Patent ID: 6926700

Claim:
A needle assembly, comprising: a needle cannula having a proximal end and a distal end with a puncture tip; a hub member supporting the proximal end of the needle cannula, said hub member having first and second lateral sides and including a lateral hub extension extending along said first lateral side in an axial direction toward said distal end of said needle cannula, said hub member further including a hub leg hingedly extending from said lateral hub extension; and a shield member including an internal passageway extending therethrough for accommodating said needle cannula, said shield member having first and second lateral sides corresponding to said first and said second lateral sides of said hub member, said shield member including a lateral shield extension extending along said second lateral side thereof in an axial direction toward said proximal end of said needle cannula, said shield member further including a shield leg hingedly extending therefrom at said first lateral side with said hub leg and said shield leg hingedly connected to each other forming a single pair of hinged legs, wherein said shield member includes a rail extending in an axial direction substantially parallel with said needle cannula, and said hub member includes a guide channel for engagement with said rail, wherein said lateral hub extension and said lateral shield extension are engageable with each other to form a unitary structure; said hub member and said shield member include interengaging structures for relative axial movement with respect to each other between a first position in which said needle assembly is in a sampling state with said puncture tip of said needle cannula exposed from said shield member, and a second position in which said needle assembly is in a shielded state with said puncture tip of said needle cannula contained within said shield member; and wherein opposing lateral forces applied against said hinged connection between said hub leg and said shield leg and against said lateral shield extension cause said relative axial movement of said shield member and said hub member between said first position and said second position, thereby shielding said needle cannula.