The present invention relates to the administration of medication and, more particularly, to a tracker device to aid in the administration of medication.
Medication containers may include IV bags, prescription bottles, pill organizers, and the like. Prescription bottles are containers that contain medicine prescribed by physicians. Prescription bottles are generally found in pharmacies. Prescription bottles have been around since the 19th-century. Standard prescription bottles state in writing on a label when to take a medication. However, patients may forget to take the medication. Alternatively, patients may forget that they took the medication and take too many, which can be dangerous.
As can be seen, there is a need for a device that provides a reminder for the administration of medication.
In one aspect of the present invention, a medication administration tracker comprises: a medication container comprising an internal housing sized to store a medication; at least one indicator configured to produce an indication when prompted; a time keeper integrated into the medication container and operable to keep time; and a processor integrated into the medication container and operatively connected to the at least one indicator and the time keeper, wherein the processor is programmable to receive at least a dosage time and activate the at least one indicator when the time keeper reaches the dosage time.
These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, description and claims.
The following detailed description is of the best currently contemplated modes of carrying out exemplary embodiments of the invention. The description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention, since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims.
The present invention is used to assist individuals in correctly self-administering medications as prescribed. The present invention may know when it was last opened preventing double dosage of a drug, and remind clients when they need to take their medication. The present invention eliminates the need to remember if and when a medication was taken. The present invention may include programmable timer enclosed in a plastic lid with buttons that allow the programming to create a schedule (once a day at 9 am, four times a day at 8 am, noon, 4 pm, and 8 pm, etc.)
The intelligent vial lid may contain the equivalent of a wrist watch with multiple timers that can be programmatically set. When it is time for a patient to take medication, the lid may know the time of day it is, the time of day to alert the patient, the quantity or number of tablets or ounces of liquid that are to be administered, and deduct that quantity from the originally loaded quantity. In normal daily use, a patient taking a one tablet medication twice a day might open the vial at 9 am to take a morning dose and at 9 pm to take an evening dose. If the original dispense quantity was a one month supply, 60 tablets or capsules would be in the vial. After the 9 am does, a counter may either automatically or manually deduct “1” from the counter to 59, after the 9 pm dose, the counter would state “58” tablets remaining and so on. The intelligent lid may also alert the client when they need to reorder the medication if refills are available.
Referring to 1 through 5, the present invention includes a medication administration tracker. The medication administration tracker includes a medication container, such as an IV bag, vitamin organizer, prescription bottle and the like. If the present invention is a prescription bottle, a lid 10 is releasably securable to the bottle 28. The present invention may include at least one indicator 12, 24 configured to produce an indication when prompted. A time keeper 25 and a processor 26 are integrated into the lid 10. The time keeper 25 and the processor 26 may be part of the same device or separate components. The time keeper 25 keeps time and the processor 26 is operatively connected to the indicator 12, 24 and the time keeper 25. The processor 26 is programmable to receive at least a dosage time and activate the indicator 12, 24 when the time keeper 25 reaches the dosage time. The present invention may be powered by a battery.
In certain embodiments, the indicator 12, 24 may include a speaker 12. Therefore, when the dosage time has been reached a sound may be emitted from the speaker 12. The indicator 12, 24 may further include a light 24. Therefore, when the dosage time has been reached the light 24 may be activated. In certain embodiments, the present invention may include a remote indicator. In such embodiments, the processor 26 may include a wireless transmitter operable to connect with and produce the indication on the remote device. For example, the wireless transmitter may be Bluetooth® which communicates with a smart device, such as a phone, and produces an indicator, such as a text message.
The present invention may further include a display 14. The display 14 may be operatively connected to the time keeper 25 and the processor 26 and may produce at least the current time and the dosage time. The time keeper 25 may also keep track of the day, month and year. Therefore, the display 14 may further produce the date.
The processor 26 may be operable to receive additional data to enhance the functionality of the lid 10. In certain embodiments, the processor 26 is programmable to receive a total medication amount 30 and a dosage amount. Therefore, the user may enter the total amount of pills in the bottle 28 and the amount of pills to take for each dosage. In certain embodiments, the processor 26 may update the total medication amount 30 when the time keeper 25 reaches the dosage time. The total medication amount 30 is changed and produced on the display so the user knows how much medication is left within the bottle 28.
The present invention may further include a plurality of buttons to operate the time keeper 25 and processor 26. For example, navigation buttons 22 and a program button 16 may be used to set the time, enter the dosage time, enter the dosage amount, enter the medication amount, and the like. In certain embodiments, the present invention may include an ignore button 18 operatively connected to the processor 26. In such embodiments, when the time keeper 25 reaches the dosage time, the ignore button 18 is activated if the user chooses not to update the medication amount. Further, the present invention may include an enter button 20 in order to indicate medication has been taken and to update the medication amount.
A method of using the present invention is demonstrated in the flow chart of
It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing relates to exemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20160199261 A1 | Jul 2016 | US |