Collecting tube packaging structure

Abstract

The utility model provides a collection tube packaging structure. The collection tube packaging structure comprises a first container, a plurality of collection tubes and an absorbing material, the plurality of collection tubes are disposed in the first container. The absorbent material is disposed below the plurality of collection tubes. The first container has a main portion and an extension portion connected with the main portion, the extension portion is located below the main portion, and an absorbent material is disposed in the extension portion.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to a collection tube packaging structure, and in particular to a collection tube packaging structure suitable for transportation. BACKGROUND

[0002] According to the needs of disease examination, clinical trials, disease monitoring, drug testing, routine examination, and the like, clinical specimens or biological materials that can be infectious are transported to various places. The shippers of clinical specimens or biological materials include pharmaceutical industries, health care institutions, diagnostic or research laboratories, medical workers, and patients, and the like.

[0003] In view of the benefits of global public health, biological specimens need to be safely, timely, effectively, and legally sent from the places where they are collected to the places where they are analyzed for testing. Regardless of the initial situation of the patient's infection, the specimens should be properly packaged and shipped to protect the personnel involved in transportation and minimize the risk of infection.

[0004] According to the transport specifications for infectious substances published by the World Health Organization (WHO), infectious biological materials and infectious disease specimens can be roughly divided into Class A and Class B infectious substances. Class A and Class B infectious substances are required to be packaged in three layers. The first layer container (main container) and the second layer container must be waterproof and leakproof, and the third layer outer packaging must be a hard outer packaging with sufficient strength, and the complete packaging must pass the drop test.

[0005] In view of the foregoing, for clinical specimens or biological materials that can be infectious, developing a packaging structure that can maintain high safety and stability during transportation and minimize the risk of infection is one of the research topics that the industry is committed to. SUMMARY

[0006] According to some embodiments of the present application, a collection tube packaging structure is provided, including a first container, a plurality of collection tubes, and an absorbent material. The plurality of collection tubes is disposed in the first container. The absorbent material is disposed below the plurality of collection tubes. The first container has a main portion and an extension portion connected to the main portion, the extension portion is below the main portion, and the absorbent material is disposed in the extension portion.

[0007] According to some embodiments, the collection tube packaging structure further includes a limiting component disposed in the first container and used to fix the plurality of collection tubes.

[0008] According to some embodiments, the first container is formed of a cushioning material.

[0009] According to some embodiments, the absorbent material includes a resin.

[0010] According to some embodiments, the width of the extension is less than the width of the main portion.

[0011] According to some embodiments, the side surface of the first container has a concave profile.

[0012] According to some embodiments, the concave profile extends in a direction from the top of the first container towards the bottom.

[0013] According to some embodiments, the absorbent material comprises a plurality of sub-portions, the plurality of sub-portions being dispersedly disposed in the extension.

[0014] According to some embodiments, the collection tube packaging structure further comprises a sealing assembly, the sealing assembly encasing the first container.

[0015] According to some embodiments, the collection tube packaging structure further comprises a second container, the first container being disposed in the second container.

[0016] In order to make the features and advantages of the present application more apparent, some embodiments are specifically described below, and the accompanying drawings are described in detail as follows. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0017] Figure 1 shows a structural schematic diagram of a collection tube packaging structure according to some embodiments of the present application;

[0018] Figure 2A shows a structural schematic diagram of a first container of a collection tube packaging structure according to some embodiments of the present application;

[0019] Figure 2B shows a side structural schematic diagram of a first container of a collection tube packaging structure according to some embodiments of the present application;

[0020] Figure 3 shows a structural schematic diagram of an absorbent material of a collection tube packaging structure according to some embodiments of the present application;

[0021] Figure 4A shows a structural schematic diagram of a collection tube packaging structure according to some embodiments of the present application;

[0022] Figure 4B shows an exploded view of a collection tube packaging structure according to some embodiments of the present application; Figure 4A

[0023] Figure 5 shows a structural schematic diagram of a collection tube packaging structure according to some embodiments of the present application;

[0024] Figure 6A shows a structural schematic diagram of a first container of a collection tube packaging structure according to some embodiments of the present application;

[0025] Figure 6B ​FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of a first container of a collection tube packaging structure according to some embodiments of the present application.

