Title of Invention

DRIP CHAMBER WITH AUTO END FLOW RETARTER AND FLOW BLOCKER

Abstract

The present invention relates to Drip chambers Llsed in medical field for executing I V fluids to patients and especially this invention relates to a Drip chamber with automatic (mechanically) control of fluid at the end of fluid in drip chamber preventing entry of air in patients I V system .The system comprises of Drip chamber (2) float (11) flow blocker (3) thin rubber membrane (10 ) spring (4) I V set (5,8,9) Air inlet seal(l) outlet with a pin hole (9) spring supporter( for spring on top model)

Full Text

Field of the invention The present invention relates to Drip chambers used in medical field for executing I V fluids to patients and especially this invention relates to a Drip chamber with automatic (mechanically) control of fluid at the end of fluid in drip chamber preventing entry of air in patients I V system Back ground of invention The designs of drip chamber which are in existence so far, does not have mechanical automatic flow control devise and flow blocker, when the fluid exhausts in the drip chamber and as such it warrants for personal monitoring by qualified medical attendant. As there is no mechanical automatic mechanism for controlling the flow of fluid when it is nearing to exhaust is existing so far, such situation is prone for endangering the life of patient in case of human failure. Summary of Invention The object of the invention is to provide a drip chamber with an automatic (mechanical) system for controlling of the fluid when the fluid is going to be exhausted in the drip chamber. This system is provided with automatic control for retarding the flow of I V fluid when it is nearing to exhaust and finally blocking when a small quantity of fluid is leftover in the drip chamber Another object of the invention is to provide an intravenous fluid delivery system having a drip chamber with automatic (mechanically) control of fluid at the end of fluid in drip chamber preventing entry of air in Patients IV system. When the drip chamber is filled with I V liquid, it will exert a buoyant force on the float and float will rise in the drip chamber, Elongating/compressing (in spring on top of float model) the spring with the float. The flow blocker which is connected to the float will open the out let of drip chamber and allow liquid to flow through a pin hole at the out let. After opening air entry seal at the top of drip chamber, the fluid starts entering the out let. The flow of the fluid is controlled by the flow control valve as per the requirement provided out side the bottle in the I V tube as usual in the case of normal execution of I V fluids. As the liquid in the drip chamber is depleting, the spring will get activated and the flow blocker is pulled/push down/up by the spring. When the flow blocker touches the outlet, it starts retarding the out flow by creating an obstruction at pin hole of outlet. As the fluid level further reduces, the blocking force on the outlet gets increased and finally when a little quantity is left over in chamber the flow will be finally blocked. Brief description of drawings. Fig. 1: A longitudinal section of the drip chamber in open condition Fig.2: A longitudinal section of the drip chamber in closed condition. Fig.3: The longitudinal cross section at flow blocker and outlet junction in open condition. Fig.4: The longitudinal cross section at flow blocker and outlet junction in closed condition Fig 5: Testing of drip chamber blocking system before execution Fig.6: A longitudinal section of the drip chamber in open condition in spring at the top of float model Fig7: A longitudinal section of the drip chamber in closed condition in spring at the top of float model Fig 8: Testing of drip chamber blocking system before execution in spring at the top of float model Fig.9: The longitudinal cross section at flow blocker and outlet junction in closed condition in spring at the top of float model Fig. 10: The longitudinal cross section at flow blocker and outlet junction in closed condition in spring at the top of float model Detailed description of the illustrative embodiment Description of the Figs 1 to 10 ITEM NO DISCRIPTION OF THE PART 1 AIR ENRTY SEAL 2 DRIP CHAMBER 3 FLOW BLOCKER 4 SPRING 5 I V FLUID PIPE 6 AIR CHAMBER 7 FLUID CONTROL VALVE 8 I V FLUID INJECTION NEEDLE 9 I V FLUID OUT LET 10 THIN FLEXIBLE MEMBRANE 11 HALLOW AIR TIGHT FLOAT 12 SPRING SUPPORTER Functions of parts shown in figures 1. AIR ENTRY SEAL;- Air entry seal is provided on the top of drip chamber for allowing air into the drip chamber when fluid is executed. This seal is made up of thin membrane pierced when the entire system is ready for execution. When the water level depletes in the drip chamber a negative pressure is created in the drip chamber, which has to be neutralized for execution of fluid. When the seal is pierced with needle the small pin hole will allow air into the drip chamber and negative pressure developed due to depletion of fluid level is neutralized. 