Multi-caliber woven artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device and cleaning method

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of biomedical material manufacturing, in particular to a multi-caliber woven artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device and method, and the device comprises a cleaning positioning unit, a water bath flushing unit and a spiral reciprocating unit. By adjusting the horizontal moving position of the cleaning and positioning unit, the woven artificial blood vessels with different calibers are always in the state of equal-force washing of the inner and outer walls, micro-nano bubbles directionally and powerfully impact the inner and outer walls of the woven artificial blood vessels at a high speed according to a set spiral cleaning track, and the micro-nano bubbles are broken under impact, so that the inner and outer walls of the woven artificial blood vessels are cleaned. Dirt in threads of the woven artificial blood vessel and between fibers and yarns is cracked and directionally stripped, and the cleanliness quantitative index of the woven artificial blood vessel is met.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of implantable medical device manufacturing, in particular to a multi-caliber braided artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device and a cleaning method. Background Art

[0002] Braided artificial blood vessels are primarily used to replace diseased or damaged human blood vessels. They are implantable Class III medical devices, and meeting quantitative cleanliness standards is a prerequisite. Braided artificial blood vessels are made of soft, tubular, and threaded fabrics woven from yarns. Mechanical contact during the manufacturing process can contaminate them with contaminants such as oil and bacteria. These contaminants penetrate the tiny pores formed by the intersecting yarns, posing a significant challenge to cleaning and ensuring they meet cleanliness requirements.

[0003] To address these issues, Chinese patent CN119553448A discloses a directional micro-nano bubble cleaning device and method for braided artificial blood vessels. The device comprises a micro-nano bubble generating unit, a water circulation unit, and a directional flushing unit. This device utilizes a high-speed, powerful impact of directional micro-nano bubbles, which rupture under impact, breaking apart and removing dirt from the threads of the braided artificial blood vessels, as well as between fibers and yarns, ensuring the required cleanliness of the braided artificial blood vessels.

[0004] In the above technical solution, the rotation center of the inner and outer wall cleaning tubes is fixed. When cleaning blood vessels of different calibers, the distance between the cleaning tubes and the inner and outer walls of the blood vessels is different. The larger the diameter of the blood vessel, the smaller the flushing force of the inner wall, and the greater the flushing force of the outer wall. The uneven impact has different effects on the inner and outer walls of the blood vessel, and will also have a certain impact on the deformation of the blood vessel. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The object of the present invention is to provide a directional cleaning device and cleaning method for multi-caliber braided artificial blood vessels. By adjusting the horizontal movement position of the cleaning positioning unit, the device can adapt to the state of equal force flushing of the inner and outer walls of braided artificial blood vessels of different calibers. Micro-nano bubbles are directed at high speed and powerfully impact the inner and outer walls of the braided artificial blood vessels according to a set spiral cleaning trajectory. The micro-nano bubbles burst under the impact, break apart and directionally peel off dirt in the threads of the braided artificial blood vessels and between fibers and yarns, thereby meeting the quantitative cleanliness indicators of the braided artificial blood vessels.

[0006] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the present invention provides a multi-caliber braided artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device, which includes a cleaning and positioning unit, a water bath flushing unit, and a spiral reciprocating unit.

[0007] The cleaning and positioning unit includes a base I, a motor I, a fixed base I, a micro-nano bubble delivery tube, a micro-nano bubble delivery tube mounting plate, a linear slider I, an outer wall cleaning tube, an outer wall cleaning tube outlet, an inner wall cleaning tube, and an inner wall cleaning tube outlet; a fixed base I is installed above the base I, and a motor I is fixed to the left end of the fixed base I. The motor I drives the linear slider I to move back and forth horizontally. The linear slider I is bolted to the micro-nano bubble delivery tube mounting plate. The micro-nano bubble delivery tube mounting plate is fixedly connected to the micro-nano bubble delivery tube mounting plate. Driven by the linear slider I, the micro-nano bubble delivery tube moves back and forth. An inner wall cleaning tube and an outer wall cleaning tube of the same height and diameter are provided at the end of the micro-nano bubble delivery tube. An inner wall cleaning tube outlet is provided 5 mm from the top of the inner wall cleaning tube, and an outer wall cleaning tube outlet is provided 5 mm from the top of the outer wall cleaning tube. The inner wall cleaning tube outlet and the outer wall cleaning tube outlet are set as tapered openings with a larger inner side and a smaller outer side. The axes of the two tapered openings are collinear and the opening directions are opposite to each other, forming a micro-nano bubble counteraction.

