Needle Guard Segmentation for Secure Tip Blocking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing needle guards for medical devices, such as catheter apparatuses, do not provide sufficient protection against accidental needle pricking, as they can be dislodged by excessive force, compromising safety for medical practitioners.
Innovation Solution
A needle guard design featuring a base portion with a needle passage, extending arms, and a distal wall, along with a stopping element made of a harder material, which secures the guard on the needle shaft, and a tension element to ensure the guard repositions and blocks the needle tip, preventing accidental exposure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a needle guard is designed to automatically cover the needle tip after withdrawal, then protection against accidental pricking is provided, but the guard can be dislodged by excessive force applied during needle insertion or withdrawal
Solution Approach 1:
The needle guard is divided into a base portion and a separate stopping element. The stopping element is inserted through the base portion to create a mechanically interlocked structure that distributes and resists excessive forces applied to the needle guard, preventing dislodgement while maintaining the automatic coverage function.
Solution Approach 2:
The needle guard combines two different materials: a plastic base portion and a metal stopping element. This composite construction provides both the flexibility needed for automatic movement and coverage, and the structural strength to resist excessive forces applied during needle insertion or withdrawal.
2Strength
If the stopping element is made of harder material than the base portion, then resistance to excessive force is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The stopping element is designed as a separate component that can be manufactured independently using suitable metal forming processes, then inserted through the pre-manufactured plastic base portion. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific material and manufacturing process, simplifying overall production despite the multi-material construction.
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3A~3D
Figure 4A~4C
AI summary
The invention relates to a catheter apparatus (40) including a needle guard (26). The needle guard including a base portion (44) having a needle passage (56) extending in an axial direction (A) from a proximal side (58) of said base portion through said base portion to a distal side (60) of said base portion wherein a needle shaft (28) having a principle outer profile can be movably arranged in said needle passage; first (46) and second (48) arms extending substantially in said axial direction from said distal side of said base portion, wherein said first arm has a distal region (62) and a proximal (64) region; and a distal wall (50) transversely arranged at said distal region of said first arm.