Injection apparatus

• US 5,823,998 A
• Filed: 02/20/1997
• Issued: 10/20/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 08/24/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: ELI Lilly Japan Kabushiki Kaisha (Eli Lilly and Company)
• Original Assignee: ELI Lilly Japan Kabushiki Kaisha (Eli Lilly and Company)
• Inventors: Yamagata, Hideto
• Primary Examiner(s): HINDENBURG, MAX F
• Application Number:
  US08/793,190
• Time in Patent Office: 607 Days
• Field of Search: 604/167, 604/131, 604/164, 604/181
• US Class Current: 604/131
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2005/2414 from the side
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/2448 comprising means for injection of two or more media, e.g. by mixing
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/31535 Means improving security or handling thereof, e.g. blocking means, means preventing insufficient dosing, means allowing correction of overset dose
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/31543 piston rod reset means, i.e. means for causing or facilitating retraction of piston rod to its starting position during cartridge change
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/31553 without axial movement of dose setting member
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/31561 using freely adjustable volume steps
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/3158 performed by axially moving actuator operated by user, e.g. an injection button

Abstract

In an injection apparatus, a guide screw shaft of a body section (20) and a screw of an operation knob (34) of a movable section (30) allow the movable section (30) to move relative to the body section (20). An ampule (7) is radially inserted into a ampule holding portion (36) of the movable section (30) and temporarily held by means of an elastic blade (36a) and at the same time, a flange (75) of the ampule (70) is inserted into a flange insertion portion (38). When the operation knob (34) is rotated, the movable section (30) moves toward the body section (20) together with the ampule (70). A guide sleeve formed in the body section (20) is inserted into a syringe (77) of the ampule (70). An operation knob (50) is rotated to set the feeding amount of a piston rod, and the operation knob (50) is pressed to perform an injection. When a release button (40) is pressed, the piston rod is returned to an initial position. This construction allows the ampule (70) to be easily mounted on the injection apparatus and the state of medicine in the ampule (70) to be easily seen.

Claims

1. An injection apparatus, comprising an ampule having a piston for sealing an agent in a syringe, comprising:

piston rod means for pressing the piston of the ampule in an axial direction;

an ampule holding part having an ampule insertion outer opening, having an original circumference, which opening is expanded circumferentially when the ampule is inserted into the opening and having an ampule insertion space for inserting the ampule thereinto, wherein the outer opening is restored to its original circumference after the ampule is inserted into the ampule insertion space, so that the ampule is held by the ampule holding part temporarily; and

ampule gripping means for gripping the ampule and preventing axial movement thereof.

2. The injection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the ampule holding part has a pair of ampule-gripping elastic blades for securing the inserted ampule therebetween;

the opening is defined between side edges of the pair of ampule-gripping elastic blades and between front edges thereof;

the ampule insertion space is defined by an inner peripheral surface of the pair of ampule-gripping elastic blades; and

the distance between the side edges of the pair of ampule-gripping elastic blades is shorter than an outer diameter of the syringe of the ampule.

3. The injection apparatus according to claim 1, which further comprises a body section which abuts the ampule and which contains the piston rod means and a movable section having the ampule holding part, wherein the body section and the movable section have driving means that allows the body section and the movable section to move relative to each other between an ampule insertion position at which the ampule is inserted into the ampule holding part of the movable section and a setting position at which the movable section is closest to the body section.

4. The injection apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the driving means comprises screw feeding means which has a guide screw shaft on the body section and a nut-type operation knob mounted on the movable section such that the operation knob is unmovable in the axial direction thereof, rotateable, and screws on a periphery of the guide screw shaft.

5. The injection apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the ampule has a flange, and wherein the ampule-gripping means comprises:

a flange hold-down part formed at a predetermined position of the ampule insertion space of the movable section, contacting a front surface of the flange of the inserted ampule, and moving the ampule rearward by pressing the front surface of the flange of the ampule when the movable section moves to the setting position, and

a flange pressing part which is provided on the body section around the piston rod means and which is pressed against a rear surface of the flange of the ampule when the movable section and the body section are set at the setting position.

6. The injection apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the flange pressing part comprises:

a spacer which freely engages the periphery of the piston rod means, and which is placed at a predetermined position of the ampule insertion space when the movable section is located at the ampule insertion position so that the spacer substantially contacts the rear surface of the flange of the ampule; and

an elastic O-ring provided at a predetermined position of the periphery of the piston road means such that the elastic O-ring is axially unmovable and pressed against a rear surface of the spacer when the movable section is located at the setting position.

7. The injection apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the piston rod means comprises:

a guide sleeve which is fixed to the body section, projects forward from the body section, is concentric with the inserted ampule, and has an outer diameter generally equal to an inner diameter of the syringe of the ampule;

a piston rod which is inserted into the guide sleeve such that the piston road is nonrotateable with respect to the guide sleeve and axially slideable, and which has a screw hole; and

a screw rod which has a screw part, formed at a front end thereof, and screwing on a screw part in a form of a screw hole of the piston rod, and which has an operation knob formed at a rear end thereof, wherein the screw rod is movable together with the piston rod between an initial position and a pushing-in position.

8. The injection apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the piston rod means further comprises rotation regulation means for regulating the rotational direction of the screw rod in one direction.

9. The injection apparatus according to claim 8, which further comprises:

detection means for detecting the rotational amount of the screw rod of the piston rod means and detecting a return of the screw rod from the pushing-in position to the initial position;

display means for displaying the injection amount in correspondence to the rotational amount of the screw rod of the piston rod means after the screw rod returns to the initial position; and

a rotation regulation release means for releasing the rotation regulation means of the piston rod means when the ampule is removed from the ampule insertion space.

