Patent ID: 9615801
Date: 2017-04-11
CPC Classifications: A61B

Claim:
1. An animal holder for use with an imaging device comprising: a body tube for receiving a first body portion of the animal, the body tube having a distal end and an opposite proximal end; a head immobilization mechanism disposed adjacent the distal end of the body tube for receiving a head of the animal, the head immobilization mechanism including opposing first and second flexible fingers that have first ends that are fixedly attached to a structure proximate an open distal end of the head immobilization mechanism and opposite free second ends configured to contact the head of the animal, the free second ends being closer to the body tube than the first ends of the first and second flexible fingers, wherein the first and second flexible fingers move between first and second positions, wherein in the first position, at which the first and second fingers are at rest, the free second ends of the first and second fingers extend beyond an outer side wall of the body tube and define a maximum width of the holder, whereas in the second position, the free second ends of the first and second fingers are in a inwardly flexed position in which the width of the holder at a location of the free second ends of the first and second fingers is the same as the width of the body tube, whereby in the inwardly flexed position, the free second ends of the first and second fingers are configured to contact and immobilize the head of the animal; and a nose support member having a proximal end that faces the body tube, wherein the distal ends of the first and second flexible fingers are located distal to the proximal end of the nose support member; wherein the head immobilization mechanism is formed in a forward portion that is defined by a bottom wall that is connected to the distal end of the body tube and a pair of upstanding side wall portions that are integral to the bottom wall, the side walls portions being spaced apart from one another, each flexible finger comprises an elongated structure that is directly connected at the first end thereof to one of the upstanding side wall portions and extends longitudinally toward the body tube such that in the first position, a distance between the first and second flexible fingers is greatest at a location proximate the distal end of the body tube.