FR2821563A1 - Syringe or similar has assembly ring for safety sleeve with recess and lock for plunger head - Google Patents

Abstract

Syringe comprising a barrel (2) and a ring (6) for fitting an outer safety sleeve (5) to prevent contact with the needle after use. Syringe comprising a barrel (2) and a ring (6) for fitting an outer safety sleeve (5) to prevent contact with the needle after use. The ring has a peripheral wall and a recess to receive the head (17) of the plunger rod (16) at the end of injection, and a lock (53) with chamfered edges for a projecting edge (24) on the head to click into it. The lock is formed by at least one rib (54) in the edge of the ring, and the plunger rod is in two telescopic sections that allow the plunger head to be locked while the syringe barrel is withdrawn inside the safety sleeve.

Description

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 The present invention relates to a syringe, or similar device, with enhanced security.

 A syringe induces a significant risk of contamination after use, and it is necessary to equip it with means capable of giving it enhanced security against the risk of contact or injury with the injection needle or reuse.

 It is known to equip a syringe with means fulfilling this function.

 However, existing syringes do not always make it possible to obtain perfect safety against the aforementioned risk.

 In addition, these syringes have various drawbacks linked either to their relative structural complexity, or to manufacturing problems resulting from the dimensional tolerances of their constituent parts or the assembly tolerances of these parts, or to the existence of clearances between said syringes. rooms.

 The present invention aims to remedy all of these drawbacks.

 Its main objective is therefore to provide a syringe allowing perfect security to be obtained against the risk of contact or injury with the injection or reuse needle.

 Another objective of the invention is to achieve the objective indicated above without overly complicating the structure or the assembly of the syringe, or even by simplifying this structure and this assembly in relation to known syringes.

 The syringe concerned comprises a syringe body and a ring intended to be assembled to the syringe body on the proximal side.

 According to the invention, the ring has a peripheral wall defining a housing suitable for receiving closely, at the end of injection, the head which comprises the actuating rod of the piston of the syringe; - locking means are arranged at the level of said peripheral wall, in said housing; and the head of the piston rod comprises locking means capable of coming into engagement with the locking means of the ring when this head is received in said housing.

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 The head of the piston rod is thus engaged and locked in said housing at the end of injection, so that there is not only an immobilization of the piston rod in this position of end of injection but also that there n 'There is virtually no grip on the piston head to separate said locking means.

 This results in very significantly increased security against the risk of reuse of the syringe.

 The locking means are preferably of the snap type, in particular snap type.

 The proximal edge of said peripheral wall advantageously has a chamfer to facilitate the engagement of said head in said housing.

 According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the locking means that the peripheral wall comprises consist of at least one rib provided in this wall, and the locking means that comprises said head consist of a corresponding flange projecting radially from this head outwards, suitable for being engaged and locked by snapping behind this or these ribs.

étui et ce corps étant mobiles l'un par rapport à l'autre entre une position d'utilisation du dispositif, dans laquelle l'aiguille de la seringue est exposée, et une position de sécurité, dans laquelle cette aiguille est entourée par l'étui de manière à prévenir tout risque de piqûre ou de coupure, et donc de contamination éventuelle, de l'utilisateur après utilisation ; l'étui de protection comprend au moins une lumière ou saignée longitudinale ; - la bague forme un moyen de déplacement du corps de seringue et de l'étui de protection l'un par rapport à l'autre entre lesdites positions d'utilisation et de sécurité ; elle présente à cet effet une partie logée à l'intérieur de l'étui de protection, comportant les moyens d'assemblage du corps de seringue à la bague, et au moins une partie de prise d'appui, engagée au travers de ladite lumière ou saignée et faisant saillie au-delà de l'étui de protection, qui sert à la prise d'appui de l'index ou du majeur de la main de l'utilisateur ; Advantageously, the syringe comprises: - a protective case, engaged around the syringe body, this

holster and this body being movable relative to each other between a position of use of the device, in which the needle of the syringe is exposed, and a safety position, in which this needle is surrounded by the case so as to prevent any risk of pricking or cutting, and therefore possible contamination, of the user after use; the protective case comprises at least one light or longitudinal groove; - The ring forms a means for moving the syringe body and the protective case relative to each other between said positions of use and safety; to this end, it has a part housed inside the protective case, comprising the means for assembling the syringe body to the ring, and at least one part for taking hold, engaged through said lumen or bled and protruding beyond the protective case, which serves to support the index or middle finger of the user's hand;

