Syringe and disposable container therefor

Claim 2

A syringe comprising an elongated barrel having an open discharge end, a plunger reciprocably mounted in the barrel, a container, means for removably engaging the container to the discharge end of the barrel to form the end wall thereof, said engaging means including a circumferential flange on said container, said flange having at least a flexible periphery for being flexed by the end of the barrel when the container is being engaged as the end wall thereof and for retaining said container as the end wall of the barrel by the tendency of at least said flexible periphery of the flange to restore to its unflexed state, and means on said barrel at said open end for flexing at least said flexible periphery and permitting restoration of said flange toward its unflexed state, said container having a substantially rigid first wall portion at the exterior side of the end wall and having an inside surface, and a flexible second wall portion at the interior side of the end wall and introvertible upon the inside surface of the first wall portion, said plunger having an end surface facing the container and designed to contact said second wall portion and to introvert the flexible wall portion upon the rigid wall portion during reciprocable movement of the plunger, said end surface being shaped to substantially conform to the shape of said inside surface of said first wall portion, and a nozzle on said first wall portion for attaching a hypodermic needle thereto.

Claim 3

A syringe as claimed in claim 1 wherein said flange is flexible and wherein said barrel includes a cylindrical socket at the discharge end thereof for receiving said flange and wherein said socket includes radially inwardly projecting means for receiving said flange by the flexing of the flange and for retaining said container in said socket during application of the piston on the flexible wall portion for introverting the latter upon the inside surface of the rigid wall portion.

Claim 4

A syringe as claimed in claim 2 wherein said flange includes a peripheral lip projecting from the edge of the flange at the side thereof which is opposite to said flexible second wall portion of the container, said lip having a conical outside surface the largest diameter of which is larger than the inside diameter of said socket, said lip yielding towards the container when inserted into the socket to frictionally engage the inner wall surface of the socket.

Claim 5

A syringe as claimed in claim 2 wherein said projecting means comprises a circumferential rib on the inside wall surface of the socket.

Claim 6

The syringe of claim 4 including means for permitting said end surface of said plunger to eject said container from said barrel upon further movement of said plunger toward said discharge end of said barrel after the introverting of said second wall portion upon the inside surface of the first wall portion.

Claim 7

The syringe of claim 4 wherein said container is prefilled before attachment to said barrel.

Claim 8

A syringe as claimed in claim 1 further comprising valve means controlling the passage between opposite sides of the plunger in the barrel to allow free flow of air from one side of the plunger to the other side thereof when the plunger is being displaced towards the discharge end of the barrel, and to prevent air flow between opposite sides of the plunger when it is displaced in the opposite direction, the interior of the barrel on the side of the plunger opposite to the discharge end of the barrel being vented to the atmosphere.

Claim 9

A syringe as claimed in claim 7 wherein said valve means comprises a sealing element on the plunger forming a conical lip thereon flared from a small end joining the plunger towards the end of the barrel which is opposite to the discharge end and engaging the inside wall surface of the barrel, said lip allowing air to pass between the plunger and the inside wall surface of the barrel when the plunger is being displaced towards the discharge end, and being forced to sealing engagement with said inside wall surface of the barrel when the plunger is being displaced in the opposite direction in the barrel.

Claim 10

A syringe as claimed in claim 7 wherein said syringe functions to fill said container and wherein said syringe includes interengaging abutment means on the plunger and the barrel for limiting the axial displacement of the plunger in the barrel during filling of said container for automatically filling the container to a predetermined extent.

Claim 11

A syringe as claimed in claim 9 wherein said abutment means on the plunger comprises several abutments at different axial positions spaced around the plunger, the barrel and the plunger being relatively rotatable to place said abutment means on the barrel in the moving path of any one of said several abutments at one time.

Claim 12

A syringe as claimed in claim 1 further comprising spring means between the plunger and the barrel biasing the plunger away from the discharge end of the barrel, and means for selectively retaining the plunger in a position in which said flexible second wall portion of the container is introverted by the piston to be collapsed against the inner surface of said one wall portion of the container.

Claim 13

A syringe as claimed in claim 11 wherein said retaining means are engaged and disengaged by relative rotation of the barrel and the plunger.

Claim 14

A syringe system comprising a syringe having an elongated barrel with an open discharge end, a plunger reciprocably mounted in the barrel, a plurality of disposable containers, means for removably attaching the containers individually to the discharge end of the barrel to form the end wall thereof, each said container having a substantially rigid first wall portion for forming the exterior side of the end wall and having an inside surface, and a flexible second wall portion at the interior side of the end wall and introvertible upon the inside surface of the first wall portion, said plunger having an end surface facing a container when attached to the barrel and designed to contact said second wall portion during the reciprocable movement of the plunger, said end surface being shaped to substantially conform to the shape of said inside surface of said first wall portion, anda nozzle on said first wall portion for attaching a hypodermic needle thereto, means for removably storing at least a portion of said plurality of containers and forming a bottom hole for each container for receiving the nozzle thereof and for closing the open end of the nozzle and thus the interior of the container to the atmosphere, said attaching means including flexible flange means on each of the containers and engagement means on the open end of the barrel, said engagement means capturing said containers individually by flexing said flexible flange means, the tendency of the flexible flange means to restore to its unflexed condition, retaining the container on the barrel for withdrawing the container from the storing means with the barrel.

