JPS596053A - Sanitary tampon inserter - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to tampon inserters, and more particularly to telescopic tubular catamenial tampon inserters.

The most common tampon inserters for inserting menstrual tampons into the vaginal canal are made of a pair of tubes that engage telescopically, with the outer tube designed to hold the tampon within the tip. The inner tube (drainage tube) is slightly smaller in diameter than the outer tube and is slidably placed behind the tampon within the outer tube.

When in use, the tampon is ejected from the inserter by pressing the inner tube within the outer tube to release the tampon.

Tampon inserters such as those described above have various drawbacks depending on how they are used. For example, tampon inserters are much longer than tampons. First, the outer tube must be of sufficient length to ensure adequate depth of insertion. Next, when the tampon and the outer tube are assembled with the evacuation tube (inner tube), a large portion of the evacuation tube necessarily protrudes from the rear end of the outer tube. As a result, the total length of the packaged and ready tampon inserter is approximately two times the length of the tampon. Thus, the relatively large size of tampon inserters has resulted in packaging that is high tension and expensive.

Women commonly have a tampon inserter packaged in their pouch, hand, or pocket.

At that time, because the tongue expander is long, it occupies a considerable amount of space in the pouch or handbag. Therefore, a small, bulky tampon inserter has been desired.

This is a particularly important problem for young women who prefer not to have purses, hands, or pockets, and who, because of fashion, use pockets in relatively tight clothing.

Some tampon inserters that have attempted to solve this problem utilize generally flat elongated piston arms placed along the outer surface of the outer tube and along the length of the outer tube (U.S. Pat. No. 3,059,641).゜3059642.31039
29.3115876.

3759258 etc.). However, this type was not commercialized.

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a tampon inserter that does not have the above-mentioned disadvantages.

In particular, it is an object of the present invention to provide a compact tampon inserter that is not bulky.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a tampon inserter that is simple in structure and convenient and easy to use.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a telescopic tube that allows a tampon to be placed in position very accurately and reliably without abrasive irritation and without increasing the standard dimensions of the tube. To provide a tampon inserter with a similar shape.

According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the tampon inserter comprises an inner evacuation tube and an outer tube adapted to hold a tampon therein, the outer tube slidingly engaging the outer surface of the evacuation tube. The distal tip is adapted to allow a tampon to be passed therethrough and expelled during a tampon evacuation operation. The outer tube is provided with an inner protrusion that prevents the tampon from moving in one direction.This protrusion allows the tampon to move freely forward, but prevents it from moving backwards. It is adapted to engage a tampon. Therefore, in the process of partially withdrawing the discharge tube from the outer tube so as to be located behind the tampon, the protrusion stops the tampon from moving relative to the outer tube. However, when the evacuation tube is moved back into the outer tube and acts to eject the tampon from its rest position, the protrusion will allow forward movement and evacuation of the tampon.

According to a further advantageous embodiment of the invention, the discharge tube has a plurality of fingers at its tip.

These fingers automatically close as soon as the evacuation tube retracts and slides over the tampon into a position for pushing the tampon from behind. Preferably, the protrusion is provided on the inner side of the outer tube at or near its tip and has an inclined surface.

The protrusions then protrude through open grooves between the fingers of the evacuation tube to engage the tampon.

Although the present specification and drawings describe preferred embodiments of the present invention and suggest various modifications, the present invention is not intended to apply only to these examples, and many other modifications may be made within the scope of the spirit of the present invention. Of course, it also applies to In short, what has been described in this specification and drawings is merely selected as an example, so that those skilled in the art will be able to fully understand the gist and principle of the present invention from the description of the present invention. Of course, it is within the scope of the present invention to make various modifications to best suit the conditions of particular use.

Next, the present invention will be described with reference to embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.

In the embodiment of FIG. 1A, the tampon inserter comprises a cylindrical outer tube 10 whose distal end 12 is separated from each other by respective grooves 16, as shown in FIG. It has petal-shaped parts 14. These petal-shaped parts 14 are @IA
.

As clearly shown in FIG. 2, it is relatively flexible and formed into a generally semicircular shape, with an opening 18 at the top. The semicircular shape of the tip 12 is advantageous in facilitating insertion of the tampon inserter into the vaginal canal. therefore,
Outer tube 10 is preferably made of any suitable smooth plastic material by molding by conventional molding techniques. Same, outer tube 1
The rear end 20 on the opposite side of 0 is open.

