Inhaler

Abstract

An inhaler according to one embodiment includes a housing having one side, another side opposite the one side, and a plurality of side surfaces connecting the one side to the other side; a reservoir located inside the housing in which an inhalable composition is stored; a canister containing the inhalable composition stored in the reservoir and connected to the reservoir in an openable and closable manner; a relief valve located apart from the canister and installed to open and close the reservoir from the outside; and a lever for controlling the opening and closing operation of at least one of the canister or the relief valve; the lever can be controlled so that the canister is opened after the relief valve is opened.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The inhaler is disclosed. [Background technology]

[0002] In general, an inhaler is a device used to inhale a composition such as a drug in a liquid or gaseous state through the oral or nasal cavity during the inhalation process. Such an inhaler includes a container that contains an inhalable composition, and the composition is ejected from the container through a thin tube and finally into the oral or nasal cavity through an inhalation port to be inhaled by the user.

[0003] The above-mentioned background art is owned or acquired by the inventors in the process of deriving the contents of the disclosure of this application, and cannot necessarily be said to be publicly known art that was disclosed to the general public prior to the filing of this application. [Prior art document] [Patent documents] [Patent Document 1] Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 10-2021229 (Announced on September 11, 2019) Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] It is an object according to one embodiment to provide an inhaler that allows for smooth filling by venting residual gas in the reservoir before filling the reservoir with the inhalable composition.

[0005] The problems to be solved in the embodiments are not limited to those mentioned above, and other problems not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] To achieve the above object, one embodiment of an inhaler includes a housing having one side, another side opposite the one side, and a plurality of side surfaces connecting the one side and the other side; a reservoir located inside the housing in which an inhalable composition is stored; a canister containing the inhalable composition stored in the reservoir and connected to the reservoir in an openable and closable manner; a relief valve located apart from the canister and installed to open and close the reservoir from the outside; and a lever for controlling the opening and closing operation of at least one of the canister or the relief valve; the lever can be controlled so that the canister is opened after the relief valve is opened.

[0007] According to one aspect, the pressure regulator may further include a relief bar having one end coupled to the relief valve and extending toward the lever, the relief bar being located between the lever and the canister.

[0008] According to one aspect, the lever may include a support member extending in a first direction toward the canister; and a protruding member having an end rotatably coupled to the support member around a rotation axis provided on the support member; and the other end of the relief bar may be located between the protruding member and the other surface of the housing.

[0009] According to one aspect, when the lever is pressed, the protruding member may move in the first direction while moving the relief bar in a second direction toward one face of the housing.

[0010] According to one aspect, when the lever is pressed in the first direction, the support member may restrict rotation of the protruding member, and when the lever returns to its original position, the support member may allow rotation of the protruding member.

[0011] According to one aspect, the protrusion member may be positioned such that, with its end standing up toward one side of the housing, rotation toward the canister is unrestricted and rotation away from the canister is restricted.

[0012] According to one aspect, when the canister is opened, the projection member may be located between the relief bar and the canister.

[0013] According to one aspect, the lever may further include a wedge member extending toward a bottom surface of the canister, and the distance between the wedge member and the bottom surface of the canister may be greater than the distance between the protrusion member and the relief bar.

[0014] According to one aspect, the wedge member may include an inclined surface inclined adjacent to the bottom surface along the first direction, and when the lever is further pressed in the first direction with the inclined surface and the bottom surface in contact, the inclined surface may move the canister in a second direction toward one side of the housing.

[0015] According to one aspect, when the lever reaches a first position where the relief valve is opened, the inhalable composition remaining in the reservoir may be discharged to the outside, and when the lever reaches a second position where one side of the canister is opened, the inhalable composition contained in the canister may be filled into the reservoir.

[0016] According to one aspect, the relief bar may open the relief valve when it moves in a second direction toward one face of the housing and close the relief valve when it returns to its original position.

[0017] In one aspect, the canister comprises a container for containing the inhalable composition; and a nozzle connected to the reservoir on one side and located within the container on the other side; the nozzle may be opened and closed to allow or restrict movement of the inhalable composition to the reservoir.

