Needle Guide Structure in Safety Caps to Prevent Needle Damage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Needle-based devices, such as hypodermic syringes and pen injectors, face issues with accidental damage to the needle due to the safety cap being pressed during transportation and handling, leading to potential harm.
Innovation Solution
A needle-based device with an external safety cap and a needle guide element that prevents significant lateral movement of the needle by using a guide element with a specific cross-sectional width and length configuration, ensuring the cap does not touch the needle, and includes a locking mechanism to secure the needle in a protected state.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a safety cap is provided to protect the needle during disuse, then needle protection is improved, but the cap may be accidentally pressed during transportation and handling causing damage to the needle
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a nested structure where the external cap encompasses the needle shield, which in turn encompasses the needle. The guide element protruding from the external cap creates a nested protective corridor that guides and constrains the needle while maintaining multiple layers of protection during transportation and handling
Solution Approach 2:
The guide element acts as an intermediary component between the external cap and the needle. It protrudes from the external cap and extends through the needle shield to provide a protective pathway that prevents direct contact between the cap and needle, thereby mediating potential harmful interactions
2Reliability
If the external cap is designed to completely encompass the needle shield, then overall protection is improved, but the cap may accidentally touch and damage the needle
Solution Approach 1:
The guide element serves as a protective intermediary that extends from the external cap through the needle shield. Its presence creates a physical barrier and guiding pathway that prevents the external cap from accidentally contacting the needle, thus mediating the interaction between these components
Solution Approach 2:
The guide element introduces a new spatial dimension to the protection mechanism by protruding longitudinally from the external cap and extending through the needle shield. This dimensional extension creates a protected corridor that separates the cap from direct contact with the needle
3Stability of the object's composition
If a guide element is added to prevent lateral needle movement, then needle stability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The guide element performs multiple functions simultaneously: it prevents lateral movement of the needle, provides structural support, and acts as a protective intermediary between the external cap and needle. This multi-functionality achieves needle stabilization without requiring separate dedicated components for each function
Data Source
AI summary
A needle-based device includes a needle-shield that encompasses an entirety of a length of a needle protruding from a body associated with the needle-based device or a needle mount coupled to the body, and an external cap that completely encompasses the needle shield in the first state of disuse of the needle-based device. The needle-based device also includes a guide element protruding inward from an end of the external cap farthest away from the body or the needle mount. The guide element is internal to the external cap, parallel to a length of the external cap and extends through the needle shield such that, in the state of disuse, the guide element at least partially envelops the needle therewithin to prevent significant lateral movement of the needle and prevents the end of the external cap from touching the needle.