Pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment including measuring devices

Abstract

The present invention relates to a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility (10) comprising a measuring device (30, 32) for monitoring the sealing of a capsule (20), the capsule having a capsule shell formed by a first shell portion and a second shell portion, the shell portion being provided with an hermetic sealing liquid in a sealing area, the measuring device comprising an infrared camera (34) or a camera with an infrared filter, the measuring device detecting a temperature or a temperature change in the sealing area and / or in a capsule section adjacent to the sealing area.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment provided with a measuring device for monitoring the sealing of capsules, wherein the capsules have a capsule shell, the capsule shell is formed by a first shell part and a second shell part, and a sealing liquid with sealing performance is provided in these shell parts in a sealing area.

Background Art

[0002] For example, based on US Patent Application Publication No. 2005 / 0217207, a capsule filling and sealing device is known. This device has a filling unit for filling the open shell part of the capsule and a sealing unit for sealing two shell parts of the capsule to be joined to each other. The above units are passed through by the capsules to be filled or the capsules to be provided with a sealing part. The sealing unit has a line sensor camera for inspecting the sealing state of the joined section of the sealed capsule for the purpose of sorting out capsules with sealing errors.

[0003] With the device known based on US Patent Application Publication No. 2005 / 0217207, it is possible to create a two-dimensional image of the capsule using a line sensor camera and inspect the sealing state of the capsule based on such an image. The line sensor camera is suitable for the band seal part that is clearly different in color from the adjacent capsule section.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] Based on this premise, the fundamental problem of the present invention is to enable more flexible detection of the sealed state. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] This problem is solved by having a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility of the type described at the beginning, in which the measuring device includes an infrared camera or a camera equipped with an infrared filter, and the measuring device detects the temperature or temperature change of the sealed area and / or capsule sections adjacent to the sealed area.

[0007] An infrared camera or a camera equipped with an infrared filter enables the detection of infrared radiation, allowing for image-based detection of the temperature of at least one sub-region of the capsule.

[0008] According to the present invention, it has been found that the application and drying of the sealing liquid involves temperature changes characteristic of various sealing states of the capsule. The application of a still-flowing and warm sealing liquid, for example, initially involves heat input to the sealing area. Such heat input can be detected by an infrared camera or a camera equipped with an infrared filter.

[0009] During the subsequent drying of the sealing liquid, the solvent in the sealing liquid evaporates, thereby releasing heat from the sealing liquid. Such heat release can be detected by an infrared camera or a camera equipped with an infrared filter, for example, by detecting the cooling of the capsule section and / or by detecting the changed ambient temperature of the capsule.

[0010] The manufacturing equipment according to the present invention enables simple and reliable detection of the capsule sealing state and the drying state of the sealing liquid, and in this case, for this purpose, it is not necessary to distinguish the color of the sealing liquid from adjacent capsule sections. Furthermore, it is possible to determine the position, orientation, and spatial extent of the sealing liquid by temperature detection using images.

[0011] The sealing liquid is, in particular, made of the same material as the capsule, for example, gelatin. The sealing liquid may be a band sealing liquid (in which case the sealing portion has a band sealing portion, or is formed by a band sealing portion).

[0012] In advantageous embodiments, the pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment includes an evaluation unit configured to automatically evaluate the temperature and / or temperature changes detected by a measuring device. This allows for at least sufficiently automated inspection of capsules with respect to a desired sealing state. For example, capsules containing defective sealing portions can be identified and ideally automatically sorted out.

[0013] Furthermore, it is advantageous if the pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment includes a sealing device for sealing capsules and a control unit, the control unit setting method parameters in particular regarding the duration and / or amount and / or position for applying the sealing solution onto a single capsule.

[0014] In one advantageous embodiment, the sealing device is configured to apply a sealing solution over the sealing area of ​​the capsule shell, for example, when the first shell portion and the second shell portion are already joined together. This makes it possible to produce a sealed portion with airtight sealing in the form of a band.

[0015] In an additional or alternative embodiment, the sealing device is configured to apply a sealing solution to a sealing area on the inner or outer surface of one shell portion that has not yet been joined to another shell portion, and the shell portions are joined to each other after the application of the sealing solution.

[0016] The control unit can optimize the application of the sealing liquid, taking into account the sealing type and the material properties of the capsule and sealing liquid.

