Medicine packaging machine

Abstract

To reduce a burden on manpower when collecting remaining medicines from a general-purpose medicine feeder.SOLUTION: A medicine packaging machine 10 comprises a plurality of medicine feeder row shelves 20, 20, etc. with their being able to be pulled out from a housing. Each medicine feeder row shelf 20 includes general-purpose medicine feeders 52, 52, etc. mounted thereon, each general-purpose medicine feeder formed by integrating a container part and a sequential discharge mechanism part. A shelf plate 23 (a pull-out mechanism) includes a pulled-out state detecting member and a remaining medicine collecting container detecting member (27) attached thereto, and when pull-out of a medicine feeder row shelf 20 and mounting of a remaining medicine collection container 100 on the medicine feeder row shelf 20 are detected, remaining medicines are discharged from the corresponding medicine feeder. The remaining medicine collection container 100 is configured to expose a part of an opening 102 thereof when being mounted thereon. Alternatively, positioning marks (26 and 105) are attached thereto. Further, a positioning member (28) is provided in the pull-out mechanism.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 11

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] This invention relates to a medicine packaging machine equipped with many medicine feeders that automatically feed granular solid medicines such as tablets and ampoules in order to automate the dispensing process in hospitals, pharmacies, etc., and more particularly to an expansion and strengthening of the function of recovering remaining medicines from the medicine feeders. More particularly, it relates to recovering remaining medicines from a medicine feeder that is compatible with multiple medicines (a general-purpose medicine feeder in which the container and base are integrated, a feeder with a fixed container) which will be described in detail later. [Background technology]

[0002] The medicine feeder is composed of an upper container portion (follower portion) that contains medicine, and a lower base portion (drive portion) that sequentially discharges the medicine from the container portion. Specialized drug feeders (drug feeders dedicated to specific drugs, feeders with detachable container section) that use a detachable drug cassette in the container section can only handle a limited number of drugs, but they are widely used because of the convenience of the detachable cassette (see Background Art 1 below). In contrast, so-called general-purpose drug feeders (multiple drug compatible drug feeders, fixed container feeders) in which the container and base are integrated are highly regarded for their convenience in handling a variety of drugs, and their frequency of use is increasing as improvements are made (see Background Art 3 below).

[0003] [Background technology 1: Specialized drug feeders (drug feeders for specific drugs, feeders with detachable containers)] Among drug packaging machines equipped with a large number of drug cassettes (see Patent Documents 1 and 2), the removable drug cassettes have machine-readable container identification information, and a reading device is built into each base section to which the drug cassettes are attached and detached.When the drug cassette is attached to the base section, the container identification information of the drug cassette is read by the reading device in the base section and compared against a correspondence table, automatically determining whether the cassette is suitable for attachment.

[0004] As a dispensing system including such a medicine packaging machine (see Patent Document 1), there is known one equipped with one or more medicine packaging machines and a dispensing server capable of communicating with their control units via a wired LAN, etc. Such a dispensing server is connected to an external prescription ordering system via a network for inputting prescription data, or is equipped with a prescription reading device. The dispensing server may be a programmable general-purpose computer provided it is equipped with a hard disk or other device with sufficient storage capacity to hold data. This computer stores prescription data received from the prescription ordering system, the drug packaging machine status received from the drug packaging machine, and a drug master that compiles drug information for each drug handled by the system.

[0005] In addition, such dispensing servers are installed with programs for inputting prescription data and issuing dispensing instructions to the drug packaging machine based on that data, a replenishment instruction creation program that creates replenishment instructions based on notifications of stockouts from the drug packaging machine (specifically, status reports that a drug cassette is empty) and the inventory management status and displays these on a reading device, and a work data recording program that records the progress of work, such as sending replenishment instructions to the reading device and receiving replenishment completion notifications from the reading device.

[0006] The medicine packaging machine is equipped with a plurality of medicine storage cabinets in the upper part of the housing so that they can be individually drawn out, and inside each medicine storage cabinet, pairs of medicine cassettes and base parts are arranged vertically and horizontally, a packaging device is stored in the lower part of the housing, and a control device (control unit) is placed in the electrical equipment space inside the housing. The medicine cassettes are removable and contain a large number of tablets or the like (medicines) of any one of various types of medicines, and are capable of sequentially discharging them. The base part is a fixed part to which the medicine cassettes can be attached and detached one by one, and is capable of driving the attached medicine cassettes to discharge the medicines. A medicine collection mechanism is also provided to guide the sequentially discharged medicines to the packaging device below, and the upper medicine collection mechanism is attached to or incorporated in the medicine storage cabinet, and the lower medicine collection mechanism is installed between the upper medicine collection mechanism and the packaging device.

[0007] In this type of drug packaging machine, the control device controls the operation of the drug cassettes and packaging device according to drug dispensing instructions received from the dispensing server, thereby discharging appropriate drugs from each drug cassette and packaging them with the packaging device. Also, when it is detected that a drug cassette has become empty and cannot discharge drugs, a notice of a shortage is sent to the dispensing server. Furthermore, identification information is assigned to each drug cassette, and when the correspondence between the identification information and the drug cassette is registered in the control device, it is transferred to the dispensing server and registered in the drug master.

[0008] Furthermore, in such a drug packaging machine (see Patent Document 1), all drug cassettes are housed in a drug feeder storage cabinet inside the housing, and when refilling drugs, the drug feeder storage cabinet into which the cassette is to be attached or detached must be inserted or removed from the housing in order to attach or detach the cassette. In response to this (see Patent Document 2), there is also a medicine packaging machine in which the medicine feeder located at the forefront of the medicine feeder storage cabinet is equipped in an exposed front state. In this medicine packaging machine, medicines can be replenished without pulling out the medicine feeder container from the housing, so long as the medicine cassette is in a front-exposed state.

[0009] [Background technology 2: Hand-spraying device for pesticides] Next (see Patent Document 3), in many medicine packaging machines, a medicine manual dispensing device is built in between the medicine feeder storage and the lower medicine collecting mechanism or in the vicinity thereof. The medicine manual dispensing device has a main body part to which a spare dispensing cassette can be attached and detached, which can be pulled out or pushed in from the housing of the medicine packaging machine, and by manually dispensing medicine in the spare dispensing cassette, it is possible to include medicines that are not contained in the medicine feeder of the medicine feeder storage in the automatic packaging. In addition to such built-in medicine manual dispensing devices, there are also stationary medicine manual dispensing devices that are configured separately from the medicine packaging machine, and by using them together, the work of manually dispensing medicine in the spare dispensing cassette can be carried out in parallel with the advance preparation work for the so-called subsequent packaging that is scheduled after the currently ongoing packaging.

[0010] [Background technology 3: General-purpose drug feeders (multiple drug compatible drug feeders, fixed container feeders)] Furthermore, (see Patent Documents 4 to 13), a type of medicine feeder in which the container part and the base are integrated will be described. A typical example of this type of medicine feeder is an alignment-supply type medicine feeder that conveys tablets or the like (medicines) of the same shape while aligning them in a line. As an example of the configuration, a medicine feeder has been developed and is in practical use, which includes an outer annular rotor that can rotate around a vertical line, an inclined rotor that is mounted inside the annular rotor and can rotate around an inclined line inclined from the vertical line to close the hollow of the annular rotor, and a regulating member that aligns the solid medicines that are conveyed from above the inclined rotor to the upper peripheral edge of the annular rotor as the annular rotor rotates. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0011] [Patent Document 1] JP 2013-146443 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2018-196709 A [Patent Document 3] JP 2007-209600 A [Patent Document 4] JP 2018-108277 A [Patent Document 5] Patent Publication No. 2021-029378 [Patent Document 6] Patent No. 6736074 [Patent Document 7] Patent No. 6736075 [Patent Document 8] Patent Application No. 2020-021938 (Application) [Patent Document 9] Patent Application No. 2020-205592 (Application) [Patent Document 10] Patent Application No. 2020-214571 (Application) [Patent Document 11] Patent Application No. 2021-001647 (Application) [Patent Document 12] Patent Application No. 2021-015626 (Application) [Patent Document 13] Patent Application No. 2021-043054 (Application) Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0012] Such general-purpose drug feeders (drug feeders suitable for multiple drugs, fixed container feeders) eliminate the need to provide a fixed flow straightening guide within the rotor and can be used with a wider range of drugs of various shapes and sizes (see Background Art 3 and Patent Documents 4 above).In addition (see Background Art 3 and Patent Documents 5-13 above), the downstream regulating mechanism that regulates the width of the drug is given the height regulating function as well, and the height regulating function of the sorting member located upstream is relaxed, making it possible to effortlessly align a variety of solid drugs in a row on the drug transport path at the upper peripheral edge of the annular rotor, from hard and durable drugs to brittle drugs, and even from plate-shaped drugs that are difficult to roll to spherical or spindle-shaped drugs that roll easily.

[0013] However, general-purpose drug feeders in which the drug storage unit and drive unit are integrated (see Patent Documents 4 to 13) are different from specialized drug feeders in which the drug storage cassette can be attached and detached (see Patent Documents 1 and 2), and also from manual drug dispensing devices in which a spare dispensing cassette can be attached and detached (see Patent Document 3).Since they do not have a detachable cassette, cassette replacement is not possible. Therefore, to collect remaining medication from a general-purpose medication feeder installed in a medication packaging machine, either the medication must be packaged in packaging paper and collected, which is known as ``remaining medication collection using packaging paper,'' or the medication must be released into a collection container below and collected, which is known as ``remaining medication collection using a container.''

