JPS6226300B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a table-top tube seal, particularly for fluid-filled tubes.

Blood collection from blood donors has become an important event in every city, town, and village as hospitals continue to have demand for blood and plasma. As a result, various types of blood collection centers are established, and mobile blood collection units are used to collect blood from donors in remote locations or in specific high-density areas such as shipping centers, factories, office buildings, etc. Blood samples are being taken.

Blood sampling is performed using a relatively simple method. However, relatively complex techniques are required to collect blood and to store and preserve this blood without spilling or contaminating it.

There are various devices that collect a predetermined weight of blood into a blood collection bag containing a predetermined amount of preservative. One such device includes a mechanism for tightening the tube that allows blood to flow into the blood collection bag. This device is now widely used and contains all of the equipment necessary to collect blood into a blood collection bag and to temporarily tighten tubing attached to the blood collection bag until a permanent hermetic seal is formed. .

Blood-filled plastic tubes can be easily and simply hermetically sealed using a hand-carried, hand-operated tube sealer. Its compact shape makes it easy to carry and can be heat sealed or heat sealed anywhere on the plastic tube placed in the middle of the jaw. The closure is therefore easily used to provide a seal at the donor site prior to withdrawing the needle and creating a sterile seal. A plurality of isolated sealed and blood-filled compartments are also completed along the length of the tube. In this case, each compartment is identified by a common serial number.
The compartments can be separated from each other so that various tests can be performed on the blood samples contained in the compartments. This advantage is particularly important when testing is required and the blood seal in the blood collection bag is not to be broken. At most blood collection centers, such as those run by the Red Cross, much of the labor is left in the hands of elderly people as a charity. Elderly people often have physical disabilities due to the natural phenomena of aging or due to previous injuries. The hand-held seals described above are difficult and painful to use for elderly people who do not have as much hand strength or experience pain when grasping the device with their own hands. As a result, the hermetic sealing rate or seal performance is substantially less than optimal.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a desk-top type tube sealing device that is lightweight and compact for convenient portability and does not require human effort when sealing a tube.

According to the present invention, there is provided a desk-top pipe seal for sealing a heat-weldable pipe, which has a top surface, a bottom surface, a front surface, and a housing having a rear surface; a stand extending laterally from the opposing sides of the housing for supporting the housing in combination with either of the two sides of the housing; and a stand extending from one side of the housing to the other side of the housing. a passageway extending through and having opposing surfaces thereof defined by said opposing side surfaces; a notch formed in said opposing side surfaces proximate an upper edge of said passage; and said opposing side surfaces; heat dissipating means disposed between and defining another surface of the passage; blocking means disposed between said opposing sides and defining a further surface of the passage; proximate said cutout; a fixed jaw extending from the heat dissipating means into the passage; a movable jaw for reciprocating from the blocking means toward the fixed jaw in substantially alignment therewith to press the tube against the fixed jaw;
electrically actuating means for causing said reciprocating motion of said movable jaw; circuit means for generating a source of high frequency energy; conductive means for transmitting said source of high frequency energy from said circuit means to said movable jaw; said electrically actuating means and said circuit means; and a switch means for starting.

Therefore, by placing the tube adjacent to the fixed jaw and actuating the switch means, the tube is compressed between the fixed jaw and the movable jaw and the high frequency energy is transmitted through the tube to the movable jaw. It is then transmitted to the stationary jaw, making it possible to seal the tube by heat welding.

Further, according to the present invention, the following advantages are achieved. That is, the sealing device of the present invention can be made lightweight and compact by making the widths of the top, bottom, front, and rear surfaces of the housing that constitute the sealing device of the present invention smaller than the height and depth of the opposing sides. By providing a heat dissipating means and extending the fixed jaw from the heat dissipating means, the heat generated between the jaws or in the tube can be dissipated, thereby preventing the temperature of the jaw or the tube from rising excessively. The reciprocating motion of the movable jaw is performed by electric actuating means, and by providing a switch means for activating the electric actuating means and the circuit means, an operation that does not require any operation other than grasping the material can be achieved. This provides a simpler sealing device.

