U.S. patent application number 10/388412 was filed with the patent office on 2003-09-25 for needle holder.
Invention is credited to Willstumpf, Erich.
Application Number | 20030178097 10/388412 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 27797891 |
Filed Date | 2003-09-25 |
United States Patent
Application |
20030178097 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Willstumpf, Erich |
September 25, 2003 |
Needle holder
Abstract
The invention relates to a needle holder (5) for use in a
filling machine, the needle holder serving for accommodating a
plurality of needles (6) for filling vials, ampoules or the like,
and the respective needle having a tubular needle section (7) and a
needle attachment (8) which can be connected to a filling tube or
the like, and with means for fastening the needles on the needle
holder. It is an object of the invention to ensure, in the case of
such a needle holder, that needles can be changed simply and within
a short period of time under optimal sterility conditions. This is
achieved by a retaining element (11) which is provided on one side
with a plurality of mutually parallel grooves (13) for
accommodating the needle sections of the needles, and also by
clamping elements (16) which can be connected to the retaining
element and are intended for fixing the needles in the grooves.
Inventors: |
Willstumpf, Erich; (Wetter,
DE) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow,
Garrett & Dunner, L.L.P.
1300 I Street, N.W.
Washington
DC
20005-3315
US
|
Family ID: |
27797891 |
Appl. No.: |
10/388412 |
Filed: |
March 17, 2003 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
141/329 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65B 39/12 20130101;
B65B 3/003 20130101; B65B 59/04 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
141/329 |
International
Class: |
B65B 001/04 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Mar 18, 2002 |
DE |
102 12 008.0 |
Claims
1. A needle holder (5) for use in a filling machine (1), the needle
holder (5) serving to accommodate a plurality of needles (6) for
filling vials, ampoules (3) or the like, and the respective needle
(6) having a tubular needle section (7) and a needle attachment (8)
which can be connected to a filling tube or the like, and with
means for fastening the needles (6) on the needle holder (5), which
comprises a retaining element (11) which is provided on one side
with a plurality of mutually parallel grooves (13) for
accommodating the needle sections (7) of the needles (6), and also
comprises clamping elements (16) which can be connected to the
retaining element (11) and are intended for fixing the needles (6)
in the grooves (13).
2. The needle holder as claimed in claim 1, wherein the retaining
element (11): is designed as a retaining plate which is provided
with the grooves (13) in the region of one main surface (12).
3. The needle holder as claimed in claim 2, wherein the retaining
plate (11) in the region of the other main surface, can be
connected to a bearing element (9) of the filling machine (1).
4. The needle holder as claimed in claim 3, wherein centering means
(23, 25) are provided for the defined positioning of the retaining
plates (11) and bearing element (9).
5. The needle holder as claimed in one of claims 2 to 4, wherein
the retaining plate (11) is of cuboidal design.
6. The needle holder as claimed in one of claims 1 to 5, wherein
the needle attachments (8) come into contact with the retaining
element (11).
7. The needle holder as claimed in one of claims 1 to 6, wherein
the clamping elements (16) are designed as clamping plates.
8. The needle holder as claimed in claim 7, wherein each groove
(13) is assigned a clamping plate (16).
9. The needle holder as claimed in one of claims 1 to 8, wherein
centering means (17, 19) are provided for the defined positioning
of the retaining plate (11) and clamping plate (16).
10. The needle holder as claimed in one of claims 1 to 9, wherein
the respective groove (13) is of V-shaped design.
Description
[0001] The invention relates to a needle holder for use in a
filling machine, the needle holder serving for accommodating a
plurality of needles for filling vials, ampoules or the like, and
the respective needle having a tubular needle section and a needle
attachment which can be connected to a filling tube or the like,
and with means for fastening the needles on the needle holder.
[0002] Such a needle holder is known in practice. It has a
plurality of adapters for accommodating the needles, which are
clamped by means of a tommy screw. This needle holder is extremely
laborious to handle. For example, suitable adapters are required
for each needle side. This makes preparational assembly of the
machine more difficult. The needles have too much play in the
holder, and as a result they would need to be aligned each time
they are installed. The adapters are seated differently in the
holder. The needle is skewed when the respective needle is clamped
in the adapter. Moreover, the needle is not fixed to a sufficient
extent. This results in the tip of the needle being made to
oscillate during production, and the product is thus slung into the
machine from the needle. The tommy screws have to be tightened by a
special tool. Finally, a special tool has to be used to align the
needles over the vials, ampoules or the like. The tips of the
needles usually penetrate to different extents into the filling and
stick there, or the final drop of product does not come away
properly. This results in filling fluctuations. The sterile needle
requires too many manipulations, and there is thus a risk of said
needle becoming unsterile.
