WO2010047425A1

WO2010047425A1 - Needle for traditional oriental acupuncture

Info

Publication number: WO2010047425A1
Application number: PCT/KR2008/005964
Authority: WO
Inventors: Youn-Sung Kim
Original assignee: Youn-Sung Kim
Priority date: 2008-10-25
Filing date: 2008-10-25
Publication date: 2010-04-29

Abstract

There is provided a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture and, more particularly, a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture, which includes a needle body, a needle tip in a pointed shape formed at one end of the needle body, and a needle handle formed at the other end of the needle body thicker than the needle body so as to function as a handle, comprising grooves or protrusions in various shapes formed on the outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body and needle tip, thereby pain is relieved when acupuncture is applied to the body of a patient, irritation is reduced since it is easy to insert the needle, and the acupuncture effect is maximized by stimulation when the needle is rotated after it is inserted. As described above, the needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to the present invention, which comprises the needle body made of stainless material, the needle tip formed at one end of the needle body, and the needle handle formed at the other end of the needle body thicker than the needle body so as to function as a handle, is characterized by the grooves or protrusions formed on the outer circumferential surface of the needle body, thereby relieving pain when applying the acupuncture and making it easy to insert the needle so as not to cause any irritation.

Description

Description NEEDLE FOR TRADITIONAL ORIENTAL ACUPUNCTURE

Technical Field

[1] The present invention relates to a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture and, more particularly, to a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture, which includes a needle body, a needle tip in a pointed shape formed at one end of the needle body, and a needle handle formed at the other end of the needle body thicker than the needle body so as to function as a handle, comprising grooves and protrusions in various shapes formed on outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body and needle tip, thereby pain is relieved when acupuncture is applied to a patient, irritation is reduced since it is easy to insert the needle, and the acupuncture effect is maximized by stimulation when the needle is rotated after it is inserted. Background Art

[2] In general, a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture is made so as to have a predetermined thickness by processing a metal material which is harmless to a patient. The needle includes: a needle line part in a thin round pin shape formed to be bent when certain force is applied; a needle tip in a pointed shape formed by gently grinding one end of the needle line part so as to be easily inserted into a patient; and, a handle in a coil or other shape extended from the other end of the needle line part so as to be held by an acupuncturist, thereby enabling the acupuncturist to apply acupuncture to a patient.

[3] In a needle used for traditional Oriental acupuncture, the needle line part is made of metal material, such as gold, silver, platinum, stainless steel or the like. While the needle line part stimulates and is inserted through the skin of a patient to be acupunctured, mechanical stimulation is given to the tissue around the needle, thereby enhancing a healing process from a disease and promoting health.

[4] That is, since a needle used for traditional Oriental acupuncture is made of metal material and has a pointed tip, a patient is scared visually and feels a pain on the skin when applying the acupuncture. Due to these reasons, a patient has aversion to the acupuncture performed in several times.

[5] FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional needle 1 for traditional Oriental acupuncture. The needle 1 comprises: a needle body 14 made of stainless material, a needle tip 12 in a pointed shape formed at one end of the needle body 14, and a needle handle 16 formed at the other end of the needle body 14 thicker than the needle body 14 so as to function as a handle. Disclosure of Invention Technical Problem

[6] When a conventional needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture is inserted into skin of a patient for a treatment using the conventional needle, friction between the skin of a patient and the surface of the conventional stainless needle tip grinded sharp or the surface of the needle body is not smooth due to a characteristic of metal, causing a pain naturally. As a result, the patient has aversion to acupuncture and thus the effect of acupuncture sharply decreases.

[7] Therefore, the present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and it is an aspect of the present invention to provide a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture, which includes a needle body, a needle tip in a pointed shape formed at one end of the needle body, and a needle handle formed at the other end of the needle body thicker than the needle body so as to function as a handle, comprising grooves and protrusions in various shapes formed on outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body and needle tip, thereby pain is relieved when acupuncture is applied to a patient, irritation is reduced since it is easy to insert the needle, and the acupuncture effect is maximized by stimulation when the needle is rotated after it is inserted. Technical Solution

[8] In accordance with the present invention, the above and other aspects can be accomplished by a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture, which includes a needle body made of stainless material, a needle tip in a pointed shape formed at one end of the needle body, and a needle handle formed at the other end of the needle body thicker than the needle body so as to function as a handle, comprising: grooves or protrusions formed on outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body and needle tip, thereby relieving pain when applying the acupuncture and making it easy to insert the needle so as not to cause any irritation.

