Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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A holding device for a blister pack and a method for opening
a blister
Technical Field
The present invention relates to a device for holding a blister pack with an
array of
cavities closed by a foil, which cavities contain an article, said device
comprising a
housing for receiving said blister pack, which housing comprises a base,
positioned facing
the foil side of the blister pack, provided with base openings and is arranged
to permit
movement of said blister pack between a first position and a second position,
in which first
position the base openings are at least partially displaced from the cavities
and the base
lo blocking the cavities, and in which second position the base openings are
aligned with the
cavities, the base openings being sized to permit passage of said article
therethrough. The
device comprises a locking arrangement comprising a operating member operable
by a
user using one single hand, between a locking position and a non-locking
position, in
which locking position the blister pack is locked in said first position, and
in which non-
is locking position the blister pack is movable to said second position.
Further, the present
invention relates to a method for opening a cavity in a blister pack placed in
said device.
Background of the Invention
Many medicaments are packaged in blister packs comprising several deformable
cavities formed in a flexible sheet. Doses of medicament are received in the
cavities which
20 are sealed by a foil. In most cases, to release a dose of medicament, force
is applied to the
blister pack and is transmitted to the dose, which ruptures the foil, for
removal of the dose
by the user. These blister packs are convenient and widely used.
Unfortunately, it is also
easy for unsupervised children to release the doses of medicament from the
blister packs,
whereby they can be poisoned by ingesting said medicament.
25 US 2002/0153276 Al describes a child-proof package for tablets and similar
pharmaceutical products comprising a blister pack having cavities containing
tablets, and a
wall part provided with openings. Said package is arranged to permit movement
of said
blister pack between an open position and a closed position, in which closed
position the
cavities are displaced from the openings, and in which open position the
cavities are
30 aligned with the openings, the openings being sized to permit passage of a
tablet
therethrough. The openings in the wall part are covered by a tear-off strip
which is
removed before pushing the blister pack from the closed position into the open
position.
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US 5,150,793 A discloses a device for inhibiting removal of an article from a
blister
pack with an array of cavities closed by a foil, which cavities contain
articles. Said device
comprises a housing for receiving a blister pack, which housing comprises a
base provided
with base openings and is arranged to permit movement of said blister pack
between a first
s position and a second position, in which first position the base openings
are displaced from
the cavities and the base blocking the cavities, and in which second position
the base
openings are aligned with the cavities, the base openings being sized to
permit passage of
said article therethrough. Said device comprises biasing means for biasing the
blister pack
toward said second position.
US 2004/0188314 Al describes blister pack comprising a protective panel having
an
array of holes substantially identical to the array of cavities, overlaying
the foil and
slidable between a first position with the holes at least partially offset
from the cavities and
the panel blocking the cavities, and a second position with the holes aligned
with the
cavities. Further, the blister pack comprises a spring web unitary formed with
the blister
pack and with the panel, and arranged to urge the panel into said first
position.
US 2001/0017273 Al, upon which the preamble of claim 1 is based, discloses a
child-resistant unit dose holder comprising a blister pack and a sleeve for
slidably
receiving said blister pack. The sleeve comprises a base provided with two
base openings
and is arranged to permit movement of said blister pack between a first
position and a
second position, in which first position the base openings are displaced from
the cavities
and the base blocking the cavities, and in which second position the base
openings are
aligned with the cavities, the base openings being sized to permit passage of
an article
contained in the cavity. Said device comprises releasable detents operable by
a user,
between a locking position and a non-locking position, in which locking
position the blister
pack is locked in said first position, and in which non-locking position the
blister pack is
movable to said second position. The detents are operated in response to
flexing the sleeve.
However, above-mentioned solutions have several drawbacks, and are not
effective enough in preventing children from opening the blister pack. Some of
above-
mentioned devices are also_ too hard to operate for elderly or disabled users.
