Patent Grant
10124580
The present invention relates to a tablet printing apparatus which performs printing of characters, marks, pictures and the like on a surface of a tablet conveyed by a conveyor belt.
Conventionally, a solid preparation printing apparatus (tablet printing apparatus) described in Patent Literature 1 has been known. The solid preparation printing apparatus includes a printer, which performs printing (transfer) by a transfer roller, and the printer performs printing of characters, marks and the like on surfaces of solid preparations (tablets) sequentially conveyed by a conveyor (conveyor belt). In the conveyor, pockets having a minute hole are arranged in the conveying direction of the conveyor. With the movement of the conveyor with solid preparations accommodated in the pockets of the conveyor, the solid preparations are sequentially conveyed. An air suction part, which sucks air through the minute hole formed in each pocket, is disposed on the back side of a portion of the conveyor which opposedly faces the transfer roller. By an air suction effect of the air suction part, the solid preparation accommodated in each pocket is fixed in the pocket at the portion of the conveyor opposedly facing the transfer roller. By fixing the solid preparation as described above, the transfer roller can transfer (print) characters, marks and the like on the solid preparation accommodated in each pocket without misalignment. Then, an ink transferred to surfaces of respective solid preparations is dried by a hot air dryer disposed on the downstream side of the printer in the conveying direction along which solid preparations are conveyed.
By taking into account ease of changing characters or marks, and hygiene, an ink ejection printer (so-called inkjet printer), which performs printing in a non-contact manner, may be used in place of a printer using the transfer roller. The inkjet printer includes an inkjet head equipped with a plurality of nozzles for ejecting ink droplets. The inkjet printer ejects ink droplets from the plurality of nozzles of the inkjet head in accordance with a pattern based on printing data thus performing printing on a surface of a tablet.
As in the case of the above-mentioned conventional solid preparation printing apparatus, in feeding tablets onto a conveyor belt, the tablets may be fed onto a surface of the conveyor belt by dropping the tablets from above the conveyor belt.
When a tablet is fed onto a conveyance system by dropping as described above, it is quite difficult to fix the posture of the tablet. For example, the tablet may be held in a pocket or by a suction system in an inclined state. When printing is performed on a tablet with such an inclined posture by an inkjet printer, which performs printing in a non-contact manner, printed characters, marks or pictures may be displaced from a desired position.
The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a tablet printing apparatus and a tablet printing method that can perform printing with high quality by ejecting ink droplets from a plurality of nozzles to a tablet with an inclined posture.
A tablet printing apparatus according to the present invention includes: an inclined posture detector that detects an inclined posture of a conveyed tablet with respect to a conveying surface; a printer including an inkjet head equipped with a plurality of nozzles for ejecting an ink droplet, the printer performing printing on the conveyed tablet by ejecting ink to the conveyed tablet from the plurality of nozzles; and a printing data adjuster that adjusts preset printing data in accordance with the inclined posture of the tablet detected by the inclined posture detector such that predetermined printing is performed on the tablet, wherein the printer performs printing on the tablet based on printing data adjusted by the printing data adjuster.
A tablet printing method according to the present invention includes: an inclined posture detecting step of detecting an inclined posture of a conveyed tablet with respect to a conveying surface; a printing step of performing printing on the tablet by ejecting ink to the conveyed tablet from a plurality of nozzles of an inkjet head; and a printing data adjusting step of adjusting preset printing data in accordance with the inclined posture of the tablet detected in the inclined posture detecting step such that predetermined printing is performed on the table, wherein in the printing step, printing is performed based on printing data adjusted in the printing data adjusting step.
With such a configuration, an inclined posture of a conveyed tablet with respect to the conveying surface is detected, printing data is adjusted in accordance with the inclined posture of the tablet such that predetermined printing is performed on the tablet, and printing is performed on the tablet in accordance with the adjusted printing data by ejecting ink from the plurality of nozzles.
