Method for controlling a drug dispensing system
First Claim
1. A system for dispensing of packaged pharmaceuticals, comprising:
- a plurality of racks each having a plurality of columns, each rack being slideably mounted in a housing, and each column receiving a plurality of packaged pharmaceuticals;
a dispensing mechanism for each of the columns; and
a control system for individually addressing each dispensing mechanism for dispensing packaged pharmaceuticals from the columns.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An automated drug dispensing system includes a cabinet adapted to store a variety of prepackaged pharmaceuticals in a plurality of bins for filling patient prescriptions. Each bin stores a particular variety of packaged multiple-dose pharmaceutical. Each variety of pharmaceutical is associated with a particular code. A controller receives request signals and in response generates dispense signals. Each bin includes a dispenser coupled to the controller for dispensing the packaged pharmaceuticals therefrom in response to a dispense signal sent from the controller. After a package is dispensed, a code reader determines the code of the dispensed package and verifies whether the code on the dispensed package matches the code of the requested package.
184 Citations
80 Claims
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1. A system for dispensing of packaged pharmaceuticals, comprising:
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a plurality of racks each having a plurality of columns, each rack being slideably mounted in a housing, and each column receiving a plurality of packaged pharmaceuticals;
a dispensing mechanism for each of the columns; and
a control system for individually addressing each dispensing mechanism for dispensing packaged pharmaceuticals from the columns. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 29, 30, 31)
a code reader coupled with a computer and operable to read a code on the packaged pharmaceutical.
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3. The system of claim 2 further comprising a printer connected to the computer operable to print a label, the label including information on the pharmaceutical.
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4. The system of claim 1 wherein the dispensing mechanism is a dual valve dispenser.
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5. The system of claim 1, wherein the dispenser is a gravity fed rack.
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6. The system of claim 1 further comprising a pusher for pushing the dispensed packaged pharmaceutical from the dispense location.
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7. The system of claim 1, wherein the pharmaceutical is for a syringe and is stored in a vial in the column of the rack, and the dispensing mechanism dispenses a vial for further processing.
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8. The system of claim 1 further comprising:
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a code reader connected with the computer and operable to read a code on a vial of the medicament; and
a printer connected to the computer operable to print a label, the label including information on the pharmaceutical.
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9. The system of claim 8, wherein the code on the package includes a barcode.
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10. The system of claim 8, wherein the code reader includes a bar code reader.
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11. The system of claim 3, wherein the label includes a picture of the pharmaceutical.
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29. The method of claim 8, wherein the code on the package includes a barcode.
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30. The method of claim 9, wherein the code reader includes a bar code reader.
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31. The method of claim 10, wherein the label includes a picture of the prescribed pharmaceutical.
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12. A system for dispensing of a packaged pharmaceuticals, comprising:
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at least one rack having a plurality of columns, the rack being slideably mounted in a housing and each column receiving a plurality of packaged pharmaceuticals;
an electronic controller in the housing that receives request signals and generates dispense signals;
a data entry device operatively connected to a computer for entering patient information corresponding to a patient; and
a dispensing mechanism for each of the columns, each dispensing mechanism being connected to the electronic controller for dispensing a packaged pharmaceutical. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
a centralized control facility remote from and operatively linked to the computer, the control facility being operative to match the patient information corresponding to a particular patient with a prescription for a pharmaceutical and to transmit a request signal to the computer; and
a database operatively associated with the centralized control facility that stores information relating to at least one authorized prescription, to initiate dispensing by transmitting a signal representative of the patient information to the centralized control facility, such that the rack dispenses a packaged pharmaceutical.
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14. The system of claim 13, wherein the database stores a unique transaction code corresponding to each respective authorized prescription.
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15. The system of claim 12, wherein the packaged pharmaceutical is in a vial received in a column of the rack, and the dispensing mechanism dispenses a vial for further processing.
