Flexible Insert Cleaning Tool for Medical Fluid Connectors
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for cleaning fluid connector devices in medical applications are inadequate as they often require direct hand contact, which can lead to pathogen transmission, and may not effectively reach all surfaces due to their contours and designs, such as threads.
Innovation Solution
A cleaning tool with a flexible insert, such as a sponge, housed in a molded polymeric structure that can be manipulated axially and rotationally to scrub and disinfect attachment surfaces, reducing direct contact and ensuring thorough cleaning by releasing disinfectant upon contact.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional wipes are used for cleaning fluid connectors, then the cleaning process is simple and quick, but direct hand contact leads to pathogen transmission and incomplete cleaning of complex surfaces
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a holder as an intermediary device between the user's hand and the cleaning wipe. The holder allows the user to manipulate the wipe without direct hand contact with the connector surface, thereby reducing pathogen transmission risk while maintaining ease of operation. The holder acts as a barrier that mediates the cleaning process.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the wiping function from direct hand manipulation by placing the wipe inside a holder structure. This separation allows the cleaning action to be performed through the holder mechanism rather than direct finger contact, addressing the pathogen transmission issue while preserving operational simplicity.
2Productivity
If conventional wipes are used for cleaning fluid connectors, then the process is fast and simple, but the wipes cannot effectively reach all portions of surfaces with various contours and threads
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a flexible wipe material that can dynamically adapt its shape to conform to complex connector surfaces including threads and contours. The flexibility allows the wipe to change form and reach difficult areas while maintaining the speed of the wiping motion, thus preserving productivity while improving cleaning completeness.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses a thin, flexible wipe structure that can bend and conform to complex geometries of fluid connectors. This flexible film design enables the wipe to effectively contact and clean threaded portions and contoured surfaces that rigid cleaning tools cannot reach, ensuring complete cleaning without sacrificing speed.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If a cleaning tool with flexible insert and housing is used, then direct hand contact is reduced and cleaning completeness is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the cleaning tool into distinct segments: a holder body and a separate flexible wipe insert. This segmentation allows the complex functions of pathogen barrier and adaptive cleaning to be distributed across separate components, making the overall system manageable despite increased complexity. Each segment performs a specific function that contributes to the overall goal.
Solution Approach 2:
The holder structure serves multiple functions simultaneously: it acts as a barrier to prevent hand contact, provides a mechanism for manipulating the wipe, and can be designed to accommodate different wipe sizes. This multi-functionality justifies the increased structural complexity by consolidating multiple requirements into a single integrated device.
Data Source
AI summary
A tool that is useful for cleaning and disinfecting the attachment surfaces of a fluid connector device used in medical applications, the tool having a housing with an opening of defined shape and a chemically treated flexible insert positionable inside the housing that substantially conforms to the inside wall of the housing and, when placed over the attachment surfaces of a fluid connector device, can be manipulated axially and rotationally relative to the attachment surfaces to contact, clean and disinfect the surfaces. Some embodiments can also be used for topical cleaning of skin or other surfaces.