2. Drip Chamber:- The drip chamber is made up of materials of non¬toxic of nature and does not react with IV fluids such as food grade PVC, glass FRP etc., the liquid which is to be executed is filled in the drip chamber. This chamber may be off cylindrical, cuboids etc. The volume of the drip chamber depends up on the requirement. 3. Flow Blocker:- The flow blocker is made up of materials of non¬toxic of nature and does not react with IV fluids such as food grade PVC, glass FRP etc., one end of the flow blocker is connected to float and other end is closed with thin membrane the flow blocker is hallow and airtight. This flow blocker is attached to float and it moves along with the float. 4. Spring:- The spring is made up of materials of non-toxic of in nature and does not react with IV fluids such as food grade PVC, stainless steel, FRP etc.. This spring is attached one end to the float and other end of at the bottom of drip chamber. The spring will be elongated /compressed along with the float when float is subjected to buoyant up ward force and allow the flow blocker to move in up ward direction i.e. away from the out let of the drip chamber. When the buoyant force is decreased it will pull the float along with flow blocker to the top of the drip chamber out let. As the buoyant force reduces the force of the spring on the out let increases. 5. IV fluid pipe:- This pipe is made up of flexible materials of non¬toxic of in nature and does not react with IV fluids such as food grade PVC etc. This fluid pipe is attached to the drip chamber out let and the other end is connected to a IV needle. 5. Air chamber:- This air chamber is made up of flexible materials of non-toxic of in nature and does not react with IV fluids such as food grade PVC etc. This chamber is connected in the fluid pipe to entrap air bubbles and to charge the IV fluid pipe line between air chamber and out let with fluid. 7. Fluid control valve:- This fluid control valve is made up of PVC materials. This is placed in circuit for controlling the flow of fluid that is to be executed as per the requirement of the patient. 8. IV fluid injecting needle:-This IV fluid injection needle is as usual. 9. IV fluid out let: - This is made up of materials of non-toxic of nature and does not react with IV fluids such as food grade PVC, glass FRP etc., this is in the space of small hallow cylindrical, cuboids etc. this is built in along with the drip chamber. The top end is provided with the pin hole for the entry of IV fluid when the flow blocker is off loaded. The bottom end is connected with the IV fluid pipe. The top surface is made perfectly flat. 10. Thin flexible membrane:- This is made up of flexible material of non-toxic nature which does not react with IV fluids such as flexible PVC, thin rubber sheet etc. This is fixed to flow blocker in the bottom and the flow blocker is made airtight with this membrane. This membrane will seal the out let of the drip chamber when the flow blocker touches the out let. As the pulling force of the spring increases in the drip chamber. This membrane will be tightly fitting on the top of the out let and not allowing the entry of fluid to out let. 11. Hallow air tight float: This is a made up of materials of non-toxic of nature and does not react with IV fluids such as food grade PVC, glass FRP etc., this is hallow air tight cylindrical, cuboids etc. in shape. The size of the hallow airtight float depends upon the force required to elongate the spring. This float will be subjected to buoyant up ward force due to the fluid in the drip chamber. This will be operating the flow blocker. 