EP2196170B1 - Pouch and strip of pouches for packaging a biological liquid substance, such as animal semen - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an assembly consisting of a hollow needle and a packaging bag of a liquid biological substance, such as animal semen.

The document WO 94/22731 A discloses a bag adapted for packaging a liquid biological substance according to the preamble of claim 1. The document WO 02/32469 A discloses an assembly consisting of a needle and a blood bag.

In the field of animal artificial insemination, in particular porcine, it is well known to condition the semen of boar in this case in sterile bags.

These bags are formed of two flexible plastic films joined and welded, usually by heat sealing, delimiting a substance receiving pocket.

The filling of the bags is done on a machine specially adapted for this purpose, in which the band of bags scrolls step by step.

The bags are suspended in a vertical position so that their filling opening is directed upwards.

The desired dose of substance is delivered by means of a hollow needle, via a flexible supply line, one end of which is connected to a container containing the substance and the other to the hollow needle; the duct is equipped with a peristaltic pump that ensures accurate dose distribution.

At the time of filling, the band of bags is stopped, and the needle, which is also vertical, enters the opening of the bag to be filled and goes down inside the pocket, until approximately mid-height of it, or even lower; the dose of substance is injected into the bag by the lower end of the needle, then the needle is withdrawn by a vertical movement from bottom to top, after which the area of the opening is closed by thermo welding.

The operation is then repeated on the next bag.

When, subsequently, the insemination is carried out, the substance is pushed out of the bag and brought to the insemination probe, either through the same opening, after opening the welded zone, or by means of a cannula arranged to the opposite end of the bag, for example according to the teachings of the document EP-B-1 317 224 .

In the case of porcine semen, the substance is composed of boar semen mixed with a diluent liquid containing preservatives such as sugars, citrates and albumin, which make the substance foaming.

The formation of foam at the time of filling, is favored by the relatively high flow rate of the substance when it leaves the needle, a high flow rate being necessary so that the filling of the bags can be done at a suitable rate (generally 2 seconds approximately per sachet).

This foam has a tendency to adhere to the needle and accompany it during its withdrawal, in the area of the opening in which the welding must take place, or even outside this area.

A fraction of the seed is removed from the bag, which is not satisfactory for the accuracy of the assay.

In addition, the presence of this foam in the area of the opening compromises the quality of the weld and therefore the tightness of the bag thus filled.

Finally, the possible presence of seed outside the bag is a possible cause of unexpected transfer of spermatozoa from one bag to another within a lot of sachets filled and stored side by side; the liquid out of the bag may also alter the marking, by dilution of the ink, which may in particular pose difficulties for reading identification tags.

The present invention aims to solve these difficulties by preventing the foam thus formed from accompanying the injection needle during removal from the filling opening of the bag.

The invention therefore relates to an assembly consisting of a needle and a packaging bag of a liquid biological substance, such as animal semen, formed of two flexible plastic films contiguous and welded, delimiting a receiving pocket. of the substance, which has at one of its ends an opening for filling the empty bag by means of a hollow cylindrical needle.

According to the invention, these films have a pair of mutual welding lines, which form tabs starting from said opening and penetrating axially and symmetrically into the internal space of the bag. converging towards the inside thereof, their free ends being separated by a value "e" which is substantially equal to πd / 2, "d" being the value of the diameter of said needle.

It will be understood that, thanks to this arrangement, when the needle passes between the two tongues and enters the bag by an axial translation movement, from top to bottom, this zone deforms and follows the circular contour of the needle; indeed, the circumference of the zone, when deployed to be "rounded", is equal to 2e, ie πd, which corresponds to the circumference of the needle.

When at the end of filling the needle is withdrawn by an axial translation movement, this time from the bottom upwards, the periphery of this circular and narrowed zone retains the foam which adheres to the cylindrical wall of the needle and the orients laterally outward with a scraping effect; the foam remains trapped in the bag below the tongue-shaped weld lines.

Preferably, the two welded lines converge forming an apex angle whose value α is between 20 and 60 °, advantageously close to 45 °, which performs a particularly effective scraping and cleaning of the needle.

