Integumental Dissolving Needles for Deep Layer Delivery

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional intradermal dissolving microneedles struggle to deliver pharmaceutical or cosmetic ingredients into the deepest layers of skin, causing pain and inflammation, and lack intuitive dosage indication and sectioning for precise administration.

Innovation Solution

The development of integumental dissolving needles with varying thickness and length, filled with micronized ingredients encapsulated in a coating layer that absorbs into the skin, allowing deep penetration, and featuring printed dosages and grooves or perforations for precise dose administration, which can be integrated into poultices to minimize side effects.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Length of moving object

If needle length is increased to reach deep skin layers, then delivery depth is improved, but pain and inflammation increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveneedle lengthVSAvoidpain and inflammation

Core Design Contradiction:

Length of moving objectVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The needle array is divided into multiple individual needles of varying lengths, allowing selective penetration at different depths across the treatment area. This segmentation enables deep delivery where needed while maintaining shorter needles in other areas to reduce pain and inflammation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Different regions of the needle array have needles with locally optimized lengths and properties matched to specific skin thickness requirements. This allows deep penetration in areas requiring it while using shorter needles in thinner-skinned areas, minimizing overall discomfort and side effects.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

2Length of moving object

If needle length is increased to reach deep skin layers, then delivery depth is improved, but skin damage increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveneedle lengthVSAvoidskin damage

Core Design Contradiction:

Length of moving objectVSObject-generated harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The needles are designed to dynamically adjust their effective length through dissolution after penetration. The biodegradable material allows needles to dissolve at controlled rates, limiting the duration of physical presence in tissue and reducing potential for damage while maintaining adequate delivery depth.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The needles are designed as single-use, biodegradable components that dissolve after delivering their payload. This disposable nature ensures no long-term foreign body remains in the skin, minimizing chronic damage risk while achieving deep initial delivery.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #27Cheap short-living objects (Disposable)

3Ease of manufacture

If conventional MN arrays are used without dosage indication, then manufacturing is simpler, but dosage precision is reduced

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemanufacturing simplicityVSAvoiddosage precision

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

Different regions of the needle array are printed with color codes or dosage indicators that visually encode the amount of active ingredient present in each needle or region. This allows users to intuitively select and administer precise dosages without complex manufacturing changes.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #32Color changes

4Ease of manufacture

If needle array is not pre-sectioned, then manufacturing is simpler, but dosage administration precision is reduced

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemanufacturing simplicityVSAvoiddosage administration precision

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The needle array incorporates pre-formed grooves or perforations that divide the array into sectionable units corresponding to specific dosages. These structural features are integrated during manufacturing and enable precise portioning without requiring post-manufacturing processing.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

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

Enables effective delivery of ingredients into deep skin layers with reduced pain and inflammation, allowing for precise and intuitive administration of desired doses, applicable across various species including humans, animals, and plants.

Implementation Method 1

encapsulated by a layer of coating agent that is absorbed into the integument

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectAbsorption: Absorption (physical)

Data Source

PatentUS20240157102A1Integumental dissolving needles and needle devices

Publication Date: 2024.05.16 NANGOU NORIHIRO

AI summary

There currently exists no needle capable of delivering pharmaceutical or cosmetic ingredient(s) into deep layers of integumental tissue (e.g. skin, scales, bark), nor any needle device designed to facilitate the precise administration of a desired dose, and to limit inflammation, pain, and other side effects associated with the needle(s). The present invention relates to an integumental dissolving needle—which houses micronized cosmetic/pharmaceutical ingredient(s), encapsulated by a coating agent absorbed into the integument—arranged on the surface or surfaces of a poultice. Needle thickness and length may be varied according to the biological species of interest. In addition, dosage(s) is/are printed on each section of the device to make explicit how many milligrams of the ingredient are present per unit area; these sections may be separated from one another along groove(s) or other markers on the device. The present invention is a needle device consisting of the above components.