CA1265770A - Receptacle assembly for storage and disposal of potentially injurious implements such as used scalpel blades, hypodermic needles and the like - Google Patents
Receptacle assembly for storage and disposal of potentially injurious implements such as used scalpel blades, hypodermic needles and the likeInfo
- Publication number
- CA1265770A CA1265770A CA000511708A CA511708A CA1265770A CA 1265770 A CA1265770 A CA 1265770A CA 000511708 A CA000511708 A CA 000511708A CA 511708 A CA511708 A CA 511708A CA 1265770 A CA1265770 A CA 1265770A
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- receptacle
- disposable
- permanent
- opening
- receptacle member
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
Links
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Landscapes
- Accommodation For Nursing Or Treatment Tables (AREA)
Abstract
ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A receptacle assembly for safely storing potentially injurious implements such as hypodermic needles, scalpel blades and the like, includes a permanent receptacle member which permits the deposit therein of used implements to be discarded; a disposable receptacle member can be essentially fully contained within the permanent receptacle member for receiving and storing the used implements; the disposable receptacle member can be retained and substantially completely encased within the permanent receptacle member, such that used implements can be deposited and stored in the receptacle assembly for disposal by simply dropping them through the receiving means of the permanent receptacle member and thence into the disposable receptacle member which, when filled with used implements, can be removed from the permanent receptacle member and sealed for ultimate disposal while the permanent receptacle member can be re-fitted with a new disposable receptacle member for storing another quantity of used implements; the assembly of the invention provides for complete disposal of used implements to avoid the risk of infection.
A receptacle assembly for safely storing potentially injurious implements such as hypodermic needles, scalpel blades and the like, includes a permanent receptacle member which permits the deposit therein of used implements to be discarded; a disposable receptacle member can be essentially fully contained within the permanent receptacle member for receiving and storing the used implements; the disposable receptacle member can be retained and substantially completely encased within the permanent receptacle member, such that used implements can be deposited and stored in the receptacle assembly for disposal by simply dropping them through the receiving means of the permanent receptacle member and thence into the disposable receptacle member which, when filled with used implements, can be removed from the permanent receptacle member and sealed for ultimate disposal while the permanent receptacle member can be re-fitted with a new disposable receptacle member for storing another quantity of used implements; the assembly of the invention provides for complete disposal of used implements to avoid the risk of infection.
Description
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The present i.nvent:ion relates generally to receptacLes, containers and -the like, and, more particularly, to recep-tacl.es :Eor safe storage and ultimate di.sposal. of potentially injurious or contami.nated implements such as used scalpel blades, hypodermic need].es and like devices which pose a risk of causing infection or even disease by exposure -to such implemen-ts.
With -the adven-t of disposable medical implemen-ts such as surgical -tools, hypodermic needles, scalpel blades and o-ther sharp implemen-ts, a need has developed for a receptacle to safely store such implements after use without risk of exposing people -t:o injury, in:Eection or disease by improper handling, until proper disposal can be made. The -tragic outbreak of the highly contagious AIDS disease has dramatically highlighted the need for safer handling, ; storage and disposal of such implements.
In the case of disposable hypodermic needles, it had been common practice to break or cut the needles prior -to discarding the needle and syringe in order to reduce the size ~, ~
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1 of the o~erall needle/syringe device and to eliminate the sharp
The present i.nvent:ion relates generally to receptacLes, containers and -the like, and, more particularly, to recep-tacl.es :Eor safe storage and ultimate di.sposal. of potentially injurious or contami.nated implements such as used scalpel blades, hypodermic need].es and like devices which pose a risk of causing infection or even disease by exposure -to such implemen-ts.
With -the adven-t of disposable medical implemen-ts such as surgical -tools, hypodermic needles, scalpel blades and o-ther sharp implemen-ts, a need has developed for a receptacle to safely store such implements after use without risk of exposing people -t:o injury, in:Eection or disease by improper handling, until proper disposal can be made. The -tragic outbreak of the highly contagious AIDS disease has dramatically highlighted the need for safer handling, ; storage and disposal of such implements.
In the case of disposable hypodermic needles, it had been common practice to break or cut the needles prior -to discarding the needle and syringe in order to reduce the size ~, ~
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1 of the o~erall needle/syringe device and to eliminate the sharp
2 poin~ from the needle ~o reduce the risk o~ injury which might
3 ~1 o~herwise resul~ from handling. In breaking or cutting the
4 I needles, however, it was determined that a substantial danger ~1 existed of accidental puncture during the breaking or cutting 6 1l operation, thus exposing the holder to possible injury and, 7 il further, to possible infection.or disease. In addition, any ~ 1l residual medicatlon in ~he needle was susceptible to g 1l splattering onto the person or his clothes and there -~as a l¦ danger that potentially harmful fumes could be inhaled.
Furthermore, the blades of the cutting tool became a breeding 12 ¦I ground for germs, bacteria and other disease-causing 13 ~¦ micro-organisms to which th~ unsuspecting person cutting the 14 ¦~ needle is unnecessarily exposed.
15 ll Recently, an even greater danger has been recognized 16 ll in connection with the handling and dismantling of used needles 17 1 and other sharp medical implements. It is now recognized that 18 ¦ certain diseases, most notably Hepatitis B, can be transmitted 19 1! ~Y covert percutaneous --i.e., by merely contacting the 20 il contaminated needle or implement.
21 1~, As a result of the foregoing dangers, the preferred 22 ~I current practice is to dispose of such devices intact. Often, 23 , the needles are now re-capped after use with the protective 2~ ¦ sheaths used during shipment from the manufactur.er, in order to 1, 25 ¦¦ prevent injury while carrying the device to a suitable disposal 26 ~ u~it. This practice, however, oten results in puncture wounds 27 ,I su~fered while re-capping the needle point.
28 11 Although certain proposals have been advanced for 29 1 eliminating some o the risks involved in the handling, storage ! and disposal of hypodermic needles and other sharp medical ; ~ ~
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imp:Lements, they gerlerally do not overcome all oE the dangers.
O:E-ten, they become the source o o-ther problems. E'or example, there are several specially designed conta:iners for storing used hypodermic needles, including some made of all pl.as-tic and some made oi- all cardboard, as identified, for example, my (John Bruno) Canadian Paten-t Application fi58,881, filed July 13, 1984.
Al-though such specially designed devices provide adequate results under cer-tain circums-tances, they do suffer certain disadvan-tages. For example, -the plastic devices, being made of plastic, can be relatively expensive -to use as a disposable storage container. In addi-tion, the plas-tic and cardboard devices generally have thin or single-layer side walls which do not provide any added margin of safety agains-t possible punctures or pokethrough. Fur-thermore, in all the con-tainers, either the entire syringe/needle or -the syringe wi-th the needle stub is dropped ver-tically into the containers, -thus creating a haphazard distribution of needles in the container. Such distribu-tion usually results in an inefficiently filled container and can be the cause of possible injury to the user because of the haphazard arrange- :
ments of implements.
Another available device for the storage and disposal of used hypodermic needles is -that sold under the designation ~MED~-SAFE~ tTrade Mark) by Bec-ton Dickenson & Co. of Ru-therford, New Jersey. This device comprises a plastic jug-like con- :
tainer having a detachable circular cover which is cut with a ~starburst~ pat-tern to form a plurality of radially inwardly extending flaps. Th:is device suEfers similar drawbacks to ~`
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, 1 ~ ~hose descibed above, including the haphazard distribution of 2 implements dropped into the container. In addition, as used 3 implements are pushed through the "starburst" arrangement of 4 flaps, any medicines or other potentially contaminable liquid ; 5 l on the devices are apt to remain on the upper surfaces of the 6 , cover, thereby ~orming a breeding ground for germs, viruses and 1 infectious diseases. Also, as implements are forced through 8 ll the "starburst" flaps, contact is invariably made with such g residual lit~uids onL t:~e flaps.
lO '' As set out in my aforesaid co-pending application, the 11 receptacle disclosed therein (also sold under the mark ,i ~ "D.D.BOX" by D.D.30x Inc. of Paterson, ~ew Jersey and ~iyhland 13 'I Beach, Florida) overcomes virtually all of the foregoing 14 '~i drawbac~s. However, even with the advantages achieved by such L5 ll receptacle, hospital administrators still express a desire for 16 ll ~urther safety eatures in storage/disposal receptacles, 17 l generally. For example, hos~ital personnel express a desire 1~ ,, for a storage/ disposal container which provides protection l9 ' against injury from or contact with discarded implements even ~' whexe the container has been overfilled, and which provides 21 `, complete protection against poke-through of needles or other 22 `' implements stored therein. Continuing concern is also .3 , expressed for increasing the protection agains~ the risk of 24 , disease transmitted by covert percutaneous, and for a means to ,`l prevent access to or contact with the implements stored in the 26 container, Also, it is desired that even though the container 27 ,I mayb~ intended to be disposable, it should nonetheless be ~a I decorative so that it will be attrastive to look at, especially 29 l when placed in patient rooms and other places frequented by 3~ I patients, ~isitors and, or course, hospital personnel.
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1 Accordin~ly, it is an object of the present invention 2 to provide a new and improved receptacle for storage and 3 , disposal of hypodermic needles, scalpels and other sharp or 4 ,', pointed implements which pose a health risk by reason of I injury, puncture or even mere contact (hereinater reerred to 6 '' collectively as "potentially injurious implements", or simply 7 ,¦ "disposable implements"). It is another object of the present 8 1 invention to provide a new and improved receptacle for storing 4 l' potentially injurious implements, which is sturdy and resistant 1I to puncture by the implements retained therein, yet permits 11 'I con~enient and complete disposal o~ the implements.
12 1 It is also an object of the invention to provide a new 13 11 and improved receptacle for storage and disposal of potentially 14 1! injurious implements, which is adapted ~o rec~ive implements in 15 ll a compact side-by-side hori20ntal configuration for maximum 16 '~ storage capacity. It is another object of the invention to 7 l¦ provide such a recep~acle which further prevents any implements 8 lll stored therein from falling out after they have been inserted 19 ~ll t~Lerein, and which provides a permanently sealable disposable container which can be conveniently discarded in an appropriate 21 i! disposal facility. In addition, it is an object of the 22 ll invention to provide such a receptacle which provides ~ ?3 ¦ protection against contact with or injury from such implements.
: 24 1l It is yet a further objec~ of the present invention to ll provide a new and improved receptacle for storing potentially 2$ ~ injurious implements, which is compact, and can be conveniently ¦
27 ¦ mounted to any wall or other desired structure, yet can also be decora~ed for producing an attractive receptacle which can be 29 ,1 installed in doctor offices, patient rooms or other hospital 3a ' I areaS .
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1 I It is still a further object of the presen~ invention 2 'I to provide a new and improved receptacle for storage and 3 ~ disposal of potentially injurious implemen~s, which provides 4 ll comple~e disposability ye~ provides a completely secure container that can be loc~ed ~o prevent access by unauthorized 6 ~ persons. As a result, the receptacle can be safely installed 7 l¦ in doctor ofices, patient rooms, etc. without Eear of entry by 8 )I unauthoriæed persons.
g ll The foregoing specific objects and advantages of the ll invention are illustrative of those which can be achieved by the present invention and are not intended to be exhaustive or 12 '¦ limiting of the possible advantages which can be realized.
13 'I Thus, these and other objects and advantages of the invention 14 ¦I will be apparent from the description herein or can be learned lS ll from practicing the invention, both as embodied herein or as lS 1l. modified in view o~ any variations which may be apparent to 17 il those ski~led in the art. Accordingly, the present inven~ion resides in the novel parts, constructions, arrangements, 19 1I combinations and improvements h~rein shown and described.