Embodiments of the present invention allow the user of the closure to directly visualize the position of the tube whether the user is seated or standing. Thus, operator fatigue is reduced and accurate positioning of the automatically hermetically sealed fluid-filled tube is facilitated. By actuation of a tube position-sensing switch or a foot-operated switch, a hermetic seal is applied to the tube located intermediate the stationary and movable jaws, thereby allowing the handler to use one hand. Alternatively, both hands can be used to repeatedly place and reposition the tube between the jaws. The closure housing seals closed the actuating element and prevents fluid from seeping into the actuating element from the fluid-filled burst tube. A shaft supporting the movable jaw and extending from within the housing is sealed via a wipe seal. The jyo itself and associated structure are made from a large amount of thermally conductive material to dissipate the heat generated by the jyo and prevent heat concentration, which is convenient for both the handler and the integrity of the formed seal.

Embodiments of the present invention also provide a compact, dual-positioning desktop tube seal.

In accordance with yet another embodiment of the present invention, a compact desk top closure is provided which may be used as a single unit or as one of a series of units to create multiple sealed isolated compartments at once. .

Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown a tube 10 similar to a plastic tube used in conjunction with a blood collection bag. The tube 10 is made of a composition that allows the formation of seals, such as welds 11, 12, by heating after the tube has been compressed. A plurality of lateral welds are formed across the fluid-filled tube, resulting in a plurality of spaced compartments 13.
Each of these compartments may be used to test fluids or
or used to contain fluid for analyzing fluid samples. If the fill fluid is blood, each of the compartments 13 is identified with a number or other indicia to match the blood-filled blood collection bag to the blood sample contained within each compartment. .

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the desktop type sealing device 15.
This seal has a generally triangular surface 17,1
It consists of a housing 16 with a diameter of 8. This seal is relatively thin, ranging from 3.8 cm to 6.4 cm.
It has a width of about cm. In order to prevent the seal from tilting diagonally, the stand 19 is
It extends laterally from 7 and 18. The stand may be made of sheet material. The central portion of the stand forms part of the enclosure that defines the housing 16. A notch 20 is formed at the lower front of the housing 16, and a stationary jaw 21 and a movable jaw 22 provided within the notch can be accessed from both the horizontal and vertical directions. The block 23 is made of a material that conducts thermal energy and radio frequency energy (this may be integral with the stationary jaw 21) and extends from the front part 2 of the housing 16.
4 and 25 to the housing 16. The passageway extends downwardly from the cutout 20 between the sections 24, 25, so that in the event of a spill, such fluid can be easily removed from the fixed and movable jaws. Additionally, this passageway, combined with the cutout, provides sufficient room for cleaning up any leaking fluid.

Referring to FIG. 3, two desktop seals 15
a and 15b are shown in different usage modes.
One desk top closure 15a is oriented for use by a seated operator. In this case, the edge of the stand 19 rests on the desk 30 and together with the bottom of the housing 16 forms a stable T-shaped support for the closure. The cutout 20, which includes a fixed jaw and a movable jaw, is adapted to generally coincide with the line of sight of the operator. That is, the operator can easily see that the tube 10 is placed between the jaws and can see the actual sealing action of the jaws. The handler's hands are both used to grip the tube on both sides of the closure 15a and to position the tube in position during the sealing operation. Additionally, the tube can be moved laterally in either direction without changing the gripping force on the tube, and multiple welds and intermediate compartments are easily formed.

The tube closure 15b is supported on the desk 30 by the flat surface of the stand 19 and the rear edge 27 of the closure. The closure is again supported by a stable T-shaped support which prevents the closure from tipping during use. At the illustrated position of the other sealing member 15b, the notch 20 is generally aligned with the line of sight of a standing operator. Thus, the operator can easily recognize the placement of the tube 10 between the fixed and movable jaws and can monitor the operation of the jaws to ascertain an effective type of weld transversely to the tube.
Furthermore, both ends of the tube can be gripped with both hands, and multiple welds can be made to form isolated, fluid-filled compartments within the tube without changing the gripping force.

