Illumination station for use in pharmaceutical identification system and methods therefor

摘要

A method of determining the identity of pharmaceutical tablets contained within a pharmaceutical vial includes the steps of: obtaining a first image of the vial as it is illuminated with colored light; obtaining a second image of the vial as it is illuminated with infrared radiation; processing the first and second images to obtain comprehensive image data; comparing the comprehensive image data to image data of a known pharmaceutical expected to be contained in the vial; and determining whether the pharmaceutical in the vial is the expected pharmaceutical based on the comparing step. The use of images obtained under both colored and IR illumination can assist in producing an accurate comprehensive image data.