CN217548795U

CN217548795U - Electrochemical pump for drug delivery and drug delivery device thereof

Info

Publication number: CN217548795U
Application number: CN202122660002.1U
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李柏颖; 郑宗杰
Original assignee: Jieyue Biomedical Technology Co ltd
Current assignee: Jieyue Biomedical Technology Co ltd
Priority date: 2021-11-02
Filing date: 2021-11-02
Publication date: 2022-10-11
Anticipated expiration: 2031-11-02

Abstract

The present application provides an electrochemical pump for drug delivery and a drug delivery device thereof. Wherein, this electrochemical pump includes: a substrate having a first surface, a second surface and a plurality of through holes, wherein the second surface has a plurality of contacts, and the through holes have conductive material therein and are electrically connected to the plurality of contacts; a plurality of electrodes arranged on the first surface and electrically connected with a plurality of contacts on the second surface through the conductive materials in the plurality of through holes; an electronic device arranged on the second surface and electrically connected with the contacts on the second surface; and a space for accommodating electrolyte, wherein the space is provided with the electrolyte and is adjacent to the first surface, so that the plurality of electrodes are in contact with the electrolyte. The present application also provides a medicament delivery device implementing the electrochemical pump.

Description

Electrochemical pump for drug delivery and drug delivery device thereof

Technical Field

The present application relates to an electrochemical pump and a drug delivery device thereof for automatically delivering a drug.

Background

Recently in the pharmaceutical industry, the technology of electrochemical pumps for delivering therapeutic agents is considered to be an area that can be further developed and improved. There are drawbacks to the design of electrochemical pumps traditionally used for the delivery of therapeutic agents. For example, electrochemical pumping using microelectrode structures has high power losses due to high impedance of the electrolyte and low local electric field; and the problem of high power consumption of the whole system of the pump caused by lower solid free energy of the surface of the electrode.

In addition, the electrode and the contact plate of the conventional electrochemical pump are usually located on the same side of the substrate, which leads to the problem that the connection structure material of the control circuit board and the electrode is inevitably corroded by the electrochemical electrolyte during the electrochemical reaction, and seriously affects the operation and energy consumption performance of the whole electrochemical pump system.

The actuating mechanism of electrochemical drug delivery medical devices is mainly to generate the pressure of gas as the driving power source, such as: the medicament is delivered by means of a pressure difference between the interior of the medicament delivery device and the environment surrounding the device. However, the pressure amplitude generated in the precise control device needs advanced device structure design and electric control device design, and the wrong design of the structure and the electric control system may cause difficulty in precisely controlling the generation amount of the gas to achieve the purposes of precisely controlling a small amount of medicament and stabilizing the medicament conveying speed.

In addition, when the medicament delivery device is required to output ultra-high speed flow rate to drive the medicament with high viscosity, the power output of the electrochemical device needs to be correspondingly increased, so that the electrochemical device has the capability of outputting extra-high driving force, and therefore, the circuit board and the power supply also have the capability of outputting ultrahigh output energy. For the same-side structural design from the contact plate to the electrodes, the wire portion (Lead) between the contact plate and the electrodes greatly increases the overall resistance impedance, and further, the energy loss of energy transmitted from the power supply to the electrodes is seriously influenced, so that the pressure power output performance of the overall electrochemical pump system is greatly reduced.

In addition, when it is necessary to deliver a large volume (e.g. several milliliters) of a highly concentrated medicament by subcutaneous or intramuscular injection, in order to avoid the problem of pain for the patient caused by too high injection speed, it is necessary to adopt a milder injection speed and a longer injection time, and if manual injection delivery is performed by manpower, it is not only labor-consuming, but also difficult to precisely control the medicament delivery rate to avoid the pain problem. Most of the currently available automatic delivery devices use mechanical force (such as spring) or micro motor as the driving power source, but the unstable driving force caused by the spring or micro motor may cause unexpected pain during the injection process, and it is difficult to achieve fast and stable delivery speed.

Therefore, there is a need in the art to improve and solve the above-mentioned problems, and to develop an electrochemical pump structure that does not corrode due to the electrodes and the lead plate being located on the same side, and that simultaneously reduces impedance, increases efficiency of large energy transmission, increases control accuracy of energy transmission to reduce pain, and has a small volume for actuating the drug delivery device or method.

