Medicine inspection support apparatus

Abstract

To provide a medicine inspection support device capable of enhancing the discrimination accuracy of a medicine.SOLUTION: In the packaging bag reading device 2 of the medicine inspection support device, a front conveyance guide photographing vicinity part 15C is arranged on the front side of a front conveyance guide insertion vicinity part in a front conveyance guide 15, and the whole range between the front conveyance guide photographing vicinity part 15C and a rear conveyance guide in a width direction is photographed by a photographing part 54. Therefore, in the packaging bag reading apparatus 2, it is possible to avoid the shadow formed by the conveyance guide 15 from overlapping with the medicine M in the captured image. Accordingly, the packaging bag reading apparatus 2 can accurately perform the process of cutting out the portion of each medicine M from the captured image and the process of determining the type or the like of each medicine M based on the cut-out image.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 12

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a drug inspection support device that is suitable for use in supporting the inspection of, for example, a single package containing a plurality of drugs. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, for patients who take multiple types of medications at one time, single-packaging has been implemented, in which the medications are pre-packaged in a single sachet, thereby reducing the burden on the patient of preparing the medications to be taken based on the type and quantity of medication written on the prescription at the time of administration. When single-packaging is implemented, pharmacists who provide medications to patients must not only dispense the medications according to the doctor's prescription, but also check that the medications are properly packed in each sachet before handing the sachet to the patient. However, it requires a great deal of effort for pharmacists to check the wide variety of medications packed in each sachet.

[0003] Therefore, a drug inspection support device has been proposed that transports a continuous string of serially connected sachets, photographs each sachet, generates an image, and displays the image based on the analysis results of the image (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 5888611 (Figure 1, etc.) Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In the above-described medicine inspection support device, a guide may be provided in the transport unit that transports the continuous sachet so that the sachet is photographed at an appropriate position in a direction intersecting the transport direction. However, in the medicine inspection support device, the guide and the sachet are close to each other near the photographing unit, which can cause the shadow of the guide to overlap with the medicine in the photographed image, which can reduce the accuracy of drug identification.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and aims to propose a drug inspection support device that can improve the accuracy of drug identification. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve this problem, the drug inspection support device of the present invention comprises an insertion section into which a sachet containing drug is inserted from the outside, a drive section which transports the sachet inserted into the insertion section in the transport direction, a guide section which guides the sachet to which driving force is transmitted by the drive section so that it moves in the transport direction, a photographing section which is located downstream of the insertion section in the transport direction and photographs the sachet from a photographing direction which intersects with the transport direction, and a discharge section which is located downstream of the photographing section in the transport direction and discharges the sachet to the outside, the guide section having a first transport guide and a second transport guide which respectively restrict the range of movement of the sachet on a first width direction side which is one direction in the width direction perpendicular to the transport direction and the photographing direction, and a second width direction side which is the opposite direction, and upstream of the photographing section in the transport direction there is provided a section where the distance between the first transport guide and the second transport guide in the width direction is an upstream width guide distance which is narrower than the photographing width guide distance which is the distance between the first transport guide and the second transport guide in the width direction in the photographing section.

[0008] In the present invention, the distance between the first transport guide and the second transport guide on the upstream side in the transport direction is set to the upstream width guide distance, so that the position and direction of travel of the sachet in the width direction can be regulated and the sachet can be photographed in an appropriate range in the photographing unit. In addition, in the present invention, the distance between the first transport guide and the second transport guide near the photographing unit on the downstream side in the transport direction is set to an photographing width guide distance that is larger than the upstream width guide distance, so that it is possible to prevent shadows of the first transport guide and the second transport guide from overlapping with the medicine in the image photographed by the photographing unit. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, a drug inspection support device that can improve the accuracy of drug identification can be realized. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing the external configuration of a medicine inspection support device. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a schematic front view showing the external configuration of the sachet reader. [Figure 3] 2 is a schematic right side view showing the external configuration of the sachet reader. FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a continuous body of sachets. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a schematic front view showing the internal configuration of the sachet reader. [Figure 6] 1 is a schematic plan view showing the internal configuration of a sachet reading device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a schematic right side view showing the internal configuration of the sachet reader. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a schematic front view showing the configuration of the imaging unit. [Figure 9] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a state (1) in which a continuous body of sachets is normally conveyed. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a state (2) in which a continuous body of sachets is normally conveyed. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a state (3) in which a continuous body of sachets is normally conveyed. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a state (4) in which a continuous body of sachets is normally conveyed. [Figure 13] 10 is a schematic diagram showing images of sachets when a continuous body of sachets is normally conveyed. FIG. [Figure 14] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a state (5) in which a continuous body of sachets is normally conveyed. [Figure 15] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an abnormal conveyance state (1) of a continuous body of sachets. [Figure 16] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing an abnormal conveyance state (2) of a continuous body of sachets. [Figure 17] 10 is a schematic diagram showing an image of a sachet bag when the continuous body of sachets is not being conveyed normally; FIG. [Figure 18] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of a notification screen. [Figure 19] FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing the configuration of the medicine inspection support device in accordance with the first embodiment, with the upper unit in an open position. [Figure 20] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a virtual sachet reader. [Figure 21] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing an image of a sachet on which a shadow is formed. [Figure 22] FIG. 10 is a schematic front view showing the internal configuration of a sachet reader according to a second embodiment. [Figure 23] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing an image of a sachet on which a shadow is formed. [Figure 24] FIG. 10 is a schematic plan view showing the internal configuration of a sachet reader according to another embodiment. [Figure 25] FIG. 10 is a schematic plan view showing the internal configuration of a sachet reader according to another embodiment. [Figure 26] FIG. 10 is a schematic plan view showing the internal configuration of a sachet reader according to another embodiment. [Figure 27] FIG. 10 is a schematic plan view showing the internal configuration of a sachet reader according to another embodiment. [Figure 28] FIG. 10 is a schematic plan view showing the internal configuration of a sachet reader according to another embodiment. [Figure 29]FIG. 10 is a schematic plan view showing the internal configuration of a sachet reader according to another embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Hereinafter, modes for carrying out the invention (hereinafter referred to as embodiments) will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0012] 1. First Embodiment [1-1. Appearance of the drug inspection support device] As shown in the schematic diagrams of FIGS. 1, 2, and 3A, medicine inspection support device 1 according to the first embodiment is broadly composed of sachet reader 2 and inspection result display device 3. Medicine inspection support device 1 is configured to perform an inspection support process (hereinafter referred to as an inspection process) when a user such as a pharmacist inspects sachets. The following description focuses on sachet continuum 100 (described in detail below) in which sachets 110 shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B are connected in succession.

[0013] Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing the overall appearance of medicine inspection support device 1. Figs. 2 and 3(A) show a front view and a right side view, respectively, of medicine inspection support device 1 without inspection result display device 3, showing only sachet reading device 2. Hereinafter, the side of medicine inspection support device 1 on which inspection result display device 3 is provided will be referred to as the front side, and the opposite side will be referred to as the rear side, and the right and left sides will be defined as seen from a user facing inspection result display device 3, as well as the top and bottom sides.

[0014] The sachet reader 2 is formed in the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped overall, and is provided with a control unit 4 inside that performs overall control of the device. The control unit 4 has a CPU (Central Processing Unit), ROM (Read Only Memory), RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. (not shown), as well as a storage unit, and performs various processes by using the RAM as a work area and executing various programs read from the ROM, storage unit, etc. by the CPU.

[0015] The sachet reading device 2 is also composed of a lower unit 5, which corresponds to approximately 2 / 3 to 3 / 4 of the lower part, an upper unit 6 located above it, and an opening / closing part 7 that rotatably connects the two.

[0016] The lower unit 5 is composed mainly of a lower frame 10 formed in the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped, with various parts attached to the inside and outside of the lower frame 10. An insertion guide 11 is provided on the right side of the lower frame 10 to guide the continuous string of sachets 100 (FIG. 4, described in detail below) being inserted. In addition, a discharge guide 12 is provided on the left side of the lower frame 10 to guide the continuous string of sachets being discharged.

[0017] As shown in FIG. 3A, the insertion guide 11 is composed of a bottom insertion guide 11B, a front insertion guide 11F, and a rear insertion guide 11R. The bottom insertion guide 11B is shaped like the right half of a cylinder extending in the front-to-rear direction and has a cylindrical peripheral side surface. The front insertion guide 11F is adjacent to the front side of the bottom insertion guide 11B and is shaped like the right half of a cylinder with a diameter slightly larger than that of the bottom insertion guide 11B. The rear insertion guide 11R is adjacent to the rear side of the bottom insertion guide 11B and, like the front insertion guide 11F, is also shaped like the right half of a cylinder with a diameter slightly larger than that of the bottom insertion guide 11B. In other words, the insertion guide 11 is configured such that flange-shaped front insertion guides 11F and rear insertion guides 11R are provided on the bottom insertion guide 11B.

[0018] The discharge guide 12 is composed of a bottom discharge guide 12B, a front discharge guide 12F, and a rear discharge guide 12R. The discharge guide 12 is configured roughly bilaterally symmetrical with the insertion guide 11, and has an overall shape like the left half of a cylinder aligned in the front-to-rear direction, but the front discharge guide 12F is located slightly forward of the front insertion guide 11F. Therefore, the length of the discharge guide 12 in the front-to-rear direction is slightly longer than that of the insertion guide 11.

