Trachea cannula sputum scab remover

Abstract

The invention discloses a sputum scab remover for a trachea cannula, and belongs to the technical field of medical instruments. The cleaner comprises a clamping assembly, an opening and closing mechanism, an elastic reset piece, a flexible arm, a handheld driving assembly and a transmission assembly. The clamping assembly comprises a mounting base and a plurality of circumferentially-distributed clamping jaws, and the lower ends of the clamping jaws are hinged to the mounting base. The opening and closing mechanism comprises a driving sleeve capable of axially moving and a connecting rod mechanism connected with the driving sleeve and the clamping jaw; the elastic reset piece provides elastic force for closing the clamping jaw; the flexible arm is connected with the mounting seat and the handheld driving assembly; the handheld driving assembly comprises a driving mechanism in the shell; the transmission assembly is connected with the driving mechanism and the driving sleeve. The flexible arm adapts to the bent path of the trachea cannula, the sputum scab is grabbed in a wrapping mode through circumferential distribution of the multiple clamping jaws, stable and reliable action control is achieved through the transmission mechanism, and therefore the problem that an existing tool is difficult to go deep into the bent cannula and completely and reliably remove the attached sputum scab is solved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of medical device technology, specifically relating to a tracheostomy tube sputum remover. Background Technology

[0002] In postoperative care following a tracheotomy, removing sputum crusts that form inside the cannula is crucial for maintaining airway patency and preventing complications. Currently, two main techniques for removing sputum crusts are used in clinical practice.

[0003] The first type is negative pressure suction technology. For example, Chinese Patent Publication No. CN217697433U, "A Portable Suction Device," uses an electric or manual pump to generate negative pressure and uses a connected suction tube to extract liquid or semi-liquid secretions from the respiratory tract and collect them into a storage bottle. This technology is effective for clearing free or highly mobile sputum and has the advantages of being relatively direct to operate and able to quickly remove large amounts of secretions.

[0004] However, when faced with dehydrated, hardened sputum crusts firmly attached to the inner wall of the tracheostomy cannula, the crusts are hard and have a large surface area adhering to the cannula wall, making it difficult for simple axial negative suction to effectively peel them off and draw them into the tube. Practice shows that negative pressure suction often fails to successfully remove such sputum crusts, leading to their continuous accumulation and gradual blockage of the cannula lumen, directly affecting patient ventilation. Negative pressure techniques lack physical means to mechanically peel, grasp, and remove the sputum crusts as a whole.

[0005] The second method is simple mechanical grasping, such as long forceps commonly used in clinical practice. Although they can provide grasping force, when they are inserted into narrow and curved cannulas, their rigid shafts are difficult to follow the path. Furthermore, when the double-point jaws are used to grasp and remove sputum crusts, they cannot completely wrap the crusts, and the fragments are easy to fall off. It is more difficult to use forceps to grasp and remove sputum crusts. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a tracheostomy tube sputum crust remover to solve the problems that existing negative pressure suction technology cannot effectively remove attached sputum crusts, and that existing mechanical gripping tools are difficult to follow curved paths, cannot completely grasp sputum crusts, and are inconvenient to operate.

[0007] A tracheostomy tube sputum remover includes a clamping assembly, an opening and closing assembly, an elastic reset element, a flexible arm, a handheld drive assembly, and a transmission assembly. The clamping assembly includes a mounting base and multiple grippers distributed circumferentially along the mounting base. The lower ends of the grippers are hinged to the outer wall of the mounting base. The opening and closing assembly includes a drive sleeve movable axially along the mounting base and a linkage mechanism connecting the drive sleeve and each gripper. When the drive sleeve moves axially along the mounting base, it drives the grippers to open and close via the linkage mechanism. The elastic reset element acts on the clamping assembly to provide an elastic force that tends to close the grippers. One end of the flexible arm is connected to the mounting base. The handheld drive assembly is connected to the other end of the flexible arm and includes a housing and a drive mechanism disposed within the housing. The transmission assembly is connected between the drive mechanism and the drive sleeve.

[0008] Furthermore, the gripper includes a cylindrical face and a conical face, the cylindrical face being close to the end that is hinged to the mounting base, and the conical face extending obliquely from the cylindrical face toward the axis of the mounting base; when the gripper is closed, the cylindrical face and the conical face of each gripper form a wrapping space to accommodate sputum crusts.

