KR19980044940A - Drug storage management method by transfolder and apparatus used therein - Google Patents

Abstract

Many cartridges are provided with a transfolder operative to receive and store information including drug names and drugs in response to an external command signal and to transmit stored drug information to the outside. The current stock of drug stored in the transfolder is read while the amount of drug released from the cartridge is measured. The release of drug is then subtracted from the current storage of the drug, and the difference is recorded in the transfolder as a new storage of the drug.

Description

Drug storage management method by transfolder and apparatus used therein

1 is a perspective view showing a pill dispensing system to which the present invention is applied.

2 is a partially cut away front view of a pill dispenser.

3 is an exploded view showing a pill feeder and a pill cartridge.

4 is a cross-sectional view showing a pill feeder and a pill cartridge.

5 is a partial cutaway view of a transfolder.

6 is a schematic diagram showing a read / write device and a transfolder.

7 is a control block diagram of the storage management apparatus of the present invention.

8 is a flowchart showing storage management operation in emission control.

9A is a flowchart showing storage management operations in supplemental control.

9B is a flow chart showing operation following FIG. 9;

The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for managing drug storage by a transfolder, and more particularly to a method for managing drug storage. The cartridge of the drug release device is provided with a transfolder for storing the storage amount of the drug contained in the cartridge such that the storage amount is updated when the drug release or replenishment is made.

To date, various methods for managing the storage amount of the drug contained in the drug cartridge of the drug release device for releasing drugs such as pills, powdered medicine and ampoules have been proposed.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-269621 discloses, for example, an apparatus of such a configuration in which the number of remaining pills present in each cartridge of a plurality of pill feeders is continuously detected to indicate the result when the number of pills required for prescription exceeds the remaining number of pills. Is proposed.

In Japanese Patent Application No. 5-60948 filed by the applicant, a storage management method is proposed in which the number of pills stored for each of a plurality of cartridges is calculated by subtracting the number of pills required for prescription from the current number of pills. When the number of pills to be dropped falls below the current pill storage, the cartridge is supplied with pills, after which the expected number of pills is replaced with the supplied pills.

Also disclosed Japanese Patent Application No. 4-102168 discloses a storage management apparatus in which the storage amount for each of a plurality of cartridges is retrieved and the final data is shown on the display.

However, even in the above-described prior art, there is a need for prior keying in the amount of drug to be accommodated in each cartridge, and in addition, there is a need to provide a space for storing information about the amount to be stored. This inevitably increases the memory capacity need. Another problem with the prior art is the possibility that the wrong drug can be supplied because it relies on manual work to identify the drug to be replenished with the drug stored in the cartridge.

Since the present invention solves the problems of the prior art, it is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for drug storage management by means of a transfolder, in which drug information such as the amount of drug storage is excreted in individual cartridges. Stored in a folder, keying labor can be saved, memory capacity requirements can be reduced, and any mistakes that may be involved in drug delivery can be eliminated.

In order to achieve the above object, a first aspect of the present invention provides a method for storage management of a drug to be released from a plurality of cartridges according to a prescription, the method comprising the following steps;

Providing a transfolder in each of the plurality of cartridges in response to an external command signal to receive and store drug information including the name and amount of drug and to transmit drug information stored externally;

Measuring the amount of drug released from the cartridge; And

Reading the current drug stock stored in the transfolder, subtracting the release from the current stock, and recording the difference as a new stock of drug in the transfolder.

As a second aspect, the present invention provides a method for storage management of a drug which is released from a plurality of cartridges according to a prescription and supplied from a drug container as needed, the method comprising:

Providing a transfolder in each of the plurality of cartridges in response to an external command signal to receive and store drug information including the name and amount of drug and to transmit the stored drug information to the outside;

Measuring the amount of drug released from the cartridge;

Reading the current storage amount of the drug stored in the transfolder and subtracting the release amount from the current storage amount to record the difference as a new storage amount of the drug in the transfolder;

Identifying the name of the drug stored in one of the drug containers;

Reading the name of the drug stored in the transfolder of the cartridge;

Verifying a match between the drug name of the cartridge and the drug name of the drug container; And reading the current storage amount of the drug in the transfolder and adding the current storage amount to the amount of drug that is replenished with the cartridge in the drug container and storing the sum in the transfolder as a new storage amount of the drug.

