TWM643505U - Medicine cabinet management system and display module for medicine cabinet management - Google Patents

Abstract

A medicine cabinet management system includes a medicine cabinet, a rail assembly, and a display module. The rail assembly includes a guiding rail, electric rails, and a magnetic element. The guiding rail is arranged on the medicine cabinet. The electric rails and the magnetic element are arranged on the guiding rail. The display module includes a housing, a display panel, a controller, pogo pin connector sets, and a magnetic portion. The housing is configured to be slidably arranged at the guiding rail. The display panel and the magnetic portion are arranged at the housing. The controller is arranged inside the housing. The pogo pin connector sets are arranged at the housing and electrically connected to the display panel and the controller. When the housing is slidably arranged at the guiding rail, the pogo pin connectors are electrically connected to the electric rails, and the magnetic portion and the magnetic element magnetically attract each other to essentially maintain the electric connection relationship between the pogo pin connector sets and the electric rails.

Description

Medicine cabinet management system and display module for medicine cabinet management

The present invention relates to a medicine cabinet management system, in particular to a medicine cabinet management system including a display module that is movable, does not require batteries, does not need to be plugged and unplugged, has wireless power supply, and can intelligently display medicine information.

The traditional medicine cabinets used in medical places such as hospitals or pharmacies use handwritten cards to mark the information of various medicines on the medicine cabinets, such as drug names and drug inventory. A relatively new way to mark drug information is to use a display module to replace individual handwritten cards, and use a central controller (such as a computer) to control the information displayed on the display module. However, some display modules known by the creators are powered by batteries, which makes the labor cost and time cost of battery replacement relatively high, especially in the application scenario where a large number of display modules are used. Other display modules known to the creators are powered by wires, but the length of the wires and potential entanglement between the wires greatly limits the mobility of the display modules, resulting in less convenience and higher maintenance costs.

In view of the above problems, the present invention proposes a medicine cabinet management system, including a medicine rack, a track assembly and a display module. The track assembly includes a guide track, an electrical track and a magnetic attraction. The guiding track is arranged on the medicine rack. The electric track and the magnetic attractor are arranged on the guide track. The display module includes a casing, a display panel, a controller, a spring electrical contact group and a magnetic attraction part. The casing is suitable for being slid on the guide track. The display panel and the magnetic attraction part are located in the casing. The controller is located inside the housing. The spring electrical contact group is located in the housing and electrically connected to the display panel and the controller. When the housing is slid on the guide track, the spring electrical contact group is electrically connected to the electrical track, and the magnetic attraction part and the magnetic attraction member are magnetically attracted to each other to substantially maintain the electrical connection relationship between the spring electrical contact set and the electrical track.

The present invention also proposes a display module for medicine cabinet management, including a casing, a display panel, a transceiver unit, a controller, a spring electrical contact group and a magnetic attraction part. The display panel and the magnetic attraction part are located in the casing. The controller is located in the casing and is configured to receive image signals through the transceiver unit to actuate the display panel to display images correspondingly. The spring electric contact group is arranged on the casing so that there is a predetermined distance between the spring electric contact groups, and is electrically connected to the display panel and the controller.

In summary, the medicine cabinet management system and the display module for medicine cabinet management proposed by the present invention have the advantages of high flexibility and convenience. Through the electrical connection relationship between the spring electrical contact group and the electrical track, no matter where the display module is slid on the guide track, the display module can be powered, thus improving flexibility and convenience. Therefore, the display module of the present invention does not need to replace the battery, does not need to be plugged and unplugged, and does not use wires, which reduces labor costs, time costs and maintenance costs.

Please refer to Figure 1. The medicine cabinet management system 100 includes a medicine rack 200 , a track assembly 300 and a display module 400 . The medicine rack 200 can be medicine storage devices such as medicine racks and medicine cabinets that are visible in medical places, and it includes medicine storage spaces such as grids and slots where medicines can be placed. The size, number of layers and partitioning method of the medicine rack 200 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 are all exemplary, and are not intended to limit the present invention. In addition, the drug rack 200 may further include doors, windows, baffles or curtains to isolate the drug storage space from the outside world, and may further include a temperature regulator or humidity regulator to maintain the quality or stability of the drug, which is not limited by the present invention.

