Patent ID: 7316662

Claim:
An infusion device for medical use, comprising: at least one container designed to hold a specified quantity of a liquid to be infused into a patient; a weighing device associated for operation with said container to measure the weight of the container and emit a corresponding control signal; a transport line connected to said container to convey the liquid, in operating conditions, towards an infusion point; means for moving a flow of the liquid along said line; a rigid support holding opposite ends of a first length of tubing of said line designed to interact with said movement means, said first length of tubing having a curved shape and a predetermined axial extension; a control unit associated with said weighing device and with said movement means, the control unit receiving said control signal and being capable of detecting at least one end of infusion condition, said control unit being configured to perform an appropriate end of infusion procedure when an end of infusion condition is detected; a continuous fluid separator capable of separating the fluid into a gaseous portion and a liquid portion, said separator operating in said transport line between said movement means and said infusion point, said separator comprising a containing body, said rigid support comprising a first portion forming said containing body, said containing body having: at least one inlet for receiving a fluid from said container; at least a first outlet for receiving a liquid portion of said fluid, said containing body internally defining a fluid passage between said inlet and said first outlet; at least a second outlet for receiving a gaseous portion of said fluid; and selector means interposed between said inlet and said first outlet and capable of continuously separating said fluid into a gaseous portion and a liquid portion, said selector means comprising at least one hydrophilic membrane having one side facing said first outlet and one side facing said inlet, for receiving said fluid and transferring only liquid towards said first outlet, said selector means further comprising at least one hydrophobic membrane having one side facing said second outlet and one side facing said inlet, for receiving said fluid and transferring only gas towards said second outlet, said hydrophobic membrane being situated, in a use configuration of said first length of tubing, in an upper zone of an upstream portion of said fluid passage, said upstream portion being located upstream of said hydrophilic membrane; at least one check valve predisposed on said transport line to prevent a flow which is inverse to an infusion direction, said check valve being arranged internally of said containing body in a zone comprised between said selector means and said first outlet.