Method for producing a sterilizing mesh tray with a three-dimensionally structured base

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a sterilization sieve tray, also called a sieve basket, such as a sterilization or disinfection sieve basket, for receiving medical objects to be disinfected or sterilized according to the preamble of claim 1. Sieve baskets of this type are used to provide a portable receiving container for a number of objects to be disinfected or sterilized, such as surgical grasping instruments, in a washer-disinfector (WD) or autoclave in a medical device reprocessing unit (MDRU). Background of the invention

[0002] The primary function of a sieve basket is to hold several items within its interior, allowing them to be handled as a single unit during the cleaning process. It is essential to prevent the items from shifting or sliding during the packing process, thus ensuring a compact load within the sieve basket.

[0003] Furthermore, a sieve basket should have as few or no sections as possible where cleaning fluid (i.e., water with additives) used during the cleaning process collects, so that the cleaning fluid drains / drips out of the sieve basket as completely as possible after the cleaning process.

[0004] Ultimately, when it comes to sieve baskets, it is important to ensure that even after intensive use, during which they are subjected to impact and cutting loads, they do not have any sections prone to breakage or cracking, so that the risk of injury and cuts to an operator is minimized. State of the art

[0005] From DE 20 2006 011 942 U1, a sieve basket is known which is adapted for holding objects to be disinfected or sterilized. The sieve basket has a base, in particular a sheet metal base, which is provided with a plurality of perforations. The base has a flat surface bounded by side walls, which is produced in a forming step.

[0006] This base is designed as a flat, perforated sheet. To prevent the collected items from shifting or slipping, a mat is placed inside the sieve basket. This mat prevents efficient drainage of the sieve basket, so residual water, even after the sieve basket has been removed from the washer-disinfector, causes bothersome dampness in various areas of the sieve basket, especially the bottom.

[0007] The problem of disruptive dampness at the bottom of the sieve basket persists even when the mat is omitted. The flat base surface creates contact between the objects held in the sieve basket and the floor, corresponding to the remaining width of the gaps between the plate holes. This contact causes residual water to collect through capillary action, further promoting the disruptive dampness.

[0008] Another type of sieve basket from the prior art is designed as a wire mesh instead of a perforated sheet. A wire mesh has a corrugated base that prevents the objects it holds from slipping or sliding away. Furthermore, a wire mesh results in less surface contact, for example with a flat substrate, and consequently less capillary action.

[0009] A disadvantage of wire mesh sieves is that not only residual water but also dirt accumulates in the individual nodes of the mesh. Furthermore, after a certain period of use, individual wires in a wire mesh inevitably break or detach, which significantly increases the risk of injury posed by the wire mesh sieve.

[0010] Furthermore, in a wire mesh sieve basket, the wall perforations correspond to the bottom perforations. Therefore, if the wire mesh is sufficiently coarse to prevent the collected objects from shifting or slipping on the base, it has the disadvantage that the wall perforations are so coarse that the collected objects can protrude through them, which again increases the risk of injury and makes handling more difficult.

[0011] Ultimately, a wire mesh sieve basket is also more complex to manufacture, as it does not use inexpensive sheet metal as a base material.

[0012] Sieve baskets are also known from DE 101 24 253 A1 and DE 10 2010 050919 A1.

[0013] All existing sieve baskets and their manufacturing processes share the disadvantage that, even after removal from the washer-disinfector, residual water adheres to them and can cause further dampness on other surfaces. Depending on their design, they also have disadvantages such as an increased risk of injury, the risk of the collected items slipping or sliding, and / or the risk of contamination or bacterial growth. Furthermore, their manufacturing processes are generally not very sophisticated. Brief description of the invention

[0014] In view of this prior art, the present invention is based on the objective of eliminating or at least mitigating the disadvantages of the prior art, and in particular of disclosing an efficient manufacturing process that economically enables the mass production of sieve baskets that drain quickly, are compactly loadable and pose a low risk of injury.

[0015] This is achieved according to the invention by means of a method with the features of claim 1. Advantageous embodiments are the subject of the dependent claims.

