TW201740352A - Cloud-based platform for patient adherence promotion and related applications - Google Patents

Abstract

Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide a cloud-based platform for monitoring patient adherence to a medical regimen. A cloud-based platform to monitor and promote patient adherence, as described herein, may help enable various useful applications.

Description

Cloud-based platform for related patient facilitation and related applications

Particular aspects of the present disclosure pertain generally to health care, and more particularly to mechanisms for monitoring and/or facilitating patient compliance with a prescription regimen.

Patient compliance generally refers to how the patient is prescribed the medication prescribed by the health care provider. In other words, the patient is considered to be compliant when the patient is dosed according to the dosage and timing of the prescribed prescription. Patient compliance is clearly a key component of treatment success. Non-compliance results in poor patient outcomes and increased medical costs.

As patient disobedience has been identified as an important factor in increased healthcare costs, efforts have recently been made to monitor patient compliance. Such surveillance has the potential to help reduce costs and improve patient health by improving the efficiency of providing care. Such surveillance can help distinguish between poor treatment response and patient non-compliance. As such, monitoring compliance can assist in guiding providers in making prescription decisions, identifying causes of non-compliance, and taking steps to promote compliance.

The usual mechanisms for monitoring compliance include clinical assessments (where the patient's use is observed and documented) and the patient's self-reporting. These mechanisms each have their own shortcomings. For example, clinical assessment of patient compliance is often inconvenient, expensive, and time consuming, and patient self-reporting is well known and unreliable.

For these reasons, there is a need for improved mechanisms for monitoring and/or facilitating patient compliance.

The systems, methods, and devices of the present disclosure each have several aspects, none of which are solely responsible for their desired attributes. Some features will now be briefly discussed under the scope of this disclosure, which is not limited by the scope of the patent application (see below). After considering this discussion, especially after reading the section entitled "Implementation," we will understand how the features of this disclosure provide advantages (including improved communication in wireless networks).

Aspects of the present disclosure provide an apparatus for tracking the count of one of the items in a container. The device generally includes a housing mountable to an opening of the container, at least one detector, a processor, and an interface for transmitting a wireless signal, the at least one detector approaching the opening and responding to the The container removes the item (or inserts the item into the container), the processor is configured to process a first signal generated by the detector to update a monitored count of the item in the container, the wireless signal indicating At least one of the monitored count or the monitored count change.

Aspects of the present disclosure provide an apparatus for monitoring patient compliance with a medication regimen. The apparatus generally includes a container for loading an item, a housing mountable to an opening of the container, at least one detector proximate the opening and responsive to removal of the item from the container, a processor, and for transmitting An interface of a wireless signal, the processor configured to process a first signal generated by the detector to update a monitored count of items in the container, the wireless signal indicating the monitored count or the monitored At least one of the changes in the count.

The aspects of the present disclosure provide a cloud-based platform to monitor and facilitate patient compliance. This cloud-based platform can help empower a variety of useful applications.

The specific aspects of the present disclosure also provide various methods, apparatus, and computer program products for performing the operations performed by the devices described above.

In order to achieve the foregoing and related aspects, the one or more aspects include the features of the following detailed description and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following description and the annexed drawings set forth, in detail These features are indicative, however, some of the various ways may employ different principles, and the description is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents.

Aspects of the present disclosure are generally directed to a platform for monitoring patient compliance with a medication regimen. The aspects of this disclosure also relate to various components that can assist in enabling the platform, such as a smart collar that can detect and communicate information about compliance. As described in this specification, a smart collar that is seamlessly integrated with a drug container can create a cost effective mechanism for communicating information about patient compliance (eg, accuracy on the order of each pill).

The aspects of the present disclosure also provide tailored communication with a patient. For example, the communication pattern with the patient can be adjusted based on feedback or inference about why the patient did not comply with a medical regimen to encourage compliance with the protocol.

Various aspects of the present disclosure will be more fully described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, this disclosure may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to any particular structure or function. Rather, the scope of the disclosure is to be fully described in the details of the disclosure. In view of the teachings of the present specification, those skilled in the art should understand that the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover any aspect of the present disclosure disclosed herein, whether independently or in any other aspect of the present disclosure. combination. For example, any of the aspects described in this specification can be used to implement a device or to implement a method. Furthermore, the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover such an apparatus or method that utilizes various aspects of the present disclosure described herein in addition to (or instead) other structures, functions, or structures and functions. . It should be understood that any aspect of the present disclosure described herein may be embodied by one or more elements of a claim.

The word "exemplary" as used in this specification means "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any aspect described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects.

Although specific aspects are described in this specification, many variations or permutations of such aspects are within the scope of the disclosure. Although the benefits and advantages of the preferred aspects are mentioned, the scope of the disclosure is not intended to be limited to a particular benefit, use, or purpose. Conversely, aspects of the present disclosure are intended to be broadly applied to different wireless technologies, system configurations, networks, and transmission protocols, some of which are shown by way of example in the drawings and . The detailed description and the drawings are merely illustrative of the scope of the invention and the scope of the claims An exemplary platform for monitoring patient compliance

Figure 1 illustrates a system 100 in which the aspects of the present invention can be implemented. System 100 can be viewed as a cloud-based platform that monitors patient compliance. System 100 includes a server 150 having a database 152, a network 140, a smart phone 130, and a vial or container 120. Container 120 includes a plurality of items 122 (e.g., pills or drugs). The container 120 can be cylindrical, sealed at one end and open at the other end. The open end of the container 120 can be referred to as the "mouth" of the container 120 in this specification. The container 120 can include a smart collar 110 coupled to the mouth of the container 120. The smart collar 110 can include an opening 112 that passes through the entire wisdom collar 110 and is used to dispense the item 122 from the container 120 or to insert the item 122 into the container 120.

In the illustrated example, the smart collar 110 can be loaded into the container 120 and the smart collar 110 configured to monitor the removal and/or insertion of the item 122 from the container 120. As will be explained in more detail below, the smart collar 110 can include one or more components (such as light that can detect the removal and/or insertion of the item 122 (or any other detectable amount of container contents) through the opening 112. Interrupter or processor).

As an example, but not limiting, the container 120 can be a pill bottle and the item 122 can be a pill. Thus, as the pill is removed from the container 120 or added, the smart collar 110 can maintain and update a pill count. In this case, the smart collar 110 can be adapted to a standard size pill bottle (eg, replacing a standard lid, or being loaded into a standard sized pill bottle to continue using the existing lid) or with a custom size Pair of pill bottles. The smart collar 110 can be a separate component or, in some cases, the smart collar 110 can be an integral part of the container 120. Although a pill bottle is described to facilitate understanding, the techniques and mechanisms described herein can be used to monitor any type of detectable content (eg, solid, liquid, or gas) that is removed or added from the container 120.

The smart collar 110 may have one or more interfaces that allow communication with a network 140, such as a cloud-computing network. The term cloud computing as used in this specification generally refers to any type of network-based (e.g., Internet-based) computing that provides shared processing resources and materials to devices on demand. In this way, cloud computing can be thought of as a model that enables on-demand access to shared configurable computing resource sets that can be quickly provisioned and released with minimal administrative effort.

The network can be used to exchange messages between spatially separated devices in several interactions. In some embodiments, the network may be classified according to a geographic category, such as a metropolitan area, a near-end area, or a personal area. Such networks may be referred to as wide area networks (WANs), metropolitan area networks (MANs), regional networks (LANs), wireless local area networks (WLANs), or personal area networks (PANs), respectively. Wireless communication networks can be widely deployed to provide various types of communication content such as voice and data. A common wireless communication network can support communication with multiple users by sharing available network resources (such as bandwidth, transmission power). Examples of such networks may include code division multiple access (CDMA) networks, time division multiple access (TDMA) networks, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) networks, and orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA). ) Network, and others. In addition, the network may be compatible with, for example, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), 3GPP2, 3GPP Long Distance Evolution (LTE), LTE Advanced (LTE-A), LTE Unlicensed (LTE-U) LTE Direct (LTE-D), License-Assisted Access (LAA), MuLTEfire, and so on. The networks are accessible by various types of user equipment (stations) that have been adapted to facilitate wireless networks, where multiple stations share available network resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power).

