Capsule for medical use

• US 4,239,040 A
• Filed: 10/13/1977
• Issued: 12/16/1980
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/1976
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Miyarisan Kabushiki Kaisha 2352 Oaza-Tokura Tokura-Machi Hanishina-Gun Nagano-Ken Japan
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Daini Seikosha
• Inventors: Hosoya, Takeshi, Noguchi, Kazuo, Tanaka, Fumihiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Kamm, William E.
• Application Number:
  US05/841,985
• Time in Patent Office: 1,160 Days
• Field of Search: 128/2 B, 128/2 PF, 128/2 R, 128/2 W, 128/213, 128/260
• US Class Current: 604/135
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 10/02 Instruments for taking cell samples or for biopsy A61B10/0038 and A61B10/0045 take precedence; needle locating or guiding means A61B17/3403; samplers for enzymology or microbiology C12M1/26; sampling or preparing biological specimens G01N33/48
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 31/002 Devices for releasing a drug at a continuous and controlled rate for a prolonged period of time artificial gland structures or devices A61F2/022; intra-uterine contraceptive devices A61F6/14; tampons for introducing into the vagina A61F13/20, A61L15/00; suppositories or bougies for intra-vaginal or intra-uterine application A61K9/02; physical forms of medicinal preparations for sustained or differential drug release A61K9/20, A61K9/50

Abstract

A capsule for discharging drugs into a live body or collecting samples from the body comprises an external cylinder having slidably mounted therein an internal cylinder. The internal cylinder is retained by a meltable thread at one end of the external cylinder against the biasing force of a compression spring and upon melting of the thread, the spring effects sliding of the internal cylinder to the other end of the external cylinder and during this sliding movement, a drug is pushed out of the external cylinder ahead of the moving internal cylinder or a body sample is withdrawn into the external cylinder behind the moving internal cylinder. An electric circuit including a tunable receiver responds to an externally transmitted electric signal to energize a heater for melting the thread to thereby effect sliding movement of the internal cylinder at the desired time.

Claims

1. A capsule for medical use comprising:

a cylindrical body frame having a cylindrical stepped portion;

an external cylinder mounted on an end portion of said cylindrical body frame and having at least one through hole extending through a wall portion thereof;

a recovery cylinder mounted for sliding movement from one position to another position within said external cylinder and having at least one through hole extending through a wall portion thereof and capable of communicating with said through hole of said external cylinder during sliding movement of said recovery cylinder in said external cylinder;

biasing means for exerting a biasing force on said recovery cylinder tending to slidably move the same along said external cylinder from said one position to said another position;

actuatable retaining means for releasably retaining said recovery cylinder at said one position within said external cylinder against said biasing force and operative when actuated for releasing said recovery cylinder whereby said biasing force effects sliding movement of said recovery cylinder to said another position;

an electric switching circuit including receiving means for switching on the switching circuit when an externally transmitted instructing electric signal is received by said receiving means to actuate said retaining means to thereby release said recovery cylinder; and

means for supplying electric power to said switching circuit to enable operation of said switching circuit;

said recovery cylinder including two axially spaced chambers one of which surrounds said cylindrical stepped portion of said cylindrical body frame when said recovery cylinder is in said one position, and means for hermetically separating said one of said two chambers from the other and being disposed within said other of said two chambers;

said retaining means comprising a thread hanger removably fixed and inserted into said cylindrical stepped portion of said body frame, and a thread coacting with said thread hanger for retaining said recovery cylinder at said one position against said biasing force, said thread extending over said thread hanger and having its ends secured in place by said means for hermetically separating said one of said two chambers from the other and being tensioned by said biasing means;

said receiving means including a heating device for heat-cutting said thread in response to the instructing electric signal thereby releasing said recovery cylinder whereby said biasing means effects sliding movement of said recovery cylinder to said another position and during such sliding movement a sample to be collected flows through the communicating through holes of said recovery cylinder and said external cylinder into the empty space formed behind the moving recovery cylinder.

2. The capsule for medical use according to claim 1;

wherein said means for hermetically separating said two chambers comprises a pillar-shaped plug inserted into a damper hole provided at a front portion of said external cylinder and through which the air in the chamber defined by the interior surface of said external cylinder is discharged.

3. A capsule for medical use comprising:

a cylindrical body frame;

an external cylinder mounted on an end portion of said cylindrical body frame and having at least one through hole extending through a wall portion thereof;

a recovery cylinder mounted for sliding movement from one position to another position within said external cylinder and having at least one through hole extending through a wall portion thereof and capable of communicating with said through hole of said external cylinder during sliding movement of said recovery cylinder in said external cylinder;

biasing means for exerting a biasing force on said recovery cylinder tending to slidably move the same along said external cylinder from said one position to said another position;

actuatable retaining means for releasably retaining said recovery cylinder at said one position within said external cylinder against said biasing force and operative when actuated for releasing said recovery cylinder whereby said biasing force effects sliding movement of said recovery cylinder to said another position;

an electric switching circuit including receiving means for switching on the switching circuit when an externally transmitted instructing electric signal is received by said receiving means to actuate said retaining means to thereby release said recovery cylinder;

means for supplying electric power to said switching circuit to enable operation of said switching circuit;

a drug packed in the empty space defined in the internal portion of said external cylinder; and

a sealing plug for closing said through hole of said external cylinder.