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 - The piston rod of the syringe includes two telescopic parts, one of which, distal, is connected to the piston of the syringe, and the other, proximal, has a head forming a support grip part for the thumb 'user; and - at least one breakable bridge connects the two telescopic parts of the piston rod, this or these bridges being capable of breaking beyond a threshold of antagonistic forces exerted on said support grip part and said head, this threshold being greater than the force necessary for the displacement of the piston but less than the opposing forces that a user is capable of exerting manually on said support grip portion and said head.

 The ring thus forms a means for moving the body and the case relative to each other between said positions of use and safety. The action enabling the body and the case to be brought into the safety position is carried out by the same manual grip as the grip by which the syringe is held during its use, and can therefore be carried out as a continuation of this use .

 The rupture of the breakable bridge (s) generates an abrupt relative movement of the syringe body and of the protective case, such that this syringe body and this case are brought into the safety position at the end of this sudden movement. This movement limits or even prohibits any untimely control of the relative movement of the body and the case.

 Preferably, the locking means are of the latching type, in particular of the latching type, and are positioned so that the locking occurs automatically when the syringe body and the protective case reach said safety position.

 Preferably, the case comprises a proximal portion which has, at its proximal edge, two latching teeth capable of ensuring the retention of the ring on this case; and the head of the piston rod comprises a peripheral step, which delimits a cylindrical portion of the head of the piston rod and a flange projecting radially outwards, the diameter of this cylindrical portion being such that this cylindrical portion can be engaged with adjustment in the proximal portion of the case at the end of injection,

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 so as to maintain the teeth in an external radial position, for locking the ring.

 For a good understanding, the invention is again described below with reference to the appended diagrammatic drawing representing, by way of nonlimiting example, a preferred embodiment of the syringe which it relates.

place dans la bague d'un corps de seringue de plus gros diamètre que le corps de seringue montré sur la figure 8 ; la figure 10 est une vue de la seringue similaire à la figure 2, une fois l'injection réalisée ; et la figure 11 est une vue de côté, à échelle agrandie, de la partie proximale de la seringue, une fois l'injection réalisée. Figure 1 is a perspective view, in the form of a syringe, before injection of the product contained in this syringe; Figure 2 is a side view, in longitudinal section; Figure 3 is an enlarged view of a portion of the plunger rod that includes the syringe; Figure 4 is a detail view of a protective case that includes the syringe, on an enlarged scale and in longitudinal section; FIG. 5 is a side view, on an enlarged scale, of this case and of an actuating ring which the syringe comprises; Figure 6 is an axial view of this case and this ring, on the proximal side of the syringe; Figure 7 is a perspective view of the same ring; FIG. 8 is an axial view of this ring, and of a syringe body assembled to it, on the distal side of the syringe; Figure 9 is a view similar to Figure 8, after setting

place in the ring of a syringe body of larger diameter than the syringe body shown in Figure 8; FIG. 10 is a view of the syringe similar to FIG. 2, once the injection has been carried out; and FIG. 11 is a side view, on an enlarged scale, of the proximal part of the syringe, once the injection has been carried out.

 FIGS. 1 and 2 represent a syringe 1 with enhanced safety, comprising a syringe body 2, a piston 3, a piston rod 4, a protective case 5 and a ring 6 for actuating the case 5.

 The syringe body 2 is of the conventional type, produced in particular from glass. It comprises a distal tip 10 comprising the injection needle 11 and a proximal collar 12, projecting radially outwards, which allows the assembly of the body 2 with the ring 6, as will be described below. The needle 11 can be mounted otherwise than by means of such a tip 10.

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The piston 3 is of the conventional type.