Advantageous Effects

[9] As described above, since the needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to the present invention, which includes the needle body, the needle tip in a pointed shape formed at one end of the needle body, and the needle handle formed at the other end of the needle body thicker than the needle body so as to function as a handle, comprises the grooves or protrusions in various shapes formed on the outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body and needle tip, there are the effects in that pain is relieved when acupuncture is applied to a patient, irritation is reduced since it is easy to insert the needle, and the acupuncture effect is maximized by stimulation when the needle is rotated after it is inserted. Brief Description of the Drawings

[10] These and other aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[11] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a conventional needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture;

[12] FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[13] FIG. 3 is a plan view illustrating a needle body and a needle tip of the needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to the first embodiment;

[14] FIG. 4 is a plan view illustrating a needle body and a needle tip of a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

[15] FIG. 5 is a plan view illustrating a needle body and a needle tip of a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to a third embodiment of the present invention;

[16] FIG. 6 shows sectional views of parts A-A in FIGS. 3 and 5;

[17] FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[18] FIG. 8 is a plan view illustrating a needle body and a needle tip of the needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[19] FIG. 9 is a plan view illustrating a needle body and a needle tip of a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention;

[20] FIG. 10 is a plan view illustrating a needle body and a needle tip of a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention; and

[21] FIG. 11 shows a sectional view of parts A-A in FIGS. 8 and 10.

[22] [Brief description of reference numbers of major elements]

[23] 10: needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture

[24] 20: needle body 30: needle tip

[25] 40: needle handle 50: groove

[26] 60: protrusion

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[27] The present invention to achieve the above aspects has the characteristics as follows:

[28] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, there is a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture, which includes a needle body made of stainless material, a needle tip in a pointed shape formed at one end of the needle body, and a needle handle formed at the other end of the needle body thicker than the needle body to function as a handle, comprising: grooves formed on an outer circumferential surface of the needle body to relieve pain when applying the acupuncture to a patient and make it easy to insert the needle so as not to cause any irritation, the grooves formed to be extended to the end of the needle tip.

[29] In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, there is a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture, which includes a needle body made of a stainless material, a needle tip in a pointed shape formed at one end of the needle body, and a needle handle formed at the other end of the needle body thicker than the needle body so as to function as a handle, comprising: protrusions formed on an outer circumferential surface of the needle body to relieve pain when applying the acupuncture to a patient and make it easy to insert the needle so as not to cause any irritation, the protrusions formed to be extended to the end of the needle tip. Mode for the Invention

[30] The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which preferred embodiments of the invention are shown.

[31] It will be understood that words or terms used in the specification and claims shall not be interpreted as limited to the meaning defined in commonly used dictionaries. It will be further understood that the words or terms should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and the technical idea of the invention, based on the principle that an inventor may properly define the meaning of the words or terms to best explain the invention.

[32] As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

[33] The present invention may be embodied in different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided as teaching examples of the invention. Therefore, it will be understood that the scope of the invention is intended to include various modifications and alternative arrangements within the capabilities of persons skilled in the art using presently known or future technologies and equivalents.

[34] FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a needle 10 for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a plan view illustrating a needle body and a needle tip of the needle 10 for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to the first embodiment.

[35] As illustrated in FIG. 2, the needle 10 for traditional Oriental acupuncture comprises: a needle body 20, a needle tip 20 in a pointed shape formed at one end of the needle body 20, and a needle handle 30 formed at the other end of the needle body 20 thicker than the needle body 20 so as to be functioning as a handle.

[36] The overall shape of the needle body 20 is cylindrical. The needle body 20 is made of stainless material and the needle tip 30 and the needle handle 40 are respectively formed at opposite ends of the needle body 20 in a single body.

[37] The needle handle 40 is formed at one end of the needle body 20 thicker than the needle body 20 so as to function as a handle. The needle handle 40 is made of same stainless material as the needle body 20 or it may be made of different material.

[38] Referring to FIG. 3, the needle tip 30 is formed at the one end of the needle body 20 in a single body. The needle tip 30 is made of the same stainless material as the needle body 20 and is formed to be progressively pointed toward its end. The acupuncture is applied to the skin of a patient through a pointed part of the needle tip 30.

[39] Grooves 50 are formed on the outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body 20 and needle tip 30 formed in a single body, to relieve pain when the acupuncture is applied to a patient and to make it easy to insert the needle 10 so as not to cause any irritation. The grooves 50 are connected from the end of the needle body 20 to the end of the needle tip 30 so as to be formed in a single body. Then, the grooves 50 are formed in a spiral shape (a screw shape) on the outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body 20 and needle tip 30.

[40] The spiral grooves 50 are formed, maintaining a regular interval between the grooves

50 toward the needle tip 30. Further, a number of the spiral grooves 50 are formed in one or more lines.

[41] FIG. 4 is a plan view illustrating a needle body 20 and a needle tip 30 of a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

[42] As illustrated in FIG. 4, a groove 50 is formed in a spiral shape (a screw shape) on the outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body 20 and the needle tip 30. The interval between the grooves 50 may be formed to be progressively narrower from the needle body 20 to the needle tip 30. To the contrary, the interval between the grooves 50 may be formed to be progressively wider from the needle body 20 to the needle tip 30.

[43] FIG. 5 is a plan view illustrating a needle body 20 and a needle tip 30 of a needle 10 for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

[44] As illustrated in FIG. 5, a number of grooves 50 are formed on outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body 20 and the needle tip 30 lengthwise. The interval between the grooves 50 is maintained to be consistent, to make it easy to insert the needle 10 when the needle 10 for traditional Oriental acupuncture is applied to a patient and thus to reduce pain of the patient. The grooves 50 are formed to be connected from the needle body 20 to the end of the needle tip 30 in a straight line.

