Drug supply device

Abstract

To feed medicines with different shapes and sizes one by one in a reliable manner.SOLUTION: A medicine feeding device includes: a first rotary body 23; an annular second rotary body 35; a medicine discharge port 73; a medicine guide part 65 for guiding a medicine on the second rotary body 35 to the medicine discharge port 73; a width regulation body 52 for regulating a transfer width of the medicine between the inner peripheral part of the second rotary body 35 and the medicine; and a height regulation body 41 for regulating a transfer height of the medicine between the top face of the second rotary body 35 and the medicine. The height regulation body 41 includes: a height regulation member 42 arranged on the second rotary body 35; an installation member 44 arranged straddling the second rotary body 35 from over the second rotary body 35 to the outside of it; and an actuation receiving member 59 for adjusting the regulation height of the medicine by the height regulation member 42.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a drug supply device capable of supplying drugs such as tablets and capsules having different shapes and sizes one by one.

Background Art

[0002] A drug counting device for counting a large number of drugs is described in Patent Document 1. This drug counting device has a central disk member rotated by a first driving means and an annular member rotated by a second driving means. The disk member and the annular member are arranged such that their respective rotation axes are on the same axis so as to be planar with each other, and are rotated in opposite directions by their respective driving means. Further, a drug guide portion is provided on the outer peripheral portion of the annular member so as to extend outward.

[0003] However, in this drug counting device, a large number of drugs not supplied to the drug guide portion are transferred in opposite directions on the disk member and the annular member. Therefore, the drug moved from the disk member to the annular member collides with the drug already moved onto the annular member, and the drug moved from the annular member to the disk member collides with the drug on the disk member.

[0004] On the other hand, Patent Document 2 describes a supply device for aligning and supplying small articles. This supply device has a disk-shaped first rotating body rotated by a first driving means and an annular second rotating body rotated by a second driving means. The first rotation axis of the first rotating body is arranged to be inclined at a predetermined angle, and the second rotation axis of the second rotating body is arranged to extend in the vertical direction. Further, the first rotating body is configured such that a portion located at the upper end due to the inclination is positioned at the same height as the inner peripheral portion of the second rotating body. Furthermore, a frame wall surrounding the outer peripheral portion of the first rotating body is integrally provided on the inner peripheral portion of the second rotating body.

[0005] In the supply device of this Patent Document 2, the supply object moves from the upper end portion to the second rotating body due to the rotation of the first rotating body. Then, only the supply object in a predetermined posture is allowed to pass downstream by the restricting body provided on the second rotating body, and the supply objects in different postures fall from the inner peripheral portion of the second rotating body onto the first rotating body. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the supply objects from colliding with each other.

[0006] However, when this supply device is used for supplying drugs, there is a possibility that two or more supply objects pass through the restricting body simultaneously and are supplied to the guide portion to the discharge port in a state of being arranged in two rows in the radial direction. As a result, there is a problem of causing clogging at the entrance of the guide portion. Further, when the drug is a tablet having a non-circular shape in plan view or a capsule agent in which a drug is stored in a capsule, even if they are supplied one by one, there are problems such as clogging occurring at the entrance of the guide portion or clogging occurring inside the guide portion depending on the moving posture.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0007]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0008] An object of the present invention is to provide a drug supply device capable of appropriately supplying drugs having different shapes and sizes.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0009] The present invention includes a first rotating body that rotates about a first rotation axis, an annular second rotating body that rotates about a second rotation axis extending in a direction different from the first rotation axis, and a drug discharge port provided on the outer side in the radial direction of the second rotating body. The drug supplied to the first rotating body rides on the moving portion of the second rotating body due to the rotation of the first rotating body, and the rotated drug is transferred to the drug discharge port by the rotation of the second rotating body. Further, a drug guide portion is provided between the moving portion of the second rotating body and the drug discharge port to guide the drug on the second rotating body to the drug discharge port, and a width restricting body is provided between the moving portion of the second rotating body and the drug guide portion, which is disposed on the outer side in the radial direction of the second rotating body than the inner peripheral portion of the second rotating body and regulates the transfer width of the drug between the second rotating body and the inner peripheral portion thereof. the aforesaid And a height restricting body that restricts the transfer height of the drug between the upper surface of the second rotating body. The drug guide portion has an inner guide extending in a tangential direction from the inner peripheral portion of the second rotating body to the drug discharge port, and an outer guide disposed on the outer side in the radial direction of the second rotating body with respect to the inner guide. 、front The height restricting body is disposed on the second rotating body. 、provided between the moving part and the inside of the medicine case A height restricting member, a bridging member connected to the height restricting member and disposed across the second rotating body from the upper surface of the second rotating body to the outside of the second rotating body when viewed from the direction in which the first rotation axis extends, and a portion of the bridging member located outside the second rotating body is connected thereto, and receives power for vertically moving the height restricting member via the bridging member, and an operating receiving member for adjusting the regulated height of the drug by the height restricting member. A drug supply device is provided.

Advantages of the Invention

[0010] In the drug supply device of the present invention, drugs having different shapes and sizes can be appropriately supplied.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6A

Figure 6B

Figure 7A

Figure 7B

Figure 8

Figure 9

Figure 10A

Figure 10B

Figure 10C

Figure 11

Figure 12

Figure 13

Figure 14A

Figure 14B

Figure 15

Figure 16

Figure 17

Figure 18

Figure 19

Figure 20

Figure 21

Figure 22

Figure 23

Figure 24

Figure 25

Figure 26

Figure 27

Figure 28

Figure 29

Figure 30

Figure 31

Figure 32

Figure 33

Figure 34

Figure 35

Figure 36

Figure 37

Figure 38

Figure 39

Figure 40

Figure 41

Figure 42

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0013] FIG. 1 shows a drug counting device using a drug supply device according to an embodiment of the present invention. This drug counting device is provided with a drug supply device, a switching valve unit 76, and a central control unit 83 as counting means, automatically adjusts the mechanism of the drug supply device, and supplies and counts various drugs having different shapes and sizes one by one.

[0014] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the exterior body 10 of the drug counting device includes an exterior body main body 11 located on the upper side and a pedestal 16 located on the lower side. The exterior body main body 11 is a housing that closes the four sides and the top and bottom, and its front cover 12 has a shape that bulges forward from the pedestal 16. A container attachment portion 13 for attaching a medicine container 1 to be handed to a patient and a collection container 2 for storing drugs is provided on the left side in the figure on this front cover 12. Further, an upper cover 14 is rotatably attached to the rear side of the exterior body main body 11. An insertion port 15 for exposing the inside of a frame body 17 described later is provided on this upper cover 14. The pedestal 16 is a housing with an upper end opening for arranging the exterior body main body 11 on the upper part. This pedestal 16 is used as necessary to arrange the exterior body main body 11 at a predetermined height so that the containers 1 and 2 attached to the exterior body main body 11 do not contact a desk or the like that is the placement surface.

[0015] As shown in FIG. 3, the drug supply device includes a substantially cylindrical frame body 17, a first rotating body 23 having a disc shape, a second rotating body 35 having an annular shape, a height restricting body 41 for restricting the height of the drugs to be supplied, a width restricting body 52 for restricting the transfer width of the second rotating body 35, and a drug guide portion 65 composed of an inner guide 66 and an outer guide 57. In this embodiment, the width restricting body 52 and the outer guide 57 of the drug guide portion 65 are configured by a single resin molded product.

[0016] As shown in FIGS. 3, 4, and 5, the frame body 17 has a partition wall 18 that covers the outer peripheral portion of the first rotating body 23 and an outer wall 20 that covers the outer peripheral portion of the second rotating body 35. These are respectively fixed vertically to the upper surface plate of the exterior body main body 11. The partition wall 18 extends from the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35 to the outer peripheral portion of the first rotating body 23 and is a substantially cylindrical shape that partitions between them. A notch 19 is provided in a part of the lower side of the outer peripheral portion of the partition wall 18 to prevent interference with the rotation bracket 30 that fixes the first drive motor 28 of the first rotating body 23. The outer wall 20 is a cylindrical shape that prevents the drug from falling off the second rotating body 35. A first notch 21 is provided in a part of the upper side of the outer peripheral portion of the outer wall 20, and a second notch 22 is provided in a part of the lower side of the outer peripheral portion. The first notch 21 is for exposing the second rotating body 35 and for arranging the width restricting body 52 and the drug guiding portion 65. The second notch 22 is for exposing the gear member 38 of the second rotating body 35 from the side. Note that the frame body 17 may integrally provide the partition wall 18 and the outer wall 20.

[0017] The first rotating body 23 has a disk shape and is disposed inclined in the partition wall 18 so as to close the bottom of the partition wall 18. That is, as shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the first rotation axis 24 of the first rotating body 23 is arranged to be inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the vertical direction. A plurality of convex ridges 25 that serve as resistance (rolling suppression) for moving the drug are provided radially on the upper surface of the first rotating body 23. An inclined surface portion 26 that inclines downward toward the radially outer side is provided on the outer peripheral portion of the first rotating body 23. The inclined surface portion 26 is arranged at a predetermined inclination angle such that the inner peripheral edge, which is the upper end, is located above the second rotating body 35 and the outer peripheral edge, which is the lower end, is located below the inner peripheral edge.

