Common Pharmaceutical Tablet Shapes Explained

Introduction

In the pharmaceutical industry, every detail matters profoundly. Factors like a tablet’s formula and shape directly affect its efficacy, with therapeutic effect and safety as top priorities. Yet tablet shape is far more than an aesthetic choice: it influences patient adherence, boosts brand recognition, enhances production efficiency, and directly impacts the performance of core tablet coating technologies such as fluidized bed coating and film coating. This blog explores how tablet shape is determined, analyzes its interplay with key tools like fluid bed coater and tablet film coating machine, and offers guidance on selecting the optimal shape for your pharmaceutical products, while highlighting considerations for tablet coating material, tablet coating process, and collaboration with tablet coating machine manufacturers.

What Determines the Shape of a Tablet?

The choice of the tablet shape is extremely important. You need to balance practicality and the feasibility of production, and even consider the needs of customers. For example, in order for people of all ages to be able to swallow pills easily, the edges usually need to be designed as rounded corners or specific sizes are adopted; the physical properties of the active drug and other components may limit certain tablet shapes; a unique shape helps customers remember the product more quickly and makes it more eye-catching on the shelves; The shape must align with tablet presses, molds, and subsequent tablet coating processes—overly complex designs can cause uneven tablet weight or inconsistent coating. Compatibility with pharmaceutical coating machine and standard production workflows is also a key factor.

Common Tablet Shapes & Their Functions

Round Tablets: The Classic and Efficient Choice

The tablet-shaped pills are the most commonly used in the pharmaceutical industry, and most patients also find them easy to swallow. Their symmetrical structure and ease of uniform tablet coating pressing during production make them ideal. Additionally, they are also very suitable for coating treatment. Their smooth curved surface enables the tablet coating material to be evenly distributed. This reduces waste and ensures the uniformity of the coating layer. At the same time, pills coating machine or advanced pharmaceutical coating machine are more cost-effective. Most tablet presses are equipped with standard circular punches, and whether using film coating or sugar coating, tablet-shaped pills can simplify the coating process.

Capsule-shaped Tablets: Designed for Easy Swallowing

Capsule-shaped or oval-shaped pills lie between round pills and hard capsules. They are in the form of long strips with rounded ends. This makes them easier to swallow. Patients who have difficulty swallowing large round pills will prefer this shape. This shape is also often used for high-dose medications. Its design enables the pills to hold more drugs without becoming thicker. In addition, in terms of tablet coating, capsule-shaped pills require fine adjustments to the settings of the coating machine. These adjustments ensure that the coating is evenly applied to the curved surface and flat ends. Most brands use this shape for prescription drugs, as it remains compatible with standard equipment like fluid bed coater and tablet film coating machine with minor parameter adjustments.

Irregular-shaped Tablets: Branding and Functional Extensions

Irregularly shaped pills, such as triangles, hexagons or custom-shaped pills, are mainly used for brand promotion. These shapes help pharmaceutical companies protect their intellectual property and enable consumers to easily identify the product at a glance. However, irregular shapes present special challenges during coating. Their uneven surfaces, sharp edges or depressions may form “shadow areas”. In these areas, the tablet coating material may not adhere well. This leads to uneven coating and even cracking during the process. To solve this problem, tablet coating machine manufacturers may need to equip the coating machine with special components. Manufacturers also need to control the coating process more carefully. For example, they will adjust the spraying rate or air flow of the fluidized bed coating machine to avoid excessive or insufficient coating. While effective for branding, irregular shapes often require specialized support from pill coating machine providers.

How Tablet Shape Influences Manufacturing

The shape of the pills will have an impact on every step of the tablet coating process. For round and capsule-shaped pills, the production process is relatively smooth. Standard molds and tablet presses can produce a large quantity of products with less downtime. Coating machines can also handle these shapes using default settings. However, for irregular shapes, it is different. They require customized molds, which will increase costs and may slow down the production speed; at the same time, when pressing irregular pills, the pressure may be unevenly distributed. This will cause some pills to be harder or softer than others. This will greatly affect the coating process; softer pills may break or crack when rolling in the tablet coating machine. More importantly, manufacturers also need to consider the impact of pill shape on the drying time of the fluidized bed pill coating machine. Irregular shapes may accumulate moisture, thereby affecting product production. Therefore, they require a longer drying period to ensure that the tablet coating can be correctly attached. The more complex the pill shape, the more careful planning of production is required.

Actual production case

A pharmaceutical company plans to launch a differentiated prescription drug. Initially, they intended to adopt a hexagonal irregular tablet design to enhance brand recognition. However, problems occurred frequently during the trial production stage. When customizing the hexagonal mold for tablet pressing, the edge hardness of the tablets was too low. After entering the tablet coating process, about 8% of the tablets had edge damage, and the tablet coating on the concave areas of the tablets was uneven. The drying time in the fluid bed coater was 40% longer than that of circular tablets, resulting in a significant decrease in production efficiency and a material loss rate of 12%. Later, the company adjusted the plan and optimized the tablets into capsule shapes. After replacing the mold with a standard capsule shape mold, the hardness uniformity of the tablet pressing met the standards, and there was no need for significant adjustments to the equipment parameters in the tablet coating process and compatibility with existing tablet film coating machine was maintained. The drying time returned to normal, and the material loss rate dropped to 3%. The production efficiency increased by 35%. This approach retains a certain degree of differentiation while also balancing production stability and economy.

Shape and Coating: A Critical Relationship

A tablet’s shape decides how well tablet coating material can be applied, dried, and bonded to the tablet. Let’s break down the key things to consider for this relationship.