Communication between network 140 and collar 110 can be bidirectional and can be used to exchange event information, configuration, alerts, or other information. In some embodiments, communication between the network 140 and the smart wrap 110 can be unidirectional (eg, from the smart wrap 110 to the network 140) and communication to patients using the smart wrap 110 can be via smart Phone 130 takes place.

In general, communication of the smart collar 110 to the network 140 can be speculative and can occur via one or more paths on multiple types of links (possibly wireless), either directly or indirectly (via a gateway) Device). In some cases, a device other than smart phone 130 can act as a gateway to network 140. For example, the functionality of the gateway can be provided as part of another connected device (TV, thermostat, Echo speaker or the like, not shown in this figure).

In this example, network 140 may allow information from smart collar 110 to be communicated (e.g., via a packet or other type of message) to server 150 that monitors patient compliance. Information about the pill count can include, for example, absolute (or relative) pill counts, changes in pill counts, number or rate of pills taken over a given period of time, number of refills, and the like. Such information about one or more patients may be stored in database 152, and such information may be analyzed as part of a master plan for monitoring and attempting to encourage patient compliance for a medication regimen.

The smart collar 110 can include any combination of interfaces to communicate directly or indirectly with the network 140. In the example illustrated in FIG. 1, the smart collar 110 can communicate indirectly with the network 140 via a smart phone 130 (eg, a mobile device), such as via Bluetooth, Bluetooth Low Energy (LE), ZigBee, Wi- Fi, NFC (or other type of wireless local area network - WLAN). The smart phone can execute an application (app) that is configured to communicate with the smart wrap 110, collect data, and in some cases, submit compliance data to the patient and/or notify the patient.

As will be explained in more detail below, in some cases, such applications can also be used to view information about a drug as a substitute (or addition) to a conventionally printed (and sometimes difficult to read) document.

In some cases, the smart collar 110 can include a local storage to store information, such as a medication regimen, information for a particular medication, or other information.

Once the medication protocol information is available, the local storage of the smart collar 110 can be used for autonomous loop operations when the network is not accessible.

In some cases, cloud computing network 140 may update information stored on smart collar 110, such as a medication regimen, information for a particular medication ("small book"), or other information. The smart collar 110 described in this specification can be tolerated at home (eg, without going to a pharmacy), at another location (pharmacy or medical provider), or at a remote location (eg, during a trip, during work, etc.) This update.

In some cases, to protect sensitive patient information, the smart collar 110 can encrypt events, medication regimens, and other information that is supplied or collected. Such encrypted information can be stored locally and can be deleted at the server command, or by a remote request from one of the patient or healthcare provider.

In some cases, devices other than the collar (eg, applications on a telephone or television, laptops, security systems, thermostats, etc.) may be used to present informational content to a patient or a person associated with the patient. Depending on the deployment, this information does not necessarily follow the same communication path from the server to the collar. In some cases, once enabled and provisioned, the collar can operate autonomously (eg, without any server communication), and in this case, the collar can generate local information content (eg, utilizing any of its functions) Event information (such as local memory in any suitable form) can also be collected and stored. In some cases, such local alert/storage may only be performed until a connection is obtained. In other cases, such local alert/storage may be auxiliary (eg, performed regardless of the connection).

As described in this manual, specific medication ("small book") information can be stored locally in the collar. In this case, such information can be accessed by connecting a viewer (application, TV, computer, refrigerator, or the like) to the collar.

In some cases, the collar may be provisioned to assist the user in locating ("looking") it. In some cases, the collar may include other "user facing" functions, such as "OK reminders" (eg, prompting the user to see that they are in compliance with the doctor's prescription and taking the pill on time).

As shown in FIG. 2, in some cases, the smart collar can communicate via different types of connections, such as directly to the network 140 (eg, without the need for a smart phone 130 or any other separate device). To the network 140) communication. In some cases, the smart collar 110 can simultaneously communicate with the network 140 directly or indirectly. In this case, the smart collar 110 may be in direct or indirect communication based on one or more conditions (eg, channel conditions, power saving mode, battery status of the smart collar 110, and/or availability of direct connections). For example, when the smart collar 110 is in a power saving mode or the battery power is below a critical level, the smart collar 110 can communicate indirectly with the network 140, thus using less power than communicating directly with the network 140.

For such direct or indirect connection capabilities to network 140, smart collar 110 may include one or more radios (e.g., transceiver 808) that support one or more radio access technologies (RATs). ) or other types of wireless technologies (eg, acoustic or optical communication that does not necessarily require an antenna). In some cases, a particular RAT or RATs that are supported may be determined based on cost considerations. Examples of such RATs include, but are not limited to, Bluetooth, Bluetooth Low Energy (LE), Zigbee, WiFi (or other types of Wireless Local Area Network-WLAN), or cellular networks (or other types of wireless wide area networks) -WAN). Thus, there are numerous options for providing a gateway for connecting the smart collar 110 directly or indirectly to the network 140. In some cases, the smart collar can utilize (piggyback) one or more existing gateways to communicate, such as Amazon Echo speakers, smart TVs with radio transceivers and networks, home automation, and/or Secure the system or use a dedicated gateway (such as 2net).

In general, any suitable type of gateway or direct communication (or other type of connection) can be supported to allow the smart wrap 110 to communicate information via the network 140. As will be explained in more detail below, in some cases, two-way communication can be used between the smart collar 110 and the cloud. For example, data can flow from the smart collar 110 to the cloud (eg, in an event-driven manner or in a request/response manner), and data can flow from the cloud to the smart collar 110 (eg, configuration information, notifications, or other types of information). .

In some embodiments, the smart collar 110 can be selectively configured via the cloud. In some embodiments, the smart collar 110 can request the patient to approve any configuration. In some embodiments, the smart collar 110 may also provide an option to the patient to select which alert to receive or what information to provide to the network 140 in the cloud.

As noted above, in some cases, the smart collar 110 can provide functionality even when there is no connection to the cloud (no connection time). In this case, a smart collar can be configured to collect and store data until it is wired. In some cases, once enabled and configured, the data collected by the collar can be encrypted and stored locally on the collar. This information can be uploaded to the cloud when it is down (for example, when the connection becomes available). In some cases, once the cloud confirms that the data was received correctly (eg, via an acknowledgement message), the data can be erased from the collar.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary operation 300 for monitoring the removal (and/or insertion) of an item from a container in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure. Operation 300 can be performed, for example, via one or more components (eg, sensors and processors) of smart collar 110.

As illustrated at 302, in some cases, the smart collar can be powered on or enabled when the smart collar is installed. For example, the smart collar can be turned on or enabled at the pharmacy or when the patient screws the smart collar into a pill bottle. In some cases, the smart collar can be activated during assembly/manufacture of a pre-packaged container (eg, containing a fixed dose of pill or other type of drug). In some cases, the bottle can be "supplied" with information about the particular patient's medication regimen, information about the type of medication (eg, pill type/size), and various other types of configuration information. At 304, the smart collar detects removal of the item from the container (and/or adds the item to the container). At 306, the smart collar takes action based on the detection result.

As described above and illustrated in operation 400 of FIG. 4, in some cases, the actions taken will vary depending on the current connectivity capabilities to the cloud. At 402, the smart collar detects removal of the item from a container (and/or adds the item to a container). As determined at 404, if no connection to the cloud is available, for example, the smart collar can be updated locally and maintain a pill count, and the change in pill count is continuously detected.

Once the connection is available, at 406, the smart collar can transmit a message to the cloud. For example, the message may indicate an update count, a change in the pill count (increment or decrement), and may include a timestamp or a representation of the time period in which the count change was made. As described above, the message can be transmitted to the cloud directly or indirectly (eg, via a smart phone).

Optionally, at 408, the smart collar can receive a message from the cloud and take action according to it. For example, the message can be generated in response to the compliant information transmitted (in 406). For example, the message may be a reminder that is transmitted (or directly to the smart collar) via the smart phone application described above. In some cases, the collar may have a mechanism to provide an audible alert (eg, a speaker or buzzer) and/or a visual alert (eg, via an LED or a small display screen). As another example, the message may only confirm that the cloud has received the message transmitted at 406 (eg, and the smart collar may delete the locally stored data in response to the confirmation).

