U.S. patent number 3,633,566 [Application Number 04/824,977] was granted by the patent office on 1972-01-11 for blood collecting method and device.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Systematiks, Inc.. Invention is credited to Robert H. Grabhorn.
United States Patent |
3,633,566 |
Grabhorn |
January 11, 1972 |
BLOOD COLLECTING METHOD AND DEVICE
Abstract
A blood specimen collecting device comprising means for holding
conventional evacuated test tubes, each such tube being sealed with
a conventional rubberlike stopper, hollow needle means for
penetrating through such stoppers and into such tubes, a
vein-puncturing hollow needle, and flexible tube means for
connecting the needle means to the vein-puncturing needle. The
means for holding the tubes is arranged so that the stoppers face
the needle means, and drive means is arranged to provide relative
reciprocation between the needle means and the tube holding means
to cause the needle means to penetrate through such stoppers. In
many cases, such tubes contain materials, such as preservatives,
coagulants and anticoagulants, with which the blood must be
thoroughly mixed promptly after or immediately as soon as it is
withdrawn from the vein. Thus, the device includes means for gently
oscillating such tubes while blood is being drawn therein.
Inventors: |
Grabhorn; Robert H. (Greenwood,
IN) |
Assignee: |
Systematiks, Inc.
(Indianapolis, IN)
|
Family
ID: |
25242788 |
Appl.
No.: |
04/824,977 |
Filed: |
May 15, 1969 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
600/575; 604/903;
604/205 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A61B
5/150351 (20130101); A61B 5/150267 (20130101); A61B
5/150496 (20130101); A61B 5/15003 (20130101); A61B
5/154 (20130101); A61B 5/155 (20130101); A61B
5/150755 (20130101); A61B 5/150389 (20130101); A61B
5/150786 (20130101); A61B 5/150251 (20130101); A61B
5/150839 (20130101); Y10S 604/903 (20130101); A61B
5/150259 (20130101); A61B 5/150992 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A61B
5/155 (20060101); A61B 5/15 (20060101); A61b
005/10 () |
Field of
Search: |
;128/2,276,272,DIG.5,218 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Camp; Warner H.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A blood collecting device comprising means for holding
conventional evacuated test tubes, each such tube being sealed with
a conventional rubberlike stopper, hollow needle means for
penetrating through such stoppers and into such tubes, a
vein-puncturing hollow needle, flexible tube means for connecting
said needle means to said vein-puncturing needle, said holding
means being arranged to hold such tubes so that such stoppers face
said needle means, drive means for providing relative reciprocation
between said needle means and said holding means to cause said
needle means to penetrate through such stoppers, and means for
gently oscillating said holding means and such tubes held
thereby.
2. The device of claim 1 in which said drive means is electrically
operated and including circuit means for preventing energization of
said drive means unless said holding means is oscillating.
3. A blood collecting device comprising a manifold providing a
passageway, a plurality of hollow needles carried by said manifold
and communicating with said passageway, each of said hollow needles
having a sharpened end portion extending away from said manifold, a
vein-puncturing hollow needle, flexible tube means for connecting
said vein-puncturing needle to said passageway, frame means for
holding a plurality of conventional evacuated test tubes, each such
tube being sealed with a conventional rubberlike stopper, said
frame means being arranged to hold each such tube in a position so
that its stopper is facing the sharpened end portion of one of said
first-mentioned needles, drive means for providing relative
reciprocation between said manifold and said frame means to cause
the sharpened end portions of said first-mentioned needles
simultaneously and respectively to penetrate through said stoppers
and into said tubes, and means for gently oscillating said frame
means and such tubes held thereby.
4. The device of claim 3 in which said drive means is electrically
operated.
5. The device of claim 4 in which said oscillating means is
electrically operated and including circuit means for assuring that
said oscillating means is energized before said drive means can be
energized.
6. A blood collecting device comprising a manifold providing a
passageway, a plurality of hollow needles carried by said manifold
and communicating with said passageway, each of said hollow needles
having a sharpened end portion extending away from said manifold, a
vein-puncturing hollow needle, flexible tube means for connecting
said vein-puncturing needle to said passageway, frame means for
holding a plurality of conventional evacuated test tubes, each such
tube being sealed with a conventional rubberlike stopper, said
frame means being arranged to hold each such tube in a position so
that its stopper is facing the sharpened end portion of one of said
first-mentioned needles, drive means for providing relative
reciprocation between said manifold and said frame means to cause
the sharpened end portions of said first-mentioned needles
simultaneously and respectively to penetrate through said stoppers
and into said tubes, a platform upon which said frame means,
manifold, and drive means are mounted, and means for gently
oscillating said platform.
7. The device of claim 6 in which said platform provides a guideway
for reciprocably mounting sad frame means and in which said drive
means is arranged to move said frame means along sad guideway
toward said manifold.
8. The device of claim 6 in which said oscillating means includes a
motor, a bent shaft driven by said motor, and a bearing for
coupling said platform to said shaft, said bearing having an outer
race upon which said platform is mounted and an inner race mounted
on said shaft.
9. A blood collecting device comprising means for holding
conventional evacuated test tubes, each such tube being sealed with
a conventional rubberlike stopper, hollow needle means for
penetrating through such stoppers and into such tubes, a
vein-puncturing hollow needle, flexible tube means for connecting
said needle means to said vein-puncturing needle, said holding
means being arranged to hold such tubes so that such stoppers face
said needle means, power means for providing relative reciprocation
between said needle means and said holding means to cause said
needle means to penetrate through such stoppers, and means for
gently oscillating said holding means and such tubes held
thereby.
10. The device of claim 1 in which said needle means includes a
second hollow needle and means for rigidly holding said second
needle, and including indexing means for providing relative
movement between said holding means and said second needle, said
indexing means being arranged so that the stoppers of such tubes
are sequentially disposed adjacent said second needle to be
penetrated thereby.
