Chronology

First early 1971 model counter

On 1 January 1971 the Kirbys and Lester began commercializing their first tablet counters. John Kirby had filed U.K. Patent number GB1358378(A) on 8 September 1970^[4] and U.S. patent number 3789194 on 9 August 1971.^[5] These early electronic counters were designed to help pharmacies replace the common (but often inaccurate) practice of counting medications by hand. In early 1980 a new research, development and production facility was built in Oldham, England at a cost of £500,000. Here, tablet counters and other portable medical equipment such as Electrocardiogram machines and Prestel Data terminals were designed and built.^[6]

Second generation late 1970s model

A simple to operate machine had now been developed to accurately and quickly count prescription medications. One of the first commercially available tablet counters in use was the KL7. That first model was soon followed by technology advancements which resulted in the more compact KL8 model. The price of such equipment in 1980 was around £1,300. This substantial investment in new technology was a major consideration for many pharmacies. Eventually the pharmacy community adopted the use of a counting machine as a superior method to hand-counting medications. These devices became known as tablet counter, capsule counter, pill counter, or drug counter.

The new counting technology replaced manual methods in many industries such as, vitamin and diet supplement manufacturing. Technicians needed a small, affordable device to count and bottle medications. In England and America, the 1980s and 1990s saw new the development of high-speed machines for counting and bottle filling, such as the KLX. Like their pharmacy-based counterparts, these industrial units were designed to be fast and simple to operate, yet remain small and cost effective.^[7]

Counter and prepackaging device

In America, in the late 1990s/early 2000s a new type of tablet counter appeared. The KL15e was simple, small, inexpensive, and offered outstanding levels of counting accuracy. At the turn of the millennium technical advances saw the design of a new breed of counters with a verification system. With an onboard computer, displaying photo images of medications to assist the pharmacist or pharmacy technician that the correct medication was being dispensed. In addition, a database for storing all prescriptions that were counted on the device.^[8]

Pictured here is an early American type of integrated counter and packaging device. This machine was a third generation step in the evolution of Pharmacy automated devices. Later models held pre-counted containers of commonly prescribed medications.

Global variations

Tablets in a blister pack

In the EU member states legislation was introduced in 1998 which had a major effect on UK Pharmacy operations. It effectively prohibited the use of tablet counters for counting and dispensing bulk packaged tablets. Both usage and sales of the machines in the UK declined rapidly as a result of the introduction of blister packaging for medicines.^[9]