Abstract:
A compartmented storage organizer for vitamins and herbal supplements comprising a housing member having a plurality of recesses located on the front surface thereof and a corresponding number of like-sized bins to be slidably retained therein for storage or removed by the user to take with them for use as a pillbox and to be returned thereafter. The bins are magnetically maintained within the housing. A means for individually dispensing tablets is further included to assist the elderly and infirm when removing the contents therefrom.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to storage bins and more specifically to a vitamin/herbal organizer having a plurality of bins within a housing. The vitamin/herbal organizer has a planar base whereby the organizer can be free standing. The organizer also has a planar rear exterior wall with at least one aperture whereby the organizer can be suspended from a fastener fixedly positioned to a structure such as a door or wall. 
     The present invention provides for several variations on the mounting of the bins within the housing with all of the variations being hermetically sealed when the bins are in the closed position to prevent oxidation of the contents therein. 
     The bins are maintained within the housing recesses by magnetic means. The rear wall of the compartment has a magnetic material that mates with an opposed magnet positioned on the interior wall of the bin housing. The magnet will provide a force used to compress the bin gasket to the frontal face of the bin housing. The amount of mating magnetic material will determine the force necessary to open the compartment. 
     Bin access is provided in the form of a button on the door having a flange member that engages the organizer housing. Each bin is composed of a hinge fastened door. A gasket is also provided, located between the door and the bin housing opening. The gasket provides an airtight seal when the access door is in the closed position, protecting the vitamins stored within from oxidation. Each individual bin can slide out from its respective housing, partially or removed totally, allowing the user to see within the bin and its contents therein. Above each bin is an exchangeable label housing with an indication arrow pointing to the relevant bin. A clear plastic protection plate and an information label are placed within the housing providing the user with pertinent information pertaining to the contents of the bin and the user. At the rear portion of the main housing unit, mounting hardware is provided. 
     The present invention provides the vitamin storage bin in various sizes, with various size bins to meet the needs of consumers. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     There are other vitamin storage units designed to store vitamins. Typical of these is U.S. Pat. No. 2,237,176 issued to Dorman on Apr. 1, 1941. 
     Another patent was issued to Mandel on Sep. 23, 1958 as U.S. Pat. No. 2,853,350. Yet another U.S. Pat. No. 2,998,128 was issued to Larson on Aug. 29, 1961 and still yet another was issued on Sep. 20, 1971 to Ungaro as U.S. Pat. No. 3,606,506. 
     Another patent was issued to Rudolph et al. on Jun. 12, 1973 as U.S. Pat. No. 3,738,723. Another patent was issued to Ruggerone on Jul. 3, 1973 as U.S. Pat. No. 3,743,372. Another patent was issued to Amtmann et al. on Nov. 4, 1980 as U.S. Pat. No. 4,231,626. Another patent was issued to Whitman on May 23, 1995 as U.S. Pat. No. 5,417,329. Another patent was issued to Musser et al. on Oct. 1, 1996 as U.S. Pat. No. 5,560,693. Another patent was issued to Yemini on Feb. 18, 1997 as U.S. Pat. No. 5,603,559. Another patent was issued to Petruzzi on Dec. 23, 1997 as U.S. Pat. No. 5,699,925. Another patent was issued to Meador et al. on Mar. 16, 1999 as U.S. Pat. No. 5,883,806. 
     The invention relates to packing and dispensing or storage of merchandise. It is a container comprising a rectangular compartment adapted to receive a drawer and having inwardly turned flanges constituting its bottom, said container having externally turned lips disposed along the forward edge of one of its sides, the rear edge of its upper wall and rear edge of the other side, said lip at the rear edge of the upper wall being of approximately the same width as the space between the flanges at the bottom of the compartment. 
     The invention relates to a cabinet structure for storing articles comprising a frame having substantially flat parallel top and bottom members joined together at their ends, said top and bottom members being spaced apart and open at their sides, depending front and rear edges on said bottom member, said edges being in-turned at the lower portion thereof and constituting transverse channels open at their ends, down-turned front and rear edges on said top member constitiuting thickened transverse edges, the thickness of said thickened edges being approximately equal to the height of said channels. 
     The invention relates to a new and improved plastic cabinet drawer construction and has for its principal object the provision in elongated multiple compartment cabinets of drawers which are of square cross-section and designated for use interchangeably in any one of the compartments in a multi-compartment cabinet, whether the cabinet is placed in a horizontal plane, the cabinets having portions designated to interfit when stacked either way, that is, horizontally on top of one another or vertically alongside one another, as may best suit the user&#39;s needs in a home work-shop or other place. 
     This invention relates to a plurality of modular units fabricated from high impact strength plastic are provided with integrally formed means for enabling the various units to be securely though releasable interlocked in the construction. 
     A container for capsules that is formed out of an outer transparent parallelepiped-shaped enclosure open at one end and closed at another, the closed end comprising a wall having a slot therein, and of an article holding tray or drawer slidingly fitted in said enclosure, one end wall of the tray being provided with a tab. 
     A modular storage system designed with reference to a modular base unit having a height equal to one height module and a width equal to one width module and including at least two removable interconnectable storage units each of rectangular cross section and having a height equal to an integral number of width modules, each side wall of each storage unit carrying an integral number of interconnecting systems, the number of systems of each wall being equal to the height or width of a particular wall in height or width modules, and each interconnecting system of each unit being adapted for removable interconnection with the other unit. 
     A storage system for items such as screws, nuts, bolts and other hardware parts includes a cabinet and drawers in which the parts are packaged and sold. Cooperating keyways and keys on the cabinet and drawers and the lack of supporting horizontal partitions in the cabinet preclude the use of drawers that are not appropriately formed. 
     A storage and dispensing device having a plurality of individual storage and dispensing compartments is provided. Each compartment is provided with a slidable mating opening through a wall of the compartment for slidably mating with an extending track. The compartments are adapted to be grasped and slidably moved along the track to separate the compartments and permit access to compartments opened thereby. The compartments are slidably returned to a non-separated position in which the wall of one compartment serves as a closure element for an adjacent compartment. The track may be an upstanding vertical rod requiring upward horizontal separation of the compartments in order to gain access. A plurality of these compartments, each having a mating opening for sliding along the extending track, act cooperatively to prevent jamming or sticking of the compartments as they slide along the track together. The compartments are rotatable with respect to each other and rotatable in unison around the track. Additionally, the entire device may be suspended with a wire and rotated using the wire. 
