Container for intermittent bulk handling

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a bulk handling container comprising a bottle for storing a plurality of tablets, said bottle comprising an inner wall, an outer wall and a base opening, where the inner wall has a slope for guiding the plurality of tablets towards a base of the bottle The container also comprises an inlet portion mounted on a top surface of the bottle, where the inlet portion comprises a guiding component and a circular deflector channel. The guiding component has a top opening for receiving the plurality of tablets, and has a wall with one or more slots. The circular deflector channel has an open-cone shape, wherein an outer circumferential edge of the deflector channel is extended towards the inner wall of the bottle to create a gap between the deflector channel and the inner wall of the bottle.

Description

“CONTAINER FOR INTERMITTENT BULK HANDLING”FIELD OF INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of an intermittent bulk handling. Particularly, the present invention relates to bulk handling of food or pharmaceutical products in container for collection, movement, storage, and dispensing of the products in a hygiene manner.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The subject matter discussed in the background section should not be assumed to be prior art merely because of its mention in the background section. Similarly, a problem mentioned in the background section or associated with the subject matter of the background section should not be assumed to have been previously recognized in the prior art. The subject matter in the background section merely represents different approaches, which in and of themselves may correspond to implementations of the claimed technology.

[0003] An Intermittent Bulk Container (IBC) is a designated vessel for the mass handling, transport, and storage of liquids, semi-solids, pastes, or solids. In general, IBCs play a pivotal role in the pharmaceutical industry, particularly in Oral Solid Dosage (OSD) manufacturing. IBCs find applications across various plant processes performed in pharmaceutical industries, ranging from dispensing, sieving, and blending to the supply of materials for tablet press operations. The containers are used in plants to facilitate collection, movement, storage, and dispensing of tablets and / or pallets in bulk to a processing equipment while adhering to hygiene practices, where the hygiene practices may be based on internal policies of a plant or the industry, or based on external regulations and standards including GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices) standards. IBCs are also used in food manufacturing and processing industries for storage and transportation of liquid, granulated, or powdered foods.

[0004] Existing practices in handling products or items such as food or pharmaceutical tablets or pellets involve the use of small containers, which may result in processes such as storage and transportation to be time consuming. Further, due to the fragile nature of items such as food or pharmaceutical pallets or tablets, it is imperative to exercise utmost caution in their handling, loading, discharging, as well as the opening and closing of valves to preventbreakage. However, in existing IBCs used for storage and transportation of such items, the items come in direct contact with an IBC’s bottom during the loading process, resulting in breakage causing loss of the final product and posing quality issues for the end customer. Specifically, with regard to pharmaceutical products such pills, tablets, and capsules, existing containers used for bulk storage lead to impact on the efficacy of the products, as they may be fragile and susceptible to damage from being dropped into the bottom of the containers.

[0005] Further, the storage of the smaller containers used in existing IBCs require a substantial storage footprint. In addition, standard procedure used for existing IBCs involves the application of two layers of polyethylene liners to each small container, along with attaching identification tags for batch and time tracking. After usage, the containers undergo a cleaning process before being made ready for subsequent operations. The utilization of drums or smaller containers poses challenges in terms of efficiency, traceability, health and safety due to their open nature, as well as quality and GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) risks. Further still, in existing bulk handling systems, containers are equipped with valves and encounter difficulties in meeting cGMP (current Good Manufacturing Practice) compliance standards and fail to withstand substantial head load requirements inherent in pharmaceutical and / or food applications for bulk handling.

[0006] Hence, there arises a need of a system for overcoming the above-mentioned challenges currently faced with respect to storage of pharmaceutical or food products or items. Specifically, there is a need for an efficient system capable of storing such items or products without causing breakage or damage.OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

[0007] A general objective of the present invention is to provide an efficient bulk handling system which can handle large volumes of items such as food or pharmaceutical pallets / tablets without breakage or damage to said items.

[0008] Another objective of the present invention is to provide a bulk handling container to reduce the overall footprint area for processing and storage.

[0009] Another objective of the present invention is to provide a container which prevents breakage of items such as tablets, capsules, and pallets while facilitating various tasks including storing, transportation, processing etc.

[0010] Yet another objective of the present invention is to reduce operator’s handling time and the overall increase in production throughput.SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0011] The summary is provided to introduce aspects related to a storage system. Other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, illustrating by way of example the principles of the invention.

