Thumb/Fingerprint Activated Pill Dispenser Patent Application (2025)

U.S. patent application number 12/043208 was filed with the patent office on 2009-09-10 for thumb/fingerprint activated pill dispenser. Invention is credited to George E. Getz.

Thumb/Fingerprint Activated Pill Dispenser

Abstract

A pill container/dispenser that includes fingerprint recognitioncircuitry located in a cap associated therewith. The cap is lockedon the container and no pill can be dispensed from the containerwithout first moving the cap. When a person places their thumb onthe cap of the pill dispenser, a computer chip reads thethumbprint. If the person is an authorized user, the cap will beunlocked from the container and released so a pill can be dispensedfrom the container. If the fingerprint is not recognized, the capwill remain locked in position so that no dispensing will occur.Furthermore, if the computer chip recognizes tampering, such as acontinued effort to remove the cap by a non-authorized user, achemical spray is sprayed from the cap into the container. Thespray will dilute or destroy the potency of the pills remaining inthe container.

 PAUL R. MARTIN 5333 BAYRIDGE COURT FAIRFIELD CA 94534 US

Claims

1. A pill container/dispenser comprising: A) a body adapted tostore pills and which includes (1) a sidewall having an openingdefined at one end thereof, (2) a pill-dispensing channel definedin the sidewall, and (3) a pill-dispensing opening defined by thepill-dispensing channel; and B) a cap which is releasably mountedon the body to overlie the opening the sidewall when in use, thecap including (1) a body portion that fits over the opening in thesidewall when the cap is in place on the body, (2) a projectionthat fits over the pill-dispensing opening in the pill-dispensingchannel when the cap is in place on the body to prevent pillspassing through the pill-dispensing opening when the cap is inplace on the body, (3) a locking mechanism which locks the cap inplace on the body when activated, (4) a locking mechanism controlsystem which de-activates the locking mechanism when desired, thecontrol system including (a) a thumb clamp on the cap, and (b) athumbprint recognition system connecting the thumb clamp to thelocking mechanism, the thumbprint recognition system beingoperative to de-activate the locking mechanism when an authorizeduser places his thumb on the thumb clamp to permit the cap to bemoved to allow dispensing of pills from the body.

2. The pill container/dispenser defined in claim 1 wherein the capfurther includes a spray system that sprays liquid onto pillsstored in the body when a non-authorized user attempts to removethe cap from the body.

3. The pill container/dispenser defined in claim 2 wherein thespray system includes a reservoir, a pump and a spray nozzle.

4. The pill container/dispenser defined in claim 1 where thethumbprint recognition system includes a memory adapted to storeprescription schedule of the pills, the thumbprint recognitionsystem dispensing the pills according to the prescription schedulestored in the memory.

5. The pill container/dispenser defined in claim 1 wherein the bodyis translucent.

6. A pill container/dispenser comprising: A) a body adapted tostore pills therein; B) a cap covering the body when in use toprevent pills from being dispensed from the body; C) a lockingmechanism locking the cap to the body in a covering position whenactivated; and D) a control system in the cap which includes printreading circuitry which reads a print of a finger or thumb of aperson attempting to move the cap out of the covering position, thecontrol system being connected to the locking mechanism anddeactivating the locking mechanism when the person attempting tomove the cap out of the covering position is an authorizeduser.

7. The pill container/dispenser defined in claim 6 wherein the capfurther includes a spray system that sprays liquid onto pillsstored in the body when a non-authorized user attempts to removethe cap from the body.

8. The pill container/dispenser defined in claim 7 wherein thespray system is connected to the control system in the cap.

9. The pill container/dispenser defined in claim 6 wherein thecontrol system includes a memory adapted to store prescriptionschedule of the pills, the control system adapted to dispense thepills according to the prescription schedule stored in the memory.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates generally to a pill dispenser,and more particularly, to a pill dispenser incorporating lockingmeans for preventing the dispensing of a pill there from until thelocking means is released.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] A tablet is a mixture of active substances and recipients,usually in powder form, pressed or compacted into a solid. Theexcipients include binders, glidants and lubricants to ensureefficient tabletting; disintegrants to ensure that the tabletbreaks up in the digestive tract; sweeteners or flavors to mask thetaste of bad-tasting active ingredients; and pigments to makeuncoated tablets visually attractive. A coating may be applied tohide the taste of the tablet's components, to make the tabletsmoother and easier to swallow, and to make it more resistant tothe environment, as a result, extending its shelf life.

