A SUCTION SYSTEM FOR SUCKING A MIXTURE OF AIR AND SOLID AND/OR LIQUID MATTER INTO A CONTAINER

Abstract: A suction system, especially for use by a dentist, comprises a corrugated, collapsible waste container (10) having a suction outlet connected to a suction source, such as a small scale piston pump (28), and a suction tube or nozzle (27) connected to a suction inlet of the container. The suction system comprises a holder (17) for selectively retaining the collapsible container in an extended position during use when the suction sources create a sub atmospheric pressure within the container. When a suitable amount of waste material has been separated from the air flowing through the suction nozzle (27) and collected in the container (10) the container may be collapsed and discarded together with the waste collected therein.

Description: A suction system for sucking a mixture of air and solid and/or liquid matter into a container The present invention relates to a suction system for sucking a mixture of air and solid and/or liquid matter into a container in which the solid and/or liquid matter is separated from the airflow and left in the container. The solid matter separated may be waste material and/or solid material which may be recycled and reused. In either case the collecting container is advantageously collapsible such that an empty or partly filled container takes up a minimum space, only. The present invention provides a suction system comprising a collapsible container made from a substantially gas and liquid tight material and having an inlet and an outlet communicating with the inner space of the container, means for retaining the collapsible container in an extended position, a suction tube connected to the inlet of the container, and a suction source connected to the outlet of the container. When the system is operating the inner space of the container is exposed to a pressure substantially below ambient pressure. However, the collapsible container is retained in its extended position by the retaining means, and when the inlet and outlet of the container are located at the upper part of the container solid and liquid matter entrained by the air sucked through the inner space of the container will be separated from the air flow and be collected in the container. When the partly filled container is removed from the system and from the retaining means it may be collapsed so as to take up a minimum space. An empty, collapsed container may then be extended and inserted into the suction system in which it is retained in the extended condition. The collapsible container may, for example have a peripheral wall part made from a flexible sheet material and axially opposite end walls. The retaining means may then be adapted to retain the end walls in desired axially spaced positions. The opposite end walls may also be made from a flexible material which may, for example, be connected to a stiff frame. In the preferred embodiment, however, the end walls are made from a relatively stiff sheet material. The flexible peripheral wall part may have folding or bending lines of any suitable shape allowing the container to collapse. In the presently preferred embodiment the peripheral container wall define peripherally extending corrugations therein so as to allow the flexible wall part to collapse in an axial direction. The corrugations may be in the form of axially spaced annular corrugations each being supported by a separate corresponding ring member. In the preferred embodiment the peripheral corrugations extend helically and a helical supporting member may be received in the inwardly opening corrugations for preventing the container from collapsing radially when exposed to internal suction. The suction system according to the invention may be used to remove solid and/or liquid matter from a selected location. Therefore, the free end of the suction tube opposite to the container inlet is preferably connected to a suction nozzle which may be inserted into the selected location. The suction source may, for example, be a vacuum container. Preferably, however the suction source is a gas suction pump having a suction port which is directly connected to the outlet of the collapsible container. The pump may then be driven by an electric motor, which may be switched on and off by switching means and the capacity of the pump may be such that a desired suction at the free end of the tubular body is obtained, when the pump is operating which means that no vacuum tank is necessary. The switching means may be positioned on the tubular body at or adjacent to the free end thereof so that they are easily accessible by an operator holding the tubular body or hose in his hand. The tubular body may comprise at least one resilient wall part and manually operateable means, such as valve means or other obstruction means, may be provided