11. A blood specimen collecting device comprising a vein-puncturing
hollow needle, means for supporting a plurality of test tubes, each
such tube being closed by sealing means disposed in the end
thereof, hollow needle means, means for penetrating said hollow
needle means through such sealing means and into such tubes, said
penetrating means including power means for providing relative
reciprocation between said hollow needle means and said supporting
means, and means for gently oscillating said supporting means and
the tubes supported thereby.
12. The device of claim 11 in which said hollow needle means
includes a second hollow needle, and in which said penetrating
means includes indexing means for providing relative movement
between said supporting means and said second hollow needle, said
indexing means being arranged so that the sealing means of such
tubes are sequentially disposed adjacent said second needle to be
penetrated thereby.
Description
My invention relates to the collection of blood specimens, and more
particularly to the provision of a device for collecting blood
specimens from a person's vein, which specimens are usable for
testing the blood. My invention does not relate to the taking of
blood for use in transfusions.
My device is designed for use with conventional evacuated blood
test tubes, each of which is sealed with a conventional rubber or
rubberlike sealing stopper. The use of such conventional evacuated
test tubes for collecting blood specimens is well known.
Specifically, it is common practice to take several blood specimens
from a person by sticking the forward end of a double-ended hollow
needle into one of the person's veins and then sequentially pushing
the rear end of the needle into and through the sealing stoppers of
the requisite number of tubes. While this practice is widely used,
it suffers from several disadvantages. First of all, the forward
end of the double-ended needle is left in the person's vein during
the entire process while the requisite number of tubes are at least
partially filled with blood. This means that the stoppers of such
tubes must be pushed onto and pulled from the rear end of the
double-ended needle while the forward end of the needle is
extending into the vein. An inexperienced nurse or technician may
accidentally shift the forward end of the needle seriously to
damage the vein wall, In fact even an experienced nurse or
technician may damage the vein with the forward end of the needle
if the person from whom the blood specimens are being taken jerks
or moves suddenly. Further, as will be discussed hereinafter,
conventional devices do not facilitate proper agitation of the
blood specimens.
My apparatus is constructed so that several of such tubes can be
either simultaneously or sequentially filled without, in any way,
manipulating or moving the needle which punctures and extends into
the vein. Specifically, it is my concept to provide a
vein-puncturing needle which is connected by means of a flexible
tube to means for admitting the blood to the evacuated tubes.
Thus, my blood specimen collecting device, broadly speaking,
comprises means for holding conventional evacuated test tubes, each
of which is sealed with a conventional stopper, hollow needle means
for penetrating through such stoppers and into such tubes, a
vein-puncturing hollow needle, and flexible tube means for
connecting the needle means to the vein-puncturing needle. The tube
holding means of my device is arranged so that the stoppers of the
tubes face the needle means. I provide drive means for producing
relative reciprocation between the needle means and the tube
holding means to cause the needle means to penetrate through such
stoppers.
I have constructed my device in such a manner that the several
tubes into which the blood is to be deposited and the needle means
for puncturing through the stoppers of the tubes may be out of the
sight of the person from whom the blood is to be taken. I prefer to
use an electrically operated drive means for causing the needle
means to penetrate through the stoppers so that a technician may
merely insert the vein-puncturing needle into the vein and then
operate a switch to cause the needle means to penetrate through the
stoppers.
In one embodiment of my invention, the needle means for penetrating
the stopper includes a single hollow needle which is connected by
the flexible tube means to the vein-puncturing needle, and this
single needle is sequentially penetrated through the stoppers of
the desired number of tubes. In another embodiment of my invention,
the needle means includes a plurality of hollow needles, each of
which is connected to the vein-puncturing needle by the flexible
tube means. In this embodiment, my drive means is arranged
simultaneously to penetrate each of the hollow needles of the
needle means through, respectively, the stoppers of the tubes.
One preferred embodiment of my invention is a device which is
constructed within a small casing the upper surface of which
provides a padded resting place for the arm of the person from whom
blood is to be taken. My device can be placed by a seat in a
doctor's office or in a laboratory and it can be stylishly
decorated so as not to appear to be a clinical instrument. When a
person sits in the seat and places an arm upon the padded surface
of my device, the nurse or technician can pull the vein-puncturing
needle from a small opening in the side of the device, remove the
conventional protective covering from the needle, insert the
forward end of the needle into the vein of the arm and then quickly
operate the switch which operates the drive means of the device.
The person from whom the blood is drawn does not have to see and
preferably cannot seen the tubes into which the blood is drawn. In
fact, preferably, the person can only see the needle which extends
into the vein and a small portion of the flexible tubing leading
away from this needle.
In many cases, the evacuated tubes into which the blood is drawn
contain materials, such as preservatives, coagulants and
anticoagulants, with which the blood must be thoroughly mixed
promptly after or immediately as soon as it is withdrawn from the
vein. It is well known that, if the blood is not properly mixed
with this material, which is usually in powder form, the tests made
on the blood may, at best, be inconclusive. Technicians and nurses
who take blood specimens are instructed gently to oscillate each
evacuated tube after its stopper is pulled off of the rear end of
the needle which is extending into the vein. This is, of course, a
manual operation which lengthens the process of taking the
blood.
The function of gently oscillating the tube for a significant
period of time properly to mix the blood with the material
contained in the tube cannot be overly emphasized. If the blood is
not agitated sufficiently to cause it to mix with the material in
the tube, the tests on the blood may be totally inconclusive. If
the blood is overly agitated, the blood cells may be damaged to the
point where the tests on the blood will be inconclusive. Further,
if the blood is not mixed properly with the material in the tube
promptly after or, in some cases, immediately as soon as it is
drawn into the tube, the tests on the blood may be
inconclusive.
In an attempt to obtain proper mixing of the blood with the
material disposed in the tube into which the blood is drawn, nurses
and technicians are often instructed gently to oscillate the tube
after the blood is drawn therein to cause the "bubble" in the tube
to move from end to end of the tube a specific number of times
without breaking or separating. In other words, when blood is drawn
into an evacuated tube, there is left a "bubble" which is analogous
to the "bubble" of a conventional "bubble level. " If this "bubble"
in the blood test tube is overly agitated, it will break up into
several small segments.
