Patent Application
20240217685
The present invention relates to the technical sector relating to the packing of bottles with pharmaceutical or para-pharmaceutical articles, in particular to the inserting of a predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles, such as for example tablets, internally of respective bottles.
In particular, the present invention concerns a method for filling bottles with a predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles and to a relative apparatus designed to carry out the count of pharmaceutical articles and the subsequent unloading thereof internally of relative bottles for carrying out the method.
For the packaging of pharmaceutical articles internally of bottles, a need is known for carrying out the filling of the bottles with a predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles, for placing on the market.
It is therefore necessary to proceed to a count of the articles and to a prior accumulation thereof up to reaching the predetermined number for filling the bottle, before unloading them internally of the bottle.
In this regard, apparatuses are known, which in the sector are known as counters, for carrying out the count of the pharmaceutical articles that are to be inserted in a given number into a bottle, and then for unloading the articles into the bottle. Pharmaceutical articles are usually accumulated inside a storage hopper while the bottles to be filled are advanced one following another along a conveying line, for example constituted by a screw conveyor.
To transport the pharmaceutical articles from the storage hopper to a filling area above the bottles advancing along the conveying line, a vibrating conveyor is used, which is provided with a series of transport channels having a “V” shape, into which the pharmaceutical articles exiting from the storage hopper are deposited.
The vibrating conveyor, with its vibrating motion, advances the pharmaceutical articles, deposited into the various transport channels, distancing them one from the others.
A known apparatus for carrying out the count of the pharmaceutical articles coming from the vibrating conveyor, and for the subsequent insertion thereof into bottles advancing along the conveying line, is for example illustrated in
The descent channels (D1) are arranged in such a way that the entry openings (a) are located immediately downstream of ends of the transport channels of the vibrating conveyor (V) so that the pharmaceutical articles, having passed beyond the end of the transport channels, can fall by force of gravity into the entry openings (a) of the descent channels (D1), and thus fall into the descent channels (D1) and be conveyed towards the exit opening (b).
The apparatus (A1) comprises sensor means (S1), which are arranged so as to perform a count of the pharmaceutical articles that fall internally of each descent channel (D1), and which are configured in such a way as to provide the apparatus (A1) with a datum relative to the overall number of pharmaceutical articles present internally of the descent channels (D1).
The apparatus (A1) further comprises an accumulation chamber (C1), generally having a funnel shape, arranged below the descent channels (D1), which is predisposed to receive and accumulate the pharmaceutical articles exiting from the exit openings (b) of the descent channels (D1), up to the number necessary for the following insertion thereof into a relative bottle (F).
This accumulation chamber (C1) inferiorly comprises an unloading mouth (S1) for unloading the pharmaceutical articles accumulated internally thereof. A hatch door (G1) is present and movable to open and close the unloading mouth (S1).
The apparatus (A1) is also equipped with closing elements (E) of the exit openings (b) of the descent channels (D1), which are activatable for closing the exit openings (b) once there is the necessary number of pharmaceutical articles in the accumulation chamber (C1) to fill a bottle (F).
The apparatus (A1) is arranged in such a way that the unloading mouth (S1) of the accumulation chamber is located above the conveying line (L) of the bottles (F). A tubular unloading element (T1) is present below the unloading mouth (S1), which connects the unloading mouth (S1) with the mouth of a bottle (F) which connecting element is positioned by the conveying line (L) paused below the counter apparatus (A1), for unloading the pharmaceutical articles (F) into the bottle.
The hatch door (G1) at the discharge mouth (S1) is positioned in such a way as to keep the unloading mouth (S1) closed until there is the predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles in the accumulation chamber (C1), falling from the descent channels (D1), necessary to fill a bottle.
Then, as soon as the predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles necessary to fill the bottle (F) has fallen into the accumulation chamber (C1), the closing elements (E) of the descent channels (D1) are activated to close the exit openings (b) of the descent channels (D1), while the hatch door (G1) is moved to open the unloading mouth (S1) and allow the pharmaceutical articles to fall into the unloading conduit (T1) which conveys the pharmaceutical articles internally of the bottle (F).
Once all the pharmaceutical articles have been unloaded from the unloading mouth (S1), a hatch door (G1) can be returned into the closed position of the unloading mouth (S1) and the closing elements (E) moved to open the exit openings (b) of the descent channels (D1) by the fall of further pharmaceutical articles into the accumulation chamber (C1); in the meantime, the conveying line (L) will position a following bottle (F*) to be filled beneath the unloading conduit (T1).
With this type of apparatus, for increasing productivity, i.e. the number of bottles filled for a given time unit (for example per minute), one method is to intervene, by increasing the operating velocity of the vibrating conveyor, so as to be able to make a greater number of pharmaceutical articles fall into the descent channels. This has seen to be substantially effective in the event that the number of pharmaceutical articles to be inserted in a bottle is quite high.
