Mechanisms for sensing the opening and closing of pharmaceutical containers

Abstract

Multiple embodiments of mechanisms for sensing the opening and closing of pharmaceutical containers are disclosed. In particular, the example sensing mechanisms of the invention trigger an automatic, built-in, electronic dosage reminder and open/close event logging operation while requiring no additional actions or otherwise changed behavior by the patient, in order to increase patient compliance with dosing regimens. Furthermore, certain embodiments of the sensing mechanisms are reliable and sufficiently low cost to be practical for use in commercial product applications. In one embodiment, the sensing mechanism includes two electrical conductors that have no electrical connection therebetween when the closure is not present on the container and a bridge conductor in the closure that provides an electrical connection therebetween when the closure is tightened onto the container. In this example embodiment, the state of the two electrical conductors may be monitored in order to sense a container opening and closing event.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.