[0018] According to one aspect, the outlet may be opened when the accommodating portion moves in a second direction from the other side to the one side of the housing, and closed when the accommodating portion returns to its original position. Effect of the Invention

[0019] In one embodiment, the inhaler advantageously vents residual gas within the reservoir prior to filling the reservoir with the inhalable composition, providing a smoother filling.

[0020] The effects of the inhaler according to one embodiment are not limited to those mentioned above, and other effects not mentioned will be clearly understood by those of ordinary skill in the art from the following description. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0021] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an inhaler according to one embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an inhaler according to one embodiment. [Diagram 3] A relief valve that operates in conjunction with a lever is shown. [Figure 4] The two-stage lever movement process is shown. [Diagram 5] The opening and closing operations of the relief valve and the canister are shown when the lever is operated in the same procedure as in Fig. 4. The following drawings attached to this specification are illustrative of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and serve to further understand the technical idea of ​​the present invention together with the detailed description of the invention, so the present invention should not be interpreted as being limited only to the matters shown in such drawings. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0022] Hereinafter, the embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. When referring to components in each drawing, it should be noted that the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals as much as possible even if they are displayed in different drawings. In addition, in the description of the embodiments, if a detailed description of related known configurations or functions is deemed to hinder understanding of the embodiments, the detailed description will be omitted.

[0023] In addition, in describing components of the embodiments, terms such as first, second, A, B, (a), (b), etc. may be used. Such terms are merely intended to distinguish the components from other components, and do not limit the essence, procedure, or order of the components. When a component is described as being "coupled," "coupled," or "connected" to another component, it should be understood that the component may be directly coupled or connected to the other component, but that there may also be another component "coupled," "coupled," or "connected" between each component.

[0024] Components having functions common to those included in any of the embodiments will be described using the same names in the other embodiments. Unless otherwise specified, the description of any of the embodiments is applicable to the other embodiments, and detailed description will be omitted to the extent that they overlap.

[0025] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an inhaler 10 according to one embodiment.

[0026] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of an inhaler 10 according to one embodiment.

[0027] FIG. 3 shows a relief valve 700 which operates in conjunction with the lever 300 .

[0028] FIG. 4 shows the two actuation stages of the lever 300 in sequence.

[0029] FIG. 5 shows the sequential opening and closing operations of the relief valve 700 and the canister 200 when the lever 300 is operated in a similar procedure to that shown in FIG.

[0030] With reference to FIG. 1, an inhaler 10 according to one embodiment includes a housing 101 , a mouthpiece 102 , a reservoir 103 , a canister 200 , and a lever 300 .

[0031] The housing 101 includes a first surface formed on one side, a second surface opposite to the first surface, and a plurality of side surfaces connecting the first surface and the second surface. The first surface of the housing 101 is, for example, a surface located at the top of the housing 101, and the second surface is, for example, a bottom surface of the housing 101.

[0032] The mouthpiece 102 may be disposed on a first surface of the housing 101. A user can inhale the inhalable composition contained in the inhaler 10 through the mouthpiece 102. At this time, the user can inhale the composition, for example, in an aerosol state, or in the form of a powder or the like. Hereinafter, an inhaler 10 according to one embodiment will be described taking as an example an inhaler 10 that sprays the inhalable composition in an aerosol state.

[0033] 1 and 2, the reservoir 103 may be disposed inside the housing 101. One side of the canister 200 is connected to the reservoir 103, and the inhalable composition contained in the canister 200 can be moved to the reservoir 103 and stored therein. In addition, the inhalable composition stored in the reservoir 103 is discharged in an aerosol state through the mouthpiece 102 when the user applies an inhalation force through the mouthpiece 102, so that the inhalable composition stored in the reservoir 103 is gradually consumed.

[0034] The canister 200 may be attached inside the housing 101. In this case, the canister 200 may be replaceably attached inside the housing 101. The canister 200 may contain an inhalable composition therein. The composition of the canister 200 may be filled in a certain amount inside the reservoir 103.