[0008] The inner wall cleaning tube is set to have an outer diameter of 7mm, an inner diameter of 4mm, an inner diameter of the tapered mouth of 3mm, and an outer diameter of 1mm; the outer wall cleaning tube is set to have an outer diameter of 7mm, an inner diameter of 4mm, an inner diameter of the tapered mouth of 3mm, and an outer diameter of 1mm. The axial distance between the central axis of the inner wall cleaning tube and the central axis of the outer wall cleaning tube is set to 10mm.

[0009] The water bath flushing unit includes a cleaning box, a cleaning box cover, a fixed protective plate, a motor II, a circular expansion pulley mechanism, a transmission shaft, a motor III, and a reciprocating mounting plate; the bottom surface of the cleaning box is placed horizontally, and a movable cleaning box cover is provided on the top surface of the cleaning box. A braided artificial blood vessel is placed in the center of the cleaning box, and the braided artificial blood vessel is coaxially connected to the circular expansion pulley mechanism and is tightened. The circular expansion pulley mechanism is connected to the motor II for transmission. The motor II is fixedly mounted on the fixed protective plate. The center opening of the fixed protective plate leads to the transmission shaft. The transmission shaft is coaxially connected to the motor III, and the motor III is fixed on the reciprocating mounting plate.

[0010] The circular expansion pulley mechanism includes a base plate, a pinion, a pinion shaft, a large gear, and an expansion rod; a central opening of the base plate is coaxially connected to a transmission shaft, and the two rotate synchronously, and sliding grooves are evenly distributed in the circumferential direction of the base plate, and an expansion rod is arranged in the sliding groove and moves back and forth radially, and an arc-shaped plate is led out radially between the two sliding grooves, and a hole is opened on the arc plate to fix one end of the pinion shaft, and the other end of the pinion shaft is coaxially locked with the motor II, and a transmission pinion is connected in the middle of the pinion shaft, and the pinion is meshed with the large gear, and the large gear is connected to the transmission shaft bearing as a driven shaft, and circular arc-shaped notches are evenly distributed in the circumferential direction of the large gear, and the cylindrical shaft on the expansion rod moves along the circular arc-shaped notches.

[0011] The circular expansion pulley mechanism is provided with a circular expansion diameter adjustable within the range of 10 to 32 mm.

[0012] The spiral reciprocating unit includes a base II, a fixed base II, a linear slider II, and a motor IV; a fixed base II is installed on the left side of the base II, and a motor IV is fixed above the base II. The motor IV drives the linear slider II to move back and forth up and down, and a reciprocating mounting plate is bolted to the slider.