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16. The system of claim 12 further comprising:
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a code reader coupled with the computer and operable to read a code on a packaged pharmaceutical; and
a printer connected to the computer operable to print a label, the label including information for a pharmaceutical product.
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17. The system of claim 16, wherein the code on the package includes a barcode.
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18. The system of claim 16, wherein the code reader includes a bar code reader.
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19. The system of claim 16, wherein the pharmaceutical product is in a syringe.
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20. The system of claim 16 wherein the pharmaceutical product is in a bottle.
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21. A method for dispensing packaged pharmaceuticals comprising:
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storing a plurality of packaged pharmaceuticals in a plurality of racks that are slideably mounted in a housing, each rack having a plurality of columns; and
dispensing a packaged pharmaceutical from a column in response to a signal from a computer that addresses a dispenser for each column. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 36, 38)
a code reader coupled with the computer and operable to read a code on a vial of the medicament; and
a printer connected to the computer operable to print a label, the label including information for a syringe or package.
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36. The method of claim 21 further comprising:
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reading a code on a vial containing the pharmaceutical with a code reader;
and printing a label with a printer, the label including prescription information for a pharmaceutical product.
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38. The method of claim 36 further comprising reading a bar code with a bar code reader.
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32. A method for dispensing of a packaged pharmaceuticals comprising:
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storing a plurality of package pharmaceuticals in a rack having a plurality of columns, the rack being slideably mounted in a housing;
entering data in a data entry device operatively linked to a computer for entering patient information corresponding to a patient, the computer being connected to an electronic controller;
receiving request signals with the electronic controller and generating dispense signals; and
dispensing a packaged pharmaceutical with a dispenser connected to the electronic controller. - View Dependent Claims (33, 34, 35, 37, 39, 40)
providing a centralized control facility remote from and operatively linked to the rack, the control facility being operative to match the patient information corresponding to a particular patient with a prescription for a pharmaceutical and to transmit a request signal when a corresponding match is identified; and
providing a database operatively associated with the centralized control facility that stores information relating to a least one authorized prescription, to initiate dispensing by transmitting a signal representative of the patient information to the centralized control facility, such that the rack dispenses a packaged pharmaceutical.
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34. The method of claim 33 further comprising storing a unique transaction code corresponding to each respective authorized prescription.
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35. The method of claim 32 further comprising storing vials of liquids in a column of the rack by sliding the rack into a load position.
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37. The method of claim 32 further comprising reading a barcode on each stored package.
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39. The method of claim 32 further comprising storing a syringe in the housing.
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40. The method of claim 32 further comprising actuating a dual valve dispenser to dispense a bar coded package.
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41. A system for dispensing of packaged pharmaceuticals, comprising:
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a plurality of racks each having a plurality of columns, each rack being movably mounted in a housing such that each rack can be moved between a dispense position and a load position, each column receiving a plurality of packaged pharmaceuticals;
a dispensing mechanism for each of the columns; and
a control system for individually addressing each dispensing mechanism for dispensing packaged pharmaceuticals from the columns. - View Dependent Claims (42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51)
a code reader coupled with a computer and operable to read a code on the packaged pharmaceutical.
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43. The system of claim 42 further comprising a printer connected to the computer and operable to print a label, the label including information on the pharmaceutical.
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44. The system of claim 41 wherein the dispensing mechanism is a dual valve dispenser.
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45. The system of claim 41, wherein the dispenser is a gravity fed rack.
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46. The system of claim 41 further comprising a pusher for pushing the dispensed packaged pharmaceutical from a dispense location.
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47. The system of claim 41, wherein the pharmaceutical is for a syringe and is stored in a vial in the column of the rack such that the dispensing mechanism dispenses a vial for further processing.
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48. The system of claim 41 further comprising:
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a code reader connected with the computer and operable to read a code on a vial of the medicament; and
a printer connected to the computer operable to print a label, the label including information on the pharmaceutical.
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49. The system of claim 48 wherein the code on the package includes a barcode.
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50. The system of claim 48, wherein the code reader includes a bar code reader.
