Animal Tissue Sampling Tube Head for Leak-Free Lab Handling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for collecting and storing animal tissue samples face issues such as contamination, leakage, and incompatibility with laboratory equipment due to deformation and sealing troubles caused by thermo-sealed covers on receiving tubes.
Innovation Solution
A sampling device comprising a receiving tube with a removable closing element that switches between plugged and released positions, ensuring tight sealing and preventing contamination, and a tube head designed for compatibility with laboratory equipment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a thermo-sealed cover is used on the receiving tube, then the sample preservation is improved, but the tube geometry becomes deformed and incompatible with standard laboratory equipment
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing system is divided into two independent parts: a separate sealing ring that fits within the tube opening and a cap that closes the tube. This segmentation avoids the need to thermo-seal the tube itself, preserving its geometric integrity while providing reliable sealing through the separate sealing ring component.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If a thermo-sealed cover is used on the receiving tube, then contamination is prevented, but sealing troubles and leakage occur due to deformation
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing function is separated from the tube structure through the use of an independent sealing ring. This ring can be made from elastomeric or plastic material that provides reliable sealing without deforming the tube geometry, thus preventing both contamination and leakage simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing ring is made from elastomeric or plastic material that combines flexibility for sealing with durability for reliable operation. This composite material approach allows the sealing element to conform to the tube opening while maintaining sealing integrity under various conditions.
3Ease of operation
If the hollow needle cuts the cover during insertion, then the sample can be inserted, but cover parts fall into the tube and contaminate the sample
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing ring is extracted from the cap structure and placed as a separate element within the tube opening. This allows the cap to be removed or pierced without risking contamination, as the sealing function is performed by the separate ring that remains in place and does not interfere with sample insertion.
4Adaptability or versatility
If a removable closing element is used instead of thermo-sealing, then compatibility with laboratory equipment is improved, but the sealing mechanism becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing system is segmented into a sealing ring and a cap, where the sealing ring is a simple annular element that fits within the tube opening. This segmentation actually simplifies the overall mechanism compared to thermo-sealing, as the sealing ring can be easily installed and the cap provides the removable closing function without complex sealing requirements.
Data Source
AI summary
A sampling device adapted to cooperate with a sampling member subsequent to collection of a sample of animal tissue. The sampling device includes: a receiving tube designed for receiving the sample of animal tissue, containing at least one specific agent and comprising an inlet; a tube head removably attached to the inlet of the receiving tube and provided with a through channel ending in the receiving tube; a closing element configured to take at least two positions: a first position, in which the closing element is held into the tube head so as to plug the through channel of the tube head, and a second position, in which the closing element is released into the receiving tube.