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

To achieve the above objective, the present application provides an electrochemical pump for drug delivery and a drug delivery device thereof. Wherein, this electrochemical pump includes: a substrate having a first surface, a second surface and a plurality of through holes, wherein the second surface has a plurality of contacts, and the through holes have conductive material therein and are electrically connected to the plurality of contacts; a plurality of electrodes arranged on the first surface and electrically connected with a plurality of contacts on the second surface through the conductive materials in the plurality of through holes; an electronic device arranged on the second surface and electrically connected with the contacts on the second surface; and a space for accommodating electrolyte, wherein the space is provided with the electrolyte and is adjacent to the first surface, so that the plurality of electrodes are in contact with the electrolyte.

In one embodiment, the electrodes comprise an anode and a cathode. Wherein the electrodes further comprise a reference electrode. Wherein the electrodes further comprise a redundant electrode.

In one embodiment, any one of the electrodes is electrically connected to the plurality of contacts through a plurality of vias.

In one embodiment, the first surface is coated with a hydrophilic layer.

In one embodiment, the space for accommodating the electrolyte is formed by attaching a super-absorbent material to the first surface.

In one embodiment, the super absorbent material is a sponge.

In one embodiment, the superabsorbent material is made of a material selected from the group consisting of: polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), polyethylene oxide (PEO), polyacrylic acid, polylactic acid (PLA), polyglycolic acid (PGA), PLA/PGA copolymer, polycaprolactone (PCL), and polymer fiber products made from the foregoing materials.

In one embodiment, the space for accommodating the electrolyte is formed by attaching a gas permeable membrane to the first surface, wherein the space for accommodating the electrolyte is sealed by the gas permeable membrane.

In one embodiment, the electronic device includes: a circuit board; an input port; and an output port.

In one embodiment, the output port electrically connects the circuit board to the electrochemical pump substrate, and one end of the input port is electrically connected to the circuit board and the other end is an input port of a power supply.

In one embodiment, the electronic device further includes a driving circuit component.

In one embodiment, the electronic device includes a power source.

In one embodiment, the output port electrically connects the circuit board to the contacts, the power source is electrically connected to the circuit board via the input port, and the driving circuit member is electrically connected to the circuit board and on the other hand to the power source.

In one embodiment, the electronic device is detachable.

In another aspect, the present application provides a medicament delivery device comprising: a container for accommodating a medicament and having a first opening and a second opening opposite to each other, wherein the first opening is an output port of the medicament; a spacer disposed in the container between the two openings and capable of sliding freely along the container wall; and the electrochemical pump is arranged at the second opening, so that the electrochemical pump is tightly combined with the container to seal the second opening.

In one embodiment, the container is a syringe, and may further comprise a syringe needle disposed in the first opening.

In one embodiment, the container is transparent or translucent.

In one embodiment, the container is rigid or flexible.

In one embodiment, the spacer is made of a rubber plug.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of an electrochemical pump structure of the present application.

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the medicament delivery device of the present application.

FIG. 3 is a graph of electrochemical pump flow rate versus number of through-holes.

Fig. 4 is a graph of total delivered volume of an electrochemical pump versus the number of through holes.

Description of the reference numerals

10. Electrochemical pump

101. Substrate

1011. First surface

1012. Second surface

1013. Through hole

1014. Conductive material

1015. Contact point

102. Space for accommodating electrolyte

1021. Electrolyte solution

103. Electrode for electrochemical cell

104. Electronic device with a detachable cover

1041. Circuit board

1042. Input port

1043. Output port

1044. Power supply

200. Medicament delivery device

20. Injection tube

201. The first chamber

202. Second chamber

21. First opening

22. Second opening

23. Spacer member

24. And (4) injecting a needle.

Detailed Description

All technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs unless otherwise defined. Where the singular forms "a," "an," "the," and their plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise, may refer to more than one referent. As used herein, the terms "or", "and", unless otherwise indicated, refer to "or/and". Furthermore, the terms "comprising" and "including" are not intended to be limiting, open-ended terms. The foregoing definitions are merely set forth for purposes of explanation of the language defined herein and are not to be construed as limiting the present invention. Unless otherwise indicated, the materials used in the present invention are readily available commercially.

Ordinal numbers such as "first," "second," etc., used in the specification and claims are only used to describe the disclosed elements, and do not denote or imply any order of execution between elements, or the order of steps in a process, or order of steps in a process. These ordinals are used only to clearly distinguish one element having a certain name from another element having a same name.

Moreover, the terms "on," "over," "above," and the like, as used herein, refer to one element being in direct contact with another element (e.g., a substrate), but also refer to one element not being in direct contact with another element (e.g., a substrate).

