Expandable Vial Adaptor Housing for Pressure-Regulated Transfer

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing vial adaptors do not effectively regulate pressure during fluid transfer between a vial and a syringe, leading to potential contamination and leakage of medical substances into the ambient air.

Innovation Solution

A vial adaptor with an expandable and contractible chamber impermeable to gas and liquid, featuring a housing that protects the chamber and allows for fluid communication between the vial and syringe while minimizing exposure to ambient air, thus regulating pressure and enhancing safety and space optimization.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If an expandable and contractible chamber is used to regulate pressure during fluid transfer, then pressure regulation and contamination prevention are improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvepressure regulationVSAvoiddevice complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The chamber is designed to be expandable and contractible, allowing it to dynamically change volume in response to pressure changes during fluid transfer. This dynamic adaptation enables automatic pressure regulation without complex control systems, as the chamber expands to accommodate excess fluid or contracts to maintain positive pressure, thereby improving reliability while avoiding excessive complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The chamber's volume parameter is made variable through its expandable and contractible design. By changing the chamber's volume in response to pressure conditions, the system automatically regulates pressure during fluid transfer from the vial to the syringe, preventing contamination while maintaining a relatively simple overall device structure.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Object-affected harmful factors

If the chamber is made impermeable to gas and liquid, then contamination prevention is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecontamination preventionVSAvoidmanufacturing complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Object-affected harmful factorsVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The chamber is constructed using flexible impermeable membranes or thin films that are inherently resistant to gas and liquid penetration. These flexible barriers provide effective contamination prevention while being relatively simple to manufacture and integrate into the device, avoiding the need for complex multi-layer constructions or specialized manufacturing processes.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #30Flexible shells and thin films

3Volume of moving object

If the housing is made expandable to accommodate the chamber, then space optimization is improved, but structural complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvespace optimizationVSAvoidstructural complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Volume of moving objectVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The expandable chamber is nested within the expandable housing, with both components capable of expanding and contracting together. This nested configuration allows the device to optimize its volume by expanding when fluid transfer requires more space and contracting when not in use, while the shared expansion mechanism reduces overall structural complexity compared to having separate expansion systems for the chamber and housing.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

Solution Approach 2:

The housing and chamber are designed to expand and contract as an integrated system, merging their expansion functions. This combination allows the device to achieve space optimization during fluid transfer while maintaining a simpler overall structure, as the housing's expansion naturally accommodates the chamber's expansion without requiring additional independent mechanisms.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

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 vial adaptor effectively regulates pressure during fluid transfer, reducing contamination and leakage risks while optimizing space usage, making it safer and more convenient for handling medical substances.

Implementation Method 1

A vial adaptor is therefore provided in accordance with claim 1. This comprises a body portion and an expandable and/or contractible chamber impermeable to gas and/or liquid.

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectElasticity: Elasticity

Implementation Method 2

According to a first aspect, the vial adaptor may also comprise an expandable housing casing the chamber. The housing provides a protection to the chamber. The expandability of the housing provides space optimization capability to the vial adaptor.

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectExpandability:

Data Source

PatentEP3706704B1Vial adaptor with housing
Publication Date: 2026.02.25 SIMPLIVIA HEALTHCARE LTD
  • EP3706704B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3706704B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3706704B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4

AI summary

A vial adaptor (1010) may comprise a body portion (1020). The body portion includes a vial connection port (1022), a syringe connection port (1024), an access passageway (1026) between the vial connection port and the syringe connection port, and a regulation passageway (1028). The vial adaptor may further comprise an expandable and/or contractible chamber (1040) impermeable to gas and/or liquid, the regulation passageway being between the vial connection port and the chamber, and an expandable housing (1050) casing the chamber. Such a vial adaptor constitutes an improved vial adaptor.