[0026] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0027] 10: collection tube packaging structure,

[0028] 20: collection tube packaging structure,

[0029] 100: first container,

[0030] 100A: first portion,

[0031] 100B: second portion,

[0032] 100b: bottom,

[0033] 100e: extension,

[0034] 100m: main portion,

[0035] 100S: side surface,

[0036] 100t: top,

[0037] 200: collection tube,

[0038] 300: absorbent material,

[0039] 300P: sub-portion,

[0040] 400: stopper assembly,

[0041] 400A: upper portion,

[0042] 400B: lower portion,

[0043] 510: sealing assembly,

[0044] 520: second container,

[0045] DS: discoloring assembly,

[0046] H1: height,

[0047] RS: recessed profile,

[0048] SW: sidewall,

[0049] T1: thickness,

[0050] T2: thickness,

[0051] W1: width,

[0052] W2: width. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0053] The following detailed description of the collection tube packaging structure provided by the embodiments of the present application is presented in terms of sequences of actions for purposes of description. It is to be understood that the description just as set forth is not intended to limit the embodiments of the present application since various modifications are possible and contemplated. As such, the following detailed description of the embodiments of the present application is not intended to limit the scope of the present application, but is merely intended to describe the particular ways in which it is implemented. Moreover, descriptions of features or aspects within each embodiment should typically be considered as available for combination with other features or aspects from the other embodiments, unless the context explicitly dictates otherwise.

[0054] It will be understood that, when an relative terms are used herein, such as "lower", "bottom", "upper" or "top", these terms are used to denote an orientation as the device is placed in the figures. The application can be implemented in any orientation. Figure 1 It is to be understood that the drawings are not necessarily to scale of the embodiments of the present application. In fact, the dimensions of the various components can be arbitrarily enlarged or reduced for the sake of presentation in the drawings.

[0055] Furthermore, descriptions of various embodiments of the present application are provided in terms of sequences of actions to be performed by, for example, elements of the examples described herein. It will be understood that various embodiments of the present application can be implemented in any order, omit any steps, or perform any steps in parallel with other steps except where the context explicitly dictates otherwise.

[0056] It is to be understood that the use of relational terms such as first, second, and the like, are used solely to distinguish one from another entity without necessarily implying a sequence or order to the entities. Such terms can include aspects of a process that have been performed or will be performed by some or each entity associated with the process. The use of singular base words such as but not limited to "comprise" or "comprising" or "include" or "including" should be read as meaning "including at least" to cover the appropriate embodiments of the present application, for example, the articles "a" or "an" preceding an element are to be understood as meaning "one or more".

[0057] In some embodiments of the application, the terms such as "connected", "interconnected" and the like with respect to the joining, connecting, etc., of structures, unless specifically stated to the contrary, can refer to both direct and indirect joining, connecting, etc., of structures, i.e., other structures can be interposed between them. Also, the term "electrically connected" or "coupled" includes any direct and indirect electrical connecting means.

[0058] In the present disclosure, the terms "about", "substantially", "approximately" generally mean within 10% or within 5% or within 3% or within 2% or within 1% or within 0.5% of a given value or range. The term "ranging from a first value to a second value" means that the range includes the first value, the second value, and any other values therebetween.

[0059] Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this application belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and the present disclosure, and will not be interpreted in an overly idealized or formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

[0060] According to embodiments of the present application, a collection tube packaging structure is provided, which can be used for transporting clinical specimens or biological materials that can be infectious, and can maintain a high level of safety and stability during transportation, reduce the risk of infection, in addition to which the design of the collection tube packaging structure can simplify the operation of loading and unloading samples during testing and analysis, for example, facilitate the automatic process extraction of the machine, and reduce the possibility of contamination during sample transfer.

[0061] Please refer to Figure 1 , Figure 1 According to some embodiments of the present application, a schematic diagram of a collection tube packaging structure 10 is shown. It should be understood that some components of the collection tube packaging structure 10 can be omitted from the drawings for clarity, and only some components are shown schematically. According to some embodiments, additional features can be added to the collection tube packaging structure 10 described below.