[0019] A conveying recess 13 is formed in a lower frame top surface 10T, which is the upper surface of the lower frame 10, near the center in the front-to-rear direction and occupying approximately one-third of the entire area. This conveying recess 13 is formed in a shape that is slightly lower and recessed than the front and rear portions of the lower frame top surface 10T. The inner surface of the conveying recess 13 is formed by a lower conveying guide 14 on the lower side, a front conveying guide 15 on the front side, and a rear conveying guide 16 on the rear side. The detailed shapes of the lower conveying guide 14, front conveying guide 15, and rear conveying guide 16 will be described later.

[0020] The upper unit 6 is composed mainly of an upper frame 20 formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape, and various parts are attached to the inside and outside of the upper frame 20. The upper frame 20 is provided with a handle portion 21 on the front side and a locking portion 22 on the rear side.

[0021] The handle 21 is located near the center of the front side surface in the left-right direction and is recessed rearward from the surrounding area. As will be described later, the user inserts their fingertip or the like into the handle 21 and uses it to apply force upward or rearward to the upper unit 6. The locking portion 22 protrudes rearward from the rear side surface of the upper frame 20 and has a rectangular shape with sides of different lengths when viewed from the left and right direction.

[0022] An upper conveying guide 24 is formed on upper frame lower surface 20B, which is the underside of upper frame 20, in an area near the center in the front-to-rear direction and occupying approximately one-third of the entire area. This upper conveying guide 24 faces lower conveying guide 14 of lower frame 10 with a predetermined distance between them. Therefore, in sachet reading device 2, lower conveying guide 14, front conveying guide 15, rear conveying guide 16, and upper conveying guide 24 form a conveying space 50 (shown by diagonal lines in FIG. 3(A)), which is a space that passes through sachet reading device 2 in the left-to-right direction.

[0023] The opening / closing unit 7 is located near the rear end of the boundary between the lower frame 10 and the upper frame 20, and functions as a hinge. Therefore, the sachet reading device 2 can rotate the upper unit 6 relative to the lower unit 5 around the central axis X7 of the opening / closing unit 7.

[0024] Specifically, as shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3(A), the sachet bag reading device 2 is configured to perform the inspection support processing described below when the upper surface 10T of the lower frame of the lower unit 5 and the lower surface 20B of the upper frame of the upper unit 6 are in contact or very close proximity (hereinafter referred to as the closed state).

[0025] Furthermore, when the user applies force upward and backward to the upper unit 6 of the sachet reading device 2 in this closed state, the upper unit 6 rotates approximately 120 degrees in the direction of arrow R1 in Figure 3(A) (i.e., clockwise) around the opening / closing part 7. This causes the sachet reading device 2 to transition to a state in which the locking part 22 abuts against the rear side of the lower frame 10 (hereinafter referred to as the open state) as shown in Figure 3(B), and come to a standstill.

[0026] In this open state, the sachet reading device 2 has almost all of the upper unit 6 positioned rearward and away from directly above the lower frame top surface 10T, largely exposing the lower frame top surface 10T of the lower unit 5. In other words, in this open state, the sachet reading device 2 has a sufficiently large space (hereinafter referred to as the removal space 80) formed in the portion adjacent to the upper side of the transport space 50 where no components of the upper unit 6 are present. Therefore, the sachet reading device 2 allows the user to easily perform various tasks using the transport recess 13 on the lower frame top surface 10T via this removal space 80 (shown with diagonal lines in Figure 3(B)).

[0027] When a force is applied downward and forward to the upper unit 6 of the sachet reading device 2 in the open state (Figure 3(B)), the upper unit 6 rotates in the direction of arrow R2 in Figure 3(B) (i.e., counterclockwise) around the opening / closing section 7, and returns to the closed state shown in Figure 3(A) etc.

[0028] Incidentally, the upper unit 6 is provided with a locking mechanism (not shown) behind or below the handle 21. Therefore, when the sachet reading device 2 is in a closed state (such as FIG. 3(A)), if the upper unit 6 is locked by the locking mechanism, the sachet reading device 2 maintains the closed state, and when the lock is released, the upper unit 6 can be rotated, i.e., can transition to an open state.

[0029] The inspection result display device 3 (FIG. 1) is formed in a thin plate shape overall and is attached to one side of the lower unit 5 of the sachet reading device 2 via an attachment member (not shown). The attachment member is designed to allow the angle of the inspection result display device 3 relative to the lower unit 5 to be adjusted. The inspection result display device 3 also has a touch panel 8 and is electrically connected to the lower unit 5 via a connection cable (not shown). This allows it to display various display screens under the control of the control unit 4 and accept input via touch operation by the user. The inspection result display device 3 also has a wired or wireless interface (not shown) and can communicate with a predetermined server device (not shown) to transmit and receive various information, such as obtaining information about the drug M and transmitting information about the results of the inspection process.

[0030] [1-2. Composition of the continuous sachet bag] Next, the configuration of the continuous body of sachets 100 will be described with reference to Figures 4(A) and (B). Figure 4(A) is a schematic plan view of the continuous body of sachets 100 as seen from above, and Figure 4(B) is a schematic plan view of the continuous body of sachets 100 as seen from the front.

[0031] The continuous sachet bag series 100 is configured with a plurality of sachet bags 110 connected in the left-right direction. Each sachet bag 110 is made of a resin film that has sufficient flexibility and a relatively high transmittance for visible light, i.e., high transparency. Furthermore, the sachet bags 110 have a flat shape, with the vertical length being sufficiently short compared to the lengths in the front-to-back and left-to-right directions.

[0032] This sachet 110 has a sealed bag-shaped portion 113 formed between an upper film 111 and a lower film 112, and medicines M are stored in a storage space 113S, which is the space within the bag-shaped portion 113. This single sachet 110 stores all of one or more types of medicines M prescribed for one patient to take on one occasion (for example, after breakfast).

[0033] In this way, storing a plurality of drugs M of one or more types together in one sachet 110 is also called single packaging or individual packaging. Furthermore, depending on the prescription, storing one drug M of one type in one sachet 110 may be treated as a single packaged sachet 110. In the following description of this embodiment, the subject is a continuous sachet 100 in which a plurality of sachets 110, each containing one or more drugs M of one or more types, are connected together.

[0034] When sachet 110 is manufactured, for example, an imaginary fold line is set in the center in the front-to-back direction of a sheet of film material, and the drugs M to be stored are placed in a collected state behind the fold line, and the front portion is folded from the top to the back along the fold line, so that the drugs M are sandwiched between upper film 111 and lower film 112. Next, the left side, right side, and back side of the drugs M in sachet 110 are fused together by a process such as thermocompression bonding, thereby forming left peripheral edge 114, right peripheral edge 115, and back peripheral edge 116 (hereinafter collectively referred to as peripheral edge 117), respectively.

[0035] Furthermore, by using a film material that is sufficiently long in the left-right direction, the continuous body of sachets 100 is manufactured with the sachets 110 connected in the left-right direction, and the boundaries of the sachets 110 are cut intermittently along the front-to-back direction to form so-called perforations. As a result, the continuous body of sachets 100 is configured in an elongated shape along the left-to-right direction, and allows the patient or other person to easily separate the sachets 110 when taking the medicine.

[0036] Next, when we look at the thickness of the sachet 110, i.e., the length in the vertical direction, the bag-shaped portion 113 is slightly thicker in accordance with the amount of medicine M stored in the storage space 113S, while the peripheral portions 117 (i.e., the left peripheral portion 114, the right peripheral portion 115 and the rear peripheral portion 116) are all about the thickness of two sheets of film material, making them sufficiently thin.

[0037] Here, let us consider the case where the thickness of the continuous series of sachets 100 is viewed continuously in the left-right direction. The rear peripheral edge 116 of the continuous series of sachets 100 always has a constant thickness. On the other hand, in the bag-shaped portion 113, left peripheral edge 114, and right peripheral edge 115 of the continuous series of sachets 100 that are forward of the rear peripheral edge 116, the relatively thick bag-shaped portion 113 and the relatively thin left peripheral edge 114 and right peripheral edge 115 appear alternately.

[0038] Next, attention will be focused on the light transmittance of sachet 110. In bag-shaped portion 113 of sachet 110, upper film 111 and lower film 112 have sufficiently high transmittance, and the transmittance is locally reduced only at the locations of each drug M. On the other hand, at peripheral portion 117 of sachet 110, due to being fused, a difference in light transmittance occurs compared to upper film 111 and lower film 112.

[0039] Hereinafter, the front or central portion of the continuous body of sachets 100, i.e., the portion corresponding to the bag-shaped portion 113, left peripheral portion 114, and right peripheral portion 115 of each sachet 110, will be referred to as the front portion 101 of the continuous body of sachets. Additionally, the rear portion of the continuous body of sachets 100, i.e., the portion corresponding to the rear peripheral portion 116 of each sachet 110, will be referred to as the rear portion 102 of the continuous body of sachets.

