Pushing device for drug delivery device

Abstract

The device is implanted in the body and is coupled to a drug delivery device including a push button for discharging a drug stored inside a housing to the outside, and selectively presses the push button. The device may include a body portion that is detachably coupled to the drug delivery device by sandwiching skin tissue, and a pressure portion that is supported movably in the longitudinal direction from the body portion and is positioned opposite the push button.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a pushing device for a drug delivery device that is coupled to a drug delivery device implanted in the body, and more particularly, to a pushing device for a drug delivery device that is coupled to the drug delivery device by pinching skin tissue and selectively pressurizing a button provided on the drug delivery device. [Background technology]

[0002] Diabetes is now known to be a common disease, affecting approximately 200 million people worldwide, and diabetes-related complications have emerged as a major health issue, with significant human, social, and economic losses.

[0003] Diabetes is a disease that occurs when our bodies are unable to produce enough insulin or use insulin properly to convert glucose (blood sugar) in the blood into energy. Therefore, diabetic patients must continually monitor their blood sugar and inject insulin as needed.

[0004] Recently, drug delivery devices that allow patients to inject insulin themselves have been developed and are being used. In these drug delivery devices, insulin is directly administered by the user through the patient's blood vessels or subcutaneous fat, so in order to maintain a constant insulin concentration in the body, it is most important to inject a fixed amount of insulin at a set time.

[0005] However, due to errors made by users of the drug delivery device, there have been frequent problems with insulin not being injected at the prescribed dose. There have been problems with users forgetting whether they have already injected insulin, injecting insulin more than the prescribed number of times, or not injecting at all. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 10-2021-0096382 (Published on August 5, 2001) Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] An object of the present invention is to provide a pushing device for a drug delivery device which is coupled to a drug delivery device including a push button for discharging a drug stored inside a housing to the outside, for selectively pressing the push button, and which can count the number of times the push button is pressed to prevent duplicate use or unused use of the drug delivery device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to achieve the above object, the pushing device for a drug delivery device according to the present invention is implanted into the body, and is coupled to a drug delivery device including a push button for discharging a drug stored inside a housing to the outside, to selectively pressurize the push button. The pushing device may include a body portion that is detachably coupled to the drug delivery device across skin tissue, and a pressure unit that is supported movably in the longitudinal direction from the body portion and positioned opposite the push button.

[0009] The body portion may have an insertion groove portion recessed at one side so that the drug delivery device can be inserted therein, and a through hole may be formed at an upper portion in a vertical direction so that the pressurizing portion can be coupled thereto.

[0010] In addition, the pressure portion may have a side portion recessed to form a support groove therearound, and an upper step and a lower step may be formed at the upper and lower portions, respectively, and a portion of the upper step may be disposed within the through hole.

[0011] The body portion may include a protruding member protruding into a lower interior portion of the through hole, and a lower step of the pressure portion may be disposed below the protruding member and may interfere with the protruding member.

[0012] In addition, the pressure member may be elastically supported on the body portion by a spring member, and the spring member may be disposed between an upper step of the pressure member and a protruding member of the body portion.

[0013] A magnetic body may be provided under the pressure unit, and an electromagnet may be provided in the insertion groove to selectively generate an attractive force on the magnetic body by an externally applied current.

[0014] In addition, at least one guide protrusion formed long in the vertical direction may be provided on an outer periphery of the pressure applying portion, and a guide groove portion into which the guide protrusion is inserted to guide the movement of the pressure applying portion may be formed on an inner wall of the body portion in which the through hole is formed.

[0015] In addition, a magnetic material is provided at a contact portion between the pressure member and the push button to prevent the pressure member from slipping.

[0016] The pressure measuring device may further include a measuring unit that counts the number of times that an external force is applied to the pressure unit and the pressure unit presses the push button, and a display unit that outputs the number of presses counted from the measuring unit.

[0017] The measurement unit can also measure click information of a push button provided on the drug delivery device and count the number of times the push button is pressed.

[0018] According to still another embodiment of the present invention, the pressure applying portion may further include a rotating gear portion attached to the body portion and generating a rotational force, and a meshing portion attached to the support groove portion and meshing with the rotating gear portion so that the pressure applying portion moves in the longitudinal direction as the rotating gear portion rotates. Effect of the Invention

[0019] According to the present invention, a pushing device for a drug delivery device is combined with a drug delivery device including a push button and counts the number of times the push button is pressed, thereby preventing duplicate use or unused use of the drug delivery device.

[0020] In addition, since it is possible to determine whether the push button has been clicked normally through the measuring unit, incomplete administration can be prevented and the amount of medicine can be more accurately injected.