[0018] A gear 27 is connected to the lower end of a first rotating shaft 24 of the first rotating body 23. The gear 27 is meshed with a gear 29 connected to the output shaft of a first drive motor 28 which is a first drive means, and is configured to be rotatable about the first rotating shaft 24. The first rotating shaft 24 and the first drive motor 28 are attached to a rotating bracket 30. A guide bearing (not shown) is disposed on the side surface of the rotating bracket 30, and the bearing is engaged with a guide groove of a mounting bracket 31 fixed to the exterior body main body 11. Further, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, an arcuate gear piece 32 is fixed to the side surface of the rotating bracket 30. A gear 34 of an angle adjustment motor 33 which is an angle adjustment means is meshed with the gear piece 32. By driving the angle adjustment motor 33, the rotating bracket 30 can be rotated with respect to the mounting bracket 31. When the rotating bracket 30 is rotated, the first rotating body 23 is rotated together with the first drive motor 28, and the inclination angle of the first rotating body 23 can be adjusted. The adjustment of the inclination angle is configured to be performed with the upper end portion of the first rotating body 23 as a fulcrum.

[0019] The second rotating body 35 is an annular member rotatably disposed at the upper end of the partition wall 18 so as to be located above the first rotating body 23. As shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the second rotating body 35 is horizontally arranged such that a second rotation axis (not shown) extends in the vertical direction. Thereby, the second rotation axis of the second rotating body 35 intersects and extends in a direction different from (neither parallel nor identical to) the first rotation axis 24 of the first rotating body 23. The angles of these rotation axes can be relatively changed by driving the angle adjustment motor 33 as described above. Further, when viewed from the axial direction of the second rotation axis, the second rotating body 35 is located outside the first rotating body 23, and the first rotating body 23 is located within the inner peripheral portion 36. Furthermore, due to the inclination of the first rotating body 23, the outer peripheral portion of the first rotating body 23 is lower than the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35, and a step of a predetermined height is formed therebetween. This step is the largest at the portion located at the lower end in the vertical direction on the left side in the figure and the smallest at the portion located at the upper end in the vertical direction on the right side in the figure due to the inclination of the first rotating body 23. And the portion where this step is the smallest constitutes a moving portion 37 through which the drug supplied to the accommodation space partitioned by the first rotating body 23 and the partition wall 18 moves from the first rotating body 23 to the second rotating body 35 as the first rotating body 23 rotates. The moving portion 37 of the present embodiment is configured such that the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35 is positioned at substantially the same height as the outer peripheral portion of the first rotating body 23 with a gap that prevents the drug from falling off. However, as long as the drug can move from the first rotating body 23 to the second rotating body 35, the height setting of the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35 and the outer peripheral portion of the first rotating body 23 in this moving portion 37 may be such that the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35 is located above or below the outer peripheral portion of the first rotating body 23.

[0020] As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, an annular gear member 38 is fixed to the lower surface of the second rotating body 35. A gear 40 of a second drive motor 39, which is a second driving means, is engaged with the gear member 38 through a second notch 22 in the outer wall 20. Further, the outer peripheral portion of the gear member 38 is supported by a support member (not shown). Thereby, the upper rotating member is rotated about the second rotation axis without moving along the second rotation axis.

[0021] The height regulating body 41 is disposed so as to be located on the downstream side in the rotation (drug transfer) direction with respect to the moving portion 37 of the second rotating body 35. The height regulating body 41 includes a height regulating member 42, a bridging member 44, and an operation receiving member 45. As shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B, the height regulating member 42 is disposed so as to be located above the second rotating body 35. The height regulating member 42 extends from the outer peripheral portion to the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35 and has a guide surface 43 that inclines at a predetermined angle along the drug transfer direction. The bridging member 44 is connected to the height regulating member 42 and is for disposing the height regulating member 42 on the second rotating body 35 across the width regulating body 52. The operation receiving member 45 is connected to the bridging member 44 and receives power for vertically moving the height regulating member 42 via the bridging member 44. A screw hole 46 for receiving power is provided in the operation receiving member 45 so as to penetrate in the vertical direction.

[0022] A screw member 47 is passed through the screw hole 46 of the height regulating body 41. The screw member 47 is supported by a bracket fixed to the upper surface plate of the exterior body main body 11 so as to be rotatable and immovable along the axial direction. Further, a gear 48 is connected to the lower end of the screw member 47. The gear 48 is engaged with a gear 50 of a height adjustment motor 49, which is a height adjustment means. By driving the height adjustment motor 49, the screw member 47 is rotated, and the height is adjusted so that the interval between the height regulating body 41 and the upper surface of the second rotating body 35 is set at substantially the same interval as the drug height. Further, on the downstream side of the height regulating body 41, a drug detection sensor 51 is disposed as a second drug detection means for detecting the drug that has passed through the lower portion of the height regulating body 41.

[0023] The width regulating body 52 is disposed on the second rotating body 35 so as to be located further downstream in the drug transfer direction than the height regulating body 41. The width regulating body 52 includes a rectangular portion 53 extending in a tangential direction with respect to the outer peripheral portion of the second rotating body 35. The rectangular portion 53 is arranged so that the erection member 44 of the height regulating body 41 bypasses it and is capable of linear movement without interfering with the erection member 44. Further, the width regulating body 52 has a width regulating portion 54 continuous with the downstream side of the rectangular portion 53 in the drug transfer direction. The width regulating portion 54 includes a first curved surface portion 55 having a diameter larger than the diameter of the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35. Thereby, the interval from the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35 is configured such that only a part in the circumferential direction becomes the narrowest transfer width. Here, this transfer width means the width (region) through which the drug can pass from the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35 to the first curved surface portion 55. Further, the width regulating portion 54 includes a second curved surface portion 56 connected such that the transfer width on the downstream side in the drug transfer direction of the first curved surface portion 55 gradually widens. And the width regulating body 52 has an outer guide 57 constituting a drug guiding portion 65 continuous with the downstream side of the width regulating portion 54 in the drug transfer direction. The outer guide 57 is configured to extend in a tangential direction with respect to the second curved surface portion 56 and in a direction orthogonal to the rectangular portion 53.

[0024] A connecting member 58 is connected to the width regulating portion 54 of the width regulator 52 so as to extend parallel to the rectangular portion 53. An operating receiving member 59 is connected to the connecting member 58 in the same manner as the height regulator 41. A screw member 61 passes through a screw hole 60 of the operating receiving member 59, and the screw member 61 is supported rotatably and immovably along the axial direction by a bracket fixed to the upper surface plate of the exterior body main body 11. Further, a gear 62 is connected to the outer end of the screw member 47, and a gear 64 of a width adjustment motor 63, which is a width adjustment means for moving the width regulator 52 in the horizontal direction, is engaged with the gear 62. When the width regulator 52 is moved outward with respect to the second rotating body 35 by the width adjustment motor 63, the transfer width between the width regulating portion 54 and the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35, and the interval between the outer guide 57 and an inner guide 66 (to be described later) can be increased. Further, when it is moved inward with respect to the second rotating body 35, the transfer width of the second rotating body 35 and the interval between the guides 57 and 66 can be narrowed. In the present embodiment, the diameter (radius of curvature) of the first curved surface portion 55 of the width regulating portion 54 is set such that the width between the outer guide 57 and the inner guide 66 is about twice (2W) the transfer width W between the width regulating portion 54 and the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35. In the present embodiment, the transfer width W is configured to be 1 / 2 of the width of the drug to be transferred. In the case of a drug having an elliptical shape or an oval shape in plan view, the drug width means the short side direction. Further, the transfer width W is not limited to 1 / 2 of the drug width, and is preferably 1 / 2 or more and the drug width or less of the drug width.

[0025] The drug guide inner part 65 guides the drug that has passed through the width restricting part 54 of the width restrictor 52 to a drug discharge member 73, which will be described later, and is the drug discharge port. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 7A and 7B, this drug guide inner part 65 is disposed on the second rotating body 35 so as to be located on the downstream side in the drug transfer direction from the width restricting part 54 of the width restrictor 52. The inner guide 66 constituting the drug guide inner part 65 is positioned parallel to the inside in the radial direction of the second rotating body 35 with respect to the outer guide 57, and is disposed so as to extend in a tangential direction with respect to the inner peripheral part 36 of the second rotating body 35. The inner guide 66 extends toward the drug discharge member 73, and a bracket part 67 for fixing to the upper plate part of the exterior body main body 11 is provided at the end thereof. The interval between the guides 57 and 66 constituting this drug guide inner part 65 is adjusted to be substantially the same interval as the drug width by driving of the width adjustment motor 63. Further, on the inner guide 66, an inclined edge 68 that inclines upward at a predetermined angle is provided at the inner end located at the inner peripheral part 36 of the second rotating body 35, which is the step between the first rotating body 23 and the second rotating body 35. Further, the inner surface side of this inclined edge 68 is an inclined surface 69 that inclines downward.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 8, the drug counting device is provided with a detection part 70 for detecting the drug, a shutter 74 for permitting or not permitting the discharge of the drug to the detection part 70, and a switching valve unit 76 for distributing the drug that has passed through the detection part 70, at the lower part of the drug discharge member 73 disposed at the outlet of the drug guide inner part 65. Note that the drug discharge member 73 constitutes a drug discharge port provided on the outside in the radial direction of the second rotating body 35, and guides the drug discharged from the drug guide inner part 65 to the detection part 70.

