U.S. patent application number 12/406306 was filed with the patent office on 2010-05-27 for medication tracker unit.
Invention is credited to Margaret Rice.
Application Number | 20100126052 12/406306 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 42194908 |
Filed Date | 2010-05-27 |
United States Patent
Application |
20100126052 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Rice; Margaret |
May 27, 2010 |
MEDICATION TRACKER UNIT
Abstract
Disclosed is a medication tracker unit. The medication tracker
unit includes a freestanding body, a pocket folder and a timer.
Further, the medication tracker unit includes a picture frame
disposed on a front side of the freestanding body. The picture
frame is configured to hold and display a sheet. The pocket folder
is disposed on a rear portion of the freestanding body and is
configured to store a plurality of objects including a plurality of
sheets and a plurality of marking objects. Furthermore, the
medication tracker unit includes a timer coupled to the
freestanding body. The timer is capable of reminding a user to take
medication. The displayed sheet in the picture frame is adapted to
be marked by the user through a marking object of the plurality of
marking objects for tracking the medication. A method for tracking
medications is also disclosed.
Inventors: |
Rice; Margaret; (Deerfield,
IL) |
Correspondence
Address: |
JAY M. SCHLOFF
6960 Orchard Lake Road, Suite 315
West Bloomfield
MI
48322
US
|
Family ID: |
42194908 |
Appl. No.: |
12/406306 |
Filed: |
March 18, 2009 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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61117978 |
Nov 26, 2008 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
40/728 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A61J 7/0472 20130101;
G09F 1/14 20130101; A61J 7/04 20130101; A61J 7/0454 20150501 |
Class at
Publication: |
40/728 |
International
Class: |
A47G 1/06 20060101
A47G001/06 |
Claims
1. A medication tracker unit comprising: a freestanding body
comprising a picture frame disposed on a front portion of the
freestanding body, the picture frame configured to hold and display
a sheet; a pocket folder configured on a rear portion of the
freestanding body, the pocket folder configured to store a
plurality of objects, the plurality of objects comprising a
plurality of sheets and a plurality of marking objects; and a timer
coupled to the freestanding body, the timer capable of reminding a
user to take medication, wherein the displayed sheet is adapted to
be marked by the user through a marking object of the plurality of
marking objects corresponding to the medication.
2. The medication tracker unit of claim 1, wherein the sheet
comprises a grid with free spaces.
3. The medication tracker unit of claim 2, wherein the marking
object is configured to mark the displayed sheet by filling the
free spaces with days of a week and times of the days related to
the medication intake by the user.
4. The medication tracker unit of claim 1, wherein the sheet is of
a size of about 5 inches in length and about 7 inches in width.
5. The medication tracker unit of claim 1, wherein the picture
frame is of about 6 inches wide and of about 8 inches tall.
6. The medication tracker unit of claim 1, wherein the freestanding
body is trapezoidal in shape.
7. The medication tracker unit of claim 1, wherein the plurality of
marking objects comprises a plurality of colorful stickers.
8. The medication tracker unit of claim 1, wherein the plurality of
marking objects represents a reward.
9. The medication tracker unit of claim 1, wherein the timer is
configured for setting one or more reminders for reminding the user
to take the medication.
10. A method for tracking medications, the method comprising:
setting one or more reminders for taking at least one medication;
taking the at least one medication based on the one or more
reminders; and marking on a sheet by a marking object to confirm an
intake of the at least one medication, the sheet displayed in a
picture frame disposed on a front portion of a freestanding body.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present invention claims priority under 35 United States
Code, Section 119, on the U.S. Provisional Patent Application No.
61/117,978, filed on Nov. 26, 2008.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention generally relates to home appliances
for purposes of a patient care, and more particularly, to a
medication tracker unit for tracking medications and a method
thereof.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] With increasing responsibilities in various areas of work, a
person may tend to forget to take or provide medicines at all or
may not adhere strictly to his or her medication as per the
prescription. Further, a person that is a caregiver for a child or
an elderly or infirm person may lose track of the medicinal regime
for such a child or elderly or infirm person.
