Patent Application
20250201376
The present invention relates to smart medication delivery systems, specifically improved electronic fluid dispensers incorporating sensing, digitization, dosage control and connectivity. The invention discloses novel syringes with integrated sensors, motors, displays and data capabilities enhancing legacy devices for radically advanced accuracy, usability, waste reduction and patient compliance monitoring to provide the next level in safe, effective smart liquid medication dosage.
Liquid medication dosage delivery devices such as syringes and droppers have existed for over a century, providing a simple mechanism to draw and dispense precise fluid medication volumes. While many advances have improved drug efficacy, the core fluid dispensing methods remain relatively unchanged until the arrival of smart ‘connected’ medical devices. As such, existing dispensing techniques and technology have critical limitations that impact accuracy, ease-of-use, waste and compliance-ultimately reducing treatment effectiveness.
While the medical syringe market alone is estimated to generate $9.24 billion by 2028, the existing syringe technology landscape provides insufficient accuracy and precision in liquid measurement capabilities for optimal treatment. Both the more primitive glass and disposable plastic syringes rely on imprecise manual measurement via visual alignment with printed scaling. This ad-hoc technique introduces significant margin of human error and inability to control dispensed amounts, with volume readings often inaccurate by over 10%. Such imprecision leads directly to the critical medical challenge of accidental under and overdosing, causing treatment ineffectiveness or patient harm.
Furthermore, existing syringes require good manual dexterity and strength for smooth plunging motion to suction and dispense liquids. This poses severe difficulties in operation by children, elderly and disabled users with limited strength or motor control. The associated lack of ergonomic considerations reduces system usability and accessibility for a significant demographic of end users.
Additionally, with no integrated dosage guidance, users must manually refer to prescription guidelines to set the appropriate medication amounts. This is cognitively burdensome and error-prone, again increasing chances of incorrect dosage. There also exists no digitized data capture of dispensed amounts, preventing detailed tracking of patient medicine intake for compliance monitoring and improvement.
While ‘smart’ syringes using modern sensors, motors and electronics exist in academic studies, these have yet to reach commercial viability and mass adoption. As such there remains a strong unmet market need to enhance the legacy syringe with integrated digital enhancements to transform accuracy, user experience, waste and data connectivity. Tremendous opportunity exists to reinvent this age-old device via sensors, displays, connectivity and dosage helpers. By intelligently bridging the analog and digital worlds the smart syringe can provide the next leap in safe, effective medication delivery.
The following summary is an explanation of some of the general inventive steps for the invention in the description. This summary is not an extensive overview of the invention and does not intend to limit its scope beyond what is described and claimed as a summary.
In some aspects thereof, the present invention discloses a smart digitally-integrated syringe system to transform legacy devices for significantly enhanced medication fluid dispensation accuracy, ergonomics, dosage control and monitoring. A novel reusable syringe is introduced comprising integrated sensors, motors, display and data exchange capabilities.
In another aspect, a scanner reads unique medicine prescription code labels, identifying the precise required dosage for automated syringe volumetric control. The scanner communicates detected dosage data to the syringe's control circuitry. This innovative optical recognition and control system ensures accurate, personalized medicine quantities are dispensed adapted per patient needs, significantly improving dosing precision over imprecise manual techniques prone to human error.
Further improving ease-of-use, an ergonomic thumb-press enables smooth one-handed operation for children or motion-impaired users. This alleviates manual force and dexterity challenges existing devices pose. The syringe nozzle also detaches for simplified washing, fitted with recyclable biopolymer tips reducing medical plastic waste.
Additionally featured is a digital fluid measurement system constituting vacuum chamber fluid displacement sensors and electronic control circuitry. It precisely gauges suctioned liquid volumes, displaying the value on a backlit panel for user verification. This enhances volume visibility and calibration, augmenting basic manual physical scale readings.
In a non-limiting embodiment, a dosage control system also intelligently limits fluid draw volumes per the scanned prescription code data for accurate, personalized dispensation. This prevents potentially dangerous ad-hoc estimates or overfill. Further, all dispensed amounts are digitally logged on device memory interfacing with patient medical records. This enables intelligent medication compliance tracking and pattern analysis for usage monitoring and improvement.
In a non-limiting aspect, the integrated technological enhancements transform primitive analog syringes into smart, precise, ergonomic liquid medication delivery systems. The inventive scanner, sensors, display and connectivity establish the next generation of safe, effective medical fluid dispensers advancing patient wellbeing.
