U.S. patent application number 13/367860 was filed with the patent office on 2012-07-26 for rotary pan.
This patent application is currently assigned to I.M.A. INDUSTRIA MACCHINE AUTOMATICHE S.P.A.. Invention is credited to NICOLA GANDOLFI, ROBERTO TREBBI.
Application Number | 20120186516 13/367860 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 36997705 |
Filed Date | 2012-07-26 |
United States Patent
Application |
20120186516 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
GANDOLFI; NICOLA ; et
al. |
July 26, 2012 |
ROTARY PAN
Abstract
Described is a rotary pan (1) of the type comprising a central
hollow cylindrical body (3) with end portions (4, 4') shaped
substantially like truncated cones, and mixing/deflecting means (7)
attached to at least one inside surface of the pan (1) itself; the
peripheral inside cylindrical surface (5) of the hollow body (3)
comprises an extended zone (A) defined by a uniform distribution of
through holes (6) and at least one zone (B) within the zone (A)
forming an area by which the mixing/deflecting means (7) are
attached or fixed to the peripheral surface (5).
Inventors: |
GANDOLFI; NICOLA; (BOLOGNA,
IT) ; TREBBI; ROBERTO; (CASTENASO, IT) |
Assignee: |
I.M.A. INDUSTRIA MACCHINE
AUTOMATICHE S.P.A.
OZZANO EMILIA (BOLOGNA)
IT
|
Family ID: |
36997705 |
Appl. No.: |
13/367860 |
Filed: |
February 7, 2012 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
|
|
|
|
|
|
Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
11910366 |
Oct 1, 2007 |
8132528 |
|
|
PCT/IB2006/000994 |
Apr 7, 2006 |
|
|
|
13367860 |
|
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
118/500 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B01J 2/12 20130101; B01J
2/14 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
118/500 |
International
Class: |
B05C 13/00 20060101
B05C013/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Apr 13, 2005 |
EP |
05425211.9 |
Claims
1. A rotary pan comprising a central hollow cylindrical body with
end portions shaped like truncated cones, and mixing/deflecting
means attached to at least one inside surface of the pan; the pan
being rotatable about a horizontal axis of rotation which runs
through the center of the cylindrical body, the pan being adapted
to and effective to apply a coating to a plurality of products
being tumbled inside the pan when the pan is rotated about the
horizontal axis of rotation, a peripheral inside cylindrical
surface of the central hollow cylindrical body comprising an
extended zone defined by a uniform distribution of through holes,
said extended zone including at least one zone within the extended
zone without holes in it and forming an area at which the
mixing/deflecting means is attached or fixed to the peripheral
inside cylindrical surface so that, when the pan is rotated, the
mixing/deflecting means effectively deflects tumbling product away
from the inside cylindrical surface and closer to the horizontal
axis, and the mixing/deflecting means comprising at least two
separate and distinct fins, each fin being rigidly fixed or
connected along its full length and covering a respective zone
without holes, said two fins being discontinuous wherein
discontinuous means not touching each other.
2. (canceled)
3. The rotary pan according to claim 1, wherein the at least one
zone has a substantially oblong shape.
4. (canceled)
5. The rotary pan according to claim 1, wherein each fin comprises
a helical profile.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] This invention relates to a rotary pan.
[0002] In particular, the present invention can be advantageously
applied to the field of machinery and equipment for coating
pharmaceutical products such as tablets, pastilles and hard gelatin
capsules of the type with lid and body which contain pharmaceutical
material in powder or liquid form, which the present specification
expressly refers to but without restricting the scope of the
invention.
BACKGROUND ART
[0003] At present, pharmaceutical products are coated with
materials of various kinds, for example a liquid substance, using a
hollow drum or rotary pan consisting basically of a hollow
cylindrical body having end portions shaped substantially like
truncated cones. The products to be coated are placed inside the
drum and a coating solution is applied to them, for example by
spraying.
[0004] The drum is rotated continuously so as to mix the products
well and a stream or flow of air is circulated inside the drum in
order to dry the solution to form the product coating.
[0005] At present, drums or pans for coating units can be divided
broadly into two types.
[0006] In a first type of pan or drum, known in the trade as a
Pellegrini pan, the air used for drying purposes is circulated by
means of a pair of perforated tubes which are mounted at an angle
inside the pan and which, in use, are partly immersed in the mass
of products being coated. The inside surfaces of the pan have
mixing blades mounted on them to improve the mixing effect while
the pan is rotated.