[0003] Medicines to be taken orally are often supplied in tabletform. Medicinal tablets and capsules are often called pills. Otherproducts that are manufactured in the form of tablets, and designedto dissolve or disintegrate, include cleaning and deodorizingproducts.

[0004] Medicinal tablets are usually intended to be swallowed, and,as a result, are a suitable size and shape. Tablets for otherpurposes, such as effervescent medicinal tablets and non-medicinaltablets, may be larger.

[0005] Medicinal tablets were originally made in the shape of adisk of whatever color their components determined, but are nowmade in many shapes and colors to help users to distinguish betweendifferent medicines they take. Tablets are often stamped withsymbols, letters, and numbers, which enable them to be identified.Sizes of tablets made to be swallowed, range from a few millimetersto about a centimeter. Some tablets are in the shape of capsules,and are thus called "caplets".

[0006] When Tylenol.RTM. capsules were laced with cyanide, manypeople stopped buying capsules because they are easy tocontaminate. They instead bought tablets, which are not. Somemakers of over-the-counter drugs responded by making "caplets",which are tablets made in the shape of a capsule. Tablets are oftenscored to allow them to be easily broken into equal halves forsmaller doses. Some people have difficulty swallowing tablets, thisis called dysphagia. This is often caused by a gag reflex.

[0007] The usage of medication in the form of pills to regain andmaintain physical and mental health, and the selection,application, and potency of prescription medications, has increasedwith the advancement of medical science. Likewise, self-taking ofprescribed medications by individuals has also increased over theyears. This is especially true in instances when medication can betaken in the home to combat diseases or conditions, which, in thepast required/allowed user to be hospitalized. With the decrease inthe amount of time patients are required to be hospitalized, theself-administration of complex medication without propersupervision has drastically increased. Unfortunately, the adverseeffect to a patient who has either improperly taken the correctdosage of medication or who has overdosed on the medication hasalso increased.

[0008] Cases are well documented in every community of medicationoverdose, misuse, and abuse. These unfortunate actions can lead tovarious adverse effects on the user's life, as well as thoseassociated with the user, including health risks, personal andsocial upheaval, reaction, addiction, deceit, fraud and loss of anormal functioning life, such as maintaining a job, caring forfamily and other basic responsibilities. Non-compliance withself-administered medication schedules is a costly health careproblem, which results in increased hospital visits and stays.While a high percentage of those who misuse medications wouldqualify as high risk, i.e., those with former or current substanceabuse or substance addiction issues, those not considered high riskcan succumb to the same problems innocently, as they are prescribeduse of a highly addictive substance, narcotic, or equivalentprescription, to deal with pain, sleep related problems, depressionor other heath issues.

[0009] Such risk of addiction concerns prescribing doctors,pharmacists and manufacturers because the risk of misuse andaddiction may be more harmful than the condition being addressed.Doctors may under-prescribe to the patient out of such concerns,lessoning the positive effects and attributes that the prescribedmedication could provide if taken properly. Free access to a bottleof highly potent, addictive, habit forming medication, can put thephysician and the user in an uncomfortable, possibly compromisingsituation.

[0010] The importance of avoiding complications by employingpreventive procedures such as the use of intelligent pilldispensers for home use has increased. Present pill devices,however are not well suited for such demanding applications.

[0011] In the past these problems were addressed by designing morefunctions into the device, increasing complexity and cost.Generally, prior home dispensing systems typically are large insize, not readily portable, and do not provide a relative costeffective and easy mechanism to dispense medication. Filling andrefilling may require in-home assistance. Transfer and loading ofmedications by home caregivers rather than a pharmacist introducesthe possibility of medication identification errors. By design manyof these devices were intended to be provided and supervised bytrained caregivers and require monitoring and maintenance. Some ofthe complexities and functions of these devices include multipledoses in a single compartment, user or caregiver loading of dosecompartments, computer programming, computer interfacing, multiplealarm sets, multiple timer set functions, event recording andmonitoring, remote monitoring, and audio and visual alarms. Thesecapabilities are labor intensive, timely, and costly.