The length and quantity of the track assembly 300 can be determined according to requirements, for example, according to the size, number of layers, and number of compartments of the medicine cabinet. For example, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 , the number of track assemblies 300 is equal to the number of layers of the drug rack 200, and the length of the track assembly 300 is equal to the width of each drug storage space of the drug rack 200, so that the display module 400 displays drug information corresponding to each horizontal position of each layer. In some other embodiments, one layer may include multiple track assemblies 300 with the same or different lengths, or the track assembly 300 only corresponds to a partial width of the drug storage space, or the track assembly 300 may span multiple drug storage spaces.

Please refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2. The track assembly 300 includes a guide track 310 , a pair of electrical tracks 320 and a magnetic attraction 330 . The guiding track 310 is disposed on the medicine rack 200 . The electrical track 320 and the magnetic attractor 330 are disposed on the guide track 310 .

The guide track 310 is suitable for fixing the display module 400 or providing a guiding function when the display module 400 is moved, and its outer frame (especially the lower edge of the outer frame) can also prevent the display module 400 from falling.

The electrical track 320 can be connected to an external power source through the wire 340 or other means to supply power to the display module 400 . One of the electrical tracks 320 is connected to the live wire 340a of the external power supply, and the other electrical track 320 is connected to the ground wire 340b of the external power supply. In one embodiment, both ends of the electrical track 320 are connected with wires 340 in order to prevent one side of the fault point from being unable to supply power to the display module 400 when the electrical track 320 fails partially. Alternatively, the electric track 320 can also be connected with the wire 340 at a position other than the end. In addition, in some embodiments, there is a predetermined distance D1 between the two electrical tracks 320 . The length of the predetermined distance D1 matches the predetermined distance D2 between the spring electrical contact sets 440 of the display module 400 (as shown in FIG. 4 ), so as to allow the electrical track 320 to supply power to the display module 400 through the spring electrical contact sets 440 (details will be described later).

The magnetic component 330 is adapted to cooperate with the magnetic portion 450 (as shown in FIG. 4 ) of the display module 400 to further stabilize the cooperation between the display module 400 and the guide track 310 (as shown in FIG. 6 ). In the track assembly 300 of the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 , the number of the magnetic attractor 330 is one, and the length of the magnetic attractor 330 is substantially equal to the length of the electric track 320, but the number of the magnetic attractor 330 can also be multiple, and the magnetic attractor 330 does not necessarily span the entire length of the electric track 320, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

Please refer to Figure 1 to Figure 5. The display module 400 can use display devices such as electronic paper or liquid crystal display (LCD) to adjust the displayed content in real time according to changes in information such as the name, batch, inventory, or shelf life of the corresponding drug. The number of display modules 400 used in each medicine storage space and the total number of display modules 400 used in the medicine rack 200 can be determined according to actual needs, and the number of display modules 400 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 is not intended to limit the number of display modules 400. In addition, when the drug corresponding to the display module 400 is changed, for example, when the drug in the drug storage space is changed, or when the display module 400 is moved to another position to correspond to another drug, it is only necessary to change the information displayed by the display module 400, so the display module 400 provides the advantage of being easy to change.

The display module 400 includes a housing 410 , a display panel 420 , a controller 430 , a pair of spring electrical contacts 440 and a magnetic attraction part 450 . The housing 410 is suitable for sliding on the guide track 310 . The display panel 420 and the magnetic attraction portion 450 are located in the casing 410 . The controller 430 is located within the housing 410 . The spring electrical contact set 440 is located on the casing 410 and electrically connected to the display panel 420 and the controller 430 . When the housing 410 is slid on the guide track 310, the spring electrical contact set 440 is electrically connected to the electrical track 320, and the magnetic attraction portion 450 and the magnetic attraction member 330 are magnetically attracted to each other to substantially maintain the electrical connection relationship between the spring electrical contact set 440 and the electrical track 320 (as shown in FIG. 6 ).