for selectively closing or obstructing the free end of the tubular body at least partly. When the free end of the tubular body is closed or obstructed while the suction pump is still operating the resilient wall part may be caused to at least partly collapse. When the free end of the tubular body is reopened the resilient wall part will suddenly expand and cause an intensified suction pulse. At least the free end part of the tubular body may be made from a resilient material so that it may be compressed and thereby at least partly closed. The suction system according to the invention may further comprise an outer tube section made from a stiff material and surrounding the free first end part of the tubular body. The manually operateable closing means, such as a pinching device, may then be mounted on this outer tube section. As an example, the switching means may comprise a micro switch embedded in the resilient wall of the free end part of the tubular body. The switching means may then automatically be actuated when the manually operateable means are operated in order to at least partly compress and close the open free end part of the tubular body. In a presently preferred embodiment the tubular body is in the form of a hose of a resilient material. The suction system according to the invention may be used for remove any kind of solid and/or liquid matter. As an example, the tubular body may be of the type used by dentists for sucking saliva and foreign matter from the mouth cavity of a patient. This means that saliva and filling material removed from teeth may be collected in the collapsible container. The suction pump used in the system according to the invention may be a centrifugal pump, but is preferably a piston pump which is driven by an electric brushless DC- motor. The present invention further provides a collapsible, substantially gas and liquid tight container for use in a suction system as described above, said container comprising a peripheral wall part made from a flexible sheet material, axially opposite end walls, axially compressible stiffening means for preventing the peripheral wall part from collapsing radially inwardly, an inlet and an outlet communicating with the inner space of the container. The opposite end walls of the collapsible container are preferably made from a relatively stiff sheet material. Furthermore, the flexible peripheral wall part may define peripherally extending corrugations therein so as to allow the flexible wall part to collapse in an axial direction. These peripheral corrugations may extend helically and the stiffening means may comprise a helical supporting member being received in the inwardly opening corrugations for preventing the container from collapsing radially when exposed to internal suction. The outer surfaces of the end walls may have connecting means, such as loops or brackets, formed thereon for engaging with stationary retaining means, such as arms or projections, so as to retain the end walls in desired, mutually spaced positions. In a system as that described above in which a motor driven suction pump or compressor is started and stopped rather suddenly rather high force or torque peaks may occur. Such excessive peak loads of the system should, however, preferably be eliminated. This may be obtained by interconnecting shaft parts by means of an elastic coupling device. The present invention provides such resilient coupling device. Thus, the present invention further provides a torque transmitting coupling device for flexibly interconnecting adjacent, substantially aligned first and second shaft ends, said device comprising a tubular member formed by a helically wound thread or wire, opposite ends of the tubular member being adapted to be connected to the respective shaft ends so as to allow torque transmission between said shaft ends. Such helical thread or wire, which may, for example, be made from metal or plastic material, is able to transmit a relatively high torque and is also able to flexibly absorb shocks and impacts. The opposite ends of the tubular member may be connected to the shaft ends in any suitable manner. Preferably, however, opposite open ends of the tubular member are adapted to receive and surround said respective shaft ends. In this case at least one of the opposite ends of the tubular member may be adapted to frictionally engage with the peripheral surface of the respective shaft end. In some cases such frictional engagement is not sufficient to transmit the necessary torque between the shaft ends. A free end of the thread or wire may then extend transversely into at least one of said opposite ends of the tubular member and may - then be received in a bore, slot or recess formed in the corresponding shaft end. It should be understood that any other kind of physical interconnection could be used. The coupling device according