US20100012547A1

US20100012547A1 - Pill case

Info

Publication number: US20100012547A1
Application number: US12/174,840
Authority: US
Inventors: Christopher P. Gardner
Original assignee: Variant Products Ltd
Current assignee: Variant Products Ltd
Priority date: 2008-07-17
Filing date: 2008-07-17
Publication date: 2010-01-21

Abstract

A dispenser includes a housing defined by a bay, and a drawer defining an open position and a closed position. The drawer is retained within the bay against a compression force applied by a spring-like member when the drawer is in a closed position.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not applicable.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not applicable. REFERENCE TO A “SEQUENCE LISTING”
Not applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to a pill case and, in particular, to a pill dispenser for dispensing pills, capsules, tablets, and/or other medication or vitamins to a user.
2. Description of Related Art
Carrying cases for medication, vitamins, and/or other pills often taken by the ill or the elderly are well known in the art. Such cases often include components designed to carry one or more pills taken orally by the user. Some such pills may be taken, for example, once a day while other pills may be taken two, three, four, or more times per day. Thus, elderly and/or other users may utilize known pill cases as a means of keeping track of the medication taken throughout the course of the day and/or the amount of medication taken on a weekly basis. Accordingly, such known pill cases may assist such users in avoiding missing required dosages and/or overdosing on required medication.
Unfortunately, known pill cases can be difficult to use for the elderly and for users having limited dexterity. For example, known pill cases may employ compartments having a lid configured to snap open or closed. Such known pill cases may be very difficult to open thereby making it difficult for some users to access the medication and/or pills contained therein. In addition, once one or more compartments of such pill cases have been opened, the relative rigidity of such snap lids and/or other components may make it difficult for users to close the compartments after accessing the medication contained therein. As a result, such compartments may remain open for the duration of the medication taking period, and the pill case may become more and more cumbersome as the user goes about taking his/her medication.
It is understood that such compartments may be opened by applying a force to, for example, a tab or other surface of the compartment, and the compartments may be hinged with, for example, a small thin strip of plastic. After repeated use, however, such tabs may begin to fray and/or otherwise break off of the compartment lids. In addition, the thin plastic strip used as a hinge device may also become brittle and eventually fail, further reducing the utility of such known pill cases.
Moreover, due to the deficiencies inherent in this tab-open design, known pill cases are not immune to tampering by undesired users such as, for example, pets and/or children. In addition, in embodiments in which known pill cases contain one or more tabs to assist in opening a lid or other component thereof, such tabs may increase the likelihood of the respective compartment being opened in an undesirable place. For example, if the pill case is carried in a purse or side bag of the user, in one or more compartments of such a pill case may unexpectedly open within the purse or side bag and the contents of the compartment may spill out thereby reducing the likelihood of timely ingestion of the medication.
The exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are designed to overcome one or more of the deficiencies stated above.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a dispenser includes a housing defining a bay, and a drawer defining an open position and a closed position. The drawer is retained within the bay, in the closed position, against a compression force applied by a spring-like member.
In another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a dispenser includes a housing defining a plurality of bays, a drawer disposed in each bay of the plurality of bays, and a plurality of openers. Each opener of the plurality of openers is configured to assist in springingly ejecting a corresponding drawer from the bay in which the drawer is disposed.
In a further exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a method of dispensing a pill disposed within a drawer of a housing includes pressing an opener, a portion of the opener being in contact with the drawer, disengaging a knob of the drawer from a pocket defined by the housing, and partially ejecting the drawer from the housing with a spring-like member disposed between the housing and the drawer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a dispenser according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is another view of the dispenser of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a dispenser according to another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is another view of the dispenser illustrated in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is an isometric view of a dispenser according to another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 is another view of the dispenser shown in FIG. 5.