Patent Grant
9505544
The invention relates to a cartridge for a medicament dispenser, in which solid medicament portions, for example tablets, are contained in a preferably column-shaped arrangement. The invention further relates to the medicament dispenser, and to the medicament dispenser with the exchangeable cartridge contained therein. The invention further relates to uses of the cartridge and of the medicament dispenser for storing and dispensing medicament portions, for example hormone preparations.
It is known to provide a user with solid medicament portions, for example tablets, in various types of packages. For example, solid medicines are very often supplied and each individually sealed in what are called blister packs (PTP: push-through pack), in which they are generally packed in closed cells. For this purpose, an in most cases transparent plastic film with receiving wells for the portions is welded to an aluminum foil, thus resulting in the formation of the individual cells in which the tablets are contained. Before being administered, the tablets are removed from the individual cells by being pushed out of the receiving wells and through the aluminum foil. This type of package is in widespread use, because each individual tablet is stored securely and is protected from harmful external influences. In another type of package, the solid medicines are made available in vials, in which the individual tablets are not individually packed. The users in this case have to remove the tablets individually by hand. In another type of package, the tablets, once again not individually packed, are located in a column-shaped arrangement in a tube. In this case too, the individual tablets are removed by hand. This is problematic in the sense that there is a risk of individual tablets falling out and thus being damaged or soiled. Moreover, the user is unable to check or see the number of tablets that have already been taken.
To permit convenient dosing and reliable medication and ensure careful handling of the medicament portions, it is advantageous if solid medicament portions packed in this way are made available, for administration by the user, in a medicament dispenser. In this case, the medicament portions are contained in the dispenser and can be dispensed from the dispenser as and when needed. The advantage of such systems is, among other things, that the medicament portions in the dispenser are protected from external influences, and there is the possibility of ensuring, by suitable means, that the portions are dispensed in a pre-dosed amount.
For the use of medicines that are packed in blister strips, WO 2005/028316 A2, for example, describes a dispenser which has a slit at one end for receiving a blister strip. In order to dispense individual tablets, the blister strip is pulled only partially out of the dispenser, such that only one individual tablet is exposed or only a small predetermined number of tablets is exposed. This is made possible by the blister strip having projections in which grippers engage in order to set a predefined advance movement upon withdrawal of the blister strip from the dispenser.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,591,043 A discloses a container and dispenser with a deformable wall and an opening at one end face. When a pressure is exerted on the side walls, a lower closure element opens as a result of the deformation of the closure element.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,409,020 B 1 discloses a further dispenser containing a blister strip with blister cells arranged in a circle. The tablets in the blister cells are in principle accessible via a window on the upper face of the dispenser, but only when a user exerts pressure on at least one of the tabs, mounted laterally on the dispenser, of a strip which extends in the rest state across the window and thereby covers the tablets and protects them from unauthorized access. By contrast, when the user exerts pressure on the tab, the strip is bent upward and releases the tablets.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,080,258 discloses a dispenser for mouth-freshening lozenges and cough lozenges. The lozenges contained in this dispenser are stacked. The lozenges are forced upward in a guide by means of a spring force and in this way arrive at an ejector head, which has an ejection claw with which the lozenges are dispensed individually from the side of the dispenser.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,366,112 also discloses a dispenser for mouth-freshening lozenges and cough lozenges, in which the lozenges are stacked in a magazine insertable into the dispenser. In this case too, the lozenges are forced upward in the magazine by a spring force and are individually dispensed by an ejector head with ejection claw provided in the dispenser. In this case, the lozenges are located in a magazine that can be provided with a simple protective sleeve for transport. As has been indicated in relation to U.S. Pat. No. 5,080,258, the tablets are dispensed from the side of the dispenser.
EP 1 189 822 B1 discloses a tablet dispenser for medical purposes. It comprises a container which is in the form of a tube and in which the tablets are stacked and placed under a spring tension. The tablets are dispensed laterally from the dispenser by means of an ejection mechanism actuated from the head of the dispenser.
US 2003/0132239 A1 discloses a magazine for receiving stacked tablets, for example mouth-freshening lozenges and cough lozenges, which magazine is provided for use in a tablet dispenser. The tablets are dispensed at the head of the dispenser, by means of an ejection mechanism, transversely with respect to the axis of the dispenser.
Moreover, U.S. Pat. No. 5,230,440 discloses a dispenser for tablets, for example contraceptives, ignition stones for lighters, or sweets, such as candies. The tablets or similar are contained as a stack in a sleeve, which can be inserted into the dispenser. The tablets or similar are dispensed laterally from the dispenser.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,048,720 describes a dispenser for candies or tablets, which has a housing and a magazine that can be locked in the latter. Two chambers are formed in the housing by the magazine. In one of the chambers, the candies or tablets are contained in the magazine. The candies or tablets are ejected laterally upon actuation of the dispenser, by means of a slide that can be actuated by the thumb being arranged on the magazine and being actuated and, consequently, an ejector for laterally dispensing an individual candy or tablet being actuated.
Moreover, DE 42 30 452 A1 discloses a container for storing and individually dispensing coated tablets that are received in supports. For dispensing the coated tablets, the container has a press ram and an ejector tongue, of which at least the tip is flexible. By actuation of the press ram, the tip moves in the direction of pressing and, by virtue of the shape of the guide for the ejector tongue, moves directly through an opening in the peripheral surface of the support. The opening is located on the outer edge of the support, opposite a second opening through which a coated tablet can be forced out, with the tip of the ejector tongue pressed into the interior of the support.
WO 2008/071233 A1 discloses a tablet dispenser with an insertable magazine. A dispensing mechanism for the tablets is mounted on the dispenser and comprises a trigger button, a dispenser slide for the tablets, and a mechanism for transferring the pressing movement on the head to the dispenser slide.
DE 88 07 774 U1 discloses a tablet dispenser with a grip piece, which is connected to a tablet reservoir, a slide and a cover, which is provided with an opening through which the tablet to be removed falls out.