[0004] Generally, a child is not very prompt in taking medicines
and may throw a tantrum when asked to take a dosage of medicine.
Further, there is no incentive for the child to swallow the
medicine, so he/she will not show much interest in taking the
medicine. Similarly, a geriatric patient, who may have amnesia or
reduced memory capability, may forget to take medicine or may not
wish to have it. In such cases, a caregiver, who cares for a
patient, may need to spend more time in making the patient ready
for taking the medicine. Nonetheless, the caregiver may find it
hard to remember when and which medicine needs to be given to the
patient.
[0005] Many common children's medications may need to be given
several times per day over the course of several days. Further, it
is dangerous to give a double dose or no dose at all. It may be the
case that parents are not available to keep track of the supply of
proper medication at the right time. It may therefore become
confusing trying to figure out an accurate dosage at a particular
time. Furthermore, babysitters and caregivers often do not remember
to give medication as per the prescription, resulting in improper
dosages and, hence, poor health of the child. In another case, the
babysitters and caregivers may forget to tell the parents that the
medication has already been given to the child, resulting in a
double dose.
[0006] Again, due to the risk of forgetting to intake medication or
administering the wrong medication, the caregiver or the patient
himself/herself may need to spend more time in remembering the
different medications at different times. Further, the caregiver
may need to think of several ways to make the patient, especially
the pediatric patients, ready to ingest the medication. This may
include spending money or otherwise providing incentives to the
pediatric patients each time to effect the taking of the
medication. Due to this, the caregiver may need to spend a
considerable amount of time and money in order to appease the
patient before the patient takes the medication. Such efforts on
the part of the caregivers to make the patient take the medication
may increase the frustration level of the caregiver.
[0007] Based on the foregoing disadvantages, there is a need for
providing ease in handling patients, and particularly, for making
them ready to take medicine and, as a result to avoid wastage of
time and money in connection therewith. Thus, there is a need of
providing a means to keep track of the medication regime to insure
a proper medication and intake thereof. Furthermore, the means
should be useful in avoiding any wastage in terms of time to
remember a medication intake regime each time for intake or
administration of a dosage of medication.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the prior
art, the general purpose of the present invention is to provide an
ease in tracking medications that are configured to include all
advantages of the prior art, and to overcome the shortcomings
inherent therein.
[0009] It is therefore an object of the present invention to
provide a medication tracker unit and a method for tracking the
medications without expending considerable time and money.
[0010] To achieve the above objective, in one aspect, the present
invention provides a medication tracker unit. The medication
tracker unit includes a freestanding body including a picture frame
disposed on a front portion of the freestanding body, a pocket
folder on a rear portion of the freestanding body, and a timer
coupled to the freestanding body. The picture frame is configured
to hold and display a sheet of the plurality of sheets. The pocket
folder stores a plurality of objects. The plurality of objects
includes a plurality of sheets and a plurality of marking objects.
The timer is capable of reminding a user to take medication.
Further, the displayed sheet may be marked by the user, through a
marking object of the plurality of marking objects, in order to
track the medications.
[0011] In another aspect, the present invention provides a method
for tracking medications. The method includes setting one or more
reminders for taking at least one medication. The method further
includes taking the at least one medication based on the one or
more reminders. Furthermore, the method includes marking on a sheet
of a plurality of sheets by a marking device to confirm an intake
of the at least one medication. The plurality of sheets is
displayed in a picture frame disposed on a front portion of a
freestanding body.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] The advantages and features of the present invention will
become better understood with reference to the following detailed
description and claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying
drawings, wherein like elements are identified with like symbols,
and in which:
[0013] FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrate exemplary views of a medication
tracker unit, according to one embodiment of the present
invention;
[0014] FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate exemplary exploded views of the
medication tracker unit, according to another embodiment of the
present invention; and
[0015] FIG. 3 illustrates a flow diagram of a method for tracking
medications, according to one embodiment of the present
invention.
