Abstract:
Embodiments of the invention are directed toward blister packaging for the temporary storage of products, specifically medicaments, as well as methods for temporarily storing medicaments in blister packaging. The blister packaging includes a number of receiving compartments that are covered by a two-layer film for at least one product unit in each case. Perforated sections in one of the film layers include a tear-open line when a mechanical force is applied to the film, via the product unit. One of the film layers provides an impermeable layer while the second layer prevents unintended opening.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The invention relates to a blister packaging for the temporary storage of products, in particular medicaments, and also to an accompanying method for the temporary storage of such products in a blister packaging. 
       RELATED PRIOR ART 
       [0002]    A blister packaging for the weekly medicament requirements of a patient who is supposed to take the medicaments in a sequence organised according to date, day of the week and time of day (morning, midday and evening and/or night) is known from DE 10 2004 034 024 A2. The receiving compartments in the blister packaging for receiving the respective medicaments are arranged in the form of a matrix and have seven “Day” columns with at least three “Time-of-day” compartments in each case, which are occluded, as a whole, by a continuous blister-pack film. Located on the blister packaging is a cover in the form of cardboard, which contains, in a manner specific to the individual patient, the combination in the individual “Time-of-day” compartments and also prescription information relating to the respective medicaments. 
         [0003]    For patients who regularly have to take a number of different medicaments, such packaging units constitute an aid to, on the one hand, not forgetting to take important medicaments and, on the other hand, also reliably keeping track of which medicaments have already been taken, in order to avoid over-medication which may, under certain circumstances, be harmful. 
         [0004]    An installation for provisioning such packaging units with the desired combination of medicaments is known from DE 10 2004 020 510 A1 and also from WO 2005 102 841 A1. For each medicament, an individually assigned distributing station is provided, which conveys the respective medicaments, by means of plungers which are associated, spatially, with the receiving compartments in the packaging unit, out of a passing packaging in the form of a strip-type blister pack and into the corresponding receiving compartments in the packaging unit. It is thus possible to safely and reliably fill packaging units which are specific to individual patients with a selection from several hundred medicaments in a fully automatic manner. 
         [0005]    Since the medicaments processed by the packaging installation are prescribed in very different quantities, relatively long “dwell times” in the passing packagings, i.e. the strip-type blister packs, can occur in the case of those medicaments that are rarely prescribed. In order to prevent the medicaments from becoming unusable because of the penetration of moisture or the like, the strip-type blister pack must therefore have satisfactory sealing of the receiving space for the medicament, particularly against water vapour. Sealing of this kind can be achieved, for example, by means of an aluminium film with a minimum thickness of 0.002 mm. On the one hand, this has the disadvantage that it does not tear open reliably at the right place, or does not tear open completely, when a mechanical force is applied to the medicament unit by the plunger, with the result that errors can occur in the provisioning of the “Week” blister packs. It is also essential to prevent tearing-off of the aluminium film in the course of the expelling operation, and therefore the possibility of remnants of film falling into the “Week” blister pack. In addition, the packaging installation is to be capable of processing medicaments of the most diverse sizes and shapes. Since the incorrect filling of even one compartment of the “Week” blister pack necessarily requires the rejection of the entire pack, errors in the “repackaging” of the medicaments from the strip-type blister pack into the “Week” blister pack involve a great deal of effort and high costs. 
         [0006]    U.S. Pat. No. 7,093,716 describes a child-proof blister packaging for medicaments which has a number of receiving compartments, each occluded by a film which has three layers. The outermost layer of film is constructed from cardboard material and has tear-open sections which are formed by perforated lines and which are difficult for small children to open. 
       ABSTRACT THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    It is therefore an object of the invention to propose a blister packaging for the temporary storage of products, in particular medicaments, and also an accompanying method for the temporary storage of such products in a blister packaging which solves the problems described above and allows long intermediate-storage periods and, at the same time, a secure transfer of the product units into the packaging unit (“Week” blister pack) which is to be delivered. 
         [0008]    This object is achieved by means of a blister packaging for the temporary storage of products, in particular medicaments, which has a number of receiving compartments, which are occluded by a film in each case, for at least one product unit in each case, which film is formed by a first and a second layer of film, wherein perforated sections constructed in the second layer of film, which form a defined tear-open line in the film when a mechanical force is exerted on said film via the product unit, are associated with the receiving compartments in each case. 
         [0009]    The first layer of film, which preferably consists of a material which is impermeable to air and water vapour, such as aluminium or plastic for example, permits secure sealing of the medicaments, even in the case of long dwell times. The second layer of film, which preferably consists of a mechanically stiff material, such as paper or cardboard for example, prevents unintended tearing-open of the first layer of film, so that the latter can be of comparatively thin construction. The perforated sections in the second layer of film facilitate the, preferably mechanical, removal of the medicaments from the strip-type blister pack. If a mechanical force is exerted on the film via the product unit, for example by the plunger of the medicament-distributing station via the product (medicament), the film tears along the perforated section in a defined manner and permits reliable transition of the medicament unit out of the passing packaging and into the delivery packaging, for instance the “Week” blister pack. 