to the invention may interconnect not only shaft ends having substantially the same diameter. Thus, the opposite ends of the tubular member may have different diameters so as to allow interconnection of first and second shaft ends of different diameters. The invention will now be further described with reference to the drawings, wherein Figs. 1 and 2 are perspective views of a collapsible container for a suction system shown in a collapsed and an extended condition, respectively, Fig. 3 shows a suction system according to the invention in a diminished scale, and Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a coupling device. Figs. 1 and 2 illustrate parts of a suction system, for example of a type which is suited for use in a dentists clinic for sucking saliva and foreign matter from the mouth cavity of a patient. Figs. 1 and 2 show an axially collapsible container 10 having a pair of opposite end walls, namely an upper wall 1 1 and a lower wall 12. The end walls 1 1 and 1 2 are made from a relatively stiff material and may, for example, be made from plastic. The container also comprises a peripheral, substantially cylindrical wall 1 3 which is made from a flexible sheet material. The container 10 should be substantially water and gas tight. The upper end wall 1 1 is provided with an inlet 1 4 and an outlet 1 5. The inlet 1 4 may be connected to a suction hose or tube 26 (Fig. 3), and the tube may at its free end have a nozzle 27 to be inserted into the mouth of a patient. The outlet 1 5 may be connected to a suction source, for example directly to the suction inlet of a suction pump, which may be a small piston pump 28 with a plurality of cylinders, vide Fig. 3. The operation of the suction pump may then be controlled by means of a switch positioned adjacent to the nozzle arranged at the free end of the suction hose or tube 26. The peripheral wall 1 3 of the container 10 is provided with a helically extending corrugation 1 6. In order to prevent the peripheral wall 1 3 of the container 1 0 from collapsing radially inwardly when the inner space of the container is exposed to suction a helically extending stiffening wire, not shown, may be received in the inwardly opening corrugations of the peripheral wall 1 3. Empty containers 1 0 may be stored in their collapsed condition shown in Fig. 1 . Before a container is taken in use it has to be moved to its extended condition and to be retained in that condition. Therefore, the collapsed container 10 is inserted into a retaining device 1 7. The retaining device 14 comprises an upright 1 8 having a lower arm 1 9 extending transversely from and being fixedly connected to the upright 1 8. An upper, transversely extending arm 20 may be displaced along the upright and may be releaseably fixed to the upright 1 8 in selected positions. Thus, a collapsed container 10 may be inserted between the arms 1 9 and 20 and the end walls 1 1 and 1 2 are releaseably connected to the arms 20 and 1 9, respectively. Thereafter, the upper arm 20 may be moved upwardly till the container 1 0 is fully extended as shown in Fig. 2. In this position the moveable arm 20 is releaseably fixed to the upright 1 8. Now, the inlet 14 and the outlet 1 5 may be connected to the suction tube 27 and the suction source 28, respectively, whereafter the suction system shown inf Fig. 3 may be used. When the container 10 has been totally or partly filled it may be collapsed as much as possible and thereafter removed from the retaining device 1 7. A new container may then be mounted as described. Fig. 4 shows a coupling device 21 for transmission of torque between a pair of substantially aligned shaft ends 21 and 22. The coupling device is in the form of a tubular member made by a helically wound wire, which may, for example, be made of metal or plastic. The opposite end parts of the wound tubular member 21 snugly receive the adjacent shaft ends 22 and 23 therein so that the friction between the outer peripheral surfaces of the shafts and the inner surface of the tubular coupling device may be sufficient to transmit the necessary torque between the shafts 22 and 23. However, in order to increase the torque which may be transmitted, a free wire end 24 at one or at each end of the tubular coupling device 21 may be received in a slot 25 or another recess formed in the shaft 22 and/or 23. The coupling device according to the invention induces a certain flexibility in the torque transmission. Furthermore, the coupling device 21 may be used also when the shaft ends 22 and 23 are not in complete alignment. This means that the coupling device may be inserted between shaft sections in order to allow increased tolerances. As an example, the crankshaft of the small scale multi-piston suction pump 28 shown in Fgi. 3 is preferably divided into lengths or sections which are interconnected by flexible coupling devices 21 .