[0021] In addition, since the measurement unit is configured to measure click information of the pressure unit, it is possible to calculate the amount of drug injected based on the number of clicks, thereby confirming whether the drug has been injected in the prescribed amount.

[0022] Furthermore, by providing magnetic bodies at the contact points between the pressure applying portion and the push button, it is possible to prevent the shaft from tilting and slipping when the pressure applying portion applies pressure to the push button. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0023] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a front view of a pushing device for a drug delivery apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 2 is a side cross-sectional view of a pushing device for the drug delivery device shown in FIG. 1. [Diagram 3] 3 shows the pushing device for the drug delivery device of FIG. 2 coupled to the drug delivery device. FIG. [Figure 4] 4 is a diagram showing a state in which the pushing device for the drug delivery device of FIG. 3 presses the push button of the drug delivery device. [Diagram 5] 3 shows the pushing device of FIG. 2 coupled to the drug delivery device with the drug delivery device implanted in skin tissue. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of a pushing device for a drug delivery device according to another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] 11 is a cross-sectional view of a pushing device for a drug delivery device according to still another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] 11 is a cross-sectional view of a pushing device for a drug delivery device according to still another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] 11 is a cross-sectional view of a pushing device for a drug delivery device according to still another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 10] 11 is a cross-sectional view of a pushing device for a drug delivery device according to still another embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0024] Hereinafter, a pushing device for a drug delivery device according to a preferred embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Hereinafter, the same components will be referred to by the same reference numerals, and repeated explanations and detailed explanations of known functions and configurations that may unnecessarily obscure the gist of the invention will be omitted. The embodiments of the present invention are provided to more completely explain the present invention to those having average knowledge in the art. Therefore, the shapes and sizes of elements in the drawings may be exaggerated for clearer explanation.

[0025] FIG. 1 is a front view of a pushing device for a drug delivery device according to one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a side cross-sectional view of the pushing device for a drug delivery device shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a state in which the pushing device for a drug delivery device of FIG. 2 is coupled to a drug delivery device, FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a state in which the pushing device for a drug delivery device of FIG. 3 presses the push button of the drug delivery device, and FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state in which the pushing device of FIG. 2 is coupled to a drug delivery device when the drug delivery device is implanted in skin tissue.

[0026] 1 to 5, a pushing device 100 for a drug delivery apparatus can include a body portion 110 and a pressure portion 120.

[0027] The pushing device 100 for a drug delivery device according to the present embodiment is implanted in the body and is coupled to a drug delivery device 10 including a push button 11 for discharging a drug stored inside a housing to the outside, and selectively presses the push button 11, and may be used interchangeably with the drug delivery device described in Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2021-0096382. However, the interchangeable drug delivery device 10 is not limited thereto, and any drug delivery device 10 having a push button 11 on the outside may be formed interchangeably.

[0028] On the other hand, the drug delivery device 10 can be implanted into the tissue of the skin S as shown in FIG. 5, and the pushing device 100 of the present invention can be connected to the drug delivery device 10 in a state where it is implanted into the tissue of the skin S during use, by clamping the skin.

[0029] The body part 110 may be detachably coupled to the drug delivery device 10 by sandwiching the skin tissue. For example, the body part 110 may have an insertion groove part 111 with one side recessed so that the drug delivery device 10 can be inserted therein, and a through hole 112 may be formed in the upper part in the longitudinal direction so that the pressurizing part 120 described below can be inserted therein and coupled thereto. Here, the longitudinal direction may refer to the same direction as the movement direction of the push button 11, i.e., the drug injection direction.

[0030] The insertion groove 111 formed in the body portion 110 can be formed to have the same appearance as the drug delivery device 10 so as not to float up when they are connected to each other. In particular, if the appearance of the insertion groove 111 and the drug delivery device 10 is formed in a rectangular prism shape, when the drug delivery device 10 is inserted into the insertion groove 111, the drug delivery device 10 is prevented from rotating from the insertion groove 111, thereby enabling more stable drug injection.

[0031] The pressure applying unit 120 is supported from the body unit 110 so as to be movable in the longitudinal direction, and may be disposed opposite the push button 11. For example, when the drug delivery device 10 is inserted into the insertion groove unit 111 and the push button 11 is positioned at the upper side, the pressure applying unit 120 may be disposed above the push button 11 and positioned opposite each other. As a result, when a user applies an external force in a downward direction to the pressure applying unit 120, the push button 11 of the drug delivery device 10 may come into contact with the pressure applying unit 120 and simultaneously move in a downward direction.

