GB2390076A

GB2390076A - Method and means for dispensing articles from blister packs

Info

Publication number: GB2390076A
Application number: GB0214655A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Hugo Glover
Original assignee: Royal College of Art
Current assignee: Royal College of Art
Priority date: 2002-06-25
Filing date: 2002-06-25
Publication date: 2003-12-31
Anticipated expiration: 2022-06-25
Also published as: GB0214655D0; GB2390076B

Abstract

A method of and means for dispensing articles from one of a series of compartments of a blister pack comprises placing said compartment against a surface 12 with an aperture 16 through which its contents may be pushed, preferably incorporating a recess 14 below to retain the released contents, and depressing the blister of the compartment to force the contents into said recess. Storage for the blister packs may also be provided. The bottom of the recess may be capable of resonating so that it is possible to hear the dispensed article falling therein. Said recess may incorporate a rim 10 about its perimeter, said rim being coated with a material with a high coefficient of friction. The surface 12 may slope downwards towards the aperture.

Description

1 2390076

Method of Dispensing Articles from Blister Packs Technical Field

The present invention relates to the removal of articles from blister packs. As 5 used herein, the term "blister pack" denotes the well-known form of packaging having a deformable sheet and a rupturable foil; the deformable sheet includes one or more blisters (i.e. depressions or wells) in which the packaged article is held and the foil covers the surface of the deformable sheet to close the wells and form sealed compartments for holding the articles. A stored article may be l 0 removed from a blister pack by pressing on the bottom of the deformable well thereby pushing the stored article against the foil. When the force is sufficient to rupture the foil, it does so, and the packaged article can be removed through the ruptured foil.

15 Such blister packs are widely used for example in the packaging of pharmaceuticals and the packaging of fragile components such as microprocessor chips.

Background Art

20 The manual opening of blister packs is problematic in at least three areas.

Firstly, it requires the user to catch the packaged article as the foil is ruptured.

On occasions, the article is not caught and falls and so is contaminated or damaged and may have to be thrown away. In addition, the article within the 25 packaging may be touch sensitive, for example a microchip that can be contaminated by human touch. In such circumstances, it is necessary to wear gloves in order to handle the article.

The second circumstance in which blister packs are problematic is for people who have difficulty manipulating with their hands who find it difficult to open such packs. Such people include, for example, those suffering from rheumatoid arthritis.

The third area where the opening of blister packs is problematic is when a large number of articles need to be dispensed, each article being held within individual compartments within a blister pack. It is highly timeconsuming and tedious to open the individual compartments manually in the manner described 10 above. Disclosure of Invention

According to the present invention, there is provided a method of dispensing articles from a blister pack, which method comprises placing the foil of a 15 blister pack on a surface provided with an opening such that a compartment in the blister pack is in register with the opening, and pressing the article within the compartment towards the opening to firstly tension the foil and, ultimately, to rupture the foil and so allow the article to be dispensed into the opening.

20 According to the present invention, there is also provided a device for use in opening blister packs to dispense articles stored within individual compartments in the blister pack, which device comprises a rigid or semi-rigid surface provided with an opening so that, in operation, a blister pack can be placed with the foil against the surface and with a compartment in register with 25 the opening, and the article can then be pressed towards the opening firstly to tension the foil and secondly to rupture the foil to dispense the article within the compartment into the opening.

Preferably, the surface slopes downwardly towards the opening since that improves the tensioning of the foil and makes it easier to rupture the foil.

The opening can be the open end of an otherwise closed recess for catching the 5 article as it is dispensed. In this way, it is not necessary to handle the article being dispensed in removing it from the blister pack. In addition, such an arrangement can be performed more speedily than the manual opening of a blister pack, for example when it is required to open a large number of blister pack compartments. Also, the device is much easier to manipulate for those 10 with manipulation difficulties since the rigid or semi rigid surface ofthe device is much easier to grasp as compared to the flexible blister packaging.

Preferably, the bottom of the recess is capable of resonating when the article is dispensed so that it is possible to hear the dispensed article falling into the 15 recess. In this way, the present invention is readily applicable to blind and partially sighted people.

In one embodiment, the device includes a rim, the top of which forms the "surface" defined above, and a recess formed in the central part of the rim for 20 catching the dispensed article, as described above.

It is preferred that the surface is made of, or coated with, a material having a high coefficient of friction, for example silicone rubber. In this way, the foil does not readily slide over the surface during the dispensing operation, which 25 would reduce the tension in the foil during the dispensing operation and make it harder to rupture the foil.

According to a further embodiment of the present invention, the device can form part of a container that also includes a compartment for holding blister packs, for example pharmaceuticals.

5 The device can include more than one opening for the rapid dispensing of several articles within the blister pack either simultaneously or in quick succession. This greatly increases the speed of removing the articles from the blister pack.

10 Brief Description of Drawings

There will now be described by way of example only three embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is an orthogonal view of a device according to the present invention; I S Figure 2 is an orthogonal view of a container incorporated in the device of the present invention; and Figure 3 is a plan view of a device of the present invention for dispensing several articles from a blister pack.