[0040] Furthermore, the front end of the bag-shaped portion 113, which is formed by folding the film material, is referred to as the bag-shaped portion front edge 121, and the rear end of the bag-shaped portion 113, which is the front end of the rear peripheral portion 116, is referred to as the bag-shaped portion rear edge 122. In addition, the length of the continuous sachet bag body 100 and the sachet bag 110 in the front-to-back direction is referred to as L1, and the length in the up-down direction is referred to as L2.

[0041] [1-3. Internal structure of the sachet reader] Next, the internal configuration of the sachet reading device 2 will be described with reference to Figures 5, 6, and 7. Figure 5 is a schematic front view with the front side of the lower frame 10 and the front side of the upper frame 20 both omitted. Figure 6 is a schematic plan view of the sachet reading device 2 with the upper unit 6 omitted, leaving only the lower unit 5. Figure 7 is a schematic right side view with the right side of the lower frame 10 and the right side of the upper frame 20 both omitted.

[0042] Inside the sachet reading device 2, a control unit 4 is disposed at the bottom, and a conveying space 50 is formed by a lower conveying guide 14, a front conveying guide 15, a rear conveying guide 16, and an upper conveying guide 24. As will be described later, this conveying space 50 is a space for conveying the continuous string of sachets 100 from right to left. Hereinafter, the left side of the conveying space 50 will also be referred to as the conveying direction, and the right side of the conveying space 50 will also be referred to as the upstream side, and the left side will also be referred to as the downstream side.

[0043] Inside the sachet reading device 2, a conveying unit 51, an insertion detection unit 52, a swinging unit 53, a photographing unit 54 and a discharge detection unit 55 are arranged near the conveying space 50, and an opening / closing detection unit 56 is arranged at a location slightly away from the conveying space 50.

[0044] The upper surface of the lower conveying guide 14 is formed in a generally horizontal plane as a whole, although each section is made of a different material such as resin, metal, or glass. The upper surface of this lower conveying guide 14 defines the downward extent of the conveying space 50. The lower surface of the upper conveying guide 24, like the upper surface of the lower conveying guide 14, is formed in a generally horizontal plane as a whole, although each section is made of a different material such as resin, metal, or glass. The lower surface of this upper conveying guide 24 defines the upward extent of the conveying space 50.

[0045] The front conveying guide 15 is made of, for example, a predetermined resin material and is composed of a front conveying guide insertion vicinity portion 15A on the right side (i.e., the upstream side), a front conveying guide central bend portion 15B near the center (i.e., the midstream portion), and a front conveying guide photography vicinity portion 15C on the left side (i.e., the downstream side). The front conveying guide 15 is continuous with the front insertion guide 11F of the insertion guide 11 on the right side, and continuous with the front discharge guide 12F of the discharge guide 12 on the left side. The rear side of the front conveying guide 15 facing the conveying space 50 can restrict the range and position of forward movement of the continuous string of sachets 100.

[0046] The front transport guide insertion vicinity 15A is a portion located near the insertion guide 11, and is located on the upstream side of the transport space 50. The front transport guide photography vicinity 15C is a portion located near the photography unit 54, which will be described later, and is located on the downstream side of the transport space 50.

[0047] The rear surfaces of the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A and the front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C are both formed as a flat surface parallel to the rear conveying guide 16 and perpendicular to the upper surface of the lower conveying guide 14 and the lower surface of the upper conveying guide 24. The front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C is located a distance L15 forward of the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A. As will be described later, the rear surfaces of the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A and the front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C both serve to restrict the movement range of the continuous series of sachets 100 in the front-to-rear direction. The rear surface of the front conveying guide central bend 15B is flat along the diagonal direction connecting the rear right side and the front left side, and is inclined relative to the rear surfaces of the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A and the front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C.

[0048] The rear conveying guide 16 is made of, for example, a predetermined resin material, and its front surface is formed in a flat, planar shape that is perpendicular to the lower conveying guide 14 and the upper conveying guide 24. That is, when viewed from above (FIG. 6), the front surface of the rear conveying guide 16 is linear along the conveying direction (i.e., the left-right direction) in which the continuous string of sachets 100 should be conveyed. The right side of the rear conveying guide 16 is continuous with the rear insertion guide 11R of the insertion guide 11, and the left side is continuous with the rear discharge guide 12R of the discharge guide 12. The front surface of the rear conveying guide 16 that faces the conveying space 50 can regulate the range and position of rearward movement of the continuous string of sachets 100.

[0049] Furthermore, in the conveying space 50, the insertion width guide interval L50A, which is the distance between the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A and the rear conveying guide 16 in the front-to-rear direction, is slightly longer than the length L1 (FIG. 4) of the sachet string 100 and the sachet 110 in the front-to-rear direction. Incidentally, in the sachet reading device 2, the distance between the front insertion guide 11F and the rear insertion guide 11R in the insertion guide 11 is also the same as the insertion width guide interval L50A. Hereinafter, the insertion width guide interval L50A will also be referred to as the upstream width guide interval.

[0050] Furthermore, in the transport space 50, the photographing width guide interval L50C, which is the interval between the front transport guide photographing vicinity 15C and the rear transport guide 16, is longer than the insertion width guide interval L50A by a distance L15. In other words, upstream of the photographing unit 54 in the transport space 50, there is a portion where the interval between the front transport guide 15 and the rear transport guide 16 in the width direction is the insertion width guide interval L50A, which is narrower than the photographing width guide interval L50C in the photographing unit 54. Incidentally, in the sachet reading device 2, the interval between the front discharge guide 12F and the rear discharge guide 12R in the discharge guide 12 is also the same as the photographing width guide interval L50C. For this reason, hereinafter, the photographing width guide interval L50C will also be referred to as the discharge width guide interval.

[0051] As described above, in the transport space 50, the downstream side (left side) is longer (wider) in the front-to-rear direction than the upstream side (right side) by a distance L15. For convenience of explanation, hereinafter, in the front-to-rear direction shown in FIG. 6, attention will be focused on the width of the transport space 50 formed by the front transport guide 15 and the rear transport guide 16, and the direction from the rear transport guide 16 to the front transport guide (front direction) will also be referred to as the first width direction, and the opposite direction, from the front transport guide 15 to the rear transport guide 16 (rear direction), will also be referred to as the second width direction. Furthermore, hereinafter, the front transport guide 15 will also be referred to as the first transport guide, and the rear transport guide 16 will also be referred to as the second transport guide.

[0052] The conveying section 51 as a drive section is composed of conveying roller pairs 61A, 61B, and 61C arranged at three positions spaced apart in the left-right direction. The conveying roller pair 61A as a drive contact section is composed of a lower driving roller 62A and an upper driven roller 63A. Similarly, the conveying roller pair 61B is composed of a lower driving roller 62B and an upper driven roller 63B, and the conveying roller pair 61C is composed of a lower driving roller 62C and an upper driven roller 63C.

[0053] The drive roller 62A is provided on the lower frame 10 side and is disposed near the rear right end of the lower conveying guide 14. That is, the drive roller 62A is disposed between the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A and the rear conveying guide 16. The drive roller 62A is formed in a flat cylindrical shape with its central axis aligned in the front-to-rear direction and is rotatably supported at its center. The drive roller 62A is also formed by appropriately combining metal materials such as stainless steel, various resin materials, or materials with a relatively high coefficient of friction such as rubber, and the frictional resistance on the peripheral surface is relatively high.

[0054] Furthermore, although the majority of the drive roller 62A is positioned below the lower conveying guide 14, only a portion near the upper end thereof protrudes above the lower conveying guide 14, i.e., into the conveying space 50, through a hole formed in the lower conveying guide 14. A driving force is transmitted to the drive roller 62A from a drive motor or actuator (not shown) via predetermined gears, belts, etc.

[0055] The drive roller 62B is disposed near the center in the left-right direction toward the rear of the lower conveying guide 14. That is, the drive roller 62B is disposed between the rear conveying guide 16 and a range extending from a portion of the front conveying guide 15 downstream of the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A, through the front conveying guide central bending portion 15B, to the front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C. The drive roller 62C is disposed near the left end toward the rear of the lower conveying guide 14. That is, the drive roller 62C is disposed between the front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C and the rear conveying guide 16. The drive rollers 62B and 62C are configured similarly to the drive roller 62A except for their locations.

[0056] The driven roller 63A is provided on the upper frame 20 and is located near the rear right end of the upper conveying guide 24, directly above the drive roller 62A. Like the drive roller 62A, the driven roller 63A is formed in a flat cylindrical shape with its central axis aligned in the front-to-rear direction and is rotatably supported at its center. The driven roller 63A is biased downward by a biasing member (not shown). Furthermore, although the majority of the driven roller 63A is positioned above the upper conveying guide 24, only a portion near its lower end protrudes below the upper conveying guide 24, i.e., into the conveying space 50, via a hole formed in the upper conveying guide 24.

[0057] The driven roller 63B is disposed near the center in the left-right direction toward the rear of the upper conveying guide 24, and is located directly above the drive roller 62B in the closed state (FIGS. 1, 2, and 3A). The driven roller 63C is disposed near the left end toward the rear of the upper conveying guide 24. These driven rollers 63B and 63C are configured similarly to the driven roller 63A except for their locations.

