SECURE MEDICAMENT DISPENSING CABINET, METHOD AND SYSTEM

• US 20110015783A1
• Filed: 09/23/2010
• Published: 01/20/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Parata Systems, LLC (Becton, Dickinson & Co)
• Original Assignee: Parata Systems, LLC (Becton, Dickinson & Co)
• Inventors: Holmes, Eric Lamont, Morgan, Stuart, Jankowski, Stan, Shows, Paul Randall, Bergeron, Michael A., Parks, Robert, Kalntz, Ryan, Goodworth, Matthew, Beale, Matthew Stuart
• Granted Patent: US 8,090,471 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/237
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/24 Rotary or oscillatory members
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/30 two or more magazines having independent delivery
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/42 the articles being delivered by motor-driven means
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/44 in which magazines the articles are stored in bulk
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/54 about vertical axes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/62 in which the articles are stored in compartments in fixed receptacles
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0092 for assembling and dispensing of pharmaceutical articles medical dispensers for private use, A61J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 5/18 specially adapted for controlling several coin-freed apparatus from one place
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 5/26 Interlocks, e.g. for locking the doors of compartments other than that to be used
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/001 Interfacing with vending machines using mobile or wearable devices
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/002 Vending machines being part of a centrally controlled network of vending machines
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 9/026 for alarm, monitoring and auditing in vending machines or means for indication, e.g. when empty
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/13 delivered from dispensers

Abstract

A medicament dispensing cabinet is comprised of a frame, at least one controller, and a plurality of drawers each movably carried by the frame and each defining a plurality of dispensing cells. A plurality of removable dispensing devices is provided with each one carried by one of the dispensing cells. Each of the dispensing cells further comprises a motor for providing rotary motion to one of the removable dispensing devices in response to the controller, a sensor operating in conjunction with the controller for counting medicament dispensed from one of the removable dispensing devices, a chute for receiving medicament dispensed from one of the removable dispensing devices and a chute gate for controlling access to the chute. The cabinet may additionally comprise a chute gate release responsive to the controller for controlling the chute gate and a chute gate sensor connected to the controller and responsive to the position of the chute gate. The cabinet may be used in conjunction with a number of processes including dispensing, secure-pickup (insuring the person picking up the dispensed medicament is authorized to do so), back-end verification (verifying the identity of the person picking up the dispensed medicament), a process for removing a dispensing device from a drawer, and a process for inserting a dispensing device into a drawer.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

dispensing an amount of medicament into a receptacle;

inputting information identifying a person requesting access to the dispensed medicament after the medicament has been dispensed into the receptacle;

determining if said person requesting access has authority to pick up the dispensed medicament; and

selectively permitting access to the dispensed medicament in the receptacle in response directly to said determining.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said determining includes determining if the person requesting access is the same as a person initiating the dispensing or if the person requesting access has authority to pick up medicament for the person initiating the dispensing.

3. The method of claim 1 additionally comprising inputting information identifying a person picking up the dispensed medicament after the medicament has been picked up.

4. The method of claim 1 additionally comprising inputting information identifying the dispenser which has performed said dispensing.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the receptacle is a chute.

6. A method, comprising:

dispensing an amount of medicament into a selectively accessible receptacle at a location;

scanning a bar code at the location with a bar code scanner; and

releasing the medicament from the receptacle responsive to the scanning step.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the bar code is located on the receptacle.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the receptacle is a chute.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein the bar code scanner is a cordless bar code scanner.