The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Nov. 23, 2010
Filed:
May. 18, 2007
Andrew Kirk Dummer, Chapel Hill, NC (US);
Bryan Patrick Farnsworth, Wake Forest, NC (US);
Richard D. Michelli, Raleigh, NC (US);
Jeffrey P. Williams, Hillsborough, NC (US);
David Alan Calderwood, Chapel Hill, NC (US);
Andrew Kirk Dummer, Chapel Hill, NC (US);
Bryan Patrick Farnsworth, Wake Forest, NC (US);
Richard D. Michelli, Raleigh, NC (US);
Jeffrey P. Williams, Hillsborough, NC (US);
David Alan Calderwood, Chapel Hill, NC (US);
PARATA Systems, LLC, Durham, NC (US);
Abstract
An apparatus for dispensing pharmaceutical articles includes a housing and a gas source to provide a positive pressure supply gas flow. The housing defines a hopper chamber to hold the articles, a dispensing channel fluidly connected to the hopper chamber, a drive jet outlet, and an agitation outlet. The dispensing channel has an inlet and an outlet and defines a flow path therebetween. The gas source is fluidly connected to each of the drive jet outlet and the agitation outlet to provide: a pressurized drive jet gas flow through the drive jet outlet to convey articles through the dispensing channel along the flow path; and a pressurized agitation gas flow through the agitation outlet to agitate articles in the hopper chamber.