     A wall mounted filing cabinet comprised of a cabinet having a plurality of openings formed through a front surface thereof. The cabinet is securable to a wall. The device contains a plurality of bins. The number of bins corresponds to the number of openings formed in the cabinet. Each of the bins is configured to be received within a corresponding opening. Each bin has a U-shaped handle secured to a front surface thereof. 
     A storage organizer, which includes a housing and drawers which are slidably accommodated within the housing. The drawers feature a locking mechanism connected to said front wall for immobilizing said drawer in said housing. The drawers further feature a downwardly extending protrusion which serves to slidably engage the housing and thereby reduce play between the drawer and the housing. The drawers further feature removable vertical dividers. 
     A portable plastic container has a tapered tongue on a lid top wall arranged for positioning within a tapered groove of a similar container bottom wall for vertically stacking a selected quantity of containers in an interlocking arrangement. Interlocking the containers permits opening of any container without the need foe rearranging and restacking. For interlocking one container to another, the bottom groove of one container is forced into the top tongue of a similar container. A snapping sound is heard as the tongue passes through a slightly smaller groove opening to its seated position within the groove, thus providing seating feedback and assurance to the user that the containers are properly interlocked. 
     A container for pharmaceutical items, comprising a tray having at least one compartment adapted to retrievably contain at least one pharmaceutical item, each said compartment having associated therewith a lid movable between a closed position restricting access to the associated compartment and an open position permitting access to the associated compartment, and each lid having associated therewith a mechanism responsive to control signals from a computer to permit movement between the closed and open positions. The invention also includes a system for dispensing pharmaceutical items comprising at least one support structure supporting at least one drawer, each said drawer being adapted to receive at least one of the above described containers and being movable with respect to said support structure between an open position permitting access to a given compartment of a given container and a closed position restricting access to all containers in each said drawer; and at least one said computer operable to control access to each compartment in each container. The invention also includes a method of controllably and securably dispensing pharmaceutical items comprising, storing pharmaceutical items in locations identifiable by a computer and to which access is controlled by a computer, inputting data identifying a desired pharmaceutical item, and having said computer identify a location having the desired item and issue appropriate control signals to permit access to the desired item. 
     SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION 
     A primary object of the present invention is to provide a compartmented vitamin storage organizer for the storage of vitamins and herbal supplements. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide a compartmented vitamin storage organizer that is wall mountable or is self-standing. 
     Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a compartmented vitamin storage organizer consisting of a plurality of individual bins, each bin composed of a hinge fastened door, and latch as means of closure. 
     Still yet another object of the present invention is to provide a compartmented vitamin storage organizer composed of a gasket located between the door and the bin housing opening, providing an air tight seal when the access door is in the closed position, protecting the vitamins stored within from oxidation. 
     Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a compartmented vitamin storage organizer having a label housing located above each bin and an arrow pointing to the relevant bin and a clear plastic plate and information label that are housed within providing pertinent information pertaining to the contents of the bin and the user. 
     Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a compartmented vitamin storage organizer having a wall mounting means located on the rear portion of the unit. 
     Additional objects of the present invention will appear as the description proceeds. The present invention overcomes the shortcomings of the prior art by providing a storage containment bin for the storage of vitamins and herbal supplements that is wall mountable or can self-stand and has a plurality of individual compartments, each compartment having a hinge fastened door and a latch as means of closure. A gasket is located between the door and the bin housing opening to provide an air tight seal when the access door is in the closed position and to protect the vitamins stored within from oxidation. The present invention includes various size bins and bin housings. 
     The foregoing and other objects and advantages will appear from the description to follow. In the description reference is made to the accompanying drawing, which forms a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. These embodiments will be described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention. In the accompanying drawing, like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the several views. 
     The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is best defined by the appended claims. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES 
     FIG. 1 is an illustrative view of the present invention in use. 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the present invention. 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the present invention (with access door open). 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the present invention (with access door open and bin pulled out). 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the present invention (with access door open and bin removed). 
     FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view of the present invention. 
     FIG. 7 is a detail view of the label housing of the present invention with label within label housing. 
     FIG. 8 is a detail view of the label housing with the label removed. 
     FIG. 9 is a rear view of the housing of the present invention. 
     FIG. 10 is an alternate size and design of the housing of the present invention. 
     FIG. 11 is an alternate front view of the present invention. 
     FIG. 12 is an alternate view of an individual compartment of the present invention. 
     FIG. 13 is a sectional view of an alternate individual bin of the present invention. 
     FIG. 14 is a sectional view of an alternate individual bin of the present invention. 
     FIG. 15 is a side view of the tilt bin housing of the present invention. 
     FIG. 16 is a side view of the tilt bin of the present invention. 
     FIG. 17 is a rear view of the tilt bin within the tilt bin housing. 
     FIG. 18 is a perspective view of a spring type closure fastener. 
     
