Process for sterilizing articles and providing sterile storage environments
OwnerRichard D. Auten, Barbara L. Heylinventors
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Abstract
A process for producing a sterile article in a sealed container during a continuous production process. In a preferred embodiment, a contact lens is immersed in an ozone-containing solution within a container during a continuous lens packaging process, and the lens and container are subsequently subjected to ultraviolet radiation. This process sterilizes the contact lens and lens container in order to maintain the contact lens in a sterile environment during shipping, handling, and storage.
Claims17
A method of sterilizing an article and providing a sterile storage container for an article, comprising the steps of:
- (a) providing a sterilization solution including ozone dissolved therein;
- (b) placing said sterilization solution in a container;
- (c) placing an article to be sterilized in said container;
- (d) sealing said container, thereby allowing said article to become at least partially immersed in said sterilization solution for a predetermined time, wherein said predetermined contact time is less than about 30 minutes;
- and
- (e) applying ultraviolet radiation to said container after a predetermined contact time with said sterilization solution, wherein said contact time with ozone and ultraviolet radiation is a time sufficient to simultaneously sterilize said article and wherein said ultraviolet light degrades said ozone.
A method of producing sterile contact lens packages in a continuous fashion, comprising the steps of:
- (a) forming a hydrophilic lens;
- (b) placing said lens and a solution including ozone dissolved therein in a container
- (c) applying ultraviolet radiation to said container after a predetermined contact time with said sterilization solution, wherein said contact time with said ozone and said ultraviolet radiation is a time sufficient to simultaneously sterilize said lens, and wherein said ultraviolet light degrades said ozone;
- and
- (d) sealing said container, thereby maintaining said lens in a sterile environment until said sealed container is opened.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.