U.S. patent application number 14/265956 was filed with the patent office on 2014-10-30 for apparatus and method for counting and filling.
This patent application is currently assigned to YUNITEC Inc.. The applicant listed for this patent is YUNITEC Inc.. Invention is credited to Akira ISHIZUKA.
Application Number | 20140318086 14/265956 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 51788055 |
Filed Date | 2014-10-30 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140318086 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
ISHIZUKA; Akira |
October 30, 2014 |
APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR COUNTING AND FILLING
Abstract
The object of the present invention is to provide a method and
apparatus for counting and filling, which allows materials to be
counted to be supplied smoothly from a hopper to a transport
mechanism, and is hardly influenced by the shape of the materials
to be counted, and further has a simple configuration. The counting
and filling apparatus aligns the materials to be counted through a
guide route of a delivery mechanism, delivers the materials to a
transport route of a transport mechanism, transports, counts, and
fills the materials, and is configured to include the spiral groove
rod disposed from the guide route to the transport route, and an
adjusting unit which allows the materials supported in spiral
grooves of the spiral groove rod to pass from the guide route to
the transport route, and prevents passing of the materials
overlapped on the spiral groove rod.
Inventors: |
ISHIZUKA; Akira; (Saitama,
JP) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
YUNITEC Inc. |
Saitama |
|
JP |
|
|
Assignee: |
YUNITEC Inc.
Saitama
JP
|
Family ID: |
51788055 |
Appl. No.: |
14/265956 |
Filed: |
April 30, 2014 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
53/475 ;
53/244 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65B 65/006 20130101;
B65B 37/10 20130101; B65B 5/103 20130101; B65B 57/20 20130101; B65B
35/26 20130101; B65B 35/06 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
53/475 ;
53/244 |
International
Class: |
B65B 65/08 20060101
B65B065/08; B65B 35/12 20060101 B65B035/12; B65B 5/10 20060101
B65B005/10 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Apr 30, 2013 |
JP |
2013-095838 |
Feb 24, 2014 |
JP |
2014-032965 |
Claims
1. A counting and filling apparatus, which aligns materials to be
counted in a guide route while changing postures of the materials
to be counted by a delivery mechanism provided below a supply port
of a hopper, and delivers the materials to a transport route of a
transport mechanism which has a guide rod and a spiral groove rod
continuing to the guide route, and then transports, counts, and
fills the materials into a container, wherein the transport
mechanism includes the spiral groove rod which is disposed from the
guide route to the transport route, and a lateral guide portion
which is provided facing to a base end side of the spiral groove
rod and along the axis of the guide rod, and forms the guide route,
and wherein the counting and filling apparatus includes, between
the supply port and the transport route, an adjusting unit which is
provided so as to pass the materials supported via the lateral
guide portion in the spiral grooves from the guide route to the
transport route, and so as to prevent the materials excessively
overlapped on the spiral groove rod or on the other materials from
passing to the transport route and allow the materials to wait
along the guide route.
2. The counting and filling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein
the delivery mechanism includes a rotating roller, which is
provided above the lateral guide portion, the rotation axis of the
rotating roller being in parallel to the longitudinal direction of
the lateral guide portion, and is capable of changing the postures
of the materials to be counted, and a central guide portion which
is provided above the base end side of the spiral groove rod, and
faces the rotating rotor so as to make a space which is the guide
route to align the materials to be counted, and wherein the
rotating rotor is provided to rotate via a drive motor in a
direction opposite to a falling direction of the materials to be
counted which fall by their own weight along the guide route.
3. The counting and filling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein
the adjusting unit includes a frame-front side wall which is
provided on a tip end side of the rotating roller, and frame-left
and right side walls which support the left and the right of the
frame-front side wall and are continuous from the supply port,
wherein the frame-front side wall and the frame-left and right side
walls constitute a partition frame portion which is disposed so as
to surround the guide route which is a space between the rotating
roller and a central guide portion, wherein the materials to be
counted, which are not delivered to the spiral grooves from the
supply port of the hopper via the delivery mechanism, are allowed
to wait in a region including the guide route in a range surrounded
by the partition frame portion, and wherein the frame-front side
wall is disposed at a position that allows passing of the materials
to be counted which are sent while being supported in the spiral
grooves, and prevents passing of the materials which are
excessively overlapped on the spiral groove rod or on the other
materials to be counted.
4. The counting and filling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein
the adjusting unit includes a shield-rotating plate which is
provided to be larger than the diameter of the rotating roller at
the tip end of the rotating roller, a frame-front side wall which
is provided along the shield-rotating plate, and frame-left and
right side walls which support the left and the right of the
frame-front side wall and are continuous from the supply port,
wherein the frame-front side wall, the shield-rotating plate, and
the frame-left and right side walls constitute a partition frame
portion which is disposed so as to surround the guide route which
is a space between the rotating roller and a central guide portion,
wherein the materials to be counted, which are not delivered to the
spiral grooves from the supply port of the hopper via the delivery
mechanism, are allowed to wait in a region including the guide
route in a range surrounded by the partition frame portion, and
wherein the shield-rotating plate is disposed at a position that
allows passing of the materials to be counted which are sent while
being supported in the spiral grooves, and prevents passing of the
materials which are excessively overlapped on the spiral groove rod
or on the other materials to be counted.
5. The counting and filling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein
the adjusting unit constitutes side walls of a partition frame
portion, which is disposed so as to surround the guide route at a
position adjacent to the supply port and above the delivery
mechanism, by a frame-front side wall which is provided between the
guide route and the transport route, a shield-rotating plate which
is provided along the frame-front side wall, and frame-left and
right side walls which are provided to support the frame-front side
wall and are continuous from the supply port of the hopper, wherein
the delivery mechanism includes, below the supply port and the
partition frame portion, a regulating unit which regulates a guide
route width for guiding the materials to be counted to the spiral
grooves which are on the base end side of the spiral groove rod,
and a posture changing unit which is disposed along the guide
route, wherein the regulating unit includes, below the supply port
and the partition frame portion, a central guide portion which is
disposed just above the spiral groove rod, and the lateral guide
portion which is provided to be opposed to a lateral side of the
spiral groove rod, and guides the materials to be counted to the
spiral groove rod, wherein the posture changing unit includes,
above the lateral guide portion, a rotating roller which is
provided to be opposed to the central guide portion across the
guide route on a lateral side of the central guide portion, and a
rotation drive unit which rotates the rotating roller in a
direction different from a falling direction of the materials to be
counted, wherein a notch portion for rotating the shield-rotating
plate is formed on at least one of the frame-front side wall and
the frame-left and right side walls, and wherein the
shield-rotating plate is provided on a tip end side in the
longitudinal direction of the rotating roller, and allows passing
of the materials to be counted which are sent while being supported
in the spiral grooves, while preventing passing of the materials to
be counted which are excessively overlapped on the spiral groove
rod or on the other materials to be counted.
6. The counting and filling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein
the lateral guide portion is a lateral guide block, which is
disposed to face the rotating roller, and is disposed to face the
base end side of the spiral groove rod, for guiding the materials
to be counted to the spiral grooves of the spiral groove rod, and
wherein the guide rod forms a groove portion which does not come
into contact with an outer peripheral edge of the shield-rotating
plate at an end portion in the longitudinal direction of the
lateral guide block, and is connected to the end portion of the
lateral guide block.
7. The counting and filling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein
the lateral guide portion is a guide portion which is provided on a
circumferential surface of the guide rod, and a surface thereof
facing the spiral groove rod is formed in a plane, and wherein the
guide rod forms a groove portion which does not come into contact
with an outer peripheral edge of the shield-rotating plate at a
position corresponding to a tip end portion in the longitudinal
direction of the guide portion.
8. The counting and filling apparatus according to claim 6,
comprising: a first support holder which includes, on a base, a
first tip end support holder for rotatably and detachably
supporting a tip end of the spiral groove rod, and a first base end
support holder for rotatably and detachably supporting a base end
of the spiral groove rod; and a second support holder which
includes, at a position adjacent to the first support holder on the
base, a second tip end support holder for detachably supporting the
tip end of the guide rod, and a second base end support holder for
rotatably supporting a base end in the longitudinal direction of
the rotating roller as well as detachably supporting a base end of
the lateral guide block connected to a base end of the guide rod,
wherein the second support holder is connected to a holder moving
mechanism which moves the second support holder close to or away
from the first support holder along a surface of the base, and
wherein the holder moving mechanism includes a linear moving unit
for linearly moving the second support holder with respect to the
first support holder along the base, a driving force transmission
unit for transmitting a driving force to the linear moving unit,
and a holder driving source for driving the driving force
transmission unit.
9. The counting and filling apparatus according to claim 7,
comprising: a first support holder which is provided on a base so
as to rotatably and detachably support both ends of the spiral
groove rod; and a second support holder which rotatably supports a
base end in the longitudinal direction of the rotating roller as
well as detachably supports both ends of the guide rod, and is
provided on the base at a position adjacent to the first support
holder, wherein the second support holder is connected to a holder
moving mechanism which moves the second support holder close to or
away from the first support holder along a surface of the base, and
wherein the holder moving mechanism includes a linear moving unit
for linearly moving the second support holder with respect to the
first support holder along the base, a driving force transmission
unit for transmitting a driving force to the linear moving unit,
and a holder driving source for driving the driving force
transmission unit.
10. The counting and filling apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein an inclined plate is provided to be spaced apart from the
rotating roller, above the rotating roller and the central guide
portion, and to be spaced apart from the frame-front side wall at a
predetermined interval, wherein the inclined plate includes a
rising surface which is formed at a position opposed to the
frame-front side wall, and an inclined surface which is inclined
continuously from the rising surface, and wherein the inclined
surface is formed in an inclination angle that allows the materials
to be counted to move by their own weight toward the supply port
side of the hopper.
11. The counting and filling apparatus according to claim 1,
comprising: a region dividing portion which encloses a region
opposed to all or at least a part of the transport route continuing
from the guide route, below the spiral groove rod, the guide rod,
and the lateral guide portion; and a dust collecting suction
mechanism which collects dust by sucking air in a range enclosed by
the region dividing portion, wherein the region dividing portion
includes route-cross wall surfaces on both end portions which are
formed so as to cross a space between the spiral groove rod and the
guide rod and a space between the spiral groove rod and the lateral
guide portion, route-parallel wall surfaces on the left and the
right which are formed along the longitudinal direction of the
guide rod, and a route-bottom wall surface which is provided at a
position on a bottom surface side opposed to the guide route and
the transport route, wherein upper ends of the route-cross wall
surfaces are respectively provided to a position in proximity to
the guide rod and the spiral groove rod, and to a position in
proximity to the spiral groove rod and the lateral guide portion,
wherein upper ends of the route-parallel wall surfaces are provided
to positions in proximity to or contact with the guide rods, and
wherein a suction opening of the dust collecting suction mechanism
is provided on the route-bottom wall surface side.
12. A method for counting and filling by use of the counting and
filling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein materials to be
counted inputted into a hopper are aligned in a guide route while
the postures of the materials to be counted are changed by a
delivery mechanism, delivered to a transport route of a transport
mechanism, supported, transported, and sent out by a guide rod and
spiral grooves of a spiral groove rod which are the transport
mechanism, and the materials to be counted are counted by a
counting unit, and filled into a container, wherein the method for
counting and filling comprises following steps: an input step of
inputting the materials to be counted into the hopper; a delivery
step of allowing the inputted materials to be counted to fall by
their own weight from the supply port of the hopper, and to be
aligned in a guide route formed by use of a regulating unit of the
delivery mechanism while changing the postures of the materials to
be counted by rotating a rotating roller which is a posture
changing unit of the delivery mechanism so as to apply a frictional
force in a direction different from the falling direction of the
materials to be counted, and delivering the materials to be counted
to the spiral grooves of the spiral groove rod via the lateral
guide portion of the regulating unit; a transport step of sending
the materials to be counted, which are delivered to the spiral
grooves of the spiral groove rod by the delivery mechanism, to the
transport route of the spiral groove rod from the guide route by
the rotation of the spiral groove rod, and transporting the
materials to be counted to a transport end in a state of being
supported in a support space region between the spiral groove rod
and the guide rod; and a filling step of sending out the materials
to be counted which are transported to the transport end, counting
the materials by the counting unit, and filling the counted
materials into the container, and wherein in the delivery step, by
the adjusting unit provided between the supply port and the
transport route, a pre-delivery step is performed together, the
pre-delivery step including passing the materials to be counted,
which are supported via the lateral guide portion opposed to the
spiral grooves, to the transport route from the guide route,
preventing passing of the materials to be counted, which are
excessively overlapped on the spiral groove rod or on the other
materials to be counted, allowing the materials to wait along the
guide route, and delivering the material to a vacant spiral groove
when there exists the vacant spiral groove of the rotating spiral
groove rod.
13. The method for counting and filling according to claim 12,
wherein in the delivery step and the transport step, a suction step
of performing a suction operation by a dust collecting suction
mechanism from a suction opening provided below the guide route and
the transport route, is performed together.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the foreign priority benefit under
Title 35, United States Code, 119 (a)-(d) of Japanese Patent
Application No. 2013-095838 filed on Apr. 30, 2013, and Japanese
Patent Application No. 2014-032965 filed on Feb. 24, 2014 in the
Japan Patent Office, each disclosure of which is herein
incorporated by reference in its entirety.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for
counting and filling, in which materials to be counted such as
tablets, capsules, tablet type materials, and capsule type
materials, are transported, counted, and filled into a
container.
BACKGROUND ART
[0003] As a counting and filling apparatus for counting and filling
tablets, the tablet being one of typical materials to be counted,
there has been well known a counting and filling apparatus for
transporting and counting tablets by using a vibration transport
mechanism or a transport mechanism with a spiral groove rod and a
vibration transport mechanism (see Patent Document 1 and Non-patent
Document 1). However, since the vibration transport mechanism is
used in any apparatus, the tablets rub against one another due to
vibrations and easily generate powders, and there is a limit to the
transport speed because the vibration transport mechanism is
used.
[0004] Therefore, there has been conventionally proposed a counting
and filling apparatus for transporting the tablets by using a
transport mechanism with a spiral groove rod (see Patent Document
2). The transport mechanism of this tablet counting and filling
apparatus receives the tablets supplied from a hopper, at a spiral
groove position between the spiral groove rod which is rotated by a
motor and guide rods which are positioned at the left and right of
the spiral groove rod, and transports the tablets in the transport
direction by the rotating spiral groove rod. The tablet counting
and filling apparatus described above is also proposed to be
configured to transport the tablets from the hopper to a filling
position by the rotation of the spiral groove rods by including the
spiral groove rods of two stages.
CITATION LIST
Patent Literature
[0005] Patent Document 1 [0006] Japanese Patent Application
Publication No. S53-096176 [0007] Patent Document 2 [0008] Japanese
Patent Application Publication No. 2010-208676
Non-Patent Literature
[0008] [0009] {Non-patent Document 1} [0010]
http://www.ishida.co.jp/products/280.php (Ishida Co., Ltd.:
Chewable tablet-enabled type tablet counter JZ33-15K type [Feb. 25,
2013])
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
Technical Problem
[0011] However, the conventional counting and filling apparatus
leaves room for improvement as described below. Since the counting
and filling apparatus receives the tablets directly from the hopper
between the spiral groove rod and the guide rod, the tablets
overlap near the outlet of the hopper depending on the shape of the
tablet, and cannot be supplied smoothly from the hopper in some
cases. Further, when the counting and filling apparatus uses the
first stage and second stage transport mechanisms, and a plurality
of first stage transport mechanisms with the spiral groove rods and
the guide rods are arranged in parallel, the configuration becomes
complicated and large, because a plurality of spiral groove rods
are rotated via a gear box by one servomotor.