       
         
               
             
               
               
             
           
               
                   
               
               
                 LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS 
               
               
                   
               
             
             
               
                   
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 10 compartmented storage organizer 
               
               
                   
                 12 organizer housing 
               
               
                   
                 14 modular bin 
               
               
                   
                 16 access door 
               
               
                   
                 18 door lock 
               
               
                   
                 20 label housing 
               
               
                   
                 22 hinge 
               
               
                   
                 24 retaining shield 
               
               
                   
                 26 gasket 
               
               
                   
                 28 vitamins 
               
               
                   
                 30 bin recess 
               
               
                   
                 32 wall fastening means 
               
               
                   
                 34 label 
               
               
                   
                 36 indicia 
               
               
                   
                 38 bin indication arrow 
               
               
                   
                 40 large bin 
               
               
                   
                 42 funnel shaped dispensing plate 
               
               
                   
                 44 tablet recess 
               
               
                   
                 46 dispenser element 
               
               
                   
                 48 transfer recess 
               
               
                   
                 50 bottom plate 
               
               
                   
                 52 first magnetic element 
               
               
                   
                 54 second magnetic element 
               
               
                   
                 56 tilt bin housing 
               
               
                   
                 58 rear wall of 56 
               
               
                   
                 60 stop member of 56 
               
               
                   
                 62 tilt bin pivot pin retainer 
               
               
                   
                 64 tilt bin 
               
               
                   
                 66 tilt bin pivot pin 
               
               
                   
                 68 tilt bin stop pin 
               
               
                   
                 70 spring housing 
               
               
                   
                 72 pressure sensitive clip 
               
               
                   
                 74 door clip 
               
               
                   
                 76 second retaining shield 
               
               
                   