20 'I
21 ll SUt~lARY OF THE INVENTION
22 I Briefly described, the present invention comprises a 23 ' receptacle assembly for the deposit, storage and ultimate 24 I disposal of disposable medical implemen~s, which includes a box-like permanen~ receptacle member adapted to retain a liner, 26 ll or disposable receptacle member which conforms generally to the 27 ll coniguration of the permanent receptacle member, for receiving ~8 ,¦ and holding used hypodermic needles, scalpels and like 29 l¦ potentially injurious implemen~s, as well as the permanent l~ receptacle member itsel. Advantageously, both receptacle ~L26S770 I
l ~ members are relatively elongate, and the tcp portions of both 2 ll receptacle members are adapted to provide access to their 3 , interiors for recei~ing the implemen~s therein. As preferably 4 1 embodied, the top portions o said receptacle members are I proportioned such that there is provided a limited access 6 ~ receiving chamber into which the implements are first dropped 7 ¦, before being fully received in the disposable receptacle B l member, preferably by an angularly inwardly projecting 9 1 trap-door closure panel which is generally biased ~owards an I opposite wall member to close the top of the disposable 11 i receptacle member but which can be pushed open to allow an 12 ll implement to drop into the disposable receptacle me~ber for 13 1¦ safe storage and ultimate disposal.
l~ ¦ Advantageously and as pre~erably embodied, the top 15 ll portion of the permanent recep~able member includes one or more 1~ il openings proportioned to receive the various sizes of 17 1 implements to be stored therein yet substantially ~o prevent acces~ to the receiving chamber by a person's hand. The top of l9 ll ~he permanent receptacle member also includes a inger access 20 ll opening ~preferably smaller than and dif~erent from the 21 ¦¦ implement-drop opening to allow only limited access by a 22 ~l¦ person's hand) to provide limited access by the person's 23 ll fingers to the closure panel of the disposable receptacle for ~4 ¦ opening the panel and thereby causing any implement therean to drop into the dispusable receptacle member.
26 , Ad~antaseously, the permanent receptacle member is 27 ,, made of metal (preferably, aluminum for light weight) or other 28 1 generally impenetrable rna~erial, while the disposable 29 Z recep~acle member may be made of corrugated cardboard, stifened paper or otner relati~ely inexpensive but relatively '! -- 7 --s~70 1 ~ rigid material adapted to resist punc~ure by a needle point.
~ ,i In this way, the disposable receptacle member will provide 3 ,l enough puncture resistance to allow it to be safely removed 4 1I from the permanent receptacle member and carried to an l appropriate disposal unit for ultimate disposal . Howevex, the 6 ''I permanent member provides complete assurance ayainst any 7 11 possible poke-through during use, and, it permits the entire 8 1l receptacle to be secured (as by locking it) against access by ~ l~ unauthorized persons.
1 Thus, the permanent receptacle member can be 11 permanen~ly installed at the immediate location(s~ where 12 1 potentially injurious disposal implements are frequently used.
13 1 When so installed, th~ receptacle according to the present 1 14 ¦ invention eliminates the need for a person otherwise to carry a 1 used implement (e.g., a used hypodermic needle) to a disposal L~ ,l unit which may be located distant from its place of usage (e.g.
17 1 a patient's room), with the consequent risk of injury from or 18 , contact with the implement while it is being carried to a I L9 ¦ ~isposal unit.
It will similarly be appreciated that, because of the 21 ,I nature of the permanent receptacle member, the receptacle 22 ,¦ assembly accordin~ to the present invention can be decorated to ` 23 1¦ complement the furnishings of the room in which the receptacle 1 24 1¦ is installed for an attractive ap~earance. (This can also help ~; dis~uise the un~tion of the receptacle from persons who might 26 1¦ otherwise be searching or used syringes to put to unlawful ; 27 Ij use.) The disposable receptacle member would, of course, be 2~ ,1 imprinted with a suitable legend, including the universal 29 1¦ s~mbol for contaminated sharps, to warn authorized persons of 30 1¦ the dangerous nature of the implements stored in the receptacle.
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In addition, the permanent receptacle can be locked to prevent unauthorized access to the contents of the receptacle.
It will ~hus be readily apparent from the foregoing 4 ~ general descrip~ion, as well as the following detailed ~ descrip~ion, that the objects and advan~ages specifically ; ~ , enumerated herein are achieved by the invention as embodied 7 li herein~ For example, by providing a permanent receptacle 8 'I member which acts as a protective shell for the disposable 9 l¦ receptacle member, a safe and durable receptacle is provided lQ i! for safely receiving, storing a~d eve~tually disposing of potentially i~jurious implements. In addition, the biased top 12 ll¦ closure panel o~ the dispasable receptacle provides a "trap 13 I door" which, as part of the receiving chamber, minimizes the 14 ll amount of contact a person must have wi~h th~ implements when 15 ll disposing of them.
16 `i By providing openings in the top portion of the 17 ,, permanent receptacle member, ass~rance is provided that a 1~ ¦ person's hand will not touch a used implement released into the L9 l~ receiving chamber when opening the closure panel of the 20 ll disposable member, yet safe storage for used implements is 21 I provided in the receiving chamber in the event that the 22 , disposable receptacle is inad~er~ently overfilled. However, ; 73 I the disposable receptacle also preferably includes an extra top 24 I closure panel which can be sealed over the trou~h-like recess ,l in the disposable receptacle for safely enclosing any 26 ~ implements which have overfilled the disposable receptacle. It ¦
27 ll also ensures ~hat any implements which may become disloged will 28 1, remain safely sealed within the disposable member.
29 l¦ It will be appreciated by those skilled in the ar~
,~ that the foregoing brief description and the following detailed , _ 9 _ ~2~ 0 ',i I
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1 description are exemplary and explanatory of the invention, but 2 are not intended to be restrictive thereof. Thus, the 3 l accompanying drawings, referred to herein and constituting a ~ part hereof, illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention , and, together with the detailed description, serve to explain 6 l the principles o~ the invention 7 'I
8 ll BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
9 li FI&U~E 1 is a an isometric view o an embodiment of a 1~ receptacle assembly according to the present invention.
11 il FIGU~E 2 is a front isometris view of ~he permanent 12 ~¦ receptacle member of the embodiment of FIGURE 1, in the open 13 'I con~iguration.
14 ! FIGURE 3 is a view similar to that of FIGURE 2 ~ i.llustrating installation of an embodiment of a disposable 16 ¦ receptacle member as part of the receptacle assembly according 17 ', ~o the invention, lS il FIGURE 4 is a view similar to that of Figures 1-3, 19 l showing operation of the receptacle assembly according to the 20 1¦ present invention, 21 ll FIGURE 5 is an isometric view, with partial cut-away, ,!
~2 !1 of a disposable receptaclP member (with the permanent 23 i~ receptacle member removed for claxity) illustrating the deposit 24 ll and storage of implements within the receptacle assembly 25 1l according to the invention.
26 ,I FIGURE 6 is an isometric view, similar to Figures 1-4, 27 ll of a preferred embodiment of disposable receptacle member in 28 ,1 accordance with to the present invention.
~9 'I FIGURE 7 is a sectional view taken along section lines 7-7 of FIGU~E 6.
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~2~i~1 FIGUR~ ~3 is a sect;orlal view taken alonc~ section Lines 8--8 o.E FIGURE 7.
L~IGU~E 9 is a view similar to -that oE FIGURE 6, with partia:l cut-away, illustrating cl.osure of the disposable receptacle member for Einal disposal, according to the present nven-t lon .
FIGURE 10 is a view of the top of a modified version of permanent receptacle member showing another aspect of the present invention.
FIGURE 11 is a partial sec-tional view taken along lines 11-11 of FIGURE 10 (looking up from within), fur-ther illustrating the structure of the feature shown in FIGUR~ 10.
FIGURE 12 is a side view, partially in section, of the embodiment of FIGURES 10 and 11 illustra-ting operation of the structure shown in FIGURES 10 and. 11.
FIGURE 13 is a view, similar to that of FIGURES 1-4 of a modified embodiment of a permanent receptacle member according to the present invention.
Turning now to the accompanying drawings wherein like reference charac-ters refer to like parts throughout -the various views, there is shown in Figures 1-9, a preferred embodiment of the receptacle assembly ~indicated generally at 10) according to the present inven-tion. As here embodied, receptacle assembly 10 comprises a permanent receptacle member which forms an outer housing or shell Eor a disposable receptacle member which, advan-tageously, may be a disposable container sub-stantially of the -type disclosed in the aforesaid Canadian Patent Appli.cation S.N. 458,881.
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Re:Ee.r:ring mo:re part;.cularly to FIG~RES :L-~, there are shown var:ious ;.llustrclt;.ons arl embodiment of permanent receptacle rnember Eor recep-table assembly 10 according to the present invention. As here embodied, recep-tacle assemb:Ly 10 incl.udes a permanent receptacle member (indicated genera:Lly at 100) which, advantageously, is adapted to form a housing for, and conform generally to -the shape of, the disposab]e receptacle member tindicated yenerally at 11) which will be described more fully below. Permanent receptacle 100 includes a back wall 102 which can be adapted to be attached to a wall (preferably by screws inserted -through holes 103) or other suitable mounting structure. Projecting outwardly from : backwall 102 are sidewalls 104 and 106 and bot-tom wall 108.
Advan-tageously, a frorlt wall/door (indicated at 110) is h:;ngedly attached a-t -the front of recep-tacle member 100 there, along the front edye o:E bottom wall 108) and is configured so as to substantially close off -the front-edges of the side and bottom walls to form a fully enclosed permanent receptacle member.
As here preferably embodied, the upper portion of perrnanent receptacle 100 is can-ted to provide, as will be ~ explained i.n grea-ter detail hereinafter, a receiving chamber;~ within the receptacle assembly. To -this end, each of the upper . ends of side wal.ls 10~ and 106 have upwardly -tapering front :~ edges (:ind:icated at 105 and 107, respectively, in Figures 2 and 3), and front wall 110 includes an angularly canted upper portion (indicated at llOa) which extends at-about the same angu:La.r pitch as the angle of taper of front edges 105 and .
107. Thus, when front wall 110 is rotated upwardly as , indicated by the arrow in Figure 2, it will fully close the ,I permanent receptacle 100, and it also provides the receiving 4 1l means for the permanen~ receptacle member, as will be explained , more fully below.
6 iI Referring specifically to FIGURE 3, when front wall 7 'l 110 of the permanent receptacle member 100 is opened, 8 1I recep~acle 100 is ready to receive a disposable receptacle 9 1 member 11. (As already indicated, the disposable member 1 preferably has the same general configuration as the permanent 11 1 receptacle member 110 to permit it to be fully enclosed 12 ~I therein.) Wi~h the front wall opened, the disposable member can 13 1I simply be placed within the permanent receptacle member and 14 1! retained in place by closing the front wall member.
,1 In order to permit used disposable implements to be 16 ~' inserted into the receptacle assembly, one or more openings are 17 l formed at the top of permanent member 100 to allow disca~ded 18 l~ implements to be dropped into the receptacle assembly. As here 19 ¦I preferably embodied, a first elongatQ opening 112 is formed in 1 canted upper portion llOa. The elongate opening 112 is 21 1~ advantageously limited in size, and is positioned and 1 22 propor~ioned so as to permit insertion of a predetermined ,I maximum size of used disposable implement, wnile substantially 24 !¦ preventing a person's fingers from reaching in to touch a used implement which may be lying in the recessed trough of the 26 ¦~ disposable member (indicated at 15 in Figure 5 and 6, as will 27 1l be explained more fully below). For example, opening 112 may 28 1l be about 8 inches long and about 1 inch wide to allow entry of 29 ll most popular size hypodermic needle/syrin~es up to about 30 cc.
~ Moreover, opening 112 is advantageously positioned as " - 13 -I
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high up on canted portion llOa as practical for maximizing the distance between opening 112 and the bottom of trough 15. As ~l illus-trated in Figure g, the permanent receptacle permits used 4 ll disposable implements (such as ~he needle/syringe indicated at 'I A) to be dropped horizontally into the receptacle, for saest 6 l~ handling, through opening 112. At the same time, while 7 i1 needle/syringe A lays at the bottom of trough 15, it remains 8 i generally out of reach by a person who might try to touch it by g lll reaching his or her fingers through opening 112.