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As shown in FIG. 1, an exemplary dispenser 10 of the present disclosure includes a housing 12 and a drawer 14. The housing 12 may include several components and, in an exemplary embodiment, the housing 12 may include a top 36, a base 37, an opener 28, and a lock assembly 26. The drawer 14 may also include several components and, in an exemplary embodiment, a drawer 14 may include a knob 20, one or more arms 22, and a spring-like member 18. The housing 12 may define one or more bay 16, and when the dispenser 10 is fully assembled, a drawer 14 may be disposed within each bay 16 of the housing 12. As shown in FIGS. 1-6, the housing 12 may define a plurality of bays 16, and a single drawer 14 may be disposed within and/or retained within each bay 16 of the housing 12.
The housing 12 and the bays 16 defined thereby may have any shape, size, and/or other configuration known in the art. In an exemplary embodiment, the housing 12 may be substantially rectangular and may define one or more substantially rectangular bays 16. Each bay 16 may be separated from an adjacent bay 16 by a sidewall 34, and each sidewall 34 may extend substantially perpendicularly from a backwall 40 of the base 37. In an exemplary embodiment, the sidewall 34 may extend along substantially an entire width of the base 37.
In an exemplary embodiment, the housing 12 may be made from a single piece of material. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 1, the base 37 and the top 36 may be separate components that are connected together by one or more conventional means. Such means can include, for example, adhesives, weldments, screws, bolts, and/or other known connection structures or methods. In an embodiment where the housing 12 is of a one-piece construction, the base 37 and the top 36 may be made through an injection molding and/or other molding process. In addition, the housing 12 may be made from any materials known in the art and such materials may include, for example, substantially waterproof and/or substantially rigid. Such materials may include, for example, plastic, rubber, polymers, metals, alloys, and/or other known materials. As discussed above, the housing 12 may be made from two or more different materials and, in such an exemplary embodiment, the top 36 and/or the sidewall 34 may be made from a different material and/or a different piece of material than the base 37. The backwall 40 of the base 37 may be substantially rigid and may be configured to withstand a compression force applied thereto. In an exemplary embodiment, such a compression force may be applied to the backwall 40 of the base 37 by the spring-like member 18 of a drawer 14 disposed within the respective bay 16.
As shown in FIG. 1, the base 37 may also define a channel 42 and a break 44. In an exemplary embodiment, the stop 24 of a drawer 14 may be disposed within the channel 42 when the drawer 14 is disposed within the bay 16. In particular, the stop 24 may be slidingly engaged with the channel 42 such that when the drawer 14 is transitioned, for example, from a closed position to an open position, the stop 24 may slide within channel 42 in the direction of arrow 46. The housing 12 may define a longitudinal axis substantially parallel to the backwall 40, and the drawer 14 may travel in a path substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis when transitioning between the open and closed positions in the direction of arrows 46 and 48, respectively.
In addition, when the drawer 14 is in the open position, a portion of the stop 24 may contact the break 44 so as to stop progress of the drawer 14 in the direction of arrow 46. Such contact between the break 44 and the stop 24 may prohibit the drawer 14 from exiting and/or otherwise being removed from the bay 16 when the drawer 14 is in the open position. The stop 24 and/or the break 44 may have any shape, size, and/or other configuration capable of prohibiting such movement of the drawer 14. For example, the stop 24 may comprise one or more protrusions configured to mate with the break 44. In such an exemplary embodiment, a portion of the break 44 may be a mirror image of the protrusion defined by the stop 24 so as to effectively mate therewith. Alternatively, it is understood that the combination of the channel 42, break 44, and stop 24, may have any other known configuration capable of impeding movement of the drawer 14 in the direction of arrow 46.
As shown in FIG. 1, the base 37 may also define one or more inclines 30. For example, each bay 16 may define at least one incline 30, and in an additional exemplary, each bay 16 may define two or more inclines 30. In such an exemplary embodiment, each incline 30 may be positioned within the bay 16 so as to mate and/or otherwise engage an arm 22 of the drawer 14. The incline 30 may be any shape, size, and/or other configuration known in the art. The incline 30 may provide resistance to and/or may support an arm 22 that is in communication with the incline 30 when the drawer 14 is in the closed position. Although shown in FIG. 1 as only extending along a portion of the sidewall 34, it is understood that, in an additional exemplary embodiment, the incline 30 may extend along substantially the entire sidewall 34 and/or substantially an entire width of the bay 16. In addition, in an embodiment in which each bay 16 defines two inclines 30, a portion of the inclines may be disposed along the backwall 40 in opposite corners of the bay 16 so as to communicate with each arm 22 of the drawer 14 disposed within the bay 16. As will be discussed in greater detail below, the incline 30 may be shaped, sized, and/or otherwise configured to enable a springing engagement between, for example, the arm 22 and the incline 30. Such an engagement may force at least a portion of the drawer 14 to contact a portion of, for example, a corresponding opener 28 when the drawer 14 is in the closed position.
