Injection System With Hidden Needles
First Claim
Patent Images
1. An auto-injector for injecting a fluid into a patient which comprises:
- a housing formed with an interior;
a fluid reservoir fixed at a site on said housing;
at least one needle held in the interior of said housing, wherein each needle has a proximal end and a distal end;
a means mounted in the interior of said housing for positioning a needle at a location therein;
a means mounted in the interior of said housing for engaging the needle in fluid communication with said fluid reservoir while mechanically isolating the needle from said fluid reservoir; and
a means mounted in the interior of said housing for moving the needle from the location to extend the distal end thereof outside said housing for insertion into the patient to inject the fluid into the patient, wherein said fluid reservoir remains fixed at the site while said needle moves from the location into the patient.
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Abstract
An auto-injector confines all functional components inside an enclosed housing, to keep its needle out-of-sight, at all times. Within the housing, a needle holder positions a needle at a location. A drive mechanism then simultaneously engages the needle with a fluid source and accelerates it with a predetermined momentum for insertion into a patient. After fluid delivery, the withdrawn needle is moved to storage within the housing for subsequent disposal.
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Citations
31 Claims
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1. An auto-injector for injecting a fluid into a patient which comprises:
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a housing formed with an interior; a fluid reservoir fixed at a site on said housing; at least one needle held in the interior of said housing, wherein each needle has a proximal end and a distal end; a means mounted in the interior of said housing for positioning a needle at a location therein; a means mounted in the interior of said housing for engaging the needle in fluid communication with said fluid reservoir while mechanically isolating the needle from said fluid reservoir; and a means mounted in the interior of said housing for moving the needle from the location to extend the distal end thereof outside said housing for insertion into the patient to inject the fluid into the patient, wherein said fluid reservoir remains fixed at the site while said needle moves from the location into the patient. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A system for injecting a fluid into a patient which comprises:
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a housing formed with an interior; a fluid reservoir fixed at a site on said housing; a magazine mounted on said housing for holding at least one needle; a means mounted in the interior of said housing for moving a needle of said magazine to a location for fluid communication engagement with said fluid reservoir; a connector mounted inside said housing for engaging the needle at the location in fluid communication with said fluid reservoir and mechanically isolating the needle from the fluid reservoir; a drive mechanism mounted inside said housing to accelerate the needle from the location for insertion of the needle into the patient, wherein said fluid reservoir remains fixed at the site while said needle moves from the location into the patient; and a plunger mounted inside said housing for ejecting fluid from said fluid reservoir and through said needle into the patient after said needle is moved into the patient. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A system for injecting a fluid into a patient which comprises:
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a housing formed with an interior; a fluid reservoir fixed at a site on said housing; a magazine mounted on said housing for holding at least one needle; a means for moving a needle of said magazine to a location, wherein the needle has a mass (mneedle); a drive means mounted in the interior of said housing for accelerating a drive rod with a mass (mrod) to a velocity (vrod) for contact with the needle with a predetermined momentum (mrodvrod), to transfer momentum from the drive rod to the needle for insertion of the needle into the patient;
wherein said fluid reservoir remains fixed at the site while said needle is inserted into the patient; anda plunger mounted in the interior of said housing for ejecting fluid from said fluid reservoir and through said needle into the patient after said needle is inserted into the patient. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A method for operating an auto-injector which comprises the steps of:
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mounting a fluid reservoir at a site on a housing formed with an interior, with said fluid reservoir remaining fixed at the site during operation of the auto-injector; loading a plurality of sterile needles onto the housing; moving a sterile needle to a location in the housing to present the sterile needle for fluid communication engagement through a connector with the fluid reservoir; positioning the housing against an injection site on the patient; accelerating a driver rod into contact with the connector to engage the connector with the needle to establish a connector/needle combination for fluid communication between the needle and said fluid reservoir; transferring momentum from the drive rod to the connector/needle combination, in response to the accelerating step, to move the connector/needle combination from the location and insert the needle into the patient; ejecting fluid from said fluid reservoir and through said needle for injecting the fluid into the patient; and disconnecting the used needle from said connector for storage of the needle in the interior of said housing. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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21. A housing with a system mounted thereon for injecting a fluid medicament into a patient, said system comprising:
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an elongated hypodermic needle defining an axis and having a proximal end and a distal end; a fluid reservoir fixed at a site on the housing; a collar mounted on the hypodermic needle between the proximal end and the distal end thereof with the collar extending radially outward from the needle, wherein the collar limits travel of the needle along a pathway inside the housing between a first position wherein the proximal end of the needle is engaged in fluid communication with the fluid reservoir and a second position wherein the distal end of the needle is inserted into the patient for infusion of the fluid medicament from the reservoir to the patient while said fluid reservoir remains fixed at the site. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
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28. An injector which comprises:
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a fluid source fixed at a site on the injector; an elongated hypodermic needle defining an axis and having a sharp proximal end and a sharp distal end; a disk-shaped collar mounted on said hypodermic needle between the proximal end and the distal end thereof with the collar extending radially outward from the needle; a means operable with the collar for connecting the proximal end of the needle in fluid communication with the fluid source, wherein the needle is mechanically isolated from the fluid source; and a means operable with the collar for inserting the distal end of the needle into a body for injecting fluid from the fluid source through the needle and into the body while said fluid source remains fixed at the site on the injector. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30, 31)
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Specification