In some embodiments, the size of the housing 410 matches the size of the guide rail 310, that is, in the viewing angles shown in FIG. 2 and FIG.

The display panel 420 is activated by the controller 430 to display the image M correspondingly. The image M includes required information, such as but not limited to drug code, drug full name, drug batch, drug inventory, drug shelf life, barcode, QR code, drug legend, drug size, drug color, remarks, information update time, and/or the IP address of the display module 400 . In addition, the display panel 420 can also be used to display a specific color or pattern in real time as required to prompt a specific message to the person taking the medicine (described later). As mentioned above, the display panel 420 can be implemented in the form of electronic paper or liquid crystal display, which is not limited in the present invention. In addition, because the display module 400 only needs to receive the image signal to display the image M correspondingly without performing too many calculations or storage, the circuit in the display module 400 can be relatively simple.

The controller 430 serves as the central control unit of the display module 400 to control various electronic components of the display module 400 (such as the aforementioned display panel 420 , the transceiver unit 460 and the proximity sensor 470 described later). The controller 430 may be implemented by a microcontroller unit (MCU), but is not limited thereto.

The spring electrical contact set 440 provides the power from the electrical track 320 to each component in the display module 400 that needs power, and its spring structure cooperates with the attractive force between the magnetic attraction part 450 and the magnetic attraction part 330 to ensure the electrical connection between the spring electrical contact set 440 and the electrical track 320, without providing power to the display module 400 through wires or plugs, and without using and replacing batteries, thereby achieving the advantages of high convenience and low maintenance cost. However, it can still be used with a battery according to needs or preferences, for example, the battery can be used as a backup power source. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 , each spring electrical contact set 440 includes three pogo pins 442 to take into account the stability of the electrical connection and the low cost. However, each spring electrical contact set 440 can also be implemented with different numbers of pogo pins 442 according to requirements, and can also be implemented with other types of components whose functions are similar to the pogo pins 442.

In some embodiments, there is a predetermined distance D2 between the two spring electrical contact sets 440 , and the predetermined distance D2 is substantially equal to the predetermined distance D1 between the aforementioned two electrical rails 320 , so that the spring electrical contact sets 440 can fit on the electrical track 320 . In addition, in some examples, in order to prevent the display module 400 from being installed upside down on the guide rail 310 by human beings, and the image M is upside down, in addition to the size of the housing 410 matching the size of the guide rail 310, the position of the two electrical rails 320 in the guide rail 310 can be further configured not to be centered (for example, in the perspective of FIG. 2 , the two electrical rails 320 are closer to the lower edge of the guide rail 310), and the two spring electrical contacts 44 0 is correspondingly non-centered at the position of the housing 410 (for example, the two spring electrical contact sets 440 are correspondingly closer to the lower edge of the housing 410 in the viewing angle of FIG. 3 ). In this way, if the display module 400 is placed upside down when placed on the guide rail 310, the spring electrical contact group 440 cannot be matched with the electrical rail 320, so the display module 400 cannot be powered by the electrical rail 320, so that the display module 400 has a fool-proof effect.

In some embodiments, the display module 400 further includes a voltage stabilizing circuit 480 . The spring electrical contact set 440 is electrically connected to the display panel 420 and the controller 430 through the voltage stabilizing circuit 480 . For example, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 , one input end of the voltage stabilizing circuit 480 is connected to one set of spring electrical contact sets 440 , namely the spring electrical contact set 440 a , and the other input end of the voltage stabilizing circuit 480 is connected to another set of spring electrical contact sets 440 , namely the spring electrical contact set 440 b. In this way, the voltage stabilizing circuit 480 can stabilize the voltage from the spring electrical contact group 440 and then provide it to the components in the display module 400 that require power, such as the controller 430 , the display panel 420 , the transceiver unit 460 , the light emitting unit 490 and the broadcasting unit 492 . The voltage stabilizing circuit 480 can prevent the components in the display module 400 that require power from being damaged when there is a surge in the power supply from the spring electrical contact set 440 (for example, the display module 400 slides on the guide track 310 to cause the electrical connection between the spring electrical contact set 440 and the electrical track 320 to be interrupted).