Each bay 16 of the housing 12 may also define one or more pockets 32. The pocket 32 may be, for example, an extension of a portion of the backwall 40. Alternatively, the pocket 32 may be a separate structure that is molded, adhered, and/or otherwise connected to the backwall 40. The pocket 32 may be shaped, sized, positioned, and/or otherwise configured to receive and retain, for example, the knob 20 of the drawer 14. In an exemplary embodiment, the pocket 32 may be configured to communicate with the knob 20 so as to assist in retaining the drawer 14 within the bay 16 against a compression force supplied by the spring-like member 18 when the drawer 14 is in the closed position. FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary embodiment in which the drawers 14 are in the closed position and FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary embodiment in which drawer 14 is in the open position. When in the closed position, the knob 20 may be disposed within the pocket 32 such that the drawer 14 may be retained substantially fully within the bay 16. Conversely, in an exemplary open position of the present disclosure (FIG. 6), the knob 20 may be disengaged with and/or otherwise removed from the pocket 32, and at least a portion of the drawer 14 may be disposed outside of the bay 16.
As shown in FIG. 1, one or more openers 28 may be mounted and/or otherwise connected to the top 36. In an exemplary embodiment, the openers 28 may be mounted to an underside 38 of the top 36. In such an exemplary embodiment, the opener 28 may define an extension 29 extending along at least a portion of the underside 38 of the top 36. The extension 29 may be rigidly connected to the underside 38 allowing for movement of a portion of the opener 28 relative to the top 36. For example, the top 36 may define one or more orifices and a portion of the opener 28 may be disposed proximate thereto and/or may extend within a respective orifice. In such an exemplary embodiment, applying pressure to the opener 28 in the direction of arrow 50 may cause the opener 28 to deflect relative to the top 36. It is understood that such pressure may be applied by, for example, a finger of a user of the dispenser 10. Once such force is removed, the opener 28 may move in the direction of arrow 52 to regain its initial position relative to the top 36 and/or the orifice defined thereby.
When a drawer 14 is in the closed position, the opener 28 may contact a surface of the drawer 14. In particular, when the drawer 14 is in the closed position, the one or more arms 22 of the drawer 14 may be springingly engaged with the incline 30 of the bay 16. The engagement between the arms 22 and the inclines 30 may force the drawer 14 to contact a respective opener 28 of the housing 12 when the drawer 14 is in the closed position. In such an exemplary embodiment, an underside of the respective opener 28 may rest upon a top surface of a backend 19 of the respective drawer 14. Thus, applying a force to the opener 28 in the direction of arrow 50 may cause the one or more arms 22 of the drawer 14 to deflect in the direction of arrow 52. In such a scenario, the backend 19 of the drawer 14 may be urged in the direction of arrow 50 due to the force applied to the opener 28. Such movement of the drawer 14 may cause a knob 20, disposed within the pocket 32 of the housing 12, to become dislodged and/or otherwise removed therefrom.
The opener 28 can be any mechanism, structure, and/or assembly configured to assist in opening at least one of the drawers 14. It is understood that by opening at least one of the drawers 14, the opener 28 may assist in, for example, ejecting at least a portion of the drawer 14 from a bay 16 of the housing 12. In an open position (FIG. 6), it is also understood that at least a portion of the backend 19 of the drawer 14 may remain at least partially within the bay 16. In the closed position (FIG. 5), the arm 22 may be springingly engaged with the incline 30 such that when the opener 28 is actuated in the direction of arrow 50, the arm 22 may deflect in the direction of arrow 52. The arm 22, the incline 30, and/or the knob 20 may be dimensioned and/or otherwise configured such that deflecting the opener 28 with a relatively small amount of force may cause the knob 20 to be removed from the pocket 32 thereby enabling the spring-like member 18 to eject the drawer 14 from the base 16 with relative ease.
