A transport device having a plate; a conveyor to transport articles; a pusher to push and move a row of articles on the conveyor onto the plate; and a stopper to prevent the articles from being moved by the conveyor and to define the start of a row of articles being moved onto the plate by the pusher. The conveyor causes the positions of rows of articles stopped by the stopper to move alternately so that the positions of rows of articles moved onto the plate are shifted alternately.

A workpiece processing arrangement comprises a spray booth (2) defining a work space (21), and operable to provide a controlled environment for spraying of material, a first oven (4) located adjacent a first end of the spray booth, the first oven defining an internal zone, and a second oven (5) located adjacent a second end of the spray booth, the second oven defining an internal zone (51). The arrangement also includes a transport rail (6) which extends from the internal zone (41) of the first oven (4), through the work space (21) of the spray booth (2) into the internal zone (51) of the second oven (5), the transport rail (6) being adapted for transport of a workpiece (10) between the work space (21) of the spray booth (2) to the internal zone of the first or second oven (4, 5). A corresponding method of processing a work piece in such an arrangement indicates the steps to be used when processing a first and a second workpiece The ovens may have both a baking and a curing zone. A ventilation system with an air curtain (23) may be included.

Feed system provided with feed means located inside a lyophilization chamber and able at least to supply electric energy to a slider, autonomously mobile at least inside the lyophilization chamber, and to the possible other internal components which need the energy present in or associated to the slider. The feed means are positioned along the travel of the slider and cooperate with energy receiver means associated to the slider, being static at least during the loading and unloading steps of at least a loading plane.

Disclosed are systems and methods for aseptically filling pharmaceutical containers with a pharmaceutical substance and then lyophilizing it. In one general aspect, the system and method can employ a lyophilizer loader subsystem having an interior chamber in communication with an interior chamber of a lyophilizer subsystem via a portal with a sealable door, with the collective interior being aseptically sealable. An articulated robotic arm can be employed to batch transfer to the lyophilizer subsystem container nests bearing the pharmaceutical containers. In one embodiment, the nests may be transferred serially to the loader subsystem, with the articulated robotic arm being configured to transfer the nests of containers in batches to the lyophilizer subsystem. The articulated robotic arm can also be configured to be used to move batches of nests within the lyophilizer subsystem. One implementation includes two articulated arms and a joint rotary wrist driven by two rotary shoulders.

A device for loading and unloading the utility surface (3′) of a drying chamber (2) of a freeze drying system. The device includes a carriage (8) which forms a movable guiding edge for the drying vessels (5), and is moveable on guides (7) disposed on both sides of the utility surface (3) and which extend in parallel with the movement direction and form fixed guiding edges for the drying vessels (5). At least one linear motor is provided to produce a drive for the carriage. All of the components of the device can be located inside the drying chamber (1), and the device of the present invention is suitable for upgrading existing freeze drying systems.

Apparatus for moving containers containing substances, comprising a plane, for the transport, movement and at least temporary storage of said containers, mobile along transit paths developing at least along an axis of movement to serve several machines or user devices.

A substrate processing apparatus comprises: a first chamber; a liquid film former which forms a liquid film P of a solution containing a sublimable substance having sublimability on a surface of a substrate in the first chamber; a second chamber 30 which receives the substrate W having the liquid film; a plate unit 311 provided in the second chamber such that the substrate W is placeable on an upper surface thereof; a temperature controller 312, 335 which controls a temperature of the upper surface of the plate unit 311 to a predetermined temperature; and a heater 322 which heats and sublimates the sublimable substance precipitated from the solution on the substrate W placed on the plate unit 311.

A plant curing and drying hanger apparatus for use with harvested plant material which includes a primary frame, a plant support bar and one or more separators arranged to space from one another plant sections positioned on the support bar. The plant support bar is hingedly coupled to the primary frame. A latch releasably joins the plant support bar to one end of the primary frame so that an end of the plant support bar can be dropped away from the primary frame to enable the insertion and removal of plant sections into the spaces between adjacent separators to allow for effective plant drying and efficient loading and unloading of plant material without damaging the product.

Example aspects of a drying rack, a rotatable drying rack, and a method of drying wet objects are disclosed. The drying rack can comprise a base and a plurality of mounting post assemblies mounted to the base, each of the mounting post assemblies comprising at least one mounting post. The mounting post assemblies can comprise inner post assembly comprising an inner post and an outer post assembly comprising a primary outer post and a secondary outer post, wherein each of the inner post, primary outer post, and secondary outer post are configured to support an object above the base

The disclosure in some aspects relates to systems and related methods for the continuous freeze-drying of materials (e.g., pharmaceuticals) with high speed and control.