Needle retraction system
First Claim
1. A medical assembly, comprising:
- a barrel having an internal cavity extending along a longitudinal axis;
a plunger assembly adapted for longitudinal sliding movement within the barrel cavity;
a sleeve mounted to the barrel, the sleeve defining a forward end and a rearward end and an internal passage extending therebetween;
a hub member mounted within the sleeve in a first position toward the forward end of the sleeve;
a needle mounted to the hub member, the needle defining a lumen;
passage means interposed between the needle lumen and the barrel cavity for establishing communication therebetween;
bias means for urging the hub member toward the rearward end of the sleeve;
a releasable retainer mechanism engageable with the hub member for retaining the hub member in its first position against the force of the bias means and movable to a release position for disengaging the hub member; and
a trigger for selectively moving the releasable retainer mechanism to its release position in response to either engagement of the plunger assembly with the trigger or manual engagement with the trigger by a user regardless of the position of the plunger, wherein engagement of the hub member is released and the bias means functions to draw the hub member rearwardly to withdraw the needle into the internal passage defined by the sleeve.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A retractable needle medical assembly includes a barrel and a plunger assembly defining an internal passageway. A sleeve is mounted to the barrel and extends into the internal passageway defined by the plunger assembly. An actuator member, in the form of an actuator tube, is mounted within the sleeve toward its rearward end, and includes a trigger which can either be manually engaged by the user or engaged by the plunger when the plunger is in its full-forward position relative to the barrel. A hub is received within the sleeve passage, and a spring bears against the hub so as to urge the hub to a rearward, retracted position. The actuator tube engages the hub so as to maintain the hub in a forward position, and a needle assembly consisting of a needle and a head is engaged with the hub by the user prior to operation of the assembly. Depression of the trigger results in movement of the actuator tube to disengage the actuator tube from the hub, so as to allow the spring to propel the hub, and thereby the needle assembly, rearwardly to retract the needle into the sleeve passage and to prevent accidental contact therewith. The needle retraction system may be incorporated into a medical device such as a syringe, or into a system for collecting blood or other body fluids from a patient.
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Citations
17 Claims
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1. A medical assembly, comprising:
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a barrel having an internal cavity extending along a longitudinal axis; a plunger assembly adapted for longitudinal sliding movement within the barrel cavity; a sleeve mounted to the barrel, the sleeve defining a forward end and a rearward end and an internal passage extending therebetween; a hub member mounted within the sleeve in a first position toward the forward end of the sleeve; a needle mounted to the hub member, the needle defining a lumen; passage means interposed between the needle lumen and the barrel cavity for establishing communication therebetween; bias means for urging the hub member toward the rearward end of the sleeve; a releasable retainer mechanism engageable with the hub member for retaining the hub member in its first position against the force of the bias means and movable to a release position for disengaging the hub member; and a trigger for selectively moving the releasable retainer mechanism to its release position in response to either engagement of the plunger assembly with the trigger or manual engagement with the trigger by a user regardless of the position of the plunger, wherein engagement of the hub member is released and the bias means functions to draw the hub member rearwardly to withdraw the needle into the internal passage defined by the sleeve. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A medical assembly, comprising:
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a barrel having an internal cavity extending along a longitudinal axis; a plunger assembly adapted for longitudinal sliding movement within the barrel cavity; a sleeve mounted to the barrel, the sleeve defining a forward end and a rearward end and an internal passage extending therebetween; a hub member mounted within the sleeve in a first position toward the forward end of the sleeve; a needle mounted to the hub member, the needle defining a lumen; passage means interposed between the needle lumen and the barrel cavity for establishing communication therebetween; bias means for urging the hub member toward the rearward end of the sleeve; an actuator movably mounted to the sleeve for movement between a retaining position and a release position, the actuator including a trigger member; and wherein the hub member includes one or more flexible retainers engageable with the actuator for retaining the hub member in its first position when the actuator is in its retaining position; and structure for moving the flexible retainers out of engagement with the actuator member upon movement of the actuator to its release position for enabling the bias means to draw the hub member rearwardly to withdraw the needle into the internal passage defined by the sleeve. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A medical assembly, comprising:
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a barrel having an internal cavity extending along a longitudinal axis; a plunger assembly adapted for longitudinal sliding movement within the barrel cavity; a sleeve mounted to the barrel, the sleeve defining a forward end and a rearward end and an internal passage extending therebetween; a hub member mounted within the sleeve in a first position toward the forward end of the sleeve; a needle mounted to the hub member, the needle defining a lumen; passage means interposed between the needle lumen and the barrel cavity for establishing communication therebetween; bias means for urging the hub member toward the rearward end of the sleeve; an actuator movably mounted to the sleeve for movement between a retaining position and a release position; a trigger for selectively moving the actuator to its release position in response to either engagement of the plunger assembly with the trigger or manual engagement of the trigger by a user regardless of the position of the plunger; wherein the hub member includes one or more flexible retainers engageable with the actuator for retaining the hub member in a first position when the actuator is in its retaining position; and structure for moving the flexible retainers out of engagement with the actuator member upon movement of the actuator to its release position for enabling the bias means to draw the hub member rearwardly and to withdraw the needle into the internal passage defined by the sleeve.
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Specification