[0014] The former, "recovery of remaining medication using packet paper," does not require any additional mechanical components and can be achieved simply by expanding the control function. However, because a series of packets contains a mixture of packets of prescribed medication and packets for collecting non-prescribed remaining medication, careful attention is required when handling the packets, including separating them, and it also tends to take a long time to collect the remaining medication and make it available for the next prescription. In contrast, the latter "residual drug collection using a container" involves pulling out a general-purpose drug feeder from the housing of the drug packaging machine on which it is installed, positioning a collection container directly below it, and then releasing the drug from the target drug feeder into the collection container below for collection (see Patent Documents 12 and 13).As a result, no collection packets containing residual drugs not prescribed are generated in the first place, eliminating the need for the above-mentioned separation work and reducing the time required to collect the residual drugs.

[0015] However, when a trial was conducted on "remaining drug collection using a container" in which such a general-purpose drug feeder is pulled out of the housing and the drug is discharged into a collection container below, the trial received a fairly high evaluation, but further improvements were also required. Specifically, the remaining drug collection is performed for one drug feeder and the collection container is held manually, so the worker is tied up during the remaining drug collection. Moreover, when there are multiple drug feeders to be collected, the work volume and the burden on the worker increase because of the sequential work. If it is required to know the correspondence between the drug feeder from which the drug is collected and the collected remaining drug, and also the type of the collected remaining drug, in order to reuse the collected remaining drug without wasting it, this also increases the burden on the worker.

[0016] Therefore, for medicine packaging machines that can perform "container-based residual medicine collection," in which a general-purpose medicine feeder is pulled out of the housing and the medicine is released into a collection container below, the technical challenge is to improve the functionality and operability of the medicine packaging machine's residual medicine collection so as to further reduce the labor burden required for residual medicine collection. [Means for solving the problem]

[0017] The medicine packaging machine of the present invention (Solution 1) was invented to solve such problems, A medicine packing machine including a plurality of medicine feeders each having a container section for randomly storing a large number of medicines and a sequential discharge mechanism section for dropping each medicine one by one from the container and discharging it downward, a packaging device for receiving the discharged medicines and packaging them, and a housing capable of housing the medicine feeders and the packaging device, a plurality of the drug feeders are general-purpose drug feeders in which the container unit and the sequential discharge mechanism unit are integrated together, and are mounted separately on a plurality of drawer mechanisms that can be drawn forward from the housing; a withdrawal state detection member for detecting a withdrawal state of each of the plurality of withdrawal mechanisms, and a remaining medicine collecting container detection member for detecting whether a removable remaining medicine collecting container is attached to a medicine discharge destination of one of the general-purpose medicine feeders; The above-mentioned general-purpose drug feeder is characterized in that when it is possible to confirm that the one of the pull-out mechanisms to which the remaining drug collection container is attached has been pulled forward based on the detection state of the pull-out state detection member, and when it is possible to confirm that the remaining drug collection container is attached to the drug discharge destination based on the detection state of the remaining drug collection container detection member, the drug feeder of the general-purpose drug feeder mounted on the pull-out mechanism to which the remaining drug collection container is attached is caused to perform a drug discharge operation.

[0018] Furthermore, the drug packaging machine of the present invention (Solution 2) is the drug packaging machine of Solution 1 above, characterized in that an alignment mark corresponding to the mark on the remaining drug collection container is provided on the pull-out mechanism, and when the remaining drug collection container is attached to the pull-out mechanism with these marks corresponding to each other, the opening of the remaining drug collection container is positioned at the drug discharge destination of the general-purpose drug feeder, and the attachment of the remaining drug collection container is detected by the remaining drug collection container detection member.

[0019] Furthermore, the drug packaging machine of the present invention (Solution 3) is the drug packaging machine of Solution 2 above, characterized in that when the remaining drug collection container is attached to the pull-out mechanism with the markers corresponding to each other, a part of the remaining drug collection container interferes with a part of the pull-out mechanism, thereby suppressing misalignment between the two.

[0020] In addition, the drug packaging machine of the present invention (Solution 4) is the drug packaging machine of Solution 2 above, characterized in that when the remaining drug collection container is attached to the pull-out mechanism with the markers corresponding to each other, a portion of the opening of the remaining drug collection container is exposed.

[0021] In addition, the drug packaging machine of the present invention (Solution 5) is a drug packaging machine of Solutions 2 to 4 above, characterized in that a plurality of the general-purpose drug feeders are mounted on the pull-out mechanism, and a corresponding plurality of remaining drug storage sections are formed in the remaining drug collection container.

[0022] In addition, the drug packaging machine of the present invention (Solution 6) is a drug packaging machine according to Solutions 1 to 5 above, characterized in that, in response to the means for attaching and detaching the remaining drug collecting container to the pull-out mechanism being a permanent magnet, iron or other magnetic material is used in the attachment and detachment portion of the permanent magnet in the pull-out mechanism, and iron or other magnetic material is also used in the holding portion of the remaining drug collecting container when not in use, such as the side surface of the outer surface of the housing.

[0023] Furthermore, the drug packaging machine of the present invention (Solution 7) is a drug packaging machine according to any one of Solutions 1 to 6, characterized in that it comprises a data retention means for retaining record data of drug discharge based on a dispensing instruction from the general-purpose drug feeder and record data of drug discharge for remaining drug recovery, and by referring to the record data, the general-purpose drug feeders that are to execute the drug discharge operation toward the remaining drug recovery container are limited to those that have discharged drug based on a dispensing instruction but have not subsequently discharged drug for remaining drug recovery. Effect of the Invention

[0024] In the medicine packaging machine of the present invention (Solution 1), a plurality of general-purpose medicine feeders are provided, which are divided and mounted on a plurality of drawer mechanisms, and in addition to detecting whether or not they are drawn forward from the housing, it is also possible to detect whether or not a removable residual medicine collection container is attached to the medicine discharge destination of the drawn general-purpose medicine feeder, and when it is automatically confirmed that the corresponding general-purpose medicine feeder is drawn forward from the housing and that a residual medicine collection container is attached to the medicine discharge destination, medicine is discharged from the corresponding medicine feeder, so that whether or not the residual medicine collection operation is possible is automatically confirmed, and after the residual medicine collection operation starts, the operation is automatically performed. Therefore, the labor burden required for residual medicine collection is greatly reduced.

[0025] Furthermore, in the drug packaging machine of the present invention (Solution 2), when the remaining drug collection container is attached to the withdrawal mechanism with the markers corresponding to each other, the opening of the remaining drug collection container is positioned at the drug discharge destination of the general-purpose drug feeder, and the attachment of the remaining drug collection container is detected by a remaining drug collection container detection member, making the attachment operation of the remaining drug collection container easier.

[0026] Furthermore, in the drug packaging machine of the present invention (Solution 3), when the remaining drug collection container is attached to the pull-out mechanism with the markers corresponding to each other, a part of the remaining drug collection container and a part of the pull-out mechanism interfere with each other, thereby preventing the two from becoming misaligned, making the installation of the remaining drug collection container easy and accurate.

[0027] Furthermore, in the drug packaging machine of the present invention (Solution 4), when the remaining drug collection container is attached to the withdrawal mechanism with the markings corresponding to each other, part of the opening of the remaining drug collection container is exposed in this state, so that the remaining drug collection status can be visually confirmed from the exposed part of the opening, and therefore it is possible to easily tell visually whether or not there is any remaining drug that has been collected, without having to wait for the remaining drug collection container to be removed.

[0028] Furthermore, in the drug packaging machine of the present invention (Solution 5), multiple remaining drug storage sections are formed in the remaining drug collection container to correspond to the number and arrangement of general-purpose drug feeders mounted on the pull-out mechanism, so that by attaching one remaining drug collection container to one pull-out mechanism, it is possible to immediately collect remaining drugs from multiple drug feeders.Therefore, even if each pull-out mechanism is equipped with multiple general-purpose drug feeders, remaining drugs can be collected easily and accurately.

[0029] In addition, in the drug packaging machine of the present invention (Solution 6), a permanent magnet is used as the attachment / detachment means for the remaining drug collection container, and a magnetic material such as iron is used for the attachment / detachment portion of the withdrawal mechanism, making it possible to realize the attachment / detachment means easily and inexpensively. In addition, by using a magnetic material such as iron on the outer surface of the housing, the remaining medicine collection container can be held to the outer surface of the housing by magnetic force when not in use. Therefore, even though the remaining medicine collection container is detachable, it can be stored out of the way when not in use, and can be easily and quickly picked up when in use.

