| CLAIMS
1. An apparatus for collecting, treating and automatically packaging surgical instruments after use comprising a container adapted to collect the surgical instruments after the use thereof, automatic handling means of said container and of its component parts, automatic packaging means of the surgical instruments contained in said container and ejection and collection means of said surgical instruments after the packaging thereof.
2. An apparatus according to claim 1 , characterized in that said container is of the removable type. 3. An apparatus according to claims 1 - 2, characterized in that said container is made so as to allow the water to flow freely therein in the collection zones of the surgical instruments and to then flow out through appropriate openings.
4. An apparatus according to claims 1 - 3, characterized in that said container comprises a basket (10) in turn comprising a lid (13b), provided with handle (13c), a cylindrical wall (10b) and a plate (1 1 ) which forms the bottom of said cylindrical wall (10b) and is separable therefrom.
5. An apparatus according to claims 1 - 4, characterized in that said plate (11 ) comprises appropriate seats (1 1 b) adapted to accommodate the radially arranged removable boxes (13) and to accommodate said surgical instruments.
6. An apparatus according to claims 4 - 5, characterized in that said plate (11 ) further comprises appropriate coupling means with said automatic handling means of said container.
7. An apparatus according to claims 5 - 6, characterized in that said boxes (13) comprise handling means of said surgical instruments contained therein.
8. An apparatus according to claim 7, characterized in that said handling means of said surgical instruments comprise appropriate forks (19) adapted to move radially with respect to said boxes (13) between two limit positions at a minimum distance and a maximum distance from the centre of said plate (11 ). 9. An apparatus according to claims 1 - 8, characterized in that said automatic handling means of said container and of the component parts thereof comprise at least one first electric motor (12), appropriately associated to a shaft in turn connected to said plate (1 1 ) so as to allow the rotation thereof about its centre, and at least one second electric motor (14) adapted to radially move said forks (19) and thus the surgical instruments accommodated in the boxes (13) of said plate (11 ) belonging to said container. 10.An apparatus according to claims 1 - 9, characterized in that said shaft, associated to said first electric motor (12) is associated to said plate (1 1 ) by means of appropriate connection means of the removable quick-fitting type.
1 1.An apparatus according to claims 9 - 10, characterized in that said second motor (14) is associated to at least one conveyor belt (15) adapted to move, along with a second conveyor belt (15b), a first conveyor belt (16) which runs near the bottom of the box (13) containing the surgical instrument to be treated.
12.An apparatus according to claim 1 1 , characterized in that said first conveyor belt (16) comprises in turn an appropriate fastening device, adapted to make the bottom of said forks (19) comprised in said boxes (13) integral with said first conveyor belt (16) thus promoting the radial movement of said forks (19) exiting the box (13) belonging to said plate (1 1 ).
13.An apparatus according to claim 12, characterized in that said appropriate fastening device comprises at least one magnet (17).
14.An apparatus according to claims 1 - 13, characterized in that said automatic packaging means comprise a double belt feeding system carrying paper strip reels (100', 101 ', 102', 103') and a heat-sealing and cutting unit.
15.An apparatus according to claim 14, characterized in that said paper strips are of the type required for the packaging of surgical instruments prior to the introduction thereof in autoclave for sterilization. 16.An apparatus according to claims 14 - 15, characterized in that said double feeding system comprises two pairs of propeller shafts (100, 101 ) and (102, 103), adapted to unwind and rewind said paper strip reels (101 ', 102', 103', 104'), receiving motion from a second conveyor belt (18) associated to said second conveyor roller (15b) and to a third conveyor roller (19b) associated in turn to a reel for each of the aforesaid pairs.
17.An apparatus according to claims 14 - 16, characterized in that said heat- sealing and cutting unit comprises a heating and cutting element (104) consisting of an upper part adapted to move vertically and outside of which the interchangeable cutting blades (105) are fixed, and a fixed lower part (106) which acts as an abutment.
18.An apparatus according to claim 17, characterized in that said upper part and said lower part (106) are coated with anti-wear material.
19.An apparatus according to claims 17 - 18, characterized in that said heat- sealing and cutting unit is associated to at least one electric resistor adapted to heat said heating and cutting element (104).