In some embodiments, the medicine cabinet management system 100 further includes a control host 500 , and the display module 400 further includes a transceiver unit 460 . The transceiver unit 460 is located in the housing 410 . The controller 430 can receive an image signal from the control host 500 through the transceiver unit 460 wired or wirelessly (eg, via WiFi) and activate the display panel 420 to display the image M correspondingly. Specifically, the control host 500 compresses the image M to be displayed to generate an image signal, and the controller 430 actuates the display panel 420 to display the image M correspondingly after decompressing the image signal. In addition, the control host 500 can also send a new image signal in real time according to the demand, so that the controller 430 can update the displayed content or color of the image M in real time to remind the medicine taker of specific information, such as insufficient medicine stock or medicine shelf life is approaching. In this way, because the display module 400 only needs to display the image M according to the image signal from the control host 500, and does not need to perform too much calculation or storage, the transmission amount between the control host 500 and the display module 400 is small and the stability is high, and the circuit in the display module 400 can be relatively simple. Specifically, the transmission time between the control host 500 and the display module 400 is short and the display module 400 can update the image of the display panel 420 without too many calculations. In addition, the display panel 420 can use electronic paper, so that the time required for the display module 400 to operate on power is greatly shortened. In this way, the chance of being affected by the power failure caused by the user moving the display module 400 is greatly reduced.

In some embodiments, the controller 430 communicates with the control host 500 through the transceiver unit 460 within a predetermined time (such as but not limited to 0.5 seconds, 1 second, 2 seconds) after receiving the power from the spring electrical contact set 440 , such as performing a handshake procedure to start receiving signals from the control host 500 . By setting the predetermined time, the display module 400 can eliminate the problem of unstable power supply caused by the display module 400 sliding on the guide rail 310 .

In some embodiments, the display module 400 further includes a proximity sensor 470 . The proximity sensor 470 is used to generate a trigger signal when triggered. The controller 430 sends the trigger signal to the control host 500 through the transceiver unit 460 .

The proximity sensor 470 can detect whether an object passes through its detection range. In practice, the proximity sensor 470 can detect whether someone takes the medicine at the position corresponding to the proximity sensor 470 . In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 , the proximity sensor 470 is located on the upper side of the housing 410 . However, the position of the proximity sensor 470 is not limited thereto, but should correspond to the position where the hand of the medicine taker will pass when taking the medicine. For example, in some embodiments, the proximity sensor 470 is disposed on the lower side of the casing 410 , so that when the medicine taker's hand or other objects pass the lower side of the display module 400 , the proximity sensor 470 will be triggered to generate a trigger signal. At this time, the control host 500 can send another image signal to the display module 400 according to the trigger signal. In some embodiments, the trigger signal carries information that allows the control host 500 to identify the display module 400 sending the trigger signal, such as the IP address or code of the display module 400, so as to allow the control host 500 to identify which display module 400 the triggered proximity sensor 470 belongs to.

In one application scenario, when the control host 500 receives the medicine taking information, the control host 500 sends an image signal to the display module 400 corresponding to the storage location of the required medicine, so that the image M displayed by these display modules 400 is changed to remind the medicine taker of the correct medicine taking location. For example, the image M can be changed to present a certain color, a certain symbol, a certain number (for example corresponding to the amount of medicine to be taken), or a certain text or a combination thereof to make the display panel 420 more eye-catching.

Based on the above application scenarios, the control host 500 can further update the image signal to the display module 400 that sends the trigger signal when receiving the trigger signal. For example, when the hand of the medicine taker passes the proximity sensor 470 of the display module 400 corresponding to the storage location of the required medicine, the trigger signal sent by the display module 400 will inform the control host 500 that the medicine at this location is taken. At this time, if the display module 400 corresponding to the trigger signal corresponds to the storage location of the required medicine (that is, the medicine to be taken is the required medicine), the control host 500 can send the image signal again, so that the image M displayed by the display module 400 restores the default color or displays preset information, or makes the image M displayed by the display module 400 prompt the correct medicine taking behavior in the form of color, symbol, text or a combination thereof; are shown in this image M). On the other hand, if the storage location corresponding to the trigger signal corresponding to the display module 400 is not the required medicine (that is, the taken medicine is not the required medicine), the control host 500 can transmit an image signal, so that the image M displayed on the display module 400 is changed to prompt the wrong medicine taking behavior. For example, the image M can be changed to present another color, another symbol, another text, or a combination thereof.