In the
solutions of US 5,150,793 and US 2004/0188314 Al, respectively, the cavities
are held in
the displaced position only by biasing means, the force of which can be easily
overcome by
a child, but too hard to overcome by a disabled person. In the solution of US
2002/0153276
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Al, after the removal of the tear-off strip, the cavities are held in the
displaced position
only by a frictional force of resistance of a narrowing between the closed and
open
position, which force also can be easily overcome by a child. Further, in the
solution of US
2001/0017273 Al, the locking detents are released only by a simple flexing
operation,
whereby the blister pack is unlocked and can be easily slid to the position
where the cavi-
ties can be opened, and the children can gain access to the medicament
contained in the
cavities of the blister pack.
The Object of the Invention
The object of the present invention is therefore to provide a device for
holding a blister
zo pack, securely protecting children from opening the blister pack, and at
the same time
being easy to operate by the intended user, especially by elderly or disabled
persons.
Summary of the Invention
The above-mentioned object is achieved by providing a device of the kind
defined in
the preamble of claim 1, comprising the special features that said operating
means are
operable from the locking position to the non-locking position by a first
movement of said
operating means in relation to the housing, followed by at least one second
movement of
said operating means in relation to the housing.
By the use of said inventive device having said operating means which
necessarily
has to be moved in at least two steps following each other for unlocking the
blister pack
from said first position and enabling the blister pack to be moved to said
second position,
thus enabling opening of the cavities, a very secure arrangement is provided
in the event of
a child getting hold of the blister pack. At the same time, the device is easy
to handle by
the intended user, especially by elderly or disabled persons, since the
operating means are
operable without any greater force and the operation of the operating means is
intuitive.
The device according to the invention provides a convenient and simple
solution
for protecting children from accessing medicaments. The protective device only
slightly
enlarges the blister pack, and the protective device together with the blister
pack are both
discrete and handbag friendly. It is also safe to carry the blister pack in a
bag, since there is
no risk of pills falling out from the blister pack, as a result of the secure
locking
arrangement.
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The article contained in a cavity of the blister pack comprises a dose of
medicament,
e.g. a pill. The device can be adapted to various kinds of blister packs
having different
kinds of patterns for the array of cavities. The device can be provided with
an inserted
blister pack and ready to use, and be a disposable article, but can also be re-
filled and re-
used after a blister pack has been emptied.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the device according to the present
invention, said operating means are operable from the locking position to the
non-locking
position by being moved in a predetermined first direction of movement,
followed by at
least being moved in a predetermined second direction of movement.
Advantageously, said
first direction of movement is substantially transverse to said second
direction of
movement.
According to a fixrther advantageous embodiment of the device according to the
present invention, the operating means are arranged to be moved in said first
direction of
movement by moving a first region of the operating means, and arranged to be
moved in
said second direction of movement by moving a second region of the operating
means, said
operating means regions being spaced apart. This embodiment further increases
the child
resistant character, without impairing the easy and intuitive operation of the
device for an
intended user. However, it is also possible to provide the operating means
with a single
operating means region arranged to be pushed in both the first and the second
direction of
movement.
According to another advantageous embodiment of the device according to the
present
invention, said operating means are operable from the locking position to the
non-locking
position by moving a first region of the operating means in a certain
direction of
movement, followed by at least moving one second region of the operating means
in said
certain direction of movement, said operating means regions being spaced
apart.
According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the device according to
the
present invention, said locking arrangement comprises blocking means for
blocking the
movement of the operating means to the non-locking position if said second
operating
means region is moved without moving said first operating means region.
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According to still another advantageous embodiment of the device according to
the
present invention, the operating means are arranged to visually indicate to
the user whether
the blister pack is locked in said first position or movable to said second
position.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the device according to the present
5 invention, the operating means, when being operated from the non-locking
position to the
locking position, are arranged to move the blister pack back to said first
position.
