user can easily grasp the corresponding relationship between the recovery port 71 and the mounting portion 221.

[0158] 15 to 17 are schematic diagrams for explaining an example of the structure of the collection unit 8. Fig. 15 is a schematic diagram showing a main configuration of a connection portion between the dispensing outlet 225 of the unspecified cassette 22 and the collection unit 8, Fig. 16 is a schematic diagram showing a side cross section of the collection unit 8, and Fig. 17 is a schematic diagram of the collection unit 8 as viewed in the XVII-XVII direction in Fig. 16. Note that in Fig. 17, a wall portion 710 (see Fig. 16) provided on the back side of the mounting portion 221 in the tablet supply unit 2 is omitted.

[0159] 15 to 17, the collection unit 8 includes a first path 711, a second path 712, and a path switching unit 713. The first path 711 and the second path 712 are connected to the dispensing outlet 225 of the unspecified cassette 22 by the unspecified cassette 22 being mounted in the mounting unit 221. Note that between the first path 711 and the second path 712 and the dispensing outlet 225, a relay path may be provided to connect them.

[0160] The first path 711 is a path that guides the tablets dispensed from the dispensing outlet 225 of the unspecified cassette 22 toward the packaging unit 5. The second path 712 is a path that guides the tablets dispensed from the dispensing outlet 225 of the unspecified cassette 22 to the recovery outlet 71. The path switching unit 713 is capable of switching the destination of the tablets dispensed from the dispensing outlet 225 of the unspecified cassette 22 between the first path 711 and the second path 712. For example, the path switching unit 713 is a plate member driven by a driving source such as a solenoid or a motor, and the driving of the path switching unit 713 is controlled by the control unit 61.

[0161] Specifically, the control unit 61 executes the collection process when receiving from the control unit 11 a request to execute a collection process for dispensing tablets contained in each of the unspecified cassettes 22 from the collection port 71 in response to a user operation on the operation unit 14. Fig. 18 is a flow chart showing another example of the medicine dispensing process and the packaging control process executed in the medicine dispensing device 100A. Note that a description of processes similar to those described in the first embodiment will be omitted.

[0162] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S31) After execution of step S9, in the following step S31, the control unit 11 accepts an operation input as to whether or not a recovery process is required to recover tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 used in the packaging operation. Specifically, the operation input as to whether or not the recovery process is required is performed for each unspecified cassette 22 used this time, or collectively for the multiple unspecified cassettes 22 used this time. Here, if an operation is performed to the effect that the recovery process is required (S31: Yes), the process proceeds to step S32, and if an operation is performed to the effect that the recovery process is not required (S31: No), the medicine dispensing process is terminated.

[0163] The control unit 11 may be capable of transmitting an execution request for the collection process for each of the unspecified cassettes 22 to the control unit 61 in response to a user operation on the operation unit 14 at any timing different from the execution of the medicine dispensing process. Also, it is considered that the control unit 11 may omit the processes of steps S31 to S32 when the unspecified cassette 22 was not used in the packaging operation. Furthermore, when the unspecified cassette 22 was used in the packaging operation, the control unit 11 may execute the next step S32 without accepting an operation input regarding the necessity of the collection process in step S31.

[0164] (Prescription control unit 1 side: step S32) In step S32, the control unit 11 transmits a request to execute the collecting process to the control unit 61. As a result, the collecting process is executed by the control unit 61. That is, the control unit 61 can execute the collecting process after the dispensing of tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 associated with the tablet packaging operation by the packaging unit 5 is completed in the medicine dispensing process.

[0165] (Packaging control unit 6 side: step S26) In step S26, the control unit 61 determines whether or not there is a request to execute the collection process, and if the request to execute the collection process is received from the control unit 11 (Yes side of S26), the control unit 61 shifts the process to step S27. On the other hand, if the request to execute the collection process is not received from the control unit 11 (No side of S26), the control unit 61 returns the process to step S21.

[0166] (Packaging control unit 6 side: step S27) In step S27, the control unit 61 executes a recovery process for recovering tablets from the unspecified cassette 22. Specifically, the control unit 61 controls the path switching unit 713 to switch the discharge destination of the tablets dispensed from the unspecified cassette 22 from the packaging unit 5 to the recovery port 71, and drives the first rotor 223 and the second rotor 224 of the unspecified cassette 22 for a preset predetermined time to dispense the tablets from the unspecified cassette 22. Here, the control unit 61 when executing such a recovery process is an example of a recovery processing unit.

