Disposable Syringe

Abstract

A syringe having a collapsible canister whereby the canister after being completely collapsed is locked in the collapsed position so that it may not be reused, and an injector nozzle conveniently packaged within the interior of the canister prior to use so that the entire package provides a convenient container and syringe, the nozzle being extendable when prepared for use.

Description

The present invention relates generally to syringes and more particularly to syringes adapted for hygienic purposes.

Syringes have been sold in the past for hygienic purposes in which there is included a bulb and an injector nozzle and some of these devices have been marketed wherein the bulb portion contains a certain quantity of fluid designed for a particular purpose. Such devices ordinarily include a separate detachable nozzle which is to be attached to the bulb after removing a seal which retains the fluid inside the bulb portion. The difficulty with such devices is that they provide no means for maintaining the nozzle sterile and in addition consist of a plurality of separate parts and are therefore inconvenient. In addition, such devices can be reused with the inherent possibility of spreading infection.

The syringe of the present invention cannot be reused since it provides a locking device which keeps the canister collapsed after use. In addition, the present invention provides a syringe which contains the injector nozzle prepackaged within the body of the canister so that it may be sealed therein and maintained in a sterile condition. In such a manner, the syringe can be prepacked with various types of fluid and will be convenient for carrying in one's pocket or purse and can be easily stored.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the ensuing detailed description in conjunction with the drawings in which:

FIG. l is a sectional elevation of the syringe in its sealed condition.

FIG. 2 is a sectional elevation of the syringe with the nozzle extended ready for use.

FIG. 3 is a sectional elevation showing the canister collapsed after use.

In the syringe of the present invention, the canister generally designated 10 consists of a substantially cylindrical device, the walls 12 of which are collapsible and may be formed as a series of circular bellowslike folds. The syringe may be entirely constructed of a semirigid plastic. The canister 10 has a bottom closure end 14 and an upper end cap 16.

The injector nozzle 18 is coaxially disposed within the interior of the canister 10. The nozzle 18 may be of a long, substantially cylindrical tube having a threaded base 20 and a hemispherical tip 22. The hemispherical tip 22 may be provided with a plurality of apertures 24 extending not only axially but radially as desired. The length of the nozzle 18 is slightly greater than the height of the canister 10 when the canister is in its extended position so that a short portion of the tip 22 of nozzle 18 extends through bore 26 in the end cap 16 and slightly therebeyond. The bore 26 of end cap 16 is threaded at 28 to receive the threaded end 20 of the nozzle. The tip 22 of the nozzle is covered by a removable sealer cap 30 which extends over the end 22 and adheres to the edges of the end cap 16.

When it is desired to use the syringe, the sealer cap 30 is removed and the tip 22 of the nozzle may be grasped and extended axially outwardly and then turned to engage the threaded base 20 in the threaded bore 28. The contents of the canister 10 may then be expelled by forcibly compressing the canister 10 so that the contents are expelled through the apertures 24 of the nozzle 18. Situated on the interior wall of the end closure 14 is a small circular plate 32 upon which is mounted a plurality of interlocking fingers 34. The bore 26 of the end cap is likewise extended a short distance inwardly from the upper end of the canister and provides a cylindrical boss 36. The outer periphery of the cylindrical boss 36 is formed at an angle to provide an annular interlocking surface 38.

As shown in FIG. 3, when the canister 10 is entirely collapsed, in order to expel the entire contents thereof, the interlocking fingers 34 engage the annular surface 38 in an interlocking relationship so that the canister 10 may not thereafter be expanded for reuse.

The entire syringe may be made of an inexpensive semirigid plastic material, so its cost would be exceedingly low and it would therefore be feasible to merely discard the device after use. This feature is a desirable one since it eliminates the possibility of spreaded infection which might occur should the owner reuse the device without properly cleaning it. For various uses, such as feminine hygiene, the canister may be filled with the appropriate fluids and carried in the pocket or purse without the danger of spilling since the sealing cap 30 would prevent any spilling or leaking of the contents. In addition, since the sealing cap is held tightly in place, the contents of the canister as well as the injector nozzle itself can be maintained in a sterile condition, it will be noted that the internal threads 28 are shown having a taper as are the threads at 20. By this method a better seal is obtained where only a few threads are present and it may also be desired to have these threads deformable in order to firmly lock and seal the extended nozzle in place prior to use.

While a particular embodiment of the present invention has been shown and described, it will be obvious to persons skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made without departing from this invention in its broader aspects, and it is the aim of the appended claims to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true scope and spirit of this invention.

Claims

I claim:

1. A disposable syringe comprising sealed container means for holding a quantity of fluid, said container means being collapsible under manual pressure, said sealed container means having locking means internally mounted at opposite ends thereof for maintaining said container means in a collapsed state after use and nozzle means coupled to said container means for conducting said fluid from said container to a remote location.

2. A syringe of the type described in claim 1 wherein said nozzle means is axially disposed within said container means and is slidable to an extended position for use, said nozzle means including means for locking said nozzle in said extended position, and a removable sealing means for retaining said nozzle in the unextended position.

3. A syringe of the type described in claim 2 wherein said container means comprises a cylindrical canister, said canister having foldable sidewalls.

4. A syringe of the type described in claim 3 wherein said nozzle means comprises a tubular member coaxially disposed within said cylindrical canister, said tubular member having an apertured tip and a threaded base, threaded means formed in said canister for receiving said base to lock said tubular member in an extended position.

5. A syringe of the type described in claim 4 wherein said locking means for maintaining said container means in a collapsed state comprises shoulder means mounted inside said canister at one end thereof, and finger means mounted inside said container at the opposite end thereof.