FORM 2
THE PATENTS ACT, 1970
(39 of 1970)
As amended by the Patents (Amendment) Act, 2005
&
The Patents Rules, 2003 As amended by the Patents (Amendment) Rules, 2006
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
(See section 10 and rule 13)
TITLE OF THE INVENTION
Machine for packaging tablets in gelatin capsules
APPLICANTS
Sci-tech Centre, 7 Prabhat Nagar, Jogeshwari West, Mumbai 400 102, Maharashtra, India, an Indian company
INVENTORS
Singh Jasjit, a British national and Deshmukh Prakash and Barde Mahesh, both Indian nationals, all of Sci-tech Centre, 7 Prabhat Nagar, Jogeshwari West, Mumbai 400 102, Maharashtra, India
PREAMBLE TO THE DESCRIPTION
The following specification particularly describes the invention and the manner in which it is
to be performed:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a machine for packaging tablets in gelatin capsules.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Tablets, especially pharmaceutical or neutraceutical tablets, are also packaged in gelatin capsules of two piece construction comprising a base (base cover of a capsule) and a lid (closing cover of a capsule) of equal sizes. Tablets so packed are generally known as caplets. A typical machine for packaging tablets in such gelatin capsules comprises a turntable (turret) disposed for intermittent rotation about a vertical axis or a transfer system (including, for example, a rectilinear conveyor) disposed for intermittent linear movement and groups of bushes equidistantly located on the periphery of the turntable or on the transfer system. In a cycle of operation of the machine, the turntable or the transfer system causes the same group of bushes to interact in succession with a base feeding station, a tablet feeding station, a lid feeding station, a capsule checking station, a capsule closing station, a filled capsule ejection and sorting station and a cleaning station.
Bases with their mouths upwards are fed into a group of bushes at the base feeding station. Tablets are fed into the bases in said group of bushes at the tablet feeding station. The lids with their mouths downwards are fed into said group of bushes at the lid feeding station. The correct presence of tablets in the bases and presence of lids over the tablets in said group of bushes is checked by the PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) controlling the functioning of the machine and anomaly, if any, is detected by the PLC at the checking station. At the closing station, an axial compression is applied to cause the tablets to enter into the respective bases and into the lids and become enclosed in the respective bases and lids in said group of

bushes. Tablet filled capsules are ejected from said group of bushes and the good and defective ones are sorted and separated at the ejection and sorting station. Good and defective capsules are separately collected at the ejection and sorting station. Good capsules are taken for packing and the defective capsules are destroyed. On being emptied, said group of bushes are cleaned at the cleaning station to take the machine to the next cycle of operation.
The base feeding station of the machine includes a base feeder mechanism including a base aligning arrangement comprising a magazine for containing the bases in bulk and a group of vertical and adjacent tubes corresponding to a group of bushes. The tubes are disposed above a base orientation rectifier located in the proximity of the turntable or transfer system. The tubes are solid and rigid and are disposed for up and down movement cyclically. During the cyclical up and down movement of the tubes, the upper ends of the tubes engage in apertures at the bottom of the magazine and the bases enter the tubes one by one and travel down in the tubes. The lower ends of the tubes are open for the bases to exit the tubes one by one and to enter in vertical seats formed in the intermediate part of horizontal ducts formed in a fixed body of the base orientation rectifier. The fall of the bases into the vertical seats is guided by guide end pieces projecting down from the lower ends of the tubes. The tubes are associated with retaining stops at the lower parts thereof to retain the penultimate bases in the tubes (EP Publication No 0615739A1; and WO 96/36307 and corresponding US 5966910 and Indian Patent No 193143).
In such a base feeder mechanism, the internal diameter of the tubes is slightly greater than the external diameter of the bases so that the bases enter the tubes themselves in a single file