Claim 15

A syringe system comprising a syringe having an elongated barrel with an open discharge end, a plunger reciprocably mounted in the barrel, a plurality of disposable containers, means for removably attaching the containers individually to the discharge end of the barrel to form the end wall thereof, each said container having a substantially rigid first wall portion for forming the exterior side of the end wall and having an inside surface, and a flexible second wall portion at the interior side of the end wall and introvertible upon the inside surface of the first wall portion, said plunger having an end surface facing a container when attached to the barrel and designed to contact said second wall portion during the reciprocable movement of the plunger, said end surface being shaped to substantially conform to the shape of said inside surface of said first wall portion, anda nozzle on said first wall portion for attaching a hypodermic needle thereto, means for removably storing at least a portion of said plurality of containers and forming a bottom hole for each container for receiving the nozzle thereof and for closing the open end of the nozzle and thus the interior of the container to the atmosphere, said attaching means including flexible flange means on each of the containers and engagement means on the open end of the barrel, said engagement means capturing said containers individually by flexing said flexible flange means, the tendency of the flexible flange means to restore to its unflexed condition, retaining the container on the barrel for withdrawing the container from the storing means with the barrel.

Claim 16

The syringe of claim 2, including means for permitting said end surface of said plunger to eject said container from said barrel upon further movement of said plunger toward said discharge end of said barrel after the introverting of said second wall portion upon the inside surface of the first wall portion.

Claim 17

The syringe of claim 2 wherein said container is prefilled before attachment to said barrel.

Claim 18

A container arranged to be attached to a syringe, said container having a substantially rigid first wall portion, said first wall portion having an inside surface, a flexible second wall portion introvertible upon the inside surface of the first wall portion, and a nozzle on said first wall portion for attaching a hypodermic needle thereto, said container further comprising a flange on said first wall portion forming a peripheral lip which projects from the edge of the flange at the side thereof which is opposite to said flexible second wall portion of the container, said lip having a conical outside surface.

Claim 19

A container arranged to be attached to a syringe, said container having a substantially rigid first wall portion, said first wall portion having an inside surface, a flexible second wall portion introvertible upon the inside surface of the first wall portion, and a nozzle on said first wall portion for attaching a hypodermic needle thereto, said container further comprising a flange on said first wall portion forming a peripheral lip which projects from the edge of the flange at the side thereof which is opposite to said flexible second wall portion of the container, said lip having a conical outside surface.

Claim 20

In a method for operating a syringe comprising an elongated barrel having an open discharge end, a plunger reciprocably mounted in the barrel for sealingly engaging the inner surface of the barrel as the plunger is displaced away from the discharge end, a container, means for removably attaching the container to the discharge end of the barrel to form the end wall thereof, said container having a substantially rigid first wall portion at the exterior side of the end wall and having an inside surface, and a flexible second wall portion at the interior side of the end wall and introvertible upon the inside surface of the first wall portion, said plunger having an end surface facing the container and shaped to substantially conform to the shape of said inside surface of said first wall portion, and a nozzle on said first wall portion for attaching a hypodermic needle thereto, wherein the means for removably attaching the container to the open end of the barrel includes a flexible flange on the containers for permitting retention of the container as the end wall of the barrel only by flexing interaction between the flange and the barrel and wherein the step of drawing the flexible second wall portion from a collapsed position in which it contacts and substantially conforms with said first wall portion, in order to draw liquid into said container through said nozzle, by displacing the plunger in the barrel away from the container and creating thereby a partial vacuum in the space of the barrel between the container and the plunger, by the sealing engagement of the plunger with the barrel.

Claim 21

In a method for operating a syringe comprising an elongated barrel having an open discharge end, a plunger reciprocably mounted in the barrel for sealingly engaging the inner surface of the barrel as the plunger is displaced away from the discharge end, a container, means for removably attaching the container to the discharge end of the barrel to form the end wall thereof, said container having a substantially rigid first wall portion at the exterior side of the end wall and having an inside surface, and a flexible second wall portion at the interior side of the end wall and introvertible upon the inside surface of the first wall portion, said plunger having an end surface facing the container and shaped to substantially conform to the shape of said inside surface of said first wall portion, and a nozzle on said first wall portion for attaching a hypodermic needle thereto, wherein the means for removably attaching the container to the open end of the barrel includes a flexible flange on the containers for permitting retention of the container as the end wall of the barrel only by flexing interaction between the flange and the barrel and wherein the step of drawing the flexible second wall portion from a collapsed position in which it contacts and substantially conforms with said first wall portion, in order to draw liquid into said container through said nozzle, by displacing the plunger in the barrel away from the container and creating thereby a partial vacuum in the space of the barrel between the container and the plunger, by the sealing engagement of the plunger with the barrel.

Claim 22

The method as claimed in claim 17 further comprising the step of returning said flexible second wall portion towards said collapsed position by displacing the plunger towards the container, while venting the space in the barrel between the container and the plunger to the atmosphere, to bring said end surface of the plunger to contact said second flexible wall portion and to introvert it mechanically and positively upon the inside surface of said first wall portion in order to expel liquid drawn into the container through said nozzle.