Drug preserver

• US 6,259,356 B1
• Filed: 06/09/1998
• Issued: 07/10/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/11/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Healthcare Company Limited (PHC Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sanyo Electric Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Tamaoki, Yuichi, Nakamura, Shigeyuki, Busujima, Hiroki
• Primary Examiner(s): Lefkowitz, Edward
• Assistant Examiner(s): GOINS, DAVETTA WOODS
• Application Number:
  US09/093,304
• Time in Patent Office: 1,127 Days
• Field of Search: 340/309.15, 340/870.09, 340/568.1, 340/569, 340/573.1, 340/479.01, 364/479.01, 221/15, 221/2, 221/9, 221/3, 702/177, 702/187, 368/10, 368/105, 368/109, 368/110, 368/111, 368/112, 368/113
• US Class Current: 340/309.7
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 7/0436 resulting from removing a drug from, or opening, a container
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 7/0454 for dispensing of multiple drugs
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 7/0481 working on a schedule basis

Abstract

A preserver for preserving drugs, comprising a door detector for detecting opening/closing the door of the preserver; a controller for determining whether the door was opened or not during a predetermined period of time based on the signal supplied by the door detector. When it is determined that the door was not opened at all in the period, the controller generates an alarm signal indicative of the determination to an administrator of the preserver. Upon receipt of the alarm signal, the administrator informs a medical facility of the situation, so that a further organized administration of the medical treatment may be provided.

Claims

1. A method of operating a drug preserver which includes a multiplicity of small rooms for storing prescribed drugs for a patient, a small rooms lock unit adapted to lock said small rooms, a controller including a memory operative to store a schedule for administering said drugs to said patient and means for generating and selectively routing a signal to said small rooms lock unit to lock or unlock selected ones of said small rooms based on said schedule, means for indicating unlocked ones of said small rooms, and communication means for informing a central monitor station of the operating condition of said drug preserver, comprising the steps of:

said controller generating a signal to said small rooms lock unit for unlocking selected ones of said small rooms according to said schedule stored in said memory,

monitoring said drug preserver to determine if said selected small rooms have been opened during a scheduled period for administering the prescribed drugs stored in said small rooms,

transmitting a first signal via said communication means to inform said central monitor station of a normal operating condition of said drug preserver when said small rooms have been opened following unlocking as scheduled,

transmitting a second signal, alternative to said first signal, via said connection means to inform said central monitor station of an abnormal operating condition of said drug preserver when said small rooms have been unlocked but not opened as scheduled, and

providing a switch operable in said connection means by said patient for transmitting to said central monitor station, together with one of said first and second signals, a signal for informing of said patient'"'"'s presence at, or absence from, said drug preserver.

2. The method of operating a drug preserver according to claim 1, in which said drug preserver includes a releasable door covering each of said small rooms.

3. The method of operating a drug preserver according to claim 1, including the step of indicating a message indicative of the unlocking of said small rooms.

4. The method of operating a drug preserver according to claim 1, in which said drug preserver includes lamps associated with each of said small rooms and said method including the step of illuminating each of said lamps when the small room associated therewith is unlocked.

5. The method of operating a drug preserver according to claim 1, including the step of providing an emergency switch for activating an alarm indicative of an emergency condition of said patient, and for transmitting to said central monitor station an alarm via said communication means.

6. The method of operating a drug preserver according to claim 1, comprising the further steps of:

sensing by an environmental condition sensor at least one of the temperature and the humidity in said drug preserver and emitting a signal in response thereto; and

regulating at least one of said temperature and said humidity within respective predetermined ranges based on the signal received from said environmental condition sensor.

7. The method of operating a drug preserver according to claim 6, including the step of:

said environmental condition regulator providing an alarm via said communication means when said regulator has become unable to control said temperature and/or said humidity within said predetermined ranges.