Apparatus and Methods for Removal of Pills from Packaging

Abstract

A pill extractor removes pills from a blister pack. In some embodiments, the pill extractor is designed to remove all of the pills from a blister pack for distribution or disposal. In such embodiments, the blister pack sits on a plate of the device, while a roller rolls across the blister pack to contact the blisters a row at a time and applies a force sufficient to extract the pills through the backing of the blister pack. The pills preferably fall through holes in the plate and may be collected on a tray under the plate. The roller is actuated by a crank, and a gear mechanism controls the advancement of the roller. In other embodiments, the pill extractor is designed to extract a single pill at a time from a blister pack. Methods of extracting pills from a blister pack are also disclosed.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A pill extractor comprising:
 a) a support having a base and a support body extending upward from the base;   b) a plate extending from the support body and having a flat upper surface and having at least one hole sized and spaced to align with a blister of a blister pack; and   c) a lever comprising a lever arm operatively coupled to the support body at a first end of the lever arm and a nub extending from the lever arm toward the plate;   wherein actuating the lever arm toward the plate applies a force to the blister of the blister pack aligned between the nub and the hole of the plate to extract a pill from the blister and through the hole.   
     
     
         2 . The pill extractor of  claim 1  further comprising a pivot operatively coupling the lever arm to the support body at the first end of the lever arm. 
     
     
         3 . The pill extractor of  claim 2  further comprising a spring biasing the lever arm away from the support body. 
     
     
         4 . The pill extractor of  claim 1 , wherein the base has a well located below the hole of the plate. 
     
     
         5 . The pill extractor of  claim 4  further comprising a container removably located in the well to receive the pill extracted from the blister pack. 
     
     
         6 . The pill extractor of  claim 1 , wherein the lever further comprises a knob extending from a second end of the lever arm opposite the first end of the lever arm. 
     
     
         7 . The pill extractor of  claim 1 , wherein the pill extractor extracts a single pill from the blister pack at a time. 
     
     
         8 . The pill extractor of  claim 1  further comprising a collar around the nub, the collar having a perimeter greater than a perimeter of the blister. 
     
     
         9 . A method of extracting at least one pill from a blister pack comprising a plastic layer comprising a plurality of blisters evenly spaced in rows and columns and a backing layer, each pill being held between the plastic layer and the backing layer in one of the plurality of blisters prior to extracting the pill, the method comprising:
 a) placing the blister pack on a plate of a pill extractor with the blisters facing away from the plate and one of the blisters aligned with at least one hole of the plate sized and spaced to align with the blister of the blister pack, the pill extractor comprising:
 a support having a base and a support body extending upward from the base; 
 the plate extending from the support body and having a flat upper surface and having the at least one hole; and 
 a lever comprising a lever arm operatively coupled to the support body at a first end of the lever arm and a nub extending from the lever arm toward the plate; and 
   b) applying a force to the lever until the nub contacts the blister containing the pill to be extracted to compress the blister until the backing behind the blister breaks such that the pill falls from the blister and into the hole of the plate.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein exactly one pill is extracted at a time. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 9  further comprising collecting the pill in a container located below the hole of the plate. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11  further comprising placing the container on the base below the hole of the plate. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the step of applying a force to the lever comprises bending the lever arm until the nub contacts the blister. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the step of applying a force to the lever comprises causing the lever arm to rotate about a pivot operatively connecting the first end of the lever arm to the support body until the nub contacts the blister. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the step of applying a force to the lever comprises causing the lever arm to rotate about a pivot operatively connecting the first end of the lever arm to the support body and against a spring biasing the lever away from the support body until the nub contacts the blister. 
     
     
         16 . A pill extractor comprising:
 a) a plate having a first edge, a second edge opposite the first edge, and a plurality of plate holes in rows and columns, the plurality of plate holes being sized and spaced to align with a plurality of blisters of a blister pack;   b) a first support coupled to the first edge of the plate, the first support extending above the plate and having a first slot;   c) a second support coupled to the second edge of the plate, the second support extending above the plate and having a second slot;   d) a roller comprising a central portion, a first hub extending from a first end of the central portion and a second hub extending from a second end of the central portion opposite the first end, the first hub extending into the first slot and the second hub extending into the second slot;   e) a crank coupled to the first hub of the roller;   f) a gear mechanism coupling movement of the roller by way of the crank to movement of the hubs along the slots; and   g) a flap hingedly attached to the plate, the flap having at least one flap hole being sized and spaced to align with at least one of the plurality of blisters of the blister pack and at least one of the plurality of plate holes when the flap is flipped down toward a top surface of the plate.   
     
     
         17 . The pill extractor of  claim 16 , wherein the gear mechanism comprises:
 a first spur gear located at the first end of the central portion of the roller and comprising a plurality of first spur teeth;   a first rack located above the first edge of the plate and comprising a plurality of first rack teeth, the first rack teeth meshing with the first spur teeth;   a second spur gear located at the second end of the central portion of the roller and comprising a plurality of second spur teeth; and   a second rack located above the second edge of the plate and comprising a plurality of second rack teeth, the second rack teeth meshing with the second spur teeth.   
     
     
         18 . The pill extractor of  claim 16 , wherein the crank comprises:
 a crank arm having a first end coupled to the first hub and a second end opposite the first end; and   a crank handle coupled to the second end of the crank arm.   
     
     
         19 . The pill extractor of  claim 16  further comprising a tray located under the plate. 
     
     
         20 . The pill extractor of  claim 16  further comprising a plurality of nubs extending radially from the central portion of the roller, the nubs being arranged in rows and spaced to correspond to locations of the holes as the crank is being turned to move the roller.