| US 7,451,761 B2 | ||
| Dry powder inhalers, related blister package indexing and opening mechanisms, and associated methods of dispensing dry powder substances | ||
| Anthony James Hickey, Chapel Hill, N.C. (US); Timothy Crowder, Durham, N.C. (US); Jeffrey Alan Warden, Raleigh, N.C. (US); Keith Arthur Johnson, Durham, N.C. (US); Mark Ennis Ketner, Apex, N.C. (US); Jay Kinsley Fording, Matthews, N.C. (US); Michael Duane Garten, Charlotte, N.C. (US); William Myles Riley, Richmond, Va. (US); Sean Derek Anderson, Richmond, Va. (US); Bruce Seymour Ferris, Richmond, Va. (US); and Paul Gilbert Rockwell, Chesterfield, Va. (US) | ||
| Assigned to Oriel Therapeutics, Inc., Durham, N.C. (US) | ||
| Filed on Oct. 21, 2004, as Appl. No. 10/970,154. | ||
| Claims priority of provisional application 60/514671, filed on Oct. 27, 2003. | ||
| Prior Publication US 2005/0103337 A1, May 19, 2005 | ||
| Int. Cl. A61M 15/00 (2006.01); A61M 16/00 (2006.01); B05D 7/14 (2006.01); B65D 83/06 (2006.01) | ||
| U.S. Cl. 128—203.21 [128/203.15] | 52 Claims |
| 31. A method of dispensing dry powder from an inhaler, comprising:
extending a mouthpiece of an inhaler outward to automatically index a blister on a blister package into a dispensing position;
vibrating the indexed blister; and
retracting the mouthpiece inward to open the indexed blister, wherein the retracting step comprises automatically advancing
a cutting blade across a portion of a projecting ceiling of the indexed blister in the inhaler responsive to the retraction.
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