[0058] Incidentally, in the conveying section 51, the distance L61 in the front-to-back direction from the rear conveying guide 16 to the front end of each conveying roller pair 61 is slightly larger than the distance L15, which is the distance between the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A and the front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C in the front conveying guide 15.

[0059] With this configuration, when the conveying unit 51 is in a closed state (FIGS. 1, 2, and 3A) in which the upper frame 20 is closed, the conveying unit 51 brings each of the driven rollers 63 (63A, 63B, and 63C) into contact with each of the drive rollers 62 (62A, 62B, and 62C). When the upper frame 20 is rotated from this closed state to an open state (FIG. 3B), the conveying unit 51 rotates each of the driven rollers 63 (63A, 63B, and 63C) together with the upper frame 20, and separates them from the drive rollers 62 (62A, 62B, and 62C).

[0060] In the closed state, the conveying unit 51 rotates the drive motor (not shown) based on the control of the control unit 4, causing each drive roller 62 to rotate counterclockwise (in the direction of arrow R2) in Figure 5, and thereby causing each driven roller 63 to rotate clockwise (in the direction of arrow R1).

[0061] In this state, when the continuous string of sachets 100 (FIG. 4) is inserted from the right side of the conveying space 50, the conveying unit 51 first clamps the rear portion 102 of the continuous string of sachets 100 with conveying roller pair 61A (i.e., drive roller 62A and driven roller 63A) and transmits a driving force to move the continuous string of sachets leftward. Next, the conveying unit 51 sequentially clamps the rear portion 102 of the continuous string of sachets with conveying roller pair 61B and conveying roller pair 61C and transmits a driving force to the continuous string of sachets 100 to move it leftward.

[0062] In this way, conveying unit 51 can convey the continuous string of sachets 100 in the left direction by transmitting a driving force to the continuous string of sachets 100. Incidentally, conveying unit 51 can also convey the continuous string of sachets 100 in the right direction (hereinafter also referred to as the opposite direction) by rotating each drive roller 62 clockwise (the direction along arrow R1).

[0063] The insertion detection unit 52 (FIG. 5) is, for example, an optical sensor, and is composed of an upper light-emitting unit 52A and a lower light-receiving unit 52B. The light-emitting unit 52A is provided on the upper frame 20 side, and is arranged near the front right end of the upper conveying guide 24. This light-emitting unit 52A emits insertion detection light L52 based on the control of the control unit 4. Hereinafter, the position where the insertion detection light L52 crosses the conveying space 50 will be referred to as the insertion position P52 (FIG. 6).

[0064] The light receiving unit 52B is provided on the lower frame 10 side, and is disposed in a position (FIG. 7) near the front right end of the lower conveying guide 14, directly below the light emitting unit 52A in the closed state (FIGS. 1, 2, and 3(A)). The light receiving unit 52B receives at least a portion of the insertion detection light L52 emitted by the light emitting unit 52A, generates a detection signal according to the amount of light, and supplies the detection signal to the control unit 4.

[0065] In response, the control unit 4 determines, based on the supplied detection signal, whether the continuous string of sachets 100 has crossed insertion position P52, and whether it is the bag-shaped portion 113 or the peripheral portion 117 that is crossing insertion position P52. The control unit 4 also calculates the timing at which the bag-shaped portion 113 will arrive at the photographing unit 54 based on the determination result obtained at this time. Furthermore, the control unit 4 can obtain the conveying speed of the continuous string of sachets 100 from the rotation speed of the drive roller 62 in the conveying unit 51, and can also use this to calculate the timing at which the bag-shaped portion 113 will arrive at the photographing unit 54.

[0066] The swinging portion 53 (FIGS. 5 and 6) is located to the left of the insertion detection portion 52 (i.e., the light receiving portion 52B) in the lower conveying guide 14, and swinging levers 53A, 53B, and 53C are arranged in sequence at predetermined intervals from right to left. Of these, swinging levers 53B and 53C are configured similarly to swinging lever 53A, and differ only in their positions. Therefore, the following description will focus on swinging lever 53A.

[0067] The rocking lever 53A is formed as a rectangular parallelepiped elongated in the front-to-rear direction as a whole, and is made of a predetermined material such as resin or rubber. Although the majority of the rocking lever 53A is embedded in the lower frame 10, a portion near its upper end protrudes above the lower conveying guide 14 through a hole formed in the lower conveying guide 14.

[0068] Furthermore, swing lever 53A is attached to lower frame 10 so as to be swingable in the vertical direction, and vibrates in response to vertical vibrations transmitted from an actuator (not shown). Therefore, when swing lever 53A is in contact with the underside of bag-shaped portion 113 of sachet 110 while sachet serial body 100 is being transported within transport space 50, it can apply vibrations to drug M inside sachet 110.

[0069] When sachets 110 of the continuous string of sachets 100 reach a position directly above swing levers 53A, 53B, and 53C in the conveying space 50 (hereinafter referred to as swing position P53), swinging unit 53 vibrates under the control of control unit 4. As a result, swinging unit 53 transmits this vibration to sachets 110, causing each drug M contained in sachets 110 to swing, thereby appropriately displacing the posture and position of each drug M within bag-shaped portion 113. As a result, even if drugs M are overlapping vertically within bag-shaped portion 113, sachets 110 are expected to break up and disperse this overlap.

[0070] As shown in the schematic front view of FIG. 8 , the photographing unit 54 is configured such that an upper photographing unit 54A and a lower photographing unit 54B face each other. The upper photographing unit 54A is attached to the upper frame 20 of the upper unit 6 and includes a transmission light source 71, a transmission cover 72, and a lens (not shown). The transmission light source 71 includes a plurality of transmission light emitters 73 arranged in the front-rear and left-right directions. Each transmission light emitter 73 is, for example, an LED (Light Emitting Diode) element, and emits light primarily downward when supplied with current. The transmission cover 72 is a thin plate extending in the vertical direction and made of a resin material or transparent glass with high light transmittance. The lower surface of the transmission cover 72 forms a flat surface that is continuous with the upper conveying guide 24.

[0071] With this configuration, the upper photographing unit 54A causes each transmitted light emitter 73 of the transmitted light source 71 to emit light under the control of the control unit 4. The light emitted from each transmitted light emitter 73 is diffused by a lens or the like (not shown) below the transparent cover 72 so that the light has approximately uniform brightness in the front-to-back and left-to-right directions, passes through the transparent cover 72, and reaches the inside of the transfer space 50.

[0072] The lower photographing section 54B is attached to the lower frame 10 of the lower unit 5, and includes a reflective light source 75, a transparent cover 76, a condenser lens 77, an image pickup element 78, etc. The reflective light source 75 is composed of an LED (Light Emitting Diode) element similar to the transmitted light emitter 73, a predetermined lens (not shown), etc., and emits light mainly diagonally upward when current is supplied. The transparent cover 76, like the transparent cover 72 of the upper photographing section 54A, is a thin plate in the vertical direction, and is made of a resin material or transparent glass with high light transmittance.

[0073] The condenser lens 77 is a lens that has the function of converging light, and converges the light that passes through the transparent cover 76 and travels downward near the center of the upper surface of the image sensor 78. The image sensor 78 is, for example, a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor), and is configured with a plurality of elements with a light receiving function arranged in a grid pattern. The image sensor 78 receives the light focused by the condenser lens 77, generates an image signal in response to the light, and supplies the image signal to the control unit 4.

[0074] When a sachet 110 of the continuous sachet string 100 reaches a position directly above the image sensor 78 in the transport space 50 (hereinafter referred to as image sensor position P54 (FIG. 6)), the photographing unit 54 causes the transmitted light source 71 to emit light and supplies an image signal generated by the image sensor 78 to the control unit 4. In the image signal obtained at this time, the portion of the sachet 110 containing the drug M appears dark and the other portions appear bright, so that the contour of the drug M is clearly visible. The control unit 4 performs predetermined conversion processing, image processing, etc. on the image signal to generate a contour image in which the contour of the drug M is clearly visible.

[0075] Furthermore, when sachet 110 reaches photographing position P54, photographing unit 54 causes reflected light source 75 to emit light, causing a portion of the emitted light to be reflected by drug M inside sachet 110 and reach imaging element 78, and supplies an image signal generated by imaging element 78 to control unit 4. The image signal obtained at this time shows the appearance of sachet 110 as viewed from below, so the color, pattern, etc. of the surface (underside) of each drug M is clearly displayed. Control unit 4 performs predetermined conversion processing, image processing, etc. based on this image signal to generate a surface image that clearly shows the surface of drug M.

[0076] In this way, photographing unit 54 photographs an image as if looking up from below at photographing position P54 where sachet 110 has arrived. For this reason, hereinafter, the upward direction will also be referred to as the photographing direction.

[0077] 6, the photographing range of the photographing unit 54 is the entire range in the width direction (front-rear direction) between the front conveying guide photographing vicinity 15C and the rear conveying guide 16. That is, the length of the photographing range of the photographing unit 54 in the width direction is the photographing width guide interval L50C, which is larger (wider) than the insertion width guide interval L50A in the portion where the upstream swinging unit 53 and the like are arranged.