According to the tablet printing apparatus and the tablet printing method of the present invention, printing data is adjusted in accordance with the inclined posture of a conveyed tablet such that predetermined printing is performed on the tablet, and printing is performed on the tablet in accordance with the adjusted printing data by ejecting ink from the plurality of nozzles, so printing can be performed with high quality by ejecting ink droplets to the tablet with a various posture from the plurality of nozzles.
Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
A tablet which is a print target of a tablet printing apparatus according to the present invention is described by taking, as one example, a tablet Tb which has a perfect circular shape as viewed in a plan view, and has curved surfaces. However, the tablet may include pills and tablets such as a non-coated tablet (uncoated tablet), a sugar-coated tablet, a film-coated tablet (FC tablet), an enteric coated tablet, a gelatin-coated tablet, a multilayered tablet, and a dry coated tablet, and may also include capsules such as a hard capsule and a soft capsule. A tablet may be used for any purpose such as medicine, food, detergent, and industrial use.
The tablet printing apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention is configured as shown in
Each of the first vibrating feeder 12a and the second vibrating feeder 12b has a structure where a vibrator is provided to a trough-like conveyor path, for example. Tablets Tb sequentially fed from the hopper 11 are sequentially moved toward the alignment feeder 14 through the conveyor path by the vibration. The alignment feeder 14 has a structure where an alignment guide is disposed on a conveyor path. The alignment feeder 14 divides the tablets Tb into two rows, for example, using the alignment guide, and sequentially conveys the tablets Tb in the respective rows toward the second transfer feeder 16. Each of the first transfer feeder 13 and the second transfer feeder 16 has a structure where a gas permeable conveyor belt is wound around two pulleys not shown in the drawing, and a suction chamber, to which a suction device not shown in the drawing is connected, is formed inside the conveyor belt. In the first transfer feeder 13, the conveyor belt conveys the tablets Tb from the first vibrating feeder 12b while receiving the tablets Tb by the suction effect of the suction chamber, and transfers the tablets Tb to the alignment feeder 14 at a position where the suction effect of the suction chamber no longer acts. In the second transfer feeder 16, the conveyor belt conveys the tablets Tb from the alignment feeder 14 while sucking the tablets Tb by the suction effect of the suction chamber, and transfers the tablets Tb to the first conveyor 17 at a position where the suction effect of the suction chamber no longer acts.
The first conveyor 17 has a structure where a conveyor belt 171 is wound around a drive pulley 172, a tension pulley 173, and two adjustment pulleys 174a, 174b. As shown in
The tablet printing apparatus uses an inkjet printer. The inkjet printer includes an inkjet head equipped with a plurality of nozzles for ejecting ink droplets, and causes energy generating elements, such as piezoelectric elements and thermal elements, to be driven in accordance with printing data thus ejecting ink droplets from the respective nozzles so as to perform printing. An inkjet head (referred to as “first inkjet head”) 21 of the inkjet printer, a first tablet posture sensor unit 23 formed of two laser displacement sensors 23a, 23b (see
As described previously, tablets Tb arranged in two rows by the alignment feeder 14 are fed onto the conveyor belt 171 of the first conveyor 17 by way of the second transfer feeder 16. In this case, in an actual apparatus, to perform printing on the respective tablets Tb in two rows on the conveyor belt 171, two sets of components are provided so as to correspond to the tablets Tb in two rows. Each set of components is formed of the above-mentioned first inkjet head 21, first tablet posture sensor unit 23, first posture check camera 24, first print check camera 25, two air injection nozzles 26a, 26b, first dryer 27, and two collection trays 28a, 28b. These two sets of components perform the same operation and hence, hereinafter, the description is made with respect to one set.