[0009] Furthermore, the number of grippers is at least three, and they are evenly distributed along the circumference.

[0010] Furthermore, the linkage mechanism includes multiple links, the upper end of each link is hinged to the middle of the outer side wall of a gripper, the lower end of each link is provided with a guide groove, and the upper end of the drive sleeve is provided with a corresponding hinge shaft, which is slidably disposed in the guide groove.

[0011] Furthermore, the elastic reset component is a ring spring, and each gripper has a slot on its outer side wall, with the ring spring being engaged in the slot of each gripper.

[0012] Furthermore, it also includes a guide cylinder, which is coaxially fixedly sleeved on the outer side of the distal end of the flexible arm and fixedly connected to the mounting base. The outer wall of the guide cylinder is provided with a groove along the axial direction. The inner wall of the drive sleeve is provided with a guide bar that cooperates with the groove, and the guide bar is slidably disposed in the groove.

[0013] Furthermore, the transmission assembly includes a traction joint, a flexible traction sleeve, a mounting flange, a connecting ring, and a drive connector. The traction joint is connected between the drive sleeve and the flexible traction sleeve. The flexible traction sleeve is located outside the flexible arm. The mounting flange is fixed inside the housing of the handheld drive assembly and is fixedly connected to the flexible arm. Multiple through holes are provided on the mounting flange along the circumferential direction. The connecting ring is fixedly connected to the end of the flexible traction sleeve. The drive connector is located inside the housing and is connected to the output end of the drive mechanism. The drive connector is provided with a number of traction rods corresponding to the number of through holes. The traction rods can slide through the corresponding through holes and are fixedly connected to the connecting ring.

[0014] Furthermore, the traction joint and the drive sleeve are detachably connected by threads.

[0015] Furthermore, the driving mechanism is a push-pull electromagnet, and the housing of the handheld driving component is equipped with a switch to control the power supply of the push-pull electromagnet.

[0016] Furthermore, the outer surface of the flexible traction sleeve is marked with length scale marks.

[0017] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0018] 1. By setting up a flexible arm to connect the distal clamping component and the proximal hand-held drive component, one end of the clamping component can flexibly conform to the natural bending path of the tracheostomy tube, enabling non-destructive deep operation.

[0019] 2. The clamping assembly, consisting of multiple circumferentially distributed claws, combined with its specific inner wall curved surface, can form a wrapping grip on the sputum crust when closed, thereby achieving complete clamping of the sputum crust and effectively preventing it from being crushed or falling off.

[0020] 3. The driving force of the handheld drive component is reliably transmitted to the remote opening and closing mechanism through the transmission component, realizing stable and controllable operation of the gripper opening and closing action, and improving the controllability and success rate of the cleaning process. Attached Figure Description

[0021] Figure 1 This is a structural schematic diagram of an embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] Figure 2 This is an exploded view of the mounting base, drive sleeve, guide cylinder, flexible traction sleeve, and flexible arm components of the present invention.

[0023] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the clamping assembly in the closed state shown in area A.

[0024] Figure 4 yes Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the clamping component in the open state shown in area A.

[0025] Figure 5 yes Figure 2 Enlarged view of the drive sleeve.

[0026] Figure 6 This is an enlarged view of the mounting base and grippers of the present invention.

[0027] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of the handheld drive component of the present invention.

[0028] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the drive connector and mounting flange of the present invention.

[0029] Labels in the diagram: 110, Mounting base; 120, Gripper; 121, Cylindrical face; 122, Conical face; 210, Drive sleeve; 211, Hinge shaft; 212, Guide bar; 220, Linkage mechanism; 221, Linkage rod; 222, Guide groove; 310, Elastic reset element; 123, Slot; 410, Flexible arm; 710, Guide cylinder; 711, Slide groove; 610, Transmission assembly; 611, Traction joint; 612, Flexible traction sleeve; 612a, Scale mark; 613, Mounting flange; 613a, Through hole; 614, Drive connector; 614a, Traction rod; 615, Connecting ring; 510, Handheld drive assembly; 511, Housing; 512, Drive mechanism; 513, Switch. Detailed Implementation

[0030] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this invention clearer, the invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely illustrative and not intended to limit the invention.