[0078] The discharge detection unit 55 (FIG. 5) is, for example, an optical sensor similar to the insertion detection unit 52, and is composed of an upper light-emitting unit 55A and a lower light-receiving unit 55B. The light-emitting unit 55A is provided on the upper frame 20 side and is arranged forward near the left end of the upper conveying guide 24. This light-emitting unit 55A emits discharge detection light L55 based on the control of the control unit 4. Hereinafter, the position where the discharge detection light L55 crosses the conveying space 50 will be referred to as the discharge position P55 (FIG. 6).

[0079] The light receiving unit 55B is provided on the lower frame 10 side, and is disposed near the left end of the lower conveying guide 14 toward the front, and directly below the light emitting unit 55A in the closed state (FIGS. 1, 2, and 3(A)) (FIG. 6). The light receiving unit 55B receives at least a portion of the discharge detection light L55 emitted by the light emitting unit 55A, and generates a detection signal according to the amount of light and supplies it to the control unit 4.

[0080] In response, the control unit 4 determines, based on the supplied detection signal, whether the continuous series of sachets 100 has crossed the discharge position P55, and whether it is the bag-shaped portion 113 or the peripheral portion 117 that is crossing the discharge position P55.

[0081] The open / close detector 56 (FIG. 6) is, for example, a magnetic sensor, and is provided near the rear end of the lower frame upper surface 10T of the lower frame 10. A predetermined magnetic material (not shown) is embedded in the upper frame lower surface 20B of the upper frame 20 at a location facing the open / close detector 56. The open / close detector 56 generates a magnetic detection signal according to the magnetic detection level and supplies it to the control unit 4. The control unit 4 can determine whether the upper unit 6 is in the closed state based on the comparison result obtained by comparing the magnetic detection signal with a predetermined threshold value.

[0082] [1-4. Audit support processing] Next, the inspection support process by medicine inspection support device 1 (FIG. 1 etc.) will be described for two cases: when serial of sachets 100 (FIG. 4) can be conveyed normally, and when it cannot be conveyed normally.

[0083] [1-4-1. When transportation is possible normally] First, a case will be described in which medicine inspection support device 1 can normally transport continuous sachet 100. When medicine inspection support device 1 receives a predetermined operation from a user, such as a pharmacist, via touch panel 8, it starts the inspection process under the control of controller 4. Specifically, controller 4 displays a predetermined guide screen (not shown) on touch panel 8, prompting the user to insert the leading end of continuous sachet 100 into transport space 50 along insertion guide 11 on the right side of sachet reading device 2. Controller 4 also controls insertion detector 52 to monitor whether insertion detection light L52 ( FIG. 5 ) is obstructed.

[0084] 9, like FIG. 6, shows the upper side of the lower unit 5 of the sachet reading device 2, with the upper unit 6 omitted. FIG. 9 also shows a state in which the leading portion of the continuous string of sachets 100 has been placed on the insertion guide 11 by a user or other operation. In this case, the continuous string of sachets 100 is not twisted, and each sachet 110 is always oriented with the upper film 111 (FIG. 4) facing upward.

[0085] 9, when the user inserts the continuous string of sachets 100 leftward, the portion near the front of the continuous string of sachets 100 reaches insertion position P52 and blocks insertion detection light L52 (FIG. 6), as shown in FIG. 10, which corresponds to FIG. 9. Furthermore, the portion near the left end of the rear portion 102 of the continuous string of sachets 100 reaches the pair of conveying rollers 61A of the conveying section 51.

[0086] At this time, when the control unit 4 of the drug inspection support device 1 recognizes that the insertion detection light L52 has been blocked in the insertion detection unit 52, it starts rotating the drive rollers 62 (62A, 62B, and 62C) and starts transporting the continuous sachet bag string 100 to the left (i.e., the transport direction) by the transport unit 51.

[0087] Next, medicine inspection support device 1 causes leading sachet 110 in continuous string of sachets 100 to reach swing position P53, as shown in FIG. 11 , which corresponds to FIG. 9 and other figures. At this time, controller 4 operates an actuator (not shown) of swing unit 53 to vibrate swing lever 53A ( FIG. 7 ), etc., and transmits the vibrations to sachet 110.

[0088] Medicine inspection support device 1 continues to transport continuous string of sachets 100 leftward (i.e., in the transport direction) using conveying roller pair 61A, until the leading edge of continuous string of sachets 100 reaches conveying roller pair 61B, which then clamps rear end 102 of continuous string of sachets. As a result, medicine inspection support device 1 transports continuous string of sachets 100 in the transport direction using conveying roller pair 61A and conveying roller pair 61B.

[0089] Eventually, as shown in FIG. 12, which corresponds to FIG. 9 and other figures, medicine inspection support device 1 causes the leading sachet 110 in sachet continuum 100 to reach photographing position P54. At this time, sachet 110 at photographing position P54 is close to rear transport guide 16 on the rear side in the front-to-rear direction, but is slightly separated from front transport guide photographing vicinity 15C of front transport guide 15 on the front side, forming a certain amount of gap between it and front transport guide photographing vicinity 15C. In this state, controller 4 controls photographing unit 54 to photograph sachet 110 and generate sachet image C1 as shown in FIG. 13(A).

[0090] Next, the control unit 4 causes the photographing unit 54 to intermittently photograph images of the photographing position P54. As a result, the photographing unit 54 sequentially generates images in which the position of each sachet 110 relative to the photographing range changes successively, as shown in Figures 13(B) and 13(C).

[0091] Thereafter, the control unit 4 causes the leading sachet 110 in the continuous string of sachets 100 to reach the left side of the discharge position P55, as shown in Figure 14, which corresponds to Figure 9, etc., and discharges the sachet 110 out of the conveying space 50.

[0092] In addition, the control unit 4 performs predetermined analysis processing and inspection processing, etc. based on the sachet bag image C1 obtained by photographing each sachet bag 110 using the photographing unit 54, to determine whether each sachet bag 110 contains a predetermined type and number of drugs M, and displays the obtained inspection results on the touch panel 8.

[0093] [1-4-2. When transportation is not possible] Next, a case where medicine inspection support device 1 cannot normally transport serial of sachets 100 will be described. As in the case where medicine inspection support device 1 can normally transport serial of sachets 100, medicine inspection support device 1 starts the inspection support process under the control of controller 4 based on a user's operation via touch panel 8, etc.

[0094] Figure 15, which corresponds to Figure 10, shows a state in which the leading portion of the continuous string of sachets 100 has been placed on the insertion guide 11 by a user or other action. Here, it is assumed that a twisted portion 100TW has been formed in the middle of the continuous string of sachets 100. As a result, the apparent thickness (i.e., the vertical length) of the continuous string of sachets 100 near twisted portion 100TW is significantly greater than the other portions. Specifically, the apparent thickness of the continuous string of sachets 100 near twisted portion 100TW is greater than the vertical length in the conveying space 50 of the sachet reading device 2, i.e., the distance between the lower conveying guide 14 and the upper conveying guide 24 (Figure 5, etc.).

[0095] Thereafter, medicine inspection support device 1 continues to transport continuous string of sachets 100 using transport unit 51, and eventually, as shown in Figure 16, twisted point 100TW reaches the vicinity of insertion guide 11. At this point, medicine inspection support device 1 is unable to advance twisted point 100TW into transport space 50 because the apparent thickness at twisted point 100TW is greater than the vertical length of transport space 50, causing a blockage.

[0096] In addition, in medicine inspection support device 1, since imaging unit 54 intermittently captures images at imaging position P54, for example, sachet images C11 and C12 shown in Figures 17(A) and 17(B) are generated in sequence, followed by sachet image C13 shown in Figure 17(C). In response, controller 4 determines that sachet continuum 100 has not been transported normally and that an appropriate sachet image cannot be obtained, because sachet image C13 (Figure 17(C)) has hardly changed from sachet image C12 (Figure 17(B)).

[0097] Therefore, the control unit 4 stops the operations of the conveying unit 51, the swinging unit 53, the photographing unit 54, etc., and displays a notification image C20 shown in Fig. 18 on the touch panel 8 (Fig. 1). This notification image C20 displays a message M20 with the content, for example, "A conveyance problem has occurred. Please open the upper unit and remove the continuous sachet bag."

[0098] Upon viewing message M20, the user rotates upper unit 6 from the closed state (e.g., 3(A)) to the open state ( FIG. 3(B)) in medicine inspection support device 1. At this time, as shown in the schematic perspective view of FIG. 19 in addition to FIG. 3(B), medicine inspection support device 1 has a sufficiently large removal space 80 formed above transport space 50 where continuous series of sachets 100 resides.

[0099] Therefore, the user can easily remove the continuous sachet bag series 100 from within the transport space 50 to the front side of the drug inspection support device 1, for example, by lifting the continuous sachet bag series 100 upward or forward without it interfering with the upper unit 6 or the driven roller 63 (Figure 5) of the transport section 51, etc.

