Source: http://www.google.com/patents/US5939619?ie=ISO-8859-1&dq=5,973,252
Timestamp: 2015-08-01 13:06:41
Document Index: 193241321

Matched Legal Cases: ['Application No. 60', 'Application No. 60', 'Application No. 60', 'Application No. 60', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 2']

Patent US5939619 - Method and apparatus for detecting leaks in packaging - Google PatentsSearch Images Maps Play YouTube News Gmail Drive More »Sign inAdvanced Patent SearchPatentsA method and apparatus are directed to non-destructive testing for a leak in a sealed package having an interior chamber formed of a gas-permeable portion and a non-gas-permeable portion. A temporary barrier having an aperture is formed to the gas-permeable portion to temporarily seal the gas-permeable...http://www.google.com/patents/US5939619?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US5939619 - Method and apparatus for detecting leaks in packagingAdvanced Patent SearchPublication numberUS5939619 APublication typeGrantApplication numberUS 08/982,728Publication dateAug 17, 1999Filing dateDec 2, 1997Priority dateDec 2, 1996Fee statusPaidAlso published asCA2273339A1, EP0941462A1, US6050133, WO1998025120A1Publication number08982728, 982728, US 5939619 A, US 5939619A, US-A-5939619, US5939619 A, US5939619AInventorsEugene K. Achter, Jonathan E. Bosworth, Helmut KlotzschOriginal AssigneeTrue Technology, Inc.Export CitationBiBTeX, EndNote, RefManPatent Citations (6), Non-Patent Citations (4), Referenced by (34), Classifications (9), Legal Events (8) External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, EspacenetMethod and apparatus for detecting leaks in packaging
US 5939619 AAbstract
1. A method for non-destructive testing for a leak in a sealed package having an interior chamber formed of a gas-permeable portion and a non-gas-permeable portion, comprising the steps of:a) forming a temporary barrier having an aperture to the gas-permeable portion to temporarily seal the gas-permeable portion of said package except at said aperture; b) applying a tracer gas through said aperture at said gas-permeable portion, whereby said tracer gas enters into said interior chamber; and c) measuring the concentration of tracer gas at the exterior of the sealed package, thereby testing for a leak in the sealed package. 2. The method of claim 1 wherein the tracer gas is selected from a group consisting of gases having a concentration of less than about one part per thousand by volume in an ambient atmosphere and is chemically inert with the sealed package.
This present application claims priority to co-pending U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/032,229, filed on Dec. 2, 1996; U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/032,962, filed on Dec. 13, 1996; U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/048,129, filed on May 30, 1997; and U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/062,350, filed on Oct. 15, 1997. The entire teachings of each application are incorporated herein by reference.
Gas sterilization is widely used for medical devices that must be sterile at time of use, but cannot be subjected to high temperature sterilization. Examples of such medical devices include cardiac pacemakers and catheter-based monitoring devices, such as blood pressure probes. Typically, the medical device is sealed within a package that is permeable to gases but impermeable to bacteria. The package is then placed within a gas sterilization chamber, and a sterilizing gas, such as ethylene oxide, is first introduced into the gas-permeable package to achieve sterilization, and is then removed from the gas-permeable package, leaving the interior of the package sterile but non-toxic.
In a typical design, the medical device is placed within a thermoformed rigid plastic tray equipped with a flat sealing flange. A sheet of gas-permeable membrane, such as du Pont TYVEK� 1073-B (medical grade) brand membrane, which is available from E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., is then sealed to the sealing flange, typically by using an adhesive. TYVEK membrane is a porous material fabricated as a mat of polyethylene fibers. It is permeable to gases, but its pores are tortuous paths that exclude bacteria.
The present invention is directed to a method and apparatus for non-destructive testing for a leak in a sealed package having an interior chamber formed of a gas-permeable portion and a non-gas-permeable portion.
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KgMethod for measuring the thickness of foil-containersUS20130192346 *Jan 31, 2013Aug 1, 2013Matthew D. SteeleApparatus and method for determining package integrity for porous and non-porous packagesUS20140290344 *Mar 10, 2014Oct 2, 2014BONFIGLIOLI ENGINEERING S.r.I.Method and apparatus for checking syringe bodiesDE102008056115A1 *Nov 6, 2008May 12, 2010Von Ardenne Anlagentechnik GmbhDevice for testing leakage in housing i.e. junction box, is designed such that housing is closed with cover, where filter made of atom permeable material is attached in opening area so that foreign body does not arrive into housing interiorDE102008056115B4 *Nov 6, 2008Jan 5, 2011Von Ardenne Anlagentechnik GmbhEinrichtung zum Testen von Lecks in Geh�usen mit Vakuumdurchf�hrungenEP1202042A2 *Sep 5, 2001May 2, 2002Mocon, Inc.Method for measuring gas leakage from sealed packagesEP1279939A2 *Jan 21, 2002Jan 29, 2003Mocon, Inc.Apparatus for conducting leakage tests on sealed packagesWO2001046667A1 *Nov 10, 2000Jun 28, 2001Inficon GmbhMethod for operating a film leak indicator and a corresponding film leak indicator for carrying out said methodWO2003006959A2 *Jan 5, 2002Jan 23, 2003Hans WolfSealing seam test deviceWO2005054806A1 *Dec 2, 2004Jun 16, 2005Enquist FredrikSystem and method for determining the leakproofness of an object* Cited by examinerClassifications U.S. Classification73/40.7, 73/49.3International ClassificationA61L2/26, A61L2/28, G01M3/22Cooperative ClassificationA61L2/28, G01M3/229European ClassificationA61L2/28, G01M3/22G6Legal EventsDateCodeEventDescriptionApr 3, 1998ASAssignmentOwner name: TRUE TECHNOLOGY, INC., MASSACHUSETTSFree format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNORS:ACHTER, EUGENE K.;BOSWORTH, JONATHAN E.;KLOTZSCH, HELMUT;REEL/FRAME:009077/0778Effective date: 19980325Mar 26, 1999ASAssignmentOwner name: IMPERIAL BANK, CALIFORNIAFree format text: SECURITY INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:TRUE TECHNOLOGY, INC.;REEL/FRAME:009859/0050Effective date: 19990312Jul 24, 2000ASAssignmentJul 27, 2000ASAssignmentFeb 11, 2003FPAYFee paymentYear of fee payment: 4Mar 5, 2003REMIMaintenance fee reminder mailedJan 23, 2007FPAYFee paymentYear of fee payment: 8Jan 13, 2011FPAYFee paymentYear of fee payment: 12RotateOriginal ImageGoogle Home - Sitemap - USPTO Bulk Downloads - Privacy Policy - Terms of Service - About Google Patents - Send FeedbackData provided by IFI CLAIMS Patent Services