[0012] The present invention has been made to solve the problems
described above, and an object of the present invention is to
provide a method and apparatus for counting and filling, each of
which allows the materials to be counted to be supplied more
smoothly from the hopper, and is hardly influenced by the shape of
the materials to be counted, and further has a simple
configuration.
Solution to Problem
[0013] In order to solve the above problems, a counting and filling
apparatus according to the present invention aligns materials to be
counted in a guide route while changing postures of the materials
to be counted by a delivery mechanism provided below a supply port
of a hopper, and delivers the materials to a transport route of a
transport mechanism which has a guide rod and a spiral groove rod
continuing to the guide route, and then transports, counts, and
fills the materials into a container, wherein the transport
mechanism includes the spiral groove rod which is disposed from the
guide route to the transport route, and a lateral guide portion
which is provided facing to a base end side of the spiral groove
rod and along the axis of the guide rod, and forms the guide route,
and wherein the counting and filling apparatus includes, between
the supply port and the transport route, an adjusting unit which is
provided so as to pass the materials supported via the lateral
guide portion in the spiral grooves from the guide route to the
transport route, and so as to prevent the materials excessively
overlapped on the spiral groove rod or on the other materials from
passing to the transport route and allow the materials to wait
along the guide route.
[0014] With this configuration, the counting and filling apparatus
aligns the materials to be counted through the guide route while
changing the postures of the materials falling from the supply port
of the hopper by the delivery mechanism, delivers the materials via
the lateral guide portion to the spiral grooves which are
positioned in the guide route side of the spiral groove rod
provided in the transport route and the guide route, and sends the
materials to the transport route by the rotation of the spiral
groove rod. By the adjusting unit provided between the supply port
and the transport route, the counting and filling apparatus passes
the materials supported in the spiral grooves, and prevents passing
of the other materials overlapped on the spiral groove rod and
allows the materials to wait temporarily, and then sends out the
materials supported properly in the spiral grooves to the transport
route. The counting and filling apparatus is in a state capable of
delivering the material to be counted, which are allowed to wait by
the adjusting unit, if there is a vacant spiral groove of the
rotating spiral groove rod. Note that, the counting and filling
apparatus changes the postures of the materials to be counted,
which fall by their own weight and have inappropriate postures, by
a posture changing unit of the delivery mechanism, and aligns the
materials to be counted, which have appropriate postures, in the
guide route by a regulating unit of the delivery mechanism while
keeping their postures.
[0015] The counting and filling apparatus may be configured such
that the adjusting unit constitutes side walls of a partition frame
portion, which is disposed so as to surround the guide route at a
position adjacent to the supply port and above the delivery
mechanism, by a frame-front side wall which is provided between the
guide route and the transport route, a shield-rotating plate which
is provided along the frame-front side wall, and frame-left and
right side walls which are provided to support the frame-front side
wall and are continuous from the supply port of the hopper, wherein
the delivery mechanism includes, below the supply port and the
partition frame portion, a regulating unit which regulates a guide
route width for guiding the materials to be counted to the spiral
grooves which are on the base end side of the spiral groove rod,
and a posture changing unit which is disposed along the guide
route, wherein the regulating unit includes, below the supply port
and the partition frame portion, a central guide portion which is
disposed just above the spiral groove rod, and the lateral guide
portion which is provided to be opposed to a lateral side of the
spiral groove rod, and guides the materials to be counted to the
spiral groove rod, wherein the posture changing unit includes,
above the lateral guide portion, a rotating roller which is
provided to be opposed to the central guide portion across the
guide route on a lateral side of the central guide portion, and a
rotation drive unit which rotates the rotating roller in a
direction different from a falling direction of the materials to be
counted, wherein a notch portion for rotating the shield-rotating
plate is formed on at least one of the frame-front side wall and
the frame-left and right side walls, and wherein the
shield-rotating plate is provided on a tip end side in the
longitudinal direction of the rotating roller, and allows passing
of the materials to be counted which are sent while being supported
in the spiral grooves, while preventing passing of the materials to
be counted which are excessively overlapped on the spiral groove
rod or on the other materials to be counted.
[0016] With this configuration, in the counting and filling
apparatus, the materials to be counted, which fall by their own
weight from the supply port of the hopper, are overlapped in the
delivery mechanism and after entering the guide route. The counting
and filling apparatus changes the postures of the materials to be
counted, which cannot pass through the guide route, while applying
a frictional force in a direction different from the falling
direction of the materials to be counted by the rotating roller as
the posture changing unit provided along the guide route. Note
that, if the materials to be counted take postures capable of
passing through the guide route, the materials are aligned by
falling by their own weight along the guide route without being
changed the postures thereof by the rotating roller. In the
counting and filling apparatus, the materials to be counted are
aligned and supported in the spiral grooves of the spiral groove
rod via the lateral guide portion. Further, some of the materials
to be counted are sent toward the side of the frame-front side wall
of the partition frame portion without being supported in the
spiral grooves, however, by coming into contact with the
shield-rotating plate, the materials are lifted temporarily in the
rotation direction so that the postures thereof are changed, and
are allowed to wait temporarily in the guide route surrounded by
the partition frame portion. Then, the materials to be counted,
which wait in the guide route in a range surrounded by the
partition frame portion while being changed the postures thereof by
the rotation of the rotating roller, enter to be supported in the
spiral grooves when there is a vacant spiral groove, and are sent
toward a transport end without being blocked by the shield-rotating
plate and the front wall surface.
[0017] A method for counting and filling for solving the above
problems is a method for counting and filling by use of the
counting and filling apparatus, wherein materials to be counted
inputted into a hopper are aligned in a guide route while the
postures of the materials to be counted are changed by a delivery
mechanism, delivered to a transport route of a transport mechanism,
supported, transported, and sent out by a guide rod and spiral
grooves of a spiral groove rod which are the transport mechanism,
and the materials to be counted are counted by a counting unit, and
filled into a container, wherein the method for counting and
filling comprises following steps: an input step of inputting the
materials to be counted into the hopper; a delivery step of
allowing the inputted materials to be counted to fall by their own
weight from the supply port of the hopper, and to be aligned in a
guide route formed by use of a regulating unit of the delivery
mechanism while changing the postures of the materials to be
counted by rotating a rotating roller which is a posture changing
unit of the delivery mechanism so as to apply a frictional force in
a direction different from the falling direction of the materials
to be counted, and delivering the materials to be counted to the
spiral grooves of the spiral groove rod via the lateral guide
portion of the regulating unit; a transport step of sending the
materials to be counted, which are delivered to the spiral grooves
of the spiral groove rod by the delivery mechanism, to the
transport route of the spiral groove rod from the guide route by
the rotation of the spiral groove rod, and transporting the
materials to be counted to a transport end in a state of being
supported in a support space region between the spiral groove rod
and the guide rod; and a filling step of sending out the materials
to be counted which are transported to the transport end, counting
the materials by the counting unit, and filling the counted
materials into the container. In the delivery step, by the
adjusting unit provided between the supply port and the transport
route, a pre-delivery step is performed together, the pre-delivery
step including passing the materials to be counted, which are
supported via the lateral guide portion opposed to the spiral
grooves, to the transport route from the guide route, preventing
passing of the materials to be counted, which are excessively
overlapped on the spiral groove rod or on the other materials to be
counted, allowing the materials to wait along the guide route, and
delivering the material to a vacant spiral groove when there exists
the vacant spiral groove of the rotating spiral groove rod.
[0018] By the above procedures, in the method for counting and
filling, when the materials to be counted are inputted into the
hopper, the materials fall by their own weight from the supply port
of the hopper, and become in a state of being overlapped between
the supply port and the delivery mechanism and after entering the
guide route. Further, in the method for counting and filling, by
applying the frictional force for the materials to be counted in
the direction different from the falling direction of the materials
to be counted by the rotating roller which is the posture changing
unit of the delivery mechanism, the postures of the materials to be
counted, which cause a bridge against the guide route, are changed,
and become in a state of being aligned by the regulating unit. If
the materials to be counted take postures capable of passing
through the guide route, the materials are aligned by falling by
their own weight along the guide route without being changed the
postures thereof by the posture changing unit. Further, in the
method for counting and filling, when the materials to be counted,
which are supported in the spiral grooves by the rotation of the
spiral groove rod, are transported from between the spiral groove
rod and the lateral guide portion of the regulating unit to between
the spiral groove rod and the guide rod, the materials supported in
the spiral grooves are passed, and the materials not supported in
the spiral grooves are prevented from passing to the transport
route by the adjusting unit and allowed to wait temporarily along
the guide route. When a vacant spiral groove of the rotating spiral
groove rod comes to a position in the guide route where the
materials to be counted wait, the materials to be counted are
supported sequentially in the spiral grooves. In the method for
counting and filling, the materials to be counted which have passed
through the adjusting unit are supported by the support space
region between the spiral grooves of the spiral groove rod and the
guide rod and transported to the transport end. Further, in the
method for counting and filling, the materials to be counted are
sent out from the transport end by the rotation of the spiral
groove rod, and the falling materials to be counted are counted by
the counting unit and filled into the container.
Advantageous Effects of Invention
[0019] A method and apparatus for counting and filling according to
the present invention exhibit excellent effects described below.
Since the adjusting unit is provided between the supply port and
the transport route, the counting and filling apparatus is hardly
influenced by the shape of the materials to be counted and can
perform quickly and accurately the delivery of the materials to be
counted from the guide route to the transport route. In the
counting and filling apparatus, since the materials to be counted,
which are not supported in the spiral grooves in the guide route,
come into contact with the shield-rotating plate on the side of the
frame-front side wall of the partition frame portion, the postures
of the materials can be changed. Therefore, the materials to be
counted, which are excessively overlapped on the spiral groove rod
or the like, can be allowed to smoothly wait temporarily in the
guide route in the range of the partition frame portion, and then
delivered to the spiral grooves when there is a vacant spiral
groove, even if the shape of the materials to be counted is an
elongated shape such as a rugby ball shape and a capsule shape.
[0020] Further, by providing the shield-rotating plate at the tip
end side of the rotating roller, the counting and filling apparatus
allows the materials to be counted to wait in the guide route in
the range of the partition frame portion while changing the
postures of the materials to be counted which have not delivered to
the spiral grooves by a delivery mechanism together with the
rotating roller. Therefore, the counting and filling apparatus can
realize that the materials to be counted are smoothly delivered
from the delivery mechanism to the transport mechanism by a simple
apparatus configuration compared with a conventional apparatus with
a two-stage transport mechanism. Further, the counting and filling
apparatus may be configured to have the guide rod in parallel with
the spiral groove rod and on one side thereof, or to have a
plurality of transport mechanisms disposed in parallel to one
another, wherein the guide rods are disposed in parallel to each
other on the left and right of the spiral groove rod, and thereby
it is possible to accurately fill a number of materials to be
counted at a high speed.
[0021] Further, by enclosing the lower side of the guide rod and
the spiral groove rod by a region dividing portion and sucking the
air in the region dividing portion by a suction mechanism, the
counting and filling apparatus can collect dust such as friction
particles generated from the materials to be counted, and by urging
downward the materials to be counted which are sent by the
transport route, the counting and filling apparatus can allow the
postures of the materials to be stabilized. Therefore, the counting
and filling apparatus can prevent falling of the materials to be
counted during transport and perform accurate visual inspection by
shooting the materials to be counted in the transport route.
[0022] The method for counting and filling aligns the materials to
be counted by the guide route of the regulating unit while changing
the postures of the materials to be counted which cannot pass
thorough the guide route, by applying the frictional force for the
materials which are inputted into the hopper by the posture
changing unit, in the direction different from the falling
direction of the materials which fall by their own weight from the
supply port of the hopper. Further, the method for counting and
filling supports the materials to be counted in the spiral grooves
of the spiral groove rod in the guide route while allowing the
material to wait temporarily in the guide route in the adjusting
unit (in the range of the partition frame portion by the
shield-rotating plate provided on the tip end side of the rotating
roller). Therefore, since the method for counting and filling is
hardly influenced by the shape of the materials to be counted and
can smoothly deliver the materials to be counted from the delivery
mechanism to the support space region between the spiral grooves of
the spiral groove rod and the guide rod, thereby quickly
transporting, counting, and filling a large amount of materials to
be counted.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0023] FIG. 1A is a schematic diagram schematically showing a whole
of a counting and filling apparatus according to the present
invention;
[0024] FIG. 1B is an enlarged perspective view of a part of a
spiral groove rod surrounded by a thick dashed circle in FIG.
1A;
[0025] FIG. 1C is an enlarged view of a part of a spiral groove rod
surrounded by a thick dashed circle in FIG. 1B;
[0026] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a whole of the counting
and filling apparatus according to the present invention by
omitting a part thereof;
[0027] FIG. 3A is a plan view showing a whole of the counting and
filling apparatus according to the present invention by omitting a
part thereof;
[0028] FIG. 3B is an enlarged view of a part surrounded by a thick
dashed circle in FIG. 3A, and shows a connecting portion between a
guide block and a lateral guide block;
[0029] FIG. 3C is an enlarged view of a part surrounded by a thick
dashed ellipse in FIG. 3A, and shows a part of the guide block and
the spiral groove rod;
[0030] FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing a
configuration of a delivery mechanism by omitting a part of the
counting and filling apparatus according to the present
invention;
[0031] FIG. 5A is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a
configuration of a shield-rotating plate in the delivery mechanism
which is a part of the counting and filling apparatus according to
the present invention;
[0032] FIG. 5B is a perspective view showing the configuration of
the shield-rotating plate in the delivery mechanism by omitting a
part of the counting and filling apparatus according to the present
invention;
[0033] FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view from a line A-A direction
in FIG. 4 of the counting and filling apparatus according to the
present invention, and is a cross-sectional view schematically
showing an interval adjusting mechanism for adjusting an interval
between second support holders for supporting guide rods;
[0034] FIG. 7 is a block diagram schematically showing a control
mechanism of the counting and filling apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0035] FIGS. 8A to 8D are schematic diagrams schematically showing
states in which materials to be counted are aligned by a regulating
unit and a posture changing unit of the delivery mechanism and
delivered to a spiral groove rod, and states in which postures of
tablets are changed by the shield-rotating plate, in the counting
and filling apparatus according to the present invention;
[0036] FIG. 9A is a schematic diagram schematically showing another
configuration of lateral guide portions of the counting and filling
apparatus according to the present invention;
[0037] FIG. 9B is a perspective view schematically showing another
configuration of the lateral guide portions of the counting and
filling apparatus according to the present invention;
[0038] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram schematically showing another
configuration of the delivery mechanism of the counting and filling
apparatus according to the present invention;
[0039] FIG. 11A is a schematic diagram schematically showing
another configuration of a partition frame portion of the counting
and filling apparatus according to the present invention;
[0040] FIG. 11B is a perspective view schematically showing another
configuration of the partition frame portion of the counting and
filling apparatus according to the present invention;
[0041] FIGS. 12A to 12C are schematic diagrams showing another
configurations of the materials to be counted which are counted and
filled by the counting and filling apparatus according to the
present invention;
[0042] FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a
state in which a dust collecting suction mechanism is provided in
the counting and filling apparatus according to the present
invention by omitting a part thereof;
[0043] FIGS. 14A to 14C are perspective views showing states in
which the dust collecting suction mechanism is provided in the
counting and filling apparatus according to the present invention
by omitting a part thereof;
[0044] FIG. 15 is an exploded perspective view showing another
configuration of an adjusting unit of the counting and filling
apparatus according to the present invention;
[0045] FIG. 16A is a view showing a state in which an inclined
plate is provided in the partition frame portion of the counting
and filling apparatus according to the present invention, and is a
perspective view showing an inside of the partition frame portion
by cutting a part thereof;
[0046] FIG. 16B is a view showing a state in which an inclined
plate is provided in the partition frame portion of the counting
and filling apparatus according to the present invention, and is a
cross-sectional diagram showing the inclined plate from a front
side by cutting a part thereof; and
[0047] FIG. 16C is a view showing a state in which an inclined
plate is provided in the partition frame portion of the counting
and filling apparatus according to the present invention, and is a
schematic diagram showing the inclined plate from a lateral side by
cutting a part thereof.
DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
[0048] Hereinafter, a method and apparatus for counting and filling
will be described with reference to drawings. Note that, in each
drawing, a configuration in which capsule-type tablets as an
example of materials to be counted are counted by a counting and
filling apparatus will be described. As an example, the counting
and filling apparatus will be described as a configuration in which
five transport mechanisms including guide rods provided in parallel
to each other on the left and right of a central spiral groove rod
are disposed in parallel to one another. Further, a relationship
between a size of the tablet to be used and that of each component
of the counting and filling apparatus, or positions of the tablets
with respect to each component of the counting and filling
apparatus are appropriately deformed or schematically shown in the
drawings in some cases.
[0049] As shown in FIGS. 1A to 3C, a counting and filling apparatus
1 is for counting a predetermined amount of tablets W and filling
them into a container V while transporting the tablets W. The
counting and filling apparatus 1 mainly includes a delivery
mechanism 30 for delivering the tablets W to a transport mechanism
4 from a hopper 2 in which the tablets W are inputted, the
transport mechanism 4 for receiving and transporting the tablets W
from the delivery mechanism 30, an adjusting unit Sm provided
between a supply port 2d of the hopper 2 and a transport route Sr
of the transport mechanism 4, a counting unit 14 for counting the
transported tablets W, and a control unit 20 for controlling each
mechanism and the like. Note that, the counting and filling
apparatus 1 is, in this case, provided with an image capturing unit
22 such as a CCD camera above a predetermined transport route Sr of
the transport mechanism 4, and is configured to be able to
determine defects such as notch of the tablets W, by data of images
taken by the image capturing unit 22 being sent to the control unit
20, and to select the chipped tablets W.
[0050] The counting and filling apparatus 1, in this case, uses a
transport conveyor 50 for continuously transporting the containers
V in which the tablets W transported by the transport mechanism 4
and counted by the counting unit 14 are filled. Further, the
counting and filling apparatus 1 includes a first support holder 31
and a second support holder 32 for holding a spiral groove rod 5,
guide rods 6, 6, and the like of the transport mechanism 4, a base
100 for supporting the first support holder 31 and the second
support holder 32, and a holder moving mechanism 40 for moving the
second support holder 32 close to or away from the first support
holder 31 in order to adjust intervals of the guide rods 6, 6 with
respect to the spiral groove rod 5. Note that, in the counting and
filling apparatus 1, a guide route GR (see FIG. 1A) is from a space
between a central guide block 11a and opposing rotating rollers 3a,
3a (see FIGS. 3A, 3B), to a space between the spiral groove rod 5
and opposing lateral guide blocks 12a, and the transport route Sr
(see FIG. 1A) is a space between the spiral groove rod 5 and the
opposing guide rods 6, 6. Further, a support space region Ts is a
region for supporting the tablets W so that the tablets W can be
transported between the guide rod 6 and spiral grooves 5a of the
spiral groove rod 5.
[0051] A capsule is a specific example of the material to be
counted as the tablet W which is an object to be counted by the
counting and filling apparatus 1, however, the tablets to be
counted such as a tablet of rugby ball shape, a round tablet, and a
tablet of triangular rice ball shape, which have a curved portion
in the external shape, are the objects. The material to be counted
as the tablet W is, as areas commonly used, not specifically
limited to areas such as medicine, supplement, and confectionary.
If the tablet W has a curved portion in the external shape, in
particular, a disc shape, a lens shape, a rugby ball shape, an
annular shape like a troche, or a capsule shape, the tablet W can
be rotated when transported, and can be stably transported at a
high speed. Further, the tablet W, which is coated on the surface
as a sugar-coated tablet or is not coated as a plain tablet, can be
handled. The tablet W of capsule is transported in a state of
rotating about a long axis as the long axis is in a horizontal
direction.
[0052] As shown in FIGS. 1A to 3C, the base 100 of the counting and
filling apparatus 1 supports the first support holder 31 and the
second support holder 32. The base 100 is formed with through holes
100b, 100c apart from each other on one side and the other side
thereof, and formed with a hole 100a which is a counting path 15
for the tablet W at a position of a transport end of the transport
mechanism 4 (see FIGS. 2, 3A). Mounting frames 101, 101 are
provided on peripheral edges of the through holes 100b, 100c (see
FIGS. 2, 3A). The mounting frame 101 is formed in annular and
rectangular, and a holder guide plate 102 is provided on the
mounting frame 101 (see FIG. 2). The holder guide plate 102
supports the first support holder 31 and the second support holder
32. The holder guide plates 102 are respectively formed with
opening holes 102b, through which transmission gears 45 of the
holder moving mechanism 40 are connected, in the centers facing a
tip end rotation support holder 31A and a base end rotation support
holder 31B of the first support holder 31 (see FIG. 6: the
transport mechanism 4 composed of the spiral groove rod 5 and the
guide rods 6, 6 on the left and right is shown as one unit in FIG.
4, however, two units of the transport mechanism 4 are shown in
FIG. 6).
[0053] As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the holder moving mechanism 40 of
the counting and filling apparatus 1 is for adjusting the intervals
between the spiral groove rod 5 and the guide rods 6, 6 by moving
the second support holders 32, 32 close to or away from the first
support holder 31. The holder moving mechanism 40 includes a tip
end holder moving mechanism 40A for moving tip end support holders
32A, 32A close to or away from the tip end rotation support holder
31A, and a base end holder moving mechanism 40B for moving base end
support holders 32B, 32B close to or away from the base end
rotation support holder 31B. Since the tip end holder moving
mechanism 40A and the base end holder moving mechanism 40B have the
same configuration, one will be described.
[0054] As shown in FIG. 6, the base end holder moving mechanism 40B
includes a holder driving source 41 such as a drive motor, a
driving force transmission unit 141 (42, 43, 44, 45) for
transmitting a driving force from the holder driving source 41, and
a linear moving unit 142 (46, 47, 48, 49 (see FIG. 4)) for linearly
moving the base end support holders 32B, 32B by the driving force
transmitted by the driving force transmission unit 141. The driving
force transmission unit 141 has a coupling portion 42 which
transmits the driving force from the holder driving source 41 by
being connected to a rotating shaft, a transmission direction
changing portion 43 such as bevel gears which changes the
transmission direction of the driving force transmitted by the
coupling portion 42 and transmits the driving force, a rotating
shaft 44 rotated by the driving force which is changed the
transmission direction by the transmission direction changing
portion 43, and the transmission gears 45 which are attached to the
rotating shaft 44 with predetermined intervals intermittently at
positions just below the base end rotation support holder 31B and
rotate together with the rotating shaft 44.
[0055] The driving force transmission unit 141 transmits the
driving force to the linear moving unit 142 by the holder driving
source 41 being operated, a rotation speed of the driving force
being reduced by the transmission direction changing portion 43,
the direction of the driving force being changed to the horizontal
direction from the vertical direction by the transmission direction
changing portion 43, and the rotating shaft 44 and the plural
transmission gears 45 being rotated. The linear moving unit 142 has
a driven gear 46 meshing with the transmission gear 45, a rotating
shaft 47 to which the driven gear 46 is secured and which is
provided in the base end support holder 32B rotatably via a
bearing, nut portions 47c, 47d which support and mesh with threaded
portions 47a, 47b formed on both ends of the rotating shaft 47, and
rotating shaft guides 48, 49 (see FIG. 4) which are provided
slidably in the base end support holder 32B in parallel with the
rotating shaft 47.
[0056] The linear moving unit 142 can move the base end support
holders 32B, 32B along the holder guide plate 102 and the rotating
shaft guides 48, 49, because the rotating shaft 47 is rotated
together with the driven gear 46 driven by the rotation of the
transmission gear 45, and the threaded portions 47a, 47b of the
rotating shaft 47 are formed to have threads opposite to each
other. Note that, the tip end holder moving mechanism 40A and the
base end holder moving mechanism 40B can be operated synchronously
or operated separately. The tip end holder moving mechanism 40A and
the base end holder moving mechanism 40B can be operated separately
in a range of tolerance of a supporting component part.
[0057] As shown in FIGS. 1A, 2, and 4, the hopper 2 is for
inputting and storing the tablets W therein, and for supplying the
tablets W via the delivery mechanism 30 (see FIG. 4) to a base end
side of the transport mechanism 4. The hopper 2 has a hopper main
body 2b which is formed narrower in the downward direction from an
input port 2a (see FIG. 4) which is open wide in the upward
direction, and the supply port 2d formed at the bottom is disposed
to face just below the base end side of the delivery mechanism 30.
The hoppers 2 may be configured to be provided for each transport
mechanism 4 (see FIG. 2), or a plurality of supply ports 2d (not
shown) may be configured to be provided in one housing for all of
the transport mechanisms 4 provided side by side.
[0058] As shown in FIG. 4, an opening is formed by a notch at a
position on a front side wall 2c of the supply port 2d, and a
sliding side wall 2e as a partition plate is provided on the
opening so as to be stopped at a predetermined position in the
vertical direction by a fixing unit (fixing bolt) 2f. The sliding
side wall 2e is for changing the size of the opening in accordance
with the size and shape of the tablets W to be inputted. Here, the
sliding side wall 2e is, for an example, set to have an opening
height (see FIGS. 5A, 5B) such that the tablets W supplied from the
supply port 2d are overlapped in about five steps including a
tablet taken (supported) in the spiral groove 5a. As shown in FIG.
5B, the supply port 2d is provided so as not to pass the tablets W
between the lower end of the supply port 2d and the upper end of
the delivery mechanism 30, by allowing a position of the lower end
excluding the front side wall 2c to be close to the delivery
mechanism 30 so that an interval therebetween is smaller than a
thickness of the tablet W. Here, the frame-left and right side
walls of a partition frame portion 9 and the left and right wall
surfaces of the supply port 2d of the hopper 2 are formed
integrally. The supply port 2d is formed of the sliding side wall
2e, the frame-left and right side walls to the sliding side wall
2e, and a rear side wall which is a surface opposed to the sliding
side wall 2e.
[0059] As shown in FIGS. 1A, 2, and 4, the partition frame portion
9 is provided in the supply port 2d, the partition frame portion 9
being provided with shield-rotating plates 112, 112 and a
frame-front side wall 19 as the adjusting unit Sm in adjacent
manner. As shown in FIG. 4, the partition frame portion 9
temporarily allows the tablets W to wait or stores the tablets W,
which are supplied and not delivered to the spiral grooves 5a of
the spiral groove rod 5 by the delivery mechanism 30 just below the
supply port 2d, and is for providing a space for delivering via the
delivery mechanism 30 the tablets W to the vacant spiral grooves 5a
just below the supply port 2d. The partition frame portion 9 forms
a rectangular space which is partitioned by the front side wall 2c
of the hopper 2 and other three side walls. Here, the partition
frame portion 9 is formed with a range between the front side wall
2c (or the sliding side wall 2e) and the tip end side of the
delivery mechanism 30, and a range including the guide route GR
(see FIG. 5A) which is formed of a central guide portion 11 and a
posture changing unit 3 of the delivery mechanism 30.
[0060] Further, the frame-front side wall 19 of the partition frame
portion 9 is formed with arc-shaped notch portions 19a, 19a, and is
configured to cover the notch portions 19a, 19a with the
shield-rotating plates 112, 112 to be described later. The
shield-rotating plates 112, 112 to be described later is, for
example, formed of a silicone resin and is provided so as not to
damage the tablets W by momentum of the tablets W, which are
conveyed in a state of overlapping on the spiral groove rod 5 and
come into contact with the shield-rotating plates 112, 112. If the
tablets W are not supported in the spiral grooves 5a, for example,
in a state where the tablets W overlap at positions on the spiral
groove rod 5 (not in the spiral grooves 5a), the tablets W cannot
pass through the shield-rotating plates 112, 112 and are
temporarily held in positions along the guide route GR in a range
of the partition frame portion 9. Note that, a state in which the
tablets W, which could not be delivered to the spiral grooves 5a of
the spiral groove rod 5 via the delivery mechanism 30 from the
supply port 2d, exist in at least one of the guide route GR on the
lower side of the range of the partition frame portion 9 and a
range surrounded by the frame-left and right side walls and the
frame-front side wall 19 in the partition frame portion 9, is in
some cases referred to as a storage, a hold, a reserve, or a wait,
however, any word is used as a same meaning. Further, the range of
the partition frame portion 9 means both or at least one of the
guide route GR on the lower side of the range surrounded by the
partition frame portion 9 and the range surrounded by the
frame-left and right side walls and the frame-front side wall 19 in
the partition frame portion 9.
[0061] As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the delivery mechanism 30 is for
aligning the tablets W supplied by falling by their own weight from
the hopper 2, and delivering them to the base end side of the
transport mechanism 4. The delivery mechanism 30 is provided just
above a position of the base end side of the spiral groove rod 5
and at a position opposed to the partition frame portion 9 and the
supply port 2d. The delivery mechanism 30 includes the posture
changing unit 3 and a regulating unit 13, and forms the guide route
GR (see FIG. 5A) with the regulating unit 13, and is configured to
deliver the tablets W which are aligned in the guide route GR to
the spiral grooves 5a of the spiral groove rod 5. Here, the
delivery mechanism 30 also plays a role of forming the guide route
GR of the regulating unit 13 with the posture changing unit 3. The
delivery mechanism 30 is set to be able to deliver the tablets W to
the transport mechanism 4 side, by introducing the tablets W to the
guide route GR of the regulating unit 13 and aligning them while
changing their postures by the posture changing unit 3 (rotating
rollers 3a, 3a) just below the partition frame portion 9 and the
supply port 2d.
