Article dispensing – With discharge assistant – Article retained by discharge assistant for manual removal
Patent
1997-10-22
1999-04-27
Noland, Kenneth
Article dispensing
With discharge assistant
Article retained by discharge assistant for manual removal
221263, 206537, B65G 5900
Patent
active
058970258
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
This invention relates to a novel container for containing and dispensing tablets.
Many products, e.g. pharmaceuticals, confectionery etc. are supplied in the form of solid tablets contained in a container, e.g. a bottle, jar or case, from which they are dispensed. Usually such tablets are dispensed from such a container by the action of tipping the container so that one or more of the tablets fall, slide or roll out of the opening of the container by the action of gravity.
A disadvantage of such containers is that on dispensing excess tablets can inadvertently spill out of the container, causing the user the inconvenience of having to return excess tablets to the container, and possibly causing loss or contamination of such excess tablets if for example they fall onto the floor.
This invention provides a container for tablets which in part at least overcomes these disadvantages of known containers. Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description.
According to this invention a container, suitable for containing and dispensing tablets has one or more dispensing openings, characterised by the dispensing opening and/or a dispensing passage upstream of the dispensing opening being constricted or obstructed such that a tablet passing along the dispensing passage is releasably retained by the constriction or obstruction with part of the tablet projecting outside the dispensing opening, the dispensing opening being defined by a rim which wholly or partly surrounds the dispensing opening, part of the said rim or an adjacent part of the container being moveable relative to the rest of the container so as to facilitate the release of the retained tablet from the container.
The terms "upstream" and "downstream" used herein refer to the direction, termed herein the "dispensing direction", in which the tablets travel from the interior of the container towards and then through the dispensing opening.
Such retention of the tablet in the dispensing passage with part of the tablet projecting outside the dispensing opening provides the advantage that the retained tablet blocks the passage and prevents excess tablets from passing through the dispensing package, thereby preventing spillage of tablets. Additionally this releasable retention facilitates the user's access to the tablet and allows the user to grip the projecting part of the tablet and withdraw the entire tablet from the dispensing opening without having to catch a falling or rolling tablet. This reduces the possibility of accidental dropping of the tablet. The provision of a part of the rim or the adjacent part of the container being moveable relative to the rest of the container facilitates removal of the tablet from the container. Release of the tablet from the container may be facilitated by exposure of more of the tablet outside the container than is the situation before the said part of the rim or the adjacent part of the container is so moved, and/or movement of the tablet beyond the restrained caused by the said constriction or obstruction.
The tablets which can be dispensed by the container of this invention may be pharmaceutical formulations, e.g. tablets for oral administration, confectionery, e.g. sweets, or other tablets.
The container of this invention is particularly suitable for tablets which have a shape which is flattened about a plane. Shapes which are flattened about a plane include circular discs, oval discs, tetragonal shapes, parallelogram shapes, oblate spheroids etc. A particular shape flattened about a plane is a circular disc, for example with beveled edges.
Suitably the cross-sectional shape of the dispensing opening(s), about the dispensing direction corresponds substantially to the cross sectional shape of the tablet about the dispensing direction. For example in the case of tablets which are a disc, tetragonal or parallelogram shape the dispensing opening may suitably be a slot shape opening, i.e. having a width greater than its height, suitably a rectangular slot shaped opening, optional
REFERENCES:
patent: 2918167 (1959-12-01), Lowen
patent: 2962190 (1960-11-01), Horland
patent: 3968902 (1976-07-01), Bachmann
patent: 5174471 (1992-12-01), Kozlowski et al.
Flewitt Harry
Johnson Wendy
Lewis Stephen Barnet
Dinner Dara L.
Noland Kenneth
SmithKline Beecham plc.
Venetianer Stephen
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