Piston Rod Centering Aid for Compact Injection Devices

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing injection devices face challenges in achieving a compact design while ensuring reliable and homogeneous force application to the piston rod for administering liquid substances, particularly with high-viscosity products, leading to potential alignment issues and unsafe deviations.

Innovation Solution

The injection device incorporates a piston rod with a centering aid, such as a centering flange or truncated member, to guide the piston rod accurately within the product container, minimizing space requirements and ensuring uniform force distribution, even with asymmetrical cross-sections.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Volume of moving object

If a compact design is implemented to reduce device size, then the space requirement is reduced, but the alignment precision and force distribution homogeneity deteriorate

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedevice sizeVSAvoidalignment precision
Core Design Contradiction:
Volume of moving objectVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

A piston rod guide is introduced as an intermediary component between the piston rod and the product container. The guide features a guide cross-section that matches the piston rod cross-section, providing precise alignment and guiding the piston rod accurately within the product container while maintaining a compact overall device design.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The piston rod guide provides localized precision guidance at the critical interface between the piston rod and product container, while other parts of the device can maintain compact dimensions. This localized quality enhancement ensures homogeneous force distribution without requiring the entire device to be large.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

2Volume of moving object

If a compact design is implemented to reduce device size, then the space requirement is reduced, but the force distribution homogeneity deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedevice sizeVSAvoidforce distribution homogeneity
Core Design Contradiction:
Volume of moving objectVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The piston rod guide acts as a mediator that ensures the piston rod is accurately positioned within the product container, thereby ensuring homogeneous force distribution on the piston throughout the injection process, even in a compact device configuration.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The guide cross-section is specifically designed to match the piston rod cross-section, changing the geometric parameters at the interface to ensure optimal alignment and homogeneous force distribution, preventing jamming and ensuring reliable product administration.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

3Device complexity

If the piston rod cross-section is reduced to save space, then the device complexity is reduced, but the alignment stability deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvepiston rod cross-section complexityVSAvoidalignment stability
Core Design Contradiction:
Device complexityVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The piston rod guide serves as a stabilizing intermediary that compensates for the reduced piston rod cross-section. The guide's matched cross-section provides the necessary alignment stability, allowing the piston rod to maintain simple, space-efficient dimensions without compromising alignment accuracy.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

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

This design maintains precise alignment and homogeneous force application, preventing jamming and ensuring reliable product administration, even with high-viscosity substances, while reducing the overall device size.

Implementation Method 1

The guide cross-section is adapted or matched to the piston rod cross-section and limits movement of the piston rod cross-section in all directions perpendicular to the longitudinal axis to a manufacturing minimum

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectGeometric constraint: Geometry

Implementation Method 2

a piston rod with a piston rod cross-section perpendicular to the longitudinal axis and a plug-side drive surface for driving the plug through force-fitting contact

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectMechanical force: Mechanical Force

Data Source

PatentEP3675937B1Drive apparatus for injection devices
Publication Date: 2025.10.01 YPSOMED AG
  • EP3675937B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3675937B1 patent drawingFigure 2~3
  • EP3675937B1 patent drawingFigure 4~5

AI summary

The invention relates to an injection device having reduced space requirements and having a reliable drive. Because of a plunger rod having a maximum outside diameter that is considerably less than the diameter of the product container, the plunger rod is not longitudinally guided by the product container. This is compensated by a centering aid on the plunger rod tip in the form of a centering flange or a centering stub, which centering aid counteracts inaccurate or insufficient alignment of the plunger rod in the product container.