WO2018131286A1

WO2018131286A1 - Tablet, reading device, and printing device

Info

Publication number: WO2018131286A1
Application number: PCT/JP2017/041135
Authority: WO
Inventors: 信行中野; 内田　直樹
Original assignee: 株式会社Ｓｃｒｅｅｎホールディングス
Priority date: 2017-01-10
Filing date: 2017-11-15
Publication date: 2018-07-19
Also published as: JP7167254B2; JP2021165274A; TW201827042A; TWI665096B; JP2018111655A; CN110022863A; JP6896431B2

Abstract

In this invention, a main image (91) and a sub-image (92) are printed on the surface of a tablet by the ink-jet method. The main image (91) is an image that is visible under ordinary environmental lighting. The sub-image (92) is an image that has a lower visibility under ordinary environmental lighting than the main image (91). Information to be displayed to a consumer is included in the main image (91), while information to be checked by a specific party is included in the sub-image (92). Since it is unlikely that the consumer will be aware of the information included in the sub-image (92), it is possible to avoid confusing the consumer with a large amount of information.

Description

Granular material, reading device, and printing device

The present invention relates to an edible granular material, a reading device that reads information contained in an image printed on the surface of the edible granular material, and a printing device that prints an image on the surface of the edible granular material by an inkjet method. .

A character string such as a drug name is recorded on the surface of a tablet as a drug. Although such a character string may be recorded by marking, there is a problem that the visibility is low by marking. In particular, in recent years, the types of tablets have been diversified due to the spread of generic drugs. For this reason, it is required to clearly record a character string on the surface of the tablet so that the tablet can be reliably identified. Moreover, since the tablet is weak in pressure, it is preferable to reduce the pressure applied to the tablet during printing. Under these circumstances, in recent years, a technique for printing an image on the surface of a tablet by an ink jet method has attracted attention.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a conventional printing apparatus that prints an image on the surface of a tablet by an inkjet method.

Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2015-3883

This type of printing apparatus is required to print a lot of information in an extremely narrow space on the surface of the tablet. For example, it is required to include not only information to be displayed to a consumer such as a drug name but also management information to be confirmed only by a tablet manufacturer or a pharmacist in a printed image. However, if a large amount of information is simply printed on the surface of the tablet, the display of individual information becomes small. In addition, if there is too much information in the eyes of the consumer, the consumer may be confused.

Patent Document 1 describes an example of printing a two-dimensional barcode on the surface of a tablet. In this example, a lot of information can be included in the two-dimensional barcode. However, a certain amount of space is required for printing the two-dimensional barcode. For this reason, it may be difficult in terms of space to print a drug name or the like that should be displayed to the consumer and print a two-dimensional barcode in the remaining space. In addition, depending on the type of tablet, it may be difficult to print a two-dimensional barcode precisely due to ink soaking or bleeding.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and a potential purpose thereof is an edible granular material on which a large amount of information is printed in a mode in which the consumer is less likely to be confused, and the granular material. It is to provide a device for reading information from a printing device and a printing device for printing on the surface of the granular material.

1st invention of this application is an edible granular material by which the image was printed by the inkjet system on the surface, Comprising: The said image is the main image visible under normal ambient light, and the said main image under normal ambient light And a sub-image having a lower visibility than the image.

A second invention of the present application is the particulate matter according to the first invention, wherein the main image and the sub-image are printed with colored ink, and the hue and lightness of the sub-image are based on the hue and lightness of the main image. Is close to the hue and brightness of the surface.

The third invention of the present application is the granular material of the first invention, wherein the main image is printed with colored ink, and the sub-image is printed with colorless and transparent ink.

The fourth invention of the present application is the granular material of the third invention, wherein the sub-image is printed over the main image.

A fifth invention of the present application is the particulate matter according to any one of the first invention to the fourth invention, wherein the absorbance of the sub-image with respect to light of a specific wavelength is the absorbance of the surface with respect to the light and the main image. Is different from the absorbance to the light.

A sixth invention of the present application is the granular material according to any one of the first to fifth inventions, wherein the reflectance of the sub-image is different from the reflectance of the surface and the reflectance of the main image. .

The seventh invention of the present application is the granular material according to any one of the first to sixth inventions, and the sub-image is printed with an ink containing a fluorescent material that emits light by light of a specific wavelength.

