Sachet remover

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a sachet dispenser for dispensing sachets of medicines or supplements provided in tablets, pills, capsules or other suitable forms. The sachet dispenser has a body forming a space for receiving a roll of sachets. The body is arranged for throughput of the sachets of the roll of sachets. The roll of sachets rotates within the space as the sachets are drawn out of the body through a slot. The sachet dispenser has first and second support surfaces on the body facing away from the body for supporting the sachets on the body after they have been drawn through the slot and out of the body. The first and second support surfaces are positioned adjacent to and along the slot such that the slot is located between the first and second support surfaces. Depending on the orientation of the sachet remover relative to the direction of gravity, when the sachet is pulled through the slot, it can be supported by a first support surface or substantially similarly supported by the second support surface, with either the first surface or the opposing second surface of the sachet facing away from the main body.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a sachet dispenser, and in particular to a sachet dispenser for dispensing sachets of medicine.

[0002] Throughout this specification, the terms "medicine" and "pharmaceutical product" are used to refer to medicines or supplements provided in a tablet, pill, capsule, or other suitable form. [Background technology]

[0003] Many people require medications that are administered daily or multiple times daily. Additionally, supplements are often consumed on a regular basis. Manual selection of medications and supplements is cumbersome and prone to errors that, in the case of critical medications, can have serious consequences.

[0004] It is known to arrange doses of tablets or pills in blister packs, such as Webster packs, which have compartments for tablet or pill selections along with labels identifying the contents, the person, the date, and possibly the day and time (e.g. if a person must take tablets or pills several times a day), so that users or staff of a hospital, care home, etc., simply identify the label on the compartment of the Webster pack which contains the required selection of tablets or pills. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Alternatively, sachets containing tablets or pills may be used. The sachets may be provided in the form of a roll of sachets, each sachet may contain a daily dose of tablets or pills for a person, or may contain doses of tablets or pills that a person may have to take multiple times a day. Each sachet has a label to identify the person, contents, date, and the label may contain other information. Such rolls of sachets are often packed in cardboard boxes, delivered to a user, hospital or care facility, etc., opened and loaded into a dispenser. The dispenser is operated by pulling the sachet through a slot in the dispenser, separating the sachet from the roll of sachets. However, known dispensers have the drawback that it is often difficult to identify the label on the sachets. The label is positioned on either the first side of the sachet or on the opposite second side (facing either towards or away from the roll of sachets), depending on the supplier's preference. If the sachet is dispensed from the dispenser (pulled out from the dispenser), either the front of the dispensed sachet faces away from the dispenser or the rear faces away from the dispenser, so that the label may face towards the dispenser making it difficult to identify the label.

[0006] The present disclosure represents an advancement in the art. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In a first aspect, the present invention provides a sachet dispenser for dispensing a sachet of medicine, the sachet dispenser comprising: a body forming a space for receiving a roll of sachets; A slot positioned within the body for throughput of sachets of a roll of sachets, the roll of sachets comprising: a slot which rotates in space as the sachets are pulled out of the body through the slot; and first and second support surfaces on the body facing away from the body to support the sachets after they have been pulled through the slot, the first and second support surfaces being positioned adjacent to and along the slot such that the slot is located between the first and second support surfaces, and depending on the orientation of the sachet extractor relative to the direction of gravity, the sachets are supportable by the first support surface or substantially similarly supportable by the second support surface when pulled through the slot, with either the first surface or the opposite second surface of the sachets facing away from the body.

[0008] The dispenser can be used as selected by the user, and the sachet pulled out of the body through the slot is supported by either the first support surface or the second support surface, thereby exposing either the first or second support surface of the sachet. A label identifying the contents of the sachet or containing further relevant information (such as the day of the week and / or the time of the day and / or the person's name) is located on either the first surface or the opposite second surface of the sachet, so that the user can use the dispenser and select the support surface such that the label faces outward and can be conveniently identified, which not only improves convenience but also improves safety.

[0009] The first and second support surfaces may be of any suitable shape, such as planar or curved. Furthermore, the first and second support surfaces may be located on a common plane, which may be planar or curved. The first and second support surfaces may be located immediately adjacent to the slot. Furthermore, the first and second support surfaces may have substantially the same extent and shape.

[0010] In one particular embodiment, the first and second support surfaces lie in a common concavely curved plane.

[0011] The body may have an axis, and the slot may have an axis, that may coincide with the axis of the roll of sachets when the roll of sachets is positioned within the body. The first and second support surfaces may be symmetrical about a plane of symmetry defined by the axis of the body and the axis of the slot.

[0012] The body may comprise clips provided on the first and second support surfaces arranged to secure the sachet on either the first support surface or the second support surface.

[0013] The body may have a rounded section and may be formed from a polymeric material, such as a suitable plastic material, and may be at least partially transparent to allow convenient inspection of the roll of sachets from outside the body to determine when the sachet extractor requires reloading.

[0014] The body may comprise two halves which may be separable for loading a roll of sachets and may comprise a snap fit arranged to engage the two halves together so that the body can be closed.

[0015] The body may be arranged for mounting to a wall, such as a vertical wall of a building or structure. The body may include a base portion positioned on opposite sides of first and second support surfaces separated by a slot. The base portion may be arranged for mounting to a wall of a building or structure, whereby the first and second support surfaces face away from the wall of the building or structure when the extractor is mounted to the wall of the building or structure.