Coating Challenges by Shape

1.Round tablets: They rarely have tablet coating issues. Their smooth and flat surface ensures a uniform coating effect with any pill coating machine or pharmaceutical coating machine.

2.Capsule-shaped pills: The flat end part may have uneven coating. You need to precisely align the spray nozzle in thetabletcoating machine. This will ensure that all surfaces are covered.

3.Irregularly shaped pills:Common problems include shadow areas, edge damage, and uneven coating thickness.Solutions include multiple coating passes, custom spray modes, or equipment modifications by tablet coating machine manufacturers to adapt the tablet coating process.

Equipment Adaptability to Different Shapes

Not all table coating machine coating equipment can work perfectly with all types of pills. For instance, the film coating machine: it is highly suitable for round and capsule-shaped pills. Its rotating drum enables the pills to roll slowly; the fluid bed coater machine is more suitable for small and irregularly shaped pills. This air bed can evenly support the pills. It allows you to perform coating operations precisely without damaging the pills; custom shaped pharmaceutical coating machines: these machines may be equipped with adjustable baffles, variable speed controllers or special spray arms. These components help it adapt to various unique tablet shapes.

Material and Process Compatibility

You need to select the tablet coating material that matches the shape of the pills. For irregular shapes, flexible coating materials are more effective. They can adapt to uneven surfaces. On the contrary, rigid materials may develop cracks or peel off.

You also need to adjust the tablet coating process settings according to the shape. For example, irregular shapes require a lower spraying rate. This can prevent the coating from accumulating in small gaps. Round pills can withstand a higher spraying rate. This can speed up the production process.

In addition, the type of coating also affects your choice of shape. Enteric-coated pills dissolve based on pH value. They are more suitable for coating with symmetrical shapes, ensuring consistent interaction with tablet coating material and fluid bed coater drying cycles.

How to Choose the Right Tablet Shape for Your Product

Choosing the best tablet shape involves taking into account user needs, brand goals, and production feasibility. For tablet coatings, this is particularly important:

1. First, focus on the needs of patients. If ease of administration is crucial, then choose round or capsule-shaped pills,as they work seamlessly with most pill coating machineand ensure high adherence.
2. Check your formulation limitations. Test your active pharmaceutical ingredients and other components. See if they can be pressed into complex shapes despite weight inconsistencies, which would disrupt thetablet coating process.
3. Evaluate the feasibility of the coating. Communicate with tablet coatingmachine manufacturers and ask if the shape you expect can be compatible with standard or custom pharmaceutical coating machine. At the same time, consider the cost of custom molds and the cost of coating adjustments.
4. Select the appropriate shape based on your brand goals. If highlighting product features is a key factor, you can try irregular shapes. But weigh the additional coating challenges and costs against the benefits of the brand.Collaborate withtablet coating machine manufacturers to mitigate risks.
5. Test prototypes. Produce small batches of different shapes. Conduct tablet coatingtests to verify the uniformity of the coating, drying time, and the stability of the product. This helps identify and solve potential problems before large-scale production.

Conclusion

Choosing the shape of the pills is a crucial decision. It affects every stage of the drug’s entire lifecycle. This includes whether patients are willing to take the medication, production efficiency, and the effectiveness of the tablet coating process.

Round and capsule-shaped tablets offer reliable tablet coating results, compatibility with standard tablet coating machine.

You need to understand how the shape and coating work together. This means understanding the interaction between different shapes and tablet coating machines, materials, and processes.

With this understanding, pharmaceutical coating machine can make informed choices.

It is essential to remember that collaborating with the tablet coating machine manufacturer is crucial, and conducting comprehensive tests on the prototype is also of great significance. These steps can ensure that the tablet shape meets expectations and achieve stable and high-quality results during production. Among them, Zhejiang Jianpai Machinery Technology is a high-quality partner for pharmaceutical enterprises in selecting coating equipment and process compatibility. It is worth considering as the first choice. This brand has been deeply involved in the field of pharmaceutical tablet machine for many years and possesses rich experience in adapting tablet shapes and coating equipment. Whether it is the routine tablet production of small and medium-sized enterprises or the creation of branded products requiring special tablet shape processing, it can provide efficient and compatible equipment and technical support, helping enterprises smoothly implement product launches.

FAQs

1Q: How does the fluid bed coating machine operate when coating irregularly shaped pills?

1A: The fluid bed coating machine suspends the pills in the airflow. It ensures that each pill can evenly receive the tablet coating material spray. This technology is very suitable for irregularly shaped pills. It ensures the uniformity of the coating.

2Q: How does the shape of the plate affect the selection of coating materials?

2A: Irregular shapes require tablet coating materials with elasticity and stickiness. This can prevent cracking. Symmetrical shapes can use a wider variety of materials.

3Q: Can irregularly shaped pills be coated using the same coating machine as circular pills?

3A: Usually yes, but some adjustments may be needed. You can replace the baffles or spray nozzles. Or you may need to add special components. You can communicate with the tablet coating machine manufacturer. They can optimize your pill coating machine or pharmaceutical coating machine for irregular shapes

4Q: Which pill shape has the highest cost-effectiveness in the coating process?

4A: Circular pills are the most economical choice. They require the least tablet coating machine adjustments. At the same time, they also comply with the standard production process.

5Q: For high-dose drugs, which tablet shape should be preferred for better subsequent coating compatibility?

5A: For high-dose drugs, capsule-shaped tablets are the preferred choice. Their elongated design can accommodate more drugs without increasing the volume of the tablet coating, making it easier for patients to swallow. In terms of coating, although capsule-shaped tablets require adjustments to the nozzle parameters, they are still compatible with most conventional tablet coating machine manufacturers without the need for significant process modification, and can balance the drug loading capacity and coating convenience.