Examples

As shown in fig. 1, the present application provides an electrochemical pump 10, the electrochemical pump 10 comprising: a substrate 101; a space 102 for accommodating an electrolyte; a plurality of electrodes 103; and an electronic device 104.

The substrate 101 has a first surface 1011, a second surface 1012, a plurality of vias 1013, a plurality of conductive materials 1014, and a plurality of contacts 1015. The contacts 1015 are disposed on the through holes 1013 at one side of the second surface 1012, and the through holes 1013 have a conductive material 1014 therein, so that the components on the first surface 1011 and the components on the second surface 1012 can be electrically connected. The space 102 for accommodating an electrolyte is disposed on the first surface 1011, and has an electrolyte 1021 therein. The electrodes 103 are disposed on the first surface 1011, directly contact the electrolyte 1021, and are electrically connected to the conductive material 1014 in the via 1013. The electronic device 104 is disposed on the second surface 1012 and electrically connected to the contacts 1015.

In the present application, the two sides of the through hole 1013 may be electrically connected by filling a conductive material in the through hole 1013, coating a conductive material layer on the wall of the through hole, or inserting a wire, but the technical means is not limited thereto. In the present application, the vias 1013 and the conductive material 1014 therein can be formed by using feed-through (feed-through) techniques widely used in Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) processes and Integrated Circuit (IC) packaging technologies, thereby achieving complete separation of "wet" structures (i.e., various structures on the first surface that are in direct contact with the electrolyte) from "dry" structures (i.e., various structures on the second surface that are in contact with the surface, such as electronic devices), avoiding direct contact of the electrolyte with the electronic devices, and enhancing the reliability of the overall device.

In one embodiment, the contacts 1015 are contact pads.

In the present application, the electrolyte containing space 102 is formed by attaching a super absorbent material (super absorbent material) to the first surface, or by attaching a breathable film to the first surface. In one embodiment, the electrolyte containing space 102 is a super absorbent material coated on the first surface 1011, and the electrolyte 1021 is made into a gel-like state to keep the electrodes 103 in contact with the electrolyte 1021, so that the electrolyte does not leak, and the generated gas is allowed to leave the electrolyte containing space 102; the electrolyte 1021 is a solution that can generate gas through electrodes, such as water or an electrolyte solution, but should not be limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, the superabsorbent material is a sponge. In another embodiment, the super-absorbent material is attached to the surface of the electrodes 103, the super-absorbent material being made of a material selected from the group consisting of: polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), polyethylene oxide (PEO), polyacrylic acid, polylactic acid (PLA), polyglycolic acid (PGA), PLA/PGA copolymer, and Polycaprolactone (PCL).

In a preferred embodiment, the number of the electrodes 103 is not less than 3. More specifically, two of the electrodes 103 serve as an anode and a cathode. For better electrochemical performance, the anode and cathode are arranged in an interdigitated comb electrode structure, and the other electrode is a reference electrode to avoid voltage decay, such as due to the ohm's voltage generated by the current flowing in dilute acid, brine plasma electrolytes. Voltage decay may affect the accuracy of drug delivery and must be avoided to obtain accurate potential measurements. If a fourth electrode or more are provided, the remaining electrodes are redundant electrodes. The redundant electrodes can avoid the inconvenience of repair when one electrode suddenly fails.

To improve electrochemical efficiency, any one of the electrodes 103 can be electrically connected to the electronic device 104 through a plurality of vias 1013. In a preferred embodiment, the anode and cathode each have 20 through holes. Figures 3 and 4 show a comparison of the electrochemical efficiency of the electrodes with other designs, where the anode and cathode each have 20 through holes (40 through holes with the electrode on the opposite side from the contact pad) and the flow rate and total delivered volume is increased by about 30% compared to the electrode without the through hole design (with the electrode on the same side as the contact pad); the flow rate and total delivered volume also increased by about 20% compared to the design with only one through hole for each of the cathode and anode (2 through holes with electrode and contact pad on the opposite side).

The first surface 1011 and the electrodes 103 may be coated with a hydrophilic layer to improve electrochemical efficiency, including but not limited to: such as polyvinyl phenol (PVP), polyacrylic acid (PAA), polyethylene oxide (PEO), polysaccharides, proton exchange membranes (e.g., sulfonated polytetrafluoroethylene (Nafion)), nanostructured metals, epoxy resins, and polymer fiber products made from the foregoing materials.

