Dry powder dispersing apparatus and methods for their use
First Claim
1. An apparatus for aerosolizing a powdered medicament, the apparatus comprising:
- a pressurization cylinder, a piston slidable within the cylinder to pressurize a gas within the cylinder;
a handle coupled to the cylinder, the handle being movable between an extended position and a home position to pressurize the gas within the cylinder;
an aerosolizing mechanism adapted to aerosolize a powdered medicament that is held within a receptacle with pressurized gas from the cylinder;
a carriage assembly adapted to receive the receptacle and to couple the receptacle to the aerosolizing mechanism; and
a first and a second interlock which are operably engageable with the carriage assembly to prevent coupling of the receptacle with the aerosolizing mechanism, wherein the first interlock is released to allow movement of the carriage upon movement of the handle to the extended position, and wherein the second interlock is engaged when the receptacle is partially inserted into the carriage assembly.
4 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
The invention provides various apparatus and methods for aerosolizing a powdered medicament. In one exemplary embodiment, an apparatus includes a pressurization cylinder, and a piston which is slidable within the cylinder to pressurize a gas. A handle is coupled to the piston and is movable between an extended position and a home position to pressurize the gas. An aerosolizing mechanism is included and is configured to aerosolize a powdered medicament that is held within a receptacle with pressurized gas from the cylinder. A carriage assembly is included to receive the receptacle and to couple the receptacle to the aerosolizing mechanism. A first and a second interlock are operably engageable with the carriage assembly to prevent coupling of the receptacle with the aerosolization mechanism. The first interlock is released to allow movement of the carriage upon movement of the handle to the extended position. The second interlock remains engaged if the receptacle is only partially inserted into the carriage assembly.
-
Citations
23 Claims
-
1. An apparatus for aerosolizing a powdered medicament, the apparatus comprising:
-
a pressurization cylinder, a piston slidable within the cylinder to pressurize a gas within the cylinder;
a handle coupled to the cylinder, the handle being movable between an extended position and a home position to pressurize the gas within the cylinder;
an aerosolizing mechanism adapted to aerosolize a powdered medicament that is held within a receptacle with pressurized gas from the cylinder;
a carriage assembly adapted to receive the receptacle and to couple the receptacle to the aerosolizing mechanism; and
a first and a second interlock which are operably engageable with the carriage assembly to prevent coupling of the receptacle with the aerosolizing mechanism, wherein the first interlock is released to allow movement of the carriage upon movement of the handle to the extended position, and wherein the second interlock is engaged when the receptacle is partially inserted into the carriage assembly. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
-
-
4. A method for aerosolizing a powdered medicament that is held within a receptacle, the method comprising:
-
inserting the receptacle into a carriage assembly until a first interlock is released from the carriage assembly;
extending a handle to a fully extended position to release a second interlock from the carriage assembly;
retracting the handle to a retracted position to produce a charge of pressurized gas; and
operating a fire button to move the carriage assembly toward an aerosolizing mechanism until the receptacle is coupled with the aerosolizing mechanism and until the charge of pressurized gas is released to aerosolize the powdered medicament within the receptacle.
-
-
5. An apparatus for aerosolizing a powdered medicament, the apparatus comprising:
-
a housing;
a pressurization cylinder;
a piston slidable within the cylinder to pressurize a gas within the cylinder, wherein the piston is pivotally attached to the housing;
a handle operably attached to the housing and the cylinder to move the cylinder relative to the piston to pressurize a gas within the cylinder; and
an aerosolization mechanism to receive gas from the cylinder to aerosolize a powdered medicament. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 9)
-
-
10. A system for aerosolizing a powdered medicament, the system comprising:
-
a receptacle having a powdered medicament;
a carriage having an opening to receive the receptacle;
an aerosolizing mechanism to aerosolize the medicament in the receptacle upon delivery of the receptacle to the aerosolizing mechanism by the carriage; and
an interlock which is movable to engage the carriage to prevent movement of the carriage toward the aerosolizing mechanism, wherein the interlock engages the carriage when the receptacle is not fully inserted into the carriage. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13)
-
-
14. A device for aerosolizing a powdered medicament, the device comprising:
-
a housing;
a capture chamber extending from the housing;
an aerosolizing mechanism disposed in the housing to introduce a powdered medicament into the capture chamber, wherein the aerosolizing mechanism includes air channels to allow air to enter into the capture chamber when a patient inhales to extract the powdered medicament from the capture chamber, and wherein the aerosolizing mechanism further includes a structure to distribute air entering into the capture chamber through the air channels such that the powdered medicament is removed from the capture chamber as a bolus that is substantially unmixed with the entering air. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
-
-
20. A method for supplying a powdered medicament to a patient, the method comprising:
-
dispersing a powdered medicament within a capture chamber;
inhaling from the capture chamber to extract the powdered medicament; and
allowing air to enter the capture chamber in a manner such that the powdered medicament is extracted from the chamber in a bolus followed by the entering air, wherein the air entering step comprises regulating the pressure of the entering air.
-
-
21. A method for supplying a powdered medicament to a patient, the method comprising:
-
dispersing a powdered medicament within a capture chamber;
inhaling from the capture chamber to extract the powdered medicament; and
allowing air to enter the capture chamber in a manner such that substantially none of the incoming air mixes with the powdered medicament as the powdered medicament is extracted from the capture chamber, wherein the air entering step further comprises diverting the entering air into air channels with an air flow divider.
-
-
22. A device for aerosolizing a powdered medicament, the device comprising:
-
a housing having at least one piercing element which is adapted to pierce a hole into a receptacle containing a powdered medicament;
a core which is insertable into the housing, the core having an extraction lumen and at least one air channel which is aligned with the piercing element when the core is inserted into the housing; and
a source of pressurized gas to extract the powdered medicament through the extraction lumen when the extraction lumen is inserted into the receptacle.
-
-
23. An apparatus for aerosolizing a powdered medicament, the apparatus comprising:
-
a pressurization cylinder;
a piston slidable within the cylinder to pressurize a gas within the cylinder;
a handle coupled to the cylinder, the handle being movable between an extended position and a home position to pressurize the gas within the cylinder;
an aerosolizing mechanism adapted to aerosolize a powdered medicament that is held within a receptacle with pressurized gas from the cylinder; and
an interlock which prevents coupling of the aerosolizing mechanism with the receptacle until the handle is moved to the extended position.
-
Specification