Medical Product Dispenser with Sensor-Based Inventory Tracking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current systems for managing medical product inventory in hospitals are inefficient, leading to waste, errors, and increased costs due to manual tracking and lack of real-time updates, especially for surgical procedures where precise and timely restocking is crucial.
Innovation Solution
A dispenser system with a receiving opening, holders, emitters, sensors, a processor, and electronic storage device that tracks medical products by their identifiers, allowing for accurate inventory management and real-time updates, enabling efficient dispensing and restocking.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual inventory tracking is used, then device complexity is reduced, but productivity decreases and loss of time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables self-service inventory tracking where the dispensing machine automatically detects when medical products are removed through its sensors and processors, eliminating the need for manual counting and tracking by hospital staff. The machine serves itself by autonomously monitoring its own inventory levels and generating restocking notifications.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical inventory tracking methods with an automated electronic system that uses sensors, processors, and communication interfaces to detect product removal, track inventory levels, and transmit restocking information, thereby substituting human labor with automated technological systems.
2Loss of information
If real-time inventory tracking is implemented, then loss of information is reduced, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements feedback mechanisms where sensors continuously monitor inventory levels and provide real-time information to the processor, which then communicates with external systems to alert staff when restocking is needed. This closed-loop feedback ensures accurate, up-to-date inventory information without requiring complex manual tracking procedures.
3Productivity
If automated dispensing machines are used, then productivity increases, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The dispensing machine is designed with multi-functionality, serving not only as a storage container but also as an automated tracking system, detection device, communication node, and restocking notification system. By consolidating multiple functions into a single device, the system improves productivity without proportionally increasing complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure is directed to a dispenser that includes a receiving opening configured to receive a plurality of medical products into a cavity of the dispenser as an available inventory, wherein each of the plurality of medical products includes an identifier; a plurality of holders in the cavity, each of the plurality of holders configured to store at least one of the plurality of medical products in a fixed location that is associated with the one of the plurality of medical products, and each of the plurality of holders including a dispensing opening; at least two emitters and at least two sensors around a periphery of the receiving opening, wherein the at least two emitters and the at least two sensors are arranged around a periphery of the receiving opening on a plane that is substantially perpendicular to the plurality of dispensing openings; a processor; and a electronic storage device.