[0032] The pressure applying part 120 has a recessed portion at the side, a support groove portion 121 formed around it, and an upper jaw portion 122 and a lower jaw portion 123 formed at the top and bottom, respectively, and a portion of the upper step 122 can be disposed within the through hole 112. With this structure, the pressure applying part 120 can move up and down within the through hole 112 of the body part 110, i.e., in the longitudinal direction of the body part 110.

[0033] Specifically, the body part 110 includes a protruding member 113 protruding into the lower inside of the through hole 112, and the lower step 123 of the pressure part 120 is disposed below the protruding member 113 and may interfere with the protruding member 113. Since the lower step 123 of the pressure part 120 interferes with the protruding member 113 of the body part 110, when the pressure part 120 moves downward and is restored to its upper position, it can be prevented from falling out of the through hole 112 of the body part 110 by being caught by the body part 110.

[0034] Meanwhile, the pressure unit 120 may be supported movably from the body unit 110 by the compression and restoring force of the spring member 130. For example, the spring member 130 may be disposed between the upper step 122 of the pressure unit 120 and the protruding member 113 of the body unit 110. As a result, the pressure unit 120 may be elastically supported on the body unit 110 by the spring member 130, and when a user applies an external force to press the pressure unit 120 downward, the pressure unit 120 moves downward due to the compression of the spring member 130, and when the external force is released, the pressure unit 120 moves upward due to the restoring force of the spring member 130 to its original position.

[0035] In the present embodiment, the pressurizing unit 120 is described as being moved within the body unit 110 by the spring member 130, but the pressurizing unit 120 may be restored by a power source such as an actuator. Alternatively, the pressurizing unit 120 may be moved by the restoring force of the drug delivery device 10 itself without the spring member 130.

[0036] According to the present invention, the pushing device 100 for a drug delivery apparatus may further include a measuring unit 140 and a display unit 150 .

[0037] The measurement unit 140 can count the number of times that an external force is applied to the pressure unit 120 and the pressure unit 120 presses the push button 11. For example, the measurement unit 140 can measure click information of the push button 11 provided in the drug delivery device 10 to count the number of times the push button 11 is pressed. Specifically, in the case of the push button 11 provided in the drug delivery device 10, when a certain force is applied and the button 11 moves, a click occurs at a specific position and the force is reduced, and the measurement unit 140 can count the number of clicks to measure the number of times the button is pressed. The amount of drug injected can be confirmed by counting the number of clicks.

[0038] In this way, the pushing device 100 for a drug delivery device is coupled to the drug delivery device 10 and configured to count the number of times the push button 11 is pressed, thereby preventing duplicate use of the drug delivery device 10. That is, when a drug needs to be injected once a day, a user may inject the drug in the morning and forget to do so in the afternoon, and either reinject the drug or not inject the drug at all. However, since the pushing device 100 for a drug delivery device can count the number of times the push button 11 is pressed, duplicate use or unused use of the drug delivery device 10 can be prevented.

[0039] In addition, since the measuring unit 140 is configured to count the number of times the push button 11 is pressed, it is possible to calculate the amount of drug injected according to the number of clicks, thereby confirming whether the prescribed amount of drug has been injected. That is, if 1U is released per click, it can be calculated that 3U has been released from the drug delivery device 10 when the measuring unit 140 counts three clicks. Such an amount of drug injected can be output through the display unit 150, which will be described later.

[0040] The measuring unit 140 further includes a speaker or an LED lamp to support sound or light when counting the number of times the push button 11 is pressed, thereby allowing visual and audio confirmation as to whether the push button 11 has been pressed normally, thereby further improving the convenience of use. As described above, since it is possible to determine whether the push button 11 has been pressed normally through the measuring unit 140, incomplete administration can be prevented and the amount of medicine can be more accurately injected.

[0041] The display unit 150 can output the number of pressurizations counted from the measurement unit 140. For example, the display unit 150 can be provided on the exterior of the body unit 110 and output the number of pressurizations counted from the measurement unit 140. In this case, the pushing device 100 for a drug delivery apparatus may be formed to be linked to a smartphone app or other external device, in which case the display unit 150 can be provided in the external device rather than the body unit 110 and output the number of pressurizations counted from the measurement unit 140. In addition, the display unit 150 can be provided in both the body unit 110 and the external device.

