Abstract:
A needle sheathing safety device having a plurality of spaced openings for grasping and securely holding a hypodermic needle and cap. This invention features a container body housing; and a plurality of spaced apart and axially aligned openings for grasping and securely holding a needle cap and needle in the body housing. In most embodiments, the body housing is configured to position the user&#39;s hands free and clear of the needle during the sheathing and unsheathing operation.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to medical safety equipment. More particularly, the present invention relates to a safety device for safely sheathing and unsheathing a needle and securely holding a needle. 
     A major concern for many health care providers is the risk of being exposed to infectious diseases. Of particular concern is the common but potentially life-threatening act of handling hypodermic needles. Health care providers handle hypodermic needles in a variety of settings for a variety of reasons. Included in the uses of hypodermic needles is the administration of medications and the drawing of blood and other bodily fluids. Whenever a used hypodermic needle is handled though, there exists the possibility that the health care provider handling the needle may be accidentally or inadvertently pricked by the now used needle. According to the latest figures available, it is estimated that at least 600,000 health workers accidentally prick themselves each year. 
     Previously, devices aimed at reducing the potential of inadvertent self-inflicted needle pricks by health care workers proposed have been unduly complicated to manufacture and use. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,469,964, there is disclosed a device that receives the sheath of a needle and engages the sheath by way of rotatable locking means. The device disclosed therein is complex in construction and thus not conducive for use as a disposable device. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a needle sheathing safety device that securely holds the cap of a hypodermic needle, thereby reducing the user&#39;s risk of being inadvertently pricked when sheathing and unsheathing the needle. 
     It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a needle sheathing safety device that securely holds the needle of a hypodermic needle, thereby reducing the user&#39;s risk of being inadvertently pricked when sheathing and unsheathing the needle. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a needle sheathing safety device that is easily manufactured and operated. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a needle sheathing safety device that retains the needle cap and needle in a secure location for convenient and safe re-sheathing. 
     This invention results from the realization that an easier to use and therefore safer needle sheathing safety device is effectuated by a needle sheathing safety device having a plurality of spaced openings for grasping and securely holding a hypodermic needle and cap. This invention features a container body housing; and a plurality of spaced apart and axially aligned openings for grasping and securely holding a needle cap and needle in the body housing. In most embodiments, the body housing is configured to position the user&#39;s hands free and clear of the needle during the sheathing and unsheathing operation. Additionally, the plurality of axially aligned openings preferably has means for securely retaining the needle cap and needle in the device. 
     In another embodiment, the needle sheathing safety device has a multiple of plurality of axially aligned openings for accommodating the sheathing, unsheathing and retaining of multiple of needles. 
     In most embodiments the axially aligned openings are U-shaped to better accept the portion of the hypodermic needle disposed therein. Of course, the openings may take on other shapes as well, such as squared corners. The plurality of axially aligned openings generally comprises an opening located at an end of the body housing and a second of the plurality of openings disposed in the body housing yet in relative close proximity to the opening located in the end of the body housing. The combined configuration of the opening located in the end of the body housing and the second opening positioned next thereto operate to grasp and retain the needle and needle cap in the needle sheathing safety device of the present invention. Other openings which are also axially aligned with the end opening are most often disposed in the body housing for grasping and retaining the needle cap. 
     This invention is preferably constructed of lightweight, needle puncture-resistant and inexpensive materials such as hard plastics. The important feature of the materials of construction is that the materials prevent the penetration of the needle, thereby alleviating the risks of inadvertent needle pricks. The body housing is generally configured so that the user need not hold the device in the vicinity of the sheathing and unsheathing process. The invention may also be attached to a work surface, thereby obviating the risk that a health care provider prick their free hand with the hypodermic needle. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Other objects, features and advantages will occur to those skilled in the art from the following description of a preferred embodiment and the accompanying drawings, in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the needle sheathing safety device of this invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a detailed view of the rails comprising the preferred embodiment of the needle sheathing safety device shown in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a view of a hypodermic needle for use in the invention shown in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 4 is a detailed view of the needle hub and cap of the hypodermic needle shown in FIG. 3; 
     FIG. 5A is a detailed end view of a particular type of needle cap used in the invention of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 5B is a side view of the needle cap of FIG. 5A; 
     FIG. 6 is a top view of the invention of FIG. 1 depicting three needles and needle caps retained is the invention of FIG. 1; and 
     FIG. 7 is perspective view of the present invention of FIG. 1 showing a needle operably positioned therein. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Needle sheathing safety device  1 , FIG. 1, of the present invention comprises a body housing comprising a front wall  8 , a rear wall  6  and side walls  2  and  4  and a bottom  5 . In the preferred embodiment depicted, the body housing is substantially a rectangular-shaped housing containing the other operable structural components of the invention. The front wall  8  has an opening  14 , generally U-shaped, to facilitate the placement of a needle hub therein. Accordingly, opening  14  is sized to accept the size of needle hubs that will be used with the needle sheathing safety device  1 . Also located in the body housing of the needle sheathing safety device  1  is a rail  10  and a rail  12 . Located in the rail  10 , are openings  16 . Also shown are openings  18  disposed in rail  12 . 