The eighth invention of the present application is the granular material according to any one of the first to seventh inventions, and the sub-image includes a code image symbolized for each character.

The ninth invention of the present application is the granular material of the eighth invention, wherein the code image is braille.

The tenth invention of the present application is a granular material according to any one of the first to ninth inventions, and is taken as a tablet by a consumer.

An eleventh invention of the present application is a reading device that reads information contained in an image printed by an inkjet method on the surface of an edible granular material, and the image is a main image that is visible under normal ambient light. A sub-image having a lower visibility than the main image under normal ambient light, and a photographing unit capable of photographing at least the sub-image, and an information obtaining unit for obtaining information from a photographing result of the photographing unit; .

A twelfth invention of the present application is the reading device according to the eleventh invention, wherein the absorbance of the sub-image with respect to light of a specific wavelength is different from the absorbance of the surface of the granular material with respect to the light and the absorbance of the main image with respect to the light. And the said imaging | photography part image | photographs the said sub image, irradiating the said light.

A thirteenth invention of the present application is the reading device according to the eleventh invention, wherein the reflectance of the sub-image is different from the reflectance of the surface of the granular material and the reflectance of the main image, and the photographing unit The reflected light is photographed while illuminating the sub-image obliquely.

A fourteenth aspect of the present invention is the reading apparatus according to the eleventh aspect, wherein the sub-image is printed with ink containing a fluorescent material that emits light with a specific wavelength of light, and the photographing unit irradiates the light. The sub-image is taken.

The fifteenth aspect of the present invention is the reading apparatus according to any one of the eleventh aspect to the fourteenth aspect, wherein the granular material is a tablet.

A sixteenth aspect of the present invention is a printing apparatus that prints an image on the surface of an edible granular material by an inkjet method, a conveying mechanism that conveys the granular material, and a surface of the granular material that is conveyed by the conveying mechanism. Furthermore, the first printing unit that prints a main image that is visible under normal ambient light and the surface of the granular material that is transported by the transport mechanism are more visible than the main image under normal ambient light. A second printing unit that prints a low sub-image.

A seventeenth aspect of the present invention is the printing apparatus according to the sixteenth aspect, wherein the first printing unit ejects colored ink toward the surface of the granular material, and the second printing unit includes the granular material. Colorless and transparent ink is ejected toward the surface of the ink, and the second printing unit is disposed downstream of the first printing unit in the conveyance direction of the granular material.

The eighteenth aspect of the present invention is the printing apparatus according to the sixteenth aspect or the seventeenth aspect, wherein the granular material is a tablet.

According to the first to tenth inventions of the present application, information to be displayed to the consumer can be included in the main image, and information to be confirmed only by a specific party can be included in the sub-image. Since the information included in the sub-image is not easily noticed by the consumer, the consumer can be prevented from being confused by a lot of information.

In particular, according to the second invention of the present application, it is possible to print the main image and the sub-image with only colored ink.

In particular, according to the third invention of the present application, the visibility of the sub-image can be further lowered by using the colorless and transparent ink.

Particularly, according to the fourth invention of the present application, the sub-image can be printed over a wide range without being restricted by the print range of the main image.

In particular, according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, information contained in the sub-image can be read using the difference in absorbance.

In particular, according to the sixth aspect of the present invention, information included in the sub-image can be read using the difference in reflectance.

In particular, according to the seventh invention of the present application, the visibility of the sub-image can be enhanced by irradiating light of a specific wavelength.

In particular, according to the eighth invention of the present application, it is possible to make it more difficult for a person other than a specific party to recognize information included in the sub-image.

In particular, according to the ninth invention of the present application, it is possible to print a braille code image finely by an inkjet method.

According to the eleventh to fifteenth inventions of the present application, information to be displayed to the consumer is included in the main image, and information to be confirmed only by a specific party is included in the sub-image. Can be read by a reader. Since the information included in the sub-image is not easily noticed by the consumer, the consumer can be prevented from being confused by a lot of information.

Particularly, according to the twelfth aspect of the present invention, a sub-image with low visibility can be clearly photographed using the difference in absorbance. For this reason, information can be easily acquired from the photographing result.

