Piston Tip With Arms For Intraocular Lens Injector

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Solution Overview

Problem

The existing injector designs for inserting intraocular lenses into the capsular bag of an eye result in high mechanical stress on the lens, piston, and injector tip, leading to potential damage and enlargement of the incision, due to the need for a small tip to minimize corneal incision size.

Innovation Solution

The design features a piston tip with a hardness range of 20 to 80 Shore A, comprising a central portion and circumferentially arranged arms that deform to accommodate the injector tip, reducing mechanical stress and allowing for a smaller tip without risk of damage, with a piston skirt made of a harder material to prevent excessive shortening.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Length of moving object

If the injector tip is made small to minimize corneal incision size, then the incision size is reduced, but high mechanical stress occurs on the lens, piston, and injector tip leading to potential damage

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveinjector tip sizeVSAvoidmechanical stress resistance
Core Design Contradiction:
Length of moving objectVSStrength

Solution Approach 1:

The piston tip material hardness is changed to a specific range (20-80 Shore A) to optimize the balance between deformability and strength. This parameter change allows the piston tip to deform controllably during insertion while maintaining sufficient strength to prevent damage to the injector tip and intraocular lens.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The piston tip is designed with a dynamic multi-arm structure that can deform elastically during the insertion process. The arms can bend and flex to accommodate the small injector tip diameter, then return to their original shape, allowing the system to adapt to the space constraints while managing mechanical stresses dynamically.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

2Length of moving object

If the injector tip is made small to minimize corneal incision size, then the incision size is reduced, but the risk of tip damage and incision enlargement increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveinjector tip sizeVSAvoidtip integrity
Core Design Contradiction:
Length of moving objectVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The piston tip material hardness is optimized to 20-80 Shore A, providing a balance between softness for deformability and hardness for structural integrity. This parameter optimization ensures the tip can be made small without excessive risk of damage during the insertion process.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The multi-arm structure of the piston tip provides inherent cushioning and stress distribution capabilities. The arms can deform to absorb mechanical shocks and stresses before they reach critical levels that would cause tip damage or incision enlargement, providing a buffer against failure.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #11Beforehand cushioning (Prior cushioning)

3Strength

If the piston tip is made of soft material to reduce mechanical stress, then stress on the lens and tip is reduced, but the piston tip may deform excessively

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemechanical stressVSAvoidpiston tip shape stability
Core Design Contradiction:
StrengthVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The piston tip material hardness is specified within the range of 20-80 Shore A, which provides an optimal balance between softness for stress reduction and structural stability. This parameter range ensures the material is soft enough to deform controllably but stable enough to maintain its functional shape during operation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The piston tip is segmented into multiple arms that can deform independently. This segmentation allows each arm to flex and absorb stress individually, distributing the deformation across multiple elements rather than requiring the entire tip to deform uniformly, thus maintaining overall shape stability while reducing mechanical stress.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

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 solution enables the creation of a smaller injector tip without risking damage, ensuring safe insertion and minimizing the risk of incision enlargement or eye damage during the procedure.

Implementation Method 1

Because the piston tip is made of a material with a hardness in the range of 10 to 80 Shore A and has a plurality of arms, it can deform when it enters the injector tip. Because the inner region has a shorter circumferential extension than the outer region, the inner region deforms more quickly than the outer region. This allows the outer region to shift circumferentially and even towards the central region.

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectElastic deformation: Elasticity

Data Source

PatentEP4370063B1Injector with a piston tip having a plurality of arms
Publication Date: 2024.12.18 CARL ZEISS MEDITEC AG
  • EP4370063B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP4370063B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4
  • EP4370063B1 patent drawingFigure 5~6

AI summary

The invention relates to an injector (10) for inserting an intraocular lens into the capsular bag of an eye, with an injector tip (14), which delimits an opening (15), and with a piston (1), which is mounted in the injector (10) in such a way as to be longitudinally displaceable along a longitudinal axis (11) of the injector (10) and has a piston tip (2) which is made of a material with a hardness in a range from 10 to 80 Shore A and is configured to move the intraocular lens out of the injector (10) via the opening (15), wherein the piston tip (2) has a central region (5) and a plurality of arms (7) which are fastened to the central region (5) and are arranged next to one another in the circumferential direction (13) with respect to the longitudinal axis (11), wherein the piston tip (2) has a relaxed state, in which the arms (7) each have an inner region (8) and an outer region (9), the latter being arranged further than the inner region (8) from the central region (5) and, in the circumferential direction (13), having a longer extent than the inner region (8).