The piston rod 4 comprises two telescopic parts 15, 16, of which the distal 15 has a cross-shaped cross section and whose proximal 16 has a tubular shape, suitable for receiving the sliding part 15. Part 15 may have a cross-section of a shape other than a cross, or part 15 may have a tubular shape and part 16 may have a cross section in the shape of a cross.

 Part 16 includes a support head 17 for the user's thumb.

 As shown more particularly in FIG. 3, each of the four wings presented by part 15 is connected to part 16 by at least one bridge of material 20, so that these parts 15 and 16 are normally maintained in an extended position. , shown in Figures 1 and 2.

 These bridges 20 are strong enough to resist the force that it is necessary to exert on the rod 4 to make the piston 3 slide in the body 2, but are capable of breaking beyond a threshold of opposing forces. likely to be exerted on the ring 6 by the index and middle fingers of the user, on the one hand, and on the head 17 by the thumb of the user, on the other hand, according to the classic gesture of actuation of a syringe. Once these bridges 20 have broken, the part 15 can slide in the part 16 to the position shown in FIG. 10.

 The part 15 is extended, on the proximal side, beyond the bridges 20, and this extension 21 has an outside diameter slightly smaller than the inside diameter of the part 16. This extension 21 makes it possible to stiffen the rod 4 longitudinally in order to avoid that this rod has, before rupture of the bridges 20, a zone of weakness in the transverse direction.

 The head 17 has a circular shape and comprises a peripheral step 23, which delimits a cylindrical portion 17a of the head 17 and a flange 24 projecting radially outwards. As shown in FIG. 11, the diameter of this cylindrical portion 17a is such that this cylindrical portion 17a can be engaged with adjustment in the proximal portion 26 of the case 5 at the end of injection.

 The case 5 has a distal portion 25 of internal diameter greater than the external diameter of the body 2 and a proximal portion 26 receiving the sliding ring 6. The whole of this case 5 is produced in

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 a part by molding a synthetic material having a degree of elastic flexibility such as a common plastic material.

 As shown in Figures 1 and 4, the portion 25 has two diametrically opposite "U" shaped slots, which each individualize a tab 30, this tab 30 being radially movable by elastic deformation at its base. The internal face of each of these tabs has, on the side of the end of the tab 30 not connected to the case 5, a boss 31 protruding inside this case.

 The portion 26 of the case has two diametrically opposite longitudinal flats 26a (cf. FIG. 6), at the level of which two grooves 32 are arranged opening into the proximal end of the case 5. These grooves 32 are intended to receive sliding parts 56 of the ring 6, described below.

 This portion 26 further has two latching teeth 33 at its end edge, capable of ensuring the retention of the ring 6 on the case 5, as will also be described later.

 Referring to Figure 7, it appears that the ring 6 comprises two slots 35 of arcuate shape, arranged symmetrically with respect to the axis of this ring. As can be seen in FIG. 6, these slots 35 are intended to receive the parts of the case 5 extending between said grooves 32.

 Set back from the longitudinal ends of these slots 35, wedging shoulders 40 are formed, making it possible to lock the ring 6 in rotation relative to the case 5. Each slot 35 extends beyond each shoulder 40, in the form of '' a slot 41.

 The ring 6 has two diametrically opposite support fins 45, projecting radially outwards, a proximal skirt 46, two holding parts 47 and two assembly parts 48. The assembly of this ring 6 is produced in a part by molding of a synthetic material having a degree of elastic flexibility such as a common plastic material.

 The fins 45 are dimensioned to form bearing surfaces for the index and middle fingers of the user (shown diagrammatically by circles in broken lines in FIG. 5), and are connected to each other by portions intermediaries 50 of the ring 6.

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 The skirt 46 defines a housing suitable for receiving closely, at the end of injection, the head 17, as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11. It has two diametrically opposite windows 51 and a proximal chamfer 52, visible in particular in FIG. 11.