[0035] Lever 300 may be pressed by a user to fill the composition contained in canister 200 into reservoir 103. Lever 300 may form one side of housing 101 or may be located adjacent to the second side. When a user presses lever 300, lever 300 pushes up the bottom surface of canister 200, and nozzle 220 of canister 200 is connected to reservoir 103, and the composition can move from canister 200 to reservoir 103 through nozzle 220.

[0036] In the following, the direction from one side surface of the housing 101 where the lever 300 is located toward the canister 200 is defined as a first direction, and the direction from the second surface of the housing 101 toward the first surface is defined as a second direction.

[0037] Meanwhile, the reservoir 103 is provided with a relief valve 700, and a relief vent hole 400 is provided on a first surface of the housing 101. The relief valve 700 is linked to the lever 300 via the relief bar 800 and the relief bar moving protrusion 320, etc., and operates to open first before the lever 300 pushes up the canister 200, thereby discharging residual gas in the reservoir 103 in advance before filling the reservoir 103 with the inhalable composition.

[0038] Such a relief valve 700 is described in more detail below with reference to Figures 3 to 5.

[0039] 2, the inhaler 10 according to one embodiment allows the user to visually check the remaining amount of the composition stored in the reservoir 103 through a display window (not shown) provided in the housing 101. The inhaler 10 according to one embodiment may also include a counter (not shown) for counting the number of times the reservoir 103 is filled in conjunction with the up and down movement of the canister 200, and a display window (not shown) for displaying the remaining amount of the composition in the canister 200. The composition stored in the reservoir 103 is sprayed in an aerosol state when the user applies an inhalation force to the mouthpiece 102, and at this time, an inhale interlocking valve 105 for opening and closing the reservoir 103 is operated by the inhalation force, and the opening and closing operation of the inhale interlocking valve 105 may be controlled by a piston 106. The inhaler 10 according to one embodiment may also include a cover 500 and a locking device 600 for preventing the canister 200 from coming off.

[0040] As described above, the inhaler 10 according to one embodiment is a system in which an inhalable composition contained in a canister 200 is filled into the reservoir 103, and if residual gas remains in the reservoir 103 during repeated refilling, it may not be easy to fill the reservoir 103 with the composition in the canister 200. Therefore, the inhaler 10 according to one embodiment may be provided with a relief valve 700 that is linked to the filling lever 300 in order to facilitate filling the reservoir 103.

[0041] 3, a relief valve 700 of the inhaler 10 according to one embodiment may be disposed in the reservoir 103 at a distance from one side of the canister 200. The relief valve 700 may be opened or closed to connect or block the reservoir 103 to the outside.

[0042] The opening or closing action of the relief valve 700 may be controlled by the aforementioned lever 300. For example, when the lever 300 is pressurized by a user, the lever 300 can be controlled such that the relief valve 700 is first opened and then the canister 200 is opened.

[0043] In this manner, the inhaler 10 according to one embodiment is provided with a relief valve 700 linked to the lever 300, which allows residual gas in the reservoir 103 to be discharged and allows the inhalable composition to be smoothly filled from the canister 200 into the reservoir 103.

[0044] The lever 300 may be pressed by a user. At this time, the lever 300 moves toward the canister 200 and reaches a first position, and when the lever 300 is further pressed by the user, it reaches a second position. When the lever 300 is in the first position, the relief valve 700 is opened, and when the lever 300 is in the second position, the relief valve 700 is closed and the injection port 220 of the canister 200 is opened.

[0045] Specifically, the relief valve 700 may be linked to the lever 300 through a relief bar 800, and may be opened or closed by raising or lowering the relief bar 800. The relief bar 800 may be disposed between the lever 300 and the canister 200. One end of the relief bar 800 may be coupled to the relief valve 700, and the other end may extend toward the lever 300. The relief bar 800 may open the relief valve 700 while moving in the second direction, and close the relief valve 700 while returning to its original position.

[0046] The lever 300 may include a support member 310 and a protruding member 320 .

[0047] The support member 310 may be extended towards the canister 200 .

[0048] The protrusion member 320 may be rotatably coupled to the support member 310 around a rotation axis provided on the support member 310. The protrusion member 320 may have an end portion protruding in a radial direction from the rotation axis on one side. The end portion of the protrusion member 320 may be disposed in an upright state toward the first surface of the housing 101.