As a third aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for storage management of a drug to be released from a plurality of cartridges according to a prescription, the apparatus comprising:

A transfolder provided in each cartridge operative to receive, store, and transmit stored drug information to the outside in response to an external command signal;

Measuring means for measuring the amount of drug released from the cartridge;

Read / write means for transmitting a read / write command signal with respect to the drug information to the transfolder; And sending a read command signal to the transfolder via the read / write means to read the current storage amount of the drug and subtracting the release amount measured by the measuring means from the current storage amount, and then recording the difference as a new storage amount of the drug. And emission control means operable to transmit a write command signal to the transfolder via the read / write means.

As a fourth aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for storage management of a drug which is to be ejected from a plurality of cartridges according to a prescription and supplied from a drug container as needed, the apparatus comprising;

A transfolder provided in each cartridge operative to receive and store drug information including the name and amount of drug in response to an external command signal and to transmit externally stored drug information;

Measuring means for measuring the amount of drug released from the cartridge;

Read / write means for transmitting a read / write command signal to the transfolder regarding the information of the drug; And receiving a read command signal to the transfolder via the read / write means to read the current storage amount of the drug and subtracting the release amount measured by the measuring means from the current storage amount, and then recording the difference as a new storage amount of the drug. A drug release section comprising release control means operable to send a write command signal to the transfolder via read / write means;

Identification means for confirming the name of the drug stored in one of the drug containers;

Reading / writing means for sending a read / write command signal to each transfolder with respect to drug information; And

Sending a read command signal through the read / write means to read the name of the drug and verifying the correspondence between the drug name of the drug container and the drug name of the cartridge drug identified by the checking means, and then reading the current storage amount. Send a read command signal to the transfolder via read / write means, and add the amount of drug replenished from the drug container to the cartridge to the current storage volume, and then read / write the total to the transfolder as a new storage amount of the drug. Drug replenishment comprising supply control means operative to transmit a record command signal to the transfolder via the recording means. Drug supplement section.

In the fourth aspect, the amount of drug replenished with the cartridge in the drug container is preferably measured by the measuring means. Optionally, the amount of drug to be replenished with the cartridge in the drug container is preferably recalled earlier from the memory means for storing the initial amount of drug container for each drug name.

According to the first feature (method for drug storage management) and the third feature (apparatus for drug storage management) of the present invention as described above, the current storage amount is continuously stored in the transfolder of each cartridge. This provides memory capacity reduction for the external memory device and saves the trouble of keying in the storage data.

As described above, according to the second aspect of the present invention (method for drug storage management) and the fourth aspect (apparatus for drug storage management), if the cartridge has little or no storage during storage management at the time of drug release, , The cartridge is removed. The drug container on the storage shelf device is then selected to replenish the cartridge with the drug stored in the drug container. In this drug supplement, storage management is also performed. Thus, each time the drug is released from the cartridge and replenished with the cartridge, the current stock is continuously stored in the cartridge's transfolder. It also reduces the effort to key in the ejection amount as well as the supply data and provides memory capacity reduction for external memory devices. Drug delivery is safely performed without any realization, since the name of the drug in each drug container matches with the name of the drug in the corresponding cartridge.

The objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description made in conjunction with the preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 shows a pill dispensing system employing a method and apparatus for storage management, in accordance with the present invention. The system includes a pill dispensing device 1, a pill dispensing control device 2, a pill storage shelf device 3, and a pill supply control device 5 configured on a work bench 4.

As shown in FIG. 2, the pill dispensing device 1 includes a supply portion 7 located at the upper inner portion of the box-shaped casing 6 and a packing portion 6 positioned at the lower inner portion of the casing 6. It includes.

The supply portion 7 is open at the front door 9 of the casing 6 and houses two sliding members 10 suitable for being pulled toward the front side. Each sliding member 10 receives a plurality of pill feeders 11 arranged therein and has a central discharge for releasing pills from each pill feeder 11 facing the funnel 12 located below each member 10. A passage 13 is formed.