[0016] It has been shown that forming or arranging spacers / bumps, for example on the outer / underside of a flat perforated plate used as a sieve basket base, could potentially reduce the contact area between the sieve basket and a flat surface, thus improving the overall drainage behavior. However, manufacturing such a special plate would be complex and expensive, and therefore uneconomical overall. Furthermore, the spacers / bumps would be distributed across the plate surface at a specific distance from each other, which could potentially cause the plate to deflect depending on the chosen spacing between two adjacent spacers / bumps. For these reasons, such a solution to the problem posed at the outset has proven to be ineffective.

[0017] The basic idea of ​​the present invention is to simulate the spatial structure of a wire mesh in a initially flat perforated plate by deforming the webs extending (and intersecting) between the plate holes (pores), at least partially or section by section, in one or more directions different from their respective web extension direction. This deformed webs themselves then define at least partially point-like contact areas, for example, with a flat substrate. This allows virtually any initially flat perforated plate to be designed / retrofitted with this additional capability, namely the provision of an almost arbitrarily selectable number of point-like contact areas in the form of correspondingly three-dimensionally extending plate webs between the plate holes, for example, by subjecting the initially flat perforated plate to a corresponding (final) deformation step.

[0018] In this application, the term "perforated plate" refers to a plate, preferably made of sheet metal with a constant thickness, extending in two principal spatial directions and a third secondary direction. The formation of corrugations or indentations, particularly in this third secondary direction, gives the perforated plate an additional three-dimensional, varying structure that differs from a flat plate with a constant thickness. It is advantageous not to form the indentations at the macro level, i.e., not to create a single indentation across a plurality of webs, but rather to provide the indentations at the micro level.to form the respective bulge / bulge, for example, essentially within / alongside each web (preferably between two or three intersection points / nodes with the other webs) and / or at each selected node (area within a number of nodes arranged in a circle, directly surrounding a single node as the center and thus contact point).

[0019] The following further advantages, for example, can be derived from this inventive method for producing a three-dimensional perforated plate: The process can be automated, thereby minimizing production costs, especially for the targeted large-scale production runs. Surfaces that the sieve basket manufactured according to the invention comes into contact with after removal from the washer-disinfector are not moistened, or only to a significantly lesser extent. The use of a sheet metal blank eliminates the need for a wire mesh, which reduces manufacturing costs and also eliminates the risk of punctures from the manufactured sieve basket. The perforation geometry of the base can be designed independently of that of the side walls through the cutting or punching step, allowing each to be adapted to different requirements. Slippage or displacement of the collected objects can be prevented even without the insertion of a (silicone) mat.

[0020] According to the invention, at least the base of the sieve basket has or consists of a perforated plate, preferably a sheet metal part, which preferably has / receives periodic, three-dimensional corrugations or indentations, also bulges / protrusions or depressions, which project from a base plane formed by the initially flat perforated plate towards the interior of the sieve basket and / or towards the exterior of the sieve basket, so that the perforated plate or sheet metal base has / receives a surface resembling a (wire) mesh. In this way, a mesh surface structure is imitated / simulated / reproduced by a perforated plate / sheet metal part, thereby synergistically combining the structure of a mesh and that of a perforated sheet metal part. Preferably, at least the sheet metal part or sheet metal part has / receivesThe perforated plate, at least of the sieve basket base, has a number of through holes (pores) that are circumferentially bounded by overlapping / crossing ribs and spaced apart from one another according to the rib width. According to the invention, deformations (bulges / serrations) are formed in / on individual ribs in one or more directions different from their respective rib extension direction, in particular (alternately) towards the outside and / or inside of the sieve basket, thereby creating a rough / toothed contact surface on the outside of the base and / or a rough / toothed bearing surface on the inside of the base.

