JPH01135970A - Flow control device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To form a flow control device in small size by forming a swollen part, having a capillary tube, in the inside of a pipe member and inserting a blocking member, having a swollen part adapted to the swollen, to be fitted to the periphery of the pipe member. CONSTITUTION:The first swollen part 48 trapezoidal shape, having a capillary tube 50, is formed swelling in the inside of a pipe member 40, and a blocking member 42, having the second swollen part 54 adapted to the first swollen part 48 closing a flow path and providing a trigger means 56 in the inside, is inserted and fitted to the periphery of the pipe member 40. Thus because a number of part items decreases, the miniaturization of a flow control device itself can be attained.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a flow control device used in a blood pressure measurement system, and more particularly, a layer having a fluid passage and bulging with respect to the fluid passage. It consists of a tube member in which a capillary tube is provided in the bulge, and a closing member in which a bulge is formed that contacts the bulge in order to close the fluid passage, and the closing member is elastically deformed to close the tube. When the bulging part of the closing member is separated from the bulging part of the member and the infusion solution is passed through at a relatively large flow rate,
The present invention relates to a flow control device configured to prevent air from remaining in the passage.

[Background of the Invention] In recent years, blood pressure measurement systems that can monitor blood pressure and the like over time have been developed and are now widely used in actual medical settings.

In general, a blood pressure measurement system includes, for example, an infusion bag that supplies an infusion agent such as physiological saline to the system, a catheter inserted into a patient's blood pressure measurement site, and an infusion agent filled in the catheter. It is generally composed of a pressure transducer that detects a blood pressure value as a transmission medium, and a display/recording device that displays and records the pressure value output from the pressure transducer.

That is, in such a blood pressure measurement system, a catheter is inserted into a patient's artery or vein, and an infusion agent such as physiological saline is supplied to the catheter from an infusion bag at a predetermined very slow flow rate. This prevents blood from flowing into the catheter and coagulating, while the pressure transducer detects changes in the pressure of the infusion agent within the catheter and outputs the value to a display/recording device. In this way, the patient's blood pressure status can be monitored in real time.

In this case, in order to set the flow rate of the infusion agent to a predetermined value, a mechanism for regulating the flow rate is usually provided in the conduit that communicates the infusion bag and the catheter, and the infusion agent is The infusion agent is passed through at a predetermined low flow rate.

By the way, when using a catheter, in order to completely remove the air inside the catheter, it is necessary to perform so-called priming using the above-mentioned infusion agent in advance to flush the infusion agent into the catheter. For this reason, various flow control devices have been proposed that are equipped with a mechanism that regulates the flow rate, such as having a low-speed flow path, and a mechanism that opens a flash flow path so that a large flow rate can flow from time to time.

Conventionally, such flow control devices are roughly classified into three types based on differences in their configurations.

That is, as a first type, a valve seat provided in a passage serving as a flush flow passage and a valve plunger etc. that operates elastically within the passage and can be freely engaged with the valve seat are provided, and the valve plunger is moved from the valve seat. There is a flow control device in which a flush passage is opened by displacing the valve plunger apart, and a low-velocity flow passage for liquid is provided so as to pass through the valve plunger (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 60-57336 and 56-8033). (see issue)
.

However, it has been pointed out that this type of device has a large number of parts and a complicated structure.

As a second type of flow control device, an elastic body is provided to surround a resistor having a capillary tube as a low-speed flow path, and a predetermined external force is applied to create a flush flow path between the resistor and the elastic body. There are devices designed to develop the technology (U.S. Pat.
No. 61-28624). Of course,
In the configuration of this second type of flow control device, the flash flow path is bent so as to go around the side of the resistor, so when the liquid flows through the flash flow path, air cannot be completely discharged and the air is It remains in the flow control device.

As a result, there is a concern that accurate pressure may not be transmitted to the pressure quadrature transducer due to this residual air.

A third type of flow control device is one in which a resistor with 11 capillaries and a flush flow path are separately provided (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 60-207638, U.S. Pat. No. 4,624).
．． (See No. 662). Like the first type, this has a complicated structure, and like the second type, the flow path is curved, so air tends to remain.

By the way, it is conceivable to incorporate the flow control device into the pressure cadence transducer to make the system more compact. From this point of view, there is a demand for further miniaturization of flow control devices, but it has been pointed out that conventional flow control devices have a large number of parts, making it difficult to miniaturize them.