[0027] The detection unit 70, which is the first drug detection means, has a pair of housing bodies 70A and 70B forming a regular square prism shape, as shown in FIGS. 9(A) and 9(B). In the upper housing body 70A, a pair of light emitting parts 71A and 71B are arranged on adjacent surfaces, and a pair of light receiving parts 72A and 72B are arranged on the opposing surfaces. Further, in the lower housing body 70B, a pair of light emitting parts 71C and 71D are arranged on adjacent surfaces, and a pair of light receiving parts 72C and 72D are arranged on the opposing surfaces. The light emitting part 71A and the light receiving part 72A, the light emitting part 71B and the light receiving part 72B, the light emitting part 71C and the light receiving part 72C, and the light emitting part 71D and the light receiving part 72D that face each other respectively form a set of two pairs of optical sensors (line sensors). The two sets (a total of four sets) of optical sensors arranged in the two housing bodies 70A and 70B are positioned at a predetermined interval in the axial direction. Further, the housing bodies 70A and 70B can have different detection directions by being arranged at a phase angle of 45 degrees with respect to each other. And the detection unit 70 configured in this way can reduce the size of the planar shape (occupied area) compared with the case of using a regular octagonal housing body in which all four sets of optical sensors can be arranged.

[0028] As shown in FIG. 8, the shutter 74 is arranged inside the outlet side of the drug discharge member 73. This shutter 74 can be rotated by a drive motor 75, which is a discharge permission determination means, from a discharge stop position extending in the horizontal direction to a discharge permission position inclined downward. At the discharge stop position, the outlet of the drug discharge member 73 is closed to prevent the discharge of the drug into the detection unit 70. Also, at the discharge permission position, the outlet of the drug discharge member 73 is opened to allow the discharge of the drug into the detection unit 70.

[0029] The switching valve unit 76 is disposed below the detection unit 70 so as to be located at the container mounting portion 13 of the exterior body main body 11. In the casing of this switching valve unit 76, an inverted Y-shaped chemical agent passage 77 branched into a dispensing portion 78 which is a first passage portion and a recovery portion 79 which is a second passage portion is formed. At the ends of the dispensing portion 78 and the recovery portion 79, step portions 78a and 79a for mounting the medicine container 1 and the recovery container 2 are provided. Among them, three sets of step portions 78a of the dispensing portion 78 located on the left side in the figure can mount three types of medicine containers 1 having different diameters (volumes). In the chemical agent passage 77, a switching valve for switching the discharge destination to the dispensing portion 78 or the recovery portion 79 is provided. The switching valve of the present embodiment has a pair of swing members 80A and 80B disposed so as to extend from the inlet of the chemical agent passage 77 toward the discharge portion 78 and the recovery portion 79. The first swing member 80A on the left side in the figure opens and closes the dispensing portion 78, and the second swing member 80B on the right side in the figure opens and closes the recovery portion 79. Elastic portions 81 which can be elastically deformed are disposed on the opposing surfaces of these swing members 80A and 80B. Further, each of the swing members 80A and 80B is individually swung by drive motors 82A and 82B which are respective drive means. In the present embodiment, it is possible to shift to three positions: a chemical agent dispensing position (first operating position) shown in FIG. 10A, a temporary stop position (second operating position) shown in FIG. 10B, and a chemical agent recovery position (third operating position) shown in FIG. 10C. Among them, in the temporary stop position, the swing members 80A and 80B are rotated to an angle at which the elastic portions 81 and 81 of each other abut and are elastically deformed. Note that the swing members 80A and 80B may be formed of a material that can be elastically deformed.

[0030] As shown in FIG. 11, the medicine counting device including the medicine supply device operates according to a command from the central control unit 83 and counts and supplies a necessary number of medicines according to the prescription data. As shown in FIG. 18, an inspection table is provided in the drug coefficient device. The inspection table is provided with a monitor 88, a first camera 89a for photographing the drug inside from above the opening of the drug container 1 from which the drug has been dispensed, and a second camera 89b for photographing the label on the side of the drug container 1. The monitor 88 displays captured images from the first camera 89a, the second camera 89b, and a third camera 89c provided near the drug inlet of the drug coefficient device for photographing the periphery of the moving part 37 from the first rotating body 23 to the second rotating body 35 or the height regulating body 41. Note that the first camera 89a may be made movable so that the first camera 89a also serves as the function of the third camera 89c, and the third camera may be eliminated.

[0031] Before injecting the drug, the operator reads the drug type ID (barcode) printed on the medicine bottle with the barcode reader 86, and permits the injection of the drug only when this drug type ID matches the correct drug indicated in the prescription data. This can prevent the dispensing of incorrect drugs. Next, the operator reads the prescription ID (barcode) printed on the drug container 1 that will receive the drug, and permits the dispensing of the drug only when this prescription ID matches the prescription ID indicated in the prescription data. This can prevent the wrong selection of the drug container 1.

[0032] Subsequently, the operator operates the operation panel 84 to adjust the inclination angle of the first rotating body 23, injects the drug into the drug injection space partitioned by the first rotating body 23 and the partition wall 18, inputs the number of drugs to be prescribed, and starts the counting process. In the counting process, after the central control unit 83 executes the automatic adjustment (auto calibration) process of each regulating body 41, 52 according to the drug, the counting process of actually counting is executed. In this counting process, the central control unit 83 serves as a counting means for counting the drugs supplied based on the detection by the detection unit 70.

[0033] The angle adjustment process of the first rotating body 23 is performed according to the amount of drug to be input and the size and shape of the drug. That is, when the amount of drug to be input is large, the inclination angle of the first rotating body 23 is set to a steep gradient (close to vertical) so that the accommodation space formed between the partition wall 18, the first rotating body 23, and the second rotating body 35 becomes wider. Also, in the case of spherical drugs that do not roll (rotate on their own) on the upper surface and move to the second rotating body 35 even when the first rotating body 23 is rotated, the inclination angle of the first rotating body 23 is set to a gentle gradient (close to horizontal). Thereby, a large number of drugs are arranged on the first rotating body 23 and adjusted so that the drugs can move to the second rotating body 35. Note that this angle adjustment process may be configured to be automatically adjustable by disposing drug detection means on the moving part 37 of the second rotating body 35 or the like. In this case, this angle adjustment process is executed in the first stage of the automatic adjustment process.

[0034] In the automatic adjustment process of the count process, the height regulating body 41 is lowered and the width regulating body 52 is moved inward. Thereby, the drugs are prevented from being discharged even when the respective rotating bodies 23, 35 are rotated. In this state, as shown in FIG. 10A, the swing members 80A, 80B of the switching valve unit 76 are rotated to the side of the dispensing portion 78, the dispensing portion 78 is opened and the recovery portion 79 is closed, and the respective rotating bodies 23, 35 are rotated. Then, the height regulating body 41 is gradually moved upward. When the drug detection sensor 51 detects the drug that has passed through the height regulating body 41, the movement of the height regulating body 41 is stopped. Next, the width regulating body 52 is gradually moved outward so as to expand. When the detection unit 70 detects the discharge of the drug, the movement of the width regulating body 52 is stopped.

[0035] It is preferable to store in advance the positions of the height regulating body 41 and the width regulating body 52 for each drug. For this purpose, first, the barcode of the medicine bottle containing the medicine to be counted is read by the barcode reader 86 provided in the medicine counting device. Also, when the medicine detection sensor 51 provided on the downstream side of the height restricting body 41 detects that the medicine has passed through the height restricting body 41, the restricting height (or position) of the height restricting body 41 at this time is stored in the memory 87. At the same time, the third camera 89c takes a picture of the medicine near the height restricting body 41. Further, when the sensor or detection unit 70 provided on the downstream side of the width restricting body 52 detects that the medicine has passed through the width restricting body 52, the transfer width (or position) of the width restricting body 52 at this time is stored in the memory 87. In the memory 87, the restricting height of the height restricting body 41, the transfer width of the width restricting body 52, and the medicine read by the barcode reader are associated and stored. Note that the stored information on the restricting height and transfer width may be displayed on the monitor 88 so that the operator can confirm it, and if necessary, fine adjustment can be performed, and the adjusted restricting height and transfer width can also be overwritten. Thus, the next time, before supplying the medicine to the first rotating body 23, the ID (barcode) of the medicine type printed on the medicine bottle is read by the barcode reader 88. If the restricting height of the height restricting body 41 and the transfer width of the width restricting body 52 associated with the medicine corresponding to this ID are stored, the medicine counting can be started immediately by adjusting to those values. Also, if the restricting height of the height restricting body 41 and the transfer width of the width restricting body 52 associated with the medicine are not stored, such as for a new medicine, the operation of acquiring these restricting heights and phase widths is performed as described above.