[0012] In contrast, simplified devices provide help in maintainingdose schedules but generally lack adequate overdose protectionfeatures. Therefore, there is a need for a method, process, andsystem that allows user access to the medication only at prescribedintervals anywhere the user is situated, yet simple and smallenough to maintain inexpensive manufacturing costs. Beneficially,such an apparatus, and system would provide drug manufacturers,prescribing physicians and pharmacies with a level of confidencethat the intended use of the medication will be complied with andwould provide the user with a compact dispenser that ensures acertain level of protection from possible misuse, dependence oraddiction.

[0013] The problem of restricting the access of infants to medicinebottles is well known. In response to a developing problem ofaccidental poisonings of infants by household prescription drugsresulted in the substantially universal use of child-proof closuresdesigned to frustrate opening of the container by infants and smallchildren. Commonly utilized designs of such child-proof closuresinclude caps that are required to be aligned in a specificrotational orientation to permit opening, caps that requiredownward pressure on the top of the cap to engage an inner cap forthe necessary unscrewing rotations, or to release the cap from alocking device. While many of these known child-proof closuredesigns are reasonably effective for their primary intendedpurposes, an unwanted side effect has been to make the medicinecontainers difficult for many adults to open, particularly theelderly, persons with poor eyesight or physical problems with theirhands, for example. A result of this is that, in many households,adults who have difficulty opening "child-proof" containers, maytend to simply remove the caps and leave the bottle open, totallydefeating the purpose of providing the child-proof closure in thefirst place. The problem currently is recognized as becomingincreasingly serious because of a demographic trend forgrandparents and grandchildren to be living in the samehouseholds.

[0014] In the tablet-pressing process, it is important that allingredients be fairly dry, powdered or granular, somewhat uniformin particle size, and freely flowing. Mixed particle sized powderscan segregate due to operational vibrations, which can result intablets with poor drug or active pharmaceutical ingredient (API)content uniformity. Content uniformity ensures that the same APIdose is delivered with each tablet.

[0015] Some APIs may be tabulated as pure substances, but this israrely the case; most formulations include excipients. Normally, aninactive ingredient (excipient) termed a binder, is added to helphold the tablet together and give it strength. A wide variety ofbinders may be used, some common ones including lactose powder,dibasic calcium phosphate, sucrose, corn starch, microcrystallinecellulose, and modified cellulose.

[0016] Often, an ingredient is also needed to act as a disintegrantthat hydrates readily in water to aid tablet dispersion onceswallowed, releasing the API for absorption. Some binders, such asstarch and cellulose, are also excellent disintegrants. Smallamounts of lubricants are usually added, as well. The most commonof these is magnesium stearate; however, other commonly used tabletlubricants include stearic acid, hydrogenated oil, and sodiumstearyl fumarate. These help the tablets, once pressed, to be moreeasily ejected from the die.

[0017] Many tablets today are coated after being pressed. Althoughsugar-coating was popular in the past, the process has manydrawbacks. Modem tablet coatings are polymer and polysaccharidebased, with plasticizers and pigments included. Tablet coatingsmust be stable and strong enough to survive the handling of thetablet, must not make tablets stick together during the coatingprocess, and must follow the fine contours of embossed characters,or logos on tablets.

[0018] Coatings can also facilitate printing on tablets, ifrequired. Coatings are necessary for tablets that have anunpleasant taste, and a smoother finish makes large tablets easierto swallow. Tablet coatings are also useful to extend theshelf-life of components that are sensitive to moisture oroxidation. Opaque materials like titanium dioxide can protectlight-sensitive actives from photodegradation. Special coatings canalso enhance brand recognition.

