Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
1304922
--1--
1 BLADE XEMOVAL AND/OR MOUN~ING MECHANISM A~D ~ISPENSER,
EX~RACTOR-DISPOSA~ ~PPARATUS INCLU~ING SAME
BACKGROU~D 0~ T ~ ElQ~
The p~e~ent lnvention relate~ to t~ art o~
cuttl~g blade di~pens~ng and disposal, and, in particular,
to a meohanism fo~ ~lade removal and/or mountlng used to
~0 pro~de convenlent 6torage, di~pen~ing, and di~po~l
apparatus for cutting ~lades which can be ~ounted on b7ade
handle~ by mean~ of a mating elongated slot and boss.
It 1~ known in the art of cutting to provide
dispo~able bl4de~, such as surgical ~calpel ~lades,
commercially in several size~ sterile or non-sterile
packaging, whlch are adapted to fit conventional metal
~calpel handle~ or ~arlous ~es to form knives use~ for a
~ariety of purpo~es in hospi~al~, ln researc~ laboratori~,
and ln ~ciQnce d~pArt~en~ ~ n ~chool~ an~ Uni~ersitie~-
Rel4t~e to the ~e in ho~pital~, ~uch bl~de~ are u~ed ln~u~ge~y, pa~hology laborAto~ies, etc. ~ypically,
~ommerci~lly av~ ble surgi~al blade~ havo a ~h~rpened tip
and cUttin~ edge portion an~ a 6ha~k por~ion extendlng
rear~ardly theref~om. The ~hank portion of the blade i8
~5 provlded ~ith an elong4ted aperture ~h~ch ~8 ~haped flna
adapte~ to receive a mating e~ongated ~08~ formed on the
~orward o~ ~tta~h~ng t~p o~ a scalpel ~andle.
1304922
1 G~ner~lly, the elong~ted handle-engaging ~perture
of the blade can have ~ wldened rear portion and a narrowed
fo~ward portlon, the wldened rear po~tion init~ally
~eceiving the en~aging boss of the gcalpel handle gulding
the bo~s forwArd lnto th~ na~rowed forward portion of the
apQr~ure. ~he boss ls undercut such that the edges o~ the
na~owed forward portion o~ thR apertu~e are engaged between
a sc~lpel handle And the undercut sur~ace of the boss. When
the bo6s is completely inserted wit~in the bl~de aperture,
th~ rear edge o~ the blade aperture can be snapped over the
rear of the engaging bosR, thu6 achleving loc~ing enga~ement
between t~e blade and the scalpel han~le.
In order to remove a blade of this ~ature from B
scalpel handle, the rear edge o~ the blade must b~ ~epar~ted
~rom the h~ndle to dl~engage the ~ear end o~ the blade
ap~rture ~ro~ the rear end of the boss ~o that the blade can
~hen be pushed ~orward until the undercut boss clear~ t~e
narrowed ~orw~rd po~tion of the blade aperture permitting
the blad~ to be cle~red of thQ handl~.
A ~h~rp ed~e 18 es~nt~al ln conductlng ~ surgical
ope~ation. However, ~lades tend to lose theix edge ~ery
q~lcXly in ~uch procedures ~o it i6 com~on to use ~e~eral
blades dur~ng a single surgical p~ocedure. Thus, removal o~
a u~e~ blade rrom the handle and replacement of the blade
~ith a new sterile blade is a ~requent occu~rence in the
cour~e of a s~rg~cal procedur~.
The const~uction and opera~ion of mounting and
dlsmounting scalpel blades on blade handles presen~ problems
in ~hat the handling o~ such sharp blades for mounting and
3o removal p~rposes can easily cause in~ury to the handler.
1304922
--3--
1 Accordlngly, ln t~e p~st lt has been Xnown to pro~de
dev~ces for removlng the ~lade wit~out the necessi~ of
touchlng them with the hand.