[0013] The present invention also provides a cleaning method for a multi-caliber braided artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device, comprising the following steps: (1) Motor IV drives the reciprocating plate on the linear slider II to move up, and the reciprocating plate drives the circular expansion pulley mechanism to the set upper stop point, so that the braided artificial blood vessel is placed on the arc surface of the expansion rod. At this time, the circular expansion pulley is in a contracted state, and the control motor II drives the small gear to rotate, and at the same time drives the large gear to engage and rotate. At the same time, the cylindrical axis of each expansion rod can only move radially outward along the base plate slot under the restriction of the arc slot shape of the large gear. The circular expansion pulley mechanism opens, and the self-locking motor II ensures that the braided artificial blood vessel is continuously tightened. (2) According to the determined diameter of the braided artificial blood vessel, the motor I is started, driving the micro-nano bubble delivery tube on the linear slider I to move horizontally, and the wall of the braided artificial blood vessel is in the middle position between the axis of the outer wall cleaning tube and the axis of the inner wall cleaning tube; (3) Motor IV starts, driving the reciprocating plate on the linear slider II to move downward, and the tightly-fitted braided artificial blood vessel moves downward synchronously until it is completely immersed in the liquid in the cleaning tank. The liquid temperature is set to 60°C, and the immersion time is 30 minutes. After the immersion is completed, motor IV drives the reciprocating plate on the linear slider II to move upward; (4) Micro-nano bubbles enter the outer wall cleaning tube and the inner wall cleaning tube in the cleaning box through the micro-nano bubble generating tube, and are convectively sprayed at the outlet of the outer wall cleaning tube and the outlet of the inner wall cleaning tube. The motor IV is started to drive the reciprocating moving plate on the linear slider II to move downward. At the same time, the motor III is started to drive the braided artificial blood vessel to rotate. The distance the braided artificial blood vessel moves downward for each rotation corresponds to the pitch of the braided artificial blood vessel. The micro-nano bubbles are directionally counteracted along the thread direction of the braided artificial blood vessel. The number of flushing times can be set according to the process requirements. (5) The braided artificial blood vessel moves upward, motor II reverses, the circular expansion pulley contracts, the braided artificial blood vessel is loosened, the tube is withdrawn and the next process is carried out. Beneficial effects

[0014] According to the multi-caliber woven artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device and cleaning method of the present invention, by adjusting the horizontal movement position of the cleaning positioning unit, the inner and outer walls of woven artificial blood vessels of different calibers are always in a state of equal force flushing. Micro-nano bubbles are directed at a set spiral cleaning trajectory and impact the inner and outer walls of the woven artificial blood vessels at high speed and strong force. The micro-nano bubbles burst under the impact, break apart and directionally peel off the dirt in the threads of the woven artificial blood vessels and between the fibers and yarns, thereby meeting the quantitative indicators of the cleanliness of the woven artificial blood vessels. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the overall structure of the present invention; Figure 2 A schematic structural diagram of the cleaning and positioning unit of the present invention; Figure 3 A cross-sectional view of the inner and outer wall cleaning pipe of the present invention; Figure 4 A schematic structural diagram of a water bath flushing unit according to the present invention; Figure 5 A schematic structural diagram of the circular expansion pulley of the present invention in a contracted state; Figure 6 A schematic structural diagram of the circular expansion pulley of the present invention in an open state; Figure 7 Schematic diagram of the spiral reciprocating unit structure of the present invention; In the figure: 1-cleaning positioning unit, 11-base I, 12-motor I, 13-fixed base I, 14-micro-nano bubble delivery tube, 15-micro-nano bubble delivery tube mounting plate, 16-linear slider I, 17-outer wall cleaning tube, 171-outer wall cleaning tube outlet, 18-inner wall cleaning tube, 181-inner wall cleaning tube outlet, 2-water bath flushing unit, 21-cleaning box, 22-cleaning box cover, 23-fixed protective plate, 24-motor II, 25-circular expansion pulley mechanism, 251-base plate, 252-pinion, 253-pinion shaft, 254-large gear, 255-expansion rod, 26-transmission shaft, 27-motor III, 28-reciprocating mounting plate, 3-spiral reciprocating unit, 31-base II, 32-fixed base II, 33-linear slider II, 34-motor IV DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0016] The following will clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the examples described are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without making any creative work shall fall within the scope of protection of the present invention. Example

[0017] Reference Attachment Figure 1 To the attached Figure 7 The technical solution of the multi-caliber braided artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device and cleaning method of the present invention is further described.

[0018] A multi-caliber braided artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device comprises a cleaning positioning unit, a water bath flushing unit, and a spiral reciprocating unit.

