JP2000006904A - Drug feed apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a drug feed apparatus which is designed so as to remarkably shorten the drug feed time. SOLUTION: A drug feed apparatus comprises a main body 7 having a case housing portion 8 on an upper part thereof, tablet cases 3, 4, 6, a plurality of which are mounted in the case housing portion 8 and contain drugs, respectively, a chute 22 through which the drugs discharged from the respective cases drop, a hopper 11 positioned under the chute 22 and provided inside the main body, and a plurality of shutters 12, 24, which are provided at the lower end of the hopper, and at least one of which is provided inside the chute. Each shutter is disposed in such a manner that the time until the drugs discharged from the uppermost tablet case reach the first shutter 24 becomes substantially equal to the time until the discharged drugs reach the subsequent shutter 12 from the first shutter.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a medicine supply device that supplies medicines stored in a tablet case to containers (bags or bottles) in a quantity specified by a prescription.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in hospitals and dispensing pharmacies, for example, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 57-5282 (B65B1 / 30).
A medicine prescribed by a doctor is provided to a patient by using a medicine supply device (referred to as a medicine packaging machine in the gazette) as shown in FIG. In such a method, the medicines (including tablets, capsules, etc.) described in the prescription are discharged one by one from a discharge drum (referred to as an aligning plate in the above-mentioned publication) in a tablet case, and thereafter collected by a hopper. Was to be packaged.

[0003]

In recent years, there has been an urgent need to reduce the time required for drug supply and packaging in order to increase the efficiency of operations at hospitals and dispensing pharmacies. By the way, medicines are usually conveyed by gravity drop by gravity or additionally by forcible movement by a conveyor or the like. ), Which increases the time required to finally supply and package the drug.

[0004] The present invention has been made to solve such a conventional technical problem, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a medicine supplying apparatus which significantly shortens a medicine supplying time.

[0005]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a medicine supply device comprising: a main body having a case storage portion on an upper part; a plurality of tablet cases mounted in the case storage portion, each containing a medicine; A chute from which the medicine discharged from the chute falls, a hopper provided below the chute and provided in the main body, and a plurality of shutters provided at the lower end of the hopper and at least one provided in the chute, Each shutter is arranged so that the time until the medicine discharged from the uppermost tablet case reaches the first shutter is almost equal to the time from the shutter to the next shutter. It is.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a medicine supply device comprising: a main body having a case storage section at an upper portion; a plurality of tablet cases mounted in the case storage section, each storing a medicine; and a medicine discharged from each case. A dropping chute, a hopper provided in the main body below the chute, a first shutter provided in the chute,
A second shutter provided at the lower end of the hopper, and a time required for the medicine discharged from the uppermost tablet case to reach the first shutter, and the medicine is supplied from the first shutter to the second shutter. Is provided with a first shutter so that the time until the image reaches.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the above device, the medicine discharged from the tablet case above the first shutter is received by the first shutter via the chute, and the medicine is discharged from the first shutter. With the opening, it is received by the second shutter via the hopper, and the medicine is supplied by opening the second shutter.

According to the present invention, the first shutter (first shutter)
When the medicine is discharged from the tablet case above the shutter), the medicine is received by the shutter and placed, and then the medicine is discharged when the medicine is discharged from the tablet case or another tablet case above the shutter. The shutter is opened, the medicine received by the tablet case is received by the next shutter (second shutter), and the medicine discharged from the tablet case is closed again by the first shutter (first shutter).
By repeatedly executing the operation of receiving from the tablet case, the operation from the tablet case to the first shutter (first shutter) and from the first shutter (first shutter) to the next shutter (second shutter) are performed. In this way, the medicines can be dropped and moved in parallel, and the time required for carrying the medicines can be significantly reduced as a whole.

As a result, it is possible to remarkably speed up the medicine supply operation and to improve the work efficiency. Further, the medicine in the tablet case below the first shutter (first shutter) is discharged at the next discharge of the medicine from the tablet case above the shutter, and is directly received by the next shutter (second shutter). With this configuration, the medicine in the tablet case below the first shutter (first shutter) can be quickly supplied without any trouble.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a medicine supply device 1 of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a partially transparent front view of the medicine supply device 1, FIG. 3 is a partially transparent side view of the medicine supply device 1, and FIG. FIG. 5 is a perspective plan view of the device 1, and FIG.
6, FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the tablet case 6, FIG.
Is a perspective view of the shutters 24, 39, and 43 of the drug supply device 1, FIG. 8 is a partially cutaway side view of the shutter 12 of the drug supply device 1, and FIG. 9 is a functional block of a control device 61 of the drug supply device 1. FIG.