For example, ~.S. Patent No. 3,172,316 to
Grieshaber ~hows a ~lade ~emoving tool formed ~rom tubing
and ha~lng an elongated handle. One end is 21at~ened
somQ~hat Yo ~ to provide flat opposed surfac-s in which a~e
~ormed opposed channel-like groove~ ~hich ~unc~ion as gu~de
tracX~ for the bo~s portion of the ~calpel when the tool and
the ~calpel bo~ poxtion are as~embled. Extending
longitudinally from one flat eur~ace of the flattened end
po~tion of the handle are two 6paced-apart prong~ which are
lnclln~d up~ardly a ~light amount. The space between the
prongs ~ ~uch A~ to per~it the ~lender bo~s po~tion of ~he
~calpel handle to pas~ therebetween, the free end cf each
p~ong belng o~f~et upwardly. ~he ~lade end of the ~calpel
handle ca~ be inltially inserted longitudinally ~hrough t~e
open ~l~t end oP the tube between the cha~nel-like groo~es.
The of~et end~ of t~e tool prong ~lldably engaglng t~e
under ~ur~ace o~ t~e b~de until they en~a~e ~ehind the
~nnermo~t edg- of the bl~e ad~acen~ the scalpel handle.
~he inclihatlon of ~he prongs caUse the innermost ed~e
po~t~on o~ the a~com~odated blade to be ~lexed ~pwardly 50
that each ed~e portlon ~hereo~ w~ll clear the ~lender bos6
p~rtlon of the ~calpel when the scalpel is withdrawn
longitudinally from the flattened end of the tool. The
blade of the ~calpel i~ held in place by the off~et end~ o~
the prongQ dur~ng withdrawal of the scalpel handle.
3o
1304922
1 U.S. P~tent No. ~,180,1~2 to ~agney ~how~ a
comb~natlon di~pen~er-disposal cartridge for a su~gicAl
blade whic~ lncludeg an elongated open-top box wlth
mean~ ~oX re~eiving and positioning ~he blade in ~ curved
po~itlon to aocept the mating bos8 0~ a 6calpel handle, The
box ~180 includeQ means ~or ~trlpping A u~ed blade ~rom the
~calpel ~andle and retainlng it within the box for dispo~al.
The bl~de 1~ packed in the box 80 that it cur~ingly extends
~r~m the ~orw~rd tlp toward~ the shank tlp t~ facilitate
lnse~t~on of a bo~s of a ~calpel handle into the elongated
~lot, whlch i~ then ~oved ~orward and withdrawn with the
blade mounted on the handle. Removal of the blade ~rom the
6calpel handlc i~ e~fected by lnserting the scalpel handle
into tho aperture end o the box ~ntil t~e tip of the blade
i8 cngaged be~ween the side wall and a ~ro~ectlon extending
downwardly from the top of the box at ~h~ch point the handle
i~ ~oved to t~e r~ht ~o that the reax edge of the bl~de is
~tripped Awa~ ~rom the narro~è~ ~orward portion o~ t~e
~c~lpe~ handl~ by engagement ~g41ng~ an up5tanding blade
diGen~aging pro~e~ion ~ormed integra~ly w~th the ~loor of
the ~ox. The Magney combination di~pen~e~-dispo~a}
cartridge can p~ove to be ~omewhat lne~fective ~n use,
resulting in ~urgeon~ or a~sistant~ xesorting to ~anual
~emo~al o~ the blade ~rom ~calpel handles.
Other devices i~clude the ~calpel blad~ remove~
~hown ln U.S. Patent No. 4,378,h24 ~o Klingenbe~g which
include~ a ~ixed block in ~ombination ~ith a ~econd mo~able
block ha~ing a 610t between ~uch b~ocks and a tab provided
on th~ movable ~lock to engage an end o t~e blade and move
3o
1304922
--5--
1 lt relative to the b~dy o~ the blade to di~engage it from
th- handle. ~he bloc~s are ~ounted on A ~upporting su~face
beneath which ~ ~terlle disposal b~x may be disposed.