[0062] As shown in FIGS. 4, 5A, and 5B, the posture changing unit 3
is for changing the postures of the tablets W and guiding the
tablets W to the guide route GR, by applying a frictional force in
a direction different from a falling direction of the tablets W
which fall from the supply port 2d. The posture changing unit 3
includes the rotating roller 3a which is a posture changing roller,
a connecting portion 3b which connects the rotating roller 3a to
the base end support holder 32B of the second support holder 32, a
roller drive motor 3c which rotates the rotating roller 3a via the
connecting portion 3b connected to the base end support holder 32B,
and a shield-rotating plate 112 which is provided on the tip end
side of the rotating roller 3a. Note that, "applying a frictional
force" means that the rotating rollers 3a, 3a directly come into
contact with the tablets W, or indirectly come into contact with
the tablets W in need of the posture changes via the other tablets
W.
[0063] As shown in FIG. 4, the rotating roller 3a is a column or a
cylindrical body which has substantially the same diameter as the
guide rod 6, and includes a connection structure for being
connected with the connecting portion 3b on the base end side. The
rotating rollers 3a, 3a are opposed to the central guide block 11a
of the central guide portion 11, and disposed facing each other
just above the lateral guide blocks 12a, 12a of lateral guide
portions 12. Here, as shown in FIG. 5A, the rotating rollers 3a, 3a
are provided just below the partition frame portion 9 and the
supply port 2d so that lower ends of both side walls of the supply
port 2d of the hopper 2 are in a range of width of the rotating
rollers 3a, 3a. As shown in FIGS. 5A, 5B, lower ends of the
partition frame portion 9 and the supply port 2d are provided in a
state close to upper portions of the shield-rotating plates 112,
112 and the rotating rollers 3a, 3a so that a space therebetween is
smaller than a thickness Wd of the tablet W. Note that, the
connection structure of the rotating roller 3a may be a structure
such as a general keyway which can be removably attached and
connect a rotation driving force from the roller drive motor 3c,
and is not limited thereto. Further, the roller drive motor 3c is
not limited thereto, as long as it is a drive unit such as a common
DC motor to rotate a rotating shaft.
[0064] As shown in FIG. 4, the second support holder 32 rotatably
supports the rotating rollers 3a, 3a, and supports the lateral
guide blocks 12a, 12a. The second support holder 32 includes the
tip end support holder 32A (see FIG. 2) and the base end support
holder 32B. Further, each of the base end support holders 32B
rotatably supports the rotating rollers 3a, 3a, and supports the
lateral guide blocks 12a, 12a. Each of the base end support holders
32B (on both sides of the base end rotation support holder 31 B of
the first support holder 31) includes a bearing or the like (not
shown) which transmits via the connecting portion 3b the rotation
driving force from the roller drive motor 3c. Further, each of the
base end support holders 32B is configured to be able to move in a
direction of being close to or away from the base end rotation
support holder 31 B (the spiral groove rod 5 side) as a center. As
shown in FIG. 6, each of the base end support holders 32B, 32B
includes, in a holder base 32B1 thereof, the nut portions 47c, 47d
in which the threaded portions 47a, 47b of the linear moving unit
142 are screwed. Note that the threaded portions 47a, 47b are
formed to have threads opposite to each other. Therefore, in
accordance with the rotation of the rotating shaft 47, the base end
support holders 32B, 32B can move close to or away from the base
end rotation support holder 31B, respectively.
[0065] As shown in FIG. 5A, the rotating rollers 3a rotate so as to
apply the frictional force to the tablets W in the direction
opposite to or different from the falling direction of the tablets
W on both sides of the guide route GR (in FIG. 5A, the rotating
roller 3a on the right side rotates clockwise, and the rotating
roller 3a on the left side rotates anti-clockwise). Therefore, even
if a tablet W is in a posture where a large area surface thereof
faces the guide route GR, the posture of the tablet W is changed by
the rotation of the rotating roller 3a, to be in a posture capable
of passing through (entering) the guide route GR. Note that the
rotating roller 3a prevents the tablets W from being bridged to
each other by applying the frictional force in the direction
opposite to the falling direction of the tablets W. A tablet W
originally in a posture capable of passing through the guide route
GR falls without touching the rotating roller 3a, or the interval
to a side surface of the central guide block 11a is small even if
the tablet W touches the rotating roller 3a, and thus the tablet W
falls along the guide route GR without changing the posture capable
of entering the guide route GR by being guided by the central guide
block 11a. A rotational speed of the rotating roller 3a is set to
be slower than a rotational speed of the spiral groove rod 5. Since
the rotational speed of the rotating roller 3a is slower than the
rotational speed of the spiral groove rod 5, the posture changing
unit 3 can deliver the tablets W more smoothly in a manner where a
ratio of the tablets W received in the spiral grooves 5a of the
spiral groove rod 5 to the tablets W falling by their own weight is
appropriate.
[0066] As shown in FIGS. 4, 5A, and 5B, the shield-rotating plate
112 is formed in a disc shape and disposed on a tip end surface
(tip end side) of the rotating roller 3a, and is configured to be
rotatable together with the rotation of the rotating roller 3a. The
diameter of the shield-rotating plate 112 is formed larger than the
diameter of the rotating roller 3a, and the shield-rotating plate
112 includes, on the outside of the rotating roller 3a, a surface
thereof capable of coming into contact with the tablets W which are
transported by the rotation of the spiral groove rod 5 in a state
of not being supported in the spiral grooves 5a. Here, the
shield-rotating plate 112 is formed of an elastic member such as a
silicone rubber and a resin (polyacetal, ultrahigh molecular weight
polyethylene) which are softer than metal. When the tablet W sent
by the rotation of the spiral groove rod 5 comes into contact with
the shield-rotating plate 112, the shield-rotating plate 112 can
also change the posture of the tablet W by temporarily moving the
tablet W in the rotation direction of the shield-rotating plate
112. The tablet W which has been changed the posture thereof is
temporarily reserved in the range of the partition frame portion 9.
Further, the tablet W which has been changed the posture thereof by
the shield-rotating plate 112 waits in a state (posture) to be
easily delivered to a vacant spiral groove 5a. Note that, the
shield-rotating plates 112, 112 are rotatable even if the diameter
thereof is larger than the diameter of the rotating roller 3a, by
groove portions 6f of the guide rods 6, 6 to be described later and
the arc-shaped notch portions 19a, 19a formed in the frame-front
side wall 19 of the partition frame portion 9. As shown in FIG. 5A,
a space between the shield-rotating plates 112, 112 and the notch
portions 19a, 19a of the frame-front side wall 19 is set so that
the shield-rotating plates 112, 112 are rotatable and the tablets W
not supported in the spiral grooves 5a cannot be passed.
[0067] Therefore, only the tablets W which are supported in the
spiral grooves 5a are delivered by the rotation of the spiral
groove rod 5 through the outside of the shield-rotating plate 112,
112, from the guide route GR at the position where the spiral
groove rod 5 and the lateral guide blocks 12a, 12a are opposed to
each other, to the transport route Sr at the position where the
spiral groove rod 5 and the guide rods 6, 6 are opposed to each
other. The tablets W, which come into contact with the
shield-rotating plates 112, 112 by being transported overlapped in
the guide route GR, are changed the postures thereof by being
temporarily moved along the rotation direction by the rotation of
the shield-rotating plates 112, 112. In particular, when the tablet
W has a laterally long shape such as a rugby ball type and a
capsule type having a large ratio of horizontal to vertical, a
state in which the tablet W enters between the tablets W supported
in the spiral grooves 5a can be eliminated. Then, the tablet W is
temporarily stored in the range of the partition frame portion 9
while the posture thereof is being changed by the rotating rollers
3a, 3a and the shield-rotating plates 112, 112, and waits for a
vacant spiral groove 5a. The tablet W waiting in the range of the
partition frame portion 9 is changed the posture thereof by the
rotation of the rotating rollers 3a, 3a and the shield-rotating
plates 112, 112, and thus the tablet W is in a state of being
aligned in the guide route GR, and becomes easy to enter the vacant
spiral groove 5a.
[0068] As shown in FIGS. 4, 5A, and 5B, the regulating unit 13 is
for regulating a route width from the supply port 2d, forming the
guide route GR, aligning the tablets W which fall by their own
weight from the supply port 2d of the hopper 2, and guiding the
tablets W to the spiral grooves 5a of the spiral groove rod 5. The
regulating unit 13 includes the central guide portion 11 which is
disposed below the partition frame portion 9 and the supply port 2d
and is disposed just above the base end side of the spiral groove
rod 5, and the lateral guide portions 12 which are disposed in
parallel with and on the left and right of the spiral groove rod 5.
Note that the rotating rollers 3a, 3a are disposed facing each
other on the left and the right of the central guide block 11a, and
thus also play a role of the regulating unit 13. The central guide
portion 11 is for distributing the tablets falling by their own
weight to the left and the right. The central guide portion 11
includes the central guide block 11a and a central block support
portion 11b which supports the central guide block 11a. The central
guide block 11a is, for example, an elongated block body which has
an upper portion thereof formed in a convex curved surface, a lower
portion thereof formed in a concave curved surface, and side
surfaces formed flat between the upper portion and the lower
portion.
[0069] The central guide block 11a is provided so that the lower
portion of a concave curved surface is opposed to the spiral groove
rod 5, and the flat side surfaces are opposed to the rotating
rollers 3a, 3a. Further, the lower portion of the central guide
block 11a is disposed to be in a state of being closer to the
spiral groove rod 5 than the thickness of the tablet W. The central
guide block 11a is provided such that the base end side in the
longitudinal direction thereof is supported by the central block
support portion 11b. The central block support portion 11b
supporting the central guide block 11a is attached to the outside
of the base end rotation support holder 31B. Since the central
guide block 11a is close to the spiral guide rod 5, the central
guide portion 11 does not allow the tablets W to enter between the
central guide block 11a and the spiral guide rod 5 in the guide
route GR, and prevents the tablets W from being bridged to each
other.
[0070] As shown in FIGS. 4, 5A, and 5B, the lateral guide portions
12 are for guiding and delivering the tablets W, which are aligned
by the guide route GR between the central guide block 11a and the
rotating rollers 3a, to the spiral grooves 5a of the spiral groove
rod 5. The lateral guide portions 12 includes the lateral guide
blocks 12a, 12a, which are disposed below the partition frame
portion 9 and the supply port 2d and are disposed in parallel with
and on the left and right of the spiral groove rod 5, and lateral
guide support portions 12d, 12d, which respectively support the
lateral guide blocks 12a, 12a individually. Note that the lateral
guide blocks 12a, 12a on the left and the right are disposed
symmetrically and are the same structure.
[0071] The lateral guide block 12a is disposed at a position of
being opposed just below the rotating roller (posture changing
unit) 3a and being opposed to the base end side of the spiral
groove rod 5. As shown in FIGS. 5A, 5B, the lateral guide block 12a
is a block body including a block side surface 12b which has a flat
side opposed to the spiral groove rod 5, and a space guide
protrusion 12c which is extended to the rotating roller 3a side
from the upper end of the block side surface 12b. The lateral guide
block 12a is supported by the lateral guide support portion 12d
(see FIG. 4), and is provided such that the block side surface 12b
is at a position of equivalent to an outermost periphery (outer
diameter) of the guide rod 6 (see FIGS. 5A, 5B). Note that the
space guide protrusion 12c is formed to be in a same plane with the
block side surface 12b. The lateral guide block 12a is disposed
such that an inside surface of the space guide protrusion 12c is
opposed to a rotating surface of the rotating roller 3a.
[0072] As shown in FIGS. 5A, 5B, the space guide protrusion 12c has
a flat surface for forming the guide route GR, the flat surface
being set at the same position as an outermost periphery of the
rotating roller 3a or inside of the outermost periphery (the side
away from the spiral guide rod 5 or the central guide block 11a).
As shown in FIG. 4, tip end surfaces in the longitudinal direction
(transport end sides) of the lateral guide blocks 12a, 12a include
a connection structure (not shown) detachably connected to base end
sides of the guide rods 6, 6. As shown in FIG. 5A, the lateral
guide block 12a is disposed to form the guide route GR at a
position where the space guide protrusion 12c and the central guide
block 11a are opposed to each other, and to form a guide space
(guide route) GS at a position where the block side surface 12b and
the spiral groove rod 5 are opposed to each other. The lateral
guide block 12a is supported by the lateral guide support portion
12d attached to the holder base 32B1.
[0073] As shown in FIG. 5A, the guide route GR (including the guide
space GS) aligns the tablets W and delivers them to the spiral
grooves 5a. Here, the guide route GR is formed by a space between
the central guide block 11a and the opposing rotating rollers 3a,
3a, a space between the central guide block 11a and the opposing
space guide protrusions 12c, 12c, and a space between the spiral
groove rod 5 and the opposing block side surfaces 12b, 12b.
Further, the guide route GR is configured to continue to the guide
space GS from the space between the central guide block 11a and the
rotating rollers 3a, 3a. Furthermore, the guide route GR is set to
have a width less than twice the thickness Wd of the tablet W on
the upper side thereof (here, the width is set to be 1.1 to 1.7
times the thickness Wd, preferably in a range of 1.2 to 1.4 times
the thickness Wd), and formed to have an interval that can support
the tablet W with the block side surface 12b and the spiral groove
5a of the spiral groove rod 5 on the lower side thereof.
[0074] Further, the guide space GS is set to be narrower than the
interval of the guide route GR. At the position of the guide space
GS, the tablets W are aligned in a row along the spiral groove rod
between the spiral groove rod 5 and the block side surface 12b.
Further, on the tablets W aligned in a row in the guide space GS,
other tablets W are overlapped in a state of being aligned along
the guide route GR. Then, since the spiral groove rod 5 rotates,
the tablets W are sent to the transport route Sr in which the
spiral groove rod 5 and the guide rod 6 are opposed to each other,
from the position of the guide space GS in which the spiral groove
rod 5 and the block side surface 12b are opposed to each other. At
this time, the tablets W overlapping between the spiral grooves 5a,
5a of the spiral groove rod 5 are sent by the rotation of the
spiral groove rod 5 and enter the vacant spiral grooves 5a to be
supported therein, or are sent as they are, to come into contact
with the frame-front side wall 19 or the shield-rotating plates
112, 112, and forced to temporarily wait in the range of the
partition frame portion 9. On the other hand, the tablets W sent to
the transport route Sr are sent to the transport end while being
supported in a support space region Ts (see FIG. 3C) formed of the
guide rods 6, 6 and the spiral groove rod 5 as the transport
mechanism 5.
[0075] As shown in FIGS. 1A to 3C, the transport mechanism 4 is for
receiving the tablets W via the delivery mechanism 30 from the
hopper 2, and transporting the tablets W to the counting unit 14.
The transport mechanism 4 mainly includes the spiral groove rod 5,
the guide rods 6, 6 disposed in parallel with the spiral groove rod
5, a transport drive unit 5G for rotating the spiral groove rod 5,
the first support holder 31 for rotatably supporting the spiral
groove rod 5, and the second support holders 32, 32 for supporting
the guide rods 6, 6.
[0076] As shown in FIGS. 1A to 3C, the spiral groove rod 5 is for
transporting the tablets W in cooperation with the guide rod 6. The
spiral groove rod 5 is rotatably supported by the tip end rotation
support holder 31A and the base end rotation support holder 31B as
the first support holders 31 which are provided on one end side
(tip end side) and the other end side (base end side) on the base
100. The spiral groove rod 5 includes a groove rod portion 5A
formed with the spiral grooves 5a at an interval of aligning the
tablets W on a circumferential surface thereof, a thin shaft
portion 5b formed continuously to one end side of the groove rod
portion 5A, and a connecting portion 5c formed continuously to the
other end side as the base end side of the groove rod portion 5A.