The medicine supply device 1 of the present invention is installed in a hospital, a dispensing pharmacy, or the like, and has a horizontally long rectangular main body 7.
A rectangular outer case 7A which is provided on the main body 7 and opens to the front, a main body side case housing portion 8 formed at the rear inside the outer case 7A, and a front side of the main body side case housing portion 8. Pulling type moving units 2A, 2B provided inside the outer case 7A and arranged in front and rear and movable in the lateral direction, and detachably attached to the back of the main body 7,
It is composed of an extension unit 9 and the like that are optionally attached according to the situation.

A hopper 11 that expands upward is provided in an upper portion of the main body 7 below the outer case 7A, and a shutter 12 (second
Shutter) is attached. In the main body 7 below the hopper 11, a printer 1 constituting a packaging machine is provided.
0 and a sealer 13, and a roll-shaped wrapping paper 1 in which the medicine discharged from the hopper 11 is installed obliquely.
5 (see FIG. 8), and is sent out from the outlet 14.

On the other hand, the main body-side case storage portion 8 is opened at the front surface, and this opening is connected to the moving units 2A, 2B.
Can be opened and closed. The moving units 2A and 2B are configured to be about half the width of the main body-side case storage unit 8, and the front moving unit 2A is normally located on the left and the rear moving unit 2B is normally located on the right as shown in FIG. By moving these independently, it is also possible to arrange them left-right reversed as shown in FIG. And both mobile units 2
A, the case storage portion 8 on the main body side in a state where
A part of the front surface of the main body-side case storage portion 8 can be selected by changing the positions of both units 2A and 2B.

A main body-side chute 22 is vertically defined by a partition plate 21 at the back of the main body-side case storage portion 8. The lower portions on both sides of the main body side chute 22 are inclined so as to narrow from the left and right ends of the main body side case storage portion 8 toward both upper edges of the hopper 11. And
The main body side chute 22 is opened corresponding to the upper part of the hopper 11, and a shutter 24 is mounted in the main body side chute 22. The exact position and structure of the shutter 24 will be described later in detail.

A shelf device 26 is erected in the case storage section 8 on the main body side, and a plurality of tablet cases 3 (or 4 or 6) are attached to the shelf device 26. A plurality of groove-like case mounting portions are formed on the shelf device 26 at predetermined intervals on the left and right, and a discharge passage 28 is formed in the shelf device 26 corresponding to each case mounting portion as shown in FIG. Each of the discharge passages 28 is provided with a medicine detector 30 described later.

The tablet cases 3, 4, 6 are formed at transparent containers 3A, 4A, 6A, a discharge mechanism 31 provided at the lower end thereof, and a lower end of the discharge mechanism 31, as shown in FIGS. Discharge mechanism 31
And the base 32 are common, and only the heights of the containers 3A, 4A, 6A are different. Thereby, the capacity of each tablet case 3, 4, 6 is, for example, 250 cc, 5 cc, respectively.
00cc and 800cc. The structure of the discharging mechanism 31 is a well-known structure including a drum for discharging the medicines one by one and a motor for rotating the drum (neither is shown).

The tablet cases 3, 4, and 6 are arranged side by side on the shelf device 26. In this case, the bases 32 of the tablet cases 3, 4, and 6 are detachably engaged with the engagement grooves from the front, and in that state, the discharge portion of the discharge mechanism 31 corresponds to the upper surface opening of the discharge passage.

On the other hand, inside the moving units 2A and 2B, moving side case storage portions 33A and 33B are formed, respectively. Each of the moving-side case storage sections 33A and 33B has an opening on the front face, and the front opening is openably and closably closed by a transparent door (not shown). And each moving side case storage part 3
A moving chute 37 is defined by a partition plate 36 on the back of the moving units 2A and 2B on the back of the moving units 2A and 3B. The lower part of each moving chute 37A, 37B
The movable case housings 33A and 33B are inclined so as to narrow toward the upper edge of the hopper 11 from the outer ends thereof. At all positions where the moving units 2A and 2B have moved to the left and right at the front side of the main body-side case storage unit 8, the lower ends of the moving-side chutes 37A and 37B open corresponding to the upper part of the hopper 11, Shutters 39A and 39B are provided in chutes 37A and 37B.
(Second shutter) is attached. The exact position and structure of each shutter 39A, 39B will be described later in detail.

