Medical Implement Enclosure with Separate Dispense and Disposal Chambers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing medical implement dispensing and disposal systems are inconvenient as they require separate locations for obtaining sterile and disposing of soiled medical implements, lacking an integrated solution for both functions.
Innovation Solution
A medical implement dispensing and disposal system with separate containers for dispensing sterile and collecting soiled implements, housed within an enclosure with distinct openings for each function, ensuring separation and convenience.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If separate locations are provided for dispensing and disposing of medical implements, then sterile and soiled implements can be kept separate, but convenience deteriorates as practitioners must move between locations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the dispensing chamber and disposal chamber into a single integrated container, allowing both functions to coexist in one location. This merging resolves the contradiction by maintaining the separation of sterile and soiled implements through internal chamber division while improving convenience by eliminating the need for practitioners to move between separate locations.
Solution Approach 2:
The container is segmented into multiple chambers - a dispensing chamber for sterile implements and a disposal chamber for soiled implements - separated by a partition wall. This segmentation maintains the reliability requirement for keeping sterile and soiled implements separate while the overall integration into one container improves ease of operation.
2Ease of operation
If a single container holds both sterile and soiled implements, then convenience improves by having one location, but reliability deteriorates due to risk of contamination
Solution Approach 1:
The single container is divided into distinct dispensing and disposal chambers by a partition wall, creating physical separation that prevents contamination while maintaining the convenience of a single-location system. This segmentation allows the container to serve both functions without compromising sterile integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the container are assigned different functions - the dispensing chamber maintains sterile quality for unused implements while the disposal chamber accommodates soiled implements. This local differentiation of quality and function within the single container resolves the contradiction between convenience and contamination prevention.
3Reliability
If separate containers are used for dispensing and disposal, then contamination prevention improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple separate containers into a single integrated container that houses both dispensing and disposal chambers. This reduces device complexity by eliminating the need for multiple separate containers while maintaining contamination prevention through internal chamber separation via partition walls.
Data Source
AI summary
A medical implement dispensing and disposal system is configured for mounting within an interior of an enclosure having a first opening for receiving soiled medical implements and a second opening for dispensing medical implements. The system comprises a dispensing chamber and a disposal chamber defined by separate containers and configured to be substantially enclosed within the interior of the enclosure and removed from the interior of the enclosure. The dispensing chamber is configured to contain medical implements and has an access opening positioned for alignment with the second opening of the enclosure to facilitate passage of medical implements from the enclosure. The disposal chamber is configured to collect soiled medical implements and has an inlet opening positioned for alignment with the first opening of the enclosure to facilitate passage of soiled medical implements into the enclosure.