Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6739476
-
Patent Number
6,739,476
-
Date Filed
Thursday, November 7, 200221 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, May 25, 200420 years ago
-
Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
Agents
- Wenderoth, Lind & Ponack, L.L.P.
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 221 172
- 221 171
- 221 173
- 221 167
- 221 156
- 221 163
- 221 253
- 198 416
-
International Classifications
-
Abstract
An ampoule storage container 1 stores a plurality of ampoules 2 in a laterally orientated state with respect to a discharge direction. A belt conveyor 5 is disposed at the bottom of the ampoule storage container 1 so that the ampoule 2 can be conveyed in the laterally orientated state. An ampoule regulating member 10 is disposed above the belt 6 of the belt conveyor 5 to form a gap through which only one of the ampoule 2 can pass. A stopper 13 which comes into contact with the one end of the ampoule 2 passing through the gap is provided so that the ampoule 2 can be changed to a longitudinally orientated state. According to the present invention, the direction of the ampoule 2 can be changed and a desired number of ampoules 2 can be discharged one by one in spite of simple construction.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an ampoule storage container in which a plurality of ampoules are stored and a desired number of ampoules can be automatically discharged if necessary.
Conventionally, as an ampoule storage container used for automatically feeding a desired number of ampoules, there is known an apparatus in which a plurality of ampoules are stored in a overlying state on each other and discharged one by one by moving a movable bottom plate (Japanese Laid-open patent publication 10-192369).
However, in the aforementioned ampoule storage container, a function of changing the direction of the ampoule is not provided and a countermeasure against the jam or the like of the ampoule is not enough. In the unlikely event of the ampoule being broken, the liquid medicine is scattered and the cleaning thereafter becomes difficult. Therefore, it is necessary to reliably prevent increase of forced load on the ampoule caused by the jam of the ampoule or the like.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide an ampoule storage container in which the direction of the ampoule can be changed and a desired number of ampoules can be discharged one by one in spite of simple construction.
In order to accomplish the above object, according to the present invention, there is provided an ampoule storage container for storing a plurality of ampoules in a laterally orientated state with respect to a discharge direction and discharging the ampoule one by one, the ampoule storage container comprising:
a belt conveyor for conveying the ampoule in the laterally orientated state;
an ampoule regulating member disposed above a belt of the belt conveyor, the ampoule regulating member forming a gap through which only one of the ampoule can pass; and
a stopper which comes into contact with the one end of the ampoule passing through the gap so that the ampoule can be changed to a longitudinally orientated state.
According to the above construction, when the belt conveyor is driven, the ampoules put on the belt conveyor are conveyed to the ampoule regulating member. Due to the ampoule regulating member, the ampoules are regulated to enter the gap between the belt and the ampoule regulating member, whereby the ampoule is moved to the stopper reliably one by one. When the ampoule is discharged, one end of the ampoule comes into contact with the stopper, whereby the ampoule can be smoothly changed to a longitudinally orientated state.
Preferably, the ampoule storage container may further comprises a press contact member which comes into contact with the upper surface of the ampoule which is discharged passing through the gap. Thus, the press contact member can properly prevent the ampoules more than needs from being discharged when the belt conveyor is stopped.
Preferably, the belt of the belt conveyor may be formed with a plurality of protrusions in a predetermined distance so that the protrusion can engage with the ampoule to convey the ampoule to the discharge direction, whereby the protrusion passes under the ampoule when the ampoule become impossible to be conveyed. Thus, even if jam of the ampoule is caused, the protrusions can pass under the ampoule, whereby the ampoule is never damaged. Alternatively, the belt of the belt conveyor may be formed with a plurality of recesses in a predetermined distance so that the recess can engage with the ampoule to convey the ampoule to the discharge direction, whereby a belt portion between the adjacent recesses passes under the ampoule when the ampoule become impossible to be conveyed.
Preferably, the press contact member may be provided with a friction generating member for coming into contact with the ampoule to generate a friction. Thus, the ampoule can be discharged without forming above protrusions. It is also possible to prevent the ampoule from being unexpectedly discharged through the gap.
