ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR, IN PARTICULAR FOR A CUTANEOUS DEVICE

• US 20170095656A1
• Filed: 05/12/2015
• Published: 04/06/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 05/19/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Commissariat a L'Energie Atomique (French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission)
• Original Assignee: Commissariat a L'Energie Atomique (French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission)
• Inventors: Perraud, Simon, Emieux, Fabrice, Karst, Nicolas, Pantigny, Philippe
• Granted Patent: US 10,213,594 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/0476 Array electrodes (including any electrode arrangement with more than one electrode for at least one of the polarities)
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/048 Electrodes characterised by a specific connection between lead and electrode
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/0492 Patch electrodes A61N1/0412, A61N1/0428 take precedence

Abstract

An electrical connector, in particular for a medical device that is intended to be secured to the skin of a user, is disclosed. The connector includes a base for solidly connecting to the device and a plug for solidly connecting to an electric conductor. The plug includes a connection means and the base includes a plurality of connection means, each being adapted to engage with the connection means of the plug in order to establish a connection between the base and the plug.

Claims

1. An electrical connector for a medical device configured to be fixed on the skin of a user, comprising:

a base secured to the device; and

a plug configured to be secured to an electrical conductor, wherein the plug comprises first connection means comprises second connection means configured for cooperating with the first connecting means of the plug to ensure the connection between the base and the plug.

2. The connector of claim 1, wherein the center-to-center distance between adjacent second connection means of the base is between 1.5 and 10 times the diameter of the second connection means.

3. The connector of claim 1, wherein the second connection means of the base are distributed uniformly over the surface of the base.

4. The connector of claim 1, wherein the plug and the base include magnetic means on both the plug and the base.

5. The connector of claim 1, wherein the second connection means of the base include a plurality of holes and the first connection means of the plug include a protuberance.

6. The connector of claim 5, wherein the base is made up of a stack of at least two layers, one of them performing at least a mechanical support function and the at least two layers also performing an electrical function and optionally a magnetic function, the holes of the base traversing at least the layer acting as mechanical support, and the plug comprises a base and the protuberance performing an electrical function and optionally a magnetic function.

7. The connector of claim 6, wherein the stack making up the base comprises a first layer performing the mechanical support function and a second layer performing the electrical function and optionally the magnetic function, wherein the holes are traversing the stack, and wherein the electrical function and optionally magnetic function of the plug is performed by the base of the plug.

8. The connector of claim 6, wherein the stack making up the base comprises a first layer performing the electrical function and a second layer performing the mechanical function, the first layer performing the electrical function also being able to perform the magnetic function, the holes only traversing the second layer performing the mechanical function, the electrical function and optionally magnetic function of the plug being performed by the protuberance.

9. The connector of claim 6, wherein the stack making up the base successively comprises a first layer performing the electrical function, a second layer performing the mechanical function and optionally a third layer performing the magnetic function, the holes traversing the third layer performing the magnetic function, wherein the third layer cooperates with any magnetic function of the plug being performed by the base and the electrical function of the plug being performed by the protuberance.

10. The connector of claim 9, wherein the layer performing the mechanical function also performs the magnetic function.

11. The connector of claim 5, wherein the plug comprises an annular part protruding on the base and extending around the protuberance, the base comprising, around each hole, an annular opening to receive the protruding annular part of the plug.

12. The connector of claim 5, wherein the plug includes a protuberance having a flared shape becoming narrower as it moves away from the base, the holes of the base including a corresponding shape to receive the protuberance.

13. The connector of claim 5, wherein the protuberance of the plug has a flared shape becoming wider as it moves away from the base, the holes of the base having a corresponding shape to receive the protuberance.

14. The connector of claim 8, wherein the protuberance of the plug comprises two parts performing the electrical function and optionally the magnetic function, separated by an insulator, the layer of the base that performs the electrical function being designed to transmit electrical signals.

15. The connector of claim 8, wherein the layer of the base that is not traversed by the holes is a discontinuous layer, having a form of a grid or independent parts that are not electrically connected.

16. The connector of claim 7, wherein a layer traversed by the holes is a discontinuous layer.

17. The connector of claim 5, wherein the protuberance of the plug performs an elastic function.

18. The connector of claim 6, wherein the layer of the base performing an electrical function is made up of two separate parts that are not electrically connected, the protuberance or the base of the plug making it possible to electrically connect these two parts when the plug is connected to the base.

19. The connector of claim 1, wherein the base includes a plurality of protuberances and the plug includes a cavity.

20. The connector of claim 19, wherein the base comprises at least one layer performing a mechanical support function and the plurality of protuberances is made directly on the mechanical support layer or on an intermediate layer, the protuberances, the layer performing a mechanical support function or the intermediate layer performing an electrical function and optionally a magnetic function, and the plug comprises a cylindrical part defining the cavity that is closed by a base, the electrical function of the plug being performed by the cylindrical part or the base and the potential magnetic function of the plug being performed by the cylindrical part or the base.

21. The connector of claim 20, wherein the base comprises, on the layer performing the mechanical support function, an intermediate layer, the electrical function and the potential magnetic function being performed by the layer or the intermediate layer, the protuberances being made on the layer or on the intermediate layer, the electrical function and the potential magnetic function of the plug being performed by the cylindrical part.

22. The connector of claim 20, wherein the base comprises, on the layer performing the mechanical support function, protuberances made directly on this mechanical support layer, the protuberances performing the electrical function and optionally a magnetic function, the electrical function and the potential magnetic function of the plug being performed by the base.

23. The connector of claim 20, wherein the base comprises, on the layer performing the mechanical support function, an intermediate layer performing the electrical function, the protuberances being made on this intermediate layer and optionally performing the magnetic function, the cylindrical part of the plug performing the electrical function and its base optionally performing the magnetic function.

24. The connector of claim 23, wherein the protuberances perform the electrical function and the intermediate layer optionally performs a magnetic function.

25. The connector of claim 1, which includes a plurality of plugs, the number of which is smaller than that of the second connection means of the base.

26. A medical device intended to be fixed on the skin of a user, comprising an electrical connector of claim 1.

27. The device of claim 26, wherein the second connection means of the base are advantageously distributed so as to occupy more than 1% of the total surface area of the device, and in particular more than 5% of this surface area.