Both ends of the thin shaft portion 5b and the connecting portion
5c of the spiral groove rod 5 are configured so as to be
respectively rotatably connected via connection-rotating portions
5d, 5d to the tip end rotation support holder 31A and the base end
rotation support holder 31B. By connecting the connecting portion
5c as the base end side to the connection-rotating portion 5d, the
spiral groove rod 5 is configured such that a rotational force of a
transport drive motor 5f is transmitted via a shaft connecting
portion 5e connected to the connection-rotating portion 5d.
[0077] As shown in FIGS. 1A to 3A, the thin shaft portion 5b is
formed to have a small diameter such that the tablets W transported
on the transport route Sr can fall through between the thin shaft
portion 5b and a guide-thin shaft portion 6b of the guide rod 6 to
be described later at a position beyond an end of the spiral groove
rod 5. The connecting portion 5c includes a protrusion (not shown)
which can be detachably connected to the connection-rotating
portion 5d formed with a keyway or the like (not shown). The
connecting portion 5c and the connection-rotating portion 5d are
not limited thereto, as long as they can be detachably connected to
each other and integrally rotated. The connection-rotating portion
5d, 5d are rotatably supported by a bearing or the like
respectively in the tip end rotation support holder 31A and the
base end rotation support holder 31B.
[0078] Note that, at least one of the connecting portion 5c and the
connection-rotating portion 5d, or at least one of a tip end of the
thin shaft portion 5b and the connection-rotating portion 5d, is
configured to be detachable by a connection structure such as a
keyway, and urged to one side or in the center by an elastic member
such as a helical spring. Therefore, by disconnecting the
connection structure of the keyway or the like and pressing the
spiral groove rod 5 against an urging force of the elastic member,
the spiral groove rod 5 can be removed from the connection-rotating
portion 5d.
[0079] The transport drive unit 5G for rotating the spiral groove
rod 5 includes the transport drive motor 5f such as a servomotor,
and the shaft connecting portion 5e connected to a rotating shaft
of the transport drive motor 5f, and is supported by the base end
rotation support holder 31B of the first support holder 31 via a
rotating shaft connected to the shaft connecting portion 5e.
Further, the rotating shaft connected to the shaft connecting
portion 5e is connected to the connection-rotating portion 5d to
transmit a driving force from the transport drive motor 5f, and
rotates the spiral groove rod 5 at a predetermined speed by the
transport drive motor 5f. The transport drive motor 5f is not
limited thereto, as long as it can rotate the spiral groove rod 5
via the shaft connecting portion 5e and the connection-rotating
portion 5d.
[0080] As shown in FIGS. 1A to 1C, the spiral grooves 5a are formed
with a same groove pitch on a rod peripheral surface of the groove
rod portion 5A, and are formed in a shape, a size, and a depth, of
a groove so as to correspond to a shape and a size of the tablet W.
Note that a groove forming angle with respect to the axial
direction of the spiral groove 5a is formed at an angle
corresponding to the type of the tablet W. As an example, the
spiral groove 5a is formed such that a groove width thereof is
equal to or larger than the diameter (length) of the tablet W, and
formed to have an interval in which the tablet W does not contact
with a tablet W located adjacent to each other. Further, the spiral
groove 5a is formed to be in a curved shape (an arc, an ellipse, a
parabolic curved surface, or the like) so that it can arrange the
tablet W in a position in the groove. Here, note that the spiral
groove 5a is formed to be in an arc shape. By forming the spiral
groove 5a in the arc shape, the tablet W to be transported is
proactively rotated and facilitated to be transported, and thereby
the transport speed can be increased. Note that, when the tablet W
has an elongated shape like a capsule, the tablet W is supported by
the support space region Ts (see FIG. 3C) which is a region between
the spiral groove 5a and the guide rod 6, such that the axial
direction of the tablet W is directed to the transport direction,
and the tablet W is transported while rotating around the axis
thereof.
[0081] Further, when the spiral groove 5a is changed in accordance
with the type of the tablet W to be handled, the groove pitch,
groove shape, and groove depth of the spiral groove 5a are changed
by changing the spiral groove rod 5. Then, the interval adjustment
of a space between the spiral groove 5a and the guide rod 6 (and
the lateral guide block 12a) is performed by the holder moving
mechanism 40. Note that the spiral grooves 5a are formed with the
same groove pitch, but the groove pitch may be configured to be
gradually enlarged.
[0082] As shown in FIGS. 2 to 3C, the guide rod 6 is for guiding
the tablet W when transporting the tablet W in cooperation with the
spiral groove rod 5. The guide rod 6 is formed at the position
corresponding to a section of the groove rod portion 5A of the
spiral groove rod 5, and includes a guide portion 6a which is
formed in a columnar shape and guides the transport of the tablet
W, the guide-thin shaft portion 6b which is formed continuously to
a tip end as a transport end side of the guide portion 6a, and a
guide-base end portion 6c which is a base end side connected to the
lateral guide block 12a. Further, the guide rod 6 is in a state of
being supported by the second support holder 32. Specifically, a
tip end side of the guide-thin shaft portion 6b of the guide rod 6
is supported by the tip end support holder 32A of the second
support holder 32, and the guide-base end portion 6c as the base
end side of the guide rod 6 is supported by the base end support
holder 32B via the lateral guide block 12a in a state of forming
the groove portion 6f. Note that the guide rod 6 is supported in a
state of not rotating. Further, as shown in FIGS. 3B and 5B, the
guide rod 6 is configured such that the guide-base end portion 6c
is connected via the groove portion 6f when it is connected to the
lateral guide block 12a. The groove portion 6f is formed with a
groove depth and groove width in which the shield-rotating plate
112 can rotate.
[0083] A surface of the guide portion 6a is preferably formed in a
state of being polished such that the friction with the tablet W to
be transported is small. Further, the guide portion 6a may be
formed such that the friction with the tablet W is small by
covering the surface thereof with a coating film such as fluorine.
Although a resin rod is used here as the guide rod 6, however, a
metal rod may be used. The guide-thin shaft portion 6b is formed at
a position corresponding to the thin shaft portion 5b of the spiral
groove rod 5, and is formed to have a diameter so that the tablet W
that has been transported can fall through between the thin shaft
portion 5b and the guide-thin shaft portion 6b.
[0084] Here, the outer diameter of the spiral groove rod 5 and the
diameter of the guide rod 6 are formed in the same size, and the
diameter of the thin shaft portion 5b of the spiral groove rod 5
and the diameter of the guide-thin shaft portion 6b of the guide
rod 6 are also formed in the same size. Further, the spiral groove
rod 5 and the guide rod 6 are arranged to be in the same position
in the height direction, and the interval therebetween is set such
that the tablet W located in the spiral groove 5a of the spiral
groove rod 5 does not fall through the interval. A space region
between the spiral groove rod 5 and the guide rod 6 when the
interval therebetween is set as described above is referred to as
the support space region Ts. In other words, the support space
region Ts is set to the interval in which the tablet W can be
supported between the spiral groove 5a of the spiral groove rod 5
and the guide portion 6a of the guide rod 6. Further, the support
space region Ts is set to the interval in which it guides the
tablet W along the rotating spiral groove 5a of the spiral groove
rod 5 and can transport the tablet W along the transport route Sr
to the transport end while the tablet W itself is rotating.
[0085] As shown in FIGS. 1A to 3A, the first support holder 31 is
provided on the base 100, and rotatably supports the spiral groove
rod 5. The first support holder 31 includes the tip end rotation
support holder 31A for rotatably supporting an end portion of the
thin shaft portion 5b of the spiral groove rod 5, and the base end
rotation support holder 31B for rotatably supporting the
connection-rotating portion 5d connected to the connecting portion
5c of the spiral groove rod 5. Further, the second support holder
32 is for rotatably supporting the rotating roller 3a of the
delivery mechanism 30, and for supporting the guide rod 6 via the
lateral guide block 12a. The second support holder 32 includes the
tip end support holder 32A for supporting an end portion of the
guide-thin shaft portion 6b of the guide rod 6, and the base end
support holder 32B for rotatably supporting the rotating roller 3a
and supporting the lateral guide block 12a. Note that, the base end
support holder 32B of the second support holder 32 are, as already
described, configured to also support the rotating roller 3a.
[0086] Further, the first support holder 31 is provided at a
position adjacent to the second support holder 32. Then, at the
positions adjacent to the left and right of the tip end rotation
support holder 31A of the first support holder 31, the tip end
support holders 32A, 32A of the second support holder 32 are
provided, and at the positions adjacent to the left and right of
the base end rotation support holder 31B of the first support
holder 31, the base end support holders 32B, 32B of the second
support holder 32 are provided. Note that, on the base 100, the
first support holder 31 and the second support holder 32 are
provided on the holder guide plate 102 mounted on the mounting
frame 101.
[0087] As shown in FIGS. 2 and 6, the tip end rotation support
holder 31A rotatably supports a shaft portion of the rotating shaft
47 formed with the threaded portions 47a, 47b on the both ends
thereof, via a bearing at the lower portion side of the holder.
Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the base end rotation support holder
31B rotatably supports the shaft portion of the rotating shaft 47
formed with the threaded portions 47a, 47b on the both ends
thereof. The threaded portions 47a, 47b are respectively supported
via bearings by the holder bases 32B1, 32B1 (see FIG. 4) which are
the lower portion side of the holder. Then, the tip end rotation
support holder 31A and the base end rotation support holder 31B
respectively include a space in which the driven gear 46 attached
to the shaft portion of the rotating shaft 47 is provided.
[0088] Further, the rotating shaft guides 48, 49 (see FIG. 2) in
parallel with the rotating shaft 47 are provided through the tip
end rotation support holder 31A and the tip end support holders
32A, 32A, and the tip end support holders 32A, 32A are configured
to be slidable. In the same manner, the rotating shaft guides 48,
49 (see FIG. 4) in parallel with the rotating shaft 47 are provided
through the base end rotation support holder 31B and the base end
support holders 32B, 32B, and the base end support holders 32B, 32B
are configured to be slidable. As shown in FIG. 4, the base end
support holders 32B, 32B have the holder bases 31B1, 31B1 which are
provided with stepped portions from the upper portion thereof for
supporting the rotating rollers 3a, 3a and are formed larger than
the upper portion thereof. The rotating shaft 47 and the rotating
shaft guides 48, 49 are provided through the holder base 32B1, and
the holder base 32B1 is formed in a size allowing the lateral guide
support portion 12d to be attached to the outside thereof.
[0089] Here, the tip end support holder 32A and the base end
support holder 32B of the second support holder 32 are, at the
lower ends thereof, respectively provided with engaging portions
32c so as to be movable along a guide groove 102a provided in the
holder guide plate 102. Therefore, the tip end support holder 32A
and the base end support holder 32B are guided by the guide groove
102 and the rotating shaft guides 48, 49, and slide (move) along
the holder guide plate 102. Further, the base end rotation support
holder 31B (see FIG. 3A) of the first support holder 31 is
configured to support the spiral groove rod 5 and also support the
central guide block 11a. Furthermore, the base end support holder
32B (see FIG. 4) of the second support holder 32 is configured to
support the lateral guide block 12a and also support the rotating
roller 3a.
[0090] Since the transport mechanism 4 includes the configuration
as described above, it is possible to input the tablets W from the
hopper 2 into where the transport mechanism 4 is ready for
transport by rotating the spiral groove rod 5 by the transport
drive unit 5G, and deliver the tablet W via the delivery mechanism
30 (from the guide route GR) to the support space region Ts in the
transport route Sr, and then transport the tablet W to the
transport end. Then, as shown in FIGS. 3A to 5B, the transport
mechanism 4 alternately sends out the tablets W aligned on the
spiral groove rod 5 and the guide rods 6, 6 from the transport end
to the counting path 15, and allows the tablets W to fall to the
counting path 15 so as to pass the counting unit 14 (see FIG. 1A).
Note that, as shown in FIG. 3A, the transport mechanism 4 is
arranged such that a portion of the spiral groove rod 5 formed with
the spiral groove 5a is more protruded than a guide surface of the
guide rod 6 at the transport end, and is thus set to reliably send
out the tablets W to the counting path 15.
[0091] As shown in FIG. 7, the counting unit 14 is for counting the
tablets W which are transported and sent out. The counting unit 14
is set for each spiral groove rod 5, and uses an optical sensor
capable of counting the tablets W by determining a state in which
light is blocked by the tablet W falling. As the optical sensor, a
common sensor used for counting the tablets W is used. Note that,
in a case of using the optical sensor, in a light emitting unit and
a light receiving unit, two or more air chambers are configured to
be arranged such that the volume of the air chamber is gradually
reduced from a position where the tablet W falls, to a position of
the light emitting unit and light receiving unit (for more
information, refer to Japanese Patent No. 3041343). Therefore, even
in a state where tablet powders generated from the tablets W in
accordance with falling of the tablets W are falling, the tablet
powders hardly adhere to a light receiving surface or the like, and
accuracy of counting is not reduced.
[0092] Further, when detecting the tablets W, the counting unit 14
sets a first reference for counting the tablet W on the basis of an
amount of light blocked in a light path, and counts the tablet W if
the amount of light blocked reaches the reference. Here, the
counting unit 14 sets two or more comparison values of the amount
of light blocked or time of light blocked, so that the comparison
value can be reduced stepwise from the above-mentioned reference
when the light receiving unit receives the light.
[0093] Therefore, if the amount of light blocked or time of light
blocked reaches the first reference, the tablet W passing through
the counting unit 14 is counted as a tablet W, and if the amount of
light blocked or time of light blocked reaches the second
reference, the tablet W passing through the counting unit 14 is not
counted as a tablet W. Note that, as shown in FIG. 1A or FIG. 7,
the counting and filling apparatus 1 can determine whether or not
the tablet W has a defect by processing the image from the image
capturing unit 22 provided in the transport route. If the counting
and filling apparatus 1 determined that the tablet W has the defect
by the image from the image capturing unit 22, it controls the
rotational speed of the transport drive motor 5f to be slow, and is
set to reliably eliminate only the tablet W with the defect by use
of a path switching flap 16.
[0094] As shown in FIGS. 1A, 3A, and 7, the counting path 15 is a
path for storing the tablets W in the container V. The counting
path 15 is configured to be cylindrical so that the tablet W having
passed through the counting unit 14 can be stored in the container
V which is disposed at the lower end. Further, the counting path 15
is provided in a tapered shape so that the path is gradually
narrower toward the lower from the upper in this case. The path
switching flap 16 is for distributing the falling tablets W to a
non-defective product path 17 or a defective product discharge path
18 of the counting path 15. The path switching flap 16 is
configured to switch the paths under the control of the control
unit 20 (see FIGS. 1A, 7).
[0095] The container V is disposed below the counting path 15, and
is for storing a predetermined number of tablets W. The shape,
size, material, color, and the like of the container V are not
particularly limited. Note that, a mounting base on which the
container V is mounted may be configured such that an operator
replaces the container V manually, or may be, as shown in FIG. 1A,
configured such that the transport conveyor 50 is provided, and
moved when a predetermined quantity (a filling quantity: a quantity
to be stored in the container) is filled into the container. Note
that, the transport conveyor 50 may be disposed such that the
transport direction thereof is a direction perpendicular to the
longitudinal direction (transport direction) of the transport
mechanism 4 so as to be across the counting path 15 of each
transport mechanism 4, or may be configured to be provided with the
same number as the number of the transport mechanism 4, and such
that each conveyor 50 is provided along the transport direction of
the transport mechanism 4.
