A cartridge having an ejection head for ejecting medicine and a reservoir as integral parts thereof is provided with an electric connection section on a lower surface of a junction forming section thereof to be brought into contact with an inhaler body. As the cartridge is put into the inhaler body and secured to the latter by means of a cartridge fixing member, the electric connection section of the cartridge is brought into contact with an electric connection section arranged on a top surface of a cartridge mounting section of the inhaler body to establish electric connection between the cartridge and the inhaler body.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an inhaler for ejecting medicine as liquid droplets and causing the user to inhale it.

2. Description of the Related Art

There are various methods of administering medicine to a patient's body including oral administration, injection by needle, application to the exterior of the body, and the use of a patch, and various devices and systems have been developed for each of these methods. Additionally, many electric devices have been developed as medical equipment as a result of the advancement of science and technology in recent years to make it possible to realize what has been difficult to achieve by mechanical means.

Many varieties of electrical medical equipment are diagnostic devices, while devices for administering medicine also exist, one example being nebulizers. The nebulizer has a vibrator as source of atomization of medicine and electric power is required for it as power source.

By observing devices for administering medicine particularly from the viewpoint of repetitive administration of medicine and replacement, it will be found that a nebulizer is so designed that a package of medicine that is independent of the nebulizer is moved into the device and subsequently atomized so that the user may inhale the medicine as he or she breathes. A package of medicine needs to be provided for each use of the nebulizer. The vibrator that is the source of atomization of medicine is operated repetitively and needs to be periodically cleaned to keep it in a sanitary condition. In other words, a nebulizer is not a particularly convenient system from the user's viewpoint.

On the other hand, such problems have already been solved in some other technical fields. For instance, a simple arrangement is provided for ink-jet printers so as to simplify the replacement operation. More specifically, a cartridge structure formed by integrally combining an ejection head for ejecting ink for printing that requires electric power, an electric connection section for supplying electric power and a container for storing ink is provided for use with an ink-jet printer. While the printer main body normally has a long service life, the ink supply needs to be replenished frequently. If an ejection head is incorporated into the main body from the beginning and develops a problem, it is a cumbersome, costly and time-consuming operation to repair the ejection head. If, on the other hand, an ejection head is provided as a replaceable part, the problem can be solved with ease.

When such an integrated cartridge is adopted, it needs to satisfy the requirements that the operation of removably putting the cartridge in position relative to printer main body should be easy and visually recognizable and the parts thereof that are directly related to the operation should be very strong, durable and dimensionally precise. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. H07-276616 and H09-141874 disclose techniques developed from this viewpoint.

More specifically, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H07-276616 relates to an arrangement of securing an integrated cartridge to a printer and subsequently rotating the cartridge so as to rigidly hold it in position in order to electrically energize it, while bringing electric connection terminals into contact with each other simultaneously.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H09-141874 relates to a spacer having dimensions adapted to isolate the electric connection sections of an ejection head in order to reduce the number of parts to be replaced when the ejection head is replaced and make the electric connection sections contact each other appropriately so as to establish a stable electric connection.

As pointed out above, an integrated cartridge needs to meet all the requirements that the operation of removably putting the cartridge in position relative to printer main body should be easy and visible and the parts thereof that are directly related to the operation should be very strong, durable and dimensionally precise in order to satisfy the user.

However, the cartridge and the printer main body have a plurality of parts that need to be linked or brought into contact in order to meet a variety of functional requirements they have. If they have problems in terms of structure and/or construction for realizing such functions simultaneously including establishing a plurality of contacts, the fixed parts of the cartridge can be damaged and degraded while the electric connection terminals may be worn and degraded.

While the linking and contacting units can be isolated to avoid the above identified problem, the number of operations that the user needs to perform will then be increased, and one or more additional mechanisms and spaces are required to consequently make the main body more complex and larger. Furthermore, the functions of a system that requires a cartridge to be replaced frequently should be reliable, reproducible and visually recognizable to the user.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the above-described circumstances, the object of the present invention is therefore to provide an inhaler to which a cartridge having an ejection head and a reservoir can be removably fitted and electrically connected with ease in a visually recognizable manner and which can operate accurately and durably.