4. The capsule for medical use according to claim 3;

wherein said recovery cylinder includes two chambers one of which surrounds said cylindrical stepped portion of said cylindrical body frame, and means for hermetically separating said one of said two chambers from the other and being disposed within said other of said two chambers;

said retaining means comprising a thread hanger removably fixed and inserted into said cylindrical stepped portion of said body frame, and a thread coacting with said thread hanger for retaining said recovery cylinder at said one position against said biasing force, said thread extending over said thread hanger and having its ends secured in place by said means for hermetically separating said one of said two chambers from the other and being tensioned by said biasing means;

said receiving means including a heating device for heat-cutting the thread in response to the instructing electric signal thereby releasing said recovery cylinder whereby said biasing means effects sliding movement of said recovery cylinder to said another position and during such sliding movement the drug discharges through the through hole of said external cylinder.

6. The capsule for medical use according to claim 3, wherein said switching circuit includes a circuit block having means for receiving the instructing electric signal, a tuning fork mounted within said cylindrical body frame and operated by the signal generated from said circuit block and having attached thereto a feeding claw, and a cam shaft rotatably mounted within said body frame and having mounted thereon a cam and a ratchet wheel which is in engagement with said feeding claw;

and wherein said retaining means includes a stopper having one end portion mounted on the inside of said body frame and the other end portion in engagement with the internal surface of said recovery cylinder through a hole formed in said body frame and which is in contact with said cam on said cam shaft whereby said other end portion of said stopper is disengaged from said recovery cylinder by said cam when said tuning fork is operated by the signal generated from said circuit block to thereby release said recovery cylinder for sliding movement.

5. A capsule for medical use comprising:

a cylindrical body frame;

an external cylinder mounted on an end portion of said cylindrical body frame and having at least one through hole extending through a wall portion thereof;

a recovery cylinder mounted for sliding movement from one position to another position within said external cylinder and having at least one through hole extending through a wall portion thereof and capable of communicating with said through hole of said external cylinder during sliding movement of said recovery cylinder in said external cylinder;

biasing means for exerting a biasing force on said recovery cylinder tending to slidably move the same along said external cylinder from said one position to said another position;

actuatable retaining means for releasably retaining said recovery cylinder at said one position within said external cylinder against said biasing force and operative when actuated for releasing said recovery cylinder whereby said biasing force effects sliding movement of said recovery cylinder to said another position;

an electric switching circuit including receiving means for switching on the switching circuit when an externally transmitted instructing electric signal is received by said receiving means to actuate said retaining means to thereby release said recovery cylinder;

means for supplying electric power to said switching circuit to enable operation of said switching circuit; and

wherein said recovery cylinder includes a flexible receiving bag made of a soft material detachably mounted in the space defined by the interior of said recovery cylinder and having a hole disposed in communication with said through hole of said recovery cylinder whereby a sample can be collected through the through hole of said external cylinder and said hole of said flexible receiving bag during sliding movement of said recovery cylinder toward said another position.

7. A capsule for use in discharging drugs into or collecting samples from a live body comprising:

an elongate hollow housing;

a movable member mounted within said housing for sliding movement therealong from an initial position to a final position and dividing the interior of said housing into a drug storage space at the forward side of said movable member and a sample collecting space at the rearward side of said movable member;

means for communicating at least one of said drug storage and sample collecting spaces to the exterior of said housing;

biasing means for exerting a biasing force on said movable member biasing said movable member toward its final position;

actuatable retaining means for releasably retaining said movable member in its initial position against the biasing force exerted by said biasing means and operative when actuated for releasing said movable member; and

electric circuit means including a tuner circuit responsive to an externally transmitted signal of a predetermined frequency for effecting actuation of said retaining means thereby releasing said movable member to undergo sliding movement toward said final position by said biasing means;

whereby drugs stored in said drug storage space can be pushed out of said housing into the live body ahead of the sliding movable member or samples from the live body can be withdrawn into said housing in said sample collecting space behind the sliding movable member.

8. A capsule according to claim 7;

wherein said means for communicating comprises means for communicating said sample collecting space to the exterior of said housing only during the course of sliding movement of said movable member.

9. A capsule according to claim 7;

wherein said retaining means includes a meltable thread secured to said movable member and strong enough to retain said movable member in said initial position against the biasing force exerted by said biasing means; and

wherein said electric circuit means includes a heater energized in response to receipt of said signal of predetermined frequency to melt said thread thereby actuating said retaining means to release said movable member.