DE 31 43 953 A1 discloses a dosing dispenser which is designed for tablet-shaped products and which contains a base element with a dosing slide mounted movably therein. A tablet cartridge or tablet reservoir can be inserted into the dosing dispenser. When the dosing slide is actuated, the products fall individually out of the dispenser.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,270,915 A discloses a dosing dispenser which is designed for pharmaceutical tablets and which comprises an outer container, a cylindrical magazine that can be inserted into the dispenser, a lower closure piece, and a rotary slide in the closure piece. The rotary slide contains an opening through which the tablets fall out.
In most of the known medicament dispensers listed above, it is not specified how the tablets, lozenges, candies or the like are introduced into the dispenser. It is true that some documents, for example U.S. Pat. No. 5,230,440, state that the sleeve containing the tablets or the like is exchangeable and is inserted into a cavity in the dispenser. Moreover, U.S. Pat. No. 5,048,720 states that a magazine containing the candies or tablets is inserted into a housing. It has been found, however, that the use of such dispensers is problematic, especially when used by persons with visual impairment or in poor lighting conditions, because the ejected tablets or the like cannot in all cases be caught by the users, and instead the tablets or the like fall to the ground and are lost. Especially when the dispenser is used to dispense small tablets, it can happen that the person using it is uncertain whether or not a tablet has been dispensed.
Moreover, in the known devices, it is not guaranteed that the tablets remain undamaged in each phase of use, especially during insertion into the dispenser.
The problem addressed by the present invention is therefore that the known medicament dispensers do not permit sufficiently simple and safe handling during use and dispensing of solid medicament portions, and the object is therefore to find means for storing and dispensing solid medicament portions, in particular a cartridge for a medicament dispenser, a medicament dispenser, and a medicament dispenser in which such a cartridge for the medicament portions is located, which means avoid said problems of use and dispensing of the portions. In particular, the medicament dispenser and the cartridge are to be easy and reliable to operate, and they should in particular ensure that the user can safely remove each individual medicament portion from the dispenser, without the portion being lost and the user, in the worst case, not even noticing this. Moreover, the solid medicament portions must not be damaged during transport and storage, nor when used in the dispenser.
This problem is solved, and the object achieved, by the exchangeable cartridge according to patent claim 1, a medicament dispenser according to patent claim 10, a medicament dispenser containing such an exchangeable cartridge for solid medicament portions according to patent claim 11, the use of the cartridge according to patent claim 8, and the use of the medicament dispenser according to patent claim 20. Preferred embodiments of the invention are set forth in the dependent claims.
Where the terms “solid medicament portions” and “medicament portions” are used below in the description of the invention and in the patent claims, these terms are to be understood as meaning pills, coated pills, capsules, tablets and other solid presentation forms. To simplify the description of the invention, the term “tablets” is used below as being representative of other (solid) medicament portions. Therefore, the use of this term is intended in each case to signify any desired type of (solid) medicament portions.
Where terms are used below, in the description of the invention and in the patent claims, to designate in particular structural elements of the subject matter according to the invention, such as “receiving means” and the like, these terms, irrespective of whether they are used in the singular or plural, are to be understood in the singular and in the plural.
The cartridge according to the invention and the solid medicament dispenser are used jointly to dispense the tablets, with the cartridge being inserted into the dispenser for use thereof. The cartridge and the dispenser preferably serve to administer medicaments and particularly preferably to administer hormone preparations and most preferably contraceptives or medicaments for hormone replacement therapy in the form of tablets.
If the medicament contained in the cartridge is, for example, a hormone preparation, for instance for contraception, the latter can be taken in the usual manner, for example in a 24-hour cycle in a two-phase fixed administration scheme. According to this scheme, a first administration phase, for example of 21 days, is followed by a second, administration-free period. For example, the administration-free period can be 7 days, or also 4 days, or another fixed number of days. Instead of the aforementioned fixed periods, for example of 21 administration days and 7 days free of administration, or 24 administration days and 4 days free of administration, or also instead of another fixed administration regimen, certain medicaments, for example for contraception, can also be taken in a flexible administration scheme, in which the administration phase lasts for at least 24 days and for at most 120 days, for example, and the administration-free phase lasts for 4 days, for example. Thus, the administration phase then divides into a first administration phase lasting 24 days and a second administration phase lasting 0 to 96 days.
The cartridge according to the invention is insertable into the medicament dispenser according to the invention and exchangeable. It is exchanged when empty. An empty cartridge is replaced by a full cartridge. The full cartridge is used to replenish the dispenser with tablets. For safe storage and transport of the cartridge, the latter can be accommodated in a preferably sealed container, for example in a closed pouch or in a blister pack which, for example, is made of aluminum foils and in which a receiving well for the cartridge is produced by cold-forming, as long as the cartridge is not yet to be inserted into the dispenser. In principle, however, the cartridge can also be connected fixedly to the dispenser, such that the dispenser is discarded when the cartridge is empty.
The cartridge is provided with a reservoir for receiving tablets, preferably in a column-shaped arrangement. The cartridge is therefore preferably cylindrical and preferably has a cylindrical reservoir.
To ensure the exchangeability of the cartridge according to the invention in the medicament dispenser according to the invention, the dispenser has receiving means for the cartridge, for example a receiving shaft which extends in the axial direction therein and into which the cartridge can be pushed. For use of the medicament dispenser, the cartridge is inserted, for example pushed, into the receiving means, for example into the receiving shaft. Thus, the cartridge and the dispenser can be in a spatial and physical relationship to each other and together form the combination, according to the invention, of medicament dispenser and cartridge, which can be assembled to form one unit.