[0012] The present invention relates to a bulk handling container comprising a bottle for storing a plurality of tablets, said bottle comprising an inner wall, an outer wall and a base opening, where the inner wall has a slope for guiding the plurality of tablets towards a base of the bottle. The container also comprises an inlet portion mounted on a top surface of the bottle, where the inlet portion comprises a guiding component and a circular deflector channel. The guiding component has a top opening for receiving the plurality of tablets, and has a wall with one or more slots. The circular deflector channel has an open-cone shape, where the inner circumferential edge is connected to a base portion of the guiding component and the outer circumferential edge of the deflector channel is extended towards the inner wall of the bottle to create a gap between the deflector channel and the inner wall of the bottle. The plurality of tablets is received by the inlet portion of the bottle, and passes through the one or more slots of the guiding components and slide through the wall of the deflector channel into the inner slope of the bottle through the gap and the plurality of the tablets settles at the base of the bottle along with the inner slope

[0013] In one aspect of the present invention, the bottle further comprises a top covering having one or more sockets, one or more guides, and a lid for sealing the bottle. The top covering of the bottle is mountable to a collecting tray during loading of the container. The container further comprises a supporting base having an opening and one or more legs, wherein the bottle is placed on the supporting base such that the base opening of the bottle is held below the openingof the supporting base. The one or more legs of the supporting base and the one or more sockets and one or more guides of the top covering allows stacking of two or more containers, wherein the one or more legs are placed in grooves constituted by the one or more sockets and the one or more guides. In one aspect, the tablets stored in a first container may be dispensed from the base opening the bottle of the first container into the inlet portion of a second container, wherein the first container is stacked on top of the second container.

[0014] In one aspect, the container further comprises an outlet for dispensing the tablets, attached to the base opening of the bottle, having a discharge valve and a hygiene sleeve, where the base opening of the bottle is sealed using a wire web of the discharge valve. Furthermore, in another aspect of the present invention, the discharge valve may include a hygiene valve which works with the flexible wire for complete closure of the discharge valve and to provide soft operation of the discharge valve to prevent breakage. The discharge valve further comprises a top flange, a bottom flange, a connecting ring, an actuator ring, one or more controlling rings. The wire web of the discharge valve is created by changing alignment of a plurality of flexible wires affixed between the top flange and the actuator ring, such that the alignment is changed by actuation of the actuator ring.

[0015] In one aspect, the tablets include pills, capsules, pharmaceutical drugs, pharmaceutical pills, medications, or food pellets.DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] The accompanying drawings constitute a part of the description and are used to provide a further understanding of the present invention. Such accompanying drawings illustrate the embodiments of the present invention used to describe the principles of the present invention. The embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not by way of limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which references indicate similar elements. It should be noted that references to “an” or “one” embodiment in this invention are not necessarily to the same embodiment, and they mean at least one. In the drawings:

[0017] Figs. 1(a), 1(b), and 1(c) illustrate a container for intermittent bulk handling, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[0018] Fig. 2 illustrates an expanded view of an outlet for dispensing tablets, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.;

[0019] Figs. 3(a) and 3(b) illustrate the wire web created by the actuation of the lever of the outlet, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Figs. 4(a) and 4(b) illustrate cross sectional detail of a discharge valve for hygiene sleeve fitment, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

[0021] Fig. 5 illustrates different parts of a discharge valve of a container for intermittent bulk handling, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[0022] Figs. 6(a) and 6(b) illustrate a container for intermittent bulk handling with and without a hygiene sleeve respectively, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[0023] Figs. 7(a) and 7(b) illustrate a top view and a bottom an exterior of the proposed container, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Figs. 8(a) and 8(b) illustrate the stacking of containers up to 3 layers, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] Fig. 9 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the proposed container, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] Fig. 10 illustrates an exemplary implementation of the proposed container for receiving tablets from a compression machine, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[0027] Fig. 11(a) and 11(b) illustrate an exemplary implementation involving dispensing tablets from the proposed container into a coater machine and loading tablets from the coater machine into the proposed container respectively, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[0028] Fig. 12 illustrate an exemplary implementation involving dispensing tablets from the proposed container into an inspection machine and loading of tablets into the proposedcontainer from the inspection machine, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Fig. 13 illustrated an exemplary implementation involving dispensing of tablets from the proposed container into a packaging machine, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Fig. 14 illustrates a reduced footprint requirement of the proposed container during stacking, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] Fig. 15 illustrates a graphical representation of reduced costs achieved by application of the proposed container, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0032] The description set forth below in connection with the appended drawings are intended as a description of various embodiments of the present invention and is not intended to represent the only embodiments in which the present invention may be practiced. Each embodiment described in this disclosure is provided merely as an example or illustration of the present invention and should not necessarily be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments. The description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details.