As shown in FIGS. 1A and 4, the outer tube 10 includes a number of inner protrusions 22 that can be provided along the inner surface of the outer tube 10. As shown in FIG. 1A, it has a substantially flat right-angled triangular shape, and its oblique side is formed to face the tip opening 18 from the inside of the outer tube 10 at an acute angle. Similarly, the protrusion 22 is sufficiently protruded toward the center of the outer tube 10 so as to engage with a tampon placed inside. Although only three protrusions 22 are provided in FIG. 4, the number can be arbitrarily selected. However, three is preferred. This is because there is more room for changes in the diameter of the tampon 40. If the number of protrusions 22 is large, the retention with the tampon will be more positive, but the tampon will be more difficult to eject. An annular groove 24m is provided along the inner circumferential surface of the groove.

The tampon inserter illustrated in FIG. 1A further includes a discharge tube 26 (indicated by 26 m in FIG. 10) t.
- this evacuation pipe is designed to act as a plunger for ejecting a tampon placed within the tip of the outer tube 10 and to slide within the outer tube with a minimum of clearance; . Similarly, the evacuation tube 26 is made slightly longer than the outer tube 10 to ensure complete evacuation of the tampon 40. As shown in FIG. 5A, the distal end 28 of the discharge tube 26 is passed through the protrusion 22 of the outer tube 10 to form the tampon 4.
In this case, the number of fingers 30 and grooves 32 can be changed arbitrarily, but As shown in FIG. 4, six grooves 32 may be provided in line with three protrusions 22. Like the petal-shaped portion 14 of the outer tube 10, the finger portion 30 is provided with its tip bent slightly inward so as to form a closed configuration, as shown in Fig. 5A of the first person.

As shown in Figure 1, Figure 5, each finger 30
The outer tube has a raised stop 34m which cooperates with a groove 24 (FIG. 1') provided inside the rear end of the outer tube. The drain tube 26 may also include an outwardly projecting annular collar 36 (FIG. 1A) at its rear end 38.

In FIG. 1A, the tampon inserter according to the invention is shown in a state where the evacuation tube 26 is placed within the generally thick outer tube 10 and is suitable for packaging. As is clear from this state, the tongue and bong 40 are not held directly within the outer tube 10 but within the discharge tube 26. The tampon 40 is formed of absorbent material in an elongated cylindrical shape and is provided with a drawstring 42 (indicated at 42 m in FIG. 10) at its rear end in a conventional manner. The drawstring 42 can, for example, form a loop that holds the loose ends of two folded pieces. In the configuration of FIG. 1A, the tips of the outer tube 10 and the discharge tube 26 are substantially aligned, and the protrusion 22 of the outer tube 10 extends through the opening or groove 32 between the fingers 30 of the discharge tube 26. The outer tube 10 telescopes onto the evacuation tube 26 so as to engage the tampon 40 . Therefore, the 1st A
As can be seen, the dimensions of the tampon inserter in its ready state are approximately one length of the length of the tampon 40;
This is extremely advantageous compared to the conventional telescopic type described above which is twice and a half times larger. Similarly, the overall length is controlled only by insertion depth and not by inserter design.

In operation, while holding the outer tube 10 firmly, the discharge tube 26 is partially pulled out from the outer tube 10. To this end, the discharge tube 26 is moved axially away from the distal opening 18 of the outer tube 10, ie in the direction of the arrow 44 in FIG. During this operation process, the tampon 40 is held in place by the protrusion 22, which grips the tampon 40 and prevents it from moving backwards.
is fixed in position relative to the outer tube 10. During said movement of the evacuation tube 26, its fingers 30 slide over the surface of the tampon 40. Once the finger 30 is pulled past the rear end of the tampon 40, the finger 30
0 and 0 are mutually closed and become the position behind the tampon, which is the starting state for the υ evacuation operation.

The outer pipe 10 and the discharge pipe 26 of the ri/bong inserter are the restraining means 24.
．． 34 (these are 24m, 24b, 2 in different drawings)
4e, 34a, 34b, 34e. For example, in FIG. 5A, 34 is 34 m) to prevent dislodgement during the extraction process of the drain pipe.

In the restraining means illustrated in FIGS. 6 to 9, the circumferential stop 24C of the outer tube 10 (clearly shown in FIG. 6) rests on the outer surface of the discharge tube 26 and the outer tube lO rear end 2
0 (FIG. 1A) facing outward and slightly pushed in the radial direction. However, the discharge pipe 26 is
) When placed at the rear, as shown in FIG. 7, the stop portion 24e engages with the inclined recess provided on the finger portion 30 of the discharge pipe 26, preventing the discharge pipe 26 from moving further rearward. be prevented. In this way, the exhaust tube 26 is prevented from being completely removed from the outer tube 10.