[0096] As shown in FIGS. 1A and 7, the control unit 20 is for
mainly controlling the transporting mechanism 4, and is realized by
a function of a computer with a CPU that performs calculation,
comparison, determination, and the like on the basis of information
(data) from an input means (a touch panel 21 as a display unit) or
the like. The control unit 20 includes an input unit 20a, a memory
unit 20b, a reset unit 20c, an image processing unit 20d, a
comparison unit 20e, and a drive control unit 20f.
[0097] As shown in FIG. 7, the input unit 20a is an interface for
inputting the data or instruction from the touch panel 21 or the
like. For example, the input unit 20a inputs, from the touch panel
21, the filling quantity of the tablet W to be filled into the
container V, a reference quantity, a reset signal, or an
instruction for moving the second support holder 32. Here, the
reference quantity is a value less than the filling quantity which
is arbitrarily determined in advance by the operator, and is, for
example, a quantity of 90 to 95 tablets when the filling quantity
is 100 tablets, and it may be a value having a predetermined
difference from the filling value so that the counting unit 14 can
reliably count the tablets W when the number of tablets W filled
into the container V reaches the filling quantity. By the value of
the reference quantity, the speed of the tablets W transported by
the transport mechanism 4 can be adjusted.
[0098] The filling quantity and reference quantity inputted from
the input unit 20a are outputted to the memory unit 20b. Note that,
the reset signal to be described later, which is inputted to the
input unit 20a, is outputted to the reset unit 20c. Further, the
instruction for moving the second support holder 32, which is
inputted to the input unit 20a, is outputted to the drive control
unit 20f. The memory unit 20b is a common memory unit such as a
hard disk, an optical disk, a memory. The memory unit 20b stores
the filling quantity, the reference quantity, and the like, which
are inputted from the input unit 20a.
[0099] The reset unit 20c receives the reset signal from the input
unit 20a or a container sensor Vs, and sends a reset control signal
to the comparison unit 20e, then resets the quantity counted by the
counting unit 14 in the comparison unit 20e. When the reset unit
20c receives the reset signal indicating that the container V is
replaced from the container sensor Vs, or receives the reset signal
which is inputted via the input unit 20a by the operator, the reset
unit 20c outputs the reset control signal for resetting the
comparison unit 20e. In other words, when the reset control signal
is outputted to the comparison unit 20e from the reset unit 20c,
the comparison unit 20e resets the quantity of the counted tablets
from the counting unit 14.
[0100] The image processing unit 20d is for processing the image
inputted from the image capturing unit 22, and for example,
extracts sampling image data sampled from captured images, or
calculates brightness value data from the image, and sends the
extracted sampling image data or the calculated brightness value
data to the comparison unit 20e. The image processing unit 20d is
not limited thereto, as long as it is configured to process the
images by a well-known image processing means and compare the
images with the reference data or reference values.
[0101] The comparison unit 20e receives the reset control signal
from the reset unit 20c, or data from the counting unit 14, data
from the image processing unit 20d, and compares the received data
with each reference data stored in the memory unit 20b, and then
controls the drive control unit 20f and resets numeric values of
the counting unit 14. When the comparison unit 20e compares the
predetermined filling quantity with the quantity of the tablets W
currently counted by the counting unit 14, and they are equal to
each other, the comparison unit 20e outputs a first control signal
to the drive control unit 20f. Further, when the comparison unit
20e compares the reference quantity stored in the memory unit 20b
with the quantity of the tablets W currently counted by the
counting unit 14, and they are equal to each other, the comparison
unit 20e outputs a second control signal to the drive control unit
20f. Furthermore, the comparison unit 20e resets quantity values
sent from the counting unit 14 by the reset control signal from the
reset unit 20c, and outputs a third control signal to the drive
control unit 20f.
[0102] Further, when the comparison unit 20e receives the data from
the image processing unit 20d, and compares the data with a
reference image or a reference value and determines that the tablet
W has a defect, the comparison unit 20e outputs a fourth control
signal indicating the defect to the drive control unit 20f. When
the comparison unit 20e determines that the tablet W has the
defect, the comparison unit 20e subtracts one from count data sent
from the counting unit 14, and then compares the subtracted data
with the filling quantity or the reference quantity. By subtracting
the number of the defective tablets W, the comparison unit 20e
accurately calculates the number of the tablets W which are
currently filled into the container V.
[0103] The drive control unit 20f controls the transport drive
motor 5f of the transport mechanism 4, the roller drive motor 3c of
the rotating roller 3a, the path switching flap 16, and the holder
driving source 41 (holder moving mechanism 40) by the input signal
or each control signal sent from the comparison unit 20e. When the
drive control unit 20f is inputted the second control signal from
the comparison unit 20e, the drive control unit 20f sends the
control signal to the transport drive motor 5f, and controls the
rotational speed of the spiral groove rod 5 to be lower than the
predetermined rotational speed. When the predetermined rotational
speed is, for example, 1000 rotation/min, the rotational speed is
controlled to be 100 to 500 rotation/min.
[0104] Further, when the drive control unit 20f is inputted the
first control signal from the comparison unit 20e, the drive
control unit 20f sends the control signal to the transport drive
motor 5f, and temporarily stops the rotation of the spiral groove
rod 5. At this time, since the tablets W reaches the predetermined
quantity, the container V is replaced by a new container V.
Further, when the drive control unit 20f receives the third control
signal from the comparison unit 20e, it outputs the control signal
for controlling the transport drive motor 5f so that the rotational
speed of the spiral groove rod 5 which has been temporarily stopped
becomes the predetermined rotational speed. When the drive control
unit 20f receives the fourth control signal from the comparison
unit 20e, it controls the rotational speed for the transport by the
transport drive motor 5f to be smaller than the predetermined
rotational speed, and outputs the control signal so as to send the
defective tablet W to the defective product discharge path 18 by
controlling the path switching flap 16 to be switched when the
identified tablet W falls. Note that, immediately after the
defective tablet W is discharged, the drive control unit 20f
switches the path switching flap 16 to the non-defective product
path 17 of the counting path 15, and outputs the control signal so
that the rotational speed of the transport drive motor 5f becomes
the predetermined rotational speed for the transport. Further, the
drive control unit 20f controls the holder moving mechanism 40 by
use of the signal inputted from the touch panel 21 via the input
unit 20a.
[0105] With the above configuration, the control unit 20
effectively performs the filling operation of filling the tablets W
into the container V by controlling the transport mechanism 4.
Here, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 7, the touch panel 21 can be used as
a monitor for displaying the touch panel as the input unit and a
state of the tablet W captured by the image capturing unit 22,
simultaneously or by switching. Further, the image capturing unit
22 is, for example, a CCD camera, and captures the rotating tablet
W in the image capturing range. Here, the image capturing units 22
are arranged with the same number as the transport route Sr, and
capture the tablets W which are transported on the transport route
Sr formed by the spiral groove rod 5 and the guide rods 6, 6.
[0106] Next, the operation of the counting and filling apparatus 1
will be described with reference to FIG. 8 mainly and the other
drawings as appropriate. Note that, the drawings shown on the left
side in FIGS. 8A to 8D schematically show only the structure on the
right side of the spiral groove rod 5 by omitting the structure on
the left side thereof. In other words, the drawings show only the
structure corresponding to the right portion in FIG. 5A. First, as
shown in FIG. 8A, the counting and filling apparatus 1 is inputted
the tablets W into the hopper 2 by an input device (not shown) or
the operator (input step). The tablets W fall by their own weight
from the supply port 2d of the hopper 2, and are guided to the
guide route GR formed by the central guide block 11a and the
rotating rollers 3a, 3a on the left and right. The tablets W take
postures in a same direction by entering the guide route GR.
Further, as shown by a tablet WA, some of the inputted tablets W
take postures not capable of entering the guide route GR. However,
since the rotating rollers 3a, 3a on the left and right rotate so
as to apply the frictional force to the tablets W in the direction
opposite to the falling direction of the tablets W, the tablet WA
is changed the posture directly or indirectly via the other tablet
W, and becomes a tablet WB which has a posture capable of entering
the guide route GR.
[0107] As shown in FIG. 8B, the tablets W are aligned by the guide
route GR (see FIG. 8A) of the delivery mechanism 30 which is formed
by the rotating rollers 3a, 3a, the central guide block 11a, and
the lateral guide blocks 12a, 12a opposed to the spiral groove rod
5. In particular, the tablets W are aligned in a row along the
spiral groove rod 5 in the guide space GS (see FIG. 5A), and
aligned in a state of overlapping along the guide route GR in the
upward direction where the tablets W are aligned in the row. Then,
the tablets W are delivered to the spiral groove 5a by being
aligned or by being guided directly, and are supported by the
spiral groove 5a (delivery step). Further, in a state of being
supported in the spiral groove 5a, the tablet W is sent out by the
rotating spiral groove rod 5 from the position where the spiral
groove rod 5 and the lateral guide blocks 12a, 12a are opposed to
each other, to the transport routes Sr, Sr (see FIG. 1A) where the
spiral groove rod 5 and the guide rods 6, 6 are opposed to each
other.
[0108] As shown in FIGS. 8B to 8D, when the tablets W are sent
remaining in the overlapped state at the position of the lateral
guide blocks 12a, 12a by the rotation of the spiral groove rod 5,
the tablets W which are not supported in the spiral groove 5a come
into contact with the shield-rotating plates 112, 112, and is
allowed to temporarily wait in the range of the partition frame
portion 9 or along the guide route GR in the range thereof. For
example, a tablet shown by a tablet WC has a vertical posture in a
state of being fitted into between the spiral groove rods 5a when
the tablet falls from the supply port 2d (see FIG. 8A). And, as
shown in FIGS. 8B, 8C, the tablet WC is sent by the rotation of the
spiral groove rod 5 and comes into contact with the shield-rotating
plates 112, 112, and thus the tablet WC is temporarily moved in the
rotation direction of the shield-rotating plates 112, 112. Then, as
shown in FIG. 9D, the tablet WC can have a proper posture to be
supported in the spiral groove 5a by being changed the posture
thereof.
[0109] Therefore, when it is a proper posture that the longitudinal
axis of the tablet W is horizontally supported in the spiral groove
5a, even if a tablet W has a posture where the longitudinal axis
thereof is in the vertical direction and is fitted into between the
tablets W supported in the spiral grooves 5a, the tablet W comes
into contact with the shield-rotating plates 112, 112, and thus the
tablet W can take a proper posture by changing the posture thereof
by the rotation of the shield-rotating plates 112, 112. As
described above, the shield-rotating plates 112, 112 come into
contact with the tablet W sent by the rotation of the spiral groove
rod 5 without being supported in the spiral groove 5a, and moves
the tablet W in the rotation direction thereof to change the
posture of the tablet W, and thus the shield-rotating plates 112,
112 can temporarily store (allow to wait) the tablet W not
supported in the spiral groove 5a in the range of the partition
frame portion 9 (in the range to the upper end of the partition
frame portion 9 from above the spiral groove rod 5 below the
partition frame portion 9).
[0110] When the spiral groove 5a is sent in a vacant state because
of the rotation of the spiral groove rod 5, the tablet W waiting in
the range of the partition frame portion 9 is fitted and supported
in the vacant spiral groove rod 5a, and sent out to the transport
route Sr through under the shield-rotating plates 112, 112
(pre-delivery step). Incidentally, the tablet W stored in the range
of the partition frame portion 9 is waiting in the guide route GR
at the position adjacent to the supply port 2d. In other words, the
tablet W is waiting in an aligned state or while being changed the
posture thereof, in a space between the central guide block 11a and
the shield-rotating plates 112, 112, the rotating rollers 3a, 3a,
and in a space between the spiral groove 5 and the lateral guide
blocks 12a, 12a opposed to the spiral groove 5. Therefore, if the
spiral groove 5a is in a vacant state, the tablet W smoothly enters
the vacant spiral groove 5a and is supported in the spiral groove
5a in the range of the partition frame portion 9. The tablet W sent
out to the transport route Sr (see FIG. 1A) from the guide route GR
is transported to the transport end in a state that the tablet W is
supported by the support space region Ts which is a region between
the spiral groove 5a of the spiral groove rod 5 and the guide rods
6, 6 (transport step). In the transport mechanism 4, if the tablet
W is a material to be counted having a capsule shape, the
longitudinal axis thereof becomes horizontal and the tablet W is
transported in the transport direction while rotating around the
longitudinal axis.
[0111] Here, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 3A, the tablets W are sent
out to the counting path 15 alternately from the transport routes
Sr, Sr on the left and the right of the spiral groove rod 5. In the
counting and filling apparatus 1, a tablet W in one transport route
Sr is sent out toward the counting path 15 by the rotation of the
spiral groove rod, and when the spiral groove rod 5 is rotated 180
degrees from the state, another tablet W in the other transport
route Sr is sent out toward the counting path 15. Therefore, the
tablets W sent out to the counting path 15 by being transported by
the transport mechanism 4 can pass through a position of the
counting unit 14 in a state where the tablets W are hardly
overlapped with each other and easily counted, when they are
counted by the counting unit 14 located in a path of the counting
path 15.
[0112] As shown in FIG. 1A, the tablet W sent out to the counting
path 15 is counted by the counting unit 14 and filled into the
container V (filling step). A signal indicating that the tablet W
has passed through the counting unit 14 is sent to the control unit
20 and counted up until the number of the passing tablets W reaches
the filling quantity to be filled into the container V. Note that,
in the counting and filling apparatus 1, when the value counted by
the counting unit 14, that is subtracted by the value of the
tablets W which are determined to be defective by the image
processing unit 20d, reaches the reference quantity, the second
control signal is issued by the control unit 20, and the rotational
speed of the spiral groove rod 5 is allowed to be slower than the
set rotational speed. Therefore, it is easy for the counting unit
14 to count the tablets W from the reference quantity to the
filling quantity, and it can reliably count the tablets W. When the
counted quantity reaches the filling quantity in consideration of
the defective tablets W, the counted signal is sent to the control
unit 20. Consequently, in the counting and filling apparatus 1, the
signal (first control signal) for stopping the operation is sent
from the control unit 20 to the transport drive motor 5f of the
transport mechanism 4, and the transport operation of the transport
mechanism 4 is temporarily stopped.
[0113] Note that, when the transport operation of the transport
mechanism 4 is temporarily stopped, since almost all of the tablets
W transported by the transport mechanism 4 are positioned in the
spiral grooves 5a, the tablets W are not sent out due to inertia
when the transport operation is stopped. When the container V is
replaced with an empty one in the state where the transport of the
tablet W is stopped, a signal is sent from the container sensor Vs,
and a signal is sent again from the control unit 20 to the
transport drive motor 5f, and then the transport operation of the
tablet W is restarted.
[0114] Since the counting and filling apparatus 1 operates as
described above, it can accurately count and fill the tablets W
into the container V at a high speed. Further, when the container V
is replaced, even if the transport operation in the transport
mechanism 4 is stopped, the tablet W is in a state of being
disposed and supported in the support space region Ts, and thus the
tablet W hardly moves due to inertia in the transport direction,
even if the rotation of the spiral groove rod 5 is stopped.