[0100] In addition, the user can easily remove the continuous sachet bag series 100 from the transport space 50, for example, by pulling the continuous sachet bag series 100 to the right or left of the drug inspection support device 1, and after eliminating any twist in the continuous sachet bag series 100, the user can smoothly insert the continuous sachet bag series 100 along the insertion guide 11.

[0101] [1-5. Effects, etc.] When performing an inspection support process in medicine inspection support device 1 according to the first embodiment, conveyance roller pairs 61 of conveyance unit 51 (FIG. 5) in sachet reader 2 clamp and transmit driving force to convey continuous sachet 100 in the conveyance direction. Sachet reader 2 also photographs each sachet 110 in continuous sachet 100 using photographing unit 54 (FIGS. 5 and 8) to generate a sachet image.

[0102] Here, we will consider a virtual sachet reading device 902 as shown in Figure 20, which corresponds to Figure 9. Compared to sachet reading device 2, sachet reading device 902 has a discharge guide 912, a front conveying guide 915, and an imaging unit 954 instead of discharge guide 12, front conveying guide 15, and imaging unit 54, but other parts are configured in the same way.

[0103] Unlike the front conveying guide 15, the front conveying guide 915 has a rear side formed in a straight line along the conveying direction. Accordingly, unlike the conveying space 50 (Figure 6, etc.) of the sachet reading device 2, the conveying space 950 formed in the sachet reading device 902 has a constant length in the front-to-rear direction over the entire range from the upstream side to the downstream side. The discharge guide 912 also has a length in the front-to-rear direction that is equal to that of the insertion guide 11 on the right side. Furthermore, the photographing range of the photographing unit 954 is the entire range sandwiched between the front conveying guide 915 and the rear conveying guide 16.

[0104] In each sachet 110 (FIG. 4) of the continuous sachet chain 100, the drug M may be located in various locations within the bag-shaped portion 113, and for example, the drug M may be located near the front edge 121 of the bag-shaped portion. Meanwhile, in the sachet reading device 902, when an image is captured by the photographing unit 954, the shadow of the front conveying guide 915 may be captured due to light reflection or the like.

[0105] 21(A), in the sachet reader 902, a shadow SH may appear in the image C91 captured by the photographing unit 954 near the front edge 121 of the bag-shaped portion at a position overlapping the drug M. In this case, the sachet reader 902 may not be able to properly extract the image of the drug M overlapped by the shadow SH, or may not be able to correctly recognize the shape, color, etc. of the drug M based on the image, and as a result, may not be able to correctly identify the type, etc. of each drug M.

[0106] In contrast to this, in the sachet reading device 2 according to the present embodiment, as shown in Figure 6 etc., the front conveying guide photographing vicinity 15C is positioned a distance L15 forward of the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A in the front conveying guide 15. Furthermore, the sachet reading device 2 is configured so that the entire range between the front conveying guide photographing vicinity 15C and the rear conveying guide 16 in the width direction is photographed by the photographing unit 54.

[0107] In the sachet reading device 2, as in the case of the sachet reading device 902, there is a possibility that the shadow of the front conveying guide 15 will be reflected in the image captured by the photographing unit 54. However, in the sachet reading device 2, by positioning the front conveying guide photographed vicinity 15C, it is possible to position the shadow SH formed by the front conveying guide 15 in front of (below in the figure) the front edge 121 of the bag-shaped portion of the sachet 110 in the photographed sachet image C1, as shown in FIG. 21(B), i.e., it is possible to prevent the shadow SH from overlapping with the medicine M.

[0108] As a result, the drug inspection support device 1 can accurately perform processes such as cutting out portions of each drug M from the captured sachet image C1 and determining the type of each drug M based on the cut-out image, without being affected by the shadow SH formed by the front conveying guide 15.

[0109] Furthermore, in advance testing, the sachet reading device 2 has determined a distance L15 (FIG. 6) based on the shadow length AS (FIG. 21), which is the length in the left-right direction of the shadow SH formed by the front conveying guide 15, and has positioned the front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C the distance L15 forward of the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A. Therefore, in the sachet reading device 2, the shadow SH can be positioned forward of the front edge 121 of the bag-shaped portion of the sachet 110, reliably preventing the shadow SH from overlapping with the medication M.

[0110] Furthermore, in the sachet reading device 2, the range in which the front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C is formed in the front conveying guide 15 is to the left of the center in the left-right direction and downstream of the conveying roller pair 61B. At the same time, in the sachet reading device 2, in the portion upstream of the conveying roller pair 61B, the distance between the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A and the rear conveying guide 16 is set to be the insertion width guide distance L50A (FIG. 6).

[0111] Therefore, in the sachet reading device 2, while the continuous sachet bag stream 100 is transported between the upstream front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A and the rear conveying guide 16, a driving force in the conveying direction can be transmitted to the continuous sachet bag stream 100 at two locations, pairs of conveying rollers 61A and 61B, which are spaced apart in the left-right direction.

[0112] As a result, in the sachet reading device 2, the position of the continuous string of sachets 100 in the front-to-rear direction can be restricted between the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A and the rear conveying guide 16, and the traveling direction of the continuous string of sachets 100 can be roughly aligned with the conveying direction. Accordingly, in the sachet reading device 2, when the continuous string of sachets 100 reaches the downstream area between the front conveying guide photograph vicinity 15C and the rear conveying guide 16, the continuous string of sachets 100 can be conveyed in a state where it is close to the rear conveying guide 16, that is, with the front edge 121 of the bag-shaped portion significantly separated from the front conveying guide photograph vicinity 15C and in a position where it does not overlap with its shadow.

[0113] Furthermore, in the sachet reading device 2, the distance L61 from the rear conveying guide 16 in the conveying section 51 to the front end of each conveying roller pair 61 is longer than the distance L15 which is the distance in the front-to-rear direction between the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A and the front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C in the front conveying guide 15 (FIG. 6). Therefore, in the sachet reading device 2, even if the continuous string of sachets 100 is biased to the front on the downstream side of the conveying space 50, the conveying roller pair 61 can clamp the rear portion 102 of the continuous string of sachets 100, and the continuous string of sachets 100 can be conveyed toward the discharge guide 12, i.e., discharged outside the conveying space 50.

[0114] In addition, in the sachet reading device 2, the front conveying guide photographing vicinity 15C is not bent backward on the left (downstream) side of the photographing unit 54 on the downstream side of the front conveying guide 15, but is made straight along the left-right direction, which is the conveying direction. This makes it possible for the sachet reading device 2 to prevent the leading portion of the conveyed continuous string of sachets 100 from getting caught on the front conveying guide photographing vicinity 15C, which would prevent the continuous string of sachets 100 from being conveyed normally.

[0115] According to the above configuration, sachet reader 2 of medicine inspection support device 1 according to the first embodiment positions front transport guide photographing vicinity 15C of front transport guide 15 forward of front transport guide insertion vicinity 15A, and uses photographing unit 54 to photograph the entire range between front transport guide photographing vicinity 15C and rear transport guide 16 in the width direction. This prevents shadow SH formed by front transport guide 15 from overlapping with drugs M in photographed sachet image C1. This allows sachet reader 2 to accurately perform processes such as cutting out portions of drugs M from photographed sachet image C1 and determining the type of drugs M based on the cut-out image.

[0116] 2. Second Embodiment Medicine inspection support device 201 according to the second embodiment differs from medicine inspection support device 1 according to the first embodiment ( FIG. 1 , etc.) in that it includes sachet reader 202 instead of sachet reader 2. Sachet reader 202 differs from sachet reader 2 according to the first embodiment in that it includes discharge guide 212, rear conveying guide 216, and photographing unit 254 instead of discharge guide 12, rear conveying guide 16, and photographing unit 54, and it includes transport space 250 instead of transport space 50, but the other parts are generally configured the same.

[0117] 22, which corresponds to FIG. 6, the rear conveying guide 216 is configured in a shape that is symmetrical from the front to the rear of the front conveying guide 15, and is composed of a rear conveying guide insertion vicinity 216A on the right side, a rear conveying guide midstream portion 216B near the center, and a rear conveying guide photography vicinity 216C on the left side. The rear conveying guide photography vicinity 216C is located a distance L216 behind the rear conveying guide insertion vicinity 216A.

[0118] For this reason, in sachet reading device 202, although insertion width guide interval L50A is the same as in the first embodiment (FIG. 6), photographing width guide interval L250C, which is the interval between front conveying guide photographing vicinity 15C and rear conveying guide photographing vicinity 216C of rear conveying guide 216, is longer than insertion width guide interval L50A by the sum of distances L15 and L216. Furthermore, in discharge guide 212, the interval between front discharge guide 212F and rear discharge guide 212R is also aligned to be the same as photographing width guide interval L250C, and is wider than discharge guide 12 in the first embodiment.

[0119] Compared to the photographing unit 54, the photographing unit 254 differs in that its photographing range is expanded in the width direction to cover the entire range sandwiched between the front conveying guide 15 and the rear conveying guide 216, i.e., the range equivalent to the photographing width guide spacing L250C, but is otherwise configured similarly.