In order to assure that the blood will be immediately and properly
mixed with the materials in the tubes into which the blood is
drawn, my blood collecting device includes means for continuously
and gently oscillating the tubes while the blood is drawn therein
and for a predetermined and desired period thereafter. In one
preferred embodiment of my device, the drive means which causes the
needle means to penetrate the stoppers of the tubes cannot be
energized until the means for continuously and gently oscillating
the tubes is energized.
Other objects and features of my invention will become apparent as
this description progresses.
To the accomplishment of the above and related objects, my
invention may be embodied in the forms illustrated in the
accompanying drawings and the method described herein, attention
being called to the fact, however, that the drawings and
description are merely illustrative and that changes may be made in
the specific constructions illustrated and described and in the
methods described, so long as the scope of the appended claims is
not violated.
In the drawings:
FIG. 1 is an exploded, perspective view, partially sectioned,
showing one embodiment of my invention;
FIG. 1a is a schematic showing the type of controls which may be
used with the embodiment of FIG. 1;
FIG. 2 is an exploded, perspective view showing a cartridge means
for holding a plurality of conventional evacuated test tubes, which
cartridge means is usable with the embodiment of FIG. 1 as well as
other embodiments of my invention;
FIG. 3 is a perspective view, partially sectioned, of a generally
triangularly shaped cartridge means for holding evacuated test
tubes;
FIG. 4 is an exploded, perspective view showing a generally
triangularly shaped cartridge for holding the test tubes and the
needle means for penetrating through the stoppers of the test
tubes;
FIG. 5 is a somewhat diagrammatical view showing a single hollow
needle for penetrating through the stoppers of a plurality of tubes
held in a generally triangularly shaped cartridge, indexing means
for sequentially positioning the stopper of each tube adjacent the
single needle and drive means for driving the needle through the
stoppers;
FIG. 6 is another somewhat diagrammatical view showing a generally
triangularly shaped cartridge holding three such evacuated tubes, a
single needle for penetrating through the stoppers of the tubes,
indexing means for sequentially moving the needle into position
adjacent each of the stoppers, and means for driving the stoppers
onto the needle;
FIG. 7 is another somewhat diagrammatical view showing a cartridge,
such as in FIG. 2, indexing means for moving the cartridge in a
step-by-step manner past a single needle and drive means for
penetrating the needle sequentially through each of the
stoppers;
FIG. 8 is another somewhat diagrammatical view showing a cartridge,
such as in FIG. 2, a single needle, indexing means for moving the
needle in a step-by-step manner sequentially to position the needle
adjacent each of the stoppers and drive means for driving the
stoppers onto the needle;
FIG. 9 is a fragmentary, perspective view showing a chuck or chuck
means for releasably and rigidly holding a hollow needle which is
used to penetrate through a tube stopper;
FIG. 10 shows a chuck means for holding a needle, means for holding
a tube so that its stopper faces the needle and means mounting the
chuck means for reciprocation toward and away from the stopper;
FIG. 11 is still another somewhat diagrammatical view showing a
chuck means for holding a needle which penetrates through stoppers
of tubes, a cartridge belt carrying a plurality of such tubes,
indexing means for advancing the cartridge belt, means for driving
the needle through the stoppers and means for separating each loop
of the belt to provide discrete tubes; and
FIG. 12 is a further diagrammatical view showing cartridge means
for holding a plurality of tubes, a single needle and drive means
for picking a tube from the cartridge means and driving its stopper
onto the needle.
Referring now to the drawings, and particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2,
it will be seen that I have illustrated my device 10 as comprising
a housing 12 having a bottom wall 14, sidewalls 16, 18, end walls
20, 22 and a cover 24 which fits down over the sidewalls. The cover
24 is provided with an upwardly facing, padded surface 26 upon
which a person may comfortably rest an arm. As illustrated, the
cover may be cut away or formed as indicated at 27 and the end wall
22 may be inclined upwardly and inwardly to provide a cavity in
which a conventional electric switch 28 is located. The purpose of
this switch will be discussed in detail hereinafter.
It will be appreciated that the device 10 may be as decorative as
desired. The housing 12, including the cover 24, may be constructed
from any suitable material, such as metal or plastic. The total
length of the device 10 need not be much greater than the length of
a person's forearm. The width of the device may be, for instance, 6
inches.
While I have illustrated the cover 24 as being arranged to slip
down over the end wall 20 and sidewalls 16, 18, it will be
appreciated that the cover may be hingedly mounted in a
conventional manner to swing upwardly.
Inside the housing 12, I provide an elongated platform 30 which my
be gently oscillated by means of a conventional electric motor 32.
In the illustrative embodiment, the motor 32 is mounted on the
bottom 14 and its output shaft 34, which is bent is illustrated,
extends upwardly therefrom. The platform 30 may be connected to the
bent shaft 34 by means such as illustrated bearing 36, the inner
race 38 of which is mounted on the upper end of the bent shaft and
the outer race 40 of which is connected to the platform. I may
provide means such as the illustrated spring means 42 extending
between portions of the housing 12 and the platform 30 yieldably to
hold the platform 30 in position. Further, I may provide means,
such as the illustrated walls 31, 31' for confining the movement of
the platform. Thus, because of the bend in the shaft 34, when the
motor 32 is energized to drive the shaft in the direction of the
arrow 44, the platform 30 is oscillated in all directions as
indicated by the arrows 46, 48. I prefer that the motor 32 be a
relatively low-speed motor so that this oscillation of the platform
30 will be gentle and smooth. The reason for gently oscillating the
platform 30 is to mix thoroughly the blood drawn into the test
tubes with the materials contained therein.
The platform 30 provides a longitudinally extending, square-walled
trackway 50 and a pair of longitudinally and vertically extending
sidewalls 52, 54, the sidewalls and the trackway providing a
guideway for receiving a cartridge 56 (FIGS. 1 and 2) containing,
in the illustrative embodiment, three evacuated blood test tubes
58, 60, 62, each of which is sealed with a conventional rubberlike
stopper 58a, 60a, 62a. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the cartridge 56
may be provided with a guide strip 64 which is slidably received in
the trackway 50 to guide the cartridge for movement along the
platform 30.