According to the invention, the cartridge has a singulation device for dispensing defined medicament portions, preferably at one end. This singulation device comprises a movable mechanism for separating a defined medicament portion from the reservoir and for dispensing it from the medicament dispenser. The singulation device is designed to produce an operative connection to an actuating device arranged in the medicament dispenser for the singulation device. The singulation device is preferably designed such that the tablets are each dispensed individually or in another defined number, for example two tablets at the same time. For this purpose, the singulation device is actuated via the operative connection between the singulation device and an actuating device or several actuating devices provided on the medicament dispenser. The actuating devices can comprise manual actuating means provided on the medicament dispenser, in order to dispense one tablet (or also several tablets at a time), and also mechanisms in the dispenser with which the movement generated by manual actuation of the actuating means is transferred to the movable mechanism on the singulation device provided on the cartridge. Since, in this embodiment of the invention, the singulation device for the tablets is provided on the cartridge, such a device is not provided on the medicament dispenser. By contrast, the actuating device or actuating devices for the singulation device are mounted on the medicament dispenser in this embodiment. These actuating devices are in a preferably mechanical operative connection to the singulation device. An electromechanical or purely electronic operative connection is also conceivable. To provide a mechanical operative connection, the singulation device on the cartridge can, for example, be provided with a pin, which can also be designated as a driver pin. In this case, by actuation of the actuating means on the dispenser, a movement is transferred for example to a claw provided with a recess and adapted to this carrier pin and from this claw to the carrier pin and hence to the singulation device. The movement generated by manual actuation of the actuating means on the dispenser is transferred to the claw preferably via the further interposed mechanical elements, for example transport levers, which represent the mechanisms for transferring the movement from the actuating means to the singulation device.
The provision of the singulation device on the cartridge has several advantageous functions:
The singulation device is used to allow the user to dispense the tablets contained in the cartridge either individually or in a defined number. Therefore, the user is allowed to safely remove the tablets from the cartridge, without more than one tablet (or more than a defined number of tablets) accidentally being dispensed at the same time.
Moreover, the singulation device closes the reservoir and therefore protects the tablets contained in the reservoir from external influences, such that the tablets contained therein cannot be damaged or otherwise impaired. In particular, the singulation device is used as a closure element, for example during transport and storage, but also during use by the user, such that the tablets are protected from external influences.
Provision of the singulation device on the cartridge further ensures that tablets cannot accidentally fall out, since the closure element cannot be accidentally detached. The singulation device can preferably only be actuated, and tablets thus released individually (or in a defined number), when the cartridge is inserted into the medicament dispenser. For actuation of the singulation device on the cartridge, manual actuating means are provided on the medicament dispenser, since for simple handling it is necessary to actuate the manual actuating means on the dispenser in order to dispense an individual tablet (or a defined number of tablets). It is in any case impossible, because of the singulation device, for more than one tablet (or more than a defined number of tablets) to be dispensed from the cartridge, and it is also extremely unlikely that the closure element of the cartridge on the singulation device will already be manually actuated when the cartridge is not located in the dispenser.
The assembly work when inserting the cartridge into the dispenser is also minimal. For example, it may suffice for the cartridge to be pushed axially into the receiving means for the cartridge in the dispenser, without a cover having to be removed or other assembly measures having to be taken. Therefore, it is not necessary, for example, to remove a lid, as in the case of the dispenser according to U.S. Pat. No. 5,230,440, in order to place the cartridge into the receiving shaft. This greatly facilitates the use of the dispenser with the cartridge. This advantage is achieved in particular by the fact that the singulation device is at the same time a closure element and is provided on the cartridge and not on the dispenser.
Moreover, during operation of the dispenser, the singulation device is actuated repeatedly and frequently in order to remove the tablets. Since the singulation device is provided on the cartridge and not on the medicament dispenser, wear and tear of the singulation device does not have the same disadvantage to the user as it would do if the singulation device were provided on the medicament dispenser, since the singulation device is exchanged with the cartridge when the latter no longer contain any tablets. If the singulation device were to be provided on the dispenser and not on the cartridge, it would have to be designed for a very much longer useful life, by suitable choice of materials and suitable construction. Moreover, abraded matter from the tablets, which can collect in particular in the singulation device, is discarded with the cartridge and does not collect in the dispenser during the entire lifetime of the latter. At any rate, this abraded matter, in combination with (air) moisture, is a good breeding ground for germs.
In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the mechanism of the singulation device for separating and dispensing the tablets has a slide that is movable substantially perpendicularly, or substantially perpendicularly with respect to the axis of the cartridge. The slide serves as a structural element for singulation of the tablets. The slide can receive each individual tablet separately and move it separately in a sliding movement relative to the stack. The tablets in the cartridge are preferably arranged in a column-shaped stack located in the reservoir in the cartridge. The slide can then be arranged at one end of this stack and separate the tablets one after another from the stack.
For this purpose, the slide can preferably have a receiving compartment which is open at both ends in the axial direction and which receives a defined medicament portion, for example an individual tablet, or two tablets at the same time, or even more, i.e. more than two tablets at the same time. When receiving the tablet from the stack, this receiving compartment is closed on the side facing away from the stack. The receiving compartment is preferably dimensioned such that (only) one individual tablet (or also a defined number of tablets) finds space therein. To ensure that the singulation is effective and reproducible, the height of this compartment can be exactly the same as or slightly greater than the height of an individual tablet (or the height of a stack of a defined number of tablets). In this case, therefore, only a single tablet (or a defined number of tablets) is received in the receiving compartment and separated from the stack of tablets by the sliding movement.
The singulation device can further comprise a bottom shell. Moreover, the slide is movable, relative to the reservoir in the cartridge, between two slide positions and substantially perpendicularly with respect to the axis of the cartridge. The bottom shell can be used, among other things, for closing the receiving compartment on the side lying away from the reservoir in the cartridge when the receiving compartment is flush with the reservoir in one of the slide positions (second slide position). In this case, a tablet passes into the receiving compartment and is held there by the bottom shell. The slide is then moved to the other of the two slide positions (first slide position) in which the tablet can be removed.