The novel features believed to be characteristic of the illustrative embodiments are set forth in the appended claims. The illustrative embodiments, however, as well as a preferred mode of use, further objectives and descriptions thereof, will best be understood by reference to the following detailed description of one or more illustrative embodiments of the present disclosure when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
Hereinafter, the preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail and reference made to the accompanying drawings. The terminologies or words used in the description and the claims of the present invention should not be interpreted as being limited merely to their common and dictionary meanings. On the contrary, they should be interpreted based on the meanings and concepts of the invention in keeping with the scope of the invention based on the principle that the inventor(s) can appropriately define the terms in order to describe the invention in the best way.
It is to be understood that the form of the invention shown and described herein is to be taken as a preferred embodiment of the present invention, so it does not express the technical spirit and scope of this invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that various changes and modifications may be made to the invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.
The non-limiting embodiment according to
The nozzle houses an electronically-controlled non-return valve system (102). In a preferred embodiment, contemporary mechanical valves demonstrating sticking from medication residue buildup are upgraded with premium electroactive polymer actuators for reliable sensitive response. Controlled by device circuitry, this intelligently governs fluid inlet/outflow.
Preferably, the components are encased in a watertight ergonomic enclosure (103), maximizing grip comfort. In some preferable aspects, human factor studies determine optimal grip shapes suiting diverse hand anthropometrics. In a preferred aspect, the enclosure dynamically senses handling, heating/cooling for comfort.
Within is a vacuum chamber (104) partially evacuated to enable fluid suction powered by an electric motor compressed spring assembly. The spring syringe subclass is selected over manual variants for its superior ergonomics from electronically-assisted operational force reduction. It may be preferred to enable multiple, separate doses to be pre-filled into detachable chambers in advance for later dispensing convenience. As such, according to one non-limiting aspect, the chamber may comprise a suitably-shaped container that screw-interlocks with the nozzle assembly via an integrated threaded male connection mating a female threaded receptor. Such a threaded junction may integrate raised chevroned gaskets on both components, enabling a tight irrotational seal when fully connected.
As an example, an empty chamber module twists into the nozzle loading position and the plunger automatically draws in a calibrated dose based on the scanned prescription. When filled, the chamber rigidly detaches by unscrewing while remaining fluid-enclosed via an integrated non-return valve impeder. The non-return valve may comprise a passive spring-loaded conical stopper only permitting inward fluid flow. Multiple filled chambers be accumulated ready for use. Subsequently when dispensation is required, a selected prefilled chamber module simply twists back onto the nozzle receptacle, the non-return valve easily opening upon reattachment to enable bidirectional flow. The extendable dispensing button fully depresses the chamber internal plunger evacuating contents through the nozzle under precise volumetric control.
The limiting link (105) sets the permissible range of motion of the plunger (106), regulating the maximum travel distance and dispensed fluid amount. It mechanically interconnects the plunger, press and controller cap components while allowing detachment for service. Depending on syringe calibration flexibility requirements, the limiting link can comprise fixed rigid bodies to strictly govern motion, or incorporate tool-adjusted screw assemblies to enable adjustable dosing control.
The plunger (106) displaces a precise fluid volume dictated by the controlled linear actuation. Integrated sensing elements within the plunger measure its displacement and the corresponding volume of liquid transferred, feeding sensor data to the control circuit for closed-loop feedback dosage metering. While typically plastic-based as in legacy art, the plunger can alternatively employ ceramic, metallic or more exotic materials that meet dimensional stability, chemical resilience and manufacturability constraints.
The press (108) and plunger (106) interface via a low-friction connector (107) allowing sliding action for smooth linear actuation yet permitting detachment for maintenance. The connector employs slippery materials such as Teflon at the interfacing surfaces to mitigate wear from repeated actuator strokes. Internally, the press houses motors and control hardware to govern plunger motion, enabling precise electronically-controlled fluid amounts. Embedded force sensors provide feedback mitigating excessive insertion pressures, preventing patient harm.
The controller cap (109) adjusts the plunger travel range through height calibration, increasing or lowering dispensed volumes. Manual finger manipulation or assisted tool-based actuation options exist for precision setting. The integrated limit screw (110) transfers these adjusted displacement thresholds to the limiting link (105). A detachable coupler (111) allows convenient controller cap rotation then rigidly fixes elements post-calibration to resist displacement during syringe operation.
Fluid volume measurement and calibrated dosing is enabled by an integrated sensor-assisted plunger (106) and link mechanism (105). Optical, ultrasound or laser time-of-flight fluid level sensors feed data to control circuitry, enabling precise volumetric metering. Stepper motors allow electronically configurable travel distance to meet prescribed amounts.
