초록 ▼

A medication dispensing cart has a pull-out drawer, and a conveyor that transports a number of removable medication bins within the cart, one at a time, to the position of the drawer. An on-board processor controls operation of the bin conveyor mechanism whose pathway can be a serpentine (folded) lo

A medication dispensing cart has a pull-out drawer, and a conveyor that transports a number of removable medication bins within the cart, one at a time, to the position of the drawer. An on-board processor controls operation of the bin conveyor mechanism whose pathway can be a serpentine (folded) loop. The drawer slide engages the bin located at the drawer position, and the bin can be pulled forward from said conveyor and pushed back onto the conveyor. The bins can be lifted out when the drawer is opened. A 2-D bar code symbol or other machine-readable code, positioned on the bin, contains data identifying the contents of the bin and the associated patient. A reader device reads the coded symbol and transfers data for that bin to an on-board processor. The processor keeps track of the bins on the conveyor, as well as their contents. Pusher arms on the drawer assist in pushing the bin out when the drawer is opened and in returning the bin onto its carrier when the drawer is closed. The arms are rocked out of contact with the associated bin when the drawer is in a fully closed position. The processor provides a record for accountability of access to the bins. An alternative arrangement can be seven feet in height with the drawer access at waist level, and with a pull-out work shelf.

대표청구항 ▼

1. An automated medication dispensing cart, comprising an enclosure having a top surface and a front wall; said front wall having an opening at a drawer position thereon; an on-board processor including display means and user access means permitting a user to enter information for access to a patien

1. An automated medication dispensing cart, comprising an enclosure having a top surface and a front wall; said front wall having an opening at a drawer position thereon; an on-board processor including display means and user access means permitting a user to enter information for access to a patient's medication contained within the dispensing cart; a plurality of elongated medication bins; internal conveyor means within said enclosure supporting said plurality of bins and moving said bins under control of said processor along a predetermined pathway inside said enclosure, the pathway including a position aligned with said drawer position; a drawer located at said drawer position including a slide member engaging a respective one of said bins when located at said drawer position and permitting said bin to be pulled out from said conveyor means and to be pushed in to return the bin to the conveyor means; and said internal conveyor means including a plurality of bin carriers that move along said pathway, and having structure slidably mating with corresponding structure on said bins for supporting the bins as they travel along said pathway but permitting the bins to slide out from the respective bin carriers when at said drawer position. 2. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 1, wherein each of said bins includes a coded symbol thereon containing data representing the contents of the bin and associated patient identification information, and said cart includes a reader device at said drawer position for reading said coded symbol and transferring said data for each respective bin to said processor. 3. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 1, wherein said coded symbol includes a 2-D bar code symbol. 4. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 1, wherein each said carrier has a pair of elongated flanges horizontal facing one another, and each said bin has a pair of elongated channels on opposite sides thereof, said channels slidably mating with said flanges. 5. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 1, wherein said pathway is a closed serpentine loop. 6. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 5, wherein said conveyor means includes a drive web traveling in said closed loop and onto which said carriers are affixed, and a gear drive motor drive for driving said drive web. 7. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 6, wherein said gear motor drive includes a 90-degree gear motor disposed at a back wall of said enclosure. 8. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 5, further comprising an auxiliary drawer disposed at an auxiliary drawer position in said enclosure, and containing an auxiliary bin that does not travel along said pathway; said serpentine pathway being adapted to bypass said auxiliary drawer position. 9. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 1, wherein said drawer slide includes a rear arm at a distal portion of the slide behind said the position of the carrier and rotatable to contact and push an associated bin forward when the drawer is pulled out; and a front arm disposed at a proximal portion of the slide in advance of said carrier and rotatable to contact and push the associated bin rearward when the drawer is pushed in; both the rear and front arms being rocked out of contact with the associated bin when the drawer is in a fully closed position. 10. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 9, further comprising front and rear cams operatively coupled to said front and rear arms, respectively for rotating the same, and a cam track affixed in said enclosure at said drawer position on which said first and second cams respectively ride when the drawer is pulled out and pushed in. 11. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 1, wherein said drawer position is located immediately beneath said top surface of said cart. 12. An automated medication dispensing cart, comprising an enclosure having a front wall having a base end and a top end; said front wall having an opening at a drawer position thereon; an on-board processor including user access means permitting a user to enter information for access to medication contained within the dispensing cart; a plurality of elongated medication bins; internal conveyor means within said enclosure supporting said plurality of bins and moving said bins under control of said processor along a predetermined pathway inside said enclosure, the pathway including a position aligned with said drawer position; a drawer located at said drawer position including a slide member engaging a respective one of said bins when located at said drawer position and permitting said bin to be pulled out from said conveyor means and to be pushed in to return the bin to the conveyor means; and said internal conveyor means including a plurality of bin carriers that move along said pathway, and having structure slidably mating with corresponding structure on said bins for supporting the bins as they travel along said pathway but permitting the bins to slide out from the respective bin carriers when at said drawer position. 13. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 12, wherein said drawer position is about three feet above said base end. 14. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 12, wherein said top end is about seven feet above said base end. 15. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 12 further comprising a pull-out shelf adjacent said drawer position. 16. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 12, wherein said pathway is a closed serpentine loop that extends above and below said drawer position. 17. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 16, wherein said conveyor means includes a drive web traveling in said serpentine loop and onto which said carriers arc affixed, and a motor drive for driving said drive web. 18. The automated medication dispensing cart according to claim 1, wherein said bins are configured to be removable from said drawer when in said drawer position.