[0030] Furthermore, in the drug packaging machine of the present invention (Solution 7), the general-purpose drug feeders that execute drug discharge operations in response to remaining drug collection instructions are limited to those that have discharged drugs based on dispensing instructions but have not yet discharged drugs for remaining drug collection, thereby making it possible to avoid unnecessary operation of drug feeders that clearly do not hold any remaining drugs. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0031] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a general configuration of a dispensing system including a medicine packaging machine according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 1 shows the overall structure of a medicine packaging machine, where (a) is a front view of the exterior and (b) is a front view of the interior. [Diagram 3] 1A to 1D are all left side views of the medicine packaging machine, and FIG. 1E is a perspective view of the front of the medicine storage section. [Figure 4] 1(a) to 1(c) are perspective views of a shelf with medicine feeders arranged thereon. [Diagram 5] 1A and 1B are left side views of the medicine packaging machine, and 1C to 1E are perspective views of the multi-stage medicine collection mechanism. [Figure 6] 1A to 1D are front views showing the main parts of a drawer lock mechanism, with FIG. 1A being a front view, FIG. 1B being a plan view, and FIG. [Figure 7] 1A is a front view of a drug feeder for a specific drug only with the cassette removed, and FIG. 1B is a left side view, front view, and right side view of a drug feeder for multiple drugs. [Figure 8]FIG. 1A is a functional block diagram relating to a control unit of the medicine packaging machine and a control unit of the medicine feeder, and FIGS. 1B to 1E are examples of screen displays of a touch panel. [Figure 9] FIG. 2A is an external perspective view of a remaining medicine recovery container, FIG. 2B is a perspective view of a detachable permanent magnet and a marker, and FIG. 2C is a two-point perspective view as viewed from the arrow C. [Figure 10] The figures show the situation when attempting to attach a remaining medicine collection container to a medicine feeder row shelf, where (a) is an oblique view of the remaining medicine collection container just before it is attached and the medicine feeder row shelf waiting for it, (b) is an oblique view of an enlarged view of the area relating to the mark on the remaining medicine collection container and the mark on the medicine feeder row shelf, and (c) is a two-point perspective view of the contact area between the remaining medicine collection container and the medicine feeder row shelf before attachment. [Figure 11] 1A and 1B are diagrams showing a state in which a remaining medicine recovery container is attached to a medicine feeder row shelf, in which (a) is an external perspective view of the corresponding medicine feeder row shelf, and (b) is an external perspective view of the medicine packing machine 10. FIG. [Figure 12] 13(a) to (d) are examples of screen displays on a touch panel, and (e) is an external perspective view of a used remaining medicine collection container attached to the side of a housing of a medicine packaging machine. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0032] A specific embodiment for carrying out such a medicine packing machine of the present invention will be described below with reference to Example 1. The first embodiment shown in Figs. 1 to 12 embodies all of the above-mentioned solutions 1 to 7 (claims 1 to 7 as originally filed). In addition, for the sake of simplicity, when illustrating these components, fasteners such as bolts, connectors such as hinges, driving sources such as electric motors, transmission members such as timing belts, electric circuits such as motor drivers, and electronic circuits such as controllers have been omitted, and only those components necessary for explaining the invention and those related thereto are illustrated. EXAMPLES

[0033] A specific configuration of a medicine packing machine according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the general configuration of a dispensing system including a medicine packing machine 10. Figures 2 and 3 show the overall structure of the medicine packaging machine 10, with Figure 2(a) being a front view of the exterior, Figure 2(b) being a front view of the interior, and Figures 3(a) to (d) being left side views of the exterior.

[0034] FIG. 3(e) is a perspective view of the front of the medicine storage section 13, and FIGS. 4(a) to 4(c) are perspective views of the medicine feeder-mounted shelves 20. As shown in FIG. 5(a) and (b) are left side views of the medicine packing machine 10, and FIGS. 5(c) to (e) are perspective views of the multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30. As shown in FIG. FIG. 6 shows the main part of the drawer lock mechanism 40, with (a) being a front view, (b) being a plan view, and (c) and (d) being front views.

[0035] Figure 7 shows two different types of drug feeders, Figure 7(a) is a front view of a drug feeder 51 for specific drugs with a detachable cassette (feeder with detachable container part, specialized drug feeder), and Figure 7(b) is an external view of a drug feeder 52 for multiple drugs (feeder with fixed container part, general-purpose drug feeder), showing, from top to bottom, a left side view, a front view, and a right side view. FIG. 8(a) is a functional block diagram relating to the controller 80 (control unit) of the medicine packing machine 10 and the controller 53 (control unit) of the medicine feeder 52, and FIGS. 8(b) to (e) are all examples of screen displays of the touch panel 15.

[0036] Figure 9 is an external perspective view of the remaining medicine collecting container 100, where (a) is an external perspective view looking down from diagonally above, (b) is an enlarged view of the detachable permanent magnet 104 and the mark 105, and (c) is a two-point perspective view viewed from diagonally below as indicated by arrow C. Figure 10 shows the situation when a remaining drug collecting container 100 is about to be attached to a drug feeder row shelf 20, where (a) is an oblique view of the container 100 just before being attached and the shelf 20 on which it is waiting, (b) is an enlarged oblique view of the portion relating to the mark 105 on the remaining drug collecting container 100 and the mark 26 on the drug feeder row shelf 20, and (c) is a two-point perspective view of the abutment areas 107, 28 between the remaining drug collecting container 100 and the drug feeder row shelf 20 before attachment.

[0037] FIG. 11 shows a state in which the remaining medicine collecting container 100 is attached to the medicine feeder row shelf 20, where (a) is an external perspective view of the corresponding medicine feeder row shelf 20 and (b) is an external perspective view of the medicine packing machine 10. 12(a) to (d) are examples of screen displays on the touch panel 15, and FIG. 12(e) is an external perspective view of the medicine packing machine 10 when a used remaining medicine collecting container 100 is attached to the side of the housing of the medicine packing machine 10.

[0038] The medicine packing machine 10 (see FIG. 1) may be used alone in small-scale pharmacies, etc., but in large-scale dispensing departments, a plurality of machines are often used under the control of a dispensing server 200. The dispensing server 200 is capable of transmitting and receiving data to and from a higher-level prescription ordering system and a lower-level drug packaging machine 10 via a LAN or the like, and by executing the program described in Background Art 1, receives and stores prescription data from the prescription ordering system, and issues dispensing instructions to the drug packaging machine 10 and, if there are other drug packaging machines not shown, based on the received prescription data. The dispensing server 200 also stores data on the operating status of the drug packaging machine 10 as packaging machine status, and also stores a drug master in which known drug information relating to various drugs is registered in advance.

[0039] The drug packaging machine 10 (see Figures 1 and 2(a)) comprises a packaging device 11 at the lower level, a drug manual distribution device equipment section 12 above that, a drug storage section 13 above that, a touch panel 15 (operation input section, display section) supported by an arm for easy position adjustment, and a controller 80 (control section of the drug packaging machine) housed inside the housing, and the drug storage section 13 has a plurality of drug feeder arrangement storage sections 14 and a plurality of drug feeder row shelves 20 incorporated in it, each of which can be pulled out forward. Although the drug feeder storage cabinet 14 is illustrated as having two rows of drug feeders arranged side by side, it may have three or more rows, or may have a single row, or each row may be further divided into upper and lower sections so that each can be pulled out forward as desired.

[0040] Although the medicine feeder rows 20 are illustrated as being arranged in three vertical rows and one horizontal row, the arrangement is not limited thereto and other arrangements are also possible. Inside the medicine feeder storage 14 in the medicine storage section 13 occupying the upper part of the medicine packaging machine 10 (see Figs. 1 and 2(b)), there are provided medicine feeder row shelves 18 arranged in six vertical stages and two horizontal rows on which a plurality of specific medicine-dedicated type medicine feeders 51 (specialized type medicine feeders, container section detachable feeders, see Fig. 7(a)) can be arranged in a row, and an upper medicine collecting mechanism 17 is provided vertically between the two horizontal rows (see Fig. 2(b)). Medicines discharged from the medicine feeders 51 are guided by the upper medicine collecting mechanism 17 to the lower lower medicine collecting mechanism 16.

[0041] Also (see Figs. 1 and 2(b)), a multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30 is also provided inside the arrangement area of ​​the medicine feeder row shelves 20, 20, 20 that occupies a corner of the medicine storage section 13, hidden behind a front plate 25 (described later) of the medicine feeder row shelves (see Figs. 3(d) and (e)) (see Figs. 1, 2(b), and 5). A handle 33 provided on the front of the multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30 is also hidden behind the front plate 25. Like the upper medicine collecting mechanism 17, this multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30 guides medicines discharged from the feeder to the lower medicine collecting mechanism 16 below, but it does not receive medicines discharged from a specific medicine-dedicated type medicine feeder 51 (specialized type medicine feeder, detachable container feeder, see Fig. 7(a)) on the medicine feeder row shelf 18, but receives medicines discharged from a multi-medicinal type medicine feeder 52 (general-purpose type medicine feeder, fixed container feeder, see Fig. 7(b)) on the medicine feeder row shelf 20. The medicine feeder row shelf 20 that receives the medicines is not just one, but multiple ones 20, 20, 20 connected vertically.

[0042] The illustrated drug feeder row shelf 20 (see FIG. 3) is provided with a handle 21 on the front (see FIG. 3(a)) and is supported by a drawer member 22 (drawer mechanism) (see FIG. 3(b)), so that the top and bottom can be individually pulled out forward or pushed back (see FIG. 3(a)-(d)). In addition, (see FIG. 3(d), (e), and FIG. 4), four multi-drug compatible drug feeders 52 (general-purpose drug feeders, container-fixed feeders) can be mounted in a line on a shelf plate 23 (drawer mechanism) supported by the drawer member 22. Furthermore, in addition to the handle 21, a rocking plate 24, a manual lock 43, and an LED display (not shown) are attached to the front plate 25 at the front end of the drug feeder row shelf 20 (see FIG. 3(e) and FIG. 4(a)).

[0043] Unlike the specific drug feeder 51 (specialized drug feeder, detachable container feeder) in which the drug to be filled is hardly changed, the multi-drug compatible drug feeder 52 (general-purpose drug feeder, fixed container feeder) can be used for drugs of various shapes and sizes by simply adjusting it as described above, specifically by replacing the sample drug or acquiring drug dimension data from the dispensing server 200 (see also Patent Documents 4 to 12). Therefore, in order to minimize mistakes such as mixing up drugs during drug refilling, a so-called fully fixed unit is adopted in which the drug container is fixed under normal conditions except during maintenance work. Although not essential, this multi-drug compatible drug feeder 52 (see FIG. 8(a)) has a built-in controller 53 (control unit) and cooperates with the controller 80 by sending and receiving data.