                 78 retaining groove 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The following discussion describes in detail one embodiment of the invention and several variations of that embodiment. This discussion should not be construed, however, as limiting the invention to those particular embodiments. Practitioners skilled in the art will recognize numerous other embodiments as well. For a definition of the complete scope of the invention, the reader is directed to appended claims. 
     FIG. 1 is an illustrative view of the present invention  10  in use and FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the present invention  10 . The present invention  10  is an organizer for vitamins and herbal supplements that could be wall mountable or free standing and comprises a bin housing  12  and a plurality of removable modular bins  14 . Each bin  14  has a securable access door  16  which is hermetically sealed when closed to protect the vitamins  28  or other such contents therein from oxidation. Bins  14  can be refilled and relabeled as required. Each bin  14  is removable from the housing  12  to make them easy to clean and organize while also allowing the user to sort and individually store each days required vitamins  28 , supplements and/or medication in its individual bin  14  well in advance. The compartmented vitamin storage organizer  10  is provided in various sizes to accommodate different needs and applications. 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the present invention  10  with the access door  16  open. Each bin has a hinged access door  16 . A door latch  18  is provided as means of closure. 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the present invention  10  with the access door  16  open and the bin  14  partially pulled out. Each individual bin  14  can slide out from the housing member  12  allowing the user to see within the bin  14  to view its contents. The bin  14  could also have the users required medication for a particular day therein and be removed completely from the housing member  12  as shown in FIG. 5 for cleaning, refilling or to be used as a pill box to be returned at a later time. 
     As illustrated in FIG. 4, each bin  14  has at the front open end has a pair of retaining shields  24  and  76  on a lower open portion for preventing any contents of the bin from inadvertently being removed therefrom. As also illustrated in FIG. 6, a recess  78  is provided to allow one of the shields  24  or  76  to be raised to adjust the height of the other shield to accommodate a greater or lesser amount of vitamins. 
     FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view of the present invention  10 . Shown are the bin  14  inside the housing member  12 . Above each bin  14  is a label housing  20  where pertinent information is provided pertaining to the contents of bin and/or the user. Positioned on the rear exterior wall is a first magnetic element  52  that will engage a second magnetic element  53  positioned on the interior back wall of the housing element  12 . The magnets  52 ,  53  will provide a force used to compress the gasket  26  to the frontal face of the bin housing  12 . The amount of mating magnetic material will determine the force necessary to remove the bin. Above each bin  14  is an exchangeable label housing  20  with an indication arrow  38  pointing to the appropriate bin  14 . 
     FIGS. 7 and 8 show the label housing  20  of the present invention  10 . A label housing  20  is provided above each bin  14  and has an arrow pointing to the corresponding bin  14 . A clear plastic protective plate and information label  34  are placed within the label housing  20 . 
     FIG. 9 is a perspective rear view of the housing member  12 . A wall so fastening means  32  is provided to accommodate a screw, molly or other wall fastening element. All units can stand or be wall mounted. 
     FIG. 10 shows the present invention  10  having large modular bins  40  maintained in the housing  12  with the other bins  14 . 
     FIG. 11 demonstrates that the housing  12  and the bins  14 ,  40  could come in different sizes, configurations as needed for different applications and aesthetics. The label housing  20  could also be mounted on the bin door  16 . 
     FIGS. 12,  13  and  14  depict a bin having a tablet dispensing means. A funnel shaped dispensing plate  42  is inside the bin  14  above the bottom plate  50 . When tablets or capsules are placed inside the bin  14  they are directed to the transfer recess  48  located centrally in the bottom of the funnel shaped dispensing plate  42 . The first pill to reach the transfer recess  48  passes therethrough and falls into the tablet recess  40  aligned therebelow. The user slides the dispenser element outward until the vitamin  28  is accessible and removes it before sliding the dispensing element  46  back into place. When the transfer recess  48  is realigned with the tablet recess  44  the next available pill or tablet residing in the transfer recess  48  is deposited into the dispenser element recess  44 . 
     FIGS. 15,  16 , and  17  show the present invention having a tilt bin  64  which pivots within a tilt bin housing  56  on pivot pins  66  that rotate within pivot pin retainers  62  with a stop pin  68  and stop member  60  to restrict the pivoting movement of the tilt bin  64  in such a manner as to promote easy access to the contents therein while prohibiting any spillage thereof. 
     FIG. 18 is a perspective view of a modular housing  14  having a pressure sensitive spring-type closure fastener having a door clip  74  on the door  16  and a mating pincer-like pressure sensitive clip  72  that retains said door clip therein  74  until such time that pressure applied to the outside of said door  16  causes the spring housing  70  to compress and to eject the door clip  74 .