The lock assembly 26 may include, for example, a thumb-actuated slide bar, clamps, and/or any other structures or mechanisms useful in limiting the motion of moveable housing components. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the lock assembly 26 may include a first portion 27 that can be actuated by one or more fingers of the user to inhibit the motion of at least one of the openers 28. This first portion 27 may be rigidly connected to a second portion 29 of the lock assembly 26 and may be configured to contact at least a portion of the opener 28. The second portion 29 may be, for example, in the form of a substantially rigid bar disposed adjacent to the backwall 40 of the base 37. When the first portion 27 of the lock assembly 26 is slid in the direction of, for example, arrow 56, at least part of the second portion 29 may become disposed beneath the opener 28 thereby prohibiting the opener 28 from being actuated in the direction of arrow 50. In such an exemplary embodiment, the second portion 29 may be disposed at least partially within, for example, a groove, slot, or indentation defined by the backwall 40 of the base 37. It is understood that the base 37 may also define a notch 58, a cutout, and/or other structure configured to accept a portion of the lock assembly 26 thereby enabling relative movement between the lock assembly 26 and the base 37 of the housing 12. As discussed above, when engaged, the lock assembly 26 may be configured to prohibit at least one of the drawers 14 from transitioning between the closed position and the open position and, in particular, from transitioning from the closed position to the open position.
As shown in FIG. 1, the drawer 14 may comprise a plurality of walls and a base. The drawer 14 may be substantially hollow and may be configured to hold one or more pills, capsules, tablets, and/or other small items. In an exemplary embodiment, the drawer 14 may be configured to retain vitamins, medication, and/or other items for scheduled ingestion by a user. The drawer 14 may be made from any of the materials discussed above with respect to the housing 12. In an exemplary embodiment, the drawer 14 may be formed from a single piece of material. In an embodiment in which the drawer is formed from a single piece of material, the one or more arms 22, and/or the stop 24 may be molded and/or otherwise formed with the walls and base of the drawer 14 as part of the single-piece drawer formation process. In such a process, the drawer 14 may comprise a single material.
Alternatively, in an additional exemplary embodiment, the drawer 14 may be made from at least two different pieces of material. In such an exemplary embodiment, at least one of the arms 22 may be made from a different piece of material than the rest of the drawer 14. As shown in FIG. 2, in an additional exemplary embodiment, one or more of the arms 22 and the stop 24 may be made from a single piece of material, and may be rigidly mounted and/or otherwise substantially permanently connected to the drawer 14. In an embodiment in which the drawer comprises a two or more piece construction, components of the drawer 14 may be comprised of at least two different materials.
The spring-like member 18 may be, for example, a spring, a flexible piece of material, and/or any other known structure configured to apply a compression force upon being compressed. The spring-like member 18 may be rigidly mounted and/or otherwise attached to a portion of the drawer 14 by any known means. The spring-like member 18 may be appropriately dimensioned and/or otherwise configured such that the spring-like member 18 may be disposed between, for example, the drawer 14 and the backwall 40 of the base 37 when the drawer 14 is in the closed position. When the drawer 14 is in the closed position, the spring-like member 18 may act upon the backwall 40 so as to apply a compression force to the backend 19 of the drawer 14 in the direction of arrow 46. It is understood that the drawer 14 may be retained within the bay 16 against the compression force applied by the spring-like member 18 when the drawer 14 is in the closed position. In such an exemplary embodiment, actuating the opener 28 in the direction of arrow 50 and removing the knob 20 of the drawer 14 from the pocket 32 may eject the drawer 14 from the bay 16 due to the compression force applied by the spring-like member 18. Accordingly, actuating the opener 28 in the direction of arrow 50 may assist in ejecting the drawer 14 from the bay 16 and may thereby assist in transitioning the drawer 14 from the closed position to the open position as a result of the force applied by the spring-like member 18.
In an exemplary embodiment, the spring-like member 18 may apply a compression force capable of substantially completely ejecting the drawer 14 from the bay 16. In such an exemplary embodiment, the spring-like member 18 may be dimensioned to urge the drawer 18 in the direction of arrow 46 until the stop 24 contacts, for example, the break 44. In such an exemplary embodiment, the spring-like member 18 may continue to apply a compression force to the drawer 14 even when the drawer 14 is in the open position. Alternatively, the spring-like member 18 may be dimensioned such that the spring-like member 18 may be completely extended in the direction of arrow 48 without the stop 24 reaching the break 44 of the base 37. In such an exemplary embodiment, fully extending the spring-like member 18 when the knob 20 is removed from the pocket 32 may not completely extend the drawer 14 from the bay 16.
As shown in FIG. 1, the drawer 14 may include a mount 21 and/or any other structure configured to assist in connecting one end of the spring-like member 18 to the backend 19 of the drawer 14. It is understood that, in an exemplary embodiment, any combination of the adhesives and/or other known connection structures may be utilized to connect the spring-like member 18 to the drawer 14.