[0019] The cleaning and positioning unit includes a base I, a motor I, a fixed base I, a micro-nano bubble delivery tube, a micro-nano bubble delivery tube mounting plate, a linear slider I, an outer wall cleaning tube, an outer wall cleaning tube outlet, an inner wall cleaning tube, and an inner wall cleaning tube outlet; a fixed base I is installed above the base I, and a motor I is fixed to the left end of the fixed base I. The motor I drives the linear slider I to move back and forth horizontally. The linear slider I is bolted to the micro-nano bubble delivery tube mounting plate. The micro-nano bubble delivery tube mounting plate is fixedly connected to the micro-nano bubble delivery tube mounting plate. Driven by the linear slider I, the micro-nano bubble delivery tube moves back and forth. An inner wall cleaning tube and an outer wall cleaning tube of the same height and diameter are provided at the end of the micro-nano bubble delivery tube. An inner wall cleaning tube outlet is provided 5 mm from the top of the inner wall cleaning tube, and an outer wall cleaning tube outlet is provided 5 mm from the top of the outer wall cleaning tube. The inner wall cleaning tube outlet and the outer wall cleaning tube outlet are set as tapered openings with a larger inner side and a smaller outer side. The axes of the two tapered openings are collinear and the opening directions are opposite to each other, forming a micro-nano bubble counteraction.

[0020] The inner wall cleaning tube is set to have an outer diameter of 7mm, an inner diameter of 4mm, an inner diameter of the tapered mouth of 3mm, and an outer diameter of 1mm; the outer wall cleaning tube is set to have an outer diameter of 7mm, an inner diameter of 4mm, an inner diameter of the tapered mouth of 3mm, and an outer diameter of 1mm. The axial distance between the central axis of the inner wall cleaning tube and the central axis of the outer wall cleaning tube is set to 10mm.

[0021] The water bath flushing unit includes a cleaning box, a cleaning box cover, a fixed protective plate, a motor II, a circular expansion pulley mechanism, a transmission shaft, a motor III, and a reciprocating mounting plate; the bottom surface of the cleaning box is placed horizontally, and a movable cleaning box cover is provided on the top surface of the cleaning box. A braided artificial blood vessel is placed in the center of the cleaning box, and the braided artificial blood vessel is coaxially connected to the circular expansion pulley mechanism and is tightened. The circular expansion pulley mechanism is connected to the motor II for transmission. The motor II is fixedly mounted on the fixed protective plate. The center opening of the fixed protective plate leads to the transmission shaft. The transmission shaft is coaxially connected to the motor III, and the motor III is fixed on the reciprocating mounting plate.

[0022] The circular expansion pulley mechanism includes a base plate, a pinion, a pinion shaft, a large gear, and an expansion rod; a central opening of the base plate is coaxially connected to a transmission shaft, and the two rotate synchronously, and sliding grooves are evenly distributed in the circumferential direction of the base plate, and an expansion rod is arranged in the sliding groove and moves back and forth radially, and an arc-shaped plate is led out radially between the two sliding grooves, and a hole is opened on the arc plate to fix one end of the pinion shaft, and the other end of the pinion shaft is coaxially locked with the motor II, and a transmission pinion is connected in the middle of the pinion shaft, and the pinion is meshed with the large gear, and the large gear is connected to the transmission shaft bearing as a driven shaft, and circular arc-shaped notches are evenly distributed in the circumferential direction of the large gear, and the cylindrical shaft on the expansion rod moves along the circular arc-shaped notches.

[0023] The circular expansion pulley mechanism is provided with a circular expansion diameter adjustable within the range of 10 to 32 mm.

[0024] The spiral reciprocating unit includes a base II, a fixed base II, a linear slider II, and a motor IV; a fixed base II is installed on the left side of the base II, and a motor IV is fixed above the base II. The motor IV drives the linear slider II to move back and forth up and down, and a reciprocating mounting plate is bolted to the slider.