[0019] If the active ingredient of a tablet is sensitive to acid,or is an irritant to the stomach lining, an enteric coating can beused, which is resistant to stomach acid and dissolves in the highpH of the intestines. Enteric coatings are also used for medicinesthat can be negatively affected by taking a long time to reach thesmall intestine where they are absorbed. Coatings are often chosento control the rate of dissolution of the drug in thegastrointestinal tract.

[0020] Some drugs will be absorbed better at different points inthe digestive system. If the highest percentage of absorption of adrug takes place in the stomach, a coating that dissolves quicklyand easily in acid will be selected. If the rate of absorption isbest in the large intestine or colon, a coating that is acidresistant and dissolves slowly would be used to ensure it reachedthat point before dispersing. The area of the gastro-intestinaltract with the best absorption for any particular drug is usuallydetermined by clinical trials.

[0021] Tablet presses, also called tabletting machines, range fromsmall, inexpensive bench-top models that make one tablet at a time,to large, computerized, industrial models that can make hundreds ofthousands to millions of tablets an hour with much greaterpressure. Some tablet presses can make extremely large tablets,such as some of the toilet cleaning and deodorizing products, ordishwasher soap.

[0022] Others can make smaller tablets, from regular aspirin, tosome the size of a BB gun pellet. Tablet presses may also be usedto form tablets out of a wide variety of materials, from powderedmetals to cookie crumbs. The tablet press is an essential piece ofmachinery for any pharmaceutical and nutraceuticalmanufacturer.

[0023] It is sometimes necessary to split tablets into halves orquarters. Tablets are easier to break accurately if scored, butthere are devices called pill-splitters which cut unscored andscored tablets. Tablets with special coatings should not be brokenbefore use, as this will expose the tablet core to the digestivejuices, short-circuiting the intended delayed-release effect. Thereis a need for a means to prevent the stealing, selling, and abuseof pills by popping out one pill at a time out of a dispenser.

[0024] A problem with many previous pill dispensers is thatchildren can gain access to the pills contained therein. Anunsupervised child might consume pills which would be detrimentalto his or her health. Other pill and tablet dispensers in the pasthave incorporated child-resistant features to make it moredifficult for a child to open the container. However, thesechild-resistant features often make access too difficult for theintended user. It is a further object of this invention to providea child-resistant locking mechanism for pill and tablet dispensers,which would provide ready access for adults.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0025] These, and other objects, are achieved by a pillcontainer/dispenser which comprises: a body adapted to store pillstherein; a cap covering the body when in use to prevent pills frombeing dispensed from the body; a locking mechanism locking the capto the body in a covering position when activated; and a controlsystem in the cap which includes print reading circuitry whichreads a print of a finger or thumb of a person attempting to movethe cap out of the covering position, the control system beingconnected to the locking mechanism and deactivating the lockingmechanism when the person attempting to move the cap out of thecovering position is an authorized user. If the fingerprint is notrecognized, the cap will remain locked in position so that nodispensing will occur. Furthermore, if the computer chip recognizestampering, such as a continued effort to remove the cap by anon-authorized user, a chemical spray is sprayed from the cap intothe container. The spray will dilute or destroy the potency of thepills remaining in the container.

[0026] Using the device of the present invention will prevent theselling of pills in bulk amounts, there would likely be nomistaking another pill for the one that is supposed to be taken,and if someone has suicidal thoughts by taking pills, they may bedeterred by the features of the container embodying the principlesof the present invention.

[0027] Other systems, methods, features, and advantages of theinvention will be, or will become, apparent to one with skill inthe art upon examination of the following figure and detaileddescription. It is intended that all such additional systems,methods, features, and advantages be included within thisdescription, be within the scope of the invention, and be protectedby the following claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURE

[0028] The invention can be better understood with reference to thefollowing drawing and description. The components in the figure arenot necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed uponillustrating the principles of the invention. Moreover, in thefigure, like referenced numerals designate corresponding partsthroughout the different views.

[0029] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a pill container/dispenserembodying the principles of the present invention.

[0030] FIG. 2 represents a circuit diagram of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0031] Other objects, features and advantages of the invention willbecome apparent from a consideration of the following detaileddescription and the accompanying drawing.