under gravity, in essentially axial alignment and with random orientation. However, while travelling down in the tubes, the bases may adopt an inclined position and may not travel down smoothly and may become jammed in the tubes as the internal diameter of the tubes is greater and the bases are light weight and are travelling down only under gravity. To eliminate the above disadvantage, WO 96/36307 teaches an arrangement comprising rectilinear blades engaged in longitudinal and continuous slots provided in the tubes for a small reciprocating horizontal movement in the tubes. The blades are integral with a common support structure which slides guided on a guide and describes a reciprocating movement in the horizontal plane. The guide is fixed to a vertically movable slide on which the groups of tubes are fixed for up and down movement thereof. The support structure is actuated by an actuator, for example, pneumatic or electromagnetic actuator so as to subject the support structure and blades to a small reciprocating movement. As a result of the reciprocal movement, the blades enter and exit the tubes and subject the line of bases in the tubes to a forced alignment and to a fluidification which guarantees their sliding by effect of gravity in the tubes.
As the above reciprocating arrangement comprises a large number of components, its reliability is reduced and cost is increased. Because of the large number of moving parts, wear and tear and maintenance cost of the arrangement are also increased. Because of the too many moving parts, chances of damage to the parts are also increased. The actuator requires energy for its operation thereby further increasing the cost. In a cycle of operation of the machine, the blades reciprocate in the tubes a number of times and the repeated movement of the blades is akin to vibrations in the same horizontal plane. Because of the vibrations, the noise level of operation of the machine also increases.

Another operating disadvantage with the above feeder mechanism is the possibility of bases arriving in the vertical seats with the same orientation as the following bases and because of this orientation of two successive bases in the same manner, two successive bases being mutually nested. As a result, when the tubes are raised and the retaining stops are intervened in the lower parts of the tubes through lateral openings in the lower parts of the tubes to retain the penultimate bases, the last bases, which were extracted from the vertical seats into which they had previously entered by the effect of gravity, remained anchored to the penultimate bases. To eliminate this disadvantage, according to WO 96/36307 there have been opened, on at least one side of each seat, respective horizontal holes which communicate through the same number of vertical holes with a single common horizontal hole made, with the function of manifold, in the fixed body and connected by one end to a pipe which can be connected on command to a source of suction. After the tubes have descended and a base has entered into the seats, the horizontal holes are connected automatically to the source of suction to retain the base in said seats, even if it is nested with the one base above which, blocked by the retaining stop, will follow alone the tube in the reascending movement of the tube. A main disadvantage with the suction arrangement and guide end pieces at the lower ends of the tubes is that they increase the cost of the machine. As a result of the suction arrangement complexity of construction and operation of the machine is also increased besides reducing the reliability of the machine.
Further, in the machine of WO 96/36307, the bases oriented with their mouths in the front and exiting the horizontal ducts in the fixed body one by one end up in the top parts of vertical ducts formed in the fixed body aligned with said group of bushes. The bases remain

in the top parts of the vertical ducts with their mouths in the front by effect of friction between the base and the top parts of the vertical ducts. The bases are oriented with their mouths upwards and pushed down in the vertical ducts with vertical pushers reciprocating in the vertical ducts in the vertical plane. In order that the bases are oriented with their mouths upwards and pushed down in the oriented position in the vertical ducts correctly, contour of the lower ends of the vertical pushers are to be very critically designed and controljed. As a result, the cost of manufacture of the vertical pushers is increased. Manufacture of the vertical pushers is also complicated and time consuming. Inspite of the critical geometry of the lower ends of the vertical pushers, there are chances for the bases to disorient in the vertical ducts and end up in said group of bushes in a disoriented manner. This may create problem for the tablets to enter the bases properly and for the lids to sit over the tablets properly and for the tablets to be enclosed in the capsules properly and may lead to rejection of the filled capsules.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the invention there is provided a machine for packaging tablets in gelatin capsules, comprising a turntable disposed for intermittent rotation about a vertical axis or a transfer system disposed for intermittent linear movement and groups of bushes equidistantly located on the periphery of the turntable or on the transfer system, wherein in a cycle of operation of the machine, the turntable or transfer system causes the same group of bushes to interact in succession with a base feeding station, a tablet feeding station, a lid feeding station, a capsule checking station, a capsule closing station, a filled capsule ejection and sorting station and a bush cleaning station and wherein the base feeding station includes a base feeder mechanism comprising a base aligning arrangement having an upper block and