12. SPRING SUPPORTER A spring supporter made of PVC, FRP, STEEL is provided on the top of the spring. This fixed to the drip chamber surface rigidly. This is designed to take up thrust exerted by the spring due to buoyant force Detailed description of the invention The invention is aimed at solving the problem of human failure in case of exhaust of fluid in drip chamber and entry of air into the human body/ entry of blood in the l.V. tube. As shown in the figs 1-10 this invention consists of drip chamber made up of food grade material such as plastic, FRP, glass etc., of convenient shape (cylindrical, cuboid etc). The drip chamber consists of an independent float (of size and shape as per the requirement of fluid to be used) to operate the flow blocker. This float automatically operates due to the buoyant force exerted by the fluid on the float and this in turn operates the flow blocker. The flow blocker is connected one end to the float and other end is sealed with a flexible membrane made up with rubber/PVC etc., A spring is connected to the float is attached to the float in top /bottom to operate and to provide the force for retarding and ultimately blocking the outlet of the drip chamber. The stiffness of spring depends upon the density of the fluid to be used in the drip chamber. Mechanism of the system When the drip chamber is filled in with liquid, a upward buoyant force is developed which will lift the float in the drip chamber and the flow blocker connected to float will also got lifted up and it will open the outlet of drip chamber. The fluid will enter the I.V. set from the outlet as usual in normal case. The flow is regulated as per the requirement with the control valve provided in the I.V. set outside of drip chamber. The spring connected to the float which was extended /compressed when lifted up along with the float will be in tension/compression and it will start exerting downward pressure on the float. The stiffness of spring is designed to keep the flow blocker in open condition until the fluid in the drip chamber is nearing to exhaust. As the fluid level starts depleting, the flow blocker will be approaching the out let valve. The flow blocker will start retarding the flow into the outlet as soon as it starts touching the pin hole at the outlet end. When the fluid level is further reduced, the force exerted by the spring increases and the buoyant force reduces, leading to more blocking effect on the pin hole at the outlet, resulting retardation of flow from the outlet. The flow to outlet and the liquid level in the drip chamber are inversely proportional after the flow blocker start touching the tip of the out let i.e. the depletion of liquid level in the drip chamber will increase the blocking force on the outlet. The retardation will increase and finally blocks the outlet. The Stiffness in the spring is set such that when the flow blocker finally blocks the outlet, some liquid is leftover above the level of the junction of outlet and flow blocker. This is designed keeping in view that in case of any physical disturbance to the drip chamber (i.e. when the drip chamber is used in mobile units or the patient is in state of unrest) if the flow blocker is offloaded for an instance also, the entry will be only for liquid, preventing the entry of air in case of disturbance after blocking. TESTING OF PERFORMANCE OF FLOW BLOCKER AND SPRING BEFORE EXECUTION The performance of spring and flow blocker can be tested for its action before its usage by in simple manner as narrated here under: The drip chamber is made upside down before execution of fluid when the air entiy seal is intact. When the drip chamber is upside down, the buoyant force on float will become nil and spring will get activated and block the out let. Again, when the drip chamber is backed to normal position, the buoyant force will again get activated and open the outlet. ADVANTAGES OF THE SYSTEM a) No constant attention of qualified medical assistant is required while execution of I V fluid to the patient b) Drip comes with an in built system for retarding the end flow and finally blocking c) No external interference is required while executing the I V fluid to the patient d) The system comes with an in built testing facility before execution of the system for any manufacturing defects making the system fool proof e) The drip chamber can be used in the mobile units also safely with out any fear inclusion of air I Claim, 1. A Drip chamber with automatic control of IV fluid for preventing entry of air in Intravenous fluid delivery system comprises of a drip chamber (2) float (11), flow blocker (3) thin membrane (10), Spring (4), IV set (5,8,9) and Air inlet seal (1) and a control valve (7). Wherein a buoyant force will be developed on the float (2) when the Drip chamber (2) is filled with IV liquid; the flow blocker (3) which is connected to the float (11) will open the outlet of drip chamber so that liquid will be allowed to flow through a pin hole at the outlet; Wherein the liquid starts entering to the outlet after opening air inlet seal (1) and the flow of the fluid will be controlled by the flow control valve (7); Wherein the spring (4) will be get activated as the liquid in the drip chamber (2) is depleting and the said flow blocker will be controlled by the spring and the out flow will be retarded by the flow blocker (3) when it touches the outlet by creating an obstruction at pin hole of outlet and as the fluid level further reduces the blocking force on the outlet will be get increased and finally blocked after leaving a little quantity of fluid. 