[0167] Incidentally, when the collection port 71 is open, it is necessary to set the medicine storage section 73 below the collection port 71 before tablets are dispensed from the collection port 71, which limits the procedure of the work. In response to this, it is considered that the collection unit 8 includes a discharge switching section 720 that can switch between a state in which the medicine dispensed from the unspecified cassette 22 to the collection port 71 is stored and a state in which the medicine can be discharged from the collection port 71.

[0168] Specifically, as shown in FIG. 19, the discharge switching unit 720 includes an opening / closing unit 714 capable of opening and closing the collection port 71, and a biasing unit 715 such as a spring that biases the opening / closing unit 714 in a direction to close the opening / closing unit 714. With this, when dispensing of tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 is executed in a state in which the collection port 71 is closed by the opening / closing unit 714, the tablets are stored in the collection port 71. Thereafter, when the medicine storage unit 73 is disposed below the collection port 71 and the opening / closing unit 714 is opened, the collection port 71 is opened and the tablets are capable of being discharged, and the tablets fall from the collection port 71 into the medicine storage unit 73 and are stored therein. Note that the opening / closing unit 714 may be opened by a part of the medicine storage unit 73, such as an opening edge portion, coming into contact with the opening / closing unit 714 by the sliding movement of the medicine storage unit 73, as shown in FIG. 19 and FIG. 20. In another embodiment, the opening / closing unit 714 may be opened and closed by a drive unit such as a solenoid or a motor, and the control unit 11 may open and close the opening / closing unit 714 in response to a user operation. Note that the discharge switching unit 720 may not include the biasing unit 715, and the opening / closing unit 714 may be opened and closed manually.

[0169] As described above, the unspecified cassette 22 is provided with the display unit 25 such as electronic paper, and the display unit 25 displays the name of the tablet as the drug information assigned to the unspecified cassette 22. The unspecified cassette 22 and the collection port 71 corresponding to the unspecified cassette 22 are arranged vertically. Therefore, a user such as a pharmacist can easily confirm that the drugs match by looking at the display unit 25 of the unspecified cassette 22 and the drug storage unit 73 set below the unspecified cassette 22, and collection of tablets into the wrong drug storage unit 73 is prevented. In addition, the medicine dispensing device 100A may be provided with an image forming device such as a printer or a label printing device, or the image forming device may be connected to be able to communicate with the device. In this case, the control unit 11 may use the image forming device to print information such as the number of tablets, drug information, and collection operation date and time on a sheet such as paper or a label as information on the collection record of the tablets using the collection port 71. Further, a configuration is conceivable in which a storage medium such as an RFID chip is provided in the medicine container 73, and the recovery unit 8 includes an RFID reader / writer capable of reading and writing information from and to the storage medium of the medicine container 73. In this case, it is also conceivable that the control unit 11 stores the recovery record information in the storage medium of the medicine container 73.

[0170] Furthermore, when the drug contained in the unspecified cassette 22 is a powerful drug or a poisonous drug, the display unit 25 may display that fact based on the drug information assigned to the unspecified cassette 22. This makes it possible to more reliably recognize that the tablets are powerful drugs or poisonous drugs when collecting tablets from the unspecified cassette 22, and reduces the risk of performing the collection operation without knowing that the tablets are powerful drugs or poisonous drugs.

[0171] As described in this embodiment, in the medicine dispensing device 100A, the collection port 71 is provided corresponding to each of the mounting parts 221, and the tablets of each of the unspecified cassettes 22 can be collected individually, so that the work of sorting the tablets dispensed from the collection port 71 is omitted. On the other hand, it is also possible to provide one collection port 71 corresponding to at least two or more mounting parts 22 of the unspecified cassettes 22. That is, it is also possible to configure so that tablets supplied from a plurality of the mounting parts 221 are dispensed from the common collection port 71 via the common second path 712. In this case, it is possible to simultaneously dispense tablets from a plurality of the unspecified cassettes 22 through one collection port 71, but a plurality of types of tablets may be mixed unintentionally. Therefore, it is considered that the control unit 11 can select whether to execute dispensing from each of the unspecified cassettes 22 individually or to execute dispensing from a plurality of the unspecified cassettes 22 simultaneously, depending on the selection operation of the unspecified cassette 22. This allows the user to collect tablets for each unspecified cassette 22 and also to collect tablets collectively from a plurality of the unspecified cassettes 22, improving convenience. In addition, since the medicine dispensing device 100A is capable of switching between the first path 711 and the second path 712 for each unspecified cassette 22, it is also possible to perform the packaging operation using the unspecified cassettes 22 that are not the target of the test dispensing process while executing a test dispensing process for testing whether or not tablets can be discharged from the unspecified cassette 22 by dispensing tablets from the unspecified cassette 22 to the collection port 71.