[0036] In the counting step of the counting process, the rotation speeds of the respective rotators 23 and 35 are made faster than in the automatic adjustment process so that counting can be performed at high speed. Then, when the medicine is dispensed to a number close to the set number of medicines, the rotation speed of the second rotator 35 is decreased. This slows down the discharge speed from the inside 65 of the medicine case. When the dispensing of the set number of medicines is counted, as shown in FIG. 10B, the swing member 80A located on the side of the dispensing part 78 is rotated toward the recovery part 79 side, and both the dispensing part 78 and the recovery part 79 are closed. At this temporary stop position, the elastic parts 81 and 81 of each other are in a pressure contact state elastically deformed by contact. In this state, the dispensed medicine can be temporarily held upstream of the pair of swing members 80A and 80B. Next, as shown in FIG. 10C, the swing member 80B located on the side of the recovery part 79 is rotated toward the side of the swing part, and the side of the recovery part 79 is opened. As a result, the medicine temporarily stored upstream of the pair of swing members 80A and 80B is ejected toward the side of the recovery part 79 by the elastic part 81 on the side of the dispensing part 78 elastically recovering. Therefore, it is possible to surely prevent an excessive amount of medicine from being dispensed to the side of the dispensing part 78. Finally, the rotation speeds of the rotators 23 and 35 are increased, and all the medicines in the frame body 17 are discharged into the recovery container 2.

[0037] The counting by the central control unit 83 is performed based on the input signals from the four sets of photosensor groups (8 sensors in each group) of the detection unit 70. The detection unit 70 of the present embodiment detects the drug that falls by its own weight (constant speed) due to discharge by the line sensors 71A, 72A to 71D, 72D from different four directions. As a result, based on the input values from the light receiving units 72A to 72D, it is possible to determine the volume including the shape such as the width and height of the passed drug. Specifically, based on the input from each light receiving element of each light receiving unit 72A to 72D, the width of the drug from different four directions is determined. And since the vertical heights of the light receiving units 72A, 72B of the upper housing 70A and the light receiving units 72C, 72D of the lower housing 70B are different, considering the detection time difference due to the fall, based on the widths determined by each of the light receiving units 72A to 72D, the horizontal cross-sectional shape of the falling drug can be accurately determined. Also, by repeatedly executing this determination every predetermined time, the horizontal cross-sectional shape for each time can be determined. And based on all the horizontal cross-sectional shapes for each time, the volume (three-dimensional shape) including the shape of the falling drug can be determined. Further, all the drug information with different various shapes and sizes is stored in the central control unit 83. Therefore, this drug information is compared with the determined shape and volume, and the type of the counted drug is determined (confirmed). And based on this confirmed drug information, the number of the dispensed drugs is counted. As a result, it is also possible to detect that two drugs have passed together. Thus, highly accurate counting can be realized. When the dispensing of the drug is completed, the drug dispensed into the interior of the drug container 1 is photographed as shown in FIG. 19(A) with the opening of the drug container 1 facing the first camera 89a of the inspection table shown in FIG. 18, and subsequently the label on the side surface of the drug container 1 is photographed as shown in FIG. 19(B) with the prescription data facing the second camera 89b. Next, the photographed image of FIG. 19(A), the photographed image of FIG. 19(B), and the photographed image of the drug during dispensing as shown in FIG. 19(C) photographed by the third camera are simultaneously displayed on the monitor 88, and an inspection is performed to check whether the drug corresponding to the prescription data has been dispensed.

[0038] Next, the drug transfer operation of the disk-shaped tablet X, which is one of the drugs, will be specifically described by the drug supply device. Note that the transfer operation of this disk-shaped tablet X is the same even for spherical drugs.

[0039] As shown in FIGS. 12(A) and (B), when the first rotating body 23 rotates, the tablet X rotates while resting on its upper surface and moves radially outward by centrifugal force. Then, the tablet X on the first rotating body 23 rides onto the second rotating body 35 at the moving part 37 located at substantially the same height as the second rotating body 35.

[0040] The tablet X that has transferred onto the second rotating body 35 is moved toward the side of the drug case interior 65, and its movement downstream is restricted by the height restricting body 41. For example, when the tablets X are moving in a stacked state, the upper tablet X abuts against the guide surface 43 of the height restricting body 41, causing it to fall onto the second rotating body 35 or to fall from the inner peripheral part 36 onto the first rotating body 23.

[0041] The tablet X that has passed through the height restricting body 41 is moved toward the inner peripheral part 36 side of the second rotating body 35 by abutting against the first curved surface part 55 of the width restricting body 52 that restricts the transfer width. Since the transfer width by the second rotating body 35 is half of the drug width by the first curved surface part 55 of the width restricting body 52, only the tablet X in contact with the width restricting body 52 can pass downstream of the width restricting body 52. That is, when the tablets X are being transferred in two rows side by side in the radial direction, the inner tablet X is pressed by the outer tablet X in contact with the width restricting body 52 and falls from the inner peripheral part 36 of the second rotating body 35 onto the first rotating body 23. Also, even if the tablets X are not arranged side by side in the radial direction, the tablets X whose center of gravity is located inside the inner peripheral part 36 of the second rotating body 35 also fall from the inner peripheral part 36 onto the first rotating body 23. Therefore, the other tablets X not in contact with the width restricting body 52 are not transferred downstream.

[0042] The tablet X that has passed through the first curved surface portion 55 of the width restricting body 52 is transferred in a stable state in the region of the second curved surface portion 56 where the transfer width has widened. Then, it is transferred between the inner guide 66 and the outer guide 57 inside the medicine case 65, moves to the outlet side in an aligned state one by one, and is discharged to the detection unit 70. At this time, the tablet X1 that protrudes inward from the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35 abuts against the end portion of the inner guide 66, and thus is guided between the outer guide 57 or dropped onto the first rotating body 23 from the inner peripheral portion 36. Then, only the tablet X that has passed through the inside of the medicine case 65 is supplied to the detection unit 70 through the medicine discharge member 73 which is the medicine discharge port.

[0043] Next, the medicine transfer operation of the capsule agent Y, which has a different shape and size from the disc-shaped tablet X, will be specifically described. Note that the transfer operation of this capsule agent Y is the same even for non-circular tablets such as elliptical shapes.

[0044] As shown in FIGS. 13(A) and (B), when the first rotating body 23 rotates, the capsule agent Y rotates on its upper surface and moves radially outward by centrifugal force. Then, the capsule agent Y on the first rotating body 23 rides onto the second rotating body 35 at the moving portion 37 located at the same height as the second rotating body 35.

[0045] The capsule agent Y that has ridden onto the second rotating body 35 is moved toward the inside of the medicine case 65, and its movement to the downstream side is restricted by the height restricting body 41. The capsule agents Y that are moving while stacked vertically are dropped onto the second rotating body 35 or dropped onto the first rotating body 23 from the inner peripheral portion 36.

[0046] The capsule agent Y that has passed through the height restricting body 41 is moved toward the inner peripheral portion 36 side of the second rotating body 35 by coming into contact with the first curved surface portion 55 of the width restricting body 52 that restricts the transfer width, and the longitudinal directionality (posture) is corrected so as to extend along the drug conveyance direction. Then, only the capsule agent Y that is in contact with the width restricting body 52 passes downstream of the width restricting body 52, and the capsule agent Y that is not in contact with the width restricting body 52 falls from the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35 onto the first rotating body 23. Also, since the transfer width by the second rotating body 35 is about 1 / 2 of the capsule agent Y1 and the center of gravity is located inside the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35, the capsule agent Y1 whose posture could not be corrected by contact with the first curved surface portion 55 cannot maintain balance and falls from the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35 onto the first rotating body 23.

[0047] The capsule agent Y that has passed through the first curved surface portion 55 of the width restricting body 52 is transferred in a stable state in the region of the second curved surface portion 56 where the transfer width has widened. Then, it is transferred between the inner guide 66 and the outer guide 57 inside the drug case portion 65, moves to the outlet side in a state of being aligned one by one, and is discharged to the detection unit 70. At this time, the capsule agent Y2 whose posture could not be completely corrected comes into contact with the end portion of the inner guide 66, so that the posture is corrected and it is guided between the outer guide 57 or falls from the inner peripheral portion 36 onto the first rotating body 23. Then, only the capsule agent Y that has passed through this drug case portion 65 is supplied to the detection unit 70 through the drug discharge member 73 which is the drug discharge port.

[0048] Since the capsule Y is not flat like the disc-shaped tablet X, it makes point contact or line contact with the second rotating body 35 and is easy to rotate when moving on the second rotating body 35. Therefore, a non-flat tablet like the capsule Y may change its orientation on the second rotating body 35 and fall onto the first rotating body 23 before reaching the inside 65 of the tablet case after passing through the width restricting body 52. Thus, as shown in FIGS. 15(A) to (C), it is preferable to provide an annular rib 35a protruding upward on the inner peripheral edge of the second rotating body 35. The rib 35a may have a triangular radial cross-section with an inner peripheral surface flush with the inner peripheral surface of the second rotating body 35, a pointed upper end, and a linearly inclined outer peripheral surface as shown in FIG. 15(A), an outer peripheral surface that is concavely curved and inclined as shown in FIG. 15(B), or a rectangular radial cross-section with an inner peripheral surface flush with the inner peripheral surface of the second rotating body 35, a flat upper end, and an outer peripheral surface consisting of a vertical surface as shown in FIG. 15(C). By providing such a rib 35a, a non-flat tablet contacts the upper surface of the second rotating body 35 and the rib 35a at two points as shown in FIG. 15(A), making it difficult to rotate on the second rotating body 35 and preventing it from falling onto the first rotating body 23.