It is also understood that, in exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, at least one of the components described above may be replaced with other known components in order to facilitate one or more similar functions. For example, the stop 24 may be replaced with one or more fins or other protrusions disposed on at least one sidewall 34 of the drawer 14. Such protrusions may fit within and/or may be otherwise disposed within one or more grooves formed in, for example, the sidewalls 34 of the base 37. In such an exemplary embodiment, the protrusions may be slidably disposed within such grooves and a portion of the grooves may contact the protrusions when the drawer 14 is in the open position so as to limit the travel of the drawer 14 in the direction of arrow 46. In addition, the one or more arms 22 of the drawer 14 may be replaced with, for example, a spring-loaded structure connected to the base 37. For example, one or more inclines 30 of the base 37 may be springingly mounted to the base 37 such that the incline 30 may be springingly engaged with the drawer 14 while the drawer 14 is in a closed position. Such communication between the incline 30 and the drawer 14 may force the drawer 14 to contact an opener 28 of the housing 12 when the drawer 14 is in a closed position. In addition, the spring-like member 18 may be connected to, for example, the backwall 40 of the base 37 instead of being connected to the drawer 14. These and other structures may be utilized in embodiments of the present disclosure to simplify, for example, manufacturing and/or assembly of the dispenser 10. In addition, as illustrated in FIGS. 1-6, the dispenser 10, 100, 200 may include, for example, two drawers, four drawers, seven drawers and/or any other number of drawers useful in, for example, dispensing pills such as vitamins and/or medication according to a predetermined schedule.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The exemplary dispenser of the present disclosure may be used as storage containers for a multitude of different items including, for example, medication and/or vitamins in the form of pills, tablets, capsules, pellets, and/or other configurations. The exemplary dispenser, as described above, may be sized and/or otherwise configured to fit easily within, for example, a purse, side bag, pockets, or other item of apparel worn or used by the user. In addition, the exemplary dispenser as described herein may be sized such that they are easily held and/or otherwise manipulated by the user. The dispenser as described herein may be particularly user-friendly for, for example, the elderly, or severely infirmed. Such users may be abnormally weak, such that the use of ordinary pill dispensers may be difficult. Alternatively, such users may have only limited use of their fingers or hands. Thus, the unique design of the dispenser described herein may make it easier for such users to maintain a proper medication schedule. For example, as will be described in greater detail below, one or more drawers of the exemplary dispensers described herein may be opened with much greater ease than the snap-open/snap-close lids of known pill dispensers. In addition, the exemplary dispensers described herein may be lockable so as to prevent tampering with and/or loss of the one or more contents of each drawer of the dispenser.
For ease of description, the exemplary dispenser 10 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 will be discussed further remainder of this disclosure unless otherwise specified. In an exemplary embodiment, dispensing one or more pills or other contents of a drawer 14 of the dispenser 10 may be facilitated by, for example, pressing and/or otherwise manipulating an opener 28 associated with the drawer 14. For example, a user may press the opener 28 in the direction of arrow 50. In an exemplary embodiment, the opener 28 may be attached to the underside 38 of the top 36 via the extension 29. In such an exemplary embodiment, the opener 28 may deflect in the direction of arrow 50. In addition, when the drawer 14 is in the closed position depicted in FIG. 5, the knob 20 may be disposed within the pocket 32, and the arm 22 of the drawer 14 may be springingly engaged with the incline 30 of the base 37. The springing engagement between the arm 22 and the incline 30 may urge and/or otherwise force a portion of the drawer 14 such as, for example, the backend 19, to contact the opener 28. This springing engagement described above may also assist in maintaining the knob 20 within the pocket 32.