[0031] It should be noted that the directional terms used in this invention, such as "upper end," "lower end," "axial," "circumferential," "far end," "proximal end," "inner side," and "outer side," are based on the relative positions of the structures shown in the accompanying drawings or the orientation of the components in their normal operating state. They are used only to clearly describe the relationships between the components and should not be construed as specific limitations on the structure or positional relationships of this invention. For example, "upper end" and "lower end" are based on the accompanying drawings. Figure 1 In the view orientation, "distal end" refers to the end closer to where the tracheostomy tube is inserted, and "proximal end" refers to the end closer to where the operator holds it. These terms should not be construed as limiting the scope of protection of this invention.

[0032] like Figure 1 As shown, the tracheostomy tube sputum remover of this embodiment includes a clamping assembly, an opening and closing assembly, an elastic reset member 310, a flexible arm 410, a handheld drive assembly 510, and a transmission assembly 610.

[0033] like Figures 3-6As shown, the clamping assembly performs a grasping action. It includes a mounting base 110 and multiple grippers 120. The number of grippers 120 is at least three, for example, six. The grippers 120 are evenly distributed along the circumference of the mounting base 110, and the lower end of each gripper 120 is hinged to the outer wall of the mounting base 110, allowing it to rotate around the hinge point. To address the brittleness, adhesiveness, and narrow, curved environment of sputum crusts, each gripper 120 includes a cylindrical face 121 and a conical face 122. The cylindrical face 121 is located near the end that is hinged to the mounting base 110. The radius of curvature of the inner surface of the cylindrical face 121 is 3–8 mm. This limits the maximum outer diameter of the clamping assembly when closed to the safe passage range of a standard endotracheal cannula, ensuring smooth insertion and withdrawal without the risk of damage. Simultaneously, it forms a large area to encapsulate the sputum crust when closed. The conical facet 122 extends obliquely from the cylindrical facet 121 towards the axis of the mounting base 110, with its angle of inclination ranging from 20° to 40° with the axis of the mounting base 110. During the closing process, the conical facet 122 contacts the sputum crust, and its force can be decomposed into a peeling force perpendicular to the tube wall and a guiding force parallel to the tube wall, thereby gradually peeling off the sputum crust adhering to the tube wall and guiding the sputum crust towards the center. In addition, when the grippers 120 are closed, the outer wall of the mounting base 110 fits against the cylindrical facet 121, and the cylindrical facet 121 and conical facet 122 of each gripper 120 form a wrapping space to accommodate the sputum crust. This achieves a circumferential wrapping gripping of the sputum crust, and the gripping force can be distributed across the entire surface of the sputum crust, adapting to irregularly shaped sputum crusts, ensuring that they are completely contained and preventing the shedding of fragments.

[0034] The opening and closing assembly is used to drive the grippers 120 to open and close. It includes a drive sleeve 210 that can move axially along the mounting base 110, and a linkage mechanism 220 connecting the drive sleeve 210 and each gripper 120. The linkage mechanism 220 includes multiple connecting rods 221. The upper end of each connecting rod 221 is hinged to the middle of the outer side wall of a gripper 120, and the lower end has an elongated guide groove 222. The upper end of the drive sleeve 210 is provided with a hinge shaft 211, which is slidably disposed in the guide groove 222. When the drive sleeve 210 moves axially, all grippers 120 can be driven to open or close synchronously through the transmission of the connecting rods 221. The length of the guide groove 222 is within the entire stroke of the drive sleeve 210, ensuring that the opening and closing movement of the grippers 120 is smooth and without jamming, so that the movement of all grippers 120 is synchronized, which is a prerequisite for achieving overall wrapping of sputum crusts.

[0035] The elastic reset element 310 acts on the clamping assembly. In this embodiment, it is specifically a ring spring. Each jaw 120 has a slot 123 on its outer side wall, and the ring spring is engaged in the slot 123 of each jaw 120. Its function is to provide an elastic force that makes the jaw 120 tend to close, ensuring that the jaw 120 remains closed when not actively driven, preventing the gripped object from falling off. The preload of the ring spring is preset. First, it must be sufficient to keep the jaw 120 closed in the non-operating state to prevent accidental scratching of the tube wall when entering or leaving the sleeve. Second, the elastic force must be significantly less than the driving force of the drive mechanism 512, usually set to 20% to 30% of the driving force, to ensure that the drive mechanism 512 can easily and effortlessly overcome the spring force to open the jaw 120.

