JP2003235960A - Milker - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To simplify an opening/closing type milker by providing an opening/ closing mechanism using an elastic body. <P>SOLUTION: In this milker having the opening/closing mechanism for sealing/ opening the inside of a milker tube 1, the opening/closing mechanism has an air port 34 communicating with the inside of the milker tube and a button 37 provided on the air port and formed of an elastic body. An air passage 36 communicating with the air port in a direction vertical to the air port is provided in an upper part of the air port, and the air passage is provided with at least one opening 361. The opening is sealed by a seat valve 371 to be extended downward from the button, and the seat valve is deflected by pushing the button to open the opening. Sealing condition and opening condition can be thereby easily formed without using a complicated valve mechanism. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a breast pump, and more particularly to a breast pump having a better milking effect than the conventional one.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIG. 8, a conventional breast pump has a milking bottle 1 for storing breast milk, a cap 2 for opening and closing the opening of the milking bottle 1, a cap 2 for inserting the cap 2 and a breast. Milking pipe 3 having a milking opening for charging the milking body and having a shell portion 31 whose diameter increases in the milking opening direction.
And has a structure in which the milking bottle 1 and the milking tube 3 are passed through. Further, a suction pump 7 for making the inside of the milking bottle 1 a negative pressure is connected to the cap 2 and attached.

The shell portion 31 is made of resin or an elastic body, and has a shape that covers the nipple and the breast.

When using such a breast pump, the shell part 31 is applied to the teat and the breast, and the valve 5 is inserted into the air port 6 formed in the connecting part 32 of the milking tube 3, for example, and the milking bottle 1 is used. After the inside is closed, the suction pump 7 sucks out the air in the milking bottle 1 to make it a negative pressure, thereby making the inside of the shell portion 31 of the milking pipe 3 a negative pressure for milking. After that, the valve 5 is opened and the inside of the milking bottle 1 is returned to the atmospheric pressure repeatedly to milk the breast milk.

However, the method of opening and closing the air port 6 by the valve mechanism as described above has a drawback in that it must be a complicated mechanism including a spring or the like.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object thereof is to provide an opening / closing mechanism using an elastic body to simplify the opening / closing system.

[0007]

In order to solve the above problems, a breast pump according to the present invention comprises a milking bottle for storing milk that has been milked, a cap for closing the opening of the milking bottle, and a cap attached to the cap. In the breast pump, which has a milking pipe communicating with the milking bottle, a manual pump for making the inside of the milking pipe negative, and an opening / closing mechanism for making the inside of the milking pipe closed-open, the opening / closing mechanism is An air passage communicating with the inside of the milking pipe and a button made of an elastic body provided on the air mouth, and an air passage communicating with the upper portion of the air mouth in a direction perpendicular to the air mouth. Has at least one opening, the opening is adapted to be closed by a seat valve extending below the button, and the seat valve is bent by pressing the button, Wherein the mouth is adapted to be opened.

According to the present invention, when the milking bottle is closed, it has an air port communicating with the inside of the milking tube and a button made of an elastic body provided on the air port, and the air port is provided above the air port. An air passage communicating with a direction perpendicular to the air opening is provided, the air passage has at least one opening, and the opening is closed by a seat valve extending below the button, By pressing the button, the negative pressure is released and the seat valve bends, so that the opening is opened, so it is possible to easily open and close without using a complicated valve mechanism. The advantage is that it is possible to create states.

[0009]

FIG. 1 is a partial sectional view of an embodiment of the present invention. As is apparent from this drawing, the breast pump according to the present invention is
A milking bottle 1 for storing breast milk, a cap 2 detachably attached to an opening of the milking bottle 1, and a cap 2
A milking tube 3 attached to the. The cap 2 has a pump for making the inside of the milking pipe 3 have a negative pressure.
A suction tube 21 for connecting (not shown) is provided.

The milking tube 3 is used for charging the breast 311.
A shell portion 31 having an opening, the diameter of which increases in the opening direction;
The shell part 31 and the inside of the cap 2 are connected to each other so as to connect to each other, and the inner part 33 that is connected to the connection part 32 to be connected and extends into the milking bottle 1.
The shell portion 31 is provided with a large elastic cup 8 and a small elastic cup 9 similarly.