20.An apparatus according to claims 17 - 19, characterized in that said heat- sealing and cutting unit is further associated to a time stamping device adapted to append a date on the surgical instrument package.
21.An apparatus according to claims 1 - 20, characterized in that said ejection and collection means of said surgical instruments after the packaging thereof comprise a separation and ejection device (107) - associated to said lower fixed part (106) of said welding and cutting element (104) - adapted to lift the package containing the treated surgical instrument and subsequently eject it.
22.An apparatus according to claims 1 - 21 , characterized in that said ejection and collection means of said surgical instruments after their packaging further comprises an appropriate collector for the surgical instruments packages. 23.An apparatus according to claim 22, characterized in that said appropriate collector is of the extractable type and is shaped and dimensioned so as to allow the introduction in autoclave and similar standard disinfection and sterilization apparatuses.
24.A method for collecting, treating, sterilizing and packaging surgical instruments after use comprising the following steps: a) Inserting the used surgical instrument in a specific container. b) Exposing said container to the usual rinsing, chemical decontamination and washing procedures usually employed for used surgical instruments. c) Automatic packaging of the single surgical instruments contained in said container. d) Collecting the packaged instruments in an appropriate collector.
25.A method according to claim 24, characterized in that said container used in said step a) consists of the container according to claims from 2 to 8. 26.A method according to claims 24 - 25, characterized in that said collector used in said step d) consists of the collector according to claim 23. 27.A method according to claims 24 - 26, characterized in that said step c) is performed according to the following steps: e) Associating said container to an automatic handling device in turn associated to an automatic packaging device of the surgical instruments contained therein. f) Aligning said container and said automatic surgical instrument packaging device. g) Extracting a surgical instrument from said container, h) Positioning said surgical instrument at said automatic packaging device, i) Packaging said surgical instrument. j) Ejecting the package produced in the previous step.
28.A method according to claim 27, characterized in that said automatic handling device consists of automatic handling means of said container and its component parts according to the claims from 9 to 13.
29.A method according to claim 27 - 28, characterized in that said automatic packaging device consists of automatic packaging means according to the claims from 14 to 20.
30. A method according to claims 27 - 29, characterized in that said step j) is performed by means of said ejection and collection means according to the claims from 21 to 23. |
AN APPARATUS AND A METHOD FOR COLLECTING, TREATING AND AUTOMATICALLY PACKAGING SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS AFTER USE Field of the invention
The present invention relates to the field of devices for the treatment of surgical instruments. State of the art
The surgical instruments employed everyday, e.g. in hospital operating rooms and surgeries of various type (e.g. dental, veterinary, etc.), are currently subjected to a washing, disinfecting, bagging and sealing cycle needed for sterilization in autoclave so as to make them available again, in total safe manner as concerns the possibility of infections, for a later use.
The above-mentioned washing, disinfecting, bagging, sealing and sterilization cycle currently consists of a sequence of subsequent actions which must necessarily be performed by means of the intervention of a human operator. In detail, after a surgical instrument has been used, the instrument itself is placed on a specific collection tray along with all the other instruments used during an examination or a surgical operation. An operator, generally a nurse in charge of instrument hygiene, performs the sequence of operations needed for disinfecting them and preparing them for sterilization in autoclave. The instruments are firstly collected, usually by hand, rinsed under running water, and deposited inside a container in a degreasing, sanitizing bath, which softens and removes a first layer of deposits, operating a first chemical decontamination. Once the aforesaid initial chemical step of decontaminating is done, the instruments are manually collected and arranged in a specific washing machine which completes the step of washing, by operating a thermal decontamination and performing a further cleaning of the instruments by means of an automatic high- temperature washing cycle.
At this point, the preliminary step of washing has ended and the instruments are prepared to be introduced into autoclave, where the proper sterilization will be performed.
During this step, the instruments previously extracted from the washing machine are bagged into specific packages consisting of a transparent waterproof film and
a porous medical paper (which detects the performed sterilization of the instruments by the changing of color in a small portion of paper) previously sealed together on two sides. Such packages are obtained by cutting portions of length corresponding to that of the instruments to be bagged from a reel of the aforesaid paper.