In a preferred embodiment, the bottom shell can have a dispensing opening which is offset with respect to the cartridge axis and flush with the open receiving compartment when the slide is located in one of the two slide positions, in particular in the first slide position. The tablet then falls through the dispensing opening and can thus be removed. The tablet is thus removed from the side of the singulation device directed away from the reservoir. In an alternative embodiment for dispensing the tablet, the first slide position can also be chosen such that the tablet is dispensed on the same side of the singulation device as the reservoir. For this purpose, the slide would have to protrude laterally from the dispenser, and the first slide position of the receiving compartment would have to be located in the laterally protruding part of the slide. The tablets can also be dispensed laterally, i.e. in the plane in which the tablets are moved by the slide during the sliding process. In all of these cases, the tablets can each be stored and separated in a position in which they are arranged lying with their main surfaces on one another, or in a position in which they are arranged standing, i.e. lying with their side surfaces on one another.
The singulation device is preferably switched between the two slide positions. One of the two slide positions can be a rest position, and the other slide position can be a second position from which the singulation device returns automatically to the rest position, for example by being tensioned in this second position by a spring, which conveys it back to the rest position. It is possible that the second slide position, in which the receiving compartment in the slide is flush with the reservoir of the cartridge, is the rest position, or that the first slide position, in which the receiving compartment in the slide is flush with the dispensing opening in the bottom shell, is the rest position.
The bottom shell of the cartridge can in particular be fitted flush with the outer skin of the dispenser. This prevents the user from removing the cartridge from the dispenser by manipulation, for example before the cartridge is completely empty. Moreover, the cartridge is fitted in the dispenser in such a way that the tablets, and thus the medical active substances in the tablets, do not come into contact with the dispenser or parts thereof when being singulated and dispensed or released from the dispenser. This embodiment is particularly advantageous for medico-legal reasons.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the cartridge and the medicament dispenser are designed such that the cartridge can be pushed into the dispenser only in one (axial) rotation orientation, such that one of the two cartridge halves that delimit the reservoir comprising the tablets is oriented to the front and the other one is oriented to the rear. This allows the two cartridge halves to be used in different ways. For example, one half can be printed, for example with information concerning the tablets contained in the cartridge, and the other half can be transparent, such that the tablets can also be seen from the outside.
According to one of the inventions, the cartridge is designed such that the tablets can be dispensed in the axial direction. This is to be understood as meaning that the tablets are not dispensed laterally from the dispenser but instead at an end face of the dispenser, specifically in a direction extending in the axial direction, i.e. along the axis of the cartridge or parallel to this axis and/or also along the axis of the dispenser or parallel thereto.
Therefore, a user can easily remove the tablets to be dispensed by holding the dispenser in one hand and using the same hand to actuate the actuating means provided on the dispenser for dispensing of the tablets, such that the tablet falls into the other hand. For this purpose, it is sufficient if the user holds the dispenser such that the side where the cartridge has been inserted into the dispenser is held over the other hand and then actuates the dispenser in order to dispense the tablet. More defined orientation of the dispenser relative to the hand not holding the dispenser is not required, such that the tablet falls safely into the user's hand, and the user can thus safely take hold of the tablet. Incorrect use, in which the tablet accidentally falls out and does not end up in the user's hand, is therefore ruled out in practice. Therefore, the handling of the dispenser is safer and more reliable than that of the known dispensers.
In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the cartridge contains a tolerance compensation plug, which sits preferably with frictional fit in the reservoir and is movable in the axial direction. This tolerance compensation plug is inserted into the reservoir before the cartridge is filled with the tablets, and it presses firmly on the stack of tablets after the cartridge has been filled with the tablets.
By virtue of the fact that the tolerance compensation plug sits with a frictional fit in the reservoir, it can keep the stack of tablets tightly packed even when the cartridge is not located in the dispenser, for example when the cartridge is being handled separately, for instance during storage or transport. It is necessary for the stack of tablets to be held firmly together in order to prevent the tablets from being able to move freely in the reservoir, so as to ensure that they do not tilt and become wedged and thus impede the dispensing of the tablets. Moreover, upon continued movement against one another, the tablets could also be subject to undesired abrasion. It should also be noted that the tablets have a thickness tolerance that leads to a height variation of the stack of tablets. For example, if the thickness tolerance of a 3 mm thick tablet is ±150 μm, the variation in the height of a stack of 30 tablets is approximately ±4.5 mm. By means of the tolerance compensation plug, the stack is always held securely in the reservoir independently of its actual height, i.e. even when the cartridge is no longer inserted in the dispenser. Compared to a compression spring, for example, that would press the tablets in the reservoir against one another and thereby fix them, the tolerance compensation plug has the advantage that, during transport and storage, the tablets are packed lying on one another without force and not, as in the case of the compression spring, under a spring tension that varies depending on the heights of the stacked tablets. Thus, the tablets are stored much more gently than in the case of the known magazines.
To permit the frictional fit of the tolerance compensation plug in the reservoir of the cartridge, the plug has at least one locking means for locking onto a profile extending in the axial direction on the inside wall of the reservoir of the cartridge. This profile can be formed, for example, by a transverse groove profile made up of transverse grooves extending parallel to one another. For example, the transverse groove profile can form at least one axially extending ratchet track on the inside wall of the cartridge or can be provided on the entire inner circumference of the inside wall of the cartridge. By configuring the profile in the form of a ratchet profile, a form-fit engagement of the plug is achieved in one direction (toward the dispensing opening), and a friction-fit engagement in the other direction.
The at least one locking means on the tolerance compensation plug can in particular be formed by at least one outwardly acting spring element with locking lugs that locks onto the profile. For example, two spring elements with locking lugs can be provided on opposite sides of a base part of the plug, the spring elements preferably being outwardly resilient spring arms that protrude approximately axially and which have locking lugs engaging in the profile, for example in two opposite ratchet tracks. The tolerance compensation plug can be inserted first with the spring elements into the reservoir of the cartridge, such that the at least one locking means stands vertically and thus counteracts slipping out.