[0017] The pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment preferably includes a sealing device, a control unit, and a measuring device. This makes it possible to manufacture and inspect capsule sealing parts using a compact manufacturing unit.

[0018] Preferably, the pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment includes a filling device, which allows for filling a capsule shell with a powdered or liquid active substance and then sealing it in a sealing device, in which case a measuring device enables final inspection of the sealing condition.

[0019] Particularly preferably, the control unit communicates with the evaluation unit. The temperature state of the sealing region of the capsule shell is detected by a measuring device, and an infrared image is created. This infrared image is evaluated by the evaluation unit. Preferably, the evaluation unit compares the detected actual value with a target value stored in the evaluation unit. Relying on such a comparison, the evaluation unit of the control unit can set modified values ​​for method parameters.

[0020] In a more preferred embodiment, the measuring device is positioned above the sealing device with respect to gravity. This allows monitoring of the sealing state without requiring an additional mounting surface, either during the application of the sealing fluid or directly following the manufacturing of the sealing portion in terms of time and space.

[0021] Preferably, the pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment includes a drying section along which capsules are transported while the sealing liquid dries. For example, multiple capsules may be distributed and arranged along the drying section, and the degree of dryness of the capsules increases in the direction of transport of the capsules as viewed along the drying section.

[0022] In particular, a plurality of measuring devices are provided which are spatially offset from each other, and these measuring devices each have a camera equipped with an infrared camera or an infrared filter. For example, the first measuring device is arranged above the sealing device with respect to the direction of gravity. The second measuring device is arranged, for example, in a region adjacent to the sealing device. When the pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment includes a drying section, a first measuring device spatially corresponding to the sealing device and monitoring the application of the sealing liquid, and a second measuring device spatially corresponding to the drying section and monitoring the drying process may be provided. The use of a third measuring device and other measuring devices is also possible.

[0023] The problem stated at the beginning is also solved by a method having the features of the independent claims regarding the method. The configuration and advantages of the method according to the invention have already been explained above in connection with the manufacturing equipment according to the invention.

[0024] Preferred configurations of the method according to the invention are the subject of dependent claims 9 and 10.

[0025] Other features and advantages of the present invention are the subject of the following description of the embodiments and the drawings.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0026] [Figure 1] It is a side view showing one embodiment of a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility equipped with two measuring devices. [Figure 2] It is a plan view showing a first embodiment of a capsule. [Figure 3] It is a plan view showing another embodiment of a capsule. [Figure 4] It is a diagram showing the temperature states of a plurality of capsules and their sealing portions detected by the first measuring device of the manufacturing equipment shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 5] It is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 4 showing the temperature states of a plurality of capsules and their sealing portions detected by the second measuring device of the manufacturing equipment shown in FIG. 1.

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0027] Figure 1 schematically illustrates one embodiment of a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility, collectively denoted by reference numeral 10. The pharmaceutical manufacturing facility 10 is associated with a manufacturing direction 12, along which the capsule portion or the capsule is processed and manufactured. The pharmaceutical manufacturing facility 10 includes a conveyor belt 14, a sealing device 16, and a drying section 18 when viewed along the manufacturing direction 12.

[0028] The conveyor belt 14 works to position and transport the shell portions 44 and 46 within the sealing device 16 along the manufacturing direction 12.

[0029] In the sealing apparatus 16, the shell portions 44 and 46 for manufacturing the capsule 20 are sealed by the sealing liquid 22 so as to be sealed in the sealing region 24 (see Figures 2 and 3).

[0030] The sealing device 16 communicates with the control unit 26, which sets method parameters relating to the duration and / or amount and / or location of application of the sealing liquid 22 onto a single capsule 20. For example, the sealing device 16 may be electrically connected to the control unit 26, or the sealing device 16 and the control unit 26 may communicate with each other wirelessly.

[0031] After the sealing liquid 22 is applied, the sealed capsule 20 reaches the drying section 18, and along this drying section 18 the capsule 20 is transported in the manufacturing direction 12, and along the manufacturing direction 12 the sealing liquid 22 applied to each capsule 20 dries.

[0032] The manufacturing equipment 10 has, for example, two measuring devices 30, 32. The first measuring device 30 is preferably positioned above the sealing device 16 with respect to the direction of gravity 28. The second measuring device 32 is positioned, for example above the drying section 18 with respect to the direction of gravity 28, particularly in the area at the end of the drying section 18.