[0049] The other end of the relief bar 800 may be located between the protruding member 320 and the second surface of the housing 101. In addition, the protruding member 320 may have an end inclined in a direction away from the canister 200 with the rotation axis as the center.

[0050] When the lever 300 is pressed in the first direction, the support member 310 may limit the rotation of the protruding member 320. In other words, the protruding member 320 may be restricted from rotating in a direction away from the canister 200 with its end portion standing up toward the first surface of the housing 101.

[0051] Therefore, when the lever 300 is pressed, the protrusion member 320 also moves in the first direction to reach the first position. In this case, the protrusion member 320 does not rotate while in contact with the relief bar 800, and can push the relief bar 800 up in the second direction.

[0052] Eventually, when the lever 300 reaches the first position, the inhalable composition remaining in the reservoir 103 is expelled to the outside.

[0053] On the other hand, when the lever 300 returns to its original position, the support member 310 may allow the rotation of the protruding member 320. In other words, the rotation of the protruding member 320 in the direction toward the canister 200 may not be restricted with the end portion of the protruding member 320 standing up toward the first surface of the housing 101.

[0054] Therefore, when the lever 300 moves in the opposite direction to the first direction after passing the first position or to the second position, the protrusion member 320 does not push up the relief bar 800, but can return to its original position while passing over the relief bar 800.

[0055] With further reference to FIG. 3, the lever 300 may further include a wedge member 330 that extends toward the bottom surface of the canister 200 .

[0056] The wedge member 330 may include an inclined surface 3301 that is inclined to further abut the bottom surface of the canister 200 along the first direction.

[0057] With this, when the lever 300 is further pressed in the first direction with the inclined surface 3301 and the bottom surface in contact with each other, the inclined surface 3301 can move the canister 200 in the second direction.

[0058] The distance between the inclined surface 3301 of the wedge member 330 and the bottom surface of the canister 200 may be greater than the distance between the protruding member 320 and the relief bar 800. Therefore, when the lever 300 moves in the first direction, the protruding member 320 can first contact the other end of the relief bar 800 before the inclined surface 3301 contacts the bottom surface of the canister 200. In other words, just before the lever 300 pushes up the canister 200 to fill the reservoir 103, the relief valve 700 installed in the reservoir 103 can be opened first.

[0059] On the other hand, when the canister 200 is opened, that is, when the lever 300 reaches the second position and the inclined surface 3301 pushes the canister 200 up in the second direction, the protruding member 320 may be positioned between the relief bar 800 and the canister 200 .

[0060] Eventually, when the lever 300 reaches the second position, the inhalable composition contained in the canister 200 can be filled into the reservoir 103 .

[0061] With further reference to FIG. 3, the canister 200 of the inhaler 10 according to one embodiment may include a container 210 and an orifice 220.

[0062] The container 210 may contain an inhalable composition.

[0063] The nozzle 220 may have one side connected to the reservoir 103 and the other side located within the housing 210. Such a nozzle 220 may be actuated to open or close with respect to the reservoir 103. For example, the nozzle 220 may be opened when the lever 300 is in the second position. When the nozzle 220 is opened, the inhalable composition contained in the housing 210 is allowed to move to the reservoir 103. On the other hand, the nozzle 220 may be closed when the lever 300 is not in the second position. When the nozzle 220 is closed, the path of movement of the inhalable composition to the reservoir 103 is blocked, and therefore filling of the reservoir 103 is stopped.

[0064] The opening and closing of the nozzle 220 is controlled by whether or not the user applies pressure to the lever 300 .

[0065] As described above, when the lever 300 is pressed, the inclined surface 3301 of the wedge member 330 may push up the bottom surface of the canister 200, i.e., the bottom surface of the accommodating part 210. At this time, the accommodating part 210 is moved in the second direction, but the nozzle 220 may be in a state where one side is fixed to the storage 103. That is, the position of the nozzle 220 does not move within the housing 101, but the position of the other side of the nozzle 220 within the accommodating part 210 may change due to the accommodating part 210 rising in the second direction.

