DIGITALISED, PORTABLE AND CONSOLIDATED APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR DISPENSING, TRACKING AND COMMUNICATING MULTIPLE-DOSE ADHERENCE IN REAL-TIME AND INCLUSIVE OF REFILL MECHANISM

Abstract

This invention relates to a safer and more comprehensive, economical, convenient and digitalised apparatus and method that equips the existing multiple-dose dispenser with a unique assembly configured to enable additional capabilities including the automated dispensing of multiple-dose pouches containing individual units of homogenous and/or heterogeneous pharmaceutical products which are retained in and/or without manufacturer's packaging, in exact customised quantities and combinations, exactly according to the dose time prescribed by the doctor, with optional automated light and/or sound alerts when the relevant dose pouches are dispensed, provision of a button which when pressed by the user cuts the dispensed pouches and stores and/or communicates the time of cutting with the central systems in real-time. The invention also contains features such as compatibility with phone applications to allow the user to control the device for allowing dispensed pouches to go back in and reporting emergencies and/or adverse drug reactions.

Claims

1. Apparatus and method for dispensing, tracking and communicating multiple-dose adherence in real-time by way of a digitalised, portable and consolidated device inclusive of refill mechanism, which comprises of: a dispensing unit for automatically dispensing and retrieving relevant dose pouches as required; a cutting unit for cutting the dispensed dose pouches, once the user presses the relevant button; an IR sensing unit that senses the eye marks present on the dispensed and cut pouches, thereby maintaining a count; a printed circuit board for multiple communication technologies including GSM, WiFi and Bluetooth; a battery that provides power for the aforesaid actions to be carried out; a USB charging port that allows for recharging the battery; a first button with light that allows the user to activate the cutting unit; a second button that allows alerts to be sent by way of in-built communication mechanisms in case of emergencies; a third button that allows the dispensation of additional pouches and/or retrieval of the dispensed pouches; a fourth button that allows the recording of consumption of medicines dispensed in exact prescribed quantities and combinations; and alert lights for dose reminders and/or low battery.

2. Apparatus and method for dispensing, tracking and communicating multiple-dose adherence in real-time by way of a digitalised, portable and consolidated device inclusive of refill mechanism in claim 1, which includes

3. Apparatus and method for dispensing, tracking and communicating multiple-dose adherence in real-time by way of a digitalised, portable and consolidated device inclusive of refill mechanism in claim 1, wherein the dispensing unit includes a motor and rollers, connected by gears, and/or an IR sensor

4. Apparatus and method for dispensing, tracking and communicating multiple-dose adherence in real-time by way of a digitalised, portable and consolidated device inclusive of refill mechanism in claim 1, wherein the cutting unit includes one or more motors, one or more blades with one or more blade holders and one or more lead screws, and may also contain one or more motors and gears.

5. Apparatus and method for dispensing, tracking and communicating multiple-dose adherence in real-time by way of a digitalised, portable and consolidated device inclusive of refill mechanism in claim 1, which includes an IR sensing unit.

6. Apparatus and method for dispensing, tracking and communicating multiple-dose adherence in real-time by way of a digitalised, portable and consolidated device inclusive of refill mechanism in claim 1, wherein the PCB (printed circuit board) includes circuitry for multiple communication technologies including GSM, WiFi and Bluetooth.

7. Apparatus and method for dispensing, tracking and communicating multiple-dose adherence in real-time by way of a digitalised, portable and consolidated device inclusive of refill mechanism in claim 1, which includes a battery and/or USB charging port.

8. Apparatus and method for dispensing, tracking and communicating multiple-dose adherence in real-time by way of a digitalised, portable and consolidated device inclusive of refill mechanism in claim 1, which includes multiple buttons which allow users to a. activate the cutting unit; b. send alerts via inbuilt communication technologies when required; c. dispense additional pouches and/or retrieve the dispensed pouches; d. dispense additional pouches and/or retrieve the dispensed pouches; and e. alert users for dose reminders and/or low battery.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS

[0027] The following drawings are illustrative of particular embodiments for enabling the system and method of the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. The drawings are not to scale (unless so stated) and are intended for use in conjunction with the explanations in the following detailed description.

[0028] FIG. 1 is an exemplary representation of apparatus for the automatic dispensing unit comprising of a motor (1) and rollers (2) connected by gears (5) along with an IR sensor (3). The figure also shows a representation of the dose pouch (4) to highlight the action of the dispensing unit.