In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the cartridge contains a tablet rider, which is movable in the axial direction in the reservoir, engages through at least one axial slit in the cartridge and is used to entrain the thrust means located in the medicament dispenser, for example a thrust bracket, also preferably movable in the axial direction, and to transfer a preferably outwardly engaging and preferably axially directed elastic force to the tablets contained in the preferably column-shaped arrangement in the cartridge, and thus to hold down the preferably column-shaped arrangement of tablets by means of the thrust means.
By way of the thrust means, for example the thrust bracket, a force is applied to the stack of tablets in the reservoir, which force originates, for example, from springs engaging on the thrust means, for example constant-force springs, such that the stack of tablets is at all times under the effect of a force in the axial direction when the cartridge is located in the medicament dispenser. This has the result that the tablets cannot move freely in the reservoir. By means of this force, the stack of tablets is pressed against the receiving compartment in the singulation device, such that a tablet always passes into the receiving compartment when the slide is located in the first slide position. To achieve this, the thrust means, for example the thrust bracket, sliding along the outside of the cartridge can come into form-fit contact with the tablet rider. For this purpose, the tablet rider, which is freely movable in the axial direction in the reservoir of the cartridge, can engage through at least one axial slit on the cartridge, for example with an arm or also with two arms (in this case through in each case one axial slit), such that the thrust means can exert the force on the tablet rider, and thus on the stack of tablets, via this arm or another projection. In this way, when the cartridge is located in the medicament dispenser, an axial force is applied to the stack of tablets, which axial force acts in the direction of the singulation device. In this way, the stack is always pressed down, such that a tablet can pass into the receiving compartment when said receiving compartment in the singulation device is flush with the reservoir.
Instead of a tablet rider, which has an arm engaging through a slit in the cartridge housing, or several arms engaging through several slits, with a force being applied to the stack of tablets from outside via the tablet rider, it is also possible to choose another embodiment in which no slit is provided in the cartridge housing. In the latter case, the force must be applied to the stack of tablets from outside in some other way, for example via an axial transfer means which, at only one end of the cartridge housing or at both ends of the cartridge housing, is subjected to an external force, which then leads to an axial force being applied to the stack of tablets. An embodiment of this kind can be obtained, for example, by a band being inserted into the cartridge housing, preferably at the lower end thereof, and being guided round the stack of tablets. When this band is pulled, a downwardly acting axial force is then applied to the stack of tablets. For example, the band stretching round the stack of tablets can be guided out laterally from the cartridge housing at the base of the stack of tablets on both sides. Or the band is guided out only at one side and is secured on the other side to the base of the cartridge housing. Alternatively, an axially movable rod can also be used which sits on the stack of tablets and applies an axial force to the stack.
Quite generally, when a full cartridge is pushed into the dispenser in the insertion direction, the thrust means, for example the thrust bracket, can be entrained in this movement, for example by the thrust means being entrained upward via the tablet rider. This thrust means can also lock the cartridge in the dispenser via at least one suitable locking means, for example by the entrained thrust means running onto a run-on surface of a locking lever arranged in the upper area of the dispenser for the purpose of locking the cartridge in the dispenser. Upon successive unloading of the cartridge, this thrust means can then be moved successively downward, such that the filling level in the cartridge is coded by the position thereof in the dispenser. When this thrust means finally comes to a (lower) end position, which is predefined by the empty cartridge, a lock can be undone, such that the cartridge can be removed from the dispenser. This can be done, for example, by the thrust means, in the lowermost position, bringing the locking levers to an unlocked position and, if appropriate, additionally unlocking suitable ejection means for the cartridge.
To ensure that the cartridge remains fixed in the dispenser after insertion into the receiving shaft or, quite generally, after insertion of the cartridge into the receiving means, at least one locking means is provided for locking the cartridge in the medicament dispenser. This locking action with the locking means is preferably such that the cartridge is locked after being pushed into the dispenser, i.e. cannot be removed again without the locking action being cancelled, as long as there are still tablets in the cartridge. Only after the cartridge is empty can the locking action in this case be cancelled in order to be able to remove the cartridge from the dispenser, such that a new cartridge filled with tablets can be inserted.
For the locking action, a locking means of this kind can be formed, for example, by one or more locking lugs on the cartridge and one or more locking profiles, for example eyelets, on the dispenser, which engage with or in the locking lugs, or conversely by one or more locking lugs on the dispenser and one or more locking profiles, for example eyelets, on the cartridge. In principle, of course, other locking means are also possible, for example locking lugs that engage behind projections, or two intermeshing locking profiles or the like. For example, the at least one locking means can be movable in rotation. It can preferably be formed by rotatably movable locking levers, which in particular can have two arms and can be equipped with locking lugs. In particular, the locking lugs can each be arranged at the lower part of the locking lever. The locking means are located in the dispenser. Each locking lug preferably engages with a locking action on the locking levers with a locking eyelet or the like provided on the cartridge. Instead of a locking eyelet, it is also possible, for example, to provide a projection on which the locking lug engages, or a recess in which the locking lug engages. To additionally secure the locking action, a pressure point can also be provided on the locking levers, at a position other than the one where a locking lug or a projection is provided, which locks behind a corresponding locking lug or a projection, for example in the dispenser housing.
In a particularly expedient embodiment, the locking levers with the locking lugs can protrude into an area which adjoins the area in which the cartridge is received in the dispenser, for example in the front area of the dispenser adjoining the receiving means for the cartridge in the dispenser, for example the receiving shaft. On the cartridge, in the adjoining area, receiving eyelets then have to be provided into which the locking lugs of the locking levers engage. This adjoining area can be located, for example, on the bottom shell of the cartridge.
