Patent Publication Number: US-11642282-B2

Title: Male-female adapter for a hermetically closable connector which can be bored by a male fitting and automatically sealingly reclosed, particularly for devices for containing and dispensing liquid solutions for pharmacological and/or nutritional use, and a male fitting connector provided with a male-female adapter

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a male-female adapter for a hermetically closable connector which can be bored by means of a male fitting and automatically sealingly reclosed, particularly for devices for containing and dispensing liquid solutions for pharmacological and/or nutritional use, and a male fitting connector provided with a male-female adapter. 
     In all medical devices intended to contain liquid solutions for pharmacological and/or nutritional use, the connections between the various parts to be connected are very important whatever the purposes such as introducing and collecting liquids, creating circulation circuits, etc. 
     In particular, bags for containing liquid solutions for pharmacological and/or nutritional use are commonly known from which flexible tubes extend, which are usable for introducing additional substances and/or for collecting the solution contained in the bag. 
     Such flexible tubes are closed by hermetically sealing connectors which however can be bored for introduction and collection purposes and then be hermetically reclosed once the operation is complete. 
     Needleless connectors which can be opened are known, for example from US 2008/093571, WO 95/15194 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,268,771, which are provided with a closing plug formed by a deformable plastic body longitudinally crossed by a slit in which a syringe luer or other male fitting can be inserted to cause the temporary opening of a check valve having elastically deformable lips, which is then automatically reclosed when the luer recedes after the introduction or collection operation. 
     In particular there is known from EP 2 667 839 B1, a connector of the aforesaid type which is provided with the additional feature of a membrane which can be bored and elastically hermetically reclosed which membrane is arranged on the closing plug in one piece therewith to hermetically seal the inlet extremity of said return valve before access with an introduction or collection male fitting, such as the luer of a needleless syringe, and then to hermetically reclose the same after the extraction of the previously introduced male fitting. 
     Due to such a membrane, the important effect is obtained of ensuring the hermetic sealing of the plug before use and the certainty of the hermetic reclosing of the plug itself after each operation of introducing and extracting the introduction/collection male fitting. 
     All the aforesaid connectors provided for needleless access have the drawback of only accepting male type boring devices, such as the luer of a syringe or other similar male fitting, while they are currently inaccessible by female fittings. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is the object of the present invention to provide a male-female adapter for a hermetically closable connector with a sealing plug which can be bored by inserting a needleless and automatically hermetically reclosable male fitting upon the removal of said male fitting. 
     It is another object to provide a hermetically closable connector with sealing plug which can be bored and automatically hermetically reclosed, which is suitable for opening and closing by a female fitting. 
     According to the present invention, such objects are achieved by coupling a hermetically closable connector provided with a sealing plug which can be bored by a male fitting to a male-female adapter which is characterized by comprising an external tubular body with external side wall provided at one extremity with an axial extension which can be hooked to the connector in a rotatable and axially slidable manner, an internal tubular body with terminal tangs axially projecting from respective extremities of said external tubular body, a middle transversal wall which integrally connects a middle portion of said internal tubular body with a corresponding middle portion of said external tubular body and two opposite sense threadings formed in internal portions of said external tubular body which are separated by said middle transversal wall. 
     By connecting the aforesaid adaptor to any male fitting connector of the aforesaid type, the connector itself may be made suitable for opening by a female fitting with external threading compatible with the internal threading of the portion of adaptor opposite to that which can be hooked to the connector. 
    