According to the present invention, the above object is achieved by providing an inhaler for ejecting medicine and causing a user to inhale it, the inhaler including: a cartridge having an ejection head for ejecting medicine and a reservoir; an inhaler body equipped with a cartridge mounting section for mounting the cartridge thereon; a junction forming section arranged at the cartridge so as to be brought into contact with the cartridge mounting section of the inhaler body; a cartridge fixing member for fixing the cartridge on the inhaler body; a first electric connection section arranged at the junction forming section of the cartridge; and a second electric connection section arranged at the cartridge mounting section of the inhaler body to be held in contact with the first electric connection section in order to supply electric power to the ejection head. The cartridge fixing member is adapted to connect the first electric connection section to the second electric connection section by fixing the junction forming section of the cartridge to the cartridge mounting section of the inhaler body.

In an inhaler according to the present invention, the cartridge can be fitted and electrically connected to the inhaler body with ease. Additionally, since the electric connection sections are designed to be scarcely worn and degraded, the service life of the inhaler is prolonged and the parts of the inhaler require replacement less frequently.

This is because the first electric connection section and the second electric connection section are made to abut and contact each other in the direction in which the cartridge is mounted on the inhaler body so that the terminals and the contacts of the electric connection sections may be worn less. Additionally, since the cartridge is electrically connected to the inhaler body in an operation of being mounted on the latter, the overall operation is easy and the contacts can be arranged respectively at visually highly recognizable positions.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1is an exploded schematic perspective view of an embodiment of inhaler according to the present invention.FIG. 2is a schematic perspective view of the assembled inhaler ofFIG. 1. Cartridge1has a reservoir2for storing medicine to be ejected, an ejection head3for ejecting medicine and a first electric connection section4for supplying power to the ejection head3among others. Inhaler body5has a second electric connection section6, a cartridge fixing member7and so on. The inhaler further has an inhalation piece8to be held by a user at his or her mouth or nose to inhale the ejected medicine and one or more inlet ports11are arranged at the inhalation piece8so as to form an air flow in the inhalation piece8by means of which the user inhales the ejected medicine. Electric power can be supplied from the inhaler body to the ejection head3as the first electric connection section of the cartridge1and the second electric connection section6of the inhaler body5are electrically brought into contact with each other. “Electric power” as used herein may refer to DC, AC or a pulse-shaped drive signal for driving the ejection head, a DC voltage or a steady state electric current.

An air flow is generated and directed from the inlet ports11toward suction port12as the user holds the inhalation piece8in his or her mouth and breathes in. Then, as medicine is ejected into the air flow path, medicine is carried toward the inhalation piece8by the air flow that operates as a medicine carrier, and is administered to the user. The suction port12may be so profiled that the user inhales medicine through the mouth or through the nose.

The inhalation piece may have any appropriate profile. More specifically, it may be box-shaped or alternatively it may have a curved profile. Preferably, however, the part of the inhalation piece that is brought into contact with the user is designed on the basis of human engineering and the remaining part is designed so as not to influence the air flow and the mist.

The inhaler body may be provided with a CPU (control section) that controls the operation of the entire inhaler including the operation of driving the ejection head. Furthermore, the inhaler body may be provided with a sensor for detecting an air flow and also the difference between the atmospheric pressure and the air pressure that is produced in the inside of the air flow path as the user breathes and the inhaler may be so designed as to transmit a drive signal representing the air flow and the pressure difference that are detected by the sensor from the control section to the ejection head so as to synchronously start ejecting medicine according to the signal. Still additionally, the inhaler body may also be provided with a display section for displaying information that makes the user visually recognize the operation he or she is doing on the inhaler, the condition of the current ejection of medicine and so on.

