Apparatus and method for an oral nicotine dispensing system
An apparatus and method for an oral nicotine dispensing system. The apparatus includes storing a plurality of a pods in a magazine within a body, receiving a fingerprint scan from a user via a fingerprint scanner coupled to the body, authenticating the fingerprint scan, de-activating a locking mechanism to allow access to at least a pod upon successful authentication of the fingerprint scan, and dispensing, using at least a drive mechanism, the at least a pod from the magazine through an opening of the body.
1. An apparatus for oral nicotine dispensing, wherein the apparatus comprises:
a body;
a magazine configured to store a plurality of pods;
a drive mechanism coupled to the magazine and configured to guide at least one pod of the plurality of pods into a dispensing position; and
an aperture located on the body and configured to allow for dispensing of the at least one pod from the dispensing position to an exterior environment,
wherein the magazine comprises:
a magazine door configured to be positioned in a closed state by default,
a loaded spring, and
a snap arm configured to prevent movement of the magazine door and to hold the magazine door in the closed state.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the magazine door is sprung upwards and the snap arm is a metal snap arm.
3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the body further comprises a magnet disposed on an inner wall of the body.
4. The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein the magnet is configured to attract the snap arm away from the magazine door, thereby allowing the magazine door to translate freely.
5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the loaded spring is configured to hold the door in a closed state.
6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the drive mechanism comprises a motor, a power source, and a circuit board.
7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the drive mechanism comprises at least one of:
a drive wheel and a slider;
the drive wheel and a fork linkage; or
a drive gear and a slider rack.
8. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the motor is configured to spin the drive mechanism to push on the magazine door to open the magazine door.
9. The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the drive wheel is configured to push the slider in a linear motion to push the at least one pod from an interior of the magazine to an exterior of the magazine.
10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the body further comprises an access restriction mechanism including at least one of a radio frequency chip or a biometric sensor.
11. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the body is formed in a cuboid shape or a cylindrical shape.
12. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the power source comprises at least one of a battery or a piezoelectric hammer starter.
13. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the power source is included in the magazine and is disposed to make contact with the apparatus upon insertion of the magazine.
14. The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the drive mechanism is configured to returns to a locking location after each dispensing cycle.
15. The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the slider is configured to move to a non-engaged location to allow for ejection of the magazine from the body.
16. A method for oral nicotine dispensing, the method comprising:
providing a magazine comprising a plurality of pods, wherein the magazine comprises a magazine door configured to be positioned in a closed state by default and a snap arm configured to prevent movement of the magazine door and to hold the magazine door in the closed state;
inserting the magazine into a body of a dispenser, wherein the insertion deactivates at least one mechanism configured to prevent opening of the magazine door; and
using a drive mechanism disposed within the dispenser to open the magazine door and push at least one pod of the plurality of pods from an interior of the magazine to an exterior of the magazine.
17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the body further comprises a magnet disposed on an inner wall of the body.
18. The method of claim 16 , wherein the deactivation of the at least one mechanism configured to prevent opening of the magazine door is initiated by an interaction between the magnet and a ferrous metal component.
19. The method of claim 16 , wherein the snap arm is a metal snap arm.
20. The method of claim 19 , wherein the magnet is configured to attract the snap arm away from the magazine door, thereby allowing the magazine door to translate freely.