WO2009007665A1

WO2009007665A1 - A device for providing a pre-determined number of elongate capsules

Info

Publication number: WO2009007665A1
Application number: PCT/GB2007/002564
Authority: WO
Inventors: Barry John Davies
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2007-07-09
Filing date: 2007-07-09
Publication date: 2009-01-15
Anticipated expiration: 2010-01-09

Abstract

This invention relates to a device for providing a predetermined number of elongate capsules and includes a base plate (11) and a location plate (12) having a predetermined number of slots (18), each slot being sized to capture a single capsule when the location plate (12) is in a first position relative to the base plate 11) and for releasing the capsules onto the base plate (11) when the location (plate 12) is moved away from the base plate (11) out of its first position.

Description

A device for providing a pre-determined number of elongate Capsules

This invention relates to a device for providing a pre-determined number of elongate capsules.

In the pharmaceutical industry hard gelatine capsules are produced by principle manufacturers, who supply them in boxes containing hundreds and thousands of units. They are generally supplied empty and in a transparent state. This means they are both difficult to handle and difficult to see.

There are a large number of instances where capsules need to be separated into small lots of around 100 or fewer capsules. This typically occurs in small scale pharmaceutical manufacturers, factories or in pharmacies themselves.

One known method of counting such capsules is to put them manually onto a balance, which is set to detect the correct weight for a particular lot of a particular size of capsule and the operator individually adds or takes away capsules until the correct weight is achieved. The weight is often displayed as a number and such machines are called counters. It will be appreciated that the balances need to be of very high quality to discriminate between the presence and absence of a single capsule with certainty and the process is labour intensive and quite slow. In pharmacies, when the capsules are filled, the normal tool is a calibrated scoop into which capsules can be shaken down on a plane and the lines across the scoop indicate the number of capsules present. This is a very old design which works extremely well with pills, that have no orientation, but it does not work so well for elongate capsules which can readily form voids of a variety of sizes between them.

A further approach is a stainless steel tray with 100 dimples in it and the suggestion is that the user can shake the tray until all the dimples are full and then take away the excess. This is far from easy, both because the excess has to be removed with care so as not to displace the light capsules from their dimples and, because of the transparent cases of the capsules, it is difficult to tell whether a dimple has a capsule in it or not.

The present invention consists in a device for providing a predetermined number of elongate capsules including a base plate and a location plate having a predetermined number of slots therein, each slot being sized to capture a single capsule when the location plate is in a first position relative to the base plate and to release the capsule onto the base plate when the location plate is moved away from the base plate out of its first position.

This arrangement is extremely advantageous, because the slots more readily capture the capsules enabling any excess simply to be poured or wiped off and because it is far easier to see whether or not a slot is full.

Preferably the base plate has one or more upstanding walls to define a capsule retention zone. The base plate may additionally or further define a pouring outlet and the device may define a capsule inlet. This may in part be by means of an upstanding wall on the location plate.

In a particular preferred embodiment the slots are waisted about their centre line periphery so as to provide a lead in for capsules entering the slots and a divergent outlet when the location plate is moved away from the base plate. The device may further include means for agitating the base plate and/or location plate so as to assist the passage of capsules into the slots. It may further include a pattern recognition means or one or more sensors for determining when all the slots are full. In a particularly preferred embodiment the location plate may be hinged to the base plate. The device may include a set of location plates for handling capsules of different dimensions or different ranges of dimensions.

Although the invention has been defined above it is to be understood that it includes any combination of the features set out above or in the following description.

The invention may be performed in various ways and a specific embodiment will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a view of the device with the location plate in its capsule release position;

Figure 2 is a corresponding view of the device with the location plate in its capsule catcher position; and

Figure 3 is a cross sectional view of a slot of .the location plate with a capsule captured therein. In Figure 1 a counting device 10 is shown comprising a base plate, generally indicated at 11 , and a location plate, generally indicated at 12. The base plate 11 has upstanding walls 13 and 14 which combine to define a pouring outlet 15. The location plate is hinged to the base plate 11 along an edge opposite the pouring outlet 15 by a hinge 16 so that it can be moved from the open position shown in Figure 1 to the closed position shown in Figure 2. It will be noted that the location plate has a series of elongate slots 18 cut therein; these are dimensioned to relatively snugly receive capsules of a particular size or range of sizes. The number of slots 18 is determined by the number of capsules which is intended to count.

The location plate has a wall 17 which is upstanding in the Figure 2 position and together with the wall 14 defines a capsule inlet 19.

As can be seen in Figure 3, each slot is preferably waisted in cross- section around its periphery so that the slot 17 provides a lead-in from above as capsules 20 drop into the slot 17 and a divergent release if the location plate 12 is removed away from the capsule 20.

In use, capsules 20 are poured onto the location plate 12 either from above or through the opening 19 and the device 10 is preferably agitated until there is a capsule 20 in each slot 18. Any excess can then be poured back into the original store through the pouring outlet 15 or they may be wiped off the surface of the location plate 12 through the opening 19. Once there is a capsule

20 in every slot 18 and no excess capsules 20 on the device, the location plate

12 can be pivoted upwardly from its closed Figure 2 position into its open Figure

1 position, where upon the located capsules 20 are released onto the base plate 11 and can be poured into the desired receptacle or forwarded as a batch for manufacturing.

It will be noted that in the closed Figure 2 position the hinge 16 spaces the location plate 12 from the base plate 11. This spacing is designed to be about half the height of the capsule which are intended to be handled by that plate 12. Other plates 12 can be provided for different size capsules or capsule ranges, in which case the hinge portion of that plate will be dimensioned so as to achieve the desired spacing. If greater location plate stability is required, legs can be provided on the underneath of the location plate 12, for example at the corners and remote from the hinge. Such legs are shown at 21.

The device as described to this point is particularly suitable for hand held use, but a person skilled in the art could easily automate the device by adding an agitator, schematically shown at 22, and a pattern recognition device, schematically illustrated at 23 for determining whether or not the slots are full. The pattern recognition device could be replaced by other appropriate sensors.

It will also be appreciated that the arrangement will work well with non- standard tablet shapes such as that used for Viagra ^(RTM). In some cases simple elongate slots may suffice; in others other shapes of openings for the slots may be needed. The design allows for the top plate to be changed readily.

Claims

1. A device for providing a predetermined number of elongate capsules including a base plate, and location plate having the predetermined number of slots, each slot being sized to capture a single capsule when the location plate is a first position relative to the base plate and for releasing the capsules onto the base plate when the location plate is moved away from the base plate out of its first position.

2. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the base plate has one or more upstanding walls to define a capsule retention zone.

3. A device as claimed in claim 2 wherein the base plate defines a pouring outlet.

4. A device as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3 wherein the device defines a capsule inlet.

5. A device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the location plate includes an upstanding wall.

6. A device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the slots are waisted.

7. A device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims including means for agitating the base plate and/or the location plate.

8. A device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims including pattern recognition means or one or more sensors for determining when all the slots are full.

9. A device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the location plate is hinged to the base plate.

10. A device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein there is a set of location plates.