Patent ID: 6896700

Claim:
A tri-leaflet heart valve comprising: an annular valve base with an inner surface defining a central orifice through which a blood flow moves from an upstream side to a downstream side; three protruding hinges formed on the inner surface of the annular valve base and equally spaced along the inner surface of the annular valve base, each hinge comprising a convex downstream face connected to a convex upstream face by a curved ridge and a pair of concave sockets on opposite sides of the hinge; and three leaflets arranged between adjacent hinges, each leaflet having an arcuate contour and being provided with a pair of round pivots respectively mounted inside the concave sockets of the hinges, each of leaflets being respectively suspended between a corresponding pair of concave sockets and being freely rotatable within the annular valve base; when the leaflets are subject to a positive pressure from the blood flow, the leaflets are fully opened to allow the blood to flow through the central orifice, and when the leaflets are subject to a negative pressure, the leaflets are closed to occlude the blood flow.