The inhaler is provided with a power supply switch (not illustrated) and the system of the inhaler is made ready for various operations according to an operation signal transmitted from the power supply switch. As for power supply, a battery is arranged in the inhaler body and power is supplied from it to various relevant components by way of electric wiring in order to operate the ejection head and the system. Any type of battery may be employed for the purpose of the present invention so long as it can supply power at a desired rate with a desired level of voltage and a desired level of electric current. The inhaler may be provided with a power supply port (not illustrated) so that power may be supplied to it from an external power source.

As illustrated inFIG. 1, the cartridge1includes an electric connection section4, a reservoir2for storing (containing) medicine and an ejection head3for atomizing medicine and the reservoir and the ejection head can be linked to each other in the inside of the cartridge. In short, the cartridge1is an integrated type cartridge. As illustrated inFIG. 2, the inhaler becomes ready to operate when the cartridge1is mounted on the inhaler body5and subsequently the inhalation piece8is mounted on top of the cartridge1and secured to the inhaler body5with the cartridge1by means of the inhalation piece fixing member10.

As illustrated inFIG. 3A, a medicine flow path is formed in the cartridge1between the ejection head3having a nozzle array for ejecting medicine and the reservoir2by means of a communication needle2aso that medicine is supplied from the reservoir2to the ejection head3.

As illustrated inFIGS. 4A and 4B, the first electric connection section4for supplying electric power to the cartridge1is arranged at the junction forming section1athat projects from the lateral sides of the cartridge1. As the cartridge1is put into the inhaler body5and rigidly secured to the inhaler body5by means of the cartridge fixing member7, the electric connection section4is forced to abut the second electric connection section6arranged at the cartridge mounting section5aof the inhaler body5so as to establish electric connection between the cartridge1and the inhaler body5. For the purpose of the present invention, “the junction forming section arranged at the cartridge” refers to an appropriate part of the surface of the cartridge1that is brought into contact with the inhaler body5when the cartridge is mounted on the inhaler body5. On the other hand, the term “cartridge mounting section of the inhaler body”5refers to the part thereof that is brought into contact with the cartridge1when the cartridge1is mounted on the inhaler body5. For the purpose of the present invention, the first electric connection section4is arranged at the junction forming section of the cartridge, while the second electric connection section6is arranged at the cartridge mounting section of the inhaler body. The electric connection sections4and6are arranged respectively at the junction forming section and the cartridge mounting section so as to establish electric connection between the cartridge1and the inhaler body5when the cartridge1is mounted on the inhaler body5and rigidly secured there.

Thus, since the electric connection sections4and6are so formed as to abut and contact each other in the direction in which the cartridge1is mounted on the inhaler body5, the electric connection sections4and6are hardly worn and degraded and hence connection failure and other troubles are minimized if the cartridge1is removably mounted on the inhaler body5frequently. The electric connection sections4and6can be formed by using any material so long as a desired level of electric conductivity is realized. The electric connection sections4and6may be provided with projections and recesses. For the purpose of the present invention, the direction in which the cartridge1is mounted on the inhaler body5refers to the direction in which the cartridge1moves relative to the inhaler body5when the cartridge1is mounted. It is the lengthwise direction inFIG. 1.

The electric connection section of the cartridge is preferably arranged at a position close to the ejection head. A long wiring distance is disadvantageously required when the electric connection section of the cartridge is separated from the ejection head by a large distance.

Preferably, the electric connection section of the cartridge is formed by a plurality of terminals, all of which terminals are arranged on a same plane. Preferably, the plane where all the terminals of the electric connection section are arranged is perpendicular to the direction in which the cartridge is removably mounted on the inhaler body.