¦I For larger size needles or implemen~s, a limited diameter opening (indicated at 114) is formed in one (or 1~ ll preferably both) of the side walls 104~ 106, in the upper 13 l¦ segment bounded by the canted edge segments 105, 107. For 14 Il example, the opening(s) 114 can be approxima~ely 2" in diameter 15 1I to accommodate hypodermic needles with oversize syringes 16 (indica~ed at B in Figure 4) up to about 50 cc., yet will 17 ll pre~ent a person's hands from touching an implement lying 18 ¦, wi~hin trough 15. (Although all used implements could be 19 1 inserted into the receptacle through opening 114, use of opening 112 is preferred for depositing the disposable 21 ' implements because it allows them to be simply and sa~ely 22 ll dropped in a horizontal orientation.) il ~.3 1l Advantageously, permanent receptacle member 100 24 i includes means or securing the receptacle assembly 10 against 2S ,l unauthorized access to the disposable receptacle member 10 26 ¦¦ contained within permanent receptacle member 100. As here 27 ¦! preferably embodied, the securing means comprise an 28 1 interlocking tongue and slot arrangement, with tongue-like tab 29 1 116 projecting upwardly from a canted side wall edge (here, ~ edge 107) to project through a slo~ 118 formed in upper canted i : ` .
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portion 110a o ~ron~ wall/door 110 when front wall/door 110 is fully closed. Tongue 116 also includes aperture 116a formed l therein for receiving the shackle of a lock for completely 4 ` securing the receptacle assembly. The tongue and slot arrangement could be located on the other side or on both sides as indicated i~ phantom in Figure 4.
7 I To assemble the receptacle unit according to the ~ I present invention, the front wall/door 110 is pulled downwardly 9 ,¦ to expose the interior of ~erm,anent ~ece~t~cle member 110, as 1l indica~ed in FIG. 2. A fresh disposable receptacle member 10 (described more fully below) ls placed within the interior of 12 ~¦ the permanent receptacle member, as illustrated in FIG. 3. The 13 ll front wall/door 110 is thçn rotated upwardly, as indicated in 14 I FIG. 4, until its upper canted portion 110a generally abuts the j can~ed side edges 10S, 107, and the tongue 116 projects through 16 ll slot 118, to close the receptacle unit. Once the receptacle is 7 ll closed, the shackle of a padlock or like locking device 18 ll (indicated at 120) is inserted through aperture 116a to secure 19 ,I the receptacle assembly against unauthorized entry.
~l Advantageously, canted side edges 105, 107 and canted 21 ,l upper portion 110a extend at abaut 45 with respect to the back ~2 i' wall 102 and the remainder o front/wall door 110, respectively. '~
23 'll As prefera~ly embodied, the length o~ slot 118 and the 24 '1 height o tongue 116 are advantageously pro~ortioned such that , the slot will "snap" over the top of the tongue in order to 26 I permit complete closure o the permanent receptacle member~
27 ,I That is, as the slot initially approaches the tongue, one of j~ i 28 jl its end edges will at l~ast rub against the corresponding edge 29 1l of the tongue during a portion of the rotational travel of ~all/door 110. To accommodate such "snaD" action, the outward ` - 15 -lZ65770 end o tongue 116 is preferably rounded, as best illus~rated in FIGU~ES 2-3.
! ~
i It will thus be understood that a force of sufficient magnitude must be exerted in order to force slot 118 over tongue 116. By the same token, a similar but reverse direction force is required to open the front wall~door. Consequently, I even if no securing device is used (such as lock 120), the receptacle assembly will remain reliably closed to keep the disposable receptacle, and the implements stored therein, llj s~fely enclosed within the receptacle assembly.
eferring now to Figures 5-9, there is shown a 12 ll preferr~d embodiment of a disposable receptacle member for the 13 ll receptacle ass~mbly according to the present invention. As ¦
14 l¦ indicated above, the disposable recaptacle is, ad~antageously, ¦ essentially the same as the disposable container disclosed in ¦
16 I my aforesaid co-pending application, except for certain 17 I modifications disclosed herein to facilitat~ use wi~h permanent ~ receptacle member 100. For convenience, the reference numbers 19 1l used hPrein are the same as those used to designate the same or I :;
'I like parts in the disposable receptacle disclosed in my aforesaid co-pending application.
22 1~ As here preferably embodied, disposable receptacle 23 li member 11 includes front wall panel 12, a back wall panel 14 24 ¦ and a pair o~ oppositely disposed side wall panels, 16 and 18, 25 lll which maintain the front and bac~ wall panels in spaced apar~
26 l relation~ Bottcm wall assembly 20 (advantageously a 27 1I double-walled member as explained in greater detail in my 28 l, aforesaid co-~ending application) seals off the bottom of 29 ll disposable recep~acle 11 to form a hollow receptacle for ~I discar~ed implements. The double walled bottom assembly may ' .. . .
.
~LZfi5770 thus include a pair of bottom panel members (54,66) spaced apart by spacer panels (60,68) and may be secured together by an interloc~ing tab and slot (72a and 74, respectively). (Tabs 50a and SOb, formed at the ends of the sidewall panels may be folded up into the receptacle at the edges of the bottom ; assembly). It will be understood however that instead of forming disposable receptacle 11 with a double walled bottom ¦ assembly ~0, a moisture proof bottom liner made, e.g., of , styrafoam, (not shown) could be used to collect any liquids ` 10 associated with the discarded implements.
As preferably embodied, the top of disposable 12 ~,l receptacle 11 is formed wi~h closure means which can be readily opened to permit the deposit of implements to be discarded, yet 14 1 will o~herwise remain closed at all o~her times to prevent any l implements therein from ~alling out. To this end, flap-like 16 li top closure panel 22 is hingedly joined to the top edge of 17 1 front wall 12 and, preferably, extends angularly inwardly into 18 ¦ the receptacle chamber, Advantageously, the width of panel 22 19 il (i.e., the distance from its hinged connection with panel 12 to 1 its inward free end edge, or distal edge) is greater than the 21 .~ corresponding depth of the container (i.e., the distance 22 ll between ~he front and bac~ wall panels) to ensure that its ?3 ~ inward, or distal, edge resides within receptacle 11 at an 24 ll angle (preferably of substan~ial slope) with respect to the top l, edges of the wall panels. In t~is way, panel 22 forms a sloped 26 1 entxy trough (indicated at 15) for initially receiving 1 ~7 ll discarded implements and, subsequently, for ensuring tha~ the 28 ll implements safely drop into the receptacle in a horizontal 29 l¦ orientation for storage in side-by-side relation.
30 ~1 Also as indica~ed in my aforesaid co-pending .
~ 17 -~1 1 .:
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application, panel 22 provides a barrier or pre~enting implements from falling out o the container once they are ¦ deposited therein. Advantagecusly, the hinged joinder of panel 4 22 with ~he top edge of front panel 12 is self-biased so that I the dis~al edge of panel 22 is constantly urged upwardly to 6 'l maintain closure of the container. It will thus be understood 7 ll that the material making up the hinged connection should be 8 ll generally resilient (or could be reinforced with a piece of g l¦ tape preferably applied before closure panel 22 is olded into I lO ¦I the container) to withstand repeated opening and closing.
~ Also advantageously, back wall panel 14 includes an 12 ¦ upstanding panel (indicated at 14a) which ~rojects beyond th~
13 i top edges of the other container walls. Upstanding panel 14a 14 1 here provides an additional closure member ~or sealing the container after it is filled. Panel 14a can simply be folded 16 i down onto the top edges of the other wall panels and therefore 17 ¦ secured (as by ~aping panels 14a adjacent panel 1~) to fully la ll~close the disposable r~ceptacle once it is sufficiently illed ' I
19 ll with discarded implements. Alternatively, a pair o tabs 14b )¦ formed along the upper edge of panel 14a can be inserted into a 21 ! corresponding pair of slots (each indicated at 14d) formed iIl 22 il the opposite upper edge as indicated in Figure 9. In addition, ~3 l¦ a portion of panel 14a can be suitably cut or scored to form 24 ~ handle 14c by which the disposable receptacle member can be '1 safely carried for proper disposal after it has been filled and 26 ~I closed~
27 I Ad~antageously and as preerably embodied, the 28 ll disposable recep~acle member is made of a single sheet of 29 ,I relatively inexpensive but relatively puncture-resistant `~ material such as corrugated paper or cardboard, stiffened paper ~ 1l 1 . ~ .. . ' ' ' ' 7~
or even some plastic materials, as described in detail in my aoresaid co-pending patent application. Where corrugated paper is used, B-flute grade is preferred. Except for expense, corrugated plastic may be preferred when ~he rec~ptable 4 , assembly is to be used in locations or applications where it ,I will be exposed to wa~er or liquids. It will also be ,~ understood that the disposable re~eptacle member can be made il from a single sheet of material as disclosed in my aforesaid 9 il copending application.
~1 As preferably embodied, and as disclosed in my 11 l¦ aforesaid co-pending application, the entry opening of 12 ll disposable receptacle member 11 is governed by upwardly biased, 13 ,l angularly inwardly extending closure panel ~2. Closure panel 4 '' 22 is pushed inwardly to open ~he disposable receptacle member 'I and allow a used implement to drop into receptacle 10, as 16 I indicated ln Fig, 5. Also as disclosed in my co-pending 17 ,l application, each of the side panels, 16 and 18, are formed 18 'I with identical, but reversed, tab members ~indicated at 42a and 19 ~¦ 42b, respectively, and delineated from the side wall panels by !¦ score lines 44) which act as guides for the openinq and closing 21 ,' action of closure panel 22. To this end, each tab 42a and d2b 22 ~l is formed with a generally L-shaped cut-out or notch (indicated 23 ~l at 43~ which form a stop edge (43a) and a clearance edge t43b) 24 ~ that in~ersect at an angle of about 75 to about 90 with 2S 1 resp~ct to each other, all as described in greater detail in my 26 ll aforesaid copending application. It will be understood that 2~ lj stop edges 43a define ~he upward limit of travel for closure 28 I¦; panel 22 and should advantageously be proportioned so that the ~9 1I distal edge of panel ~2 is at least closely adjacent, or 30 ll abutting, panel 1~ when panel ~2 rests against s~op edges 43a.
, 19 1265`770 1 1 Also as described in my a~oresaid co-pendillg 2 'l application, the sides of closure panel 22 are preferably 3 ,I tapered, with a step 22a to provide a narrower inner segment of 4 Il the closure panel. This narrowing facilitates the interfit l between closure panel 22 and the notches formed in ~he side 6 il tabs ~2a and 42b and helps reduce friction between closure 7 1¦ panel 22 and the side tabs 42a and 42b to ensure proper closure 8 ¦ of the disposable receptacle 10.
9 1 It will b~ understood that since tabs ~2a and 42b are ¦
! urged upwardly against the side edges of closure panel 22, they 11 ~ close any gap which otherwise might exist between the side 1 12 edges of panel 22 and the side wall panels 16 and 18, and thus 13 ~ seal the implements within the container. It will further be 1~ ¦ unders~ood that tapered side edges of panel 22 facilitate its ¦¦ swinging movement over side tabs 4~a and 42b. In addition, 16 ,~, indenta~ions 22a serve to recess the innermost edges of panel 17 ll 22 which actually slide over the tahs, thereby to reduce the ~ friction generated by the movement of panel 22. The 19 ll iuxtaposition of closure panel 22 and side tabs 42a and 42b 20 1¦ thus create trough-like recess 15 for receiving:used implements.
21 l~ for disposal.
22 ¦~ Once assembled with a fresh disposable receptacle 11 23 l¦ secured within permanent receptacle 100, the receptacle ~: ¦ assembly according to the invention provides a safe and simple 2S means for handling and storage of used implements for 26 ¦ subse~uent disposal. A~ter use, each disposable implement ~o ~i 27 1 be discarded, such as a hypodermic needle, is simply deposited 28 1 into receptacle 10 by holding it horizontally and dropping it 29 ll ~hrough opening 112 (as illustrated by needle A in Figure 4).
I 3 I The im~lement automatically drops in~o the receiving chamber '.
l - 20 -1~ 65~J70 1 ~ formed by upwardly canted front wall/do~r portion llOa and the 2 ~ll trough-like recess 15 formed at the top of disposable 3 ¦ receptacle 11. ThP needle automatically falls into the deepest 4 I portion of the trough which is preferably adjacent back wall l¦ 102 so that the needle rests farthest from both openings, 112 6 ¦¦ and 114. The person then simply inserts his or her fingers 7 , into opening 114 by a sufficient amount to touch panel ~2 and 8 ll push the panel downwardly until the needle simply drops, by its 9 11 own weight, into the interior of disposable receptacle 11.