[0042] FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a pushing device for a drug delivery apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[0043] 6, the pushing device 200 for a drug delivery apparatus may further include a guide protrusion 124 formed on the outer periphery of the pressurizing part 120 and a guide groove 114 formed on the inner wall of the body part 110. For example, at least one guide protrusion 124 formed long in the up-down direction may be provided on the outer periphery of the pressurizing part 120, and at least one guide groove 114 into which the guide protrusion 124 is inserted to guide the movement of the pressurizing part 120 may be provided on the inner wall of the body part 110 in which the through hole 112 is formed. In this case, the guide protrusion 124 may be formed to protrude in a hemispherical shape, and the guide groove 114 may also be formed in a shape corresponding to the guide protrusion 124. The guide protrusions 124 and the guide groove 114 may be provided in the same number at positions corresponding to each other.

[0044] In this manner, the movement of the pressure member 120 within the body portion 110 is guided by the guide protrusion 124 and the guide groove portion 114, so that when the pressure member 120 moves downward, it is possible to prevent the pressure member 120 from spinning freely within the body portion 110, thereby improving the convenience of use.

[0045] FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of a pushing device for a drug delivery apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

[0046] 7, the pushing device 300 for the drug delivery apparatus may further include a magnetic body 160. For example, the magnetic body 160 may be installed at a contact portion between the pressurizing part 120 and the push button 11 to prevent the pressurizing part 120 from slipping.

[0047] Specifically, a magnetic body 160 is placed on the bottom surface of the pressure applying unit 120, and another magnetic body 160 is placed on the top surface of the push button 11 facing the pressure applying unit 120, and they are able to move while attached to each other by magnetic force, thereby preventing the axis from tilting and slipping when the pressure applying unit 120 applies pressure to the push button 11.

[0048] In this embodiment, a pair of magnetic bodies 160 is provided on the pressure applying portion 120 and the push button 11, respectively, but the push button 11 itself may be made of a magnetic body 160 or a metal material, and the magnetic body 160 may be provided on the bottom surface of the pressure applying portion 120, thereby preventing the pressure applying portion 120 from slipping. In addition, the push button 11 itself may be made of a magnetic body 160 or a metal material, and the pressure applying portion 120 itself may be made of a magnetic body 160, thereby preventing the pressure applying portion 120 from slipping.

[0049] FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a pushing device for a drug delivery apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

[0050] 8, the pressing unit 120 of the pushing device 400 for a drug delivery device may be movably supported from the body unit 110 by a magnetic force. For example, a magnetic body 170 may be provided at the lower part of the pressing unit 120, and an electromagnet 180 may be provided in the insertion groove 111 to form a selective attractive force on the magnetic body 170 by an externally applied current. To this end, although not shown in the figure, the pushing device 400 for a drug delivery device may further include a battery for applying a current to the electromagnet 180 and a switch for turning on / off the power of the battery.

[0051] As a result, when the user operates the switch in the on state, a current is applied to the electromagnet 180, generating an attractive force against the magnetic body 170, causing the pressure member 120 to move downward, and when the user operates the switch in the off state, the supply of current applied to the electromagnet 180 is interrupted, causing the pressure member 120 to move upward due to the restoring force of the spring member 130.

[0052] In addition, although not shown in the drawings, the pressure unit 120 may be moved up and down by a linear actuator, a hydraulic cylinder, a pneumatic cylinder, etc. In other words, the method of moving the pressure unit 120 up and down is not limited to the example and may be embodied in various ways.

[0053] As described above, the pushing device for a drug delivery device is combined with a drug delivery device 10 including a push button 11 to count the number of times the push button 11 is pressed, thereby preventing duplicate or unused use of the drug delivery device 10.

[0054] Also, since it is possible to determine whether the push button 11 has been clicked normally through the measuring unit 140, incomplete administration can be prevented and the amount of medicine can be more accurately injected.

[0055] In addition, since the measurement unit 140 is configured to measure the click information of the pressurizing unit 120, it is possible to calculate the amount of medicine injected based on the number of clicks, thereby confirming whether the medicine has been injected in the prescribed amount.

[0056] Furthermore, by providing magnetic bodies 160 at the contact points between pressure applying portion 120 and push button 11, it is possible to prevent the axis from tilting and slipping when pressure applying portion 120 applies pressure to push button 11.

[0057] FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a pushing device for a drug delivery apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

[0058] Referring to FIG. 9, a pushing device for a drug delivery device according to another embodiment of the present invention may further include a rotating gear portion 125 that is attached to the body portion 110 and generates a rotational force, and a meshing portion 126 that is attached to the support groove portion 121 and meshes with the rotating gear portion 125 so that the pressure portion 120 moves in the longitudinal direction as the rotating gear portion 125 rotates.