[0044] Further, (see Figs. 3(d), (e) and 4), the medicine feeder row shelves 20 are provided with covers 52a and cover open / closed state detection means 29 for each of the medicine feeders 52 mounted thereon. Lid 52a is for opening and closing the medicine insertion port on the top of corresponding multi-drug compatible medicine feeder 52, and is pivotally supported at its rear end (upper right part in the figure) so as to be swingable. Moreover, in the horizontal position, it closes the medicine insertion port (see FIG. 4(a)), and in the vertical or nearly vertical position, it opens the medicine insertion port to a state in which medicine can be inserted (see FIG. 4(b)), transitioning between the two states via an inclined state between them.

[0045] The lid open / closed state detection means 29 (see FIG. 4(a)) is mainly composed of, for example, a magnetic sensor, and is attached to the back plate of the shelf 23 (drawer mechanism) of the shelf 20 with the drug feeders, and is located behind the corresponding drug feeder 52 for multiple drug applications, to detect the open / closed state of the corresponding lid 52a, and not only detects whether the lid 52a is sufficiently open to allow drug input (see FIG. 4(b)), but also detects whether the lid 52a is sufficiently closed to prevent drug spillage (see FIG. 4(c)). The detection can be realized by a plurality of magnetic sensors with different sensitivity levels, or by comparing the output value of a single magnetic sensor with a plurality of threshold values ​​with different levels.

[0046] The detection result of the lid open / close state detection means 29 is notified to the controller 80 of the medicine packaging machine 10 via the controller 53 of the medicine feeder 52. Then, when the controller 80, which is responsible for managing the drug administration, etc., receives the information and determines that drug administration has begun for the corresponding drug feeder 52, based on the detection value of the lid open / closed state detection means 29, that the corresponding lid 52a has been opened from a fully closed state (see Figure 4(a)) to a state allowing drug administration (see Figure 4(b)). In addition, when the controller 80 determines based on detection by the lid opening / closing state detection means 29 that the lid 52a has been sufficiently closed to prevent the medicine from spilling (see the change from Figure 4(b) to Figure 4(a)), it determines that the medicine has been dispensed into the corresponding medicine feeder 52.

[0047] The lower end of the oscillating plate 24 is connected to the lower end of the front surface of the front plate 25 via a swinging support shaft (see Figs. 3(d), (e), and 4), so that it can be gently swung with a hand or fingertip. When the free end / oscillating end is raised (see Figs. 3(a)-(c)), it takes a vertical position as if it were attached to the front plate 25. On the other hand, when the free end / oscillating end is lowered (see Figs. 3(d), (e), and 4), it takes a horizontal position, like a small table, on which small items such as medicine bottles and prescription instruction sheets can be placed.

[0048] As mentioned above, the multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30 (see FIG. 5) is disposed immediately beside the three-stage medicine feeder row shelves 20, 20, 20 and guides medicines discharged from them downward to drop them, but this mechanism is also supported by a multi-stage drawing mechanism 37 inside the medicine storage section 13 (see FIG. 5(a) and (b)) and can be drawn forward from the medicine storage section 13 (see FIG. 5(b)). In addition, the length of the multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30 in the front-rear direction is shorter than that of the medicine feeder row shelves 20, and it is always located behind the left end of the front plate 25, 25, 25 of the right-side medicine feeder row shelves 20, 20, 20 (see FIG. 2, FIG. 5(a) and (b)).

[0049] The front plates 25, 25, 25 whose left ends protrude forward of the multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30 in this way each serve as a relative pull-out position restricting means for preventing the multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30 from being pulled forward from the medicine feeder row shelf 20, and also serve as a member for restricting the multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30 from being pulled forward from the medicine storage section 13. In addition, the medicine feeder row shelves 20 each having such a front plate 25 are provided only on the right side of the multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30 (see FIG. 2(b)), and there is no restricting member such as the front plate 25 on the left side of the multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30, so that when the multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30 is pulled forward from the medicine storage section 13 (see FIG. 5(b)), the left side of the multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30 is released.

[0050] Furthermore, the multi-stage medicine collection mechanism 30 (see Figs. 5(c)-(e)) mainly comprises a shallow box-shaped main body 31 and a removable side plate 35 disposed on the left open side of the main body 31, which is the side farthest from the medicine feeder rows 20, 20, 20, and closes the side when attached. The right side plate of the main body 31 has medicine receiving openings 32, 32, 32 for receiving medicines discharged from the medicine feeder rows 20, 20, 20, and a handle 33 is provided at the front end of the main body 31, and a side plate holding member 34 for receiving the lower end of the side plate 35 from below is provided at the lower end of the main body 31, located below the open side.

[0051] The upper part of the side plate 35 is equipped with a small latch member 36, which can be operated by a lever, and when the lower end of the side plate 35 is placed on the side plate holding member 34 and received, and then the side plate 35 is raised and the latch member 36 is latched to the main body 31, the open side of the main body 31 is closed (see FIG. 5(c)). When all the latch members 36, 36 are removed, the upper part of the side plate 35 moves away from the open side of the main body 31 (see FIG. 5(d)). However, since the side plate holding member 34 is made of, for example, a hook member and receives the lower end of the side plate 35 with a little play, the side plate 35 is held in a slightly tilted state. Furthermore, when the side plate 35 is lifted by placing hands on, for example, both the left and right ends of the side plate 35, the side plate 35 moves completely away from the main body 31, and the inside of the main body 31 is largely exposed (see FIG. 5(e)).

[0052] As described above, the manual lock 43 is provided on the front plate 25 of the medicine feeder row shelf 20 (see Fig. 3(e) and Fig. 4(a)), and the drawer lock mechanism 40 including this manual lock 43 (see Fig. 6) is attached to the front end of the medicine feeder row shelf 20 and the front end of the medicine storage section 13. Specifically, the drawer lock mechanism 40 includes a swinging member 44 provided on the medicine feeder row shelf 20 together with the manual lock 43, an electromagnetic driving unit 41 provided on the frame of the medicine storage section 13, and an advancing and retreating member 42 that can move forward and backward from the electromagnetic driving unit 41 toward the swinging member 44. The advancing / retreating member 42 is constantly biased forward (to the left) by a spring or the like (not shown) and protrudes from the frame of the drug storage section 13 toward the drug feeder row shelf 20. When its tip is in front of the oscillating member 44 (see Figure 6(a)), the drug feeder row shelf 20 is locked and cannot be pulled forward from the drug storage section 13.

[0053] Furthermore (see Figure 6(b)), a slope is formed at the tip of the advancing / retreating member 42, and when the oscillating member 44 abuts against this, the resulting force causes the advancing / retreating member 42 to retreat toward the electromagnetic drive unit 41 (move to the right in the figure). Therefore, when the pulled-out drug feeder row shelf 20 is pushed into the drug storage section 13, the oscillating member 44 temporarily retreats the advancing / retreating member 42 and moves it backwards (see the two-dot chain line and the one-dot chain line in Figure 6(b)). Therefore, while the pulling-out of the drug feeder row shelf 20 is normally locked, the drug feeder row shelf 20 can be pushed in at any time. In addition, although the illustration would be omitted since it can be configured with a magnetic sensor or the like, a drawer state detection member for detecting whether or not the drug feeder row shelf 20 is located within the lockable range of the drawer lock mechanism 40 is also provided in correspondence with each drug feeder row shelf 20.

[0054] Furthermore (see FIG. 6(c)), when the electromagnetic drive unit 41 is excited by the control of the controller 80, the retractable member 42 retreats toward the electromagnetic drive unit 41 (moves rightward in the figure) due to the electromagnetic force exceeding the spring force, so that the drug feeder row shelves 20 are in a state in which they can be pulled out as well as pushed in. In other words, electric unlocking is possible. Furthermore, (see FIG. 6(d)), when the key 45 is inserted into the manual lock 43 and turned to the unlocking side, the swinging member 44 also rotates accordingly, and assumes a position / state in which the swinging member 44 is not engaged with the advancing / retreating member 42, making manual unlocking also possible.

[0055] Furthermore, when it is determined based on detection by the lid opening / closing state detection means 29 and notification from the controller 53 that the lid 52a of the drug feeder 52 mounted on the drug feeder row shelf 20 is securely closed (see Figure 4(a)), the controller 80 determines that the drug feeder row shelf 20 is normal even if it is pushed into the housing. However, if this is not the case, for example, when the lid 52a is closed in an incomplete state that is not detected by the lid opening / closing state detection means 29 (see Figure 4(c)) and the above-mentioned drawer state detection member detects that the corresponding drug feeder row shelf 20 has been pushed into the housing and is located within the lockable range of the drawer lock mechanism 40, an alarm is issued.

[0056] To summarize, although it may be repetitive, the drug feeder 51 (see FIG. 7(a)) is the aforementioned specific drug-dedicated type drug feeder (specialized drug feeder, detachable container portion feeder), and is of the cassette detachable type consisting of a fixed base 51b (drive portion) and a cassette 51a (container portion). When the motor of the base 51b is operated under the control of the controller 80 with the cassette attached, the movable member of the cassette 51a is driven, and the drugs are dropped and discharged one by one.