[0016] The medication tracker unit and a corresponding method for
tracking the medications have been represented where appropriate by
conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific
details that are pertinent for understanding the embodiments of the
present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0017] Before describing in detail, embodiments that are in
accordance with the present invention, it should be observed that
the embodiments reside primarily in combinations of components of
the medication tracker unit and method steps related to tracking
the medication.
[0018] In this document, relational terms such as first and second,
and the like may be used solely to distinguish one module or action
or component from another module or action or component without
necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or
order between such modules or actions or component. The terms
"comprises," "comprising," or any other variation thereof, if used,
are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a
process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of
elements does not include only those elements but may include other
elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method,
article, or apparatus. An element proceeded by "comprises . . . a"
does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of
additional identical elements in the process, method, article, or
apparatus that comprises the element.
[0019] The subject matter described herein is directed towards a
medication tracker unit that may be used effectively to track
medications. The medication tracker unit may include a freestanding
body comprising a picture frame, a pocket folder, and a timer. The
freestanding body may be a trapezoidal solid frame including the
picture frame attached to a front portion of the freestanding body
and the pocket folder attached to a rear portion of the
freestanding body. The medication tracker unit may include a base
of approximately 6''. The pocket folder of the freestanding body
may be used to store a plurality of objects corresponding to
tracking of the medication.
[0020] The picture frame of the medication tracker unit is present
on the front portion of the freestanding body and thus represents
the front portion of the medication tracker unit. The picture frame
is used to hold a sheet in such a manner that a major area of the
sheet is open and accessible to parents and caregivers so that they
can fill information corresponding to the medications thereon. The
information may be filled in an object that may be held by the
picture frame. Further, in an embodiment, the picture frame may be
coupled to the freestanding body on the opposite side of the pocket
folder of the freestanding body. The timer may be coupled to the
freestanding body and may be present below the pocket folder of the
freestanding body.
[0021] Referring now to FIGS. 1A and 1B, exemplary perspective
views of a medication tracker unit 100 are shown, according to one
embodiment of the present invention. The medication tracker unit
100 includes a freestanding body 102, a picture frame 104 and a
pocket folder 106. The freestanding body 102 may be of any shape
including, but not limited to, trapezoidal, cube or cuboidal. The
picture frame 104, as shown in FIG. 1A, may be disposed on a front
portion 108 of the freestanding body 102. The picture frame 104 may
either be coupled to the freestanding body 102 as a separate
element or be manufactured alongwith the freestanding body 102.
[0022] The picture frame 104 comprises a slot (not shown), which
may hold a sheet, such as a sheet 110a. The sheet 110a may be any
card, a thin material or anything on which a user may write or
mark. As used herein, the "user" refers to a patient or a caregiver
of the patient. The sheet 110a may slide into the slot of the
picture frame 104. A major area of the sheet 110a is displayed to
the user when the sheet 110a is placed inside the slot of the
picture frame 104. It would be apparent to a person skilled in the
art that the displayed sheet 110a is accessible to the user so that
the user may fill information thereon. In another embodiment, the
user may fill the information on an open area of the picture frame
104 instead of filling the information into the sheet 110a (by
placing the sheet 110a into the slot of the picture frame 104). In
such cases, the open area may be made up of wood, plastic, or any
other appropriate material, such that the user may mark or write
into the open area to fill in the information. In one embodiment,
the sheet 110a may be of a size of about 5''.times.7'' and may be
of any color. Further, the picture frame 104 may be about 6'' wide
and about 8'' tall.
[0023] The pocket folder 106 is disposed on a rear portion 112 of
the medication tracker unit 100 as depicted in FIG. 1B. The pocket
folder 106 may be used to store a plurality of objects. The
plurality of objects may include a plurality of sheets 110b and a
plurality of marking objects (not shown). It would be apparent to
those ordinary skilled in that a sheet, such as the sheet 110a of
the plurality of sheets 110b may be placed in the picture frame
104. Further, the sheet 110a may be filled with the information by
marking on the sheet 110a to track the medications. The sheet 110a
may be marked by using a marking object from the plurality of the
marking objects stored in the pocket folder 106 of the medication
tracker unit 100.