[0033] As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “a”, “an”, and “the” includes plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In addition, as used in the description herein, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

[0034] The present invention relates to a container for intermittent bulk handling. The proposed container may be used for the collection, movement, storage, and dispensing of food or pharmaceutical products or items such as tablets, pills capsules, pharmaceutical drugs, pharmaceutical pills, medication, and food pellets. Hereafter, such items or products are referred to collectively as tablets. Figs. 1 (a) illustrates an isometric view of the proposed container for intermittent bulk handling of tablets, in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention. Figs. 1(b) and 1(c) illustrate a cross-sectional view of the proposed container for intermittent bulk handling, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The container 100 comprises a bottle 102 and an inlet 104, where the inlet is used for accumulating or directing the tablets loaded into the container 100 towards the bottle 102, and where the bottle 102 is used for storing the tablets. The bottle 102 comprises an inner wall, an outer wall, and a base opening 106. The inlet 104 is mounted on a top portion of the bottle 102, where the top portion of the bottle 102 may be an opening or mouth of the bottle 102 into which the tablets are loaded.

[0035] The inlet 104 comprises a guiding component 108 and a circular deflector channel 110. The guiding component 108 has a top opening 112 for receiving a plurality of tablets and a wall having one or more slots (collectively labelled 114). The plurality of tablets received at the inlet 104 during loading is passed from the top opening 112 of the guiding component 108 towards the circular deflector channel 110 through the one or more slots 114 of the guiding component 108. The circular deflector channel 110 has an open-cone shape with an inner circumferential edge near a vertex of the circular deflector channel 110 and an outer circumferential edge near the base of the circular deflector channel 110.

[0036] The circular deflector channel 110 is attached to the guiding component 108 such that the inner circumferential edge of the circular deflector channel 110 is connected to a base portion of the guiding component 108, and the outer circumferential edge of the circular deflector channel 110 extends towards an inner wall of the bottle 102. The circular deflector channel 110 is placed such that a gap is formed between the outer circumferential edge of the circular deflector channel 110 and the inner wall of the bottle 102. The gap formed enables the movement of the plurality of tablets received at the circular deflector channel 110 from the guiding component towards the inner wall of the bottle 102. The inner wall of the bottle 102 has a gradual slope for ensuring that the plurality of tablets received from the gap slides gradually down the slope of the inner wall of the bottle 102 towards a base of the bottle 102. The plurality of tablets is stored at the base of the bottle 102 until the base opening 106 of the bottle 102 is opened to dispense the tablets from the bottle 102. In an embodiment of the present invention, a collecting tray 116 is attached to the inlet 104 for efficient collection of all the tablets loaded into the container 100 without causing any spillage or wastage. In certain embodiments, an outlet 118 is used for dispensing one or more tablets stored in the bottle 102 by means of the base opening 106 of the bottle 102.

[0037] Fig. 2 illustrates an expanded view of an outlet for dispensing tablets, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The outlet 200 comprises a discharge valve 202 and a hygiene sleeve 204. The discharge valve 202 is used for opening and closing the base opening of the bottle for dispensing one or more tablets from the bottle, and the hygiene sleeve 204 is used for providing a hygienic passage or means of dispensing the tablets. The discharge valve functions based on actuation of a lever 206, wherein the actuation of the lever results in the formation of a flexible wire web, where the wire web allows the bottle to withstand high loads caused due to the plurality of tablets, addressing a limitation of conventional iris diaphragm valve.

[0038] Figs. 3(a) and 3(b) illustrate the wire web created by the actuation of the lever of the outlet, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 3(a) illustrates an open arrangement of the wire web 302, and such an arrangement of the wire web 302 of the discharge valve 300 placed at the base opening of the bottle causes one or more tablets to be dispensed from the base opening of the bottle. Fig, 3(b) illustrates a closed arrangement of the wire web 302, and such an arrangement of the wire web 302 of the discharge valve 300 placed at the base opening of the bottle causes the base opening to be closed, thereby preventing tablets from being dispensed. The change from the open arrangement of the wire web 302 of the discharge valve 300 to a closed arrangement, and vice versa, is achieved by actuation of the lever 304. The arrangements enable complete closure of the discharge valve 300 with 75-degree actuation of the lever 304, which is less than market available valve. This new valve design enables to do soft closure of valve and intermittent closing without breakage of the tablets. In an embodiment, the discharge valve 300 can be open and close with 77 deg actuation of the lever 304. The actuation of the discharge valve 300 may be done to dispense some of the tablets while retaining the remaining tablets in the bottle.

