PT11010U - TIME ALARM SYSTEM, COMMUNICATION OF IDENTIFICATION, DOSAGE AND INSTRUCTIONS FOR TAKING MEDICINES - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a system for timekeeping, the identification of drugs in any form, and to the communication of dosage and the instructions for a user, through the use of BLUETOOTH IDENTIFICATION LABELS, OF A COMPUTER PROGRAM , AND A MOBILE DEVICE THAT ENDS A COMPUTER PROGRAM AND IS ENABLED TO USE THE BLUETOOTH TECHNOLOGY. A COMPUTER PROGRAM THAT IS PERFORMED ON A MOBILE DEVICE, AS FOR EXAMPLE A SMARTPHONE OR A TABLET, WHEN THE TIME OF TAKING THE MEDICINE ARRIVES, UNDERSTANDS A SOUND AND VISUAL ALARM THAT INFLUENCES WHAT THE MEDICINE TO BE TAKEN, DOING, AT THE SAME TIME, WITH WHICH LED LIGHT AND ACOUSTIC BLUETOOTH LABEL ADVERTISER EXISTING IN THE MEDICINE TO BE TAKEN IT IS TURNED ON AND BEEN BEEN SENT.

Description

DESCRIPTION

FIELD OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a system consisting of an apparatus, one or more devices and a computer program, which allows to warn a patient that it is time to take a medicine, as well as the communication of its identification, dosage and taking instructions, through the use of " Bluetooth " identification tags, a computer program, and mobile equipment that runs a computer program and is enabled to use " Bluetooth " technology.

Background of the Invention

There are some solutions that help a patient to remember to take medications in a timely manner, often essential to their lives. These solutions and their simplification are closely linked to the existing technology at the time of their development, so all of them end up showing in their characteristics the technological evolutions, especially those that refer to the systems of communication between equipment and / or devices. Examples of such solutions can be found in the following documents: WO0154055 which relates to an apparatus and a method for enabling the information contained in a bar code in the container of a medicament to be read and converted into text for further diffusion through a system of audio or video; - TW200840560 referring to a system consisting of an RFID signal reader and RFID signal emitting tags coupled to a drug container, and provided the labels are within the scope of the reader, the patient will be advised in due time that he has to take a which drug; US2005199526 and US2008136629 referring to containers for medicaments, in which are recorded the previously inserted consumption instructions, for later communication to the patient; - document US2012183941 referring to a device, method, device and computer program for visually detecting the identification of a medicament and sound communication of the taking and dosing instructions.

Advantages of the Invention

Various advantages may be mentioned when comparing this invention with others having similar objects and methodologies. The main advantage of the invention derives mainly from the use of " Bluetooth " technology, which uses a number of advantages when compared with the above inventions, which use RFID technology. This technology characterized by using proximity radio signals implies that the range is only a few centimeters. Therefore, the identification of the medicine can only be done if the device (label) is literally against the device (smartphone / tablet). Given this difference between the range of RFID and Bluetooth technologies, one of the features the present invention provides is to allow the labels to emit a visual (LED) and audible (audible) signal, clearly indicating which drug to take.

Other advantages come from the fact that the equipment used is an easily accessible device that, in addition to being able to use the technology "Bluetooth", is a mobile device capable of making telephone calls, sending instant messages, accessing the Internet and performing computer programs. For this reason, through remote monitoring, a duly authorized user can be warned in real time of any failure to take the medicines.

Among other advantages, the following can be highlighted: the use of easily accessible mobile equipment equipped with " Bluetooth " technology, namely " smartphones " or " tablets "; the initial configuration of the tags is done locally, but in case of configuration changes, these can be made by remote communication through an interface that communicates with the remote server located in " cloud "; the labels may be placed directly in the original container of the medicinal product and do not need to be transferred to specific containers; 3 the ease of programming the labels by simply touching the label to be placed in the container of the drug and selecting its purpose and how the shot will be taken; voice commands are always accompanied by visual information displayed on the mobile device; the possibility of a voice or video connection can be established directly from the application in case of doubts, making use of the mobile communication capabilities or " wi-fi " of the equipment; the ability to remotely monitor drug shots (by a family member or health care professional) through a proprietary interface that communicates with the remote server located in " cloud "; the use of pre-recorded audio files locally, using the microphone of the equipment, or using a mechanism called " text-to-speech " that generates the voice file in real time, through a written text, in order to give detailed and personalized instructions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 shows the flowchart relating to the steps necessary for the configuration of the instructions for creation in the application of a new entry of a drug, or for changing instructions for an existing drug. Figure 2 shows the flowchart relative to the steps of the monitoring mode. Figure 3 shows the flowchart for the steps for remote monitoring. 4

Detailed Description of the Invention The present invention relates to a system comprising one or more devices, equipment and a computer program for identifying medicaments and their purpose, as well as the timing and instructions of the taking, through the use Bluetooth ™, and a mobile device, namely " smartphone " or " tablet " that runs a computer program and is enabled to receive & decode " Bluetooth " signals.

&Quot; Bluetooth " is meant a radio communication technology for communication between equipment and / or devices with each other, characterized by low power consumption and a relatively small power-dependent range based on low-cost transmitter microcircuits in each equipment / device. In the case of the present invention, the latest version of this technology called " Bluetooth low energy " is used. However, this version of the technology should not be limiting in any way within the scope of the invention and should only be considered as an embodiment, which may be substituted by another available or available.

By " smartphone " is a mobile phone with advanced features that can be accessed through computer programs that are run by the operating system.