In addition, an ejection block can also be provided which, for example, can comprise a release lever. External, manually actuated ejection means for ejecting the cartridge, for example an ejection button, are blocked by the ejection block, such that removal of the cartridge is possible only when the cartridge no longer contains any tablets. This block blocks the actuation of these external ejection means and only frees them again when the cartridge is empty. This block can in particular be released by means for cancelling the locking action. For this purpose, an ejection slide that can be actuated by the ejection button can be provided, in which case the release lever blocks the ejection slide, and thus the ejection button, when the cartridge still contains at least one medicament portion.
If the aforementioned at least one locking means leads to a locking of the cartridge in the dispenser, i.e. the at least one locking means can no longer be released without separate cancellation of this locking action, at least one means must also be provided for cancelling the locking action. This means for cancelling the locking action is preferably designed such that the locking action can be cancelled only when there are no more medicament portions left in the cartridge. Without a locking action, the catch could be released simply by manually overcoming the locking force of the at least one locking means. This would be possible if the at least one locking means, by suitable design of the parts forming the locking connection, is designed such that these slide along one another, when a force is applied releasing the locking means, such that the locking action is cancelled.
However, if a locking action takes place upon engagement of the at least one locking means, for example because the locking lugs and locking profiles are so designed that the locking action cannot be cancelled without destroying the at least one locking means, unless the locking action is released at the same time, the at least one means for cancelling the locking action must be released manually or preferably by a mechanism present in the dispenser, or also by a combination of these means. For this purpose, the dispenser can accommodate at least one unlocking means which, depending on the filling state of the cartridge with tablets, releases the locking lugs of the locking levers, preferably only when the cartridge is empty. In this case, the at least one locked locking means is released by the at least one unlocking means, by the at least one locking means being brought from a locking position to the unlocked position without external manual actuation. This unlocking means can in particular be the above-described thrust means, which brings the locking of the cartridge to the locked position upon insertion and to the unlocked position after emptying of the cartridge. The locking means are locked by the thrust means pressing against one or more upper parts of the locking lever. Moreover, the thrust means can also act on the ejection block and release the latter, preferably when there are no more tablets left in the cartridge. For this purpose, the thrust means for releasing the blockade of the ejection means can actuate the release lever, such that the ejection slide and with it the ejection means are unlocked. The ejection slide preferably presses, by actuation of the ejection means, against one or more lower parts of the locking means, preferably of the locking lever, and in this way unlocks the cartridge locked with the locking means.
The unlocking can be effected, for example, by suitable means in the medicament dispenser, the position of which means is dependent on the filling level of the cartridge. For this purpose, for example, the thrust bracket, mounted axially movably on the cartridge, or another movable thrust means can be provided which, for example, is in each case located at the height of the tablet located at the uppermost position in the cartridge. It is only when there are no longer any tablets in the cartridge that the thrust bracket, or the other thrust means, is also located at the lower pole position and in this case releases the locking action.
To be able to unlock the external, manual ejection means for ejecting the cartridge, i.e. to be able to release the blockade of the ejection block, the same means for cancelling the locking action can be provided again, for example the aforementioned thrust bracket or the other thrust means, whose position is dependent on the filling level of the cartridge.
In another embodiment of the invention, at least one elastic means can be provided which, upon insertion of the cartridge into the medicament dispenser, exerts an elastic force on the cartridge in the axial direction counter to a direction in which the cartridge is pushed into the medicament dispenser (direction of insertion). This has the result that the cartridge in the dispenser is under tension, preferably spring tension. The spring force acting on the cartridge has the effect that the tablets in the cartridge are pressed against one another, such that they do not fall back and forth in the reservoir of the cartridge during the movement of the dispenser. Since the tablets are always under spring tension, the order initially set up in the stack of tablets is not lost.
The spring force is preferably exerted by elastic means configured in the form of at least one constant-force spring, in particular two constant-force springs. In this way, the stack of tablets located in the reservoir of the cartridge can always be subjected to the same force independently of the actual height, i.e. of the filling level of the cartridge, such that the tablets are treated carefully, without having to lose the advantage of applying tension to the stack of tablets, even when the latter is only very small, for example comprising two or three tablets. The at least one elastic means can be formed, for example, by at least one spring steel band.
The abovementioned thrust means, for example the abovementioned thrust bracket, which is movable preferably along the receiving shaft, can also be used in particular to transfer an elastic force to the tablets contained in a column-shaped arrangement in the cartridge. This thrust means can, on the one hand, have the function of transferring the outer elastic force to the stack of tablets. This is done, for example, by securing a spring or two springs on the thrust means and on a counter-bearing in the medicament dispenser. It is preferable to provide two constant-force springs, of which one is secured on one end of the thrust means, for example on one end of the thrust bracket, and the other is secured on the other end of the thrust means, for example on the other end of the thrust bracket, such that a symmetrical force is transferred to the thrust means. Alternatively, it is also possible to provide a single spring, which engages on the thrust means. In this case, asymmetrical forces that are generated are intended to be compensated. As has already been explained above, the thrust means can also be used among other things to cancel the locking action for ejecting the cartridge and the ejection block, i.e. the thrust means can at least be part of the means for cancelling the locking action.
The medicament dispenser according to the invention, which if appropriate does not initially contain a cartridge, and which is designed to receive an exchangeable cartridge that has a reservoir for the medicament portions and a singulation device for dispensing defined medicament portions, comprises at least one actuating device for the singulation device and also means for producing an operative connection between the at least one actuating device and a movable mechanism on the singulation device for separating a defined medicament portion from the reservoir and for dispensing it from the medicament dispenser.