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       A male fitting connector provided with a male-female adapter according to the present invention is shown by way of example in the accompanying drawings, in which: 
         FIG.  1    shows an exploded axial section of the connector and the adapter before the operating coupling thereof; 
         FIG.  2    shows the connector with adapter mounted, ready to receive a female fitting; 
         FIG.  3    shows a similar axial section of the connector with female fitting screwed into the upper threaded portion of the adapter; 
         FIG.  4    shows a similar axial section of the connector with adapter and female fitting in open position of the closing plug of the connector. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       FIG.  1    shows a connector for a male fitting which is indicated as a whole with numeral  1  and comprises a main body  2  crossed by an axial hole  3 . The main body  2  consists of a collar  4  and an axial extension  5 . 
     There is a closing plug  6  in collar  4 , overlapping the axial extension  5 , the closing plug being made of elastically deformable plastic material and kept in position by an external ring nut  7  with external threading  13  and tapered end mouth  11 , which is screwed about collar  4 . 
     The closing plug  6  is provided with a main body  8  with axial hole  9  which ends at the top (looking at  FIG.  2   ) with a pair of elastically flexible lips  10  separated by a narrow axial slit  12  having rectangular section, which ends immediately before the upper extremity of plug  6 . 
     A thin elastic sealing membrane  50  formed in one piece with plug  6  overlaps the two flexible lips  10 . The structural and functional features of membrane  50  are those already described in EP 2 667 839 B1, to which explicit descriptive reference is made herein. 
     By forcing them from the outside with a male fitting, such as e.g. a Luer needleless syringe, the lips  10  open with movements in opposite senses, thus allowing the male fitting to penetrate slit  12 , and therefore connector  1 , in order to introduce or collect a substance contained in a container attached to the axial extension  5  of the connector. 
     The connector described and shown in  FIG.  1    is to be considered a simple example of male fitting connector to which a male-female adapter according to the present invention can be applied. Other connectors of similar type can be used for the same purpose, for example that described in EP 2 667 839 B1. 
     A male-female adapter according to the present invention—of which an embodiment indicated as a whole with numeral  21  is shown in  FIG.  1   —can be coupled to connector  1  or another similar connector for a male fitting. 
     Adapter  21  comprises an external tubular body  22  with an external side wall  23  provided at one extremity with an axial extension  24  (cylindrical or having two opposite arms) which can be hooked by end folds  25  consisting of projections directed at one another below the collar  4  of connector  1  in a rotatable and axially slidable manner. 
     Adapter  21  further comprises an internal tubular body  26  which has an axial hole  38  and terminal tangs  27  and  37  which project axially with respect to the extremities of the external tubular body  22 . 
     A middle transversal wall  28  integrally connects a middle portion of the internal tubular body  26  with a corresponding middle portion of the external tubular body  22 . 
     Two threadings  29  and  30  extend in opposite senses along internal portions of said external tubular body  22 , which are separated by said middle transversal wall  28 . Threading  30  is compatible for screw coupling with the external threading  13  of connector  1 . 
       FIG.  2    shows connector  1  and adapter  21  hooked to each other, ready to receive a female fitting  41 , which shape is vaguely hypothesized by mere way of example in  FIG.  2   , and comprises, as key parts, a first axial hole  42  having a diameter which is suitable for receiving the terminal tang  27  of adapter  21 , a second axial hole  43  having a diameter less than or equal to the internal diameter of the terminal tang  27  of adapter  21 , and an internal transversal wall  44  which separates the two holes  42  and  43  and is suitable for resting on the extremity of tang  27 . An external threading  45  compatible for screw coupling with the internal threading  29  of adapter  21  is also provided. Hole  43  of the female fitting  41  obviously is in communication with an introduction/collection container. 
       FIG.  3    shows the female fitting  41  coupled to adapter  21  by screwing the threaded part  45  in the threaded part  29  of adapter  21  with subsequent introduction of the terminal tang  27  in the axial hole  42  of the female fitting  41  up to contact of wall  44  with the extremity of tang  27 . 
     After such a screwing, the opening of the plug  6  of connector  1  may be performed by axially pushing and rotating adapter  21  so as to screw the threaded part  30  of adapter  21  on the threaded part  13  of connector  1  and by pushing the terminal tang  37  of adapter  21  against membrane  50  and the underlying flexible lips  10  of the closing plug  6  of connector  1  up to causing the temporary breaking of membrane  50  and the mutual distancing of the lips themselves due to the subsequent widening of slit  12  and the introduction of the whole tang  37  in plug  6 , with subsequent communication between the holes  3 ,  9 ,  38  and  43 . Now the operation may be performed of passing the liquid from one of the liquid containers to the other of the liquid containers thus connected to each other.  FIG.  4    shows the final position of the various parts with the connector open. 
     Once the liquid introduction/collection operation is complete, reverse movements of the female fitting  41  cause the return of the various parts  1 ,  21  and  41  to the original condition in  FIG.  2   , with subsequent hermetical reclosing of plug  6  due to the elastic properties of the flexible lips  10  and of membrane  50 , which having self-sealing properties, closes and seals the slit  12  of plug  6  again.