Tip assembly for syringes

Abstract

A tip assembly for a syringe wherein the assembly includes a cylindrical main body having an open forward end and a partially closed back end. The inner surface of the main body adjacent the back end has an annular seal. An inner cylindrical body is positioned within and coaxial with the main body forwardly of the annular seal. A flange-like member connects the inner body to the main body to retain the inner body in spaced relation within the main body. A cap is provided for closing the open end of the main body. A needle assembly is supported by the inner body within the main body. This needle assembly has a hub with a hole extending therethrough. A needle is held in the forward portion of the hub and a portion of the hub rearwardly of the needle is sized to fit in the inner body to position the needle assembly within the main body.

Description

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to apparatus in the syringe field and, more particularly, to a tip assembly for use in conjunction with a syringe.

In this age of specialization in the medical field, it is imperative that some action be taken to cut down the high number of component requirements, particularly with regard to syringes and related apparatus. It is with this in mind that the present tip assembly has been developed.

In view of the foregoing, it is an object of this invention to provide a tip assembly for syringes which has great adaptability both with regard to the syringes on which it is used and to the use to which the syringes are put.

It is yet another object of this invention to provide a tip assembly which will provide safer means for storage of the syringe with inserted cannula, ready for use upon removal of the cap or cap and body depending upon the use prescribed.

The above and additional objects and advantages will become more apparent when taken in conjunction with the following detailed description and drawings.

IN THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a plan view partly in section illustrating the tip assembly and its attachment to a syringe,

FIG. 2 is a view showing the use of the tip assembly with a flexible dispensing bag, and

FIG. 3 is a view depicting the use of the tip assembly wherein the cap and main body have been removed and the needle has been introduced into a bottle of medicament.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As best illustrated in FIG. 1, the tip assembly 10 comprises a cylindrical main body 12 having an open forward end 14 and a partly closed back end 16. The inner surface 18 of the main body 12 is provided with a pair of axially spaced annular sealing rings 20 adjacent the back end 16. An integral cylindrical inner body 22 is coaxially positioned within the main body 12 forwardly of the sealing rings 20. This inner body 22 is attached to the main body 12 by means of a flangelike member 24 extending inwardly from the inner surface 18 of the main body 12. The outer surface 26 of the inner body 22 is equidistant from the inner surface 18 of the main body. The inner surface 28 of the inner body 22 is hexagonal in cross section for cooperation with the needle hub as will be described later.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the inner surface 18 of the main body 12 is provided with a retaining groove 34 adjacent the forward end of said body. A cap 36 fits into the open forward end 14 and is provided with locking ring 38 on its outer cylindrical surface for engagement with the retaining ring 34 to hold the cap in position on the main body. In addition, the cap 36 is provided with a plurality of longitudinally extending spacing bars 40 equispaced around the outer surface 42 of the cap 36. The length of the spacing bars 40 is such that the end opposite of the cap head 44 will abut the front extremity 45 of the main body 12.

A needle assembly 48 is carried by the inner body 22 with the hexagonal portion 50 of the needle hub 52 fitting into the hexagonal opening 28 in the inner body 22. More specifically, the needle hub 52 comprises an enlarged rear portion 54, a hexagonally shaped midportion 50 and a forward portion 56 having a diameter smaller than that of the mid or rear portion 50 and 54, respectively. The hub 52 is provided with a longitudinal throughbore into which needle 60 is introduced at the forward hub end. The needle is conventionally held in the hub by swaging, however, any other suitable means may be used for the purpose of fastening the needle to the hub in an operational manner. The length of the needle 60 is such that a portion of same extends outwardly beyond the open end 14 of the main body 12. The rear enlarged hub portion 54 is formed with an upstanding outward lip 64 on its open end while the inner surface 66 of the rear hub portion 54 is provided with the conventional Luer taper.

The tip assembly of this invention can be used with a large capacity syringe of the type disclosed in pending application Ser. No. 401,272, filed Sept. 27, 1973, in the names of Elliot Bartner, Edward M. Curley, Sheldon Kaplan and Stanley J. Sarnoff.

The tip assembly 10 is received by the syringe barrel 70 in the following manner. The tip assembly mounting arrangement comprises a threaded body portion 72 threadedly carried in an appropriately threaded portion 74 of the syringe barrel 70. A horizontal hexagonally shaped portion 76 extends outwardly from the threaded body portion 72 for wrench use when assemblying the unit. An outer sleeve 78 projects forwardly from the horizontal portion 76 and has its inner surface 80 formed with conventional "Luer-Lok" threads 82. An inner sleeve 90 extends forwardly from the body 81 coaxially within the outer sleeve 78. The outer surface 92 of the inner surface 90 is provided with the usual Luer taper to cooperate with the Luer taper of inner surface 66 of the needle hub rear portion 54.

