Dosage reminder cap

• US 7,621,231 B2
• Filed: 11/06/2007
• Issued: 11/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kevin Mcneely
• Original Assignee: Kevin Mcneely
• Inventors: McNeely, Kevin
• Primary Examiner(s): JOHNSON, AMY COHEN
• Application Number:
  US11/935,611
• Publication Number:
  US 20080060969A1
• Time in Patent Office: 749 Days
• Field of Search: 116/284, 116/298, 116305-309, 116311-313, 116/315, 116/318, 206/459.1, 206/495.5, 206/534, 215/230, 235/116, 235/122
• US Class Current: 116/308
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 7/04 Arrangements for time indication or reminder for taking medicine, e.g. programmed dispensers
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 2203/02 Labels
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 2215/02 requiring the combination of simultaneous actions
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 50/046 and such deformation causes the disengagement of locking means, e.g. the release of a pawl-like element from a tooth or abutment, to allow removal of the closure by simultaneous rotation
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 51/245 provided with decoration, information or contents indicating devices, labels B65D81/366 takes precedence

Abstract

A dosage reminder cap provides an easy, effective way to track consumption of medication. A rotating disk provides a tool for marking the either last dose taken or the next dose due to be taken of a prescribed medication in order to facilitate proper consumption of the medication.

Claims

1. A medicine container cap which indicates the next dose of medicine to be taken comprising:

a base for engaging and thereby sealing a medicine container;

the base comprising a planar upper wall and at least one side wall extending substantially perpendicularly downward from the upper wall;

a disk-shaped cavity formed in the upper wall of the base and comprising a bottom wall located a predetermined distance below the upper wall and a side wall extending substantially perpendicularly upward from the bottom wall;

the disk-shaped cavity having a predetermined depth;

an aperture extending through the upper wall of the base at the center of the disk-shaped cavity;

the bottom wall of the disk-shaped cavity having two circular lines of indicia formed thereon, the circular lines of indicia being concentric with one another and with the aperture extending through the upper wall of the base;

the outer circular line of indicia comprising seven abbreviations each corresponding to one of the days of the week located at equally spaced intervals around the aperture formed through the upper wall of the base;

the inner line of indicia comprising repetitive sets of four dosage reminder numerals indicative of the number of times per day that a dose of medicine is to be taken, the repetitive sets of numerals being arranged at equally spaced intervals around the aperture formed in the upper wall of the base and aligned with the days of the week comprising the outer circular line of indicia;

the spacing between adjacent sets of four dosage reminder numerals being substantially greater than the spacing between the reminder numerals comprising each set;

a plurality of identical sets of triangularly shaped notches formed in the bottom wall of the disk-shaped cavity, the sets of triangular notches forming a circular array concentric with the aperture formed in the upper wall of the base;

each of the triangular notches corresponding to one of the dosage reminder numerals indicia formed on the bottom wall of the cavity;

a window disk having a diameter substantially equal to the diameter of the disk-shaped cavity formed in the upper wall of the base and having a thickness substantially equal to the predetermined depth of the disk-shaped cavity formed in the upper wall of the base;

the window disk having a locking pin extending downwardly therefrom for engagement with the aperture formed through the upper wall of the base to lock the window disk in engagement with the base while permitting rotation of the window disk relative to the base;

the window disk having a notch formed in the edge thereof for simultaneously displaying one of the days of the week and one of the dosage reminder numerals formed on the base of the cavity;

a triangular wedge formed on the underside of the circular disk for engagement with a selected triangular notch formed in the bottom surface of the cavity to lock the window disk at a predetermined rotational location relative to the base;

child-proof means for securing the base onto a medicine container; and

wherein the notches of the cavity disposed in the disk-shaped cavity and the wedge protruding from the bottom side of the window disk comprise isosceles triangles which allow the wedge to move forward and engage the next subsequent notch while preventing the wedge from moving backward to engage the previous notch.