For high-volume production or when multiple welds must be made, multiple desktop seals may be used as a fourth
They are used in groups as shown in the figure. here,
Each of the closures 15 is placed close to each other at a distance corresponding to the length of the compartment formed in the tube 10. Each of the notches 20 is a straight tube 1.
0 are generally aligned with each other such that they can be inserted simultaneously between the fixed jaw and the movable jaw of each seal. By activating a foot-operated switch or similar device, the seals are moved all at the same time or in some other order to form the required weld on the tube. In FIG. 4, the sealing device 15
is shown with the orientation of closure 15a in FIG. 3, but this orientation could also be that of closure 15b.

Referring to FIGS. 5, 6, 7, and 8, the structural features of the components used in the closure are illustrated. Block 23 is attached to opposing sides 17, 18 by machine screws or bolts extending through the block from one side to the other. The fixed jaw 21 is the block 2
3 or as a separate element fixed to the block by welding, machine screws or the like. The movable jaw 22 is a cylindrical member 3
It is supported by a shaft 36 extending from 7. A block 38 made of electrically insulating material is located in the notch 20.
housing 1 between one side of the housing 1 and parts 24, 25
6 defines one side of a passageway extending through the passageway. A sleeve 39 located within a passageway 40 extending through block 38 provides an axial support surface for movable cylindrical member 37. As shown in the figure, the fixed jaw 21 is
The cross section is semicircular, and the movable jaw 22 also has a semi-circular cross section.
The cross section is at least semicircular, but may be cylindrical as shown. A threaded pin extends from the block 38 into the passageway 40 to align the fixed jaw 21 and the movable jaw 22 longitudinally with each other to obtain the proper radiation directing pattern of radio frequency energy therebetween.
longitudinally oriented slot 4 in the plane of 7;
It is slidably aligned with 2. This allows axis 3
Reorientation of the movable jaw 22 about the 6 axis is excluded. A wipe seal 43 is disposed within an annular groove around the forward end of passageway 40. An aperture 44 located approximately in the center of the wipe seal engages around the shaft 36. By making the diameter of the opening 44 smaller than the diameter of the shaft 36, the wiping seal flexes and thus creates a wiping action on the shaft each time the movable jaw 22 moves along the axis of the shaft 36.

A threaded shaft 48 extends rearwardly from the cylindrical member 37 and supports another cylindrical member 49.
A washer 50 is attached to the rear of the cylindrical member 49. A compressed spring 51 is held between this washer and a side wall 52 inside the housing 16. The action of spring 51 keeps movable jaw 22 in block 38 during periods when the seal is not actuated.
The point is to maintain it in a state where it is almost in contact with . Opening 5
3 is formed in the side wall 52 to accommodate movement of the cylindrical member 49 along the axis of the shaft 36.
Block 38 and cylindrical member 49 are each electrically insulated.

Movement of the movable jaw 22 is effected by an electrically operated solenoid 55. The solenoid includes a spring loaded plunger 56 having a threadably adjustable end piece 57. When the solenoid is actuated, the plunger 56 moves toward the fixed jaw 21 and contacts the end of the cylindrical member 49, thereby causing the cylindrical member 37 and the shaft 36 to move.
The movable jaw 22 is moved toward the fixed jaw via the movable jaw 22. When the solenoid 55 is no longer activated, the spring 58 pulls back the plunger 56 and releases the cylindrical member 4.
A spring 51 around 9 presses the washer 50 to pull back the movable jaw 22.

The extended position of movable jaw 22, shown in phantom, can be precisely controlled by extension or retraction of threaded shaft 48 relative to cylindrical member 49 or end piece 57 relative to plunger 56. Accurate extension of the movable jaw is therefore easily and easily repeated. Since the axes of the solenoid plunger and the movable jaw are not mechanically coupled to each other, any misalignment between them will not degrade the operating characteristics of the movable jaw. Therefore, inexpensive solenoids with relatively poor quality bearings can be used.

The solenoid and its actuation mechanism are isolated within the housing 16 by side walls 52, 54 that press against the faces 17, 18 of the housing.

