Patent ID: 7630789

Claim:
An apparatus for distributing drugs, the apparatus comprising: an automated dispensing machine having at least one drawer; a plurality of receptacles adapted to be placed in said at least one drawer, said receptacles each having a plurality of side walls, a bottom adjoined to said side walls, and a top movably secured to at least one of said side walls such that said top is adapted for movement between an open position and a closed position, said receptacles being individually removable from said at least one drawer; an information storage device secured to or in each of said receptacles for storing information relative to contents of each of said receptacles; a communication contact on each of said receptacles enabling the wireless transfer of information between said information storage device and an information source, wherein said automated dispensing machine is adapted to receive information and to process a signal to one of said receptacles to cause said one of said receptacles to open and enable removal of at least a portion of the contents of said one of said receptacles.