In some embodiments, the display module 400 further includes a light emitting unit 490 . The light emitting unit 490 is located in the casing 410 . The controller 430 receives a lighting signal from the control host 500 through the transceiver unit 460 and activates the lighting unit 490 to emit light. The light emitting unit 490 may be implemented with a light emitting diode (LED) or other light emitting elements. In these embodiments, the aforesaid reminder to the person taking the medicine can be achieved through the light emitting unit 490 instead, or can be implemented in combination with the light emitting unit 490 . For example, the light emitting unit 490 may not emit light or emit light of one color in the default state, and then the control host 500 updates the light emitting signal to make the light emitting unit 490 start to emit light, change the light emitting color, or change the light emitting mode, such as but not limited to blinking, when a prompt is required. The position and quantity of the light emitting unit 490 shown in FIG. 3 are exemplary and not intended to limit the present invention, and there may be more than one light emitting unit 490 and/or in different positions.

In some embodiments, the display module 400 further includes a broadcast unit 492 . The broadcast unit 492 is located in the casing 410 . The controller 430 receives the broadcast signal from the control host 500 through the transceiver unit 460 and activates the broadcast unit 492 to broadcast. The broadcasting unit 492 can be realized by a speaker or other broadcasting components. The broadcast unit 492 can replace the above-mentioned reminder to the medicine taker or cooperate with the image M and/or the light emitting unit 490 to remind the medicine taker. For example, the broadcasting unit 492 can be activated to play audio correspondingly when the medicine is taken correctly, the medicine is taken wrongly, the stock is insufficient, the shelf life is approaching, or other times. Of course, these functions can also be realized by the image M and/or the light emitting unit 490 . The position and quantity of the broadcasting unit 492 shown in FIG. 3 are exemplary and not intended to limit the present invention. There may be more than one broadcasting unit 492 and/or be located at different positions.

In summary, the medicine cabinet management system and the display module for medicine cabinet management proposed by the present invention have the advantages of high flexibility and convenience. Through the electrical connection relationship between the spring electrical contact group and the electrical track, no matter where the display module is slid on the guide track, the display module can be powered, thus improving flexibility and convenience. Therefore, the display module of the present invention does not need to replace the battery, does not need to be plugged and unplugged, and does not use wires, which reduces labor costs, time costs and maintenance costs.

100: Medicine cabinet management system 200: medicine rack 300: track assembly 310: guide track 320: Electrical track 330: Magnetic parts 340: wire 340a: FireWire 340b: ground wire 400: display module 410: shell 420: display panel 430: controller 440, 440a, 440b: spring electrical contact group 442: pogo pin 450:Magnetic part 460: transceiver unit 470: Proximity Sensor 480: voltage regulator circuit 490: Lighting unit 492: broadcasting unit 500: Control host D1, D2: Predetermined distance M: image

Fig. 1 is the schematic diagram of the medicine cabinet management system of an embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 2 is the schematic diagram of the track assembly of an embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 3 is a schematic front view of a display module according to an embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 4 is a schematic view of the back of the display module according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 5 is a schematic functional block diagram of a display module according to an embodiment of the present invention; and FIG. 6 is a side cross-sectional view of the display module shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 installed in the track assembly of FIG. 2 .