[0036] The flexible arm 410 typically uses a universal flexible hose, a type of hose with multi-directional adjustment capabilities. Its body is made of corrugated structure, braided mesh, or a special polymer, allowing it to bend in multiple directions while maintaining a fixed angle. One end is connected to the mounting base 110, and the other end is connected to the handheld drive assembly 510. The flexible arm 410 allows its front end to bend flexibly, conforming to the natural curvature of the tracheostomy tube. To ensure the stability of the drive sleeve 210's movement in the bent state of the flexible arm 410, a guide cylinder 710 is also included. This guide cylinder is coaxially fixedly sleeved on the outer side of the distal end of the flexible arm 410 and fixedly connected to the mounting base 110. The outer wall of the guide cylinder 710 has an axially oriented groove 711, and the inner wall of the drive sleeve 210 has a guide strip 212 that mates with the groove 711. The guide strip 212 is slidably disposed within the groove 711, restricting the drive sleeve 210 to move only axially.

[0037] like Figure 7 As shown, the handheld drive assembly 510 includes a housing 511 and a drive mechanism 512 disposed within the housing 511. In this embodiment, the drive mechanism 512 adopts a push-pull electromagnet, with a stroke typically of 5–10 mm and a thrust of 10–20 N. This parameter range is sufficient to reliably overcome the elastic force of the ring spring and drive the gripper 120. A control switch 513 is provided on the housing 511, and a transmission assembly 610 is connected between the drive mechanism 512 and the drive sleeve 210 for transmitting power.

[0038] like Figure 2 , Figure 7 and Figure 8 As shown, the transmission assembly 610 includes a traction joint 611, a flexible traction sleeve 612, a mounting flange 613, a connecting ring 615, and a drive connector 614. The traction joint 611 is detachably connected to the drive sleeve 210 via threads. The traction joint 611 is then fixed to the distal end of the flexible traction sleeve 612, which is sleeved outside the flexible arm 410, for example, by using an internal support spring to fix the flexible traction sleeve 612 inside the traction joint 611. The outer surface of the flexible traction sleeve 612 is provided with length scale markings 612a to indicate the insertion depth.

[0039] The mounting flange 613 is fixed inside the housing 511 and fixedly connected to the proximal end of the flexible arm 410, such as by a threaded connection, or the mounting flange 613 is integrally formed with the flexible arm 410. The mounting flange 613 has multiple through holes 613a, usually four, evenly distributed circumferentially, with smooth inner walls, allowing the traction rods 614a to pass through and slide smoothly. The drive connector 614 is connected to the output end of the drive mechanism 512 and has multiple traction rods 614a on it. After passing through the through holes 613a, the traction rods 614a are connected to the connecting ring 615 fixed to the proximal end of the flexible traction sleeve 612. The connecting ring 615 is fixed to the flexible traction sleeve 612, such as by an internal support spring. Multiple traction rods 614a provide parallel traction. Compared with single-rod traction, this design distributes the traction force, avoiding torsion and unilateral wear of the flexible traction sleeve 612, and greatly improving the life and stability of the transmission assembly 610.

[0040] When the drive mechanism 512 is activated, the flexible traction sleeve 612 is pulled by the traction rod 614a and the connecting ring 615, thereby driving the traction joint 611 and the drive sleeve 210 to move axially, and finally realizing the remote controllable opening and closing of the gripper 120.