U.S. P~tent No, 4,318,473 to Sandel ~hows a
surglc~l blade ~emoval And di~posal device which operates by
lnse~t~ng a h~ndle with a blade mo~nted thereon through a
gulde mean~ B0 tha~ the rear o~ the blade is disposed over
~paced apart ~houlder~ a~ter whlch the handle i6 u~ged
downward tendlng to bow t~e blade, thu~ disengaging ~he rear
of t~e in~erted portion from the rear edge of the blade 810t
to 4110w the handle to slide relative to the blade. The
blade tend~ to move with the handle ~s a result of frict~on
bet~een the blade and the handle until it encounters the
~ront wall of a ~top which prevents further ~ovement of the
blade rearwardly. One of the problem~ encounter~d with the
S~ndel blado removal de~ice is the ~evere bend imposed on
th~ blade when it is fit over the spaced apart 6houlde~s t~
guide the blAde to the rear ~top. ~his cau6es a hig~ degree
o~ ~lction betwQen t~ blade slot and the hand~e bo5
zo maklng x~mo~al o~ th~ ~lAde ver~ dir~cult.
U.S. Patent ~o. 4,344,532 to Eldridge, Jr., et al.
dl~clo~e~ a ~ur~ical blade remove~ h~ving ~ wedge 6haped
~upport member which ta~er~ ~rom its front s~de to it~ back
side. The support has one or more mu~ally p~rallel
latitud~nal slots open at one end and along their length
ex~nding from the ~ront ~de of the support to it~
inter$or. ~he ~lots Are ~ized to receive the tang of the
blade holder ~hile preventing the blade itself from passing
the~et~rough and the surface of each of the ~upport members
3o ~ordering the slot is covereq w~th an adhesive which hold~
1304922
-G -
1 the blade in place wh~le the handle ls plvoted downw~rd i~
the $10t nw~y from the blade. In certain embodlments, the
~lots are ~hown to h~ve modificat~ons co~toured to
compllment the ~hape of the blade and/or to provide a notch
to reoeive 4 port~on of the hilt of the blade ~n order to
assl~t ln blade removal.
U.~. Patent No. 4,120,~97 to Neum~nn show6 a unit
~o~ accom~o~atlng dl~posable blade-like art~cles in which
the underside o~ a blade 6uch a6 A scalpel blade, slidably
eng~ge~ a ~esillent tongue-llke element whlch i~ de~lected
upwardl~, The tong~e-like element ha~ mounted thereon cam
mean~ havlng ~urfaces which c~n be p~shed against the blade
to unse~t the ~ear of the blade away fro~ a bo6s on the
blade handle. once the tongue-like me~ber 1~ ~ully
depressed thereby dePleot~ng the rear of the blade
downwardly, the scalpel handle can be re~oved, abutting the
~ear o~ the blade agaln~ the lnside sur~ace o~ a panel,
thu~ un~eating the blade ~rom the bos~ and di~a6~embling the
blade from tho handl~.
U. 6 . ~tent ~o . 4,106,6~0 to Brlmmer, et al. shows
a ~ur~ical ~lade dl~pen~er and dl~posal assembly whi~h
~n~ludes bladeG i~dividually posit~oned and supported wlthin
the box between ~ slot in a forward wall and a ~lot in a
rearward wall which hold~ ~he blade~ in such a fashion as to
~ htly dc~or~ them ~.n a lateral curve for recelpt oP a
boss of a ~urgical blade ~older in the elongated slst formed
in the body of the blade. The blades can be rem~ved by
lnsertion of the blade bearing handle through the aperture
and wedged rea~ward~y against pro~eoting ears. The handle
is t~en moved laterally to sepa~ate the rear of the
blade from the ~oss and remo~e the handle completel~ ~ff t~e
3~
~304922
--7--
1 blnde. Thls de~ice h~s proved to be cumberso~e and the
r~movAl app~atus does not pro~ide fox efficient removal of
the bl~des.
~ herefo~e an ob~ect of the pre~ent invention
to prov~de ~ gcalpel blade dispenser by whlch scalpel blades
c~n be q~icXly ~nd easily ~o~nted on~o a ~calpel bl~de
handle.
~ t i~ another object of ~he lnvention to pr~vide A
~calpel blade ext~actor whi~h ~acilitate~ easy x~oval of
the blade ~ro~ ~ blade handle.