[0172] [Other features] Hereinafter, various functions of the medicine dispensing apparatus 100 or the medicine dispensing apparatus 100A will be described. Note that the various functions described here may be functions of the medicine dispensing apparatus 100 or the medicine dispensing apparatus 100A, and may be functions realized by the control unit 61 instead of the control unit 11, or functions realized by cooperation between the control unit 11 and the control unit 61.

[0173] [Automatic detection of remaining medication] In the step S31, the case where the necessity of the collection process is determined in response to a user operation has been described. On the other hand, it is considered that the control unit 11 has a remaining medicine automatic determination function for determining the presence or absence of remaining medicine in the unspecified cassette 22.

[0174] For example, an optical sensor or the like that detects the medicine in the unspecified cassette 22 may be provided in the unspecified cassette 22, and the control unit 11 may determine the presence or absence of the medicine in the unspecified cassette 22 based on the detection result of the optical sensor.

[0175] Furthermore, when the unspecified cassette 22 is turned upside down (flipped over) after the dispensing operation of the medicine from the unspecified cassette 22 is completed, it can be determined that the remaining medicine in the unspecified cassette 22 has been removed by the user. Therefore, it is considered that the unspecified cassette 22 is provided with an acceleration sensor capable of detecting the operation of the unspecified cassette 22, a control unit for controlling the acceleration sensor, and a power supply circuit including a secondary battery or the like for driving the acceleration sensor and the control unit. Note that a part or all of the configuration of the control unit and the power supply circuit may be common to the control board on which the RFID tag 26 provided in the unspecified cassette 22 is mounted.

[0176] Then, the control unit determines whether or not the unspecified cassette 22 has been turned upside down after the medicine dispensing operation has been performed on the unspecified cassette 22 based on the detection result by the acceleration sensor, and records a remaining medicine flag in a non-volatile storage unit such as an EEPROM (registered trademark) in the control unit. Thus, in the medicine dispensing device 100A, the control unit 11 can determine the presence or absence of remaining medicine in the unspecified cassette 22 by reading out the remaining medicine flag stored in the storage unit of the unspecified cassette 22. The remaining medicine flag may also be stored in the RFID tag 26.

[0177] In this way, when the control unit 11 has the remaining medicine automatic determination function, it is considered that the control unit 11 can display whether or not there is remaining medicine in the unspecified cassette 22 for each unspecified cassette 22. For example, it is considered that the presence or absence of remaining medicine is displayed on the display unit 25 of the unspecified cassette 22. This enables the user to easily grasp the presence or absence of remaining medicine in each of the unspecified cassettes 22 and determine the need for the collection process.

[0178] Furthermore, the control unit 11 may be configured to accept an operation input regarding whether the collection process is necessary or not when there is remaining medicine in the unspecified cassette 22 in step S31, and not to accept an operation input regarding whether the collection process is necessary or not when there is no remaining medicine in the unspecified cassette 22. For example, the control unit 11 may display a message on the monitor 13 in step S31 to inquire regarding whether the collection process is necessary or not when there is remaining medicine in the unspecified cassette 22. In this case, too, the user can easily grasp the presence or absence of remaining medicine in each of the unspecified cassettes 22 and determine whether the collection process is necessary or not for that unspecified cassette 22.

[0179] [Tablet authenticity check function] It is considered that the medicine dispensing device 100A includes a camera capable of photographing the tablets dispensed from the unspecified cassette 22. Specifically, the camera is disposed at a position where the camera can photograph the tablets accommodated in the tablet accommodating portion 222 of the unspecified cassette 22, or at a position where the camera can photograph the tablets one by one on the dispensing path along which the tablets are conveyed to the dispensing outlet 225 by the second rotating body 224 of the unspecified cassette 22.