According to a further advantageous embodiment of the device according to the
present invention, the operating means comprise stop means for preventing the
movement
of the blister pack and thereby locking it in said first position when the
operating means are
in the locking position, and for pushing the blister pack back to said first
position when the
operating means are operated from the non-locking position to the locking
position, said
stop means comprising two fangs between which the blister pack is captured.
According to another advantageous embodiment of the device according to the
present
invention, the operating means are operable by pushing by the user.
According to still another advantageous embodiment of the device according to
the
present invention, the operating means are movable from the non-locking
position to the
locking position by being pushed in a single predetermined third direction of
movement.
According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the device according to
the
present invention, the locking arrangement comprises spring means for urging
the
operating means into the locking position when being pushed in said
predetermined third
direction of movement. Advantageously, said spring means are arranged to urge
the
operating means toward the non-locking position.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the device according to the present
invention, the locking arrangement is arranged at a compartment at one side of
the housing,
in the direction of movement of the blister pack held by said device, in which
compartment
a portion of the blister pack is insertable when the operating means are in
the non-locking
position.
According to a further advantageous embodiment of the device according to the
present invention, the operating means comprise at least two operating
members, the first
operating member comprising said first operating means region, and the second
operating
member comprising said second operating means region, and advantageously, said
operat-
ing members comprise said blocking means.
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According to still another advantageous embodiment of the device according to
the
present invention, the operating means comprise one single operating member.
According to a further advantageous embodiment of the device according to the
present invention, said device is flexible to a certain degree, whereby the
breaking of the
foil covering the blister pack is facilitated. By using a flexible device,
breaking of the foil
covering the blister pack blisters is easily achieved by bending the device
together with the
blister pack, thereby breaking the foil. This is especially advantageous when
in use by
elderly persons, or persons with weak hands like rheumatics. The device can be
made of
any suitable material which is flexible enough and rigid enough, for example a
plastic ma-
terial.
Further, the above-mentioned objects are attained by a method of the kind
defined in
the preamble of claim 19 comprising the special steps of:
= unlocking the blister pack from the fist position by operating the operating
means
according to the first movement of said operating means in relation to the
housing,
followed by at least operating the operating means according to the second
movement of said operating means in relation to the housing, whereby the
operating means are operated from the locking position to the non-locking
position,
= moving the blister pack from the first position to the second position, in
which
second position said base openings are aligned with the cavities, and
= opening a cavity by breaking the foil, whereby the article contained in said
cavity is
passed through the base opening.
According to an advantageous embodiment of the method according to the present
invention, the foil is broken by flexing said device together with the blister
pack.
Brief Description of the Drawings
The present invention will now be described, for exemplary purposes, in more
detail
by way of embodiments and with reference to the enclosed drawings, in which:
Figs. 1-2 are side views of the same embodiment of the device according to the
present invention, without the blister pack,
Fig. 3 is a magnified view of a portion of the embodiment of Fig. 1,
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Figs. 4-5 are schematic perspective views of the embodiment of Fig. 1, holding
a
blister pack,
Figs. 6-10are cross sectional views of the locking arrangement of the
embodiment of
Fig. 1, where the operating member is in different positions,
Fig. 11 is an illustrative view illustrating the different steps of the method
for opening
a cavity in a blister pack placed in a device according to the present
invention, and
Fig. 12 is a schematic view of an embodiment of an inventive auxiliary device
for use
in combination with the device according to the present invention.
Detailed Description of Preferred Embodiments
io Fig. 1 shows the front side of an embodiment of the device for holding a
blister pack
with an array of cavities closed by a foil, which cavities contain an article,
according to the
present invention: The device comprises a housing 8 for receiving said blister
pack. The
housing 8 is designed to be flexible to a certain degree and is formed of a
plastic material.
