Medical fluid machine with supply autoconnection

• US 9,586,003 B2
• Filed: 08/27/2014
• Issued: 03/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 07/05/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Baxter Healthcare SA (Baxter International Inc.), Baxter International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Baxter Healthcare SA (Baxter International Inc.), Baxter International Inc.
• Inventors: Lee, Patrick, Biewer, John, Childers, Robert W., Foohey, Mark W., Gilbert, Richard R. II, Kopychev, Andrey, Murphey, Randy, Orand, Austin J., Reitz, Douglas, Roger, Rodolfo, Steck, John E.
• Primary Examiner(s): GILBERT, ANDREW M
• Application Number:
  US14/470,326
• Publication Number:
  US 20140360594A1
• Time in Patent Office: 923 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 1/152 Details related to the interface between cassette and machine
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 1/153 the cassette being adapted for heating or cooling the treating fluid, e.g. the dialysate or the treating gas
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 1/155 with treatment-fluid pumping means or components thereof
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 1/156 Constructional details of the cassette, e.g. specific details on material or shape
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 1/159 specially adapted for peritoneal dialysis
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 1/28 Peritoneal dialysis ; Other peritoneal treatment, e.g. oxygenation
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 1/284 Continuous flow peritoneal dialysis [CFPD]
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/12 with interchangeable cassettes forming partially or totally the fluid circuit
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/58 Means for facilitating use, e.g. by people with impaired vision
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/6054 Magnetic identification systems
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/6072 Bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 39/18 Methods or apparatus for making the connection under sterile conditions, i.e. sterile docking
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/162 Needle sets, i.e. connections by puncture between reservoir and tube ; Connections between reservoir and tube in jet-action syringes A61M5/30; connectors for tubes having sealed ends and a needle for piercing them A61M39/14
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/16813 by controlling the degree of opening of the flow line
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/6116 With holding means functioning only during transportation assembly or disassembly
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49826 Assembling or joining

Abstract

A system for automatically connecting tubing to a medical fluid machine includes at least one fluid container including a tube having a cap on an end of the tube, a shuttle configured to receive the tube, a driving mechanism configured to translate the shuttle, a cap removal device configured to remove the cap from the end of the tube, and a control unit programmed to cause (i) the driving mechanism to translate the shuttle holding the tube in a first direction towards the cap removal device so that the cap removal device can engage the tube cap, (ii) the driving mechanism to translate in a second direction away from the cap removal device so that the cap removal device removes the cap from the end of the tube, and (iii) the driving mechanism to translate the shuttle in the first direction with the cap removed from the tube so that the tube can be mated with the medical fluid machine.

Claims

1. A system for automatically connecting tubing to a medical fluid machine, the system comprising:

at least one fluid container including a tube having a cap on an end of the tube;

a shuttle configured to receive the tube;

a driving mechanism configured to translate the shuttle;

a cap removal device configured to remove the cap from the end of the tube; and

a control unit programmed to cause (i) the driving mechanism to translate the shuttle holding the tube in a first direction towards the cap removal device so that the cap removal device can engage the tube cap, (ii) the driving mechanism to translate in a second direction away from the cap removal device so that the cap removal device removes the cap from the end of the tube, and (iii) the driving mechanism to translate the shuttle in the first direction with the cap removed from the tube so that the tube can be mated with the medical fluid machine.

2. The system of claim 1, which includes an occluder configured to occlude the tube while the driving mechanism translates the shuttle.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the control unit is programmed to cause the occluder to occlude the tube before the cap removal device engages the tube cap.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the control unit causes a sealing membrane on the end of the tube to be spiked open when the tube is mated with the medical fluid machine.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the medical fluid machine includes a cassette, and wherein the tube is mated with the cassette at control unit action (iii).

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the cap removal device includes at least one finger configured to remove the cap from the end of the tube.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the cap removal device is configured to rotate the at least one finger away from a path traveled by the shuttle after removing the cap from the end of the tube.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein each at least one fluid container includes a tube with a cap on its end, and wherein the control unit is programmed to cause the shuttle to translate each of the tubes simultaneously.

9. A system for automatically connecting tubing to a medical fluid machine, the system comprising:

at least one fluid container including a tube having a cap on an end of the tube;

a shuttle configured to receive the tube;

a driving mechanism configured to translate the shuttle along a path;

a finger rotating system configured to engage the cap; and

a control unit programmed to cause (i) the finger rotating system to rotate while engaged with the cap so that the cap is removed from the tube and the path of the shuttle, and (ii) the driving mechanism to translate the shuttle in a direction towards the medical fluid machine with the cap removed from the tube so that the tube can be mated with the medical fluid machine.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the control unit is programmed to cause the driving mechanism to translate the shuttle in a direction away from the medical fluid machine after the finger rotating system has engaged the cap.

11. The system of claim 9, which includes an occluder configured to occlude the tube while the driving mechanism translates the shuttle.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the control unit is programmed to cause the finger rotating system to move out of a translation path of the shuttle.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein the control unit causes a sealing membrane on the end of the tube to be spiked open when the tube is mated with the medical fluid machine.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein the medical fluid machine includes a cassette, and wherein the tube is mated with the cassette at control unit action (ii).

15. A method for automatically connecting tubing to a medical fluid machine, the method comprising:

placing a tube of a medical fluid container into a shuttle;

translating the shuttle in a first direction towards a cap removal device so that a cap of the tube is engaged by the cap removal device;

translating the shuttle in a second direction away from the cap removal device to remove the cap from the tube; and

translating the shuttle in the first direction towards the medical fluid machine so that the tube is mated with the medical fluid machine.

16. The method of claim 15, which includes occluding the tubing before translating the shuttle towards the cap removal device.

17. The method of claim 15, which includes moving the cap removal device out of a translational path of the shuttle so that the shuttle can be translated in the first direction to mate the tube with the medical fluid machine.

18. The method of claim 17, which includes rotating the cap removal device out of the translational path of the shuttle.

19. The method of claim 15, which includes restraining the cap in a pocket of the cap removal device before translating the shuttle in the first direction towards the cap removal device.

20. The method of claim 15, which includes reading an identification tag on the tubing to identify the contents of the medical fluid within the container.