Distributed medicine supplying device and medicine packaging device

• US 7,861,495 B2
• Filed: 09/24/2008
• Issued: 01/04/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/27/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yuyama Manufacturing Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Yuyama Manufacturing Company Limited
• Inventors: Kondo, Fuminori, Yuyama, Hiroyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): GERRITY, STEPHEN FRANCIS
• Application Number:
  US12/594,788
• Publication Number:
  US 20100121486A1
• Time in Patent Office: 832 Days
• Field of Search: 533/96, 534/73, 534/74, 531/58, 535/39, 532/46, 533/90
• US Class Current: 53/246
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 7/04 Arrangements for time indication or reminder for taking medicine, e.g. programmed dispensers
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 5/103 for packaging pills or tablets
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 11/44 in which magazines the articles are stored in bulk
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/0092 for assembling and dispensing of pharmaceutical articles medical dispensers for private use, A61J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/13 delivered from dispensers

Abstract

There is provided a distributed medicine supplying device, which allows medicines to be distributed at a time relative to a plurality of prescription data and to be distributed appropriately in response to various types of requests. The distributed medicine supplying device includes: a receiving unit 7 for receiving prescription data; a storing unit 8 for storing an assignment condition to medicine to be accommodated in measures 4 of a tray 5; a central processing unit 10 for determining a position of the medicine to be distributed to each of the measures 4 of the tray 5 in accordance with the assignment condition stored in the storing unit 8 based on the prescription data 12 sequentially received by the receiving unit 7; and a displaying unit 9 for displaying the distribution position determined by the central processing unit 10.

Claims

1. A distributed medicine supplying device for sequentially supplying medicine accommodated in a plurality of measures defined in a tray, comprising:

receiving means for receiving prescription data;

storing means for storing an assignment condition to medicine accommodated in each of the measures of the tray;

position determining means for determining a position of the medicine to be distributed to each of the measures of the tray in accordance with the assignment condition based on the prescription data sequentially received by the receiving means; and

displaying means for displaying a distribution position determined by the position determining means,

wherein the assignment condition includes a maximum package number having a maximum package number that can be assigned to the tray, and

wherein the position determining means is configured to sequentially count a package number of each of the prescription data received by the receiving means and to put an accumulated value of the counted package number as a maximum value not exceeding the maximum package number to determine the position of the medicine to be distributed to each of the measures of the tray.

2. The distributed medicine supplying device of claim 1, wherein the assignment condition further includes at least one of following conditions:

an assignment per ward building;

an assignment by a prescription number;

an assignment by reception time; and

a forced assignment; and

wherein the position determining means is configured to determine the prescription data to be assigned to the tray when one of two or more of the assignment conditions including the assignment by a maximum package number are satisfied.

3. The distributed medicine supplying device according to claim 1, further comprising distribution pattern selecting means for selecting a distribution pattern for the medicine accommodated in each of the measures of the tray.

4. The distributed medicine supplying device of claim 3, wherein the distribution pattern includes at least one of following sets:

a continuation set for continuatively distributing the medicine in order of the medicine supplied from each of the measures; and

a measure-skipping set for skipping at least one measure to proceed to a next distribution process when a prescription changes.

5. The distributed medicine supplying device according to claim 1, further comprising a display controlling means for allowing the displaying means to display a distribution-permitted indication showing that distribution is permitted when the position of the medicine to be distributed to each of the measures of the tray is determined by the position determining means.

6. A medicine packaging device for sequentially supplying and packaging medicine accommodated in a plurality of measures defined in a tray, comprising:

receiving means for receiving prescription data;

storing means for storing an assignment condition for a medicine to be accommodated in each of the measures of the tray;

position determining means for determining a position of the medicine to be distributed to each of the measures of the tray in accordance with the assignment condition based on the prescription data sequentially received by the receiving means;

displaying means for displaying a distribution position determined by the position determining means;

extracting means for extracting data relating to distributed medicine, the data included in the prescription data received by the receiving means; and

printing means for printing a distribution instruction showing which medicine is distributed to which measures of the tray based on the data relating to the distributed medicine extracted by the extracting means.

7. The medicine packaging device of claim 6, wherein the displaying means is configured to display an indication that a distribution process is permitted when the data relating to the distributed medicine is extracted by the extracting means.