[0066] For example, when the other side of the nozzle 220 is pushed deep into the housing 210, the nozzle 220 is opened. As a result, the inhalable composition in the housing 210 can move to the reservoir 103 through the nozzle 220. At this time, the inhalable composition can be moved by the pressure difference between the reservoir 103 and the housing 210. That is, when the inhalable composition filled in the reservoir 103 by the user is consumed by aerosol discharge, the pressure in the reservoir 103 decreases, and therefore, when the nozzle 220 is opened, the inhalable composition can move from the housing 210 to the reservoir 103. On the other hand, when the reservoir 103 is sufficiently filled with the inhalable composition, the inhalable composition does not move further to the reservoir 103 even if the user presses the lever 300 to open the nozzle 220.

[0067] Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, a process in which the lever 300 of the inhaler 10 according to one embodiment is actuated in two stages to sequentially open the relief valve 700 and the canister 200 and return to its original position will be described.

[0068] FIG. 4( a ) shows the inhaler 10 with no external force applied to the lever 300 .

[0069] At this time, as shown in FIG. 5(a), neither the relief valve 700 nor the canister 200 is opened.

[0070] FIG. 4(b) shows the inhaler 10 in a state where the lever 300 has been pressed in a first direction to move it to a first position.

[0071] At this time, the support member 310 restricts the end of the protruding member 320 from rotating in a direction away from the canister 200. As a result, the protruding member 320 comes into contact with the other end of the relief bar 800 with the end standing toward the first surface of the housing 101. The relief bar 800 opens the relief valve 700 as it is lifted in the second direction by the protruding member 320. As shown in Fig. 5(b), the composition remaining in the reservoir 103 is discharged to the outside as the relief valve 700 is opened.

[0072] FIG. 4(c) shows the inhaler 10 in the state shown in FIG. 4(b) after the lever 300 has been further pressed in the first direction to move the inhaler 10 to the second position.

[0073] As the lever 300 passes through the first position, the protruding member 320 is released from contact with the end of the relief bar 800, and the relief bar 800 returns to its original position. That is, the relief bar 800 descends and the relief valve 700 is closed. As shown in Fig. 5(c), when the lever 300 eventually reaches the second position, the inclined surface of the wedge member 330 moves up the receiving portion 210 of the canister 200 in the second direction, opening the nozzle 220. The inhalable composition moves through the nozzle 220 and is smoothly filled into the reservoir 103 from which residual gas has been removed.

[0074] FIG. 4(d) shows the inhaler 10 in a state where the lever 300 has reached the first position in the process of returning from the second position to its original position.

[0075] At this time, while the inclined surface 3301 moves in the direction opposite to the first direction, the container 210 descends as shown in FIG. 5(d) and the nozzle 220 is closed. That is, the filling of the inhalable composition into the reservoir 103 is completed. At the same time that the inclined surface 3301 is released from contact with the bottom surface of the container 210, the protruding member 320 comes into contact with the other end of the relief bar 800. At this time, the support member 310 allows the end of the protruding member 320 to rotate toward the canister 200. As a result, the end of the protruding member 320 does not maintain an upright state but rotates toward the canister 200 and smoothly passes the other end of the relief bar 800. For example, the protruding member 320 can elastically avoid the relief bar 800. As a result, when moving in the opposite direction to the first direction, the protruding member 320 does not lift the relief bar 800 in the second direction, so that the relief valve 700 remains closed and the newly filled inhalable composition in the reservoir 103 is not discharged to the outside.

[0076] FIG. 4(e) shows the inhaler 10 with the lever 300 fully returned to its original position.

[0077] As shown in FIG. 5(e), the protruding member 320 that has passed the relief bar 800 can return to the same position as the protruding member 320 in FIG. 5(a). For example, the protruding member 320 is provided with an elastic member (not shown) that can be compressed in a direction in which the end of the protruding member 320 rotates toward the canister 200. In the step of 5(d), the elastic member may be compressed in a direction in which the end of the protruding member 320 rotates toward the canister 200, and when no external force is applied to the protruding member 320, the elastic member can rotate the protruding member 320 to its original position as shown in FIG. 5(a) and FIG. 5(e). As a result, when the lever 300 returns to its original position after the filling is completed, the protruding member 320 does not push up the relief bar 800, but can elastically escape and return to its original position.