Another ob~ect o~ the invention i6 to provide a
~oalpel ~lade dlspenser holder whlch give~ quick and ea~
acces6 to a v~r~ety o~ scalpel blade~.
~ ommen~ur~te with the p~eviou~ object of the
inventlon, it 1~ A ~urther ob~ect ~o p~ovide a device by
Which stored blade6 can be easlly iden~lfied.
A further o~ect of the p~esent lnventlon i~ to
provlde ~o~ ~afe ~torag~ o~ ~calpol bl~d~s duxing the cour~e
0~ ~U~g~Al operAtiorl~.
Another ob~ect o~ the inven~io~ ls to facilitate
the ~afe dis~osal of u~ed and contAminated ~calpel blade~.
Another ob~ect of the in~ention i8 to permit the
qui~k and Accurate invento~y of scal~el blades usually
conducted at th~ conclusion o~ gu~gical operations.
Other ~nd ~u~her ob~ect~ of the. present lnv-ntion
will become Apparent to those skilled in the art in view of
th~ disclo~ure of the in~ention as ~et forth herein.
3o
1304922
--8--
The preBent $nvention lnclude~ a ~echan~6m which
oan be u~ed ~or both mounting and rem3vl~g a bl~de having an
~longatQd ~lot mounting ~an~ ~rom a ~lAde handle whic~ ha~
a mounting bo~ for ~nsertion lnto the elongated ~lot. The
mechanl~m includes a handle guide ~hich forms one side of a
pa~ageway for in~ertion o~ the ~lade handle, the handle
guide having a flexlble body portion which is su~ficiently
~lex~ble to allow delection o~ the handle ~or withdrawal o~
the bos~ out o~ mating relations~ip with the elon~ated ~lot
of the blade. Another element o~ the mechanism is a blade
extractlng mean6 ~ixed opposite the handle guide which forms
a 6econd si~e of the passage~ay, the extracting mean~
haYing a blade rstaining project~on arranged adjacent the
pa~AgewAy w~ch c~n be actuated to prevent wlthdrawal o~ a
bl~de from the passageway. The mechan~m further lncludes a
actu~tion ~ans fixed or actuation o~ the blAde extracting
mean~ upo~ d~rlect~on o~ the ~ndle su~iciently to
aisengage the ~0~8 out o~ a ~ting relation~hlp with the
2V ~lcngated slot. A~ a con~equ~nce a ~lade mounted on a
hanale c~n be remo~ed there~ro~ when the handle is
wlthdrawn from ~he pa~sagew~y w~le the extracting ~ean~ is
b~ing actuated.
A deYlce o~ the present invention csn also inc~ude
a well ~o~ holdlng a blade in a pos~tlon ~or mountlng on a
ha~dle a~ well as for receiving a blade once used.
~lternatively, the wel~ can be u~ed as a disposal receptacle
wh~n t~è mechanism is used merely a~ a b~ade disarmer. When
it iB contemplated ~o provlde a dispen.~ing/dlsposal
3o ~pparatus, the well can also ~nclude a blade su~port whic~
holds a blade ln a mounting position whil~ p~eserving the
blade'~ cutting edge.
1~04922
g
1 ~eferring to the lnd~vldual elements o~ t~e
mech~nlsm, the blade extrac~ing means includes a ~lexible
arm extending from a point at one end of the passageway and
extends along the pac~agewa~ to an operati~e end, the blade
re~ain~ng pro~ction belng fixed at the operative end so
tbat lt 1~ po~tloned out o~ the pa~ageway ln the
unact~ated condition and ~o that it can be drawn over the
pa~ageway when actuate~. The actuation mean6, ln turn,
includes a latch ~ean~ secured ~o, ~or example, the h~ndle
gu~de, the latch mea~ including a yoke extending around the
passagsway and ~ ~oke tab extendlng around the blade removal
hoo~ Arm whereby t~s tab i~ d~awn into actuating contact
with th~ arm when the handle guide i~ d~flected away ~rom
the blade extracting mean~. Alternatlvely, the latch means
can be ~ecured to the bla~e xemoval arm wh~le the ~oke
extends around the pa~sageway and the yoke tab extends
around the handle guide. The yoke t~b can extend a~ound
el~her the arm or the handle ~uide a di~tanos ~u~fici~nt to
permit ln~rtlon o~ tho han~le through the passageway
withou~ actuatin~ the actu~ting ~rm.
