Mobile pharmaceutical hopper

Abstract

An integral double wall hopper for handling, storing and dispensing dry flowables such as capsules, tablets, and powders in the pharmaceutical industry, comprises an outer shell having a bottom wall and four walls extending upwardly from the bottom wall, an inner shell having a frustoconical bottom wall and four walls extending upwardly from the frustoconical bottom wall, a lip along the upper edges of the upwardly extending walls connecting the outer shell to the inner shell, four downwardly extending legs formed in the bottom wall of the outer shell forming supporting members for the hopper, a discharge opening molded in the center of the frustoconical bottom wall of the inner shell and in the bottom wall of the outer shell, and a closure member positioned on the discharge opening for opening and closing the discharge opening to dispense the contents of the hopper when desired. Runners molded in the periphery of the bottom wall of the outer shell allow the tines of a forklift truck to pick up the hopper from the side without damaging the discharge opening or the closure member. Protector bosses molded in the bottom wall of the outer shell allow the tines of a forklift truck to pick up the hopper from the front or rear without damaging the discharge opening or the closure member. The hopper has a plurality of covers including a cover which has a manway formed therein, a lid for the manway, and a plurality of towers formed on the cover for protecting the manway of a lower stacked hopper and the closure member of an upper stacked hopper from being damaged by the tines of a forklift when the hoppers are moved. One cover is hinged at one end to allow the hopper to be filled without removing the entire cover. The hopper includes a plurality of recessed channels formed in the walls of the outer shell to make the hopper easy to maneuver without injuring an operator's hands.