Claims: CLAIMS 1 . A suction system comprising a collapsible container made from a substantially gas and liquid tight material and having an inlet and an outlet communicating with the inner space of the container, means for retaining the collapsible container in an extended position, a suction tube connected to the inlet of the container, and a suction source connected to the outlet of the container. 2. A suction system according to claim 1 , wherein the collapsible container has a peripheral wall part made from a flexible sheet material and axially opposite end walls, the retaining means being adapted to retain the end walls in a desired axially spaced position. 3. A suction system according to claim 2, wherein the opposite end walls are made from a relatively stiff sheet material. 4. A suction system according to claim 3, wherein the flexible peripheral wall part define peripherally extending corrugations therein so as to allow the flexible wall part to collapse in an axial direction. 5. A suction system according to claim 4, wherein the peripheral corrugations extend helically, a helical supporting member being received in the inwardly opening corrugations for preventing the container from collapsing radially when exposed to internal suction. 6. A suction system according to any of the claims 1 -5, wherein a free end of the suction tube opposite to the container inlet is connected to a suction nozzle. 7. A suction system according to any of the claims 1 -6, wherein the suction source is a gas suction pump having a suction port which is directly connected to the outlet of the collapsible container, the pump being driven by an electric motor, which may be switched on and off by switching means, the capacity of the pump being such that a desired suction at the free end of the tubular body is obtained, when the pump is operating. 8. A suction system according to claim 7, wherein the switching means is positioned on the tubular body at or adjacent to the free end thereof. 9. A suction system according to any of the claims 1 -8, wherein the tubular body comprises at least one resilient wall part, manually operateable means being provided for selectively closing or obstructing the free end of the tubular body at least partly. 10. A suction system according to claim 9, wherein at least the free end part of the tubular body is made from a resilient material. 1 1 . A suction system according to claim 1 0, further comprising an outer tube section made from a stiff material and surrounding the free end part of the tubular body, the manually operateable closing means being mounted on the outer tube section. 1 2. A suction system according to claims 10 or 1 1 , wherein the switching means comprise a micro switch embedded in the resilient wall of the free end part of the tubular body, the switching means being actuated when the manually operateable means are operated so as to at least partly compress and close the free end part of the tubular body. 1 3. A suction system according to any of the claims 1 -1 2, wherein the tubular body is in the form of a hose of a resilient material. 14. A suction system according to any of the claims 1 -1 3, wherein the tubular body is of the type used by dentists for sucking saliva and foreign matter from the mouth cavity of a patient. 1 5. A suction system according to any of the claims 7-14, wherein the pump is a piston pump. 1 6. A suction system according to any of the claims 7-1 5, wherein the electric motor is a brushless DC-motor. 1 7. A collapsible, substantially gas and liquid tight container for use in a system according to any of the claims 1 -1 6, said container comprising a peripheral wall part made from a flexible sheet material, axially opposite end walls, axially compressible stiffening means for preventing the peripheral wall part from collapsing radially inwardly, an inlet and an outlet communicating with the inner space of the container. 18. A container according to claim 17, wherein the opposite end walls are made from a relatively stiff sheet material. 1 9. A container according to claim 1 7 or 1 8, wherein the flexible peripheral wall part define peripherally extending corrugations therein so as to allow the flexible wall part to collapse in an axial direction. 20. A container according to claim 1 9, wherein the peripheral corrugations extend helically, said stiffening means comprising a helical supporting member being received in the inwardly opening corrugations for preventing the container from collapsing radially when exposed to internal suction. 21 . A container according to any of the claims 1 7-20, wherein the outer surfaces of the end walls have connecting means formed thereon for engaging with stationary retaining means so as to retain the end walls in desired, mutually spaced positions. 22. A torque transmitting coupling device for flexibly interconnecting adjacent, substantially aligned first and second shaft ends, said device comprising a tubular member formed by a helically wound thread or wire, opposite ends of the tubular member being adapted to be connected to the respective shaft ends so as to allow torque transmission between said shaft ends. 23. A coupling device according to claim 22, wherein opposite open ends of the tubular member are adapted to receive and surround said respective shaft ends. 24. A coupling according to claim 23, wherein at least one of the opposite ends of the tubular member is adapted to frictionally engage with the peripheral surface of the respective shaft end. 25. A coupling according to any of the claims 22-24, wherein a free end of the thread or wire extends transversely into at least one of said opposite ends of the tubular member and is received in a slot or recess formed in the corresponding shaft end. 26. A coupling according to any of the claims 22-25, wherein the opposite ends of the tubular member have different diameters so as to allow interconnection of first and second shaft ends of different diameters.

Inventors: REIPUR JOHN, REIPUR, JOHN
Applicants: REIPUR JOHN, REIPUR TECHNOLOGY A S, REIPUR TECHNOLOGY A/S, REIPUR, JOHN
Application year: 1999
Main classification: B05B
IPC codes: A61C1, A61C3, A61C17, A61M1, B08B15