The first inkjet head 21 (a plurality of nozzles) is disposed so as to opposedly face the surface of the conveyor belt 171 at a print position Pp. The first tablet posture sensor unit 23 outputs a detection signal based on an inclined posture of a tablet Tb with respect to the surface of the conveyor belt 171 at a tablet detection position Pd, which is set at a predetermined position on the upstream side of the print position Pp in the moving direction D of the conveyor belt 171 (the conveying direction D along which tablets Tb are conveyed). Further, a detection signal from the first tablet posture sensor unit 23 can be used as a signal indicating presence or absence of a tablet Tb on the conveyor belt 171 at the tablet detection position Pd. A shooting region of the first posture check camera 24 includes a predetermined area defined between the above-mentioned print position Pp and tablet detection position Pd on the conveyor belt 171. A shooting region of the first print check camera 25 is set to a predetermined area on the downstream side of the print position Pp in the moving direction D of the conveyor belt 171 (the conveying direction D along which tablets Tb are conveyed). The two air injection nozzles 26a, 26b and the two collection trays 28a, 28b are disposed on the lower side of the suction chamber 175 so as to sandwich the conveyor belt 171 made to extend between the drive pulley 172 and the adjustment pulley 174b. Further, at a predetermined position on the upstream side of the collection trays 28a, 28b, the first dryer 27 is disposed so as to opposedly face the conveyor belt 171.
As shown in
In
Returning to
In the tablet printing apparatus having the above-mentioned structure, characters or marks are sequentially printed on surfaces of tablets Tb as follows under control of a print controller 100.
Tablets Tb are sequentially fed from the hopper 11, and move through the first vibrating feeder 12a and the second vibrating feeder 12b. Then, the tablets Tb are transferred to the alignment feeder 14 by the first transfer feeder 13. The tablets Tb are arranged in two rows, for example, by the alignment feeder 14, and are sequentially transferred to the first conveyor 17 by the second transfer feeder 16. The tablets Tb sequentially transferred to the first conveyor 17 by the second transfer feeder 16 are sequentially conveyed in a state where the tablets Tb are held by suction on the conveyor belt 171 in two rows (see
In the first conveyor 17, a tablet Tb (positioned at the tablet detection position Pd) is detected on the basis of detection signals from the first tablet posture sensor unit 23 (the laser displacement sensors 23a, 23b) while tablets Tb in the respective rows are being conveyed. After this, positions of the detected tablet Tb, where the tablet detection position Pd is a starting point, is identified on the basis of values of the first encoder 45 by a print controller 100. For example, based on the detection result from either of the laser displacement sensors 23a, 23b which detects the tablet Tb before the other, the print controller 100 identifies the position of the tablet Tb. When the tablet Tb passes through an area below the first tablet posture sensor unit 23, the print controller 100 also generates inclined posture information indicating an inclined posture of the tablet Tb based on detection signals respectively outputted from the right laser displacement sensor 23a and the left laser displacement sensor 23b of the first tablet posture sensor unit 23 (inclined posture information generator). The inclined posture of the tablet Tb means an inclination of the tablet Tb with respect to the surface of the conveyor belt 171. Detection signals outputted from the right laser displacement sensor 23a and the left laser displacement sensor 23b vary in accordance with the inclined posture of the tablet Tb. These right laser displacement sensor 23a and left laser displacement sensor 23b (optical displacement sensors) and the print controller 100 having a function of generating the inclined posture information form inclined posture detector. The description of the generation of inclined posture information is made later in detail.
When a tablet Tb enters the shooting region of the first posture check camera 24, the first posture check camera 24 takes a picture of a predetermined photographing area. The print controller 100 determines presence or absence of stains or damage such as chipping on the tablet Tb based on an image obtained by taking a picture of the photographing area using the first posture check camera 24. Further, the print controller 100 generates plane posture information indicating a planar posture of the tablet Tb determined to have no damage on the conveyor belt 171 (the planar posture including a posture such as the front or back side of the tablet Tb, the position of the tablet Tb on the conveyor belt 171, and the direction of the tablet Tb held on the belt). The print controller 100 adjusts printing data, which corresponds to a tablet Tb in a reference posture, based on the plane posture information and inclined posture information such that predetermined printing is performed on the tablet Tb in an actual plane posture and an actual inclined posture (printing data adjuster). In this embodiment, the reference posture of a tablet Tb means a posture where, for example, the printing direction of characters or marks to be printed on the tablet Tb extends in the direction orthogonal to the conveying direction, the center position of the tablet Tb aligns with the line CL along which the through holes 176 are arranged in a row, and the tablet Tb is not inclined with respect to the surface of the conveyor belt 171. Print data which corresponds to the reference posture is preset. The adjustment of the printing data is performed by adjusting predetermined printing data such that printing equal to printing performed on a tablet Tb in a reference posture, which is a predetermined posture, is performed on a tablet Tb in an actual plane posture and an actual inclined posture.