A shelf device 26 (in this case, the width dimension is halved) of the same structure is also installed in each of the movable case storage portions 33A and 33B. , 4 or 6) are attached. In addition, the discharge passage 28 of the shelf device 26 of the moving side case storage sections 33A, 33B is connected to the moving side chutes 37A, 37B.
Is in communication with

Further, an additional medicine feeder 46 for arbitrarily supplying an additional medicine is provided at a lower portion in the moving unit 2B, and the feeder 46 is provided with a shutter 39B.
The lower side communicates with the inside of the movable chute 37B.

The extension unit 9 is attached to the back of the main unit 2 as shown by an arrow in FIG. 3 in accordance with the expansion of the scale of a hospital or the like, and is a unit for adding a tablet case 3 (4 or 6). An additional case storage section 41 is provided at the upper part. An additional side chute 42 is vertically defined at the front of the additional side case storage portion 41. The lower part on both sides of this additional side chute 42 also
From the left and right ends of the additional case storage portion 41, the hopper 11
Are formed so as to narrow toward both sides of the upper edge. The lower end opening of the additional chute 42 corresponds to a through hole formed on the rear surface of the main body 2 located at the rear end of the upper end of the hopper 11 in a state where the additional unit 9 is attached to the main body 2. The chute 42 communicates with the hopper 11. Further, a shutter 43 (second shutter) is mounted in the additional chute 42. The exact position and structure of the shutter 43 will be described later in detail.

A similar shelf device 26 is also installed in the additional case storage section 41, and a plurality of tablet cases 3 (or 4 or 6) are similarly attached to the shelf device 26. In addition, the discharge passage 28 of the shelf device 26 of the additional case storage section 33 communicates with the additional chute 42. The extension unit 9 is electrically connected to the extension unit 9 while being attached to the main body 2.

Here, the shutters 24, 39A,
The structure of 39B, 43 and 12 will be described with reference to FIGS. The shutter 2 provided in each chute
4, 39A, 39B and 43 all have the same structure,
As shown in FIG. 7, a shutter plate 52 pivotally supported on one side by a frame body 51 for opening and closing the passage, and a spring 53 for urging the shutter plate 52 to be always closed.
And a solenoid 58 for rotating the shutter plate 52 through a fixture 54, a shaft 56, and a connector 57.

Then, by energizing the solenoid 58, the plunger 59 rotatably connected to the connecting member 57 is sucked, and the shutter plate 52 is opened against the urging force of the spring 53. When the solenoid 58 is de-energized, the shutter plate 52 is closed by the spring 53, and the plunger 59 projects from the solenoid 58. With this shutter plate 52 closed,
The medicines discharged from the tablet cases 3, 4, 6,... Above the respective shutters 24, 39A, 39B, 43, falling in the respective chutes are received thereon, released, and dropped into the hopper 11. It is.

Next, the shutter 12 has a rectangular cylindrical main body 62, a shutter plate 63 pivotally supported on one side by the main body 62 to open and close the main body 62, and a shutter plate 63. A spring (not shown) for urging the shutter plate 63 to be always closed, a solenoid (not shown) for rotating the shutter plate 63, and a wrapping paper 15 attached to the lower end of the main body 62 and folded into a substantially V shape from above. It is composed of insertion pieces 64, 66, 67 etc. which are inserted and expanded.

Then, by energizing the solenoid, the shutter plate 63 is rotated clockwise in FIG. 8 to open against the urging force of the spring. When the solenoid is de-energized, the shutter plate 63 is pulled up by a spring to close the passage in the main body 62.
The medicine that has fallen into the hopper 11 with the passage closed is received thereon, opened, and dropped into the wrapping paper 15.

Here, each of the chutes 22, 37A, 3
Shutters 24, 39A provided in 7B and 42,
The positions of 39B and 43 will be described. Each of the shutters 24, 39A, 39B and 43 is connected to each of the case storage sections 8,
The uppermost tablet case 3 of 33A, 33B and 41
.. the time required for the medicine discharged from each chute to fall in each chute and reach each of shutters 24, 39A, 39B and 43;
And 43 fall in the hopper 11 and
At the same time (for example, 0.8 seconds in the apparatus of the embodiment). That is, in the embodiment, the position is set at a position corresponding to the upper side of the lowermost stage (the additional medicine feeder 46 for the moving unit 2B) in each of the case storage sections 8, 33A, 33B and 41.