The housing 8 comprises a planar base 9, positioned facing the foil side of
the blister pack,
is provided with an array of elliptical base openings 10, but any other shape
of the base
openings 10 is possible, and with a pair of longitudinal flanges=l1 extending
inwardly from
opposed sides to define a slot for receiving the blister pack. The housing 8
is arranged to
permit movement of said blister pack between a first position and a second
position, in
which first position the base openings 10 are at least partially displaced
from the cavities of
20 the blister pack and the base 9 blocking the cavities, and in which second
position the base
openings 10 are aligned with the cavities. Further, the housing 8 comprises
spacing means,
provided inside the housing 8 at the base 9, for providing a space between the
foil side of
the blister pack and the base 9, in order to allow the blister pack to slide
smoothly between
said first position and said second position, especially after the removal of
several articles
25. from the cavities when ruptured foil portions may extend from the foil
side of the blister
pack. The base openings 10 are sized to permit passage of the article,
contained in the
cavity, therethrough. Further, the housing 8 comprises an entry portion 41,
which will be
discussed in more detail in connection to Fig. 2, via which the blister pack
is inserted into
the housing 8. The device comprises a locking arrangement 12 comprising an
operating
30 member 13 operable by a user using one single hand or two hands, between a
locking
position and a non-locking position, in which locking position the blister
pack is locked in
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said first position, and in which non-locking position the blister pack is
movable to said
second position.
Fig. 2 shows the rear side of the device of Fig 1. When the blister pack is in
the second
position where the base openings 10 are aligned with the cavities, an article
contained in
the cavity can be released by flexing the device and applying a force to the
front side of the
blister pack, more specifically to the cavity in question, which is then
transmitted to the
article which ruptures the foil and passes through the base opening 10.
Fig. 3 is a magnified view of the entry portion 41 shown in Fig. 1. At the
entry portion
41 each flange 11 is provided with a notch 14. The notches 14 are positioned
opposite each
other, forming a transverse entry slot, and the end portion 15 of the entry
portion 41 is
provided with a pair of leading edges 16. The length of the transverse entry
slot formed by
said notches 14, i.e. the distance from the inner wall 17 of one of the
notches 14 to the
inner wall 17 of the other notch 14, is slightly smaller the width of the
sheet of the blister
pack. When the blister pack sheet is forced into said transverse entry slot,
the blister pack
sheet is slightly buckled by the two leading edges 16, whereby the blister
pack sheet is fit-
ted into said transverse entry slot and can be inserted into the housing. When
the blister
pack is fully received by the housing, the two leading edges 16 function as
blocking means
preventing children from removing the blister pack from the housing 8 via said
transverse
entry slot. In the entry portion 41, three recesses 43, 44 are provided in the
base 9. These
recesses 43, 44 are arranged to be penetrated by a certain tool from the rear
side of the
device, in order to remove the blister pack from the device. Said certain tool
is arranged to
force the blister pack away from the base 9 in a direction transverse to the
direction of
movement of the blister pack between said fist and second positions, and out
of its
engagement with the housing.
Fig. 4 shows the embodiment of Fig. 1 in perspective, holding a blister pack
42. The
blister pack 42 is in said first position and the operating member 13 of the
locking
arrangement is in the locking position.
Fig. 5 shows the embodiment of Fig. 4, having the blister pack 42 in said
second first
position and the operating member 13 in the non-locking position.
Fig. 6 shows, in cross section, the locking arrangement 12 of the embodiment
of Fig.
1, where the operating member 13 is in the locking position. The locking
arrangement 12
comprises a guiding frame 30 in which the operating member 13 is guided. There
is no
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actual attachment between the guiding frame 30 and the operating member 13,
but the
operating member 13 is retained in the locking arrangement by said guiding
frame 30.