¦ FI~URE 5 illustrates this procedure but with permanent 11 receptacle 100 removed for ease of illustration.
12 Once the disposable receptacle is filled, the 13 1¦ disposable receptacle member can be removed from the receptacle 14 ¦¦ assembly. To remove r0ceptacle 11, the lock 120, if used, is 15 1¦ unlocXed and removed by an authorized person, and the front 16 ~¦ panel/door 110 is urged open. (As indicated above, su~ficien~
17 1I force must be exerted to force slot 118 over locking tongue 18 ! }16.) Front panel/door 110 is then ~ully opened to expose the 19 ¦ filled disposable receptacle member. The addi~ional top panel ¦! 14a preferably should be lolded down and secured (as by 21 ¦1 inserting ta~s 14b into slots l~d and, if possi~le, taping i~
22 l¦ closed as ~ell to provide a secure additional closure means)~
23 1 The disposable insert can then be safely li~ted out of the ~ 4 1 permanent receptacle by the handle member 14c and carried ~o ; 25 !I the ultimate disposal unit or station.
~6 ~8 ~. ~ .. . ~, ~6~r~
l ~I In order to ensure that a person's hand can ex~end 2 ~l only a limited amount into the receiving chamber, second 3 ll opening 114 can be about 4 inches long and about one inch 4 ,I high. In addition, opening 114 is advantageously located at ~ ll the point of joinder of front wall/door 110 and its can~ed 6 ,I portion 110a, which is also adjacent the ~op edge of disposable 7 ll receptacle ll. In this way, closure panel 22 will be 8 1¦ immediately accessible to a person's hand so there will be no 9 1I reason to try to reach deeper into the receptacle chamber.
¦ Turning now to FIGURES 10-l~, there is shown another ll I aspect of the present invention, by which ~he receptacle 12 ', assem'aly can be adapted to safely dismantle and store large 13 1 needles for which removal of the needle is required or 14 ¦¦ desired. An example of such a needle device is thb blaad 15 ¦I taking device sold u~der the designation "VACUTAINER" by Becton 16 Dickenson, which includes a relatively elongate needle coupled 17 !~ to a vile or syrin~e. Because the vile portion is repeatedly 18 1' used, it is important to remove the needle a~ter use to i9 11 eliminate any danger of puncture by or contact with the needle.
20 ¦l In order to provide for the removal of the n edle 21 l¦ portion from any such device, the canted upper portion 110a of 22 l¦ front wall/door is formed with an additional opening (here, 23 generally tear-drop shaped opening 130) into which the needle 24 c;an be inserted. Grasping means are associated with opening ¦ 130 to grasp the needle sa that it can be removed from the 26 1 syringe or vile portion (as by rotating the syringe until the 27 j needle drops o~).
As here embodied, an L-shaped arm member 132 is ~9 ¦¦ pivotally attached (by, e.g., a screw or rivet 134) to the ~¦ underside of canted upper partion 110a. One leg (indicated at ~ 11 ,, .
,1 ~
3~a) of the L~shaped member is adapted ~o bear against the 2 ,I needle, while the o~her leg 132b can conveniently be used for 3 ! moving the bearing leg 132a in~o and out of engagement with the 4 ,I needle. To facilitate the grasping function, leg 132a includes l, a flange portion (indicated a~ 133) which is bent out of the 6 I plane of leg 132a ~o project into opening 130. Flange 133 7 1l serves not only to provide a bearing surface area for grasping 8 1¦ ~he needle hub but it also limi~s the rotational movement o 9 1¦ ~he L-shaped me~ber. Leg 132b similarly incLudes a downwardly ¦ projec~ing ~ab 13S to facilitate moving the L-shaped member 11 1 into and out of abutting engagement with the needle to be 12 ¦ removed.
13 ¦ In operation, then, the needle to be removed is 14 j inserted into tear-drop opening 130. The bearing leg 132a is 1 then rota~ed tc graspingly engage the needle by rotating member $6 1l 132 in the direction of the arrow in Figures 10 and 11. With 17 '~ the leg 132a urged against the needle hub indicated at 136 in 18 ,¦ Figure 1~, the syringe (138) is twisted until it is released 19 l; from the needle, Thereafter, the leg 132a can be released and li the needle will drop into the trough at the top o disposable 21 1 insert 11. The s~rin~e can then be droped through opening 112 22 1~ ~or opening 114 if it is oversiæed), a~d panel ~2 pushed down, 73 1¦ as described above, to saely store the device for subsequent 24 l¦ disposal. In this way, a person does not have to touch the 2S ¦ needle at all durlng either the needle removal or the needle 26 ¦I disposal opera~ions.
27 i! As indicated above, the permanent and disposable 28 1I receptacles are general:Ly the same size, except that the 29 ,¦ permanent receptacle will generally be taller by about the 3~ !I vertical distance of upp~r canted panel llOa. Thus, as 1 !
1 disclosed in my aforesaid co-pendinq patent application, the ~ I inner disposable receptacle can be as large as about 20 inches 3 I tall, 10 inches wide and 3 inches deep. In those instances, 4 the degree of opening of the front wall/door (indicated at l¦ 110') may, advantageously, be limited by chain 140. In this 6 ¦ way, the elongated fron~ wall door 110 need not he rotated a 7 , full 180 (and thereby protrude into the room which may be .
~ I awkward or inconvenient) in order to replace the disposable 9 i receptacle. Of course, such chain can be used with any size ¦ receptable assembly.
11 , Also ad~antagously, the canted panel llOa may also 12 include slots or ven~s (indicated at 142) to facilitate visual 13 1 inspection of the trough at the top of ~he disposable 14 1' receptacle 11. As preferably embodied, each slot 142 is very small as ~o allow only visual access to the interior of the 16 ¦ permanent receptacle while preventing access by a person's 17 ~I figures. For example, the slots can be about 1 3/8 inches long 18 ll ahd about 1/4 inch wide.
19 il It will be appreciated by those sk}lled in the art ~ that the present invention in its broader aspects is not 21 ¦ limited to the particular embodiments shown and described 22 ll herein, and that variations may be made which are within the 23 l¦ scope o~ the accompanying claims without departing from ~he 24 l¦ principle of the invention and without sacrificing its chief ' advantages.
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Furthermore, the blades of the cutting tool became a breeding 12 ¦I ground for germs, bacteria and other disease-causing 13 ~¦ micro-organisms to which th~ unsuspecting person cutting the 14 ¦~ needle is unnecessarily exposed.
15 ll Recently, an even greater danger has been recognized 16 ll in connection with the handling and dismantling of used needles 17 1 and other sharp medical implements. It is now recognized that 18 ¦ certain diseases, most notably Hepatitis B, can be transmitted 19 1! ~Y covert percutaneous --i.e., by merely contacting the 20 il contaminated needle or implement.
21 1~, As a result of the foregoing dangers, the preferred 22 ~I current practice is to dispose of such devices intact. Often, 23 , the needles are now re-capped after use with the protective 2~ ¦ sheaths used during shipment from the manufactur.er, in order to 1, 25 ¦¦ prevent injury while carrying the device to a suitable disposal 26 ~ u~it. This practice, however, oten results in puncture wounds 27 ,I su~fered while re-capping the needle point.
28 11 Although certain proposals have been advanced for 29 1 eliminating some o the risks involved in the handling, storage ! and disposal of hypodermic needles and other sharp medical ; ~ ~
~2~ 7~
imp:Lements, they gerlerally do not overcome all oE the dangers.
O:E-ten, they become the source o o-ther problems. E'or example, there are several specially designed conta:iners for storing used hypodermic needles, including some made of all pl.as-tic and some made oi- all cardboard, as identified, for example, my (John Bruno) Canadian Paten-t Application fi58,881, filed July 13, 1984.
Al-though such specially designed devices provide adequate results under cer-tain circums-tances, they do suffer certain disadvan-tages. For example, -the plastic devices, being made of plastic, can be relatively expensive -to use as a disposable storage container. In addi-tion, the plas-tic and cardboard devices generally have thin or single-layer side walls which do not provide any added margin of safety agains-t possible punctures or pokethrough. Fur-thermore, in all the con-tainers, either the entire syringe/needle or -the syringe wi-th the needle stub is dropped ver-tically into the containers, -thus creating a haphazard distribution of needles in the container. Such distribu-tion usually results in an inefficiently filled container and can be the cause of possible injury to the user because of the haphazard arrange- :
ments of implements.
Another available device for the storage and disposal of used hypodermic needles is -that sold under the designation ~MED~-SAFE~ tTrade Mark) by Bec-ton Dickenson & Co. of Ru-therford, New Jersey. This device comprises a plastic jug-like con- :
tainer having a detachable circular cover which is cut with a ~starburst~ pat-tern to form a plurality of radially inwardly extending flaps. Th:is device suEfers similar drawbacks to ~`
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, 1 ~ ~hose descibed above, including the haphazard distribution of 2 implements dropped into the container. In addition, as used 3 implements are pushed through the "starburst" arrangement of 4 flaps, any medicines or other potentially contaminable liquid ; 5 l on the devices are apt to remain on the upper surfaces of the 6 , cover, thereby ~orming a breeding ground for germs, viruses and 1 infectious diseases. Also, as implements are forced through 8 ll the "starburst" flaps, contact is invariably made with such g residual lit~uids onL t:~e flaps.
lO '' As set out in my aforesaid co-pending application, the 11 receptacle disclosed therein (also sold under the mark ,i ~ "D.D.BOX" by D.D.30x Inc. of Paterson, ~ew Jersey and ~iyhland 13 'I Beach, Florida) overcomes virtually all of the foregoing 14 '~i drawbac~s. However, even with the advantages achieved by such L5 ll receptacle, hospital administrators still express a desire for 16 ll ~urther safety eatures in storage/disposal receptacles, 17 l generally. For example, hos~ital personnel express a desire 1~ ,, for a storage/ disposal container which provides protection l9 ' against injury from or contact with discarded implements even ~' whexe the container has been overfilled, and which provides 21 `, complete protection against poke-through of needles or other 22 `' implements stored therein. Continuing concern is also .3 , expressed for increasing the protection agains~ the risk of 24 , disease transmitted by covert percutaneous, and for a means to ,`l prevent access to or contact with the implements stored in the 26 container, Also, it is desired that even though the container 27 ,I mayb~ intended to be disposable, it should nonetheless be ~a I decorative so that it will be attrastive to look at, especially 29 l when placed in patient rooms and other places frequented by 3~ I patients, ~isitors and, or course, hospital personnel.
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lZ~5770 , I
1 Accordin~ly, it is an object of the present invention 2 to provide a new and improved receptacle for storage and 3 , disposal of hypodermic needles, scalpels and other sharp or 4 ,', pointed implements which pose a health risk by reason of I injury, puncture or even mere contact (hereinater reerred to 6 '' collectively as "potentially injurious implements", or simply 7 ,¦ "disposable implements"). It is another object of the present 8 1 invention to provide a new and improved receptacle for storing 4 l' potentially injurious implements, which is sturdy and resistant 1I to puncture by the implements retained therein, yet permits 11 'I con~enient and complete disposal o~ the implements.
12 1 It is also an object of the invention to provide a new 13 11 and improved receptacle for storage and disposal of potentially 14 1! injurious implements, which is adapted ~o rec~ive implements in 15 ll a compact side-by-side hori20ntal configuration for maximum 16 '~ storage capacity. It is another object of the invention to 7 l¦ provide such a recep~acle which further prevents any implements 8 lll stored therein from falling out after they have been inserted 19 ~ll t~Lerein, and which provides a permanently sealable disposable container which can be conveniently discarded in an appropriate 21 i! disposal facility. In addition, it is an object of the 22 ll invention to provide such a receptacle which provides ~ ?3 ¦ protection against contact with or injury from such implements.
: 24 1l It is yet a further objec~ of the present invention to ll provide a new and improved receptacle for storing potentially 2$ ~ injurious implements, which is compact, and can be conveniently ¦
27 ¦ mounted to any wall or other desired structure, yet can also be decora~ed for producing an attractive receptacle which can be 29 ,1 installed in doctor offices, patient rooms or other hospital 3a ' I areaS .
