Vaginal speculum apparatus
DCFirst Claim
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1. A vaginal speculum apparatus, said apparatus comprising:
- a portable illumination assembly defined by a housing that retains a portable power supply, at least one LED and an integral curved light pipe made from a light transmissive material, said at least one LED being adjacent to and optically coupled to a proximal end of said integral curved light pipe; and
a vaginal speculum comprising an upper blade and a lower blade, said lower blade including a trough-shaped blade section and a handle portion that receives a portion of said portable illumination assembly and wherein said portable illumination assembly, including said integral light pipe, is releasably attached to the handle portion of said speculum such that the curved light pipe of said illumination assembly extends into the trough-shaped blade section of said speculum.
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Abstract
A vaginal speculum apparatus includes a portable illumination assembly that is releasably attached to one of the upper blade and lower blade of a disposable vaginal speculum. The portable illumination assembly is defined by a housing that retains at least one LED and a portable power supply. The portable illumination assembly can be energized by an externally accessible member after the illuminator has been attached to the speculum.
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Citations
19 Claims
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1. A vaginal speculum apparatus, said apparatus comprising:
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a portable illumination assembly defined by a housing that retains a portable power supply, at least one LED and an integral curved light pipe made from a light transmissive material, said at least one LED being adjacent to and optically coupled to a proximal end of said integral curved light pipe; and a vaginal speculum comprising an upper blade and a lower blade, said lower blade including a trough-shaped blade section and a handle portion that receives a portion of said portable illumination assembly and wherein said portable illumination assembly, including said integral light pipe, is releasably attached to the handle portion of said speculum such that the curved light pipe of said illumination assembly extends into the trough-shaped blade section of said speculum. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A vaginal speculum apparatus, said apparatus comprising:
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a portable illumination assembly comprising a portable power source, at least one LED, and a mechanism for energizing said at least one LED within a common housing; and a vaginal speculum having an upper blade a lower blade, and a mechanism disposed at a proximal end of said speculum for permitting relative movement between said upper blade and said lower blade to enable dilation of a patient, said movement mechanism including a lever portion extending from a proximal end of said upper blade and defining an opening, said portable illumination assembly being entirely contained within the proximal end of one of said upper blade and said lower blade and releasably attached thereto and in which said illumination assembly is accessed for at least one of energization of said at least one LED and removal through said opening. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method for assembling a vaginal speculum apparatus, said apparatus comprising a vaginal speculum having an upper blade and a lower blade, said lower blade and said upper blade each including a proximal end and a mechanism for moving said blades relative to one another, said movement mechanism comprising a lever portion extending from the proximal end of said upper blade defining an opening and a portable illumination assembly comprising at least one battery and at least one LED retained within a common housing, said method comprising the steps of:
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configuring said portable illumination assembly with an externally accessible mechanism for energizing said at least one LED; and attaching said portable illumination assembly to the proximal end of one of said lower blade and said upper blade; and accessing the energizing mechanism of said attached illumination assembly through the opening. - View Dependent Claims (17)
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18. A vaginal speculum apparatus, said apparatus comprising:
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a portable illumination assembly comprising a portable power source, at least one LED, and a mechanism for energizing said at least one LED within a common housing; and a vaginal speculum having an upper blade and a lower blade, each of said upper blade and said lower blade having a distal end and an opposing proximal end, and a mechanism for permitting relative movement between said upper blade and said lower blade to enable dilation of a patient, said movement mechanism including a downwardly lever portion extending from the proximal end of said upper blade that engages a yoke extending upwardly from the proximal end of said lower blade, each of said lever portion and said yoke defining an opening of said speculum, said portable illumination assembly being attached to the proximal end of one of said upper blade and said lower blade and disposed such that the energization mechanism can be accessed for energizing said at least one LED only through said defined opening. - View Dependent Claims (19)
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Specification