Sealing machines which perform the task are used for the packaging operation but must be assisted by an operator who, once again, must take the instruments - not yet sterilized - with his or her hands, and appropriately position them one by one inside a specific package, previously heat-sealed on one end. After introducing the instruments, the other end of the package is also heat-sealed. A time stamp is printed on the paper part of the package to record the date of packaging. As mentioned, the operators in charge of collecting, shifting and inserting the various containers of surgical instruments to be treated through the various described steps use their hands, duly protected by gloves generally made of latex or rubber, for this purpose.
Some surgical instruments have particularly pointed or sharp edges making in such manner likely, particularly when a large number need to be handled, that some may manage to cut through the latex of the gloves worn by the operator and thus come dangerously into contact with the operator's skin, with all the risks which may derive therefrom, especially in relation to the transmission of viral or bacterial infections, always possible in surgeries and hospitals. In addition to this, the described operations are very time-consuming and take up resources and human operators who could be otherwise employed. Finally, said operations represent a great cost for the structure, hospital or medical or veterinary surgery or other, where they are implemented and a solution to the problem of surgical instruments management after their use would thus be desirable which allows to rationalize the performance of the various described steps, achieving to reduce technical performance times and avoiding at the same time all direct contact between used surgical instruments and the operator's hands, thus canceling the risks of infection which are inherent to this operation.
Summary of the invention
The present invention refers to an apparatus for collecting and treating surgical instruments after use, which allows the operator to never come into direct contact with the instruments themselves and at the same time to safely manage all the steps related to their cleaning and their preparation for a later use. The structure of the apparatus according to the present invention comprises:
- A container preferably comprising a series of removable baskets adapted to directly collect the instruments from the hands of the user after their use and appropriately arrange them so as to be subjected to the subsequent steps of treating. Said container is preferably provided with appropriate handles such that the operator can handle it and arrange it directly under the jet of running water to perform the first rinsing of the instruments, arrange it inside the tanks in which the degreasing, sanitizing bath is performed and arrange it inside the specific washing machine which completes the step of washing by performing a thermal decontamination and performing a further cleaning of the surgical instruments by means of an automatic high-temperature washing cycle. Said container, moreover, is made so as to allow the water to flow freely within the collection zones of the instruments themselves and to then flow out through appropriate openings. - A device associated to said container and comprising automatic handling means of said container and of its component parts.
- A device associated to said container and comprising automatic packaging means of the instruments contained in said container and ejection and collection means of said surgical instruments after their packaging. Brief description of the figures
Fig. 1 shows a first overall perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the apparatus according to the present invention.
Fig. 2 shows a second overall perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the apparatus according to the present invention. Fig. 3 shows a third overall perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the apparatus according to the present invention.
Fig. 4 shows a view of the bottom of the basket of the apparatus according to the present invention.
Detailed description of the invention
Accompanying Figures 1 , 2, 3 and 4 depict a preferred but not limiting embodiment of the apparatus object of the present invention complete with all its component parts.
The container adapted to directly collect the surgical instruments from the hands of the user after use comprises a basket 10, preferably cylindrical-shaped, comprising a lid 13b, possibly provided with a handle 13c, a cylindrical wall 10b and a circular-shaped plate 11 which forms the bottom thereof and is separable therefrom.
Said plate 1 1 is provided with appropriate seats 11 b in which removable boxes 13 radially arranged and adapted to accommodate said instruments therein are housed and further provided with appropriate coupling means with said automatic handling means of said container.
In turn, boxes 13 are provided with handling means of said instruments contained therein and may be made, for example, by appropriate forks 19 free to move radially with respect to said boxes 13. The radial movement of said forks 19 causes the radial movement of the instruments themselves between two limit positions at a minimum distance and a maximum distance from the centre of said plate 1 1.