The press contact member may comprise an elastic member. Alternatively, the press contact member may be urged by an elastic member in a direction that the press contact member comes into contact with the ampoule.
Preferably, the ampoule storage container may further comprise a projection plate that comes into contact with the ampoule of the second layer positioned at a lead position in the ampoule discharge direction. The projection plate allows the lead ampoule of the second layer to be push into the first layer, whereby the ampoules can be reliably discharged without jam. It is preferable that the lower edge of the projection plate is positioned between a center line that is obtained by connecting the centers of the plurality of ampoules of the second layer and a tangential line that is obtained by connecting the outer top surfaces of the plurality of ampoules of the second layer. It is more preferable that the lower edge of the projection plate is positioned just above the center line.
Preferably, the belt conveyor may be inclined downward to the discharge direction of the ampoule. Thus, it is possible to more reliably conduct discharge of the ampoule.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Other objects and features of the present invention will become clear from the following detail description with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1A
is a plane view of an ampoule storage container according to an embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 1B
is a front view of the ampoule storage container of
FIG. 1A
;
FIG. 2A
is a partial enlarged view of
FIG. 1B
;
FIG. 2B
is a left side view of the ampoule storage container of
FIG. 1B
;
FIG. 3
is a general schematic view of a medicine feed apparatus on which the ampoule storage containers of
FIG. 1
are removably mounted;
FIG. 4
is a front view of the ampoule storage container of
FIG. 1
which is mounted on a medicine feed portion of the medicine feed apparatus of
FIG. 3
;
FIG. 5
is a partial enlarged view of an ampoule storage container of an another embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 6
is a partial enlarged view of an ampoule storage container of a still another embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 7
is a perspective view of an ampoule storage container according to a still another embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 8
is a sectional view of the ampoule storage container of
FIG. 7
;
FIG. 9
is a partial sectional view of a modification of the ampoule storage container of
FIG. 8
; and
FIGS.
10
(
a
)-
10
(
d
) are sectional views of the ampoule storage container continuously showing ampoule discharge operations.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
FIGS. 1 and 2
show an ampoule storage container
1
according to an embodiment of the present invention. The ampoule storage container
1
has a box-like shape with an upper surface opened. In the ampoule storage container
1
, a plurality of ampoules
2
are stored in a laterally laid condition with respect to a discharge direction. As shown in
FIG. 3
, the ampoule storage container
1
is removably mounted on a plurality of medicine feed portions
4
fixed on a medicine feed apparatus
3
in a matrix-like arrangement.
In the ampoule storage container
1
, the bottom central portion is provided with a belt conveyor
5
. The bottom both side portions and the bottom front portion are formed with two inclined surfaces
1
a
,
1
a
and an inclined surface
1
b
respectively. A guide wall
8
for supporting a head
2
a
of the ampoule
2
is formed along the lower edge of one of the inclined surfaces
1
a
. The belt conveyor
5
has a construction that a belt
6
is supported between rotation shafts
5
a
,
5
b
disposed at both ends. The outer surface of the belt
6
is provided with a plurality of protrusions
7
disposed along a conveying direction and extended in a lateral direction. A distance between the adjacent protrusions
7
is substantially same as or more than the diameter of the ampoule
2
. Each of the protrusions
7
has such a height that the protrusion
7
can engage with the ampoule
2
to move it in a state orientated in a lateral direction and also can pass under the ampoule
7
before the ampoule
2
is damaged due to an external force that inhibits the ampoule
2
from being moved.
At the rear end surface of the ampoule storage container
1
is disposed an ampoule regulating member
10
. The ampoule regulating member
10
forms an ampoule passage
11
having a gap, between the belt
6
of the belt conveyor
5
and the ampoule regulating member
10
, that allows only one ampoule
2
to pass through. The ampoule regulating member
10
is provided with a press contact member
12
and a stopper
13
as shown in FIG.