Therefore, the counting and filling apparatus 1 performs counting
of the tablets W in almost perfect condition. Further, even if
there is a certain size fragment of the tablet W, since a space
between the spiral groove rod 5 and the guide rods 6, 6 is large in
the transport route Sr, the counting and filling apparatus 1 can
prevent the fragment from falling from the transport route Sr
during transport to be filled into the container V, as well as can
eliminate the fragment via the path switching flap 16 by the image
capturing unit 22.
[0115] Further, in the counting and filling apparatus 1, the
rotational speed of the spiral groove rod 5 of the transport
mechanism 4 is constant, for example, 1000 rotation/min, and thus
the count timing of the tablets W sent from each transport route Sr
is constant, however, the counting and filling apparatus 1 may be,
for example, configured to fill the tablets W into one container V
from a plurality of spiral groove rods 5. As an example, the
counting and filling apparatus 1 may vary a rotational speed of a
spiral groove rod 5 from those of other four spiral groove rods 5.
The counting and filling apparatus 1 may, in this case, count the
tablets W and fill them into one container V through all five
spiral groove rods 5.
[0116] Specifically, if the predetermined quantity is, for example,
1000 tablets, the counting and filling apparatus 1 operates all
five spiral groove rods 5 until the quantity of the tablets W
reaches 990 tablets, and stops four spiral groove rods 5 which have
been rotating at a high speed by a signal from the control unit 20
when the 990 tablets are counted by the counting unit 14. Then, by
performing the filling of 10 tablets remaining until 1000 tablets
by a spiral groove rod 5 which is operating at low rotational
speed, it is possible to reliably count the tablets W and fill them
into the container V without miscounting the quantity. As described
above, by varying the rotational speed of the spiral groove rod 5,
the counting and filling apparatus 1 has an advantage capable of
performing the operation in accordance with the quantity to be
filled into the container V. Note that, as other examples of
different configurations, the counting and filling apparatus 1 may
be configured to rotate all five spiral groove rods 5 at a high
speed and vary all the five to a low speed when the quantity
reaches the reference quantity, or may be configured in different
ways.
[0117] Further, when the type of the tablet W is changed, the
counting and filling apparatus 1 adjusts the interval between the
spiral groove rod 5 and the guide rods 6, 6, and the interval
between the spiral groove rod 5 and the lateral guide block 12a,
12a. The counting and filling apparatus 1 adjusts the intervals by
the holder moving mechanism 40 via the control unit 20 by the input
of the touch panel 21. The holder moving mechanism 40 drives the
holder driving source 41, and thus rotates the coupling portion 42,
the transmission direction changing portion 43, and the rotating
shaft 44, and rotates the driven gear 46 by the rotation of the
transmission gear 45. When the rotating shaft 47 rotates by the
rotation of the driven gear 46, in the second support holder 32,
the tip end support holder 32A and the base end support holder 32B
move along the rotating shaft guides 48, 49 and the holder guide
plate 102 (refer to arrows in FIG. 3A). Note that, in accordance
with the movement of the second support holders 32, 32, the
shield-rotating plates 112, 112 also move, however, they can move
in the range of the space between them and the frame-front side
wall 19 (see FIG. 5A). Further, the shield-rotating plates 112, 112
can, by changing the diameter thereof, deal with a large movement
of the second support holders 32, 32.
[0118] The guide rods 6, 6 supported by the second support holder
32 via the lateral guide blocks 12a, 12a can be adjusted the
intervals between the spiral groove rod 5 and themselves by a
rotation number transmitted from the holder driving source 41 of
the holder moving mechanism 40. The intervals between the spiral
groove rod 5 and the guide rods 6, 6, or the lateral guide blocks
12a, 12a are preferably set in advance. In particular, the sizes
and shapes of the tablets W are listed in a display screen of the
touch panel 21, and by touching a position of an objective in the
list, an output rotation number of the holder driving source 41 of
the holder moving mechanism 40 is set and outputted, and thus the
intervals are adjusted. Note that, as shown by imaginary lines in
FIG. 6, the interval adjustment may be performed by a manual
means.
[0119] As described above, since the counting and filling apparatus
1 delivers the tablet W through the delivery mechanism 30 to the
transport mechanism 4 formed of the spiral groove guide 5 and the
guide rods 6, 6, and transports the tablet W, the counting and
filling apparatus 1 can count a number of tablets W at a high
speed, and can accurately fill only non-defective tablets into the
container. Further, since the counting and filling apparatus 1 uses
the spiral groove rod 5 which is different from a transport by a
conventional vibration mechanism, powders of the tablet W hardly
occur, and a portion contacting the tablet W in the transport route
is small, and thus cleaning or the like is facilitated. Further,
since the counting and filling apparatus 1 has the delivery
mechanism 30 as compared to a conventional apparatus including a
spiral groove rod, the counting and filling apparatus 1 can
smoothly deliver the tablets W to the transport mechanism 4, and
thus can perform the steps from the input step until the filling
step at higher speed. Furthermore, even if the tablets W has an
elongated capsule shape or a rugby ball shape, since the rotating
rollers 3a, 3a are provided with the shield-rotating plates 112,
112, the counting and filling apparatus 1 can change the posture of
the tablet W and smoothly deliver them to the transport mechanism
4.
[0120] Note that, the counting and filling apparatus 1 may form the
transport route Sr by using only one side guide rod 6 in the
transport mechanism 4. Further, the counting and filling apparatus
1 has a capability equivalent to the conventional apparatus by
setting the rotational speed of the spiral groove rod 5 to 300
rotation/min, and the capability difference from the conventional
apparatus is increased each time adding a transport route Sr.
Further, since the counting and filling apparatus 1 can set the
rotational speed of the spiral groove rod 5 to 500 to 1500
rotation/min and transport the tablets, it has the filling speed
more than or equal to several times of the conventional
apparatus.
[0121] The counting and filling apparatus 1 has been described as
an example that the spiral groove rod 5 is rotated at a speed
slower than the predetermined rotation speed when the quantity
reaches the reference quantity, and the rotation of the spiral
groove rod 5 is stopped when the quantity reaches the filling
quantity, however, the counting and filling apparatus 1 may be
operated by setting only the filling quantity without setting the
reference quantity as a matter of course. Further, although the
guide rods 6, 6 have been described in a fixed state, they may be
configured to rotate. Note that, since the guide rods 6, 6 serve
for guiding the tablet W, and they can only guide the tablet W in a
state of slipping against the tablet W, the rotation direction does
not matter if they rotate. Further, the materials of the spiral
groove rod 5 and the guide rods 6, 6 may be metal, resin, or the
like, and not particularly limited thereto.
[0122] As shown in FIGS. 9A, 9B, as the lateral guide portion 12
(see FIG. 4), the guide rods 6, 6 which are extended to the
positions of the lateral guide blocks 12a, 12a may be provided, and
the lateral guide portion 12 may be replaced with the configuration
in which guide pieces (guide portions) 120 are provided at
predetermined positions of the guide rods 6, 6. The guide pieces
120 are mounted between the posture changing units 3 and the guide
rods 6, 6 disposed in parallel with the spiral groove rod 5. The
guide pieces 120 are provided by being attached to the peripheral
surfaces of the guide rods 6, 6 which are connected to and
supported by the base end support holders 32B, 32B of the second
support holders 32, 32. The guide pieces 120 are provided such that
spaces between themselves and the rotating rollers 3a, 3a are
smaller than the thickness Wd of the tablet W. Further, the
shield-rotating plates 112, 112 are provided rotatably by groove
portions 60f formed in the peripheral surfaces of the guide rods 6,
6, and the notch portions 19a, 19a of the frame-front side wall 19
(see FIGS. 5A, 5B). In this case, the groove portion 60f is formed
in a concave groove shape on the circumferential surface of the
guide rod 6 at a position which is a tip end of the guide piece
120.
[0123] Note that, if the spiral groove 5a is formed inclined in an
upper right direction to the transport direction (see FIGS. 1A to
3A), the spiral groove rod 5 is rotated clockwise, and if the
spiral groove 5a is formed inclined in an upper left direction to
the transport direction, the spiral groove rod 5 is rotated
anticlockwise. That is, if the spiral groove rod 5 is rotated in a
direction such that the tablet W can be transported toward the
transport end from the base end side, it may be rotated in either
direction in relationship with the spiral groove 5a.
[0124] Further, as shown in FIG. 10, the delivery mechanism 30 may
be a delivery mechanism 30B. That is, as shown in FIG. 10, a
central rotating roller 111 may be configured to be disposed in
place of the central guide block 11a (see FIG. 5A). The central
rotating roller 111 is alternately rotated clockwise and
anticlockwise (or continuously rotated in either direction), and
thus the posture of the tablet W can be changed. Further, between
the central rotating roller 111 and the spiral groove rod 5, a
spacer SP is provided so that the tablet W does not enter
therebetween. With such a configuration, the delivery mechanism 30B
has many positions to change the posture of the tablets W, thereby
preventing the tablets W from being bridged to each other.
[0125] Further, if the delivery mechanism 30, 30B already described
above can align the tablets W from the hopper 2 and deliver them to
the base end side of the transport mechanism 4, the delivery
mechanism 30, 30B may be configured to include protrusions or
concave portions on the circumferential surface of the rotating
roller 3a, 3a. Further, the vertical positional relationship
between the rotating roller 3a and the lateral guide portion 12 has
been described that they are provided to have central axes aligned
in the vertical direction, however, their diameter may be changed
or their placements may be changed such that the central axes
thereof aligned in the vertical direction are shifted to the left
or right, as long as the guide route GR can be formed. Further, the
shape of the central guide block 11a of the regulating unit 13 is
not limited thereto, as long as it can distribute the tablets W to
the left and right, and it may be configured to lead the tablets W
either to the left or right. Furthermore, in the counting and
filling apparatus 1, the rotating rollers 3a, 3a, the central guide
block 11a, and the lateral guide blocks 12a, 12a (guide pieces 120,
120) have been described as the same length, however, they need not
to be the same length, as long as their portions opposed to each
other are just below the partition frame portion 9 and the supply
port 2d.
[0126] Further, as shown in FIGS. 11A, 11B, the shield-rotating
plates 112, 112 may be configured to be rotatable by being disposed
inside a frame-front side wall 190 (in the frame) of the partition
frame portion 9. The shield-rotating plates 112, 112 can be
provided rotatably by forming the notch portions 190a, 190a in the
frame-left and right side walls, and providing groove portion 6f
(60f) in the guide rod 6. Note that, the positional relationship
between the shield-rotating plates 112, 112 and the other members
are as described above. Even with such a configuration shown in
FIGS. 11A, 11B, it is possible to achieve the same operation and
effect as the shield-rotating plates 112, 112 configured as shown
in FIGS. 5A, 5B.
[0127] Note that, even if the type of the material to be counted
such as the tablet W which can be handled by the counting and
filling apparatus 1 is, for example, an annular tablet W1, a
disk-shaped tablet W2, or a tablet W3 of triangular rice ball
shape, they can be transported while being rotated as shown by
arrows in FIGS. 12A to 12C. If the tablet W has a disk shape, it is
transported by the rotation of the spiral groove rod 5 while being
rotated in a posture such that the diameter direction thereof is
the upper and lower, and the front and rear directions in the
transport route Sr. Still further, the materials to be counted are
not particularly limited thereto, as long as they are those need to
be counted such as confectionery, supplements, mechanical parts,
and semiconductor components in addition to the tablets. Further,
the size of the spiral groove 5a may be smaller than, equal to, or
larger than that of the tablet W, and the spiral groove 5a may be
configured such that a curved portion of the material to be counted
comes into contact with an arc shape of the spiral groove 5a, and
the tablet W does not come into contact with an adjacent tablet W
supported in the spiral groove 5a.
[0128] Further, as shown in FIGS. 13 to 14C, the counting and
filling apparatus 1 may be configured to transport the tablet W
while sucking, by a dust collecting suction mechanism Bk, an inside
of a region partition portion 200 which partitions a space below
the lateral guide blocks 12a, 12a, guide rods 6, 6, and the spiral
groove rod 5. Note that, the region partition portion 200 is
provided so as to surround almost all of a region below the guide
route GR and the transport route Sr. As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14,
the region partition portion 200 partitions a region to be sucked
having an upper opening, and is configured by a suction partition
housing 201 which is formed with a suction connection opening 202
at the bottom surface thereof and has the upper opening. The
suction partition housing 201 is for housing abrasion powders,
damaged pieces, or the like of the tablet W to be transported, and
sending them to the suction connection opening 202. The suction
partition housing 201 includes route-parallel wall surfaces 203,
204 which are in contact with or close to the guide rods 6, 6 and
the lateral guide blocks 12a, 12a, route-cross wall surfaces 205,
206 which are formed continuously in a direction perpendicular to
both end portions of the route-parallel wall surfaces 203, 204, and
a route-bottom surface 207 which is a housing bottom surface formed
with the suction connection opening 202.
[0129] The route-parallel wall surfaces 203, 204 are disposed in
parallel to each other below the guide rods 6, 6 and the lateral
guide blocks 12a, 12a, and the upper end thereof is provided so as
to be close to the guide rod 6 and the lateral guide block 12a. The
route-parallel wall surfaces 203, 204 are formed in a predetermined
thickness in this case, and each of them is formed so as to face
each other just below the guide rod 6 and the lateral guide block
12a. The route-cross wall surface 205 is disposed below the spiral
groove rod 5 or below the spiral groove rod 5 and the guide rods 6,
6, and the upper end surface thereof is provided so as to be close
to the spiral groove rod 5 or the spiral groove rod 5 and the guide
rods 6, 6. The route-cross wall surface 205 is formed so as to be
in a predetermined constant thickness in this case, and is formed
integrally and continuously to one end portions of the
route-parallel wall surfaces 203, 204.
[0130] The route-cross wall surface 206 is disposed below the
spiral groove rod 5 or below the spiral groove rod 5 and the
lateral guide blocks 12a, 12a, and the upper end surface thereof is
provided so as to be close to the spiral groove rod 5 or the spiral
groove rod 5 and the lateral guide blocks 12a, 12a. The inner
peripheral side of the route-cross wall surface 206 is formed along
an arc shape of the suction connection opening 202 in this case,
and the route-cross wall surface 206 is formed integrally and
continuously to the other end portions of the route-parallel wall
surfaces 203, 204. The route-bottom surface 207 is for sending the
abrasion powders, damaged pieces, or the like of the tablet W to be
transported, to the suction connection opening 202. The
route-bottom surface 207 is formed so as to be inclined toward the
suction connection opening 202 in this case. Further, on the
route-cross wall surface 206 side of the route-bottom surface 207,
the suction connection opening 202 is formed therethrough in a
circular shape.
[0131] The dust collecting suction mechanism Bk is for sucking,
collecting, and removing the abrasion powders or the like generated
from the tablet W. The dust collecting suction mechanism Bk is not
limited thereto, as long as it includes a dust collecting mechanism
and a suction pump used when the tablet W is transported. The dust
collecting suction mechanism Bk is allowed to face the suction
connection opening 202 of the suction partition housing 201 by
connecting a tip end of a suction hose Bp to a connecting portion
formed in the base 100.