The mechani~m can ~e lncluded in a housing to
provlde A comblnation ~lade di~pen~er and dispo~al device.
The hou~lng can be 4 6teriliz~ble clear contalner whereln
the blades can be visibly packag~d and sterilized.
A reclosa~l¢ lid can be formed over the entixe set o~ blade
ope~lngs with a weakened portion attaching ~t to the housing
on one s~de and an opening on the opposite ~$de for
articulable movement over the blade~. ~re~erably, the
devioe can ~n~lude at least four blades for use i~ an
operating environment.
1304922
--10--
1 It has been found that t~e devlce can preferably
be ~rom about 2" to about 2 3/4" h~gh, from about 3" to
abou~ 4" long, and ~rom about 1 3/4ll to about 2 3/4" wide at
t~e ba~e, and can be provided with an adhesive on the botto~
5 ~ur~ace fo~ BeCuring the devico ln place dur~nq ~se.
A~ ~ result of th~ prQ~ent ~nven~ion a medical
operating team can be provided with guick and easy a~cess to
a v~riety o~ scalpel blades ln the devlce which permit ~ha
sa~e handl~ng o~ the blade~ by mechanically moun~ing and
10 aismounting a~ ~equired. The blade~ c~n b~ identi~ied as
new or u~ed and the devlce pe~mits a blade count at the
concluslon o~ the operation to be perfor~ed more quickly and
accuxately while all~wing ~or the ~afe storage and d~posal
of the used ~calp~l blades.
1~ In another embodiment, the in~ention can be used
to provide ~ blade disposa~ con~iner which conta~ns the
mechani~ described ~ove ~or disarming a blade from a
handl~
For A b~tter under~tandlng o~ the pregent
lnv~ntlon, together Wlth other and ~u~the~ objects,
referenG~ 1~ made to the following de~cr~p~lon, taken in
aon~unction wt~h th~ accompanylng drawings, and it~ 6~0pe
will be pointed ~u~ in the appended claims.
BRI~F DES~IPTION OF ~E DRAWINGS
Pre~srred embodiments of t~e invention have been
chosen ~or puxposes o~ illu~tration and description and are
shown ln the accompanying drawin~ wherein;
Flgure. 1 i~ a per~pective view of a blade
3o d~pen~lng/disposal appa~atus in a~ordance with the present
invent~on~
1304922
--11--
1 Figure 2 ~6 a perspectlve vie~ of a handle wlt~ a
blade mounted thereon;
F~ure 3 show~ the ~elationshlp of the blade and
the handle ln the disassembled c~ndltion;
~lgure 4 1~ a per~pectivæ view of the operative
mechan~sm o~ the present ln~ention with the scalpel blade
~hown ~n ph~ntom ~n order to depict the relati~nship of the
blade to the ~ec~anl~m;
Fl~ure 5 iB a slde elevatl~nal cro~g-~ection of
the apparatus ~hown ln Figure 1 tak~n along lin~s 5-5:
Fi~ure 6 is an exploded i~o~etric view of a handle
guide and latch hooX a6sembly of th~ operative mechanism:
Figure 7 1B an exploded l~ometric o~ a blade ho~k
as~embly portion o~ the mechanlsm;
Figure 8 ~hows an alternatlve embodiment of the
ope~ative mechanism o~ the p~esent invention:
~ $gure 9 ~6 an end vlew of the apparatu~ ~hown in
Figure 1 with part~al cutawa~ ~o dep$ct the o~era~ion of the
lld And t~e ~l~d~ u~age indic~tor tab;
~o F~gure~ 10 and 11 ~how the steps.in~olved in
moUnting a blade onto A blade hand~e:
~ gure lz ~how~ the oper~tion oP the me~hanism for
removal o~ the blado ~rom the handle7
Flgur~ 13 i~ yet another embodiment of the present
invention whlch ~ use~l a~ A blade disarming ~nd dispo~al
apparatus: ~nd
Flgure 14 i~ a cross-~ection o~ the embodiment
~ho~n ~n Figute 13 taken along lines 14-14.
