Pill-splitting implement with non-crumbling characteristic

A pill-splitting implement or tool having self-centering means for positioning a pill in desired alignment with the path of movement of a pill-engaging projection in the form of a blade, wedge or edge. The projection is movably associated with the pill-holding structure, which preferably retains the pill in an elevated position above a support base to provide a clearance space or area underlaying the pill to enhance clean, sharp splitting of the pill. The pill holding means is preferably of a resilient character to accommodate and yield to the displacement of the pill during the splitting or dividing operation.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
Most compacted powder pills used for medical purposes are disk shaped and 
of a predetermined size corresponding to a specific dosage. This specific 
dosage may be more or less than the dosage prescribed by the attending 
physician for the patient. For example, it is not uncommon for a physician 
to instruct a patient to take one half of the pill three times a day or to 
take one and a half pills on each of alternate days or some other dosage 
or frequency which involves the necessity of taking half of the pill. 
In view of this common practice, pills are frequently provided with a 
diametrical score mark to facilitate dividing them in half. For pills 
which are relatively large in diameter, splitting of the pill can usually 
be accomplished without too much difficulty by grasping the pill between 
the thumb and forefinger of each hand and applying a breaking force. Even 
with the relatively large pills, the breaking force required is 
sufficiently great so that it may not be within the competence of the 
elderly or the feeble or those whose finger-gripping strength or ability 
has been impaired for such other reason. 
The majority of pills are of small diameter and cannot readily be grasped 
in a manner to achieve the necessary leverage for breakage. Considerably 
more difficulty is encountered in attempting to break the small pills than 
is the case with the relatively larger sizes of pills, even for persons 
who are not unduly enfeebled or handicapped. For these smaller pills, most 
patients find it necessary to use a kitchen knife or similar implement to 
shear the pill or score it to a greater extent where it can be broken 
between the fingers. The pill is placed upon a supporting surface and, 
when the knife is applied to it, more often than not the pill does not 
separate cleanly into two halves, but crumbles into several parts. 
Apart from the inconvenience, irritation and frequent crumbling of the pill 
when using these methods of pill splitting, there is also the possibility 
of having the pill drop or slip and be lost or contaminated, as well the 
more serious problem of possible injury if the knife slips. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
It is the primary object of the invention to provide a pill-splitting 
implement which will position and retain a pill in a manner to permit it 
to be split or divided without the application of great force and which 
will produce a clean, sharp fracture of the pill into two equal parts, 
which can be further subdivided. 
Another object of the invention is to provide a pill dividing implement 
having a mechanical advantage which requires the use of little strength or 
force on the part of the user. 
A further object of the invention is to provide self-centering means for 
positioning a pill in the implement. 
Still another object of the invention is to provide a pill-splitting 
implement of small but effective size, which can conveniently be carried 
in the pocket or purse of the user. 
Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent during 
the course of the following description.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings, there is shown a pill-dividing 
tool provided with a pill support base 20 at one end of a support arm 21. 
The other end of the support arm is joined to another arm 22 which is in 
the form of a resilient leaf spring which diverges from its joinder with 
the support arm 21 to extend in spaced overlying relationship to the base 
20. 
The free end of the arm 22 is provided with an inwardly extending 
projection or knife-edge portion 23 which is in substantial alignment with 
a transversely extending projection or ridge 24 which extends centrally of 
the base 20. Mounted on the base 20 is a substantially U-shaped spring 
steel retaining clip 25 providing a pair of resilient oppositely disposed 
retaining arms 26 which diverge from each other and extend substantially 
parallel to the surface of the base 20. The arms 26 are disposed to be 
substantially equi-distant from the central ridge 24 of the base. 