In particular, according to the thirteenth aspect of the present invention, a sub-image having low visibility can be clearly photographed using the difference in reflectance. For this reason, information can be easily acquired from the photographing result.

In particular, according to the fourteenth aspect of the present invention, a sub-image with low visibility can be clearly captured using a fluorescence reaction. For this reason, information can be easily acquired from the photographing result.

Further, according to the sixteenth to eighteenth inventions of the present application, information to be displayed to the consumer can be included in the main image, and information that should be confirmed only by specific parties can be included in the sub-image. Since the information included in the sub-image is not easily noticed by the consumer, the consumer can be prevented from being confused by a lot of information.

Particularly, according to the seventeenth aspect of the present invention, the visibility of the sub-image can be further lowered by using the colorless and transparent ink. In addition, after the main image is printed, the sub-image can be overlaid on the main image. Accordingly, the sub image can be printed over a wide range without being restricted by the print range of the main image.

1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a printing apparatus. It is a fragmentary perspective view of a conveyance mechanism. It is a bottom view of a head. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a connection between a control unit and each unit in the printing apparatus. It is the figure which showed the example of the tablet on which the main image and the subimage were printed. It is the figure which showed the example of the tablet on which the main image and the subimage were printed. It is the figure which showed the structure of the reader. It is the figure which showed the example of the tablet irradiated with imaging | photography light.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, a direction in which a plurality of tablets are transported is referred to as a “transport direction”, and a direction perpendicular to the transport direction is referred to as a “width direction”.

<1. About printing device>
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a printing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. This printing apparatus 1 is an apparatus that prints an image on the surface of each tablet 9 by an inkjet method while conveying a plurality of tablets 9 that are edible granular materials. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the printing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes a transport mechanism 10, a first printing unit 20, a second printing unit 30, a drying mechanism 40, and a control unit 50.

The transport mechanism 10 is a mechanism that transports a plurality of tablets 9 while holding them. The transport mechanism 10 includes a pair of pulleys 11 and an annular transport belt 12 that is stretched between the pair of pulleys 11. The plurality of tablets 9 put into the printing apparatus 1 are aligned at equal intervals by a carry-in mechanism 101 including a vibration feeder, a conveyance drum, and the like, and are supplied to the outer peripheral surface of the conveyance belt 12. One of the pair of pulleys 11 is rotated by power obtained from the conveyance motor 13. Thereby, the conveyance belt 12 rotates in the direction of the arrow in FIG. At this time, the other of the pair of pulleys 11 is driven to rotate as the conveyor belt 12 rotates.

FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view of the transport mechanism 10. As shown in FIG. 2, the conveyance belt 12 is provided with a plurality of suction holes 14. The plurality of suction holes 14 are arranged at equal intervals in the transport direction and the width direction. As shown in FIG. 1, the transport mechanism 10 includes a suction mechanism 15 that sucks out gas from the space inside the transport belt 12. When the suction mechanism 15 is operated, the space inside the conveyor belt 12 becomes a negative pressure lower than the atmospheric pressure. The plurality of tablets 9 are sucked and held in the suction holes 14 by the negative pressure.

Thus, the transport mechanism 10 transports the plurality of tablets 9 by rotating the transport belt 12 while holding the plurality of tablets 9 in the plurality of suction holes 14 at regular intervals. Below the first printing unit 20 and the second printing unit 30, the plurality of tablets 9 are conveyed in the horizontal direction.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the transport mechanism 10 has a blow mechanism 16 inside the transport belt 12. When the blow mechanism 16 is operated, only the suction holes 14 facing the carry-out mechanism 102 among the plurality of suction holes 14 of the transport belt 12 have a positive pressure higher than the atmospheric pressure. As a result, the suction of the tablet 9 in the suction hole 14 is released, and the tablet 9 is delivered from the transport belt 12 to the unloading mechanism 102. The carry-out mechanism 102 carries out the tablet 9 delivered from the conveyance belt 12 to the outside of the printing apparatus 1 by, for example, another conveyance belt.