10. The injection apparatus according to claim 7, wherein a concave part is formed on a peripheral surface of the piston rod, wherein the concave part comprises a bottom surface generally parallel with an inner peripheral surface of the guide sleeve, a front step surface being provided on a front side of the bottom surface and extending from the bottom surface outwardly in a radial direction of the piston rod, and a rear step surface being provided on a rear side of the bottom surface and extending from the bottom surface outwardly in the radial direction of the piston rod, and wherein the piston rod means further comprises:

spring means for automatically returning the screw rod and the piston rod to the initial position when a force for pushing in the screw rod and the piston rod is released, and

a stopper member which is positioned in the concave of the piston rod, slides in contact with the bottom surface of the piston rod and the inner peripheral surface of the guide sleeve with a predetermined frictional force, moves together with the piston rod with the stopper member in contact with the rear step surface of the piston rod when the piston rod is pushed in, and stops the movement of the piston rod with the stopper member in contact with the front step surface of the piston rod when the piston rod is returned by the spring means, wherein a frictional force between the stopper member and the bottom surface of the piston rod is smaller than an automatic return force of the spring means; and

a frictional force between the stopper member and the inner peripheral surface of the guide sleeve is greater than the automatic return force of the spring means.

11. The injection apparatus according to claim 8, wherein a concave part is formed a peripheral surface of the piston rod, wherein the concave part comprises a bottom surface generally parallel with an inner peripheral surface of the guide sleeve, a front step surface being provided on a front side of the bottom surface and extending from the bottom surface outwardly in a radial direction of the piston rod, and a rear step surface being provided on a rear side of the bottom surface and extending from the bottom surface outwardly in the radial direction of the piston rod, and wherein the piston rod means further comprises:

spring means for automatically returning the screw rod and the piston rod to the initial position when a force for pushing in the screw rod and the piston rod is released, and

a stopper member which is positioned in the concave of the piston rod, slides in contact with the bottom surface of the piston rod and the inner peripheral surface of the guide sleeve with a predetermined frictional force, moves together with the piston rod with the stopper member in contact with the rear step surface of the piston rod when the piston rod is pushed in, and stops the movement of the piston rod with the stopper member in contact with the front step surface of the piston rod when the piston rod is returned by the spring means, wherein a frictional force between the stopper member and the bottom surface of the piston rod is smaller than an automatic return force of the spring means; and

a frictional force between the stopper member and the inner peripheral surface of the guide sleeve is greater than the automatic return force of the spring means.

12. The injection apparatus according to claim 9, wherein a concave part is formed on a peripheral surface of the piston rod, wherein the concave part comprises a bottom surface generally parallel with an inner peripheral surface of the guide sleeve, a front step surface being provided on a front side of the bottom surface and extending from the bottom surface outwardly in a radial direction of the piston rod, and a rear step surface being provided on a rear side of the bottom surface and extending from the bottom surface outwardly in the radial direction of the piston rod, and wherein the piston rod means further comprises:

spring means for automatically returning the screw rod and the piston rod to the initial position when a force for pushing in the screw rod and the piston rod is released, and

a stopper member which is positioned in the concave of the piston rod, slides in contact with the bottom surface of the piston rod and the inner peripheral surface of the guide sleeve with a predetermined frictional force, moves together with the piston rod with the stopper member in contact with the rear step surface of the piston rod when the piston rod is pushed in, and stops the movement of the piston rod with the stopper member in contact with the front step surface of the piston rod when the piston rod is returned by the spring means, wherein a frictional force between the stopper member and the bottom surface of the piston rod is smaller than an automatic return force of the spring means; and

a frictional force between the stopper member and the inner peripheral surface of the guide sleeve is greater than the automatic return force of the spring means.

13. The injection apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the stopper member is made of a frictional/elastic material such as a rubber, wherein the front step surface of the piston rod is an inclined surface which extends from the bottom surface outwardly in the radial direction and towards a front side of the piston rod, and wherein a wedge-shaped space is formed between the inclined surface and the inner peripheral surface of the guide sleeve.

14. The injection apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the stopper member is made of a frictional/elastic material such as a rubber, wherein the front step surface of the piston rod is an inclined surface which extends from the bottom surface outwardly in the radial direction and towards a front side of the piston rod, and wherein a wedge-shaped space is formed between the inclined surface and the inner peripheral surface of the guide sleeve.

15. The injection apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the stopper member is made of a frictional/elastic material such as a rubber, wherein the front step surface of the piston rod is an inclined surface which extends from the bottom surface outwardly in the radial direction and towards a front side of the piston rod, and wherein a wedge-shaped space is formed between the inclined surface and the inner peripheral surface of the guide sleeve.

16. The injection apparatus according to claim 10, wherein a stroke of the stopper member moving between the front step surface of the piston rod and the rear step surface thereof is smaller than the amount of the screw rod which is fed relative to the piston rod by rotating the screw rod to set a dosage amount for injection.

17. The injection apparatus according to claim 11, wherein a stroke of the stopper member moving between the front step surface of the piston rod and the rear step surface thereof is smaller than the amount of the screw rod which is fed relative to the piston rod by rotating the screw rod to set a dosage amount for injection.

18. The injection apparatus according to claim 12, wherein a stroke of the stopper member moving between the front step surface of the piston rod and the rear step surface thereof is smaller than the amount of the screw rod which is fed relative to the piston rod by rotating the screw rod to set a dosage amount for injection.

19. The injection apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the concave is formed as a circumferential concave, and the stopper member is a ring-shaped stopper member provided on the circumferential concave.

20. The injection apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the concave is formed as a circumferential concave, and the stopper member is a ring-shaped stopper member provided on the circumferential concave.

21. The injection apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the concave is formed as a circumferential concave, and the stopper member is a ring-shaped stopper member provided on the circumferential concave.