FIG. 5A illustrates an exemplary sequence of operations for updating compliance information via a container with a smart collar in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure. As shown, the smart collar can detect the removal of the pill and send a message to the cloud, in this case via a smart phone. Cloud-based monitoring (e.g., server 150) may then be followed to update patient compliance information (e.g., in repository 152).

As shown in FIG. 5B, in some cases, cloud-based monitoring may generate a warning message (or other notification) in response to a triggering event. For example, if the server does not receive an update indicating that the patient has taken the medication according to the doctor's advice, a simple reminder can be sent periodically. As another example, if a timer is overdue indicating that the patient has not followed the medical plan (eg, taking too little or too many pills), the triggering event may be caused. In the illustrated example, the smart phone application can forward the alert message to the smart collar (eg, the smart collar can provide an audible or visual alert to the patient). In some cases, providers (such as doctors) can actually adapt medications based on compliance information (possibly and based on other information, such as bio-informatics for patients).

Although the examples shown in Figures 5A and 5B show indirect communication between the smart collar 110 and the cloud (via the wireless device 140), a similar series of messages can be directly exchanged between the cloud and the smart collar (eg, Remove step 2) in both cases. Exemplary wisdom collar

Figure 6 illustrates an exemplary container in accordance with a particular aspect of the present disclosure having a smart collar for monitoring items removed and/or inserted from the container. As shown, the smart collar can be seamlessly integrated with existing types of pill bottles.

In some cases, the smart collar can be automatically enabled (turned on and started monitoring/reporting) when attached to the bottle. The occurrence of this enablement can be, for example, when configured with protocol and/or drug information. In some cases, the collar can be designed to be very difficult to remove once attached (eg, via a mechanical device). This may allow "lifetime tracking" of the container and/or its contents. In some cases, other sensor information (in addition to removal for compliance) may be monitored (eg, for the end of its life). Examples of such sensor information may include humidity, temperature, collision, or even location (eg, via GPS or other means).

In some cases, the sensor can detect the removal and trigger the transmission of an alarm and/or a message. As described above, the collar can record and report the removal of the pill from the container 120. In some cases, the collar may include some type of visual tamper detection (eg, "twist" with a break-off ring, sometimes used on a particular type of bottle (twist) Off) bottle cap). Various other types of containers (eg, bottles) may also be implemented, such as for tamper detection and counterfeiting detection (eg, using a secure ID).

In some embodiments, the sensor can include a light detector or a camera (or machine vision) device. A light detector can be used in conjunction with the timing to identify when a potential foreign object or contaminant is introduced into the container 120. In some embodiments, the camera or machine vision system can capture the contents of the container, or a photo or image of the item being dispensed or introduced into the container 120 from the container 120. In some embodiments, the smart collar 110 (eg, via the processor 802) is configured to identify an inappropriate item or a contaminant in the container from the captured image. In some embodiments, the identification work can be shared with an external processor (eg, the processor of smart phone 130). In some embodiments, the determination or identification of a contaminant or inappropriate item can be made by comparing the captured image to a known image. Accordingly, articles having different sizes, shapes, colors, textures, and the like can be identified as contaminants.

This monitoring functionality can be combined with specific "user-oriented" communications, such as alerts or other types of notifications. Such alerts/notifications may be provided by any applicable technology, such as via a smart phone application or a contact/means identified via the platform. In some cases, the smart collar may include mechanisms for alerting, such as buzzers or speakers for audible alerts and/or LEDs or display screens for visual alerts.

In some cases, information can be supplied to a set of rings that uniquely identify the drug (eg, drug type, manufacturer, date, location, and verification ID) - this can be combined with the aforementioned lifetime tracking and can also be used to verify The source and authenticity of the drug. This offer may also include medication guidelines/information.

7A-7C illustrate exemplary smart collars in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure, the smart collar having one or more sensors to detect an item (eg, a pill) from the opening of the smart collar Go on. As noted above, at a relatively low cost, the arrangement of the sensors allows the smart collar to provide relatively accurate results (eg, a pill count with a "per pill" of fineness).

As shown in Figures 7A and 7B, one type of sensor arrangement can be a photo interrupter formed by a transmitter 124 (e.g., an LED) and a detector 126 (e.g., a photonic crystal). In this case, the passage of the pill 122 (or other item) can be detected as an interruption of the light detected at the detector 126 (issued from the transmitter 124). As shown in Figure 7B, the emitter/detector pair can be located at an opening through which the article passes. In some cases, the removal (or insertion) of multiple pills can be detected by monitoring the signal (for example, and how long it has been interrupted according to the pill size path).

As shown in FIG. 7C, in some cases, multiple photointerrupters may be offset (eg, vertically or horizontally). This deviation assists in determining which direction of movement of the item (distinguishing and inserting) based on which photointerrupter path was first interrupted. In some cases, multiple photointerrupters can also be offset from the opening by different angles, which can help provide more accurate results. More sophisticated sensing schemes can also be used, although in some cases the cost will increase. In some embodiments, the plurality of photointerrupters can include a single light emitter 124 and a plurality of detectors 126.

Although the examples shown in Figures 7A through 7C utilize a photointerrupter, various other practices can be used for the counting of pills. For example, various other types of optical sensors can be used, such as one or more cameras or other imaging methods placed in a variety of topologies (centralized or decentralized).

In some cases, a reflective optical sensor can be used instead of a photointerrupter (also known as a transmissive optical sensor). A transmissive optical sensor detects an item when the beam is interrupted. A reflective optical sensor measures the amount of light reflected by the passing item. Other types of mechanical or proximity sensors can also be used. In general, any suitable mechanism capable of detecting the addition or removal of an item from a container (e.g., removing the pill from the bottle) can be utilized.

In some cases, one type of sensor that can be included is an accelerometer. In such cases, accelerometers can be used for a variety of functions including: power management, distinguishing between removal and insertion, and collecting information about bottle movements. In some cases, sensor fusion can be performed to improve the accuracy of event detection. In some embodiments, the accelerometer can provide an indication of the orientation of the smart collar 110 or any other motion. Accordingly, the accelerometer can indicate when the container 120 is tilted or rotated in a particular direction to dispense the drug, or when it is in an upright (or non-fitting) position. Therefore, an accelerometer can be utilized to distinguish when a drug is being dispensed or when a drug is being inserted. For example, when the accelerometer indicates an oblique position and the photodetector sensor sees the passage of the medication, the smart collar 110 (via the processor 802) can determine that the medication is being dispensed. When the accelerometer indicates a non-tilted position and the photodetector sensor sees the passage of the medication, the smart collar 110 (via the processor 802) can determine that the medication is being inserted.

Figure 8 illustrates an exemplary schematic of a device in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 8 illustrates various components that may be utilized in device 800 of network 140 (e.g., associated with smart collar 110, smart phone 130, or server 150 as described in Figure 1), which may be It is employed in system 100 of Figure 1. Apparatus 800 is an example of a device that can be configured to carry out the various methods described herein. In some embodiments, device 800 can be smart collar 110 or server 150 or smart phone 130. For the description of Fig. 8 in this specification, some of the item numbers may be referred to in the same numbered form as described above in Fig. 1.

As illustrated, the smart collar can include a processor 802 that controls the operation of the device. Processor 802 may also be referred to as a central processing unit (CPU) or a hardware processor. Memory 804 (which may include both read only memory (ROM) and random access memory (RAM)) provides instructions and data to processor 802. Portions of memory 804 may also include non-volatile random access memory (NVRAM). Processor 802 typically performs logical and arithmetic operations based on program instructions stored in memory 804. The instructions in memory 804 can be executed to implement the methods described in this specification. In addition, device 800 can utilize memory 804 to store information about other devices on the network to enable use of a particular method, such as storing identification for a particular smart phone 130 or server 150 on network 140. And/or the characteristics of the smart phone 130 or the server 150. Device 800 can then utilize processor 802 along with memory 804 to analyze the dispensing and insertion events, medication protocol data, and time to determine and/or identify compliance or non-compliance conditions for the medication regimen. In some embodiments, processor 802 can include a clock (or device 800 can include a separate clock, not shown in this figure). This clock can be used to allow device 800 to track for a time (eg, when the item is dispensed from container 120 or inserted into container 120).