[Object of the Invention] ＼ The present invention has been made to overcome the above-mentioned disadvantages, and includes forming a tapered bulge inside a pipe member having a fluid passage and injecting the fluid into the bulge. A capillary tube is provided along the passage, and a closing member having a tapered bulge that contacts the bulge and closes the fluid passage is fitted onto the tube member, and the catheter is inserted into the tube prior to measurement. When filling an infusion with an infusion solution, the closing member is elastically deformed to form a gap defined between the bulging portion of the tube member and the bulging portion of the closing member and within the diameter of the fluid passageway into a high-speed flow path. On the other hand, at the time of measurement, the capillary provided in the tube member is used as a low-velocity flow path to allow the infusion to flow through.As a result, it is possible to achieve a simple configuration and further miniaturization. It is an object of the present invention to provide a flow control device that can effectively remove air from inside the flow control device and accurately and quickly measure blood pressure and the like.

[Means for achieving the object] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a flow control device used in a blood pressure measurement system, which comprises a pipe member having an inlet passage and an outlet passage communicating with each other; a closing member made of an elastically deformable material and fitted onto the tube member;
The tube member is located between the inlet passage and the outlet passage, is formed to bulge inward of the passage, and is provided with a capillary-like through hole having a minute inner diameter that communicates with the inlet passage and the outlet passage. The first A second bulge is formed on the closing member to abut on the first bulge and close communication between the inlet passage and the outlet passage, and the closing member is elastically The second bulging part is separated from the first bulging part by deformation, and a flow path having a flow rate larger than that of the through hole is opened as necessary.

[Embodiments] Next, preferred embodiments of the flow control device according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 10 indicates a blood pressure measurement system in which a flow control device according to the invention is used. That is,
In this blood pressure measurement system 10, an infusion bag 12 filled with an infusion agent such as physiological saline and an infusion tube 14 disposed below the bag are supported by an infusion stand (not shown), and the infusion tube 14 is connected via a tube 16. and is connected to the upstream side of the flow control device 18 according to the present invention. The downstream side of this flow control device 18 is connected to a pipe joint 22 via a tube 20. The pipe line branches at one end of the pipe joint 22, that is, a catheter 26 inserted into a blood vessel of a patient 28 via a tube 24 is connected to one end, and a pressure transducer 30 is connected to the other end. This pressure transducer 30 has a display/recording device i3.
Connect 2.

Therefore, details of the flow control device 18 according to the present invention used in such a blood pressure measurement system 10 are shown in FIGS.
As shown in the figure.

As shown in FIG. 2, the flow control device 18 is basically composed of a tube member 40 and a closure member 42 that fits over the tube member 40.

The tube member 40 is integrally molded from synthetic resin, such as polycarbonate, and has a substantially cylindrical shape. As shown in FIG. 3, an inlet passage 44 and an outlet passage 46 are defined in the tube member 40, and these inlet passage 44 and outlet passage 46 communicate with each other at the central portion of the tube member 40. Further, a first bulging portion 48 having a trapezoidal longitudinal cross section is formed in the center of the tube member 40 so as to bulge into the artificial passage 44 and the outlet passage 46. A flat part 48a is formed at the top of the first bulging part 48, and an inclined part 48 that is inclined with respect to the axial direction of the tube member 40 so as to expand in cross section from the flat part 48a.
b, 48c are formed. Furthermore, the first bulge 48
A capillary tube 50 with a minute inner diameter is inserted through the tube. The capillary tube 50 is in communication with the inlet passageway 44 and the outlet passageway 46.

Then, the tube member 4 is arranged so as to correspond to the first bulging portion 48.
A cut-out portion 52 is formed in the center of the side surface of 0.

In addition, in this embodiment, the size of each component of this tube member 40 is selected as follows, for example. That is, the tube member 40 has an outer diameter of 4.9 mm, an inner diameter of 2.0 mm,
The total length is 15.0 mm, and the first bulging portion 48 has a height of 1 mm.
5 am, the length of the upper base is 1.0 cranes, the inclined part 48b
, 48c with respect to the axial direction of the tube member 40 is 30@. Further, the capillary tube 50 has a total length of 5.0 mm, an outer diameter of 0.4 mm, and an inner diameter of 50 μm.

