Multi-piece crown for cassette of pharmaceutical tablet packaging machine

Abstract

A crown for a pharmaceutical tablet packaging machine includes: a generally cylindrical hub having an upper end and a lower end; a generally disc-shaped divider mounted to the upper end of the hub, the divider having upper and lower surfaces and a plurality of radially-extending teeth; and a cap mounted to the upper surface of the divider, the cap having an upper surface comprising a plurality of alternating hummocks and furrows. The cap is attached to the divider with a first fastener, and wherein the hub is attached to the divider with a second fastener.

1 . A crown for a pharmaceutical tablet packaging machine, comprising:
 a generally cylindrical hub having an upper end and a lower end;   a generally disc-shaped divider mounted to the upper end of the hub, the divider having upper and lower surfaces and a plurality of radially-extending teeth; and   a cap mounted to the upper surface of the divider, the cap having an upper surface comprising a plurality of alternating hummocks and furrows;   wherein the cap is attached to the divider with a first fastener, and wherein the hub is attached to the divider with a second fastener.   
     
     
         2 . The crown defined in  claim 1 , wherein the first fastener is distinct from the second fastener. 
     
     
         3 . The crown defined in  claim 1 , wherein the hub, divider and cap are formed of polymeric materials. 
     
     
         4 . The crown defined in  claim 3 , wherein the hub and cap are formed by injection molding. 
     
     
         5 . The crown defined in  claim 4 , wherein the divider is formed by machining the teeth into an injection molded blank. 
     
     
         6 . The crown defined in  claim 3 , wherein at least one of the huh, divider and cap is formed by 3-D printing. 
     
     
         7 . The crown defined in  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of hummocks is a first number, and the plurality of teeth is a second number that is different than the first number. 
     
     
         8 . The crown defined in  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of hummocks is between 3 and 6 hummocks, and the plurality of teeth is between 8 and 15 teeth. 
     
     
         9 . The crown defined in  claim 1 , in combination with a cassette configured for installation in the pharmaceutical tablet packaging machine. 
     
     
         10 . The combination defined in  claim 9 , further in combination with a pharmaceutical tablet packaging machine.