 As shown in Figures 10 and 11, the ring 6 is intended to be engaged on the proximal end of the case 5 to beyond the teeth 33, which locks it definitively on the portion 26 of the case 5. The chamfer 52 is for its part intended to allow the engagement of the head 17 in the housing defined by the wall 46, until snap-fastening, at the end of use, of the rim 24 behind ribs 53 arranged in the areas of the ring 6 which delimit the proximal edges of the windows 51.

This snap locks the rod 4 in the position shown in FIGS. 10 and 11. The portion 17a of the head 17 maintains the teeth 33 in an external radial position, which makes it possible to lock the ring 6 .

 The holding parts 47 are diametrically opposite and each have a fork shape, that is to say each comprise a pair of arms 55 and a connecting body 56 connecting these arms 55 to the ring 6.

 The arms 55 are shaped, in particular rounded in the example shown, so as to be able to partially surround the syringe body 2, and comprise chamfers 57 arranged on their proximal side, by which a syringe body 2 is intended to be introduced into the across the ring 6.

 Each arm 55 also comprises, at its free end, a boss 58 projecting radially inwards. It can include several such bosses.

sensiblement perpendiculairement à l'axe de la bague 6. The connecting body 56 of each retaining part 47 has an angled shape, that is to say comprises a base part, connected to the rest of the ring 6 and arranged substantially parallel to the axis of this ring 6, and an intermediate part, connected to said arms 55 and arranged

substantially perpendicular to the axis of the ring 6.

The base parts are arranged on the same diameter as that according to which the fins 45 project.

 As shown in FIG. 5, the connecting bodies 56 are shaped so that after assembly of the ring 6 on the case 5,

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 the said intermediate parts are slidably engaged in the grooves 32 and the said base parts protrude relative to the wall of the case 5, thanks to the flats 26a of the portion 26.

 As can be understood with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9, the arms 55 are intended to receive between them and to grip the syringe body 2, and can be elastically deformed so as to be able to receive between them, and grip, syringe bodies 2 of different outside diameters, in particular a body 2 called "0.5 ml" as shown in FIG. 8 and a body 2 die "1 ml" as shown in FIG. 9.

 The chamfers 57 make it easier to engage a syringe body 2 between these arms, and the bosses 58 make it possible to immobilize and center a syringe body 2 of reduced diameter.

 The relative flexibility of the connecting bodies 56 in the radial direction of the ring 6 makes it possible to place the arms 55 according to several distinct radial positions, and therefore to ensure good tightening of a syringe body 2, over a wide range of diameters of these.

 The tabs 30 and the bosses 31 make it possible, as can be deduced from FIG. 4, to wedge laterally syringe bodies 2 of different external diameters, the tabs 30 deforming outwardly if necessary so as to allow adequate erasure of the bosses 31.

 In addition, the presence of said base parts of the connecting bodies 56 makes it possible to separate the fingers of the user from the wall of the case 5, as shown in FIG. 5, thus eliminating any risk of friction liable to brake the activation movement of the locking system, or even compromise this locking.

 The two assembly parts 48 are delimited by the central opening of the ring 6 on the one hand and by the slots 35 on the other hand. They have a thickness such that they are elastically deformable in the radial direction, this deformability being made significant by virtue of the slots 41.

 These parts 48 constitute for example an oval ring, connected, at their peripheral zones, the most distant from each other, to the ring 6, near the base parts of the connecting bodies 56. These peripheral areas are located relative to each other

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 at a distance greater than the external diameter of the flange 12 of the body 2 while the median zones of this ring, the closest to each other, are located relative to each other, in the state not deformed from the ring, at a distance less than the outside diameter of this flange 12.

 FIG. 11 shows that the proximal part 26 of the case 5 has a diameter such that there is a space between the wall of this proximal part 26 and said median zones of said ring, this space allowing the radial deformation of these median zones.

 In addition, chamfers 60 are arranged in these same median zones.

 As can be deduced from FIGS. 6,8, 9 and 11, the flange 12 is intended to be engaged through the aforementioned oval ring as far as the parts 48. The chamfers 60 of these parts 48 allow the erasing of said median zones to allow the passage of the flange 12. The elastic return of these parts 48 to their original shape allows the flange 12 to be locked beyond these parts 48.