[0024] The sheet 110a may include a grid with free (available)
spaces available between grid lines. The grid may include various
square boxes to fill in the information. These free spaces may be
filled by the marking objects to fill the information.
[0025] The marking objects may be a plurality of colorful and
attractive stickers. The marking objects may be placed onto the
sheet 110a to fill in the information. More specifically, the
marking objects are placed onto the free spaces between the
gridlines of the sheet 110a. Further, the marking objects may also
represent a reward. For example, in case of a child patient,
caregivers or parents may give a marking object as a reward for
taking the medication. The child patient may himself/herself place
the marking object on the sheet 110a after taking the medication.
The child may get encouraged to take medication in an urge of
having the marking object for placing onto the sheet 110a. The
child may place the marking object to fill the information related
to a medication regime. For example, the child may place the
marking object on the sheet 110a for representing a day of a week
and a time of the day when the child has taken the medication.
[0026] Further, FIG. 1B shows a timer 114 that may be coupled to
the freestanding body 102. The timer may be placed below the pocket
folder 106 of the freestanding body 102 and on an opposite side to
the picture frame 104 of the medication tracker unit 100. The timer
114 allows the user to set a time as a reminder for taking the
medication. The user may need to take or dispense more than one
medication in a day. For this, the user may set more than one
reminder for each medication.
[0027] Referring now to FIGS. 2A and 2B, exemplary exploded views
200 of the medication tracker unit 100 are shown, in accordance
with another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2A
represents an exploded view of the picture frame 104 and the sheet
110a of the medication tracker unit 100. As shown in FIG. 2A, the
picture frame 104 of the medication tracker unit may include a slot
202 to hold the sheet 110a. The picture frame 104 shows an area 204
where the sheet 110a may be placed and a portion of the sheet 110a
is displayed to the user. The sheet 110a may slide into the slot
202 to cover the area 204 of the picture frame 104. The portion of
the sheet 110a over the area 204 is displayed to the user and the
user may fill the information onto the sheet 110a.
[0028] The sheet 110a is shown with the grid having free spaces 206
to fill in the information. The grid may include, but is not
restricted to, square boxes. In an embodiment, the user may fill
the information in the area 204 of the picture frame 104. In such
cases, the area 204 may be of wood or of the material that may be
marked. The information may include, but is not restricted to, a
day of a week and a time of the day of taking the medication. This
information may be useful for the user to track the medication,
i.e., which type of medication the user has taken and at what time
the medication has been taken. By this, the user may keep the track
of the medication regime.
[0029] FIG. 2B represents an exploded view of the rear side of the
medication tracker unit 100. FIG. 2B shows a pocket folder 106
placed on the rear portion 112 of the freestanding body 102. The
pocket folder 106 is used to store the plurality of sheets 110b may
be placed in the pocket folder 106. The pocket folder 106 may
contain a plurality of marking objects (not shown) along with the
plurality of sheets 110b. The timer 114 may be fitted into a
portion 208 of the freestanding body 102.
[0030] Referring now to FIG. 3, an exemplary flowchart of method
300 for tracking medications is shown, according to one embodiment
of the present invention. The method 300 may be carried out in a
medication tracker unit such as the medication tracker unit 100.
The order in which the method 300 is described is not intended to
be construed as a limitation, and any number of the described
method blocks may be combined in any order to implement the method,
or an alternative method.
[0031] The method 300 commences at 302. At 304, a user may set one
or more reminders for taking at least one medication. The reminder
may be set for reminding the user for the medications. For example,
a caregiver or parents may set a reminder for a medication in order
to dispense proper medication at the correct time. The user may
require dispensing the medication more than one time in a day or
may need to take different medications at various times. Due to
this, the user may set one or more reminders using a timer such as
the timer 114 of the medication tracker unit so as to get an alert,
related to each reminder, for taking the at least one medication.