[45] FIG. 6 shows sectional views of parts A-A of FIGS. 3 and 5.

[46] As illustrated in FIG. 6, the grooves 50 taken along parts A-A of FIGS. 3 and 5 are formed in various sectional shapes, such as a rectangular shape, an inverted triangular shape and a hemispheric shape.

[47] FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating a needle 10 for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 8 is a plan view illustrating a needle body and a needle tip of the needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

[48] As illustrated in FIG. 7, the needle 10 for traditional Oriental acupuncture comprises: a needle body 20, a needle tip 30 in a pointed shape formed at one end of the needle body 20, and a needle handle 40 formed at the other end of the needle body 20 thicker than the needle body 20 so as to function as a handle.

[49] The overall shape of the needle body 20 is cylindrical. The needle body 20 is made of stainless material and the needle tip 30 and the needle handle 40 are respectively formed at opposite ends of the needle body 20 in a single body.

[50] The needle handle 40 is formed at one end of the needle body 20 thicker than the needle body 20 so as to function as a handle. The needle handle 40 is made of same stainless material as the needle body 20 or it may be made of different material.

[51] Referring to FIG. 8, the needle tip 30 is formed at the one end of the needle body 20 in a single body. The needle tip 30 is made of the same stainless material as the needle body 20 and is formed to be progressively pointed toward its end. The acupuncture is applied to the skin of a patient through a pointed part of the needle tip 30.

[52] Protrusions 60 are formed on outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body 20 and needle tip 30 formed in a single body, to relieve pain when the acupuncture is applied to a patient and to make it easy to insert the needle 10 so as not to cause any irritation. The protrusions 50 are connected from the end of the needle body 20 to the end of the needle tip 30 so as to be formed in a single body. Then, the protrusions 60 are formed in a spiral shape (a screw shape) on outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body 20 and needle tip 30.

[53] The spiral protrusions 60 are formed, maintaining a regular interval between the protrusions 60 toward the needle tip 30. Further, a number of the spiral protrusions 60 are formed in one or more lines.

[54] FIG. 9 is a plan view illustrating a needle body 20 and a needle tip 30 of a needle for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

[55] As illustrated in FIG. 9, protrusions 60 are formed in a spiral shape (a screw shape) on outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body 20 and the needle tip 30. The interval between the protrusions 60 may be formed to be progressively narrower from the needle body 20 to the needle tip 30. To the contrary, the interval between the protrusions 60 may be formed to be progressively wider from the needle body 20 to the needle tip 30.

[56] FIG. 10 is a plan view illustrating a needle body 20 and a needle tip 30 of a needle 10 for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

[57] As illustrated in FIG. 10, a number of protrusions 60 are formed on outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body 20 and the needle tip 30 lengthwise. The interval between the protrusions 60 is maintained to be consistent, to make it easy to insert the needle 10 when the needle 10 for traditional Oriental acupuncture is applied to a patient and thus to reduce pain of the patient. The protrusions 60 are formed to be connected from the needle body 20 to the end of the needle tip 30 in a straight line.

[58] FIG. 11 is a sectional view of parts A-A in FIGS. 8 and 10.

[59] As illustrated in FIG. 11, the protrusion 60 in parts A-A section of FIGS. 8 and 10 shows a hemispheric shape. However, the protrusion may be formed in the other various shapes.

Claims

[1] A needle (10) for traditional Oriental acupuncture, which includes a needle body

(20) made of metal material, a needle tip (30) in a pointed shape formed at one end of the needle body (20), and a needle handle (40) formed at the other end of the needle body (20) thicker than the needle body (20) so as to function as a handle, comprising: a groove (50) formed on an outer circumferential surface of the needle body (20), to relieve pain when the needle (10) is applied to a patient and to make it easy to insert the needle (10) so as not to cause any irritation.

[2] A needle (10) for traditional Oriental acupuncture, which includes a needle body

(20) made of metal material, a needle tip (30) in a pointed shape formed at one end of the needle body (20), and a needle handle (40) formed at the other end of the needle body (20) thicker than the needle body (20) so as to function as a handle, comprising: a protrusion (60) formed on an outer circumferential surface of the needle body (20), to relieve pain when the needle (10) is applied to a patient and to make it easy to insert the needle (10) so as not to cause any irritation.

[3] The needle (10) for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the groove (50) or the protrusion (60) is formed in a spiral shape in one or more lines on outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body (20) and needle tip (30).

[4] The needle (10) for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a number of the grooves (50) or a number of the protrusions (60) are formed on outer circumferential surfaces of the needle body (20) and needle tip (30) lengthwise.

[5] The needle (10) for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the groove (50) or the protrusion (60) in the spiral shape is formed so as to be progressively narrower or wider toward the needle tip (30) in the interval between the grooves (50) or between the protrusions (60).

[6] The needle (10) for traditional Oriental acupuncture according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the groove (50) or the protrusion (60) in the spiral shape is formed so as to be connected from the needle body (20) to an end of the needle tip (30).