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51. The system of claim 43, wherein the label includes a picture of the pharmaceutical.
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52. A system for dispensing of a packaged pharmaceuticals, comprising:
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at least one drawer having a plurality of bins, the drawer being movably mounted in a housing and each bin receiving a plurality of coded packaged pharmaceuticals;
an electronic controller in the housing that receives request signals and generates dispense signals;
a data entry device operatively connected to a computer for entering patient information corresponding to a patient;
a code reader connected with the computer and operable to read a code on a packaged pharmaceutical; and
a dispensing mechanism for each of the bins, each dispensing mechanism being connected to the electronic controller for dispensing a packaged pharmaceutical. - View Dependent Claims (53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60)
a centralized control facility remote from and operatively linked to the computer, the control facility being operative to match the patient information corresponding to a particular patient with a pharmaceutical and to transmit a request signal to the computer; and
a database operatively associated with the centralized control facility that stores patient information.
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54. The system of claim 53, wherein the database stores a unique transaction code corresponding to each respective authorized prescription.
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55. The system of claim 52, wherein the packaged pharmaceutical is in a vial received in a bin, and the dispensing mechanism dispenses a vial for further processing.
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56. The system of claim 52 further comprising a printer connected to the computer operable to print a label, the label including information for a pharmaceutical product.
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57. The system of claim 52, wherein the code on the package includes a barcode.
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58. The system of claim 52, wherein the code reader includes a bar code reader.
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59. The system of claim 56, wherein the pharmaceutical product is in a syringe.
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60. The system of claim 56 wherein the pharmaceutical product is in a bottle.
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61. A system for dispensing of packaged pharmaceuticals, comprising:
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a plurality of coded bins, each bin being mounted in a housing and receiving a plurality of coded packaged pharmaceuticals;
a dispensing mechanism for each of the bins;
a printer that is operable to print a label, the label including information on the pharmaceutical;
a code reader that reads a code of a package; and
a control system that individually addresses each dispensing mechanism to dispense packaged pharmaceuticals from the bins. - View Dependent Claims (62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71)
a code reader connected with the computer and operable to read a code on a vial of the medicament; and
a printer connected to the computer operable to print a label, the label including information on the pharmaceutical.
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69. The system of claim 61 wherein the code on each package includes a barcode.
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70. The system of claim 61, wherein the code reader includes a bar code reader.
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71. The system of claim 68, wherein the label includes a picture of the pharmaceutical.
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72. A system for dispensing of a packaged pharmaceuticals and syringes comprising:
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a plurality of bins in a housing, each bin receiving a plurality of coded packaged pharmaceuticals or syringes;
an electronic controller in the housing that receives request signals and generates dispense signals;
a data entry device operatively connected to a computer for entering patient information corresponding to a patient, the computer being programmed with software having a plurality of pull-down menus;
a code reader connected with the computer and operable to read a code on a packaged pharmaceutical; and
a dispensing mechanism for each of the bins, each dispensing mechanism being connected to the electronic controller for dispensing a packaged pharmaceutical. - View Dependent Claims (73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80)
a centralized control facility remote from and operatively linked to the computer, the control facility being operative to match the patient information corresponding to a particular patient with a pharmaceutical and to transmit a request signal to the computer; and
a database operatively associated with the centralized control facility that stores patient information.
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74. The system of claim 73, wherein the database stores a unique transaction code corresponding to each respective authorized prescription.
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75. The system of claim 72, wherein the packaged pharmaceutical is in a vial received in a bin, and the dispensing mechanism dispenses a vial for further processing.
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76. The system of claim 72 further comprising a printer connected to the computer operable to print a label, the label including information for a pharmaceutical product.
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77. The system of claim 72, wherein the code on the package includes a barcode.
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78. The system of claim 72, wherein the code reader includes a bar code reader.
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79. The system of claim 76, wherein the product is a syringe.
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80. The system of claim 76 wherein the pharmaceutical product is in a bottle.
Specification