Drug Injection Device Color-Coded Feedback for Penetration Depth
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing drug injection devices lack clear indicators for users to determine correct needle penetration depth and stages of the injection process, making self-administration less accurate and convenient.
Innovation Solution
A drug injection device equipped with a needle guard featuring visual and audible indicators that provide feedback on needle penetration, drug delivery stages, and device orientation, along with a transparent housing for viewing the plunger and a removable label for drug quality verification.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If the needle guard is made movable to indicate penetration depth, then visual indication of injection stages is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The needle guard incorporates color-coded indicia (green, yellow, red zones) that change visually based on the penetration depth stage, providing intuitive feedback without complex mechanical indicators
Solution Approach 2:
The needle guard automatically provides visual feedback through its position relative to the housing and color zones during the injection process, requiring no additional active components or user intervention to indicate stages
2Loss of information
If the housing is made transparent to view the plunger, then visibility of drug delivery progress is improved, but drug quality protection is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The housing incorporates selective transparency - specific regions are transparent or translucent to allow viewing of the plunger and drug reservoir, while other regions remain opaque to maintain protection and structural integrity
Solution Approach 2:
A removable label with instructions is provided in advance to guide users on how to properly view and verify drug quality through the transparent portions, ensuring proper usage before the injection process begins
3Ease of operation
If multiple indicators are added to show injection stages, then user guidance is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple indicator functions are merged into the single needle guard component, which provides both physical protection and visual feedback through integrated color zones and positional indicators
Solution Approach 2:
The needle guard serves multiple functions simultaneously: it protects the needle, indicates penetration depth, shows injection progress, and provides orientation guidance, eliminating the need for separate indicator devices
Data Source
Figure 1A
Figure 1B
Figure 2
AI summary
A drug injection device including a housing for holding a container storing a drug therein. The housing includes a window that allows viewing of the drug, the window comprising (a) one or more discrete windows in the housing of the drug injection device, or (b) a transparent 360 degree section of the housing of the container, the tray comprising: a support wall defining a first recess adapted to hold the drug injection device; a drug test surface disposed on the support wall, at least a portion of the drug test surface being disposed in the recess immediately adjacent the window of the drug injection device when the drug injection device is disposed in the tray such that the drug in the container can be compared against the drug test surface to determine at least one of a clarity and a color of the drug by viewing the drug against the drug test surface through the window of the housing of the device.