[0057] In contrast, drug feeder 52 (see FIG. 7(b)) is the previously described drug feeder suitable for multiple drugs (general-purpose drug feeder, feeder with fixed container portion), in which the container portion and base are integrated (see Patent Documents 4 to 11), and in the normal state, is fixed to drug feeder row shelf 20. This drug feeder 52 has an internal motor or the like operating under the control of controller 80 to rotate the outer annular rotor and the inner inclined rotor, and drug feeder 52 also drops and discharges drugs one by one.

[0058] Furthermore, in medicine packing machine 10, controller 80 controls touch panel 15, thereby providing a function of inputting operations in addition to displaying information on the screen (see FIG. 1, etc.). When the controller 80 of the medicine packaging machine 10 receives a dispensing instruction from the dispensing server 200, it automatically processes the instruction to the extent possible, but if necessary, it displays a guide for the dispensing worker on a screen and receives instructions from the dispensing worker. For example, when the dispensing instruction includes a drug that is not held in the specialized drug feeder 51 and the general-purpose drug feeder 52 is selected as the dispensing destination, if the dispensing worker's assistance is required, it displays an instruction to feed the drug into the corresponding drug feeder 52 on the touch panel 15.

[0059] Then, when the data necessary for automatic discharge is collected and preparation for automatic discharge is completed, the controller 80 of the medicine packaging machine 10 transmits an automatic discharge command to the controller 53 of the target medicine feeder 52 (see Figs. 1 and 8(a)), and if the corresponding medicine feeder 52 is pushed into the housing of the medicine packaging machine 10 (see the upper and middle medicine feeder shelves 20 of the upper and lower three shelves shown in Figs. 1 and 3(e)), the medicine is automatically discharged from there. The medicine discharged from the medicine feeder 52 (see Figs. 2(b) and 5) is sent to the lower medicine collection mechanism 16 via the multi-stage medicine collection mechanism 30 shared by the upper and lower medicine feeder shelves 20, and further to the packaging device 11.

[0060] Each time the medicine is discharged or packaged based on the prescription, the controller 80 stores the specific information of the medicine feeder, the discharge information, and the time data, etc., in a data storage means such as a hard disk (not shown), as recorded data, whether the medicine is discharged from the specific medicine dedicated type medicine feeder 51 (specialized type medicine feeder, detachable container feeder) or the multi-medicine compatible type medicine feeder 52 (general-purpose type medicine feeder, fixed container feeder). In addition, each time the medicine is discharged for the remaining medicine collection described below, the controller 80 also stores the specific information of the medicine feeder, the execution information of the remaining medicine collection, and the time data, etc., as recorded data, whether the medicine is collected from the general-purpose type medicine feeder 51 or the general-purpose type medicine feeder 52. So-called log data and history data that the controller 80 automatically records and stores for abnormality diagnosis, etc., are also recorded data if they contain the above information.

[0061] Furthermore, when excess medicine remains in the multiple medicine compatible type medicine feeder 52 after automatic medicine discharge, the remaining medicine will be collected, and the medicine packaging machine 10 has four types of methods for collecting the remaining medicine from the target medicine feeder 52 (see FIG. 8(a)). All of these methods are performed by cooperation between the controller 80 of the medicine packaging machine 10 and the controller 53 of the target medicine feeder 52 from which the remaining medicine is to be collected, but there are three types of methods (first to third remaining medicine collecting methods) for giving a remaining medicine collecting instruction to the multiple medicine compatible type medicine feeder 52 to discharge the remaining medicine by displaying or operating the touch panel 15, and one type of method (fourth remaining medicine collecting method) that does not require such an operation.

[0062] Three types of means using the touch panel 15 will be described first. In the first to third remaining medicine collecting methods, when a remaining medicine collecting instruction to instruct the multi-medicine compatible type medicine feeder 52 to discharge remaining medicine is given by display and operation input via the touch panel 15, the discharge operation mode selection program 81 of the controller 80 of the medicine packaging machine 10 selects one of the automatic discharge program 54, the container-specific collecting program 55, or the shelf-specific collecting program 56 from the program group 54-56 of the controller 53 of the medicine feeder 52 as a linking partner. In contrast, in the fourth remaining medicine collecting method described later, the discharge operation mode selection program 81 selects the shelf-specific collecting program 56 in response to detection of the remaining medicine collecting container detection member 27.

[0063] The automatic discharge program 54 (first remaining drug collection method) performs the above-mentioned "remaining drug collection using packaging paper" in which the remaining drugs are discharged and packaged while the drug feeder row shelf 20 equipped with the target multi-drug compatible drug feeder 52 is pushed into the housing of the drug packaging machine 10 and locked by the drawer lock mechanism 40. In this case, the drug name can be printed on the part of the packaging paper where the remaining drugs are packaged, which has the advantage of making it easy to manage the collected drugs. Such an automatic discharge program 54 can be easily diverted and used in combination with a program used for normal packaging in which the number of drugs to be discharged is specified, by simply operating the number of drugs to be discharged.

[0064] Container-specific collection program 55 (second remaining drug collection method) executes the aforementioned "remaining drug collection using containers" (see FIG. 8(a)). Specifically, for a drug feeder row shelf 20 mounting a multiple drug compatible drug feeder 52 for which remaining drugs are to be collected, the program unlocks the corresponding drawer lock mechanism 40, and when it detects that the drug feeder row shelf 20 has been moved out of the locked position based on detection by the above-mentioned drawer state detection member (not shown), it determines that the drug feeder row shelf 20 is in a state where it has been pulled out forward from the housing of the drug packaging machine 10. In this state (see the drug feeder row shelf 20 in the lower tier of the upper and lower three tiers shown in FIGS. 1 and 3(e)), when an instruction to release remaining drugs is received from controller 80 of drug packaging machine 10, the program accordingly continues the discharge operation for drug feeder 52 for which remaining drugs are to be collected until it is empty.

[0065] With this "residual drug collection using containers," it is difficult to collect residual drugs from multiple multi-drug compatible drug feeders 52 in parallel, so the drug feeders 52 from which residual drugs can be collected are basically limited to one at a time. However, there are less strict restrictions on the containers that can be used, and general-purpose cups and glasses can also be used as long as they are not damaged or dirty. The collaborative operation between the dispensing worker and both controllers 80, 53 using the container-specific collection program 55, which is performed in response to operation of the touch panel 15, will be explained below with reference to screen display examples (see Figures 8(b) to (e)).

[0066] The shelf-specific collection program 56 as a third remaining medicine collection method which is activated by operating the touch panel 15, and the shelf-specific collection program 56 as a fourth remaining medicine collection method which is activated in response to detection by the remaining medicine collection container detection member 27, have different activation modes (see Figure 8 (a)), but in either case, after activation, they control the simultaneous parallel collection of remaining medicines from multiple multi-type medicine feeders 52, ..., 52 mounted on one medicine feeder row shelf 20, and are based on the assumption that a remaining medicine collection container 100 corresponding to the medicine feeder row shelf 20 is used. Therefore, prior to explaining the functions, etc. of the shelf-specific collection program 56, the configuration, etc. of the remaining medicine collection container 100 will be explained.

[0067] The remaining medicine collecting container 100 (see FIG. 9) is a separate entity from the medicine packing machine 10, and has as its base a long plate-like body 101 that is detachably attached to the underside of the medicine feeder row shelf 20. This plate body 101 has a plurality of openings 102 (four in this example) formed therein to correspond to the arrangement of the drug feeders 52 on the drug feeder row shelf 20, and a remaining drug storage section 103 (container section) is connected below each opening 102, so that drugs introduced into the openings 102 from above are divided and stored in the plurality of remaining drug storage sections 103 (four in this example).

[0068] A plurality of pairs (three pairs in this example) of permanent magnets 104 and markers 105 are attached to the upper surface of the plate body 101 of the remaining medicine collecting container 100 (see Figs. 9(a) and (b)). The permanent magnets 104 are fixed to the upper surface of the plate body 101 by screws or the like, and are designed to generate a magnetic force that can hold the remaining medicine collecting container 100 on the lower surface of the shelf board 23 (drawing mechanism) of the medicine feeder row shelf 20. The marks 105 correspond not only in number but also in position and orientation to the marks 26 on the drug feeder row shelf 20 described below. When the remaining drug collection container 100 is placed under the shelf 23 of the drug feeder row shelf 20 with the marks 105, 26 facing each other, the openings 102 (four in this example) of the remaining drug collection container 100 are positioned one-to-one with the drug discharge destinations of the multiple drug compatible drug feeders 52 (four in this example) mounted on the shelf 23 (see Figure 11(a)).

[0069] In addition, on the side of the remaining medicine collecting container 100 near the mark 105 (see Figs. 9(a) and (b)), a handle 106 useful for carrying the remaining medicine collecting container 100 is attached, and on the opposite side (see Fig. 9(c)), a small protruding alignment portion 107 is formed. The end of this alignment portion 107 is bent toward the remaining medicine storage portion 103 so that it can be smoothly placed on and positioned on a positioning member 28 (see Fig. 10(c)) of the medicine feeder row shelf 20, which will be described later.

[0070] In the drug feeder row shelves 20, to which such remaining drug collecting containers 100 are attached and detached on their undersides, the means for attaching and detaching the remaining drug collecting containers 100 to and from the shelf boards 23 (pull-out mechanism) is a permanent magnet 104, and accordingly, a magnetic material such as iron is used at least in the attachment and detachment portions of the shelf boards 23 where the permanent magnets 104 are attached and detached. However, since it is common to use iron for the components of shelves and cases, magnetic materials such as iron plates are also used for the sides and other parts of the exterior of the case.