In applying the tip assembly 10 of this invention to the syringe unit disclosed in FIG. 1 and more fully covered in copending application Ser. No. 401,272, filed Sept. 27, 1973, the tip assembly is slipped onto the syringe body passing the sealing rings 20 of the main body 12 over the outer sleeve 78 and simultaneously causing the hub flange 64 to engage the Luer Lok threads 82 and the tapered outer surface 92 of inner sleeve 90 to snugly engage the inner tapered surface 66 of the rear hub portion 54. Thus the syringe unit complete with removable tip assembly is ready for use.

One of the conventional uses of a syringe unit such as this is in intravenous apparatus and, more particularly, wherein it is desired to add a medicament to the receptacle from which the liquid is being dispensed. One form of such receptacle is a flexible bag having a plurality of nipple connections extending therefrom which are adapted to accommodate conventional connecting devices.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the cap 36 has been removed from the tip assembly 10 and the needle 60 has been introduced into and through flexible stopper 100 carried on the bag nipple 102.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the cap 36 and main body 12 with integral inner body 22 have been removed from the tip assembly 10 so that the long shank of the needle 60 is available for insertion in various types of medicament containing units 110. As shown, the needle 60 is passed through a flexible stopper 112 to reach the medicament 114.

As might be expected, the body of the tip assembly can most advantageously be made from a plastic material. The cannula and hub should be made from conventional materials which are well known to the art. Adaptability and versatility of cannula size with regard to different types of syringes make the tip assembly aforedescribed a very useful and necessary piece of apparatus.

Claims

We claim:

1. A tip assembly comprising:

a cylindrical main body, said main body having an open forward end and a partially closed back end, the inner surface of the main body adjacent the back end having a pair of spaced annular sealing rings extending inwardly therefrom,

an inner body positioned within the main body forwardly of the sealing rings, the outer surface of the inner body being equispaced from the inner surface of the main body, the inner surface of the inner body being hexagonal, means connecting the inner body to the main body and retaining same in the aforesaid spaced relation,

the forward end of the main body being provided with a retaining groove,

a cap fitting over the open end of the main body, said cap having a cup-shaped configuration including a bottom and a cylindrical wall extending therefrom, holding means on the outer surface of the cap wall to engage the retaining groove in the main body, a plurality of spacing bars on the outer surface of the cap wall generally perpendicular to the cap bottom, the length of said spacing bars being such that they abut the forward edge of the main body when the cap is positioned on the main body and the holding means are seated in the retaining groove, and

a needle assembly carried within the main body by the inner body, said needle assembly comprising a hub member having an enlarged rear portion, a hexagonally shaped middle portion and a forward portion having a cross section smaller than the middle portion, the hub having a hole extending completely therethrough, a needle positioned in the forward portion of the hub and held therein by the swaging of said hub portion into firm engagement with the needle, the hexagonal middle portion of the hub being sized to snugly fit into the hexagonal inner surface of the inner body whereby the needle assembly is firmly held in position within the main body

2. A tip assembly adapted for use in conjunction with a medicament container from which the medicaments are removed by a needle wherein the dispensing end of the container has a body portion from which extends an outer sleeve having its inner surface threaded, and an inner sleeve also extending forwardly from said body, the inner sleeve being positioned within and spaced from the outer sleeve, said inner sleeve being tapered so as to enlarge in the direction of the body and in communication with the medicament in the container, said tip assembly comprising:

a cylindrical main body, said main body having an open forward end and a partially closed back end, the inner surface of the main body adjacent the back end having circumferential sealing means extending inwardly therefrom, said sealing means being adapted to sealingly engage the outer surface of the outer sleeve on the medicament container when the tip assembly is operatively connected to said container,

an inner cylindrical body within and coaxial with the main body forwardly of the sealing means, means connecting the inner body to the main body to retain the aforesaid spaced relation, the inner surface of the inner body being hexagonal in cross section,

a cap fitting over the open end of the main body, said cap having a cup-shaped configuration including a bottom and a cylindrical wall extending therefrom, cooperating retaining means on the outer surface of the cap wall and the inner surface of the main body to hold the cap on the main body,

a needle assembly carried within the main body by the inner body, said needle assembly comprising a hub member having an enlarged rear portion adapted to engage the threads on the inner surface of the outer sleeve of the container, a hexagonally shaped middle portion and a forward portion of smaller diameter than the middle portion, the hub having a hole extending completely therethrough, a needle fixedly mounted in the forward portion of the hub, the rearward portion of the hub hole being sized to conformingly engage the tapered inner sleeve of the container, the hexagonal portion of the hub being sized to operatively fit into the hexagonal inner surface of the inner body whereby the needle assembly is firmly held in position within the main body, and

whereby when the tip assembly is operatively mounted on the dispensing end of the container all of the components of the tip assembly remain in fixed position during use except for the cap which is removed to expose the needle prior to use.