An anchor post 27 is secured to the support arm 21 and extends through the 
arm 22 into pivotal connection with an operating lever arm 28. When the 
free end of the lever 28 is depressed or moved toward the arm 22, its 
fulcrum 29 causes the free end of the arm 22 and its knife-edge 23 to be 
displaced with compounded force toward the support base 20. A pill P, 
shown in phantom outline, can be placed on the base 20 so as to be 
retained between the opposed arms 26 of the spring clip 25. By reason of 
the substantially equal resilient characteristic of the spring arms 26, 
they provide a self-centering function for positioning the pill so that 
its diametrical plane is substantially coincident or aligned with the 
transverse projection 24 on the base. When the linear, wedge-shaped 
knife-edge 23 is forced into shearing engagement with the upper surface of 
the pill, an effective, substantially instantaneous splitting force is 
applied to separate the pill into two equal halves. The projection or 
ridge 24 elevates the bottom of the pill above the main surface of the 
base 20 to provide a clearance space beneath the pill as the splitting 
force is applied. The wedge or taper of the knife-edge 23, acting as an 
inclined plane, impresses a separating force of large magnitude on the 
upper surface of the pill and this action is complemented by the taper or 
wedge shape of the opposed ridge 24 on the underside or bottom of the 
pill. 
As the pill is subjected to these diametrically aligned splitting forces, 
the fractured halves of the pill are forced to pivot downwardly relatively 
to each other as the wedge penetration of the projection 23 increases and 
causes greater separation of the pill adjacent its upper surface than 
ordinarily occurs adjacent its lower surface. The slight elevation of the 
pill above the main surface of the base 20 provides the clearance space to 
accommodate this movement of the separating halves of the pill without 
subjecting the pill to a compressive force adjacent its bottom surface 
periphery, which would cause crumbling of the edges of the pill if such 
clearance were not provided. 
Furthermore, as the knife-edge splitting wedge penetrates the upper surface 
of the pill it causes lateral displacement of the halves of the pill in a 
direction substantially normal to the knife-edge. If the pill were solidly 
and firmly restrained against movement, this displacement would create a 
undesired compressive force on the pill in opposition to the splitting 
action of the knife-edge 23 and would cause multiple fracturing or 
crumbling of the pill. However, the resilient retaining arms 26 yieldably 
accommodate to the displacement of the pill halves during the splitting 
action and self-adjust in response to increased wedge separating action on 
the pill. Therefore, there is no substantially increased compressive force 
acting upon the pill to create multiple fractures or crumbling as the 
splitting action progresses and a clean, sharp division of the pill is 
quickly and easily achieved. The resilience of the spring arms 26 also 
permits these retaining arms to self-adjust to pills of various diameters 
over a substantially wide range of commonly used pill sizes, thus avoiding 
the necessity of specially adjusting or preparing the base for the support 
and retention of a particular pill size. It should be noted that after a 
whole pill has been split into halves and removed from the implement, 
either one of the halves can be reinserted into the implement and further 
split into quarters, if desired, preferably positioning the pill so that 
its sheared diameter is normal to the knife-edge 23, equivalent to being 
90.degree. removed from its previous position when being split as a whole 
pill. If desired, the pill-retaining surfaces of the arms 26 can be 
roughened, corrugated, serrated or otherwise treated to enhance their 
gripping action. 
By using a pivotally mounted anchor post 27, the lever arm 28 can be 
rotated 90.degree. and pivoted back over the post into storage position, 
to make a small, compact, yet highly effective pill dividing tool which 
can easily be carried on the person for ready use. 
FIGS. 3 and 4 of the drawings, there is shown a modified form of the 
pill-dividing implement concealed and carried within a pill box or 
container 30 having a container body portion 31 and a lid 32 hingedly 
connected to one end of the body 31. 
In this form of the invention, the support base 20 having the central ridge 
24 and the spring steel pill-retaining clip 25 with resilient arms 26, is 
mounted within the container body 31. The wedge shaped knife-edge 23 is 
mounted on the interior surface of the lid 32. As the lid is swung closed 
over the body of the container, the knife-edge 23 moves in an arcuate path 
which brings it toward the base 20 in alignment with the ridge 24. 