On the other hand, the same results were not obtained when the number of pharmaceutical articles to be inserted in the bottles is quite low, such as for example less than 20-30.
In fact, in these cases, it is necessary to keep one or more of the descent channels closed, as otherwise a number of pharmaceutical articles would accumulate in the accumulation chamber that is greater than what is necessary during the pause time of the bottle beneath the counter apparatus.
Another known method at present used for the purposes of increasing the productivity consists in predisposing two or more counter apparatuses, both made as described in the foregoing, one by the side of another (as for example illustrated in
This mode however, as is clear, brings with it the need to predispose an adequate space for the positioning of the various counter apparatuses one flanked to the others, and is therefore disadvantageous in terms of size and optimisation of work spaces.
Further, it can occur that one of the two apparatuses might accumulate, in the accumulation chamber thereof, the predetermined number of articles to be unloaded into one bottle before the other: in these cases, before activating the conveying line, it will be necessary in any case to wait for the other apparatus also to accumulate, in the accumulation chamber thereof, the predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles and to unload them into the respective bottle positioned below it.
The aim of the present invention is therefore to describe a method for filling bottles with a predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles, and an apparatus for actuating the method, able to obviate the drawbacks present in the prior-art apparatuses described in the foregoing.
In particular, an aim of the present invention is therefore to describe a method, and a relative apparatus which actuates the method, which enables reducing the time required for carrying out the filling of bottles with a predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles, thus guaranteeing high productivity.
The cited aims are obtained with a method for filling bottles with a predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles, and with a relative apparatus which actuates the method, according to the contents of the claims.
The characteristics of a preferred, but not exclusive, embodiment of the apparatus which allows actuation of the method of the invention, as well as the steps of the method of the invention, will be described in the following with reference to the appended tables of drawings, in which:
With reference to the accompanying tables of drawings, reference numeral (100) denotes the apparatus which is used by the method of the invention for filling bottles with a predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles.
The apparatus (100) is configured to receive, count and unload pharmaceutical articles, such as for example tablets, and is arranged above the conveying line (L) of bottles (F) to be filled.
In particular, the apparatus (100) is configured to be positioned between a feeder of pharmaceutical articles, for example constituted by a vibrating conveyor (not illustrated in the appended figures as of known type and not pertinent to the invention) for the transport of rows of pharmaceutical articles and the conveying line ((L) of the bottles (F) which are to be filled with pharmaceutical articles.
The apparatus (100) comprises (see for example
The accumulation container (2) is conformed in such a way as to comprise:
The accumulation container (2) further comprises a separating wall (4), arranged so as to mutually separate the first accumulation chamber (21) and the second accumulation chamber (22) in a zone at the entry mouth (20) of the accumulation container (2) and beneath the descent channels (1).
In this way, the separating wall (4) divides the entry mouth (20) into a first entry section (21A), for the first accumulation chamber (21), and into a second entry section (22A), for the second accumulation chamber (22).
Consequently, the first entry section (21A) can receive pharmaceutical articles from a first group of the descent channels (1) and the first accumulation chamber (21) can accumulate a predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles to be inserted into a first bottle (F1), and the second entry section (22A) can receive pharmaceutical articles from a second group of the descent channels (1) and the second accumulation chamber (22) can store a predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles to be inserted in second bottle (F2).
The separating wall (4) is arranged in such a way as to be movable and positionable with respect to the descent channels (1) equally: in a first position (P1), in which the separating wall (4) is positioned so that the first entry section (21A) and the second entry section (22A) can receive pharmaceutical articles from an equal number of descent channels (1), and at least in a second position (P2, P3), in which the separating wall (4) is positioned so that the first entry section (21A) and the second entry section (22A) can receive pharmaceutical articles from a different number of descent channels (1) with respect to one another.
For example, in the preferred embodiment illustrated in the figures of the drawings, the apparatus (100) is made in such a way as to comprise 12 descent channels (1).
The separating wall (4) can therefore be positioned in a first position (P1) in which it is positioned between the 6th and 7th descent channel (1), as shown in
In this first position (P1) of the separating wall (4), the first accumulation chamber (21) and the second accumulation chamber (22) can thus receive pharmaceutical articles falling from a same number of the descent channels (1).
The separating wall (4) can also be positionable in a second position (P2) in which it is positioned between the 7th and 8th descent channel, as shown for example in
In this second position (P2) of the separating wall (4), the first accumulation chamber (21) can thus receive pharmaceutical articles falling from a greater number of descent channels (1) with respect to the second accumulation chamber (22).