I provide a pusher plate 68 which is arranged for reciprocation in
the guideway provided by sidewalls 52, 54, the pusher plate being
provided with a downwardly extending tang 70 which slidably engages
the trackway 50. An internally threaded tube 72 extends rearwardly
from the pusher plate 68 as illustrated. In order to drive the
pusher plate 68, I provide a motor 74 which is mounted on the rear
end of the platform 30 as illustrated, the motor 74 driving an
externally threaded shaft 76 which threadedly engages the tube 72.
Thus, when the motor 74 is energized to drive the shaft 76 in one
direction, the pusher plate 68 moves in the direction of the arrow
78 and, when the motor 74 is energized to drive the shaft 76 in the
opposite direction, the pusher plate 68 moves in the opposite
direction.
There is an end member 80 at the forward end of the platform 30,
this member being spaced apart from the forward ends 82, 84 of the
guide walls 52, 54. In this space between the member 80 and the
ends 82, 84 of the walls 52, 54, I can drop a manifold 86 from
which extends three parallel and equally spaced apart hollow
needles 88, 90, 92. The manifold 86 is formed with an internal
passageway 94 which is in communication with the needles 88, 90,
92. A flexible plastic tube 96, preferably made from a
hemorepellant material, connects the passageway 94 and, therefore,
the needles 88, 90, 92, to a vein-puncturing needle 98. I prefer to
provide a gripper 100 on the vein-puncturing needle 98 as
illustrated.
In the illustrative embodiments, each end of the manifold 86 is
provided with a corner notch for receiving the end 82, 84 of the
adjacent wall 52, 54. This is one scheme for holding the manifold
86 in a desired position relative to the platform 30.
In operation of the device 10, the nurse or technician responsible
for taking blood specimens will remove the manifold 86 including
the needles 88, 90, 92 from a sanitary package and place the
manifold in its illustrated position on the platform 30. Then, the
nurse or technician will drop a cartridge 56 into the guideway
provided by the trackway 50 and the sidewalls 52, 54 with the
stoppers 58a, 60a, 62a facing the needles 88, 90, 92. Preferably,
as will be appreciated by those familiar with the use of evacuated
test tubes, each of the needles 88, 90, 92 is coaxially aligned
with the stopper 58a, 60a, 62a through which the needle will
penetrate. With the cartridge 56 and the manifold 86 in position,
the nurse or technician will energize the motor 32 gently to
oscillate the platform 30. Then, after the vein-puncturing needle
98 is inserted into a vein, the motor 74 may be energized to drive
the pusher plate 68 in the direction of the arrow 78 to cause the
needles 88, 90, 92 to penetrate through, respectively, the stoppers
58a, 60a, 62a. As soon as the needles 88, 90, 92 penetrate through
the stoppers 58a, 60a, 62a, blood will be drawn from the vein
through the needle 98, tube 96, passageway 94 and into the
evacuated tubes 58, 60, 62.
It will be appreciated that the above-described method is such that
the only action required by the nurse or the technician after the
needle 98 is inserted into the vein and before the needle is
withdrawn from the vein is to throw a switch which energizes the
motor 74. The tube 96 is of sufficient length to permit the
platform 30 to oscillate without, in any way, disturbing the
position of the needle in a vein.
Thus, by using my device 10, a plurality of conventional evacuated
test tubes, such as the three illustrated tubes 58, 60, 62 can be
simultaneously at least partially filled with blood in a short
period of time and without maneuvering the needle 98. Since the
platform 30 can be oscillated before the needle 98 is inserted into
the vein or, at least, before the motor 74 is energized, my device
10 will begin to mix the blood drawn into the tubes 58, 60, 62
immediately with the material in the tubes. In fact, in order to
assure such immediate mixing of the blood with the material in the
tubes, I prefer to arrange my device 10 so that the motor 74 cannot
be energized to drive the pusher plate 68 forward until the motor
32 is energized to oscillate the platform 30. As stated previously,
this is an important object of my invention.
While I have illustrated three test tubes 58, 60, 62, it will be
appreciated that the cartridge 56 may contain more or less tubes as
desired. Generally, in most blood tests, it is only desired that
three such tubes be at least partially filled with blood.
Referring now to FIG. 1a, an illustrative control system for my
device 10 will be discussed. I show positive voltage terminals 102,
102' and negative voltage terminals 104, 104' providing power for
my device 10. It will be appreciated that these terminals may
represent the terminals of a battery power source or the output
terminals of a conventional rectifier for alternating current. The
motor 32 is energized by current flow through a manually operated
switch 106, the coil of a relay 108 and the master switch 28. The
relay 108, when energized, closes switch 110 through which the
motor 74 is energized for rotation in a direction for driving the
pusher plate 68 in the direction of the arrow 78. That is, current
flows from the terminal 102, through the switch 28, switch 110, a
switch 112, the coil of motor 74, a switch 114 and a switch 116 to
the negative voltage terminal 104 to drive the motor 74 to move the
plate 68 in the direction of the arrow 78.
Switches 112 and 116 are manually operated, double throw switches
arranged, when thrown one way and switches 110 and 114 are closed,
to drive motor 74 in one direction to advance plate 68 and, when
thrown in the opposite way and switch 114 is closed, to drive motor
74 in the opposite direction to retract plate 68. Switch 114 is
normally closed and is opened by a tang 115 in the plate 68 when
the plate has moved a predetermined distance in the direction of
the arrow 78. Switches 112 and 116 may be connected to a common
actuator as illustrated.
It will be appreciated that the motor 74 cannot be energized to
advance the plate 68 in the direction of the arrow 78 unless the
switch 110 is closed and that the switch 110 will not be closed
unless the motor 32 is energized to oscillate the platform 30.
