Medicine cassette and automatic medicine packing machine therewith

1. A medicine cassette for automatically supplying medicines according to prescription information, the medicine cassette comprising:

a medicine supplier configured to supply accommodated medicines according to prescription information;

a medicine delivery part configured to deliver the medicines supplied from the medicine supplier to a medicine discharge part; and

the medicine discharge part configured to discharge the medicines, which are delivered through the medicine delivery part, to an outside of the medicine cassette,

wherein the medicine supplier includes a medicine accommodation part configured to accommodate the medicines and a rotating rotor part configured to deliver the medicines accommodated in the medicine accommodation part to the medicine delivery part;

the rotating rotor part configured to be tilted against a horizontal plane and move the medicines accommodated in the medicine accommodation part upward to the medicine delivery part by rotating around an axis tilted at a predetermined angle against the horizontal plane;

the rotating rotor part includes a rotating rotor, which is formed in a disc shape and has at least one recess formed at an outer circumference thereof, and at least one sliding member which is installed at the at least one recess of the rotating rotor such that the at least one sliding member is movable in the at least one recess of the rotating rotor along a radial direction of the rotating rotor; and

the at least one sliding member is formed in a shape corresponding to a shape of the at least one recess and is operated to be outwardly moved in the radial direction of the rotating rotor and close the at least one recess as the at least one recess of the rotating rotor approaches a medicine supply inlet configured to supply the medicines to the medicine delivery part.

2. The medicine cassette of claim 1 , wherein:

a protrusion vertically extending from the at least one sliding member is provided at a rear surface of the at least one sliding member;

the protrusion is inserted into and installed at a guide groove formed at a base portion of the medicine accommodation part at which the rotating rotor is installed; and

the guide groove formed at the base portion is formed in a structure of guiding a movement of the at least one sliding member to be outwardly moved in the radial direction of the rotating rotor as the at least one recess of the rotating rotor approaches the medicine supply inlet.

3. The medicine cassette of claim 2 , wherein the guide groove formed at the base portion is formed for guiding a movement of the at least one sliding member to be inwardly moved in the radial direction of the rotating rotor after the at least one recess of the rotating rotor passes the medicine supply inlet.

4. The medicine cassette of claim 1 , wherein the at least one sliding member has a structure that a surface of the at least one sliding member, which is positioned at an outer circumference of the rotating rotor when the at least one sliding member is installed at the rotating rotor, is downwardly inclined from a front side of a rotational direction of the rotating rotor to a rear side thereof.

5. The medicine cassette of claim 1 , wherein the medicine accommodation part has a space extension configured to secure empty space in a vicinity of the at least one recess which is ascended toward the medicine supply inlet.

6. The medicine cassette of claim 1 , wherein:

the medicine delivery part includes a transfer part having an upper portion on which the medicines are disposed and a vibration part configured to apply vibration to the transfer part; and

the medicines disposed on the transfer part are to be transferred one by one to the medicine discharge part due to vibration applied by the transfer part.

7. The medicine cassette of claim 6 , wherein:

the medicine discharge part includes a detector installed at an inlet through which the medicines transferred from the medicine delivery part pass and configured to detect the number of medicines which pass the inlet, a retention member on which the medicines passing the detector is temporarily retained, and an opening and closing member installed at a downstream side of the retention member and configured to move the medicines toward a packaging passage or a recollecting passage according to a detection result of the detector; and

the opening and closing member is pivotably installed between the packaging passage and the recollecting passage, and when the number of the medicines detected by the detector matches the prescription information, the opening and closing member is operated to open the packaging passage while closing the recollecting passage, whereas when the number of the medicines detected by the detector does not match the prescription information, the opening and closing member is operated to open the recollecting passage while closing the packaging passage.

8. The medicine cassette of claim 7 , wherein the retention member and the opening and closing member are configured to be pivotable within a predetermined angle range by a drive motor.

9. An automatic medicine packaging apparatus comprising:

an medicine cassette for automatically supplying medicines according to prescription information, the medicine cassette comprising:

a medicine supplier configured to supply accommodated medicines according to prescription information;

a medicine delivery part configured to deliver the medicines supplied from the medicine supplier to a medicine discharge part; and

the medicine discharge part configured to discharge the medicines, which are delivered through the medicine delivery part, to an outside of the medicine cassette,

wherein the medicine supplier includes a medicine accommodation part configured to accommodate the medicines and a rotating rotor part configured to deliver the medicines accommodated in the medicine accommodation part to the medicine delivery part;

the rotating rotor part configured to be tilted against a horizontal plane and move the medicines accommodated in the medicine accommodation part upward to the medicine delivery part by rotating around an axis tilted at a predetermined angle against the horizontal plane;

the rotating rotor part includes a rotating rotor, which is formed in a disc shape and has at least one recess formed at an outer circumference thereof, and at least one sliding member which is installed at the at least one recess of the rotating rotor such that the at least one sliding member is movable in the at least one recess of the rotating rotor along a radial direction of the rotating rotor; and

the at least one sliding member is formed in a shape corresponding to a shape of the at least one recess and is operated to be outwardly moved in the radial direction of the rotating rotor and close the at least one recess as the at least one recess of the rotating rotor approaches a medicine supply inlet configured to supply the medicines to the medicine delivery part.