Preferably, a projecting section is arranged to project from the lateral sides of the cartridge so as to extend the plane where the ejection head is placed and the projection section is provided with the electric connection section. With this arrangement, both the cartridge and the inhaler body can be made to show a simple structure and the electric connection sections can be arranged at respective positions that are visually highly recognizable to the user so that the user can make sure with ease that electric connection is established between the cartridge and the inhaler body and the cartridge is mounted in position. Preferably, the terminals (contact pins) of the electric connection section are arranged on the flat projecting section that projects from the cartridge in the directions perpendicular to the direction in which the cartridge is put into the inhaler body as seen fromFIGS. 3B through 3D. Preferably, the terminals are arranged on the rear side of the projecting section that is opposite to the side where the ejection head3is formed. The projecting section is formed integrally with the member to which the ejection head3is secured or that is arranged around the ejection head3and extends laterally from the lateral sides of the ejection head3.

As illustrated inFIG. 3B, the projection section of the cartridge1having the junction forming section1awhere the electric connection section4is arranged projects from the lateral sides of the main body of the cartridge1. The projecting section may show a profile selected from a variety of different possible profiles so long as it projects in the vicinity of the ejection head3. For example,FIG. 3Cillustrates an instance where a junction forming section1bis formed on the bottom surface of the part of a projecting section whose top surface is displaced toward the inhalation piece from the plane of the cartridge1where the ejection head is arranged.FIG. 3Dillustrates an instance where a junction forming section1cis formed on the bottom surface of the part of a projecting section whose top surface is displaced conversely toward the inside of the inhaler body5. The first electric connection section4is placed at a position remote from the surfaces of the cartridge cabinet in each of these instances.

The instance where a junction forming section1bis formed on the bottom surface of the part of a projecting section whose top surface is displaced toward the inhalation piece from the plane of the cartridge1where the ejection head is arranged provides an advantage that the user can visually recognize the established electric connection very easily, whereas the instance where a junction forming section1cis formed on the bottom surface of the part of a projecting section whose top surface is displaced conversely toward the inside of the inhaler body5provides an advantage that the cartridge can be secured to the inhaler body very reliably.

As illustrated inFIGS. 5A and 5B, the electric connection section4of the cartridge and the electric connection section6of the inhaler body that are arranged vis-à-vis and contact each other are arranged at suitable respective positions in a suitable manner according to the projecting profile of the junction forming section1aof the cartridge1.

The cartridge fixing member7operates to secure the cartridge1to the inhaler body5. Any generally available unit may be used for the cartridge fixing member7so long as it can reliably secure the cartridge1to the inhaler body5. For example, it may be a physical unit such as a pawl or a stoppers, a unit that can bond the cartridge1to the inhaler body5with ease or a non-contact unit such as magnetic power.

The cartridge1is put into and rigidly secured to the inhaler body5by the cartridge fixing member7. At this time, the electric connection section4of the cartridge1contacts the electric connection section6of the inhaler body5and the contact is securely maintained by the cartridge fixing member7to make the inhaler operational.

The reliability of the operation of the inhaler is improved by the scheme that does not electrically energize inhaler when the cartridge1is put into the inhaler body5but electrically energizes the inhaler only when the cartridge1is rigidly secured to the inhaler body by the cartridge fixing member7. This scheme can be realized by arranging a restitutive member (not illustrated) such as a spring in the space in the inhaler body for receiving a cartridge1. With such an arrangement, the inhaler is not electrically energized when the cartridge1is put into the inhaler body5but electrically energizes only when the cartridge1is forced into the space against the restitutive member and rigidly secured to the inhaler body by the cartridge fixing member7.

As illustrated inFIG. 2, the first electric connection section4of the cartridge1and the second electric connection section6of the inhaler body are electrically connected to each other in the state where the cartridge1is mounted on and secured to the inhaler body5and the inhaler piece8is fitted in position.

Each of the electric connection sections has a plurality of terminals and each of the terminals thereof needs to be held in touch with and connected to their counterparts of the other electric connection section appropriately.

Additionally, appropriate force needs to be exerted to rigidly secure the oppositely disposed electric connection sections to each other and maintain the electric connection between them. The force is applied when the cartridge is secured to the inhaler body and maintained as the cartridge is held in position by the cartridge fixing member. A spacer may be provided in order to improve the accuracy more.