The smart collar 110 can also include a memory 804 (for example, in some embodiments the memory 804 can store instructions executable by the processor 802) to store configuration information, compliance information (eg, pill count), or other types of News. As noted above, in some cases, memory 804 can include information about the medication (dose, precautions, and the like) as an alternative (or additional) to the information typically provided in printed form.

Processor 802 can include (or) a component of a processing system implemented in one or more processors. The one or more processors can be implemented in any combination of general purpose microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs). , controller, state machine, gated logic, discrete hardware components, dedicated hardware finite state machines, or any other applicable entity that can perform calculations or other manipulation of information.

The processing system can also include non-transitory machine readable media for storing software. Software should be widely interpreted to represent any type of instruction, whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or others. The instructions may include code (eg, in a source code format, a binary code format, an executable code format, or any other suitable code format). When an instruction is executed by one or more processors, the instruction causes the processing system to perform the various functions described in this specification. Processor 802 can further include a packet generator for generating packets for controlling operations and data communications.

Apparatus 800 can include a transmitter (transmitter circuit) 809 and a receiver (receiver circuit) 811 to allow for transmission and reception of data between device 800 and a remote location and/or device. Transmitter 809 and receiver 811 can be combined into a transceiver 808. An antenna 812 (or multiple antennas) can be electrically coupled to the transceiver 808. The apparatus 800 can also include (not shown) multiple transmitters, multiple receivers, multiple transceivers, and/or multiple antennas, which can be used during multiple input multiple output (MIMO) communication (for example, ). In some embodiments, each of the plurality of antennas may be dedicated to the transmission and/or reception of LTE-U, LTE-D, MuLTEfire, and/or WLAN communications. The wireless device can be covered by a housing unit 801.

In some embodiments, device 800 may also include a data modem or other means of communication (not shown in this figure). For example, additional means of communication may cause device 800 to transmit, receive, and process communications, such as via a particular communication medium or communication protocol. As noted above, the communication means or transceiver 808 can include any type of suitable wireless interface to allow the device 800 to communicate directly or indirectly (via one or more antennas) with the network 140 or any other network.

Device 800 can also include a sensor 806 that can be used to attempt to detect and quantify various conditions encountered by the device. For example, in the smart collar 110, the sensor 806 can be used to detect the dispensing of a drug from the container 120 or the insertion of a drug into the container 120. In some embodiments, processor 802 can receive input from sensor 806 (eg, the photointerrupter described above) to detect the removal/insertion of the pill. Additionally, sensor 806 can include sensors for monitoring various other parameters such as temperature, humidity, location, and the like.

In some aspects, device 800 can further include a user interface 816. The user interface 816 can include a keypad, a microphone, a speaker, and/or a display screen. User interface 816 can include any component or component that conveys information to and/or receives input from a user of device 800.

The various components of device 800 can be coupled together by a busbar system 818. The busbar system 818 can include, for example, a data bus, in addition to the data bus and the power bus, the control signal bus, and the status signal bus. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that various components of device 800 can be coupled together or with some other mechanism to accept or provide input to each other.

Although several separate components are illustrated in FIG. 8, those skilled in the art will appreciate that one or more of these components are implemented not only for the functionality described above, but also for the other components described above. Functionality. For example, processor 802 can be used not only to implement the functionality described above for processor 802, but also to implement the functionality described above for sensor 806 and/or user interface 816. Each of the components illustrated in Figure 8 can be implemented using a plurality of discrete elements.

As noted above, device 800 can include smart wrap 110 or smart phone 130 and can be used to transmit and/or receive communications over authorized or unauthorized spectrum, and/or with each other and/or network. Other devices on path 140 exchange communications.

Processor 802 can be configured to perform the operations described above. For example, when device 800 implements smart collar 110, processor 802 can assist in enabling smart collar 110 to begin monitoring patient compliance as soon as deployment of smart collar 110 is detected (eg, mounted on a bottle).

As noted above, the smart collar 110 can also include mechanisms to provide audible and/or visual alerts. For example, the smart collar 110 can include a buzzer (or speaker) 812 to provide an audible alert, and/or an LED (or display screen) 814 to provide a visual alert.

In some cases, processor 802 can take steps to retain power. For example, a smart collar can therefore be operated on a single battery for an extended period of time (eg, several years). In this regard, while monitoring the sensor and/or transmitting the message, the processor 802 can implement any combination of one or more power optimization techniques to retain power.

In some embodiments, the smart collar 110 can be configured to operate in an independent manner (eg, without the aforementioned communication with the cloud network, or with minimal such communication). For example, in some embodiments, the smart collar 110 can be configured to perform active compliance or closed loop monitoring of a patient following a medication regimen. Active compliance or closed loop monitoring may include determining that the patient is following the medication regimen without communicating with the smart phone 130 or the server 150.

When the smart collar 110 itself performs active compliance or closed loop monitoring, the smart collar 110 can be configured to monitor the mating and insertion events and compare the events to the patient's medication regimen. For example, the smart collar 110 can store the events in their memory (e.g., memory 804) and compare the number of such events to the expected number of times indicated in the medication regimen. Accordingly, the smart collar 110 can actively monitor patient compliance with the medication regimen in a closed loop without the intervention of any external device or communication with any external device. For example, the medication regimen and details of the medication contained within the container 120 can be stored in the memory of the smart collar 110. Accordingly, the smart collar 110 can include all of the information it needs to perform compliance monitoring.

In some embodiments, active compliance may involve monitoring the dispensing of medication from the container 120 via the smart collar 110 (eg, via the processor 802) (eg, the number of pills 122 and the time at which the pills were dispensed). Processor 802 can further associate the dispensing (or insertion) information with the patient's medication regimen. The act of correlating the dispensing information may include comparing the dispensing information (e.g., time, amount of medication dispensed, etc.) with the medication regimen to see if they match or are in any disagreement. In some embodiments, the smart collar 110 can alert the patient to alert for the need to dispense a medication or to indicate that a dispensing cycle has been missed. In some embodiments, the smart collar 110 can alert the patient to indicate that too many medications have been dispensed, and some of the dispensed medications must be reinserted into the container 120 via the wisdom collar 110.

The smart collar 110 may be subscribed to a warning based on a determination that one or more match events have been missed (eg, the number of scheduled medication uses). In some embodiments, the smart collar 110 can include different alert levels and can progress to different levels based on the severity of the missed match event. The different levels of alerting can be gradually increased in terms of the number of alerts or the level of attention received by the alert. For example, a low severity level alert can include only text messages or warnings. Alerts of higher severity levels may include audible or visual alerts. Even a higher severity level alert may include making a call to a person associated with the patient.

Thus, if the patient misses a single match event, the smart collar 110 may decide to generate a text alert. However, if the patient misses a continuous subsequent match event, the smart collar 110 can be advanced to a different level of alert (eg, an audible alert or a visual (eg, colored light) alert). If there are multiple days of missed events, the smart collar 110 can further communicate with the person associated with the patient, the healthcare provider, or the emergency responder.

In some embodiments, the smart collar 110 can be configured to encrypt and record each match event (or any insertion event). In such an embodiment, the patient's smart phone 130 can be configured to communicate the encrypted and/or recorded information to a device on the cloud (e.g., server 150 that tracks patient compliance for the medication regimen). In some embodiments, by encrypting the mating and insertion events at the smart collar 110, the patient's healthcare information may be maximized or encrypted compared to the smart phone 130 or similar device. The system has improved. In some embodiments, the smart collar 110 can be configured to record a specified number of events in a local memory (eg, memory 804). The ability to record events in local memory 804 allows smart collar 110 to be synchronized less frequently than smart collar 110 without local memory 804. This less frequent synchronization can facilitate the power saving of the smart collar 110 and reduce the transmission of healthcare information. In some embodiments, the smart collar 110 can be configured to communicate with the smart phone 130 and devices in the cloud with minimal delay. The minimum delay can be compared when the patient takes or misses their pill 122, several pills 122 are dispensed or missed, and the monitored event is compared to the medication regimen (e.g., itinerary) provided by the healthcare provider to the patient. Provides more timely monitoring. Accordingly, cloud devices that monitor for such events can act on disambiguation or non-compliance events.

