Wall mounted medications cabinet

• US 20070244598A1
• Filed: 04/12/2006
• Published: 10/18/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/12/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: S&S X-Ray Products Inc.
• Original Assignee: S&S X-Ray Systems Incorporated
• Inventors: Shoenfeld, Norman
• Granted Patent: US 7,668,620 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/236
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/13 delivered from dispensers
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/20 for the management or administration of healthcare resources or facilities, e.g. managing hospital staff or surgery rooms

Abstract

A wall-mounted medications cabinet has at least one, and preferably up to four locking drawers, each with a removable bin holding the medications for a given patient. The drawers are each independently openable electronically. This can be accomplished using an incorporated PC with a touch screen monitor, or authorized access can be obtained via a network. The cabinet may be connected using USB or ethernet interface. A key lock can provide access in the event of a power failure.

Claims

1. Medication cabinet comprising

an enclosure that is adapted to be mounted on a wall of a patient room the enclosure having a front wall and at least one side wall;

one or more locking drawers in said enclosure, each drawer including

a slide-out medications bin having a proximal end disposed, when said bin is in a closed position, at said side wall and a distal end situated within said enclosure;

slide means permitting the bin to be pulled out laterally to an open position to allow access to the bin and, to be pushed back in to its closed position; and

releasable latch means within said enclosure for releasably engaging a member on said bin in its closed position to lock the drawer, and being movable between a locked position and an unlocked position in which the latch means releases said member; and

automatic access means permitting an authorized person to actuate the releasable latch means to its unlocked condition to permit access to said drawer and automatically returning said latch means to its locked position to secure the drawer bin when pushed in and returned to its closed position.

2. Medication cabinet according to claim 1 in which said latch means includes a latch member pivotally supported on a horizontal pivot, and said member on the bin includes a transverse strike plate formed on the distal end of the bin.

3. Medication cabinet according to claim 2 wherein said latch member has a hook member at its end with a slanting surface that engages the transverse strike plate to rise over it and with a blocking surface that engages behind the strike plate to hold the bin against being pulled out.

4. Medication cabinet according to claim 2 wherein said latch means fiber includes a servo motor associated with the latch member for lifting same from its locked to its unlocked position.

5. Medication cabinet according to claim 1 wherein there are a plurality of said drawers superposed one above another, each with its own respective latch means.

6. Medication cabinet according to claim 5 wherein said latch means are each independently actuable.

7. Medication cabinet according to claim 6 wherein said automatic access means includes interlock means that ensures that only one of said drawers can be unlocked and opened at a time.

8. Medication cabinet according to claim 1 wherein said automatic access means includes a touch screen computer mounted upon said front wall of the cabinet enclosure.

9. Medication cabinet according to claim 8 wherein said touch screen computer includes DVD player means for providing visual program material to a patient.

10. Medication cabinet according to claim 8 wherein said touch screen computer includes a network interface for connecting with a hospital computer network.

11. Medication cabinet according to claim 1 wherein each said drawer further includes a sensor coupled to said automatic access means detecting if the drawer bin is in its closed position.

12. Medication cabinet according to claim 1 said automatic access means including a network interface and cable means connecting the network interface to a hospital computer network.

13. Medication cabinet according to claim 1 wherein automatic access means includes a USB interface.

14. Medication cabinet according to claim 1 wherein said automatic access means includes a fingerprint scanner mounted on said enclosure.

15. Medication cabinet according to claim 8 wherein said touch screen computer includes audit trail software to store times of openings of said one or more locking drawers and identities of persons accessing said one or more drawers.