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; - S -~ ~' , . I ' 1; :6~;`77~
1 I It is still a further object of the presen~ invention 2 'I to provide a new and improved receptacle for storage and 3 ~ disposal of potentially injurious implemen~s, which provides 4 ll comple~e disposability ye~ provides a completely secure container that can be loc~ed ~o prevent access by unauthorized 6 ~ persons. As a result, the receptacle can be safely installed 7 l¦ in doctor ofices, patient rooms, etc. without Eear of entry by 8 )I unauthoriæed persons.
g ll The foregoing specific objects and advantages of the ll invention are illustrative of those which can be achieved by the present invention and are not intended to be exhaustive or 12 '¦ limiting of the possible advantages which can be realized.
13 'I Thus, these and other objects and advantages of the invention 14 ¦I will be apparent from the description herein or can be learned lS ll from practicing the invention, both as embodied herein or as lS 1l. modified in view o~ any variations which may be apparent to 17 il those ski~led in the art. Accordingly, the present inven~ion resides in the novel parts, constructions, arrangements, 19 1I combinations and improvements h~rein shown and described.
20 'I
21 ll SUt~lARY OF THE INVENTION
22 I Briefly described, the present invention comprises a 23 ' receptacle assembly for the deposit, storage and ultimate 24 I disposal of disposable medical implemen~s, which includes a box-like permanen~ receptacle member adapted to retain a liner, 26 ll or disposable receptacle member which conforms generally to the 27 ll coniguration of the permanent receptacle member, for receiving ~8 ,¦ and holding used hypodermic needles, scalpels and like 29 l¦ potentially injurious implemen~s, as well as the permanent l~ receptacle member itsel. Advantageously, both receptacle ~L26S770 I
l ~ members are relatively elongate, and the tcp portions of both 2 ll receptacle members are adapted to provide access to their 3 , interiors for recei~ing the implemen~s therein. As preferably 4 1 embodied, the top portions o said receptacle members are I proportioned such that there is provided a limited access 6 ~ receiving chamber into which the implements are first dropped 7 ¦, before being fully received in the disposable receptacle B l member, preferably by an angularly inwardly projecting 9 1 trap-door closure panel which is generally biased ~owards an I opposite wall member to close the top of the disposable 11 i receptacle member but which can be pushed open to allow an 12 ll implement to drop into the disposable receptacle me~ber for 13 1¦ safe storage and ultimate disposal.
l~ ¦ Advantageously and as pre~erably embodied, the top 15 ll portion of the permanent recep~able member includes one or more 1~ il openings proportioned to receive the various sizes of 17 1 implements to be stored therein yet substantially ~o prevent acces~ to the receiving chamber by a person's hand. The top of l9 ll ~he permanent receptacle member also includes a inger access 20 ll opening ~preferably smaller than and dif~erent from the 21 ¦¦ implement-drop opening to allow only limited access by a 22 ~l¦ person's hand) to provide limited access by the person's 23 ll fingers to the closure panel of the disposable receptacle for ~4 ¦ opening the panel and thereby causing any implement therean to drop into the dispusable receptacle member.
26 , Ad~antaseously, the permanent receptacle member is 27 ,, made of metal (preferably, aluminum for light weight) or other 28 1 generally impenetrable rna~erial, while the disposable 29 Z recep~acle member may be made of corrugated cardboard, stifened paper or otner relati~ely inexpensive but relatively '! -- 7 --s~70 1 ~ rigid material adapted to resist punc~ure by a needle point.
~ ,i In this way, the disposable receptacle member will provide 3 ,l enough puncture resistance to allow it to be safely removed 4 1I from the permanent receptacle member and carried to an l appropriate disposal unit for ultimate disposal . Howevex, the 6 ''I permanent member provides complete assurance ayainst any 7 11 possible poke-through during use, and, it permits the entire 8 1l receptacle to be secured (as by locking it) against access by ~ l~ unauthorized persons.
1 Thus, the permanent receptacle member can be 11 permanen~ly installed at the immediate location(s~ where 12 1 potentially injurious disposal implements are frequently used.
13 1 When so installed, th~ receptacle according to the present 1 14 ¦ invention eliminates the need for a person otherwise to carry a 1 used implement (e.g., a used hypodermic needle) to a disposal L~ ,l unit which may be located distant from its place of usage (e.g.
17 1 a patient's room), with the consequent risk of injury from or 18 , contact with the implement while it is being carried to a I L9 ¦ ~isposal unit.
It will similarly be appreciated that, because of the 21 ,I nature of the permanent receptacle member, the receptacle 22 ,¦ assembly accordin~ to the present invention can be decorated to ` 23 1¦ complement the furnishings of the room in which the receptacle 1 24 1¦ is installed for an attractive ap~earance. (This can also help ~; dis~uise the un~tion of the receptacle from persons who might 26 1¦ otherwise be searching or used syringes to put to unlawful ; 27 Ij use.) The disposable receptacle member would, of course, be 2~ ,1 imprinted with a suitable legend, including the universal 29 1¦ s~mbol for contaminated sharps, to warn authorized persons of 30 1¦ the dangerous nature of the implements stored in the receptacle.
i !
i ~6 ,1 .
In addition, the permanent receptacle can be locked to prevent unauthorized access to the contents of the receptacle.
It will ~hus be readily apparent from the foregoing 4 ~ general descrip~ion, as well as the following detailed ~ descrip~ion, that the objects and advan~ages specifically ; ~ , enumerated herein are achieved by the invention as embodied 7 li herein~ For example, by providing a permanent receptacle 8 'I member which acts as a protective shell for the disposable 9 l¦ receptacle member, a safe and durable receptacle is provided lQ i! for safely receiving, storing a~d eve~tually disposing of potentially i~jurious implements. In addition, the biased top 12 ll¦ closure panel o~ the dispasable receptacle provides a "trap 13 I door" which, as part of the receiving chamber, minimizes the 14 ll amount of contact a person must have wi~h th~ implements when 15 ll disposing of them.
16 `i By providing openings in the top portion of the 17 ,, permanent receptacle member, ass~rance is provided that a 1~ ¦ person's hand will not touch a used implement released into the L9 l~ receiving chamber when opening the closure panel of the 20 ll disposable member, yet safe storage for used implements is 21 I provided in the receiving chamber in the event that the 22 , disposable receptacle is inad~er~ently overfilled. However, ; 73 I the disposable receptacle also preferably includes an extra top 24 I closure panel which can be sealed over the trou~h-like recess ,l in the disposable receptacle for safely enclosing any 26 ~ implements which have overfilled the disposable receptacle. It ¦
27 ll also ensures ~hat any implements which may become disloged will 28 1, remain safely sealed within the disposable member.
29 l¦ It will be appreciated by those skilled in the ar~
,~ that the foregoing brief description and the following detailed , _ 9 _ ~2~ 0 ',i I
., .
1 description are exemplary and explanatory of the invention, but 2 are not intended to be restrictive thereof. Thus, the 3 l accompanying drawings, referred to herein and constituting a ~ part hereof, illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention , and, together with the detailed description, serve to explain 6 l the principles o~ the invention 7 'I
8 ll BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
9 li FI&U~E 1 is a an isometric view o an embodiment of a 1~ receptacle assembly according to the present invention.
11 il FIGU~E 2 is a front isometris view of ~he permanent 12 ~¦ receptacle member of the embodiment of FIGURE 1, in the open 13 'I con~iguration.
14 ! FIGURE 3 is a view similar to that of FIGURE 2 ~ i.llustrating installation of an embodiment of a disposable 16 ¦ receptacle member as part of the receptacle assembly according 17 ', ~o the invention, lS il FIGURE 4 is a view similar to that of Figures 1-3, 19 l showing operation of the receptacle assembly according to the 20 1¦ present invention, 21 ll FIGURE 5 is an isometric view, with partial cut-away, ,!
~2 !1 of a disposable receptaclP member (with the permanent 23 i~ receptacle member removed for claxity) illustrating the deposit 24 ll and storage of implements within the receptacle assembly 25 1l according to the invention.
26 ,I FIGURE 6 is an isometric view, similar to Figures 1-4, 27 ll of a preferred embodiment of disposable receptacle member in 28 ,1 accordance with to the present invention.
~9 'I FIGURE 7 is a sectional view taken along section lines 7-7 of FIGU~E 6.
" -- 1 0 - 1.
.
~2~i~1 FIGUR~ ~3 is a sect;orlal view taken alonc~ section Lines 8--8 o.E FIGURE 7.
L~IGU~E 9 is a view similar to -that oE FIGURE 6, with partia:l cut-away, illustrating cl.osure of the disposable receptacle member for Einal disposal, according to the present nven-t lon .
FIGURE 10 is a view of the top of a modified version of permanent receptacle member showing another aspect of the present invention.
FIGURE 11 is a partial sec-tional view taken along lines 11-11 of FIGURE 10 (looking up from within), fur-ther illustrating the structure of the feature shown in FIGUR~ 10.
FIGURE 12 is a side view, partially in section, of the embodiment of FIGURES 10 and 11 illustra-ting operation of the structure shown in FIGURES 10 and. 11.
FIGURE 13 is a view, similar to that of FIGURES 1-4 of a modified embodiment of a permanent receptacle member according to the present invention.
Turning now to the accompanying drawings wherein like reference charac-ters refer to like parts throughout -the various views, there is shown in Figures 1-9, a preferred embodiment of the receptacle assembly ~indicated generally at 10) according to the present inven-tion. As here embodied, receptacle assembly 10 comprises a permanent receptacle member which forms an outer housing or shell Eor a disposable receptacle member which, advan-tageously, may be a disposable container sub-stantially of the -type disclosed in the aforesaid Canadian Patent Appli.cation S.N. 458,881.
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Re:Ee.r:ring mo:re part;.cularly to FIG~RES :L-~, there are shown var:ious ;.llustrclt;.ons arl embodiment of permanent receptacle rnember Eor recep-table assembly 10 according to the present invention. As here embodied, recep-tacle assemb:Ly 10 incl.udes a permanent receptacle member (indicated genera:Lly at 100) which, advantageously, is adapted to form a housing for, and conform generally to -the shape of, the disposab]e receptacle member tindicated yenerally at 11) which will be described more fully below. Permanent receptacle 100 includes a back wall 102 which can be adapted to be attached to a wall (preferably by screws inserted -through holes 103) or other suitable mounting structure. Projecting outwardly from : backwall 102 are sidewalls 104 and 106 and bot-tom wall 108.
Advan-tageously, a frorlt wall/door (indicated at 110) is h:;ngedly attached a-t -the front of recep-tacle member 100 there, along the front edye o:E bottom wall 108) and is configured so as to substantially close off -the front-edges of the side and bottom walls to form a fully enclosed permanent receptacle member.
As here preferably embodied, the upper portion of perrnanent receptacle 100 is can-ted to provide, as will be ~ explained i.n grea-ter detail hereinafter, a receiving chamber;~ within the receptacle assembly. To -this end, each of the upper . ends of side wal.ls 10~ and 106 have upwardly -tapering front :~ edges (:ind:icated at 105 and 107, respectively, in Figures 2 and 3), and front wall 110 includes an angularly canted upper portion (indicated at llOa) which extends at-about the same angu:La.r pitch as the angle of taper of front edges 105 and .
107. Thus, when front wall 110 is rotated upwardly as , indicated by the arrow in Figure 2, it will fully close the ,I permanent receptacle 100, and it also provides the receiving 4 1l means for the permanen~ receptacle member, as will be explained , more fully below.
6 iI Referring specifically to FIGURE 3, when front wall 7 'l 110 of the permanent receptacle member 100 is opened, 8 1I recep~acle 100 is ready to receive a disposable receptacle 9 1 member 11. (As already indicated, the disposable member 1 preferably has the same general configuration as the permanent 11 1 receptacle member 110 to permit it to be fully enclosed 12 ~I therein.) Wi~h the front wall opened, the disposable member can 13 1I simply be placed within the permanent receptacle member and 14 1! retained in place by closing the front wall member.