[0032] Referring to the figure, it can be understood that theprinciples of the present invention is embodied in a pillcontainer/dispenser 10 which comprises a body 12 that includes acylindrical sidewall 14 that can be translucent if suitable, afirst wall 16 that is a bottom wall when the device is in a useorientation such as shown in FIG. 1, and an open mouth 20 that isdefined by a rim 22 to which a cap 30 is releasably attached. Acylindrical dispenser pill-dispensing channel 40 is defined on oneportion of the sidewall and extends between the first wall and therim and terminates in a pill-dispensing opening 42 that isco-planar with the open mouth of the sidewall. Pills, or the like,are stored in body 12 for dispensing as needed.

[0033] Cap 30 includes a circular body 50 and an arcuate projection52, with the body being shaped and sized to be releasably mountedon rim 22 with projection 52 being shaped, sized and positioned tooverlie mouth 42 when the cap is in place on body 12 to closeopening 42 and prevent pills stored in the device from passing outof the device via the opening 42 or via mouth 20. Cap 30 furtherincludes a locking mechanism 60 which locks the cap to the bodywhen activated, and which unlocks the cap sufficiently to uncoveropening 42 when de-activated. Locking mechanism 60 includes a bolt62 which moves out of a channel in the cap to abut sidewall 14adjacent to rim 22 when the mechanism is activated and to move intothe channel out of abutment with the sidewall when the mechanism isde-activated. In this manner, mechanism 60 will lock the cap ontothe body when activated and will permit the cap to move whende-activated.

[0034] As illustrated in FIG. 2, mechanism 60 is controlled by afingerprint-recognition system 64 that includes a circuit 66electrically connected to locking mechanism 60 and to a thumb clamp68 in a manner such that when a user places his or her thumb onclamp 68, the thumbprint is read by circuit 66, and if the user isauthorized, the print will be approved and the locking mechanismwill be de-activated and cap 30 can be moved in a manner to uncoveropening 42 and permit a pill, such as pill P, to be dispensed.Alternatively, if the thumbprint is not authorized, the lockingmechanism remains active to prevent moving the cap.

[0035] It is noted that details of the fingerprint recognitionsystems are known to those skilled in the art from disclosures suchas those found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,015,579, 7,023,319, 7,068,145,7,266,226, among others, with the disclosures of the just-mentionedpatents being incorporated herein by reference. The exact detailsof such mechanisms and systems are not important to this inventionand, as such, will not be presented or claimed.

[0036] Control circuit 66 may be electrically coupled to a memory67 to store prescription schedule of the pills stored in thedispenser 10. Before the pills in the dispenser 10 are given to apatient, the pharmacist or the doctor may store the prescriptionschedule to the memory 67. The prescription schedule may proscribethe number of fills that is/are to be dispensed within apredetermined amount of time. If a patient desires to take a pillfrom the dispenser 10, the patient places his or her finger on theclamp 68, and if the fingerprint matches, then the circuit 66determines if the instructions to dispense the pill is within theallowed time period, and if so the correct quantity of pill(s) maybe dispensed. As an example, if a doctor proscribes that one pillis to be taken every six hours, but if the patients places itsfinger print on the clamp before the next dispense period, then thecircuit 66 may not dispense the pill. On the other hand, if thepatient does not request a pill past the six hour period since thelast time the earlier pill was dispensed, then the circuit may givean alarm or give notice to the patient that the next pill needs tobe dispensed.

[0037] Cap 30 further includes a spray mechanism 70 electricallycoupled to control circuit 66, a reservoir 74 and a spray nozzle 76that is fluidically connected to the reservoir by a small pump 78.If the cap is tampered with by someone whose fingerprint is notrecognized by circuit 66, the circuit 66 activates the spraymechanism to turn on pump 78 to spray liquid onto the pills storedin the device to destroy or inactivate these pills to render themunusable to thwart the tampering. Again, the exact details of thespray mechanism and its control systems are not important to thisinvention and thus will not be disclosed or claimed.

[0038] While various embodiments of the invention have beendescribed, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in theart that many more embodiments and implementations are possiblewithin the scope of this invention. Accordingly, the invention isnot to be restricted except in light of the attached claims andtheir equivalents.

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