By " tablet " is a thin laptop and touchscreen, and similar to the " smartphone " can run computer programs. 5

By " cloud " means the use of memory and the storage and computing capabilities of shared and interconnected computers and servers over the Internet.

By " range " it is understood the maximum range that the " Bluetooth " can achieve. In the case of the present invention, this distance is approximately 30 meters. However, this distance should not in any way be limiting on the scope of the invention and should only be considered as an embodiment.

According to figure 1, with the system in configuration mode, it is necessary to place a " Bluetooth " in each of the containers of the medicinal products for which the monitoring of the intake is intended. If the medication is new it is necessary to inform the computer program which label is associated with the medication, and it is also necessary to record the taking instructions (time, dosage and others that may be considered relevant). This procedure also has to be carried out in case there are changes to the existing instructions. Once the program has been configured, it enters the monitoring mode.

According to Figure 2, with the system in monitoring mode, when it is time for the patient to take one of the configured medications, the computer program triggers an audible and visual alarm. When the alarm is answered, the application is opened and the reason for the alarm is communicated to the patient, with information on which medication to take. At the same time a log is created with this information that, if there is an available internet connection, will be sent to the log file of 6 events on the server located in " cloud "; if an internet connection is not available, the registration is stored in the equipment for later transmission. This audio communication can be done through a mechanism called " text-to-speech " in which pre-set text is read by the equipment, or by playing back a pre-recorded audio file. At the same time that this sound indication is activated in the equipment, the application communicates with the label corresponding to that medicine, and activates the alarm function in that label characterized by the LED lighting, and by the emission of a sound signal through acoustic warning therein . For this activation to take place, the container label with the drug must be within range of the mobile device so that the tag associated with it is capable of receiving and interpreting the signal emitted by the mobile device. This alarm status on the label remains active until the patient touches the label to the equipment where the application is running. When the application detects that the patient has touched the container label with the correct medication (which contains the associated label) to the device, the alarm status of the label (audible warning and LED) is disabled and another sound information is triggered on the indications for taking the same medicinal product, namely the dosage, care to be taken, and other information considered relevant. When the container label is pushed back to the device, a log is created with this information that, if an available internet connection is available, will be sent to the event log file on the server located in " cloud "; if an internet connection is not available, the registration is stored in the equipment for later transmission.

After this last phase, the application will again enter 7 in monitoring state until a new alarm is triggered.

According to Figure 3, there is also a remote monitoring mode of the application. This remote monitoring is performed using the event file on the server located in the " cloud " and to which the records of the events referred to above are sent, and is carried out by a duly authorized user with an authentication key (a family member or a health professional), who may be alerted in case the alarm response has not been correctly, or if the instructions for taking the correct medicinal product have not been received. This alert can be made through a notification sent via a text message or by e-mail. If you wish, the user can still access this information by connecting to the remote server and by consulting the log file of the events, check all the information available there. 2/24/2014

Claims (9)

A method for timekeeping, identification communication, dosing and medication taking instructions comprising the following steps: a) in the configuration mode: i) checking whether it is a new medicament; ii) if it is a new drug to attach a " Bluetooth " to the container of the medicinal product; (iii) associate the label with the container of the medicinal product; (iv) if the medicinal product is new, or if there are changes to the instructions for taking an existing one, record the instructions for the taking, in particular the times, dosage and other information considered relevant; (b) in the monitoring mode: (i) keep in monitoring mode while it is not time to take a medicinal product; (ii) triggering a visual and audible alarm when taking a medicinal product; (iii) respond to the alarm; iv) communicate to the patient which medication to take and the instructions for taking it; v) create registration with date, time and medication information; vi) if there is an Internet connection, this record is sent to the event log file located on the remote server, otherwise it will be stored on the device until it can be sent; 1 vii) check that the label on the medicine container is within the range of the emitter " Bluetooth "; (viii) with the container of the medicinal product within the range of the "Bluetooth" emitter, on the corresponding label the alarm function is activated, signaled by the emission of a visual signal and a sound signal; ix) the alarm function remains active until the label on the medicine container is pushed back to the device and the alarm is deactivated; x) create a record with the information that the alarm has been correctly deactivated; xi) If an Internet connection exists, this record is sent to the event log file located on the remote server, otherwise it will be stored on the device until it can be sent; xii) inform the patient of the instructions of taking; xiii) reenter in monitoring mode; c) in the remote monitoring mode: i) checks if the warning alarm to the medicine intake has been answered; (ii) if the warning alarm to the dispenser has been correctly answered, checks that the container label has been attached to the equipment; (iii) if the warning alarm has not been correctly responded to the medication intake, or if the container label has not been placed against the device, it shall send an alert message. 2 Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the communication between the equipment and the devices is carried out using " Bluetooth " technology. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the visual signal is the ignition of an LED. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the audible signal is effected through an acoustic signal. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that the remote monitoring is performed by a user provided with a suitable authentication key to operate on any equipment equipped with a web browser. A data processing system comprising means for performing the steps of claims 1 to 5. Data processing system according to the preceding claim, characterized in that it comprises: a) one or more identification tags " Bluetooth " with a unique identifier associated adjacent to a drug container; b) mobile device enabled for " Bluetooth " which comprises a computer processor, a wireless communication means, a " Bluetooth " signal receiver / decoder, audio and video playback means and an internet connection; c) a remote server located in " cloud ". 3 A computer program product characterized by the computer indication method 8. is adapted to fulfill claims 1 to 5. 9. Readable storage medium characterized by containing the king's program 02/24/2014 4