Syringe content identification system

• US 5,692,640 A
• Filed: 12/05/1995
• Issued: 12/02/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 12/05/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Arthur E. Caulfield, Patricia E. Caulfield
• Original Assignee: Arthur E. Caulfield, Patricia E. Caulfield
• Inventors: Caulfield, Patricia E., Caulfield, Arthur E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Terrell, William E.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tran, Khoi H.
• Application Number:
  US08/567,568
• Time in Patent Office: 728 Days
• Field of Search: 221/70, 221/73, 221/199, 221/282, 604/189
• US Class Current: 221/70
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 1/201 having one piercing end
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 1/2055 having gripping means
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 1/2096 Combination of a vial and a syringe for transferring or mixing their contents
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2005/3125 specific display means, e.g. to indicate dose setting
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 3/10 by an adhesive layer
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/10 relating to drugs or medications, e.g. for ensuring correct administration to patients

Abstract

A system for establishing and maintaining the identity of a medication in a syringe (80) from the point in time that a medication is withdrawn from a vial (30) to the point in time that the medication is administered to a patient. This method is based on integrating a label dispenser (40) including preprinted, pressure sensitive, syringe labels (71) with a medicine vial (30). As the medication is withdrawn from the vial a label is provided that identifies the contents of the vial. When this label is applied to the syringe it provides the ability to verify that the correct medication and dosage is being administered to the correct patient. Subsequently the label can be removed from the syringe and used to provide a permanent record of the administration.

Claims

1. A method of identifying a substance after said substance is removed from a container comprising the steps of:

(a) providing a label dispenser having means for integration with said container and means for dispensing a strip of multiple labels with each label corresponding to each issue of said substance from said container, said strip of labels is freely received within said label dispenser for sequentially removal, each said label presenting sufficient information for identifying said substance (b) periodically withdrawing a quantity of said substance from said container, and withdrawing one of said plurality of labels when said substance is withdrawn (c) attaching said label to a vessel to which the said substance is transferred concurrently with the transfer

thereby enabling a determination to be made at the site of an application of said substance that said substance conveyed by said vessel is appropriate for said application.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said label is removed from said vessel concurrently with the application of said substance and subsequently used to establish a permanent record of said application.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said container is a medicine vial and said substance is a medicine contained in said vial and said vessel is a syringe and said application is an injection of said medicine into a patient and said information is selected from the group consisting of generic medication name and dosage and label sequence and manufacturer name and medicine trade name and lot number and expiration date.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein concurrently with said injection said label is removed from said syringe and used to establish a permanent record of said injection.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein said container is a medicine bottle and the substance is an ingestable medication and said vessel is a medicine cup and said application is the ingestion of the medicine by a patient and said information is selected from the group medication name and dosage and label sequence and manufacturer name and medicine trade name and lot number and expiration date.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein concurrently with said ingestion said label is removed from said medicine cup and used to establish a permanent record of said ingestion.

7. A label dispenser, integrated with a container, for supplying adhesive labels, said labels reciting attributes of a substance contained in said container comprising:

(a) a strip of multiple adhesive labels with attributes of said substance printed thereon,

(b) a dispenser body for enclosing unexpended portion of said strip,

(c) dispensing means for successively providing said labels, and

(d) integrating means for combining said label dispenser with said container

(e) said integrating means comprising a center located circular mounting ring set to secure said dispenser on said container

whereby a positive correlation is maintained between said substance in said container and said attributes printed on said labels provided by said dispensing means.

8. The label dispenser of claim 7 wherein said dispensing means includes:

(a) a carrier web on which said labels are releaseably mounted,

(b) a delaminating edge having a curve with a radius sufficiently small to cause said labels to break free from said carrier web when said carrier web is slidingly moved around said curve, and

(c) a feed path leading from inside said dispenser body around said delaminating edge and under a carrier web return guide

whereby pulling an exposed length of said carrier web away from said dispenser body moves said carrier web with said labels attached to said delaminating edge where a resistance of said labels to bending around said curve causes said labels to delaminate from said carrier web and come to rest on an exterior surface of said dispenser body.

9. A label dispenser, integrated with a container, for supplying adhesive labels, said labels reciting attributes of a substance contained in said container comprising:

(a) a strip of adhesive labels with attributes of said substance printed thereon,

(b) a dispenser body for enclosing unexpended portion of said strip,

(c) dispensing means for successively providing said labels, and

(d) integrating means for combining said label dispenser with said container,

(e) said integrating means comprising a center located circular mounting ring which uses adhesive bonding means to secure said dispenser on said container.

10. A label dispenser, integrated with a container, for supplying adhesive labels, said labels reciting attributes of a substance contained in said container comprising:

(a) a strip of adhesive labels with attributes of said substance printed thereon,

(b) a dispenser body for enclosing unexpended portion of said strip,

(c) dispensing means for successively providing said labels, and

(d) integrating means for combining said label dispenser with said container,

(e) said integrating means includes molding said dispenser body as part of said container.