In an embodiment, when the processor 802 is encrypting information to be communicated to the smart phone 130 or the server 150, the processor 802 may first select an encryption key from an encrypted key store. In some embodiments, each device communicated by the smart collar 110 may have its own encryption key. In some embodiments, to minimize the likelihood that the cryptographic key is guessed by the bad party, the cryptographic key may be rotated. In some embodiments, different devices of network 140 may utilize different encryption keys. For example, a pharmacy communicating over the network 140 can use a first encryption key, and a healthcare provider communicating over the network 140 can use a second encryption key. Similarly, a third encryption key can be used by the patient's family or home network. Accordingly, the processor 802 can select an encryption key for the user from the encrypted key repository based on the destination of the communicated information. In some embodiments, processor 802 can include the encryption key in the encrypted information to facilitate decryption.

Similarly, in some embodiments, processor 802 can be configured to decrypt information received via network 140. For example, the smart collar 110 can receive an encrypted communication regarding the medication in the container 120. Accordingly, the smart collar 110 can identify a correct decryption key to use (eg, from an encrypted keystore) to properly decrypt the received communication.

In some embodiments, event reporting (eg, drug dispensing or insertion detected by the smart collar 110) may occur in a timely but power efficient manner. For example, the smart collar 110 can determine when it is wired to one or more cloud devices (e.g., server 150) and coordinate event reporting to the server 150 based on the connection status of the smart collar 110. For example, when the smart collar 110 determines that it is not wired to a more or more cloudy device (eg, the server 150), the smart collar 110 may suspend reporting of the event to reduce the unconnected to the server in the smart collar 110. Data transmission during the period of 150. In some embodiments, the smart collar 110 can be configured to implement a back-off procedure or other communication scheduler. In some embodiments, when the smart collar 110 detects an event, the smart collar 110 implements an electrical communication algorithm to connect to the server 150. For example, the algorithm can include the back-off procedure and can include storing a plurality of event information for communication to the server 150 once the communication to the server 150 is re-established. Exemplary custom communication with the patient

The aspects of this disclosure are also intended to be used for custom communication with patients.

In general, this customized approach to communication can involve a combination of factors that enable communication. Examples of such factors include content (eg, what to convey), methods (eg, how this content is communicated), when (eg, time and/or frequency of communication), and who (eg, recipients of such communications).

The specific examples described below involve custom communication based on explicit feedback (eg, from a patient or a larger range). However, such examples are intended to promote understanding rather than set limits. Conversely, many different programs/events/information can result in customized actions, including (but not limited to) historical records of compliance, location, and behavior (eg, if the user has forgotten to take the medication while at work, then they go to work A reminder at the time may be valid). Other examples that can cause custom actions include analyzing pressure (measured by biometric measurement sensors, or looking at a meeting schedule, or email load, or traffic conditions, etc.) to customize how and when to communicate Travel plans (for example, knowing when/where the communication may be helpful). Other examples include external variables (news, weather, traffic, family, holidays, etc.), calendar information (for example, do not disturb if you are in a meeting).

A long-range goal of customized communications is to provide a system of constant sources of monitoring and alerting (eg, "virtual mothers") that will learn and understand how to best interact with patients to improve/maintain compliance (eg, even if so In some cases there is no communication).

As mentioned above, the custom action can involve changing any combination of what (how), method (how), and frequency (how often) of the communication. As such, custom actions can be as simple as turning on the illumination on the collar, changing the word in the alert, transmitting the audio message (eg via an Echo speaker or other type of device), interrupting the television program (eg via superimposition or replacement), and / Or contact the patient, family member, doctor, or some other person associated with the patient.

Again, the customization action can be based on explicit feedback (eg, asking the patient), implicit feedback (all other), or a combination of explicit and implicit feedback. In general, the platform described in this specification can provide a user (patient) control (voice) to select how/when it is affected by a customized communication ("touch"). The control can be for how (eg via phone, TV, Echo speakers), where (eg home, company, gym, family travel, car), or what to receive as a communication (eg private notes, favorite idols, or some) Off the shelf type of communication).

In other particular embodiments, the customization action may also be based on some implicit/inferential reason for non-compliance. For example, such implicit/inferential feedback may relate to solicited or inferred/implicit non-compliance reasons.

For example, a pattern of communication with the patient to encourage compliance with the medication regimen can be adjusted based on feedback or inference results regarding the patient's failure to follow a medication regimen. In this way, the form of ineffective communication with the patient can be discarded or altered to yield an alternative form that can lead to better compliance.

FIG. 9 illustrates an exemplary operation 900 that may be performed to customize communication for a patient in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure. Operation 900 can be performed, for example, at server 150 (or some other component in the cloud network). In some embodiments, operation 900 can be performed by smart collar 110 (as shown in FIG. 8A) or one or more components of device 850, which can include a smart phone (as shown in FIG. 8B).

Operation 900 begins at block 902 by receiving information regarding the compliance of the patient with a medication regimen. As mentioned above, the information can be received from a smart collar and possibly transferred to another device via a smart phone application. In some embodiments, the information regarding compliance may include details of the medication regimen received or generated from the healthcare provider's premises. In some embodiments, information regarding compliance may include details regarding dispensing, use, dispensing, or dispensing pills from the container via the smart collar 110. In some embodiments, the details of the medication regimen can be accessed by performing the device of operation 900. For example, if the operation 900 is performed by a device of a healthcare provider, the device can directly obtain details of the medication regimen.

At block 904, non-compliance with the medication regimen is detected or determined based on the received information. For example, non-compliance can be determined based on identifying the received information about the pill dispensing and comparing the received information to the medication regimen. In some embodiments, non-compliance may include placing an inappropriate amount of pills at the appropriate time or frequency. In an embodiment, non-compliance may be included at the appropriate time or at an appropriate frequency without the proper amount of pills being dispensed.

At 906, feedback is received from the patient or a person (or person) associated with the patient for one or more reasons for non-compliance. In some embodiments, the reason for non-compliance can be inferred from the device performing operation 900. In some embodiments, the feedback request can include a prompt provided to the patient or his or her associated person. Therefore, the feedback request can prompt the patient to explain why non-compliance occurs. When non-compliance is inferred, the device can monitor various activities of the patient (eg, patient's calendar, patient location, etc.). Accordingly, if the calendar shows that there is a scheduled meeting during the time the drug is scheduled to be dispensed, the device can determine that the non-compliance may be due to the patient being in the meeting. Alternatively, when the device determines that the patient is at the gym, or is watching a movie, etc., the device may determine the reason for non-compliance. Accordingly, the device can infer the reasons for non-compliance or request a reason from the patient. In some embodiments, the device may select or decide whether to infer the non-compliance or request feedback. The selection may be based on whether additional information is available (eg, patient's calendar, location information, etc.), or whether the patient is versed in using a smart phone or other feedback providing device. In some embodiments, the feedback providing device can include a patient's smart phone.

In some embodiments, the act of requesting feedback may further include receiving feedback from the patient or receiving feedback from the person/people being requested for feedback. The feedback can be received from the patient's smart phone or provided via any other feedback (eg, I/O for the device). In some embodiments, the received feedback may indicate that the patient has never received a previous alert.

At 908, based on the feedback or the result of the inference, a custom communication with the patient or a customized communication with the patient is generated or altered to facilitate compliance with the medication regimen. In some embodiments, the device may decide to customize the communication based on the patient's disobedience at the gym to alert the patient after arriving at the gym or prior to the scheduled event. In some embodiments, when the device determines that the patient will be with another person, the device can customize the communication to the other person to alert the patient. In some embodiments, the device can customize a warning to the patient (eg, via a patient's smart phone to generate and/or transmit a reminder, utilize a communication component integrated into the smart collar 110, or the feedback providing device) .

In some embodiments, the act of custom communication or custom communication may include changing a previously established communication method or communication to a patient. For example, if the previous communication or communication method includes direct transmission of a warning to the patient, the customized communication or custom communication method can be changed to direct to the person or person associated with the patient.

Alternatively (or additionally), the custom action may include changing the type of communication or communication method (eg, turning a text or visual alert into an audible alert). In some embodiments, the custom communication or custom communication means may include a reminder to the patient to assist in maintaining compliance with the medication regimen. In some embodiments, the custom action can include altering one or more of the following: how the communication is communicated to the patient, what device communicates the communication to the patient, when the communication is communicated to the patient, or What information is conveyed to the patient's newsletter. In some embodiments, the communication or communication method can include at least one of an audible alert, a visual alert, or a vibrating alert.