In addition, the spring-like member 18 connected to the backend 19 of the drawer 14, may be substantially fully-compressed when the drawer 14 is in the closed position as illustrated in FIG. 5. The compression force supplied by the spring-like member 18 to the drawer 14 may also assist in maintaining the knob 20 within the pocket 32 when the drawer 14 is in the closed position. When the opener 28 corresponding to the drawer 14 is pressed in the direction of arrow 50, at least the backend 19 of the drawer 14 may also be actuated in the direction of arrow 50 due to the contact between the opener 28 and the drawer 14. As the backend 19 moves in the direction of arrow 50, the knob 20 of the drawer 14 may be removed from the pocket 32. Once the knob 20 has been removed from the pocket 32, the drawer 14 may no longer be held in the closed position illustrated in FIG. 5. Instead, the compression force supplied by the spring-like member 18 may cause the drawer 14 to move in the direction of arrow 46. Thus, the compression force supplied by the spring-like member 18 disposed between the housing 12 and the drawer 14 may assist in at least partially ejecting the drawer 14 from the housing 12. It is understood that, in an exemplary embodiment, the spring-like member 18 may be sized and/or otherwise configured to at least partially eject the drawer 14 from a bay 16 of the housing 12. In such an exemplary embodiment, the spring-like member 18 may be sized such that the spring-like member 18 may no longer contact the backwall 40 of the base 37 once the drawer 14 is, for example, pulled or otherwise transitioned into the open position. Alternatively, the spring-like member 18 may be sized and/or otherwise configured to maintain contact with the backwall 40 when the drawer 14 is substantially fully removed and/or otherwise ejected from the bay 16.
When the opener 28 is pressed in the direction of arrow 50, the arm 22 may bend and/or otherwise deflect in the direction of arrow 52 to enable the knob 20 to be removed from the pocket 32. In addition, once the drawer 14 has been ejected from the bay 16, the user may, for example, pull at least a portion of the drawer 14 in the direction of arrow 46 to substantially completely remove the drawer 14 from the bay 16 thereby positioning the drawer 14 in a the open position. The travel of the drawer 14 may, however, be limited by the stop 24. For example, the stop 24 may engage a surface of the housing 12 such as, for example, the break 44. In an exemplary embodiment, the stop 24 may be slidably disposed within the channel 42 and a portion of the stop 24 may contact the break 44 to limit the travel of the drawer 14 in the direction of arrow 46 and thereby retain at least a portion of the drawer 14 within the bay 16 when the drawer 14 is in the open position.
Once the drawer 14 has been transitioned from the close position to the open position, any contents contained within the drawer 14 may be removed by the user. In particular, medication, vitamins, and/or other contents of the drawer 14 may be ingested by the user, and the drawer 14 may be transitioned from the open position back to the closed position by pushing and/or otherwise manipulating the drawer 14 in the direction of arrow 48. As the drawer 14 travels in the direction of arrow 48, the stop 24 may slide within a channel 42 in the direction of arrow 48. In addition, the arm 22 may slide along the incline 30 and may thereby at least partially deflect in the direction of arrow 52. It is understood that as the arm 22 moves along the incline 30 in the direction of arrow 48, the backend 19 of the drawer 14 may move in the direction of arrow 52 relative to the top 36. As the backend 19 moves in the direction of arrow 52, the knob 20 may be reinserted within the pocket 32. In addition, as the backend 19 moves in the direction of arrow 52, at least a portion of the drawer 14 may again be forced into contact with the opener 28. Moreover, as the drawer 14 moves in the direction of arrow 48, the spring-like member 18 may contact the backwall 40 and may deflect in the direction of arrow 46, thereby applying a compression force to the drawer 14.
It is understood that when the drawer 14 is in the closed position illustrated in FIG. 5, the lock assembly 26 may be actuated in the direction of arrow 56 to lock the drawer 14 in the closed position. For example, moving the lock assembly 26 in the direction of the arrow 56 may dispose the second portion 29 beneath a portion of the opener 28 associated with the drawer 14. Disposing the second portion 29 beneath the opener 28 may restrict and/or otherwise substantially eliminate the ability of the user to move the opener 28 in the direction of arrow 50. In such an exemplary embodiment, the second portion 29 may contact the opener 28 and may mechanically stop the opener 28 from being actuated in the direction of arrow 50. Locking the drawer 14 in this way may prohibit unwanted removal and/or tampering with the contents of drawer 14.
While particular exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure have been illustrated and described herein, the present disclosure should not be limited to such illustrations and descriptions. For example, in additional exemplary embodiments, a drawer 14 of the dispenser 10 may include one or more partitions configured to divide the volume of the drawer 14 into one or more compartments. In another exemplary embodiment, a portion of the drawer 14 and/or the opener 28 may be substantially transparent to enable a user to view the contents of the drawer 14. In still a further exemplary embodiment, the drawer 14 may include an inclined surface configured to urge the contents of the drawer 14 toward a front end of the drawer 14 opposite the backend 19 when the dispenser 10 is held and/or otherwise positioned substantially horizontally. It is intended that changes and modifications may be incorporated and embodied as part of the present disclosure within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. A dispenser, comprising:

