Medicine Container with an Orientation Sensor

• US 20140262918A1
• Filed: 03/14/2013
• Published: 09/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/13/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SMRxT, Inc.
• Original Assignee: SMRxT, Inc.
• Inventors: Chu, Victor
• Granted Patent: US 9,740,828 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 206/534
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 1/03 for pills or tablets containers for pills or tablets with special dispensing means therefor B65D83/04
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 2200/30 Compliance analysis for taking medication
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 7/02 Pill counting devices
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 22/00 Methods or apparatus for measuring volume of fluids or fluent solid material, not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 15/00 Arrangements for check-weighing of materials dispensed into removable containers packaging aspects B65B; electric measuring arrangements involving comparison with a reference value G01R17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 17/06 having means for controlling the supply or discharge
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/00 Weighing apparatus or methods adapted for special purposes not provided for in the preceding groups electric measuring arrangements involving comparison with a reference value G01R17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01L 5/00 Apparatus for, or methods of, measuring force, work, mechanical power, or torque, specially adapted for specific purposes
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/10 relating to drugs or medications, e.g. for ensuring correct administration to patients
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/13 delivered from dispensers

Abstract

A medicine container configured to hold one or more different medications. The container may include an orientation sensor to determine the orientation of the container. The container may also include one or more additional sensors to detect other physical characteristics about the container and/or medicine. The orientation of the container in combination with the information from the one or more additional sensors is used to determine an accurate indication of an amount of the medicine within the container and thus usage information. The container also includes a wireless transmitter for transmitting the information regarding the medicine to a remote location.

Claims

1. A medicine container configured to hold medicine, the medicine container comprising:

a body including exterior walls forming an interior space to hold the medicine;

an orientation sensor arranged within the body and configured to sense an orientation of the body in at least one axis;

a quantity sensor arranged within the body and configured to sense a quantity of the medicine within the interior space, the quantity sensor configured to sense one of a weight of the medicine in the interior space or a volume of the medicine in the interior space; and

a wireless communications interface arranged within the body and configured to send to a remote device readings from the orientation sensor, or the quantity sensor, or both, or information derived from the readings.

2. The medicine container of claim 1, further comprising a processor arranged within the body and configured to obtain readings from each of the orientation sensor and the quantity sensor at a plurality of time intervals.

3. The medicine container of claim 2, wherein the processor is further configured to determine medicine usage information based on the readings from each of the orientation sensor and the quantity sensor, wherein the information communicated from the wireless communications interface being the medicine usage information.

4. The medicine container of claim 2, wherein the processor is configured to determine an orientation of the body based on one of the readings received from the orientation sensor and to cause the quantity sensor to sense one of the weight and the volume of the medicine in the interior space when the orientation of the body is in a predetermined orientation.

5. The medicine container of claim 1, further comprising memory arranged within the body to store readings from each of the orientation sensor and the quantity sensor.

6. The medicine container of claim 1, wherein the orientation sensor is an accelerometer and is positioned within the interior space.

7. The medicine container of claim 1, further comprising a module body arranged within the interior space and having a side that faces towards the exterior walls of the body, the module body being sized to fit within an outlet in the body, each of the orientation sensor, the quantity sensor, and the wireless communications interface being mounted on the module body.

8. The medicine container of claim 1, further comprising an environmental sensor arranged within the body and configured to sense an aspect of an environment in the interior space.

9. A monitoring system to determine medicine usage by a patient, comprising:

a processor configured to;

obtain a first reading from an orientation sensor arranged within a container for containing medicine, the first reading being indicative of an orientation of the container;

obtain a second reading from a quantity sensor arranged within the container, the second reading being indicative of a weight of the medicine in the container or a volume of the medicine in the container; and

calculate a quantity of the medicine in the container based on the first reading and the second reading.

10. The monitoring system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to determine that the container is in a predetermined orientation prior to calculating the quantity of the medicine in the container.

11. The monitoring system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to determine a correction factor based on the orientation of the container and to calculate the quantity of the medicine in the container using the correction factor.

12. The monitoring system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to cause a wireless communications interface arranged within the container to send and receive information about the medicine usage to a remote device.

13. The monitoring system of claim 9, wherein the processor is configured to place the orientation sensor and the quantity sensor in a low-power state.

14. The monitoring system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to obtain a third reading from an environmental sensor arranged within the container used to calculate the quantity of the medicine in the container based on the first, second, and third readings.

15. The monitoring system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to receive the first and second readings from a wireless communications interface arranged within the container.

16. The monitoring system of claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to notify the patient when the container is oriented outside of the predetermined orientation.

17. A medicine container configured to hold medicine, the medicine container comprising:

a body including exterior walls forming an interior space to hold the medicine;

a first sensor arranged within the body and configured to sense an orientation of the body in at least one axis;

a second sensor arranged within the body and configured to sense a physical characteristic of the medicine indicative of an amount of the medicine in the body, the second sensor configured to sense the physical characteristic when the body is in a predetermined orientation sensed by the first sensor; and

a wireless communications interface arranged within the bottle to communicate information about the medicine with a remote device.

18. The medicine container of claim 17, further comprising a processor arranged within the body that receives signals from the first sensor indicating that the body is in the predetermined orientation and causes the second sensor to sense the physical characteristic of the medicine.

19. The medicine container of claim 17, further comprising a sensor module independent of the body and sized to fit within the interior space and be positioned in proximity to a bottom of the interior space and including an outer edge that faces towards the exterior walls of the body, the sensor module mounted to the bottom of the interior space of the container and including the first and second sensors and the wireless communications interface.

20. The medicine container of claim 17, wherein the second sensor is a weight sensor or a volume sensor positioned in proximity to a bottom of the interior space and configured to sense a weight or a volume of the medicine within the interior space.