Stretchable cap for sealing and/or resealing blood drawing tubes and the like
AssigneeBio-Plas, Inc.
InventorDonald H. DeVaughn
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A cap for sealing closed the opened end of an elongated tube such as a blood drawing tube, a test tube or the like is disclosed herein and comprises an integrally formed main body constructed of a flexible material, preferably polyethylene plastic. This main body is closed at its top end, and tapers outwardly at and near its bottom end, and it includes an arrangement of annular sealing ribs, all of which allow a cap to be readily positioned over the tube to be sealed in a reliable fluid sealed fashion and readily removed from the tube without causing the substance in the tube to aerosol (in the case of liquids) or otherwise escape into the ambient surroundings.
Claims18
A cap for sealing closed the opened end of an elongated tube such as a blood drawing tube having an upper lip around its opened end, a test tube or the like, comprising:
- (a) an integrally formed top end section having a closed top end, a cylindrical sidewall depending down from said top end so as to define a receiving area for a top end section of said elongated tube including the tube's upper lip, and an annular rib concentrically disposed around the inner surface of said sidewall a fixed distance from said top end and extending a fixed distance into said receiving area, said main section sized relative to said tube and integrally formed from a sufficiently flexible material so as to receive readily said top end section of said tube within said receiving area such that said annular rib engages the entire outer annular circumference of the tube's top end section just under its upper lip in a fluid tight manner and such that said main section is equally readily removable from said top end section of said tube;
- (b) an outwardly tapering skirt having a cylindrical cross section, integrally formed of the same material as said upper main section and having a top opened end and a larger bottom opened end, said skirt being integrally connected at its top end to the bottom end of said cylindrical sidewall and extending down from the latter in coaxial relationship therewith whereby to define a downwardly opening circumferential space around the outer surface of said tube when the top end section of said tube is disposed within the receiving area of said top end section;
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- (c) said top end section including a second annular rib concentrically disposed around the inner surface of said sidewall below said first-mentioned rib and extending into said receiving area a fixed distance whereby to sealingly engage the outer circumference of said tube in the same manner as said first-mentioned rib, said second rib extending a greater distance into said receiving area than said first-mentioned rib whereby to compensate for a tube which might be out-of-round to a limited extent, said second rib being sufficiently closer in proximity to said skirt than said first-mentioned rib so as to flex radially outwardly to a greater extent than the first-mentioned rib.
A cap for sealing closed the opened end of an elongated tube such as a blood drawing tube having a lip extending around its opened end, a test tube or the like, comprising an integrally formed main body having (i) a closed top end, (ii) a circumferential sidewall depending down from said top end so as to define a receiving area for a top end section of said elongated tube including the tube's lip, said sidewall including at least a lowermost circumferential section which tapers outwardly in the downward direction whereby to define a downwardly opening circumferential space around the outer surface of the tube when the top end section of the tube is disposed within said receiving area, and (iii) first, second and third vertically spaced annular ribs concentrically disposed around the inner surface of said sidewall fixed distances from said top end, said first rib being disposed above the second and third ribs and extending a first fixed distance into said receiving area and said second and third ribs extending a second greater fixed distance into said receiving area, said main body being sized relative to said tube and integrally formed from a sufficiently flexible material so as to receive readily said top end section of said tube within said receiving area such that said first rib engages the entire outer annular circumference of the tube's top end section just under its upper lip in a fluid tight manner and said second and third ribs sealingly engage the outer circumference of said tube in the same manner as said first rib even though the outer circumference of siadd tube engaged by said second and third ribs may be out-of-round to a limited extent and such that said main body is equally readily removable from said top end section of said tube.
A tube assembly, comprising:
- (a) an elongated tube such as a blood drawing tube, test tube or the like having an opened top end having a lip extending around its opened end and a cylindrical tube body;
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- (b) a cap for sealing closed the opened end of said tube, said cap including an integrally formed main body having (i) a closed top end, (ii) a circumferential sidewall depending down from said top end so as to define a receiving area into which a top end section of said elongated tube including the tube's upper lip is disposed, said sidewall including at least a downwardly circumferential section which tapers outwardly in the downward direction whereby to define a downwardly opening circumferential space around the outer surface of the tube whereby to accomodate a user's thumbnail in removing said cap from said tube in a way which prevents aerosoling of any liquid substances with the tube, and (iii) first, second and third vertically spaced annular ribs concentrically disposed around the inner surface of said sidewall fixed distances from said top end, said first rib being disposed above the second and third ribs and extending a first fixed distance into said receiving area so as to engage the entire outer annular circumference of the tube's top end section just under its upper lip in a fluid tight manner and said second and third ribs extending a greater fixed distance into said receiving area so as to sealingly engage the outer circumference of said tube in the same manner as said first rib, even though the outer circumference of said tube engaged by said second and third ribs may be out-of-round to a limited extent, said main body being sized relative to said tube and integrally formed of a sufficiently flexible material so as to easily fit on and be removed from said tube.
A cap for sealing closed the opened end of an elongated tube such as a blood drawing tube, a test tube or the like, comprising an integrally formed main body having (i) a closed top end, (ii) a circumferential side wall depending down from said top end so as to define a receiving area for a top end section of said elongated tube, and (iii) first and second vertically spaced annular ribs concentrically disposed around the inner surface of said side wall fixed distances from said top end, said first rib being disposed above the second rib and extending a first fixed distance into said receiving area and said second rib extending a second greater fixed distance into said receiving area, said main body being sized relative to said tube and integrally formed from a sufficiently flexible material so as to receive readily said top end section of said tube within said receiving area such that said first rib engages the entire outer annular circumference of the tubes' top end section just under its opened end in a fluid tight manner, such that said second rib sealingly engages the outer circumference of said tube in the same manner as said first rib even though the outer circumference of said tube engaged by said second rib may be out-of-round, to a limited extent, and such that said main body is readily removable from said top end section of said tube.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.