Dispense event verification for dispensers
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Dispensers in locations like hospitals and psychiatric wards are susceptible to abuse and tampering, leading to potential harm or death, as users may ingest toxic substances or use them as weapons.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a dispense event verification system that uses a user verification component and access model definition to restrict access based on user identification and predefined rules, preventing excessive or unauthorized use by generating a dispense access model that specifies levels of access for different users and scenarios, and updating rules dynamically.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If access control rules are implemented to prevent abuse and tampering, then safety and security are improved, but device complexity increases due to verification components and access models
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a verification component as an intermediary between the user and the dispenser. This component evaluates user identification information against access models to determine whether to permit or restrict dispense events. The intermediary handles the complexity of access control logic separately from the core dispensing function, thereby improving safety while managing device complexity through modular design.
2Reliability
If user identification and verification processes are implemented, then access control and abuse prevention are improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to additional verification steps
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary verification of user identification information before allowing dispense events. The verification component evaluates user credentials against access models in advance, determining access permissions before the actual dispensing action. This preliminary action ensures access control is maintained while streamlining the operation once verification is complete, as the decision logic is resolved beforehand.
3Reliability
If dispense limits and restrictions are enforced, then abuse prevention is improved, but productivity decreases due to restricted material distribution
Solution Approach 1:
The access models in the system are dynamic and can be configured with different dispense limits, time restrictions, and user-specific rules. The verification component evaluates these dynamic parameters in real-time to determine whether to permit dispense events. This dynamic approach allows the system to prevent abuse through enforceable limits while maintaining productivity by allowing authorized users to access materials within their allocated permissions, adapting to different operational requirements.
Data Source
AI summary
One or more techniques and/or systems are provided for dispense event verification. For example, a user verification component may be associated with a dispenser that is configured to dispense material, such as a sanitizer dispenser configured to dispense sanitizer. The user verification component may obtain user identification information associated with a user attempting to invoke the dispenser to perform a dispense event of material. The user identification information may be evaluated against a dispense access model (e.g., specifying levels of access to the dispenser for users, such as a first user being allowed to perform up to 10 dispense events of sanitizer every 45 minutes) to determine whether to facilitate or restrict the dispense event. In this way, dispensing of material that may be susceptible to abuse by users (e.g., prisoners, psychiatric ward patients, daycare children, etc.) may be monitored and/or restricted for the safety of such users.