100: Medicine cabinet management system

200: medicine rack

300: track assembly

400: display module

500: Control host

Claims (17)

A medicine cabinet management system, comprising: a drug rack; A track assembly, comprising: a guiding track, set on the medicine rack; a pair of electrical tracks disposed on the guide track; and a magnetic attraction, arranged on the guide track; and A display module, including: a shell, suitable for sliding on the guide track; a display panel located on the housing; a controller located within the housing; a pair of spring electrical contact groups, located on the housing and electrically connected to the display panel and the controller, wherein when the housing is slid on the guide rail, the pair of spring electrical contact groups are respectively electrically connected to the pair of electrical rails; and A magnetic attraction part is located on the casing, wherein when the casing is slid on the guide track, the magnetic attraction part and the magnetic attraction part are magnetically attracted to each other to substantially maintain the electrical connection relationship between the pair of spring electrical contact groups and the pair of electrical rails. The medicine cabinet management system as described in claim 1 further includes a control host, wherein the display module further includes a transceiver unit located in the casing, and the controller receives an image signal from the control host through the transceiver unit and activates the display panel to display an image correspondingly. The medicine cabinet management system as described in claim 2, wherein the display module further includes a proximity sensor, the proximity sensor is used to generate a trigger signal when triggered, and the controller sends the trigger signal to the control host through the transceiver unit. The medicine cabinet management system as described in claim 3, wherein the control host sends another image signal according to the trigger signal. The medicine cabinet management system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein each spring electrical contact group includes a plurality of pogo pins. The medicine cabinet management system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the display module further includes a voltage stabilizing circuit, and the pair of spring electrical contacts are electrically connected to the display panel and the controller through the voltage stabilizing circuit. The medicine cabinet management system as described in claim 2 or 3, wherein the display module further includes a light emitting unit, the light emitting unit is located in the casing, and the controller receives a light emitting signal from the control host through the transceiver unit and activates the light emitting unit to emit light. The medicine cabinet management system as described in claim 2 or 3, wherein the controller communicates with the control host through the transceiver unit within a predetermined time after receiving a power supply from the spring electrical contact group. The medicine cabinet management system as described in claim 3, wherein each spring electrical contact group includes a plurality of pogo pins, the display module further includes a voltage stabilizing circuit and a light emitting unit, the pair of spring electrical contact groups are electrically connected to the display panel and the controller through the voltage stabilizing circuit, the light emitting unit is located in the housing, the controller receives a light emitting signal from the control host through the transceiver unit and activates the light emitting unit to emit light, and the controller communicates through the transceiver unit at a predetermined time after receiving a power supply from the spring electrical contact group Connect to the control panel. A display module for medicine cabinet management, including: a shell; a display panel located on the housing; a transceiver unit; a controller, located in the housing and configured to receive an image signal through the transceiver unit to actuate the display panel to display an image correspondingly; a pair of spring electrical contact sets, located on the housing so that there is a predetermined distance between the pair of spring electrical contact sets, the pair of spring electrical contact sets are electrically connected to the display panel and the controller; and A magnetic attraction part is located on the casing. The display module for medicine cabinet management according to claim 10, wherein the controller receives the image signal through the transceiver unit and activates the display panel to display the image correspondingly. The display module for medicine cabinet management as described in claim 11 further includes a proximity sensor, which is used to generate a trigger signal when triggered, and the controller sends the trigger signal. The display module for medicine cabinet management according to any one of claims 10 to 12, wherein each spring electrical contact group includes a plurality of pogo pins. The display module for medicine cabinet management according to any one of claims 10 to 12 further includes a voltage stabilizing circuit, and the pair of spring electrical contacts are electrically connected to the display panel and the controller through the voltage stabilizing circuit. The display module for medicine cabinet management as described in claim 11 or 12 further includes a light emitting unit, the light emitting unit is located in the casing, and the controller receives a light emitting signal through the transceiver unit and activates the light emitting unit to emit light. The display module for medicine cabinet management according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the controller communicates with an external device through the transceiver unit within a predetermined time after receiving a power supply from the spring electrical contact group. The display module for medicine cabinet management as described in claim 12, wherein each of the spring electrical contact groups includes a plurality of pogo pins, and the display module further includes a voltage stabilizing circuit and a light emitting unit. The pair of spring electrical contact groups are electrically connected to the display panel and the controller through the voltage stabilizing circuit. Connect an external device.

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