• l'ouverture de remplissage du sachet présente, tournée vers l'extérieur du sachet, une zone d'embouchure de largeur « a » constante, sensiblement plus grande que ladite valeur « e » d'écartement des extrémités libres des lignes de soudure ;
• cette zone d'embouchure est délimitée de chaque côté par une plage soudée traversée chacune par un orifice dans lequel peut s'engager un doigt de retenue lors du remplissage du sachet ;
• les deux lignes de soudure présentent une extrémité renforcée, par exemple en forme de bourrelet ;
• l'extrémité opposée du sachet est munie d'une canule intégrée, destinée à être utilisée pour le vidage du sachet.

According to other advantageous features possible, but not limiting, of the invention:

• the filling opening of the bag has, facing the outside of the bag, a mouth area of constant width "a" substantially larger than said value "e" spacing the free ends of the weld lines;
• this mouth area is delimited on each side by a welded pad each traversed by an orifice in which a retaining finger can be engaged during filling of the bag;
• the two weld lines have a reinforced end, for example in the form of a bead;
• the opposite end of the bag is provided with an integrated cannula, intended to be used for emptying the bag.

• la figure 1 est une vue de face d'un sachet de l'ensemble selon l'invention, constitutif d'une bande de sachets identiques ;
• la figure 2 est une vue partielle de la figure 1, illustrant le retrait de l'aiguille en fin d'opération de remplissage du sachet ;
• la figure 3 est une vue similaire après obturation de l'ouverture de remplissage ;
• la figure 4 est une vue partielle d'une variante du sachet ;
• la figure 5 est une vue analogue à la figure 3 montrant un mode d'obturation différent.

Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent hereinafter from the description of a preferred embodiment of the invention. This description is made with reference to the appended drawings in which:

• the figure 1 is a front view of a bag of the assembly according to the invention, constituting a band of identical bags;
• the figure 2 is a partial view of the figure 1 , illustrating the withdrawal of the needle at the end of the filling operation of the bag;
• the figure 3 is a similar view after closing the filling aperture;
• the figure 4 is a partial view of a variant of the bag;
• the figure 5 is a view similar to the figure 3 showing a different shutter mode.

The bag 1 represented on the figure 1 is intended to contain boar semen for subsequent artificial insemination of a sow.

It is manufactured, as is well known from two thin films and flexible heat-sealable plastic, superimposed and then welded to one another, forming a band B.

Each sachet has an elongated rectangular overall shape, the major axis of symmetry of which is designated X-X '. Its contour is delimited by two welded lateral edges 10, a first closed end zone 11 (bottom), also welded, and a second end zone comprising two welded zones 12a, 12b separated by an opening 4 for filling.

This plastics material is preferably transparent or translucent and consists for example of polyethylene, polyamide or polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

The two films are preferably made of two separate sheets. However, one can make use of one and the same sheet that has been folded on itself.

Each sheet can be single or multilayer

The bag 1 is separated from the two adjacent bags 1A and 1B by precut lines 100A, respectively 100B, connecting end perforations 101-102, as is well known.

In the zones 12a and 12b are drilled openings 3, 3 'which serve to receive the driving fingers and retaining the bags, in the suspended position, in the filling machine.

According to a known arrangement, one 3 'of these orifices has an oblong shape, being formed of two circular holes partially overlapping.

In the bottom zone 11 is integrated a dump cannula 2, axis X-X ', integrated in the bag, for example in accordance with the teachings of the document EP-B-1 317 224 .

The longitudinal edges of the strip, outside the zones 12a-12b and the filling opening 4 are disjoint (not welded) and can therefore be spaced freely from one another.

The opening 4 has a main portion 6, which will be designated conventionally "mouth", delimited by the edges vis-à-vis the welded portions 12a and 12b, which edges are parallel to the axis XX 'and spaced apart. a distance "a". These edges extend inside the bag by weld lines 7 in the form of straight tabs. These are inclined symmetrically with respect to the median axis X-X 'so as to converge towards the inside of the bag, forming a cut-off "V".

They have an apex angle α whose value is advantageously about 45 °.

Their free ends are distant from a value "e" significantly lower than "a".

This value "e" is adapted to the diameter "d" of the hollow needle used for filling, so that when the needle passes axially through the opening 6 it pushes the areas of plastic film around this narrowed passage, referenced 70 on the figure 1 , making him take a circular shape of corresponding diameter. For this, the value "e" is substantially equal to ½ πd.

During the filling operation of the bag, it is suspended in the filling machine with retaining fingers R and R 'which are engaged in the above-mentioned orifices 3 and 3', as illustrated in FIG. figure 2 .

The width "a" of the mouth zone 6 is significantly larger than the diameter "d" of the needle 8.

