Safety Needle Snap Feature and Housing Retention
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing needle protection devices with pivoting housings face challenges in securely retaining the housing and base while preventing exposure of contaminated fluid and compatibility with hook mechanisms, often requiring specific anchor lengths and thin housing sections, which complicates implementation and increases the risk of fluid exposure.
Innovation Solution
A safety needle device with a locking mechanism featuring catch mechanisms extending from the housing and base that interlock upon pivoting, ensuring the housing and base are fixedly retained, and a hook mechanism secures the needle, preventing re-exposure and allowing single-pivoting movement for secure retention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If an anchor-based locking mechanism is used to retain the housing to the base, then the housing and base can be secured together, but the anchor must be of a specific length and the housing must have a thin section with a well-defined opening, which complicates the design and may expose contaminated fluid
Solution Approach 1:
The locking mechanism is divided into two separate catch portions: one extending from the back wall of the housing and another extending from the base. These portions independently engage with each other, eliminating the need for a single complex anchor structure piercing through the housing. This segmentation simplifies the design while maintaining secure retention.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention removes the traditional anchor structure that required piercing through the housing wall. Instead, the catch portions extend from the housing and base respectively and engage externally, eliminating the need for openings in the housing and preventing exposure of contaminated fluid through such openings.
2Reliability
If an anchor pierces through the housing to lock to the base, then the housing and base can be retained, but contaminated blood may be splattered to the anchor and exposed on the backside of the housing
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the anchor structure from within the housing and relocates it to extend from the base. The catch portion from the housing engages with the catch portion from the base externally, eliminating the need for the anchor to pierce through the housing wall and preventing contamination exposure.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces a mediating engagement structure where the two catch portions meet and interlock between the housing and base, rather than one component piercing through the other. This intermediary engagement prevents direct penetration through the housing wall, blocking the pathway for contaminated fluid exposure.
3Reliability
If an anchor-based mechanism is used to lock the housing to the base, then the components can be retained together, but it is difficult to implement with a hook mechanism inside the housing as the anchor and opening conflict with the hook retention
Solution Approach 1:
The locking function is segmented into two separate catch portions that engage externally, allowing the hook mechanism to operate independently inside the housing without interference. The hook can retain the needle while the catch portions secure the housing to the base, enabling both functions to coexist without conflict.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention safety device is a one-piece needle assembly that has a base and a housing pivotally connected to the base. The base has a distal portion to which a needle is fitted. At the base there is formed longitudinally along its distal portion a catch mechanism that may be in the form of an anchor projection. At the back wall of the housing there is extended another catch mechanism that may be configured in the form of two clasping fingers. Also providing in the housing is an integral hook. As the housing and the base are pivoted relative to each other, and as the needle makes contact with the hook, the respective catch mechanisms at the base and the housing also make contact with each other, resulting in the coupling of the catch mechanisms and the coupling of the needle to the hook. As a result, the catch mechanisms are interlocked and the needle is fixedly retained by the hook within the housing. The catch mechanisms may also be configured as a hook and a latch in the form of a rib with an opening whereto the hook is fixedly coupled. The catch mechanisms may further be configured as respective interlockable pairs of loops and bosses. The gauge of the needle may be determined by the color of both the base and the housing, which are molded as a unitary single unit.