Compact Fluid Dispenser with Spring-Driven Uniform Flow Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing medicament dispensers for ambulatory patients are cumbersome, imprecise, and require bed confinement, making them unsuitable for transporting patients to remote treatment facilities, and they lack efficient fluid control mechanisms.
Innovation Solution
A compact, lightweight fluid dispenser with a collapsible pre-filled container and a stored energy source, such as constant force springs or a sponge-like material, that provides a uniform flow rate, integrated with a flow control assembly for precise fluid delivery, allowing for easy use and transport.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If traditional gravity flow methods are used, then fluid delivery is simple, but the apparatus is cumbersome and requires bed confinement
Solution Approach 1:
The device is divided into separate functional modules: a collapsible reservoir, a stored energy source (spring mechanism), a flow control assembly with needle valve, and an administration set. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function efficiently while keeping the overall device compact and manageable, resolving the contradiction between operational simplicity and device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
A stored energy source (spring mechanism) is introduced as an intermediary between the reservoir and the patient to provide controlled fluid delivery. This intermediary component enables precise flow control and portable operation without requiring complex gravity-based infrastructure or bed confinement, thus improving ease of operation while maintaining manageable device complexity.
2Measurement precision
If traditional hypodermic syringe methods are used, then precise fluid delivery is achieved, but the apparatus is cumbersome and requires periodic monitoring
Solution Approach 1:
The flow control assembly with needle valve and spring mechanism is designed to automatically regulate fluid delivery at a uniform rate without requiring periodic nursing intervention. The system self-regulates the flow based on the spring's stored energy and the valve's pressure control, maintaining measurement precision while reducing device complexity and monitoring requirements.
3Volume of moving object
If a compact design is implemented, then portability is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The administration set is coiled and stored within the housing, and the flow control assembly is integrated into the compact structure. This nesting arrangement achieves a compact dispenser size suitable for portability while using standard manufacturing techniques for each component, thereby not significantly increasing manufacturing complexity.
4Measurement precision
If a stored energy source is added for uniform flow, then flow control precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The spring mechanism changes its physical state from compressed to expanded, providing controlled mechanical energy to drive uniform fluid flow. This parameter change approach achieves precise flow rate uniformity while using a simple mechanical system rather than complex electronic or gravitational mechanisms, thus improving flow control precision without excessive increase in device complexity.
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
The dispenser enables controlled and precise delivery of medicaments at a uniform rate, is easy to use, and can be manufactured inexpensively in large quantities, making it suitable for ambulatory patients and field use.
Implementation Method 1
a stored energy source provided in the form of a compressible, expandable or retractable member of novel construction that provides the force necessary to continuously and uniformly expel fluid from the apparatus reservoir
Implementation Method 2
a stored energy source operably associated with the carriage assembly for moving the carriage assembly between the first and second positions
Data Source
AI summary
A compact fluid dispenser for use in controllably dispensing fluid medicaments, such as antibiotics, blood clotting agents, analgesics, and like medicinal agents from collapsible containers at a uniform rate. The dispenser includes a novel stored energy source that is provided in the form of a compressible-expandable member that functions to continuously and uniformly expel fluid from the apparatus reservoir. The apparatus further includes a novel fluid flow control assembly that precisely controls the flow of the medicament solutions from the apparatus reservoir to the patient.