Preferred examples of the restraining means are shown in Fig. 1A (groove 24a) and Fig. 5A.
(protrusion 34a). In another example, as shown in FIG. 1B, the annular groove 24b of the outer tube 10 may have an inclined surface so that it can be well engaged with the inclined protrusion 34b of the discharge tube 26.

When operating the tampon inserter, eject it first.
After pulling the tube 26 into its operating position (FIG. 7), the outer tube lO
is inserted into the vaginal canal, and then the discharge tube 26 is telescopically inserted into the entire outer tube 10 toward its tip, and the petal-shaped portion 14 of the outer tube 10 is pushed out, and the tip is inserted into the outer tube 10. 18 and push out 40 tons of tampon (Figure 8). At this time, the protrusion 22 is of a one-way stop type and stops the tampon 4o from backward movement, but is designed to be able to move freely in the distal direction.

Forward movement of the drain tube 26 within the outer tube lo is restricted by providing the drain tube 26 with a collar 36 that adheres to the rear end of the outer tube 10 (FIG. 4). Although the discharge pipe 26 is slightly longer than the outer tube 1o, the distal end of the discharge tube 26 protrudes beyond the distal end of the outer tube 1o. Therefore, the tampon 4o is completely inserted into the vaginal canal.

In carrying out the present invention, if a 4° tampon is used that has sufficient expandability to fit tightly into the outer tube, the tip of the discharge tube may be attached to the rear end of the tampon during the discharge process. Because of the positive engagement, the discharge tube 26 can be operated effectively even without the fingers 3ot.

If there were no groove 32 formed by the fingers 30 at the tip of the ejection tube, the one-way restraining protrusion 22 would prevent the tampon from moving backwards and only allow it to move forward. Must be engaged before the tip of the tube. To do this, the tampon must be held so that it slightly protrudes beyond the tip of the drain tube.

The protrusion 22 can be replaced by a one-way restraining means, such as a looped extension 22m at the true end of the drawstring 42, as shown in FIG. In this case, the tampon 4o is held by a loop 22a hung around one of the petal-shaped parts 14 of the outer tube 10, and does not move backward, but moves forward and is discharged. .

The present invention is applicable to other modified preferred tampon inserters of standard length. Users have found that there is considerable discomfort when expelling a dry tampon through the delicate tissue of the vaginal canal/inserter. The discomfort caused by the tampon moving relative to the lung surface and causing friction is especially noticeable when menstrual flow is weak. At this time, the above problem can be solved by applying a lubricant to the surface of the tampon, but this is not completely satisfactory. However, it has been found that this problem can be overcome by making the outer tube long enough to allow the user to place the tampon in its final position before expelling it from the ejector.

Tampon insertion as described above is effectively performed according to the present invention. That is, the tampon inserter according to the invention is inserted deeply into the vaginal canal so that the tampon is delivered to the correct final position, then the evacuation tube 26 is pulled behind the tampon, and finally the evacuation tube 26 is placed in a static position. While holding the outer pipe 10 at the discharge pipe 2
6 until it hits the rear end 38 of the discharge pipe.

Therefore, in this case, the operation of positioning the tampon 40 within the vaginal canal can be called a pulling operation rather than an ejection operation. Since the wall of the outer tube 10 is much smoother than the surface of a tampon, the problem of abrasion is largely eliminated. In contrast to the conventional device in which the tampon inserter 40 is inserted directly into the outer tube 10, in the device of the present invention, the tampon inserter is inserted into the tip of the internal discharge tube 26. However, it does not need to be as long as in the conventional case.

Furthermore, when inserting a tampon by a pull-type operation instead of an ejection operation, the tampon can be controlled to be inserted more aggressively and accurately than in the case of a conventional pusher-type ejection operation. In the case of a conventional no-flanger-type evacuation operation, there is a risk that the tampon may be deflected when positioning the tampon.

Previously, pull-operated tampon inserters have been developed, but as in US Pat. No. 4,048,998, the structure was complicated and expensive.

Finally, in carrying out the present invention, in order to facilitate manufacturing, it is necessary to provide the inner surface of the outer tube 10 and the outer surface of the inner discharge tube 26, respectively.
Preferably, longitudinally extending and engaging projections and grooves are provided to provide positive rotational alignment between the tubes.