         [0010]    The first and second layers of film are preferably bonded to one another, so that tearing-off of the aluminium film in the course of the expelling operation, and therefore the possibility of remnants of film falling into the “Week” blister pack, is avoided. 
         [0011]    In this case, the first layer of film, which preferably consists of a material which is impermeable to air and water vapour, such as aluminium or plastic for example, occludes the receiving compartments, for example, and the second layer of film is constructed on the first layer of film. 
         [0012]    In order to further simplify the removal of the product units from the blister packaging, the perforation is preferably adapted to the shape and/or size of the product unit which is received in the receiving compartment. 
         [0013]    In this case, the first layer of film may have, for example, a thickness of 0.002 mm to 0.05 mm, and the second layer of film may have a thickness of 0.05 to 0.5 mm. In this case, the depth of the perforation preferably corresponds to the thickness of the second layer of film. 
         [0014]    The second layer of film may have a machine-readable identifier on its outer side for product identification. In order to guarantee satisfactory readability of this identifier, the outer side of the second layer of film is preferably provided with a dark surface. This dark surface also facilitates the applying of the perforation in the second layer of film by means of a controlled laser beam which removes said second layer of film (which consists of paper material, for example) by thermal action, while the first layer of film (which consists of aluminium, for example) is not damaged by the laser beam. 
         [0015]    The blister packaging may preferably be constructed as an endless strip-type blister pack. 
         [0016]    The invention also proposes a method for the temporary storage of products, in particular medicaments, in a number of receiving compartments in a blister packaging which are occluded by a film in each case, which film is formed by a first and a second layer of film, said method comprising the following steps: the mechanical filling of the receiving compartments with at least one product unit in each case; the occluding of the receiving compartments by means of the film; the providing of the second layer of film with perforated sections in the region of the receiving compartments, which perforated sections form a defined tearing-open line in the film when a mechanical force is exerted upon said film via the product unit; and the mechanical removal of the products from the receiving compartments as a result of the exerting of a mechanical force on the film via the product unit ( 30 ), said film tearing open along the perforated sections. 
         [0017]    As explained above, the method step for forming the perforated sections in the second layer of film is preferably performed by means of a laser beam. 
         [0018]    The method step for mechanically removing the products from the receiving compartments may advantageously be performed by means of cyclically controlled plungers associated with each of said receiving compartments. 
         [0019]    The method step for forming the perforated sections in the second layer of film may preferably be carried out, for example, prior to the method step for mechanically filling the receiving compartments with the products, in order to permit the most efficient possible course of development of the method. 
         [0020]    The manufacture of the perforated sections by means of a laser beam can be adjusted to different sizes and shapes of medicament in a flexible manner, so that, with the method according to the invention, a number of different medicaments can be packed away, one after another, in respective endless strip-type blister packs for temporary storage. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0021]    The invention will be described in detail below with the aid of exemplified embodiments and with reference to the drawings. 
           [0022]      FIG. 1  shows a diagrammatic side view of a strip-type blister pack. 
           [0023]      FIG. 2  shows an enlarged diagrammatic side view of one exemplified embodiment of the blister packaging according to the invention. 
           [0024]      FIG. 3  shows a top view of the film side of a first exemplified embodiment of the blister packaging according to the invention. 
           [0025]      FIG. 4  shows a top view of the film side of a second exemplified embodiment of the blister packaging according to the invention. 
           [0026]      FIG. 5  is a flow chart for explaining the method steps in one exemplified embodiment of the method according to the invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0027]      FIG. 1  shows a diagrammatic side view of a strip-type blister pack for the temporary storage of products, in particular medicaments. The product units are individually poured, preferably mechanically, into the blister packaging which is constructed as a strip-type blister pack  20 . One full strip-type blister pack at a time of each sort of medicament is made available to the “Week” blister pack provisioning installation as a product stock. Since the medicaments processed by the provisioning installation are used up in very different quantities, comparatively long storage periods in the strip-type blister packs can occur. 
         [0028]    In the “Week” blister pack provisioning installation, there is provided, for each medicament, an individually assigned distributing station which conveys the respective medicaments out of the endless strip-type blister pack and into the corresponding receiving compartments in the packaging unit, for example by means of plungers which are associated spatially with the receiving compartments in the strip-type blister pack. It is thus possible to safely and reliably fill “Week” blister packs which are specific to individual patients with a selection from several hundred medicaments in a fully automatic manner. The critical working step in this process is the “repackaging” of the product units from the strip-type blister pack into the “Week” blister pack. 