The first printing unit 20 is a part that records a main image on the surface of the tablet 9 conveyed by the conveying belt 12. The main image includes information to be displayed to the consumer such as the product name, company name, logo mark, and weight of the tablet 9. As shown in FIG. 1, the first printing unit 20 of the present embodiment has four heads 21. The four heads 21 are located above the transport belt 12 and are arranged in a line along the transport direction of the tablets 9. Each head 21 ejects colored ink that is visible under normal ambient light toward the surface of the tablet 9. For example, the four heads 21 eject cyan, magenta, yellow, and black ink droplets, respectively. As a result, a main image that is a multicolor image is printed on the surface of the tablet 9.

In addition, the edible ink manufactured by the raw material approved by the food hygiene law is used for the ink discharged from each head 21.

FIG. 3 is a bottom view of one head 21. In FIG. 3, the conveyance belt 12 and the plurality of tablets 9 held on the conveyance belt 12 are indicated by a two-dot chain line. As shown enlarged in FIG. 3, a plurality of nozzles 211 capable of ejecting ink droplets are provided on the ejection surface 210 which is the lower surface of the head 21. In the present embodiment, a plurality of nozzles 211 are two-dimensionally arranged on the lower surface of the head 21 in the transport direction and the width direction. The nozzles 211 are arranged at different positions in the width direction. Thus, if the plurality of nozzles 211 are two-dimensionally arranged, the positions in the width direction of the nozzles 211 can be brought closer to each other. However, the plurality of nozzles 211 may be arranged in a line along the width direction.

As a method for ejecting ink droplets from the nozzle 211, for example, a so-called piezo method is used in which the ink in the nozzle 211 is pressurized and ejected by applying a voltage to the piezoelectric element, which is a piezoelectric element, to cause deformation. However, the ink droplet ejection method may be a so-called thermal method in which the ink in the nozzle 211 is ejected by heating and expanding by energizing the heater.

The second printing unit 30 is a part that records a sub-image on the surface of the tablet 9 transported by the transport belt 12. The sub-image includes management information that should be confirmed only by a specific person such as the manufacturer of the tablet 9 or a pharmacist. For example, the date of manufacture, the expiration date, the manufacturing factory, the content components, and the like of the tablet 9 can be included in the sub-image. The second printing unit 30 of this embodiment has one head 31. The head 31 is disposed above the transport belt 12 and downstream of the four heads 21 of the first printing unit 20 in the transport direction. In the present embodiment, the head 31 of the second printing unit 30 ejects colorless and transparent ink toward the surface of the tablet 9. As a result, a sub-image having a lower visibility than the main image is printed on the surface of the tablet 9 under normal ambient light.

In addition, the edible ink manufactured with the raw material approved by the food hygiene law is used for the ink discharged from the head 31. FIG. The structure of the head 31 is the same as the structure of the head 21 shown in FIG. That is, the head 31 ejects ink droplets from a plurality of nozzles 211 provided on the lower surface.

The drying mechanism 40 is a mechanism that dries the ink attached to the surface of the tablet 9. The drying mechanism 40 is provided around the transport belt 12 at a position downstream of the second printing unit 30 in the transport direction. For the drying mechanism 40, for example, a hot air supply mechanism that blows heated gas (hot air) toward the tablets 9 that are transported by the transport belt 12 is used. The ink ejected from the first printing unit 20 and the second printing unit 30 is dried by hot air and fixed on the surface of the tablet 9.

In addition to this drying mechanism 40, a drying mechanism (intermediate drying mechanism) may be further provided between the first printing unit 20 and the second printing unit 30. Then, before the sub-image is printed, only the colored ink constituting the main image may be dried by the intermediate drying mechanism.

The control unit 50 is a means for controlling the operation of each unit in the printing apparatus 1. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing connections between the control unit 50 and each unit in the printing apparatus 1. As conceptually shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 50 includes a computer having a processor 51 such as a CPU, a memory 52 such as a RAM, and a storage unit 53 such as a hard disk drive. A computer program P for executing print processing is installed in the storage unit 53.

As shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 50 includes the transport motor 13, the suction mechanism 15, the blow mechanism 16, the four heads 21 of the first printing unit 20, the head 31 of the second printing unit 30, and drying. The mechanism 40, the carry-in mechanism 101, and the carry-out mechanism 102 are connected so as to be able to communicate with each other. The control unit 50 temporarily reads the computer program P and data stored in the storage unit 53 into the memory 52, and the processor 51 performs arithmetic processing based on the computer program P, thereby controlling the operation of each unit described above. To do. Thereby, the printing process with respect to the some tablet 9 advances.

