Sampling Connector One-Way Valve Prevents Injection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing medical sampling equipment fails to prevent accidental injection of substances into sensitive body cavities like the arterial system and subarachnoid space, leading to potential harm or disability, and does not ensure a one-way flow of body fluids as required in procedures like cardiopulmonary bypass.
Innovation Solution
A sampling connector with a one-way valve arrangement, including a male and female end configuration, and a stop valve to prevent fluid backflow, ensuring that fluid can only be withdrawn from the body cavity and not injected back in, and optionally a permanent or reversible connection mechanism to prevent accidental disconnection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a standard sampling connector is used to enable fluid sampling, then sampling efficiency is improved, but the risk of accidental injection into the body cavity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary anti-action by incorporating a one-way valve mechanism that preemptively prevents accidental injection into the body cavity. The valve is designed to allow fluid withdrawal in the correct direction while automatically blocking any reverse flow, thus preventing harmful injection before it can occur. This resolves the contradiction by maintaining sampling efficiency while eliminating the injection risk through pre-built protective functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The one-way valve acts as an intermediary element between the sampling connector and the body cavity. It mediates the fluid flow by permitting withdrawal while blocking injection, thus serving as a protective interface that enables sampling efficiency without compromising patient safety. This intermediary mechanism resolves the contradiction by decoupling the sampling function from the injection risk.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If a one-way valve is added to prevent accidental injection, then patient safety is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the one-way valve functionality directly into the sampling connector body, combining the sampling function and the protective valve function into a single integrated device. This merging approach prevents accidental injection while minimizing the increase in device complexity, as the valve is not a separate additional component but an integrated feature of the connector itself.
Solution Approach 2:
The sampling connector is designed with multi-functionality, serving both as a fluid sampling interface and as a protective device with built-in one-way valve functionality. This universal design allows the single device to perform multiple functions (sampling and protection) without requiring separate components, thus improving patient safety while limiting the increase in complexity.
3Reliability
If a stop valve is implemented to prevent fluid backflow, then fluid flow control is improved, but the number of operational steps increases
Solution Approach 1:
The stop valve is designed to function automatically based on fluid pressure differential, requiring no manual operation. When fluid attempts to flow in the wrong direction, the valve self-activates to block the flow. This self-service mechanism improves fluid flow control reliability without increasing the number of operational steps, as the valve operates autonomously in response to pressure changes during normal sampling procedures.
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
The sampling connector effectively prevents accidental injection into body cavities, reduces the risk of fluid backflow, and simplifies the sampling process by reducing the number of rotations required for blood sampling, enhancing user compliance and safety.
Implementation Method 1
a one-way valve disposed to allow fluid to flow from the first aperture, through the fluid flow conduit and out of the second aperture, but not to allow fluid to flow into the second aperture and through the fluid flow conduit to the first aperture
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
A sampling connector for use in sampling a body fluid such as arterial blood or cerebrospinal fluid. The sampling connector comprises at least two apertures in fluid communication via a fluid flow conduit and a one-way valve (14) disposed to allow fluid flow from the first aperture, through the fluid flow conduit and out of the second aperture, but not to allow fluid to flow into the second aperture and through the fluid flow conduit to the first aperture. In use, the sampling connector is connected to a body cavity to enable the sampling of a body fluid by withdrawal of the body fluid through the first aperture, and to prevent the introduction of a separate fluid to the body cavity. The first aperture can be within a male end and the second aperture can be within a female end or vice versa. A sampling device comprising a sampling connector according to the present invention and use of the sampling connector and/or sampling device is also claimed.