Further, the guiding frame 30 prevents the operating member 13 from being
moved in a
direction transverse to the plane of said base 9. The operating member 13 is
operable from
the locking position to the non-locking position by being pushed in a
predetermined first
direction of movement 19, followed by being pushed in a predetermined second
direction
of movement 20. Said first direction of movement 19 is substantially
transverse to said
second direction of movement 20. The operating member 13 is arranged to be
pushed in
said first direction of movement 19 by pushing a first region 21 of the
operating member
13, and arranged to be pushed in said second direction of movement 20 by
pushing a
second region 22 of the operating member 13, said operating means regions 21,
22 being
spaced apart. The locking arrangement 12 is arranged at a compartment 23 at
one side of
the housing 8, in the direction of movement of the blister pack held by said
device, in
which compartment 23 a portion of the blister pack is insertable when the
operating
is member 13 is in the non-locking position. The operating member 13 comprises
stop means
24 for stopping the blister pack from being inserted into the compartment 23
when the
operating member 13 is in the locking position, as it is in Fig. 6, whereby
the blister pack is
prevented from being moved to the second position. The stop means 24 are in
the form of
two fangs 25, 26, between which the blister pack is captured, whereby the
blister pack is
prevented from possibly pass the stop means 24 when the operating member 13 is
in the
locking position, in consequence of an excessive force on the blister pack in
the direction
of movement of the blister pack. Further, the locking arrangement 12 comprises
spring
means 27, 28 comprising a first spring member 27 and a second spring member
28. In the
position of Fig. 6, the spring means 27, 28 are arranged to urge the first
operating means
region 21 against the first direction of movement 19. The locking arrangement
12
comprises first retaining means 29 for preventing the first operating means
region 21 to
pass its resting position, against the first direction of movement 19, the
resting position of
the first operating means region 21 being the position of the first operating
means region
21 when there is no action on the operating member 13 and it is in the locking
position.
Further, the spring means 27, 28 are arranged to urge the second operating
means region
22 against the second direction of movement 20. The locking arrangement 12
comprises
second retaining means 31 for preventing the second operating means region 22
to pass its
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resting position against the second direction of movement 20, the resting
position of the
second operating means region 22 being the position of the second operating
means region
22 when there is no action on the operating member 13 and it is in the locking
position.
The locking arrangement 12 comprises first blocking means 32 for blocking the
movement
5 of the second operating means region 22 from its resting position in a
direction transverse
to the second direction of movement 20.
Fig. 7 shows the locking arrangement 12 with the operating member 13 in a
first
transitional position. The user is pushing the first operating means region 21
in said first
direction of movement 19, whereby the operating member 13 is pushed in the
same
10 direction. By this action, a protrusion 33 of the operating member 13,
which is projecting
in the second direction of movement 20, is positioned in alignment with a
complementary
recess 34 of the guiding frame 30, permitting the operating member 13 to be
pushed in the
second direction of movement 20.
Fig. 8 shows the locking arrangement 12 with the operating member 13 in a
third
transitional position, between the second transitional position and the non-
locking position.
The locking arrangement 12 comprises third retaining means 40 for preventing
the
operating member 13 to be fully released from the guiding frame 30. The third
retaining
means 40 comprise a hitch 35 provided on the operating member 13 and a
complementary
hitch recess 36 provided in the guiding frame 30. Fig. 8 shows the hitch 35
and the
complementary hitch recess 36 just before they are engaging.
Fig. 9 shows the locking arrangement 12 with the operating member 13 in the
non-locking position. Said hitch 35 has fu.lly engaged the complementary hitch
recess 36,
whereby the operating member 13 is prevented from being fully released from
the guiding
frame 30. Said spring means 27, 28 are arranged to urge the operating member
13 toward
the non-locking position. In the non-locking position, the operating member 13
is arranged
to visually indicate to the user whether the blister pack is locked in said
first position or
movable to said second position. The operating member 13 is movable from the
non-
locking position to the locking position by being pushed in a single
predetermined third
direction of movement 37. The operating member 13, when being operated from
the non-
locking position to the locking position, is arranged to move the blister pack
back to said
first position, by means of said stop means 24. When the operating member 13
is pushed in
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said third direction of movement 37, the spring means 27, 28 are arranged to
urge the
operating member 13 back into the locking position.