Referring now to FIG. 2, it will be seen that the cartridge 56 is
provided with three longitudinally extending, parallel openings
120, 122, 124 into which the tubes 58, 60, 62 are, respectively,
inserted. The mouths of these openings 120, 122, 124 are
proportioned and designed snugly to engage, respectively, the
stoppers 58a, 60a, 62a so that, when the cartridge is pushed in the
direction of the arrow 78 by the pusher plate 68, the force exerted
by the needles 88, 90, 92 upon the stoppers will not be directed
through the walls of the tubes 58, 60, 62. The further advantage of
having the mouth of the openings 120, 122, 124 snugly engaging the
stoppers 58a, 60a, 62 a is that not all of the tubes which will be
used with the cartridge will be of the same length.
I prefer to provide a cover 126 which slips over the end of the
cartridge 56 as illustrated, this cover being provided with
openings 120', 122', 124' which are in registry with the mouths of
the correspondingly numbered openings in the cartridge. These
openings 120', 122', 124' are provided to accommodate the needles
88, 90, 92.
It will be appreciated by those familiar with blood collecting
methods that the test tubes 58, 60, 62, after they are at least
partially filled with blood, are conventionally inserted into a
plastic mailing package. Thus, my cartridge 56, which is usable
with the device 10 in the blood-drawing operation, can be used also
as a mailing package.
Referring now to FIG. 3, it will be seen that I have illustrated a
generally triangularly shaped cartridge 130 having an open end 132
through which three conventional evacuated tubes are inserted.
Inside the cartridge, there are three triangularly related wall
sections 134, 136, 138 providing cubicles for receiving the closed
ends of the tubes which are inserted into the cartridge. A
centrally located, longitudinally extending stem 140 is arranged to
extend from the intersection of the wall sections 134, 136, 138 to
the open end 132 of the cartridge 130. The stem 140 separates the
tubes which are inserted into the cartridge 130. The end of this
stem 140 which is adjacent the open end 132 is proportioned and
designed so that, when three tubes are inserted into the cartridge
130, the stoppers sealing the tubes are engaged snugly by portions
of the perimeter of the open end 132 of the cartridge and by the
adjacent end of the stem 140.
Referring now to FIG. 4, it will be seen that I have illustrated
another generally triangularly shaped cartridge 146 which provides
a plurality of openings 148, 150, 152 which receive, respectively,
conventional evacuated tubes, such as indicated at 154. The
openings 148, 150, 152 are also triangularly arranged so that, when
tubes are, respectively, received therein, the axes of the tubes
will extend through the corners of an equilateral triangle. The
reason for this will become apparent as this description
progresses.
For use with the generally triangularly shaped cartridges 130, 146,
I provide a generally triangularly shaped manifold 156 from which
extends hollow needles 158, 160, 162, the manifold being provided
with a passageway 164 in communication with the needles. This
passageway 164 is connected by means of a flexible tube 166 to a
vein-puncturing needle 168. The needles 158, 160, 162 are
triangularly arranged so that each needle can be coaxially aligned
with one of the openings 148, 150, 152 to be penetrated through the
stopper of the tube disposed in the opening.
Thus, the manifold 156 and either one of the cartridges 130, 146
may be used with my device 10.
For aesthetic reasons, I may provide a paper liner 170 which can be
fitted into the open end of the cartridge 146 so that, when the
manifold 156 is pulled away from the cartridge, the blood drops on
the needles 158, 160, 162 will drop into and be absorbed by the
liner 170. Of course, this liner 170, the manifold 156, tube 166
and needle 168 may be conventionally disposed of after the blood is
deposited into the tubes carried in the cartridge 146.
The cartridges shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4 may be used with my device
10 simultaneously to deposit blood into the tubes disposed in the
cartridges. Further, these same cartridges may be used with other
embodiments of my invention which sequentially deposit blood into
the tubes contained in the cartridge as will be hereinafter
described.
The triangularly shaped cartridges 130, 146 may be preferable in
some cases because they will stand alone on their bases, i.e., on
their closed ends, to provide a self-standing unit with which the
laboratory technicians can work. Further, for the same amount of
material, a triangularly shaped cartridge may be somewhat stronger
than a rectangularly shaped cartridge. Further, as will be
discussed in conjunction with FIGS. 5-8, as a matter of mechanics,
it may be advisable to index or position the triangularly shaped
cartridges 130, 146 about a longitudinal axis.
Referring now to FIG. 5, it will be seen that I have illustrated
one device, indicated generally at 178, for sequentially depositing
blood specimens into a plurality of tubes carried in a cartridge
146, The device 178 includes members 180, 182 for supporting the
cartridge 146 for rotation about a journal axis extending parallel
to the axes of the tubes carried in the cartridge and equidistantly
spaced therefrom. It will be seen that, in the illustrative
embodiment, each of the support members 180, 182 is provided with a
triangularly shaped cutout for receiving and engaging an end
portion of the cartridge 146. I have illustrated a rotary stepping
drive motor 184 which is drivingly connected, by means indicated at
186, to the support member 180. This motor 184, when energized, is
arranged to drive the member 180 and the cartridge 146 through
120.degree. step movements about the axis defined by the members
180, 182. The means by which the members 180, 182 are mounted as
well as the motor 184 and the transmission 186 may be conventional
and need not be discussed, in detail, in this description.
The device 178 further comprises a block or a single channel
manifold 188 which carries a single hollow needle 190 which is
connected through a passageway in the block and a flexible tube 192
to a vein-puncturing needle 194. The block 188 may be a plastic
block formed with the passageway providing communication between
the needle 190 and the tube 192 in the same manner that the
manifold 86 is formed. The needle 190 is preferably held so that it
will extend toward the stoppers 154a sealing the tubes carried in
the cartridge 146. Specifically, it is desirable that the needle
190 always be coaxially aligned with one of the tubes in the
cartridge 146 carried by the support members 180, 182.
