Needle protector device having a lockable protective cover which is unlockable during actuation

Abstract

A needle protector device includes a mount, to which a needle subassembly is fixed, and a protective cover for the needle telescopically coupled to the mount against the biassing of a compression spring. The protective cover is coupled to the mount by a pair of protruding lugs which engage a pair of channels in the mount. The channels each include an entrance portion adjacent the lower end of the mount and an elongated portion extending at an angle toward the upper end of the mount. When the lug is in the entrance portion, the cover is in a locked needle protection position in which the needle tip is covered. To operate the device, the device is placed against a needle-receiving surface and the mount is simultaneously pushed toward the surface and rotated with respect to the cover, causing the lug to move out of the entrance portion to unlock the cover and travel along the elongated portion of the channel. Upon removal of the needle, the compression spring biases to move the cover back over the needle.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.