Disposable Safety Needle With Transverse Flexible Shield

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing medical safety devices for needles and catheters fail to allow for maximum blood or fluid flow while preventing needle stick injuries and contamination, as they either restrict needle rotation or become contaminated themselves during use.

Innovation Solution

A safety needle assembly with a longitudinally disposed needle cannula within a safety enclosure, featuring a flexible internal member that slides transversely to block the needle tip upon retraction, preventing accidental exposure and maintaining fluid flow by allowing needle rotation post-cannulation.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Object-affected harmful factors

If a prior art tubular shield is used to protect the needle after use, then needle stick injuries are prevented, but the medical provider's hands must move toward the exposed needle which may allow needle stick injuries during recapping

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveneedle stick injury preventionVSAvoidhand movement toward exposed needle

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

Instead of moving hands toward the exposed needle to engage the shield, the shield is designed to be engaged by moving hands away from the needle in the proximal direction. The shield moves distally relative to the needle to cover it, inverting the traditional recapping motion and eliminating the need to approach the exposed needle tip.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

Solution Approach 2:

The shield acts as an intermediary element between the medical provider's hands and the needle. By engaging the shield from a distance and having it move to cover the needle, the hands never need to approach the hazardous needle tip directly, with the shield serving as the mediating protective barrier.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Object-affected harmful factors

If a prior art device with a non-rotating needle is used, then the needle tip is blocked during withdrawal, but the needle cannot be rotated after cannulation to maximize blood or fluid flow

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvefluid splatter preventionVSAvoidfluid flow maximization

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The device is segmented into independent functional components: the needle assembly that can rotate for optimal fluid flow, and the shield assembly that provides safety coverage. This segmentation allows the needle to rotate freely during use while the shield remains positioned to prevent splatter and block the needle tip during withdrawal.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The needle is designed with rotational freedom after cannulation to maximize fluid flow, while the shield provides dynamic protection during withdrawal. The system transitions from a static non-rotating configuration to a dynamic state where the needle can rotate optimally while maintaining safety through the shield's protective coverage.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

3Object-affected harmful factors

If a prior art device with an imperforate blocking flange is used, then the needle point is blocked, but the enclosing guard becomes contaminated with body fluid during withdrawal

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveneedle point blockingVSAvoidenclosing guard contamination

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSObject-generated harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The blocking function is extracted from the enclosing guard itself and assigned to a separate shield element. The shield provides the blocking action at a distance, preventing the need for the enclosing guard to contact the needle tip or body fluids during withdrawal, thus eliminating the contamination issue while maintaining effective needle point blocking.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentUS8221352B2Disposable safety needle system and safety enclosure means

Publication Date: 2012.07.17 MERCHANT MICHAEL

AI summary

Techniques disclosed herein include a disposable safety needle assembly and safety enclosure for internally shielding a used or contaminated needle. The needle assembly has a needle cannula slidably disposed within a safety enclosure. The safety enclosure includes an internally disposed flexible safety member. The flexible safety member has face portion transversely situated and having a safety feature disposed to the needle and that slides thereon. Retracting the needle within the safety enclosure to a point wherein the sharp tip of the needle is beyond the needle protection section of the flexible member causes the protection section to travel transversely to the direction of motion of the needle. As a result, the safety feature receives the sharp tip of the needle and prevents the needle from exiting the enclosure, thereby maintaining the needle safely after use.