Puncture needle cartridge and lancet for blood collection

• US 20050145520A1
• Filed: 12/14/2004
• Published: 07/07/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Healthcare Holdings Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Ilo, Toshiaki, Shinohara, Noriyuki, Amano, Yoshinori, Kurokawa, Koya
• Granted Patent: US 7,604,118 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 206/365
• 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 5/150305 Packages specially adapted for piercing devices or blood sampling devices kits for diabetes A61M5/003; packaging in general B65D
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150358 Strips for collecting blood, e.g. absorbent optical reagent test strips G01N21/8483; chemical reagent test strips G01N33/4875, G01N33/52
• 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 5/150725 removal procedure linked to further actions, e.g. cocking of the piercing device, which indicate that the piercing device is used or tempered
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/151 Devices specially adapted for taking samples of capillary blood, e.g. by lancets , needles or blades
• 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 5/1519 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

A lancet is pressed against a puncture needle cartridge while fitting a puncture needle loading inlet of the lancet to the axis of a puncture needle on the puncture needle cartridge. At this time, in order to facilitate the operation, one of plural puncture needles arranged in parallel is tilted up from its initial position at a predetermined angle, and the puncture needle is guided into a puncture needle holding rod of the lancet, and simultaneously, the puncture needle is pressed up to a position where the rear end part of the needle pushes the bottom surface of a puncture needle loading chamber of the puncture needle holding rod, whereby the puncture needle is loaded. When discarding a used puncture needle, the puncture needle is inserted into a lancet guide member of the puncture needle cartridge, whereby the puncture needle is reliably captured to be discarded.

Claims

1. A puncture needle cartridge wherein

a plurality of puncture needles, each being integrally formed by plastic molding, are arranged in a line on a single substrate, with front ends thereof being integrally plastic-molded with the substrate, and

rear ends of the respective puncture needles are open-terminated.

2. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 1 wherein

the substrate has a side surface in its longitudinal direction, on which the plural puncture needles are arranged in parallel.

3. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 1 wherein

the plural puncture needles are independent of one another, and

the front ends of the respective puncture needles are connected to the substrate with flexibility so that one of the puncture needles which are arranged in parallel within one plane can be tilted downward or upward to a state where the puncture needle intersects the plane.

4. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 1 wherein

when each puncture needle is separated from the substrate, a needle portion of the puncture needle is exposed, and a cap which has covered the puncture needle remains integrally-connected to the substrate.

5. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 1 wherein

the substrate has, on a side surface thereof, a mechanism for capturing and holding a used puncture needle.

6. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 5 wherein

the substrate has the used puncture needle holding mechanism, at a side surface that is perpendicular to the side surface on which the plural puncture needles are arranged within one plane.

7. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 5 wherein

a lancet that holds a used puncture needle is pressed against the used puncture needle holding mechanism provided at the side surface of the substrate, and

after the used puncture needle holding mechanism captures the used puncture needle, holding of the used puncture needle by the lancet is released, and the lancet is moved backward, whereby the used puncture needle holding mechanism holds the used puncture needle.

8. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 5 wherein

when a used puncture needle that is held by the puncture needle holding mechanism provided at the side surface of the substrate is externally pressed by a used puncture needle that is held by the lancet, the previously used puncture needle that is held by the holding mechanism is dropped into a waste box of the puncture needle cartridge to be discarded.

9. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 8 wherein

an inner bottom of a puncture needle holding rod provided in the lancet, which rod holds the rear end of the puncture needle, has a rotation prevention mechanism that serves as a rotation stop for the rear end of the puncture needle when the puncture needle is twisted to exposes the cap at the front end of the puncture needle.

10. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 8 wherein

the puncture needle has, in the center thereof, a stopping concave part for holding the rear part of the puncture needle with puncture needle holding claws of the puncture needle holding mechanism provided in the lancet, and separating the rear part of the puncture needle from the front part thereof.

11. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 8 wherein

the substrate has an insertion slot connected to the waste box, through which a used biological data measurement sensor that has been used for measurement of biological data from the collected blood is dropped.

12. A blood collection lancet for performing puncture using a puncture needle that is taken out of the puncture needle cartridge defined in claim 1 wherein

the lancet body is moved from the rear end side of the puncture needle toward the puncture needle in the direction of the axis of the puncture needle to insert the puncture needle in the lancet and automatically hold the needle by the lancet, and

the puncture needle is pulled backward to expose the front end of the puncture needle from the puncture needle cap that is integrally molded with the puncture needle cartridge, thereby attaching and holding the puncture needle.

13. A puncture needle cartridge comprising:

a bottom case in which a plurality of puncture needles are arranged in parallel, an end of each puncture needle being integrally connected to an inner wall of the bottom case;

a slide cover that is slidably provided with respect to the bottom case so as to close an upper opening of the bottom case; and

said slide cover having a convex portion at an end of a puncture needle support that is integrated with the slide cover and supports the puncture needles from the bottom, and said convex portion pushing up the plural puncture needles one by one at a predetermined angle when the slide cover slides along the bottom case.

14. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 13 wherein

the bottom case has, at a side surface thereof, a mechanism for capturing and holding a used puncture needle.

15. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 14 wherein

the bottom case has the used puncture needle holding mechanism at a side surface that is perpendicular to the side surface on which the plural puncture needles are arranged within one plane.

16. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 15 wherein

a lancet that holds a used puncture needle is pressed against the used puncture needle holding mechanism provided at the side surface of the substrate, and

after the used puncture needle holding mechanism captures the used puncture needle, holding of the used puncture needle by the lancet is released, and the lancet is moved backward, whereby the used puncture needle holding mechanism holds the used puncture needle.

17. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 15 wherein

when a used puncture needle that is held by the puncture needle holding mechanism provided at the side surface of the substrate is externally pressed by a used puncture needle that is held by the lancet, the previously used puncture needle that is held by the holding mechanism is dropped into a waste box of the puncture needle cartridge to be discarded.

18. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 17 wherein

the bottom case has an insertion slot connected to the waste box, through which a used biological data measurement sensor that has been used for measurement of biological data from the collected blood is dropped.

19. A puncture needle cartridge as defined in claim 17 wherein the bottom case and the plural puncture needles are integrally plastic-molded, and a junction between them has flexibility.