3o
1304922
-12-
1 ~ETAI~ED DES~RIPT~O~ OF THE ~VENT~ON
~ o the ex~ent pos~lble, the ~a~e numeral~ will b~
~ed throughou~ the f~qures when referring to the ~ame
parts. Re~errlng to Figure 1 there can be seen a device
con~tructed ln accordance w$th the present lnventlon for
p~ckaglng 4 series o~ b~ades, such aQ ~calpel blades, f~r
moun~ing o~ a ~calpel blade handle, and ~or dismounting the
blade fro~ ~he handle and di~posal after use. In Figure 1
the device is ghown with ~lve blades which can be packaged,
6terilized, and delivered to the operatlng environment ~or
~eleotion and uQe by the operating team. The ~ispen~er can
ha~e a transparent housing 11 whereby th~ di~erent size and
type o~ blades can be oonvenlently ~iewed by th~ surgeon or
a~sl6tant.
Figure ~ and 3 ~how the relationship o~ the
lpel blade to the scalpel blade handle in a fully
a~e~bled positlon ln Flgure 2, and ln a disassembled
conftguratlon ln ~gure 3, ~eferrin~ to these ~igures thcre
can be ~een a ~lade 50 having an elongated ~perture 51 with
20 A reduced slzed seatlon 53 and A~ enlarged section 52. It
1G Al~o known that the elongated aperture can have three
variatlon~ in aperture ~ze r~ther than merely two AS shown
ln Figure 3.
A blade handle 55 is s~own with an elongated
forwaxd portion 57 provided with a peripheral mounting slot
5~. ~he peripheral ~lot 59 can be ~ormed by provision ot a
ral~ed ~o~s 56 having the undercut perlpheral ~lot 59. ~he
boss 56 extend~ outwardly ~rom the forward end portion S7.
Referrin~ ~peoifi~ally to F~gure 3 there i~ ~hown a partial
cutaway o~ the boss 56 to show the peripheral mounting slot
~3()4922
-13-
1 59 formed ~ ~n underout o~ t~e boss 56. In order to
mount the blade S0 onto the handle ~5, ~he ralsed boss
portion 56 mu~t be direct~d into the enlarged portion 52 o~
the elongat~d ~perture 51 and thrust forward ~o that the
entire body o~ ral~ed bos4 56 i~ ln~erted int~ the elongated
apertuxe Sl. The narrowed por~on 53 of the elongated
aperture i~ frlctionally engaged by the peripheral ~lot 5~
to secure the blade S0 on the handle S5. It i6 n~ed that
the blade ~E secured on the handle when the rear portion 52
o~ aperture Sl drops ~ver the rear portion of th~ ral~ed
boss 56 and snap~ into mating relationsbip therewith.
Re~erring to ~igur~ 4, the ope~atlve mechanlsm of
the prssent invention 16 shown wi~h a ~lad~ 50 shown in
phantom the~e1n. Reference iB also made to Flgu~e 6 and 7
15 to ~how the dl~ferent element~ of the operative pDrtion
~h~wn in ~xploded lsometric view. In particular, the
operatlve ~echanism includes a handle gu~de assembly 20
having a lower ~rame 21, whiçh can be part o~ A molded base
portlon, and an upper handl~ gui~e 22 havlng a gu~d~ng
~ur~ace 26, ~he handle gu~de assembly is fix~d within
housing 11 oppo~lte a blade hook assembly 30 to ~orm on~
side of a p4ssageway ~or the blade and ~lade handle.
~ he blade hoo~ a~sembly 30, in turn, includes a
housing ~upp~rt part 31, a~ well a~ ~ le~ portion 32 which
extend6 upwardly to a b~ade re~oval hook 37 having a b~ade
remo~al surface 34.