For example, as shown in
A distance between the inkjet head 21 and a printing surface also varies depending on the inclination of a tablet Tb. To cope with such variation in distance, conditions for ejecting ink droplets are adjusted. For example, when the tablet Tb is inclined with respect to the reference posture, printing data is adjusted such that the ejection amount of ink droplet to a portion of a tablet Tb close to the inkjet head 21 is reduced, while the ejection amount of ink droplet to a portion of the tablet Tb where a distance from the inkjet head 21 is increased by the inclination of the tablet Tb is increased. By performing such adjustments, the printing data is adjusted such that a small amount of ink droplet is deposited onto a position close to the inkjet head 21, while a large amount of ink droplet is deposited onto a position where a distance from the inkjet head 21 is increased by the inclination of the tablet Tb. Accordingly, a normal printing state of the whole tablet Tb can be achieved. This is because even when a distance between the inkjet head 21 and the printing surface is increased, an ejection amount of ink droplet is increased so as to increase a weight of the ink droplet whereby it is possible to cause the ink droplet to be deposited onto a scheduled depositing position with certainty. The adjustment of the ejection amount is performed by the adjustment of a driving amount of an energy generating element such as a piezoelectric element and a thermal element. For example, a voltage to be applied to the piezoelectric element is adjusted. With respect to the adjustment of the ejection amount, it is not always necessary to adjust an ejection amount of ink droplet to a portion of a tablet Tb close to the inkjet head 21, and it may be possible to adjust only an ejection amount of ink droplet to a portion where a distance from the inkjet head 21 is increased by the inclination of the tablet Tb.
A dot pitch of ink droplets which are ejected from the plurality of nozzles of the inkjet head 21 and deposited onto a printing surface also varies depending on an inclined state of a tablet. For example, a dot pitch of ink droplets deposited onto a plane is substantially equal to an interval of the nozzles. However, a dot pitch of ink droplets deposited onto an inclined surface is larger than the interval of the nozzles when viewed from the direction of the inclined surface. Accordingly, nozzles for ejecting ink droplets are selected by taking into account such points so that a dot pitch of ink droplets to be deposited onto a tablet is adjusted. With such an adjustment, even when printing is performed on an inclined tablet, when viewing the tablet in a non-inclined state, it is possible to bring about a printing state substantially equal to a printing state obtained by performing printing on a tablet in a non-inclined state.
When the tablet Tb determined to have no damage passes through the print position Pp, the print controller 100 controls an ejection pattern of ink droplets ejected from the plurality of nozzles of the first inkjet head 21 (selection of nozzles for ejecting ink, an ink ejection amount and the like) in accordance with printing data adjusted as described above. As a result, when the tablet Tb passes through the print position Pp, characters, marks or the like are printed on a predetermined position of the surface of the tablet Tb with a predetermined direction.
Further, when the tablet Tb on which the printing has been performed (the tablet Tb which passes through the print position Pp) enters the shooting region of the first print check camera 25, the first print check camera 25 takes a picture of a predetermined photographing area. The print controller 100 determines whether or not the characters or the marks are normally printed on the tablet Tb based on an image obtained by taking a picture of the photographing area using the first print check camera 25. Then, the print controller 100 thereafter tracks the positions (based on values from the first encoder 45) of the tablet Tb which is determined that printing is not normally performed.
