Abstract:
Apparatus to prevent pollution of potable water by preventing backflow in an endoscope reprocessor including a spout a spout discharging water vertically downward and a flow diverter positioned under and aligned with the spout redirecting the water off of vertical. The apparatus may also include one or more passageways either internal to a base or in external auxiliary spouts for discharging other liquids into the water in the region of the flow diverter to mnix the other liquids and water together. The apparatus may also have an air gap with a predetermined minimum length between the spout and the flow diverter or auxiliary spouts to prevent backflow.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     The present invention relates to the field of Automatic Endoscope Reprocessors (hereinafter AERs) and similar equipment having similar characteristics and requirements.  
         [0002]     Such equipment often is connected to a shared or community potable water supply to provide the AER with water for washing, rinsing, and diluting liquid chemicals for disinfecting endoscopes during reprocessing.  
         [0003]     The present invention relates more particularly to water and disinfectant delivery to one or more basins of the reprocessor. In the past, various forms of spouts or other water delivery devices were used to deliver potable water from a permanently connected public water supply.  
         [0004]     To protect the sanitary integrity of the public water supply, governmental units have promulgated various standards which must be met by equipment (including endoscope reprocessors) sold for use within the territory under the supervision of that respective governmental unit. One such standard is European Standard EN 1717:2000, Protection against pollution of potable water in water installations and general requirements of devices to prevent pollution by backflow. This European Standard is given the status of a national standard by those European countries which either publish an identical text or endorse the European Standard itself.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0005]     The present invention meets the requirements of a type AA unrestricted air gap under the above standard, and in addition, enables mixing of water with one or more other chemical components (typically liquid) of a disinfectant solution used in the basin of an endoscope reprocessor.  
         [0006]     The present invention may include an apparatus for delivering water to an endoscope reprocessing basin while avoiding interference with a working area of the basin. In one aspect, the invention may have at least one spout selectively discharging a liquid in a generally vertically downward direction and also has a flow diverter spaced apart from the spout by an air gap, while being positioned under the spout to receive the liquid discharged by the spout. The flow diverter then redirects the discharged liquid from the vertical direction into the basin. Stated another way, the flow diverter is a surface redirecting the discharged liquid in a direction having a horizontal component and a vertical component.  
         [0007]     The air gap preferably has a length equal to a predetermined minimum distance between the spout and the flow diverter. The spout preferably has a downwardly directed outlet and the flow diverter will have an upper edge. The length of the air gap may be more precisely defined to be between the outlet of the spout and the upper edge of the flow diverter.  
         [0008]     The spout has a characteristic diameter, typically an inside diameter, and the length of the air gap is preferably equal to or greater than three times the diameter of the spout.  
         [0009]     The invention may also include a feed pipe upstream of and in fluid communication with the spout. In this aspect, the feed pipe has a characteristic diameter, typically an inside diameter, and the length of the air gap may be equal to or greater than three times the diameter of the feed pipe.  
         [0010]     In another aspect, the present invention may include a means for discharging a second liquid into the liquid from the spout in the region of the flow diverter such that the liquids are mixed.  
         [0011]     In another aspect, the present invention may be seen to be a method of preventing backflow and directing a liquid into an endoscope reprocessor basin comprising the steps of discharging a liquid from a spout in a downward direction; receiving the liquid discharged from the spout in a flow diverter spaced apart from the spout; and redirecting the liquid in a predetermined direction having a substantial horizontal component.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0012]      FIG. 1  is a very diagrammatic view in perspective of a prior art Automatic Endoscope Reprocessor useful in the practice of the present invention.  
         [0013]      FIG. 2  is a plan view of a prior art rack with an endoscope therein suitable for use with the apparatus of  FIG. 1 .  
         [0014]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the basins of the AER of  FIG. 1 .  
         [0015]      FIG. 4  is a top plan view of the basins of  FIG. 3 .  
         [0016]      FIG. 5  is an elevation view in section taken along line  5 - 5  of  Figure 4 .  
         [0017]      FIG. 6  is a fragmentary elevation view taken along line  6 - 6  of  Figure 4 .  
         [0018]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the spout assembly of the present invention showing the discharge and deflection of liquid from the assembly.  
         [0019]      FIG. 8  is an exploded view of the parts from  FIG. 7 .  
         [0020]      FIG. 9  is a top plan view of a base useful in the practice of the present invention.  
         [0021]      FIG. 10  is a bottom plan view of the base of  FIG. 9 .  
         [0022]      FIG. 11  is a perspective view from above of the base of  FIG. 9 .  
         [0023]      FIG. 12  is a perspective view from below of the base of  FIG. 9 .  
         [0024]      FIG. 13  is a front elevation view of the base of  FIG. 9 .  