<2. Main image and sub image>
Next, the main image 91 and the sub image 92 printed on the surface of the tablet 9 will be described in more detail. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the tablet 9 on which the main image 91 and the sub-image 92 are printed.

In the example of FIG. 5, a character string “TABLET A” which is a product name and a character string “200 mg” indicating a weight are printed on the surface of the tablet 9 as a main image 91. These main images 91 are printed clearly with colored ink. For this reason, the consumer of the tablet 9 can easily visually recognize the main image 91 under normal ambient light.

As the colored ink constituting the main image 91, pigment-based or dye-based ink can be used. Examples of the pigment-based ink include carbon black and iron oxide (yellow iron oxide, yellow iron sesquioxide, iron sesquioxide, bengara, black iron oxide, etc.). In addition, the dye-based ink can be appropriately selected from, for example, synthetic edible pigments, natural pigment derivatives, natural synthetic pigments, natural edible pigments, and the like. Examples of the synthetic food coloring include food red No. 2, food red No. 3, food red No. 40, food red No. 102, food red No. 104, food red No. 105, food red No. 106, food yellow No. 4, food yellow No. 5, Edible Blue No. 1, Edible Blue No. 2, and Edible Green No. 3 are listed. Examples of natural pigment derivatives include copper chlorophyllin sodium. Examples of natural synthetic pigments include β-carotene. Examples of natural edible pigments include anthocyanin pigments, carotenoid pigments, quinone pigments, and flavonoid pigments. These may be used singly or in combination of two or more. Further, the ink constituting the main image 91 is not limited to these examples.

In the example of FIG. 5, braille is printed on the surface of the tablet 9 as a sub-image 92. The Braille characters in FIG. 5 are obtained by converting the character string “20170404” that is the expiration date of the tablet 9 into Braille characters. Since the printing method of the printing apparatus 1 is an inkjet method, fine braille can be printed by the ink droplets ejected from the head 31.

In this embodiment, the sub-image 92 is printed with colorless and transparent ink. For the colorless and transparent ink, for example, zinc oxide or titanium oxide can be used. The sub-image 92 has lower visibility than the main image 91 under normal ambient light. Therefore, it is difficult for the consumer of the tablet 9 to recognize the sub-image 92 under normal ambient light. However, a specific person concerned such as a manufacturer of the tablet 9 or a pharmacist can check information included in the sub-image 92 by using the reading device 2 described later.

In this way, if the main image 91 and the sub-image 92 with lower visibility than the main image 91 are printed on the surface of the tablet 9, information to be displayed to the consumer of the tablet 9 and a specific relationship It is possible to distinguish from information that should be confirmed only by a person. Further, since the sub-image 92 is difficult to be visually recognized by the consumer, only the information included in the main image 91 is noticed by the consumer. Thus, the amount of information that can be seen by the consumer can be reduced to prevent the consumer from being confused, and more specific information can be shown to a specific party.

In particular, in the example of FIG. 5, a part of the sub-image 92 is printed over the main image 91. Since the sub-image 92 is colorless and transparent, even if it is printed over the main image 91, the visibility of the main image 91 is hardly affected. Also, if the sub image 92 is printed over the main image 91, the sub image 92 can be printed over a wide range without being restricted by the print range of the main image 91. Therefore, more information can be included in the sub-image 92.

In this embodiment, colorless and transparent ink is used for the sub-image 92, but colored ink may be used for the sub-image 92. In that case, it is preferable to use ink having a color close to the color of the surface of the tablet 9. For example, the hue of the sub-image 92 may be closer to the hue of the surface of the tablet 9 than the hue of the main image 91. Preferably, the hue of the sub-image 92 is substantially the same as the hue of the surface of the tablet 9. The brightness of the sub-image 92 is preferably closer to the brightness of the surface of the tablet 9 than the brightness of the main image 91. Preferably, the brightness of the sub-image 92 is substantially the same as the brightness of the surface of the tablet 9. Thereby, the visibility of the sub-image 92 under normal ambient light can be lowered.