[0033] Each measuring device 30 and 32 includes an infrared camera 34. The measuring devices 30 and 32 use the infrared camera 34 to detect the temperature and / or temperature changes of the capsule 20, in particular the temperature of the sealing region 24 of the capsule 20.

[0034] The first measuring device 30 (positioned in correspondence with the sealing device 16) detects the temperature state of each sealing region 24 of each capsule 20, and / or the temperature state of the capsule sections adjacent to each sealing region 24, particularly the mutually opposite ends of the shell portions 44 and 46. Figure 4 illustrates the temperature states detected by the first measuring device 30. Immediately following the application of the sealing liquid 22, the sealing regions 24 of the capsule 20 have significantly higher temperatures than the capsule sections adjacent to the shell portions 44 and 46 of these capsules 20, which corresponds to the clear contrast between these regions of the capsule 20 in Figure 4.

[0035] A second measuring device 32 (positioned corresponding to one end of the drying section 18) similarly detects the temperature state of each sealing region 24 of each capsule 20, and / or the temperature state of the capsule sections adjacent to each sealing region 24, particularly the mutually opposite ends of the shell portions 44 and 46. Figure 5 illustrates the temperature state detected by the second measuring device 32. After at least sufficiently dried (while evaporating the solvent) the sealing liquid 22 of the capsule 20, the sealing region 24 has a temperature that is sufficiently assimilated to the temperature of the capsule sections adjacent to the shell portions 44 and 46 of the capsule 20, which corresponds to the simply weak contrast between the aforementioned regions of the capsule 20 in Figure 5.

[0036] The first measuring device 30 and the second measuring device 32 communicate with correspondingly positioned evaluation units 38 and 40, respectively. Alternatively, the pharmaceutical manufacturing facility 10 has only one common evaluation unit 38 or 40 that communicates with both the first measuring device 30 and the second measuring device 32.

[0037] At least one evaluation unit 38,40 is configured to automatically evaluate the temperature and / or temperature change detected by the measuring devices 30,32.

[0038] The first measuring device 30 detects temperature and / or temperature changes, and also detects the positioning, extension length and / or integrity of the sealing portion of the newly manufactured sealing area 24 of the capsule 20 based on the spatial correspondence of these temperatures.

[0039] The second measuring device 32 detects temperature and / or temperature changes, and also detects the positioning, extension length and / or integrity of the sealing portion of the capsule 20, at least partially dried sealing region 24, based on the spatial correspondence of these temperatures.

[0040] In alternative embodiments not shown, the drying section 18 is not provided. In this case, the capsule 20 remains in the sealing device 16 for a drying period after the application of the sealing liquid 22. The measuring device 30, positioned in conjunction with the sealing device 16, preferably detects the temperature state of the freshly manufactured sealing area 24 as well as the temperature state of the partially dried or fully dried sealing area 24.

[0041] The evaluation units 38 and 40 communicate with the control unit 26. For example, the first evaluation unit 38 and the second evaluation unit 40 may be electrically connected to the control unit 26, or they may communicate with each other non-contactually. When one or both of the evaluation units 38 and 40 identify the actual deviations of the position and / or integrity and / or dryness of the sealing area 24 from predetermined target values, the control unit 26 automatically adjusts the method parameters for operating the sealing device 16, such as the duration and / or amount and / or location of application of the sealing liquid 22.

[0042] The manufacturing equipment 10 is suitable for use with capsules 20 having various different sealing types. This will be explained below with reference to Figures 2 and 3.

[0043] The capsule 20 has a capsule shell 42. The capsule shell 42 is formed from a first shell portion 44 and a second shell portion 46. Each shell portion 44 and 46 has a wall portion 50 that extends rotationally symmetrically about a common extending axis 48, the wall portion 50 defining a containment chamber 52 that serves to contain the medicinal substance. The free ends 54 of each shell portion 44, 46 are closed, and the second ends 56 have openings 58, 60 that face the containment chamber 52 located inside, respectively. The diameter of the opening 58 of the first shell portion 44 is larger than the diameter of the opening 60 of the second shell portion 46, in which case the opening 60 of the second shell portion 46 can be inserted into the opening 58 of the first shell portion 44 to form the capsule shell 42.

