Sterilizable Vacuum Stoppering Device for Medical Containers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing devices for vacuum and vent tube stoppering of medical containers are large, heavy, and not sterilizable, making them difficult to move and use outside clean rooms, which restricts their application and increases the complexity of the stoppering process.
Innovation Solution
A portable, sterilizable device that combines vacuum and vent tube techniques, featuring a main body with a variable pressure chamber connected to a vacuum pump, a moveable vent tube, and a piston rod, allowing for quick and simple stoppering of medical containers without the need for a clean room environment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If existing devices for vacuum and vent tube stoppering are used, then the stoppering function is achieved, but the devices are large, heavy, and not sterilizable, making them difficult to move and use outside clean rooms
Solution Approach 1:
The device is divided into separable components including a handle, a vent tube, and a body that can be disconnected. This segmentation allows for easier sterilization of individual parts and reduces the overall complexity while maintaining the vacuum stoppering function.
Solution Approach 2:
The device incorporates movable components such as a moveable vent tube that can be inserted and removed from the body, and a piston rod that moves within the vent tube. This dynamic design enables compact storage and easier sterilization while maintaining operational functionality.
2Adaptability or versatility
If existing devices are used, then vacuum and vent tube stoppering is achieved, but the devices are not sterilizable, restricting use outside clean rooms
Solution Approach 1:
The device is designed with separable components that can be individually sterilized. The handle, vent tube, and body can be disconnected and processed separately, enabling sterilization outside clean rooms while maintaining adaptability for various environments.
Solution Approach 2:
The device is constructed with materials and designs that facilitate sterilization, allowing repeated use after sterilization. The components can be sterilized using standard methods and reused, providing versatility for different environmental conditions.
3Ease of operation
If a portable device is designed, then ease of movement is improved, but the device must be sterilizable to be used outside clean rooms
Solution Approach 1:
The portable device is segmented into components that can be sterilized individually, reducing the complexity of sterilization requirements while maintaining portability. Each component can be processed separately without compromising the overall device functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The device incorporates dynamic components that can be assembled and disassembled, facilitating sterilization while maintaining portability. The moveable vent tube and other components can be positioned for sterilization and then reassembled for use.
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 efficient, sterilizable, and easily movable stoppering of medical containers, reducing the size of air bubbles and simplifying the process, making it suitable for use in various environments, including clinical trials.
Implementation Method 1
the breaking of the vacuum inside the variable pressure chamber then causes the stopper to move further down the medical container until equilibrium of pressure
Implementation Method 2
the stopper is compressed in a tube, usually called 'vent tube', which outer diameter is smaller than the inner diameter of the container, so as to allow air circulation between the vent tube and the container
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a device for vacuum and vent tube stoppering a medical container. The device includes a main body defining an internal volume that has a first variable pressure chamber configured to be connected to a vacuum pump, the main body being configured to receive the proximal end of a medical container so that said medical container is in communication with the first variable pressure chamber. A vent device including a vent tube is moveable inside the internal volume of the main body along a longitudinal axis between a proximal rest position and a distal operative position. A piston rod is moveable inside the internal volume of the vent tube along the longitudinal axis between a proximal rest position and a distal operative position. A container holder system is provided in the main body, in communication with the first variable pressure chamber.