,1 In order to permit used disposable implements to be 16 ~' inserted into the receptacle assembly, one or more openings are 17 l formed at the top of permanent member 100 to allow disca~ded 18 l~ implements to be dropped into the receptacle assembly. As here 19 ¦I preferably embodied, a first elongatQ opening 112 is formed in 1 canted upper portion llOa. The elongate opening 112 is 21 1~ advantageously limited in size, and is positioned and 1 22 propor~ioned so as to permit insertion of a predetermined ,I maximum size of used disposable implement, wnile substantially 24 !¦ preventing a person's fingers from reaching in to touch a used implement which may be lying in the recessed trough of the 26 ¦~ disposable member (indicated at 15 in Figure 5 and 6, as will 27 1l be explained more fully below). For example, opening 112 may 28 1l be about 8 inches long and about 1 inch wide to allow entry of 29 ll most popular size hypodermic needle/syrin~es up to about 30 cc.
~ Moreover, opening 112 is advantageously positioned as " - 13 -I
~70 il .
high up on canted portion llOa as practical for maximizing the distance between opening 112 and the bottom of trough 15. As ~l illus-trated in Figure g, the permanent receptacle permits used 4 ll disposable implements (such as ~he needle/syringe indicated at 'I A) to be dropped horizontally into the receptacle, for saest 6 l~ handling, through opening 112. At the same time, while 7 i1 needle/syringe A lays at the bottom of trough 15, it remains 8 i generally out of reach by a person who might try to touch it by g lll reaching his or her fingers through opening 112.
¦I For larger size needles or implemen~s, a limited diameter opening (indicated at 114) is formed in one (or 1~ ll preferably both) of the side walls 104~ 106, in the upper 13 l¦ segment bounded by the canted edge segments 105, 107. For 14 Il example, the opening(s) 114 can be approxima~ely 2" in diameter 15 1I to accommodate hypodermic needles with oversize syringes 16 (indica~ed at B in Figure 4) up to about 50 cc., yet will 17 ll pre~ent a person's hands from touching an implement lying 18 ¦, wi~hin trough 15. (Although all used implements could be 19 1 inserted into the receptacle through opening 114, use of opening 112 is preferred for depositing the disposable 21 ' implements because it allows them to be simply and sa~ely 22 ll dropped in a horizontal orientation.) il ~.3 1l Advantageously, permanent receptacle member 100 24 i includes means or securing the receptacle assembly 10 against 2S ,l unauthorized access to the disposable receptacle member 10 26 ¦¦ contained within permanent receptacle member 100. As here 27 ¦! preferably embodied, the securing means comprise an 28 1 interlocking tongue and slot arrangement, with tongue-like tab 29 1 116 projecting upwardly from a canted side wall edge (here, ~ edge 107) to project through a slo~ 118 formed in upper canted i : ` .
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portion 110a o ~ron~ wall/door 110 when front wall/door 110 is fully closed. Tongue 116 also includes aperture 116a formed l therein for receiving the shackle of a lock for completely 4 ` securing the receptacle assembly. The tongue and slot arrangement could be located on the other side or on both sides as indicated i~ phantom in Figure 4.
7 I To assemble the receptacle unit according to the ~ I present invention, the front wall/door 110 is pulled downwardly 9 ,¦ to expose the interior of ~erm,anent ~ece~t~cle member 110, as 1l indica~ed in FIG. 2. A fresh disposable receptacle member 10 (described more fully below) ls placed within the interior of 12 ~¦ the permanent receptacle member, as illustrated in FIG. 3. The 13 ll front wall/door 110 is thçn rotated upwardly, as indicated in 14 I FIG. 4, until its upper canted portion 110a generally abuts the j can~ed side edges 10S, 107, and the tongue 116 projects through 16 ll slot 118, to close the receptacle unit. Once the receptacle is 7 ll closed, the shackle of a padlock or like locking device 18 ll (indicated at 120) is inserted through aperture 116a to secure 19 ,I the receptacle assembly against unauthorized entry.
~l Advantageously, canted side edges 105, 107 and canted 21 ,l upper portion 110a extend at abaut 45 with respect to the back ~2 i' wall 102 and the remainder o front/wall door 110, respectively. '~
23 'll As prefera~ly embodied, the length o~ slot 118 and the 24 '1 height o tongue 116 are advantageously pro~ortioned such that , the slot will "snap" over the top of the tongue in order to 26 I permit complete closure o the permanent receptacle member~
27 ,I That is, as the slot initially approaches the tongue, one of j~ i 28 jl its end edges will at l~ast rub against the corresponding edge 29 1l of the tongue during a portion of the rotational travel of ~all/door 110. To accommodate such "snaD" action, the outward ` - 15 -lZ65770 end o tongue 116 is preferably rounded, as best illus~rated in FIGU~ES 2-3.
! ~
i It will thus be understood that a force of sufficient magnitude must be exerted in order to force slot 118 over tongue 116. By the same token, a similar but reverse direction force is required to open the front wall~door. Consequently, I even if no securing device is used (such as lock 120), the receptacle assembly will remain reliably closed to keep the disposable receptacle, and the implements stored therein, llj s~fely enclosed within the receptacle assembly.
eferring now to Figures 5-9, there is shown a 12 ll preferr~d embodiment of a disposable receptacle member for the 13 ll receptacle ass~mbly according to the present invention. As ¦
14 l¦ indicated above, the disposable recaptacle is, ad~antageously, ¦ essentially the same as the disposable container disclosed in ¦
16 I my aforesaid co-pending application, except for certain 17 I modifications disclosed herein to facilitat~ use wi~h permanent ~ receptacle member 100. For convenience, the reference numbers 19 1l used hPrein are the same as those used to designate the same or I :;
'I like parts in the disposable receptacle disclosed in my aforesaid co-pending application.
22 1~ As here preferably embodied, disposable receptacle 23 li member 11 includes front wall panel 12, a back wall panel 14 24 ¦ and a pair o~ oppositely disposed side wall panels, 16 and 18, 25 lll which maintain the front and bac~ wall panels in spaced apar~
26 l relation~ Bottcm wall assembly 20 (advantageously a 27 1I double-walled member as explained in greater detail in my 28 l, aforesaid co-~ending application) seals off the bottom of 29 ll disposable recep~acle 11 to form a hollow receptacle for ~I discar~ed implements. The double walled bottom assembly may ' .. . .
.
~LZfi5770 thus include a pair of bottom panel members (54,66) spaced apart by spacer panels (60,68) and may be secured together by an interloc~ing tab and slot (72a and 74, respectively). (Tabs 50a and SOb, formed at the ends of the sidewall panels may be folded up into the receptacle at the edges of the bottom ; assembly). It will be understood however that instead of forming disposable receptacle 11 with a double walled bottom ¦ assembly ~0, a moisture proof bottom liner made, e.g., of , styrafoam, (not shown) could be used to collect any liquids ` 10 associated with the discarded implements.
As preferably embodied, the top of disposable 12 ~,l receptacle 11 is formed wi~h closure means which can be readily opened to permit the deposit of implements to be discarded, yet 14 1 will o~herwise remain closed at all o~her times to prevent any l implements therein from ~alling out. To this end, flap-like 16 li top closure panel 22 is hingedly joined to the top edge of 17 1 front wall 12 and, preferably, extends angularly inwardly into 18 ¦ the receptacle chamber, Advantageously, the width of panel 22 19 il (i.e., the distance from its hinged connection with panel 12 to 1 its inward free end edge, or distal edge) is greater than the 21 .~ corresponding depth of the container (i.e., the distance 22 ll between ~he front and bac~ wall panels) to ensure that its ?3 ~ inward, or distal, edge resides within receptacle 11 at an 24 ll angle (preferably of substan~ial slope) with respect to the top l, edges of the wall panels. In t~is way, panel 22 forms a sloped 26 1 entxy trough (indicated at 15) for initially receiving 1 ~7 ll discarded implements and, subsequently, for ensuring tha~ the 28 ll implements safely drop into the receptacle in a horizontal 29 l¦ orientation for storage in side-by-side relation.
30 ~1 Also as indica~ed in my aforesaid co-pending .
~ 17 -~1 1 .:
, ~L2'~ ;;Y7~
application, panel 22 provides a barrier or pre~enting implements from falling out o the container once they are ¦ deposited therein. Advantagecusly, the hinged joinder of panel 4 22 with ~he top edge of front panel 12 is self-biased so that I the dis~al edge of panel 22 is constantly urged upwardly to 6 'l maintain closure of the container. It will thus be understood 7 ll that the material making up the hinged connection should be 8 ll generally resilient (or could be reinforced with a piece of g l¦ tape preferably applied before closure panel 22 is olded into I lO ¦I the container) to withstand repeated opening and closing.
~ Also advantageously, back wall panel 14 includes an 12 ¦ upstanding panel (indicated at 14a) which ~rojects beyond th~
13 i top edges of the other container walls. Upstanding panel 14a 14 1 here provides an additional closure member ~or sealing the container after it is filled. Panel 14a can simply be folded 16 i down onto the top edges of the other wall panels and therefore 17 ¦ secured (as by ~aping panels 14a adjacent panel 1~) to fully la ll~close the disposable r~ceptacle once it is sufficiently illed ' I
19 ll with discarded implements. Alternatively, a pair o tabs 14b )¦ formed along the upper edge of panel 14a can be inserted into a 21 ! corresponding pair of slots (each indicated at 14d) formed iIl 22 il the opposite upper edge as indicated in Figure 9. In addition, ~3 l¦ a portion of panel 14a can be suitably cut or scored to form 24 ~ handle 14c by which the disposable receptacle member can be '1 safely carried for proper disposal after it has been filled and 26 ~I closed~
27 I Ad~antageously and as preerably embodied, the 28 ll disposable recep~acle member is made of a single sheet of 29 ,I relatively inexpensive but relatively puncture-resistant `~ material such as corrugated paper or cardboard, stiffened paper ~ 1l 1 . ~ .. . ' ' ' ' 7~
or even some plastic materials, as described in detail in my aoresaid co-pending patent application. Where corrugated paper is used, B-flute grade is preferred. Except for expense, corrugated plastic may be preferred when ~he rec~ptable 4 , assembly is to be used in locations or applications where it ,I will be exposed to wa~er or liquids. It will also be ,~ understood that the disposable re~eptacle member can be made il from a single sheet of material as disclosed in my aforesaid 9 il copending application.
~1 As preferably embodied, and as disclosed in my 11 l¦ aforesaid co-pending application, the entry opening of 12 ll disposable receptacle member 11 is governed by upwardly biased, 13 ,l angularly inwardly extending closure panel ~2. Closure panel 4 '' 22 is pushed inwardly to open ~he disposable receptacle member 'I and allow a used implement to drop into receptacle 10, as 16 I indicated ln Fig, 5. Also as disclosed in my co-pending 17 ,l application, each of the side panels, 16 and 18, are formed 18 'I with identical, but reversed, tab members ~indicated at 42a and 19 ~¦ 42b, respectively, and delineated from the side wall panels by !¦ score lines 44) which act as guides for the openinq and closing 21 ,' action of closure panel 22. To this end, each tab 42a and d2b 22 ~l is formed with a generally L-shaped cut-out or notch (indicated 23 ~l at 43~ which form a stop edge (43a) and a clearance edge t43b) 24 ~ that in~ersect at an angle of about 75 to about 90 with 2S 1 resp~ct to each other, all as described in greater detail in my 26 ll aforesaid copending application. It will be understood that 2~ lj stop edges 43a define ~he upward limit of travel for closure 28 I¦; panel 22 and should advantageously be proportioned so that the ~9 1I distal edge of panel ~2 is at least closely adjacent, or 30 ll abutting, panel 1~ when panel ~2 rests against s~op edges 43a.
, 19 1265`770 1 1 Also as described in my a~oresaid co-pendillg 2 'l application, the sides of closure panel 22 are preferably 3 ,I tapered, with a step 22a to provide a narrower inner segment of 4 Il the closure panel. This narrowing facilitates the interfit l between closure panel 22 and the notches formed in ~he side 6 il tabs ~2a and 42b and helps reduce friction between closure 7 1¦ panel 22 and the side tabs 42a and 42b to ensure proper closure 8 ¦ of the disposable receptacle 10.
