US Patent 7255247 Apparatus and methods for handling pills

A brush for a pill handling apparatus and an associated pill handling apparatus and method are provided. The brush defines a non-circular profile and agitates the pills when rotated. For example, the brush can be rotatably mounted proximate a rotary slat of the pill handling apparatus so that the brush is configured to seat the pills into the receptacles of the apparatus, such as into receptacles defined by one or more rotary slats. Multiple brushes can be provided in a single pill handling apparatus, e.g., to define therebetween a reservoir for holding the pills.