Catheter Needle Retracting Device Safety Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing catheter insertion devices often expose the needle before and after insertion, posing a risk of contamination and needle stick injury to operators.
Innovation Solution
A catheter assembly with a hub assembly and a needle retracting device that projects the needle through the catheter for insertion and, upon user actuation, retracts the needle and detaches from the hub assembly, ensuring the needle is shielded to prevent exposure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the needle is exposed before and after insertion, then the operator is exposed to needle stick injury risk, but using protective elements increases device complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the protective housing and needle retracting device into a single integrated unit that automatically shields the needle after insertion. The housing and retracting mechanism are merged into one component system, eliminating the need for separate protective elements and reducing overall device complexity while maintaining safety functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The needle is retracted into the housing automatically after insertion before the operator can be exposed to it. This preliminary protective action occurs as part of the insertion sequence, ensuring the needle is shielded before any potential handling by the operator, thus providing protection without requiring additional manual steps or complex mechanisms.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If a protective element is used to shield the needle, then needle stick injury risk is reduced, but the device structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The protective housing and needle retracting device are merged into a single integrated unit. The housing serves dual purposes: protecting the needle during storage and automatically retracting it after insertion. This merging eliminates the need for separate protective elements, reducing structural complexity while maintaining protection functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The device performs self-protection through automatic needle retraction into the housing after insertion. The mechanism uses the insertion motion itself to trigger the retraction, eliminating the need for additional manual protective steps or complex control systems. The device protects itself and the operator through this self-actuating mechanism.
3Reliability
If the needle is retracted and shielded after insertion, then user safety is enhanced, but the device requires additional mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The retracting mechanism is merged with the housing structure, using the housing itself as part of the retraction system. This integration reduces the number of separate mechanisms needed compared to having an independent retraction device, thereby enhancing safety while minimizing the increase in overall device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The needle retraction is performed as a preliminary action immediately following insertion, before the operator needs to handle the device. This timing ensures user safety is enhanced without requiring complex post-insertion control mechanisms, as the protective action occurs automatically as part of the insertion sequence.
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
A catheter assembly is disclosed. The catheter assembly comprise a hub assembly (4) comprising a hub (6) and a catheter (2) attached to the hub and a needle retracting device (5) releasably attached to hub assembly which is arranged to project a needle (3) through the catheter to allow catheterization and, in response to user actuation, to retract the needle and to be detached or to allow detachment from the hub assembly. The needle retaining device comprises a chassis (20) extending along an axis from a base (24) and a slider (21) carrying the needle supported on the chassis, arranged to be moveable away from the base along the axis from a first position in which the needle projects through the catheter to a second position in which the needle is withdrawn from the catheter and is shielded by the chassis. The chassis and hub comprise movable locking members (29; Fig. 8) and cooperating locking surfaces (17; Fig. 6) for engaging the locking members and wherein the slider comprises retaining surfaces (52) for limiting movement of the locking members. The catheter assembly is configured such that, when the slider is in the first position, the locking members are discouraged or prevented from disengaging from the locking surfaces by the retaining surfaces and, when the slider is in the second position, the locking members are free to disengage from the locking surfaces and so allow the needle retracting device to disengage from the hub assembly.