[0039] The wire web 302 is created by a plurality of flexible wires (collectively labelled 306). The plurality of flexible wires is affixed between different parts of the discharge valve. Figs. 4(a) and 4(b) illustrate cross sectional detail of a discharge valve for hygiene sleeve fitment, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The different parts of the discharge valve are illustrated in Fig. 5. The discharge valve 500 comprises a top flange 502, a bottom flange 504, a connecting ring 506, an actuator ring 508, one or more controlling ring (collectively labelled 510), the lever with a lock, and the flexible wire 512 to forming the wire web. The discharge valve 500 also comprises a point of attachment 514 for the hygiene sleeve.The hygiene sleeve secures to the top flange 502 and the actuator ring 508 of the discharge valve 500 with help of cover ring. In an embodiment, the connecting ring 506 of the discharge valve 500 will be in the option of plastic snap fit to eliminate any fasteners required to hold the hygiene sleeve in the valve body.

[0040] The top flange 502, the bottom flange 504 and the connecting ring 506 together form a close or sealed body, while the actuator ring 508 fits within the circular cavity form by the top flange 502, the bottom flange 504 and the connecting ring 506. The lever, equipped with the lock, is connected to the actuator ring 508 to actuate the discharge valve 500. The lock of the lever may assist in locking the discharge valve 500 in the position of open and close. The flexible wire 512 is affixed at one end to the non-rotating top flange 502 and another end to the actuator ring 508, collectively forming the flexible wire web. Therefore, the actuation of the lever results in the opening and closing of the discharge valve (116) as depicted in Figs 4(a) and 4(b).

[0041] Figs. 6(a) and 6(b) illustrate the proposed container with and without a hygiene sleeve respectively, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The hygiene sleeve 604 may optionally configure with the discharge valve 602 to ensure the complete closure of the discharge valve 602. The special design of the discharge valve 602 having the flexible wire configured to work with the hygiene sleeve 604 may further prevent any damage to the tablets discharging through the outlet. The flexible wire web working with hygiene sleeve 604 make the discharge valve’s 602 design unique, which enable it handle higher head load with lesser actuation to operate the discharge valve 602. In an embodiment, partial discharge of the tablets is done with the discharge valve and the remaining tablets are stored within the container.

[0042] In certain embodiments of the present invention, the bottle may also have a top covering for covering the top portion of the bottle. Further, in certain embodiments of the present invention, the inlet and the bottle are supported by a supporting base having an opening and one or more legs. Figs. 7(a) and 7(b) illustrate a top view and a bottom an exterior of the proposed container, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The exterior of the container 700 comprises the top covering 702 and the supporting base 704. The top covering comprises a lid 706 and a plurality of grooves (collectively labelled 708), where the grooves 708 are constituted by socket 710 and guides 712. The supporting base 704 comprises an opening 714 and one or more legs (collectively labelled 716). The bottle is placed on thesupporting base 704 such that the discharge valve 718 affixed to the base opening of the bottle is held below the opening 714 of the supporting base 704.

[0043] The legs 716 of the supporting base 704 and the grooves 708 of the top covering 702 result in a unique feet and shoulder design allowing the containers 700 to be stacked one over another up when filled and / or empty. In an embodiment, the containers 700 may be stacked up to 3 layers without tipping as illustrated in Figs. 8(a) and 8(b). In such an arrangement of containers, the contents of a first container may be dispensed from the outlet of the first container into a second container through the inlet of the second container, wherein the first container is stacked on top of the second container. The stacking of containers results in a reduction of the overall footprint area for processing and storage.

[0044] Fig. 9 illustrates a front cross-sectional view of the proposed container, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 9 illustrates the bottle 902, a supporting base 904, a lid 906, a lid seal 908, at least on lid clamp 910, and a discharge valve 912. In the present embodiment, the lid 906 may be secured to the container 900 with the lid clamp 910 where the lid seal 908 provides sealing the inlet. Optionally, the bottle 902 has a square shape cut-out 914. The special configuration of the supporting base 904 carries top load from the container 900 as well as stacking load to the supporting base 904 without deflection. The container 900 has a spigot type square in square design 914 for facilitating bottle 902 to supporting base 904 welding and load carrying support.

[0045] The containers proposed in the present invention may be used for the different steps associated with the processing of pharmaceutical tablets. Figs 10-13 illustrate the exemplary implementation of the container in the different sequential steps involved in the processing of the tablets. In Fig. 10, the tablets are received into the container from a compression machine to compress the tablet. Subsequently, the tablets are loaded into a coater machine for the coating of the tablets through the outlet of the container, as depicted in Fig. 11(a). Upon completion of the coating process, the tablets are unloaded from the coater machine to the container through the inlet, as illustrated in Fig 11(b). The next phase involves the loading of the tablets into an inspection machine through the outlet of the container for quality check of the tablets, as illustrated in Fig 11(a). Following the quality assessment, the tablets are unloaded from the inspection machine for packaging, as shown in Fig 12. Consequently, the tablets are furtherloaded into a packaging machine, as illustrated in Fig 13, to conclude the overall processing procedure.