[0059] Specifically, the rotating gear unit 125 may be connected to an electric motor to generate a rotating force, or may further include a rotating handle protruding outward to manually rotate the rotating gear unit 125 without an electric motor. In the case where an electric motor is included, it is needless to say that a small power supply unit connected to the electric motor may be further included.

[0060] FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of a pushing device for a drug delivery apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

[0061] Referring to FIG. 10, a pushing device for a drug delivery apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention may further include a screw portion 127 attached to the body portion 110 and generating a rotational force, and a screw coupling portion 128 formed in a thread shape in the support groove portion 121 and meshing with the screw portion 127 so that the pressure applying portion 120 moves in the longitudinal direction as the screw portion 127 rotates.

[0062] Specifically, the screw unit 127 may be connected to an electric motor to generate a rotational force, or may further include a rotating handle protruding outward to manually rotate the screw unit 127 without an electric motor. In the case where an electric motor is included, it is needless to say that a small power supply unit connected to the electric motor may further be included.

[0063] Although the present invention has been described with reference to an embodiment shown in the accompanying drawings, this is merely an example, and those skilled in the art will recognize that various modifications and equivalent embodiments are possible. Therefore, the true scope of protection of the present invention should be determined only by the appended claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0064] 110 Body 111 Insertion groove 112 Through hole 113 Protruding member 114 Guide groove 120 Pressurizing section 121 Support groove 122 Upper Step 123 Lower Step 124 Guide protrusion 125 Rotating gear part 126 Meshing part 127 Screw section 128 Screw joint 130 Spring member 140 Measuring section 150 Display unit 160, 170 magnetic material 180 Electromagnet

Claims

1. A pushing device for a drug delivery device is implanted in a body, and is coupled to a drug delivery device including a push button for discharging a drug stored inside a housing to the outside, the pushing device selectively pressing the push button, a body portion removably coupled to the drug delivery device across skin tissue; a pressure applying portion supported so as to be movable in the longitudinal direction from the body portion and positioned opposite the push button.

2. 2. The pushing device for a drug delivery device according to claim 1, wherein the body portion has an insertion groove portion recessed on one side so that the drug delivery device can be inserted therein, and a through hole is formed in the upper portion in the longitudinal direction so that the pressurizing part can be coupled thereto.

3. 3. The pushing device for a drug delivery device according to claim 2, wherein the pressure applying portion has a recessed portion at a side thereof and a support groove portion formed therearound, and an upper step and a lower step are formed at the upper and lower portions, respectively, and a portion of the upper step is positioned within the through hole.

4. 4. The pushing device for a drug delivery device according to claim 3, wherein the body portion includes a protruding member protruding into the lower interior of the through hole, and the lower step of the pressure applying portion is positioned below the protruding member and interferes with the protruding member.

5. The pressure applying portion is elastically supported by a spring member on the body portion, The pushing device for a drug delivery apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the spring member is disposed between an upper step of the pressure applying portion and the protruding member of the body portion.

6. 3. The pushing device for a drug delivery device according to claim 2, wherein a magnetic body is provided at a lower part of the pressure applying portion, and an electromagnet is provided at the insertion groove portion to form a selective attractive force on the magnetic body by an externally applied current.

7. At least one guide protrusion extending in the vertical direction is provided on the outer periphery of the pressure unit, 3. The pushing device for a drug delivery apparatus according to claim 2, wherein an inner wall of the body portion in which the through hole is formed is formed with a guide groove portion into which the guide protrusion is inserted to guide the movement of the pressurizing portion.

8. The pushing device for a drug delivery apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein a magnetic material is provided at a contact portion between the pressure applying portion and the push button to prevent the pressure applying portion from slipping.

9. A measuring unit that counts the number of times that an external force is applied to the pressure unit and the pressure unit presses the push button; The pushing device for a drug delivery apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising: a display unit that outputs the number of pressurizations counted by the measurement unit.

10. The pushing device for a drug delivery device according to claim 9 , wherein the measurement unit measures click information of a push button provided on the drug delivery device and counts the number of times the push button is pressed.

11. A rotating gear portion attached to the body portion and generating a rotational force; The pushing device for a drug delivery device according to claim 3, further comprising a meshing portion attached to the support groove portion and meshing with the rotating gear portion so that the pressure applying portion moves in the longitudinal direction as the rotating gear portion rotates.

12. A screw portion attached to the body portion and generating a rotational force; The pushing device for a drug delivery device according to claim 3, further comprising a screw coupling portion formed in a screw thread shape in the support groove portion and meshing with the screw portion so that the pressure applying portion moves in the longitudinal direction as the screw portion rotates.

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