2
B. The press contact member
12
is made of synthetic resin, rubber and so on and has a plate-like shape (a film-like shape and a protruding shape are also permissible) that protrudes downward obliquely in a discharge direction of the ampoule
2
. The press contact member
12
comes into press contact with the outer surface of the ampoule
2
, preventing the ampoule
2
from being unexpectedly discharged through the ampoule passage
11
when the belt conveyor
5
is stopped. The stopper
13
is disposed on one side of the ampoule passage
11
and has a plate-like shape. The stopper
13
comes into contact with the head
2
a
of the ampoule
2
, allowing the ampoule
2
conveyed by the belt conveyor
5
to turn and orient in a longitudinal direction. In the vicinity of the ampoule regulating member
10
, a door
14
which can cover the lower half portion of the rear end surface of the ampoule storage container
1
is provided pivotably around a support shaft
14
a
. The door
14
is urged by a spring not shown in a closing direction.
The medicine feed portion
4
is provided with a medicine feed container
16
and a rotor
17
disposed in the medicine feed container
16
.
The medicine feed container
16
has a box-like shape with an upper surface opened and is inclined downward in the discharge direction of the ampoule storage container
1
. The ampoule
2
discharged in the medicine feed container
16
is detected by an ampoule detecting sensor
18
provided on one side wall. The rotor
17
has a substantially cylindrical shape and the outer surface of the rotor
17
is formed with a plurality of ampoule holding recesses (not shown). The detail of the rotor
17
is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Laid-open patent publication No. HEI8-208024 and Japanese utility model No. 2539005, the teachings of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
Operation of the medicine feed apparatus
3
will be explained hereinafter.
In an ampoule feed process, it is decided by a sensor not shown whether or not the ampoule
2
is present in the ampoule holding recess of the rotor
17
stopped at the predetermined position. If the ampoule
2
is detected in the ampoule holding recess, the rotor
17
is rotated to feed the ampoule
2
. If the ampoule
2
is not detected, it is decided whether or not the ampoule
2
is present in the medicine feed container
16
based on a detection signal of the ampoule detecting sensor
18
.
If the ampoule
2
is detected in the medicine feed container
16
, the rotor
17
is rotated to hold the ampoule
2
into the ampoule holding recess and then feed it.
On the other hand, if the ampoule
2
is not detected, the belt conveyor
5
is driven forwardly for 5 minutes and reversely for 1 minute. This operation is repeated. The ampoule
2
in the ampoule storage container
1
is conveyed to the medicine feed container
16
. The protrusions
7
formed on the belt
6
allows the ampoule
2
to be conveyed in a state orientated in the lateral direction. The ampoule regulating member
10
allows only the ampoule
2
directly put on the belt
6
to pass through the ampoule passage
11
. At the outlet of the ampoule passage
11
, the head
2
a
of the ampoule
2
comes into contact with the stopper
13
so that the ampoule
2
continues to move as it turns. Then, the ampoule
2
turns by about 90 degrees, whereby the ampoule
2
is discharged into the medicine feed container
16
in a state orientated in the longitudinal direction.
Thus, in spite of a simple construction comprising the ampoule regulating member
10
, the press contact member
12
and the stopper
13
, the orientation of the ampoule
2
can be easily changed from the lateral direction to the longitudinal direction. The ampoule regulating member
10
allows only the ampoule
2
directly put on the belt
6
to move in the discharge direction and the press contact member
12
prevents the ampoule
2
from unexpectedly discharged, whereby a predetermined number of ampoules
2
can be reliably discharged. In addition, since the ampoule
2
can be turned by the stopper
13
as it is pressed by the press contact member
12
, the orientation of the ampoule
2
can be accurately changed from the lateral direction to the longitudinal direction.
By the way, even if a forced load is applied on the ampoule
2
to be discharged through the ampoule passage
11
due to the fact, for example, that the ampoules
2
stacked on the ampoule
2
to be discharged are skewed, the protrusions
7
pass under the ampoule
2
, in other ward, the ampoule
2
overpass the protrusions
7
(the protrusions
7
themselves are compressed), whereby the ampoule
2
is never damaged.