The printed tablet Tb which has passed through the shooting region of the first print check camera 25 is conveyed along with the movement of the conveyor belt 171. When the tablet Tb is conveyed while opposedly facing the first dryer 27, ink of the characters or the marks printed on the surface of the tablet Tb is dried (fixed). Assume a tablet Tb where the tablet Tb has damage such as chipping so that printing is not performed on the tablet Tb so that the position of the tablet Tb is tracked by the print controller 100. When such a tablet Tb arrives at a position which opposedly faces one air injection nozzle 26a, the tablet Tb is blown off the conveyor belt 171 by air injected from the air injection nozzle 26a thus being collected into the collection tray 28a. Assume a tablet Tb where the tablet Tb has no damage such as chipping, but printing is not normally performed on the tablet Tb so that the position of the tablet Tb is tracked by the print controller 100. When such a tablet Tb arrives at a position which opposedly faces the other air injection nozzle 26b, the tablet Tb is blown off the conveyor belt 171 by air injected from the air injection nozzle 26b thus being collected into the other collection tray 28b.
A tablet Tb where characters or marks are normally printed on a surface of the tablet Tb is conveyed along with the movement of the conveyor belt 171, and drops onto the conveyor belt 181 of the second conveyor 18 from the conveyor belt 171 at a position where the suction effect of the suction chamber 175 no longer acts. In such a manner, the tablet Tb where printing is normally performed on the surface of the tablet Tb is transferred from the first conveyor 17 to the second conveyor 18. That is, the tablet Tb is transferred in an upside down state where a surface of the tablet Tb on which printing has been performed is disposed on the conveyor belt 181 side.
Also in the second conveyor 18, in the same manner as the first conveyor 17, with respect to tablets Tb sequentially conveyed along with the movement of the conveyor belt 181, the print controller 100 performs a control of: position tracking based on a value from the second encoder 46 which uses a timing, at which a detection signal is outputted from the second tablet posture sensor unit 33 (tablet detection position Pd), as a starting point; generation of inclined posture information and plane posture information; adjustment of printing data based on the inclined posture information and the plane posture information; printing of characters, marks or the like on a rear surface (a surface on a side opposite to a surface on which printing has been performed in the first conveyor 17) of each tablet Tb by the second inkjet head 31 (positioned at the print position Pp) based on the adjusted printing data; drying of ink of the characters or the marks printed on the tablet Tb by the second dryer 37; collection of a tablet Tb having damage into the collection tray 38a by the air injection nozzle 36a; and collection of a tablet Tb having a printing defect into the collection tray 38b by the air injection nozzle 36b. Tablets Tb where printing has been normally performed drop and are accommodated into the storage tray 40 at a position where the suction effect of the suction chamber 185 no longer acts.
The principle of the generation of the above-mentioned inclined posture information is described.
An output signal from the first tablet posture sensor unit 23 varies depending on a distance between a laser beam emission surface and a surface of a tablet Tb. The shorter the distance, the higher a value of an output signal becomes. For example,
For example, assume a case where, as shown in
For example, assume a case where, as shown in
For example, assume a case where, as shown in
For example, assume a case where, as shown in
As described above, in the cases where a tablet Tb is not inclined (see
To be more specific, laterally inclined posture information indicating an inclination component in the direction orthogonal to the conveying direction D is calculated as a function of a value ((h1u−h2u)/W) obtained as follows. With respect to a value at a predetermined point which can be obtained from an output signal out1 from the right laser displacement sensor 23a (for example, a distance h1u at a rising point (see
Laterally inclined posture information=FT((h2u−h2u)/W)
For example, as shown in
In the output signal out1 from the right laser displacement sensor 23a and the output signal out2 from the left laser displacement sensor 23b, corresponding predetermined points are set to the rising points of the respective output signals out1, out2. However, the predetermined points are not limited to the rising points of the output signals. The predetermined points may be falling points of the respective output signals out1, out2 or other corresponding points.