[0120] In sachet reader 2 of medicine inspection support device 1 according to the first embodiment, when an image is captured by photographing unit 54, the shadow of rear conveying guide 16 may be reflected due to light reflection or the like. As a result, as shown in FIG. 23(A), sachet reader 2 may capture sachet image C21 captured by photographing unit 54, with posterior shadow SH2 appearing near rear edge 122 of the pouch at a position overlapping with medicine M. In this case, sachet reader 2 may not be able to properly extract the image of medicine M overlapped by posterior shadow SH2, or may not be able to correctly identify the type of medicine M based on the image.

[0121] In contrast, in sachet reader 202 of medicine inspection support device 201 according to the second embodiment, as shown in Fig. 22 etc., rear conveying guide photographing vicinity 216C is positioned a distance L216 rearward of rear conveying guide insertion vicinity 216A in rear conveying guide 216. Furthermore, sachet reader 202 is configured to use photographing unit 254 to photograph the entire range in the width direction between front conveying guide photographing vicinity 15C and rear conveying guide photographing vicinity 216C.

[0122] In sachet reading device 202, as in the case of sachet reading device 2, there is a possibility that the shadow of rear conveying guide 216 will be reflected in the image captured by photographing unit 254. However, in sachet reading device 202, by positioning rear conveying guide photographing vicinity 216C, it is possible to position rear shadow portion SH2 formed by rear conveying guide 216 behind rear edge 122 of the bag-shaped portion of sachet 110 in the captured sachet image C22, as shown in FIG. 23(B), i.e., it is possible to prevent rear shadow portion SH2 from covering the medicine M.

[0123] As a result, the drug inspection support device 201 can accurately perform processes such as cutting out portions of each drug M from the captured sachet image C22 and determining the type of each drug M based on the cut-out image, without being affected by the shadow area SH and rear shadow area SH2 formed by the front conveying guide 15 and rear conveying guide 216.

[0124] In other respects, sachet reader 202 can also achieve the same effects as sachet reader 2 according to the first embodiment.

[0125] 3. Other Embodiments In the first embodiment described above, the entire area of ​​the front conveying guide 15 to the left of the front conveying guide central bend 15B is defined as a linear front conveying guide photographing vicinity 15C along the conveying direction (see FIG. 6, etc.). However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as in the sachet reading device 302 shown in FIG. 24, the front conveying guide photographing vicinity 315C of the front conveying guide 315 may extend up to the area corresponding to the photographing unit 54, and downstream of that, a front conveying guide second bend 315D bent diagonally backward and a front conveying guide discharge portion 315E along the conveying direction may be provided. In this sachet reading device 302, the discharge width guide interval L350E, which is the distance between the front conveying guide discharge portion 315E and the rear conveying guide 16, is equal to the insertion width guide interval L50A. In addition, in the sachet reading device 302, the distance between the front discharge guide 312F and the rear discharge guide 312R in the discharge guide 312 is also equal to the discharge width guide interval L350E. Therefore, the sachet reading device 302 can appropriately regulate the range of movement of the sachet continuous body 100 in the forward and backward directions using the front conveying guide discharge section 315E, and can appropriately photograph the sachet continuous body 100 using the photographing section 54.

[0126] Alternatively, as in the sachet reading device 402 shown in Figure 25, the front conveying guide photography vicinity 415C of the front conveying guide 415 may be limited to the range corresponding to the photography unit 54, and downstream of that may be provided a front conveying guide second bent portion 415D bent rearward, and a front conveying guide discharge portion 415E along the conveying direction. In this sachet reading device 402, the discharge width guide spacing L450E, which is the distance between the front conveying guide discharge portion 415E and the rear conveying guide 16, is larger (wider) than the insertion width guide spacing L50A and smaller (narrower) than the photography width guide spacing L50C. In addition, in the sachet reading device 402, the distance between the front discharge guide 412F and the rear discharge guide 412R in the discharge guide 412 is also the same as the discharge width guide spacing L450E. Therefore, sachet reading device 402, like sachet reading device 302, can appropriately restrict the range of movement of continuous string of sachets 100 in the front-to-back direction by front conveyance guide discharge section 415E, while reducing the possibility of the leading end of the continuous string of sachets 100 getting caught on front conveyance guide second bend section 415D more than sachet reading device 302. This allows sachet reading device 402 to appropriately photograph continuous string of sachets 100 by photographing section 54.

[0127] Furthermore, the rear conveying guide 216 (FIG. 22) in the second embodiment may have a shape that is symmetrical in the front-to-back direction to the front conveying guide 315 (FIG. 24) or the front conveying guide 415 (FIG. 25). In this case, the rear discharge guides 312R and 412R in the discharge guides 312 and 412 may be positioned so as to be continuous with the left end of the rear conveying guide 216.

[0128] In the first embodiment described above, the connection points of the front conveying guide 15 between the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A and the front conveying guide central bending portion 15B, and the connection points of the front conveying guide central bending portion 15B and the front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C are bent so as to form corners when viewed from above (see FIG. 6, etc.). However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as in a sachet reading device 502 shown in FIG. 26, the connection points of the front conveying guide 515 between the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 515A and the front conveying guide central bending portion 515B, and the connection points of the front conveying guide central bending portion 515B and the front conveying guide photography vicinity 515C may be curved in a curved shape without forming corners when viewed from above. The same applies to the second embodiment, and the rear conveying guide 216 (FIG. 22) may have a shape that is symmetrical to the front conveying guide 515 in the front-to-back direction.

[0129] Furthermore, in the first embodiment described above, the rear side of front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C in front conveying guide 15 is formed in a straight line substantially parallel to the conveying direction (FIG. 6, etc.). However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as in a sachet reading device 602 shown in FIG. 27, the front conveying guide central bend portion may be omitted in front conveying guide 615, and front conveying guide photography vicinity 615C may be directly connected to front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A, and the rear side of front conveying guide photography vicinity 615C may be an inclined surface that displaces forward as it moves leftward. The same applies to the second embodiment, and rear conveying guide 216 may be shaped symmetrically to front conveying guide 615.

[0130] Furthermore, in the first embodiment described above, a configuration has been described in which one front conveying guide 15 is bent with respect to the conveying direction, thereby positioning the front conveying guide photographing vicinity 15C further forward than the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A (see FIG. 6, etc.). However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as in the sachet reading device 702 shown in FIG. 28, which corresponds to FIG. 6, two linear front outer conveying guides 715 and front inner conveying guides 717 may be provided along the conveying direction. In this case, the front inner conveying guide 717 is positioned rearward (i.e., on the inner side, closer to the rear conveying guide 16) from the front outer conveying guide 715 by a distance L15 within the range from the insertion guide 11 to the vicinity of the photographing unit 54. Furthermore, the right end of the front outer conveying guide 715 may be positioned to the left of the right end of the front inner conveying guide 717. In this case, it is desirable that the front outer conveying guide 715 and the front inner conveying guide 717 at least partially overlap in the front-to-rear direction. Furthermore, when the front outer conveying guide 715 and the front inner conveying guide 717 are arranged apart in the left-right direction, the gap between them should be kept as narrow as possible so that the continuous string of sachets 100 can be kept within the conveying space 750. Hereinafter, the front inner conveying guide 717 will also be referred to as the third conveying guide.

[0131] Furthermore, in the second embodiment, a configuration has been described in which one front conveying guide 15 and one rear conveying guide 216 are provided ( FIG. 22 ). However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as in a sachet reading device 802 shown in FIG. 29, which corresponds to FIGS. 22 and 28, four linear conveying guides, a front outer conveying guide 715, a front inner conveying guide 717, a rear outer conveying guide 816, and a rear inner conveying guide 818, may be provided along the conveying direction. Of these, the front outer conveying guide 715 and the front inner conveying guide 717 are configured and arranged in the same manner as in the sachet reading device 702 ( FIG. 28 ). The rear outer conveying guide 816 and the rear inner conveying guide 818 are configured and arranged so as to be symmetrical in the front-to-rear direction to the front outer conveying guide 715 and the front inner conveying guide 717, respectively. In other words, the rear inner conveying guide 818 is arranged forward (inward) from the rear outer conveying guide 816 by a distance L216. Furthermore, the right end of the rear outer conveying guide 816 may be located to the left of the right end of the rear inner conveying guide 818, as in the case of the front outer conveying guide 715. In this case, it is desirable that the rear outer conveying guide 816 and the rear inner conveying guide 818 overlap at least partially in the front-to-rear direction. Furthermore, when the rear outer conveying guide 816 and the rear inner conveying guide 818 are arranged apart in the left-to-right direction, it is sufficient to keep the gap as narrow as possible so that the continuous string of sachets 100 can be kept within the conveying space 850.

[0132] Furthermore, in the first embodiment described above, the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A of the front conveying guide 15 is linear along the conveying direction, and the distance between the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A and the rear conveying guide 16 in the width direction is a constant insertion width guide distance L50A ( FIG. 6 ). However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A may be formed in various shapes, such as by bending the vicinity of the right end thereof forward, so that the distance between the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A and the rear conveying guide 16 in part of the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A may be made larger than the insertion width guide distance L50A. The key is that by setting the distance between the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A and the rear conveying guide 16 to the insertion width guide distance L50A in at least a portion of the front conveying guide insertion vicinity 15A, the continuous sachet bag series 100 can be conveyed in a position close to or in contact with the rear conveying guide 16 in the width direction. The same applies to the rear conveying guide 16 and the second embodiment.

