Patent ID: 7540840
Filing Date: 2009-06-02
Classification: A61B

Abstract:
1. A tongue depressor for illuminating a confined target zone during medical procedures and the like, said tongue depressor comprising: a handle section suitably sized and shaped for being grasped and held within a user's hand; an elongated implement connected to a distal end portion of said handle section and protruding forwardly therefrom, said implement having a longitudinal axis centrally registered with a longitudinal length of said handle section; a light-emitting source situated interior of said handle section and proximally adjoined to said implement, said light-emitting source facing outwardly from said handle section and emitting a light ray linearly along a longitudinal length of said implement in such a manner that the target zone and said implement are simultaneously illuminated during operating conditions; and a power supply source electrically coupled to said light-emitting source, said light-emitting source being selectively adaptable between on and off modes as desired by the user; wherein said implement comprises a central shaft having a concave shape and an arcuate distal end portion provided with a plurality of laterally offset ribs equidistantly stepped away from said proximal end portion; and a shield directly conjoined to said central shaft and disposed adjacent said proximal end portion thereof, said shield laying contiguous with said central shaft and being suitably sized and shaped for preventing said central shaft from moving beyond a predetermined location within said handle section; wherein said shield is situated distal to said proximal end of said central shaft such that said shield remains positioned exterior of said handle section when said proximal end portion of said central shaft is inserted inside said handle section; means for selectively ejecting said implement from said handle section such that said implement can be discarded after a single use, said ejecting means comprising a push button directly traversing through a side of said handle section and being adaptable between engaged and disengaged positions defined along a travel path registered orthogonal to the longitudinal axis; a casing located within the handle section including top and bottom sides, each side provided with a monolithically formed lip portion, said lip portions being oppositely spaced along said top and bottom sides and flanging away from a center of said casing, said casing having a central opening formed therein, said opening being suitably sized and shaped wherein a proximal end portion of said implement is slidably intercalated therethrough, said lip portions being directly abutted against oppositely spaced interior surfaces of said handle section for prohibiting said casing from laterally displacing beyond a predetermined linear path, and a resilient spring member having a first arm directly positioned through said casing and maintaining a fixed spatial relationship therewith during operating conditions; wherein said implement includes a notch formed in said proximal end portion thereof, said notch being removably engageable directly with an outer wall of said casing such that said implement is held at a tensed position and statically abutted against said casing during operating conditions, said implement being slidably ejected from said handle section when said push button is laterally biased towards the longitudinal axis thereby causing said casing outer wall to disengage from said implement notch while linearly and laterally traversing through said handle section.