     The openings  16  disposed in rail  10  and the openings  18  disposed in rail  12  are each axially aligned with each other and with the openings  14  located in the front wall  8 . In other words, for each opening  14  in the front wall  8 , there is a corresponding axially aligned opening  16  in rail  10  and a corresponding axially aligned opening  18  in rail  12 . The axially aligned openings in the front wall and spaced apart rails  10  and  12  in combination operate to accommodate a needle cap and needle hub during the process of sheathing and unsheathing of a hypodermic needle as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. 
     A better understanding of the front wall  8 , the rail  10  and the rail  12  may be understood by referring to FIG.  2 . The FIG. 2 shows that the front wall  8  and the rail  10  have substantially rounded U-shaped or oval openings,  14  and  16  respectively. Although appearing substantially the same size, the openings  14  in front wall  8  actually extend lower than the rail  10  openings  16 . The front wall  8  openings  14  extend lower than the rail  10  openings since the needle hub  24 , FIGS. 3 and 4, typically has a greater diameter at the point of contact with the front wall  8  than at the point of contact with rail  10 . Although this is the preferred embodiment, the front wall  8  openings and the rail  10  openings may be of the same size. The important feature is that the top of openings  14  and openings  16  extend above the needle hub and needle cap respectively of a hypodermic needle fully and operably inserted into the needle sheathing safety device  1 . 
     The openings  14 ,  16  and  18  all have slight “lips” to grasp and securely retain the needle cap and needle in the needle sheathing safety device  1 . The FIG. 2 shows the lips on the front wall  8  openings  14  at the upper inside edge of the openings  14 ; the lips  17  on rail  10  openings  16  at the upper inside edge of the openings  16 ; and the lips  19  on rail  12  openings  18  at the upper inside edge of openings  18 . When the needle cap and needle of a hypodermic needle are inserted into axially aligned openings  14 ,  16  and  18 , the needle cap  20 , FIG. 4, is positioned in the opening  18  of rail  12  with the top of the needle cap blow the top of the opening  18 . Since the lips  19  extend slightly above and over the top of the seated needle cap  20 , the needle cap  20  is held in the opening  18 . The fully seated needle cap  20  will also have lips  17  of the opening  16  slightly extending over the rail  10  opening  16 . Thus, the needle cap flange  30  is prevented from accidentally becoming disengaged from the opening  16 . The fully seated needle cap  20  will also be positioned such that the opening  14  lips  15  extend slightly over the needle hub  24 , thereby securely retaining the needle hub  24  in the needle sheathing device  1  until removed by the user. 
     The front wall  8  and the rail  10  are in relatively close proximity to each other since the needle cap flange  30  is typically relatively thin and the front wall  8  opening  14  grasps the needle hub  30  and the rail  10  opening  16  grasps the needle cap just beyond the needle cap flange  30 . In the preferred embodiment, the front wall  8  openings  14  exterior side faces are chamfered, i. e. beveled, so that the needle hub  24  may be easily seated down into the opening  14  and so that the initial unsheathing of the needle cap  20  is done gradually without the need for the user to exert undue force. The beveled exterior face of the openings  14  also eases the re-sheathing process since the syringe  26  may be brought slightly closer to the needle hub  24 , close enough to frictionally lock the needle hub  24  onto the needle cap  30  prior to the user lifting and removing the hypodermic needle  100  from the needle sheathing safety device  1 . Constructing the body housing of the needle sheathing safety device  1 , at least the front wall  8 , of resilient materials that give slightly under nominal force from the user also facilitates and eases the re-sheathing process. 
     In most embodiments, including the preferred embodiment, the rail  12  openings  18  have squared bottoms. The openings  18  squared-off bottoms are particularly designed to prevent “Leur-Lock” type needle caps, FIG. 5A and 5B, from rotating. This is important when sheathing and unsheathing Leur-Lock needles since these types of needles are threadedly attached to the syringe  26  of the hypodermic needle  100 . The squared-off bottoms of openings  18  prevent the needle cap  20  from rotating by impeding the rotation of the needle cap ridges  22  as the syringe  26  is rotated in an effort to remove(or attach) the needle from(to) the syringe  26 . Since the needle cap  20  and the needle hub are in frictional contact, the needle  28  is also prevented from rotating. The user may load and unload Leur-Lock needles simply and easily by inserting the needle cap  20  in an opening  18 , and then screwing or unscrewing the syringe  26  from the threadedly attached needle hub  24 . While the squared-off bottom of opening  18  are particularly useful in the instance of working with threaded-type needles, the squared-off bottoms can adequately accommodate friction-fit needles and needle caps without ridges. 
     Within the scope of this invention are means for attaching the needle sheathing device  1  of the present invention to a work surface so that the user need not hold the device in their hand. This too reduces the risks of a user becoming accidentally pricked by a contaminated needle. A variety of attachment means are contemplated and covered by this invention as understood by those skilled in the art, including but not limited to adhesive tapes, temporary adhesives, hook and loop fasteners and mechanical means. 
     Other embodiments will occur to those skilled in the art and are within the following claims: