Disposable ambulatory microprocessor controlled volumetric pump

• US 5,807,075 A
• Filed: 05/06/1996
• Issued: 09/15/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 11/23/1993
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sterling Investments LC
• Original Assignee: Sarcos Incorporated (Rtx Corporation)
• Inventors: Miles, Scott D., Jacobsen, Stephen C., Davis, Clark C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Thorpe, Timothy
• Assistant Examiner(s): Korytnyk, Peter G.
• Application Number:
  US08/643,472
• Time in Patent Office: 862 Days
• Field of Search: 417/326, 417/313, 417/415, 417/360, 417/44.1, 417/44.2, 417/44.4, 417/63, 604/151, 604/152
• US Class Current: 417/44.2
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/142 Pressure infusion, e.g. using pumps
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 17/00 Pumps characterised by combination with, or adaptation to, specific driving engines or motors
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 17/03 driven by electric motors
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 2201/1208 Angular position of the shaft
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 2205/05 Pressure after the pump outlet
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 49/12 by varying the length of stroke of the working members
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 53/02 Packing the free space between cylinders and pistons
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 53/164 Stoffing boxes
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 7/0015 and having a slidable movement
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 9/02 the means being mechanical
• CPC Class Codes: F04B 9/045 the means being eccentrics
• CPC Class Codes: F05C 2225/04 PTFE [PolyTetraFluorEthylene]
• CPC Class Codes: F16K 41/12 with approximately flat diaphragm

Abstract

An ambulatory volumetric pump apparatus includes a housing defining a channel therethrough having an inlet for receiving a fluid and an outlet for discharging a fluid, a pump operable to pump fluid through the channel, a motor for operating the pump in response to control signals, and a programmable microprocessor for selectively supplying control signals to the motor to cause the motor to operate. The programmable microprocessor is "programmed" by manually setting rotatable knobs having faces which extend through but are generally flush with the housing exterior surface. The knobs include indicia to provide a visual display of the setting of the knobs and thus of the parameters of operation of the pump. An under-pressure sensor is disposed after the inlet of the channel to detect a suction or vacuum in the channel and to signal the microprocessor if such condition is detected. An over-pressure sensor is disposed before the outlet of the channel to signal the microprocessor if greater than expected pressure is detected in the channel. The microprocessor then sounds an alarm, shuts off the motor, or both.

Claims

1. Ambulatory volumetric pump apparatus comprising

channel means having an inlet for receiving a fluid, and an outlet for discharging the fluid,

pump means operable to pump fluid through the channel,

a pump chamber coupled into the channel means, and having a first opening for allowing fluid to flow into the chamber, a second opening for allowing fluid to flow out of the chamber, and a third opening for disposing the pump means therein,

motor means for operating the pump means in response to control signals, and

programmable control means for selectively supplying control signals to the motor means to cause the motor means to operate, the programmable control means providing means for varying one or more pumping parameters.

2. Apparatus as in claim 1 further including a housing in which the channel means, pump means, motor means and control means are disposed.

3. Apparatus as in claim 2 wherein said control means includes manually manipulable means for varying one or more of the pumping parameters selected from the group consisting of flow rate, total dosage time, number of doses or pump cycles over some period of time, and total volume of fluid to be pumped.

4. Apparatus as in claim 3 wherein said manually manipulable means comprise rotatable knobs having top faces which are generally flush with a housing exterior surface.

5. Apparatus as in claim 4 wherein said knobs have inscribed on the top faces indicia which provide a visual display of the setting of the knobs.

6. Apparatus as in claim 2 wherein said housing comprises

a base housing in which are disposed the motor means and programmable control means,

a casing in which are disposed the channel means and pump means, and

clip means to enable clipping the casing onto the base housing,

said motor means including a drive means exposed through an opening in a base wall of the base housing, and

said pump means including a driven hub engageable with said drive gear, to be driven thereby, when the casing is clipped onto the base housing.

7. Apparatus as in claim 6 wherein said drive means and driven hub are rotatable generally about the same axis of rotation, wherein the drive means includes a gear drive tang means, and wherein the drive hub includes a hub drive tang means engageable for driven rotation by the gear drive tang means at the same relative angle of rotation from one engagement to another.

8. Apparatus as in claim 6 further including means disposed on the base housing for signalling the programmable control means when the casing is clipped onto the base housing.

9. Apparatus as in claim 6 further including seal means disposed about the drive means to rotate therewith, said seal means including a plurality of first concentric walls, and wherein the base housing includes a plurality of second concentric walls formed on an inside surface of said base wall about said opening, to fit and mesh between the first concentric walls to prevent entry of liquid into the base housing through said opening.

10. Apparatus as in claim 9 wherein the intermeshing walls of the seal means and the base wall are spaced so as to produce a capillary action when exposed to liquid.

11. Apparatus as in claim 6 wherein said motor means further includes a drive shaft and a pinion gear mounted on the drive shaft to rotate about a first axis when the motor is operated, and wherein said drive means comprises a disk mounted to rotate about a second axis which is generally perpendicular to the first axis, said disk including gear teeth disposed circumferentially on the disk to extend axially thereof to mesh with the pinion gear and cause rotation of the disk when the pinion gear is rotated.