[0021] To produce such a three-dimensional perforated plate, the invention relates to a method for producing such a perforated plate and a sieve basket provided with this perforated plate for holding medical objects to be disinfected or sterilized. In the method, the following steps (not necessarily in chronological order) are carried out based on a blank plate, in particular a sheet metal blank: 1. A first processing step, preferably a separating, particularly preferably a nibbling or, for example, a cutting process such as laser or waterjet cutting, produces a flat sieve basket base from the sheet metal blank, consisting of the (later) sieve basket bottom and the (later) sieve basket side walls which are integrally and flatly adjoining it; 2. A second processing step (occurring before or after the first processing step), preferably a separating, particularly preferably a punching, provides the sheet metal blank or the sieve basket base with perforations / holes / pores, particularly in the area of ​​the (later) sieve basket bottom and optionally in selected / selectable areas of the (later) sieve basket side walls.with holes of different sizes at the bottom of the sieve basket to obtain a perforated initial shape; 3 a subsequent third processing step, preferably forming, particularly preferably rolling / smoothing, which occurs after the first and second processing steps, produces a perforated plane. (This step is necessary because deformations / warping occur within the sheet metal during the first and / or second processing steps, caused, for example, by residual stresses); 4 a fourth processing step (occurring after the third processing step), preferably forming, particularly preferably bending / folding the side wall area relative to the bottom area, produces a sieve basket (basic) shape whose raw bottom corresponds to the flat inner section of the perforated plane and the side walls correspond to the flat outer sections of the perforated plane.

[0022] Thus, based on a sheet metal that is inexpensive to obtain and easy to process by cutting, punching and bending, a basic sieve basket shape can be produced in just a few steps, which (after welding the side walls together) would theoretically already be suitable for use in a washer-disinfector.

[0023] According to the invention, a fifth processing step, preferably a forming step, and more preferably an embossing step, is provided after the third processing step, but not necessarily after the fourth processing step. This fifth processing step results in at least a partially three-dimensionally structured bottom with the structure described above, at least from the flat inner section (which defines the bottom of the sieve basket). In this way, the previously flat bottom of the sieve basket is provided with a ribbed structure without deformation occurring in other areas of the sieve basket not intended for embossing during the fifth processing step / embossing.

[0024] In other words, the invention can be functionally described as follows: a sieve basket with a base made of a perforated plate, preferably made of sheet metal, which has the surface geometry and structure of a woven fabric, without actually being woven. Thus, the invention achieves the advantage of a woven fabric (base structure with contact and fixing surfaces, efficient drainage) without its disadvantages. A woven fabric involves two interwoven strands / wires overlapping / lying on top of each other at the nodes. Such an overlap has the significant disadvantage for sieve baskets that germs and dirt particles accumulate at the overlap point, i.e., the node, as these are difficult to reach and therefore clean. Furthermore, a woven fabric is considerably more complex to manufacture than sheet metal fabrication.Thus, the "braid simulation" according to the invention efficiently eliminates the disadvantages of the prior art.

[0025] The inventive idea lies in the fact that by producing a mesh-like / mesh-simulating bottom sheet, firstly, the items to be cleaned are prevented from slipping during the packing process of the sieve basket, while secondly, the presence of residual water in the sieve basket after the cleaning process in the washer-disinfector is reduced or even avoided, so that there is no disruptive moistening (e.g. of the packing table).

[0026] In this context, it should be mentioned that the processing steps described in this application may each consist of several sub-steps.

[0027] In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the fifth processing step / the embossing takes place before the fourth processing step. In this case, the embossing of the three-dimensional structure occurs immediately after the base plate / workpiece, which has already been cut and punched with holes in the inner and outer areas, has been smoothed. As a result, the partially processed base plate / workpiece still has a low height during the embossing process (because the side walls have not yet been bent), so that the embossing tool can only be moved slightly in the vertical direction. Furthermore, in this case, it would also be possible to emboss the outer areas of the base plate, which are intended to serve as side walls.

[0028] Alternatively, the processing steps from the first to the fifth processing step can be carried out chronologically in exactly this sequence. The cut and already perforated sheet metal part is bent into a sieve basket with side walls extending vertically from the base before the base is embossed (fifth step) to create the three-dimensional structure as defined above. This approach has the advantage that prior art manufacturing processes can be modified so that the fifth processing step according to the invention can be carried out after the existing process, or existing perforated sheet metal sieve baskets can be retrofitted with a corresponding three-dimensional structure.

[0029] Preferably, a sixth processing step, preferably a joining process (such as a material bond), and particularly preferably welding, such as fusion welding, takes place after the fourth processing step. This sixth step firmly joins the individual edge sections, which now form the side walls of the sieve basket, together at their edges. The fifth processing step can optionally be carried out before or after the sixth processing step. The sixth processing step ensures a robust construction of the sieve basket.