[0049] Thus, in the drug supply device of the present invention, since the height restricting body 41 and the width restricting body 52 can align the drugs one by one and supply them to the inside 65 of the tablet case, it is possible to surely pass the drugs one by one through the inside 65 of the tablet case and supply them from the drug discharge member 73 to the outside without causing problems such as clogging. Also, since the multiple drugs to be transferred are configured to fall onto the first rotating body 23 instead of being blocked by the restricting bodies 41, 52 and the inside 65 of the tablet case, it is possible to surely prevent clogging from occurring in the restricting bodies 41, 52 and prevent multiple drugs from colliding with each other. Therefore, it is possible to surely prevent the occurrence of cracks and chips in the drugs. In particular, since the width restricting body 52 restricts the transfer width of the second rotating body 35 to 1 / 2 of the drug width, a drug having a non-circular shape in plan view can pass only when its longitudinal direction extends along the drug transfer direction. Therefore, it is possible to surely prevent clogging from occurring at the entrance of the inside 65 of the tablet case.

[0050] In addition, since the regulating height by the height regulator 41 and the transfer width of the second rotating body 35 by the width regulator 52 can be adjusted, it is possible to supply various types of drugs with different shapes and sizes. Furthermore, since the width regulator 52 and the outer guide 57 of the drug case interior 65 are integrally provided so that they can be adjusted simultaneously, the workability regarding adjustment can be improved and the number of components can be reduced. Moreover, in the present embodiment, since the regulators 41 and 52 are configured to be automatically adjustable, the operator does not need to make any adjustments, and the convenience in use can be significantly improved.

[0051] Furthermore, since the inner guide 66 of the drug case interior 65 is provided with an inclined edge 68 that inclines upward, it is possible to reliably prevent the drug transferred in a state of protruding inward from the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35 from being clogged at the entrance of the drug case interior 65. This configuration is particularly effective because when a drug having a non-circular shape in plan view is transferred while being slightly inclined, its posture can be corrected or it can be dropped onto the first rotating body 23. Moreover, since the inclination angle of the first rotating shaft 24 of the first rotating body 23 can be adjusted, the drug can be reliably transferred to the moving portion 37 by the rotation of the first rotating body 23 and moved onto the second rotating body 35.

[0052] Moreover, the drug counting device using the drug supply device can reliably discharge different-shaped and -sized drugs one by one to the outside, detect the drugs with the detection unit 70, and accurately count them with the central control unit 83. Therefore, a predetermined number of drugs can be reliably dispensed and prescribed to patients. In addition, the switching valve unit 76 arranged in the container mounting portion 13 has a dispensing portion 78 for arranging the drug container 1 to be handed to the patient and a collection portion 79 for arranging the collection container 2, so the workability regarding prescription can be improved. Moreover, the swing members 80A and 80B, which are switching valves, when counting the number of drugs to be prescribed, operate to a temporary stop position where both the dispensing portion 78 and the collection portion 79 are closed, so that it is possible to prevent drugs exceeding the predetermined number from being dispensed into the drug container 1. Also, when it is later set as the collection position to the collection container 2, since the elastic portion 81 elastically restores, the drugs held on the upstream side of the pair of swing members 80A and 80B can be ejected to the collection portion 79, so that excessive dispensing into the drug container 1 through the dispensing portion 78 can be reliably prevented.

[0053] Further, if the third camera 89c is provided on the apparatus main body together with the height restricting body 41, the movement of the height restricting body 41 will be obstructed. For this reason, the third camera is preferably provided not on the apparatus main body but on the lid body as shown in Fig. 18(a). Similarly, by providing the height restricting body 41 not on the apparatus main body but on the lid body, when the height restricting body 41 is moved radially outward of the second rotating body 35 in order to clean the first rotating body 23 and the second rotating body 35, it is possible to prevent the height restricting body 41 and the width restricting body 52 from colliding and being damaged.

[0054] <Other Embodiments> Note that the drug counting device of the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible. In particular, various modifications are possible for the drug supply device.

[0055] For example, in the embodiment, the regulation height on the second rotating body 35 can be adjusted by the height regulator 41, and the transfer width of the second rotating body 35 can be adjusted by the width regulator 52, but it may also be a fixed type that cannot be adjusted. Even in this case, as long as the drug has a height that can pass between the second rotating body 35 and the height regulator 41 and a width that can pass through the transfer width of the second rotating body 35 regulated by the width regulator 52, drugs with different shapes and sizes can be transferred and supplied. Therefore, the versatility regarding drug supply can be enhanced.

[0056] Also, in the above embodiment, the transfer width by the second rotating body 35 can be changed by the width regulator 52, but the width regulator 52 may not be provided. Even in this case, as long as the drug is circular in plan view, drugs with different shapes and sizes such as spherical or disc-shaped drugs can be transferred and supplied. In this case, the drugs that have passed through the height regulator 41 are supplied to the entrance of the drug case interior 65 in two rows in the radial direction. However, since the pair of guides 57 and 66 in the drug case interior 65 are set at substantially the same interval as the drug width, the drugs located on the side of the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35 abut against the inner guide 66 and fall from the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35 onto the first rotating body 23. Therefore, clogging of the drugs at the entrance of the drug case interior 65 can be prevented, and they can be reliably discharged one by one to the outside.

[0057] Furthermore, the height regulator 41 can be adjusted by linear movement in the vertical direction, and the width regulator 52 can be adjusted by linear movement in the horizontal direction. However, as shown in FIG. 14A, it may also be adjustable by rotation. Moreover, although the width regulator 52 is integrally provided with the outer guide 57 that constitutes the drug case interior 65, as shown in FIG. 14B, it may be provided separately and individually adjustable. In this case, the width regulator 52 excluding the outer guide 57 may be constituted by an elastically deformable material and configured to adjust the transfer width by being partially movable.

[0058] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the first rotating body 23 is arranged to be inclined at a predetermined angle, and the second rotating body 35 is arranged horizontally. However, the first rotating body 23 may be arranged horizontally, and the second rotating body 35 may be arranged to be inclined at a predetermined angle. Of course, both the first rotating body 23 and the second rotating body 35 may be arranged to be inclined at a predetermined angle. That is, the rotation axes of the first rotating body 23 and the second rotating body 35 may be configured to intersect at an angle at which the drug can move.

[0059] Also, in the above-described embodiment, the first rotating body 23 and the second rotating body 35 are configured to rotate in the same direction, but they may be configured to rotate in opposite directions. Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the partition wall 18 is a fixed type that cannot rotate, but it may be configured to be rotatable. In this case, the partition wall 18 may be configured to rotate integrally with the second rotating body 35, or may be configured to rotate coaxially and individually. Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the inner guide 66 of the drug case interior 65 is disposed so as to be located at the edge of the inner peripheral portion 36 of the second rotating body 35. However, as long as it is a position where a drug with a shifted center of gravity can be dropped from the inner peripheral portion 36 onto the first rotating body 23, it may be disposed so as to be located radially outward from the edge of the inner peripheral portion 36.

[0060] In the above-described embodiment, the first rotating body 23 and the second rotating body 35 are fixed in the axial direction, and in the moving portion 37 where the drug moves from the first rotating body 23 to the second rotating body 35, the heights of the first rotating body 23 and the second rotating body 35 are made substantially the same. However, the first rotating body 23 may be moved in the axial direction to make it possible to adjust the amount of drug transfer. When there is a large amount of drug, the first rotating body 23 is moved downward, and the drug forms a lump on the first rotating body 23 and moves to the moving portion 37, and the uppermost drug in the lump of drug is transferred to the second rotating body 35. When the amount of drug decreases and the drug on the second rotating body 35 disappears, the first rotating body 23 is moved upward so as to approach the second rotating body 35 to facilitate the movement of the drug from the first rotating body 23 to the second rotating body 35.

[0061] In the above-described embodiment, the distance between the moving portion 37 through which the drug moves from the first rotating body 23 to the second rotating body 35 and the height regulating body 41 is constant, but this distance may be variable. This is possible by changing the inclination direction of the first rotating body 23. When there is a large amount of drug, if the distance from the moving portion 37 to the height regulating body 41 is short, there will be a large amount of drug clogged or dropped by the height regulating body 41, and it will take time for discharge. Therefore, the position of the moving portion 37 is moved farther from the height regulating body 41 so that the distance from the moving portion 37 to the height regulating body 41 becomes longer. When there is a small amount of drug, if the distance from the moving portion 37 to the height regulating body 41 is long, it will take time to reach the height regulating body 41. Therefore, the position of the moving portion 37 is moved closer to the height regulating body 41 so that the distance from the moving portion 37 to the height regulating body 41 becomes shorter.

[0062] As shown in Fig. 16(A), an openable and closable lid 84 is provided at the opening end of the recovery portion 79 which is the second passage portion of the drug passage 77, and it is biased by a spring 85 in the direction of closing the opening end. When the lid 84 is pushed by the mouth of the recovery container 2, the lid 84 can be opened to position the mouth of the recovery container 2 below the opening end of the recovery portion 79. Thereby, the drug can be stored in the recovery portion 79 closed by the lid 84, and the stored drug can be recovered into the recovery container 2 at once. Further, if a holding mechanism for holding the drug container 1 is provided in the drug supply device and the drug container 1 is held by the holding mechanism, the drug discharged from the dispensing portion 78 can be dispensed into the drug container 1 without holding the drug container 1 by hand.