[0025] The present invention also provides a cleaning method for a multi-caliber braided artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device, comprising the following steps: (1) Motor IV drives the reciprocating plate on the linear slider II to move up, and the reciprocating plate drives the circular expansion pulley mechanism to the set upper stop point, so that the braided artificial blood vessel is placed on the arc surface of the expansion rod. At this time, the circular expansion pulley is in a contracted state, and the control motor II drives the small gear to rotate, and at the same time drives the large gear to engage and rotate. At the same time, the cylindrical axis of each expansion rod can only move radially outward along the base plate slot under the restriction of the arc slot shape of the large gear. The circular expansion pulley mechanism opens, and the self-locking motor II ensures that the braided artificial blood vessel is continuously tightened. (2) According to the determined diameter of the braided artificial blood vessel, the motor I is started, driving the micro-nano bubble delivery tube on the linear slider I to move horizontally, and the wall of the braided artificial blood vessel is in the middle position between the axis of the outer wall cleaning tube and the axis of the inner wall cleaning tube; (3) Motor IV starts, driving the reciprocating plate on the linear slider II to move downward, and the tightly-fitted braided artificial blood vessel moves downward synchronously until it is completely immersed in the liquid in the cleaning tank. The liquid temperature is set to 60°C, and the immersion time is 30 minutes. After the immersion is completed, motor IV drives the reciprocating plate on the linear slider II to move upward; (4) Micro-nano bubbles enter the outer wall cleaning tube and the inner wall cleaning tube in the cleaning box through the micro-nano bubble generating tube, and are convectively sprayed at the outlet of the outer wall cleaning tube and the outlet of the inner wall cleaning tube. The motor IV is started to drive the reciprocating moving plate on the linear slider II to move downward. At the same time, the motor III is started to drive the braided artificial blood vessel to rotate. The distance the braided artificial blood vessel moves downward for each rotation corresponds to the pitch of the braided artificial blood vessel. The micro-nano bubbles are directionally counteracted along the thread direction of the braided artificial blood vessel. The number of flushing times can be set according to the process requirements. (5) The braided artificial blood vessel moves upward, motor II reverses, the circular expansion pulley contracts, the braided artificial blood vessel is loosened, the tube is withdrawn and the next process is carried out.

[0026] While embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions, and variations may be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, and that the scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A multi-caliber braided artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device, characterized in that: The invention comprises a cleaning and positioning unit, a water bath flushing unit and a spiral reciprocating unit; the cleaning and positioning unit comprises a base I, a motor I, a fixed base I, a micro-nano bubble delivery tube, a micro-nano bubble delivery tube mounting plate, a linear slider I, an outer wall cleaning tube, an outer wall cleaning tube outlet, an inner wall cleaning tube and an inner wall cleaning tube outlet; a fixed base I is installed above the base I, a motor I is fixed to the left end of the fixed base I, the motor I drives the linear slider I to reciprocate horizontally, the linear slider I is bolted to the micro-nano bubble delivery tube mounting plate, a micro-nano bubble delivery tube is fixedly connected to the micro-nano bubble delivery tube mounting plate, and the micro-nano bubble delivery tube reciprocates under the drive of the linear slider I, an inner wall cleaning tube and an outer wall cleaning tube of the same height and diameter are provided at the end of the micro-nano bubble delivery tube, an inner wall cleaning tube outlet is provided 5 mm away from the top of the inner wall cleaning tube, and an outer wall cleaning tube outlet is provided 5 mm away from the top of the outer wall cleaning tube, the inner wall cleaning tube outlet and the outer wall cleaning tube outlet are arranged as tapered openings with a larger inner side and a smaller outer side, the axes of the two tapered openings are arranged collinearly, and the opening directions are opposite, forming micro-nano bubble counteraction.

2. The multi-caliber braided artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The inner wall cleaning tube is set to have an outer diameter of 7mm, an inner diameter of 4mm, an inner diameter of the tapered mouth of 3mm, and an outer diameter of 1mm; the outer wall cleaning tube is set to have an outer diameter of 7mm, an inner diameter of 4mm, an inner diameter of the tapered mouth of 3mm, and an outer diameter of 1mm. The axial distance between the central axis of the inner wall cleaning tube and the central axis of the outer wall cleaning tube is set to 10mm.

