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US 6,345,487 B1Granted
High quality control tablet filler device
AssigneeLuciano Packaging Technologies, Inc.
InventorsRobert A. Luciano, Lawrence W. Luciano, Richard L. Smith
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present invention tablet filler device with enhanced quality control features includes a tablet hopper and an agitating drum functionally connected to the hopper and adapted to regulate and orient gravity outflow of tablets. There is a gravity feed chute connected to and downstream from the hopper to singularly align and feed tablets, and a rotatable starwheel having slots to receive tablets individually from the feed chute so as to move tablets to a filling outlet for gravity feed to a container filling station.
Claims20
A tablet filler device with enhanced quality control features, which comprises:
- (a) a tablet hopper for filling with randomly positioned tablets of a predetermined size and shape, said tablet hopper having a base with an outlet for gravity outflow of tablets;
- (b) an agitating drum functionally connected to said outlet and adapted to regulate and orient gravity outflow of tablets from said hopper;
- (c) a feed chute connected to and downstream from said hopper for receiving tablets therefrom and adapted to singularly align and feed tablets in a fixed orientation by gravity feed, said feed chute being sufficiently non-horizontal to permit gravity flow of tablets therethrough;
- (d) a rotatable starwheel having a sawblade-like profile with endpoints biased towards a direction of rotation and a plurality of slots there between which are adapted to receive tablets individually from said feed chute so as to move tablets from said feed chute to a filling outlet for gravity feed to a container filling station located below said filling outlet;
- (e) a container filling station located below said filling outlet of said starwheel;
- (f) tablet inspection means located on at least one of said feed chute or said rotatable starwheel and having sufficient discrimination capabilities to discern quality characteristics of tablets moving down said feed chute in accordance with a predetermined standard including means to identify unacceptable tablets and communicate with a tablet ejector for ejection of unacceptable tablets;
- (g) a tablet ejector in communication with said tablet inspection means adapted to eject unacceptable tablets from said feed chute in response to signals from said tablet inspection means;
- and,
- (h) a stepper drive motor with a counter means for driving said starwheel in a step fashion for controlled release of tablets via said filling outlet and for counting tablets released from said filling outlet of said starwheel.
6 more elements
A tablet filler device with enhanced quality control features, which comprises:
- (a) at least one tablet hopper for filling with randomly positioned tablets of a predetermined size and shape, said tablet hopper having a base with an outlet for gravity outflow of tablets;
- (b) at least one agitating drum functionally connected to said outlet and adapted to regulate and orient gravity outflow of tablets from said hopper;
- (c) a plurality of feed chutes connected to and downstream from said hopper for receiving tablets therefrom and adapted to singularly align and feed tablets in a fixed orientation by gravity feed, said feed chute being sufficiently non-horizontal to permit gravity flow of tablets therethrough;
- (d) at least one rotatable starwheel having a sawblade-like profile with endpoints biased towards a direction of rotation and a plurality of slots there between which are adapted to receive tablets individually from said feed chute so as to move tablets from said feed chute to a filling outlet for gravity feed to a container filling station located below said filling outlet;
- (e) at least one container filling station located below said filling outlet of said starwheel;
- (f) at least one tablet inspection means located on at least one of said feed chute or said rotatable starwheel and having sufficient discrimination capabilities to discern quality characteristics of tablets moving down said feed chute in accordance with a predetermined standard including means to identify unacceptable tablets and communicate with a tablet ejector for ejection of unacceptable tablets;
- (g) at least one tablet ejector in communication with said tablet inspection means adapted to eject unacceptable tablets from said feed chute in response to signals from said tablet inspection means;
- and,
- (h) at least one stepper drive motor with a counter means for driving said starwheel in a step fashion for controlled release of tablets via said filling outlet and for counting tablets released from said filling outlet of said starwheel.
6 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.