[0063] Whether all the drugs supplied onto the first rotating body 23 have been dispensed is visually confirmed by the operator. However, even when the drug remains undispensed, there is a risk that the operator may judge that all the drugs have been dispensed. In this case, if a different drug is supplied to the first rotating body 23 in order to count the next drug, not only will different kinds of drugs be mixed and a counting error will occur, but there is also a possibility that the wrong drug will be supplied to the patient and a medical accident will occur. Therefore, after the counting of the drugs is completed and before the next drug is supplied, the second rotating body 35 is reversely rotated for a predetermined time. As a result, even if there are drugs remaining on the second rotating body 35, particularly between the inner guide 66 and the outer guide 57, the drugs will fall onto the first rotating body 23 by the width restricting body 52. After that, the outer guide 57 is moved to the innermost position to close the inside 65 of the tablet case, and further the height restricting body 41 is raised to the maximum extent. The raising of the height restricting body 41 may be performed prior to the movement of the outer guide 57. Subsequently, the first rotating body 23 and the second rotating body 35 are rotated forward. As a result, the drugs on the first rotating body 23 move onto the second rotating body 35 and pass through the height restricting body 41, but fall back onto the first rotating body 23 by the width restricting body 52, and this is repeated. Here, when it is detected that the drugs have passed through the height restricting body 41 or the width restricting body 52, it is possible to notify that there are remaining drugs that have not been dispensed, for example, by emitting a warning sound. The timing of the reverse rotation of the second rotating body 35 is preferably, for example, after the lid 84 of the recovery portion 79 of the aforementioned second passage has been opened and closed and the drugs stored in the recovery portion 79 have been recovered.

[0064] In the above embodiment, the first rotating body 23 is formed smaller than the second rotating body 35 and is disposed within the projected area of the inner circumference of the second rotating body 35. However, as shown in FIG. 17, it is also possible to configure the first rotating body 23 to be larger than the second rotating body 35 such that a part of the outer circumference on the side opposite to the moving portion 37 of the first rotating body 23 is located outside the outer circumference of the second rotating body 35.

[0065] In the above embodiment, it has an auditing function for confirming the drug type ID and the prescription ID. However, it may be provided with an inventory taking business support function that only confirms the drug type ID and records this drug type ID and the counted value of the drugs. With the inventory taking business support function, it is possible to periodically check the inventory of the drugs used in the pharmacy outside of the business hours of the pharmacy. Further, it may simply have a counting function for counting the quantity of drugs without confirming either the drug type ID or the prescription ID.

[0066] If the tip of the inner guide 66 in the above-described embodiment (the tip on the upstream side in the rotation direction of the second rotating body) is at a position higher than the upper surface of the second rotating body 35, the drug being transported on the second rotating body 35 may collide with the tip of the inner guide 66 and be damaged. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 20, it is preferable that the tip of the inner guide 66 is inside the inner peripheral edge of the second rotating body 35 and at a position lower than the upper surface of the second rotating body 35. Note that, unlike the above-described embodiment, in FIG. 20, the second rotating body rotates in the clockwise direction in the drawing. Further, it is preferable to provide a protruding portion 66a protruding from the lower end of the inner guide 66 toward the inner peripheral edge of the second rotating body 35 so as to fill the gap between the lower end of the inner guide 66 and the inner peripheral edge of the second rotating body 35. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the drug that hits the inclined surface 69 and is returned onto the second rotating body 35 from falling through the gap between the lower end of the inner guide 66 and the inner peripheral edge of the second rotating body 35.

[0067] <Elevating mechanism of the first rotating body> In the above-described embodiment, the vertical position of the first rotating body 23 is fixed with respect to the second rotating body 35. In this case, the capacity of the drug supply space on the first rotating body 23 is limited. Therefore, the first rotating body 23 may be provided so as to be vertically movable with respect to the second rotating body 35. Hereinafter, the elevating mechanism of the first rotating body 23 will be described.

[0068] Figs. 21 and 22 show an embodiment in which the first rotating body 23 is provided so as to be vertically movable parallel to the second rotation axis (not shown) of the second rotating body 35 with respect to the second rotating body 35. The first rotating body 23 is supported by a bracket 91 at the upper end of a rectangular cylindrical movable frame 90 together with a first drive motor 28. A pair of rollers 92 as cam followers are provided on the outer surfaces of both side walls at the lower end of the movable frame 90. Protrusions 93 extending in the vertical direction are formed on the outer surfaces of the other two side walls of the movable frame 90 where the rollers 92 are not provided. The movable frame 90 is housed inside a rectangular cylindrical fixed frame 95 fixed to the base plate 94 of the apparatus main body. Guide protrusions 96 with which the protrusions 93 of the movable frame 90 slidably engage are formed on the inner surface of the fixed frame 95 so as to extend in the vertical direction. Notches 97 are formed downward from the upper ends of both side surfaces of the fixed frame 95, and the shafts of the rollers 92 are fitted into the notches 97 so that the rollers 92 are positioned outside the notches 97.

[0069] On the base plate 94 of the apparatus main body, a cam cylinder 99 having a cam surface 98 formed at its upper end is rotatably placed. On the cam surface 98, a roller 92 of the movable frame 90 is rotatably placed. The cam surface 98 consists of a first inclined surface 98a that rises with an inclination of about 20° from the lowermost first point P1, a second inclined surface 98b that descends with an inclination of about 60° from the uppermost second point P2 of the first inclined surface 98a, a third inclined surface 98c that rises with an inclination of about 20° from the third point P3 of the second inclined surface 98b, and a fourth inclined surface 98d that descends with an inclination of about 60° from the uppermost fourth point P4 of the third inclined surface 98c to the first point P1. When the roller 92 of the movable frame 90 is located at the lowermost first point P1 and the third point P3, the first rotating body 23 supported by the movable frame 90 is at the lowermost position, and when the roller 92 is located at the uppermost second point P2 and the fourth point P4, the first rotating body 23 is at the uppermost position. The cam cylinder 99 has a drive shaft 100 that protrudes downward from the base plate 94. A worm gear 101 is provided on the drive shaft 100, and the worm gear 101 is connected to a lifting motor 104 via a worm 102 and a drive gear 103. When the cam cylinder 99 rotates due to the drive of the lifting motor 104, the roller 92 of the movable frame 90 rolls along the cam surface 98 of the cam cylinder 99, and the movable frame 90 gently moves upward from the lowermost first point P1 and the third point P3 to the uppermost second point P2 and the fourth point P4, and rapidly moves downward from the uppermost second point P2 and the fourth point P4. Instead of such a cam mechanism, a rack & pinion mechanism can also be adopted.

[0070] At the upper end of the fixed frame 95, the lower end of the cylindrical partition wall 18 is attached. The partition wall 18 consists of an elliptical lower part 18a and a substantially conical upper part 18b. The lower part 18a of the partition wall 18 is an elliptical cylinder in which the inclined first rotating body 23 is accommodated with a minimum gap. The upper end of the lower part 18a is elliptical and inclined along the outer peripheral edge of the first rotating body 23 located at the uppermost position and is connected to the lower end of the upper part 18b. The portion of the lower end of the upper part 18b that faces the highest position of the inclined first rotating body 23 coincides with the upper end of the lower part 18a, and the portion that faces the lowest position of the inclined first rotating body 23 extends obliquely upward so as to be away from the upper end of the lower part 18a. The upper end of the upper part 18b is circular so as to follow the inner peripheral edge of the second rotating body 35.

[0071] On the inner surface of the portion of the upper part 18b of the partition wall 18 that faces the lowest position of the inclined first rotating body 23, as shown in Fig. 23(A), there are formed a tablet rising suppression surface 105 that inclines upward from the lower end so as to approach the first rotating body 23, and a tablet falling guide surface 106 that inclines downward from the upper end so as to approach the first rotating plate 23. The tablet rising suppression surface 105 moves the tablets accumulated on the outer periphery as the first rotating body 23 rotates toward the center side of the first rotating body 23, thereby suppressing these tablets from merging with the tablets transferred on the second rotating body 35 after climbing onto the second rotating body 35 and blocking the space between the inner guide 66 and the outer guide 57. Downstream of the inner guide 66 of the second rotating body 35, it is not necessary to suppress the rising of the tablets. Rather, since the tablets must be raised toward the tablet moving portion 37 from the first rotating body 23 to the second rotating body 35, as shown in Fig. 23(B), the inclination of the tablet rising suppression surface 105 is gentle.

[0072] The operation of the lifting mechanism of the first rotating body 23 will be described. When operating the lifting mechanism of the first rotating body 23, a drug detection sensor 51 for detecting a drug being transported on the second rotating body 35 is used. The drug detection sensor 51 is provided on the outer wall 20 around the second rotating body 35. A recess 107 having a size that does not allow tablets to enter is provided on the inner surface of the outer wall 20, and a hole 108 is provided at the bottom of the recess 107, and a lens 109 that transmits the light of the drug detection sensor 51 is embedded in the hole 108. Thereby, since the tablet does not come into contact with the lens 109, it is possible to prevent the lens 109 from being damaged by coming into contact with the lens 109 while being transported on the second rotating body 35.