In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the at least one actuating device comprises, on at least one narrow side of the medicament dispenser, an actuating means for dispensing medicament portions. Moreover, a further actuating means can be provided on another narrow side of the medicament dispenser, preferably on the second narrow side directed away from the first narrow side. These actuating means each serve to dispense a tablet from the cartridge by manual actuation. For this purpose, the actuating means can be operatively connected to the singulation device via suitable transfer means in a mechanical, electromechanical or electronic operative connection, in order in each case to release one tablet from the cartridge. As the actuating means are provided on the narrow sides of the medicament dispenser, they can be easily actuated even when the user operates the dispenser with just one hand, for example by the user holding the dispenser in one hand and applying pressure to the narrow sides of the dispenser and thus actuating the actuating means. Instead of the actuating means being positioned on one or both narrow sides of the dispenser, the actuating means can also be arranged at another location on the dispenser, for example on the front or rear of the dispenser, or on one or both end faces.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the transfer means by which the actuating means are operatively connected mechanically to the singulation device are formed by mechanisms by which a movement generated by actuation of the actuating means is transferred to a singulation device provided on the cartridge. For this purpose, for example, transport levers can be used which, if appropriate, can be synchronized, for example via in each case a toothed rod and a toothed wheel meshing with the latter. The transport levers can, for example, be in a direct mechanical operative connection to the singulation device, for example a form-fit connection, for example by provision of a carrier pin on the singulation device and of a recess, operatively connected to the carrier pin, on at least one of the transport levers, or vice versa.
Moreover, in a preferred embodiment of the invention, a window can be provided in an outer face of the housing of the medicament dispenser, such that the tablets located in the cartridge are visible from the outside. This permits a visual check of the filling level of the cartridge. Moreover, the tablet rider can be colored in order to contrast it against the tablets and, for example, also against the background of the cartridge and/or the components of the dispenser otherwise visible through the window. This makes visual monitoring of the filling level of the cartridge through the window easier. For this purpose, the cartridge can preferably be made at least partially of a transparent material. In principle, however, it can also be made at least partially of a translucent material. In particular, the part of the cartridge that is visible through the window in the housing of the dispenser can be made of a transparent or translucent material, such that the tablets contained in the cartridge are visible.
In addition, the medicament dispenser can have an electronic display for showing the number of tablets taken and/or the number of tablets still to be taken and/or the number of tablets still located in the cartridge. Each of these information items can be displayed alternately, for example by manual selection. The electronic display can additionally be designed such that alarm signals are displayed, for example to show that a time period during which a tablet is to be taken has been exceeded or has not been met, and to show the charge status of a battery used in the dispenser. The display can also be used to view the status of different administration phases, for example a display showing that the user is in a first, second, third or n-th phase, where the first phase, for example, can constantly cover 24 days, the second phase being flexible, for example from 0 to 96 days, and the third phase again constantly covering 4 days for example.
To be able to display said information on the electronic display, an electronic circuit is provided, preferably in the form of a circuit board with an integrated semiconductor circuit accommodated thereon. Switches can also be mounted on and connected to the circuit board, preferably electrical operating buttons, in order to perform the required inputs, for example for selecting the display mode (number of tablets taken, number of tablets still located in the cartridge). Moreover, electrical switches can be provided in the dispenser in order to be able to automatically determine certain operating states of the dispenser with the cartridge, for example the first use of the dispenser by first insertion or pushing-in of the cartridge into the dispenser, as a result of which, for example, batteries serving to supply power to the electrical circuit and to the electronic display are activated, i.e. are connected to the circuit and to the display, and also the dispensing of a tablet, the ejection of the cartridge and/or the detection of a defined small number of tablets remaining in the cartridge, in order to correctly display how many tablets are still located in the cartridge. For the last-mentioned function, it is normally sufficient, starting from the number of the tablets in a completely full cartridge, to calculate how many tablets are still located therein, if each dispensing of a tablet is detected. However, this display may be subject to error if the number of the tablets fluctuates because of an unavoidable thickness tolerance of the tablets in the completely full cartridge. This error can be ruled out by detecting that, for example, there are still four tablets located in the cartridge.
The invention is explained in more detail below on the basis of illustrative embodiments, which are depicted schematically in the figures. However, the invention is not limited to the embodiments and instead only presents a preferred embodiment. Other embodiments with variants of the individual features of the invention are equally conceivable and fall within the scope of protection of the invention. Identical reference signs in the individual figures designate identical elements or designate elements that are identical in function or that correspond in terms of their function.
The dispenser 1 shown in
Of course, the dispenser can also be used to dispense other tablets T, for example medicaments for hormone replacement therapy, diuretics or antihypertensive agents.
The dispenser 1 comprises a dispenser housing 10 with a housing front shell 11.1 (
An electronic display 16 and operating buttons 17, 18 are provided in the housing front shell 11.1. The electronic display is used for checking the administration of the tablets T. The operating buttons 14, 15 are used to select a menu item shown on the display, for example for checking the battery, the administration day, the administration-free day, and the number of tablets still located in the cartridge, and for choosing whether administration of the tablets should be discontinued.
In the lower area of the dispenser 1, part of the cartridge can be seen, namely the cartridge bottom shell 920, which lies flush on the housing of the dispenser. A dispensing opening 922 for the tablets T can be seen in the cartridge bottom shell (
In its inside, the dispenser 1 contains a housing interior framework 100, which assumes substantially all the static functions of the dispenser. The housing interior framework has, for example, a central web 110 (concealed) curved cylindrically inward from one side in order to receive the cartridge housing 930 (the front half of the cartridge housing can be seen only in part). The inward curve of this web, together with further structural elements (not shown here) of the dispenser, forms a receiving shaft (indicated by reference sign 150) into which the cartridge can be pushed from below into the dispenser. The receiving shaft is only indicated here by broken lines and is characterized by an elongate hollow space.
The actuating buttons 14, 15 on the dispenser housing 10 are pressed inward to actuate the dispenser 1 (
In the form shown here, the cartridge 900 can be handled separately, i.e. can be used to replenish the dispenser 1, by means of the cartridge being pushed from the end face into the substantially cylindrical receiving shaft 150 in the dispenser and being locked therein. For transport and storage of the separate cartridge, the latter is preferably sealed in a watertight and airtight secondary package, for example in a pouch or a blister pack.
