Patent Application
20180214629
This application claims priority to and benefit of Indian Patent Application No. 201711003942 filed Feb. 2, 2017. The contents of the above-identified application are relied upon and incorporated herein in their entirety by reference.
The present invention relates to liquid dispensers adapted to be fitted to a container holding liquid. More particularly, the present invention relates to a liquid dispensing port and liquid dispensing system, and methods and system comprising the liquid dispensing port for dispensing liquid whereby a desired quantity of the liquid can be dispensed at a controllable flow rate without interruption.
The liquid dispensing port and liquid dispensing system can be used for dispensing liquid (for example glucose solution, saline solution, medicine, blood, blood components, etc.) to be infused into a human or animal body i.e. a patient by means of an infusion system.
Intravenous infusion system with a flow regulating and stopping liquid dispensers are already known and used to administer controlled quantities of intravenous fluid (for example glucose solution, saline solution, medicine, blood, blood components, etc.) into a patient's body seeking treatment. Such infusion systems are either pump driven or gravity driven infusion devices.
Gravity driven infusion devices typically include a drip chamber with or without a flow regulating and stopping member, a length of flexible infusion line to connect the lower end of the drip chamber to a standard connector. The connector is then connected via conventional access means such as a needle, a catheter or the like to a patient. The upper end of the drip chamber is provided with a spike which is used to pierce a fluid source such as a bag or bottle containing a specified infusion fluid.
However, various problems and disadvantages are associated with such infusion devices. One of the major problems commonly faced is that certain amount of air in the form of bubbles may get into the blood circulation of the patient accidently during the infusion procedure which may lead to air embolism. The air embolism in a patient may cause breathlessness, chest pain, stroke, wheezing, fast heartbeat, loss of consciousness or the like and may lead to death.
Some systems rely on a dip tube to draw the liquid out of containers of liquids which always leads to a small percentage of the liquid being wasted. Moreover, current systems relying on a dip tube to draw the liquid out of the container have problems with the exchange of the container: air bubbles can be trapped at the bottom of the tube which if not purged out, will cause process defects leading to losses as well as increased production costs.
It is desired to provide an improved liquid dispensing port adapted to be fitted to a container holding liquid, whereby a desired quantity of the liquid can be dispensed from the container at a controllable flow rate without interruption. It is also desired to provide an improved liquid dispenser port which is inexpensive to manufacture, efficient, effective and simple in its construction and use.
A primary object and advantage of the present invention is to provide an improved liquid dispensing port which is easy to install and use.
Another object and advantage of the present invention is to provide an improved liquid dispensing port which has an ability to be used in many different types of containers with many different types of liquids and be easily cleaned.
Another object and advantage of the present invention is to provide an improved liquid dispensing port which is inexpensive to manufacture, efficient, effective and simple in its construction and use.
Another object and advantage of the present invention is to provide an improved liquid dispensing port which act as adapters that can be pressed and/or fitted into the open end of a container/bottle neck and/or opening to allow the use of dispenser which restricts leakage from the bottle and resists removal from the bottle.
Another object and advantage of the present invention is to provide a liquid dispensing port and liquid dispensing system, and methods and system comprising the liquid dispensing port which prevents the instances of air embolism.
Another object and advantage of the present invention is to provide a liquid dispensing port of unique design.
Another object and advantage of the present invention is to provide a liquid dispensing port and liquid dispensing system, and methods and system comprising the liquid dispensing port which helps reducing work load with respect to its installation and use.
Another object and advantage of the present invention is to provide a liquid dispensing port and liquid dispensing system, and methods and system comprising the liquid dispensing port which can help in preparing a series of infusions at once which is quicker and more hygienic than ever before.
Yet another object and advantage of the present invention is to provide a liquid dispensing port having means to communicate ambient air pressure to the liquid level surface in the liquid container. One of the means used is a filter which is permeable to air and impermeable to liquid being fitted in a channel provided in the liquid dispensing port. The filter is provided within the channel, preferably, at the distal end thereof. However, the filter can be arranged anywhere between the proximal and distal ends of the channel. The filter is designed such that it is permeable for air to pour out of the container into the atmosphere but prevents liquid contained in the container from pouring out through an opening into the atmosphere.
According to the invention, it is possible that the filter is formed by a hydrophobic or hydrophilic material. The filter is formed from hydrophobic material, i.e. material repelling water and other liquids. However, the filter material allows the passage of air.
Another object and advantage of the present invention is to provide a liquid dispensing port which is transferable from one container to another.
Yet another object and advantage of the present invention to provide a liquid dispensing port that may be easily assembled and disassembled without the use of tools.
One aspect of the present invention relates to an improved liquid dispensing port adapted to be fitted to a container holding liquid for example a bottle, whereby a desired quantity of the liquid can be dispensed from the container at a controllable flow rate without interruption. The liquid dispensing port comprising: a distal end and a proximal end, wherein the distal end is received in a container/bottle, an infusion tube is received in the proximal end; a holding rim is provided in between the proximal and distal end; axially extending openings formed in the liquid dispensing port; an air vent extending axially parallel to the openings is provided in the port which facilitate the passage of liquid from the container through the tube.