3. The multi-caliber braided artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The water bath flushing unit includes a cleaning box, a cleaning box cover, a fixed protective plate, a motor II, a circular expansion pulley mechanism, a transmission shaft, a motor III, and a reciprocating mounting plate; the bottom surface of the cleaning box is placed horizontally, and a movable cleaning box cover is provided on the top surface of the cleaning box. A braided artificial blood vessel is placed in the center of the cleaning box, and the braided artificial blood vessel is coaxially connected to the circular expansion pulley mechanism and is tightened. The circular expansion pulley mechanism is connected to the motor II for transmission. The motor II is fixedly mounted on the fixed protective plate. The center opening of the fixed protective plate leads to the transmission shaft. The transmission shaft is coaxially connected to the motor III, and the motor III is fixed on the reciprocating mounting plate.

4. The multi-caliber braided artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The circular expansion pulley mechanism includes a base plate, a pinion, a pinion shaft, a large gear, and an expansion rod; a central opening of the base plate is coaxially connected to a transmission shaft, and the two rotate synchronously, and sliding grooves are evenly distributed in the circumferential direction of the base plate, and an expansion rod is arranged in the sliding groove and moves back and forth radially, and an arc-shaped plate is led out radially between the two sliding grooves, and a hole is opened on the arc plate to fix one end of the pinion shaft, and the other end of the pinion shaft is coaxially locked with the motor II, and a transmission pinion is connected in the middle of the pinion shaft, and the pinion is meshed with the large gear, and the large gear is connected to the transmission shaft bearing as a driven shaft, and circular arc-shaped notches are evenly distributed in the circumferential direction of the large gear, and the cylindrical shaft on the expansion rod moves along the circular arc-shaped notches.

5. The multi-caliber braided artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device according to claim 4, characterized in that: The circular expansion pulley mechanism is provided with a circular expansion diameter adjustable within the range of 10 to 32 mm.

6. The multi-caliber braided artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The spiral reciprocating unit includes a base II, a fixed base II, a linear slider II, and a motor IV; a fixed base II is installed on the left side of the base II, and a motor IV is fixed above the base II. The motor IV drives the linear slider II to move back and forth up and down, and a reciprocating mounting plate is bolted to the slider.

7. The cleaning method of the multi-caliber braided artificial blood vessel directional cleaning device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: (1) Motor IV drives the reciprocating plate on the linear slider II to move up, and the reciprocating plate drives the circular expansion pulley mechanism to the set upper stop point, so that the braided artificial blood vessel is placed on the arc surface of the expansion rod. At this time, the circular expansion pulley is in a contracted state, and the control motor II drives the small gear to rotate, and at the same time drives the large gear to engage and rotate. At the same time, the cylindrical axis of each expansion rod can only move radially outward along the base plate slot under the restriction of the arc slot shape of the large gear. The circular expansion pulley mechanism opens, and the self-locking motor II ensures that the braided artificial blood vessel is continuously tightened. (2) According to the determined diameter of the braided artificial blood vessel, the motor I is started, driving the micro-nano bubble delivery tube on the linear slider I to move horizontally, and the wall of the braided artificial blood vessel is in the middle position between the axis of the outer wall cleaning tube and the axis of the inner wall cleaning tube; (3) Motor IV starts, driving the reciprocating plate on the linear slider II to move downward, and the tightly-fitted braided artificial blood vessel moves downward synchronously until it is completely immersed in the liquid in the cleaning tank. The liquid temperature is set to 60°C, and the immersion time is 30 minutes. After the immersion is completed, motor IV drives the reciprocating plate on the linear slider II to move upward; (4) Micro-nano bubbles enter the outer wall cleaning tube and the inner wall cleaning tube in the cleaning box through the micro-nano bubble generating tube, and are convectively sprayed at the outlet of the outer wall cleaning tube and the outlet of the inner wall cleaning tube. The motor IV is started to drive the reciprocating moving plate on the linear slider II to move downward. At the same time, the motor III is started to drive the braided artificial blood vessel to rotate. The distance the braided artificial blood vessel moves downward for each rotation corresponds to the pitch of the braided artificial blood vessel. The micro-nano bubbles are directionally counteracted along the thread direction of the braided artificial blood vessel. The number of flushing times can be set according to the process requirements. (5) The braided artificial blood vessel moves upward, motor II reverses, the circular expansion pulley contracts, the braided artificial blood vessel is loosened, the tube is withdrawn and the next process is carried out.

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