Situated in the cartridge housing 930, above the stack of tablets T, there is a tablet rider 960 that can in principle move freely in the axial direction in the reservoir of the cartridge (
The dispenser 1 additionally comprises a thrust bracket 300 which engages around the central web 110 of the housing interior framework 100 and is movable along this web in the axial direction and guided thereon, for example by a dovetail guide, formed by the side faces of the web and the U-legs 311, 312 of the bracket, or by locking of these U-legs onto the side faces of the web (
In
When the cartridge is pushed from below into the receiving shaft 150 (not shown here) in the dispenser 1 (arrow), the rider arm 961 (
When the cartridge 900 is pushed into the receiving shaft 150 of the dispenser 1, the cartridge is locked in the dispenser. For this purpose, a left-hand locking lever 420 and a right-hand locking lever 410 are provided for the cartridge. The locking levers are mounted on the housing interior framework 100 at pivot points 415, 425. Locking lugs 412, 422 are provided at the respective lower ends of the locking levers (
To be able to eject an empty cartridge from the dispenser, an ejection mechanism is provided which cancels the block caused by the locking levers. Details of this ejection mechanism are shown in
To be able to eject the cartridge, a release lever 500 is provided which is located directly behind the ejection slide 600 comprising the ejection button 19 (concealed).
The release lever is fixed by means of a leg spring 510 (
The release lever 500 blocks the ejection slide 600, and thus the ejection button 19, by virtue of the fact that catch lugs 531, 532 (or alternatively just a single catch lug) lie in front of corresponding projections 611, 612 of the ejection slide (or alternatively in front of just a single projection) in the rest position of the release lever and block the downward translation movement of the slide (ejection block).
As the cartridge 900 empties as a result of tablets T being dispensed, the thrust bracket 300 in the dispenser 1 slides downward (
The function of the locking levers 410, 420 upon release of the cartridge 900 is shown in
The dispenser 1 has an electronic display 16 and two electronic operating buttons 17, 18 (
The dispenser 1 contains batteries 1010, 1020 (
At the same time as the electronics are initialized when a cartridge 900 is pushed into the dispenser 1 for the first time, a second switch (not shown) located next to the initializing switch 710 is activated and remains switched on only for as long as the upper arm of the right-hand lock is pressed outward, i.e. for as long as the cartridge remains in the dispenser. After the cartridge has been removed, this second switch is switched off again by the inward pivoting of the upper arm of the locking lever 420. This second switch signals to the electronics that a cartridge is located in the dispenser. In this way, the number of tablets T located in the dispenser can be calculated, specifically on the basis that there is always a defined number of tablets T in a full cartridge, for example 30 tablets, and also by a further signal which is forwarded to the electronics and with which each removal of a tablet from the dispenser is registered. Moreover, when an empty cartridge is removed from the dispenser and a full cartridge is inserted, the further signal from the second switch also informs the electronics that a completely full cartridge is now once again located in the dispenser.
The further signal with which removal of a tablet T from the dispenser 1 is registered is generated by a third switch (not shown) which is located in the area of one of the transport levers 210, 220 and which, upon each actuation of the transport levers, is switched and thus generates this further signal.
The dispenser 1 further contains a fourth switch (not shown) which is located in the lower area of the receiving shaft 150 and with which the sliding past of the thrust bracket 300 is registered and conveyed as an additional signal to the electronics. Shortly before final emptying of the cartridge 900, for example when only five tablets T are left in the cartridge, this fourth switch is used to forward to the electronics a signal concerning the number of tablets remaining in the cartridge. This is defined by the exact spatial positioning of this fourth switch on the receiving shaft, as a result of which the fourth switch is actuated by removal of a tablet only when there is still a predetermined number of tablets in the cartridge. This verification count may be necessary in order to correctly display to the user how many tablets are still located in the cartridge when there are just a few of them. This ensures that no false assumption is made regarding the number of remaining tablets, since it could be critical if the user were not warned in good time of the cartridge having been emptied. This precautionary measure is advantageous when the degree to which a cartridge is filled with tablets cannot be safely verified by all the control measures in place during the filling sequence. This is because the height of an individual tablet has a tolerance, with the result that the height of the stack of tablets can also fluctuate. In any case, however, the user can determine by way of the window 20 in the housing rear shell 11.2 whether there are still tablets left in the cartridge.
It will be appreciated that the examples and embodiments described here serve only for illustration and that various modifications and amendments to the examples and embodiments, and also combinations of other features described in this application, will be immediately apparent to a person skilled in the art and fall within the disclosure of the invention described here and within the scope of protection of the claims. All patents and patent applications referred to here are hereby incorporated in the disclosure of the application.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 2008 059 672 | Nov 2008 | DE | national |
| 10 2008 059 674 | Nov 2008 | DE | national |
| 10 2008 059 675 | Nov 2008 | DE | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/EP2009/008123 | 11/14/2009 | WO | 00 | 11/24/2011 |
| Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| WO2010/060546 | 6/3/2010 | WO | A |
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| 3270915 | Auer | Sep 1966 | A |
| 3300087 | Kuypers | Jan 1967 | A |
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| 6431399 | Gabel | Aug 2002 | B2 |
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| 20030132239 | Konig | Jul 2003 | A1 |
| Number | Date | Country |
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| 3143953 | May 1983 | DE |
| 8807774 | Sep 1989 | DE |
| 4230452 | Mar 1994 | DE |
| 1189822 | Mar 2005 | EP |
| 2002-502779 | Jan 2002 | JP |
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| Entry |
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| International Search Report, dated Apr. 6, 2010, issued in corresponding PCT/EP2009/008123. |
| Written Opinion of the International Searching Authority issued in corresponding PCT/EP2009/008123. |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20120055948 A1 | Mar 2012 | US |