[0030] Another advantageous embodiment is characterized in that the openings / holes obtained in the second processing step / the punching process produce perforations with different structures in the flat inner section and the outer or edge section. For this purpose, the punching tool has differently designed or selectable working surfaces distributed across its base for such structuring.

[0031] Advantageously, in the fifth processing step / the (embossing) process, at least one stamp, similar to an (embossing) die, is used. This stamp is pressed by a press onto a portion of at least the flat inner section (hereinafter referred to as the sieve basket base) of the already cut and perforated base plate in such a way that this portion of the inner section conforms plastically to the negative shape of the stamp. This allows the desired three-dimensional structure to be produced with high precision.

[0032] Advantageously, a large number of dies are used in this stamping step, so that the entire flat inner section is designed as a three-dimensionally structured base. Preferably, the corresponding dies have the same structure, so that the flat inner section is uniformly deformed. Because the entire inner section is designed as a three-dimensionally structured base in this embodiment, the (previously mentioned) draining of the sieve basket occurs quickly, resulting in the associated advantages.

[0033] In a preferred embodiment, the punch has a shape such that the three-dimensionally structured base produced in the fifth processing step has (periodic) corrugations or indentations that project towards the inside and / or outside of the sieve basket, giving the base a mesh-like surface. This mesh simulation synergistically combines the advantages of sheet metal sieve baskets with those of wire sieve baskets.

[0034] Another advantageous embodiment is characterized in that the punch is configured such that the three-dimensionally structured base produced in the fifth processing step is composed of a plurality of longitudinal strut pairs / rib pairs and transverse strut pairs / rib pairs, each running parallel in the base plane and perpendicular to one another in a top view of the structured base. Thus, the fifth processing step deforms the base exclusively in the sieve basket height direction, i.e., towards the inside and / or outside of the sieve basket, while a grid structure advantageous for packing is maintained in the top view.

[0035] The stamp used in the inventive method is preferably configured such that the three-dimensionally structured base forms contact and fixation surfaces for objects to be placed in the sieve basket. In this way, the positional stability of the objects is increased, and it is not necessary to place a (silicone) mat on the base to ensure secure, form-fitting adhesion of the individual objects.

[0036] The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to preferred embodiments and the accompanying figures. The figures are schematic and serve solely to illustrate the invention. The same elements are identified by the same reference numerals. They show: Fig. 1: a flowchart of the manufacturing process according to the invention; Fig. 2: another flowchart of the manufacturing process according to the invention; Fig. 3: a sheet metal blank on which the manufacturing process is based; Fig. 4: a sieve basket starting shape made from the sheet metal blank Fig. 3 is produced; Fig. 5: a perforated initial shape (if no rolling has yet taken place) or a perforated plane (if rolling has already taken place); Fig. 6: a sieve basket shape after bending; Fig. 7: a perspective view of a sieve basket; Fig. 8: the area indicated by viii made of Fig. 7 schematically enlarged; Fig. 9: the area indicated by ix from Fig. 7 schematically enlarged; Fig. 10 a perspective view of a woven-imitation base; Fig. 11 a perspective view of another embodiment of the woven-imitation base; and Fig. 12 a section of the sieve basket with inserted objects.

[0037] Fig. 1 shows a first possible process flow for the production of a sieve basket 1 (see Fig. 7 ) chronologically. Here, laser cutting I, punching II (also punch-nibbling, if the part to be punched out is only partially punched and partially broken), rolling III, embossing V, bending IV and welding VI take place chronologically one after the other.

[0038] Fig. 2 A second possible process sequence is shown chronologically. Here, laser cutting I, punching II (also punch-nibbling, if the part to be punched out is only partially punched and partially broken), rolling III, bending IV, embossing V and welding VI are performed chronologically one after the other.

[0039] The components resulting after each step, which are already in the boxes of the Figures 1 and 2 These are mentioned, will now be discussed in connection with the Figures 3 to 7 explained in more detail.

[0040] In Fig. 3 A rectangular sheet metal blank 2 is shown. This can have any desired shape. Its material thickness is approximately 0.5 mm to 2 mm, preferably approximately 1.5 mm. Fig. 3 This already indicates a cutting contour 12, along which the laser cutting I is carried out.