[0132] When performing suction operation via the region partition
portion 200 by the dust collecting suction mechanism Bk, the
atmosphere in the region partition portion 200 is sucked, and if
the abrasion powders are generated from the tablet W in accordance
with the transport, the abrasion powders are received by the
route-bottom surface 207 of the suction partition housing 201 of
the region partition portion 200, and moved by suction along the
route-bottom surface 207, and then collected from the suction
connection opening 202 via the suction hose Bp by the dust
collecting suction mechanism Bk (or collected directly from the
suction connection opening 202 via the suction hose Bp) (suction
step). Further, when the dust collecting suction mechanism Bk
performs the suction operation, the tablet W being transported is
always urged downward (to the suction direction). Therefore, in the
counting and filling apparatus 1, the tablet W is sent in a state
of close contact with the spiral groove 5a of the spiral groove rod
5 in the transport route Sr or the guide route GR, and thus the
transport posture of the tablet W is stabilized. Since the
transport posture of the tablet W is stabilized, if the visual
inspection is performed in the transport route, the counting and
filling apparatus 1 can improve the accuracy of the inspection.
[0133] The counting and filling apparatus 1 described above is not
limited to the configuration described above, as long as the
regulating unit 13 and the posture changing unit 3 of the delivery
mechanism 30 can align the materials to be counted (tablets W) by
changing the posture thereof, and deliver them to the transport
mechanism 4. Further, the configuration of the guide route GR
formed by the regulating unit 13 is not limited thereto, as long as
the guide route GR can align the materials to be counted and lead
or guide them to the spiral groove 5a. Furthermore, the falling of
the tablets W means that the materials to be counted fall, or
proceed, or move by their own weight toward the delivery mechanism
30 from the supply port 2d, and when the materials to be counted
fall, they may be either in a single state or an overlapped state.
Further, the second holder 32 may be configured without providing
the guide groove 102a and the engaging portion 32c shown in FIG. 6.
Further, the upper surface side of the partition frame portion 9
has been described as a configuration of being formed with opening
in this case, it is more preferably configured to be provided with
a transparent lid body (not shown). Furthermore, the base end
rotation support holder 31B of the first support holder 31 has been
described to be configured to support the spiral groove rod 5 and
also support the central guide block 11a in this case, however,
separate holder portions may be provided to support them. Further,
the base end support holder 32B of the second support holder 32 has
been described to be configured to support the lateral guide block
12a and also support the rotating roller 3a, however, separate
holder portions may be provided to support them.
[0134] The guide route GR has been described to be configured to
have a constant interval between a lateral plane of the central
guide block 11a and a lateral plane formed by the rotating roller
3a and the space guide protrusion 12c, however, the lateral plane
of the central guide block 11a may be configured to be inclined
toward the outer peripheral surface of the spiral groove rod 5
(refer to the spacer SP in FIG. 10). Further, the region partition
portion 200 has been described to be formed by the suction
partition housing 201 as an example, however, the route-bottom
surface 207 may be the surface of the base 100, and the
route-parallel wall surfaces 203, 204 and the route-cross wall
surfaces 205, 206 may be integral with an engaging portion (not
shown) formed in the surface of the base 100 or may be detachably
engaged with the engaging portion as separate bodies. Further, as
shown in FIG. 13, the structure formed with the counting path 15
may be integrally formed with the frame housing 150, and one
lateral wall surface of the frame housing 150 may be in place of
the route-cross wall surface 205. Further, since the region
partition portion 200 is sucked by the dust collecting suction
mechanism Bk, and thus the tablet W is urged to the direction of
being supported in the spiral groove 5a, even if the region
partition portion 200 is provided so as to surround a position
corresponding to a part of, or a half of, or all of the transport
route Sr continued from the guide route GR, it is possible to
obtain the same effect as described above compared with a state
without suction.
[0135] Further, the counting and filling apparatus 1 has been
described to be configured to form the shield-rotating plates 112,
112 as the adjusting unit Sm along the frame-front side wall 19,
however, it may be configured as shown in FIG. 15. That is, as
shown in FIG. 15, the partition frame portion 9A forms a
rectangular space which is partitioned by the front side wall 2c of
the supply port 2d and the other three side walls. A frame-front
side wall 9a of the partition frame portion 9A is configured to be
formed with a notch 9b on the side wall thereof, and to cover the
notch 9b with a silicone resin plate 9c by a fixing unit (fixing
bolt). In other words, the partition frame portion 9A is configured
to be provided with the silicone resin plate 9c on the frame-front
side wall 9a, in place of the shield-rotating plates 112, 112. The
silicone resin plate 9c is provided at a position where the tablet
W cannot pass through the silicone resin plate 9c, if the tablet W
is not supported in the spiral groove 5a. The tablet W, which is
prevented from passing through by the silicone resin plate 9c, is
temporarily held in the partition frame portion 9. Further, the
silicone resin plate 9c also serves not to damage the tablets W by
momentum of the tablets W, which are conveyed in the state of
overlapping too much on the spiral groove rod 5 and come into
contact with the silicone resin plate 9c. Further, the silicone
resin plate 9c is set to be capable of adjusting the installation
position thereof by the fixing bolt in accordance with the type of
the tablet W. The partition frame portion 9A including such a
silicone resin plate 9c may be the adjusting unit Sm. Note that,
the frame-front side wall 9a may be configured to be formed
integrally with the frame-left and right side walls by using the
same material with the frame-left and right side walls. In other
words, as long as the frame-front side wall 9a can allow the tablet
W supported in the spiral groove 5a to pass therethrough, and
prevent the tablet W excessively overlapped from passing
therethrough, the configuration such as a size, a shape, and a
material of the frame-front side wall 9a is not limited
thereto.
[0136] Further, the counting and filling apparatus 1 may be
configured to be provided with an inclined plate 300 shown in FIGS.
16A to 16C, in the partition frame portions 9, 9A shown in FIGS. 4,
11B, 15. Here, as an example, a configuration in which the inclined
plate 300 is provided in the partition frame portions 9 in
above-described FIG. 4 will be described, however, the
configuration of the inclined plate 300 and the moving state of the
tablets W in FIGS. 11B, 15 are the same as in FIG. 4. Further, the
same components as those already described are denoted by the same
reference numerals, and the descriptions thereof will be omitted.
As shown in FIGS. 16A, 16B, 16C, the inclined plate 300 is provided
in the partition frame portion 9 by being supported by the central
guide block 11a (or the inner wall surface of the partition frame
9). The inclined plate 300 is for forcibly moving the tablets W
toward the supply port 2d side. The inclined plate 300 includes a
rising surface 301 which is provided at a position opposed to the
frame-front side wall 9a, an inclined surface 302 which is inclined
toward the supply port 2d from the rising surface 301, and an
engaging mounting portion 303 which is formed at a position opposed
to the central guide block 11a. The inclined plate 300 is
configured as a block-shaped member as an example, and is formed so
that side surfaces of the inclined plate 300 come into contact with
the frame-left and right side walls of the partition frame portion
9, as shown in FIG. 16B.
[0137] As shown in FIG. 16C, the rising surface 301 is disposed at
a position spaced apart from the frame-front side wall 9a by a
distance which is a predetermined interval FS. Here, the rising
surface 301 is disposed at a position spaced apart from the
frame-front side wall 9a by more than two tablets W in the
longitudinal direction (or diameter direction) thereof. The rising
surface 301 is formed at a height where the tablets W, which are
between the rising surface 301 and the frame-front side wall 9a,
can move by their own weight via the inclined surface 302. Further,
the rising surface 301 is preferably formed in a range between 30
degrees and 90 degrees (orthogonal) with respect to the horizontal
line at the top of the central guide block 11a in this case.
[0138] As shown in FIGS. 16A, 16C, the inclined surface 302 is
formed at an inclined angle where the tablets W, which get over the
rising surface 301, are allowed to move by their own weight to the
supply port 2d side of the hopper 2. The inclined surface 302 has
one end which is formed continuously from the rising surface 301,
and has the other end which is formed in a range between a position
of the sliding side wall 2e or the front side wall 2c of the hopper
2 and a position spaced apart from the sliding side wall 2e or the
front side wall 2c by a predetermined distance LS. The inclined
surface 302 is, for example, preferably formed at an inclined angle
between 15 degrees and 60 degrees. If the inclined angle is in a
range of between 15 degrees and 30 degrees, the inclined surface
302 is suitable for the tablet W having a curved surface shape such
as a disk shape, a spherical shape, a rugby ball shape as a part or
all of a contour thereof. Further, if the inclined angle is in a
range beyond 30 degrees up to 60 degrees, the inclined surface 302
is suitable for the tablet W of a triangular shape having curved
corners or of a shape having flat side surfaces. As a position of
the other end of the inclined surface 302 is closer to the sliding
side wall 2e or the front side wall 2c of the hopper 2, a moving
distance of the tablet W to be returned is increased, and thus the
possibility that the tablet W is housed in the spiral groove 5a is
increased. The inclined surface 302 has a slope length in which the
tablet W can be moved by a distance corresponding to at least three
times of the tablet W in the longitudinal direction or the diameter
direction thereof, and the inclined surface 302 preferably has the
slope length corresponding to 4 to 10 tablets W in this case.
[0139] The engaging mounting portion 303 is for mounting the
inclined plate 300 detachably in the partition frame portion 9.
Here, the engaging mounting portion 303 is formed such that the
bottom surface of the inclined plate 300 is spaced apart from the
rotating rollers 3a, 3a, and mounted in engagement with the central
guide block 11a. As an example, the engaging mounting portion 303
is formed with an engaging concave portion engaged with a circular
portion of the central guide block 11a, and is formed such that
facing portions 304, 304 facing the rotating rollers 3a, 3a are
spaced apart from the rotating rollers 3a, 3a. As an example, since
the inclined plate 300 is formed in a size such that the side
surfaces thereof come into contact with the frame-left and right
side walls of the partition frame portion 9, the inclined plate 300
can be stably placed by mounting the engaging mounting portion 303
so as to be engaged with the central guide block 11a.
[0140] The above-described inclined plate 300 has the following
functions. That is, when the tablets W are allowed to wait in the
partition frame portion 9 by the frame-front side wall 19 or the
shield-rotating plates 112, 112, the inclined plate 300 accumulates
the tablets W between the rising plate 301 and the frame-front side
wall 19 by the rising plate 301. When the accumulated tablets W
ride on the inclined surface 302 beyond the height of the rising
plate 301, the tablets W move by their own weight on the inclined
surface 302, and thus the inclined plate 300 move the tablets W to
the supply port 2d side. By moving the tablet W to a position close
to the supply port 2d by the inclined plate 300, the tablet W can
be easily housed in a vacant spiral groove 5a of the guide route
GR.
[0141] As described above, since the inclined plate 300 can
sequentially move the tablets W, which wait at the side of the
frame-front side wall 19 of the partition frame portion 9, toward
the supply port 2d side by use of the inclined surface 302, by
providing the inclined plate 300 in the partition frame portion 9
as an intra-frame moving mechanism of the tablet W, the possibility
of reducing the waiting time of the tablet W waiting in the
partition frame portion 9 is increased. Note that, the inclined
plate 300 can be secured to the central guide block 11a by engaging
the engaging mounting portion 303 located in the center of the
lower surface thereof with the central guide block 11a, and thus
the inclined plate 300 can be also placed in a state of non-contact
with the frame-left and right side walls. Further, when the
inclined plate 300 is in the state of non-contact with the
frame-left and right side walls, the inclined plate 300 may be in a
state where the tablet W cannot enter the space therebetween.
[0142] Further, by preparing the inclined plates 300 having
different angles in advance and using them switchably in accordance
with the shape, size, or the like of the tablet W, the inclined
plates 300 can move the tablet W in the partition frame portion 9
in accordance with the outer shape of the tablet W. Further, the
inclined plate 300 has been described to be configured such that
the tablets W move by their own weight, however, an unillustrated
belt conveyor may be provided as the intra-frame moving mechanism
in the partition frame portion 9 in the same positional
relationship as the inclined plate 300, and a drive motor for the
belt conveyor may be configured to be provided through either of
the frame-left and right side walls of the partition frame portion
9.
REFERENCE SIGNS LIST
[0143] 1: counting and filling apparatus [0144] 2: hopper [0145]
2a: input port [0146] 2b: hopper main body [0147] 2c: front side
wall [0148] 2d: supply port [0149] 2e: sliding side wall [0150] 3:
posture changing unit [0151] 3a: rotating roller [0152] 3b:
connecting portion [0153] 3c: roller drive motor (drive motor)
[0154] 4: transport mechanism [0155] 5: spiral groove rod [0156]
5A: groove rod portion [0157] 5G: transport drive unit [0158] 5a:
spiral groove [0159] 5b: thin shaft portion [0160] 5c: connecting
portion [0161] 5d: connection-rotating portion [0162] 5e: shaft
connecting portion [0163] 5f: transport drive motor [0164] 6: guide
rod [0165] 6a: guide portion [0166] 6b: guide-thin shaft portion
[0167] 6c: guide-base end portion [0168] 9: partition frame portion
[0169] 9a: frame-front side wall [0170] 9b: notch [0171] 9c:
silicone resin plate [0172] 11: central guide portion [0173] 11a:
central guide block [0174] 11b: central block support portion
[0175] 12: lateral guide portion [0176] 12a: lateral guide block
[0177] 12b: block side surface [0178] 12c: space guide protrusion
[0179] 12d: lateral guide support portion [0180] 13: regulating
unit [0181] 14: counting unit [0182] 15: counting path [0183] 16:
path switching flap [0184] 17: non-defective product path [0185]
18: defective product discharge path [0186] 19: frame-front side
wall [0187] 19a: notch portion [0188] 20: control unit [0189] 20a:
input unit [0190] 20b: memory unit [0191] 20c: reset unit [0192]
20d: image processing unit [0193] 20e: comparison unit [0194] 20f:
drive control unit [0195] 21: touch panel [0196] 22: image
capturing unit [0197] 30: delivery mechanism [0198] 31: first
support holder [0199] 31A: tip end rotation support holder [0200]
31B: base end rotation support holder [0201] 32: second support
holder [0202] 32A: tip end support holder [0203] 32B: base end
support holder [0204] 32c: engaging portion [0205] 40: holder
moving mechanism [0206] 40A: tip end holder moving mechanism [0207]
40B: base end holder moving mechanism [0208] 41: holder driving
source [0209] 42: coupling portion [0210] 43: transmission
direction changing portion [0211] 44: rotating shaft [0212] 45:
transmission gear [0213] 46: driven gear [0214] 47: rotating shaft
[0215] 47a: threaded portion [0216] 47c: nut portion [0217] 48:
rotating shaft guide [0218] 50: transport conveyor [0219] 100: base
[0220] 100b: through hole [0221] 101: mounting frame [0222] 102:
holder guide plate [0223] 102a: guide groove [0224] 112:
shield-rotating plate [0225] 120: guide piece (guide portion)
[0226] 141: driving force transmission unit [0227] 142: linear
moving unit [0228] 300: inclined plate [0229] Sm: adjusting unit
[0230] GR: guide route [0231] GS: guide space [0232] Sr: transport
route [0233] Ts: support space region [0234] V: container [0235]
Vs: container sensor [0236] W: tablet [0237] W1: tablet [0238] W2:
tablet [0239] W3: tablet
* * * * *
References