[0044] Figure 2 shows one embodiment of the capsule 20 having a covered sealing portion 36. Before joining the first shell portion 44 and the second shell portion 46, the sealing liquid 22 is applied to a region defined radially outward by the second end 56 of the first shell portion 44 and radially inward by the second end 56 of the second shell portion 46.

[0045] Figure 3 shows one embodiment of a capsule 20 having an outwardly exposed sealing portion 36. The first shell portion 44 and the second shell portion 46 are joined together, similar to the embodiment shown in Figure 2. The sealing region 24 is positioned radially outward with respect to the wall portion 50 and is exposed toward the periphery of the capsule 20. Such a sealing region 24 is also referred to as a band seal.

Claims

1. A pharmaceutical manufacturing facility (10) equipped with measuring devices (30, 32) for monitoring the sealing of a capsule (20), wherein the capsule (20) has a capsule shell (42), the capsule shell (42) is formed by a first shell portion (44) and a second shell portion (46), and the shell portions (44, 46) are provided with a sealing liquid (22) that provides airtight sealing in a sealing region (24), in the pharmaceutical manufacturing facility (10), The measuring device (30, 32) includes an infrared camera (34) or a camera equipped with an infrared filter, and the measuring device (30, 32) detects the temperature and temperature change of the sealing region (24) by detecting the heat input to the sealing region (24) which has just been manufactured and to which the fluid and warm sealing liquid (22) has been applied, and the heat discharge from the sealing region (24) which has been partially dried or completely dried, using the infrared camera (34) or the camera equipped with an infrared filter.

2. The pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment (10) according to claim 1, wherein the pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment (10) includes evaluation units (38, 40), and the evaluation units (38, 40) are configured to automatically evaluate the temperature and temperature changes detected by the measuring devices (30, 32).

3. The pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment (10) according to claim 2, comprising a sealing device (16) for sealing the capsules (20) and a control unit (26), wherein the control unit (26) sets method parameters relating to the period and / or amount and / or position for applying the sealing liquid (22) onto one capsule (20).

4. The pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment (10) according to claim 3, characterized in that the control unit (26) communicates with the evaluation units (38, 40).

5. The pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment (10) according to claim 3, characterized in that the measuring device (30) is positioned above the sealing device (16) with respect to the direction of gravity (28).

6. The pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment (10) according to claim 1, wherein the pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment (10) includes a drying section (18), and the capsules (20) are transported along the drying section (18) while the sealing liquid (22) is drying.

7. The pharmaceutical manufacturing facility (10) according to claim 1, characterized in that a plurality of measuring devices (30, 32) are provided that are spatially offset from each other, and each of the measuring devices (30, 32) has an infrared camera (34) or a camera equipped with an infrared filter.

8. The pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment (10) according to claim 1, further characterized in that the measuring devices (30, 32) detect the temperature and temperature change of capsule sections adjacent to the newly manufactured sealing region (24) to which the fluid and warm sealing liquid (22) has been applied, and capsule sections adjacent to the partially dried or completely dried sealing region (24).

9. A method for monitoring the sealing of a capsule (20), wherein the capsule (20) has a capsule shell (42), the capsule shell (42) is formed of a first shell portion (44) and a second shell portion (46), and the pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment (10) described in claim 1 is used, and the shell portion (44, 46) is provided with a sealing liquid (22) in a sealing region (24), or is provided with a sealing liquid (22), a) The temperature and temperature changes of the sealing region (24) are detected by detecting the heat input to the sealing region (24) that has just been manufactured and to which the fluid and warm sealing liquid (22) has been applied, and the heat discharge from the sealing region (24) that has been partially dried or completely dried, using an infrared camera (34) or a camera equipped with an infrared filter. b) Evaluating the temperature and the temperature change, A method that includes this.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that the detection a) is performed during the application of the sealing liquid (22) to the sealing region (24) and / or after the application of the sealing liquid (22) to the sealing region (24).

11. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that method parameters relating to the period and / or amount and / or position for applying the sealing liquid (22) onto a single capsule (20) are adapted depending on the temperature and the temperature change detected by a).

12. The method according to claim 9, further comprising detecting the temperature and temperature changes of capsule segments adjacent to the newly manufactured sealing region (24) to which the fluid and warm sealing liquid (22) has been applied, and capsule segments adjacent to the partially dried or completely dried sealing region (24).

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