Apparatus for providing skin cuts to a predetermined measure

• US 4,157,086 A
• Filed: 12/29/1977
• Issued: 06/05/1979
• Est. Priority Date: 10/13/1975
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Farmindustria SA (Abbott Laboratories Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Farmindustria SA (Abbott Laboratories Incorporated)
• Inventors: Valentini, Luigi, Praga, Claudio, Maiorano, Michele
• Primary Examiner(s): Michell, Robert W.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Thaler, Michael H.
• Application Number:
  US05/865,398
• Time in Patent Office: 523 Days
• Field of Search: 128/314, 128/2 G, 128/2 R, 128/305, 30/272 R
• US Class Current: 600/369
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/32093 for skin incisions

Abstract

Improved apparatus for providing skin cuts to a predetermined measure in order to determine blood bleeding time, comprising a casing having a cutting blade accommodated therein and restrained to the casing through a pin coupling within an elongate groove. The blade is moved by a rotating spring member to cause its cutting end to project from a casing slit to a degree and travel that are exactly predetermined and repeatable.

Claims

1. An apparatus for providing cutaneous or skin cuts to a predetermined measure, comprising:

a casing having a bottom plate and slit formed in said bottom plate;

a manually operable member exterior to the casing and coupled thereto,

a first spring coupling said manually operable member to said casing;

a movable rigid assembly coupled to said casing, said assembly comprising an arm having an elongated slot at a distal end thereof relative to said bottom plate and an elongated groove intermediate between said slot and the other end of said arm, a bladeholder mounted on said arm, a blade with a cutting end coupled to said bladeholder, and a second spring for biasing said assembly such that said assembly is movable between two end of stroke positions at which said cutting end of said blade is farthest away from said bottom plate under and respectively against the action of said second spring;

means for coupling said assembly to said casing, said coupling means comprising a first pin integral with said casing inserted into and movable within said elongated slot of said arm of said rigid assembly, a rotatable member extending through said casing and coupled to said manually operable member, said rotatable member having a second pin integral therewith and inserted into and movable within said elongated groove of said arm such that said assembly and said shaft are loaded by said first spring, the assembly arm being urged towards said slit by said second spring and restrained at an intermediate location along its length by means of said second pin, said manually operable member provided for moving the assembly to that end of stroke position at which said first spring is loaded;

a manually releasable member for retaining the assembly at that end of stroke position at which said first spring is loaded;

whereby upon release of said manually releasable member rotational movement is transmitted to said rotatable member by said first spring, said rotatable member then acting on said arm by means of said second pin in said groove such that said cutting end of said blade defines a generally curvilinear trajectory through the casing at one side of said slit, followed by a relatively rectilinear movement to the other side of said slit, and then a curvilinear return trajectory to the interior of the casing, the end of said slot farther from said bottom plate contacting said first pin integral with the casing after the blade cutting end protrudes from said slit while allowing free movement of the second pin integral with the rotating member in said groove, the radial distance between said first pin contacting said end of said slot farther from said bottom plate and the cutting end of said blade defining a radius of curvature of said relatively rectilinear movement of said blade cutting end.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a pawl is integral with said rotating member and bears on an abutment fixed to the casing to determine the two ends of stroke for the blade.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said casing has a blade calibrating plate mounted thereon and movable between a position, at which it overlies said slit, and a position at which it is moved away from the slit.

4. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a tooth is integral with said calibrating plate and engages a notch of a disc integral with said movable member for preventing it from rotating under the conditions at which the plate is moved above said slit and the blade is at that end of stroke position at which said spring is loaded.