Piezoelectric Injection Confirmation Subassembly Without Battery Power
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current medicament delivery devices, such as autoinjectors, face challenges related to sustainability and lack of digital confirmation of injection completion, particularly for patients requiring frequent injections and viscous drugs.
Innovation Solution
A subassembly for medicament delivery devices incorporating a piezo-electric energy harvesting unit that generates electrical energy from the impact of a U-bracket hitting a rear cap, powering a data transmission device to provide digital confirmation of injection, including a time stamp and serial number.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Extent of automation
If a battery is used to power the medicament delivery device, then the device can operate autonomously, but the device complexity and number of components increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the battery component from the medicament delivery device. Instead of using a battery to store energy, the device harvests energy directly from the user's body through piezoelectric elements that convert mechanical motion during walking into electrical energy. This elimination of the battery simplifies the device structure and reduces the number of components while maintaining autonomous operation capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The device implements self-service by harvesting its own operating energy from the user's body motion through piezoelectric energy harvesting. The piezoelectric elements convert the mechanical energy of walking into electrical energy that directly powers the medicament delivery system, eliminating the need for external battery power sources and reducing overall device complexity.
2Use of energy by moving object
If a battery is used to power the medicament delivery device, then the device can store energy, but the device weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the battery component from the device, thereby eliminating its weight. The energy storage function previously performed by the battery is replaced by direct energy harvesting from body motion through piezoelectric elements, which convert mechanical energy into electrical energy on-demand without requiring heavy energy storage components.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical battery-based energy storage system with a piezoelectric energy harvesting system that converts mechanical body motion directly into electrical energy. This substitution eliminates the need for heavy battery components while maintaining the device's ability to store and utilize energy for autonomous operation.
3Reliability
If a battery is used to power the medicament delivery device, then the device can function independently, but the risk of bacterial growth from fluid connections increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the battery component that would require fluid connections for operation. By eliminating the battery, the device eliminates the associated fluid connection pathways that could serve as routes for bacterial growth, thereby reducing the risk of contamination while maintaining independent functionality through body motion-powered operation.
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
Enables sustainable use of devices by harvesting energy for digital confirmation, providing both audible and wireless notification of injection completion.
Implementation Method 1
The device may be a powered device and may include a power source, such as a battery or a piezoelectric element adapted to harvest energy from motion of a user's body
Data Source
Figure 1
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Figure 3A
AI summary
The present disclosure generally relates to medicament delivery devices such as autoinjectors, and particularly concerns a subassembly adapted to provide digital confirmation of a completed injection.