MXPA98000708A - Fra closure removal - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an apparatus for removing a closure from a container, wherein the closure includes a closing lid through an opening in the container, the apparatus being characterized in that it comprises a container holding means for holding the container and releasing it. Subsequently when the closure has been removed, a closure fastening means includes jaws that can fasten to the closure and remove a fastener fastened from the container held during a relative separation movement of the jaws and the container, the container fastening means and the closure fastening means moves in a relative position so that closure of a fastening container by the container fastening means can be held and removed by said jaws, wherein the closure fastening means includes a rigid member that is moves in a position between the jaws and to make contact with the closing wall, whereby the c The contact of said rigid member with the closure in a pressure deformable closure confers rigidity on said deformable compression closure to facilitate the clamping of the closure by the jaws and the removal of the closure by the jaws

Description

BRAKE CLOSURE REMOVER FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a novel device that is an apparatus for removing a closure from a container, particularly for removing container closures containing clinical specimens such as body fluids (which may have been pretreated) on automated sample testing equipment in which the bottles are transported by a transporter system.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Tubes for blood samples and the like for handling liquid specimens typically have two types of closures, one is a soft rubber plug type device that works on friction and the other is a screw cap type closure. The automated handling of samples requires some form of automated lid removal device that can handle these two types of quite different capping media. The closures in the form of soft rubber stoppers comprise a closing wall through the opening of the mouth of the bottle and a cap that depends on it and that is inserted in the opening of the mouth of the bottle or tube. Although that allows the closure to be easily inserted to form a fluid-tight friction-compression seal, the softness of the rubber causes a problem for the mechanical equipment designed for the removal of said closures. The compression deformable nature of said rubber plugs causes them to deform when they are held by said equipment, for example, by means of clamping jaws, and are therefore difficult to hold. An additional problem is caused by the fact that some bottles can be closed by means of screw cap closures, and as a consequence separate closure removal equipment is needed for the bottles with rubber stoppers and the bottles with screw caps. An object of the present invention is to provide a solution to this problem. Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION This invention provides an apparatus for removing a closure from a container, characterized in that the closure includes a closure wall through an opening of the container; and the apparatus comprises: a container holding means for securing the container and subsequently releasing the container when the closure has been removed, a closure fastening means including jaws that can hold the closure and removing a fastened fastener from the container held during a Relative separation movement of the jaws and the container, the container holding means and the closing fastening means are movable in a relative position to each other so that the closure of a container held by the container holding means can be clamped and removed by said jaws, characterized in that the closure fastening means includes a rigid member that moves in a position between the jaws and makes contact with the wall of the closure, whereby the contact of said rigid member with the closure when the closure is a deformable closure by compression confers rigidity on said compression deformable closure to facilitate the fastening of the closure by the jaws and the removal of the closure by the jaws.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings. Figure 1 shows a cross section through a bottle closure and an adjacent part of a bottle. Figure 2 shows a schematic plan view of a container holding means suitable for the bottle of Figure 1. Figure 3 shows a schematic side view of the closure fastening means suitable for the closure of Figure 1, with the open jaws. Figure 4 shows a schematic bottom view of the closure fastening means of Figure 3.