Cam-Actuated Syringe Package for Single-Hand Opening
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current syringe packaging requires two hands to open, posing challenges in emergency situations where only one hand is available, leading to potential contamination, delays, and increased risk of needle-related injuries.
Innovation Solution
A hard package assembly with a cam mechanism that allows single-hand operation, featuring a push button and button retainer to eject the syringe while piercing and opening a seal, enabling easy access and disposal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional blister packaging or air-tight bags are used, then the package provides adequate protection and containment, but both hands are required to open the package by peeling or separation
Solution Approach 1:
The package employs a dynamic snap-fit mechanism where the syringe holder transitions from a locked to an unlocked state through a cam action. Pressing the plunger rod causes the holder to rotate and disengage from the retainer, enabling single-hand operation while maintaining structural integrity during storage.
Solution Approach 2:
The package design allows the syringe holder to automatically eject the syringe upon activation. The cam mechanism converts the pressing motion into rotational motion that automatically releases the syringe from the holder, reducing the need for manual manipulation and enabling single-hand operation.
2Reliability
If conventional packages are opened in emergency situations, then access to the syringe is delayed and contamination risk increases, but using trauma shears or teeth may cause contamination
Solution Approach 1:
The package is pre-configured with a ready-to-activate snap-fit mechanism and seal system. The seal remains intact during storage and is designed to be broken easily upon activation, allowing rapid access while maintaining sterility until the moment of use.
Solution Approach 2:
The dynamic cam mechanism enables rapid transition from a sealed, protected state to an open, accessible state. The rotational motion quickly breaks the seal and ejects the syringe, minimizing the time the medical article is exposed to unsterile conditions while preventing the need for improper opening methods.
3Reliability
If safety needles with additional safety shield mechanisms are used, then needle reuse is prevented, but the hub becomes bulkier and more difficult to mold
Solution Approach 1:
The safety shield is integrated with the hub as a single molded component rather than a separate attachment. This merging of components eliminates the need for complex assembly while maintaining safety functionality, and the hub retains a standard geometry that is easy to mold.
Solution Approach 2:
The hub is designed with a standard geometry that serves multiple functions: structural support, connection to the syringe, and integration of the safety shield mechanism. This universal design simplifies manufacturing while maintaining safety features.
4Ease of operation
If the needle shield that protects the needle pre-use is discarded, then access to the needle is enabled, but plastic usage and waste increase
Solution Approach 1:
The needle shield is designed as a dynamic component that rotates from a protective position to an access position. This rotational motion allows the shield to remain attached to the hub while enabling needle access, eliminating the need to discard the shield and reducing plastic 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
Facilitates quick, safe, and efficient single-hand access to syringes and needles, reducing contamination risks and needle injuries, especially in emergency scenarios.
Implementation Method 1
The syringe and cannula are positioned within the package and in communication with the cam mechanism such that ejection of the syringe and cannula from the package is initiated by operation of the cam mechanism.
Data Source
AI summary
A hard package assembly is disclosed having a cam mechanism for ejecting a syringe from a hard package container with the use of a single hand. The cam mechanism including a push button and a button retainer, the push button having a trapezoidal body having a button face, a distal face adjacent and distal to the button face and a sloped face opposite the button face, the button retainer having a proximal portion, a distal portion in contact with the sloped face of the push button and a distal hook in contact with a bottom surface of the barrel flange. A method of use and a method of assembly are also disclosed.