In addition, when the sub-image 92 is printed with colored ink, it is not necessary to provide the head 31 separately from the four heads 21 of the first printing unit 20. Therefore, the head 31 may be omitted, and the four heads 21 may serve as both the first printing unit 20 that prints the main image 91 and the second printing unit 30 that prints the sub image 92.

In the example of FIG. 5, braille is printed as the sub-image 92. In this way, using braille makes it more difficult for a person other than a specific party to recognize information included in the sub-image 92. However, the sub-image 92 may include other code images symbolized for each character instead of or together with the Braille. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the sub-image 92 may be a normal character string such as a number. Further, the sub image 92 may not overlap the main image 91.

<3. About Reader>
Next, the reading device 2 that reads information included in the image printed on the tablet 9 will be described. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the reading device 2. A specific person such as a manufacturer of the tablet 9 or a pharmacist can check the information included in the sub-image 92 using the reading device 2. As illustrated in FIG. 7, the reading device 2 includes an imaging unit 60, an information acquisition unit 70, and a display unit 80.

The photographing unit 60 is a device that can photograph at least the sub-image 92. The imaging unit 60 includes a light irradiation unit 61 and a camera 62. When the imaging unit 60 is operated, the camera 62 images the surface of the tablet 9 while irradiating light from the light irradiation unit 61 toward the tablet 9. Here, it is difficult to capture the sub-image 92 clearly under normal ambient light. However, if the absorbance of the sub-image 92 with respect to the light of the specific wavelength is different from the absorbance of the surface of the tablet 9 with respect to the light with the specific wavelength and the absorbance of the main image 91 with respect to the light with the specific wavelength, the difference between the absorbances. The sub-image 92 can be taken using. In this case, the light irradiation unit 61 emits the imaging light L having the specific wavelength. When the photographing light L is received, the sub-image 92 is clarified by the difference in absorbance as shown in FIG. 8, for example. In this state, the photographing unit 60 performs photographing with the camera 62. Thereby, it is possible to obtain a photographing result in which the sub-image 92 appears clearly.

If the reflectance of the sub-image 92 is different from the reflectance of the surface of the tablet 9 and the reflectance of the main image 91, the sub-image 92 may be photographed using the difference in reflectance. . For example, the reflected light may be photographed while irradiating the photographing light L obliquely from the light irradiation unit 61 toward the sub-image 92.

Further, the sub-image 92 may be printed with an ink containing a fluorescent material that emits light by light of a specific wavelength (for example, black light having a wavelength shorter than normal ambient light). In that case, the light irradiation unit 61 emits the imaging light L having the specific wavelength. When the photographing light L is received, the fluorescent material constituting the sub-image 92 emits light. Thereby, the sub-image 92 is clarified. In this state, the photographing unit 60 performs photographing with the camera 62. Thereby, it is possible to obtain a photographing result in which the sub-image 92 appears clearly.

The information acquisition unit 70 is a processing unit that acquires information from the photographing result of the camera 62. For the information acquisition unit 70, for example, a computer having a processor and a memory is used. The information acquisition unit 70 extracts Braille from the photographing result of the camera 62 by image processing. Then, the extracted braille is converted into a character string and displayed on the display unit 80. For example, a liquid crystal display is used for the display unit 80.

Using such a reading device 2, a sub-image 92 with low visibility under normal ambient light can be clearly photographed. Therefore, a specific person such as the manufacturer of the tablet 9 or a pharmacist can easily read the information included in the sub-image 92.

<4. Modification>
As mentioned above, although main embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to said embodiment.

In the above embodiment, the image is printed only on one side of the front and back surfaces of the tablet 9. However, images may be printed on both the front and back surfaces of the tablet 9. For example, the main image 91 may be printed on one side of the tablet 9 and the sub-image 92 may be printed on the other side of the tablet 9. Further, the main image and the sub image may be printed on both the front and back surfaces of the tablet 9.

In the above embodiment, the four heads 21 are provided in the first printing unit 20. However, the number of heads 21 included in the first printing unit 20 may be 1 to 3, or 5 or more. Further, in the above embodiment, one head 31 is provided in the second printing unit 30. However, the number of heads 31 included in the second printing unit 30 may be two or more.

