Biometric electronic communicating drug dispenser
A system, a device, a method, and a computer program are provided that dispense pharmacy/clinic loaded medications only to a specific patient that has biometric information pre-programmed to a Biometric Electronic Communicating Drug Dispenser (BECDD) device by, e.g., a clinic physician or authorized user. The biometric information may include, e.g., a finger print, a retinal signature, a voice signature, a DNA code, a blood type, or the like.
1. A biometric electronic communicating drug dispenser (BECDD) device, comprising:
an authentication sensor including a camera that senses authentication attributes of a user and generates a user authentication signal;
a controller that receives the user authentication signal from the authentication sensor and generates a dosage dispensing instruction based on a dosage schedule at a remote computer; and
a medication dispenser that dispenses a dosage under control of the controller based on the dosage schedule to control access to the dosage by the user,
wherein the medication dispenser comprises an actuator that receives the dosage dispensing instruction from the controller and is configured to dispense the dosage,
wherein the BECDD device further comprises a generally rectangular shaped housing that receives the medication dispenser having a generally rectangular shape, the medication dispenser comprising a spring-loaded dispenser that holds a series of linearly stacked pills with each pill being offset from an adjacent pill.
2. The device of claim 1 , wherein the authentication sensor comprises:
a camera;
a fingerprint reader; or
a photo detector.
3. The device of claim 1 , wherein the medication dispenser comprises:
a drug cartridge that receives, holds, and stages dosages for dispensing.
4. The device of claim 3 , wherein the drug cartridge comprises:
a spring-loaded magazine that receives, holds, and stages a plurality of pills for dispensing.
5. The device of claim 1 , further comprising:
a memory that stores data and control signals when a communication link is determined to be inactive.
6. A method for dispensing drugs, comprising:
loading patient data and medication data of a user into a BECDD device comprising a camera;
installing a drug cartridge into the BECDD device, the drug cartridge comprising a spring-loaded dispenser configured to hold a series of linearly stacked pills with each pill being offset from an adjacent pill;
confirming completion of loading of the patient data and medication data into the BECDD device;
using the camera, sensing authentication data of the user that is used by the BECDD device to match the user data with the patient data and the medication data in the BECDD device;
confirming installation of drug cartridge into the BECDD device;
determining a ready-to-use status of the BECDD device; and
delivering the ready-to-use BECDD device to the user.
7. The method of claim 6 , further comprising:
sensing authentication data for the user; and
sending the authentication data to a delivery control monitoring station (DCMS) for verification of the authentication data for the user.
8. The method of claim 6 , further comprising:
setting a dosage interval.
9. The method of claim 8 , further comprising:
authenticating the user based on the authentication data.
10. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:
correlating a set dosage schedule to the medication data; and
validating the dose schedule.
11. The method of claim 10 , further comprising:
dispensing a dosage based on the validated dose schedule.
12. A method of dispensing drugs, comprising:
identifying an exceptions event;
generating exceptions data related to the exceptions event including an indication of a failure to take medication, an indication of a tamper event, or an indication of attempting to take medication too frequently;
sending the exceptions data to a computer located at a remote location; and
receiving a control signal from the remote computer to display a message or generate a sound on a biometric electronic communicating drug dispenser device (BECDD) device, the BECDD device being generally rectangular in shape and comprising a generally rectangular cartridge configured to dispense a series of linearly stacked pills through a single dispensing opening at a base of the BECDD, the cartridge comprising a spring-loaded dispenser that holds the series of linearly stacked pills with each pill being offset from an adjacent pill,
wherein the exceptions data is stored at the remote computer and associated with the BECDD device.
13. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
controlling an operation of the BECDD device based on the control signal.
14. The method of claim 13 , wherein the operation comprises:
powering down the BECDD device;
powering up the BECDD device;
dispensing a dosage from the BECDD; or
disabling the BECDD device.
15. The method of claim 12 , wherein the exceptions data comprises:
identification data that identifies a person trying to access a dosage, including:
a fingerprint,
a photo,
a voice signature, or
a retina image;
a time-stamp that includes a date and time of the exceptions event.
16. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
sending a second message related to the exceptions data to another computer, which may be located remotely from said remote computer.
17. The device of claim 1 , wherein an image taken by the camera is sendable to the remote computer.
18. The device of claim 1 , wherein the generally rectangular shaped housing comprises the authentication sensor located on a first side of the housing and a display located on a second side of the BECDD.
19. The device of claim 18 , wherein the medication dispenser dispenses a pill on a third side of the BECDD.