[0041] Fig. 4 Figure 1 shows a sieve basket base 3, which was cut out of the sheet metal blank 2 along the cutting contour 12. The sieve basket base 3 already has areas 7' and 8', which, after further processing, are modified to form a flat inner section 7 and edge sections 8, respectively (see Figure 1). Fig. 5 ).

[0042] After a punching or punch-nibbling step, a perforated starting form 5 is present, cf. Fig. 5 , before. This has punched openings 4, as shown in Fig. 5are shown schematically. In practice, after cutting I and punching II, the sheet metal exhibits certain residual stresses, which lead to a deformation of the initial shape 5. Consequently, rolling III must now be carried out, which flattens / smooths the sheet metal to obtain a perforated plane 6. In a top view, the initial shape 5 cannot be distinguished from the perforated plane 6, which is why in Fig. 5 Both reference symbols were used.

[0043] Furthermore, Fig. 5 The inner section 7 and the outer sections 8 can be identified. These are preferably punched with different tools so that they have different perforations.

[0044] The object of the embossing process V according to the invention, which produces the desired three-dimensional structure in the manner of a woven imitation, is exclusively the inner section 7 or the inner section 7 and the outer sections 8.

[0045] After bending IV, a sieve basket shape 9 is obtained (see below). Fig. 6 A raw base 10 corresponds to the inner section 7. Once the embossing V has been carried out, the (flat) raw base 10 has the indentations according to the invention (see figure). Figs. 9, 10 ) on.

[0046] Fig. 7 shows a sieve basket 1 for receiving objects to be cleaned, with a multitude of perforations 4, as also shown in the detailed view in Fig. 8 are recognizable. The sieve basket 1, which in this case has a rectangular base / base plane, has a three-dimensionally structured bottom 11, from which side walls 13 extend from each side edge, in this case four.

[0047] Floor 11 shows, as in the detailed view Fig. 9Periodic corrugations or indentations 14 are recognizable. These corrugations 14 protrude from the base plane towards the interior 15 of the sieve basket and, in this case, also towards the exterior 16 of the sieve basket, so that the sheet metal part / base 11 assumes the woven structure surface.

[0048] According to the detailed view from Fig. 8 Figure 1, which shows a top view of a section of the floor 11, shows the floor 11 exhibiting a grid structure in the projection. This structure consists of a multitude of longitudinal strut pairs 17 (also called longitudinal web pairs) and transverse strut pairs 18 (also called transverse web pairs), each running parallel in the ground plane, i.e., in the present top view.

[0049] A single pair of longitudinal struts 17 consists of two longitudinal struts 19, 20. These longitudinal struts 19, 20 run parallel to each other in the ground plane, i.e., in the present top view. In a spatial view (cf. Figs. 9 and 10It can be seen that each strut 19, 20 in the third spatial direction, namely towards the inside of the sieve basket 15 and / or towards the outside of the sieve basket 16, has a different, approximately complementary geometry.

[0050] A single pair of cross braces 18 consists of two cross braces 21, 22. These cross braces 21, 22 run parallel to each other in the ground plane, i.e., in the present top view. In a spatial view (cf. Figs. 9 and 10 It can be seen that each strut 21, 22 in the third spatial direction, namely towards the inside of the sieve basket 15 and / or towards the outside of the sieve basket 16, has a different, approximately complementary geometry.

[0051] The area spanned by the openings 4 fulfills two functions. First, it provides a contact and fixing surface 23 on the edge surface of each strut 19 to 22 facing the opening 4. This area 23 increases with the size of the openings 4. Consequently, the larger the objects to be inserted, the larger the openings 4 must be to ensure sufficient contact and fixing surface 23. Second, the area spanned by the openings 4 allows the cleaning fluid to drain from the sieve basket 1. This drainage function also increases with the size of the openings 4. Therefore, this second function also encourages keeping the area ratio between the strut pairs 17, 18 and the area spanned by the openings 4 less than 1.The area spanned by the openings 4 is limited to a maximum size that is small enough to prevent devices being cleaned from falling out.

[0052] The grid structure defined by the base 11 has the base nodes 24 resulting from the indentation V. According to the invention, these base nodes 24 do not lie in the same plane because of the corrugations 14. A particular advantage of the invention is that the base nodes 24, each formed by cutting a longitudinal strut 19, 20 with a transverse strut 21, 22, have almost the same material thickness as the respective longitudinal or transverse strut 19 to 22.