[0133] Furthermore, in the first embodiment described above, the front conveying guide 15 is formed from a predetermined resin material. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the rear surface of the front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C of the front conveying guide 15 may be processed to increase (roughen) the surface roughness, or a plate-shaped member with a relatively large surface roughness may be attached to the rear surface of the front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C to reduce the light reflectance. Alternatively, the rear surface of the front conveying guide photography vicinity 15C may be processed to increase the light reflectance, for example, by attaching a member with a mirror finish to the rear surface. The same applies to the second embodiment, and also to the rear conveying guide photography vicinity 216C of the rear conveying guide 216.

[0134] Furthermore, in the first embodiment described above, the photographing unit 54 (FIG. 9) of the sachet reading device 2 is configured from an upper photographing unit 54A on the upper unit 6 side and a lower photographing unit 54B on the lower unit 5 side. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the upper photographing unit 54A may be omitted and the photographing unit 54 may be configured from only the lower photographing unit 54B. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0135] In the first embodiment, drug inspection support device 1 (FIG. 1) is provided with inspection result display device 3, and various screens are displayed on touch panel 8. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, drug inspection support device 1 may omit inspection result display device 3 and instead include a communication unit with a communication function using a wireless local area network (LAN) or the like, so that information about the various screens can be transmitted to a tablet terminal, smartphone, or personal computer (not shown) to display the various screens. Furthermore, drug inspection support device 1 and inspection result display device 3 may each be provided with a communication unit with a communication function using a wireless LAN or the like, so that various information can be transmitted and received between them to display various screens on touch panel 8. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0136] Furthermore, in the first embodiment described above, control unit 4 is provided on lower unit 5 of sachet reader 2, and control unit 4 performs analysis and inspection processes based on sachet image C1, etc. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, medicine inspection support device 1 may have a communication function so that sachet images can be sent to a tablet terminal, smartphone, or personal computer (not shown) to perform at least some of the analysis and inspection processes. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0137] Furthermore, in the first embodiment described above, the embodiment has been described in which the upper photographing section 54A, which is located on the upper unit 6 side of the photographing section 54 (FIGS. 5 and 8), is provided with the transmitted light source 71, the transmitted cover 72, etc., and the lower photographing section 54B, which is located on the lower unit 5 side, is provided with the reflected light source 75, etc. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and each component may be appropriately disposed on the upper photographing section 54A side or the lower photographing section 54B side, such as by providing the image sensor 78 on the upper photographing section 54A side. Alternatively, for example, all of the components that constitute the photographing section 54 may be provided on the lower unit 5 side. The same applies to the second embodiment.

[0138] Furthermore, in the first embodiment described above, a continuous string of sachets 100 in which a plurality of sachets 110 are connected in series is the target of analysis processing, inspection processing, etc., and the continuous string of sachets 100 is conveyed by the conveying unit 51 ( FIG. 5 ). However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when a plurality of sachets 110 are not connected and are separated from one another, these sachets 110 may be treated as a group and be the target of inspection processing, etc., and each sachet 110 may be inserted sequentially from the insertion guide 11 side into the conveying space 50 and conveyed sequentially by the conveying unit 51. The same applies to the second embodiment. In this case, it is preferable to convey the plurality of sachets 110 from the insertion guide 11 side to the discharge guide 12 side by appropriately changing the position and number of each conveying roller pair 61 (61A, etc.) in the conveying unit 51 in the conveying direction. Even when the conveying unit 51 is configured in this manner, the same effects as those of the first embodiment can be obtained.

[0139] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and other embodiments. That is, the scope of application of the present invention also extends to embodiments in which the above-described embodiments are combined in part or in whole with any of the above-described other embodiments. The scope of application of the present invention also extends to embodiments in which part of the configuration described in any of the above-described embodiments and other embodiments is extracted and used as part of the configuration of any of the above-described embodiments and other embodiments, or in which part of the extracted configuration is added to any of the above-described embodiments.

[0140] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the drug inspection support device 1 is configured as a drug inspection support device including insertion guide 11 as an insertion section, transport section 51 as a drive section, front transport guide 15 and rear transport guide 16 as guide sections, photographing section 54 as a photographing section, and discharge guide 12 as a discharge section. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the drug inspection support device may be configured using an insertion section, drive section, guide section, photographing section, and discharge section having various other configurations. [Industrial Applicability]

[0141] The present invention can be used, for example, in a medicine inspection support device that supports pharmacists in inspecting sachets. [Explanation of symbols]

[0142] 1, 201...Medicine inspection support device, 2, 202...Sachet reader, 4...Control unit, 10...Lower frame, 11...Insertion guide, 11F...Front insertion guide, 11R...Rear insertion guide, 12, 212...Ejection guide, 12F, 212F...Front ejection guide, 12R, 212R...Rear ejection guide, 14...Lower transport guide, 15...Front transport guide, 15A...Front transport guide insertion vicinity, 15B...Front transport guide central bending portion, 15C...Front transport guide photography vicinity, 16, 216...Rear transport guide, 24...Upper transport guide, 50, 250...Transport space, 51...Transport unit, 54, 254...Photography unit, 61...Transport rod Pair of sachets, 100...continuous sachet bag assembly, 101...front part of continuous sachet bag assembly, 102...rear part of continuous sachet bag assembly, 110...sachet bag, 113...bag-shaped part, 113S...storage space, 121...front edge of bag-shaped part, 122...rear edge of bag-shaped part, 216A...near insertion part of rear conveying guide, 216B...midstream part of rear conveying guide, 216C...near photography part of rear conveying guide, C1, C21, C22...image of sachet bag, L15, L216, L61...distance, L50A...insertion width guide spacing, L50C...photography width guide spacing, L250C...photography width guide spacing, L350E...ejection width guide spacing, L450E...ejection width guide spacing, SH, SH2...shadow part.

Claims

1. an insertion section into which a sachet containing medicine is inserted from the outside; a drive unit that transports the sachet inserted into the insertion unit in a transport direction; a guide portion that guides the sachet to which the driving force is transmitted by the drive portion so as to move in the conveying direction; an imaging unit that is provided downstream of the insertion unit in the conveying direction and that images the sachet from an imaging direction that intersects with the conveying direction; a discharge unit that is provided downstream of the photographing unit in the conveying direction and discharges the sachet to the outside; Equipped with the guide section has a first conveying guide and a second conveying guide, each of which restricts a movement range of the sachet, on a first width direction side, which is one direction of widths perpendicular to the conveying direction and the photographing direction, and a second width direction side, which is the opposite direction; On the upstream side of the photographing unit in the transport direction, a portion is provided in which the distance between the first transport guide and the second transport guide in the width direction is an upstream width guide distance that is narrower than a photographing width guide distance, which is the distance between the first transport guide and the second transport guide in the width direction at the photographing unit. A drug inspection support device characterized by:

2. the drive unit has a drive abutment portion that abuts against the sachet at a position closer to the second conveying guide than to the first conveying guide in the width direction, the second conveying guide has a portion that regulates the movement range of the sachet, and the portion has a position in the width direction that is the same in the insertion unit, the photographing unit, and the discharge unit; The first conveying guide has a portion that regulates the movement range of the sachet, and the position of the portion in the width direction differs between the insertion section and the imaging section. The drug inspection support device according to claim 1 .

3. A discharge width guide interval, which is the interval between the first conveying guide and the second conveying guide in the width direction in the discharge section, is equal to the upstream width guide interval. The drug inspection support device according to claim 1 .

4. A discharge width guide interval, which is an interval between the first transport guide and the second transport guide in the width direction in the discharge section, is smaller than the photographing width guide interval and larger than the upstream width guide interval. The drug inspection support device according to claim 1 .

5. the drive unit has a drive abutment portion that abuts against the sachet at a position that is closer to the second conveying guide than the first conveying guide in the width direction and downstream of the photographing unit, The difference between the upstream width guide interval and the photographing width guide interval is smaller than the interval between the end of the driving contact portion on the first width direction side and the second transport guide. The drug inspection support device according to claim 1 .

6. the second conveying guide has a portion that regulates the movement range of the sachet at different positions in the width direction in the insertion section and the imaging section, The first conveying guide has a portion that regulates the movement range of the sachet at different positions in the width direction in the insertion section and the imaging section. The drug inspection support device according to claim 1 .

7. In addition to the first transport guide and the second transport guide, the guide section has a third transport guide that restricts the movement range of the sachet in the first width direction, the third transport guide being located upstream of the photographing section in the transport direction and closer to the second transport guide than the first transport guide in the width direction. The drug inspection support device according to claim 1 .

8. In addition to the first transport guide, the second transport guide, and the third transport guide, the guide section has a fourth transport guide that restricts the movement range of the sachet in the second width direction, the fourth transport guide being located upstream of the photographing section in the transport direction and closer to the first transport guide than the second transport guide in the width direction.

8. The drug inspection support device according to claim 7.

9. The sachets are connected to other sachets in the conveying direction to form a continuous sachet body, The drive unit conveys the continuous body of sachets in the conveying direction. The drug inspection support device according to claim 1 .

Images