Patent ID: 7488308

Claim:
An injector, comprising: a substance container defining a substance chamber configured for containing a substance to be injected; an injection conduit configured for injecting the substance into a patient; a driver associated with the substance chamber for driving the substance through the injection conduit; a channel member having an interior surface that defines an internal passageway open to the substance chamber, the channel member defining a channel that has a first end open towards the internal passageway for receiving the substance from the chamber and a second end open towards the injection conduit, the channel extending radially exterior to a portion of the interior surface and internal passageway between the first and second ends for bypassing the internal passageway to fluidly communicate the substance container to the injection conduit from the first end to the second end for injecting the substance; a blocking stopper having a closed position for blocking flow of any substance from the substance container through the channel to the injection conduit, the blocking stopper being movable within the internal passageway with respect to the channel ends to an open position for unblocking the flow of the substance from the chamber to the first end, through the channel around the blocking stopper to the second end, and to the injection conduit for injecting the substance, wherein the channel member comprises a guide protruding inwardly adjacent the groove to the interior surface for defining a circumferential side of the channel and for guiding and positioning the stopper in the open position; a firing mechanism operably associated with the driver and operable by the user to cause the driver to drive the substance sufficiently to move the blocking stopper to the open position and also to inject the substance into the patient; and an energy source configured for driving the driver to both move the blocking stopper to the open position and inject the substance into the patient.