Disposable electro-fluidic connector with data storage

• US 5,405,269 A
• Filed: 02/26/1993
• Issued: 04/11/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 05/10/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Bird Products Corporation (Becton, Dickinson & Co)
• Original Assignee: Bicore Monitoring Systems, Inc. (Allied Healthcare Products Incorporated)
• Inventors: Stupecky, Josef J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Abrams, Neil
• Application Number:
  US07/998,400
• Time in Patent Office: 774 Days
• Field of Search: 439/188, 439/488, 439/489, 439/490, 439/620, 439/191-195, 128/736, 128/691, 128/692, 128/693, 128/725, 128/673, 128/748, 128/713, 604/283, 604/905, 607/37, 607/38, 607/59
• US Class Current: 439/191
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/08 Sensors provided with means for identification, e.g. barcodes or memory chips
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/227 Sensors with electrical connectors
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/087 Measuring breath flow
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/005 Electrical coupling combined with fluidic coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/502 composed of different pieces H01R13/514 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/5224 for medical use
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6271 Latching means integral with the housing H01R13/6276, H01R13/6277, H01R13/6278 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/631 for engagement only
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 285/921 Snap-fit
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 439/955 including electronic identifier or coding means
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 604/905 Aseptic connectors or couplings, e.g. frangible, piercable

Abstract

A modular constructed connector for interconnecting with a single male and female connector a plurality of electrical lines and fluid lines while maintaining a consistent bubble-tight fluid interconnection. The modular design permits the number of fluidic and electrical connections to be varied depending upon the particular application. In one embodiment, a programmable microchip is mounted within this connector. This chip stores the response characteristics of a flow meter used, for example, as an air flow measurement device in a respiratory circuit. The connector includes a passage for providing fluidic communication between the flow meter or other sensor and a medical monitoring device. In turn, the monitoring device communicates electrically with the programmable microchip to determine a correction factor to be applied to the fluidic signal received from the flow meter.

Claims

1. A connector for a non-electrical disposable flow meter for establishing a path of fluidic communication between said disposable flow meter and a medical device, said disposable flow meter having a relatively large measurement accuracy tolerance, said connector comprising:

a male core having at least two electrical pins protruding from said core;

a female core having at least two electrical receptacles positioned therein, each said receptacle configured to closely receive and electrically contact one of said electrical pins;

at least two electrical leads connected to each said electrical receptacles and adapted to establish a path of electrical current flow between said connector and said medical device;

a passage disposed within each said male and female cores for providing a path of fluidic communication between said disposable flow meter and said medical device; and

an electronically programmable memory device mounted on said connector and electrically connectable to said medical device so that (i) the response curve of said disposable flow meter over a predetermined range can be ascertained and permanently stored in said connector electronically without altering the physical configuration of said connector itself and (ii) said response curve can be electronically accessed by said medical device in order to apply a correction factor to the fluidic signal received from said disposable flow meter.

2. The connector as recited in claim 1, wherein said passage for providing a path of fluidic communication comprises:

at least one hollow pneumatic pin protruding from said male core and engageable with a corresponding fluid connector on said disposable flow meter; and

at least one hollow pneumatic receptacle in said female core and engageable with a corresponding fluid connector in said medical device, said pneumatic receptacle being positioned in said female core for closely receiving said pneumatic pin to establish a passageway for fluidic communication between said medical device and said disposable flow meter.

3. The connector as recited in claim 2, wherein said disposable flow meter is a variable area obstruction gas flow meter.

4. The connector as recited in claim 2, wherein said electronically programmable memory device comprises an electronic microchip memory mounted on said male core.

5. The connector as recited in claim 1, wherein said electronically programmable memory device comprises an electronic microchip memory adapted to record a plurality of individual data points representative of the response curve of said disposable flow meter over a predetermined range such that the response curve can be electronically accessed by said medical device in order to adjust the output thereof accordingly.

6. The connector as recited in claim 5, wherein said electronic microchip memory has a memory capacity of at least about one thousand (1K) bits of data.

7. A multiple electrical and fluidic connector for a non-electrical disposable medical sensor for rapidly connecting and disconnecting with a single male and female connector a plurality of electrical lines and fluid lines while maintaining consistent, bubble-tight fluid interconnection thereof, said connector having a modular design so that the number of fluidic and electrical connections may be varied depending upon the particular application, said connector comprising:

a common upper cover shell and a common lower cover shell each being substantially identical regardless of the number of electrical and fluid connections;

a core member retained between and within said upper and lower cover shells, said core member comprising;

a male core comprising male tubular hollow fluidic pins, corresponding to the number of fluid connections, extending from the end of said male core, and male electrical pins, corresponding to the number of electrical connections, extending from the end of said male core; and

a female core comprising a female fluidic receptacle having female fluidic socket openings corresponding to said male fluid pins and female electrical socket openings corresponding to said male electrical pins;

said connector further comprising

an electronically programmable memory device mounted on said connector and electrically connectable to a medical device so that (i) information representative of the response characteristics of said disposable sensor over a predetermined range is permanently stored in said connector electronically without altering the physical configuration of said connector itself and (ii) said representative information can be accessed by said medical device in order to calibrate a non-electrical signal output of said disposable sensor to a linear standard.

8. The multiple electrical and fluidic connector as recited in claim 7 wherein said electronically programmable memory device comprises a serially accessible EEPROM memory mounted on said male core.

9. The multiple electrical and fluidic connector as recited in claim 8, wherein said EEPROM memory has a capacity of at least about one thousand (1K) bits of data and is adapted to record a plurality of data points representative of the response curve of said disposable sensor over a predetermined range.