[0041] When removing sputum crusts, the operator can observe through a video endoscope to determine the position and shape of the crusts within the tracheostomy cannula. The operator then holds the handheld drive assembly 510 and inserts the gripper 120 through the tracheostomy cannula opening. Thanks to the multi-degree-of-freedom bending capability of the flexible arm 410, the gripper 120 can pass through the curved cannula path without damage. The scale markings 612a on the flexible traction sleeve 612 provide depth guidance. When the gripper 120 reaches the sputum crust position, the operating switch 513 actuates the drive mechanism 512, which pulls the drive sleeve 210 through the transmission assembly 610, causing the gripper 120 to open against the elastic force of the ring spring. After adjusting the position so that the sputum crust is centered in the open gripper 120, the switch 513 is released, the drive mechanism 512 resets, and the drive sleeve 210 moves downward under the action of the elastic reset member 310, i.e., the ring spring, causing the gripper 120 to close and enclose the sputum crust within the encapsulation space 130. Finally, keep the gripper 120 closed and withdraw the entire clamping component to completely remove the phlegm crust.

[0042] The above are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, and improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A tracheal tube sputum crust clearer characterized by, The endoscope comprises: a clamping assembly comprising a mounting base and a plurality of clamping jaws distributed circumferentially along the mounting base, the lower end of the clamping jaws being hingedly connected to the outer wall of the mounting base; an opening and closing assembly comprising a driving sleeve axially movable along the mounting base, and a linkage mechanism connecting the driving sleeve and each of the clamping jaws, the driving sleeve being axially moved along the mounting base to drive the clamping jaws to open and close through the linkage mechanism; a resilient return member acting on the clamping assembly to provide a resilient force tending to close the clamping jaws; a flexible arm having one end connected to the mounting base; a handheld driving assembly connected to the other end of the flexible arm, the handheld driving assembly comprising a housing and a driving mechanism arranged in the housing; a transmission assembly connected between the driving mechanism and the driving sleeve.

2. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the clamping jaws comprise a cylindrical surface portion and a tapered surface portion, the cylindrical surface portion being close to the hingedly connected end of the mounting base, and the tapered surface portion being inclinedly extended from the cylindrical surface portion towards the axis of the mounting base, and when the clamping jaws are closed, the cylindrical surface portion and the tapered surface portion of each of the clamping jaws enclose a wrapping space for accommodating sputum crusts.

3. The endoscope according to claim 2, wherein the number of the clamping jaws is at least three, and the clamping jaws are uniformly distributed along the circumference.

4. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the linkage mechanism comprises a plurality of linkages, the upper end of each of the linkages being hingedly connected to the middle portion of the outer wall of one of the clamping jaws, and the lower end of each of the linkages being provided with a guide slot, and the upper end of the driving sleeve being provided with a corresponding hinged shaft, the hinged shaft being slidably arranged in the guide slot.

5. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the resilient return member is a ring spring, and each of the clamping jaws is provided with a clamping groove on the outer wall thereof, and the ring spring is clamped in the clamping groove of each of the clamping jaws.

6. The endoscope according to claim 1, further comprising a guide cylinder coaxially and fixedly arranged outside the distal end of the flexible arm and fixedly connected to the mounting base, and the outer wall of the guide cylinder is provided with a sliding slot in the axial direction, and the inner wall of the driving sleeve is provided with a guide strip matched with the sliding slot, and the guide strip is slidably arranged in the sliding slot.

7. The endoscope according to claim 6, wherein ​ The transmission assembly comprises a traction joint, a flexible traction sleeve, a mounting flange, a connecting ring and a driving connecting piece, the traction joint is connected between the driving sleeve and the flexible traction sleeve; the flexible traction sleeve is arranged outside the flexible arm; the mounting flange is fixed in the shell of the handheld driving assembly and is fixedly connected with the flexible arm, a plurality of through holes are formed in the mounting flange in the circumferential direction; the connecting ring is fixedly connected to the end of the flexible traction sleeve, the driving connecting piece is arranged in the shell and is connected with the output end of the driving mechanism, a plurality of traction rods corresponding to the through holes are arranged on the driving connecting piece, the traction rods are respectively slidably arranged through the corresponding through holes and are fixedly connected with the connecting ring.

8. The endotracheal tube sputum scab remover according to claim 7, characterized in that, the traction joint is detachably connected with the driving sleeve through threads.

9. The endotracheal tube sputum scab remover according to claim 1, characterized in that, the driving mechanism is a push-pull electromagnet, and the shell of the handheld driving assembly is provided with a switch for controlling the on-off of the push-pull electromagnet.

10. The endotracheal tube sputum scab remover according to claim 1, characterized in that, a length scale mark is arranged on the outer surface of the flexible traction sleeve.

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