Sterile Drape Connector Alignment for Electrical Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
In surgical procedures, there is a need to establish electrical connections through a sterile drape without compromising the sterility of the field, as existing methods often require breaching the sterile barrier.
Innovation Solution
A connection system comprising a first connector with an alignment protrusion and a piercing element, and a second connector with an alignment notch, channel, and receptacle, allowing for electrical connections through the drape while maintaining sterility, using self-sealing polymer septums and LEDs for indication of successful connections.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a sterile drape is placed over a patient to establish a sterile field, then sterility of the surgical field is maintained, but electrical connections cannot be made between components without breaching the sterile barrier
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a sterile adapter assembly that acts as an intermediary device between the sterile surgical field and non-sterile external equipment. This adapter includes a sterile adapter body with electrical contacts that can receive connectors from external devices through the drape, enabling electrical connections without breaching the sterile barrier. The adapter maintains the sterile boundary while facilitating the needed electrical connectivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system divides the connection interface into separate sterile and non-sterile components. The sterile adapter body remains on the sterile side of the drape, while external connectors remain on the non-sterile side. This segmentation allows each component to maintain its appropriate sterility status while still enabling electrical connection through the drape material.
2Ease of operation
If the sterile barrier is breached to make electrical connections, then electrical connectivity is achieved, but sterility of the sterile field is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The sterile adapter serves as a mediator that eliminates the need to breach the sterile barrier. It provides electrical contacts that can engage with external connectors through the intact drape, thereby achieving electrical connectivity while the drape remains intact and sterility is preserved.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical approach of physically breaching the drape with an electrical field approach. Electrical signals can penetrate the non-conductive drape material to establish connections, substituting mechanical penetration with electromagnetic field interaction.
3Ease of operation
If connectors are designed to pierce the drape for electrical connections, then electrical connectivity through the drape is achieved, but the drape sealing capability is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The sterile adapter body acts as an intermediary that receives connectors without requiring them to pierce the drape. The adapter maintains direct contact with the drape surface, allowing electrical connections to be made through the adapter rather than through penetrations in the drape itself, thus preserving seal integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of creating connections through the thickness of the drape (vertical dimension), the system establishes connections laterally through the adapter body that contacts the drape surface. This dimensional shift allows electrical connectivity without compromising the drape's sealing function.
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
Enables secure, sterile electrical connections through the drape, preventing contamination and ensuring the integrity of the sterile field during procedures like catheter placement.
Implementation Method 1
The sticker is configured to adhere to the drape about a piercing thereof
Implementation Method 2
The first piercing element has one or more electrical contacts... configured to form at least a first electrical connection of the one or more electrical connections with the first connector
Implementation Method 3
a light-emitting diode ("LED") on the first connector configured to change from a first state to a second state to indicate success in forming the one or more electrical connections
Data Source
AI summary
A connection system includes a first connector and a second connector configured for establishing one or more electrical connections through a drape. The first connector can include an alignment protrusion and a first piercing element having one or more electrical contacts configured to pierce the drape. The second connector can include an alignment notch, a channel, and a first receptacle configured to receive the first piercing element when inserted therein. The alignment notch can be configured to accept the alignment protrusion when the first connector is aligned with the second connector then disposed over the second connector. The channel can be configured to allow the alignment protrusion to slide along a length of the second connector. The first receptacle can have one or more electrical contacts configured to form at least a first electrical connection of the one or more electrical connections with the first connector.