MULTITUBE BLOOD SAMPLER
First Claim
1. A blood sampler adapted to receive a plurality of sample tubes of the type which are evacuated and have stoppers closing the ends thereof, and comprising:
- a. a retainer, which is open at the rear end thereof, to receive said plurality of sample tubes, stopper first, at selected tube positions within the retainer;
b. a head traversing the front end of the retainer;
c. a cannula mounted upon the forward face of the head and extended forwardly therefrom;
d. a plurality of tubular insert needles mounted upon the rearward face of the head, extending rearwardly therefrom, and lying within the retainer, with a needle being located upon the head at the approximate center of each said selected tube position for contact with and insertion into the stopper of a tube placed in the retainer at said selected tube position; and
e. a separate passageway within the head, independently interconnecting the cannula with each insert needle to permit the passage through the cannula to communicate with the passage through each insert needle, whereby blood will flow through the cannula, when inserted into a patient'"'"''"'"'s vein, And into the plurality of sample tubes when they are placed in the retainer with the insert needles being inserted through the stoppers.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A multitube blood sampler of a type which uses two, three or more evacuated sample tubes of the type which are closed by rubber stoppers. The sampler combines a retainer which holds the sample tubes and a head fastened onto the front of the retainer which carries a forwardly projecting cannula and rearwardly projecting insert needles. The insert needles, within the retainer, pierce the rubber stoppers of the tubes. The unit is completed by a branched passageway within the head which connects the cannula to the insert needles so that when the cannula is inserted into the vein of a patient and the insert needles inserted into the several tubes, all of the tubes will be filled with a blood sample. The head carrying the cannula and insert needles is separable from the retainer and preferably, is provided as a throwaway unit once it has been used.
78 Citations
13 Claims
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1. A blood sampler adapted to receive a plurality of sample tubes of the type which are evacuated and have stoppers closing the ends thereof, and comprising:
- a. a retainer, which is open at the rear end thereof, to receive said plurality of sample tubes, stopper first, at selected tube positions within the retainer;
b. a head traversing the front end of the retainer;
c. a cannula mounted upon the forward face of the head and extended forwardly therefrom;
d. a plurality of tubular insert needles mounted upon the rearward face of the head, extending rearwardly therefrom, and lying within the retainer, with a needle being located upon the head at the approximate center of each said selected tube position for contact with and insertion into the stopper of a tube placed in the retainer at said selected tube position; and
e. a separate passageway within the head, independently interconnecting the cannula with each insert needle to permit the passage through the cannula to communicate with the passage through each insert needle, whereby blood will flow through the cannula, when inserted into a patient'"'"''"'"'s vein, And into the plurality of sample tubes when they are placed in the retainer with the insert needles being inserted through the stoppers.
- a. a retainer, which is open at the rear end thereof, to receive said plurality of sample tubes, stopper first, at selected tube positions within the retainer;
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2. In the sampler defined in claim 1, wherein said retainer is formed as a flat unit, substantially rectangular in plan and oval in cross section, and being adapted to hold the tubes in a side-by-side arrangement.
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3. In the sampler defined in claim 1, wherein said head is a separable member from the retainer member, and including further, a means adapted to attach the head onto the retainer when the sampler is being used.
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4. In the sampler defined in claim 3, wherein the attaching means includes a hooklike lug on one member and a transversely disposed surface on the other member adapted to be engaged by the lug.
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5. In the sampler defined in claim 3, wherein a portion of one member laps a portion of the other member, and wherein the attaching means includes a lug at the lapped portion of one member and a socket at the lapped portion of the other member adapted to receive the lug.
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6. In the sampler defined in claim 5, wherein one of the members is resilient at the lapping, interlocking portions and is thereby adapted to flex to effect disengagement of the lug from the socket.
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7. In the sampler defined in claim 3, wherein said head includes a hood lapping the retainer having diametrically opposed, inwardly directed lugs, wherein said retainer includes diametrically opposed sockets at its end adapted to be engaged by the lugs when the two members are interconnected, and wherein said retainer includes slits at each side of one socket of sufficient extent as to form an elastic strip which may be flexed sufficiently as to release the lug from the socket.
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8. In the sampler defined in claim 3, wherein the head comprises a pair of flat wafers welded together as a unitary member, including a forward, outer wafer and a rearward, inner wafer, with the forward wafer carrying the cannula, with the rearward wafer carrying the insert needles and with said passageways being at the innerface of the two wafers.
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9. In the sampler defined in claim 3, wherein the underside portion of the retainer is formed as an arched surface adapted to lie upon a patient'"'"''"'"'s arm and the cannula, mounted upon the head, is adjacent to this undersurface.
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10. In the sampler defined in claim 9, wherein the walls of the retainer are sufficiently transparent as to view the stopper end of a tube inserted therein, and a mark on the walls of the retainer adapted to facilitate the partial insertion of a tube to the aforesaid selected depth.
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11. A blood sampler adapted to receive a plurality of individual sample tubes, each of which is evacuated and is closed at its end by a comparatively thick rubber stopper, and comprising in combination therewith:
- a. a retainer having a front end, a rear end, a flattened undersurface adapted to lie upon the body of a patient when a blood sample is being taken and a laterally widened socket cavity therein which opens at the rear end to receive said plurality of sample tubes stopper-first, in a longitudinal side-by-side array at selected positions therein, and with the floor portions of the socket cavity being adjacent to the flattened undersurface. b. a head traversing the front end of the retainer;
c. a cannula having an insert section adapted to be inserted into the vein of a patient, mounted upon, outstanding forwardly from the forward face of the head and positioned at the approximate lateral center of the head but being offset to the bottom edge of the head with the insert portion being substantially parallel with and lying closely adjacent to a plane which is generally defined by the flattened undersurface of the retainer;
d. a plurality of tubular insert needles having a length sufficient to penetrate the tube stoppers, with one needle for each tube, mounted upon, outstanding rearwardly from the rearward surface of the head, within the socket cavity and at each selected tube position, said nEedles lying in spaced parallelism to the cannula insert section and in a plane parallel with the aforesaid plane defined by the flattened undersurface of the retainer but above this plane and near the center of the head; and
e. a passageway means in the head communicating between each tubular needle and the cannula whereby, when each of the plurality of tubes is partially inserted into the retainer opening, to a selected depth, the stopper of each tube will contact a needle and the needles will be partially inserted into their stoppers to block off the passageway means to prevent a flow of blood from the cannula and through the needles whenever the cannula is inserted into a patient'"'"''"'"'s vein, but when one of the tubes is thereafter completely inserted into the retainer opening, the needle penetrates the stopper and the passageway means is open to the interior of the tube to permit blood to flow thereinto.
- a. a retainer having a front end, a rear end, a flattened undersurface adapted to lie upon the body of a patient when a blood sample is being taken and a laterally widened socket cavity therein which opens at the rear end to receive said plurality of sample tubes stopper-first, in a longitudinal side-by-side array at selected positions therein, and with the floor portions of the socket cavity being adjacent to the flattened undersurface. b. a head traversing the front end of the retainer;
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12. In the sampler defined in claim 11, wherein the walls of the retainer are sufficiently transparent as to view the stopper end of a tube inserted therein;
- and a mark on the walls of the retainer adapted to facilitate the partial insertion of a tube to the aforesaid selected depth.
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13. In the sampler defined in claim 11, wherein the underside portion of the retainer is formed as an arched surface adapted to lie upon a patient'"'"''"'"'s arm and the cannula, mounted upon the head, is adjacent to this undersurface.
Specification