The circuit used in the present invention transmits high frequency energy between the movable jaw 22 and the fixed jaw 21,
This high frequency energy also heats the partially compressed tube 10 provided between the jaws and partially melts the tube. This circuit is provided within compartment 60. Power to the circuit is provided by power cord 61 extending from grommet 62 to housing 16. The output side of the circuit includes a conductor 63 connected to a high frequency coil 64. The other end of the high frequency coil is electrically connected to the cylindrical member 37 via a conductive wire 65 and locked in place by nuts 66, 67 which are threadably engaged with the shaft 48.
A pair of conductors 68, 69 extending from compartment 60 electrically actuate the coil of solenoid 55. Selective activation of the circuits within compartment 60 is via a foot-operated switch (not shown) as previously described.
or by a small switch 75 responsive to placing the tube 10 between the fixed jaw 21 and the movable jaw 22. Regardless of the type of switch used, the switch is electrically connected to circuitry within compartment 60 via conductors 70,71.

A small switch 75 may be provided in a cavity 76 within the block 38 or in the housing 16.
It may be installed outside the An arm 77 rotatably attached to the small switch is adapted to rotate in response to the downward movement of the tube 10 between the fixed jaw 21 and the movable jaw 22. As the arm rotates, the arm presses against the pin 78 and the conductors 70, 71
are electrically connected to each other and thereby close the circuit within compartment 60.

In order to properly position the tube 10 between the fixed jaw and the movable jaw, the upper edge 2 of the sections 24, 25
8, 29 act as a support to prevent the tube from being pushed down below it. By this, tube 10
is inserted between the fixed and movable jaws, the circuit within the compartment 60 is activated. Activation activates solenoid 55 to force the movable jaw toward the fixed jaw. At the same time, a time burst of radio frequency energy is generated which is transmitted to the movable jaw 22 through the conductor 63, the radio frequency coil 64, the conductor 65, the cylindrical member 37 and the shaft 36. A return path for the generated high frequency energy is formed by the movable jaw 21 and the electrically conductive parts 24,25.

When the movable jaw is positioned close to, but not in contact with, the fixed jaw, the tube 10 is compressed as shown in FIG. 5, bringing the inner opposing surfaces closer together. A burst of radio frequency energy of a predetermined value is transmitted from the movable jaw to the fixed jaw through the tube. The tube 10 exhibits resistance to radio frequency energy transmitted therethrough to cause sufficient heating to partially melt or soften the tube and weld the opposing surfaces of the tube together. During compression of the tube,
The initial transfer of radio frequency energy through the tube generates some heat in the tube, causing it to assume the compressed shape shown in Figure 5.

After a predetermined period of time, the circuitry within compartment 60 terminates the generation of radio frequency energy, thus allowing the tube to cool and solenoid 55 to cease its activation.
By deactivating and deactivating the solenoid, the movable jaw is retracted and the tube 10 is removed. The heat generated during the welding operation and during the slight heating of the jaw itself is dissipated through the block 23, which serves as a rapid and effective means of heat dissipation. Therefore, the temperature of the fluid inside the tube will not increase excessively. In addition, part 2 made of aluminum or similar heat transfer material
4,25 readily dissipate heat to the housing 16 and the surrounding air. Continuous and rapid welding operations can therefore be carried out for long periods of time, with only small temperature increases occurring which are of little concern to either the tube or the handler.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of a typical circuit for operating the movable jaws and for heating and welding the tubes between the jaws. electric plug 80
is connected to a power source such as a conventional 110 volt alternating current circuit. The on-off switch 81 is the fuse 8
Power is supplied to the supply circuit 83 via 2. The power supply circuit provides a 24 volt DC power source for timing control circuit 84, switching circuit 85, and high frequency power oscillator 86, and also provides 24 volt power to solenoid 55 via conductor 68. When miniature switch 75 closes, timing control circuit 84 is activated and forms a command to switching circuit 85. This command causes power to flow through amplifier 87 to solenoid 55 . Additionally, high frequency energy is supplied to the movable jaw 22 from a high frequency power oscillator. After a predetermined period of time controlled by the timing control circuit, the transmission of high frequency energy ends, the solenoid 55 is no longer activated, and the movable jaw 22 is
Evacuate from a position that is close to the fixed jaw but away from it. The circuitry within dotted line 88 is generally representative of the circuitry within compartment 60, as shown in FIG.