a lower block disposed spaced apart from each other and rigidly held together for up and down movement in unison, the upper block comprising a group of through vertical passages corresponding to a group of bushes and matching and aligned with a group of through vertical passages in the lower block and a plurality of flexible tubes corresponding to the vertical passages in the upper and lower blocks and disposed between the upper and lower blocks with one ends of the flexible tubes located over the lower parts of the vertical passages in the upper block and the other ends of the flexible tubes located over the upper parts of the vertical passages in the lower block, the upper parts of the vertical passages in the upper block being movably disposed in the lower part of a base feeder magazine mounted to the machine frame and a base orientation rectifier located below the lower block in close proximity to the lower block and comprising a plurality of horizontal ducts along the length thereof corresponding to the vertical passages in the lower block, a plurality of vertical seats each located in each of the horizontal ducts at the centre thereof aligned with a vertical passage in the lower block, a plurality of flat horizontal pushers, each disposed for reciprocating movement in each of the horizontal ducts upstream of the respective vertical seat, each of the horizontal pushers having an upper orienter recess and a lower orienter recess at the forward end thereof, a plurality of vertical ducts formed in the orientation rectifier corresponding to and communicating with the horizontal ducts at the down stream end of the respective vertical seat, the vertical ducts opening into a group of bushes at the lower ends of the vertical ducts and a plurality of flat vertical pushers each reciprocally disposed in each of the vertical ducts.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS In the accompanying schematic drawings:

Fig 1 is a partial sectional view of the base feeder mechanism of a machine for packaging tablets in gelatin capsules according to an embodiment of the invention;
Fig 2 is a front view (view in the direction X) in Fig 1;
Fig 3 is a cross-sectional view of a flexible tube and associated vertical holes in the upper lock and lower block of the feeder mechanism of Fig 1;
Fig 4 is an isometric view of a base orientation rectifier, flat horizontal pushers, vertical pushers and lower block of the feeder mechanism of Fig 1;
Fig 5A is a partial sectional view of the feeder mechanism of Fig 1 showing a base with the open side in the front located in the upper orienter recess of a horizontal pusher;
Fig 5B is a partial sectional view of the feeder mechanism of Fig 1 showing a base with the open side in the front located in the lower orienter recess of a horizontal pusher;
Fig 6 is a partial sectional view of the feeder mechanism of Fig 1 with a base in a vertical duct being oriented by a vertical pusher; and
Fig 7 is a partial sectional view of a feeder mechanism of Fig 1 showing an oriented base being pushed down in the vertical duct by a vertical pusher.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION WITH REFERENCE TO THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS
A machine of the type comprising a turntable 1 for packaging tablets in gelatin capsules as described in WO 96/36307 includes, according to the invention, a base feeder mechanism 2 comprising a base aligning arrangement 3 having an upper block 4 and a lower block 5 disposed spaced apart from each other and rigidly held together between frame members 6 (Figs 1 and 2). The upper block comprises a group of through vertical passages 7 corresponding a group of bushes 8 equidistantly located on the periphery of the turntable of the machine. The turntable is disposed for intermittent rotation about a vertical axis. The vertical passages in the upper block match with and are aligned with a group of through vertical passages 9 in the lower block. A plurality of flexible tubes 10 corresponding to the vertical passages in the upper and lower blocks are disposed between the upper and lower blocks with one ends of the flexible tubes located over the lower parts of the vertical passages in the upper block and the other ends of the flexible tubes located over the upper parts of the vertical passages in the lower block. The upper ends of the vertical passages in the upper block are movably disposed in the lower part of a magazine 11 mounted to the machine frame 12.
A base orientation rectifier 13 is located below the lower block in close proximity to the lower block. The orientation rectifier comprises a plurality of horizontal ducts 14 along the length thereof corresponding to the vertical passages 9 in the lower block 5. A vertical seat 15 is located in each of the horizontal ducts at the centre thereof aligned with a vertical passage in the lower block. A flat horizontal pusher 16 is disposed in each of the horizontal ducts for reciprocating movement in the respective horizontal duct upstream of the respective