The ampoule
2
discharged into the medicine feed container
16
is detected by the ampoule detecting sensor
18
. After the ampoule
2
is detected by the sensor
18
, the belt conveyor
5
is stopped. When the ampoule
2
in the rotor
17
is discharged, the belt conveyor
5
is driven again in the same drive cycle.
Same operation is repeated in the same manner until a desired number of ampoules
2
are discharged. When the desired number of ampoules
2
are discharged, the belt conveyor
6
is stopped. Since the ampoule
2
adjacent to the ampoule passage
11
is prevented from being unexpectedly discharged, a surplus ampoule
2
is never discharged due to the stop of the belt conveyor
5
.
The desired number of ampoules
2
discharged from the rotor
17
of the medicine feed container
16
is dropped into a tray
22
on a belt conveyor
23
disposed at a bottom portion of the medicine feed apparatus
3
by a lifter (not shown) disposed behind the medicine feed portion
4
in the medicine feed apparatus
3
. The tray
22
is conveyed on the belt conveyor
23
while similarly receiving other medicines from each medicine feed portion
4
. The medicine in the tray
22
is housed in a bucket
24
fed from a bucket stacker
25
. An envelope, which is fed from an envelope roll
26
and on which a patient name and the like are printed by a printer
27
, and a sheet of paper, which is fed from a paper roll
28
and on which prescription information is printed by the printer
27
, are also housed in the bucket
24
. The bucket
24
housing the medicine, envelope and paper is dispensed to the outside of the medicine feed apparatus
3
.
In the case that the ampoule
2
is not detected for 30 minutes by the sensor
18
in spite of conducting the above operation, it is decided and indicated that the ampoule
2
is lacking. The operator, in accordance with the indication, removes the ampoule storage container
1
from the medicine feed portion
4
of the medicine feed apparatus
3
. The ampoule
2
positioned in the vicinity of the door
14
of the ampoule storage container
1
never drop out because the press contact member
12
comes into contact with the ampoule
2
. Therefore, when the ampoule storage container
1
is removed, the door
14
is not prevented from being pivoted, allowing the door
14
to be smoothly closed.
In the case that the rotor
17
causes the defects of rotation due to the jam of the ampoule
2
or the like during the feeding operation of the ampoule
2
, the rotor
17
is once driven reversely for a predetermined time and then driven forwardly. Thus, it is possible to promptly resolve the jam of the ampoule
2
or the like and to retrieve normal feed condition. If the defects of rotation is not resolved in spite of reverse rotation of the rotor
17
, an error may be indicated and the apparatus may be stopped.
In the aforementioned embodiment, although the stopper
13
is fixed on the ampoule regulating member
10
so that the orientation of the ampoule
2
is changed just after passing through the ampoule passage
11
, it is also possible to provide a protrusion such as a pin on the door
4
so that the orientation of the ampoule
2
is changed just before reaching the rotor
17
.
In addition, in the aforementioned embodiment, although the press contact member
12
is provided on the ampoule regulating member
10
, it may be possible to adopt a construction as shown in FIG.
5
.
That is to say, a friction generating member
20
is provided on the lower surface of the tip end portion of the press contact member
12
. As the friction generating member
20
, urethane rubber (polyurethane), nitrile rubber (butadiene acrylonitrile copolymer), silicon rubber (inorganic polysiloxane), cork, felt or the like can be used. In stead of press contact member
12
a friction generating member may be provided. Preferably, the belt conveyor
5
is inclined downward in a discharge direction of the ampoule
2
.
According to the above construction, when the belt conveyor
5
is driven, the ampoule
2
is conveyed in the discharge direction due to the friction between the belt conveyor and the ampoule
2
and discharged as the press contact member
12
is elastically deformed. At this time, since the ampoule
2
is pinched between the friction generating member
20
and the belt conveyor
5
, it is never caused that the ampoule
2
slips and is not discharged even if the ampoules
2
in the ampoule storage container
1
become shortage. More specifically, if the friction generating member
20
is not provided as shown in
FIG. 5
, the ampoule
2
rotates in a clockwise direction in
FIG. 5
due to the slip between the press contact member
12
and the ampoule
2
, disenabling the ampoule
2
to be discharged. However, this is prevented by the friction generating member
20
and the ampoule
2
is reliably discharged.