[0046] Hence, the proposed container may used for storage and processing of different pharmaceutical and food products. The proposed container allows for storage and dispensing of the items or products without causing any damage to the products, due to the gradual drop provided by the guiding component, the circular deflector channel, and the sloped inner wall of the bottle. Further, the unique design of the exterior of the container which allows the stacking of container helps in reducing the footprint required for storage, as illustrated in Fig. 14. Further, the use of the proposed container helps reduce costs associated with storage, processing, transports etc of different tablets, as illustrated in Fig. 15.

[0047] It would be appreciated by a person skilled in the art that described above containers and its method to operate may be used for pharmaceutical industries, efficient intermittent bulk handling systems and the like.

[0048] In view of the present disclosure, which describes the present invention, all changes, modifications and, variations within the meaning and range of equivalency are considered within the scope of the invention. It is to be understood that the aspects and embodiment of the disclosure described above may be used in any combination with each other. Several of the aspects and embodiment may be combined together to form a further embodiment of the disclosure.

Claims

WE CLAIM:

1. A bulk handling container, comprising: a bottle (102, 902) for storing a plurality of tablets, said bottle (102, 902) comprising an inner wall, an outer wall and a base opening (106), wherein the inner wall has a slope for guiding the plurality of tablets towards a base of the bottle (102, 902); an inlet portion (104) mounted on a top surface of the bottle (102, 902), wherein the inlet portion (104) comprises: a guiding component (108) with a top opening for receiving the plurality of tablets, the guiding component (108) having a wall with one or more slots (114); and a circular deflector channel (110) having an open-cone shape, wherein the inner circumferential edge is connected to a base portion of the guiding component (108) and the outer circumferential edge of the circular deflector channel (110) is extended towards the inner wall of the bottle to create a gap between the circular deflector channel (110) and the inner wall of the bottle, wherein when the plurality of tablets is received by the inlet portion (104) of the bottle (102, 902), the plurality of the tablets pass through the one or more slots (114) of the guiding component (108) and slide through the wall of the circular deflector channel (110) into the inner slope of the bottle (102, 902) through the gap and the plurality of the tablets settles at the base of the bottle (102, 902) along with the inner slope.

2. The container as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bottle (102, 902) further comprises a top covering (702) having one or more sockets (710), one or more guides (712), and a lid (706) for sealing the bottle (102, 902).

3. The container as claimed in claim 2, wherein the top covering of the bottle (102, 902) is mountable to a collecting tray (116) during loading of the container.

4. The container as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a supporting base (704, 904) having an opening and one or more legs (716), wherein the bottle (102, 902) is placed on thesupporting base (704, 904) such that the base opening (106) of the bottle (102, 904) is held below the opening (714) of the supporting base (704, 904).

5. The container as claimed in claim 1, further comprising an outlet (118, 200) for dispensing the tablets, attached to the base opening (106) of the bottle (102, 902,), having a discharge valve (202, 300, 500, 602, 718, 912) and a hygiene sleeve (204, 604), wherein the base opening (106) of the bottle (102, 902) is sealed using a wire web (302) of the discharge valve (202, 300, 500, 602, 718, 912).

6. The container as claimed in claim 5, wherein the discharge valve (202, 300, 500, 602, 718, 912) further comprises a top flange (502), a bottom flange (504), a connecting ring (506), an actuator ring (508), one or more controlling rings (510).

7. The container as claimed in claim 6, wherein the wire web (302) of the discharge valve (202, 300, 500, 602, 718, 912) is created by changing alignment of a plurality of flexible wires (512) affixed between the top flange (502) and the actuator ring (508), such that the alignment is changed by actuation of the actuator ring (508).

8. The container as claimed in claims 2 and 4, wherein the one or more legs (716) of the supporting base (704, 904) and the one or more sockets (710) and one or more guides (712) of the top covering (702) allows stacking of two or more containers, wherein the one or more legs (716) are placed in grooves (708) constituted by the one or more sockets (710) and the one or more guides (712).

9. The container as claimed in claim 8, wherein the tablets stored in a first container may be dispensed from the base opening (106) the bottle (102, 902) of the first container into the inlet portion (104) of a second container, wherein the first container is stacked on top of the second container.

10. The container as claimed in claim 1, wherein the tablets include pills, capsules, pharmaceutical drugs, pharmaceutical pills, medications, or food pellets.

Images