As shown in FIG. 3, each pill feeder 11 has a motor base 14 and a motor base 14 fixed to the sliding member 10 for receiving a drive motor 16 and a central discharge passage 3. A chute 17 is formed to guide. The motor base 14 is provided with a measuring device 18 for measuring the number of pills to be released through the chute 17. Each cartridge 15 is typically a rectangular top open container that can be sealed with a cover 19 and is suitable for containing pills. At the bottom of the cartridge is a rotor 22 having a number of pockets 20 around its outer side and a gear 21 at its lower end. The rotor 22 is engaged with the gear 23 of the drive motor 16 of the motor base 14 when the cartridge 15 is mounted on the motor base 14 (see FIG. 3). In this way, the rotor 22 is driven to rotate so that the tablets entering the pocket 20 are discharged to the central discharge passage 13 one by one through the chute 17. The transfolder 24 is housed in each cartridge 15.

As shown in FIG. 5, the transfolder includes a ferrite antenna 25, a C-MOS IC chip 26, and a power source capacitor 27, all housed in a tempered glass tube 28. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 6, the IC chip 26 is formed of a RAM memory 29 and a control circuit 30 necessary for communication. The power source capacitor 27 stores the power obtained by rectifying the unwavered wave received through the antenna 25 from the read / write device 41 described later. The power stored in the power source capacitor 27 is used to transmit the signal. The memory 29 records, in coded form, the name of a pill stored in the cartridge 15 and pill information including the storage of such a pill. The control circuit 30 writes the pill information in the memory 29 based on the signal received through the antenna 25 and reads the pill information stored in the memory 29. The packaging part 8 shown in FIG. 2 folds the wrapping paper 32 wound on the roll 31 via a triangular flat plate 33 and feeds it through a funnel 12 that is received into a double-folded portion. The pills released from 7) are once packed, then the folded package is sealed with a heated sealing device 34 and then released.

As shown in FIG. 1, a pill release control device 2 is provided beside the pill distribution device 1. The control device 2 controls the supply part 7 and the packing part 8 of the pill dispensing device 1 and also performs storage management on the pill contained in the cartridge 15. The description given hereinafter is directed to a configuration for pill storage management. As shown in FIG. 7, the tablet ejection control device 2 includes a central processing unit (referred to as a CPU 25), an input device 36 for inputting information about a tablet prescription based on a prescription, and a control program. Read / write with ROM memory 37 for storage, RAM memory 38 for storing input information, display device 39, and antenna 40 for transfolder 24 in individual cartridge 15 Recording device 41;

As shown in FIG. 6, the read / write device 41 includes a control module 43 having an RF module and a transmit / receive decryption circuit. During the write operation, the control module 43 converts the pill information received from the CPU 35 into a transmission signal suitable for a specific communication procedure for data recording, as agreed with the transfolder 24, and then the RF module ( 42 modulates the transmitted signal into a signal of a predefined frequency such as, for example, an FSK signal and transmits it through the antenna 40. During the read operation, the RF module demodulates the transmitted signal received from the transfolder 24 by the antenna 40, and then the control module 43 converts the demodulated signal into a digital signal so that the CPU 35 The demodulated signal is converted into a digital signal and placed in the CPU 35.

In this embodiment, the burnout signal from the read / write device 41 to the transfolder 24 includes a combination of a power signal, a pill confirmation signal, and a control signal for activating the transfolder. As a control signal, three kinds of signals, namely (1) a cartridge presence check signal for checking whether or not a cartridge 15 containing a related tablet is present in the supply portion 7 of the tablet dispensing apparatus 1, (2) A current storage query signal for querying the current storage amount of pills stored in each transfolder 24, and (3) a new storage record signal for updating the current storage amount of pills stored in each transfolder 24 with a new storage amount. do.

On the other hand, as a response signal from each transfolder 24 to the read / write device 41, two kinds of signals, i.e., a confirmation signal as a response to the cartridge presence investigation signal, and a current storage amount inquiry signal or a new storage amount recording signal, The storage signal as a response is used.