[0071] In addition, a mark 26 is attached to the side of the shelf 23 above the side on which the remaining medicine collecting container 100 is attached (see Figures 10(a)-(c)). As described above, when the mark 26 on the medicine feeder row shelf 20 and the mark 105 on the medicine packaging machine 10 are aligned, for example, so that the arrows face each other (see Figure 10(b)), and the remaining medicine collecting container 100 is attached under the shelf 23 (pull-out mechanism) of the medicine feeder row shelf 20, the position of the opening 102 of the remaining medicine storage section 103 of the remaining medicine collecting container 100 (see Figure 11(a)) corresponds one-to-one with the medicine discharge port 23a (see Figure 10(c)), which is the medicine discharge destination of the multiple medicine compatible type medicine feeder 52 mounted on the medicine feeder row shelf 20. These medicine discharge ports 23a are for sending the medicines discharged from the medicine feeders 52 to the medicine receiving port 32 of the multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30 when the medicine feeder row shelf 20 is pushed into the housing.

[0072] Furthermore, as described above (see Figure 10), the remaining medicine collecting container 100 is attached to the shelf 23 (drawing mechanism) of the medicine feeder row shelf 20 with the marks 105, 26 corresponding to each other, and the alignment portion 107 is placed on the positioning member 28 to stabilize it, and then the remaining medicine collecting container 100 is moved toward or pressed toward the medicine feeder row shelf 20, and further the alignment portion 107 is moved toward the remaining medicine collecting container detection member 27 (see Figure 10(c)). This ensures that the alignment portion 107 of the remaining medicine collecting container 100 is securely positioned at the detection target of the remaining medicine collecting container detection member 27, and part of the opening 102 of the remaining medicine storage portion 103 is exposed (see Figure 11(a)), allowing the remaining medicine collection status to be visually confirmed.

[0073] Moreover, in such an attached state, a part of the remaining medicine collecting container 100 interferes with a part of the medicine feeder row shelf 20 to suppress misalignment between the two, and even in a situation where the remaining medicine collecting container 100 is about to come off the shelf board 23 due to the action of an unexpected external force exceeding the magnetic force of the permanent magnet 104, the occurrence of an undesirable situation such as the remaining medicine collecting container 100 dropping to the floor can be prevented with a high degree of certainty by the interference between the positioning part 107 and the positioning member 28. In addition, since the remaining medicine collecting container 100 is located in front of the multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30 (see FIG. 11(b)), inadvertent drawing out of the multi-stage medicine collecting mechanism 30 can be reliably prevented.

[0074] Each of these medicine feeder row shelves 20 (see FIG. 10(c)) is provided with a remaining medicine collection container detection member 27 for detecting whether a removable remaining medicine collection container 100 is attached from below to the medicine discharge destination (23a) of the multiple medicine compatible type medicine feeder 52 mounted on the shelf 23 (drawer mechanism). When the remaining medicine collection container 100 is attached under the shelf 23 (drawer mechanism) of the medicine feeder row shelf 20 with the mark 105 corresponding to the mark 26, the opening 102 of the remaining medicine collection container 100 is positioned at the medicine discharge destination of the multiple medicine compatible type medicine feeder 52, and the attachment of the remaining medicine collection container 100 is detected by the remaining medicine collection container detection member 27.

[0075] Now that the remaining medicine collection container 100 and the components of the medicine feeder-mounted shelf 20 related to its attachment and detachment have been explained, the functions of the shelf-specific collection program 56 that controls the "shelf-specific collection" performed by temporarily mounting the remaining medicine collection container 100 on the medicine feeder-mounted shelf 20 will be explained (see FIG. 8(a)). This shelf-specific collection program 56 (third and fourth remaining medicine collection methods) performs control when simultaneously and in parallel collecting remaining medicines from a plurality of medicine feeders 52, ..., 52 mounted on one medicine feeder-mounted shelf 20 in cooperation with the controller 80, and is based on the temporary mounting of the remaining medicine collection container 100 having a plurality of remaining medicine storage units 103, ..., 103 aligned in correspondence with the arrangement of the plurality of medicine feeders 52, ..., 52, and is configured to automatically discharge remaining medicines from the medicine feeders 52, ..., 52 of the medicine feeder-mounted shelf 20 to which the remaining medicine collection container 100 is attached, thereby causing the remaining medicines to be collected in the remaining medicine collection container 100 in response to the mounting.

[0076] Specifically, when "collect by shelf container" is selected by operating the touch panel 15 (see FIG. 12(a)), the controller 80 executes the discharge operation mode selection program 81 and the controller 53 executes the shelf-by-shelf collection program 56, and the "third remaining medicine collection method" is realized by the cooperation of the two 80 and 53. In this case, the controller 80 issues a remaining medicine collection instruction for discharging the remaining medicine to a plurality of general-purpose medicine feeders 52 in units of medicine feeder row shelves 20, and for the medicine feeder row shelves 20 that are in a state in which withdrawal is permitted due to completion of medicine discharge or the like, the corresponding drawer lock mechanism 40 is unlocked, and the shelves 20 can be manually drawn forward from the housing. Then, when a drug feeder row shelf 20 that can be drawn out is drawn forward from the housing, the controller 80 can determine and confirm this based on the detection state of a drawer state detection member (not shown).

[0077] Moreover, the touch panel 15 is also provided with a display that prompts the user to attach the remaining medicine collecting container 100 under the drug feeder row shelf 20 in the pulled-out state (see FIG. 12(b)). When the user is prompted by the display to properly attach the empty remaining medicine collecting container 100 to the drug feeder row shelf 20 to be collected (see FIGS. 10 and 11), the fact of the container being attached and the destination of the container are detected by the remaining medicine collecting container detection member 27 of the drug feeder row shelf 20 to which the container is attached, and the remaining medicine collecting operation for the corresponding drug feeder 52 is automatically performed accordingly (see FIG. 12(c)). When all the drug feeders 52 to be collected are emptied, it is determined that the remaining medicine collecting operation has been completed, and the user is prompted to remove the remaining medicine collecting container 100 (see FIG. 12(d)).

[0078] When the above-mentioned unillustrated drawer state detection member detects that the medicine feeder row shelf 20 has been drawn out from the housing, and the remaining medicine collection container detection member 27 detects that the remaining medicine collection container 100 has been attached to the medicine feeder row shelf 20 (see Figs. 10(a), 10(c), 11(a), and 8(a)), the shelf-specific collection program 56 functions as a "fourth remaining medicine collection method" under the discharge operation mode selection program 81. In this case, unlike the above-mentioned third remaining medicine collection method, the selection of the collection method (see Fig. 12(a)) and the prompting of the installation of the remaining medicine collection container 100 (see Fig. 12(a)) are not performed, and the remaining medicine collection operation is automatically performed for the corresponding medicine feeder 52 promptly (see Fig. 12(c)). When all the medicine feeders 52 to be collected are emptied, the completion of the remaining medicine collection is determined, and the removal of the remaining medicine collection container 100 is prompted (see Fig. 12(d)).

[0079] Furthermore, the medicine packaging machine 10 does not always cause all of the medicine feeders 52 to perform the remaining medicine collecting operation, regardless of whether the medicine packing machine 10 operates as the third remaining medicine collecting method by operating the touch panel 15 or as the fourth remaining medicine collecting method in response to the detection of the remaining medicine collecting container detection member 27 without operating the touch panel 15, for the multiple (four in the illustrated example) general-purpose medicine feeders 52 that are targets for collecting remaining medicine using the remaining medicine collecting container 100. Instead, the medicine packing machine 10 causes only those medicine feeders 52 that have already discharged medicine based on the dispensing instruction but have not yet performed the remaining medicine collecting operation to perform the remaining medicine collecting operation. Whether or not a medicine feeder 52 corresponds to one that has discharged medicine but has not yet performed the remaining medicine collecting operation can be easily determined by referring to the above-mentioned recorded data.

[0080] In addition, the completion of remaining drug collection can be determined when drug feeder 52 becomes empty, which can be relatively easily detected when the waiting time for detecting fallen drugs has expired (time-out, timeout) (see, for example, Patent Document 13). In this type of "residual drug collection using residual drug collection container 100," it is necessary to prepare the residual drug collection container 100 as the container to be used, but it is efficient because residual drugs can be collected in parallel from multiple drug feeders 52, and the corresponding relationship between the arrangement of drug feeders 52 on the drug feeder row shelf 20 and the residual drug storage section 103 in the residual drug collection container 100 is maintained, making it easy to manage the drugs after collection.

[0081] In addition, the collaborative operation between the two controllers 80, 53 and the dispensing worker using the shelf-specific collection program 56 in response to operation of the touch panel 15 (third remaining medicine collection method), as well as the collaborative operation between the two controllers 80, 53 in response to container detection by the remaining medicine collection container detection member 27 without the need for operation of the touch panel 15 by the dispensing worker (fourth remaining medicine collection method) will be briefly explained in the following operation explanation with reference to screen display examples (see Figures 12(a) to (d)).

[0082] The manner of use and operation of the medicine packing machine 10 of the first embodiment will be described with reference to the above-mentioned FIGS. 1 to 12.