A third porti~n o~ the operative mechanl6m of the
present invention 1~ a lat~h hook a6sembly 40 whi~h i8
rigid~y ~ixed to the handle guide 22 by means of a latch bar
41 and continues perimetrically around the ~lade passage ~y
mean~ sf a latch extenSiQn 42. At the end of the latch
1304922
-14-
1 exten~ion 42 18 a l~tch ho~ 43, w~lch extend~ around the
le~ 32 n ~i~t~nce "f" from the leg 32 to permi~ de1ection
of the hAndle gulde as~embly 20 ~ distance su~icient to
permlt ln~ertlon of A handle tip ln the pa6~ageway ~or
mounting a blade t~ereon.
In Flgure 8, an alternatlve embodimen~ o~ the
present inventlon 16 ~hown wlth the latch hook a6~embly
rlgldly a~ixed to the ~lade removal hook rather than the
handle gulde Assembly. ~hese p~rts o~ the con~iguration
~h~n ln Figure 8 whlch have bee~ rearran~ed ars deQignated
with prime4 num~er~ to lndicate tha~ they parts wlth ~i~llar
functlon, but with a di~erent con~iguration.
Referxing ~o ~lgure S the~e can be ~ee~ a ~ide
elevational view in croQs-section o~ the apparatus ~ 6hown
in ~igure 1 take~ alon~ llnes ~-5 wh~c~ show~ the
relatlonshlp of the operative portion6 of the mechani~ to
thê housing 11. In ~hls view the ~lade i~ ~hown re~ting on
A blade ~lat~orm 18, which can ~clude a blade ~upport
pro~ e~tlon 19 . IhQ ~uppor~ pr~ection ~g 1~ locsted on the
pl~tform 18 at ~ po~l~lo~ wherein the blade rests thereon at
location "~ een in Fi~ure 4) which i6 essentially unused
durlng a procedure, e.g., usuall~ between the polnt ~nd the
cuttl~g "belly" of the blade.
~urthe~ featur~s of the pre~ent ~n~ention inc~ude
in the pre~erred mode, a lid ~2 prefer~bly, having a living
hinge 13, which can be raised rearwardly (see ~igure 9) to
expose a bla~e use indicator tab 14 located ~mmediately
a~ove the package~ blade. In operation, when the handle is
~n~erted to mount the blade thereon, the blade indicator t~
14 16 depressed downwardly to ~e ~ptured between co~verging
1304922
-15-
1 shoulders 15 provlded ~n ~he ~ous~ng, ~o tha~ once
depre~ed, u~e of the blade ls memor~lized by the
downwardly-~etalned tab.
The oper~t~on by which ~ blade 1~ ~ounted on the
handle ~ ~hown in Flgures ~0 and ~1. In part~cular, ln
Fl~re 10, the front portlon 57 o~ a blade handle 55 i8
th~u~t downwardly to depress the ~lade ~ndicator tab 14 and
to g~ln 4e~e5S lnto the pass~geway ~etween the handle guide
assembly 20 and the ho~k removal assembly 30. Referrlng n~w
to ~l~ure 11, the handle aan be ~een a~ it ha~ been engaged
with the elongated apertur& 51 of the blade 50. ~he tab 14
which has been dspressed iB retained in th~ depressed
condition ~y 2rict~onal ~it b~tween converging shoulders 15.
S~nce there i~ a dl~ance ~-fll between the leg 32 and the
latch hook 43, the handle gu~de can be de21ected to a
certaln eX~ent ~ithout act~vating the ~lade re~o~al asse~bly
30, Once the blade ha~ been ~ecured on the front end 57 of
the h~nale 55, the entire as~e~bly c~n be vertically rQmoved
~rom th~ me¢h~nism.