Longitudinally inclined posture information indicating an inclination component in the conveying direction D is calculated as a function of a value ((h1u−h1d)/A1) obtained as follows. A value h1u (h2u) at a rising point and a value hid (h2d) which corresponds to a falling point are obtained from an output signal out1 from the right laser displacement sensor 23a or an output signal out2 from the left laser displacement sensor 23b, and a difference (h1u−h1d) between these values is obtained. The difference is divided by a width A1 (A2) from rising to falling of the output signal out1 from the right laser displacement sensor 23a. Then, the longitudinally inclined posture information is obtained as
Longitudinally inclined posture information=FL (h1u−h1d)/A1
For example, as shown in
As described above, the inclined posture information (the laterally inclined posture information and the longitudinally inclined posture information) is obtained based on the output signal out1 from the right laser displacement sensor 23a and the output signal out2 from the left laser displacement sensor 23b. Based on such inclined posture information, the print controller 100 (printing data adjuster) adjusts printing data such that the predetermined printing is performed on a tablet Tb as described above.
A conveyed tablet Tb may be displaced in the lateral direction on the conveyor belt 171 with respect to the conveying direction D as shown in
To solve such a problem, as shown in
By disposing two laser displacement sensors 23a, 23b as described above, even when a tablet Tb is largely displaced in the lateral direction, it is possible to prevent a laser beam from at least the left laser displacement sensor 23b from falling outside the tablet Tb. For example, as shown in
In the above-mentioned example, the first tablet posture sensor unit 23 is formed of two laser displacement sensors. However, the number of laser displacement sensors for forming the first tablet posture sensor unit 23 is not limited to two. For example, the first tablet posture sensor unit 23 may include a center laser displacement sensor (not shown in the drawing) between the right laser displacement sensor 23a and the left laser displacement sensor 23b.
In the above-mentioned example, the right laser displacement sensor 23a and the left laser displacement sensor 23b forming the first tablet posture sensor unit 23 are arranged in a row in the direction orthogonal to the conveying direction D. However, the arrangement of the right laser displacement sensor 23a and the left laser displacement sensor 23b is not limited to such an arrangement. For example, as shown in
In the above-mentioned example, the first tablet posture sensor unit 23 is formed of the two laser displacement sensors 23a, 23b. However, the components for forming the first tablet posture sensor unit 23 are not limited to such components. For example, as shown in
Further, as shown in
The number of laser displacement sensors forming the first tablet posture sensor unit 23 is not limited to the above-mentioned two or three, and may be four or more. Further, the first tablet posture sensor unit 23 may be formed of a single laser displacement sensor which scans a surface of a conveyed tablet Tb, with a linear laser beam in the direction crossing the conveying direction D (for example, the direction orthogonal to the conveying direction D).
In the above-mentioned example, tablets Tb are fed in two rows onto the conveyor belt 171 (181) (see
In the example described above, the plurality of laser displacement sensors (23a, 23b, 23c) are used so as to detect an inclined posture of a tablet Tb. However, a component used for detecting the inclined posture of the tablet Tb is not limited to the laser displacement sensors. A camera may be used for detecting the inclined posture of the tablet Tb. In this case, a separated camera may be used in place of the first tablet posture sensor unit 23. Further, the first posture check camera 24 used for detecting a plane posture of a tablet Tb may be used also for detecting an inclined posture of the tablet Tb.