[0007] Rotary drums or pans of this kind have been used in product
coating devices for some time with excellent results, especially if
the speed at which the pan is rotated is not too high.
[0008] In the second known type of coating pan, the central body of
the hollow pan has a plurality of holes distributed on its
cylindrical surface, through which the air used to dry the coating
material flows. The deflecting/mixing blades, on the other hand,
are located on both the truncated cone portions. Each blade is
fixed at one end to the wall of the pan and extends with its other
end towards the central cylindrical part.
[0009] This solution, however, suffers from a considerable
drawback, especially when the pan is rotated at high speeds and
that is, that the projecting blades are not able to mix the product
very effectively, which means that many of the products are not
properly coated and must be rejected.
[0010] In addition, the projecting configuration of the
deflecting/mixing blades makes it difficult to clean the pan,
especially because product fragments tend to accumulate in corners
and recesses where the blades are attached to the pan and which are
difficult to see and access.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
[0011] The present invention therefore has for an aim to provide a
rotary pan that overcomes the drawbacks of prior art described
above.
[0012] This invention accordingly provides a rotary pan of the type
comprising a central hollow cylindrical body with end portions
shaped substantially like truncated cones, and mixing/deflecting
means attached to at least one inside surface of the pan itself;
the pan being characterised in that the peripheral inside
cylindrical surface of the hollow body comprises an extended zone
defined by a uniform distribution of through holes and at least one
zone within said extended zone forming an area by which the
mixing/deflecting means are attached or fixed to the peripheral
surface.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] The technical characteristics of the invention are clearly
described in the claims below and its advantages are apparent from
the detailed description which follows, with reference to the
accompanying drawings which illustrate a preferred embodiment of
the invention provided merely by way of example without restricting
the scope of the inventive concept, and in which:
[0014] FIG. 1 is a schematic side view in cross section and with
some parts cut away for clarity, of a preferred embodiment of a
rotary pan according to the present invention, used in a product
coating device;
[0015] FIG. 2 is a front view in cross section of the rotary pan of
FIG. 1; and
[0016] FIG. 3 is a perspective view in cross section of the rotary
pan of FIGS. 1 and 2.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE
INVENTION
[0017] With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, the numeral 1 denotes a
hollow drum or pan forming an integral part of a device for coating
products, preferably pharmaceutical products with a coating
material consisting. for example, of a powder or liquid
substance.
[0018] The pan 1 is designed to rotate continuously about a
horizontal axis of rotation 2 under the action of drive means
(known and not illustrated) and consists basically of a central
hollow cylindrical body 3 with end portions 4 and 4' shaped
substantially like truncated cones (FIGS. 1 and 3). The products to
be coated are placed inside the central body 3 and the coating
solution is applied to them, for example by spraying.
[0019] As better illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 3, the peripheral
inside cylindrical surface 5 of the hollow body 3 comprises an
extended zone A defined by a uniform distribution of through holes
6 and a distribution of zones B substantially oblong in shape,
preferably without holes in them, and variously arranged over the
surface 5.
[0020] Each oblong zone B within the perforated zone A forms an
area by which a mixing/deflecting fin 7 designed to mix the mass of
products as the pan 1 rotates about the axis 2, is attached or
fixed.
[0021] More specifically, each fin 7 is rigidly fixed or connected
along its full length to the surface 5, exactly covering a
respective zone B, and comprises a substantially helical profile 8,
as well illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3.
[0022] A rotary pan 1 of this type offers the following important
advantages:
[0023] optimum and effective mixing of the product inside the pan 1
even when the pan 1 rotates at high speeds and/or contains large
quantities of product, thanks also to the advantageous helical
profile 8 of the fins 7 themselves;
[0024] ease of cleaning/washing the inside of the pan 1 during
maintenance and/or when changing over to a different product,
especially in the areas where the mixing/deflecting fins 7 are
attached to the cylindrical surface 5 of the central body 3, thus
preventing product fragments from accumulating.
[0025] The invention described can be modified and adapted in
several ways without thereby departing from the scope of the
inventive concept. Moreover, all the technical details of the
invention may be substituted by technically equivalent
elements.
* * * * *