[0016] The invention will be more fully understood from the following description of specific embodiments of the invention, the description being provided in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a sachet dispenser according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a side cross-sectional view of a sachet dispenser according to an embodiment of the invention. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a side cross-sectional view of a sachet dispenser according to an embodiment of the invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a top view of a sachet dispenser according to an embodiment of the invention. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a bottom view of a sachet dispenser according to an embodiment of the invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0018] With reference to Figures 1 to 5, a sachet dispenser 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention will now be described. The sachet dispenser 100 has a body 102 having an interior space 103 arranged to receive a roll of sachets containing medication (not shown). The body 102 is formed from two halves 104, 106 which are separable so that the body 102 can be opened to receive a roll of sachets 114. The halves 104, 106 are joined by a hinge 108 and a snap fit arrangement 110 is used to secure the halves 104, 106 such that the body 102 is in a closed position.

[0019] The body 102 has a slot 112 through which a sachet 114 can be pulled out of the body 102. The ends of the sachets 114 are shown diagrammatically in Figures 1, 2 and 4, and a cross-sectional side view of a roll of sachets 114 is shown in Figure 2. The sachet extractor 100 has two support surfaces 116, 118, which are located on opposite sides of the slot 112. When the sachet has been pulled sufficiently out of the slot 112, the sachet 114 can be clamped (supported) by either the support surface 116 or the support surface 118 (depending on the orientation of the sachet extractor relative to the direction of gravity).

[0020] In the illustrated embodiment, the support surfaces 116, 118 are located immediately adjacent the slot 112 and are positioned on a concavely curved common plane. In variations of the illustrated embodiment, the support surfaces 116, 118 may be on a flat surface, for example, or may be positioned on different surfaces. Additionally, the support surfaces 116, 118 may alternatively not be positioned immediately adjacent the slot 112.

[0021] The body 102 further comprises clips 120, 122 which are positioned on the support surfaces 116, 118 and arranged to secure the sachet 114 on either the support surface 116 or the support surface 118 once the sachet is pulled out of the slot 112. In addition, the body 102 has holes 124 which can be used to secure the sachet extractor 100 to a wall surface, such as a vertical or horizontal wall, using suitable screws or bolts.

[0022] The body 102 may be formed from a suitable polymeric material, such as a plastic material. The body 102 may be at least partially transparent. In this embodiment, the body 102 has substantially straight or rounded wall portions. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the body may alternatively have a different shape, such as being generally cylindrical.

[0023] Furthermore, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the dispenser may not only be suitable for dispensing sachets of tablets, pills or capsules, but may also be suitable for dispensing sachets containing medicines or vitamins etc. provided in other suitable forms, such as powder or liquid form. [Explanation of symbols]

[0024] 100 Sachet remover 102 Main unit 103 Interior Space 104, 106 half body 108 Hinge 110 Snap Fit Placement 112 Slots 114 Sachet 116, 118 Support surface 120, 122 clips

Claims

1. 1. A medicine dispenser for dispensing a sachet of medicine, comprising: The medicine dispenser includes: a body forming a space for receiving the roll of sachets; a slot positioned within the body for throughput of the sachets of the roll of sachets, the roll of sachets rotating within the space as the sachets are drawn out of the body through the slot; first and second support surfaces on the body facing away from the body for supporting the sachet after the sachet has been pulled through the slot; Equipped with the first and second support surfaces are positioned adjacent to and along the slot such that the slot is located between the first and second support surfaces; A medicine dispenser, wherein depending on the orientation of the medicine dispenser relative to the direction of gravity, the sachet is supportable by the first support surface or substantially similarly supportable by the second support surface when pulled through the slot, and either the first surface or the opposing second surface of the sachet faces away from the main body.

2. the medication dispenser comprises a roll of said sachets of medication; the sachet comprising a label identifying the contents of the sachet; the label is located on either the first surface or the opposing second surface of the sachet; the sachet of medication is pulled out of the body through the slot and supported by either the first support surface or the second support surface; 2. The medication dispenser of claim 1, wherein either the first support surface or the second support surface is selected such that the label on the sachet faces away from the body of the medication dispenser and can be conveniently identified.

3. 3. The medication dispenser of claim 1 or 2, wherein the first and second support surfaces lie on a common plane.

4. 10. The medication dispenser of claim 1, wherein the first and second support surfaces are planar.

5. 10. The medication dispenser of claim 1, wherein the first and second support surfaces are curved surfaces.

6. 2. The medication dispenser of claim 1, wherein the first and second support surfaces are located immediately adjacent the slot.

7. 10. The medication dispenser of claim 1, wherein the first and second support surfaces are substantially coextensive and co-shaped.

8. the body having an axis that is substantially coincident with an axis of the roll of sachets when the roll of sachets is loaded into the medication dispenser; The slot has an axis. the first and second support surfaces are symmetrical with respect to a plane of symmetry defined by an axis of the body and an axis of the slot; 2. The medication dispenser of claim 1.

9. 2. The medicine dispenser of claim 1, wherein the body includes clips on the first and second support surfaces arranged to secure the sachet on either the first support surface or the second support surface when the sachet is pulled through the slot.

10. 10. The medication dispenser of claim 1, wherein the body is at least partially transparent.

11. The body comprises two halves; 2. The medication dispenser of claim 1, wherein the two halves are separable for loading the roll of sachets and include a snap fit arranged to engage the two halves with each other so that the body closes.

12. the body having a base portion positioned opposite the first and second support surfaces; 2. The medication dispenser of claim 1, wherein the base portion is positioned for mounting to a wall of a building or structure, whereby when the medication dispenser is mounted to the wall of the building or structure, the first and second support surfaces face away from the wall of the building or structure.

Images