Calibrated Sink Insert With Electric Pumps For Medical Device Lumen Cleaning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for cleaning reusable medical/surgical devices, particularly tubular items like endoscopes, are labor-intensive, ergonomically challenging, and prone to errors due to variability in cleaning liquid concentration and waste of additives, with deep sinks causing physical strain and inefficiency.
Innovation Solution
A modular, one-piece sink insert with a calibrated measurement system, electrically powered pumps, and a thermometer, designed to fit standard medical sinks, providing accurate dilution of additives and ergonomic improvements, reducing the need for manual mixing and minimizing additive waste.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of stationary object
If a deep sink is used to accommodate large medical devices, then the sink can hold large items, but the technician experiences ergonomic problems and physical strain
Solution Approach 1:
The invention divides the cleaning function into two separate components: a deep sink for holding large devices and a portable basin for actual cleaning operations. This segmentation allows the technician to work with the portable basin at an ergonomic height while the deep sink remains available for storing large medical devices that require immersion.
Solution Approach 2:
The cleaning process is extracted from the deep sink by using a separate portable basin. This extraction allows the cleaning operation to be performed at a convenient height without requiring the technician to bend over the deep sink, thereby resolving the ergonomic problem while maintaining the sink's capacity to hold large devices.
2Ease of manufacture
If manual mixing of additives is used to prepare cleaning liquid, then the process is simple, but the concentration accuracy varies and additives are wasted
Solution Approach 1:
The portable basin incorporates an integrated electric pump that automatically draws cleaning liquid from the deep sink and pumps it through the medical device lumen. This self-service mechanism eliminates the need for manual mixing and syringe filling, ensuring consistent additive concentration while reducing technician labor and additive waste.
Solution Approach 2:
The manual mechanical process of mixing additives and filling syringes is replaced with an electric pump system. This substitution provides precise control over cleaning liquid delivery, ensuring accurate additive concentration and eliminating the variability and waste associated with manual mixing methods.
3Ease of operation
If syringe flushing is used to clean device lumens, then the method is straightforward, but the process is labor-intensive and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The portable basin with integrated electric pump performs the flushing operation automatically. The pump draws cleaning liquid from the basin and forces it through the medical device lumen without requiring the technician to manually operate syringes, thereby maintaining operational simplicity while dramatically improving productivity by eliminating repetitive manual actions.
Solution Approach 2:
The electric pump enables continuous delivery of cleaning liquid through the device lumen, replacing the intermittent manual syringe filling and flushing process. This continuous action maintains the simplicity of the cleaning method while significantly reducing the time and labor required, thereby improving overall productivity.
4Weight of moving object
If small syringes are used for copious flushing, then the syringe size is manageable, but the process becomes labor-intensive and additives are wasted
Solution Approach 1:
The electric pump system in the portable basin performs the copious flushing operation automatically, eliminating the need for multiple manual syringe fillings. This self-service approach maintains the manageability of the system while dramatically improving flushing efficiency by delivering large volumes of cleaning liquid without repetitive manual labor or additive waste.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enhances the efficiency and accuracy of the cleaning process, reduces ergonomic strain, and optimizes the use of additives, ensuring effective disinfection while minimizing waste and improving working conditions for technicians.
Implementation Method 1
two or more electrically powered pumps, each having an inlet tube to draw treated water from the basin and to forcibly eject the cleaning liquid through an outlet tube
Data Source
AI summary
A sink insert for cleaning medical or surgical devices having lumens includes a basin and at least two pumps. The basin is shaped to be inserted into a sink and to hold cleaning liquid, and includes an additive reservoir integrally formed in its floor, having additive fill lines defining a plurality of pre-calibrated volume measurement areas for measurement of additives. Basin fill lines positioned on one or more side walls of the basin define a plurality of pre-calibrated volume measurement areas for measurement of a liquid filled into the basin to form the cleaning liquid. At least one of the two pumps has an inlet tube for drawing the cleaning liquid from the basin into the pump, and an outlet tube for pressurized output of the cleaning liquid directed to the medical or surgical device. One or more of the pumps is removable from the sink insert.