In order to drive the needle 190 sequentially to penetrate through
the stopper 154a, I provide a drive motor 196 which may be
drivingly connected to the block 188 by means such as the
illustrated gear 198 and rack 200. Specifically, the block 188 is
carried by the rack 200 and, when the motor 196 is driven in one
direction, the needle 190 moves in the direction of the arrow 202
and, when the motor is driven the opposite direction, the needle
190 moves in the direction of the arrow 204.
Preferably, the motor 184, 196, rack 200 and supports 180, 182 are
mounted upon an oscillable platform 30', only a fragment of which
is shown.
Thus, in the use of the device 178, the nurse or technician taking
the blood specimens will place the cartridge 146 in the support
members 180, 182, place the block 188 in the proportioned cutout
206 in the rack 200 and, then, place the needle 194 into a vein. At
that point, the motor for oscillating the platform 30 is energized
and then the motor 196 is energized to move the needle 190 in the
direction of the arrow 202 to penetrate the needle through the
coaxially aligned stopper 154a. After a predetermined time, the
motor 196 is again energized to move the needle 190 in the
direction of the arrow 204 so that the motor 184 can be energized
to rotate the cartridge 146 120.degree. to place another in coaxial
alignment with the needle 190, and, thereafter, the needle 190 is
again moved in the direction of the arrow 202 to deposit blood into
the second coaxially aligned tube.
It will be appreciated that I may provide circuit means arranged
sequentially to operate the indexing motor 184 and the drive motor
196 so that the nurse or technician taking the blood specimens need
only throw one switch after the needle 194 is punctured into a
vein. Preferably, during the entire blood-drawing operation, the
platform 30' is being gently oscillated to oscillate the tubes in
the cartridge 146.
The rack 200 constitutes means for rigidly holding the hollow
needle 190 and the cartridge 146 comprises means for supporting a
plurality of conventional evacuated test tubes. The motor 184 and
transmission 186 and support member 180, 182 comprise indexing
means for providing relative movement between the means which
supports the needle 190 and the cartridge 146. The motor 196 and
the transmission 198 comprise drive means for providing relative
reciprocation between the support means for the needle 190 and the
cartridge 146.
Referring now to FIG. 6, it will be seen that I have illustrated
another device, indicated generally at 210, for sequentially
depositing blood into a plurality of test tubes. This device 210
comprises a support 212 upon which a cartridge 146' may be placed.
In the illustrative embodiment, the support 212 provides a pair of
spaced apart locating blocks 214, 216 which engage notches 218,
formed in the edges of the cartridge 146' to prevent movement of
the cartridge longitudinally, i.e., in the direction of the axes of
the tubes in the cartridge, relative to the support 212. The
illustrative support 212 is reciprocated longitudinally by a
drivescrew 220 which is driven by a motor not shown.
It will be seen that I have illustrated a manifold or block 188'
and a single hollow needle 190' and means for sequentially
positioning the needle adjacent the stopper 154a of each of the
tubes in the cartridge 146. Specifically, in the illustrative
embodiment I provide a rotary-stepping motor 222 for moving a
support 224 which holds the block 188' in a step-by-step manner.
The motor 222 preferably moves the support 224 in 120.degree.
increments.
The cartridge 146 and the support 212 are proportioned and arranged
so that one of the tubes in the cartridge 146 will he coaxially
aligned with the needle 190' in each of its three positions
obtained by energizing the motor 222. Thus, the support 224 moves
about an axis which is parallel to and equidistantly spaced from
the axes of the tubes in the cartridge 146.
The nurse or technician taking blood specimens using the device 210
places the cartridge 146 on the support 212 as illustrated and then
places the block 188' in the proportioned cutout 226 in the support
224. Then, after the needle 194' is inserted into the vein, the
nurse or technician may operate a switch to cause the support 212
to be driven toward the needle 190' to penetrate the needle through
the stopper 154a of the first tube in the cartridge 146. After a
predetermined time the support 212 is moved away from the needle
190' and then the motor 222 is energized to index the needle so
that is is in coaxial alignment with the second tube in the
cartridge 146.
Again, the support 212, motor 222 and drivescrew 220 are preferably
mounted on an oscillable platform 30', only a portion of which is
shown.
In the device 178, the needle 190 is reciprocated axially toward
and away from the stoppers of the tubes in the cartridge 146 and
the cartridge is rotated about an axis in a step-by-step manner
sequentially to position each stopper adjacent the needle. In the
device 210, the tubes and the cartridge are reciprocated toward and
away from the needle 190' and the needle is driven about an axis in
a step-by-step manner sequentially to be positioned adjacent each
of the stoppers.
Referring now to FIG. 7, it will be seen that I have illustrated
still another device, indicated generally by the reference numeral
230, for sequentially depositing blood into a plurality of test
tubes. The device 230 utilizes the cartridge 56 which contains
three tubes as discussed previously. The cartridge 56 is placed
upon a support 232 and held in position thereon by means such as
the spring clip indicated at 234. The support 232 and the cartridge
56 supported thereon is moved in a step-by-step manner as indicated
by the two arrows 235 by a motor 236. The motor 236 may be
connected to the support 232 by means such as the illustrated
drivescrew 238. The motor 236 is, therefore, indexing means for
moving the cartridge 56 in a step-by-step manner sequentially to
position the stopper of each tube contained in the cartridge
adjacent a single hollow needle 190'. The block 188' carrying the
needle is placed in a cutout 239 on a support 240 which, in the
illustrative embodiment, is drivingly connected to a motor 242 by a
drivescrew 244. The motor 242 is a bidirectional motor used to
reciprocate the needle 190' toward and away from the cartridge 56
sequentially to penetrate the needle 190' through the stoppers of
the tubes contained in the cartridge.
Again, the support 232, 240, 242 and the motor 236 are preferably
mounted on an oscillable platform 30', only a portion of which is
shown.
Referring now to FIG. 8, it will be seen that I have illustrated
still another device 250 comprising a guideway 252 for slidably
receiving a cartridge 56 and means 254 for drivingly connecting the
cartridge to an illustrative drivescrew arrangement 256. The
drivescrew arrangement is provided for reciprocating the cartridge
56 in the guideway 252 as indicated by the arrows 258, 260
sequentially to push the stoppers of the tubes contained in the
cartridge onto a single needle 190'.
