Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61B—DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION
  • A61B1/00—Instruments for performing medical examinations of the interior of cavities or tubes of the body by visual or photographical inspection, e.g. endoscopes; Illuminating arrangements therefor
  • A61B1/12—Instruments for performing medical examinations of the interior of cavities or tubes of the body by visual or photographical inspection, e.g. endoscopes; Illuminating arrangements therefor with cooling or rinsing arrangements
  • A61B1/121—Instruments for performing medical examinations of the interior of cavities or tubes of the body by visual or photographical inspection, e.g. endoscopes; Illuminating arrangements therefor with cooling or rinsing arrangements provided with means for cleaning post-use
  • A61B1/122—Instruments for performing medical examinations of the interior of cavities or tubes of the body by visual or photographical inspection, e.g. endoscopes; Illuminating arrangements therefor with cooling or rinsing arrangements provided with means for cleaning post-use using cleaning tools, e.g. brushes

Definitions

• the invention relates to endoscopes, more precisely the operating channels of these endoscopes.
• the endoscope operating channels allow biopsy forceps to be advanced into the operating field to take tissue samples.
• the repeated passages of the biopsy forceps in the operating channels, and in particular the passage of the rigid elements of these devices in the curvatures taken by the channels once introduced into the human organism, have the harmful effects of scraping the internal walls thereof, to create diverticula there, even to provoke perforations there, or to support the creation of biofilms by coating their wall, thus multiplying the risks of contamination of the forceps before their arrival in the operating field.
• the brushes consist of an assembly of plastic bristles and are attached to flexible "handles", or flexible cores long enough to allow the brushes to pass from one end to the other of the channels.
• the swabs are manufactured and packaged individually, they are made several times, including at least the preparation of the cores and brushes, the assembly of the brushes on the cores being ensured thirdly, followed by the packaging of the swab.
• US 5,964,004 teaches tube cleaners, such as endoscope operator channels, and proposes blades on a sheath mounted on a flexible core, the blades and the sheath being integrally molded on the flexible core and being made of rubber or plastic, the core being a steel wire.
• WO01 28406 proposes the materials that can be used and the means of hanging the brush on the core which is an extruded propylene filament on which the brush is overmolded.
• the Applicant has sought to reduce the costs of manufacturing the swabs as much as possible.
• the invention relates to a method of manufacturing a swab (1) for cleaning an endoscope operator channel comprising, mounted on a flexible core (10), at least one brush (15) comprising a propeller cleaning (21) disposed on an axis (20), in which a plastic brush (15) is overmolded (30 '30 "; 100) on the core (10), process characterized in that it is overmolded a plurality of brushes (15) on the core (10).
• the core is precut between two brushes.
• FIG. 1 is a simplified view of a swab according to the invention
• FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional view in front of the last fin of a swab brush
• - Figure 3 shows a perspective view of elements of the mold
• FIG. 4 shows a view in partial axial section of a brush
• FIG. 5 shows the principle of manufacture and packaging of a set of swabs.
• - Figure 6 shows an example of a precut segment
• - Figure 7 shows a perspective view of an example of a half-mold.
• the swab 1 has a core 10, plastic wire, for example Teflon, or polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFO), flexible and of good mechanical quality, to which is attached a brush 15, itself consisting of a pin 20 supporting brushing fins or scraping 21.
• the brush 15, here, is made in one piece, molded plastic, for example low density polyethylene, the flexibility of which allows brushing the walls of the working channel without injuring or deforming them.
• the fins have a shape covering substantially one, for fins having only one blade, or n sectors, for fins with n blades of the cross section of the working channel from which they are called to scrape the walls.
• the fins 21 are relatively arranged, here with two sectors substantially with an angle at the center ⁇ , inscribed in a circle of diameter D corresponding to the diameter of the section of the channel to be scraped, or slightly greater, its axis 20 to which it is connected, of diameter d, and the core 10 of the swab.
• the fins 21 are axially regularly arranged on the axis 20, spaced from each other by a distance e, not too great, for example equal to Dd.
• the fins 21 are angularly regularly arranged, that is to say that two successive fins 21 correspond in an axial rotation of angle ⁇ . This is why we can speak of a cleaning propeller, although the fins are not themselves twisted.
• the angle ⁇ is equal to ⁇ / 2
• the fin 21 according to that shown would cover the angle ⁇ in the figure.
• a brush will consist of at least 2 ⁇ / (n ⁇ ) fins with n blades to cover the entire periphery of the wall.
• fins 21 and the axis 20 simultaneously so as to constitute only one and the same part.
• a mold 30 ′, 30 ′′, FIG. 5 has been provided for overmolding the brushes 15 directly on the flexible core 10 of the swab.
• the overmolding operation is here of the fusion pressure type.
• the core 10 is stretched between a supply reel 50, delivering the PTFO wire (to serve as a core), and a take-up reel 60, receiving the formed swabs, ready for shipment.
• the mold 30 ′, 30 "by imprints 32a, 32b, FIG. 3, molds the brushes 15 on the wire 10 at predetermined locations by the advancement of the wire between the two coils and the position of the imprints in
• the fixing of the brushes to the core is purely thermal, the temperature reached during the overmolding operation, which is carried out by fusion, causing a surface melting of the PTFO wire.
• predetermined locations 70 relative to the imprints 32a , 32b of the mold are, simultaneously with the brushes, formed by precutting of the core 10 at the ends 2, 3 of the swabs, between two brushes (15), so as to be able to separate them at the time of their use.
• FIG. 6 a particular embodiment of these precuts is shown, in which the PTFO wire of the core 10 is cut at 11, the two strands 10 ′, 10 "are moved apart to leave an interval 12 between them, and we overmold on the two strands 10 ', 10 ", respecting this interval, a connection 23, itself comprising, between the two strands, a breaking point (24).
• the mold itself must include the imprints of these segments at locations 70.
• the mold 30 ', 30 " comprises two complementary blocks 30' and 30", corresponding to two half-molds.
• the two blocks in contact are separated on their contact face by a cutting plane 40, partially shown in FIG. 4 and indicated in FIG. 2.
• a block 30 ′ or 30 ′′ consists of a stack of elements 31a, 31b. .., each element comprising two halves 32a, 32b each with a half-thickness of fin imprint, the stack making the complete thicknesses, and the two blocks forming the complete imprints. , 32b are connected by a half-footprint 38 of the axis segment of the brush.
• This design requires termination elements comprising only a half-thickness of footprint. It is possible to design elements (not shown) comprising only '' a full thickness of a half-cavity, the terminal blocks are no longer necessary.
• the method of manufacturing the swabs is as follows: assuming the flexible core 10 in place in the mold 30 ′, 30 "open,
• the supply reel 50 is rotated to unwind the virgin core 10 of brushes with a flexible core length corresponding to a molding operation, this length being placed in the block 30 ′, 5) and the take-up reel 60 is rotated simultaneously by the length of the core corresponding to the molding operation which has just been carried out to wind the core carrying the brushes of a corresponding length.

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Publications (1)

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ID=30011567

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (5)

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• 2002
  • 2002-07-29 FR FR0209605A patent/FR2842751B1/fr not_active Expired - Fee Related
• 2003
  • 2003-07-29 AU AU2003281832A patent/AU2003281832A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2003-07-29 WO PCT/FR2003/002395 patent/WO2004012573A2/fr not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2003-07-29 US US10/523,571 patent/US20060202387A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2003-07-29 EP EP03756513A patent/EP1524933A2/de not_active Withdrawn

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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