In some embodiments, a transmitting circuit or a transmitter circuit (transmitter) can be utilized to transmit a custom communication to a patient or to a person/person associated with the patient. In some embodiments, the customized communication can include altering at least one of a manner of electronically alerting the patient via an electronic surveillance alert, changing a time or frequency of communication with the patient, contacting to alert the patient to the patient At least one person, or at least one person associated with the patient to alert the patient.

Figure 10 illustrates an exemplary sequence of operations for customizing, customizing, or changing communications with a patient in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure. As shown, in step 1, the server 150 or other device may determine non-compliance (eg, based on information received from the smart collar, or may not be able to receive compliance information within a period of time (which also represents non-compliance) Sex)). In step 2, the reason for non-compliance is obtained via the smart phone application, for example, by prompting the patient (or one or more persons associated with the patient) to request or solicit feedback. In step 3, the smart phone application provides feedback to the server 150 via the cloud. In step 4, the server 150 changes the way the patient communicates. In some embodiments, the sequence of operations can include various blocks of operation 900.

In some cases, the smart collar can provide an indication of the pill count, along with a time stamp of when the pill is taken. In this case, the non-compliance may be detected under the medication regimen in which the number of pills removed from the container is not in accordance with the prescribed time. In some cases, the smart collar may have received information about the medication regimen and may be provided to the server.

In some cases, changing the manner in which the patient communicates may involve changing the manner in which the patient is electronically alerted via an electronic surveillance alert (eg, changing an audible alert, a visual alert, or a vibrating alert).

The act of soliciting feedback in some cases may involve prompting a plurality of people associated with the patient until feedback is received. In some cases, the feedback may provide an indication that the patient has not received one or more compliance alerts. In such a case, changing the manner in which the patient communicates with may involve altering at least one of the time or frequency used to communicate with the patient.

In some cases, the feedback may indicate one or more locations when the patient misses the one or more compliance alerts, and the manner in which the patient communicates may be altered based, at least in part, on the locations.

In some embodiments, the smart collar can be configured as a beacon and can be used to identify the location of the medication container. For example, when the smart collar is not actively communicating with a smart phone or cloud device, the patient can optionally enable (eg, utilize the smart phone application) the smartie mode of the smart collar. In the sender mode, the smart collar can transmit, generate, and/or transmit a signal that can be used by an external device (eg, a smart phone) to identify the location of the container containing the smart collar. In some embodiments, the smart phone application can be used to generate a map or geographic location of the smart collar. In some embodiments, the smart phone application can be used to activate one or more indicators (eg, sound or visual indicators) of the smart collar that can help guide the patient toward the container.

In some cases, changing the manner in which the patient communicates with the patient may involve altering at least one person associated with the patient to be contacted to alert the patient. In some cases, changing the manner in which the patient communicates may involve changing the manner in which at least one person associated with the patient is contacted to alert the patient.

As described above, certain aspects of the present disclosure provide a cloud-based platform that can utilize a smart collar to monitor patient compliance for a medication regimen. The Smart Collar provides a relatively low cost mechanism that seamlessly integrates into existing containers (eg, standard pill bottles of various sizes) and provides accurate monitoring of drug consumption. This information can be provided to cloud-based surveillance systems to help monitor and facilitate patient compliance with a program, which can result in improved outcomes, increased health and cost savings and life-saving.

The methods disclosed in this specification include one or more steps or actions for achieving the methods described. The method steps and/or actions may be interchanged without departing from the scope of the claimed invention. In other words, the order and/or use of specific steps and/or actions may be modified without departing from the scope of the claimed invention, unless a particular order of the steps or acts is specified.

As used in this specification, a clause referring to a series of items "at least one of" refers to any combination of the items, including a single component and combinations thereof, which may have multiple identical components.

The various operations of the above methods can be performed by any suitable means capable of performing the corresponding functions. The member can comprise any suitable combination of hardware, software, or both. Examples of such hardware include any suitable circuit or circuitry, such as a processor (e.g., a general purpose processor), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC).

Portions implemented in software may include code or instructions on a computer readable medium. The term software as used in this specification generally refers to instructions, materials, or any combination of the two, and may include firmware. The computer readable storage medium can be built into (or coupled to) the processor such that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. Examples of machine readable storage media may include, for example, one or more of any type of random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), or any other suitable storage medium.

It will be understood that the scope of the patent application in this application is not limited to the exact configuration settings and components exemplified above. Various modifications, changes and variations can be made in the arrangement, operation and details of the methods and apparatus described above without departing from the scope of the claimed invention. Various applications for cloud-based platforms

As described in this specification, a cloud-based platform for monitoring and facilitating patient compliance can assist in enabling a variety of useful applications. In addition to promoting compliance and compliance, such applications may include locating containers (such as "finding my medication containers" and other tracking), monitoring and providing notifications about product overdue (eg, based on date and local storage on the smart collar) Information) and facilitated replacement/replenishment, promotion/targeted product recall and replacement (eg when providers can communicate with patients via the cloud network), help avoid conflicts with other prescriptions or have potential for mutual The role of the patient is prescribed, as well as providing possible damage/destruction notices.

The table in Figure 11 provides an overview of some such exemplary applications. As described in this specification, for compliance/compliance, the platform can provide a warning that the drug is not being used as a doctor's advice, and can also be used to refill notifications when the drug is completely used or almost exhausted. A one-click ordering mechanism (eg via the smart collar or the interface on the smart phone application).

In some embodiments, the server 150 can provide automatic refilling of the drug without the intervention of a patient or healthcare provider. In some embodiments, the server 150 can utilize monitored event information (eg, dispensing and insertion events) to determine the amount of medication coupled to the container 120 of the smart collar 110. A replenishment request can be transmitted to the healthcare provider and/or pharmacy using the determined amount. In some embodiments, depending on the type or detail of the medication being replenished, the server 150 may decide to transmit a replenishment request or reminder at a sufficient delivery time to ensure that the patient is dispensed with the last medication in the current container 120. Replenished before or at the time. In some embodiments, active communication between the smart collar 110, the server 150 (for example, or any other device on the network 140) and the back-end connection to the pharmacy allows the patient (or pharmacist or associated with the patient) Person) specifies the exact time required to order replenishment. In some embodiments, knowing the exact amount of medication and the regimen in the container 120 may allow for a reminder to be selected based on the number of remaining pills, the number of days remaining in the protocol, or even how long the pharmacy needs to complete. In some embodiments, the selection can be made by one of the following: a patient, a person associated with the patient, or a healthcare provider of the patient.

The product may also be overdue by warning to indicate that the remaining product in the package has expired and, once again, optionally provide an option to reorder. For product recycling, the platform can provide targeted recycling notifications, such as only those (patients) that still have packaging and product remaining.

In some embodiments, the two-way communication between the smart collar 110 and the server 150 (or other device of the network 14) or the smart phone 130 can provide improved tracking and drug overdue notification, drug recovery, and/or general Drug tracking power. For example, once the medication is placed in a particular container 120 and the smart collar 110 is properly configured with details of the medication, the smart collar 110 can be associated with a particular manufacturing lot number (eg, manufacturing date, production line, etc.) The drug and the patient's information. Accordingly, if recycling occurs, the details of the medication stored in the smart collar 110 can provide the ability to contact the patient (and even the person associated with the patient) to ensure that the medication is properly discarded and/or returned. No longer being consumed. Additionally (or alternatively), the details of the drug stored in the smart collar 110 can be used to monitor the overdue date of the drug. Accordingly, appropriate actions can be taken when the drug is overdue.

In some embodiments, the processor 802 can identify the drug overdue from the drug related information stored in the memory 804 of the smart collar 110. If processor 802 is aware that there is still medication in container 120, processor 802 can generate an alarm to the patient (e.g., via audible or visual indicators 812 and 814). This alert can indicate to the patient that the drug is overdue. In some embodiments, the indication that the drug is overdue can be received via the network 140 or some external device.

The cloud platform (by assisting in the maintenance of information about patients and their medications) can also assist providers in avoiding conflicts or adverse potential interactions between prescribed patient medications and other medications. In such cases, the cloud platform can display (to the provider) a list of patients' current prescription medications so that the provider can avoid having a prescription for the patient (or the pharmacy can avoid dispensing to the patient) a conflicting medication. In some cases, the cloud platform can assist in transmitting alerts to patients and others (eg, for any potential drug conflicts that are missing, which are only discovered after the conflict drug has been opened).