         [0025]      FIG. 14  is a section view of the base of  FIG. 9  taken along line  14 - 14  of  FIG. 10 .  
         [0026]      FIG. 15  is a partially cut away section view of the base of  FIG. 9  along line  15 - 15  of  FIG. 10 .  
         [0027]      FIG. 16  is a side view of a spout assembly showing an alternative embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0028]      FIG. 17  is a front elevation view of the alternate embodiment of  FIG. 16 .  
         [0029]      FIG. 18  is a top plan view of the alternate embodiment of  FIG. 16 .  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0030]     One example of a system for cleaning, disinfecting and/or drying endoscopes is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,641,781 B2, issued Nov. 4, 2003, and the entire contents thereof are hereby incorporated by reference.  
         [0031]     Another example of a device and method-for cleaning and/or disinfecting endoscopes is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,260,560 B1, issued Jul. 17, 2001, and the entire contents thereof are hereby incorporated by reference.  
         [0032]     Still another example of a device and method for cleaning and/or disinfecting endoscopes is shown in European Patent Application EP 0 709 056 A1, published Jan. 5, 1996, and the entire contents thereof are hereby incorporated by reference.  
         [0033]     Referring now to the Figures, and most particularly to  FIG. 1 , a disinfecting device or Automatic Endoscope Reprocessor (or AER)  30  may be seen. The disinfecting device  30  is provided with two trays or basins  31  and  32  in which a rack  34  is, with an endoscope  36  therein, can be accommodated. In  FIG. 1 , a rack of this nature is located in the left hand tray. Both trays  31  and  32  are provided with a counter-connection block  40  which, when a rack  34  is placed in the tray  31 ,  32 , can be connected to the connection block  38  arranged in rack  34 . The counter-connection block  40  in the right hand tray can be seen in  FIG. 1 . Each tray or basin  31 ,  32  may be provided with a lid  92 , which may be transparent.  
         [0034]     Referring now also to  FIG. 2 , the rack  34  may be formed from bent rods  42  and  44  which are fixedly connected to one another. The rack  34  is provided with one or two handles  46 , by means of which the rack can be gripped and lifted up. The rack  34  is furthermore formed in such a manner that an endoscope  36  can be placed therein in a more or less folded state. In order to be able to fix in particular the fragile end  48  of the endoscope, the rack may be provided with a tip holder  50 .  
         [0035]     The connection block  38  is arranged fixedly in the rack. This connection block is provided with passages and ports  52  which are connected to the passages and can be connected to the passages of the endoscope  36  by means of flexible tubes  54 . On its underside (not visible in  FIG. 2 ), the connection block  38  is provided with connection points for the connection of counter-connection blocks  40  in either basin  31  or  32  of device  30 . The connection block  38  is furthermore provided with a handle  56 . By moving the handle  56 , the connection block  38  can be connected to a counter-connection block  40  or removed therefrom.  
         [0036]     Referring now to  FIGS. 3, 4  and  5 , various views of the basins  31 ,  32  of the reprocessor  30  may be seen. Each basin preferably has a spout assembly  60  installed in one rear comer. It may be noted (particularly with reference to  FIG. 4 ) that the spout assembly  60  provides clearance for insertion of the rack  34  into the basin  31  or  32 , without interference, because the spout assembly does not extend into the periphery of the basin and overlap the area where the rack  34  would extend when lowered into the basin. Each basin has a main drain  62  near the front thereof, and a pair of shelves  64  at the rear thereof, with one shelf supporting the spout assembly  60  and the other shelf containing an overflow drain  66 .  
         [0037]     Referring now to  FIGS. 6, 7  and  8 , various details of the spout assembly or apparatus  60  may be seen. Spout assembly  60  preferably has a spout  70  for selectively discharging a liquid (typically potable water from a public water supply) in a generally vertically downward direction.  
         [0038]     Spout assembly  60  also includes a flow diverter  72  spaced apart from the spout  70  by an air gap  74  and positioned under the spout and receiving the liquid discharged by the spout  70 . The flow diverter  72  redirects the discharged liquid in a direction other than vertical to direct the discharged liquid into the basin. In the embodiment shown in FIGS.  6 - 8 , the discharged liquid is initially directed at an angle  76  of about 125 degrees from the vertical, although it is to be understood that other angles are within the scope of the present invention.  
