The invention broadly relates to medicine dosage devices, and is specifically directed to a device for sealably carrying and dispensing a predetermined amount of liquid medicine.
Medicine in liquid form is commonly used because it is more easily ingested than pills and capsules. It is often made in syrup form and flavored to be more palatable to children.
However, there are several drawbacks with liquid medicines, not the least of which is spillage when it is poured from its container. Leaking and dripping of the substance from the neck or top of the container are also problematic, particularly when the medicine is in syrup form, which is usually quite sticky. As such, the container itself and articles with which the medicine comes into contact have a sticky residue and become contaminated easily, requiring that they be cleaned.
Because of such problems, it is generally quite convenient for an individual to carry a container of liquid medicine for doses throughout the day. Further, a separate spoon for taking doses must be carried or be made available, which not only is inconvenient but also has the same problem of stickiness, contamination and the need for cleaning.
Dosage devices for liquid medicine having an integral dispensing spoon are available, but have many of the same problems because of the nature of liquid medicine. Such devices typically consist of a tube closed at one end to define a container portion with a spoon bill integrally formed at the open end. Liquid medicine is typically poured into the tubular container portion of the device in a desired volume or dose, and dispensed by pouring the medicine from the container portion, through the integral spoon bill and into the user's mouth.
However, such devices generally do not include caps or other closures. As such, they are not usable as medicine containers, but rather only as dosage devices. After the dose is taken, the dosage device must be cleaned, or it will remain sticky and become contaminated before the next use.
Some dosage devices of this type include closure plugs for the container portion, but the spoon bill remains exposed and hence subject to the same types of problems.
The inventive dosage device utilizes the advantages of the prior art devices but eliminates the problems and disadvantages. It also takes the form of a tubular container closed at one end, and its open end includes an integrally formed spoon bill. In the preferred embodiment, a portion of the side wall of the container at the open end is cut away, leaving a dispensing spoon bill having a curvature that is the same as the tubular side wall.
The improved dosage device further includes a sealing cap that slides over the spoon bill, sealing the entire open end of the dosage device. At the same time, the outer and inner surfaces of the spoon bill are sealed from the medicine as well as the outside environment, regardless of the position of the spoon. This is accomplished by forming the cap with concentric external and internal tubular members that are internally spaced and configured to define an annular recess having the same curvature as and which receives the entirety of the spoon portion. The exposed lower end of the internal tubular member carries one or more 0-rings that sealably engage the spoon and open end of the container, and the lower internal portion of the external tubular member is threaded to screw onto the tubular container. As such, the open end of the tubular container is sealably closed to keep the contained liquid medicine from being contaminated as well as to prevent it from leaking. At the same time, the annular recess in the sealing cap sealably contains both the outer and inner surfaces of the spoon bill, keeping them from becoming contaminated. This construction also prevents liquid medicine from crystallizing on the spoon bill and making it difficult to remove the sealing cap.
In the preferred embodiment, the sealing cap is formed from separate but interlockable external and internal tubular members that may be easily separated for cleaning.
In addition, the improved dosage device advantageously includes a pill container integrally formed on the closed end of the tubular container, permitting pills, tablets, capsules or the like to be simultaneously carried with liquid medicine. The pill container in the preferred embodiment is slightly larger in diameter than the tubular container, providing the overall device with a base on which it may stand in upright fashion.
The structural features and advantages of the improved dosage device will be more fully appreciated from the description below and accompanied drawings.