20 Best Mode for Carrying out the Invention

Referring initially to Figure 1, there is shown a device according to the present invention. It is made of a rigid plastic material, for example by moulding. It includes a rim to haying anuppersurface 12. An opening 160farecess 14 is formed in the centre of the device so that the recess, which is integrally formed 25 with the rim, is located below the level of the rim.

l he upper surface 12 of the rim slopes downwardly towards the opening 16 at an angle of, for example, 3 to 15 to the horizontal. The upper surface 12 is preferably coated with silicone rubber.

The diameter of the opening 16 should be sufficient to allow the article within the blister pack to readily fall through the opening. It will depend on the 5 article being dispensed but for a pharmaceutical, it will generally be I to 8 ems, e.g. 2 to 7 ems and preferably about 5 ems, in diameter.

In order to open a blister pack, the blister pack is placed foil down on the surface 12 so that the article within the pack is in register with the opening 14.

10 Pressure is then applied to the compartment of the blister pack containing the article, the rim 10 can be gripped by the fingers of two hands leaving the thumb of one or both hands to push the blister pack against the hole. The pushing action first of all tensions the foil of the blister pack until it engages the rim around the opening. Further pressure causes the foil to rupture and the article 15 within the blister pack to be dispensed. The high friction between the silicone upper surface 12 and the blister pack 8 prevents the foil slipping over the upper surface and so aids the tensioning of the foil. Because the foil is tensioned, it is more easily ruptured.

20 The dispensed article is captured within the recess 14 and can be easily tipped out. If more than one article is to be dispensed, they can be collected in the base of the recess 14 and all tipped out together.

The provision of the rim 10 to assisting gripping while pressing with thumbs 25 against the blister pack to dispense the article is relatively easy to manage, even for those with manipulation difficulties.

The device can be incorporated within a container, as shown in Figure 2 where the upper surface of the container contains a device having a surface 12 sloping

down to an opening 16 and can be used in the manner described above.

However, it also has flaps 18 that can be opened to access a storage container for blister packs underneath the device. In this way, it is possible to sell, for example, medicines in the packaging shown in Figure 2 with the device of the 5 present invention and a storage compartment for blister packs. Instead of flaps 18 to open and close the storage container, other closures may be used, e.g. a sliding drawer may be provided.

It is important that the upper surface 12 is rigid or semi-rigid in order to tension 10 the blister pack foil.

If it is necessary to dispense multiple articles from a blister pack, an array of devices according to the present invention can be provided, as shown in Figure 3 where ten devices of the present invention are provided in an array matching 15 the array of articles in a blister pack. The blister pack can then be placed on the Figure 3 device with the articles of the pack in register with the openings 16. It is then relatively simple to dispense articles from the blister pack quickly as described above.

Claims

1 A method of dispensing articles from a blister pack, which method comprises placing the foil of a blister pack on a surface provided with an 5 opening such that a compartment in the blister pack is in register with the opening, and pressing the article within the compartment towards the opening to firstly tension the foil and, ultimately, to rupture the foil and so allow the article to be dispensed into the opening.

10 2 A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the opening is the open end of an otherwise closed recess for catching the article as it is dispensed.

3 A method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the bottom of the recess is capable of resonating when the article is dispensed so that it is possible to hear 15 the dispensed article falling into the recess.

4 A method as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3, wherein the surface is part of a device that includes a rim that surrounds the recess and the said surface is the upper surface of the rim.

5 A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the surface is made of, or coated with, a material having a high coefficient of friction, for example silicone rubber.

25 6 A method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the surface is provided on a container holding blister packs.

7 A method as claimed in any one of claims I to 6, wherein the surface slopes downwardly towards the opening.

8 A device for use in opening blister packs to dispense articles stored 5 within individual compartments in the blister pack, which device comprises a rigid or semi-rigid surface provided with an opening so that, in operation, a blister pack can be placed with the foil against the surface and with a compartment in register with the opening, the article can then be pressed towards the opening firstly to tension the foil and secondly to rupture the foil to 10 dispense the article within the compartment into the opening.

9 A device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the opening is the open end of an otherwise closed recess for catching the article as it is dispensed.

15 10 A device as claimed in claim 9, wherein the bottom of the recess is capable of resonating when the article is dispensed so that it is possible to hear the dispensed article falling into the recess.

11 A device as claimed in claim 9 or claim 10, which includes a rim that 20 surrounds the recess and the said surface is the upper surface of the rim.

12 A device as claimed in any one of claims 8 to 1 1, wherein the surface is made of, or coated with, a material having a high coefficient of friction, for example silicone rubber.

13 A device as claimed in any one of claims 7 to 12, which includes a container for holding blister packs.

14 A device as claimed in any one of claims 8 to 13, wherein the device includes more than one opening for the dispensing of several articles within the blister pack either simultaneously or in succession.

5 15 A device as claimed in any one of claims 8 to 14, wherein the surface slopes downwardly towards the opening.