In an inhaler according to the present invention, the medicine ejection head (ejection head) has an appropriate ejection energy generating element. The ejection energy generating element may be an electrothermal transducer that applies thermal energy to medicine or an electro-mechanical transducer that applies mechanical energy to medicine. A thermal jet system for applying thermal energy to medicine by means of an electrothermal transducer and causing it to jet out from the ejection port or a system using an electro-mechanical transducer (e.g., a piezoelectric element) to apply mechanical energy to medicine and causing it to jet out under the vibration pressure of the electro-mechanical transducer may be used for the purpose of the present invention. The system to be used for an inhaler according to the present invention may be selected depending on the type of medicine.

When a thermal jet system is employed, individual liquid ejection units can be made to show a high level of dimensional accuracy and reproducibility in terms of the bore of the ejection port, the calories of the thermal pulse to be used for ejecting medicine, the size of the electrothermal transducer, which may typically be a micro-heater, etc. Therefore, the size distribution of liquid droplets can be confined to a small and narrow range. Additionally, a thermal jet type ejection head can be manufactured at low cost and hence can find applications in small apparatus that require the ejection head to be replaced frequently. Thus, a thermal jet type ejection system is preferable particularly when the medicine inhaler is required to be portable and convenient for use.

For the purpose of the present disclosure, the term “medicine” encompasses not only medicinal compounds that provide pharmaceutical and physiological effects but also tasty and fragrant ingredients, aromatics, dyes and pigments. Additionally, for the purpose of the present disclosure, the medicine may be a liquid or a powder.

For the purpose of the present disclosure, “medicinal liquid” refers to liquid medicine and liquid media that contain medicine. The medicinal liquid may contain any additive(s). As for the state of the solid (if any) contained in the liquid, it may be dissolved, dispersed, emulsified, suspended or slurried. Preferably, it may exist in the liquid in a uniform fashion.

When medicinal liquid is employed as medicine, the liquid's major medium is preferably water or an organic compound. It is more preferably water from the viewpoint that the medicinal liquid is administered to a living body.

An inhaler according to the present invention can find various applications. Medicine can be administered by means of an inhaler according to the present invention by way of the mouth or the nose of a user having a locally diseased respiratory organ or a diseased circulatory system of the entire body. Additionally, a particular site in the user's body can be targeted. Respiratory diseases that can be treated by means of an inhaler according to the present invention include asthma and chronic obstructive lung diseases, whereas diseases of the circulatory system of the entire body include diabetes mellitus.

Medicinal compounds that can be used for the purpose of the present invention include low molecular weight compounds and polymers such as peptides and proteins.

FIG. 1throughFIGS. 5A and 5Bschematically illustrate the first embodiment of inhaler according to the present invention. The cartridge1includes a reservoir2, an ejection head3and a first electric connection section4for supplying power. As illustrated inFIG. 3A, the reservoir2and the ejection head3communicate with each other by way of a communication needle2ain the cartridge so that medicine is supplied from the reservoir2to the ejection head3.

An inhalation piece8to be used by the user to inhale medicine is mounted to the inhaler body5while the cartridge1is mounted in the inside of the inhalation piece8.

As illustrated inFIGS. 5A and 5B, the inhaler body5has a cartridge mounting section5aon which the cartridge1is mounted and a second electric connection section6and a restitutive member, which is described above, are arranged there. As the cartridge1is rigidly secured to the inhaler body5by means of the cartridge fixing member7, the first electric connection section4of the cartridge1is brought into contact with the second electric connection section6of the inhaler body5to establish an electric circuit.

Then, as a result, power can be supplied to the ejection head3and related information can be transmitted to it. In short, electric power is reliably supplied to the cartridge1once the cartridge1is properly mounted, whereas no electric power is supplied to the cartridge so long as the cartridge is not properly mounted.