The removal o~ a blade ~rom A handle i6 explalned
wi~h re~erence to ~lgure 12. The blade and handle a~sembly
c~n be inserted once again through the open~ng pxovided by
the pexmanently depre~ed ~ab 14 ~nd lnto the passageway
betw~en ths hAndle guide assembly 20 and the bl~de hooX
Asgembly 30. Once the blade i8 ~ully ~nser~ed ~nt~ the
pa~a~eway, t~e handle 55 can ~e deflected toward the handle
guide a~mbly 20 and away 2rom th~ blade ~emo~al a~embly
30, i~e., to ~he ~igh~ a~. ~hown in Figure 12. A~ a result
o this de~lection, the handle ss strikes agains~ the
upper handle guide 22 thereby urging the hand~e quide
assembly wlth the latch hook assem~ly 40 rigidly ~ixed
3~
1304922
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l thereto away fro~ the passagQway. ~he latc~ hook 43,
thereby traver~es through the dl~tance "f" ~nd ~tri~es the
rear of le~ 32 o~ blade removal hook n~embly 30 thereby
urg~nq ~t over the paseageway as ~hown in Figure 12. Wher.
tho blade hanale i~ aeflected out of the passageway, the
rear portlo" of the rai~ed b~s~ 56 ls simultaneou61~ ~rom
the rear portion o~ the elongated aperture 5~ thus,
per~ittlng a disengaging move~en~ of the hand~e from the
blade.. In the pre~ent mechanlsm the di~en~aging movement is
10 a vertlcally upward pull of the handle out of the
passageway, whlch, ln the condition shown in ~i~ure 12
causes the top end o~ the blade 50 to strlke agai~st the
blade re~oval ~urface 34 t~ereby preventing the blade ~rom
being lifted from the pa~a~eway. I~ shoul~ be no~ed that
~ince only a slight de~lection o~ the handle away from the
blade i~ regu~red to di6engage the bo~s 56 fro~ the aperture
51, and to ~imultaneously actuate the blade removal
as~embly, there i~ but a mlnlmal lncrease ~n the fric~ion
b~t~een the narr~w portion 53 o~ the blAde ape~ture Sl and
20 th- un~er¢~t peri~h~ral slot 59 o~ the bo~s 56. ~hus, as a
result o~ the actuatlon o~ the rem4val a~e~ly 30 and the
low-~ictional-~it conditlon of the ~lade 50 on the mounting
boss 56, the handle can be very easily withdrawn and
dlsas~e~led ~rom the blade without touching the blade
l~elf.
Referx~n~ ~o Figure 13 t~ere $~ ~hown a furthe~
em~odiment o~ the pre~ent lnventlon which can be used merely
a~ a d~sposal apparatus for removal and stora~e of used
blades. In particular there ~ 6hown dev~ce 70 with a lid
71 wh~ch can be rotated rearwardly from the top o~ the
appa~tus 70 as shown in phantom in Figure 14. Once the lid
~304922
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1 i~ opened, ~ ~ully a~sembled blade ~nd handle can ~e
ln~e~ted into the mechanlsm And manipulated A~ chown in
Figure 13 ~o remove A blade. Add~tlonally, in the
con~lguratlon ~h~wn ln ~igure~ 13 and 14 a blade retaining
po~t 7Z can be provlde~ ~n receiv~ng wells 74 in order to
malnt41n the blades thexein ln ~ coherent ~t~c~.
In elther o~ the preferred embodim~nt~, when the
hou~ing $s ~ade of a ~ran~parent ma~erial, the blades
ai~posed o~ can be e~sily inv~ntoried after a p~ooedure to
fa~ilitate acoountability. Further with regard to the
~re~erred e~odiment~, the compos~te housing unit can have
an ~dhesive bottom 16 which holds lt flrmly ~n plac~ ~or
both the blade ~ounting and dismounting procedure a~
de~cribed abo~e. The di~penslng device with new blades
packaged therein can be optionally covered with a ~terile
wrap m~terial and sub~ected to ~terill~ation procedure by
u~e o~ ethylene oxide, radiation, etc.
Thus, whlle there have ~een de~crlbed what are
pre~ently ~elleved to be th~ prerer~ed em~o~iments o~ the
inv~ntion, tho6e ~ki~led in the art wlll realize that
changes and modlfica~ion~ may be made thereto without
dep~rtln~ ~ro~ th~ 6p~ rit o~ the i~ention, and it is
intended to cl~lm all ~uch ~hanges and msdi~ication~ a~ fall
wlthin the true ~cope of the inventlon~
3o