As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of pill containers 44 containing pills for feeding a cartridge of the pill dispensing device 1 for supply are stored in the pill storage shelf 3. Each pill container 44 has a barcode (see FIG. 7) 45 attached to identify the name of the pill contained in the container 44.

On the workbench 4, an antenna for a pill supply control device 5 including a personal computer, and in addition to the measuring device 46, a barcode reader 47, and a transfolder 24 provided in the cartridge 15 ( 48) is selected.

As shown in FIG. 7, the pill supply control device 5 includes a CPU 49, a data change device for converting the count value from the measuring device 46 into a digital value, a ROM for storing a control program, and the like. Read / write device 54 having a memory 51, a RAM memory 52 for storing input information, a display device 53, and an antenna 48 for a transfolder 24 provided in cartridge 15 And an input device 55. Each pill container 44 for containing a pill to be supplied is stored in a buried state on the pill storage shelf 3. Thus, the initial amount of pills stored in the container is predetermined according to the prescription of the pills. The initial amount of this pill is stored in the ROM memory 51 in advance. Therefore, when the pill contained in the pill container 44 is completely supplied, the amount supplied can be known by calling the information stored in the ROM memory for the initial amount of the pill in the container 44. No coefficient is needed. Since the configuration of the read / write device 54 is the same as that of the read / write device of the tablet release control device 2, the description thereof is omitted. The transmit / receive signal for communication between the read / write device 54 and the transfolder 24 is as follows. The transmission signal from the read / write device 54 to the transfolder 24 activates the transfolder 24. And a combination of power signal, pill signal, and control signal. Four kinds of control signals as control signals, namely (1) a pill name investigation signal, (2) a cartridge presence signal for investigating whether or not a cartridge 15 containing a related pill exists on a work table 4, (3) A current storage query signal for querying the current storage amount of pills stored in each transfolder 24, and (4) a new storage record signal for updating the current storage amount of pills stored in each transfolder 24 to a new storage amount; Used.

On the other hand, two kinds of signals as response signals from each transfolder 24 to the read / write device 54, namely, a confirmation signal as a response to a pill name signal or a cartridge presence signal, and a current storage amount query signal or a new storage amount The storage amount signal is used as a response to the recording signal.

Next, an operation procedure for storage management by the pill release control device 2 and the pill supply control device 5 will be described with reference to the flowcharts given in FIGS. 8 and 9.

8 shows an operation procedure for storage management of pills in the cartridge 15 during drug release and packaging operation of the pill dispenser 1.

First, in step 101, a prescription is read by input device 36. In step 102, the presence signal for the cartridge 15 containing the pills to be first packed is sent to the transfolder 24 of each cartridge 15 in the read / write device 41 of the tablet dispensing device 1. Is transmitted through the antenna 40. If no response is received in step 103, an indication of the non-existence of the associated cartridge 15 is given to the display device 3a in step 104. If there is a response, then in step 105 the current storage response signal is sent to the transfolder 24. When a query signal for the current storage amount is received from the transfolder 24, in step 106 the current storage amount data is stored in the RAM memory 38 based on the response signal.

Then, in step 107, it is determined whether or not the release amount is insufficient by subtracting the required amount of pills based on the prescription from the current storage amount. If insufficient, an alarm display is provided to the display device 39 for the operator to make up.

If not insufficient, in step 109 the pill dispensing device 1 is activated to perform a release operation on the associated pill. Thus, a pill corresponding to the prescription is ejected from the cartridge 15, and packaging of the pill is carried out by the packaging section 8. In step 110 during this release operation, the release amount of the pill is measured by the measuring device 18. In step 111 the storage after release is calculated by subtracting the release from the current storage.

In step 112, the presence check signal for the associated cartridge 15 is sent back from the read / write device 41 of the pill dispenser 1 to the transfolder 24. If no response is received in step 113, a non-existent display is given in step 114. If there is a response, a storage amount recording signal is transmitted in step 115, causing the transfolder 24 to record the storage amount calculated in step 111 as a new storage amount. Then, in step 116, the storage amount recording signal received from the transfolder 24 is transmitted again in response to the storage amount recording signal and the operation ends if it matches.