The large cup 8 has a funnel shape and has a breast mounting portion 81 for covering a breast to be milked and a tubular root tube portion 82 communicating with the breast mounting portion 81, while the small cup 9 is also mounted on a nipple for covering the breast to be milked. Portion 91 and tubular root tube portion 92 communicating with this portion
It has a structure with. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line BB of FIG. 1. As is clear from these figures and FIG. 1, the inner wall of the root pipe portion 82 of the large cup 8 is Is provided with two mounting walls 83 provided in the circumferential direction, and the root tube portion 92 of the small cup 9 can be inserted and fixed.

A cutout 84 is provided in a part of the mounting wall 83 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) so that the inside of the milking tube 3 and the breast mounting portion 81 of the large cup 8 can be ventilated. .
By providing the notch 84, when the small cup 9 is detached from the large cup 8, the joint surface does not come into close contact and is unlikely to come off.

Further, a plurality of projections 85 are provided on the outer wall of the root tube portion 82 of the large cup 8 in the axial direction, and the root tube portion 82 is connected to the connecting portion 3 of the milking tube 3 by the projections 85.
It is detachably fitted to 2. That is, the root tube portion 92 of the small cup 9 is inserted into and attached to the root tube portion 82 of the large cup 8, and the root tube portion 92 of the small cup 9 is detachably fitted into the connecting portion 32 so as to be attached to the shell portion 31. The large cup 8 and the small cup 9 are fixed.

At the end of the root tube portion 82 of the large cup,
A ventilation groove 86 is formed so that it can be ventilated with the connecting portion 32 of the milking tube 3.

The breast mounting portion 81 of the large cup 8 and the small cup 9
The thickness of the elastic body of the nipple mounting portion 91 is made so as to gradually decrease toward the edge and become soft. The size of the breast mounting portion 81 of the large cup 8 is set so that the entire breast is accommodated, and the size of the nipple mounting portion 91 of the small cup 9 is set so that the areola is completely accommodated.

A thick portion 87 as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 can be provided on the rear surface of the breast mounting portion 81 of the large cup. By providing the thick portion 87, the thin portion 88 surrounded by the thick portion 87 allows the milking pipe 3 to be formed.
When it becomes negative pressure, it contracts in advance, so that there is an advantage that the breast mounting portion 81 evenly presses the breast and improves the milk output. Such a thick portion 87 need not be ginkgo leaf-shaped as shown in FIG.
It may be a linear protrusion as shown in FIG. That is,
The shape is not limited in the present invention. Moreover, the number of the thick portions 87 is not limited.

The shell portion 31 is made of a rigid material such as resin and has one or a plurality of ventilation windows 312, and the length thereof is the breast mounting portion 8.
It is slightly shorter than 1 and has a shape in which the edges open outward.
The shell portion 31 has a function of preventing the root of the large cup from being crushed toward the chest wall side when the inside of the large cup becomes a negative pressure, and having a function of absorbing the breast while stably compressing it. It is provided to prevent the movement of the

The inner portion 33 of the milking tube 3 is the milking bottle 1
It is attached to the bottom portion of the cap 2 so as to extend inward, and communicates with the shell portion 31 via a connecting portion 32. Further, the cap 2 has a vent hole 22 communicating with the inside of the milking bottle 1. This vent hole 22 is for keeping the inside of the milking bottle 1 at atmospheric pressure.

Further, as described above, the suction pipe 21 is provided in the cap 2 so as to open to the inner portion 33. At the other end of this inner part 33,
The supply port 331 is provided and the supply port 3 is provided.
The valve 31 is covered with an elastic tongue-shaped valve 332. This valve 332 closes the supply port 331 because the inside of the milking bottle 1 is maintained at the atmospheric pressure by the action of the vent hole 22 when the milking pipe 3 has a negative pressure. On the other hand, when the inside of the milking pipe 3 is at atmospheric pressure, the valve 332 made of an elastic material is flipped up by the weight of the milk that has been milked to expose the supply port 331 and cause the milk to flow into the milking bottle 1. Run.