Further, in one embodiment, the user may set the reminder for a
specific type of medication by setting a particular tone for the
specific type of medication.
[0032] At 306, the user may take the at least one medication based
on the one or more reminders. Further, a caregiver of a patient may
dispense medication to the patient whenever the reminder reminds
the caregiver for the medication. The reminder may ring a bell or
produce a sound to alert the user for the medication. After getting
the alert through the reminder, the user may become aware about the
medication. Due to this, the user may take the correct medication
at the correct time.
[0033] At 308, the user may mark on a sheet, such as the sheet
110a, of a plurality of sheets (such as the plurality of sheets
110b), to confirm an intake of the medication. The sheet may be
placed inside the picture frame 104 of the medication tracker unit
for marking. The user may put mark on the sheet by using a marking
object from a plurality of marking objects, such as the plurality
of marking objects placed inside the pocket folder 106. As
described in conjunction with FIGS. 1A and 1B, the sheet may be
displayed to the user for filing in information regarding the
intake of the medication. The information may confirm the user or a
caregiver regarding an intake of the medication.
[0034] The plurality of marking objects may include a plurality of
colorful stickers that may be placed inside the sheet to fill in
the information. For example; the sheet may include the grid with
free spaces between gridlines. Further, the grid may include
various square boxes that may represent free spaces for different
days of a week and times of the day. The user may place the sheet
inside the picture frame 104 and may fill the sheet each time after
taking the medication.
[0035] Further, the marking objects, that may be colorful stickers,
may be used as a reward to encourage a patient for taking the
medication, especially when the patient is a child. The child may
be asked to take the medication and in return the child may get the
marking object to place inside the sheet for filling the
information corresponding to the medication (such as the day and
time of taking the medication). By this way, the caregivers and
parents may attract the child by offering the reward for taking the
medication. Due to this, the information related to the medication
regime may be marked inside the sheet. The marked sheet may be used
to track the medication taken by the patient and may further be
used to compare the information marked on the sheet with progress
in the child's health.
[0036] The sheet of the plurality of sheets may include the
information related to the medication of about one month. After
filling the sheet fully with the information regarding the
medication, the user may take a new sheet from the plurality of
sheets stored inside the pocket folder 106. Thereafter, the new
sheet may be used to track an intake of further medications. At
310, the method 300 is terminated.
[0037] As described above, the present invention describes the
medication tracker unit and the method for tracking medications in
accordance with various embodiments of the present invention. The
various embodiments of the present invention may be utilized for
providing assistance to parents, babysitters, and anyone caring for
a patient in dispensing medications. Further, the patients may also
use the medication tracker unit for themselves in order to get
assistance in getting the correct medication at correct time.
Furthermore, the present invention may be utilized when caring for
pets. The present invention provides an easy way to track
medication by providing a sheet, a chart or any other object to log
information like when the medication is administered or dispensed.
Further, the present invention gives a privilege of reward system
for the child or patient and to encourage the child or patient to
take the medication. The present invention may not only provide a
way to track the medication and to prepare the child to take the
medication but also to provide more than one reminder associated
with the medication. The reminder may remind the caregivers at a
correct time for dispensing a next dosage. The present invention
accordingly may lessen the chances of dispensing a wrong medication
and also may minimize the chances of dispensing a medication at an
incorrect time.
[0038] The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the
present disclosure have been presented for purposes of illustration
and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit
the present disclosure to the precise forms disclosed, and
obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light
of the above teaching. The embodiments were chosen and described in
order to best explain the principles of the present disclosure and
its practical application, to thereby enable others skilled in the
art to best utilize the present disclosure and various embodiments
with various modifications as are suited to the particular use
contemplated. It is understood that various omissions and
substitutions of equivalents are contemplated as circumstance may
suggest or render expedient, but such are intended to cover the
application or implementation without departing from the spirit or
scope of the claims of the present disclosure.
* * * * *