Thus, during the axial descent of the needle 8, along X-X ', in the mouth 6, it pushes the film portions opposite and easily causes the separation of this area, this despite the tension due to the presence of retaining fingers R and R '.

Any risk of piercing or tearing the bag at this level is virtually eliminated.

Its downward movement continues, its end portion is guided in a gentle and progressive manner by the tabs 7 passes without significant clearance the area 70 "rounded" and then enters the interior of the bag.

It usually goes down to half the height of the bag, or even lower, after which the dose of seed-referenced S- is injected inside the sachet, inflating it by giving it the shape of a pocket, while generating foam.

At the end of filling, the needle 8 is withdrawn by an axial translation movement from bottom to top, symbolized by the arrow F on the figure 2 .

The reference M denotes foam adhering against the wall of the needle 8. The ends of the tongues 7, such as flexible lips, as well as the edges of plastic film at the right of the narrowed passage 70 scrape this wall and retain the foam M, by deflecting laterally under the oblique welding lines 7, as symbolized by the arrows G. The foam remains trapped inside the bag, without contaminating the mouth 6, according to the desired objective.

The filling opening is then closed tightly, under good conditions, by a heat-sealing line 9.

On the variant illustrated on the figure 4 , the tongues 7 each have a bulge-shaped end expansion 71.

The presence of the beads 71 reinforces the ends of the tongues by limiting the risk of initiation of rupture at this level when the bag is subjected to high mechanical stresses, including torsion, for emptying during insemination ( via the cannula 2).

Variant 5 illustrates another possible shutter mode of the bag after filling.

In this variant, the inside of the opening 6, as well as the portion located above and between the tongues 7, are closed by a heat-welded pad 9 '. However this closure is only partial, a central passage not welded 91 being preserved.

To the outside this passage opens with a 90 profile V-shaped area.

This passage is itself closed by a 9 "peelable range.

With this arrangement the filling opening 4 can also be used for emptying, which is particularly useful for closed-bottomed bags, as described for example in the document FR-A-2,667,504 .

After opening the peelable portion, the passage 91 acts as emptying duct and the portion 90 of centering cone for the introduction of the insemination probe.

The configuration of the filling opening and the presence of the tongues makes it possible to use a straight-ended needle (perpendicular to the axis of the needle), simply slightly chamfered and blunt.

In general, a needle with a bevelled end is used with conventional bags to facilitate its introduction into the bag, but which presents a risk of the flow of a small quantity of substance retained in the needle, after it has been removed from the bag.

• contour interne du sachet : 190 mm x 60 mm
  • a = 20 mm
  • e = 8 mm
  • d = 5 mm

As a purely indicative example, we will give the following dimensions:

• inner contour of the bag: 190 mm x 60 mm
  • a = 20 mm
  • e = 8 mm
  • d = 5 mm

Claims (6)

1. Set consisting of a hollow needle (8) with a diameter "d" and of a packaging sachet for a biological liquid substance, such as animal semen, formed by two coupled and welded films of flexible plastic material, delimiting a reception pouch of the substance, which has at one of its ends an opening (4) for filling the empty sachet by means of a hollow cylindrical needle (8), characterised in that said films have a pair of welding lines which form tabs (7) starting out from said opening and axially and symmetrically penetrating the internal space of the sachet (1) by converging to the interior of the latter, their free ends being spaced apart by a value "e" which is substantially equal to πd/2, "d" being the value of the diameter of said needle (8), such that said needle passes between said tabs (7) for said filling, the latter ensuring that the needle is scraped when it is withdrawn.
2. Set according to Claim 1, characterised in that the two welding lines (7) converge by forming an angle at the apex whereof the value α is between 20 and 60°, advantageously close to 45°.
3. Set according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, characterised in that its filling opening (4) has, turned to the exterior of the sachet, an orifice zone (6) of constant width "a", substantially larger than said spread value "e" of the free ends of the welding lines (7).
4. Set according to Claim 3, characterised in that said orifice zone (6) is delimited on either side by a welded area (12a, 12b) each traversed by an orifice (3, 3') in which a retaining finger (R, R') can engage during filling of the sachet (1).
5. Set according to one of Claims 1 to 4, characterised in that the two welding lines (7) have a reinforced end, for example in the form of a bead (71).
6. Set according to one of Claims 1 to 5, characterised in that the end opposite the sachet (1) is fitted with an integrated canula (2), to be utilised for emptying out the sachet.

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