Surgical Cassette Bubble Breaking Structure
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ophthalmic microsurgical systems face challenges in protecting the vacuum source from liquid ingress while maintaining efficient aspiration, particularly due to the limitations of hydrophobic filter media and large air chambers that increase fluidic response times and complicate simultaneous operation of vacuum and flow controlled aspiration systems.
Innovation Solution
A surgical cassette with a bubble breaking structure within the aspiration chamber, designed to separate air bubbles from liquid, preventing liquid from reaching the vacuum source and optimizing fluidic response by facilitating the removal of entrained liquid from air bubbles.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If hydrophobic filter media are incorporated into the fluid line to protect the vacuum source from liquid, then liquid protection is improved, but air flow is delayed and fluidic response time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention removes the hydrophobic filter media from the fluid path between the aspiration chamber and vacuum source, extracting the liquid-blocking function from the flow path. Instead, a liquid barrier is formed at the inlet of the vacuum source by the interaction between aspirated fluid and the vacuum source inlet geometry, separating the liquid protection function from the air flow path.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces an intermediary mechanism where the vacuum source inlet geometry and aspirated fluid interact to form a liquid barrier. This intermediary liquid barrier at the vacuum source inlet serves as the protection mechanism, replacing the hydrophobic filter media and eliminating the need for filter-induced flow delay.
2Reliability
If large air chambers are incorporated to reduce liquid reaching the vacuum source, then liquid protection is improved, but fluidic response time increases due to increased compressible fluid volume
Solution Approach 1:
The invention eliminates the need for large air chambers by extracting the liquid protection function from the air chamber volume and relocating it to the vacuum source inlet region. The liquid barrier forms naturally at the vacuum source inlet, removing the requirement for bulky air chambers and their associated response time delays.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention shifts the liquid protection mechanism from a volumetric approach (large air chambers) to a geometric approach (vacuum source inlet geometry). By changing from a three-dimensional volume-based solution to a two-dimensional surface-based solution at the inlet, the system achieves liquid protection without the response time penalty of large air chamber volumes.
3Reliability
If a bubble breaking structure is added to separate air bubbles from liquid, then liquid protection is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the bubble breaking function with the existing vacuum source inlet geometry. The liquid barrier forms as a natural consequence of the fluid-vacuum source interaction, combining the aspiration function and liquid protection function into a single integrated mechanism at the vacuum source inlet, eliminating separate bubble breaking components.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses its own aspirated fluid to create the liquid barrier at the vacuum source inlet. The fluid being aspirated automatically forms the protective barrier through its interaction with the vacuum source geometry, making the system self-protecting without requiring external bubble breaking devices or additional components.
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 bubble breaking structure effectively prevents liquid from reaching the vacuum source, enhancing the system's dynamic performance and response time by ensuring that only air is aspirated to the vacuum source, thereby improving the overall efficiency of the microsurgical system.
Implementation Method 1
the bubble breaking structure has a geometry that facilitates breaking of air bubbles so that liquid entrained in the air bubbles falls back into the aspiration chamber
Implementation Method 2
chamber for fluidly coupling to a source of vacuum in a surgical console... to separate air bubbles from liquid, preventing liquid from reaching the vacuum source
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
A surgical cassette having a chamber for fluidly coupling to a source of vacuum in a surgical console and a bubble breaking structure disposed within the chamber. The cassette protects the source of vacuum from liquid.