[0073] When supplying a drug to the first rotating body 23, the first rotating body 23 is in the lowest position. When the first rotating body 23 and the second rotating body 35 rotate, the tablets on the first rotating body 23 accumulate on the outer periphery and rise, and move from the first rotating body 23 through the moving part 37 onto the second rotating body 35, and as described above, are transported and discharged on the second rotating body 35. As the drugs are sequentially discharged, the rise of the drugs on the first rotating body 23 decreases, so that the drugs cannot move from the first rotating body 23 through the moving part 37 onto the second rotating body 35, and there are no drugs being transported on the second rotating body 35. Then, since the drug detection sensor 51 no longer detects the drug being transported on the second rotating body 35, the first rotating body 23 is moved upward so as to approach the second rotating body 35. As a result, the drugs on the first rotating body 23 move from the first rotating body 23 through the moving part 37 onto the second rotating body 35, and the drug detection sensor 51 detects the drug being transported on the second rotating body 35, so the upward movement of the first rotating body 23 is stopped. Thereby, the discharge of the drug can be continued. By repeating this, all the drugs on the first rotating body 23 can be discharged. When supplying a drug onto the first rotating body 23, in order to secure the storage space, the first rotating body 23 is moved downward so as to be separated from the second rotating body 35.

[0074] The lifting mechanism of the second rotating body 35 is not limited to the above embodiment. As shown in FIG. 26, the first rotating body 23 may be moved up and down parallel to its first rotation axis 24. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 27, it may be moved up and down along an arc S centered at a point O in the plane formed by the first rotation axis 24 of the first rotating body 23 and the second rotation axis (not shown) of the second rotating body 35. In this case, the point O, which is the center of the arc, is arbitrary, but it is preferably configured such that the highest position of the first rotating body 23 is on the arc center side. Thereby, when the first rotating body 23 is moved downward along the arc, the inclination of the first rotating body 23 increases. Generally, the more the drug filled on the first rotating body 23, the easier it is for the upper surface of the drug group to become horizontal. When the upper surface of the drug group is horizontal, the upper surface of the drug county above the lowest position of the first rotating body 23 reaches the inner guide 66 of the second rotating body 35 and is mixed with the drugs transported in a single row by the inner guide, resulting in a problem of drug clogging. However, as shown in FIG. 27, when the inclination of the first rotating body 23 moved downward is large, even if a large amount of drug is put on the first rotating body 23, it is difficult for the upper surface of the drug group to become horizontal. As a result, in the vicinity of the inner guide 66, the upper surface of the tablet group on the first rotating body 23 becomes lower than the second rotating body 35, and the above-mentioned problem of clogging due to mixing with the drugs transported on the second rotating body 35 can be avoided.

[0075] <Drug supply system> A drug supply system that processes the counting operation of the drug counting device (hereinafter simply referred to as the counter 110) of the present invention in conjunction with prescription data will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG. 28, the flowcharts of FIGS. 29-36, and the screen diagrams of FIGS. 37-43. A plurality of counters 110 are installed in large pharmacies and are connected to the host system 111111 of the pharmacy together with other drug supply devices and drug packaging devices. A pharmacist who conducts audits and the like is stationed on the host system 111111 side, and an operator (drug technician) who operates the counter 110 is stationed on the counter 110 side.

[0076] The host system 111 is a system that dispenses and supplies the necessary drugs to patients based on the patients' prescription data. As shown in FIG. 28, the host system 111 includes a control unit 112 that communicates data with a counter 110, other drug supply devices, and a drug packaging device, an audit unit 113 that verifies the drugs to be supplied to the patients against the prescription data, a prescription printer 114 that prints prescriptions according to the prescription data, a label printer 115 that prints labels to be affixed to vials according to the prescription data, a prescription master 116 that stores the prescription data, and the like.

[0077] The counter 110 includes a control unit 117 that controls the operation of the counter 110 and communicates data with the control unit 112 of the host system 111, a barcode reader 118 that reads barcodes on prescriptions, original bottles of drugs, and vials, a tray imaging camera 119 (similar to the third camera 89c in the above-described embodiment) that images drugs on the tray of the counter 110 (mainly referring to the drug storage portion composed of the first rotating body 23, the second rotating body 35, and the partition wall 18 in the above-described embodiment), and a vial / prescription imaging camera 120 that images the vials supplied by the patients and the prescriptions. The counter 110 also includes a drug master 121 that stores the names, shapes, sizes, etc. of various drugs, a vial master 122 that stores the sizes of vials and the number of various drugs that can be accommodated, an image data master 123 that stores the images captured by the tray imaging camera 119 and the vial / prescription imaging camera 120, a communication data master 124 that stores communication data for transmitting and receiving data with the control unit 112 of the host system 111, and a touch panel type operation display panel 125.

[0078] Power-on and login operations As shown in FIG. 29, when the operator turns on the power of the counter 110 on the counter 110 side (S101), the control unit 117 starts the application, waits for login from the host system 111 side, starts the web service host (S102), and initializes the counter 110 (S103). On one hand, on the host system 11 side, when a pharmacist logs in to the host system 111 based on the power-on of the counter 110 (S201), the control unit 112 on the host system 111 side performs user authentication (S202) and sends a login request to the counter 110 side (S203). As a result, on the counter 110 side, when receiving a login request from the host system 111 side (S104), it sends a login response to the host system 111 side (S105). On the host system 111 side, when receiving a login response from the counter 110 side, it recognizes the login (S204). In this way, on the counter 110 side, the counting process linked to the prescription cannot be performed unless a login request is received from the host system 111 side.

[0079] Upon login, the menu screen shown in FIG. 37 is displayed on the operation display screen of the counter 110. The menu screen is composed of a touch panel and is provided with a prescription counting process (Counting for Rx) button for performing a counting process linked to a prescription (Rx), a manual counting process (Counting for manual) button for performing a counting process of a required amount of medicine without linking to a prescription, a master maintenance button for adding and modifying medicines in the medicine master 121, and an advanced setting button for performing environment settings and the like.

[0080] Drug Prescription Processing by Counter When the operator on the counter 110 side touches the prescription counting process button, the prescription scan waiting screen shown in FIG. 38 is displayed (S106). Also, when the operator gives a prescription issuance instruction to the host system 111, the control unit 112 of the host system 111 receives the prescription issuance instruction (S206), performs the issuance process of the prescription form, and performs the printing process with the prescription form printer 114 (S207). On the prescription scan waiting screen of the counter 110, as shown in FIG. 38, the operator is instructed to scan the prescription form. So, the operator receives the issued prescription form and scans it with the barcode reader 118 of the counter 110. When the scan is performed (S107), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs a prescription form reading process (S108) and displays the count screen shown in FIG. 39 (S109). Next, in order to receive detailed prescription information from the host system 111, the control unit transmits an Rx data request to the host system 111 side (S110). When the host system 111 receives an Rx data request from the counter 110 side (S208), it transmits an Rx data response together with the prescription data (S209). When the counter 110 receives the Rx data response (S111), it stores the received data in the communication data master 124 (S112), and as shown in the figure, displays the prescription data (prescription number (Rx), patient name (Patient), drug (Drug) code and name, required quantity (Request)) on the count screen (S113), searches for the image of the drug corresponding to the prescription data from the drug master 121, and displays it on the count screen (S114).

[0081] Next, the control unit 117 of the counter 110 searches the drug master 121 for the size of the drug corresponding to the prescription, and adjusts the tray size of the counter 110 based on the size of this drug (S115). The tray size is the regulated height by the height regulator 41 and the transfer width of the second rotating body 35 by the width regulator 52 as already described. Since the count screen is instructed to scan the stock bottle as shown in FIG. 39, the operator takes out the stock bottle corresponding to the drug name in the prescription data and scans it with the barcode reader 118 of the counter 110. When the scan is performed (S116), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs the stock bottle barcode reading process (S117), checks whether the drug in the stock bottle is the drug to be counted (S118), and if correct, displays "OK" in the item of "Check a Stock Bottle" in the "Check" column of the count screen in FIG. 39, and displays an instruction to input the drug (S119). When the "OK" display is made and there is an instruction display for drug input, the operator inputs the drug from the stock bottle into the tray of the counter 110.

[0082] Next, the control unit 117 of the counter 110 issues a label issuance instruction to the host system 111 side (S120). When the control unit 112 of the host host system 111 receives the label issuance instruction from the counter 110 side (S210), it issues a label with the prescription data printed on an empty label by the label printer 115 (S211). The operator on the counter side receives the issued label and attaches it to the vial. The control unit 117 of the counter 110 instructs to scan the label on the count screen (S121). Thereby, the operator scans the label attached to the vial with the barcode reader 118 of the counter 110. When the scan is performed (S122), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs the label barcode reading process (S123), checks whether the prescription indicated on the label is the prescription to be counted (S124), and if correct, displays "OK" in the item of "Check a Vial Label" in the "Check" column of the count screen in FIG. 39.

[0083] When the label check is "OK", the operator instructs the start of tray image capture on the count screen. When the control unit 117 of the counter 110 receives the instruction to start tray image capture (S125), it operates the counter 110 (S126), captures a tray image (S127), and displays the captured tray image on the left side (Live) of the camera image capture screen in FIG. 40 (S128). The operation of the counter 110 is performed until the drug sensor 51 detects that the drug on the first rotating body 23 has moved to the second rotating body 35 and is being transported on the second rotating body 35 and has reached the height regulating body 41. The tray image captures in real time the image of the drug stopped by this height regulating body 41. The operator checks that the drug in the tray image displayed on the camera image capture screen is the same as the image of the prescribed drug (S129). If the drug imprint or the like cannot be confirmed, the operation of the counter 110 is retried and repeated until it can be confirmed. The confirmation of the drug and the instruction for retrial at this time are performed by the pharmacist in the audit department 113 of the host system 111. When the image is confirmed (S129), an "OK" display is made in the Tray Capture item in the Check column of the count screen in FIG. 39, and the tray image as shown on the right side (Still picture) of FIG. 40 is saved in the image data master 123 (S130).

