Home Specimen Tube Cap With One-Way Locking and Buffer Release
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing specimen collection devices are not user-friendly for unskilled individuals, pose safety risks due to potential contact with harmful fluids, and are challenging to produce in large quantities due to complex mold designs.
Innovation Solution
A specimen collection device with a tube and cap design that includes a cutter integrated into the tube wall for sealing and a cap with a slide element providing one-way rotation, ensuring safe handling and simplifying production through injection molding.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the cap is made releasable by unscrewing, then the user can access the specimen, but the user may accidentally release the cap and spoil the collected fluid
Solution Approach 1:
The cap is designed with dynamic characteristics allowing easy tightening through screwing while preventing accidental loosening. The asymmetric thread geometry creates a self-locking effect where the cap can be easily screwed on but requires significant force to unscrew, thus preventing accidental release while maintaining ease of closure.
Solution Approach 2:
The screw thread is designed with asymmetric geometry where the engagement direction (screwing on) requires minimal force while the disengagement direction (unscrewing) requires significant force. This asymmetry ensures the cap can be easily closed but prevents accidental opening, resolving the contradiction between ease of operation and reliability.
2Productivity
If the cutter is integrated into the tube wall, then the device can be mass-produced with standard dimensions, but the mold design becomes complex
Solution Approach 1:
The cutter is integrated directly into the tube wall as a unified structure rather than being a separate component. This merging of the cutter with the tube allows both features to be produced in a single injection molding process, enabling mass production with standard dimensions while the complexity is managed through efficient mold design.
Solution Approach 2:
The tube structure serves multiple functions: it contains the specimen, provides structural support, and integrates the cutting function through the embedded cutter. This multi-functionality reduces the number of separate components needed, simplifying the overall manufacturing process despite the integrated cutter's complexity.
3Ease of operation
If the buffer chamber seal is cut upon cap placement, then the buffer is released to treat the specimen, but the user may contact toxic buffer fluid
Solution Approach 1:
The seal acts as an intermediary barrier that prevents direct contact between the user and the toxic buffer fluid. The seal is strategically positioned and cut only when the cap is properly placed, allowing automatic buffer release into the specimen while maintaining protection against user exposure throughout the collection process.
Solution Approach 2:
The seal is pre-positioned to cover the buffer chamber opening before cap placement. This preliminary protective action ensures the toxic buffer remains sealed during handling and is only released into the specimen after the cap is securely in place, preventing user contact while enabling automatic treatment.
Data Source
AI summary
A specimen collection device configured to receive a donor specimen, like saliva or urine. The specimen collection device includes a tube having a collection space to receive the donor specimen which is formed by a circumferential tube wall and a tube bottom wall and a cap to close the tube after collecting the donor specimen in the collection space. The cap includes a buffer chamber to hold a buffer, which may be a liquid or tablet. The buffer chamber is closed by a seal. A cutter is positioned inside the tube to cut the seal. The specimen collection device is improved in that the cutter is positioned on an impression in the circumferential tube wall which is formed by a local deformation of the circumferential tube wall and which forms a protrusion at an inside of the tube.