Next, in the functional block diagram of FIG. 9, the control device 61 is constituted by a general-purpose microcomputer 69. The input of the microcomputer 69 is input from an input device (not shown) (not shown) such as a prescription data. And drug detection signals from the drug detectors 30... The output of the microcomputer 69 includes the ejection mechanisms 31 of the tablet cases 3, 4, and 6, the shutters 24, 39A,
9B, 43, 12, the printer 10, the sealer 13, and the feeder 68 for the wrapping paper 15 are connected.

Next, the use and operation of the medicine supply device 1 of the present invention having the above-described configuration will be described with reference to FIGS. It is assumed that the shutters 12, 24, 39A, 39B, and 43 are closed when the power is turned on. Also, the main body side case storage section 8 and each moving unit 2
A, 2B moving-side case storage sections 33A, 33B, and additional-side case storage section 41 when expansion unit 9 is attached.
Are attached with the tablet cases 3, 4, or 6 each containing a predetermined medicine.

In this case, a large amount of medicine or a large individual medicine is stored in a large-capacity tablet case 6, and a smaller or smaller medicine is stored in a medium-capacity tablet case 4. The least used medicine or the smallest medicine is stored in the small capacity tablet case 3. As described above, the tablet cases 3, 4, or 6 are arranged side by side on the shelf device 26. In this case, tablet cases having the same capacity are mounted on the same shelf device 26.

Next, the operation of discharging the medicine from each of the tablet cases 3, 4, and 6 by the microcomputer 69 will be described with reference to FIGS. When the operator inputs prescription data from the input device (personal computer) based on the doctor's prescription, the microcomputer 69 pastes the contents of the prescription data into the data table of FIG.

Here, the numbers (,
..) Are addresses assigned to each of the tablet cases 3, 4, and 6. Each address is composed of three data: a case number, the number of medicines to be discharged (the number of medicines), and a counter. Note that this counter indicates the position of the shelf device 26 to which the tablet case is attached, and the number increases sequentially from 2, 3... Then, the contents of the prescription data are pasted as the number of agents corresponding to each case number. Therefore, the number of medicines in the tablet case containing medicines that need not be discharged is naturally zero.

When starting the medicine discharging operation, the microcomputer 69 sets a case drive flag ("1") in step S1 of the flowchart of FIG.
In step S2, a start address () is set, and in step S3, it is determined whether the counter of the address is 1 or not. 1
If so, the process proceeds to step S4 to determine whether the case number is not 0. If not, the process proceeds to step S5 to determine whether the number of agents is not 0. Here, if it is not 0, the process proceeds to step S6 and the tablet case 3 of the address
The driving of the discharge mechanism 31 in (4, 6) is started.

Next, the counter of the address is decremented by one in step S7, the next address (in this case) is set in step S8, and the flow advances to step S9. In step S9, it is determined whether or not all addresses have been completed. If not, the process proceeds to step S3. If the counter is not 1 in step S3, the process proceeds to step S13 to determine whether the counter is 0, and if not, the process proceeds to step S7.
If it is 0, the process proceeds to step S8.

If all the addresses are completed in step S9, the process proceeds to step S10 and waits for 100 ms, and then proceeds to step S11 to determine whether or not the counters of all the addresses are 0. If it is not 0, step S2
When it is 0, the process proceeds to step S12, and it is determined whether the case drive flag is reset ("0"). If it is not 0, step S12 is repeated until it becomes 0.

With the above control, scanning is performed for all the addresses from the shelf device 26 at the uppermost stage, and the number of medicines becomes zero.
Of the tablet case 3 (4, 6) is started, and this is executed up to the lowermost shelf device 26, and the number of medicines is not 0, that is, a request to eject medicines by prescription data is made. All tablet cases 3
The driving of the discharge mechanism 31 in (4, 6) is started.

Next, the flowchart of FIG. 12 shows the operation of counting the number of discharged medicines, and while the case drive flag is set, the flowchart of FIG. 11 is interrupted. That is, the microcomputer 69 determines whether or not the case drive flag has been reset in step S14. If the case drive flag has been set, the microcomputer 69 proceeds to step S15 and sets the start address.

Then, in step S16, the medicine detector 3 corresponding to the tablet case 3 (4, 6) of the address
It is determined whether there is a drug detection signal from 0, and if a signal is input, the number of drugs is decremented by one in step S17. next,
In step S18, it is determined whether or not the number of agents is 0. If the number is not 0, the process proceeds to step S20. If it is 0, the process proceeds to step S1.
In step 9, the drive of the discharge mechanism 31 of the tablet case is stopped, and the process proceeds to step S20.