The hydrophilic layer is applied to ensure that the first surface 1011 of the electrochemical pump 10 has hydrophilicity for continuously generating gas during electrochemical reaction. The coated electrode can provide better gas solubility compared to conventional untreated electrodes.

In order to further enhance the electrochemical efficiency, it is effective to change the geometry of the electrodes. In some embodiments, the inverted trapezoidal shaped electrode is formed by improved standard electron beam lithography with improved oxygen plasma processing or improved photolithography procedures, improved Reactive Ion Etching (RIE), improved Deep Reactive Ion Etching (DRIE), or improved Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP). On the other hand, the electrochemical efficiency can be enhanced by changing the shape of the electrode. In one embodiment, the electrode 103 is made in the shape of an inverted trapezoid to generate a strong electric field and cause a larger amount of gas to be generated. In another embodiment, the hydrophilicity of the electrochemical pump 10 can be achieved by hydrophilic treatments such as oxygen plasma treatment, chemical etching, and mechanical rubbing.

The electronic device 104 is electrically connected to the contacts 1015, and is used for providing power to the electrodes 103 and controlling the time and power of the electrochemical reaction. In a preferred embodiment, the electronic device 104 is configured to be removable, and can be assembled with and separated from the remaining components of the electrochemical pump 10.

In one embodiment, the electronic device 104 includes: a circuit board 1041; an input port 1042; and an output port 1043.

The output port 1043 electrically connects the circuit board 1041 to the contact 1015 to control the electrodes 103, thereby controlling the electrochemical pump 10 to generate gas. One end of the input port 1042 is electrically connected to the circuit board 1041, and the other end is an input port of a power supply, which can be electrically connected to a power supply to provide power to the electrochemical pump 10. The power source may be an external power source or may be included in the electronic device 104.

In one embodiment, the electronic device 104 further includes a power supply 1044, and the power supply 1044 is electrically connected to the input port 1042.

In a preferred embodiment, the electronic device 104 further comprises a driving circuit component for controlling the switch of the electronic device 104.

Accordingly, the output port 1043 serves as an electrical bridge between the electronic devices 104 and the rest of the components of the electrochemical pump 10. The output port 1043 may be a micro connector such as a Pogo pin.

As shown in fig. 2, the present application provides a medicament delivery device 200 comprising: a container, an injection cylinder 20; and the electrochemical pump 10.

The barrel 20 has a first opening 21, a second opening 22, and a spacer 23. The first opening 21 and the second opening 22 are opposite to each other.

In a preferred embodiment, the barrel 20 further has a needle 24 disposed in the first opening 21.

In one embodiment, the drug delivery device 100 is small enough to deliver minute amounts of a drug, wherein the volume of the syringe cartridge 10 is preferably on the order of microliters (0.1-500 microliters).

In another embodiment, the medicament delivery device 100 is capable of delivering a high consistency, large volume medicament, wherein the syringe cartridge 20 is preferably on the order of milliliters (mL) (0.1-500 mL).

According to an embodiment of the present application, the spacer 23 is disposed in the syringe 20 and divides the syringe 20 into a first chamber 201 and a second chamber 202, the first chamber 201 is used for containing the medicament, and the second chamber 202 is used for containing the electrolyte containing space 102 of the electrochemical pump and the electrolyte 1021 therein.

According to embodiments of the present application, the container may be a syringe 20 made of transparent or translucent material, and the container, such as a syringe, may be rigid or flexible. Preferably, the barrel 20 is composed of a rigid material including, but not limited to: glass (e.g. quartz, fused silica, soda lime, silicates and borosilicates), polymers/plastics (e.g. Polycarbonate (PC), polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), ethylene terephthalate (PET), polylactic acid (PLA), thermoplastic elastomers (TPE) and cyclic olefin polymers of parylene, COP or COC), rubber (natural rubber and rubber), colloids (epoxy, silicone and acrylic), and conductive polymers (polyfluorene, polybiphenyl compounds, polypyrene, polyazulene, polynaphthalene, polypyrrole (PPY), polyaniline (PANI), polythiophene (PT), poly (3, 4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT), polyphenylene Sulfide (PPs), polyacetylene (PAC) and polystyrene (PPV)).

In the present embodiment, the spacer 23 is a diaphragm (diaphragm). The separator may be made of a material such as thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), styrene-ethylene-butylene-styrene block copolymer (SEBS), styrene-ethylene-propylene-styrene type block copolymer (SEPS), and parylene, but the present application is not limited thereto. In another embodiment, the spacer 23 may be a stopper made of a rubber plug made of rubber, polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon), silicone, thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), styrene-ethylene-butylene-styrene (SEBS), styrene-ethylene-propylene-styrene (SEPS), parylene, and so on.