9 1 It will b~ understood that since tabs ~2a and 42b are ¦
! urged upwardly against the side edges of closure panel 22, they 11 ~ close any gap which otherwise might exist between the side 1 12 edges of panel 22 and the side wall panels 16 and 18, and thus 13 ~ seal the implements within the container. It will further be 1~ ¦ unders~ood that tapered side edges of panel 22 facilitate its ¦¦ swinging movement over side tabs 4~a and 42b. In addition, 16 ,~, indenta~ions 22a serve to recess the innermost edges of panel 17 ll 22 which actually slide over the tahs, thereby to reduce the ~ friction generated by the movement of panel 22. The 19 ll iuxtaposition of closure panel 22 and side tabs 42a and 42b 20 1¦ thus create trough-like recess 15 for receiving:used implements.
21 l~ for disposal.
22 ¦~ Once assembled with a fresh disposable receptacle 11 23 l¦ secured within permanent receptacle 100, the receptacle ~: ¦ assembly according to the invention provides a safe and simple 2S means for handling and storage of used implements for 26 ¦ subse~uent disposal. A~ter use, each disposable implement ~o ~i 27 1 be discarded, such as a hypodermic needle, is simply deposited 28 1 into receptacle 10 by holding it horizontally and dropping it 29 ll ~hrough opening 112 (as illustrated by needle A in Figure 4).
I 3 I The im~lement automatically drops in~o the receiving chamber '.
l - 20 -1~ 65~J70 1 ~ formed by upwardly canted front wall/do~r portion llOa and the 2 ~ll trough-like recess 15 formed at the top of disposable 3 ¦ receptacle 11. ThP needle automatically falls into the deepest 4 I portion of the trough which is preferably adjacent back wall l¦ 102 so that the needle rests farthest from both openings, 112 6 ¦¦ and 114. The person then simply inserts his or her fingers 7 , into opening 114 by a sufficient amount to touch panel ~2 and 8 ll push the panel downwardly until the needle simply drops, by its 9 11 own weight, into the interior of disposable receptacle 11.
¦ FI~URE 5 illustrates this procedure but with permanent 11 receptacle 100 removed for ease of illustration.
12 Once the disposable receptacle is filled, the 13 1¦ disposable receptacle member can be removed from the receptacle 14 ¦¦ assembly. To remove r0ceptacle 11, the lock 120, if used, is 15 1¦ unlocXed and removed by an authorized person, and the front 16 ~¦ panel/door 110 is urged open. (As indicated above, su~ficien~
17 1I force must be exerted to force slot 118 over locking tongue 18 ! }16.) Front panel/door 110 is then ~ully opened to expose the 19 ¦ filled disposable receptacle member. The addi~ional top panel ¦! 14a preferably should be lolded down and secured (as by 21 ¦1 inserting ta~s 14b into slots l~d and, if possi~le, taping i~
22 l¦ closed as ~ell to provide a secure additional closure means)~
23 1 The disposable insert can then be safely li~ted out of the ~ 4 1 permanent receptacle by the handle member 14c and carried ~o ; 25 !I the ultimate disposal unit or station.
~6 ~8 ~. ~ .. . ~, ~6~r~
l ~I In order to ensure that a person's hand can ex~end 2 ~l only a limited amount into the receiving chamber, second 3 ll opening 114 can be about 4 inches long and about one inch 4 ,I high. In addition, opening 114 is advantageously located at ~ ll the point of joinder of front wall/door 110 and its can~ed 6 ,I portion 110a, which is also adjacent the ~op edge of disposable 7 ll receptacle ll. In this way, closure panel 22 will be 8 1¦ immediately accessible to a person's hand so there will be no 9 1I reason to try to reach deeper into the receptacle chamber.
¦ Turning now to FIGURES 10-l~, there is shown another ll I aspect of the present invention, by which ~he receptacle 12 ', assem'aly can be adapted to safely dismantle and store large 13 1 needles for which removal of the needle is required or 14 ¦¦ desired. An example of such a needle device is thb blaad 15 ¦I taking device sold u~der the designation "VACUTAINER" by Becton 16 Dickenson, which includes a relatively elongate needle coupled 17 !~ to a vile or syrin~e. Because the vile portion is repeatedly 18 1' used, it is important to remove the needle a~ter use to i9 11 eliminate any danger of puncture by or contact with the needle.
20 ¦l In order to provide for the removal of the n edle 21 l¦ portion from any such device, the canted upper portion 110a of 22 l¦ front wall/door is formed with an additional opening (here, 23 generally tear-drop shaped opening 130) into which the needle 24 c;an be inserted. Grasping means are associated with opening ¦ 130 to grasp the needle sa that it can be removed from the 26 1 syringe or vile portion (as by rotating the syringe until the 27 j needle drops o~).
As here embodied, an L-shaped arm member 132 is ~9 ¦¦ pivotally attached (by, e.g., a screw or rivet 134) to the ~¦ underside of canted upper partion 110a. One leg (indicated at ~ 11 ,, .
,1 ~
3~a) of the L~shaped member is adapted ~o bear against the 2 ,I needle, while the o~her leg 132b can conveniently be used for 3 ! moving the bearing leg 132a in~o and out of engagement with the 4 ,I needle. To facilitate the grasping function, leg 132a includes l, a flange portion (indicated a~ 133) which is bent out of the 6 I plane of leg 132a ~o project into opening 130. Flange 133 7 1l serves not only to provide a bearing surface area for grasping 8 1¦ ~he needle hub but it also limi~s the rotational movement o 9 1¦ ~he L-shaped me~ber. Leg 132b similarly incLudes a downwardly ¦ projec~ing ~ab 13S to facilitate moving the L-shaped member 11 1 into and out of abutting engagement with the needle to be 12 ¦ removed.
13 ¦ In operation, then, the needle to be removed is 14 j inserted into tear-drop opening 130. The bearing leg 132a is 1 then rota~ed tc graspingly engage the needle by rotating member $6 1l 132 in the direction of the arrow in Figures 10 and 11. With 17 '~ the leg 132a urged against the needle hub indicated at 136 in 18 ,¦ Figure 1~, the syringe (138) is twisted until it is released 19 l; from the needle, Thereafter, the leg 132a can be released and li the needle will drop into the trough at the top o disposable 21 1 insert 11. The s~rin~e can then be droped through opening 112 22 1~ ~or opening 114 if it is oversiæed), a~d panel ~2 pushed down, 73 1¦ as described above, to saely store the device for subsequent 24 l¦ disposal. In this way, a person does not have to touch the 2S ¦ needle at all durlng either the needle removal or the needle 26 ¦I disposal opera~ions.
27 i! As indicated above, the permanent and disposable 28 1I receptacles are general:Ly the same size, except that the 29 ,¦ permanent receptacle will generally be taller by about the 3~ !I vertical distance of upp~r canted panel llOa. Thus, as 1 !
1 disclosed in my aforesaid co-pendinq patent application, the ~ I inner disposable receptacle can be as large as about 20 inches 3 I tall, 10 inches wide and 3 inches deep. In those instances, 4 the degree of opening of the front wall/door (indicated at l¦ 110') may, advantageously, be limited by chain 140. In this 6 ¦ way, the elongated fron~ wall door 110 need not he rotated a 7 , full 180 (and thereby protrude into the room which may be .
~ I awkward or inconvenient) in order to replace the disposable 9 i receptacle. Of course, such chain can be used with any size ¦ receptable assembly.
11 , Also ad~antagously, the canted panel llOa may also 12 include slots or ven~s (indicated at 142) to facilitate visual 13 1 inspection of the trough at the top of ~he disposable 14 1' receptacle 11. As preferably embodied, each slot 142 is very small as ~o allow only visual access to the interior of the 16 ¦ permanent receptacle while preventing access by a person's 17 ~I figures. For example, the slots can be about 1 3/8 inches long 18 ll ahd about 1/4 inch wide.
19 il It will be appreciated by those sk}lled in the art ~ that the present invention in its broader aspects is not 21 ¦ limited to the particular embodiments shown and described 22 ll herein, and that variations may be made which are within the 23 l¦ scope o~ the accompanying claims without departing from ~he 24 l¦ principle of the invention and without sacrificing its chief ' advantages.
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Claims (37)
1. A receptacle assembly for safely storing potentially injurious implements such as hypodermic needles, scalpel blades and the like, comprising:
a permanent receptacle member generally in the configuration of a fully enclosable generally box-like enclosure, having a wall structure comprising a back wall portion disposed between a pair of oppositely disposed side wall portions, a front wall. portion opposite said back wall portion, a bottom wall portion along bottom edges of said front, back and side wall portions and an inclined top wall portion disposed generally opposite said bottom wall portion but extending at an acute angle generally between said front and back wall portions along their upper edges, said top wall portion including a first opening proportioned to permit insertion of used implements to be discarded, one of said wall portions being attached so as to permit opening and closure of said permanent receptacle member when desired, and a disposable receptacle member proportioned to fit within said permanent receptacle member when said permanent receptacle member is opened and to be substantially fully enclosed within said permanent receptacle member when closed, said disposable receptacle member being adapted to receive used implements through its top after used implements are inserted through said first opening, and said inclined top wall portion providing a receiving chamber above said disposable receptacle member and spacing said opening from said receiving means of said disposable receptacle member, such that used implements can be deposited and stored in said receptacle assembly for disposal by simply dropping them through said first opening in said permanent receptacle member for collection in said disposable receptacle member which, when filled with used implements, can be safely removed from the permanent receptacle member and sealed for ultimate disposal while the permanent receptacle member can be refitted with a new disposable receptacle member for storing another quantity of used implements, said spacing of said opening from the top of the disposable receptacle member acting to prevent hand access to potentially contaminated surfaces or implements within said receptacle assembly.
a permanent receptacle member generally in the configuration of a fully enclosable generally box-like enclosure, having a wall structure comprising a back wall portion disposed between a pair of oppositely disposed side wall portions, a front wall. portion opposite said back wall portion, a bottom wall portion along bottom edges of said front, back and side wall portions and an inclined top wall portion disposed generally opposite said bottom wall portion but extending at an acute angle generally between said front and back wall portions along their upper edges, said top wall portion including a first opening proportioned to permit insertion of used implements to be discarded, one of said wall portions being attached so as to permit opening and closure of said permanent receptacle member when desired, and a disposable receptacle member proportioned to fit within said permanent receptacle member when said permanent receptacle member is opened and to be substantially fully enclosed within said permanent receptacle member when closed, said disposable receptacle member being adapted to receive used implements through its top after used implements are inserted through said first opening, and said inclined top wall portion providing a receiving chamber above said disposable receptacle member and spacing said opening from said receiving means of said disposable receptacle member, such that used implements can be deposited and stored in said receptacle assembly for disposal by simply dropping them through said first opening in said permanent receptacle member for collection in said disposable receptacle member which, when filled with used implements, can be safely removed from the permanent receptacle member and sealed for ultimate disposal while the permanent receptacle member can be refitted with a new disposable receptacle member for storing another quantity of used implements, said spacing of said opening from the top of the disposable receptacle member acting to prevent hand access to potentially contaminated surfaces or implements within said receptacle assembly.
2. A receptacle assembly according to claim 1, wherein said first opening of said permanent receptacle member is generally slot-like and proportioned substantially resist hand-entry therethrough.
3. A receptacle assembly according to claim 2, wherein said disposable receptacle member includes an angularly inwardly inclined closure panel member at its top, said closure panel member being adapted to be pushed inwardly of said disposable member to permit a used implement to drop into said disposable receptacle member yet, being urged toward an opposite wall of said disposable member, to sub-stantially close said disposable receptacle for preventing access to the contents of said disposable receptacle member.
26
5. A receptacle assembly according to claim 4, wherein said wall structure includes a second opening located at a point generally near said closure panel member of said dis-posable receptacle member, said second opening proportioned to permit limited access by a person's fingers to the closure panel member of said disposable receptacle member for operating the closure panel.
6. A receptacle assembly according to claim 4, wherein said front and inclined top wall portions are integrally formed to form a front wall/door member hingedly attached to another of said wall portions to permit removal and installation of disposable receptacle members out of and into said permanent receptacle member, said side wall portions having upwardly tapered edges at their upper ends extending to said back wall portion angularly at generally the same slope as said inclined top wall portion of said front wall/door member when said permanent receptacle member is closed.