[0003] It is an object of the present invention, in the case of a
needle holder of the type mentioned in the introduction, to avoid
the abovementioned disadvantages, in particular to develop the
needle holder so as to ensure that needles can be changed simply
and within a short period of time under optimal sterility
conditions.
[0004] The object is achieved, in the case of a needle holder of
the type mentioned in the introduction, by a retaining element
which is provided on one side with a plurality of mutually parallel
grooves for accommodating the needle sections of the needles, and
also by clamping elements which can be connected to the retaining
element and are intended for fixing the needles in the grooves.
[0005] A particular application area of the invention is medical
technology, preferably the filling of ampoules with a wide range of
different medical products. Such ampoules may have, for example, a
filling volume of 1 ml.
[0006] In the case of the needle holder according to the invention,
the needles are fixed directly between the retaining element and
the clamping elements. The needles are positioned with their needle
sections in the grooves of the retaining elements and are fixed by
means of the clamping elements. The retaining element is preferably
the component which is relatively stationary, while the clamping
elements constitute the smaller components, which are thus
particularly easy to release from the retaining element and to
connect thereto.
[0007] According to a particular embodiment of the invention, it is
provided that the respective groove is of V-shaped design. This
allows the tubular needle section of the respective needle to be
positioned in a self-centering manner in the groove. This applies
to needle sections of different external diameters. Needle sections
with a relatively small diameter are positioned in the groove base
between the two V-shaped flanks of the groove and are fixed by
means of clamping-element protrusions which project into the
groove. Tubular needle sections with a larger external diameter, in
some circumstances, project out of the groove to some extent and
are fixed in this centered position by means of the clamping
elements.
[0008] The retaining element is advantageously designed as a
retaining plate which is provided with the grooves in the region of
one main surface. This retaining plate is, in particular, of
cuboidal design, with the result that it can easily be connected to
a correspondingly planar surface of a bearing element of the
filling machine. The retaining element and bearing element of the
filling machine can be positioned particularly straightforwardly if
the retaining element and bearing element are provided with
centering means. It is possible to provide on the retaining
element, for example, centering bolts, which pass through centering
bores in the bearing element. The retaining element and bearing
element may be connected in the customary manner by means of a
screw/nut connection. For straightforward release, this nut is
designed, in particular, as a wing nut. Corresponding centering
and/or connection is also advantageous in respect of the retaining
element and the clamping elements. The clamping elements are
designed, in particular, as clamping plates, preferably each groove
being assigned a clamping plate. The needles can easily be aligned
in that their needle attachments come into contact with the
retaining element, in particular, in the case of the retaining
element being of cuboidal design, a side surface of the retaining
plate which runs perpendicularly to the longitudinal extent of the
grooves.
[0009] The straightforward assembly and dismantling of the
individual parts of the needle holder allows these parts to be
easily sterilized. The needles may optionally be preassembled or
inserted on the filling machine. The needle holder can be easily
sterilized in the event of a batch change. The needles are located
in a self-centering manner in the grooves. It is possible for all
needle diameters to be inserted in the same securing means. The
needle height is uniform when the needle is pushed right up against
the retaining element. The easy handling during installation under
clean-room conditions considerably reduces the risk of the needles
becoming unsterile.
[0010] In order to insert a needle, the wing nut, for example, of
the clamping plate is released; it does not need to be unscrewed.
The needle is pushed laterally beneath the clamping plate and
pressed into the groove, and the nut is tightened by hand. It is no
longer necessary for the needle to be pushed through an unsterile
opening from above. If the needle comes up against an obstruction,
for example, if ampoules are used, against the ampoule neck, then
the needle, rather than bending, is pushed upward and can be reset.
The risk of the machine breaking down is considerably reduced by
the needle holder according to the invention.
[0011] The invention is illustrated in the drawing of the figures
with reference to an exemplary embodiment, without being restricted
thereto. In the drawing:
[0012] FIG. 1 shows a three-dimensional view of part of a filling
machine with needle holder, and
[0013] FIG. 2 shows a front view of the needle holder, with one
needle removed.
[0014] The filling machine 1 has a transporting device 2 for
transporting ampoules 3 which are open at the top. The respective
ampoule 3 is inserted, in a vertically oriented position, in a
mount 4 of the transporting device 2. The mounts 4 are moved
cyclically in the direction of the arrow A by means which are not
shown. Since the needle holder 5, which is arranged above the
transporting device 2, accommodates six needles 6 and, accordingly,
six ampoules 3 can be filled during each cycle, the process
advances by six ampoules 3 in three case per cycle.