In the present application, the electrochemical pump 10 is disposed at the second opening 22 of the syringe, and the electrochemical pump 10 and the syringe 20 are tightly combined to seal the second opening 22, so as to prevent the electrolyte 1021 contained therein and the gas generated by the operation of the electrochemical pump 10 from leaking. Accordingly, when the electrolyte 1021 is subjected to an electrochemical reaction to generate gas, the pressure of the second chamber 202 is higher than the pressure of the first chamber 201, and the spacer 23 is pushed toward the first opening 21 to output the medicament. The spacer 23 is provided to isolate the first chamber 201 and the second chamber 202 from each other to prevent mixing of the electrolyte and the medicament. The sealing method includes sealing with a gasket (e.g., an O-ring), sealing with an adhesive, or sealing with welding (e.g., ultrasonic, thermal, or laser welding), but should not be limited thereto.

In one embodiment, the electrochemical pump 10 is detachable after the second opening 22 is sealed.

In another embodiment, the electrochemical pump 10 is non-removable after the second opening 22 is sealed.

In the disclosure of the embodiments of the present invention, it is obvious to those skilled in the art that the foregoing embodiments are only illustrative and not limiting; those skilled in the art can implement the present invention by many modifications and substitutions without departing from the technical characteristics of the present invention. According to the embodiment of the specification, the utility model can have various changes and still can be implemented without hindrance. The claims provided in this specification define the scope of the invention, which encompasses the methods and structures described above and equivalents thereof.

Claims

1. An electrochemical pump, comprising:

a substrate having a first surface, a second surface and a plurality of through holes, wherein the second surface has a plurality of contacts, and the through holes have conductive material therein and are electrically connected to the plurality of contacts;

a plurality of electrodes arranged on the first surface and electrically connected with the plurality of contacts on the second surface through the conductive materials in the plurality of through holes;

the electronic device is arranged on the second surface and is electrically connected with the contact on the second surface; and

a space for accommodating electrolyte, wherein the electrolyte is provided and is adjacent to the first surface, so that the plurality of electrodes are in contact with the electrolyte.

2. The electrochemical pump of claim 1, wherein said electrodes comprise at least an anode and a cathode.

3. The electrochemical pump of claim 2, wherein said electrode further comprises a reference electrode.

4. The electrochemical pump of claim 2, wherein said electrode further comprises a redundant electrode.

5. The electrochemical pump of claim 1, wherein any one of said electrodes is electrically connected to a plurality of contacts by a plurality of vias.

6. The electrochemical pump of claim 1, wherein the first surface is coated with a hydrophilic layer.

7. The electrochemical pump of claim 1, wherein the electrolyte receiving space is formed by attaching a super absorbent material to the first surface.

8. The electrochemical pump of claim 7, wherein the superabsorbent material is a sponge.

9. The electrochemical pump of claim 1, wherein the electrolyte receiving space is formed by attaching a gas permeable membrane to the first surface, and wherein the electrolyte receiving space is sealed by the gas permeable membrane.

10. The electrochemical pump of claim 1, wherein the electronic device comprises: a circuit board; an input port; and an output port.

11. The electrochemical pump of claim 10, wherein the electronic device further comprises a drive circuit member.

12. The electrochemical pump of claim 11, wherein the electronic device comprises a power source.

13. The electrochemical pump of claim 12, wherein the output port electrically connects the circuit board to the contact, the power source is electrically connected to the circuit board via the input port, and the drive circuit member is electrically connected to the circuit board and on the other hand to the power source.

14. The electrochemical pump of claim 1, wherein the electronic device is removable.

15. A medicament delivery device, comprising:

the container is used for containing a medicament and is provided with a first opening and a second opening which are opposite to each other, wherein the first opening is an output port of the medicament;

a spacer disposed in the container between the two openings and capable of sliding freely along the container wall; and

the electrochemical pump of claim 1, disposed in the second opening such that the electrochemical pump is in intimate engagement with the container to seal the second opening.

16. The device of claim 15, wherein the container is a syringe.

17. The device of claim 16, wherein the cartridge comprises a needle disposed in the first opening.

18. The device of claim 15, wherein the container is transparent or translucent.

19. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the container is rigid or flexible.

20. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the spacer is formed of a rubber plug.