A minute vent hole 333 is provided above the inner portion 33. The vent hole 333 is provided to prevent the milk accumulated in the bottom portion of the inner portion 33 from foaming due to the negative pressure, and has a function of relieving the negative pressure inside the inner portion 33.

The connecting portion 32 is provided with an opening / closing mechanism for opening / closing the inside of the milking pipe.
In this opening / closing mechanism, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 6, an air port 34 is formed in the connecting portion 32 of the milking tube 3, and a protrusion 35 is formed so as to cover the upper portion. The projection 35 is provided with an air passage 36 extending in a direction horizontal to the air port 34. The air passage 36 is provided with at least one opening 361. Elastic button 3
7 is provided with a seat valve 371 that is inclined and extends via a flange 372. The seat valve 371 is also made of an elastic material and serves to close the opening 361.

A button cover 38 is covered on the button 37, and is fixed by being locked by a locking projection 39 formed on the upper portion of the connecting portion 32. The seat valve 37
The tip portion of 1 is sandwiched and fixed to the upper portion of the button cover 38 and the connecting portion 32 (see FIG. 7).

With such a structure, when the button 37 is not pressed, it is pushed upward by the elastic seat valve 371 and is restricted by the upper portion of the inner wall of the button 37. And the protrusion 35
The opening 361 of the air passage 36 formed in the
It has been blocked by. In this case, since the inside of the milking pipe 3 has a negative pressure, the seat valve 371 surely closes the opening 361.

When the button 37 is pressed, the button 37 descends and its bottom contacts the upper end surface of the protrusion 35. At this time, since the tip of the elastic seat valve 371 is sandwiched between the button cover 38 and the upper portion of the connecting portion 32 and is fixed, the flange 372 is inverted and the seat is closed as shown in FIG. The valve 371 bends to open the opening 361, and air flows into the milking tube 3 to return to the atmospheric pressure state.

When the breast pump according to the present invention is used, when the entire breast is accommodated in the breast mounting portion 81 of the large cup 8, the small areola of the small cup is accommodated in the nipple mounting portion 91 of the small cup 9. The length of the root canal 92 inserted into the root canal 82 of the large cup is adjusted. Large cup 8 by shell 31
When the peripheral edge portion of the breast mounting portion 81 of the breast contact portion is brought into contact with the breast foot portion and the manual or electric suction pump 7 is operated, the air in the inner portion 33 of the milking pipe 3 is exhausted to a negative pressure, and the suction pipe 2
The inside of the breast attachment portion 81 of the large cup 8 and the nipple attachment portion 91 of the small cup 9 have a negative pressure through the 1, the ventilation groove 86, and the notch 84.

At this time, the breast mounting portion 81 and the nipple mounting portion 91
The thickness of the elastic body of the tape gradually decreases toward the edge, so that the elastic body is sucked inward sequentially from the edge toward the center, the breast and areola are stronger toward the outside, and sequentially compressed toward the teat. Will be done. Therefore, milking can be effectively performed. Furthermore, the milking effect is further enhanced by using a large cup as shown in FIGS.

The milk thus milked is connected to the connecting portion 32 of the milking tube 3.
Through the inner part 33 and stays at the bottom of the inner part 33. At this time, the inside of the milking bottle 1 is kept at atmospheric pressure because the vent 2 is provided in the cap 2.
Since the inner portion 33 has a negative pressure, the supply port 331 is connected to the valve 3
It is surely closed by 32.

A part of the air in the milking bottle 1 is a minute vent hole 3
It flows into the inner part 33 from 33. This air flow has an effect of preventing foaming of the breast milk staying at the bottom of the inner portion 33. As a result of an experiment, it has been clarified that it is effective to provide the ventilation hole 333 in the upper portion of the inner portion 33 diagonally opposite to the ventilation hole 22 of the cap 2 as shown in FIG.

