System for withdrawing blood

• US 20040034318A1
• Filed: 04/30/2003
• Published: 02/19/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Roche Diabetes Care Inc. (Roche Holding AG)
• Original Assignee: Roche Diagnostics Operations Incorporated (Roche Holding AG)
• Inventors: Fritz, Michael, List, Hans, Weiss, Thomas, Deck, Frank, Sacherer, Klaus-Dieter, Immekus, Claudio
• Granted Patent: US 8,043,317 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 604/19
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150022 for capillary blood or interstitial fluid
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150183 Depth adjustment mechanism using end caps mounted at the distal end of the sampling device, i.e. the end-caps are adjustably positioned relative to the piercing device housing for example by rotating or screwing
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150412 Pointed piercing elements, e.g. needles, lancets for piercing the skin blade-like piercing elements A61B5/150442
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150519 Details of construction of hub, i.e. element used to attach the single-ended needle to a piercing device or sampling device
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150549 Protectors removed by rotational movement, e.g. torsion or screwing
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150572 Pierceable protectors, e.g. shields, caps, sleeves or films, e.g. for hygienic purposes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150618 Integrally moulded protectors, e.g. protectors simultaneously moulded together with a further component, e.g. a hub, of the piercing element
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150717 manually removed
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/15113 Manually triggered, i.e. the triggering requires a deliberate action by the user such as pressing a drive button
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/15117 comprising biased elements, resilient elements or a spring, e.g. a helical spring, leaf spring, or elastic strap
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/15153 Multiple piercing elements stocked in a single compartment
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/15163 Characterized by propelling the piercing element in an axial direction relative to the disc
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/15186 Devices loaded with a single lancet, i.e. a single lancet with or without a casing is loaded into a reusable drive device and then discarded after use; drive devices reloadable for multiple use
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1519 comprising driving means, e.g. a spring, for propelling the piercing unit
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/15194 fully automatically retracted, i.e. the retraction does not require a deliberate action by the user, e.g. by terminating the contact with the patient's skin

Abstract

The present invention includes a system for withdrawing body fluids. The system includes a drive unit having a plunger which is moved from a resting position into a lancing position in order to carry out a lancing process and a lancing unit containing a lancet with a needle. The plunger and lancet are coupled together by a form fit in order to carry out a lancing process. The invention additionally concerns a method for temporarily extending a needle from a device for withdrawing body fluid as well as a lancing unit that can be attached to the drive unit.

Claims

1. System for withdrawing body fluid comprising

a drive unit (100, 100′

) having a plunger (10, 110) which is moved from a resting position into a lancing position in order to carry out a lancing process and

a lancing unit (20, 120, 120′

) containing a lancet (30, 130, 130′

) with a needle which in the resting position of the plunger is arranged within the lancing unit and is displaced by the plunger when it moves into the lancing position in such a manner that the needle at least partially emerges through an exit opening (41, 41′

) in the lancing unit,

wherein the plunger and lancet are coupled together by a form fit in order to carry out a lancing process and

the plunger has a holding area (11) which can be held in a form-fitting manner by a holding device (32a, 32b) on the lancet or

the lancet has a holding area (131) which can be held in a form-fitting manner by a holding device (132a, 132b) on the plunger, wherein the holding device is firstly opened and closes around the holding area by means of a longitudinal movement

wherein at least one holding element of the holding device moves transversely to the longitudinal direction.

2. System as claimed in claim 1, in which the lancing unit contains a sleeve (40) in which the lancet is movably located.

3. System as claimed in claim 2, in which the holding device of the lancet or of the plunger has at least one movable element (32a, 32b) which is moved transversely when the lancet is moved within the sleeve towards the lancing position such that a form-fitting coupling of the plunger and lancet occurs.

4. System as claimed in claim 2 or 3, in which the sleeve has a channel in which the lancet is moved and the lancet has a taper by means of which the at least one movable element is moved transversely when the lancet is moved towards the lancing position.

5. System as claimed in one of the previous claims, in which the lancing unit is detachably attached to the drive unit.

6. System as claimed in claim 5, in which the plunger is coupled to the lancet in a form-fitting manner when the lancing unit is attached to the drive unit.

7. System as claimed in claim 5 or 6, in which the plunger and lancet are disconnected when the lancing unit is removed from the drive unit.

8. System as claimed in claim 1 or 3, in which the holding device has at least two flexible elements which move towards one another when the plunger is coupled to the lancet.

9. System as claimed in claim 1, which has a device for adjusting the extent to which the needle emerges from the lancing unit.

10. System as claimed in claim 1, which has a magazine containing a plurality of lancets which can be successively coupled to the plunger of the drive unit.

11. System as claimed in claim 1, in which the holding device has two or more holding elements (132a, 132b) which close when the lancing unit is placed on the drive unit such that the holding elements hold the holding area of the lancet.

12. System as claimed in claim 11, in which the holding elements are connected by a spring element which moves the holding elements towards one another.

13. System as claimed in claim 12, in which the holding elements can be tensioned by a tensioning element against the force of the spring elements so that they are opened and placing the lancing unit on the drive unit releases the tensioning element such that the holding elements move towards one another.

14. Method for temporarily extending a needle from a device for withdrawing body fluid comprising the steps

coupling a lancet (30, 130, 130′

) to a plunger (10, 110) of a drive unit in a form-fitting manner where either the plunger has a holding area (11) and the lancet has a holding device (32a, 32b) or the lancet has a holding area (131) and the plunger has a holding device (132a, 132b),

moving the plunger from a resting position in which the needle of the lancet is located inside a lancing unit into a position in which the needle emerges from an exit opening of the lancing unit, wherein at least one holding element of the holding device is moved transversely to the longitudinal direction by means of the longitudinal movement of the holding device such that at least one holding element at least partially closes around the holding area

moving the plunger back in order to retract the needle into the lancing unit.

15. Method as claimed in claim 14, in which the lancet is coupled to the drive unit by attaching the lancing unit to the drive unit.

16. Method as claimed in claim 14, in which the lancet and plunger are disconnected by removing the lancing unit from the drive unit.

17. Lancing unit (20) for attachment to a drive unit comprising

a lancet (30) having a needle and a holding device with holding elements (32a, 32b) to make a form-fitting connection with a plunger of the drive unit in which the holding device is firstly opened and the holding elements are moved transversely to the longitudinal direction when the lancet is moved longitudinally in a sleeve (40).

18. Lancing unit as claimed in claim 17, wherein the sleeve has a taper by which means the holding elements are moved towards each other when the lancet is moved in the sleeve.

19. System for withdrawing body fluid comprising

a drive unit (100, 100′

) having a plunger (10, 110) which is moved from a resting position into a lancing position in order to carry out a lancing process and

a lancing unit (20, 120, 120′

) containing a lancet (30, 130, 130′

) with a needle which in the resting position of the plunger is arranged within the lancing unit and is displaced by the plunger when it moves into the lancing position in such a manner that the needle at least partially emerges through an exit opening (41, 41′

) in the lancing unit,

wherein the plunger and lancet are coupled together by a form fit in order to carry out the lancing process in a longitudinal direction by coupling a holding device (211) which is firstly opened to a holding area (232) by moving at least one holding element transversely to the longitudinal direction.