a housing defining a bay; and

a drawer defining an open position and a closed position, the drawer being retained within the bay against a compression force applied by a spring-like member when the drawer is in the closed position.

2. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the drawer defines a knob configured to assist in retaining the drawer within the bay in the closed position.

3. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the drawer defines an arm springingly engaged with a portion of the bay while the drawer is in the closed position.

4. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the drawer defines a stop configured to retain a portion of the drawer within the bay while the drawer is in the open position.

5. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the housing includes a lock assembly configured to prohibit the drawer from transitioning between the closed position and the open position.

6. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the housing includes an opener configured to assist in ejecting the drawer from the bay, thereby transitioning the drawer from the closed position to the open position.

7. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the drawer is comprised of at least two different materials.

8. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the drawer is formed from a single piece of material.

9. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein the drawer is one of a plurality of drawers retained by the housing.

10. A dispenser, comprising:

a housing defining a plurality of bays;

a drawer disposed in each bay of the plurality of bays; and

a plurality of openers, each opener of the plurality of openers being configured to assist in springingly ejecting a corresponding drawer from the bay in which the drawer is disposed.

11. The dispenser of claim 10, wherein each drawer is retained within the bay in which it is disposed against a compression force.

12. The dispenser of claim 10, wherein an arm of each drawer springingly engages the housing when the respective drawer is in a closed position.

13. The dispenser of claim 12, wherein the arm forces the respective drawer to contact a respective opener of the plurality of openers when the drawer is in the closed position.

14. The dispenser of claim 12, wherein the arm springingly engages an incline defined by the housing when the drawer is in the closed position.

15. The dispenser of claim 10, wherein a knob of each drawer is disposed within a corresponding pocket of the housing when the drawer is in a closed position.

16. The dispenser of claim 15, wherein actuating an opener of the plurality of openers removes the knob from the corresponding pocket of the housing.

17. The dispenser of claim 10, wherein a portion of each opener is rigidly mounted to a top of the housing.

18. A method of dispensing a pill disposed within a drawer of a housing, comprising:

pressing an opener, a portion of the opener being in contact with the drawer;

removing a knob of the drawer from a pocket defined by the housing; and

partially ejecting the drawer from the housing with a spring-like member disposed between the housing and the drawer.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein pressing the opener causes an arm connected to the drawer to deflect.

20. The method of claim 18, further including engaging a surface of the housing with a stop connected to the drawer to retain a portion of the drawer within the housing.