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The containers can be the jars for clinical specimens mentioned above, which are typically glass or plastic tubes typically with a capacity of 10 ml and a diameter of 15 mm. The closures for said bottles may be the soft rubber stoppers or screw caps mentioned above. A particular type of soft rubber stopper for said bottles has a depression in the upper outer surface of its closure wall, 8 mm in diameter and 3 mm in depth. These bottles are commercially available, such as the "Vacutainer MR" marketed by Becton Dickinson. A particular advantage of the apparatus of this invention is that it can remove both rubber stoppers and screw caps without the need to distinguish between bottles with rubber stoppers and those with screw caps, or to treat them separately. The container holding means may conveniently comprise a set of clamping jaws that can hold the container. Preferably, the clamping means aligns the container in a predetermined orientation and positions it precisely so that the operation of the container and closure fastening means can be automated and easily controlled by data processing equipment. In the case of the aforementioned tubular jars, said jaws are preferably closed in an opposite way across the diameter of the tube, and the jaws can include a pair of opposite "V" shaped cuts on the surface of the jaw that gives to the bottle to ensure precise alignment and positioning, and to allow the jaws to hold jars of various diameters. In the case of the aforementioned tubular jars, the closing clamping jaws are preferably also closed in an opposite manner across the diameter of the closure, and may also include a pair of opposite "V" shaped cuts on the surface of the closure. the clamp that gives towards the closing. Said cuts in the form of "V" allow the jaws to hold closures of various diameters and also help to achieve a firm grip around the closure. The jaws of the container holding means and the closing holding jaws preferably have a surface with a high friction elastic polymer material to facilitate a firm hold of both the container and the closure respectively. The relative separation movement of the jaws and the closure is preferably a movement in which the jaws pull the closure out of the container. In the case of the aforementioned bottles, this movement includes a pulling movement in the long axial direction of the bottle, thus pulling the closure out of the bottle. If the closure is a screw cap closure, the relative separation movement must include a rotating unscrewing movement, optionally combined with a pull action. If the closure is of the type of a rubber stopper retained in the bottle by friction as described above, said rotary movement does not damage the closure, and may assist in the removal thereof. This type of relative separation movement thus makes it possible for the apparatus of the invention to remove both rubber stoppers and screw caps from the bottles. The rigid member is preferably on an axis or the projection of an axis extending along the center line between the surfaces of the closure clamping jaw. In a preferred embodiment of the closure fastening means, suitable for bottles, the closing clamping jaws approach closure from above during the aforementioned movement of the container holding means and the closing fastening means in a relative position between yes so that the closure of a container held by the container holding means can be held by the jaws. The contact of the rigid member with the soft rubber plug can prevent the soft rubber wall from deforming by buckling inwardly while the closing clamping jaws close around the plug providing a rigid retainer. The shapes and sizes suitable for the part of the rigid member that makes contact with the closure can be determined by simple experimentation. Nevertheless, if the closure of the bottle has a depression as mentioned above on the upper outer surface of its closing wall, the shape of the part of the rigid member that makes contact with the closure may correspond to the shape of the depression. Advantageously, with said structure the depression allows the member to descend below the level of the upper outer surface of the closure wall so that while the jaws are closed laterally around the closure, the rubber of the closure is sandwiched and received between jaws and the rigid member, resulting in improved fastening of the closure. Said rigid member is also suitable for use with screw cap jars, since its sensors also serve to properly position the jaws around the rigid caps. The aforementioned movements of various parts of the apparatus of this invention can be produced using a conventional driving means such as electric motors, pneumatic or hydraulic actuators, etc., as is well known to those skilled in the art. These movements can be controlled by conventional automatic control equipment linked to a conventional data processing equipment. This control equipment may include sensors for reading the information on the labels on the containers, eg, bar codes on the bottles, as well as known equipment for moving the container holding means and / or closure fastening means. in locations known precisely to each other or to other parts of the apparatus. It is essential that the control equipment include means to determine that the closure is in such a position and correctly aligned in relation to the closure fastening means that when the jaws are closed they fasten the closure, eg, the rubber stopper aforementioned, without also holding adjacent portions of the container, e.g., the aforementioned jars. Suitable means will be apparent to those skilled in the art of automatic control equipment. For example, the container fastening means may have fastening surfaces that orient the longitudinal axis of a container such as a bottle along a defined axis, and the closure fastening means may approach the closure along this axis. The rigid member preferably terminates in the vicinity of the surfaces of the jaw and can then act as a detection probe to detect by contact or proximity of the rigid member with the upper outer surface of the closure wall, that the surfaces of the jaw are in a position where, when closed, hold the closure, but do not make contact with the container when holding the closure in a manner and with sufficient force to remove the closure. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the rigid member is also capable of detecting the presence of the lid surface and controlling the positioning of the jaws around the closure in relation to the container. For example, a container such as a bottle can be held while in an upright position by the container holding means, and the closure holding means can descend vertically upwardly from that of the bottle, and the contact occurring between the rigid member and the closure can communicate to the control team that the closure is in an adequate positional relationship in relation to the jaws. In said structure, the lower end of the rigid member may be between the upper and lower ends of the jaws. In a preferred embodiment of the apparatus of this invention, the containers are the above-mentioned bottles containing clinical specimens and which are presented to the apparatus of the invention on the conveyor belt of an automated test system. The bottles are preferably held by the container holding means while they are on the carrier or on the storage region of the container., or adjacent to the transporter, and which is moved by the driving means under the direction of the automatic control equipment towards a relative position with the closing fastening means so that the closure of a bottle held by the container holding means can be fastened and removed by the jaws of the closing fastening means. The jaws of the closing fastening means then descend on the closure under the direction of the automatic control equipment. The rigid member descends together with the jaws until the rigid member contacts the closure. The jaws of the closure fastening means then hold the closure, and the closure fastening means is then moved in a separation movement relative to the bottle, in which the closure fastening means rotates both clockwise relative to the closure. tubular shaft of the bottle, as in the axial direction of the tube outside the bottle. This movement removes the closure of the bottle, either a soft rubber stopper or a screw cap. The closure can then be discarded, e.g., by the closure fastening means and the vial being moved further while the closure fastening means continues to hold the closure, then the closure is released in a closure collection area. . The container holding means can then return the bottles without their closures to the carrier or to an accumulator area. Referring to Figure 1, the upper part of a conventional glass bottle 1 for clinical specimens is shown, which is a tube with an internal diameter of 14 mm. Retained by a friction / compression fit in the bottle 1 is a closure 2 (generally), which is a soft rubber stopper having a closure wall 3 through the mouth opening of the bottle 1. A stopper 4 depends on the closing wall 3 and engages the bottle 1. On the upper outer surface of the closing wall 3 there is a depression 5 of a generally hemispherical shape. Referring to Figure 2, a container holding means comprises a pair of opposing jaws 6 and 7. By means of actuators operated by compressed air (not shown) of conventional structure and operation and located in the driving means 8, the jaws 6 and 7 can be moved reciprocally in the direction shown by the arrows A between open and closed positions around a bottle 1. An intermediate position of the jaws 6, 7 between open and closed is shown in figure 2. The jaws 6 and 7 have cuts 9 and 10 in the form of "V" on the surfaces of the jaw, which make possible a firm and precise positioning of the bottle 1 in the jaws 6 and 7. With reference to figures 4 and 5, a closing fastening means comprises a pair of opposite jaws 11 and 12. By means of actuators operated by compressed air (not shown = of conventional structure and operation and located in the driving means 13, the jaws 11, 12 can be moved reciprocally in the direction shown by the arrows B between open and closed positions around a closure 2 (not shown in Figures 4 and 5.) The jaws 11, 12 have "V" shaped cuts 14, 15 on the surfaces of the jaw, which make it possible to firmly and accurately position the closure 2 in the jaws 11 and 12. A rigid member 16 which is made of steel, is located between the jaws 11, 12 and on the projection of a CC axis extending along the center line between the surfaces of the clamping jaw closure 14, 15. The lower end 17 of the member 16 is just below the upper edge of the surfaces 14, 15 of the jaw, and the lower end 17 is configured to correspond to the depression . The member 16 is connected by the rigid connector 18 to a contact detection device 19 of known type, mounted on the driving means 13. During use, the container holding means of figure 2 is mounted adjacent to a conveyor line conventional (not shown), which transports closed bottles 