Patent ID: 7886506

Claim:
A method of dispensing pills comprising: (a) inputting a request including at least one pill type and a pill count associated with each of the at least one pill type; (b) loading a cassette having a first pill type of the at least one pill type over a target location; (c) positioning a target container beneath the target location; (d) energizing the cassette to drop one pill into the target container at the target location; (e) detecting if a pill dropped from the cassette into the target container; (f) if a pill dropped from the cassette into the target container and there are still more current pill type to drop into the target container, repeating steps d-f without changing the target container at the target location; (g) if a pill dropped from the cassette into the target container and the number current pill type has satisfied the request, ending; (h) if a pill dropped from the cassette into the target container and a number of the current pill already dispensed type has not satisfied the request, continuing with step d without changing the target container at the target location; (i) if no pill dropped, informing an operator; (j) if the operator indicates that there are still pills in the cassette, processing a jammed cassette; (k) if the operator indicates the cassette is empty and another cassette has a same pill type, moving the another cassette to the target location and repeating from step d without changing the target container at the target location; (l) if the operator indicates the cassette is empty and there is no cassette having a same pill type, instructing the operator to refill the cassette; (m) if the cassette is refilled by the operator, continuing with step d without changing the target container at the target location.