Tube blister packaging apparatus and method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016304229-A1
Application number	US-201514689155-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Apr 17, 2015
Priority date	Apr 17, 2015
Publication date	Oct 20, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

An apparatus for the production of tube blister packages includes dispensing stations and a collection apparatus for providing medication doses to a blister packaging apparatus. The blister packaging apparatus fills the received medication doses, by groups, into pockets of a tube blister package. An inspection buffer apparatus disposed between the collection apparatus and the blister packaging apparatus includes a buffer apparatus for temporarily storing at least one group of medication doses intended for being filled into a pocket, a sensor apparatus for detecting an image and/or predetermined properties of the temporarily stored group of medication doses, and an evaluation and control device. The evaluation and control device determines whether the temporarily stored group of medication doses corresponds to a group of medication doses to be filled in, and if so, passes the temporarily stored group on to the blister packaging apparatus.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A medication packaging apparatus for producing tube blister packages of medications, comprising:
a plurality of supply containers configured to make medication doses available; one or more dispensing apparatuses configured to selectively dispense medication doses from the supply containers; a collection apparatus configured to pick up the medication doses dispensed by the one or more dispensing apparatuses and to pass on the medication doses; a blister packaging apparatus configured to fill the received medication doses, by groups, into pockets of a tube blister package, wherein a group of medication doses filled into a pocket comprises one medication dose or multiple similar or different medication doses; and an inspection buffer apparatus disposed between the collection apparatus and the blister packaging apparatus, the inspection buffer apparatus comprising:
a buffer apparatus configured to pick up the medication doses passed on by the collection apparatus and to temporarily store at least one group of medication doses intended to be filled into a pocket;
a sensor apparatus configured to detect at least one of an image and predetermined properties of the temporarily stored group of medication doses; and
an evaluation and control device configured to determine, on the basis of the detected at least one of the image and the predetermined properties, whether the temporarily stored group of medication doses corresponds to a predetermined group of medication doses to be filled in, and configured to control the buffer apparatus to pass the temporarily stored group on to the blister packaging apparatus only if the temporarily stored group corresponds to the predetermined group.

2 . The medication packaging apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the buffer apparatus comprises a transport apparatus configured to pick up the medication doses passed on by the collection apparatus at a first location, and to transport the medication doses to a second location, wherein the sensor apparatus is configured to detect the at least one of the image and the predetermined properties of the temporarily stored group of medication doses.

3 . The medication packaging apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the transport apparatus is configured to pass the temporarily stored group on to the blister packaging apparatus if the temporarily stored group of medication doses corresponds to the predetermined group of medication doses to be filled in.

4 . The medication packaging apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the transport apparatus is configured to transport the temporarily stored group back to the first location if the temporarily stored group of medication doses does not correspond to the predetermined group of medication doses to be filled in because the temporarily stored group is missing one or more medication doses, and wherein the missing medication doses are supplied to the group temporarily stored at the first location.

5 . The medication packaging apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the transport apparatus is configured to discard the temporarily stored group if the temporarily stored group of medication doses does not correspond to the predetermined group of medication doses to be filled in because the temporarily stored group contains at least one of incorrect, defective and excess medication doses.

6 . The medication packaging apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the transport apparatus comprises a horizontal conveyor having at least one holding compartment, the at least one holding compartment configured to be moved to the first location for receiving medication doses and to be moved to the second location for detecting the at least one of the image and the predetermined properties of the group by the sensor apparatus.

7 . The medication packaging apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the transport apparatus comprises a chute having an upper end disposed at the first location and a catch apparatus configured to catch the medication doses that slide down, wherein the catch apparatus is configured to be controlled by the evaluation and control device so that the catch apparatus releases the temporarily stored group formed by catching the medication doses that slide down and passes the released group on to the blister packaging apparatus only if the temporarily stored group corresponds to the predetermined group.

8 . The medication packaging apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the sensor apparatus comprises a camera configured to detect an image of the temporarily stored group of medication doses.

9 . The medication packaging apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the buffer apparatus comprises a mechanical separation apparatus configured to separate the medication doses of the temporarily stored group before the image is recorded, so that the medication doses do not reciprocally cover one another in the image.

10 . The medication packaging apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the sensor apparatus comprises a scale.

11 . The medication packaging apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the collection apparatus comprises a collection funnel disposed below the medication supply container.

12 . The medication packaging apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the supply containers comprise at least one of first supply containers that each contain a plurality of the same medication doses of a predetermined type of medication and second supply containers that each contain only one medication dose or a few medication doses of one or more types of medications.

13 . The medication packaging apparatus of claim 12 , further comprising:
multiple first supply containers, each having a related dispensing apparatus, stacked one on top of the other to form multiple vertical columns of dispensing stations disposed next to one another in a plane; the collection apparatus comprising a plurality of vertical guide shafts configured to be moved horizontally past the vertical dispensing station columns, each vertical guide shaft comprising a pickup opening into which the dispensing apparatuses are configured to dispense medication doses when a guide shaft moves past the dispensing apparatuses so that the medication doses move downward in the guide shafts and exit from a dispensing opening at a lower end; and a plurality of collection containers disposed below the plurality of vertical guide shafts, each collection container, together with a corresponding vertical guide shaft, configured to be moved horizontally, to catch the medication doses of a respective group, and to dispense the caught medication doses to the inspection buffer apparatus after the corresponding vertical guide shaft has been moved past the dispensing station columns.

14 . The medication packaging apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the collection containers are configured to be moved below dispensing apparatuses of the second supply containers so that one or more medication doses contained in the second supply containers are dispensed into one or more collection containers.

15 . A packaging apparatus for producing tube blister packages of medications, comprising:
a plurality of medication supply containers; a plurality of dispensing devices configured to selectively dispense medication doses from the plurality of medication supply containers; a collection device configured to pick up the medication doses dispensed by the plurality of dispensing devices; a blister packaging device configured to receive the medication doses from the collection device and to fill the received medication doses into pockets of a tube blister package; and an inspection buffer device disposed between the collection device and the

Assignees

• Carefusion Germany 326 Gmbh

Inventors

• Hellenbrand Christoph

Classifications

• B65B37/02

  by gravity flow · CPC title

• B65B35/44

  by endless belts or chains {(B65B35/405 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• B65B35/04

  with buffer storage devices · CPC title

• B65B9/08

  in a web folded and sealed transversely to form pockets which are subsequently filled and then closed by sealing · CPC title

• B65B35/30

  Arranging and feeding articles in groups · CPC title