Spiral pill dispenser for medicine bottles and containers

Abstract

A pill dispenser that aids in the dispensing of pills from a medicine bottle or container having a top opening and an inside wall in which a raised spiral coil is included on the inside wall of the container where the coil terminates next to the top opening, the raised spiral coil forming a substantially spiral ridge and a substantially spiral trough into which pills are guided when tipping the bottle or container to discharge one or more pills.

1 . A pill dispenser for discharging pills comprising:
 a pill container having an open top that is adapted to be covered by a cap, the container having a substantially cylindrical inside portion below the open top, and   a raised spiral coil within the pill container on the cylindrical inside portion that terminates near the open top, wherein the raised spiral coil forms a substantially spiral ridge with a substantially spiral trough between turns of the spiral ridge, the ridge and trough being sized to urge pills contained in the pill container into the trough when tipping the container for controlled dispensing of individual pills wherein the spacing between turns of the spiral ridge approximates the width of pills contained in the pill container.   
     
     
         2 . The pill dispenser of  claim 1  wherein the pill container has an inside wall and the raised spiral coil is formed in the inside wall along the cylindrical inside portion of the pill container. 
     
     
         3 . The pill dispenser of  claim 1  wherein the raised spiral coil is formed in a substantially cylindrical sleeve insertable into the open top of the pill container at least along the cylindrical inside portion of the pill container. 
     
     
         4 . The pill dispenser of  claim 1  wherein the pill container is an irregularly shaped bottle with a cylindrical neck. 
     
     
         5 . The pill dispenser of  claim 1  wherein the pill container is a cylindrical pharmaceutical-type canister. 
     
     
         6 . The pill dispenser of  claim 1  wherein the raised spiral coil has at least three turns of the coil. 
     
     
         7 . The pill dispenser of  claim 1  wherein the ridge of the raised spiral coil is rounded. 
     
     
         8 . The pill dispenser of  claim 1  wherein the pill container has an inside wall and the raised spiral coil has an adhesive adapted to attach the raised spiral coil to the inside wall of the container at the cylindrical inside portion of the pill container. 
     
     
         9 . The pill dispenser of  claim 1  wherein the pill container is a bottle with a cylindrical neck and the raised spiral coil is located within the bottle at the neck. 
     
     
         10 . The pill dispenser of  claim 1  wherein the width of the trough between turns of the spiral ridge is sized to be slightly greater than the width of a pill contained in the container.