Each time a pill is dispensed according to the prescription, the preceding steps are executed. Thus, the storage amount of pills stored in each cartridge 15 is continuously stored in the transfolder 24 of the cartridge 15. Therefore, the storage amount of pills stored in all the cartridges 15 is continuously stored in the transfolder 24 of the cartridge 15. Therefore, the total storage amount of pills for all the cartridges 15 need not be stored in the RAM memory 38.

9A and 9B or a pill display during operation of the pill dispensing device 1 is made and the pill when the associated cartridge 15 is removed from the workbench 4 for replenishment of the pill. The operating procedure of the supplemental control unit 5 is shown.

First, in step 201, a pill name investigation signal is transmitted from the read / write device 54 of the pill replenishment control device 5 to the transfolder 24 of the associated cartridge 15 via the antenna 48. If no response has been received from the transfolder 24 at step 202, this means that the cartridge 15 has not yet been placed in a predefined position on the workbench 4. Thus, the operation returns to step 201 and the pill name search signal is continuously transmitted until the cartridge 15 is placed on the work bench 4. If a response is received in step 202, a pill name is stored in step 203, and then in step 204 a current stock query signal is sent to transfolder 24. In step 205 the current amount of storage is stored in RAM memory 52 based on the response signal received.

A pill container 44 containing pills to be supplied for replenishment is taken from a pill storage shelf 3 and placed on a workbench 4 and a barcode reader 45 reads the barcode 45 of the pill container 44. do. Then, in step 206, it is determined whether or not information regarding the name of the pill to be supplied for replenishment has been entered. If there is no such input, the standby position is established until the pill container 44 is read by the barcode reader 47. If so, the name of the pill to be supplied for replenishment at step 207 is stored in RAM memory 52 and the name of the pill to be supplied for replenishment at step 208 is contained in cartridge 15. It is determined whether or not it matches the name of the pill. If not, an error indication is displayed on the display device 53 at step 209 to inform the operator that the pill container 44 is wrong. The operation then returns to step 206. If there is a match, it is determined at step 210 whether all pills in the pill container 44 should be supplied for replenishment. In this regard, input regarding whether full or partial replenishment is made is based on the operator's visual judgment as to the amount of pills contained in the pill container 44 and the available space for replenishment in the cartridge 15. Thus, a decision regarding full replenishment or partial replenishment may be made depending on how the replenishment decision was entered.

If all of the pills contained in the pill container 44 are to be supplied for replenishment, it is determined at step 211 whether data for the initial amount of pills available for replenishment has been stored in the ROM memory. If there is such data, it is stored in the initial amount of RAM memory 52 at step 212. If there is no such data, in step 213 a measurement instruction is given to the operator. When the measurement is performed by the operator, it is determined in step 214 whether the measured value has been input from the measuring device 46 via the data converter 50. If there is such an input, in step 212 the input data is stored as a supplemental pill amount. If there is no such input, the operation returns to step 213 and the instruction is again given to perform the measurement again.

In step 210, if a determination is made about partial replenishment but not full replenishment, the operator takes the appropriate amount of pill from the pill container 44 and measures it with the measuring device 46. Thus, the value measured at step 212 after passing step 214 is stored as the supplemental pill amount.

In step 212, after the replenishment pill amount is stored in the RAM memory 52, the stored amount after replenishment is calculated in step 215 by adding the replenishment amount to the current storage amount. Then, in step 216, the cartridge presence test signal is sent back from the read / write device 54 of the pill replenishment control device 5 to the transfolder 24. If there is no response at step 217, then a non-existent indication is given at step 218. If a response is received, a storage amount recording signal is transmitted in step 219 to cause the transfolder 24 to record the storage amount calculated in step 215 as a new storage amount. Then, in step 220, it is determined whether or not the storage amount received from the transfolder 24 matches the transmitted storage amount in response to the storage amount recording signal. If it does not match, the storage amount recording signal is transmitted again. If it matches, the operation is terminated.