[0062] As shown in Figure 1 , the collection tube packaging structure 10 includes a first container 100, a plurality of collection tubes 200, and an absorbent material 300. The collection tubes 200 and the absorbent material 300 can be disposed in the first container 100, and the absorbent material 300 can be disposed below the collection tubes 200.

[0063] Please refer to Figure 2A and Figure 2B , Figure 2AFIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a first container 100 of a collection tube packaging structure 10 according to some embodiments of the present application. Figure 2B FIG. 2 shows a side view of the first container 100 of the collection tube packaging structure 10 according to some embodiments of the present application. The first container 100 has a main portion 100m and an extension portion 100e connected to the main portion 100m, the extension portion 100e is below the main portion 100m, and an absorbent material 300 can be disposed in the extension portion 100e. According to some embodiments, the width W2 of the extension portion 100e is less than the width Wl of the main portion 100m. In other words, the sidewall SW of the first container 100 can have different thicknesses, for example, the sidewall SW near the top 100t of the first container 100 has a thickness Tl, the sidewall SW near the bottom 100b of the first container 100 has a thickness T2, and the thickness T2 is greater than the thickness Tl.

[0064] In detail, the first container 100 has a main portion 100m defined by a sidewall SW and an extension portion 100e below the bottom 100b of the first container 100, a collection tube 200 is disposed in the main portion 100m, and an absorbent material 300 is disposed in the extension portion 100e. According to some embodiments, the extension portion 100e has a height Hl, which can be between 5 mm and 15 mm, for example, 6 mm, 7 mm, 8 mm, 9 mm, 10 mm, 11 mm, 12 mm, 13 mm, or 14 mm. Notably, even if the absorbent material 300 disposed in the extension portion 100e swells after absorbing liquid (e.g., a sample leakage), it will not press the collection tube 200 disposed in the main portion 100m to damage the packaging structure.

[0065] In addition, according to some embodiments, the side surface 100S of the first container 100 can have a concave profile RS, which can be located at the top 100t of the first container 100. According to some embodiments, the concave profile RS can extend from the top 100t of the first container 100 towards the bottom 100b. In particular, the concave profile RS can serve as a handgrip for sample placement, facilitating subsequent automated processes for extraction, thereby simplifying the operation of sample loading and unloading during inspection and analysis, and reducing the possibility of sample contamination during transfer.

[0066] According to some embodiments, the first container 100 is formed of a cushioning material. According to some embodiments, the material of the first container 100 can include polystyrene (PS), polycarbonate (PC), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), other suitable cushioning materials, or combinations thereof, but is not limited thereto.

[0067] Next, please refer to Figure 1 The collection tube 200 can be used to load any sample, such as a clinical specimen or biological material with infectiousness. The sample can include various different sources of specimens. According to some embodiments, the sources of the sample can include a saliva specimen, a sputum specimen, a nose swab specimen, a throat swab specimen, a nasopharyngeal specimen, a urine specimen, a stool specimen, a rectal swab specimen, a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) specimen, a body fluid specimen, other suitable specimens, or a combination thereof, but not limited thereto.

[0068] In detail, the collection tube 200 can have a tube body (not shown) and a tube cover (not shown). The tube body can be combined with the tube cover to contain the sample in the tube body and prevent the sample in the tube body from leaking out.

[0069] In addition, the collection tube packaging structure 10 can further include a limiting assembly 400, which can be arranged in the first container 100 and used to fix the collection tube 200. In detail, the limiting assembly 400 can be arranged in the main part 100m of the first container 100. According to some embodiments, the limiting assembly 400 can include an upper part 400A, a lower part 400B, and a connecting part (not shown) connecting the upper part 400A and the lower part 400B. The connecting part can substantially extend along the length direction (e.g., the Z direction in the drawing) of the collection tube 200 and fix the upper part 400A and the lower part 400B. In addition, the upper part 400A and the lower part 400B of the limiting assembly 400 can have a plurality of corresponding limiting holes for placing the collection tube 200.

