Keyed Medication Cartridge With Slidable Vial Dosing Control
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing medication dispensing devices are cumbersome, confusing, and prone to errors, particularly for patients managing multiple medications, and traditional oral medications are inconvenient for discreet use.
Innovation Solution
A mechanized medication cartridge with a slidable vial and pump mechanism, integrated into a handheld device, featuring a keyed connector and alignment features for precise positioning, and user authentication to ensure accurate and secure medication administration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a mechanized pump mechanism is integrated into the medication cartridge, then medication dispensing accuracy and reliability are improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The pump mechanism is nested within the cartridge body, with the piston housed inside the cartridge and the plunger extending through the cartridge wall. This nesting approach integrates the pumping function into the existing cartridge structure rather than adding external components, thereby improving dispensing reliability while minimizing increases in overall device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines multiple functions into unified components: the piston serves both as a sealing element and a pumping mechanism, the plunger acts as both a actuator and a seal, and the aperture serves as both a dispensing opening and a positioning feature. This merging of functions reduces the number of separate parts needed, improving reliability through fewer potential failure points while controlling structural complexity.
2Productivity
If a slidable vial with pump mechanism is used, then medication dispensing control is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cartridge is segmented into distinct functional components: the vial containing medication, the piston for pumping action, the plunger for actuation, and the aperture for dispensing. Each component can be manufactured separately using standard processes and then assembled through straightforward operations, improving dispensing control while maintaining ease of manufacture through modular construction.
Solution Approach 2:
The slidable vial design allows the medication container to automatically engage with the pump mechanism through its own movement. As the vial slides within the cartridge, it self-aligns with the piston and plunger components, eliminating the need for complex external alignment mechanisms or precision assembly operations, thereby improving dispensing control without significantly increasing manufacturing difficulty.
3Measurement precision
If keyed connector and alignment features are added, then positioning precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The keyed connector and alignment features utilize asymmetric geometries that provide unique positioning orientations. The keyed connector has a specific shape that fits only one orientation within the cartridge, and the alignment features have asymmetric profiles that guide the vial into precise positional alignment. This asymmetric design achieves high positioning precision through simple geometric constraints rather than complex adjustment mechanisms.
4Reliability
If user authentication is implemented, then medication security is improved, but ease of operation decreases
Solution Approach 1:
User authentication is performed as a preliminary action before the medication dispensing process begins. The authentication mechanism verifies user identity or authorization in advance, and only after successful authentication does the system enable the pumping mechanism. This preliminary authentication step ensures medication security while maintaining ease of operation by automating the verification process and eliminating the need for manual checks during the actual dispensing action.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure provides a medication cartridge and associated dispensing device. The dispensing device includes a housing containing a cartridge carrier, designed with a specific connector to align with a medication cartridge. The medication cartridge includes a shell with a medicine vial slidably positioned therein. When the dispensing device is activated, the cartridge carrier rotates to raise the vial and cause the vial to dispense medicine from the vial and out of a dispensing aperture for use by a patient.