Next, the closing member 42 is fitted into the cutout 52 of the tube member 40 . This closing member 42 is made of an elastic material such as silicone rubber.

The closing member 42 is liquid-tightly fitted into the cutout 52 of the tube member 40, that is, in this case, the total length is 10 mm, the outer diameter is 7.7 fi, and the inner diameter is equal to the outer diameter of the tube member 40. 4.9 Slightly smaller than Ryu (selected).

In fact, a second bulging portion 54 having a trapezoidal longitudinal cross section is formed protrudingly from the distal end portion of the closing member 42 facing the inside of the tube member 40 so as to match the shape of the cut portion 52. The second bulge 54 has a flat portion 5 similar to the first bulge 48.
4a and inclined portions 54b and 54c are formed. The inclined portions 54b and 54c are formed so that their cross sections substantially expand upward. In a normal state, this second bulging portion 54 is
The flat portion 54a abuts against the flat portion 48a of the first bulging portion 48 of the tube member 40, and as a result, the inlet passage 44 and the outlet passage 46 are closed. Further, a rond-like pull means 56 is attached to the closing member 42 for use in elastically deforming the closing member 42. That is, the closing member 42
A top-shaped space 43 is defined in the center of the space 4.
3 has a bulging tip 57 of the pull means 56 fitted or bonded thereto.

Note that a handle portion 59 is formed at the tail end of the pull means 56.

The flow control device according to the present invention is basically constructed as described above, and its operation and effects will be explained next.

First, in the blood pressure measurement system 10 shown in FIG. 1, the drip tube 14 and the flow control device 18 are connected via the tube 16, and the outlet side of the flow control device 18 and the pipe joint 22 are connected via the tube 20. . Furthermore, this pipe joint 22
On the branching side, the - side is connected to the catheter 26 via the tube 24, and the other side is connected to the pressure transducer 3.
Concatenate 0.

After completing the circuit connection work of the blood pressure measurement system 10, the infusion bag 12 filled with an infusion agent, for example, physiological saline, and the drip tube 14 are placed at a predetermined height using an infusion stand (not shown). Set it to the right position. As a result, a head pressure corresponding to the height of the drip pipe 14 acts as a differential pressure before and after the flow control device 18.

Next, prior to actually measuring the blood pressure, so-called priming is performed, and the pipes constituting this blood pressure measurement system 10 are filled with physiological saline.

Therefore, in priming, the operator should insert the pull means 56 provided on the closing member 42 of the flow control device 18 into the handle portion 5.
9, the closing member 42 is pulled outward while resisting its own elastic force. By doing this, the closing member 42 is elastically deformed, as shown in FIG.
8. That is, until now, the flat portion 48a of the first bulging portion 48 and the flat portion 54a of the second bulging portion 54 have been in contact with each other, and communication between the inlet passage 44 and the outlet passage 46 has been cut off. Since the flat portion 54a is displaced upwardly with respect to the portion 48a, the inlet passage 44 and the outlet passage 46 are brought into communication (see FIG. 5). Therefore, a flow path using this gap as a flush path is opened,
Saline introduced from the inlet passageway 44 through the tube 16 flows through this flush passageway at a greater flow rate than the capillary tube 50 and is directed to the tube 20 through the outlet passageway 46. Physiological saline is then filled downstream from this tube 20 in a short time.

At that time, the inclined part 48c of the first bulging part 48 and the second bulging part 5
Since the inclined portion 54c of No. 4 widens widely toward the upstream side of the saline, the saline flows into the flush channel with as little flow resistance as possible.

In the prior art, the flush flow path opened by elastic deformation was configured to curve around a resistor including a capillary tube, but in this embodiment, the inlet passage 44 and the outlet passage 46 are bent. Flush channels that are within a diameter and oriented in the same direction are opened.

Moreover, since the first bulging part 48 and the second bulging part 54 have inclined parts 48b, 48c and 54b, 54c, respectively, and are formed in a so-called tapered shape, air can be effectively discharged at the initial stage of priming. will be done.

Next, after performing priming as described above and filling the pipe line of the blood pressure measurement system 10 with physiological saline, the tension on the pull means 56 is stopped. As a result, the closing member 42 returns to its original shape, and the flat portion 5 of the second bulging portion 54
4a abuts against the flat portion 48a of the first bulging portion 48, thereby blocking communication between the inlet passage 44 and the outlet passage 46. Therefore, the flow path in the flow control device 18 is
It is limited only to the flow path formed by the capillary tube 50 (see FIG. 3).

