Locking Medication Container for Credential-Timed Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Travelers are exposed to health risks due to unfamiliar water purification technologies and diseases in foreign destinations, necessitating the provision of medications that require secure and controlled access to ensure timely and appropriate use.
Innovation Solution
A locking medication container with a locking mechanism that allows controlled access through credentials, ensuring medications are securely stored and dispensed only when authorized, featuring compartments that can be unlocked within specific time intervals or with valid credentials.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a locking mechanism is implemented to secure medication containers, then security and controlled access are improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The locking mechanism is divided into separate functional components: a credential input interface, a credential verification system, and a physical locking component. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function independently, improving security while keeping the overall device complexity manageable through modular design.
Solution Approach 2:
A credential (such as a code, password, or biometric data) serves as an intermediary between the user and the medication container. The credential verification system acts as a mediator that validates the user's authorization before allowing access, thereby enhancing security without requiring direct physical control of the locking mechanism by the user.
2Reliability
If controlled access through credentials is implemented, then medication safety and compliance are improved, but ease of operation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The credential verification system is designed to be self-service, allowing users to independently verify their credentials and gain access to their medication without requiring assistance from healthcare providers or pharmacists. This maintains medication safety through credential verification while improving ease of operation by enabling autonomous access.
Solution Approach 2:
Credentials are verified in advance before the user gains access to the medication container. This preliminary verification ensures medication safety is maintained while the actual access process remains simple and quick, as the verification has already been completed beforehand.
3Reliability
If time intervals for credential usability are enforced, then medication compliance is improved, but loss of time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements periodic credential verification at specified time intervals, allowing users to access their medication only during authorized time windows. This enforces compliance with medication schedules while the verification process itself is designed to be rapid, minimizing the actual time lost during each access event.
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides immediate feedback to the user regarding whether their credential is valid for the current time interval. This feedback mechanism ensures compliance by clearly indicating when access is permitted or denied, while the rapid nature of the feedback minimizes time loss during the verification process.
Data Source
AI summary
A medication dispenser having an inner container disposed therein configured to securely secure a medication, the inner container having a bottom disposed therein, a cone having a sloped surface extending upward from the bottom of the inner container, wherein the cone has a opening defined therein and wherein the cone is stationary with respect to the inner container, a rotatable assembly cooperatively connected to base of the inner container, the rotatable assembly having an opening defined therein configured to rotate with respect to the cone, wherein the opening rotates along with the rotatable assembly, a push wing disposed within the inner container and adjacent to the sloped surface, the push wing configured to rotate with respect to the cone, a chute extending from the from a bottom of the rotatable assembly and a reversible motor coupled to the rotatable assembly operable to rotate the rotatable assembly and the push wing.