In step S20, the next address is set. In step S21, it is determined whether or not all the addresses have been completed. If not, the process returns to step S16. It is determined whether the number of agents is zero. Then, when it becomes 0, the process proceeds to step S23 to reset the case drive flag.

In this manner, the microcomputer 69
Counts the number of medicines discharged one by one until the number of medicines reaches 0 for all tablet cases 3 (4, 6), and the prescription data is obtained for all the tablet cases for which the driving of the discharge mechanism 31 has been started in the flowchart of FIG. When the number of medicines based on the discharge is completed, the discharge mechanism 31 is stopped. Thus, a predetermined number of medicines are discharged.

Next, referring to the timing chart of FIG. 13, the operation of discharging the medicine under the control of the microcomputer 69 and the shutters 24 (39A, 39B,
3) Operation timings of the shutter 12, the printer 10, the sealer 13, and the feeder 68 will be described. The top row of FIG. 13 shows each shutter 24 (39A, 39B, 4
3) illustrates an ejection operation of the tablet case 3 (4, 6) positioned above 3).

When the microcomputer 69 starts operation (time 0), first, the shutter 24 (39A, 39B, 4)
3) The above-described discharge operation (first discharge operation) is executed for the tablet case 3 (4, 6) located above (performed for 0.2 seconds). The discharged medicine is received on each shutter 24 (39A, 39B, 43) as described above. Here, since the fall time from the uppermost tablet case is set to 0.8 seconds as described above, all medicines are received on the shutter at the maximum 0.8 seconds after the discharge operation is completed. become.

Next, 0.8 seconds after the end of the discharging operation, the shutter 24 (39A, 39B, 43) is opened, the medicine is dropped onto the hopper 11, and the printer 1 is synchronized.
0, Feeder 68 is operated for 0.4 seconds. The dropped medicine is supplied to the shutter 24 (39A, 39B, 4) as described above.
0.8 seconds after the start of the opening of 3), all the images are received on the shutter 12.

On the other hand, the microcomputer 69 sets the tablet case 3 above the shutter 24 from 0.1 seconds before the shutter 24 (39A, 39B, 43) closes.
The second discharging operation () is started for (4, 6). That is, the second discharging operation is performed while the medicine discharged in the first discharging operation is falling on the shutter 12. The medicine discharged in the second discharging operation falls on the shutter 24 (39A, 39B, 43) which is closed again and is received. In addition, each shutter 24 (39
A, 39B, 43), the discharging operation is performed in synchronization with the second discharging operation, and the tablet case 6 is directly dropped on the shutter 12.

On the other hand, the microcomputer 69 operates after the feeder 68 operates (the shutter 24 (39A, 39A)).
B, 43 seconds after the opening operation starts), the sealer 13 is operated for 0.4 seconds to seal the wrapping paper 15,
After the operation of the sealer 13 is completed, the shutter 12 is opened, and the medicine discharged first time (including the medicine discharged from the tablet case below the shutter 24 and the like) is dropped into the wrapping paper 15. Thereafter, this is repeated.

Thus, in the case of the embodiment, the operation interval of the shutter 12 is 1.3 seconds, and the packaging capacity is 4 seconds.
It was 6 packets / min.

Here, each shutter 24, 39A, 39
When B and 43 are attached to the lowermost portions of the chutes 22, 37A, 37B and 42, the time required for the medicine to drop from the uppermost tablet case onto the shutter takes one second in the embodiment. Therefore, the shutters 24 and 37
Even if the time required for the medicine to fall from A, 37B, 42 to the shutter 12 is reduced to 0.6 seconds, the waiting time until the shutters 24, 37A, 37B, 42 close is extended. As a result, the operation interval of the shutter 12 becomes 1.5 seconds as a result, and the packaging capacity is limited to 40 packets / min in the case of the embodiment.