Fig. 10 shows the locking arrangement 12 with the operating member 13 in a
blocked
position. The locking arrangement comprises second blocking means 38 for
blocking the
movement of the operating member 13 in said second direction of movement 20 if
said
second operating means region 22 is pushed without pushing said first
operating means
region 21. Said second blocking means 38 comprise said protrusion 33 of the
operating
member 13 and a blocking recess 39. When the user is pushing the second
operating means
region 22 in said second direction of movement 20 without pushing said first
operating
io means region 21, the protrusion 33 is arranged to engage said blocking
recess 39, and since
the blocking recess 39 is considerably shallow the movement of the operating
member 13
in the second direction of movement 20 is blocked. By providing a blocking
recess 39
instead of a just blocking wall, an accidental sliding of the protrusion 33
from the blocking
position into align7nent with a complementary recess 34 is prevented.
Fig. 11 illustrates the method for opening a cavity in a blister pack held in
a device
according to the present invention, by way of seven different steps.
In step 1, the first operating member portion is pushed in the predetermined
first
direction of movement; whereby the operating member is pushed in same
direction and
moved to the first transitional position, which is shown in Fig. 7, in which
position the
operating member is permitted to be pushed in the second direction of
movement.
In step 2, the second operating member portion is pushed in the predetermined
second
direction of movement, whereby the operating member is pushed in same
direction and
moved to the second transitional position, in which position the second
operating member
portion is permitted to be moved in a direction substantially transverse to
the second
direction of movement into the non-locking position.
In step 3, the operating member is urged in a direction transverse to the
second
direction of movement into the non-locking position, which is shown in Fig. 9,
by means
of the spring means of the locking arrangement and the user's thumb. When the
operating
member is in the non-locking position, the operating member visually indicates
to the user,
by means of its position, whether the blister pack is locked in said first
position or movable
to said second position.
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In step 4, the blister pack is moved in the direction of the arrow and a
portion of the
blister pack is inserted in the compartment of the locking arrangement,
whereby the blister
pack is moved from the first position to the second position, in which first
position the base
openings are displaced from the cavities and the base blocking the cavities,
and in which
second position the base openings are aligned with the cavities.
In step 5, a cavity is opened by breaking the foil, which foil is broken by
flexing the
device together with the blister pack, whereby the article contained in said
cavity is passed
through the base opening, and falls into the hand of the user.
In step 6, the operating member is pushed in the single predetermined third
direction
io of movement, shown by the arrow, and by this action the operating member
starts to urge
the blister pack toward said first position, in which the base openings are
displaced from
the cavities and the base blocking the cavities, preventing the cavities from
being opened.
In step 7, the blister pack is forced back to the first position in the
direction of the
arrow, by means of the stop means of the operating member, and the spring
means of the
locking arrangement urge the operating member into the locking position,
whereby the
blister pack is locked in said first position.
In Fig. 11, the operating member is operated by a user using two hands, but
the
operating member is very suitable for operation by a user using one single
hand.
Fig. 12 shows schematic view of an embodiment of the auxiliary device for use
in
combination with the device according to the present invention. The auxiliary
device
comprises a planar base portion 50 and wall portions 51, 52 surrounding said
base portion
50, forming a tray with an opening. The auxiliary device comprises resting
means 53 for
permitting the device to rest at the opening with its rear side facing the
base portion of the
auxiliary device. The auxiliary device can also comprise retaining means
positioned at said
opening, for releasably retaining the device of the invention at said opening.
The
engagement of the device with the auxiliary device enables elderly/handicapped
people to
remove an article more easily from the blister pack, for example by using a
tool. Further,
the auxiliary device comprises an opening 54 at the base portion 50, in any of
the wall
portions 51, 52 or in the base portion 50, advantageously at a corner, through
which the
removed article can pass. Further, the auxiliary device can be used for
storing the device
when not in use.