[0053] Thus, the mesh simulation according to the invention not only enables the imitation of a mesh, but also has the advantage over a mesh that there is no overlap, i.e., no doubling of the material thickness, in the area of ​​node 24, but rather the same constant material thickness as in the rest of the soil. Before this feature is used in connection with Fig. 9 As further discussed, two more parameters of the present invention will be introduced.

[0054] Thus, a portion of the bottom nodes 24 can be hypothetically connected to one another in order to identify the first hypothetical connecting line 25. As will be evident in the following, the bottom nodes 24 connected by the first hypothetical connecting line 25 represent bottom nodes 24 which, according to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, are each arranged at the same height and project into the interior of the sieve basket 15. They each, so to speak, form a wave crest 27 (see [reference]). Fig. 9 ) of the periodic ripples 14.

[0055] Rotated by 90° in the base plane, a second hypothetical connecting line 26 can be seen next to line 25. This line results from connecting the bottom nodes 24 omitted by the first hypothetical connecting line 25. As can be seen further below, the bottom nodes 24 connected by the second hypothetical connecting line 26 are such that, according to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, they are each arranged at the same height and project outwards towards the outer surface 16 of the sieve basket. They each form, so to speak, a wave trough 28 (see [reference]). Fig. 9 ) of the periodic ripples 14.

[0056] Those wave crests 27 and wave troughs 28 are in Fig. 9 depicted. Fig. 9 represents a cross-sectional drawing through the floor 11 (see section ix from Fig. 7The strut shown here is a longitudinal strut 19, 20, which, however, does not differ structurally in its basic form from a transverse strut 21, 22. Based on the visible edges, it can be seen that a first transverse strut 21 extends from each crest 27 of the longitudinal strut 19, 20, while a second transverse strut 22 extends from each trough 28. The reciprocity of the crests 27 and troughs 28 described above is clearly visible here.

[0057] The longitudinal strut 19, 20 has an angular profile in the present case. However, this shape is only exemplary. In other embodiments, an approximately sinusoidal wave shape is particularly desirable.

[0058] Fig. 9Furthermore, it shows that the material thickness of the bottom node 24 does not exceed that of the remaining longitudinal strut 19, 20, which means that despite the mesh simulation, there is no disadvantageous overlap of the struts as described at the beginning.

[0059] In Fig. 10 The undulations 14 are shown in perspective. The first hypothetical connecting line 25 (cf. Fig. 8 ) connects the wave crests 27, the second hypothetical connecting line 26 (cf. Fig. 8) connects the wave troughs 28. The three-dimensional roof shape formed between four adjacent bottom nodes 24 is composed of two triangles. Depending on the perspective, the vertex of these triangles can be positioned either between the two wave crests 27 of the four adjacent bottom nodes 24 (in which case the roof is closed towards the inside of the sieve basket 15) or between the two wave troughs 28 of the four adjacent bottom nodes 24 (in which case the roof is open towards the inside of the sieve basket 15 and closed towards the outside of the sieve basket 16).

[0060] Fig. 10 reveals that the structure formed by the imprint V, which appears in the projected top view from Fig. 8The rectangular grid structure, viewed from a perspective, exhibits a high degree of spatial depth, which reduces the wetting of that surface by droplets after removal from the washer-disinfector. Furthermore, the structure created by the corrugations 14 provides sufficiently large contact and fixation surfaces 23.

[0061] Fig. 11 Figure 1 shows the three-dimensional corrugations 14 and the resulting ribbing in a further section. Over the entire surface of the base 11, so many corrugations 14 are arranged that the totality of the wave crests 27 and wave troughs 28 gives the user the impression of an almost flat surface. Thus, according to the invention, the advantages of a flat surface (such as the easy placement of the sieve basket) are realized while avoiding its disadvantages.