However, according to the present invention, the time required for the medicine discharged from the uppermost tablet case 3 (4, 6) to reach the shutters 24, 37A, 37B and 42, and the time required for the medicine to be released from the shutters 24 and 37A. , 37B, 4
Since the time from 2 to the shutter 12 is set to be equal, the shutters 24, 37A, 37B, 4
When the medicine is discharged from the tablet case above 2, the medicine is first received and placed on the shutters 24, 37A, 37B and 42, and before the medicine is discharged from the tablet case, the shutter 24, 37A,
37B, 42 are opened, and shutters 24, 37A, 3
7B, shutter 12
And the medicine discharged from the tablet case is closed again by the shutters 24, 37A, and 37.
By repeatedly executing the operation of receiving at B and 42, the shutters 24, 3
7A, 37B, 42 and the shutters 24, 3
The fall movement of the medicine is performed in parallel between 7A, 37B, 42 and the shutter 12, and the time required for the fall conveyance of the medicine can be significantly reduced as a whole. This will significantly speed up the drug supply operation,
It is possible to achieve improvement in work efficiency.

[0049]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, when the medicine is discharged from the tablet case above the first shutter (first shutter), the medicine is received by the shutter and placed. The shutter is opened when the medicine is discharged from the tablet case or another tablet case above the shutter, and the medicine received by the medicine is received by the next shutter (second shutter). By repeatedly performing the operation of receiving the medicine discharged from the tablet at the first shutter (first shutter) closed again, the interval between the tablet case to the first shutter (first shutter) and the first shutter (first shutter) are repeated. From the shutter (first shutter) to the next shutter (second shutter)
), And the time required for transporting the medicine can be significantly reduced as a whole.

As a result, it is possible to remarkably speed up the drug supply operation and to improve the work efficiency. Further, the medicine in the tablet case below the first shutter (first shutter) is discharged at the next discharge of the medicine from the tablet case above the shutter, and is directly received by the next shutter (second shutter). With this configuration, the medicine in the tablet case below the first shutter (first shutter) can be quickly supplied without any trouble.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a drug supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partially transparent front view of the drug supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a partially transparent side view of the drug supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective plan view of the drug supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the tablet case.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a tablet case.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a shutter provided in a chute of the medicine supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a partially cutaway side view of a shutter at a lower end of a hopper of the medicine supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a functional block diagram of a control device of the drug supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a data table of a control device of the drug supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a program of a microcomputer constituting a control device of the drug supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a program of the microcomputer.

FIG. 13 is a timing chart illustrating the operation of the drug supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a timing chart illustrating an operation when a shutter is provided at a lower end of a chute.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Drug supply apparatus 2A, 2B Moving unit 3, 4, 6 Tablet case 7 Main body 8 Main body side case storage part 9 Expansion unit 11 Hopper 12 Shutter (second shutter) 22 Main body side chute 24, 39A, 39B, 43 Shutter ( (First shutter) 33A, 33B Moving-side case storage portion 37A, 37B Moving-side chute 41 Additional-side case storage portion 42 Additional-side chute 61 Control device 69 Microcomputer

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A main body having a case storage section at an upper portion, a plurality of tablet cases mounted in the case storage section, each storing a medicine, a chute into which a medicine discharged from each case falls, and a chute below the chute. And a hopper provided in the main body, and a plurality of shutters provided at a lower end of the hopper and at least one provided in the chute, and discharged from the uppermost tablet case. Wherein each of the shutters is arranged such that a time until the medicine reaches the first shutter is substantially equal to a time from the shutter to the next shutter. 2. A main body having a case storage section at an upper portion thereof, a plurality of tablet cases mounted in the case storage section, each storing a medicine, a chute into which the medicine discharged from each of the cases falls, and a chute below the chute. A hopper provided in the main body, a first shutter provided in the chute, and a second shutter provided at a lower end of the hopper, and discharged from the uppermost tablet case. The first shutter is provided so that the time required for the medicine to reach the first shutter is substantially equal to the time required for the medicine to reach the second shutter from the first shutter. A drug supply device, characterized in that: 3. The medicine discharged from the tablet case above the first shutter is received by the first shutter through the chute, and the medicine is discharged through the hopper with the opening of the first shutter. Second
3. The medicine supply device according to claim 2, wherein the medicine supply device is configured to receive the medicine when the second shutter is opened. 4. A medicine is discharged from a tablet case above the first shutter, and the medicine is received by the first shutter.
When the medicine is discharged from another tablet case above the shutter, the first shutter is opened, so that the medicine received by the first shutter is received by the second shutter, and the medicine is discharged from the tablet case. 4. The medicine supply device according to claim 3, wherein the operation of receiving the discharged medicine by the first shutter is repeated. 5. The medicine in the tablet case below the first shutter is discharged the next time the medicine is discharged from the tablet case above the first shutter, and is directly received by the second shutter. The drug supply device according to claim 4.