vertical seat. 16a is a common support for the horizontal pushers (Fig 4). Each of the horizontal pushers comprises an upper orienter recess 17 and a lower orienter recess 18 at the forward end thereof. A plurality of vertical ducts 19 are formed in the orientation rectifier corresponding to and communicating with the horizontal ducts at the downstream end of the respective vertical seat. The vertical ducts open into a group of bushes 8 assuming position at the lower ends of the vertical ducts during the cyclic intermittent rotation of the turntable of the machine. Each of the vertical ducts comprises a pair of upper base orienter pins 20, 20 and a pair of lower base orienter pins 21, 21. The upper orienter pins and lower orienter pins are spaced apart from each other and are fixed to the opposite side walls of the vertical ducts at the same level. The upper pins and lower pins in each of the vertical ducts are aligned with the upper orienter recess 17 and lower orienter recess 18 at the forward end of each of the horizontal pushers in each of the horizontal ducts. A vertical pusher 23 is reciprocally disposed in each of the vertical ducts. Each of the vertical pushers comprises a flat tip 24 with a thin pusher projection 25 at one side of the tip. 23a is a common support for the vertical pushers. Vacuum pins 26 are provided in the vertical ducts.
The feeder mechanism 2 is fixed to a vertical slide 27 with the help of support members 28. The vertical slide is disposed for up and down movement during the cyclic operation of the machine. Therefore, the feeder mechanism also moves up and down with the vertical slide. 29 is an angled lever fulcrumed (fulcrum 30) on a bracket 31 extending from the machine frame 12. One limb 32 of the lever is pivoted (pivot 33) on the vertical slide. The other limb 34 of the angled lever is connected to the common support 16a of the horizontal pushers 16 through a connecting rod 35. During the up and down movement of the vertical guide, the angled lever oscillates about the fulcrum 30 and causes the horizontal pushers to move back

and forth and reciprocate in the horizontal ducts 14. The vertical passages 9 in the lower block 5 are associated with retaining stops comprising as many substantially L-shaped stoppers 36 as there are vertical passages 9 in the lower block. One limb 37 of each of the L-shaped stoppers 36 is fixed to one end of a cross piece 38 fulcrumed (fulcrum 39) on the frame members 6 and the other limb 40 of each of the L-shaped stoppers 36 is adapted to close against and move away from the bottom of a vertical passage in the lower block. The cross piece 38 and the stoppers 36 are tensioned with tension springs 41 fixed to the other end of the cross piece and the frame members 6. 42 is an end piece at said one end of the cross piece adapted to interact with a fixed striker 43.
Vertical slide 27 is similar to that of WO 96/36307 and is moved up and down in the same manner as in WO 96/36307. Arrangement of angled lever 29 and connecting rod 35 for moving the horizontal pushers 16 back and forth is similar to that of WO 96/36307. Retaining stops for the vertical passages 9 in the lower block 5 comprising L-shaped stoppers 36 and associated cross piece 38, end piece 42 and fixed striker 43 are similar to the retaining stops of WO 96/36307. However, arrangements of different construction and configuration also can be used for the up and down movements of the vertical slide, reciprocating motion of the horizontal pushers and closing and opening of the vertical passages in the lower block. Such variations are within the scope of the invention.
In a cycle of operation of the machine, the base aligning arrangement 3 moves up and down due to the upward movement of the vertical slide 27 and as a result, the upper block 4 with the vertical passages 7 therein moves up in the lower part of the magazine 11 containing bases 22 in bulk. During the upward movement of the base aligning arrangement 3, the