The air vent is provided with another axially extending openings to facilitate equalizing the pressure on the liquid level with ambient air pressure thereby allowing the liquid to freely flow.
Another aspect of the present invention relates to liquid dispensing system, and methods and system comprising the liquid dispensing port for dispensing liquid whereby a desired quantity of the liquid can be dispensed at a controllable flow rate without interruption.
In one embodiment, the liquid dispensing port is provided with a filter which is permeable to air and impermeable to liquid. Preferably the material of filter may be flexible and may be sheet or film, tube or fiber, or plug form or a combination thereof. The material may be a fabric, as a nonwoven, woven, or knit fabric, or a scrim. The filter is fitted in a channel provided in the liquid dispensing port.
In an embodiment, the liquid dispensing port can be constructed as a unitary dispensing port being a one-piece design. In an alternative embodiment, the liquid dispensing port can be molded with more than one piece.
In an embodiment, the liquid dispensing port which act as adapters that can be pressed and/or fitted into the open end of a bottle neck to allow the use of dispenser which restricts leakage from the bottle and resists removal from the bottle.
In an alternative embodiment, the liquid dispensing port can be fitted to a liquid container of the type having a cap threadably engaging external or male threads wherein the liquid dispensing port has internal or female threads such that the port can be threadably connected to the liquid container such as a one-gallon bottle.
The foregoing and other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
Generally speaking, the term “proximal” refers to a region of the device or parts thereof or a location on the device which is closest to, for example, a user using the device. In contrast to this, the term “distal” refers to a region of the device which is farthest from the user, for example, the distal region of a needle will be the region of a needle containing the needle tip which is to be inserted e.g. into a patients vein.
According to a first aspect of the present invention and referring to
Referring now to
As illustrated in
Thus, the port 10 comprises two flow paths (i) a first passage/channel 40 formed by axially extending openings 22 and 24 that allows liquid to pass out of the container 16; and (ii) a second passage/channel 42 formed by axially extending openings 28 and 30 to allow air to enter or pass-through the container 16.
The first passage/channel 40 facilitates only the passage of liquid from the container 16 and does not allow air flow due to the second passage/channel 42 which runs parallel to each other and do not share any connection. This independent parallel arrangement does not hinder the passage of free flow of liquid from the container 16 when in use. This parallel arrangement ensures that a person pouring liquid from container 16 do not face the problem of liquid flow erratically and the problem of “glugging” i.e. uneven flow of liquid caused by unbalanced pressures between the atmospheric air pressure outside the container 16 and the air pressure within the container 16. The port 10 not only minimizes or prevents the common glugging effect but it can allow liquid from a container 16 to be poured smoothly at any angle.
The filter 32 is preferably permeable to air and impermeable to liquid. In an alternative embodiment, the filter 32 can be arranged anywhere in between the openings 28 and 30. In one embodiment the filter 32 is cylindrical in shape with a larger diameter on its side falling in the container 16 than an inner diameter within the openings 28 and 30. Other shape of filter 32 such as oval, square, semi-circular, rectangular or the like can also be used.
Having a cylindrical filter 32 with a larger diameter on its side falling in the container 16 is advantageous, because a certain blockage of the filter 32, if occurs, is compensated by the diameter difference, such that a continuous flow of air through the filter 32 and to the atmosphere is still ensured.
A fluid flow adjustment device such as a roller clamp (not shown) can be arranged between the tube 18 and the standard connector being movable along the length of the flexible infusion tube 18. The roller clamp could be gradually adjusted so that the infusion tube could be squeezed proportionally to change the infusion rate and may also help in changing the fluid source i.e. bottle or container for multiple infusion procedures.
A clip (not shown) may also be arranged between the on the flexible tube 18 along its. The clip is configured to stop the flow of infusion fluid instantly by a clipping action.
The filter 32 can be sealed in the air vent by heat sealing, adhesive sealing, ultrasonic welding, heated die, radio frequency, mechanical seal, insert molding, laser welding, press/snap fit, annular ring with groove fitment etc. The filter 32 has a strong affinity for air while restricting liquid to pass through its surface. As a result, the filter 32 is permeable to air and impermeable to fluid/liquid which facilitate equalizing the pressure on the liquid level with ambient air pressure thereby allowing the liquid to freely flow.
Furthermore, because the same liquid dispensing port 10 can be used for multiple infusions, the material cost and clinical waste is greatly reduced and this is one of the advantages of the present invention.
Although this invention has been disclosed in the context of certain preferred embodiments and examples, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention extends beyond the specifically disclosed embodiments to other alternative embodiments and/or uses of the invention and obvious modifications and equivalents thereof. Thus, from the foregoing description, it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that many changes and modifications can be made thereto without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as set forth in the claims.
Accordingly, it is not intended that the scope of the foregoing description be limited to the exact description set forth above, but rather that such description be construed as encompassing such features that reside in the present invention, including all the features and embodiments that would be treated as equivalents thereof by those skilled in the relevant art.
Thus, it is intended that the scope of the present invention herein disclosed should not be limited by the particular disclosed embodiments described above but should be determined only by a fair reading of the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 201711003942 | Feb 2017 | IN | national |
