Patent ID: 7497848

Claim:
A needleless connector for medical use, adapted to facilitate the flow of fluid therethrough, said connector comprising: a housing having an inlet port and an outlet port; and a flex-tube assembly defining a fluid path between the inlet port and the outlet port, the flex-tube assembly movable between uncompressed and compressed states, the flex-tube assembly having a first internal volume when in the uncompressed state and a second internal volume, at least as great as the first internal volume, when in the compressed state; wherein the flex-tube assembly comprises: a flex-tube insert having at least one collapsible section movable between uncollapsed and collapsed states; and a flex-tube piston surrounding the flex-tube insert and defining the fluid path, the flex-tube piston including a piston head positioned within the inlet port during the uncompressed state and outside the inlet port during the compressed state, a bore carried by the piston head, the bore closed when the piston head is within the inlet port and opened when the piston head is outside the inlet port, and a piston base proximal the outlet port and in communication therewith, the flex-tube piston responsive to the movement of the flex-tube insert, the flex-tube insert being formed of a substantially rigid material and the flex-tube piston being formed of a resiliently deformable material such that the outer circumference of the flex-tube insert remains in close contact with the inner circumference of the flex-tube piston over the length of the flex-tube insert in the compressed and uncompressed states.