[0070] As described above, the absorbent material 300 can be located below the collection tube 200 and arranged in the extension part 100e. In detail, please refer to Figure 3 , Figure 3 According to some embodiments of the present application, a schematic diagram of the structure of the absorbent material 300 is shown. According to some embodiments, the absorbent material 300 can include a plurality of sub-parts 300P, which can be arranged in the extension part 100e in a scattered manner. According to some embodiments, the sub-parts 300P can be disconnected from each other.

[0071] The absorbent material 300 can absorb liquid (e.g., the leaked liquid of the sample) to avoid the repeated contamination of the sample caused by the leaked liquid. According to some embodiments, the absorbent material 300 can include a resin, such as a resin material having water absorption properties. According to some embodiments, the resin material having water absorption properties is, for example, an acrylic resin, but is not limited thereto. In addition, according to some embodiments, the absorbent material 300 can have a color-changing component DS, which can be disposed on the surface of the absorbent material 300. According to some embodiments, each of the sub-portions 300P can each have the color-changing component DS. When the absorbent material 300 absorbs liquid, the color of the color-changing component DS changes. The color-changing component DS can be used to identify whether the absorbent material 300 absorbs liquid, for example, to determine whether the collection tube 200 leaks.

[0072] Next, please refer to Figure 4A and Figure 4B , Figure 4A shows a structural schematic diagram of the collection tube packaging structure 10 according to some other embodiments of the present application, Figure 4B shows Figure 4A an exploded view of the collection tube packaging structure 10. As shown in Figure 4A and Figure 4B , the collection tube packaging structure 10 can further include a sealing component 510, which can cover the first container 100. The sealing component 510 can be waterproof and leakproof, and can be used to seal the first container 100 and other components disposed therein, to avoid the leakage of the clinical specimen or biological material that can be infectious, thereby reducing the risk of external infection. According to some embodiments, the sealing component 510 can include a pressure-resistant sealing bag, for example, having a pressure resistance of 95 kpa, but is not limited thereto. According to some embodiments, the sealing component 510 can have a "BIOHAZARD" mark thereon.

[0073] Further, the collection tube packaging structure 10 can further comprise a second container 520, and the first container 100 can be disposed in the second container 520. In detail, the first container 100 covered by the sealed assembly 510 can be disposed in the second container 520. The second container 520 can be a protective packaging box, and the second container 520 can provide sufficient strength to withstand the volume of the shipment. According to some embodiments, the shape of the second container 520 can comprise a barrel, a box, or a square barrel, etc. According to some embodiments, the second container 520 can also have a "biohazard" mark, and the second container 520 can have a mark of the contents, the possible risks and the packaging standards followed, etc. In addition, it should be understood that although the second container 520 in the shown embodiment only loads one sealed assembly 510, it is not limited thereto. According to other embodiments, the second container 520 can load 1 to 4 sealed assemblies 510.

[0074] Next, please refer to Figure 5 , Figure 5 The structure of the collection tube packaging structure 20 according to some embodiments of the present application is shown. It should be understood that in order to clearly illustrate, some components of the collection tube packaging structure 20 can be omitted in the drawings, and only some components are shown schematically. According to some embodiments, additional features can be added to the collection tube packaging structure 20 described below. In addition, it should be understood that components or components in the following text that are the same or similar as those in the foregoing text will be represented by the same or similar reference numerals, and their materials and functions are the same or similar to those described in the foregoing text, so this part will not be described again in the following text.

[0075] Figure 5 The collection tube packaging structure 20 shown is generally similar to the collection tube packaging structure 10 shown in Figure 1 Compared with the collection tube packaging structure 10, the buffer material of the first container 100 forming the collection tube packaging structure 20 can be paperboard, and the first container 100 can be a container assembled from paperboard.

