Summary of Smart Medicine Box
This ECE 4760 final project is a programmable smart medicine box designed for elderly users and nurses. It features seven sub-boxes to manage different medications, allowing users to set pill quantities and specific serving times. The system provides audio-visual reminders via sound and light when doses are due. A seven-segment LED display on each sub-box shows the exact number of pills to take. An LCD screen and keypad serve as the user interface, addressing challenges like language barriers and memory issues associated with traditional pillboxes.
Parts used in the Smart Medicine Box:
- Microcontroller
- LCD screen
- Keypad
- Seven segment LED displays
- Sound generator (for loud alarms)
- Light indicator
- Seven separate sub-boxes
Our ECE 4760 final project is to build a microcontroller based smart medicine box. Our medicine box is targeted on users who regularly take drugs or vitamin supplements， or nurses who take care of the older or patients. Our medicine box is programmable that allows nurses or users to specify the pill quantity and day to take pills, and the serve times for each day. Our smart medicine box contains seven separate sub-boxes. Therefore, nurses or users can set information for seven different pills. When the pill quantity and time have been set, the medicine box will remind users or patients to take pills using sound and light. The specific number of pills needs to be taken will be displayed by a seven segment led display placed on the corresponding sub-box. Compared with the traditional pill box that requires users or nurses to load the box every day or every week. Our smart medicine box would significantly release nurses or users’ burden on frequently preloading pills for patients or users.
Rationale and Inspiration
I am an international student, and during holidays I always bring some USA made medicines to my grandparents back in China. I found they always have trouble remember the number of pills they need to take from each of the medicine bottle because they couldn’t read English. They also complained to me that they sometimes forget to take to pills, and some medicines were expired due to this reason. Therefore, the idea to make a smart pillbox that would help people like my grandparents came to my mind. After I talked with my partner Jie, we broadened the targeted users of our pillbox from just the older to people who regularly take pills. We also thought nurses who take care of patients could also benefit from, since they also regularly prepare pills for patients. After the targeted user being defined, we then defined the specifications of our device based on the user needs. The device should be able to generate loud sound so that even people with impaired hearing were able to hear it. The device should demonstrate ease of use. Therefore, we decided to use a LCD and a keypad as the user interface. In order to help user remember the number of pills they need to take, we also used several seven segment LED displays to indicate the number of pills the user need to take. Based on theses specifications, we designed a high-level block diagram (figure below) to demonstrate the overall design of our device.
For More Details: Smart Medicine Box
- Who is the target audience for this smart medicine box?
The device targets users who regularly take drugs or vitamin supplements, as well as nurses caring for older people or patients. - How many separate sub-boxes does the smart medicine box contain?
The smart medicine box contains seven separate sub-boxes to allow setting information for seven different pills. - What interface components were chosen for ease of use?
An LCD and a keypad were selected as the user interface to ensure the device demonstrates ease of use. - How does the device remind users to take their pills?
The medicine box reminds users using both sound and light when the set time arrives. - How does the device indicate the specific number of pills needed?
A seven segment led display placed on the corresponding sub-box displays the specific number of pills that need to be taken. - Can users specify the day and quantity for taking pills?
Yes, the medicine box is programmable, allowing users to specify the pill quantity and the day to take pills. - What inspired the creation of this project?
The inspiration came from the creator's grandparents struggling with English labels, forgetting doses, and dealing with expired medicines.
