Patent Application
20090032547
This application relates to a pill holder/dispenser. More specifically, this application relates to a pill holder/dispenser that may incorporate multiple safety features.
Many pill holders/dispensers incorporate multiple safety features. Nevertheless, there is always a trade-off between greater safety and ease-of-use.
It would be desirable to incorporate one or more safety features into a pill holder/dispenser without substantially adversely affecting the ease-of-use of the holder/dispenser.
It is an object of the invention to incorporate one or more safety features into a pill holder/dispenser—alternatively referred to herein as a pill container—without substantially adversely affecting the ease-of-use of the holder/dispenser.
A pill holder/dispenser according to the invention is provided. The pill holder/dispenser includes a housing comprising a plurality of apertures and a top button. In response to actuation of the top button a pill is caused to be dispensed from the pill holder/dispenser. The pill holder/dispenser also includes two side buttons. The side buttons may project through the apertures in the housing. Furthermore, the side buttons lock the top button such that the top button may only be actuated when the two side buttons are depressed.
It should be noted that invention may includes a pill holder/dispenser and pills inside such a dispenser. Such pills according to the invention may be any pills that are specified in die FDA Orange Book for approved medications.
The objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters refer to like parts throughout, and in which:
The invention is directed to a pill container that may dispense pills in response to actuation of three buttons in a predetermined sequence. In one embodiment of the invention, the sequence may require depressing two side buttons in order to unlock a top button. Thereafter, or substantially simultaneously thereto, the top button may be actuated and, in response, a pill may be dispensed. When a pill is dispensed, certain embodiments of the invention preferably cause a counter to be changed such that the number of pills that have been dispensed is recorded.
One embodiment of the invention includes a pill hook that restrains the pill from exiting an aperture in a housing of the holder until the top button is actuated. Before the top button is actuated, a distal edge of the pill hook forms a narrow corridor with a projection on the internal portion of the housing of the pill holder/dispenser. As long as the top button is not actuated, this corridor is too narrow for the pill to pass through. When the top button is actuated, the distal end of the pill hook moves away from the projection and, in one embodiment of the invention, widens the pill corridor within the housing. The wider corridor allows the pill to move below the projection, into a cavity in the housing, and then to be ejected out of the aperture in the housing.
In certain embodiments of the invention, the housing may be formed to incorporate a cartridge that is adapted to he pulled out and refilled with pills. Alternatively, the cartridge may be sealed within the housing such that the pill holder/dispenser is a disposable item that is filled with a certain predetermined number of pills and discarded after use. In such embodiments, a number of such disposable packages may be combined in a single aggregation or package to provide a certain predetermined dose over a period of time that extends longer than the number of pills in a single package is adapted to contain.
Tray 104 may be covered by aluminum cover 106. It should be noted that cover 106 may be implemented with any suitable material. In this embodiment, sealable plastic tray 104 and cover 106 may aid stability of the stored pill holder/dispenser. Furthermore, an embodiment of the invention including cover 106 may provide additional space for showing information relating to the packaged device and/or medication.
Furthermore, in certain embodiments of the invention, counter 306 may only be actuated when top button 302 is actuated. As such, counter 306 is only actuated when a pill is dispensed from holder/dispenser 300.
The holder/dispenser in
While holder/dispenser 400 is shown with a removable cartridge 402, nevertheless holder/dispenser may be formed as a unitary, sealed, preferably disposable device. As such, a user would not have access to the cartridge but would be presented with a number of disposable devices according to the invention, each of which incorporates a certain number of pills or other appropriate medicines.
When pill hook 502 is actuated in a downward motion with respect to housing 500, the open portion of hook 502 moves downward with respect to projection 504 and engages a portion of cavity 506. As a result, pill 503 begins to fill cavity and to pass by projection 504. In this sense, the pill channel is moving down, and opening as the top button is pressed.
With respect to
The three stages shown in
In alternative embodiments of the invention, the pill attributes such as various pill metrics including height, width, and depth may drive the overall size of the actual device. Additionally, the “counting” functionality may be customized for a particular brand need. Furthermore, the dispensing mechanism as disclosed herein may be tailored to a pill form factor.
One additional feature of the invention includes the sealable pack which may provide stability and protection from collision issues. Finally, the flat areas provide significant brand billboards for brand identification.
Thus, systems and methods for according to the invention have been provided. Persons skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention can be practiced by other than the described embodiments, which are presented for purposes of illustration rather than of limitation, and the present invention is limited only by the claims which follow.
