Article dispensing – With discharge assistant – Article adhering or gripping type
Patent
1993-12-06
1995-04-11
Olszewski, Robert P.
Article dispensing
With discharge assistant
Article adhering or gripping type
221 1, 221 7, 221 11, 221 17, 221 79, B65G 5904, B65H 308
Patent
active
054050480
ABSTRACT:
A vacuum operated system for individually dispensing items of oral solid medicine from bulk storage to a user, where the medicine is dispensed under computer control, and the quantity and type of medicine is selected in advance by the user. The invention includes medicine dispensing equipment and a computer that provides a user interface. A plurality of storage containers arranged in a rotatable carousel or a rectilinear array may contain various pharmaceutical articles, or various types, dosages, ages, and lot numbers of medicines. The storage containers may be easily refilled by inserting modular refill cartridges into the storage containers. After a user enters certain data into the computer, the invention aligns a universal vacuum probe with the storage container that contains the desired items. The universal vacuum probe is lowered to the desired storage container and engaged with a container probe that is exclusive to that storage container. After a vacuum source creates suction within the universal vacuum probe and the container probe, the universal vacuum probe and the container probe are operated to individually extract items from the storage container. In one embodiment, the extracted items are dispensed into a cup for retrieval by a user. In another embodiment, one or more items are packaged separately in an envelope, which is stored in a portable envelope-organizing tote along with other envelopes containing items requested by that user.
REFERENCES:
patent: 1962902 (1934-06-01), Kunath
patent: 3848112 (1974-11-01), Weichselbaum et al.
patent: 4018358 (1977-04-01), Johnson et al.
patent: 4664289 (1987-05-01), Shimizu et al.
patent: 4695954 (1987-09-01), Rose et al.
patent: 4697721 (1987-10-01), Johnson et al.
patent: 4717042 (1988-01-01), McLaughlin et al.
patent: 4785969 (1988-11-01), McLaughlin et al.
patent: 4967928 (1990-11-01), Carter
patent: 5014875 (1991-05-01), McLaughlin et al.
patent: 5280845 (1994-01-01), Leight
patent: 5292029 (1994-03-01), Pearson
Drug-O-Matic brochure, entitled "Spend More Time Caring With . . . Drug-O-Matic", undated, place of publication (if any) unknown.
Baxter brochure, entitled "Sure-Med Medication Management System," dated 1991, place of publication (if any) unknown.
Baxter brochure, entitled "ATC 212 System Automatic Medication Dispenser System. The Confidence of Control," dated 1991, place of publication (if any) unknown.
Argus brochure, entitled "An Automated Medication Management System for Hospital," undated, place of publication (if any) unknown.
Berry John F.
Henckel Mark G.
Hoskins Van W.
Kelley Scott A.
Kraft Thomas L.
KVM Technologies, Inc.
Olszewski Robert P.
Reichard Dean A.
LandOfFree
Vacuum operated medicine dispenser does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Vacuum operated medicine dispenser, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Vacuum operated medicine dispenser will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-1533405