Wet/dry automatic injector assembly

An automatic injection device containing a pre-loaded charge of medicament for automatically self-administering the medicament upon actuation thereof, the device comprising:

• a housing assembly having an interior chamber, the interior chamber including a dry compartment containing a dry medicament component, and a wet compartment containing a liquid component to be mixed with the dry medicament component;
• a seal structure between the dry compartment and the wet compartment, the seal structure being initially in a sealing condition that maintains the dry component sealed from the wet component, the seal structure being converted to a mixing condition as a result of activation of the device;
• the seal structure having a periphery that forms a peripheral seal slidably disposed with respect to an adjacent surface of the interior chamber, the seal structure having an inner seal portion spaced radially inward from the peripheral seal that seals a passage formed in the seal structure prior to activation of the device, the inner seal portion being convertible from a sealing condition to a mixing condition to enable fluid to flow through the passage in the seal structure;
• a needle assembly that dispenses the charge of medicament from the housing;
• an activation assembly carried by the housing and including a stored energy source, wherein activation of the activation assembly releases the stored energy from the stored energy source, and wherein the release of the stored energy causes a) the seal structure to be converted from the sealing condition to the mixing condition and thereby permit the liquid component to pass therethrough b) force the mixed liquid and dry components through the needle assembly.

A separation assembly for a container for separating a first component from a second component, wherein the first component is to be mixed with the dry component in the container upon occurrence of a predetermined operating condition, the separation assembly comprising:

• a generally cylindrical body that is constructed and arranged to be slidably supported within the container between the first component and the second component,
• wherein the body includes a seal structure constructed and arranged to be disposed within the container between the first component and the second component, the seal structure having an inner seal portion, the inner seal member being initially in a sealing condition that maintains the dry component sealed from the first component, the inner seal portion being converted to a mixing condition in response to the predetermined operating condition such that the first component flows through the seal structure to mix with the second component,
• wherein the body further includes a flow distributing member disposed adjacent the seal structure to evenly distribute the first component into the second component upon occurrence of the predetermined operating condition,
• whereby the seal structure and the flow distributing member form a single unit.