[0180] The control unit 11 then judges whether the tablets dispensed from the unspecified cassette 22 are appropriate or not based on the captured image (still image or video) taken by the camera and the registered image for each type of tablet registered in advance in the medicine master. The captured image is collated with the registered image based on the shape, color, size, engraved characters, or printed characters of the tablets. For example, if the shape, color, and size of the tablets match, the tablets are judged to be appropriate, and if the engraved characters or printed characters of the tablets match, the tablets are judged to be appropriate. Here, if the tablets dispensed from the unspecified cassette 22 are incorrect, the control unit 11 stops the dispensing operation from the unspecified cassette 22 and executes a notification process such as a predetermined error message. It is also possible that the information of the tablets cannot be accurately grasped by photographing the tablets contained in the tablet storage unit 222 or the tablets being transported by the second rotating body 224. Therefore, the control unit 11 may determine that a tablet is suitable even if the engraved or printed characters do not match, if the shape, color, and size of the tablet match, and similarly, may determine that a tablet is suitable even if the engraved or printed characters do not match, if the engraved or printed characters match.

[0181] As a configuration capable of determining whether a tablet is genuine after it has been dispensed, it is possible to photograph and verify the tablet after it has been discharged from the dispensing outlet 225. In contrast, with the tablet genuineness determination function, the tablet is photographed and verified at a position leading up to the dispensing outlet 225, making it possible to check whether the tablet is genuine before it is dispensed.

[0182] [Parallel withdrawal function] The control unit 11 may be provided with a parallel dispensing function for allocating one type of medicine information to a plurality of the unspecified cassettes 22 and dispensing one type of tablets in parallel by simultaneously using each of the unspecified cassettes 22. This makes it possible to dispense tablets in parallel from the unspecified cassettes 22, which makes it possible to efficiently dispense the tablets and shortens the medicine dispensing time.

[0183] Specifically, in step S3 or S15, when the control unit 11 assigns the drug information included in the prescription data to the unspecified cassette 22, if the total number of tablets dispensed corresponding to the drug information exceeds a predetermined number of tablets set in advance, the control unit 11 assigns the drug information to multiple unspecified cassettes 22. Note that the control unit 11 may also assign the drug information to multiple unspecified cassettes 22 if the product of the volume per tablet of a tablet registered in the pharmaceutical master or the like in correspondence with the drug information and the total number of tablets dispensed based on the prescription data exceeds a predetermined specific value.

[0184] Then, the control unit 11 causes the control unit 61 of the packaging control unit 6 to execute a process for dispensing tablets in parallel using a plurality of the unspecified cassettes 22. This makes it possible to shorten the time required for dispensing tablets when the number of tablets is large. Also, when the number of tablets is small, allocation of medicine information to a plurality of the unspecified cassettes 22 is prevented, and it is possible to prevent the occurrence of a wasteful task of refilling tablets into the plurality of the unspecified cassettes 22. Note that, since a user may wish to do so even when the number of tablets is small, the control unit 11 may be capable of allocating the medicine information to a plurality of the unspecified cassettes 22 in response to a user operation.

[0185] Furthermore, when the total number of tablets to be dispensed based on the prescription data exceeds a predetermined number of tablets, even if the tablets are contained in the fixed cassette 21, the control unit 11 may allocate medicine information corresponding to the tablets to the unspecified cassette 22. Then, the control unit 11 causes the control unit 61 of the packaging control unit 6 to execute a process for dispensing tablets in parallel using a plurality of cassettes including the fixed cassette 21 and the unspecified cassette 22. Thereby, even if the tablets are contained in the fixed cassette 21, when the number of tablets to be dispensed is large, it is possible to shorten the time required for dispensing the tablets by using the unspecified cassette 22.

[0186] [Tablet counting function] The control unit 11 may be provided with a tablet counting function for counting the number of tablets contained in the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22. Specifically, when the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 is specified by a user operation and a tablet number counting process is requested, the control unit 11 causes the control unit 61 to execute a counting process of the tablets contained in the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22.

[0187] Then, the control unit 61 executes a packaging operation for counting the number of tablets in the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22. In the packaging operation, the tablets contained in the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 are packed into one or more of the packaging papers 52 for each preset allowable number. Note that the allowable number is a number that is preset as the number of tablets that can be packed into the packaging paper 52, and may be set for each type of tablet.

[0188] Thereby, the control unit 61 can count the number of tablets dispensed from the unspecified cassette 22 in the packaging operation using a counter having an optical sensor (not shown) provided at the dispensing outlet 225 of the unspecified cassette 22. The number of tablets counted by the control unit 61 is notified to the control unit 11 from the control unit 61, for example, and is displayed on the monitor 13 by the control unit 11. The control unit 61 may also display the number of tablets contained in the unspecified cassette 22 on the display unit 25 of the unspecified cassette 22.

