Patent Publication Number: US-11020318-B2

Title: Push release closed system drug transfer apparatus

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     Not Applicable 
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
     Not Applicable 
     THE NAMES OF THE PARTIES TO A JOINT RESEARCH AGREEMENT 
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     INCORPORATION-BY-REFERENCE OF MATERIAL SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISC OR AS A TEXT FILE VIA THE OFFICE ELECTRONIC FILING SYSTEM 
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     STATEMENT REGARDING PRIOR DISCLOSURES BY THE INVENTOR OR JOINT INVENTOR 
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     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     (1) Field of the Invention 
     (2) Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98 
     The disclosure and prior art relates to closed system drug transfers and more particularly pertains to a new closed system drug transfer for easy and secure drug transfer. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a cylindrical housing having a top end, an outer wall, and a bottom end forming an inner cavity. The top end has a syringe aperture extending through to the inner cavity. The syringe aperture is configured to receive a syringe. The bottom end has a principal aperture extending through to the inner cavity. A needle tube is coupled to the cylindrical housing and extends from the syringe aperture to the principal aperture within the inner cavity. The needle tube is configured to receive a needle of the syringe. An inner cylinder is slidably coupled within the principal aperture. The inner cylinder has a shaft having a top side and a bottom side and a nipple coupled to the bottom side. The inner cylinder has a compressed position with the shaft within the inner cavity of the cylindrical housing and the nipple extending through the principal aperture. The inner cylinder has an alternate decompressed position with the shaft extended through the principal aperture. The nipple is configured to selectively engage a connector of a vial. The inner cylinder has a central aperture extending from the top side of the shaft through the nipple to receive the needle tube. An ejector spring is coupled to the cylindrical housing and the inner cylinder to move the inner cylinder from the compressed position to the alternate decompressed position. A lock mechanism is coupled to the top side of the inner cylinder. A release is coupled to the cylindrical housing through the outer wall and in operational communication with the lock mechanism. The release secures the inner cylinder in the compressed position and alternatively frees the inner cylinder to move to the alternate decompressed position. 
     There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto. 
     The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S) 
       The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is an isometric view of a push release closed system drug transfer apparatus according to an embodiment of the disclosure. 
         FIG. 2  is a side elevation view of an embodiment of the disclosure. 
         FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the disclosure. 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the disclosure along line  4 - 4  of  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to  FIGS. 1 through 4  thereof, a new closed system drug transfer embodying the principles and concepts of an embodiment of the disclosure and generally designated by the reference numeral  10  will be described. 
     As best illustrated in  FIGS. 1 through 4 , the push release closed system drug transfer apparatus  10  generally comprises a cylindrical housing  12  having a top end  14 , an outer wall  16 , and a bottom end  18  forming an inner cavity  20 . The top end  14  has a syringe extension  22  extending away from the inner cavity  20  and a syringe aperture  24  extending through the syringe extension  22  to the inner cavity  20 . The syringe extension  22  may be threaded. The syringe aperture  24  is configured to receive a syringe. A spring stop  26  may be coupled to the top end  14  within the inner cavity  20  and concentric with the syringe aperture  24 . The bottom end  18  has a principal aperture  28  extending through to the inner cavity  20 . The outer wall  16  has an upper portion  30  and a lower portion  32 . The upper portion  30  is wider than the lower portion  32 . The upper portion  30  has a button aperture  34  extending through to the inner cavity  20  and the lower portion  32  has a lip  36  adjacent the bottom end  18 . A button housing  38  is coupled to the outer wall  16  within the inner cavity  20  adjacent the button aperture  34 . A needle tube  40  is coupled to the cylindrical housing  12  and extends from the syringe aperture  24  to the principal aperture  28  within the inner cavity. The needle tube  40  is configured to receive a needle of the syringe. 
     An inner cylinder  42  is slidably coupled within the principal aperture  28 . The inner cylinder  42  has a shaft  44  having a top side  46  and a bottom side  48  and a nipple  50  coupled to the bottom side  48 . The nipple  50  may comprise a plurality of tiers  52  comprising a straight portion  54 , a curved portion  56 , a flange portion  58 , and a tip  60 . The inner cylinder  42  has a compressed position  62  with the shaft  44  within the inner cavity  20  of the cylindrical housing and the nipple  50  extending through the principal aperture  28 . The inner cylinder  42  has an alternate decompressed position  64  with the shaft  44  extended through the principal aperture  28 . The nipple  50  is configured to selectively engage a connector  51  of a vial  53 . The inner cylinder  42  has a central aperture  66  extending from the top side  46  of the shaft through the nipple  50  to receive the needle tube  40  when in the compressed position  62 . 
     An ejector spring  68  is coupled to the cylindrical housing  12  and the inner cylinder  42 . The ejector spring  68  is coupled within the spring stop  26  of the cylindrical housing. The ejector spring  68  moves the inner cylinder  42  from the compressed position  62  to the alternate decompressed position  64 . A lock mechanism  70  is coupled to the top side  46  of the inner cylinder  42 . The lock mechanism  70  comprises an inner ring  72  and an outer ring  74 . The inner ring  72  is coupled to the ejector spring  68  and the outer ring has a catch  76 . A release  78  is within the button housing  38  through the outer wall  16  and in operational communication with the lock mechanism  70 . The release  78  may comprise a button  80 , a hook  82 , and a button spring  84 . The hook  82  is coupled to the button  80  and extends through the button housing  38  to selectively engage the catch  76  and secure the inner cylinder  42  in the compressed position  62 . The button spring  84  is coupled between the button  80  and the button housing  38  around the hook  82 . The button  80  is depressible to move the hook  82  off the catch to allow the inner cylinder  42  to move to the alternate decompressed position  64 . 
     In use, the nipple  50  is engaged with the connector of the vial and the syringe is inserted through the syringe aperture  24  to draw medicine. When complete, the button  80  is depressed to move the inner cylinder  42  to the alternate decompressed position  64  to safely withdraw the syringe from the vial. 
     With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure. 
     Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.