Multi-Site Injection Syringe With Ratcheted Gear Dosing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current syringe systems face challenges in serial delivery of multiple doses to multiple sites on a patient, leading to increased medical waste, potential needle stick risks, and inefficiencies in fluid delivery, especially for high viscosity fluids, while also requiring complex and costly components.
Innovation Solution
A dispensing and injection system with a reusable portion and disposable portion, featuring a gear assembly that includes a pinion gear and reduction gears to advance the plunger distally, an anti-return ratchet for preventing proximal movement, and a mode switch for aspiration mode, allowing for precise and efficient delivery of multiple doses.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a single-use syringe system is used for each injection site, then injection simplicity is maintained, but medical waste increases and resource utilization decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the syringe into disposable and reusable portions. The disposable portion includes the syringe body, plunger, and needle, while the reusable portion contains the gear assembly and ratchet mechanism. This segmentation allows the complex mechanical components to be reused across multiple injection sites while maintaining the simplicity of the disposable syringe components.
Solution Approach 2:
The reusable portion is designed to work with multiple disposable syringe assemblies, enabling a single reusable mechanism to serve multiple injection sites. The universal interface allows attachment and detachment of different syringe bodies, maximizing resource utilization and reducing waste.
2Device complexity
If manual plunger operation is used, then device complexity is reduced, but precision and control over fluid delivery deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The ratchet mechanism with indexed positions provides automatic positioning and control for the plunger. The system self-regulates the injection process by mechanically limiting plunger travel to predetermined positions, eliminating the need for complex electronic controls or manual measurement while ensuring precise fluid delivery.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual measurement and control with a mechanical ratchet and gear system that provides precise, repeatable positioning. The mechanical indexed positions on the ratchet correspond to specific fluid volumes, providing measurement precision through pure mechanical means without electronics or complex mechanisms.
3Device complexity
If standard syringe systems are used for multiple sites, then device simplicity is maintained, but needle stick risks increase
Solution Approach 1:
The needle is extracted from the reusable portion and placed in the disposable portion. The reusable syringe body includes a needle shield that covers the needle when not in use. This extraction and protective enclosure eliminate needle stick risks while maintaining system simplicity, as the protective features are integrated into the disposable components that are discarded after single use.
4Measurement precision
If complex components are used for multiple site delivery, then delivery precision improves, but cost and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs disposable syringe bodies, plungers, and needles that are inexpensive and single-use, paired with a reusable mechanical control system. This approach achieves delivery precision through the reusable ratchet and gear mechanisms while keeping overall system cost low by discarding the complex components after each use, effectively transferring the complexity burden from the reusable to the disposable portion.
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 system enables efficient, safe, and cost-effective serial delivery of multiple doses to multiple sites with reduced needle stick risk, utilizing off-the-shelf components and minimizing waste, while providing ergonomic and precise fluid delivery.
Implementation Method 1
a gear assembly that includes a pinion gear configured to sequentially advance the plunger member distally by a predetermined distance
Implementation Method 2
The plunger member defines a rack gear including a plurality of rack gear teeth
Implementation Method 3
an anti-return ratchet for preventing proximal movement
Data Source
AI summary
A system for injection includes a disposable portion and a reusable portion. The disposable portion includes a syringe body having proximal and distal ends, a syringe interior, and a disposable portion flange at the proximal end thereof, an injectable fluid disposed in the syringe interior, a stopper member disposed in the syringe interior, and a plunger member coupled to the stopper member, wherein the plunger member defines a rack gear including a plurality of rack gear teeth. The reusable portion is configured to be removably coupled to the disposable portion. The reusable portion includes a gear assembly including a pinion gear configured to sequentially advance the plunger member distally by a predetermined distance, and a finger flange coupled to the disposable portion flange.