The block 188' carrying the single needle 190' is disposed in a
socket indicated at 262 provided in a support member 264 which is
reciprocated in a step-by-step manner by a solenoid 266. The
solenoid 266 is connected to the support member 264 by means of a
connecting device 268. The device 268 comprises a pivotally mounted
hook 270 which is arranged to engage notches 272, 274 provided on
the support member 264. A spring 276 is arranged yieldably to
engage the hook with the notches. The solenoid 266 comprises a
plunger 278 which extends through an opening in the device 268, the
distal end of the plunger 278 being provided with an enlarged end
280 which serves loosely to connect the end of the plunger to the
device 268. A spring 282 is arranged conventionally to urge the
plunger 278 to its outermost position in the solenoid 266. I have
illustrated a trip release 284 for manually disengaging the hook
270 from the notches 272, 274 and a spring 286 for biasing the
support member 264 to its illustrated position.
The connecting device 268 is mounted for slidable movement relative
to the support member 264 within the limits established by the
elongated slots 288. Assuming that the illustrated position of the
support member 264 is its initial starting position and that the
needle 190' has been penetrated through the opening 120' of the
cartridge 56 and the stopper of the tube aligned with that opening
and that it is desired to move the needle 190' into alignment with
the opening 122', this movement is accomplished by energizing the
solenoid 266 while the hook 270 is engaged with the notch 272 to
move the needle 190' one step as indicated by the arrow 290. Then
the cartridge 56 is driven in the direction of the arrow 258 to
push the stopper of the tube aligned with the opening 122' upon the
needle 190'. While the needle 190' is extending through the stopper
behind the opening 122', the solenoid 266 is deenergized and the
spring 282 moves the connecting device 268 to the left as viewed in
FIG. 8 and relative to the support member 264 to engage the hook
270 with the notch 274. Then, after the cartridge 56 is pulled in
the direction of the arrow 260, the solenoid 266 may again be
energized to move the needle 190' one step as indicated by the
arrow 292 to position the needle 190' in alignment with the opening
124'. When the needle 190' is aligned with the opening 124', the
cartridge 56 can be pushed in the direction of the arrow 258 to
penetrate the needle through the stopper of the tube in alignment
with the opening 124'. When the blood is deposited into the tube in
alignment with the opening 124', the blood-collecting operation is
completed and while the needle 190' is still penetrating through
the stopper of the tube aligned with the opening 124', the
cartridge 56 with the needle and block 188' connected thereto can
be lifted out of the guideway 252. Then, the supporting member 264
can be returned to its initial starting position by pushing down on
the trip 284 which disengages the hook 270 from the notch 274.
It will be appreciated that, in each of the devices 178, 210, 230,
250, I may use a solenoid for driving the single needle 190 through
the stopper of each of the tubes in the cartridges 146, 56.
In order to prevent the blood which is contained in the needle 194,
tube 192 and block 188 from running out the open end of the needle
194 after it is removed from a vein, I prefer to leave the needle
190 penetrating into the last three test tubes into which the
needle is inserted. After the person from whom the blood specimens
have been taken leaves the area, the nurse or technician taking the
blood can remove the needle 190 from the last of the three tubes
which is filled and then deposit the needle, block 188, flexible
tube 192 and needle 194 into a trash container.
Referring now to FIG. 9, it will be seen that I have illustrated a
chuck means 300 for releasably, but rigidly holding a hollow needle
302 so that stoppers of evacuated tubes can be pushed upon the
needle, the needle being connected by means of a flexible tube 304
to a vein puncturing needle (not shown).
The illustrative chuck means 300 includes a member 306 providing a
surface 306a having a trough 308 formed therein for receiving the
needle 302, a second member 310 providing a second surface 310a for
engaging the first-mentioned surface 306a, means 312 for hingedly
connecting the members 306, 310 so that the surfaces 306a and 310a
can be separated, and fastener means 314 for releasably holding the
surfaces in engagement. The illustrative fastener means 314
includes a wing screw 316 which is conventionally rotatable to
bridge across a notch 318 provided in the member 310.
In some cases, it may be sufficient to provide a resilient pad,
such as indicated at 320, on the surface 310a, which pad
resiliently engages the needle 302 securely to position the needle
in the trough 308 of the chuck means 300. In other cases, it may be
desirable to provide a small plastic block, such as indicated at
322, which is molded so as to be rigidly connected to the needle
302 and which is received in a recess 324 formed in the surface
306a. It will be appreciated that the engagement of the block 322
with the recess 324 will, when the surfaces 306a and 310a are
brought into engagement, position when needle 302 against
longitudinal movement.
Thus, a nurse or technician using the chuck means 300 may simply
raise the upper member 310 and insert a needle 302 into the trough
308 as indicated by the arrows 326 and then, close the chuck means
by lowering the upper member 310 and operating the fastener means
314.
It will be appreciated that, by using the chuck means 300, it will
be possible to eliminate the block 188, 188' shown in FIGS. 5-8,
the block being a plastic piece of material having a passageway
formed therein with a flexible tube connected to one end of the
passageway and a needle extending into and connected to the other
end of the passageway. The formation of such a block will be
significantly more expensive than the connection of the needle 302
to one end of the flexible tube 304. While I have illustrated (FIG.
9) the small block 322 molded about the end of the flexible tube
receiving the hollow needle 302, as stated above, I may provide
chuck means 300 which will resiliently and frictionally engage the
needle and hold the needle rigidly without using such a block. In
such a case, the flexible tube 304 may be simply heat sealed to the
needle 302.
My illustrative chuck means 300 may be used in any one of the
systems illustrated in FIGS. 5-8. That is, the chuck means 300 may
be placed on the rack 200 (FIG. 5), on the support member 224 (FIG.
6), on the support member 240 (FIG. 7), or on the support member
264 (FIG. 8).
