Smart pill dispenser

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12156853-B2
Application number	US-202318535225-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 11, 2023
Priority date	Oct 5, 2020
Publication date	Dec 3, 2024
Grant date	Dec 3, 2024

Abstract

The medication dispensing assembly includes a housing having an interior. A medication bottle is disposed in the interior with its cap assembly facing vertically downwardly. The cap assembly includes outer, middle, and inner pieces. The outer and inner pieces are fixed with one another, and the middle piece is fixed with the bottle. A drive unit is disposed in the interior of the housing and is configured to rotate the bottle and the middle piece of the cap assembly about a vertical axis. The three pieces of the cap assembly have respective medication openings, and rotating the bottle causes individual pills to travel first from the bottle into the inner piece, then into the middle piece, then around the vertical axis, and then outside of the cap assembly through the medication opening of the outer piece.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A medication dispensing device for dispensing a medication from a bottle, the medication dispensing device comprising:
a memory element;
at least one sensor positioned inside the medication dispensing device, wherein the at least one sensor is configured to obtain inspection data associated with medication bottles including the bottle; and
at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory element and the at least one sensor, the at least one processor configured to:
receive the bottle including a receptacle containing bottle contents and a cap assembly, wherein the bottle is disposed inside the medication dispensing device to position the cap assembly facing vertically downward, wherein the cap assembly includes an inner piece, a middle piece, and an outer piece, wherein the inner piece and the outer piece are fixed with one another, wherein the middle piece is fixed with the receptacle, and wherein each of the inner piece, the middle piece, and the outer piece of the cap assembly includes at least one medication opening;
perform an inspection of the bottle to verify a type and a quantity of the bottle contents, using the at least one sensor, wherein the medication comprises the bottle contents; and
in response to verifying the type and the quantity of the bottle contents based on the inspection, dispense the medication, by:
initiating rotation of the receptacle and the middle piece relative to the outer piece and the inner piece;
based on the rotation, channeling a requested quantity of the bottle contents from the bottle sequentially through the at least one medication opening in the inner piece, then through the at least one medication opening in the middle piece, and then out of the cap assembly through the at least one medication opening in the outer piece; and
releasing the requested quantity of the bottle contents to a dispensing tray of the medication dispensing device.

2. The medication dispensing device of claim 1 , wherein the outer piece comprises an outer cap and the middle piece comprises an inner cap that is received in the outer cap, and wherein the inner piece comprises a disk that is received in the inner cap.

3. The medication dispensing device of claim 2 , wherein the at least one medication opening in the disk is circumferentially offset from the at least one medication opening in the outer cap such that the medication must travel in the at least one medication opening in the inner cap around a rotational axis before exiting the cap assembly through the at least one medication opening in the outer cap.

4. The medication dispensing device of claim 1 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:
prior to releasing the requested quantity of the bottle contents to the dispensing tray,
release the medication dispensed out of the cap assembly into a staging zone of the medication dispensing device, wherein the requested quantity comprises the medication dispensed out of the cap assembly;
analyze the medication in the staging zone using a second sensor associated with the staging zone;
perform a second verification of the medication in the staging zone; and
dispense the medication out of the staging zone in response to a positive result of the second verification of the medication in the staging zone.

5. The medication dispensing device of claim 1 , wherein the medication dispensing device further comprises a carousel disposed in an interior of a housing of the medication dispensing device;
wherein the carousel includes a plurality of openings for receiving a plurality of cap assemblies including the cap assembly; and
wherein the carousel is rotatable about a carousel axis parallel to a bottle axis to move a plurality of medication bottles through a plurality of zones within the interior of the housing, wherein the plurality of medication bottles includes the bottle.

6. The medication dispensing device of claim 5 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:
receive the bottle into a carousel of the medication dispensing device, wherein the bottle is disposed inside the carousel to position the cap assembly facing vertically downward;
initiate rotation of the carousel to bring the bottle into an inspection zone inside the medication dispensing device, prior to rotating the receptacle and middle piece of the cap assembly; and
perform the inspection of the bottle contents using the at least one sensor associated with the inspection zone.

7. The medication dispensing device of claim 1 , further comprising a surface scanner communicatively coupled to the at least one processor, wherein the surface scanner is configured to scan an outer surface of the bottle for a label or machine-readable code identifying the bottle contents, wherein the surface scanner comprises at least one of: a code scanner and a label scanner; and
wherein the at least one processor is further configured to perform the inspection by:
initiating a first scan of a surface of the bottle using the surface scanner;
initiating a second scan of the bottle contents using the at least one sensor, wherein the at least one sensor includes at least one of: a camera and an ultrasound sensor;
performing a comparison of results of the second scan to a database of previous scans associated with the medication dispensing device and external medication dispensing devices; and
verifying the type of the bottle contents based on the comparison.

8. The medication dispensing device of claim 7 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:
after to performing the comparison,
determine whether the type of the bottle contents can be determined based on the first scan, the second scan, and the comparison; and
when the type of the bottle contents can be determined,
verify the type of the bottle contents.

9. The medication dispensing device of claim 7 , further comprising an agitator communicatively coupled to the at least one processor, wherein the agitator is configured to lift the bottle and pivot the bottle about a pivot point;
wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:
after to performing the comparison,
determine whether the type of the bottle contents can be determined based on the first scan, the second scan, and the comparison; and
when the type of the bottle contents cannot be determined,
activate the agitator to shake the bottle contents;
initiate a third scan of the bottle contents using the at least one sensor;
perform a second comparison of a second set of results of the third scan to the database of previous scans associated with the medication dispensing device and external medication dispensing devices; and
verify the type of the bottle contents based on the second comparison.

10. The medication dispensing device of claim 1 , further comprising an agitator communicatively coupled to the at least one processor, wherein the agitator is configured to lift the bottle and pivot the bottle about a pivot point, and wherein the agitator includes a built-in scale for measuring weight of the medication bottles;
wherein the at least one processor is further configured to perform the inspection by:
initiating lifting of the bottle using the agitator;
determining a weight measurement of the bottle based on the lifting;
performing a calculation using the weight measurement, known weights of a plurality of types of medications, and a known empty bottle weight associated with the bottle; and
verifying the quantity of the bottle contents based on the calculation.

11. A method of dispensing a medication from a bottle in a medication dispensing device, the method comprising:
recei

Assignees

• Express Scripts Strategic Dev Inc

Inventors

• Long Andrew
• Johnson Stanley Joe
• Hoffman Robert E

Classifications

• A61J7/0076

  Medicament distribution means (with pill counting devices A61J7/02; with time indication A61J7/04; containers or packages with special means for dispensing contents B65D83/00) · CPC title

• A61J7/02

  Pill counting devices · CPC title

• A61J1/03

  for pills or tablets (containers for pills or tablets with special dispensing means therefor B65D83/04) · CPC title

• A61J2200/30

  Compliance analysis for taking medication · CPC title

• B65G1/045

  in a circular arrangement, e.g. towers · CPC title