tension springs 41 are under expansion and the other limbs 40 of the stoppers 36 move in towards the respective vertical passages 9 in the lower block 5 and close against the bottom of the vertical passages in the lower block thereby holding a line of bases in each of the vertical passages in the lower block and corresponding flexible tubes 10 and vertical passages 7 in the upper block 4. Simultaneously the horizontal pushers 16 are moved in the forward direction due to the oscillation of the angled lever 29 about the fulcrum 30 and the angular movement of the limb 34 of the angled lever 29 towards the horizontal pushers. During forward movement of the horizontal pushers depending upon whether the base has landed in the vertical seat 15 with the mouth in the front or the crown in the front, the base will be engaged in the upper or lower orienter recess 17 or 18 at the front end of the horizontal pusher 16. In case the base enters the vertical seats with the mouth upwards, then the bases will be engaged and oriented in the upper orienter recess 17 as shown in Fig 5A and in case the base enters the vertical seats 15 with the crown directed up, the bases will be engaged and oriented in the lower orienting recess 18 as shown in Fig 5B. The bases with their mouths oriented in the front being moved forward by the horizontal pushers exit the horizontal ducts 14 and end up in the upper parts of the vertical ducts 19.
While entering the upper parts of the vertical ducts, the bases are guided in the upper parts of the vertical ducts on the upper guide pins 20 or the lower guide pins 21, as the case may be, depending upon whether the bases are seated in the upper orienter recess 17 or lower orienter recess 18 of the horizontal pusher. While the bases engage and are guided on the upper or lower guide pins, the vertical pushers 23 move down in the vertical ducts and the pusher projections 25 at the flat tip 24 of the vertical pushers push the crown of the bases down and tilt the bases so as to orient the bases with their mouths directed upwards and

engage the mouths of the bases against the flat tip of the vertical pushers. During further downward movement of the vertical pushers, the bases oriented with the mouths upwards and engaged against the flat tips of the vertical pushers are also moved down and the bases oriented with their mouth upwards are guided into the bushes 8 on the turntable 1 by applying vacuum through the vacuum pins 26.
During downward movement of the base aligning arrangement 3, the bases in the magazine enter the vertical passages 7 in the upper block 4 and descend into the flexible tubes 10 and vertical passages 9 in the lower block 5 one after another in a line. In order to facilitate entry of the bases into the vertical passages in the upper block, the upper ends of the vertical passages in the upper block are tapered (taper marked 7a). However, the vertical passages in the upper block need not be tapered at the upper ends thereof. Such variation in the vertical passages in the upper block are within the scope of the invention. As the base aligning arrangement reaches the bottom position, the end pieces 42 strike against and interact with the fixed strikers 43. As a result, the tension.springs 41 contract and the other limbs 40 of the stoppers 36 move away from the bottom of the vertical passages 9 in the lower block 5 allowing the bottommost base in the vertical passages in the lower block to drop down and enter the respective vertical seats 15 under their own weight and under gravity. Simultaneously the horizontal pushers 16 are moved back to their original position by the angular movement of the limb 34 of angled lever 29 away from the horizontal pushers due to the oscillation of the angled lever 29 about the fulcrum 30 in the opposite direction. The machine is now ready for the next cycle of operation. During the following cycles of operation of the machine the turntable 1 rotates intermittently and brings the same groups of bushes into interaction with the successive stations.

In the case of the base feeder mechanism of the invention the flexible tubes 10 are subjected to a swinging or buckling motion during the up and down movement of the base aligning arrangement 3 due to the flexibility of the tubes. As a result, the bases 22 in the flexible tubes are subjected to a shaking motion and are forced to slide down one below another in a line smoothly by the effect of gravity and exit the vertical passages 9 in the lower block 5 one by one even if the bases tend to disorient in the flexible tubes. In order to facilitate the downward movement of the bases in the vertical passages 7 and 9 of the upper and lower blocks 4 and 5 and flexible tubes 10, the inner diameter of the vertical passages and tubes is selected to be slightly larger than the outer diameter of the base. As a result of the smooth flow of the bases, jamming of the bases in the flexible tubes and the vertical passages is avoided. The feeder mechanism of the invention comprises few components and is simple in construction. Therefore, the cost of the feeder mechanism is reduced and reliability is increased. Wear and tear and maintenance cost of the feeder mechanism is practically eliminated. The feeder mechanism also does not require any actuator and energy for its operation. As the base aligning arrangement of the feeder mechanism does not have any moving parts chances of damage to the base aligning arrangement are also reduced.
As the bases in the vertical passages 9 in the lower block 5 enter the vertical seats 15 one after another and as the bases in the vertical seats 15 are pushed out of the horizontal ducts 14 and cleared by the horizontal pushers 16 in time, it has been found that nesting of similarly oriented bottom base in the vertical passages in the lower block and base in the vertical seats does not take place and that the vacuum arrangement in the orientation rectifier is not required. Therefore, according to the invention the vacuum arrangement in the orientation