[0189] In this way, the tablet counting function makes it possible to count the number of tablets contained in the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22, and also makes it possible for the user to count the number of tablets without touching them. When the tablets contained in the packaging paper 52 are to be used as they are, the tablets are returned from the packaging paper 52 to the fixed cassette 21 or the unspecified cassette 22 by a user such as a pharmacist.

[0190] [Distributed usage function] The control unit 11 may be provided with a distributed use function capable of uniformly adjusting the frequency of allocation or the cumulative number of allocations of medicine information to each of the unspecified cassettes 22. Specifically, when the control unit 11 allocates medicine information to each of the unspecified cassettes 22, the control unit 11 stores history information such as the allocation date and time, the tablet type, and the number of dispensed tablets in the storage unit 12. Then, in the step S3, the control unit 11 preferentially selects an unspecified cassette 22 that has a low frequency of use in a predetermined period of time from among the unspecified cassettes 22 based on the history information stored in the storage unit 12, and allocates medicine information to the unspecified cassette 22. In addition, in the step S3, the control unit 11 may preferentially select an unspecified cassette 22 that has a low cumulative number of times medicine information has been allocated from among the unspecified cassettes 22, and allocate medicine information to the unspecified cassette 22. Furthermore, in step S3, the control unit 11 may preferentially select from among the unspecified cassettes 22 those which have been used less frequently within a predetermined period of time and to which drug information has been assigned a smaller cumulative number of times, based on the history information stored in the memory unit 12, and assign the drug information to those unspecified cassettes 22.

[0191] [Abnormal wearing notification function] The control unit 11 may be provided with an abnormal mounting determination function capable of determining whether the correspondence between the unspecified cassette 22 and the mounting unit 221 is appropriate.

[0192] As described in the first embodiment, the target to which the medicine information is assigned in step S15 is limited to the unspecified cassette 22 mounted in the mounting portion 221. Here, it is considered that the control unit 11 stores in the storage unit 12 correspondence information that associates the identification information of the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information is assigned with the identification information of the mounting portion 221 in which the unspecified cassette 22 is mounted.

[0193] Thereafter, the control unit 11 judges an abnormality in the correspondence relationship between the medicine cassette and the mounting unit based on the correspondence information. Specifically, the control unit 11 judges an abnormality when an unspecified cassette 22 different from the unspecified cassette 22 corresponding to the mounting unit 221 is mounted in the mounting unit 221. When the control unit 11 detects the abnormality, it executes, for example, an error notification process or prohibits a packaging operation using the unspecified cassette 22.

[0194] When the packaging operation using the unspecified cassette 22 is completed, the control unit 11 erases the correspondence information for the unspecified cassette 22 and cancels the correspondence with the mounting unit 221. In addition, for the mounting units 221 for which a correspondence relationship with the unspecified cassette 22 is not determined, any of the unspecified cassettes 22 may be mountable.

[0195] As a result, only the unspecified cassette 22 to which the medicine information is assigned can be mounted in each of the mounting units 221. Therefore, after the unspecified cassette 22 mounted in the mounting unit 221 is removed and filled with tablets, the unspecified cassette 22 is prevented from being mounted in another mounting unit 221. Also, for example, it is possible to prevent a situation in which the unspecified cassette 22 to be used in a packaging operation to be performed after the packaging operation to be performed cannot be mounted by mounting the unspecified cassette 22 to the mounting unit 221 in advance.

[0196] [Appendix 1] A medicine dispensing device including a plurality of medicine cassettes capable of dispensing any type of medicine, a display processing unit that displays a selection screen in which a plurality of selection areas for selecting each of the medicine cassettes are displayed in the same arrangement as the arrangement of each of the medicine cassettes in the medicine dispensing device; a reception processing unit that receives a selection operation of the selection area on the selection screen; an allocation processing unit that allocates medicine information to be dispensed to the medicine cassette corresponding to the selection area accepted by the reception processing unit; a drive processing unit that drives the medicine cassette in accordance with a preset drive condition corresponding to the medicine information assigned by the assignment processing unit, and sets the medicine cassette in a state in which the medicine corresponding to the medicine information can be dispensed; A medicine dispensing device comprising:

[0197] [Appendix 2] the display processing unit displays an allocation status of each of the medicine cassettes on the selection screen or on the medicine cassette. 2. A medicine dispensing device as described in appendix 1.

[0198] [Appendix 3] a plurality of specific medicine cassettes capable of dispensing a predetermined specific type of medicine; the display processing unit displays, on the selection screen, the selection areas corresponding to each of the medicine cassettes and the specific areas corresponding to each of the specified medicine cassettes in the same arrangement as an arrangement of the medicine cassettes and the specified medicine cassettes in the medicine dispensing device. 3. The drug dispensing device according to claim 1 or 2.