Further, the “edible granule” in the present invention may be a scored tablet as shown in FIGS. 5, 6, and 8, and is an uncoated tablet, an orally disintegrating tablet (OD tablet), or a film coating. Tablets (FC tablets), dragees, capsules and the like may be used. Further, the “edible granule” in the present invention is not limited to a tablet as a pharmaceutical product, but may be a tablet as a health food or a tablet confectionery such as ramune.

Further, the elements appearing in the above-described embodiments and modifications may be appropriately combined within a range where no contradiction occurs.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printing apparatus 2 Reading apparatus 9 Tablet 10 Conveyance mechanism 11 Pulley 12 Conveyance belt 13 Conveyance motor 14 Adsorption hole 15 Suction mechanism 16 Blow mechanism 20 1st printing part 21 Head 30 2nd printing part 31 Head 40 Drying mechanism 50 Control part 60 Imaging unit 61 Light irradiation unit 62 Camera 70 Information acquisition unit 80 Display unit 91 Main image 92 Sub-image 101 Carry-in mechanism 102 Carry-out mechanism 210 Discharge surface 211 Nozzle L Shooting light

Claims

An edible granular material having an image printed on the surface by an inkjet method,
The image is
A main image that is visible under normal ambient light, a sub-image that is less visible than the main image under normal ambient light, and
Granules containing.
The granular material according to claim 1,
The main image and the sub-image are printed with colored ink,
The hue and brightness of the sub-image is a granular material that is closer to the hue and brightness of the surface than the hue and brightness of the main image.
The granular material according to claim 1,
The main image is printed with colored ink,
The sub-image is a granular material printed with colorless and transparent ink.
The granular material according to claim 3,
A granular material in which the sub-image is printed over the main image.
The granular material according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein
The absorbance of the sub-image with respect to light of a specific wavelength is different from the absorbance of the surface with respect to the light and the absorbance of the main image with respect to the light.
The granular material according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein
The sub-image has a reflectance different from the reflectance of the surface and the reflectance of the main image.
It is a granular material given in any 1 paragraph of Claims 1-6,
The sub-image is a granular material printed with ink containing a fluorescent material that emits light with a specific wavelength of light.
It is a granular material given in any 1 paragraph of Claims 1-7,
The sub-image is a granular material including a code image symbolized for each character.
The granular material according to claim 8, wherein
The code image is a granular material that is braille.
It is a granular material given in any 1 paragraph of Claims 1-9,
Granules taken as tablets by consumers.
A reading device for reading information contained in an image printed by an inkjet method on the surface of an edible granular material,
The image is
A main image that is visible under normal ambient light;
A sub-image that is less visible than the main image under normal ambient light;
Including
A photographing unit capable of photographing at least the sub-image;
An information acquisition unit for acquiring information from the imaging result of the imaging unit;
A reading apparatus comprising:
The reading device according to claim 11,
The absorbance of the sub-image with respect to light of a specific wavelength is different from the absorbance of the surface of the granular material with respect to the light and the absorbance of the main image with respect to the light,
The image capturing unit captures the sub-image while irradiating the light.
The reading device according to claim 11,
The reflectance of the sub-image is different from the reflectance of the surface of the granular material and the reflectance of the main image,
The image capturing unit captures reflected light while illuminating the sub-image obliquely.
The reading device according to claim 11,
The sub-image is printed with an ink containing a fluorescent material that emits light with a specific wavelength of light,
The image capturing unit captures the sub-image while irradiating the light.
A reading device according to any one of claims 11 to 14,
The granular material is a reading device which is a tablet.
A printing apparatus that prints an image on an edible granular surface by an inkjet method,
A transport mechanism for transporting the granular material;
A first printing unit that prints a main image visible under normal ambient light on the surface of the granular material conveyed by the conveyance mechanism;
A second printing unit that prints a sub-image having a lower visibility than the main image under normal ambient light on the surface of the granular material conveyed by the conveyance mechanism;
Printing device with
The printing apparatus according to claim 16, wherein
The first printing unit discharges colored ink toward the surface of the granular material,
The second printing unit discharges colorless and transparent ink toward the surface of the granular material,
The second printing unit is a printing apparatus that is disposed downstream of the first printing unit in the conveyance direction of the granular material.
The printing apparatus according to claim 16 or 17,
The said granular material is a printing apparatus which is a tablet.