         [0039]     In this embodiment, the flow diverter  72  is a surface  78  that may be seen to be redirecting the discharged liquid in a direction having a horizontal component and a vertical component. The air gap  74  is to be understood to have a length equal to a predetermined minimum distance between the spout and the flow diverter, with the predetermined minimum distance preferably equal to or greater than three or more diameters of the spout, more particularly either the inside or outside diameter of a discharge end or outlet  80  of the spout  70 . It may thus be seen that the spout  70  has downwardly directed outlet  80  and the length of the air gap  74  is preferably measured between the outlet  80  of the spout and the flow diverter  72 . More precisely, in this embodiment the flow diverter  72  is preferably formed (in this embodiment) in a base  86  which has an upper edge  82  and the length of the air gap  74  is measured between the outlet  80  of the spout  70  and the upper edge  82  of the flow diverter  72 .  
         [0040]     The spout assembly  60  is preferably connected to a feed pipe  84  upstream of and in fluid communication with the spout  70 . The feed pipe  84  has a diameter, and the length of the air gap  74  may be made equal to or greater than three times the diameter of the feed pipe  84  in the practice of the present invention. Furthermore, the portion of the spout  70  upstream of the outlet  80  may be considered the feed pipe for air gap dimensioning in accordance with the practice of the present invention. In that regard, the diameter used for dimensioning the air gap may be an inside or outside diameter of the feed pipe, including spout  70 . It is preferred that the direction of discharge from the outlet  80  of spout  70  is not more than fifteen degrees from the vertical.  
         [0041]     The liquid discharged from the spout  70  may be considered a first liquid and the apparatus of the present invention further includes means for discharging at least a second liquid (and preferably a third liquid) into the first liquid in the region of the flow diverter  72  such that the liquids are mixed- In the embodiment shown in FIGS.  6 - 8 , the means for discharging the second liquid (and optionally the third liquid) is one or more internal passages  88  in the base  86  (shown in  FIG. 15 ).  
         [0042]     Referring now most particularly to  FIGS. 9 through 15 , various views of the base  86  for the spout assembly  60  of the present invention may be seen. It is to be understood that alternative embodiments for the base  86  and for the flow diverter  72  are within the scope of the present invention, and the base  86  and flow diverter  72  are shown and described as an illustration of one embodiment of the present invention. Base  86  is shown as a solid material formed of, for example  316  stainless steel, but the base  86  (and other components of the spout assembly  60 ) may advantageously be formed of other suitable materials, such as other metals or polymers, if desired, and the flow diverter  72  may be formed, for example, from a sheet of material, if desired.  
         [0043]     Base  86  has a through bore  94  to permit the passage of water to spout  70 . In this embodiment, base  86  also has fittings  96  and  98  to receive respective tubes  100  and  102  to couple the two liquid disinfectant chemicals to the base and to their respective internal passages  88 .  
         [0044]     Referring now again to  FIG. 8 , an O-ring  104  may be used to seal the base  86  to shelf  64  and a plurality of fasteners  106 , such as cap screws and washers, may be used to secure base  86  to shelf  64 , by receiving the fasteners  106  into blind threaded bores  108  in the bottom surface  110  of base  86 . A groove  112  may be formed in the bottom surface  110  to receive O-ring  104  or another seal may be used to seal the base to the shelf, if desired.  
         [0045]     It is to be understood that the surface contour of the flow diverter  72  can take many forms while still remaining within the scope of the present invention. Referring now again to  FIGS. 9, 11  and  14 , one example surface  78  may be formed by a cutout having a radius  114  of 8 mm (shown in  FIG. 9 ) which is swept through an arc  116  (shown in  FIG. 14 ) having a radius  118  of 40 mm from a center  120  located a horizontal distance  122  of 29.92 mm and a vertical distance  123  of 2.55 mm from the front edge  124  of the envelope of top edge  82  of the base  86 .  
         [0046]     Referring now to  FIGS. 16, 17  and  18 , an alternative embodiment  60 ′ of the spout assembly of the present invention may be seen. In this embodiment, the water spout  70  is the same or similar to that in the previous embodiment, but internal passages  88  are omitted and replaced by liquid chemical delivery spouts  124 ,  126 . The flow diverter  72  may be the same or similar to that in the previous embodiment, except that there are no apertures for the internal passages  88  in the surface  78  of the flow diverter  72  in this embodiment. The spouts  124  and  126  each have internal passages for delivery of a liquid chemical. Each of spouts  124  and  126  may be directed vertically downward or may be directed at an angle indicated by dashed lines  128 ,  130  to foster mixing with the stream of water from the spout  70 . It is preferable in this embodiment that the chemical spouts  124  and  126  are each spaced a distance  132  equal to or greater than at least three diameters of the water spout  70  away from the water spout  70 .  
         [0047]     This invention is not to be taken as limited to all of the details thereof as modifications and variations thereof may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. In particular, the present invention as claimed is not limited for use with an automatic endoscope reprocessor (including, but not limited to, reprocessors for flexible endoscopes), but may be used with other equipment having similar characteristics or requirements.