[0199] [Appendix 4] before The display processing unit is capable of switching between a first display state in which the selection area and the specific area are both displayed on the selection screen and a second display state in which only the selection area is displayed in response to a user operation. 4. A medicine dispensing device as described in appendix 3.

[0200] [Appendix 5] The display processing unit displays the selected area and the specific area in a distinguishable manner. 5. The drug dispensing device according to claim 3 or 4.

[0201] [Appendix 6] 6. The medicine dispensing device according to any one of appendix 1 to 5, wherein the reception processing unit receives an input operation of the medicine information to be dispensed after the selection operation is received.

[0202] [Appendix 7] The medicine dispensing device according to any one of appendix 1 to 5, wherein the reception processing unit receives an input operation of the medicine information to be dispensed before the selection operation is received.

[0203] [Appendix 8] a plurality of specific medicine cassettes capable of dispensing a predetermined specific type of medicine; When the specified drug cassette from which the drug corresponding to the drug information to be dispensed can be dispensed is present, the display processing unit highlights the specified drug cassette on the selection screen. Display 8. The drug dispensing device according to claim 7.

[0204] [Appendix 9] a dispensing execution unit that dispensing, in response to a dispensing start request including the drug information allocated to the drug cassette as a dispensing target, the drug corresponding to the drug information by using the drug cassette corresponding to the drug information, 9. The medicine dispensing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

[0205] [Appendix 10] a packaging unit that packages the medicine dispensed from the medicine cassette; a collection port for discharging the medicine dispensed from the medicine cassette to the outside; a path switching unit that switches a supply destination of the medicine dispensed from the medicine cassette between a first path leading to the packaging unit and a second path leading to the collection port; The medicine dispensing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9, comprising:

[0206] [Appendix 11] The recovery port is disposed immediately below the mounting portion in which the medicine cassette is mounted. 11. The medicine dispensing device according to claim 10.

[0207] [Appendix 12] a recovery processing unit that switches a supply destination of the medicine to the second path by the path switching unit and executes a recovery process of driving the medicine cassette, 12. The medicine dispensing device according to claim 10 or 11.

[0208] [Appendix 13] the collecting processing unit is capable of executing the collecting process after the dispensing of the medicine from the medicine cassette associated with the packaging operation of the medicine by the packaging unit is completed. 13. The medicine dispensing device according to claim 12.

[0209] [Appendix 14] a discharge switching unit that is switchable between a state in which the drug dispensed from the drug cassette to the collection port is stored and a state in which the drug can be discharged from the collection port, 14. The medicine dispensing apparatus according to any one of claims 10 to 13.

[0210] [Appendix 15] The allocation processing unit, a method for allocating the drug information to a drug cassette mounted in any one of a plurality of mounting parts in which the drug cassette is mounted, storing correspondence information that associates identification information of the drug cassette to which the drug information is assigned with identification information of the mounting part in which the drug cassette is mounted, and determining whether or not the correspondence relationship between the drug cassette and the mounting part is appropriate based on the correspondence information; 15. The medicine dispensing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 14.

[0211] [Appendix 16] A processor for controlling a medicine dispensing device including a plurality of medicine cassettes capable of dispensing any type of medicine, a display step of displaying a selection screen in which a plurality of selection areas for selecting each of the medicine cassettes are displayed in the same arrangement as the arrangement of each of the medicine cassettes in the medicine dispensing device; a receiving step of receiving a selection operation of the selection area on the selection screen; an allocation step of allocating medicine information to be dispensed to the medicine cassette corresponding to the selection area accepted in the acceptance step; a driving step of driving the medicine cassette in accordance with a preset driving condition corresponding to the medicine information assigned by the assignment step, and bringing the medicine cassette into a state in which the medicine corresponding to the medicine information can be dispensed; A drug dispensing program to execute the above.

Claims

[Claim 1] A medicine dispensing device having a plurality of medicine containers capable of dispensing tablets of any size, a display processing unit that displays a selection screen in which a plurality of selection areas for selecting each of the medicine containers are displayed in the same arrangement as that of each of the medicine containers in the medicine dispensing device; a reception processing unit that receives a selection operation of the selection area on the selection screen; an allocation processing unit that allocates drug information to be dispensed, which is included in prescription data input to the drug dispensing device, to the drug container unit corresponding to the selection area accepted by the reception processing unit; A medicine dispensing device comprising:

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