Hinged Urinary Stone Collection Device with Integrated Filter and Sealed Storage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current urinary stone collection devices are impractical, unhygienic, and inefficient, often requiring multiple attempts and handling of urine-soaked materials, with limited success in collecting stones and determining stone composition for analysis.
Innovation Solution
A device with a filter part and a hinged lid that forms a closed volume to retain stones, allowing for easy handling and pH analysis, designed for multiple uses without direct finger contact with urine, and includes a cuvette for urine collection and pH testing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a paper filter or cloth gauze pad is used to collect urinary stones, then the device is simple and inexpensive, but the patient must directly touch urine which is unhygienic and the filter can tear or spill resulting in loss of stones
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a disposable collection device that is discarded after a single use, eliminating the need for cleaning and sterilization. This single-use approach maintains hygiene by preventing repeated contact with urine while keeping the device simple and inexpensive to manufacture.
Solution Approach 2:
The funnel-shaped collection device acts as an intermediary between the urine stream and the filter, allowing the patient to hold the device without direct finger contact with urine. The spout directs urine through the filter into a collection container, mediating the contact process to maintain hygiene.
2Reliability
If a rigid foldable pyramid-shaped paper device with internal flap filter is used, then the device can seal the conduit, but the patient must retrieve the stone from the filter and place it in a sealed bag which requires handling and is inconvenient
Solution Approach 1:
The collection device is divided into distinct functional segments: a funnel-shaped collection portion, an integrated filter section, and a sealed storage chamber. This segmentation allows each part to perform its specific function while maintaining a compact, single-piece structure that eliminates the need for manual stone retrieval and transfer.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines the collection funnel, filter, and storage container into a single integrated device. The filter is built into the wall between the collection and storage portions, and the device seals automatically, merging multiple functions into one convenient unit that requires no manual stone handling.
3Reliability
If a cylindrical body with filter and two screw lids is used, then the device can be sealed for laboratory shipment, but the device has three separate parts requiring unscrewing and screwing of two lids for each collection attempt which is impractical
Solution Approach 1:
The device is segmented into exactly two parts: a collection portion with an integrated filter and a lid portion. This binary segmentation eliminates the complexity of three separate parts while maintaining reliable sealing capability through a single latch mechanism that secures both components together for laboratory shipment.
Solution Approach 2:
The lid portion is designed to be movable between an open position for collection and a closed position for sealing, connected through a hinge or latch mechanism. This dynamic design allows the device to transition from an open state during use to a securely sealed state for transport, eliminating the need for multiple lids and complex assembly steps.
4Productivity
If multiple filters or gauze pads are prepared for multiple collection attempts, then the patient can make several collection attempts throughout the day, but the patient must have several filters or gauze pads available which is inconvenient and wasteful
Solution Approach 1:
The disposable collection device maintains its functionality throughout the entire collection process in a single continuous operation. The funnel collects urine, the integrated filter captures stones, and the sealed storage chamber preserves them, all without requiring the patient to switch between multiple devices or perform intermediate handling steps.
Solution Approach 2:
By using a disposable device that can complete the entire collection process in one use, the system eliminates the need for patients to maintain inventories of multiple reusable filters. Each disposable unit is designed for a single complete collection cycle, making the process as convenient as using a single item rather than managing multiple items throughout the day.
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
Enhances hygiene and efficiency in collecting and analyzing urinary stones, allowing for reliable diagnosis and reduced stone recurrence by facilitating multiple uses and urine pH analysis without handling urine-soaked materials.
Implementation Method 1
a filter portion (11a) having a concave face (11a1) and an opposite convex face (11a2), and a multitude of holes forming a filter (12)
Data Source
Figure 1A~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5A~6
AI summary
The invention relates to a device for collecting urinary stones, comprising: a filter portion (1a, 11a, 21a) having a concave face and an opposite convex face, and a plurality of holes which form a filter (2, 12, 22), a cover portion (1b, 11b, 21b) connected to the filter portion by a hinge (5, 15, 25a) so as to be movable between a deployed position, in which the cover portion provides a handle function, and a closed position, in which the cover portion covers the concave face of the filter portion and closes a volume defined by the filter and cover portions for holding urinary stones collected by the filter, and a device for locking (4a, 4b, 14a, 14b, 24a, 24b) the filter and cover portions in the closed position.