Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61J—CONTAINERS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR MEDICAL OR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES; DEVICES OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR BRINGING PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTS INTO PARTICULAR PHYSICAL OR ADMINISTERING FORMS; DEVICES FOR ADMINISTERING FOOD OR MEDICINES ORALLY; BABY COMFORTERS; DEVICES FOR RECEIVING SPITTLE
  • A61J1/00—Containers specially adapted for medical or pharmaceutical purposes
  • A61J1/03—Containers specially adapted for medical or pharmaceutical purposes for pills or tablets
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61J—CONTAINERS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR MEDICAL OR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES; DEVICES OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR BRINGING PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTS INTO PARTICULAR PHYSICAL OR ADMINISTERING FORMS; DEVICES FOR ADMINISTERING FOOD OR MEDICINES ORALLY; BABY COMFORTERS; DEVICES FOR RECEIVING SPITTLE
  • A61J1/00—Containers specially adapted for medical or pharmaceutical purposes
  • A61J1/14—Details; Accessories therefor
  • A61J1/1412—Containers with closing means, e.g. caps
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D51/00—Closures not otherwise provided for
  • B65D51/24—Closures not otherwise provided for combined or co-operating with auxiliary devices for non-closing purposes
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D83/00—Containers or packages with special means for dispensing contents
  • B65D83/04—Containers or packages with special means for dispensing contents for dispensing annular, disc-shaped, spherical or like small articles, e.g. tablets or pills
  • B65D83/049—Containers or packages with special means for dispensing contents for dispensing annular, disc-shaped, spherical or like small articles, e.g. tablets or pills the dispensing means forming a part of a removable closure, e.g. gripping teeth or cavity