The separating wall (4) can also be positionable in a third position (P3) in which it is positioned between the 5th and 6th descent channel, as shown for example in
In the third position (P3) of the separating wall (4), the second accumulation chamber (22) can thus receive pharmaceutical articles falling from a greater number of descent channels (1) with respect to the first accumulation chamber (21).
The apparatus (100) further comprises sensor means (S) (some of which are schematically indicated in
The blocking elements (10) are arranged and configured to be activatable to close the descent channels (1) which are in communication with the entry sections (21A, 22A) of the two accumulation chambers (21, 22) once that internally thereof the predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles to be inserted in a bottle has been reached, and to be activatable to open the descent channels (1) to enable the pharmaceutical articles to fall from the descent channels (1) into the two accumulation chambers (21, 22) in order to newly accumulate a predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles for filling successive bottles.
According to the preferred but not exclusive embodiment illustrated in the figures, the separating wall (4) is predisposed to be movable in rotation about a rotation axis.
The method of the present invention uses the above-described apparatus for carrying out the filling of the bottles advanced from the conveying line beneath the unloading conduit, with a predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles.
The method of the invention comprises carrying out steps of:
Therefore, in this way, with the method of the invention, by activating the separating wall it is possible to change the number of descent channels which are in communication with the two accumulation chambers in such a way as to obtain an imbalance in the filling thereof, in the sense of facilitating a fall of a greater number of pharmaceutical articles in one of the two accumulation chambers, and thus facilitate the reaching of the predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles to unload into a bottle more rapidly in one of the two chambers with respect to the other.
Consequently, once one of the two chambers has reached the predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles, and in the time period during which the other chamber also reaches the predetermined number, it will be possible to unload the pharmaceutical articles from the chamber in which the predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles internally of a bottle has already accumulated, and then, by activating the conveying line, it will be possible to position a further bottle beneath the unloading conduit.
In this way, as soon as the other chamber has reached and accumulated the predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles, it will be possible to unload said articles into the subsequent bottle waiting beneath the unloading conduit.
Therefore, with the method of the invention it is possible to use two accumulation chambers for unloading, with a single unloading conduit, time by time as the inside of one of the two accumulation chambers reaches the predetermined number of pharmaceutical articles, the pharmaceutical articles into a bottle which in the meantime is positioned beneath the unloading conduit.
It is clear that with the method of the invention the conveying line of the bottles can be activated with a frequency of positioning of each bottle beneath the unloading conduit at a frequency that is clearly superior to the prior-art, thus obtaining a significant increase in productivity.
This is because while one accumulation chamber unloads the pharmaceutical articles accumulated therein, the other accumulation chamber receives and accumulates pharmaceutical articles so as to be ready to unload the pharmaceutical articles as soon as a subsequent bottle is positioned beneath the unloading conduit.
Further preferred aspects of the method of the invention are set out in the following, with particular reference to the sequence of FIGS. from 3A to 3E. The method is such that, with the first closing element (21C) positioned in such a way as to close the first unloading mouth (21B) of the first accumulation chamber (21) and with the second closing element (22C) positioned in such a way as to close the second unloading mouth (22B) of the second accumulation chamber (22) (the situation of
Preferably, in conjunction with or in consequence of the step of activating the first closing element (21C) to open the first unloading mouth (21C) in such a way as to unload the pharmaceutical articles accumulated in the first accumulation chamber (21) into the unloading conduit (3) and thus fill the first bottle (F1) positioned paused beneath the unloading conduit (3), the method comprises carrying out a step of moving and positioning the separating wall (4) with respect to the descent channels (1) in an operating position so that the second entry section (22A) of the second accumulation chamber (22) can receive pharmaceutical articles falling from at least a further descent channel (1) which previously was in communication with the first entry section (21A) and then activating the blocking element (10) of the at least a further descent channel (1) to open the further descent channel (1) and cause the articles contained therein to fall into the second accumulation chamber (22).
For example, and according to operating requirements which exist time by time, the separating wall (4) can moved and positioned in a position (P1) in which it is situated between the 6th and 7th descent channel (as illustrated in
The cycle of steps described in the foregoing can be repeated cyclically. In this regard, in the cyclical carrying out of the cycle of steps described in the foregoing, the method comprises, before the start of the cycle of steps, and before the step of moving and positioning the separating wall (4) with respect to the descent channels (1) in an operating position so that the first entry section (21A) of the first accumulation chamber (21) and the second entry section (22A) of the second accumulation chamber (22) can respectively receive pharmaceutical articles from a different number of descent channels (1) with respect to one another, to include an initial positioning step of the blocking elements (10) of the descent channels (1) in such a way as to close the descent channels (1) (
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 102021000011864 | May 2021 | IT | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/IB2022/054098 | 5/4/2022 | WO |