 Another embodiment may consist in that the assembly parts 48 constitute a substantially circular ring with one or more bosses in the middle zones, the most deformable.

 The body 2 is then perfectly assembled to the ring 6, without any radial play and with a very limited axial play.

 In practice, as is understood by comparison of FIGS. 2 and 10, the user performs the injection by exerting opposing pressures on the fins 45 and on the head 17, by means of his middle finger and his index finger, respectively. on the one hand, and his thumb, on the other hand, according to the aforementioned classic gesture.

 At the end of the injection, the piston 3 abuts against the bottom of the syringe body 2 or the head 17 abuts against the case 5; said opposing forces can then be exerted more intensively, until the bridges 20 break. This results in an abrupt relative displacement of the ring 6, and therefore of the syringe body 2, relative to the head 17, up to coming from the ring 6 and the head 17 in a safety position,

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 shown in Figure 10, in which the needle 11 is fully retracted into the case 5.

 This sudden movement is carried out as an extension of the gesture of using the syringe 1 for the injection. The abrupt nature of this movement, associated with the separation of the user's fingers from the case 5 resulting from the presence of said base parts of the connecting bodies 56, ensures that the safety position is effectively reached in all cases.

 The head 17 is locked automatically at the end of this sudden movement, by engagement of the rim 24 behind the ribs 53. The engagement of the portion 17a of the head 17 in the proximal end of the case 5, like the shows figure 11, eliminates, or at least makes very difficult, any attempt to unlock the rod 4.

 As appears from the above, the invention provides a syringe having the essential advantage of allowing perfect security to be obtained against the risk of reuse.

 It goes without saying that the invention is not limited to the embodiment described above by way of example, but on the contrary embraces all the variant embodiments covered by the claims appended hereto. Thus, the invention can relate to a device for medical use, with safety, comprising (a) a sub-assembly of the syringe type, comprising a body elongated along a reference axis; a needle disposed axially, communicating with the interior of said body, at the distal end of the latter; a piston movable inside said body to a distal position in abutment; and a piston rod emerging at the proximal end of said body, with a proximal grip portion; (b) a safety sub-assembly, comprising a protective case mounted around the body, axially movable relative to the latter between two positions, namely an exposure position in which the needle is exposed and a safety position wherein the needle is entirely contained inside said protective case; according to the invention, in combination: (i) the protective case is extended by a proximal portion beyond the proximal end of the body in the exposure position

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 said protective case, the piston rod emerging from the proximal end of said proximal portion; (ii) an actuating ring extends radially from the proximal end of the body, being integral with the latter, and comprises an external part of support bearing, on either side of the body; (iii) axial sliding means between the actuating ring and the proximal portion of the protective case, said proximal portion being freely mounted in translation through the ring; (iv) means for axially retracting the piston rod on itself, by axial thrust on the proximal part of the support grip when the piston is in its distal position in abutment, so that said proximal grip part 'support abuts against the proximal end of the protective case, then moves the latter to its safety position, still by pushing.

Claims (8)