In another aspect,
In some aspects, embedded barcode data particularly provides unique fluid identifiers, while code database look-ups enable extraction of medication instructions and parameters from remote digital datasets in vendor EHR systems. These instruct syringe control circuitry of required dosage amounts for a given patient fill prescription. Barcode uptake across pharmaceuticals presently exceeds 80% enabling broad applicability.
Control circuits manipulate embedded micro-controllers, data converters, memory and I/O hardware resources to orchestrate device behaviors based on scanned data inputs. Micro-controllers govern core functions from fluid sensing, pumping, valves and user interfaces while maintaining safe operating thresholds. Circuits integrate valve/pump actuation and measurements from displacement and pressure sensors to enforce proper fill levels. User interface provides confirmation and any manual dosage adjustment if required.
Positively, the embodiment of
Further, the non-limiting embodiment of
Also shown is the power button (115) allowing manual activation and deactivation of device functionality alongside sleep/wake modes for energy efficiency. The integrated digital panel (116) and display circuit (117) work in conjunction to show measured fluid amounts on graphical user interfaces intelligible at a glance. Sizeable LED or LCD screens with high contrast ratios allow legibility for those with visual impairments. Touch capabilities are also increasingly integrated for enhanced convenience and utility.
Further,
The ergonomic press (108) has been purposefully contoured and sized for convenient single-handed thumb operation by users with limited strength and motor control like children. No manual squeezing or high force required compared to incumbent devices. The control cap (109) employs a quick turn coupler (111) for tool-less volume limit adjustment then rigid locking at desired calibration. Overall the embodiment discloses both assistive and sustainability oriented advances easing adoption across wider demographic groups.
The last shown embodiment according to
Subsequently, the user presents a medication bottle imprinted with encoded dosage data to the scanner window a process step 119. Optical sensors capture label imagery for machine vision processing to extract embedded product identifiers, drug names and dosage parameters into digital variables. Cloud database lookups further enrich medicine metadata as needed.
Further, extracted dosage data automatically configures permissible displacement limits imposed on the plunger pump assembly matched to precise amounts required a process step 120. This prevents potentially dangerous overfills beyond required quantities. The user then immerses the nozzle tip and presses the ergonomic button to trigger automated plunger retraction governed to the configured fill limit for safety. Integrated flow sensors measure intake for graphical display feedback.
Even further, internal mechanical switches toggle configuring the system from the intake phase into a calibrated dispensation phase. The user targets the recipient mouth region and hits the trigger initiating smooth automated plunger actuation calibrated not to over-dispense in a process step 121. Exact pre-configured amounts get reliably delivered.
In some aspects, all sensor measurements and operational events get logged locally a process step 122 for periodic synchronization to patient records, enabling fluid intake analytics. Nozzle sterilization reminder alarms also activate before the user powers down the device in a process step 123 into a dormant low power state, maximizing operation intervals between charges.
Embodiments of the smart syringe may utilize a variety of materials for constructing the external housing and internal components interfacing with the dispensed fluids when in operation. Materials are selected for mechanical properties enabling reliable precise function including dimensional stability, resilience to wear and chemical corrosion.
Alternative embodiments may selectively specify different materials for key sub-assemblies based on specialized performance requirements. The nozzle assembly in particular necessitates bio-compatibility for extensive direct fluid contact. The controller housing however demands durability and toughness to protect delicate interior electronics.
Additional embodiments also encompass smart syringes producible in a multiplicity of sizes, capacities and ergonomic shapes matched to usage scenarios from home healthcare to professional clinical settings. Configurability also suits variable hand sizes across potential consumer demographics including children and elderly with limited grip strengths.
Method alternatives extend to mechanical, adhesive or socketed fixturing of syringe components to ensure proper alignment, assembly and precision tolerance conformance during manufacturing procedures. Quality assurance processes further verify sensor calibration, control accuracy and fluid flow precision prior batch release.
The applicant intends to encompass all such obvious alternative designs, modifications and enhancements tailored for this smart syringe application that build on the core inventive concepts disclosed. References to singular terms are meant to additionally encompass plural forms, and vice versa, unless explicitly stated otherwise. Grammatical conjunctions denote both conjunctive and disjunctive combinations, unless otherwise evident from the context.
The disclosed invention has broad applicability across the global healthcare industry for enhanced delivery and tracking of liquid medications. Its integrated precision fluid measurement, automated dosage control and sensor-basedlogging capabilities transform safety and transparency in medical fluid dispensation over primitive manual techniques. Industrial markets ranging from hospital pharmacies to home healthcare providers can incorporate these next-generation smart syringes improving dosing accuracy, user experience and medicine compliance monitoring-ultimately advancing patient outcomes through modern technology integration with incumbent devices. The invention also paves way for further smart medical instrument advancements interfacing biology, electronics and informatics.
