Patent ID: 8567639

Claim:
A medicine feeding apparatus comprising: a medicine cartridge having an entrance opening formed in the top thereof, through which a medicine product is put into the medicine cartridge, the entrance opening being provided with a cover, and a discharge hole formed in a front position of the bottom thereof, through which the medicine product is discharged under operation of a medicine discharge mechanism provided at the medicine cartridge; a cartridge mount having an upper surface, on which the medicine cartridge is mounted, and an outer discharge hole communicating with the discharge hole to discharge the medicine product from the cartridge mount; and a discharge drive mechanism provided at the medicine cartridge and the cartridge mount to drive the medicine discharge mechanism, wherein the medicine cartridge is provided with a cover locker to lock the cover used to cover the entrance opening of the medicine cartridge, and wherein the cover locker includes: a protrusion protruding downward from an end of the cover to lock the cover simultaneously when the cover covers the entrance opening; a retainer member provided at the rear surface of the medicine cartridge and having a recess corresponding to the protrusion of the cover such that the protrusion is inserted into or separated from the recess as the retainer member is moved in a given direction or an opposite direction; and an elastic member connected to the retainer member to allow the retainer member, which has been moved when the protrusion is inserted into the recess to be returned to an original position thereof, wherein the cover locker further includes an anti-opening structure to prevent opening of the entrance opening of the medicine cartridge even if the key member is used in a state in which the entrance opening of the medicine cartridge faces downward.