Apparatus for the disposal of contaminated needles

Claim 1

A system for disposing of an elongated biocontaminated sharp object that includes a distal sharp end portion, an elongated shaft, and a proximal end portion, comprising: a protective housing having a closed end portion and a hollow interior communicating with an open end portion, the housing having a side wall portion fabricated of a material which prevents penetration by the sharp end portion of a said sharp object, the side wall defining an annular rim at the open end portion of the housing; holding means contained in the housing, for receiving and retaining a sharp object, said means formed of a solid material with a centrally located opening that is receptive of a said sharp distal end portion of a said sharp object to retain a said sharp object; said holding means comprising a rigid metallic disk positioned closely adjacent the annular rim so that a user can easily register a said sharp object into the holding means; the disk having radial loading means for forming a load at the central opening against a said retained sharp object along radial lines that extend between a said retained sharp object and the side wall portion of the housing; the said metallic disk comprising a plurality of radial slots that separate the disk into disk segments and which allows for bending of the disk during insertion of a retained sharp object; and wherein the radial loading means includes sufficient stiffness of the disk segments so that the segments bend to accept the sharp object while preventing removal of the said inserted sharp object.

Claim 2

A system for disposing of an elongated biocontaminated sharp object that includes a distal sharp end portion, an elongated shaft, and a proximal end portion, comprising: a protective housing having a closed end portion and a hollow interior communicating with an open end portion, the housing having a side wall portion fabricated of a material which prevents penetration by the sharp end portion of a said sharp object, the side wall defining an annular rim at the open end portion of the housing; holding means contained in the housing, for receiving and retaining a sharp object, said means formed of a solid material with a centrally located opening that is receptive of a said sharp distal end portion of a said sharp object to retain a said sharp object; said holding means comprising a rigid metallic disk positioned closely adjacent the annular rim so that a user can easily register a said sharp object into the holding means; the disk having radial loading means for forming a load at the central opening against a said retained sharp object along radial lines that extend between a said retained sharp object and the side wall portion of the housing; the said metallic disk comprising a plurality of radial slots that separate the disk into disk segments and which allows for bending of the disk during insertion of a retained sharp object; and wherein the radial loading means includes sufficient stiffness of the disk segments so that the segments bend to accept the sharp object while preventing removal of the said inserted sharp object.

Claim 5

A system for disposing of an elongated biocontaminated sharp object that includes a distal sharp end portion, an elongated shaft, and a proximal end portion, comprising: a protective housing having a closed end portion and a hollow interior communicating with an open end portion, the housing having a side wall portion fabricated of a material which prevents penetration by the sharp end portion of a said sharp object, the side wall defining an annular rim at the end portion of the housing; holding means contained in the housing, for receiving and retaining a said sharp object, said holding means formed of a solid, hard resilient material with a hardness of at least thirty (30) durometers that is easily penetratable by the sharp distal end portion of a said sharp object, but which offers substantial resistance to withdrawal of a said sharp object in order to retain the sharp object, the holding means being closely positioned adjacent the annular rim so that a user can easily register a said sharp object into the holding means; said holding means further including radial loading means for forming a load against a said retained sharp object along radial lines that extend between the retained sharp object and the side wall portion of the housing; and wherein the holding means will retain a said sharp object in the housing through a combination of frictional resistance against withdrawal of the retained sharp object and compressive action of the material on the retained sharp object, such that the force required to manually withdraw the retained sharp object from the holding means is greater than the gravitational and centrifugal force developed by casual motion of the housing and the retained sharp object.

Claim 6

A system for disposing of an elongated biocontaminated sharp object that includes a distal sharp end portion, an elongated shaft, and a proximal end portion, comprising: a protective housing having a closed end portion and a hollow interior communicating with an open end portion, the housing having a side wall portion fabricated of a material which prevents penetration by the sharp end portion of a said sharp object, the side wall defining an annular rim at the end portion of the housing; holding means contained in the housing, for receiving and retaining a said sharp object, said holding means formed of a solid, hard resilient material with a hardness of at least thirty (30) durometers that is easily penetratable by the sharp distal end portion of a said sharp object, but which offers substantial resistance to withdrawal of a said sharp object in order to retain the sharp object, the holding means being closely positioned adjacent the annular rim so that a user can easily register a said sharp object into the holding means; said holding means further including radial loading means for forming a load against a said retained sharp object along radial lines that extend between the retained sharp object and the side wall portion of the housing; and wherein the holding means will retain a said sharp object in the housing through a combination of frictional resistance against withdrawal of the retained sharp object and compressive action of the material on the retained sharp object, such that the force required to manually withdraw the retained sharp object from the holding means is greater than the gravitational and centrifugal force developed by casual motion of the housing and the retained sharp object.