[0084] When the tray image becomes "OK", the operator sets the vial to the dispensing unit 78 of the counter 110. When the control unit 117 of the counter 110 detects the setting of the vial (S131), it performs a counting process (S132). When the counting is completed, the control unit 117 of the counter 110 displays the counted numerical value in the center of the count screen and displays "OK" in the Count item of the Check column. When the count becomes "OK", the count screen is instructed to scan the stock bottle that collects the drug remaining in the tray, so the stock bottle into which the drug was put is scanned by the barcode reader 118 of the counter 110. When the scanning is performed (S133), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs the stock bottle barcode reading process (S134), checks whether the stock bottle is correct (S135), and if it is correct, performs the drug collection process (S136).

[0085] Although it is optional to recount the drug contained in the vial counted by the counter 110 for safety, when the operator is instructed to recount (S137) and a set of vials is detected (S138), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs a recount process (S139). When the recount is completed, the operator attaches a cap to the vial and places the vial and the prescription form under the vial-prescription form photographing camera 120 with the vial placed on the prescription form. Then, the operator gives an instruction to photograph the vial and the prescription form on the count screen. When there is an instruction to photograph the vial and the prescription form (S140), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs a vial-prescription form photographing process (S141) and displays the vial-prescription form photographed image in the second row of the photograph column on the count screen (S142). If the label of the vial or the content of the prescription form cannot be confirmed from the photographed image, the vial-prescription form photographing process can be retried. When the pharmacist on the host system 111 side confirms that a series of operations has been completed (S143), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 creates prescription completion data (S144) and transmits the prescription completion data to the host system 111 (S145). The control unit 112 of the host host system 111 receives the prescription completion data (S212) and stops a series of operations.

[0086] Division of Vial The control unit 117 of the counter 110 selects the size of the vial based on the prescription data. When the prescribed amount cannot be accommodated in one vial, as shown in the screen of FIG. 41, in the column of the split vial, a plurality of vials (3 vials of 40 DR in the example of FIG. 41) are displayed, and it is shown that 40 of the 2 vials and 20 drugs are accommodated in the remaining 1 vial. Therefore, the drugs are counted and accommodated in the vials in predetermined quantities accordingly.

[0087] Processing When Stock-Out Occurs During the counting process, when the drug in the tray runs out before counting up the amount of a predetermined drug, that is, when the tablet detection sensor no longer detects the drug, a stock-out state occurs. In this case, it is necessary to add the drug to the tray. As shown in FIG. 34, when it is determined that a shortage state has occurred (S151), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 temporarily stops the discharge and counting of the drug (S152) and instructs to scan a new original bottle. The operator takes out a new original bottle corresponding to the drug name in the prescription data and scans it with the barcode reader 118 of the counter 110. When the scanning is performed (S153), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs a new original bottle barcode reading process (S154) and checks whether the drug in the new original bottle is the drug to be counted (S118). Thereafter, the counting process is continued (S132).

[0088] Prescription processing for liquids and tablets in boxes other than tablets Liquids in bottles or tablets in boxes supplied as they are cannot be counted by the counter 110. However, the counter 110 can perform an audit in conjunction with the prescription. In the case of a prescription for a liquid or a tablet in a box, the operator places the bottle of the liquid or the box below the vial bottle / prescription slip photographing camera 120. Then, the operator gives an instruction to photograph the liquid bottle / box on the counting screen. As shown in FIG. 35, when there is an instruction to photograph the liquid bottle / box (S161), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs a liquid bottle / box photographing process (S162) and displays the photographed image of the liquid bottle / box in the second row of the photograph column on the counting screen (S163). If the contents of the label of the liquid bottle or box cannot be confirmed from the photographed image, the liquid bottle / box photographing process can be retried (S164). Next, the operator places the prescription slip for the liquid or the tablet in a box below the vial bottle / prescription slip photographing camera 120. Then, the operator gives an instruction to photograph the prescription slip on the counting screen. When there is an instruction to photograph the prescription slip (S165), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs a prescription slip photographing process (S166) and displays the photographed image of the prescription slip in the third row of the photograph column on the counting screen (S167). If the contents of the prescription slip cannot be confirmed from the photographed image, the prescription slip photographing process can be retried (S168). The processing after a series of operations are completed is the same as that after step S143.

[0089] Manual counting process The drug counting device of the present invention can also perform a manual counting process for simply counting drugs without linking to prescription data. When performing this manual counting process, the operator touches the manual counting process button on the menu screen of FIG. 37. When there is a manual counting instruction (S171), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 displays (S172) the manual dispensing screen shown in FIG. 42. The operator specifies the required number of counts using the numeric keypad on the screen, takes out the original bottle of the drug to be counted, and scans it with the barcode reader 118 of the counter 110 or manually enters the NDC on the screen. When the barcode of the original bottle is scanned (S174), the control unit 117 of the counter 110 performs the original bottle barcode reading process (S175). Also, when the NDC is manually entered (S176), the drug master 121 is searched to identify the drug (S177). Next, based on the size of the drug, the control unit 117 of the counter 110 adjusts the tray size of the counter 110, that is, the regulated height by the height regulator 41 and the transfer width of the second rotating body 35 by the width regulator 52 (S178). Next, the control unit 117 of the counter 110 displays (S179) an instruction to put the drug into the tray. When there is a count instruction (S180), the counting process is performed (S181), and the counting process is terminated (S182). In the manual counting process, when specifying the number of counts, "all" or "specify count value" can be selected. If "all" is selected, the process ends after counting all the drugs put into the tray. If "specify count value" is selected, the input quantity is counted. In this case, if the input quantity is not reached, the shortage processing described above is performed. In this shortage processing, it is necessary to scan the NDC code of the original bottle and check whether it is the same as the drug being counted.

[0090] In the above embodiment, the drug supply device is used as the drug counting device, but it is also applicable to a drug packaging device that houses various drugs in cassettes respectively and packages a predetermined drug according to a prescription.

Explanation of symbols

[0091] 1…Medicine container 2…Recovery container 18…Partition wall 23…First rotating body 24…First rotating shaft 28…First drive motor (first drive means) 33…Angle adjustment motor (angle adjustment means) 35…Second rotating body 35a…Rib 36…Inner peripheral part 37…Moving part 39…Second drive motor (second drive means) 41…Height regulating body 49…Height adjustment motor (height adjustment means) 51…Drug detection sensor (second drug detection means) 52…Width regulating body 57…Outer guide 63…Width adjustment motor (width adjustment means) 65…Drug case interior 66…Inner guide 68…Inclined edge 69…Inclined surface 70…Detection part (first drug detection means) 71A~71D…Light emitting part 72A~72D…Light receiving part 73…Drug discharge member (drug discharge port) 74…Shutter 75…Drive motor (discharge permission means) 76…Switching valve unit 77…Drug passage 78…Dispensing part (first passage part) 79…Recovery part (second passage part) 80A,80B…Swinging member (switching valve) 81…Elastic part 82A,82B…Drive motor (drive means) 83…Central control unit (counting means) 86…Barcode reader 87…Memory X,X1…Tablet (drug) Y,Y1,Y2…Capsule (drug)

Claims

【Claim 1】 a first rotating body rotated about a first rotation axis; an annular second rotating body rotated about a second rotation axis extending in a direction different from that of the first rotation axis; a chemical discharge port provided on the radially outer side of the second rotating body; and comprising; the chemical supplied to the first rotating body rides on the moving portion of the second rotating body by the rotation of the first rotating body, and the rotated chemical is transferred to the chemical discharge port by the rotation of the second rotating body. Further, a chemical guiding portion provided between the moving portion of the second rotating body and the chemical discharge port for guiding the chemical on the second rotating body to the chemical discharge port; a width restricting body provided between the moving portion of the second rotating body and the chemical guiding portion, disposed radially outside the second rotating body than the inner peripheral portion of the second rotating body, and regulating the transfer width of the chemical between the inner peripheral portion of the second rotating body and the chemical guiding portion to be adjustable; a height restricting body for restricting the transfer height of the chemical between the upper surface of the second rotating body; and comprising; the chemical guiding portion includes; an inner guide extending in a tangential direction from the inner peripheral portion of the second rotating body to the chemical discharge port; an outer guide disposed radially outside the second rotating body with respect to the inner guide; and having; the height restricting body includes; a height restricting member disposed on the second rotating body and provided between the moving portion and the chemical guiding portion; a bridging member connected to the height restricting member and disposed so as to straddle from the upper surface of the second rotating body to the outside of the second rotating body as viewed from the direction in which the first rotation axis extends; an operation receiving member connected to a portion of the bridging member located outside the second rotating body, receiving power for vertically moving the height restricting member via the bridging member, and adjusting the regulated height of the chemical by the height restricting member; A chemical supply device comprising.

Images