[0029] FIG. 2 is an exemplary representation of the apparatus for the cutting unit comprising of a blade (1) and blade holder (2) mounted on a lead screw (3), powered by a motor (4) which is connected by gears. The blade holder also includes an leveler (5) that holds the pouch down while the blade cuts.

[0030] FIG. 3 exemplary representation of the apparatus of the side view of the arrangement of the section of the apparatus that holds the PCB (1) and the battery (2).

[0031] FIG. 4 exemplary representation of the apparatus for the arrangement of the buttons with multiple functionalities including cutting (1), dispensing/retrieving (2), consumption tracking (3) and emergency alert (4) along with the USB port (5) for charging and alert light (6) for alerting user about dose time and low battery.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Description

[0032] The present invention relates to a digitalised apparatus and method with refill mechanism for dispensing, tracking and communicating multiple-dose adherence in real-time. The said apparatus comprises of:

[0033] a dispensing unit, comprising of motors and rollers, for automatically dispensing and retrieving relevant dose pouches, when needed;

[0034] a cutting unit, comprising of motors, a blade with blade holder and a lead screw, for cutting the dispensed dose pouches, once the user presses the relevant button;

[0035] an IR sensing unit that senses the eye marks present on the dispensed and cut pouches, thus maintaining a count;

[0036] a PCB (printed circuit board) that includes circuitry for multiple communication technologies including GSM, WiFi and Bluetooth;

[0037] a battery that provides power for the said actions to be carried out;

[0038] a USB charging port that allows for recharging of battery;

[0039] a first button with light that allows user to activate the cutting unit;

[0040] a second button that allows user to send alert via inbuilt communication technologies in case of emergencies;

[0041] a third button that allows user to dispense additional pouches and/or retrieve the dispensed pouches;

[0042] a fourth button that allows user to record when they have consumed the medicines from the dispensed and cut dose pouch; and

[0043] alert lights for dose reminders and/or low battery.

[0044] A schematic representation of a system where the present invention may be implemented is illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. 1 illustrates the dose pouch (4) that once fed into the apparatus is automatically moved ahead and dispensed by the rollers (2) powered by the motor (1). The motor is able to power the rollers using connected gears (5). As the dose pouches (4) are moved ahead, they pass through the IR sensors (3), which reads the eye marks on the dose pouches (4) and uses that to calculate count of those getting dispensed.

[0045] FIG. 2 illustrates the cutting mechanism. Once the dose pouch has been dispensed by the mechanism explained in FIG. 1, the user has to press a button as explained in FIG. 4 to activate the cutting mechanism. Once the button is pressed, the lead screw (3) powered by the motor (4) starts to rotate and thus moves the blade (1), blade holder (2) and leveler (5) across the width of the dose pouch. The leveler (5) hold the section of the pouch down while the blade (1) cuts through it, thus detaching the pouch from the rest.

[0046] FIG. 3 illustrates the part of the apparatus that houses the battery (2) that provides power to all mechanisms and PCB (1) that contains the circuitry, processor and communication modules including those for GSM, Wifi and Bluetooth that allow the device to communicate with other systems. The processor downloads and gives the command to the dispensing mechanism explained in FIG. 1 to be able to dispense the relevant dose pouches at the correct time, tracks the time at which the user cuts the dose pouches using the cutting mechanism as explained in FIG. 2 and communicates this time stamp to other systems using the aforementioned communication options

[0047] FIG. 4 illustrates the arrangement of the buttons that when pressed carry out the relevant command. Once the relevant dose pouches have been automatically dispensed by the dispensing mechanism as mentioned in FIG. 1, the cutting button (1) lights up, alerting the user to press the same. Once this cutting button (1) is pressed by the user, the cutting mechanism as described in FIG. 2 is activated and the timestamp of that action is stored and communicated as described in FIG. 3. The dispensing/retrieving button (2) when pressed activates the dispensing mechanism as explained in FIG. 1 and allows the user to dispense and/or retrieve dose pouches on demand. The emergency alert button (4) when pressed by the user sends an alert to connected systems which in turn alert relevant persons to take appropriate actions. The USB port (5) present on the apparatus allows the user to charge the device and the alert light (6) informs the user when it is time to cut the dose pouches that have been automatically dispensed or when the apparatus has low battery and needs to be charged.