rectifier has been eliminated. According to the invention, the guide end pieces at the lower ends of the tubes have also been eliminated. As a result of all this, the cost of the machine is further reduced and the construction and operation of the machine is further simplified. The reliability of the machine also is increased.
According to the invention the bases 22 with their mouths in the front entering the upper parts of the vertical ducts 19 are guided by the guide pins 20 or 21, as the case may be, thereby preventing disorientation of the bases in the upper parts of the vertical ducts. The bases oriented with their mouths upwards are pushed down in the vertical ducts in their oriented position by the vertical pushers 23 with flat tips 24. As the vertical pushers have simple contour and geometry at the tips thereof, construction of the vertical pushers is simplified thereby further reducing the cost. Beside this, chances for the bases to disorient in the vertical ducts are also reduced.
The flexible tubes 10 are preferably helical springs and still preferably stainless steel helical springs. However, any other flexible tubes are also within the scope of the invention. Instead of a turntable 1 with groups of bushes 8, a transfer system disposed for intermittent linear movement and having groups of bushes equidistantly located on the transfer system also can be used in the invention. Therefore, the transfer system is also within the scope of the invention.

We claim:
1. A machine for packaging tablets in gelatin capsules, comprising a turntable disposed for intermittent rotation about a vertical axis or a transfer system disposed for intermittent linear movement and groups of bushes equidistantly located on the periphery of the turntable or on the transfer system, wherein in a cycle of operation of the machine, the turntable or transfer system causes the same group of bushes to interact in succession with a base feeding station, a tablet feeding station, a lid feeding station, a capsule checking station, a capsule closing station, a filled capsule ejection and sorting station and a bush cleaning station and wherein the base feeding station includes a base feeder mechanism comprising a base aligning arrangement having an upper block and a lower block disposed spaced apart from each other and rigidly held together for up and down movement in unison, the upper block comprising a group of through vertical passages corresponding to a group of bushes and matching and aligned with a group of through vertical passages in the lower block and a plurality of flexible tubes corresponding to the vertical passages in the upper and lower blocks and disposed between the upper and lower blocks with one ends of the flexible tubes located over the lower parts of the vertical passages in the upper block and the other ends of the flexible tubes located over the upper parts of the vertical passages in the lower block, the upper parts of the vertical passages in the upper block being movably disposed in the lower part of a base feeder magazine mounted to the machine frame and a base orientation rectifier located below the lower block in close proximity to the lower block and comprising a plurality of horizontal ducts along the length thereof corresponding to the vertical passages in the lower block, a plurality of vertical seats each located in each of the horizontal ducts at the centre thereof aligned with a vertical passage in the lower block, a plurality of flat horizontal pushers, each disposed for reciprocating movement in each of the horizontal ducts upstream

of the respective vertical seat, each of the horizontal pushers having an upper orienter recess and a lower orienter recess at the forward end thereof, a plurality of vertical ducts formed in the orientation rectifier corresponding to and communicating with the horizontal ducts at the down stream end of the respective vertical seat, the vertical ducts opening into a group of bushes at the lower ends of the vertical ducts and a plurality of flat vertical pushers each reciprocally disposed in each of the vertical ducts.
2. The machine as claimed in claim 1, wherein the upper part of each of the vertical ducts comprises a pair of spaced apart upper base orienter pins fixed to the opposite sidewalls of the upper duct at the same level and a pair of spaced apart lower base orienter pins fixed to the opposite sidewalls of the upper duct at the same level and wherein each of the vertical pushers comprises a flat tip with a thin pusher projection at one side of the flat tip.
3. The machine as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the upper ends of the vertical passages in the upper block are tapered.
4. The machine as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the flexible tubes are helical springs.
5. The machine as claimed in claim 4, wherein the helical springs are stainless steel springs.