In this embodiment, the pill dispenser 1 is in the form of a slide box. However, the configuration of the pill dispensing device 1 is not limited to such a form, but may be of other known or rotating forms. Needless to say, the pill dispensing device 1 can be applied to use, such as powder medicine dispensing device or ampoule discharging device.

Although the present invention has been described fully by way of example with the accompanying drawings, it should be understood that various modifications may be made to those skilled in the art. Thus, unless such modifications depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention, they should be considered to be included in the present invention.

Claims (6)

A method for the storage management of a drug to be released from a plurality of cartridges according to a prescription, the method comprising the following steps: Providing a transfolder in each of the plurality of cartridges in response to an external command signal to receive and store drug information including the name and amount of drug and to transmit the stored drug information to the outside; Measuring the amount of drug released from the cartridge; And Reading the current storage amount of drug stored in the transfolder, subtracting the release amount from the current storage amount, and recording the difference as a new storage amount of the drug in the transfolder. A method for the storage management of a drug which is to be released from a plurality of cartridges according to a prescription and to be replenished from the drug container as needed, the method comprising the following steps: Receive and store medication information, including the name and quantity of the medication, in response to an external command signal on each of the multiple cartridges, And providing a transfolder operable to transmit the stored drug information to the outside; Measuring the amount of drug released from the cartridge; Reading the current drug stock stored in the transfolder and subtracting the release from the current stock to record the difference as a new stock of drug in the transfolder; Identifying the name of the drug stored in one of the drug containers; Reading the name of the drug stored in the transfolder of the cartridge; Verifying a match between the drug name of the cartridge and the drug name of the drug container; And And reading the current storage amount of the drug, adding the current storage amount to the amount of drug to be replenished with the cartridge in the drug container, and storing the sum in the transfolder as a new storage amount of the drug. An apparatus for storage management of a drug to be released from a plurality of cartridges in accordance with a prescription, the apparatus comprising:; As a third aspect, the present invention provides a device for storage management of a drug to be released from a plurality of cartridges according to a prescription, the device comprising: A transfolder provided in each cartridge operative to receive, store, and transmit stored drug information to the outside in response to an external command signal; Measuring means for measuring the amount of drug released from the cartridge; Read / write means for transmitting a read / write command signal with respect to the drug information to the transfolder; And Send a read command signal to the transfolder via the read / write means to read the current storage amount of the drug and subtract the release amount measured by the measuring means from the current storage amount, and then read it to record the difference as the new storage amount of the drug. And release control means operable to transmit a recording command signal to the transfolder via the recording means. An apparatus for the storage and management of drugs to be ejected from a plurality of cartridges according to a prescription and to be replenished from a drug container as needed, the apparatus comprising:; A transfolder provided in each cartridge operative to receive and store drug information including the name and amount of drug in response to an external command signal and to transmit externally stored drug information; Measuring means for measuring the amount of drug released from the cartridge; Read / write means for transmitting a read / write command signal to the transfolder regarding the information of the drug; And Receive a read command signal to the transfolder via the read / write means to read the current storage amount of the drug and subtract the release amount measured by the measuring means from the current storage amount, and then read to record the difference as the new storage amount of the drug. A drug release section including release control means operable to transmit a write command signal to the transfolder via the recording / recording means; Identification means for confirming the name of the drug stored in one of the drug containers; Reading / writing means for sending a read / write command signal to each transfolder with respect to drug information; And Send a read command signal through the read / write means to read the name of the drug, and verify the correspondence between the drug name of the drug container and the drug name of the cartridge drug identified by the checking means, and then read the current storage amount. A read command signal to the transfolder via read / write means to add the amount of drug refilled from the drug container to the cartridge, and then operate the total into the transfolder as a new reservoir of drug. And a drug replenishment section comprising means. 5. The device of claim 4, wherein the amount of drug replenished from the drug container to the cartridge is measured by measuring means. 5. The device of claim 4, wherein the amount of drug replenished from the drug container to the cartridge is called in advance from memory means for storing an initial amount of drug container for each drug name.