As in the previously described form of the invention, the self centering 
retaining arms 26 hold the pill central of the ridge 24 so that the 
knife-edge 23 and the underlaying ridge 24 are coincident with the 
diametrical plane of the pill. If a pill is placed between the arms 26 on 
the base 20 and the lid 32 is swung towards closed position, the 
previously described splitting action occurs and the pill is cleanly and 
sharply separated into equal halves without crumbling. This form of the 
invention provides an extremely convenient pill-splitting implement 
concealed within the pill box and therefore available for use whenever and 
wherever access is had to the pill box. 
Although reference has been made to the resilient retaining members as 
being spring arms 26, it will be understood that this is only convenient 
and simple form of resilient retaining means and that the invention 
contemplates that other forms of yieldable or spring loaded members could 
be utilized, of which the resilient clip arrangement 25 is merely a 
simple, economical and readily available form. In FIGS. 5 and 6 of the 
drawings there is shown still another form of the invention which utilizes 
three point splitting engagement with the pill instead of the two point 
engagement of the previously described forms of FIGS. 1 and 3. It will be 
noted that in the forms of FIGS. 1 and 3, the ridge 24 provided one point 
or line of engagement of the pill and the knife-edge 23 provided the other 
point or line of engagement for splitting action, the two lines or points 
reacting against each other to cause division of the pill. In the form of 
the invention shown in FIG. 5, the knife-edge 23 is carried by one arm 33 
of a lever implement or tool 34 having a second arm 35 pivotally connected 
to the arm 33 at one end thereof. The free ends of the arms 33 and 35 
provide hand grips for manipulation of the tool. 
A support base 36 for the pill is mounted upon and carried by the lever arm 
35, in opposition to movement of the projection or knife-edge 23 of arm 
33, and has mounted thereon the previously described retaining clip 25 
having the resilient arms 26. 
A pair of projections 37 extend uprightly from the surface of the base 36 
and are spaced from each other so as to be substantially equi-distant on 
opposite sides of the diametrical plane defined by the knife-edge 23 as it 
engages the retained pill P. 
It will be apparent that when the pill P is placed on the support base 36 
between the pill-centering arms 26, the bottom surface of the pill will be 
elevated above the main surface of the base by means of the projections 
37. As the lever arms 33 and 35 are drawn toward each other, the blade 23 
engages the retained pill and cleanly divides it, the yieldable retaining 
arms 26 and the clearance space under the pill serving to accommodate the 
displacement of the pill and prevent the imposition of undesired 
compressive forces that would create multiple fractures and crumbling of 
the pill. 
Although it is not considered necessary, it will be understood that any 
suitable form of spring loading may be used between the arms 33 and 35 to 
obtain automatic return and release of the arms after the splitting 
operation of the pill has been completed. 
In the three forms of the invention described above, the bottom surface of 
the pill has been supported in elevated position on a base in opposition 
to the action of a wedge or knife blade which moves downwardly into 
engagement with the upper surface of the pill. In FIGS. 7 and 8 of the 
drawings, there is shown a modified form of the invention in which the 
direction of the splitting action still remains in the diametrical plane 
of the pill but is in a direction normal to that previously described, 
that is the splitting action of the wedge or blade is directed towards the 
opposed edges of the pill rather than to its upper and lower surfaces. As 
illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8, a projection or wedge 38, comparable to the 
previously described knife-edge 23, is mounted on one lever arm 39 which 
is pivoted to another lever arm 40 of a pincher type tool having high 
mechanical advantage. 
The inner face of the lever arm 40 has mounted thereon a modified form of 
spring clip 41 which presents spaced resilient pill retaining arms 42 of 
arcuate or channel-like cross-section. Traversing and extending upwardly 
through the clip 41, between the arms 42, is another projection or wedge 
blade 43 which extends in the same direction as the arms 42 and in 
opposition to the wedge projection 38. 
