Patent ID: 7147127

Claim:
A pill dispenser comprising a base formed to includc a series of pill-receiving compartments and a lock-out section interposed between a first and last in the series of pill-receiving compartments, a closure formed to include a compartment access opening and mounted on the base for rotation relative to the base about an axis of rotation to align the compartment access opening formed in the closure with one of the lock-out section to block access to pills deposited in any of the pill-receiving compartments and a selected one of the pill-receiving compartments to allow access to a pill deposited in the selected one of the pill-receiving compartments, and a rotation controller including a closure lock coupled to the closure to rotate therewith, a series of motion-interrupting limiters appended to the base, and a motion-blocking limiter appended to the base, each motion-interrupting limiter being associated with one of the pill-receiving compartments and formed to include a compartment-selector pocket sized to receive a lock tab portion of the closure lock therein, the motion-blocking limiter being associated with the lock-out section and formed to include a lock-out pocket sized to receive the lock tab portion of the closure lock therein, and wherein the lock tab portion of the closure lock, during rotation of the closure about the axis of rotation in a first rotary direction, is arranged to intercept each motion-interrupting limiter associated with a pill-receiving compartment and extend into the compartment-selector pocket formed therein to align the compartment access opening formed in the closure with the pill-receiving compartment formed in the base and associated with the motion-interrupting limiter receiving the lock tab portion of the closure lock and is also arranged to intercept the motion-blocking limiter associated with the lock-out section and extend into the lock-out pocket formed therein to align the compartment access opening formed in the closure with the lock-out section formed in the base to block access into the pill-receiving compartments through the compartment access opening formed in the closure.