[0078] The inhaler 10 according to the embodiment described above is provided with a relief valve 700 linked to the filling lever 300 to remove residual gas from within the reservoir 103 before filling, in order to prevent the pressure of residual gas remaining within the reservoir 103 from interfering with the entry of new composition when the composition is refilled into the reservoir 103 using the filling lever 300.

[0079] In addition, in the inhaler 10 according to the embodiment described above, the filling lever 300 operates in two stages, with the relief valve 700 being opened in the first stage to indicate a pre-filling state, and with the relief valve 700 being closed in the second stage while filling is performed.

[0080] As described above, the embodiments of the present invention have been described with specific details such as specific components, limited examples, and drawings, but these are merely provided for a more general understanding of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications and variations can be made from such descriptions. For example, the described technology may be performed in a different procedure than described, and / or the described structures, devices, and other components may be combined or combined in a different manner than described, and replaced or substituted with other components or equivalents, while still achieving the appropriate results. Therefore, the concept of the present invention is not limited to the described embodiments, and all modifications equivalent to the claims, as well as those within the scope of the following claims, are deemed to belong to the concept of the present invention.

Claims

1. a housing having one surface, another surface opposite to the one surface, and a plurality of side surfaces connecting the one surface and the other surface; a reservoir located within said housing in which an inhalable composition is stored; a canister containing the inhalable composition to be stored in said reservoir and releasably connected to said reservoir; A relief valve that is disposed apart from the canister and is installed so as to be capable of opening and closing the storage tank to the outside; and a lever for controlling the opening and closing of the canister and the relief valve; Including, The lever controls the canister to be opened after the relief valve is opened.

2. a relief bar having one end connected to the relief valve and extending toward the lever; The inhaler of claim 1 , wherein the relief bar is located between the lever and the canister.

3. The lever is a support member extending in a first direction toward the canister; and a protruding member having an end rotatably coupled to the support member around a rotation axis provided on the support member; Including, 3. The inhaler of claim 2, wherein the other end of the relief bar is located between the projection member and the other surface of the housing.

4. 4. The inhaler of claim 3, wherein when the lever is compressed, the protruding member moves in the first direction while moving the relief bar in a second direction toward one side of the housing.

5. When the lever is pressed in the first direction, the support member limits the rotation of the protruding member; The inhaler of claim 3 , wherein the support member permits rotation of the projection member when the lever returns to its original position.

6. The inhaler of claim 3, wherein the protrusion member is positioned such that, with an end portion thereof standing up toward one surface of the housing, rotation toward the canister is unconstrained and rotation away from the canister is constrained.

7. The inhaler of claim 3 , wherein when the canister is opened, the projection member is located between the relief bar and the canister.

8. The lever further includes a wedge member extending toward a bottom surface of the canister, 4. The inhaler of claim 3, wherein the distance between the wedge member and the bottom surface of the canister is greater than the distance between the projection member and the relief bar.

9. the wedge member includes an inclined surface inclined to be adjacent to the bottom surface along the first direction, 9. The inhaler of claim 8, wherein when the lever is further pressed in the first direction with the inclined surface and the bottom surface in contact, the inclined surface moves the canister in a second direction toward one side of the housing.

10. When the lever reaches a first position where the relief valve is opened, the inhalable composition remaining in the reservoir is discharged to the outside, 2. The inhaler of claim 1, wherein when the lever reaches a second position in which one side of the canister is open, the inhalable composition contained in the canister is filled into the reservoir.

11. 3. The inhaler of claim 2, wherein the relief bar opens the relief valve when moved in a second direction toward one side of the housing and closes the relief valve when returned to its original position.

12. The canister comprises: a container for containing the inhalable composition; and a jet connected to the reservoir on one side and located within the receiving portion on the other side; Including, 12. An inhaler according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the orifice is opened and closed to allow or restrict movement of the inhalable composition into the reservoir.

13. The inhaler of claim 12, wherein the nozzle is opened when the container is moved in a second direction from the other side to the one side of the housing, and is closed when the container returns to its original position.

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