[0083] A dispensing instruction is sent from the dispensing server 200 to the drug packaging machine 10 by operating the touch panel 15 etc. (see Figure 1). When this is received by the controller 80 of the drug packaging machine 10, the contents of the dispensing instruction are displayed on the touch panel 15 for confirmation. If the drug to be automatically dispensed is contained in the drug feeder 51 of the drug feeder storage room 14, the controller 80 automatically assigns it appropriately and then preparations are complete. Once the dispensing worker has confirmed this by operating the touch panel 15, the drug to be dispensed is automatically discharged from the drug feeder 51, collected as it falls, and delivered to the packaging device 11, where it is sorted and stored in packet paper.

[0084] If the drug to be automatically dispensed can be handled by any of the specific drug-specific type drug feeders 51 but happens to be not contained in any of the drug feeders 51, a display will be displayed on the touch panel 15 asking the dispensing worker whether to place the target drug in the appropriate drug feeder 51, select any of the multiple drug compatible type drug feeders 52 and place the target drug therein, or manually distribute the target drug using the manual drug distribution device 12 (not shown), and from the standpoint of convenience and efficiency, the selection will normally be made in that order if possible. When the dispensing worker selects drug feeder 51, he or she loads the target drug into drug feeder 51 and then operates the panel for confirmation, and automatic dispensing is carried out as described above.

[0085] In contrast, when drug feeder 51 is unavailable, if drug feeder 52 is free and available for use, drug feeder 52 is selected instead of drug manual distribution device 12 (in the following references, this will be referred to as "selection of drug filling into multi-drug compatible type drug feeder 52"). Then, the medicine packaging machine 10 displays the name of the medicine, the prescribed number, and a list of available medicine feeders 52 on the touch panel 15, and the appropriate medicine feeder 52 is selected by operating the screen. Then, the drawer lock mechanism 40 of the medicine feeder row shelf 20 on which the selected medicine feeder 52 is mounted is released, and the corresponding medicine feeder row shelf 20 becomes available for drawing out, and this is notified by a screen display or the like, so the dispensing worker draws it out (see FIG. 3(e)), and opens and closes the lid 52a of the corresponding medicine feeder 52 indicated by the screen display or the like (see FIG. 4(a)) to feed medicines. At this time, the number of medicines specified in the dispensing instruction or a number exceeding this number is fed.

[0086] Then, the dispensing worker pushes back into the housing of the drug packaging machine 10 the drug feeder row shelf 20 on which the multiple drug compatible drug feeder 52 that has finished feeding drugs is mounted, and after confirming that the drawer lock mechanism 40 has been locked, causes the drug packaging machine 10 to start automatic dispensing by operating the screen of the touch panel 15 or the like. After automatic dispensing starts, in either case, an appropriate number of drugs are discharged from the appropriate drug feeder 51, 52 according to the prescription instructions, and are then packaged by the packaging device 11. After dispensing according to the prescription instructions is thus completed, if there is any drug remaining in the multiple drug compatible drug feeder 52 used therefor, the multiple drug compatible drug feeder 52 is emptied and the remaining drug is collected for use in another dispensing, unless there are fortunate cases where the remaining drug can be used for a subsequent dispensing.

[0087] Then, when there are no other prescriptions in the drug packaging machine 10, or when there are other prescriptions but it is not necessary to start dispensing them immediately, the touch panel 15 is operated to display the "UF recovery" screen for recovering remaining drugs from the multi-drug compatible drug feeder 52 (see Figure 8 (b)), and then "Package and recover" is selected. Under the control of the coordinated operation of the discharge operation mode selection program 81 of the controller 80 of the drug packaging machine 10 and the automatic discharge program 54 of the controller 53 of the drug feeder 52 (first remaining drug recovery method), the remaining drugs are immediately and easily wrapped in packaging paper and recovered, without the need to pull out the corresponding drug feeder 52 or drug feeder row shelf 20 from the housing of the drug packaging machine 10.

[0088] On the other hand, when it is necessary to have the drug packaging machine 10 quickly dispense another medicine automatically in accordance with another prescription instruction, or when it is not desired to use packaging paper to collect remaining medicine, the dispensing worker operates the touch panel 15 to display the "UF collection" screen for collecting remaining medicine from the multi-drug type drug feeder 52, and then selects either "collection in containers by container" or "collection in containers by shelf" as the remaining medicine collection method. Here, we will first explain the case where "collection in containers by container" (second remaining medicine collection method) is selected, which does not require a special container and can be used with a general-purpose cup or glass, etc. (see Figure 8(b)).

[0089] Then, a screen prompting the selection of the drug feeder 52 to be collected from is displayed on the touch panel 15 (see FIG. 8(c)), and the dispensing worker performs an operation to specify the target (in the example of FIG. 8(c), "12" is selected, which indicates the second drug feeder 52 from the front on the bottommost drug feeder row shelf 20). Then, the lower drug feeder row shelf 20 on which the drug feeder 52 to be collected from is mounted is specified ("UF1 shelf" in the example of FIG. 8(d)), and a screen instructing the user to pull it out is displayed on the touch panel 15 (see FIG. 8(d)).

[0090] Then, the drawer lock mechanism 40 attached to the medicine feeder row shelf 20 is unlocked, and then the medicine feeder row shelf 20 is pulled out forward from the housing (see the bottommost medicine feeder row shelf 20 in Figs. 1 and 3(a)). In this way, when the lock on the relevant shelf is released and it is detected that the shelf has been pulled out further than the locked position, it is determined that drug feeder 52 from which remaining drugs are to be collected has been sufficiently pulled out of the housing, and a screen is displayed on touch panel 15 prompting the dispensing worker to place a collection container under drug feeder 52 from which remaining drugs are to be collected (see Figure 8(e)).

[0091] Therefore, the dispensing worker can quickly and accurately place a collection container under the medicine feeder 52 from which the remaining medicine is to be collected (not shown). Then, when the dispensing worker instructs "start" collection of remaining medication by operating the screen of touch panel 15 (see the lower right part of the example screen display in Figure 8 (e)), controller 53 executes container-specific collection program 55 under the control of controller 80, and through their cooperative control, the remaining medication is discharged downward one after another from the medication feeder 52 targeted for remaining medication collection, so that the remaining medication is quickly transferred into the collection container.

[0092] While the remaining medication is being discharged, the lid 52a of the medication feeder 52 from which the remaining medication is to be collected must be kept closed to prevent the medication from undesirably splashing, etc.; however, once the discharge is complete, this is detected by the expiration of the waiting time for detecting fallen medication, etc., and the lid 52a is unlocked. Therefore, to be on the safe side, the dispensing worker should, if possible, open the lid 52a of the medication feeder 52 from which the remaining medication is to be collected and visually check for the presence or absence of remaining medication (see Figure 4(b)). Then, when the dispensing worker confirms that the medicine feeder 52 from which the remaining medicine is to be collected is completely empty, he / she closes the lid 52a and makes the empty medicine feeder 52 available for the next use.

[0093] In this way, remaining medication can be collected from drug feeder 52 after automatic discharge into a general-purpose collection container; however, as for drug feeders 52 mounted on drug feeder row shelves 20 that do not have drug feeder 52 from which remaining medication is to be collected (the upper and middle drug feeder row shelves 20 in the examples of Figures 1 and 3(e)), whether the drug feeder row shelf 20 from which drug feeder 52 is to be collected (the lower drug feeder row shelf 20 in the examples of Figures 1 and 3(e)) is mounted is contained within the housing of drug packaging machine 10 or protrudes forward from the housing, there is no effect on the drug discharge operation, and therefore the drug feeders can be simultaneously used for another automatic dispensing according to another prescription instruction.

[0094] Furthermore, when the dispensing worker operates the touch panel 15 to display the “UF recovery” screen for recovering remaining medication from the multi-drug compatible type medication feeder 52 (see Figs. 8(b) and 12(a)), the case where “Recover by container by shelf” is selected as the remaining medication recovery method instead of “Recover by container by vessel” will be described (see Fig. 12(a)). In this case (third remaining drug recovery method), the configuration has already been described in detail, so to briefly explain how to use it and how it works, the dispensing worker first selects "recover by container on shelf" on the touch panel 15 (see Figure 12(a)), and then pulls out the corresponding drug feeder shelf 20, whose pull-out lock has been released, from the housing forward.

[0095] Then, a message is displayed on the touch panel 15 encouraging the dispensing worker to install the remaining medicine collecting container 100 under the pulled-out medicine feeder row shelf 20 (see Figure 12 (b)), and the dispensing worker then installs the empty remaining medicine collecting container 100 accordingly. Thereafter, the drug packaging machine 10 automatically detects whether the remaining drug collection container 100 is properly attached to the drug feeder row shelf 20, and collects the remaining drugs from drug feeders 52 that have already discharged drugs but have not yet performed the remaining drug collection operation (see Figure 12(c)). Once collection of the remaining drugs is complete, the user is prompted to remove the remaining drug collection container 100 (see Figure 12(d)).

[0096] In this way, the dispensing worker is involved in selecting the collection method and installing the remaining medicine collection container 100, but since the remaining medicine collection operation thereafter is performed automatically, the dispensing worker is quickly relieved from the remaining medicine collection task and can move on to other dispensing tasks, etc., promptly. For example, while remaining drugs are being collected from the drug feeders 52, ..., 52 of the lower drug feeder row shelf 20 into the remaining drug collection container 100, once the remaining drug collection operation enters an automatic continuation state, the dispensing worker can perform preparations for the next automatic dispensing operation, such as feeding drugs into the drug feeders 52, ..., 52 of the upper and middle drug feeder row shelves 20, and then return to the task of removing the remaining drug collection container 100 from the lower drug feeder row shelf 20 at an appropriate time.