The pill P is placed into the retaining channel provided by the 
self-adjusting spring arms 42, so as to bring a point on the periphery or 
edge of the pill into a position of rest on the element 43. When the 
operating handles 44 of the implement are gripped and drawn toward each 
other, the wedge element 38 is brought into engagement with the peripheral 
edge of the pill at a point diametrically opposed to its engagement with 
the wedge blade 43. Both the elements 38 and 43 act in opposition to each 
other to split and separate the pill along its diametrical plane. The pill 
is divided sharply and cleanly without crumbling, as there are no solid 
abutments which would exert compressive forces upon the pill as its halves 
are displaced during the splitting action. 
In each of the four forms of the invention previously described, a wedging 
action and impact force has been utilized to effect the splitting of the 
pill. In the form of invention illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10 of the 
drawings, the splitting implement is designed to produce a shear effect on 
the pill to divide the pill. The implement includes two like arms 45 of 
channel cross-section and triangular configuration so as to provide a 
taper. At their narrow ends, the arms 45 are pivotally secured to each 
other as at 46 for relative movement out of the plane defined by the arms 
when they are in their closed position. The opposite ends of the arms 45 
are slit and formed to provide operating handles 47. Thus, as shown in 
FIG. 9, the opposed channels 48 of the arms in the closed position 
provide, in combination, a progressively tapered narrowing retaining 
recess for accommodation and containment of a pill. 
As best seen in FIG. 10 of the drawings, the height dimension of the 
channels 48 is also progressively decreased from the wide end of the arms 
toward the narrow end of the arms. Thus the combination of the opposed 
channels not only provides a tapered recess to accommodate varying 
diameters of pill, but also is tapered correspondingly for the lesser 
thickness of the pills of smaller diameter. The central abutting edges 49 
of the channel arms 45 serve as the shear blades for splitting the pill. 
A pill is slideably inserted into either one of the arms 45 or may be 
inserted into both of the arms 45 through the opening 50 when the 
implement is in its closed position. The pill is slideably received in the 
channel recess and comes to rest at a point dictated by its diameter and 
thickness in relation to the recess in which it is slideably received. The 
recess causes the pill to be centered within the implement so that the 
shearing edges 49 are aligned with the diameter of the retained pill. When 
the operating handles 47 are manipulated to pivot and displace one of the 
arms 45 out of the plane of the other arm 45, the edges 49 shear the 
contained pill in its diametrical plane. If the user takes and is required 
to split pills of significantly different sizes, this form of pill 
dividing implement can obviously be utilized to shear two pills 
simultaneously, provided their sizes are such that they are accommodated 
in spaced relationship to each other within the channels 48 of the 
implement. 
FIG. 11 of the drawings shows a form of pill-splitting implement providing 
a pill-support base 51 on which is mounted a forked pill retaining member 
52 made of a resilient or elastomeric material so as to present two spaced 
resilient or deformable divergent retaining arms 53. 
An end of the support base 51 opposite to the retaining member 52 is 
provided with a channel or track 54 in which is slideably mounted a block 
55 provided with a wedge shaped projection 56 directed toward a point 
mid-way between the resilient retaining arms 53. 
The retaining arms 53 are grooved to provide a channel 57 to accommodate 
and receive the edge of a pill that is positioned therein. When a pill is 
so positioned, the block 55 is moved toward the member 52 so as to engage 
the wedge blade 56 with the edge of the pill on a diametrical plane 
thereof. As the wedge increasingly penetrates the pill, a splitting action 
of the pill occurs on the diametrical plane and the arms 53 resiliently 
accommodate to the separation of the two halves of the pill so as to 
prevent crumbling or multiple fracture. 
An abutment or stop 58 is provided on the support base 51 adjacent one end 
thereof to prevent inadvertent withdrawal of the block 55 from its sliding 
engagement with the support base 51. If desired, the block 55 may be 
tension spring-loaded to withdraw the block from pill splitting position 
after the function has been performed. 
It is to be understood that the forms of my invention, herewith shown and 
described, are to be taken as preferred examples of the same, and that 
various changes in the shape, size and arrangement of parts may be 
resorted to, without departing from the spirit of my invention, or the 
scope of the subjoined claims.