In some cases, the platforms described in this specification can assist in achieving personalized medicine, for example, allowing for immediate treatment modifications. In such a case, the patient's medication consumption data can be retrieved and analyzed along with the patient data obtained from the remote biosensing monitor/wearable device, thus allowing the healthcare provider to immediately see the patient pair The reaction of the doctor's disposal and the immediate change of the treatment. For example, the platform may allow a provider to increase a patient's dose of a diabetes drug based on post-consumption data from a patient's continuous blood glucose monitor (CGM), which provides information via the cloud network.

In some cases, anti-theft applications can be enabled. For example, if the content from the package was removed at an unusual time or place, it could show a theft. Similarly, if the item was inserted into the package at an unusual time or place, it can detect anti-counterfeit products, impure goods, or tampering.

In some cases, the cloud-based platform can assist in detecting or avoiding possible damage/destruction, such as if the content is exposed to high/low temperature, light, vibration, or the like (which can be detected by the image shown in Figure 8). Detected by the device).

The cloud-based platform can also be enabled for data mining. For example, information collected (eg, with the patient's consent) about what drugs the patient consumes, when the patient consumes the drug, and where the patient consumes the drug can be used (professed) for marketing, sales, research and development. (R&D), investment and other opportunities.

In some embodiments, the target cloud device (eg, server 150) can be configured to know when event reporting from smart collar 110 can be expected. The server 150 can know when the event report can be expected according to the medication plan. For example, when the protocol indicates that the patient should be dispensing medication at 8 am, the server 150 may decide to report a match event within a critical time period (eg, 15 minutes). If a report is received within the threshold, server 150 may determine that the program is being followed and may congratulate the patient or praise the patient (or related person, such as via smart phone 130) for compliance activities. Alternatively (or additionally), if a report is not received within the threshold, the server 150 may determine that the program is not adhered to and may alert the patient (or a related person, such as via the smart phone 130) about the medical plan Matters.

In some embodiments, if the report is not received within the threshold, the server 150 may utilize the lack of reporting as a trigger for one or more actions. For example, the lack of reporting can trigger the server 150 to test the connection capabilities of the server 150 to the last used gateway. Additionally (or alternatively), the lack of reporting may trigger the server 150 to test the connection capabilities to the smart collar 110. In some embodiments where the report is not received, the server 150 can communicate with the patient or a person associated with the patient. In some embodiments, the lack of reporting may trigger the server 150 to transmit one or more reminders to the patient's application on the smart phone 130, to the smart collar 110, or to a person associated with the patient. In some embodiments, a lack of reporting for an extended period of time (e.g., exceeding a predetermined number of thresholds) may indicate an emergency or similar condition, and the server 150 may alert for such conditions. In some embodiments, the functionality pertaining to server 150 can be performed by smart phone 130 or any other device on network 140.

In some embodiments, the smart collar 110 can be in two-way communication with a more or more cloudy device (eg, server 150) or a patient's smart phone 130. In some embodiments, this two-way communication can provide a medication reminder that will be transmitted from the server 150 to the smart collar 110 or to the smart phone 130. For example, at least one of the alert to the smart collar 110 or the patient's smart phone 130 can be transmitted from the server 150 for a particular situation. For example, as shown below, this condition may be indicated on the smart collar 110 or smart phone 130. For example, the smart collar 110 and/or smart phone 130 can include a status indicator (not shown) that illuminates in green to display a "good" state in which no action by the patient is required. The smart collar 110 and/or smart phone 130 may include a status indicator illuminated in yellow that indicates a "warning" state in which no action by the patient is currently required but will require action for a specified period of time ( For example, after one hour, you will need to dispense a drug). The smart collar 110 and/or smart phone 130 can include a status indicator that can be illuminated in red, indicating a "warning" status in which the patient's action is immediately required (eg, missing a match event or it is being occur).

In some embodiments, the smart collar 110 can be configured to not communicate a mating and insertion event for an extended period of time. For example, if the smart collar 110 is brought to a remote location (eg, on vacation) for an extended duration, where access to the network 140 is intermittent or absent, the smart collar 110 can be configured To operate in "stand alone" mode. In this mode, one or more of the advantages described in this specification may not be available. For example, where the communication between the smart collar 110 and the smart phone 130 or the server 150 is intermittent or non-existent, a custom alert may not be available. When operating in stand-alone mode, the smart collar 110 can be configured to store all of the necessary information for drug consumption locally. Accordingly, the patient can be alerted to compliance by the smart collar 110 or via a smart phone application. In some embodiments, the communication of the smart phone application to the smart collar 110 does not necessarily rely on the network 140 to communicate. In stand-alone mode, the smart collar 110 can operate in an intermittent or very expensive area of network communication, such as via Wi-Fi or cellular telephone connections.

As described above, certain aspects of the present disclosure provide a cloud-based platform that can utilize a smart collar to monitor patient compliance for a medication regimen. The Smart Collar provides a relatively low cost mechanism that seamlessly integrates into existing containers (eg, standard pill bottles of various sizes) and provides accurate monitoring of drug consumption. This information can be provided to cloud-based surveillance systems to help monitor and facilitate patient compliance with a program, which can result in improved outcomes, increased health and cost savings and life-saving.

The methods disclosed in this specification include one or more steps or actions for achieving the methods described. The method steps and/or actions may be interchanged without departing from the scope of the claimed invention. In other words, the order and/or use of specific steps and/or actions may be modified without departing from the scope of the claimed invention, unless a particular order of the steps or acts is specified.

As used in this specification, a clause referring to a series of items "at least one of" refers to any combination of the items, including a single component and combinations thereof, which may have multiple identical components.

The various operations of the above methods can be performed by any suitable means capable of performing the corresponding functions. The member can comprise any suitable combination of hardware, software, or both. Examples of such hardware include any suitable circuit or circuitry, such as a processor (e.g., a general purpose processor), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC).

Portions implemented in software may include code or instructions on a computer readable medium. The term software as used in this specification generally refers to instructions, materials, or any combination of the two, and may include firmware. The computer readable storage medium can be built into (or coupled to) a processor such that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. Examples of machine readable storage media may include, for example, one or more of any type of random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), or any other suitable storage medium.

It will be understood that the scope of the patent application of the present application is not limited to the exact configuration and components exemplified above. Various modifications, changes and variations can be made in the arrangement, operation and details of the methods and apparatus described above without departing from the scope of the claimed invention.

The various operations of the methods described above can be performed by any suitable means capable of performing such operations, such as various different hardware and/or software components, circuits, and/or modules. In general, any of the operations shown in the figures can be performed by corresponding functional components that are capable of performing such operations.

Information and signals can be represented by any of a variety of different technologies and technologies. For example, the materials, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and data fragments mentioned in the above description may be voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, light fields or particles, or the like. Any combination is indicated.

The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, and method steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as an electronic hardware, a computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above in terms of their functionality. Such functionality is implemented in hardware or software and will vary depending on the particular application or design constraints imposed on the overall system. The described functionality may be implemented in different ways for a particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as a departure from the scope of the embodiments.

Various exemplary blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the embodiments disclosed in this specification can be implemented by a general purpose hardware processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or a field. A programmed gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination of the above designed to perform the aforementioned functions, is implemented or performed. A general purpose hardware processor can be a microprocessor, but alternatively the hardware processor can be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The hardware processor can also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration the way.

The steps and functions associated with the methods described in the embodiments disclosed herein may be embodied in hardware, in a software module executed by a hardware processor, or in a combination of the two. If implemented in software, the functions can be stored (or transmitted) as one or more instructions or codes on a tangible, non-transitory computer readable medium. The software module can be resident in random access memory (RAM), flash memory, read only memory (ROM), electrically programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), temporary A memory, a hard drive, a removable disc, a CD ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. The storage medium is coupled to the hardware processor such that the hardware processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. Alternatively, the storage medium can be built into the hardware processor. The disks and optical discs used in this specification include compact discs (CDs), laser discs, optical discs, digital audio and video discs (DVDs), flexible magnetic discs and Blu-ray discs, in which the discs are usually magnetically reproduced, and the discs are The film optically reproduces the data with a laser. The above combinations should also be included in the scope of computer readable media. The hardware processor and the storage medium can be in an ASIC.

