Surgery – Means for introducing or removing material from body for... – Treating material introduced into or removed from body...
Reexamination Certificate
2000-02-16
2002-06-04
Nguyen, Anhtuan T. (Department: 3762)
Surgery
Means for introducing or removing material from body for...
Treating material introduced into or removed from body...
C604S230000, C604S218000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06398763
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a syringe apparatus for dispensing compositions particularly viscous dental compositions. More particularly, the present invention is directed to syringes which enable compositions to be viscous compositions to be easily delivered.
2. The Relevant Technology
Three syringes are described below to provide an understanding of different plunger configurations which may be utilized with different materials. Syringe
106
, depicted in
FIGS. 1A-1C
, is an example of a widely used conventional syringe. Syringe
10
can be used with both high and low viscosity fluids. Syringe
100
depicted in
FIGS. 2A-2C
is more useful with high viscosity fluids due to the configuration of the tip
160
of plunger
150
. Another syringe is shown in
FIGS. 3A-3C
at
200
.
The primary components of syringe
10
are a barrel
20
and a plunger
50
which is slidably engaged in barrel
20
. Note that plunger
50
has a cylindrically shaped sealing gasket
60
made of a soft, compressible, sealing material, such as rubber, which allows the exterior surface of gasket
60
to seal against barrel
20
to ensure that the fluids held within barrel
20
do not leak.
Although syringe
10
is shown primarily to depict sealing gasket
60
, the other features of syringe
10
are described in detail hereinbelow in order to appreciate certain limitations of syringes such as syringe
10
. Note also that all of the syringes shown herein, including those shown in
FIGS. 2A-2C
,
3
A-
3
C,
4
A-
4
C and
5
A-
5
C, are depicted with barrel
20
. Accordingly, the features of barrel
20
are not numbered or described in detail in reference to syringes
100
,
200
or
300
.
Barrel
20
has a top grasping end
21
opposite a bottom end
29
with a substantially cylindrical sidewall
22
extending therebetween. Sidewall
22
has an exterior surface
23
and an interior surface
24
. Interior surface
24
defines a substantially cylindrical or tubular chamber
25
for holding a composition. Chambers such as chamber
25
of barrel
20
are typically configured to hold about 1.2 cc of liquid.
Barrel
20
has a grasping handle
26
which is an annular flange extending radially outward from sidewall
22
at top grasping end
21
of barrel
20
. Grasping handle
26
is centrally located around opening
27
which has the same diameter as the interior surface
24
of chamber
25
.
A radial extension
28
extends integrally from sidewall
22
at bottom end
29
inward to define an exit port
32
. Radial extension
28
acts as a stop for plunger
50
as plunger
50
is depressed.
Exit port
32
is the opening into channel
33
which enables channel
33
to communicate with chamber
25
. Note that channel
33
is the interior surface of tapered exit tube
30
. Channel
33
extends through tapered exit tube
30
and terminates at outlet
34
.
Surrounding exit tube
30
is an attachment sleeve
36
. Attachment sleeve
36
has an interior surface
37
with engagement threads
38
positioned thereon. A nozzle or tip
40
, shown in
FIG. 1C
, may be selectively attached to barrel
20
by coupling with threads
38
. A variety of tips are available which may be attached such that channel
33
of exit tube
30
is in fluid communication with the tip for guided delivery of the composition to a desired location.
Tip
40
is configured to selectively attach in fluid communication with exit tube
30
. To accomplish this end, tip
40
has a threaded end
42
for engagement with threads
38
of attachment sleeve
36
. Opposite threaded end
42
is a flexible and angled spout
44
for guiding delivery of the composition to a desired location. It is of course envisioned that different sizes and shapes of spouts
44
can be used depending on the type and intended use of the composition. Furthermore, in alternative embodiments, tip
40
may be permanently attached to bottom end
29
or means other than threads may be used to attach different sizes and/or shapes of tips.
Plunger
50
has a distal lead end
51
opposite from a proximal pushing end
53
with a stem
52
extending therebetween. Radially extending outward at pushing end
53
is an annular pushing handle
58
used in advancing plunger
50
. Plunger
50
is sized to be slidably received within chamber
25
through opening
27
at top grasping end
21
. Plunger
50
has a length that permits it to be advanced to bottom end
29
such that a small portion of plunger
50
remains extending beyond opening
27
.
FIG. 1C
depicts a loaded syringe with only gasket
60
and a portion of stem
52
in chamber
25
of barrel
20
. In use, plunger
50
is depressed further and further into chamber
25
until gasket
60
contacts radial extension
28
to stop the depression of plunger
50
.
Cylindrically shaped sealing gasket
60
is positioned at lead end
51
of plunger
50
. More particularly, gasket
60
is coupled to stem
52
via a gasket holder as shown in
FIG. 1B
at
64
. As indicated above, gasket
60
is made of a soft, compressible, sealing material, such as rubber, which allows the exterior surface of gasket
60
to seal against interior surface
24
of chamber
25
as plunger
50
is advanced within chamber
25
or selectively slid down to bottom end
29
. While syringe
10
can be utilized to deliver either high or low viscosity fluids, the sealing capability of gasket
60
enables it to be particularly useful with low viscosity fluids as it prevents rapid evaporation of such fluids.
Gasket holder
64
has a post
66
with a head element
65
integrally extending at one end and a base
67
integrally extending from the other end. Head element
65
and post
66
are inserted into an opening
62
of gasket
60
which expands such that head element
65
can be inserted therein and then elastically return to its original size such that head element
65
is removably held in gasket
60
. Base
67
is connected to stem
52
to hold gasket holder
64
in position.
Syringe
100
shown in
FIGS. 2A-2C
has a plunger
150
which is less expensive to manufacture than plunger
50
as plunger
150
is integrally made from a single material. Syringe
100
is similar to the syringes disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,986,820 which is hereby incorporated by reference. U.S. Pat. No. 4,986,820, which is entitled “Syringe Apparatus Having Improved Plunger”, issued to Dan E. Fischer and is owned by Ultradent Products, Inc.
Like plunger
50
, plunger
150
has a pushing handle
158
and a stem
152
extending between a distal lead end
151
and a pushing end
153
. The plunger tip configuration located at distal lead end
152
, however, is distinct from that of plunger
50
. The tip
160
has a conical or bowl-shaped rim
162
which is separated by a rim notch
164
from a ring
166
. A ring notch
168
is located between ring
166
and stem
152
.
Conical rim
162
has a diameter identified in
FIG. 2C
as D
R
which is slightly greater than the diameter of the interior surface
24
of barrel
20
identified in
FIG. 2C
as D
B
. Since the diameter of conical rim
162
, D
R
, is slightly greater than the diameter of the interior surface
24
of barrel
20
, D
B
, conical rim
162
provides a fluid tight seal with interior surface
24
of barrel
20
. Ring
166
provides a secondary seal with interior surface
24
of barrel
20
.
Rim notch
164
and ring notch
168
combined with the material properties, thickness is of conical rim
162
, and physical dimensions such as length, angular orientation, etc. all combined to enable conical rim
162
and ring
166
an appropriate amount of flexibility. An advantage of this configuration as stated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,986,820 at column
6
, line
33
-
39
is that when a user increases pressure on the plunger, such as when a particularly viscous formulation is contained with barrel
20
, the conical shape of rim
162
causes the rim to be pressed against interior surface
24
of barrel
20
with even greater force, thus ensuring an adequate seal.
Although, the tip configuration of plun
Rachal Richard N.
Richardson Kim L.
Lam Ann Y
Nguyen Anhtuan T.
Ultradent Products Inc.
Workman & Nydegger & Seeley
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