Although only the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been shown above, various changes or modifications may be made within the scope of the claims without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a typical fluid-filled plastic tube with a plurality of spaced seals or welds; FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a desktop tube seal according to the present invention; Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing how the desktop type pipe sealing device shown in Fig. 2 is used, Fig. 4 is a front view showing a plurality of combination pipe sealing devices, and Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing the state in which the desk-top type pipe sealing device shown in Fig.
A cross-sectional view of the pipe sealing device taken along the line 5-5 in the figure, FIG. 6 is a top view taken along the line 6-6 in FIG. 5, and FIG.
Figure 5 is a side view taken along line 7-7, Figure 8 is a side view taken along line 8-8 in Figure 6, and Figure 9 is a typical circuit for generating high frequency energy. It is a block diagram. 10...Pipe, 13...Compartment, 15...Sealing tool, 16...Housing, 17, 18...Surface, 2
0... Notch, 21, 22... Jiyo, 23...
Block, 40... passage, 55... solenoid,
63, 65... Solenoid, 64... Coil, 7
4, 84, 85...switch.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A desk-top pipe sealing device for sealing heat-weldable pipes, which has a top surface, a bottom surface, a front surface, and a rear surface each having a width smaller than the height and depth of the opposing sides. a housing; a stand extending laterally from said opposing sides of the housing for supporting the housing in conjunction with either of two sides of the housing; and a stand extending through the housing from one side of the housing to the other side. between a passageway extending and having opposing surfaces thereof defined by said opposing side surfaces, a notch formed in said opposing side surfaces proximate an upper edge of said passageway, and said opposing side surfaces; heat dissipating means disposed and defining another surface of the passageway; blocking means disposed between said opposing sides and defining a further surface of the passageway; a fixed jaw extending from the dissipating means into the passageway; a movable jaw for reciprocating from the blocking means toward the fixed jaw in substantially alignment therewith to press the tube against the fixed jaw; and said reciprocating jaw of the movable jaw. electrically actuating means for effecting the movement; circuit means for generating a source of high frequency energy; electrically conductive means for transmitting the source of high frequency energy from the circuit means to the movable jaw; and switch means for activating the electrically actuating means and the circuit means. , whereby by positioning the tube adjacent to the fixed jaw and activating the switch means, the tube is compressed between the fixed jaw and the movable jaw and the radio frequency energy is applied to the tube. A desk-top type pipe sealing device characterized in that the transmission is transmitted from a movable joint to a fixed joint through the pipe, and the pipe is sealed by heat welding. 2. A pipe seal according to claim 1, wherein said electrically actuated means is a solenoid having a spring-loaded plunger. 3. A tube seal according to claim 2, wherein said movable jaw is disposed within the passageway and includes a shaft extending into the housing through blocking means. 4. A tube seal according to claim 3, wherein the shaft has an end that presses against, but is not connected to, the plunger of the solenoid. 5. A tube sealing device according to claim 4, further comprising bearing means for supporting said shaft within block means. 6. The tube sealing device according to claim 5, further comprising a sealing means for hermetically sealing the shaft. 7. A pipe seal according to claim 6, characterized in that said switch means is located within the passageway adjacent to said notch. 8. A tube seal according to claim 7, wherein said switching means includes an actuation arm responsive to insertion of the tube between a fixed jaw and a movable jaw. 9. A tube sealing device according to claim 8, characterized in that said circuit means is arranged within a housing. 10. The tube sealing device according to claim 1, wherein the corner portions of the opposing sides adjacent to the stand have an angle of 90 degrees. 11 the housing is supported in a first position by the stand and one side of the housing and in a second position by the stand and another side of the housing, the second position being 90° from the first position;
11. The tube sealing device of claim 10, wherein the tube sealing device is in a rotated position by an angle of .degree. 12. The blocking means includes means for bearing the movable jaw so that the movable jaw moves and returns from the blocking means toward the fixed jaw in a reciprocating manner generally on the same line as the fixed jaw. The pipe sealing device according to claim 1, characterized in that: 13. The tube seal of claim 3, wherein said shaft is generally longitudinally colinear with the operating axis of said solenoid.