[0015] The respective needle 6 has a tubular needle section 7 and a
needle attachment 8 which is connected to the needle section at the
top and onto which a filling tube (not illustrated) can be plugged.
The filling tubes connected to the needles 6 lead to a filling pump
(not shown) by means of which the liquid which is to be introduced
into the ampoules 3 is fed from a main tank (which is not shown
either).
[0016] The needle holder 5 is retained in a bearing plate 9 which
is mounted in a vertically displaceable lifting unit 10. The means
for vertically raising and lowering the lifting unit 10 are not
illustrated. By means of the lifting unit 10, it is possible for
the needle holder 5, with the needles 6 accommodated by it, to be
partially introduced into the ampoules 3 aligned beneath the
needles 6, for the purpose of filling the ampoules 3, and to be
raised above the level of the ampoules 3 following the filling
operation, with the result that the filled ampoules 3 can be
transported out of the region of the needle holder 5 and the next
six ampoules 3 can be filled.
[0017] The needle holder 5 has a cuboidal retaining plate 11 which
is provided with six mutually parallel grooves 13, for
accommodating the needle sections 7, in the region of the main
surface 12. The respective groove 13 is of V-shaped design, with
the result that needles 6 with needle sections 7 of different
thicknesses can be centered via said grooves. The respective needle
6 is aligned vertically in relation to the retaining plate 11 in
that the needle attachment 8 butts against the top surface 15 of
the retaining plate 11 by way of its end surface 14 directed toward
the needle section 7.
[0018] Clamping plates 16 serve for fixing the needles 6 in the
grooves 13, one clamping plate 16 acting on each needle 6. The
respective clamping plate 16 has a top and bottom centering bore 17
and a fastening bore 18 located between these. Mutually parallel
centering pins 19, which are connected to the retaining plate 12,
are aligned with the centering bores 17. Arranged between said
centering pins is a threaded pin 20, which is likewise connected to
the retaining plate 11. In order to fix the respective needle 6,
the clamping plate 16 is moved against the retaining plate 11, the
centering pins 19 passing through the centering bores 17 and the
threaded pin 20 projecting through the fastening bore 18. The width
of the clamping plate 16 is selected such that it projects slightly
beyond the groove 13. With the needle 6 positioned in the groove 13
and the clamping plate 16 positioned on the needle section 7, a
wing nut 21, if appropriate with a washer, screwed onto the
threaded pin 16 is tightened, as a result of which the positioned
needle is fixed. In order to insert or remove the needle 6, there
is no need to unscrew the wing nut 21 completely from the threaded
pin 20. It is sufficient if the respective clamping plate 16 can be
raised up slightly from the retaining plate 11, with the result
that the needle 6 can be moved out laterally beneath the clamping
plate 16 or introduced laterally beneath the clamping plate 16.
[0019] On each side of the needle region, the retaining plate 11
has a centering bore 23 and a fastening bore 24. On one side, the
centering bore 23 is arranged at the bottom and the fastening bore
24 is arranged at the top and, on the other side, the centering
bore 23 is arranged at the top and the fastening bore 24 is
arranged at the bottom. In alignment with the bores 23 and 24,
centering pins 25 and threaded pins 26 are connected to the bearing
plate 9.
[0020] The needle holder 5 preassembled with the adjusted six
needles 6 is connected in a centered manner to the bearing plate 9
in that the retaining plate 11 is plugged onto the centering pins
25 of the bearing plate 9 in the region of its centering bores 23.
Wing nuts 27 are screwed onto the threaded pins 26, as a result of
which the needle holder 5 is securely connected to the lifting unit
10.
[0021] List of Designations:
[0022] 1 Filling machine
[0023] 2 Transporting device
[0024] 3 Ampoule
[0025] 4 Mount
[0026] 5 Needle holder
[0027] 6 Needle
[0028] 7 Needle section
[0029] 8 Needle attachment
[0030] 9 Bearing plate
[0031] 10 Lifting unit
[0032] 11 Retaining plate
[0033] 12 Main surface
[0034] 13 Groove
[0035] 14 End surface
[0036] 15 Top surface
[0037] 16 Clamping plate
[0038] 17 Centering bore
[0039] 18 Fastening bore
[0040] 19 Centering pin
[0041] 20 Threaded pin
[0042] 21 Wing nut
[0043] 22 Washer
[0044] 23 Centering bore
[0045] 24 Fastening bore
[0046] 25 Centering pin
[0047] 26 Threaded pin
[0048] 27 Wing nut
* * * * *