12. Apparatus as in claim 11 wherein said drive means further includes an annular bead disposed concentrically with respect to the disk gear teeth, and wherein said motor means further includes roller means disposed adjacent the pinion gear to rotate therewith, and to maintain rolling contact with the annular bead to thereby establish and maintain a predetermined spatial relationship between the pinion gear and disk gear teeth.

13. Apparatus as in claim 6 wherein said casing includes a body in which at least a portion of the channel means is formed on an underside thereof, and in which the pump means is disposed on the body,

a top cover disposed over an upper side of the body,

a bottom cover disposed over the underside of the body, and

a gasket membrane disposed on at least a portion of the body, and between the body and the bottom cover, to form one side of at least a portion of the channel means.

14. Apparatus as in claim 13 wherein said pump means includes a pump crank shaft which, when rotated, drives the pump means and which extends through the gasket membrane to couple to the driven hub, said gasket membrane forming a sterility seal about the pump crank shaft.

15. Apparatus as in claim 13 further including over-pressure sensing means disposed adjacent a part of the gasket membrane forming a side of the channel means, near the outlet, for detecting an increase in pressure in the channel means.

16. Apparatus as in claim 15 wherein the gasket membrane is caused to bulge when pressure in the channel means increases, and wherein said over-pressure sensing means comprises means for detecting bulges in the gasket membrane.

17. Apparatus as in claim 13 further including under-pressure sensing means disposed adjacent a part of the gasket membrane forming a side of the channel means, near the inlet, for detecting a decrease in pressure in the channel means.

18. Apparatus as in claim 17 wherein the gasket membrane is caused to deflect inwardly toward the channel means when pressure in the channel means decreases, and wherein said under-pressure sensing means comprises means for detecting deflections of the gasket membrane.

19. Apparatus as in claim 1 further including inlet valve means disposed downstream of the inlet of the channel means to control the flow of fluid into the channel means, and outlet valve means disposed upstream of the outlet of the channel means to control the flow of fluid out of the channel means, said inlet and outlet valve means being normally closed, and being operable to selectively open under control of the programmable control means when the pump means is being operated.

20. Apparatus as in claim 19 wherein said inlet and outlet valve means each comprises

a resilient membrane forming one side of at least a portion of the channel means and being deformable into that portion of the channel means to block the flow of fluid,

nipple means moveable to deform the membrane into the channel means to block the flow of fluid, and moveable away from the channel means to release the membrane and allow the flow of fluid,

spring means disposed to normally urge the nipple means to deform the membrane, and

means for selectively moving the nipple means away from the channel means to allow the flow of fluid.

21. Apparatus as in claim 20 wherein said resilient membrane is comprised of polymeric material.

22. Apparatus as in claim 20 wherein said resilient membrane is comprised of a material selected from the group consisting of silicone, polyurethane, and natural rubber, polysiloxene-modifier, styrene/ethylene-butylene/styrene, and EPDM/polypropylene alloy.

23. Apparatus as in claim 20 wherein said nipple means comprises

an elongate lever having a first end and second end and mounted to pivot about an axis spaced from a first end, and

a nipple extending from the first end generally at a right angle from the lever, to contact and deform the membrane when the lever is pivoted to a first position and to release the membrane when the lever is pivoted to a second position.

24. Apparatus as in claim 23 wherein said motor means includes a gear means having a cam track defined thereon, said cam track moving when the motor means is operated, and wherein said moving means comprises,

an actuation lever mounted to pivot about an axis spaced from one end,

a push means extending from the actuation lever to contact and move the second end of the elongate lever to the second position, when the actuation lever is pivoted, and

a cam follower means disposed on the actuation lever to rest on and ride over the cam track and cause the actuation lever to pivot.

25. Apparatus as in claim 24 wherein said spring means is disposed to normally urge the first end of the elongate lever and nipple to contact and deform the membrane.

26. Apparatus as in claim 24 wherein said gear means includes

an axle means about which the gear means rotates to rotate the cam track, said axle means including a lower end for resting on a support as the gear means is rotated, and

a support cup bearing for receiving and holding said lower end of the axle means.

27. Apparatus as in claim 26 wherein said lower end of the axle means is generally spherical, and wherein the support cup bearing is generally concave with inverse conical side walls against which the lower end of the axle means rests.

28. Apparatus as in claim 1 further including a filter chamber formed in the channel means and into which fluid flows before exiting through the outlet, and a hydrophilic membrane disposed between the filter chamber and the outlet for filtering the fluid as it flows from filter chamber to the outlet.

29. Apparatus as in claim 28 further including a hydrophobic membrane disposed between the filter membrane and the outside to allow air in the fluid to diffuse therethrough to the outside.

30. Apparatus as in claim 1 wherein the pump means comprises:

piston means disposed in the third opening of the pump chamber to reciprocate in and out of the pump chamber to pump fluid therethrough, and

sphincter seal means positioned over the third opening of the pump chamber and about the piston means to prevent fluid from leaking from the pump chamber out the third opening.

31. Apparatus as in claim 30 wherein the pump means further comprises

crank means coupled to the motor means to rotate when the motor means is operated, and

connecting means pivotally coupled between the crank means and the piston means to cause the piston means to reciprocate when the crank means is rotated.

32. Apparatus as in claim 1 wherein said motor means includes a drive means shaft for rotating to cause operation of the pump means, said drive means shaft including a lobe thereon, said apparatus further including a switch means operable by the lobe after one revolution of the drive means shaft to turn off the motor means.