2. The drip chamber as claimed in claim 1, wherein the chamber is made up food grade materials such as plastic, FRP and glass. 3. The drip chamber as claimed in claim 1 and 2,wherein the chamber can be in any convenient shape. 4. The drip chamber as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the chamber can be in the shape of cylindrical or cuboid. 5. The drip chamber as claimed in claim 1,wherein the said membrane (10) is made-up with rubber or PVC. 6. The drip chamber as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the flow is controlled by the flow control valve as per the requirements. 7. The drip chamber as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the drip chamber is designed with an inbuilt automatic mechanical flow blocking arrangement of float and float blocker operated with buoyant force developed within the drip chamber and spring. 8. The drip chamber as claimed any of the preceding claims wherein the chamber is provided with automatic control for retarding the flow of IV fluid when it is nearing to the exhaust and finally blocking when a small quantity of fluid is left over in the drip chamber. 9. An intravenous fluid delivery system comprising; Drip chamber (2), float (11), flow blocker (3), thin membrane (10), spring (4), air entry seal (1), fluid control valve (7), air chamber (6), IV fluid pipe (5), IV fluid outlet (9), IV fluid injecting needle (8); Wherein the said drip chamber (2) comprises of said float (11) for operating the flow blocker (3); wherein the said float (11) automatically operates due to the buoyant force exerted by the IV fluid on the said float which is in turn operated the said flow blocker (3); One end of the flow blocker (3) is connected to the float (11) and the other end to the thin membrane (10); said spring (4) is connected to the float to operate and to provide force for retarding and blocking the outlet of the drip chamber; Wherein an upward buoyant force will develop when the drip chamber is fllled with IV liquid which is in turn lift the float (11) in the drip chamber (2) and flow blocker (3) connected to the float (11) also gets lifted up so that the outlet of the drip chamber will open and the said fluid will enter in to the said IV set (5,8,9) where the flow is regulated by the said control valve (7); Where the spring (4) connected to the float (11) will be lifted up along with the float and in turn the said spring will exerting downward pressure on the said float; Where the said fluid level starts depleting, the said flow blocker (3) will be retarding the flow in to the outlet wherein the force exerted by the spring (4) will be increased and force exerted by the buoyant force will be reduced so that the retardation will increase and finally block the outlet leaving some liquid over the level of the outlet and flow blocker.

Documents:

1021-CHE-2008 AMENDED CLAIMS 01-07-2013.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 AMENDED PAGES OF SPECIFICATION 01-07-2013.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 CLAIMS.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 CORRESPONDENCE OTHERS 30-09-2014.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 CORRESPONDENCE OTHERS 01-07-2013.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 CORRESPONDENCE OTHERS.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 CORRESPONDENCE PO.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 DESCRIPTION (COMPLETE).pdf

1021-CHE-2008 DRAWINGS.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 FORM-18.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 FORM-5.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 FORM-9.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 ABSTRACT.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 AMENDED CLAIMS. 12-11-2014.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 AMENDED PAGES OF SPECIFICATION. 12-11-2014.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 EXAMINATION REPORT REPLY RECEIVED. 12-11-2014.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 FORM-3. 12-11-2014.pdf

1021-CHE-2008 EXAMINATION REPORT REPLY RECEIVED 01-07-2013.pdf

1021-che-2008-correspondnece-others.pdf

1021-che-2008-description(provisional).pdf

1021-che-2008-drawings.pdf

1021-che-2008-form 1.pdf

1021-che-2008-form 5.pdf