[0076] Please refer to Figure 6A and Figure 6BIn this embodiment, the first container 100 may include a first portion 100A and a second portion 100B disposed at the bottom of the first portion 100A. The first portion 100A may define a main portion 100m, and the second portion 100B may define an extension portion 100e. Both the first portion 100A and the second portion 100B may be containers assembled from cardboard. Similarly, the main portion 100m is connected to the extension portion 100e, the extension portion 100e is located below the main portion 100m, and absorbent material 300 (not shown) may be disposed in the extension portion 100e. Furthermore, the width W2 (not shown) of the extension portion 100e is smaller than the width W1 (not shown) of the main portion 100m. The extension portion 100e has a height H1, which may be between 5 mm and 15 mm, for example, 6 mm, 7 mm, 8 mm, 9 mm, 10 mm, 11 mm, 12 mm, 13 mm, or 14 mm.

[0077] In addition, the collection tube packaging structure 20 may further include a sealing component 510 and a second container 520. The sealing component 510 may cover the first container 100, and the first container 100 covered by the sealing component 510 may be disposed in the second container 520.

[0078] To make the above and other objects, features and advantages of this application more apparent and understandable, specific embodiments are described below, but they are not intended to limit the scope of this application.

[0079] Example 1 - Field Test

[0080] The acquisition tube packaging structure provided in the embodiments of this application (e.g.) Figure 4A The sample collection tube packaging structure 10 shown was used as a test sample for a 1.2-meter drop test. The test sample was dropped freely from a height of 1.2 meters onto the impact plate. A total of 6 drops were performed from different directions: the first drop was a horizontal drop from the bottom of the box, the second drop was a horizontal drop from the top of the box, the third drop was a horizontal drop from a long side, the fourth drop was a horizontal drop from a short side, the fifth drop was a horizontal drop from a corner, and the sixth drop was a drop from a ridge where the joint was glued or the box was nailed.

[0081] After six drop tests from different directions, the outer packaging and contents of the collection tube packaging structure provided in this application embodiment were undamaged, and it passed the 1.2-meter drop test.

[0082] In summary, the collection tube packaging structure provided by the embodiments of the present application can be used for transporting clinical specimens or biological materials that may be infectious, can maintain high safety and stability during transportation, and can reduce the risk of infection. In addition, the design of the collection tube packaging structure can simplify the sample loading and unloading operation during inspection and analysis, for example, facilitate the automatic process extraction of the machine, and reduce the possibility of contamination during sample transfer.

[0083] Although the embodiments of the present application and their advantages have been disclosed above, it should be understood that any person with ordinary knowledge in the art can make changes, substitutions and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. The features of the embodiments of the present application can be arbitrarily mixed and used as long as they do not conflict with each other or deviate from the spirit of the invention. Furthermore, each patent claim constitutes a separate embodiment, and the protection scope of the present application also includes the combination of each patent claim and embodiment. The protection scope of the present application is defined by the appended patent claims.

Claims

1. A collection tube packaging structure, wherein, Comprising: a first container; a plurality of collection tubes disposed in the first container; and an absorbent material disposed below the plurality of collection tubes, wherein the first container has a main portion and an extension portion connected to the main portion, the extension portion is below the main portion, and the absorbent material is disposed in the extension portion. Further comprising:

2. The collection tube packaging structure of claim 1, wherein, a limiting assembly disposed in the first container and configured to secure the plurality of collection tubes. The first container is formed of a cushioning material.

3. The collection tube packaging structure of claim 1, wherein, The absorbent material includes a resin.

4. The collection tube packaging structure of claim 1, wherein, The extension portion has a width that is less than a width of the main portion.

5. The collection tube packaging structure of claim 1, wherein, A side surface of the first container has a concave profile.

6. The collection tube packaging structure of claim 1, wherein, The concave profile extends from a top portion to a bottom portion of the first container.

7. The collection tube packaging structure of claim 6, wherein, The absorbent material includes a plurality of sub-portions that are dispersedly disposed in the extension portion.

8. The collection tube packaging structure of claim 1, wherein, Further comprising:

9. The collection tube packaging structure of claim 1, wherein, a sealing assembly that covers the first container. Further comprising:

10. The collection tube packaging structure of claim 1, wherein, a second container, wherein the first container is disposed in the second container. ​

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