Injection Dose Metering with Anti-Rotation Locking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing injection devices lack the ability to freely select and adjust doses, particularly for self-administered medications like insulin, where optimal doses can vary by time, activity, or meal consumption, increasing the risk of incorrect dosing.
Innovation Solution
A drive and dose metering module with a dosing member and drive member that can be displaced to set doses at various axial heights and rotational stops, locking in place to prevent accidental dose adjustments, ensuring secure dosing through a mechanism that allows for multiple dose settings and prevents accidental changes to the set dose.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a syringe allows dose setting by a pharmacist, then the risk of incorrect dosing is reduced, but the ability to adjust doses for self-administration is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The syringe incorporates a dynamic dose adjustment mechanism that allows the dose setting to be changed by the patient during self-administration. The plunger rod and drive member can be repositioned to different dosing stops, enabling flexible dose selection while maintaining controlled dispensing through the mechanical coupling between the drive member and plunger rod.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces an intermediary mechanism between the fixed dose setting and the patient's self-administration needs. The adjustable dosing stops and drive member coupling act as intermediaries that translate patient-selected dose settings into controlled plunger movement, bridging the gap between fixed pharmacy settings and variable patient requirements.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a syringe allows variable dose selection, then adaptability to different treatment needs is improved, but the risk of incorrect dosing increases
Solution Approach 1:
The syringe provides pre-marked dosing stops on the barrel that correspond to specific dose volumes. These pre-established reference points guide the patient to select the correct dose setting before administration, reducing the risk of incorrect dosing while maintaining flexibility for variable treatment needs.
Solution Approach 2:
The mechanical coupling between the drive member and plunger rod provides inherent feedback through the triggering mechanism. The drive member must be pulled back to a specific trigger position to initiate dispensing, and the dosing stops provide tactile feedback to confirm proper dose setting, ensuring accurate dose delivery despite variable selection capability.
3Reliability
If the drive member and plunger rod are rigidly coupled, then dose delivery control is improved, but the ability to reset for subsequent injections is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The coupling between the drive member and plunger rod is designed to be dynamically controllable. During injection, the coupling is rigid to ensure precise dose delivery. After injection, the drive member can be decoupled and reset to its initial position while the plunger rod remains in place, enabling easy preparation for subsequent injections without compromising dose control during administration.
Solution Approach 2:
The injection device separates the drive member and plunger rod into distinct, independently resettable components. The drive member can be detached and reset separately from the plunger rod, allowing the dosing mechanism to be prepared for the next injection while maintaining the integrity of the dose delivery control during the actual injection process.
Data Source
AI summary
A drive and dosing module for an injection device, and an injection device including the module, wherein the module includes a dosing member which can be displaced into one of several dosing positions in relation to a drive member to set a product dose, wherein one of the dosing or drive members forms several dosing stops at axially different heights and rotational stops that are associated with the dosing stops and the other member forms at least one selection element, and wherein the drive member can be moved in relation to the dosing member until it reaches a trigger position in which the at least one selection element attains one of the dosing stops and, in said trigger position, the selection element and the rotational stops combine to lock the rotation of the dosing member in both directions.