Portable Microbubble Drug Mixing Device Using Segmented Containers
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Maintaining the integrity of microbubbles during storage, shipment, and mixing in field applications is challenging due to their fragility, and existing mixing devices are often impractical for emergency or rural clinic settings where time and skilled personnel are limited.
Innovation Solution
A portable mixing device comprising a flexible outer container for drugs and a rigid inner container for microbubbles, with the rigid inner container separating microbubbles from the drug until mixing, allowing for easy release and mixing without the need for precise electronic equipment, using materials with specific tensile strengths and design features like turbulence fins and tear-away mechanisms.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If dedicated electronic mixing machines are used to mix microbubbles and drug, then mixing precision is improved, but device complexity and portability worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The device is divided into two separate containers: a rigid inner container for microbubbles and a flexible outer container for drug. This segmentation allows simple manual mixing without complex electronic equipment while maintaining mixing precision through controlled geometry and turbulence fins.
Solution Approach 2:
The device uses simple, inexpensive materials with specific tensile strengths (flexible outer container ≤15 MPa, rigid inner container ≥20 MPa) that can be easily manufactured and disposed of after single use, eliminating the need for expensive, complex electronic mixing machines.
2Ease of operation
If microbubbles are stored in flexible containers, then ease of operation is improved, but microbubble integrity worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The device separates microbubbles and drug into different containers until the point of mixing. The rigid inner container maintains microbubble integrity during storage and transport, while the flexible outer container facilitates easy manual mixing after separation.
Solution Approach 2:
The device is pre-assembled with microbubbles in the rigid inner container and drug in the flexible outer container, ready for immediate mixing at the point of use. This preliminary preparation eliminates the need for on-site assembly and ensures microbubble integrity until mixing is required.
3Manufacturing precision
If skilled personnel and time for measuring components are available, then mixing accuracy is improved, but loss of time worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The device is pre-measured and pre-assembled with correct proportions of microbubbles and drug in separate containers. This eliminates the need for on-site measurement and preparation, reducing time loss while maintaining mixing accuracy through controlled geometry and turbulence fins.
Solution Approach 2:
The device is designed to be self-mixing through simple manual activation that triggers the tear-away mechanism. This eliminates the need for skilled personnel and complex measurement procedures, allowing any user to achieve accurate mixing quickly in emergency settings.
4Reliability
If rigid containers are used for microbubbles, then microbubble integrity is improved, but ease of mixing worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The device uses a rigid inner container for microbubbles to maintain integrity, combined with a flexible outer container for drug. The rigid inner container is designed with a tear-away mechanism that allows easy separation and mixing when needed, resolving the contradiction between rigidity for integrity and flexibility for mixing.
Solution Approach 2:
The rigid inner container is pre-positioned within the flexible outer container with the tear-away mechanism already in place. This preliminary arrangement allows immediate mixing upon activation without requiring complex operations, maintaining both microbubble integrity and ease of mixing.
Data Source
AI summary
A portable microbubble and drug mixing device is provided. The portable microbubble and drug mixing device comprises a flexible outer container comprising an interior chamber for accommodating a drug, and a rigid inner container within the flexible outer container and comprising an interior chamber for accommodating microbubbles. The outer container has a tensile strength at break less than or equal to approximately 15 MPa, and the inner container has a tensile strength at break greater than or equal to approximately 20 MPa and is capable of storing microbubbles at a concentration higher than or equal to approximately 5×106 microbubbles/ml. The inner container is configured to separate the microbubbles in the interior chamber of the inner container from the drug in the interior chamber of the outer container until a point of mixing when the microbubbles are released into the interior chamber of the outer container.