[0097] Furthermore, the remaining medicine collection performed by mounting the remaining medicine collection container 100 on the medicine feeder row shelf 20 is automatically started as described above when it is detected that the medicine feeder row shelf 20 is pulled out from the housing and the remaining medicine collection container 100 is mounted on the medicine feeder row shelf 20. In this case (fourth remaining medicine collection method), the remaining medicine collection is started without manual operation of the touch panel 15 or the like, and the only start condition is sufficient forward pulling of the medicine feeder row shelf 20 and proper mounting of the remaining medicine collection container 100 thereon, so that it can be used not only in pre-expected situations but also in unexpected situations.

[0098] A typical example of an expected situation is to perform residual drug collection using the residual drug collection container 100 (fourth residual drug collection method) after the above-mentioned ``selection of drug filling into the multi-drug compatible type drug feeder 52'' and before the drug filling is actually performed. Specifically, the dispensing worker selects the drug filling into the multiple drug compatible drug feeder 52 by operating the touch panel 15 as described above, and after the drawer lock mechanism 40 of the corresponding drug feeder row shelf 20 is unlocked accordingly, the corresponding drug feeder row shelf 20 is manually pulled forward from the housing. Then, only when the remaining drug collection is to be performed prior to drug filling, the remaining drug collection container 100 is attached to the drug feeder row shelf 20 to automatically collect the remaining drug, and after collection, the remaining drug collection container 100 is removed. Then, the drug filling work into the multiple drug compatible drug feeder 52 can be performed.

[0099] In this way, the dispensing worker can decide at his / her own discretion whether or not to use the residual drug collection container 100 to collect residual drugs prior to filling the multiple drug compatible type drug feeder 52, and the timing of this decision can be delayed until just before filling the drug feeder 52 with drugs, which reduces the burden on the dispensing worker and is highly practical. Furthermore, when a command is given to collect remaining medicines again from medicine feeders 52 in medicine feeder row shelves 20, even though the collection of remaining medicines has already been completed, whether by using remaining medicine collection container 100 or other individual containers, the recorded data is referenced prior to the execution of remaining medicine collection, and based on that data, the medicine feeders 52 that are the targets for the execution of remaining medicine collection are limited to those that have "discharged medicines based on dispensing instructions but have not subsequently discharged medicines for remaining medicine collection." Therefore, even when one wishes to check whether remaining medicines have been collected, one can easily attempt to collect remaining medicines without having to spend time on the checking task.

[0100] Finally, to explain how to handle the remaining medicine collection container 100 after use, as mentioned above, a magnetic material such as iron is also used for the side panels of the housing of the medicine packaging machine 10. Therefore, when the remaining medicine collection container 100 is not in use, the permanent magnet 104 of the remaining medicine collection container 100 can be abutted against the side panels of the housing of the remaining medicine collection container 100 to temporarily attach the remaining medicine collection container 100 to the medicine packaging machine 10 (see Figure 12 (e)), allowing it to be stored easily and unobtrusively, and can also be removed and used immediately when necessary.

[0101] [others] In the above embodiment, the medicine packing machine 10 is provided with the controller 80, and each medicine feeder 52 is provided with an individual controller 53, but it is not essential that each medicine feeder 52 is provided with an individual controller 53. For example, the control units of a plurality or a large number of medicine feeders 52 may be combined into a single or small number of controllers, or the control unit of the medicine packing machine 10 may be made to function as the control unit of the medicine feeder 52 by installing a program that performs the function of the controller 53 in the controller 80 of the medicine packing machine 10. The functions of the container-specific collecting program 55 and the shelf-specific collecting program 56 may also be installed in the controller 80.

[0102] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, even when shelf-specific recovery program 56 functions as the third remaining drug recovery method or even as the fourth remaining drug recovery method under discharge operation mode selection program 81, the progress is displayed on touch panel 15 to inform the dispensing worker (see Figures 12(c) and (d)). However, the time required for remaining drug recovery is usually only a few tens of seconds, and if all of the targeted multi-drug compatible drug feeders 52 have already recovered remaining drugs, the process is completed instantly, so there is no significant inconvenience in omitting the display and notification of the progress as shown in the figures. [Industrial Applicability]

[0103] The medicine packaging machine of the present invention may be of a stand-alone type that does not require linkage with a higher-level device such as a medicine dispensing server, so long as it is provided with a means for acquiring prescription instruction data. [Explanation of symbols]

[0104] 10...Drug packaging machine, 11 ... packaging device, 12 ... drug manual spraying device equipment section, 13 ... drug storage section, 14...Drug feeder storage (special drug dedicated type drug feeder storage), 15...Touch panel (operation input unit and display unit of the medicine packaging machine), 16, 16a...lower drug collecting mechanism, 17...upper drug collecting mechanism, 18...Shelf with drug feeders (for specific drug feeders), 20...Shelf with drug feeders (for drug feeders compatible with multiple drugs), 21: handle; 22: pull-out member (pull-out mechanism); 23... shelf (drawer mechanism), 23a... drug discharge port, 24... swing plate, 25...Front plate (relative withdrawal position control means, member for controlling forward withdrawal of the multi-stage drug collection mechanism), 26...mark (alignment mark), 27...remaining medicine collection container detection member, 28: positioning member; 29: cover open / close state detection means (magnetic sensor); 30...Multi-stage drug collection mechanism, 31: main body; 32: drug receiving port; 33: handle; 34: side plate holding member, 35: side plate, 36: hook member, 37: multi-stage drawer mechanism, 40...Drawer lock mechanism, 41: electromagnetic drive unit; 42: advance / retreat member (engagement member); 43: manual lock, 44: swinging member (engagement member), 45: key, 51...Drug feeder (specialized drug feeder, specialized drug feeder), 51a... cassette (container), 51b... base (drive unit), 52...medicinal feeder (multiple types of drug compatible type, general-purpose drug feeder), 52a...lid, 53...Controller (multiple drug compatible type, general-purpose drug feeder control unit), 54…Automatic discharge program, 55...Device-specific collection program (remaining drug collection program, remaining drug collection instruction receiving means), 56...Shelf-specific collection program (remaining drug collection program, remaining drug collection instruction reception means), 80: controller (control unit of the medicine packaging machine); 81: discharge operation mode selection program; 100…Remaining medicine collection container, 101: plate body, 102: opening, 103: remaining medicine storage section, 104: permanent magnet (attaching / detaching means), 105: mark (alignment mark), 106: Handle; 107: Alignment portion (detection portion) 200…Pharmacy server

Claims

1. A medicine packing machine including a plurality of medicine feeders each having a container section for randomly storing a large number of medicines and a sequential discharge mechanism section for dropping each medicine one by one from the container and discharging it downward, a packaging device for receiving the discharged medicines and packaging them, and a housing capable of housing the medicine feeders and the packaging device, a plurality of the drug feeders are general-purpose drug feeders in which the container unit and the sequential discharge mechanism unit are integrated together, and are mounted separately on a plurality of drawer mechanisms that can be drawn forward from the housing; a withdrawal state detection member for detecting a withdrawal state of each of the plurality of withdrawal mechanisms, and a remaining medicine collecting container detection member for detecting whether a removable remaining medicine collecting container is attached to a medicine discharge destination of one of the general-purpose medicine feeders; A positioning mark corresponding to the mark on the remaining medicine collection container is provided on the drawer mechanism, and when the remaining medicine collection container is attached to the drawer mechanism with the marks corresponding to each other, an opening of the remaining medicine collection container is positioned at the medicine discharge destination of the general-purpose medicine feeder, and the attachment of the remaining medicine collection container is detected by the remaining medicine collection container detection member, When the remaining medicine collecting container is attached to the drawing mechanism with the marks corresponding to each other, a part of the remaining medicine collecting container interferes with a part of the drawing mechanism, so that misalignment between the two is suppressed, The drug packaging machine is characterized in that, for the above-mentioned general-purpose drug feeder, when it is possible to confirm that the one of the pull-out mechanisms to which the remaining drug collection container is attached is pulled forward based on the detection state of the pull-out state detection member, and when it is possible to confirm that the remaining drug collection container is attached to the drug discharge destination based on the detection state of the remaining drug collection container detection member, the drug feeder mounted on the pull-out mechanism to which the remaining drug collection container is attached is caused to perform a drug discharge operation.

2. A drug packaging machine as described in claim 1, characterized in that when the remaining drug collection container is attached to the pull-out mechanism with the marks corresponding to each other, a portion of the opening of the remaining drug collection container is exposed.

3. A drug packaging machine as described in claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that a plurality of the general-purpose drug feeders are mounted on the pull-out mechanism, and a corresponding plurality of residual drug storage sections are formed in the residual drug collection container.

4. A drug packaging machine as described in any of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that iron or other magnetic material is used in the attachment / detachment portion of the pull-out mechanism for the permanent magnet in correspondence with the fact that the means for attaching and detaching the residual drug collection container to and from the pull-out mechanism is a permanent magnet, and iron or other magnetic material is also used in the holding portion of the residual drug collection container when not in use, such as the side surfaces of the outer surface portion of the housing.

5. A drug packaging machine as described in any of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that it is equipped with a data retention means for retaining record data of drug discharge based on a dispensing instruction and record data of drug discharge for remaining drug recovery for the general-purpose drug feeder, and by referring to the record data, it is possible to limit the general-purpose drug feeders that are to perform the drug discharge operation toward the remaining drug recovery container to those that have discharged drug based on a dispensing instruction but have not subsequently discharged drug for remaining drug recovery.

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