Referring now to FIG. 10, it will be seen that I have shown an
illustrative chuck means 300' mounted on a support block 330 for
reciprocation in the direction of the arrow 332 which is parallel
to the longitudinal axis of the needle 302 held in the chuck. The
illustrative chuck means 300' includes an illustrative snap
fastener 334 in lieu of the rotatable-type fastener means 314
discussed above.
The support member 330 is formed with an upwardly opening,
longitudinally extending cavity 336 for receiving a conventional
evacuated tube 338, the end of the cavity 336 facing the chuck
means 300' being enlarged as indicated at 340 to receive the
stopper 338a sealing such a tube. The tube 338 may be dropped into
the cavity 336 and then the chuck means 300' may be pushed manually
toward the tube to penetrate the needle 302 carried by the chuck
means through the stopper 338a. After blood is drawn into the
evacuated tube 338, the chuck means can be pulled away from the
cavity 336 and the tube can be removed from the cavity and a second
tube can be placed therein. The device of FIG. 10, therefore, is a
manual means for sequentially penetrating the needle 302, which is
connected by a flexible tube 304 to a vein-puncturing needle,
through the stoppers of several evacuated tubes.
In order to facilitate the manual removal of the tubes 338 from the
cavity 336, I provide enlarged, laterally extending openings 342
intermediate the ends of the cavity. These openings 342 will permit
a nurse or technician to grip the tube securely at a point
intermediate its ends.
Referring now to FIG. 11, it will be seen that I have illustrated a
chuck means 300' for releasably and rigidly holding a hollow needle
302 and means 344 for reciprocating the chuck means toward and away
from the stoppers of a plurality of tubes. The illustrative means
344 includes a bidirectional drive motor 346 and drivescrew
arrangement 348 for reciprocating the chuck means 300 as indicated
by the arrow 350.
In FIG. 11, the tubes 352 are carried by a cartridge belt 354,
i.e., a belt formed with a plurality of spaced apart loops 356,
each of which receives a tube 352. Each loop 356 of the belt 354 is
preferably provided with coded indicia for identifying the tube
received therein. Preferably, means such as the illustrated knife
358 which is pivotally mounted as indicated at 360, will be
provided for separating the belt loops 356. In the illustrative
embodiment, the knife 358 is pivotally mounted on the same member
as the chuck means 300' so that when the chuck means is moved away
from the tubes, the knife will drop down to separate the loop 356
from the belt 354. In some cases, it may be advisable to remove or
to deactivate the knife 358 so that reciprocation of chuck means
300' will not separate belt loops.
In the illustrative embodiment, there is a frame 362 defining a
guideway through which the belt 354 and tubes 352 move. At one
point on the frame 362, there is provided a notch 364 through which
the needle 302 reciprocates. Means must be provided for driving the
belt 354 in a step-by-step manner past the notch 364. In the
illustrative embodiment, this function is provided by a rotary
stepping motor 366 which drives a drive wheel 368 which engages the
belt 354. The drive wheel 368 may be soft so as resiliently to
engage the belt 354 as illustrated. Preferably, each step of the
motor 366 moves the belt 354 one loop space sequentially to advance
each tube 352 carried by the belt past the notch 364.
The system of FIG. 11 may be ideally used for collecting large
groups of blood specimens from large groups of people, such as Army
inductees. The coded indicia or serial numbers carried on each loop
356 will facilitate the identification of each blood specimen. That
is, each person from whom blood is to be taken can be assigned a
serial number corresponding to the number of the loop 356 receiving
the tube 352 into which the person's blood is deposited. Thus,
using the system of FIG. 11, one or more blood specimens can be
efficiently taken from each person of a group of people. The nurse
or technician taking the specimens will not have to manipulate
manually the tubes.
The rotary stepping motor 366 and drive wheel 368 constitute
indexing means for advancing the tubes 352 or the belt 354 holding
the tubes sequentially past the chuck means 300' which holds the
needles to be penetrated through the stoppers of the tubes.
Referring now to FIG. 12, it will be seen that I have shown a block
188 carrying a needle 190, the block being mounted on a platform
30'. The hollow needle 190 is connected by means of a flexible tube
192 to a vein-puncturing needle. The block 188 is illustrative and
chuck means 300 may be used in lieu thereof.
The system of FIG. 12 includes a chamber 382 in which tubes 384 are
held for movement toward and away from the needle 190. In the
illustrative embodiment, the chamber 382 is reciprocated toward and
away from the needle 190 by means of a bidirectional motor 384 and
drivescrew 386 arrangement. The system of FIG. 12 also includes
cartridge means or a hopper 388 for sequentially feeding such tubes
384 into the chamber 382 and means 390 for ejecting filled tubes
from the chamber so that empty tubes can be deposited therein. In
the illustrative embodiment, the ejecting means 390 comprises a
member 392 mounted for pivotal movement as indicated at 394 toward
and away from the chamber 382 as indicated by the arrow 395. The
member 392 provides a portion 396 for engaging a tube 384 and
pushing it out of the chamber 382. The ejecting means 390 also
includes a second member 398 which is pivotally mounted on a
platform 400 so as to engage a portion 402 of the member 392 when
the chamber 382 is moved away from the needle 190 toward the
cartridge means 388. The member 398 is pivotally movable as
indicated by the arrow 404 and a leaf spring 406 is provided for
yieldably urging the member 398 in a direction opposite to the
arrow 404.
In the operation of the system of FIG. 12, when the chamber 382
with a tube 384 is moved away from the needle 190 toward the
cartridge means 388, the member 392 strikes the member 398 and
moves inwardly to push the tube out of the chamber as indicated by
the arrow 408. The chamber 382 continues to move to a position
under the cartridge means 388 so that another tube 384 can drop
into the chamber for movement toward the needle 190. The spring 406
will permit the member 398 to pivot in the direction of the arrow
404 when the member 392 is moved toward the needle 190.
It will be appreciated that the entire system of FIG. 12 may be
mounted on an oscillable platform 30', only a portion of which is
shown.
* * * * *