7. A receptacle assembly according to claim 6, wherein said front wall/door member further includes a hand access opening which is proportioned to permit a person's hand to reach into said permanent receptacle member to operate said closure panel of said disposable receptacle member yet substantially prevent the person's hand from touching an implement lying in said trough-like recess.
8. A receptacle assembly according to claim 7, wherein first said slot-like opening is formed generally at an upper portion of said inclined top wall portion generally to maximize the distance between said slot-like opening and said trough-like recess to prevent access to an imple-ment in said trough-like recess by a person reaching into said slot-like opening, and wherein said hand-access opening is located generally along a line of joinder of said inclined top wall portion and said front wall portion and generally coinciding with a top edge of said disposable receptacle member adjacent the closure panel of the dis-posable receptacle member.
9. A receptacle assembly according to claim 8, wherein at least one or said side wall members includes a third opening in a portion bounded by its said upwardly tapering edge, said third opening being proportioned to receive relatively oversized implements such as hypodermic needles up to 50 cc. in size.
10. A receptacle assembly according to claim 7, which further includes means for securing said front wall/door member to prevent access by unauthorized persons to the disposable receptacle member within said permanent receptacle member.
11. A receptacle assembly according to claim 10, wherein said securing means comprise a tongue-like member on one of said side wall members and a corresponding slot on said front wall/door, proportioned and positioned to receive said tongue-like member when said front wall/door is closed, said tongue-like member having an aperture therein to receive a securing device such as a lock shackle.
12. A receptacle assembly according to claim 11, wherein said tongue-like member projects outwardly from at least one of said upwardly tapering side wall edges, and wherein said slot is formed in the canted panel portion of said front wall/door member.
13. A receptacle assembly according to claim 12, wherein said slot and said tongue-like member are pro-portioned and positioned relative to each other to contact each other at least upon initial engagement such that when a sufficient force is exerted, the tongue-like member is surmounted by said slot in a snapping-like action to keep said front wall/door closed.
14. A receptacle assembly according to claim 7, wherein said inclined top wall portion of said front wall/door member includes a second aperture, and which further includes grasping means associated with said second aperture and operable for holding an object inserted into said second aperture, such as a needle of the hypodermic needle/-syringe device, such that the needle can be removed from the syringe and it will drop automatically into the trough-like recess of the disposable receptacle member.
15. A receptacle assembly according to claim 14, wherein said grasping means includes a generally L-shaped member pivotally mounted to said inclined top wall portion adjacent said second opening, said L-shaped member having a first leg adapted to cooperate with an edge of said second opening to grasp an object inserted thereinto, and a second leg for moving said first leg towards and away from said second opening edge.
16. A receptacle assembly according to claim 15, wherein said second aperture has a generally tear-drop shape, and wherein said first leg includes an up-turned segment projecting into said tear-drop shaped second aperture to provide a bearing surface of relatively sub-stantial area for grasping an object inserted into the second aperture.
17. A receptacle assembly according to claim 4, wherein said disposable receptacle member further includes an additional closure panel member adapted to be closed over the top of said disposable receptacle for closing and sealing the disposable receptacle after it is filled with discarded implements.
18. A receptacle assembly according to claim 17, wherein said disposable receptacle member includes a handle associated with said additional closure panel for per-mitting said disposable receptacle member to be safely carried to its ultimate disposal destination.
19. A receptacle unit for safely storing potentially injurious implements such as hypodermic needles, scalpel blades and the like until ultimate disposal can be made, comprising:
a permanent receptacle member having receiving means for permitting the deposit therein of used implements to be discarded, said permanent receptacle member being adapted to removably receive and essentially fully contain a disposable receptacle member in which used implements are stored and subsequently transported for ultimate disposal along with the disposable receptacle member, said permanent receptacle member being generally in the configuration of a fully enclosable generally box-like enclosure and having a wall structure comprising a back wall portion disposed between a pair of oppositely disposed side wall portions, a front wall portion opposite said back wall portion with said back wall portion extending higher than said front wall portion, a bottom wall portion along bottom edges of said front, back and side wall portions and an inclined top wall panel portion disposed generally opposite said bottom wall portion, but extending at an acute angle generally between said front and back wall portions along their upper edges, said top wall portion including a first opening proportioned to permit insertion of used implements to be discarded, one of said wall portions being attached so as to permit opening and closure of said permanent receptacle member when replacement of the disposable receptacle member is desired, such that used implements can be safely stored within said receptacle unit by simply dropping them through the first opening in said permanent receptacle member for collection in said disposable receptacle member which, when filled with used implements, can be removed from the permanent receptacle member and sealed for ultimate disposal while the permanent receptacle member can be re-fitted with a new disposable receptacle member for storing another quantity of used implements, said inclined top wall portion providing ready inspection of the fill condition of implements within the disposable receptacle member.
a permanent receptacle member having receiving means for permitting the deposit therein of used implements to be discarded, said permanent receptacle member being adapted to removably receive and essentially fully contain a disposable receptacle member in which used implements are stored and subsequently transported for ultimate disposal along with the disposable receptacle member, said permanent receptacle member being generally in the configuration of a fully enclosable generally box-like enclosure and having a wall structure comprising a back wall portion disposed between a pair of oppositely disposed side wall portions, a front wall portion opposite said back wall portion with said back wall portion extending higher than said front wall portion, a bottom wall portion along bottom edges of said front, back and side wall portions and an inclined top wall panel portion disposed generally opposite said bottom wall portion, but extending at an acute angle generally between said front and back wall portions along their upper edges, said top wall portion including a first opening proportioned to permit insertion of used implements to be discarded, one of said wall portions being attached so as to permit opening and closure of said permanent receptacle member when replacement of the disposable receptacle member is desired, such that used implements can be safely stored within said receptacle unit by simply dropping them through the first opening in said permanent receptacle member for collection in said disposable receptacle member which, when filled with used implements, can be removed from the permanent receptacle member and sealed for ultimate disposal while the permanent receptacle member can be re-fitted with a new disposable receptacle member for storing another quantity of used implements, said inclined top wall portion providing ready inspection of the fill condition of implements within the disposable receptacle member.
20. A receptacle unit according to claim 19, wherein said first opening in said permanent receptacle member is generally slot-like and proportioned to substantially resist hand-entry therethrough.
21. A receptacle unit according to claim 20, wherein said permanent receptacle member further includes a second slot-like opening to permit limited access by a person's hand to a movable closure panel formed on the disposable receptacle member retained therein.
22. A receptacle unit according to claim 21, wherein said front and inclined top wall portions are integrally formed to form a front wall/door member hingedly attached to another of said wall portions to permit removal and installation of a disposable receptacle member out of and into said permanent receptacle member, said side wall portions having upwardly tapered edges at their upper ends extending to said back wall portion angularly upwardly at generally the same slope as said inclined top wall portion of said front wall/door member when said permanent receptacle member is closed.
23. A receptacle unit according to claim 22, wherein said front wall/door panel further includes a hand access opening which is proportioned to permit a person's hand to reach into said permanent receptacle member to operate a closure panel of a disposable receptacle member retained therein, yet substantially prevent the person's hand from touching any implement therein.
24. A receptacle unit according to claim 23, wherein said first slot-like opening is formed generally at an upper portion of said inclined top wall portion generally to maximize the distance between said first slot-like open-ing and a disposable receptacle member retained therein to prevent access to an implement in a disposable member by a person attempting to reach into said slot-like opening, and wherein said hand-access opening is located generally along a line of joinder of said inclined top wall portion and said front wall portion.
25. A receptacle unit according to claim 24, wherein at least one of said side wall members includes a third opening in a portion bounded by its said upwardly tapering edge, said third opening being proportioned to receive relatively oversized implements such as hypodermic needles up to 50 cc. in size.
26. A receptacle unit according to claim 23, which further includes means for securing said front wall/door member to prevent access by unauthorized persons to a dis-posable receptacle member within said permanent receptacle member.
27. A receptacle unit according to claim 26, wherein said securing means comprise a tongue-like member on one of said side wall members and a corresponding slot on said front wall/door, proportioned and positioned to receive said tongue-like member when said front wall/door is closed, said tongue-like member having an aperture therein to receive a lock shackle.
28. A receptacle unit according to claim 27, wherein said tongue-like member projects outwardly from at least one of said upwardly tapering side wall edges, and wherein said slot is formed in the inclined top wall portion of said front wall/door member.
29. A receptacle unit according to claim 28, wherein said slot and said tongue-like member are proportioned and positioned relative to each other to contact each other at least upon initial engagement such that when a sufficient force is exerted, the tongue like member is surmounted by said slot in a snapping-like action to keep said front wall/-door closed.
30. A receptacle unit according to claim 23, wherein said inclined top wall portion of said front wall/door member includes a second aperture, and which further includes grasping means associated with said second aperture and operable for holding an object inserted into said second aperture, such as a needle of a hypodermic needle/syringe device such that the needle can be removed from the syringe and it will drop automatically into a disposable receptacle member retained within said permanent receptacle member.
31. A receptacle unit according to claim 30, wherein said grasping means includes a generally L-shaped member pivotally mounted to said inclined top wall portion adjacent said second opening, said L-shaped member having a first leg adapted to cooperate with an edge of said second opening to grasp an object inserted thereinto, and a second leg for moving said first leg towards and away from said second opening edge.
32. A receptacle unit according to claim 31, wherein said second aperture has a generally tear-drop shape, and wherein said first leg includes an up-turned segment pro-jecting into said tear-drop shaped second aperture to pro-vide a bearing surface of relatively substantial area for grasping an object inserted into the second aperture.
33. A method for safely receiving and storing potentially injurious implements such as used hypodermic needles, scalpel blades, etc. for later disposal, comprising the steps of:
providing a permanent receptacle member sub-stantially completely enclosing a disposable receptacle member therein;
depositing implements to be discarded into the disposable receptacle through an opening formed at the top of said permanent receptacle for collection in the disposable receptacle member, said opening being spaced from the top of disposable member;
removing the disposable member from the permanent receptacle, once the disposable member is filled to desired capacity by opening the permanent receptacle member and sealing the disposable receptacle with a closure panel formed integrally with the disposable receptacle member;
forwarding the filled disposable receptacle for ultimate disposal; and refilling the permanent receptacle with a fresh disposable receptacle.
providing a permanent receptacle member sub-stantially completely enclosing a disposable receptacle member therein;
depositing implements to be discarded into the disposable receptacle through an opening formed at the top of said permanent receptacle for collection in the disposable receptacle member, said opening being spaced from the top of disposable member;
removing the disposable member from the permanent receptacle, once the disposable member is filled to desired capacity by opening the permanent receptacle member and sealing the disposable receptacle with a closure panel formed integrally with the disposable receptacle member;
forwarding the filled disposable receptacle for ultimate disposal; and refilling the permanent receptacle with a fresh disposable receptacle.
34. A method according to claim 33, wherein said step of sealing the disposable receptacle is carried out before the disposable receptacle is removed from the per-manent receptacle.
35. A method according to claim 3, which further includes the step of removing particularly dangerous portions of implements to be discarded, such as needle sections, by means directly associated with the permanent receptacle to ensure that such dangerous portions can be removed by, and automatically deposited into, the permanent receptacle without requiring any direct handling by a person.
36. A method according to claim 34, wherein said step of forwarding the filled disposable receptacle for ultimate disposal includes the step of carrying the disposable receptacle by handle means formed integrally with the disposable receptacle.
37. A receptacle assembly according to claim 2, wherein said front and inclined top wall portions are integrally formed and hingedly attached to said bottom wall portion.
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| US74604785A | 1985-06-17 | 1985-06-17 | |
| US746,047 | 1985-06-17 |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1265770A true CA1265770A (en) | 1990-02-13 |
Family
ID=24999279
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000511708A Expired CA1265770A (en) | 1985-06-17 | 1986-06-16 | Receptacle assembly for storage and disposal of potentially injurious implements such as used scalpel blades, hypodermic needles and the like |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA1265770A (en) |
-
1986
- 1986-06-16 CA CA000511708A patent/CA1265770A/en not_active Expired
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| MKLA | Lapsed |