[0062] Fig. 12Figure 1 represents a section of a sieve basket 1. Several objects 29, in this case surgical scissors, are arranged within it, remaining in position due to the corrugations 14 and the contact and fixation surfaces 23 they create. In addition to the base 11, the sieve basket 1 has side walls 13. These also have perforations 30, which, however, differ geometrically from those in the base 11. In this case, the perforations 30 are finer than the perforations 4, so that if the objects 29 slide towards the side wall 13, there is no risk of sharp sections of the objects 29 protruding laterally. Furthermore, the side walls 13 are optionally smooth, i.e., explicitly not corrugated. Reference symbol list

[0063] 1 Sieve basket 2 Sheet metal blank 3 Sieve basket base 4 Perforation 5 Basic shape 6 Perforated plane 7 Flat inner section 8 Edge section 9 Sieve basket shape 10 Raw bottom 11 Three-dimensionally structured bottom 12 Cutting contour 13 Side wall 14 Corrugations or indentations 15 Sieve basket interior 16 Sieve basket exterior 17 Pair of longitudinal struts 18 Pair of transverse struts 19 First longitudinal strut 20 Second longitudinal strut 21 First transverse strut 22 Second transverse strut 23 Mounting and fixing surface 24 Bottom node 25 First hypothetical connecting line 26 Second hypothetical connecting line 27 Wave crest 28 Wave trough 29 Object 30 Perforations in the side wall I First processing step / Laser cutting II Second processing step / Punching III Third processing step / Rolling IV Fourth processing step / Bending V Fifth processing step / Embossing V Sixth processing step / Welding

Claims

1. Method for producing a sieve basket (1) for receiving medical items to be disinfected or sterilized, in which from a plate blank (2), preferably a sheet metal blank (2), - in a first processing step (I), preferably separating, particularly preferably cutting, such as laser cutting, a base plate or sieve basket base surface (3) comprising the bottom and side walls of the sieve basket in one piece is produced, - in a second processing step (II) taking place prior to or after the first processing step (I), preferably separating, especially preferably punching, the plate blank, in particular sheet metal blank (2), or the sieve basket base surface (3) is provided with apertures or holes (4) in order to obtain a perforated initial shape (5), - in a third processing step (III) taking place after the first and second processing steps (I, II), preferably forming, especially preferably rolling or flattening, a perforated or punched plane (6) is produced, which is divided into a flat inner portion (7) representing the bottom and edge portions (8) representing the side walls, - in a fourth processing step (IV) taking place after the third processing step (III), preferably forming, especially preferably bending, a sieve basket shape (9) with a raw bottom and side walls extending vertically thereto is produced, the raw bottom (10) of which corresponds to the flat inner portion (7) and the side walls correspond to the flat edge portions (8) of the perforated plane (6), characterized by a fifth processing step (V) which takes place directly or indirectly after the third processing step (III), preferably forming, especially preferably embossing, which at least partially produces a three-dimensionally structured bottom (11) at least from the flat inner portion (7).

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the fifth processing step (V) takes place prior to the fourth processing step (IV).

3. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the processing steps from the first processing step (I) to the fifth processing step (V) run chronologically in this order.

4. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that after the fourth processing step, a sixth processing step, preferably joining, especially preferably welding, such as fusion joint welding, takes place, which connects the individual edge portions (8) together, which now constitute side walls (13) of the sieve basket (1).

5. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the apertures (4) obtained in the second processing step (II) cause perforations which are structured differently from each other in the flat inner portion (7) and the edge portion (8).

6. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that in the fifth processing step (V), at least one punch is used, which is pressed by a press onto a part of the flat inner portion (7) in such a way that the part of the inner portion (7) plastically adapts to the negative shape of the punch.

7. Method according to claim 6, characterized in that a plurality of punches is used so that the entire flat inner portion (7) is designed as a three-dimensionally structured bottom (12).

8. Method according to one of claims 6 or 7, characterized in that the punch is designed in such a way that the three-dimensionally structured bottom (11) produced in the fifth processing step (V) has corrugations or indentations (14) which project towards the sieve basket interior (15) and / or towards the sieve basket exterior (16), so that the bottom (11) has a surface in the manner of a meshwork.

9. Method according to one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that the punch is designed in such a way that the three-dimensionally structured bottom (11) produced in the fifth processing step (V) is composed of a plurality of, in the base plane parallel, longitudinal strut pairs (17) and transverse strut pairs (18), which run perpendicular to each other in a top view of the structured bottom (11).

10. Method according to one of claims 6 to 9, characterized in that the punch is designed in such a way that the three-dimensionally structured bottom (11) forms contact and fixing surfaces (23) for items (30) to be inserted into the sieve basket (1).