Therefore, the catheter 26 is inserted into a predetermined part of the artery or vein of the patient 28 to measure the desired blood pressure. Physiological saline dripped from the infusion bag 12 into the drip tube 14 is introduced from the drip tube 14 through the tube 16 into the flow control device 18 through the inlet passage 44 at a head pressure corresponding to its height. This physiological saline is supplied through the capillary tube 50 at a predetermined low flow rate (in this embodiment, when the differential pressure before and after the flow control device 18 is 300 ml/h, the flow rate is 3.0 ml/h).
our), flows through the tube 20, tube fitting 22) tube 24, and is injected into the patient's blood vessel from the catheter 26. During this process, the blood pressure of the patient 28 is detected by the pressure quadrature transducer 30 using the physiological saline in the catheter 26 and tube 24 as a transmission medium, and the pressure transducer 30 outputs a voltage proportional to the pressure to the display recording device 32. Output to. As a result, the blood pressure value is displayed on the display/recording device 32 in real time.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, a bulge having a capillary tube is formed inside a tube member having a fluid passage, and further comes into contact with the bulge to close the fluid passage. A closure member having a bulging portion is configured to be fitted onto the tube member. Since the flow control device is composed of a small number of parts such as the pipe member and the closing member, it is possible to downsize the flow control device itself. Further, the flush flow path defined when the closing member is elastically deformed exists within the diameter of the fluid passage and is oriented in the same direction, and each of the bulges is formed into a tapered shape. Therefore, the flow resistance of the physiological saline on the upstream side is reduced (and the air removal performance is improved on the downstream side, and as a result, the effect that air remains in the flow control device is prevented. In this case, since each of the bulges has a symmetrical longitudinal section, there is no need to distinguish between the upstream side and the downstream side when installing the bulges, making handling easier. .

Although the present invention has been described above with reference to preferred embodiments, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments.
For example, the same purpose can be achieved by providing a capillary-shaped through hole integrally in the bulge instead of a capillary tube, and various improvements and design changes are possible without departing from the gist of the present invention. Of course.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory diagram showing a flow control device according to the present invention incorporated into a blood pressure measurement system, FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the flow control device according to the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a flow control device according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the flow control device during priming; FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line V-V of the flow control device in FIG. 4. lO... Blood pressure measurement system 12... Infusion bag 18... Flow control device 40... Tube member 4
2... Closing member 44... Inlet passage 46
...Exit passage 48...Bulging part 50...
- Capillary tube 52... Cutting section 54... Swelling section 56... Pull means FIG, 1 FIG, 4

Claims (5)

[Claims] (1) A flow control device used in a blood pressure measurement system, which includes a tube member having an inlet passage and an outlet passage communicating with each other, and a closing member made of an elastically deformable material and fitted onto the tube member. , the tube member is located between the inlet passage and the outlet passage, is formed to bulge inward of the passage, and has a capillary-like through hole with a minute inner diameter that communicates with the inlet passage and the outlet passage. The closing member has a first bulge provided therein, and a second bulge is formed on the closing member to abut the first bulge and close communication between the inlet passage and the outlet passage. , the second bulging portion is separated from the first bulging portion by elastically deforming the closing member, and a flow path having a flow rate larger than that of the through hole is opened as necessary. Characteristic flow control device. (2) In the device according to claim 1, the first
The bulging part and the second bulging part have a trapezoidal longitudinal cross section, and when they are pressed together, the bulging part and the second bulging part have a flat part that blocks communication between the inlet flow path and the outlet flow path of the pipe member, and expand from the flat part. A flow control device formed with an inclined portion that is inclined at a slope. (3) In the device according to claim 1 or 2, a position where the first bulging part and the second bulging part are in contact with each other and a position where the first bulging part and the second bulging part are separated from each other. The flow path formed when this occurs is within the diameter of the cross section of the inlet flow path and the outlet flow path of the tube member, and the flow path is configured to be oriented in the same direction as the axial direction of the tube member. Flow control device. (4) A flow control device according to claim 1, wherein the closing member includes a handle for elastically deforming the closing member. (5) The flow control device according to claim 1, wherein the closing member is molded from silicone rubber.