This will aid in correct assembly of the inserter so that the protrusion 22 lines up with the groove 32 and projects into it.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

ilA shows a partially cut away side view of a preferred embodiment of a tampon inserter according to the invention, FIG. 1B shows an enlarged sectional view of another embodiment of the restraint means shown in FIG. 1A, and FIG. 1A shows a perspective view of the distal end of the outer tube shown in FIG. 1A, FIG. 3 shows a front view of the distal end of the embodiment of FIG. 1A, and FIG. 4 shows the line 4--4 of FIG. 1A. FIG. 5A is a side view of the distal end of the discharge pipe of the implementation row of FIG. 1A, and FIGS. 5B and 5G are similar to FIG. Figures 6.7 and 8.9 respectively show a longitudinal cross-sectional side view of a tampon inserter with a discharge tube according to Figure 5C; is being pulled out from the preparation position in the outer pipe to the start position, the discharge pipe is in the start position of the discharge operation,
The state in which the ejection pipe is discharging the tampon from the outer tube and the state in which the ejection pipe has completed the ejection operation are shown;
1d is a drawing similar to figure ilA, but showing a different embodiment of the grasping means involved in preventing unidirectional movement of the tampon. 10... Outer tube, 12... Tip portion of outer tube 10, 1
6... groove, 14... petal-shaped part, 18...
Opening, 20... Rear end of outer tube, 22... Outer tube 1
0 inner protrusion, 24a... annular groove, 26.
... Discharge pipe, 28... Tip of discharge pipe 26, 30.
...Finger portion of the tip portion 28, 32...Groove or groove portion,
24a...groove, 24b...groove, 34a...raised stop or protrusion, 34b...slope protrusion, 3G
... Annular collar portion, 38 ... Rear end portion of the discharge pipe 26,
4o...tampon, 42...pull string, 44...
- Arrow, 22a...Loop-shaped extension of the drawstring 42.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A discharge tube suitable for storing a tampon therein, an outer tube slidably engaged with the surface of the discharge tube and provided with a tip discharge portion, and retained within the discharge tube. grasping means provided on said outer tube for engaging said tampon/to resist movement of said tampon toward the dorsal end of said outer tube, but permitting ejection of said tampon/from said distal end; A menstrual button/bom inserter comprising: 2. The grasping means has an inclined shape angled toward the distal end of the outer tube, and is attached to the outer tube so as to engage with a tumbler held in the discharge tube. 2. A sanitary tampon inserter as claimed in claim 1, comprising a number of internal protrusions that can be used as a sanitary tampon inserter. 3. Each of the protrusions has a substantially triangular shape that is gradually and gently sloped toward the rear end of the tube, and is substantially vertical or sharply sloped toward the distal end. The sanitary tampon inserter according to item 2. 4. The distal end of the outer tube is provided with a plurality of petal-shaped parts, which are bent to form a generally rounded top and are sufficiently flexible to allow the passage of the tank y therethrough. A sanitary tampon inserter as claimed in claim 1 constructed therein. 5. The sanitary tampon inserter according to claim 1, wherein the distal end of the discharge tube includes a plurality of fingers separated from each other. 6. The fingers are flexible and are slightly biased at their free ends inwardly to follow the closed state of the evacuation tube holding the tampon, and are opened and ejected during the evacuation operation. When the tube is pulled backwards, it passes over the tampon and can move relative to the outer tube.
The sanitary tampon inserter described in Section 1. 7. The grasping means may protrude from the outer tube between the fingers of the evacuation tube to engage a tampon within the evacuation tube. The sanitary tampon inserter according to item 5. 8. The sanitary tampon inserter according to claim 1, further comprising a restraining means for preventing the outer tube of the discharge tube from coming off. 9. The restraining means comprises a circumferentially extending raised stop and a circumferential groove engaged therewith, one of which is formed on the outer surface of the distal end of the discharge tube, and the other is formed on the outer surface of the distal end of the outer tube. The sanitary tampon inserter according to claim 8, wherein the sanitary tampon inserter is formed on the inner surface of the rear end portion. 10. The stop is a series of ribs extending annularly and formed on the outside of the fingers of the discharge tube, and the groove is provided on the inner surface of the outer tube close to the rear end. A sanitary tampon inserter according to claim 9. 11. The evacuation tube has an outwardly directed flange at its rear end, and the flange is adapted to inhibit forward movement of the evacuation tube relative to the outer tube during the tampon ejection operation.
The sanitary tampon inserter described in Section 1.