Definitions

• the invention relates to the general field of medicinal containers and bottles used to hold and dispense pills, capsules, tablets, caplets, or similar forms of medicine (collectively "pills"), for individual use.
• the invention is a medicine container cap that allows a user to separate out a particular number of pills for ingestion and return the rest to the container without forcing the pills to come into contact with the user's skin.
• Still other known pill bottle caps dispense a daily dosage electronically, rather than by manual operation. Some electronic dispensers are synchronized with an integrated alarm and dosage calculator to dispense the appropriate number of pills at the correct time, based on the individual user's set parameters. Electronically-enhanced pill container caps, however, are complex to use and must be set up properly beforehand to ensure proper dispensation of medicine.
• the invention is directed to methods and apparatus for limiting the number of pills, tablets, capsules, caplets, vitamins, or any such similar objects (collectively, "pills") dispensed from a container.
• the invention considers a specially designed container, or bottle, cap that permits a user to dispense one or more pills into the cap from a container, retain a chosen number of pills in the cap, and return the rest of the dispensed pills back into the container from the cap without necessitating skin contact with the pills.
• the inside of the container cap contains outwardly protruding structures that form cleats large enough to support a small number of pills dispensed from a container, but small enough to fit inside the physical parameters of the cap and still allow the cap to be secured properly onto a pill container.
• the design of the structures may vary greatly as long as it allows for retention of one or more pills in the cap, including, but not limited to, a cross or plus-sign shape, a letter "L" shape, and hook shape.
• FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the invention in conjunction with a container
• FIG. 2 is a frontal view of the inside of the embodiment of the invention from FIG. i ;
• FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the embodiment of the invention from FIG. 1 in conjunction with a container displaying pill dispensation into the cap;
• FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the embodiment of the invention from FIG. 1 in conjunction with a container;
• FIG. 5 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the invention in conjunction with a container
• FIG. 6 is a frontal view of the inside of the embodiment of the invention from FIG.
• FIG. 7 is a frontal view of the inside of one embodiment of the invention.
• FIG. 8 is a frontal view of the inside of one embodiment of the invention.
• FIG. 1 generally depicts a medicine or pill container 100 with cap 200 (medicine and pills not shown).
• the container 100 has a mouth opening 110 and a screw neck 111 with a screw thread of a particular width and spacing, both of which may vary from one embodiment to another.
• the screw neck 111 generally functions as a securing means for a container cap associated with the particular container.
• the associated cap 200 would have a screw thread that corresponds and fits securely onto the screw neck 111 of the container 100.
• Such containers may also contain a different type of securing means for a cap other than a screw neck.
• the cap may be affixed to the container and be opened with a latch or snap-on means.
• the cap 200 generally has an outside surface 220, an inside surface 210, and a screw thread 221 that runs the entire circumference of the inside rim of the cap 200.
• the cap 200 is configured to connect with and secure onto the screw neck 111 on the container 100 via the screw thread 221 on the cap's inside surface 210.
• the corresponding cap's screw thread must match or correlate to, within some small variation, the width and spacing of the screw thread on the screw neck of the particular container.
• FIG. 1 also depicts a raised cleat structure 231 232 233 234 on the inside surface 210 of the cap 200.
• the raised cleat structure 231 232 233 234 consists of a cross pattern with one cleat 231 233 perpendicular to another cleat 232 234 to form a cross, or plus sign, design.
• FIG. 2 depicts a frontal view of the cap 200 shown in FIG. 1 with the cross pattern cleat structure 231 232 233 234 displayed on the inside surface 210 of the cap 200.
• the cross pattern cleat structure 231 232 233 234 in this embodiment creates four spatial quadrants 241 242 on the inside surface 210 of the cap.
• Each of the quadrants 241 242 is configured to retain one or more pills, tablets, caplets, capsules, or vitamins (collectively, "pills,” not depicted), once the pills are poured into the cap 200 and excess returned to the container 100.
• the container 100 may be lifted and tilted to pour one or more pills 10 into the cap 200 during the dispensation of the individual user's desired dose.
• the user may pour the excess pills 10 from the cap 200 back into the container 100 while retaining only the desired number of pills 10 within the cleat structure in the cap 200, as shown generally in FIG. 4.
• the retained pills 10 would rest in one or more of the quadrants 241 242 created by the raised cleat structure 231 232 233 234. And a user can easily pick up the retained pill(s) from the quadrant(s) without get in touch with the unrestrained pills as shown in Fig. 3.
• one or more pills 10 may be retained in one or two adjacent cleat quadrants 241 242, depending on the user's desired dose and amount of pills 10.
• the pills 10 may be retained in any one or two adjacent quadrants 241 242, which are determined by how the cap 200 is held by the user when the excess pills 10 from the cap 200 are returned to the container 100.
• the amount of pills 10 retained in the cap 200 depends in part on the size of the cleats 231 232 233 234 and the size of the resulting quadrants 241 242 made.
• the number of pills 10 that may fit in each quadrant 241 242 is approximately one to two; however, the size of the quadrants 241 242 may be varied to increase or decrease the number of pills 10 that may be retained, by increasing or decreasing the length, width, and spacing of the cleats 231 232 233 234, while maintaining the same or similar general cleat structure 231 232 233 234.
• FIG. 5 depicts another embodiment of the invention with a different cleat structure 231 232 than shown in FIGS. 1-4.
• the embodiment in FIG. 5 depicts the cleat structure 231 232 as generally an "L" shape, forming only one quadrant to hold pills 10 in the cap 200 after dispensation from the container 100.
• the cleat structure 231 232 as shown in FIG. 5 may be enlarged or diminished in size to allow for retention of more or less pills 10 in the cap 200 after return of the excess to the container 100, while maintaining the same or similar general cleat structure 231 232.
• FIG. 6 depicts a frontal view of the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 5, which the "L" shape cleat structure 231 232.
• FIG. 6 illustrates the quadrant 241 formed by the cleat structure 231 232.
• FIG. 7 depicts another embodiment of the invention with a cleat structure 231 232 233 in a hook shape, resembling the embodiment illustrated by FIGS. 5-6 with an added cleat member 232.
• the extra cleat member 232 grants additional support for pills 10 retained in the quadrant 241 formed by the cleat structure 231 232 233.
• the additional cleat member 232 prevents pills 10 retained in the quadrant 241 from easily rolling off the edge of the other cleat member 233.
• FIG. 8 depicts another embodiment of the invention with a cleat structure 231 232 233 234 that resembles the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1-4, but with curved, instead of straight, cleat members 231 232 233 234.
• the curved cleats 231 232 233 234 may aid in capturing and retaining pills 10 dispensed into the cap 200 from the container 100 by creating grooves on the inside surface 210 of the cap to facilitate capture of pills 10.
• the pills 10 may rest in the grooves created by the cleat members 231 232 233 234, and thus be more difficult to dislodge back into the container 100.
• the curved cleats in the embodiment in FIG. 8 create four spatial quadrants 241 242 in which the pills 10 rest, allowing for retention of a great number of pills 10 for a bigger desired dosage.
• the cleat members 231 232 233 234 in the embodiment in FIG. 8 may be enlarged or decreased in size to retain more or less pills 10, respectively, during dispensation and return of the pills 10 from and back to the container 100.
• the layout may include the cross, "L” shape, hook, or curved cross designs described above and depicted in the accompanying drawings, but may also include, but not be limited to, half-ovular, teardrop, "U”-shaped, “V”-shaped, bracket, or other similar structure.
• the size and type of the container 100 and corresponding cap 200 may be selected from the sizes and types of containers and caps commonly used in the industry and known in the art. While the embodiments depict only screw-necked containers and screw caps, the invention also encompasses other types of containers and container caps, including, but not limited to, containers and associated caps with latch securing means, containers with caps that snap on and off, and other such containers and associated caps, as long as the container cap has an inside surface on which the cleat structure may be placed for pill retention as part of the dispensation process discussed above.
• the container and cap may be plastic, or be manufactured from a variety of materials, including, but not limited to, glass and metal. All such variations as described above are intended to be included within the scope of the present invention as defined by the claims.

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• Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Pharmacology & Pharmacy (AREA)
• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Animal Behavior & Ethology (AREA)
• General Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Public Health (AREA)
• Veterinary Medicine (AREA)
• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Closures For Containers (AREA)

Priority Applications (1)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=55078872

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (1)

Citations (11)

• 2014
  • 2014-07-17 WO PCT/US2014/047064 patent/WO2016010542A1/en active Application Filing

Patent Citations (11)

Non-Patent Citations (2)

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