Providing the friction generating member
20
prevents the ampoule
2
from being unexpectedly discharged through the ampoule passage
11
when the belt conveyor
5
is stopped and also enables the ampoule
2
to be reliably discharged. The presence of the friction generating member
20
enables the ampoule
2
to be reliably discharged without providing the protrusions
7
on the surface of the belt conveyor
5
. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the lifetime of the belt conveyor
5
from becoming shorter due to the detachment of the protrusions
7
or the like. Moreover, since the protrusions
7
are not necessary, the diameter of the rotation shafts
5
a
,
5
b
between which the belt
6
is supported can be reduced, enabling to reduce the size (in a vertical direction) of the ampoule storage container
1
.
In addition, although the protrusions
7
are provided on the belt
6
of the belt conveyor
5
in the aforementioned embodiment, as shown in
FIG. 6
, a plurality of recesses
21
may be provided on the surface of the belt
6
of the belt conveyor
5
at a predetermined interval in a longitudinal direction of the belt
6
. Each recess
21
extends in a lateral direction of the belt
6
, allowing the ampoule
2
to be engaged with the recess
21
and conveyed in a state orientated in the lateral direction. When the jam of the ampoule
2
or the like is caused, belt portions between the adjacent recesses
21
pass under the ampoule
2
, whereby the ampoule
2
is never damaged.
Moreover, in the above mentioned embodiment, although the elastic member itself is used as the press contact member, a press contact member
31
which is urged by an elastic member
30
in a direction that the press contact member
31
comes into press contact with the ampoule
2
may be used as shown in
FIGS. 7 and 8
. In this embodiment, an ampoule regulating member
32
of shelf-like shape is provided on the rear end surface of the ampoule storage container
1
so as to protrude inwardly. On the lower surface of the ampoule regulating member
32
, a press contact member
31
of plate-like shape is pivotably provided by means of pins
33
fixed at the upstream end of the press contact member
31
with respect to the ampoule discharge direction. The press contact member
31
is urged by the elastic member
30
comprising a spring in a direction that the press contact member
31
comes into press contact with the ampoule
2
. On the lower surface of the press contact member
31
is attached the friction generating member
20
as described above with reference to FIG.
5
. operation of the press contact member
31
and the friction generating member
20
during discharge of the ampoule
2
is same as that of the aforementioned embodiment and therefore the explanation thereof will be omitted.
Between the lower surface of the ampoule regulating member
32
and the belt conveyor
5
is formed a ampoule passage
11
having a gap through which one ampoule
2
can pass. The upper surface of the ampoule regulating member
32
is formed with an inclined surface
34
that is inclined downward in an opposite direction to the discharge direction of the ampoule
2
. The lower end of the inclined surface
34
comprises a projection plate
35
that projects in the opposite direction to the ampoule discharge direction. The lower edge of the projection plate
35
is positioned between a center line C that is obtained by connecting the centers of the plurality of ampoules
2
of the second layer and a tangential line T that is obtained by connecting the outer top surfaces of the plurality of ampoules
2
of the second layer, preferably just above the center line C. If the upper edge of the projection plate
35
is positioned at higher level, The ampoule
2
is broken when the ampoule
2
rolling down along the inclined surface
34
dropped to the belt conveyor. Therefore, the upper edge of the projection plate
35
is preferably positioned at as low level as possible. Moreover, the inclined surface of the ampoule regulating member
34
may be curved as shown in FIG.
9
.
According to the construction above, as shown in FIG.
10
(
a
), when the first layer of the ampoules
2
are conveyed by the belt conveyor
5
in the ampoule discharge direction (a left side direction in the Figure), the first layer of the ampoules
2
are also moved in the same direction. Then, as shown in FIG.
10
(
b
), No. 5 ampoule
2
at the lead position of the second layer comes into contact with the projection plate
35
of the lower end of the inclined surface
34
, which allows No. 5 ampoule
2
to be pressed downward and push into a space between No. 3 and No. 4 ampoules
2
of the first layer. At this time, as shown in FIG.
10
(
c
), even if No. 5 ampoule
2
is jammed between the projection plate
35
and the ampoule
2
of the first layer, because the belt conveyor
5
repeats the forward drive for 5 minutes and the reverse drive for 1 minute, the No. 5 ampoule
2
drops to the belt conveyor
5
as shown in FIG.
10
(
d
) at the time of the reverse drive of the belt conveyor
5
. Into this vacant space in the second layer enters the ampoule
2
rolling down along the inclined surface
34
or the ampoule
2
of third layer. Thus, the ampoules
2
are reliably discharged without jam.
As it is clear from the above description, according to the present invention, the ampoule regulating member allows only the ampoules directly put on the belt to be conveyed. Since the stopper allows the ampoule to change its orientation, the direction of the ampoule can be changed in spite of simple construction.
Although the present invention has been fully described by way of the examples with reference to the accompanying drawing, it is to be noted that various changes and modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Therefore, unless such changes and modifications otherwise depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention, they should be construed as being included therein.
Claims
- 1. An ampoule storage container for storing a plurality of ampoules in a laterally orientated state with respect to a discharge direction and discharging the ampoule one by one, the ampoule storage container comprising:a belt conveyor for conveying the ampoule in the laterally orientated state; an ampoule regulating member disposed above a belt of the belt conveyor, the ampoule regulating member forming a gap through which only one of the ampoule can pass; and a stopper which comes into contact with the one end of the ampoule passing through the gap so that the ampoule can be changed to a longitudinally orientated state.
- 2. The ampoule storage container as in claim 1, wherein further comprising:a press contact member which comes into contact with the upper surface of the ampoule which is discharged passing through the gap.
- 3. The ampoule storage container as in claim 1, wherein the belt of the belt conveyor is formed with a plurality of protrusions in a predetermined distance so that the protrusion can engage with the ampoule to convey the ampoule to the discharge direction, whereby the protrusion passes under the ampoule when the ampoule become impossible to be conveyed.
- 4. The ampoule storage container as in claim 1, wherein the belt of the belt conveyor is formed with a plurality of recesses in a predetermined distance so that the recess can engage with the ampoule to convey the ampoule to the discharge direction, whereby a belt portion between the adjacent recesses passes under the ampoule when the ampoule become impossible to be conveyed.
- 5. The ampoule storage container as in claim 2, wherein the press contact member is provided with a friction generating member for coming into contact with the ampoule to generate a friction.
- 6. The ampoule storage container as in claim 2, wherein the press contact member comprises an elastic member.
- 7. The ampoule storage container as in claim 2, wherein the press contact member is urged by an elastic member in a direction that the press contact member comes into contact with the ampoule.
- 8. The ampoule storage container as in claim 1, further comprising a projection plate that comes into contact with the ampoule of the second layer positioned at a lead position in the ampoule discharge direction.
- 9. The ampoule storage container as in claim 1, wherein the lower edge of the projection plate is positioned between a center line that is obtained by connecting the centers of the plurality of ampoules of the second layer and a tangential line that is obtained by connecting the outer top surfaces of the plurality of ampoules of the second layer.
- 10. The ampoule storage container as in claim 8, wherein the lower edge of the projection plate is positioned just above the center line.
- 11. The ampoule storage container as in claim 1, wherein the belt conveyor is inclined downward to the discharge direction of the ampoule.
Priority Claims (2)
Number |
Date |
Country |
Kind |
2001-344438 |
Nov 2001 |
JP |
|
2001-368859 |
Dec 2001 |
JP |
|
US Referenced Citations (2)
Number |
Name |
Date |
Kind |
3332531 |
Chaney |
Jul 1967 |
A |
4413556 |
Ackley |
Nov 1983 |
A |
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
10-192369 |
Jul 1998 |
JP |