 CLAIMS 1-Syringe, or similar device, with increased safety, comprising a syringe body (2) and a ring (6) intended to be assembled to the syringe body (2) on the proximal side, characterized in that: - the ring (6) has a peripheral wall (46) defining a housing suitable for receiving closely, at the end of injection, the head (17) which comprises the rod (4) for actuating the piston (3) of the syringe; - locking means (53) are arranged at the level of said peripheral wall (46), in said housing; and - the head (17) of the piston rod (4) comprises locking means (24) capable of coming into engagement with the locking means (53) of the ring (6) when this head (17) is received in said accommodation.  2-syringe according to claim 1, characterized in that the locking means (53,24) are of the latching type, in particular latching.  3-syringe according to claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that the proximal edge of said peripheral wall (46) has a chamfer (52) to facilitate the engagement of the head (17) in said housing.  4-syringe according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the locking means that comprises the peripheral wall (46) consist of at least one rib (53) arranged in this wall (46), and in that that the locking means that comprises said head (17) consist of a corresponding flange (24) projecting radially from this head (17) outwards, suitable for being engaged and locked by snap behind this or these ribs (53 ).  5-syringe according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that it comprises a protective case (5), engaged around the syringe body (2), this case (5) and this body (2) being movable relative to each other between a position of use of the syringe (1), in which the needle (11) of the syringe is exposed, and a safety position, in which this needle (11) is surrounded by the case (5) so as to prevent any risk of pricking or cutting, and therefore of possible contamination, <Desc / Clms Page number 13>  of the user after use; the protective case (5) comprises at least one slot or longitudinal groove (32); - The ring (6) forms a means for moving the syringe body (2) and the protective case (5)) 'tun relative to the other between said positions of use and safety; for this purpose, it has a part housed inside the protective case (5), comprising the means of assembly (47, 48) of the syringe body (2) to the ring (6), and at least a support grip part (45), engaged through said lumen or groove (32) and protruding beyond the protective case (5), which serves to support the index finger or the middle finger of the user's hand; - the piston rod (4) of the syringe (1) comprises two telescopic parts (15, 16), one of which, distal, is connected to the piston (3) of the syringe, and the other of which, proximal, comprises a head (17) forming a grip portion for the thumb of the user; and - at least one breakable bridge (20) connects the two telescopic parts (15,16) of the piston rod (4), this or these bridges (20) being capable of breaking beyond a force threshold antagonists exerted on said support grip part (45) and said head (17), this threshold being greater than the force necessary for the displacement of the piston (3) but less than the antagonistic forces that a user is capable of exerting manually on said support grip part (45) and said head (17).  6-syringe according to claim 5, characterized in that the locking means (51,24) are of the latching type, in particular latching, and are positioned so that the locking occurs automatically when the syringe body ( 2) and the protective case (5) reach said safety position.  7-syringe according to claim 5 or claim 6, characterized in that - the case (5) comprises a proximal portion (26) which has, at its proximal edge, two latching teeth (33) at the same to ensure the retention of the ring (6) on this case (5); and - the head (17) of the piston rod (4) comprises a peripheral step (23), which delimits a cylindrical portion (17a) of the head (17) of the piston rod (4) and a flange (24 ) projecting radially outwards, the diameter of this cylindrical portion (17a) being such that this cylindrical portion (17a) can be engaged with adjustment in the portion <Desc / Clms Page number 14>  proximal (26) of the case (5) at the end of injection, so as to maintain the teeth (33) in an external radial position, for locking the ring (6).  8-Device for medical use, with security, according to one of claims 1 to 7, comprising (a) a sub-assembly (1) of the syringe type, comprising a body (2) elongated along a reference axis; an axially disposed needle (11) communicating with the interior of said body at the distal end of the latter; a piston (4) movable inside said body to a distal position in abutment; and a piston rod (4) emerging at the proximal end of said body (2), with a proximal grip portion (17); (b) a safety sub-assembly, comprising a protective case (5) mounted around the body (2), axially movable relative to the latter between two positions, namely an exposure position (cf. FIG. 2) in which the needle (11) is exposed and a safety position (cf. FIG. 10) in which the needle (11) is entirely contained inside said protective case (11); device characterized in that, in combination: (i) the protective case (5) is extended by a proximal portion (26) beyond the proximal end of the body (2) in the position of exposure of said case protective, the piston rod (4) emerging from the proximal end of said proximal portion (26); (ii) an actuation ring (6) extends radially from the proximal end of the body (2), being integral with the latter, and comprises an external part (45) for taking support, on either side of the body (2); (iii) means (41) for axial sliding between the actuating ring (6) and the proximal portion (26) of the protective case (5), said proximal portion being freely mounted in translation through the ring (6); (iv) means (20) for axially retracting the piston rod (4) on itself, by axial thrust on the proximal part of the support grip (17) when the piston (3) is in its distal position in abutment, so that said proximal support grip part (17) abuts against the proximal end of the protective case (5), then moves the latter towards its safety position, still by pushing.