         [0029]    In order to make this critical working step easier, the blister packaging  20  according to the invention has an occluding film  25  consisting of a first layer of film  24  and a second layer of film  26 , said second layer of film  26  being provided with perforated sections  28  which facilitate removal of the product units from the strip-type blister pack which serves as the passing packaging, and prevent the tearing-off of the aluminium film in the course of the expelling operation. 
         [0030]    A first exemplified embodiment of the blister packaging according to the invention is represented in  FIG. 2 . The first layer of film  24 , which preferably consists of a material which is impermeable to air and water vapour, such as aluminium or plastic for example, occludes the respective receiving compartments  21  for the product units  30  (represented in broken lines) and permits secure sealing of the medicaments, even in the case of fairly long storage periods. The second layer of film  26 , which preferably consists of a mechanically stiff material such as paper or cardboard for example, prevents unintended tearing-open of the first layer of film in the event of mechanical deformations, for instance when the strip-type blister pack is wound onto and off from the appertaining stock roll, so that the first layer of film  24  itself may be of comparatively thin construction, which aids the product removing operation. Furthermore, the perforated section  28  in the second layer of film  26 , which section is associated with the respective receiving compartments, facilitates the, preferably mechanical, removal of the medicament units. If a mechanical force is exerted on the film  25 , for example by the plunger of the medicament-distributing station via the product unit  30 , the film tears along the perforated section  28  in a defined manner and permits reliable removal of the product  30  from the strip-type blister packaging  20  through the opening formed in the film along the perforation in a defined manner. In the process, the second layer of film prevents the flap which is formed from the first layer of film and is thrust open, from being torn off. The first and second layers of film are bonded to one another, so that the aluminium film does not tear off in the course of the expelling operation and no remnants of film fall into the “Week” blister pack. 
         [0031]    In order to further optimise the removal of the product units  30  from the blister packaging  20 , the perforated section  28  is preferably adapted to the shape and/or size of the product unit received in the receiving compartment. Two exemplified embodiments of different shapes for the perforation  28  are represented in  FIGS. 3 and 4 . The perforated section  28  may consist of a single continuous U-shaped line, as shown in  FIG. 3 , or of two separate, mutually complementary perforated sections, as shown in  FIG. 4 . Various arrangements of perforations can be conceived of within the scope of the present invention, depending upon the shape of the medicaments. 
         [0032]    That being the case, the first layer of film may have, for example, a thickness of 0.002 mm to 0.05 mm, and the second layer of film may have a thickness of 0.05 mm to 0.5 mm. In this case, the depth of the perforation preferably corresponds to the thickness of the second layer of film, but may also have a lesser depth, so that the second layer of film  26  is not completely severed. 
         [0033]    As is shown in  FIG. 4 , the second layer of film  26  may have a machine-readable identifier  32  on its outer side for product identification. 
         [0034]    One exemplified embodiment of the method according to the invention will be explained below with the aid of the flow chart in  FIG. 5 . 
         [0035]    In the first step S 2  of the method, the perforation  28  is applied to the outer layer of film  26 , preferably by means of a controlled laser beam which removes said second, outer layer of film  26  (which consists of paper material for example) by thermal action, while the first layer of film  24  (which consists of aluminium for example) is not damaged by the laser beam. In order to aid the thermal removal of the second layer of film  26  by means of the laser beam, this layer preferably has a dark surface. 
         [0036]    In the following step S 4  of the method, the receiving compartments  21  in the strip-type blister pack  20  are filled with the product units  30  in a per se known manner, preferably mechanically. 
         [0037]    In the next step S 6  of the method, the blister-pack compartments  21  are occluded and thereby sealed in a manner impermeable to air and water vapour, likewise in a per se known manner, by the application, for example the welding-on or sealing-on, of the blister film  25 . 
         [0038]    In the concluding step S 8  of the method, the action of a force is finally exerted on the occluding film  25  by the product units  30  themselves by means of the plungers described above, so that said film tears open in a defined manner along the perforated sections  28  in the upper layer of film  26 , and the product units  30  can thus be removed from the receiving compartments  21  reliably and without delay and repackaged into the “Week” blister packs or the like. The forming of the perforated sections by means of a laser beam can be adjusted to different sizes and shapes of medicament in a flexible manner, so that the invention allows the intermediate storage of a number of different medicaments in strip-type blister packs in successive working steps on the same installation. 
         [0039]    The invention thus permits the secure temporary storage of products, in particular medicaments, even over fairly long periods of time, and also a reliable, preferably mechanical, removal and repackaging of the products in another packaging unit, such as a “Week” blister pack for instance.