The second electric connection section6is arranged on the outer surface of the inhaler body5so that it can be visually recognized with ease by the user. Thus, the user can visually confirm that the cartridge1is properly mounted and electric connection is established between the cartridge and the inhaler body to provide the inhaler with an improved degree of reliability. To rigidly secure the cartridge1to the inhaler body5, the cartridge fixing member7is moved from the position illustrated inFIG. 1to the position illustrated inFIG. 2.

As illustrated inFIGS. 4A and 4B, the first electric connection section4is arranged on the rear surface of the projecting section of the cartridge1whose top surface is substantially flush with the top surface of the ejection head3arranged at the top side of the cartridge1. As illustrated inFIGS. 5A and 5B, when the cartridge1is mounted on and rigidly secured to the inhaler body5, the first electric connection section4is electrically connected to the second electric connection section6that comes to be arranged in front of it.

FIGS. 6 and 7schematically illustrate the second embodiment of inhaler according to the present invention. The second embodiment of inhaler includes a cartridge fixing member27having an opening27aso as to surround the ejection surface of cartridge1and rigidly secure the cartridge1to the inhaler body5. The cartridge1, the inhaler body5and the inhalation piece8of this embodiment are the same as their counterparts of the first embodiment and hence denoted respectively by the same reference symbols and will not be described any further.

The cartridge fixing member27is supported at an end thereof by the inhaler body5so as to be able to turn at rotary section23. The cartridge1is mounted on the inhaler body5and then the cartridge fixing member27is turned onto the cartridge to rigidly secure the cartridge in place. Then, the cartridge fixing member27contacts the cartridge1near the ejection head3. Thus, the cartridge1is rigidly secured by the cartridge fixing member27and the inhalation piece8is rigidly secured by an inhalation piece fixing member10at the same time. The inhalation piece fixing member10may be provided separately relative to the inhaler body5.

FIGS. 8 and 9schematically illustrate an inhaler formed by modifying the inhaler of the second embodiment. The cartridge fixing member37of this modified embodiment is made to show a profile that resembles the profile of the inhalation piece8in order to make the cartridge fixing member37having an opening37ato be bound to the inhaler piece8and the inhaler body5more reliably with no gap separating them and generate a desired air flow. An arrangement that makes the cartridge fixing member form part of the air flow path is highly desirable. As illustrated inFIG. 10, the elliptic part of the cartridge fixing member37operates as window at the side of the inhaler piece while the rectangular part at the bottom of the cartridge fixing member37operates as window for the ejection head3. The positional and dimensional relationship between the elliptic part and the rectangular part is so selected as to exert no influence on the ejection performance of the inhaler and the edges are so designed as to make the cartridge fixing member37snugly match the inhalation piece8. The edges may be linear or not continuous and may be formed by straight lines or one or more curved lines.

FIGS. 11 and 12schematically illustrate the third embodiment of inhaler according to the present invention. The inhaler of this embodiment is provided with a junction forming member (junction forming section)45that is movable relative to the inhaler body5so as to make it possible to release the electric connection between the cartridge1and the inhaler body5without removing the inhalation piece8and the cartridge1. With this arrangement, the electric connection between the cartridge1and the inhaler body5can be released to prevent administration of medicine from taking place even while the cartridge1is rigidly secured to the inhaler body5so as to prevent the inhaler from unintentionally operating by error and improve the safety of the inhaler.

The junction forming member45that is movable relative to the inhaler body5is provided with a second electric connection section46and the second electric connection section46at the side of the inhaler body is electrically connected to the first electric connection section4at the side of the cartridge by way of a second cartridge fixing member47as illustrated inFIG. 12. The electric connection between the cartridge1and the inhaler body5is released as the cartridge fixing member47is moved toward the outside of the inhaler body5and the electric connection section46is released from the secured position and separated from the first electric connection section4. To establish electric connection once again, the cartridge fixing member47is pushed in to move the first fixing member45having the electric connection section46upward and bring it into contact with the electric connection section4of the cartridge1. Then, the cartridge1is electrically energized.

This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No. 2008-200448, filed Aug. 4, 2008, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.