A camera is installed above tablets Tb conveyed by the conveyor belt 171, and the camera takes a picture of the tablet Tb. Based on the image of the picture taken by the camera, the inclined posture information indicating an inclined posture of the tablet Tb can be generated. For example, with respect to a planar image of a tablet Tb which is obtained by taking a picture of the tablet Tb, defocus amounts at respective portions of the planar image are calculated based on contrasting density information. Based on the defocus amounts, the inclined posture information indicating an inclined posture of the tablet Tb can be generated. Further, for example, when the fact is utilized that a planar shape of a tablet Tb varies depending on a degree of inclination of the tablet Tb, the inclined posture information indicating an inclined posture of the tablet Tb can be generated based on a comparison result between a shape of the tablet Tb in a planar image obtained by taking a picture of the tablet Tb and a planar shape (reference planar shape) of the tablet Tb in a non-inclined state. When the fact is utilized that an intensity of reflection light differs depending on an inclination of the tablet Tb between a portion of the tablet Tb close to a camera and a portion of the tablet Tb separated from the camera by a distance, the inclined posture information indicating an inclined posture of a tablet can be also generated based on the contrasting density distribution in a planar image of the tablet Tb which is obtained by taking a picture of the tablet Tb. Further, a camera for taking a picture of a tablet Tb from the above and a camera for taking picture of the tablet Tb from the side are used and, based on a planar image and a side image of the tablet Tb obtained by taking pictures of the tablet Tb using these two cameras, inclined posture information indicating an inclined posture of the tablet Tb can be generated.
Further, with the use of a line sensor where a plurality of CCD elements are linearly arranged, an inclined posture of a tablet Tb can be detected. For example, the line sensor is installed at a predetermined position above the conveyor belt 171 so as to extend in the direction crossing the conveying direction D along which tablets Tb are conveyed (for example, the direction orthogonal to the conveying direction D), and sub scanning (scanning in the direction along which the CCD elements are arranged in a row) and main scanning (scanning in the opposite direction to the conveying direction D) are performed on conveyed tablets Tb. With such operations, a planar image can be obtained. Further, in the same manner as the case of the above-mentioned camera, an inclined posture of the tablet Tb can be detected from the planar image. That is, it is possible to generate inclined posture information.
In the example described above, damage of a tablet Tb is detected and, at the same time, a posture of the tablet Tb is checked by the first posture check camera 24. However, the configuration is not limited to such a configuration. For example, by making the right laser displacement sensor 23a and the left laser displacement sensor 23b detect the position of a tablet Tb, the first posture check camera 24 may be omitted. In the case where the left laser displacement sensor 23b is disposed as shown in
Assume the case where the position of a tablet Tb is detected by the first tablet posture sensor unit 23. In such a case, when a tablet inspection device is used in a step performed before to a step where the tablet printing apparatus described in the embodiment is used so as to inspect damage of a tablet Tb in advance, an inspection of damage performed before printing can be omitted. Accordingly, the first posture check camera 24 can be omitted.
A simple tablet printing apparatus based on the present invention may be installed in a pharmacy, for example. In this case, the tablet printing apparatus preferably includes a print information inputting portion. A pharmacist can input print information (printing data) to be printed on a tablet Tb into the print information inputting portion based on content described in a prescription. As information to be inputted in the print information inputting portion, the patient's name taking a tablet Tb, the patient's age, the number of tablets to be taken at one time, the times for the patient to take the tablet (morning, noon, before bed or the like), printing color and the like can be considered. The tablet printing apparatus performs printing on a tablet Tb based on these input information.
The embodiment of the present invention and modifications of respective parts are described heretofore. However, the embodiment and the modifications of the respective parts are merely given for the sake of example, and do not intend to limit the scope of the invention. The above-mentioned novel embodiment can be carried out in other various embodiments, and various omissions, replacements, and changes may be made thereto without departing from the gist of the invention.
These embodiments and modifications of the embodiments are also included in the scope and the gist of the invention, and are also included in the invention described in Claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-131796 | Jun 2015 | JP | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/JP2016/065893 | 5/30/2016 | WO | 00 |
| Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| WO2017/002502 | 1/5/2017 | WO | A |
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20140168309 | Morita | Jun 2014 | A1 |
| 20170297351 | Fujioka | Oct 2017 | A1 |
| Number | Date | Country |
|---|---|---|
| H6-143539 | May 1994 | JP |
| 2011-125835 | Jun 2011 | JP |
| 2013-13711 | Jan 2013 | JP |
| 2012169391 | Dec 2012 | WO |
| Entry |
|---|
| International Search Report for International Application No. PCT/JP2016/065893 dated Aug. 16, 2016. |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20180194132 A1 | Jul 2018 | US |