When the button 37 is pressed after the negative pressure is applied for a predetermined time, the seat valve 371 of the button 37 is bent and the opening 361 of the air passage 36 is opened.
Air flows from the opening 361 through the air passage 36 into the milking tube 3 through the air port 34. The inflowing air enters the space between the root tube portion 82 of the large cup 8 and the root tube portion 92 of the small cup 9 through the ventilation groove 86, passes through the notch 84, and passes through the notch 84.
Flow into 1. Therefore, the inside of the milking pipe 3 returns to the atmospheric pressure.

When the inside of the milking pipe 3 is returned to the atmospheric pressure, the milk of the inner portion 33 pushes the valve 332 due to its weight and flows into the milking bottle 1.

By repeating the negative pressure and the atmospheric pressure in this manner, the breast and areola are sequentially compressed from the outside toward the central part, and a strong suction force is exerted on the teat and the areola. Milking is possible.

[0032]

As described above, according to the breast pump of the present invention, when the milking bottle is closed, the air port communicating with the inside of the milking pipe and the elastic body provided on the air port are used. And an air path communicating with the air opening in a direction perpendicular to the air opening, the air path having at least one opening, and the opening extends below the button. It is an opening and closing mechanism that is designed to be closed by a seat valve, and the seat valve is bent by pressing the button to open the opening, so without using a complicated valve mechanism. The advantage is that it is possible to easily form a closed state-open state.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an embodiment of a breast pump of the present invention (C in FIG. 3).
-C sectional view).

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG.

3 is a sectional view taken along line BB of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of an example of a large cup.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of another example of the large cup.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of an opening / closing mechanism.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the operation of the seat valve.

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of a conventional breast pump.

[Explanation of symbols] 1 milking bottle 2 cap 3 milking tubes 31 shell part 32 connection 33 Inner part 34 Air port 36 airways 361 opening 37 buttons 371 seat valve 4 milking department 8 large cups 9 small cups 82 Large cup root tube 92 Small cup root tube 86 Ventilation groove 5 valves 6 air port 7 suction pump

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A milking bottle for storing milk that has been milked, a cap that closes an opening of the milking bottle, a milking pipe that is attached to the cap and communicates with the milking bottle, and the inside of the milking pipe has a negative pressure. In a breast pump having a manual pump to perform and an opening / closing mechanism for making the inside of the milking pipe closed-open, the opening / closing mechanism has an air port communicating with the inside of the milking pipe, and an elastic body provided on the air port. A button comprising, and an air path communicating with the air opening above the air opening, wherein the air path includes at least one opening,
The opening is closed by a seat valve extending through the flange, and when the button is pressed, the flange is inverted and the seat valve is bent, so that the opening is opened. A breast pump characterized by that. 2. The milking tube includes an opening for loading a breast, a shell portion having a diameter increasing in the opening direction, a connecting portion for connecting the shell portion and the cap in communication, and the connecting portion. A breast pump, comprising: an inner part that is connected to and connected to and that extends into the milking bottle. 3. A large cup made of an elastic body having a breast attachment portion covering the breast and a tubular root canal portion communicating with the breast attachment portion, and a nipple attachment portion attached to the inside thereof to cover the nipple and the areola and the cup. 3. The breast pump according to claim 2, wherein a small cup made of an elastic body having a tubular root canal communicating with the small cup and the root canal are detachably provided by inserting the root canal into a connecting part of the milking duct. . 4. The breast pump according to claim 3, wherein the thicknesses of the breast attachment portion and the nipple attachment portion of the large cup and the small cup are gradually reduced toward the edges. 5. The breast pump according to claim 2, wherein the opening / closing mechanism is provided on the connecting pipe. 6. A milking bottle-side end of the inner portion is formed with a supply port communicating with the milking bottle, and the milking pipe is provided with the milking pipe into the milking bottle at a normal pressure. Is allowed to flow in, and when the milking tube becomes negative pressure,
The breast pump according to any one of claims 2 to 5, further comprising an elastic valve that holds the inside of the milking bottle at a normal pressure. 7. The breast pump according to claim 6, wherein the inner portion is provided with a vent for venting the inside of the milking bottle and the inside of the milking tube. 8. The breast pump according to claim 3, wherein a thick portion having a large thickness is intermittently formed near the tip of the large cup.