Medicine dispensing apparatus

A medicine dispensing apparatus for dispensing medicines filled in a vial having a polygonal cross-sectional shape with a plurality of corner portions, the apparatus comprising:

• a stocker that stocks the vial;
• a labeling unit that labels the vial;
• a vial transporting unit that transports the vial from the stocker to the labeling unit, said vial transporting unit comprises a vial erecting unit configured to place the vial in a standing position with its opening facing upward;
• a first vial orienting unit that adjusts coarsely an orientation of the vial;
• a second vial orienting unit that adjusts precisely the vial by obtaining information about a transverse cross-sectional shape of the vial and thereby rotating the vial around a rotational axis extending in a longitudinal direction of the vial and identifying a transverse orientation of the vial by detecting anyone of said plurality of corner portions so as to determine a starting position for labeling the vial, based at least in part on said information;
• and
• a medicine filling unit that fills the vial with the medicines.