1 with closures 2 on an automated test line, for example by supplying bottles 1 to test stations (not shown) where automated clinical tests are carried out. When it is required to remove a closure 2 from a bottle 1, the container holding means, with the jaws 6, 7 open, is moved by automatic and conventional moving means such as a robotic arm, to a position in which the bottle 1 is between the surfaces 9, 10 of the jaw. It may be necessary to stop flask 1 for this operation, or move it to an accumulator area (not shown) adjacent to the conveyor. The jaws 6, 7 are then closed around the bottle 1, so that the bottle 1 is positioned precisely in the cuts 9, 10. This operation responds to information read automatically from a label on the bottle 1, e.g., an optically readable bar code, instructing the automatic control equipment (not shown) to operate the bottle holder means. The bottle holder, holding the bottle I, is then moved by said movement means to a position such that the axis of the tubular bottle 1 is directly below the lower end 17 of the rigid member 16. The closing fastening means of Figures 3 and 4 is then moved downwardly. by driving means (not shown) which can be a conventional driving means such as an actuator driven by compressed air. The lower end 17 of the member 16 makes contact with the closure 2, the rounded lower end 17 being adapted to the depression 5. The contact detection device 19 detects this contact and causes the control equipment to instruct the driving means to stop the downward movement of the closing fastening means. Simultaneously or just after, the control equipment causes the jaws II, 12 close around the closure 2. Since the end 17 of the rigid member 16 is within the depression 5, the soft rubber material of the closure 2 is sandwiched between the surfaces 14, 15 of the jaw and the member 16. This makes it possible for the jaws 11, 12 to grip the closure 2 firmly without deformation and buckling of the soft rubber material of the closure that could occur without the presence of the member 16. With the closure 2 firmly held by the jaws 11, 12, the The closure clamping means is moved by the impeller means out of the bottle 1 clamped in the jaws 6, 7 in a relative separation movement, in which the closing clamping means moves upwards out of the bottle clamping means in the clamping means. the direction of the CC axis. At the same time, the closure fastening means is rotated by the shaft 20 around the CC axis in a left-handed direction as seen looking down the axis CC towards the closure 2. This removes the closure 2 of the bottle 1. The Closing 2 remains held by the closing fastening means, and the closing fastening means can be moved by the driving means towards the vicinity of a closing waste means (not shown) for example, a waste tube. The bottle 1 remains firmly clamped in the jaws 6, 7, and the bottle holding means can be moved after removal of the closure by the movement means to a position such that when opening the jaws 6, 7 the bottle 1 is released and returned to the conveyor or to an accumulator area for subsequent transfer back to the conveyor. The contents (not shown) of the bottles 1 without closures 2 can then be subjected to tests in test stations for which the absence of the closure 2 is necessary. Although in the above specific description it is described for use with a soft rubber closure 2, the apparatus of the specific description is equally suitable for the removal of a screw cap closure that is on the bottle 1, although in this case said closures are normally made of a hard plastic material, and the presence of the member 16 as a rigid rear support for the jaws 14, 15 will not generally be necessary. In such a case, the member 16 functions primarily as a contact detection probe, communicating to the control equipment that the screw cap is in a position in which it can be held by the closing action of the jaws 11, 12.

Claims (2)

NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION CLAIMS

1. - An apparatus for removing a closure from a container, characterized in that the closure includes a closing wall through an opening of the container, the apparatus comprises: a container holding means for holding the container and releasing it subsequently when the closure has been removed, a closure fastening means including jaws that can clamp to the closure and remove a fastener fastened from the fastened container during a relative separation movement of the jaws and the container, the container fastening means and the closure fastening means it moves in a relative position relative to each other so that the closure of a container held by the container holding means can be held and removed by said jaws; wherein the closure fastening means includes a rigid member that moves in a position between the jaws and to contact the closure wall, whereby the contact of said rigid member with the closure when the closure is a deformable closure by compression, it confers rigidity on said deformable compression closure to facilitate the clamping of the closure by the jaws and the removal of the closure by the jaws.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, substantially as described above, with reference to the accompanying drawings.