For the purposes of summarizing the disclosure, the description has described specific aspects, advantages, and novel features. It will be understood that not all such advantages may be achieved in accordance with any particular embodiment. Accordingly, the invention may be embodied or carried out in a manner that is capable of <RTIgt; </ RTI> <RTIgt; </ RTI> <RTIgt; </ RTI> <RTIgt;

Various modifications to the above described embodiments will be apparent, and the general principles defined in the specification may be applied to other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the application. Therefore, the present application is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown in the present specification, but should be accorded to the broadest scope of the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

100‧‧‧ system
110‧‧‧Smart collar
112‧‧‧ openings
120‧‧‧ container
122‧‧‧ Items/Pills
124‧‧‧transmitter
126‧‧‧Detector
130‧‧‧Smart Phone
140‧‧‧Network
150‧‧‧Server
152‧‧‧Database
300‧‧‧ operations
302‧‧‧Enable/enable the collar when it is tightened into the container (eg at the pharmacy or by the consumer/patient)
304‧‧‧Detecting removal/insertion of items from containers with smart collars
306‧‧‧ Take local actions based on the detection results (update count, update timer, forward updates to the cloud, etc.)
400‧‧‧ operation
402‧‧‧Detecting removal/insertion of items from containers with smart collars
404‧‧‧ Is there a connection to the cloud available?
406‧‧‧Transfer messages to the cloud based on the detection results (eg updated counts, increments or decrements with timestamps)
408‧‧‧Receive messages from the cloud and take actions (eg audible/visual alerts, update configurations, etc.)
800‧‧‧ device
801‧‧‧Shell unit
802‧‧‧ processor
804‧‧‧ memory
806‧‧‧ sensor
808‧‧‧ transceiver
809‧‧‧transmitter
811‧‧‧ Receiver
812‧‧‧ audio output
814‧‧‧ visual output
816‧‧‧User interface
818‧‧‧ busbar system
850‧‧‧ device
900‧‧‧ operation
802‧‧‧ Receive information about the compliance of patients with a medical plan
904‧‧‧Based on this information, detection of non-compliance
906‧‧ Ask for feedback (or inference) for one or more reasons for non-compliance
908‧‧‧Change the communication with the patient based on this feedback to promote compliance with the medical plan

FIG. 1 illustrates a diagram of an exemplary compliance monitoring platform in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 illustrates a diagram of an exemplary compliance monitoring platform in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

Figure 3 illustrates an exemplary operation for monitoring items removed (and/or inserted) from a container in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary operation for updating compliance information in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5A illustrates an exemplary operational sequence for updating compliance information via a container with a smart collar in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5B illustrates an exemplary operational sequence for communicating an alert in accordance with compliance information via a container with a smart collar in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

Figure 6 illustrates an exemplary container having a smart collar for monitoring the removal and/or insertion of an item from the container in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

Figure 7A illustrates an exemplary wisdom collar in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure having one or more sensors to detect travel of an item, such as a pill, from the opening of the wisdom collar.

Figure 7B illustrates an exemplary arrangement of one or more sensors in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

Figure 7C illustrates another exemplary arrangement of one or more sensors in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

Figure 8 illustrates an exemplary schematic diagram of a smart collar in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

Figure 9 illustrates an exemplary operation for custom communication with a patient in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

Figure 10 illustrates an exemplary sequence of operations for custom communication with a patient in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

Figure 11 illustrates a table summarizing various applications that can be enabled by a cloud-based platform in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

To promote understanding, the same reference element symbols have been used, where possible, to refer to the same elements that are common in the various figures. It is contemplated that elements disclosed in one embodiment may be beneficially utilized in other embodiments.

Domestic deposit information (please note according to the order of the depository, date, number)

Foreign deposit information (please note in the order of country, organization, date, number)

100‧‧‧ system

130‧‧‧Smart Phone

140‧‧‧Network

150‧‧‧Server

152‧‧‧Database

Claims (18)

An apparatus for providing medication monitoring for a patient, the apparatus comprising: a receiver circuit configured to receive a wireless signal via an electronic communication, the wireless signal indicating information regarding dispensing a medication from a container; a memory circuit configured to store and provide access to at least one of: information relating to the dispensing of the drug, information about a medication regimen of the patient, information about the medication, And an indication by the patient of compliance or non-compliance of the medication regimen; a processor circuit configured to generate one or more alerts to the patient, the one or more alerts relating to at least One: the drug, the regimen, and the patient's compliance or non-compliance with the medication regimen; and a transmitting circuit configured to send the one or more alerts to at least one of: The patient, the health care provider, or the person associated with the patient. The device of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to: determine when an amount of the drug in the container is below a threshold; and when the amount is below the threshold, generate a Request to replenish the drug from a pharmacy. The device of claim 1, wherein the receiver circuit is further configured to receive information regarding the patient's healthcare, and wherein the processor is further configured to: identify the medication and other to the patient Conflict or negative interaction between drugs; and identifying adverse interactions between the drug and other aspects of the patient's healthcare. The device of claim 3, wherein the information about the patient's healthcare includes allergic information, and an adverse interaction between the drug and other aspects of the patient's healthcare identified includes identifying the drug The possibility of an allergy. The device of claim 1, wherein the one or more alerts generated for the patient comprise generating a compliance alert indicating that the patient is not compliant with the medical regimen or the patient is compliant with the medical regimen. The device of claim 5, wherein the compliance alert is generated to indicate that the patient is not compliant with the medical protocol, the processor being further configured to schedule one or more reminders or notifications to the patient for Assist the patient to comply with the medical plan. The device of claim 1, wherein the one or more alerts generated for the patient comprise a medication alert generated to the patient, wherein the medication alert indicates that the medication contained within the container is near expired, Overdue or have been recycled. The device of claim 1, wherein the one or more alerts generated for the patient comprise a degradation alert generated to the patient, wherein the degradation alert indicates that the container has been exposed to a condition that may result in degradation of the drug Proper temperature. The device of claim 1, wherein the receiving circuit is further configured to receive a location of the container, and wherein the transmitting circuit is configured to transmit the location to the patient. A method of providing medication monitoring for a patient, the method comprising the steps of: receiving a wireless signal indicative of information relating to dispensing a medication from a container; storing at least one of the following and providing access thereto: The information on the dispensing of the drug, information about the medication regimen of the patient, information about the medication, and an indication of compliance or disobedience of the patient with the medication regimen; one or more a plurality of alerts, the one or more alerts relating to at least one of: the medication, the medication regimen, and compliance or non-compliance of the patient with the medication regimen; and transmitting the one or more alerts to the following At least one: the patient, the health care provider, or the person associated with the patient. The method of claim 10, further comprising the steps of: determining when an amount of the drug in the container is below a threshold; and when the amount is below the threshold, generating a request to The pharmacy then replenished the drug. The method of claim 10, further comprising the steps of: receiving information about the patient's health care; identifying a conflict or negative interaction between the drug and other drugs prescribed to the patient; and identifying the Adverse interactions between the drug and other aspects of the patient's healthcare. The method of claim 12, wherein the information about the patient's health care includes allergy information, and an adverse interaction between the drug and other aspects of the patient's health care is identified, including identifying the drug The possibility of an allergy. The method of claim 10, wherein the one or more alerts generated for the patient comprise generating a compliance alert indicating that the patient is not compliant with the medical regimen or the patient is compliant with the medical regimen. The method of claim 14, wherein the compliance alert is generated to indicate that the patient is not compliant with the medical regimen, the method further comprising one or more reminders or notifications scheduled for the patient to assist the patient Obey the medical program. The method of claim 10, wherein the one or more alerts generated for the patient comprise a medication alert generated to the patient, wherein the medication alert indicates that the medication contained in the container is near expired, overdue Or has been recycled. The method of claim 10, wherein the one or more alerts generated for the patient comprise a degradation alert generated to the patient, wherein the degradation alert indicates that the container has been exposed to an inappropriate condition that may result in degradation of the drug temperature. The method of claim 10, further comprising receiving a location of the container and transmitting the location to the patient.