Capsule Filling Piston Compression for Dosing Accuracy
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing filling machines for capsules are structurally and functionally complex, expensive, and struggle with accurate dosing of non-compressible products like powders, granules, and micro-tablets, leading to dosage variations during high-speed operations.
Innovation Solution
A filling machine with a rotating transfer turret and a dosing station equipped with electric linear actuators and a piston system that compresses and accurately dispenses product doses into capsules, using a combination of linear and orthogonal movements to ensure precise filling, even with difficult-to-compact products.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If volumetric dosing devices with pistons are used to dose products, then dosing capability is provided, but device complexity increases due to multiple mechanical means and pneumatic actuators
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the complex pneumatic actuation system and cam mechanisms from the dosing device. Instead of using multiple mechanical means and pneumatic actuators to move the dosing turret and pistons, the invention uses a simplified system where the dosing device is directly actuated by a single pneumatic cylinder that moves the piston linearly, reducing the overall structural complexity while maintaining dosing capability
Solution Approach 2:
The dosing device is designed to perform multiple functions through a single integrated mechanism. The same pneumatic actuation system that moves the piston for dosing also controls the positioning and product transfer, eliminating the need for separate mechanical means for each function and thereby reducing device complexity
2Productivity
If high speed rotation of transfer turret is used to increase productivity, then productivity improves, but dosing accuracy deteriorates due to product detachment from hollow cylinders
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by compacting the product in the hollow cylinder before the high-speed transfer operation. The piston is moved to compress the product densely within the cylinder, creating a stable, compacted dose that resists detachment during the rapid rotation and transfer of the turret, thus maintaining dosing accuracy at high productivity speeds
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the physical state of the product from loose to compacted by applying compression through the piston mechanism. This parameter change in product density ensures that the product remains firmly held in the hollow cylinder during high-speed operations, preventing detachment and maintaining dosing precision even when the transfer turret rotates at high speeds
3Device complexity
If products are not compacted before dosing, then device complexity is reduced, but manufacturing precision deteriorates due to dosage variations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical parameter of the product by applying compression through the piston mechanism. This compaction transforms the product from a loose state to a dense, stable state, ensuring uniform dosage delivery. The compression process is integral to the dosing mechanism, ensuring that every dose is compacted to the same density, thereby achieving manufacturing precision without requiring overly complex mechanical means
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The machine provides reliable, precise, and repeatable filling of capsules with products that are hard to compact, offering a simple, robust, and safe operation with improved dosing accuracy and reduced product detachment issues.
Implementation Method 1
When the dosing device is inserted and plunged at a predefined speed into the product layer contained in the tank, the product is inserted and compacted inside the hollow cylinder, in the dosing chamber, forming a sort of 'core' of product which constitutes the dose.
Implementation Method 2
The pistons are slidably mounted in the respective cylinders so that they can slide inside and expel the product doses. More precisely, each piston is movable according to an operating stroke between an upper internal position... and a lower external position in which said lower end portion is facing the lower open end of the cylinder so as to empty the dosing chamber and transfer the product to the underlying capsule.
Data Source
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AI summary
A filling machine (1) includes a dosing station (3) comprising a supporting element (5) and a dosing unit (10) having a dosing cylinder (12) and a piston (13), for filling bodies (101) of capsule (100) with a product (P) picked-up from a tank (4); the supporting element (5) is movable between a lowered picking position (B), in which the dosing unit (10) is inserted in the tank (4) and a dosing position (C) in which the dosing unit (10) faces a body (101); the piston (13) is movable between a first internal position (D) to form a dosing chamber (15) suitable for picking up and retaining a dose (PI) of product (P), a second internal position (E) to reduce a volume of the dosing chamber (15) and compress the dose (PI) and an external position (F) to push the dose (PI) from the dosing cylinder (12) into a body (101).