Said automatic handling means of said container and of its component parts preferably comprise at least one first electric motor 12, appropriately associated to a shaft in turn connected to said plate 11 so as to allow the rotation thereof about its centre, and at least one second electric motor 14 adapted to radially move forks 19 and thus the surgical instruments accommodated in boxes 13 of said plate 1 1 belonging to said basket 10. The connection between the shaft of said first electric motor 12 and said plate 11 will preferably be of the quick-fit coupled removable type so as to allow a convenient, rapid releasing. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, said second motor 14 is associated to a first conveyor roller 15 adapted to move, along with a second conveyor roller 15b, a first conveyor belt 16 which runs near the bottom of box 13
containing the surgical instrument to be treated. Said first conveyor belt 16 is in turn provided with an appropriate fastening device, e.g. comprising at least one magnet 17, adapted to make the bottom of said forks 19, comprised in said boxes 13, integral with said first conveyor belt 16 thus promoting the radial exiting movement of box 13 belonging to said plate 1 1. During its radial movement, fork 19 drags the surgical instrument arranged in box 13 along with it until it is deposited at said automatic packaging means. At this point, said first conveyor belt 16, by reversing its direction of travel, returns said magnet 17 and thus said fork 19 to their own, corresponding starting positions. Said automatic packaging means preferably comprise a double belt feeding system carrying reels of strips of paper of the type required for the packaging of surgical instruments prior to their introduction in autoclave for sterilization and a heat-sealing and cutting unit. Said double feeding system preferably comprises two pairs of propeller shafts 100, 101 and 102, 103, adapted to unwind and rewind aforesaid paper strip reels 101 ', 102', 103' and 104', receiving motion from a second conveyor belt 18 associated to said second conveyor roller 15b and to a third conveyor roller 19b associated in turn to a reel for each of the aforesaid pairs, the one which works as drive reel. During normal operation, by means of conveyor roller 15, said second motor 14 transmits its motion to first conveyor belt 16 which moves the surgical instrument as previously explained by means of the action of said magnet 17 and said fork 19. At the same time, said first conveyor belt 16, by means of said second conveyor roller 15b and said second conveyor belt 18, transmits its motion to the third conveyor roller 19b which causes the advancement of the paper of reels 100, 101 , 102, 103, and the rewinding of the paper not used for packaging at the same speed as the advancement of the surgical instrument so as to prevent relative speeds, between the paper and the surgical instrument itself, which could result in damage and breakage of the paper strip. When the surgical instrument reaches its limit position, at said automatic packaging means, the apparatus object of the present invention proceeds with the packing of the surgical instrument and the concurrent re-initialization of the machine so as to prepare the treatment of the next surgical instrument. It thus
results that said second motor 14 reverses its direction of rotation so as to promote the positioning of first conveyor belt 16 and magnet 17 integral thereto in the starting position. Concurrently, said second conveyor belt 18 will not be moved because said second conveyor roller 15b will act as free wheel and turn idly without transmitting any motion.
The packaging of the surgical instrument is performed by said heat-sealing and cutting unit which will preferably consist of a welding and cutting element 104 consisting of an upper part which moves vertically, outside of which interchangeable cutting blades 105 are fixed, and a fixed lower part 106 which acts as abutment. Said upper and lower parts 106 are preferably coated with anti- wear material. Inside said welding parts, one or more electric resistors adapted to take these parts to the temperature necessary for welding are accommodated. Said heat-sealing and cutting unit may also be associated to a time stamping device adapted to append a date on the surgical instrument package to promote traceability.
Finally, said ejection and collection means of said instruments after the packaging thereof comprise a separation and ejection device 107 - associated to said lower fixed part 106 of said welding and cutting element 104 - adapted to lift the package containing the treated surgical instrument and subsequently eject it. Said movements (welding, cutting and ejecting) are controlled by a further electric motor or transmission system adapted to receive motion from said second motor 14.
When the surgical instrument to be treated is positioned at said automatic packaging means, it finds itself arranged between the aforesaid two strips of paper which are appropriately heat-sealed by said heat-sealing unit. The package thus obtained, containing the surgical instrument to be treated, is then separated from the aforesaid strips of paper by means of the aforesaid separation and ejection means 107, which finally eject the sealed package placing it in an appropriate container which will preferably be of the extractable type and will be shaped and dimensioned so as to allow the introduction thereof into autoclaves and similar standard disinfection and sterilization apparatuses.
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