Inhaler device counter
AssigneeAstraZeneca AB
InventorsNic Bowman, Douglas Bradshaw, Lennart Sörby
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Inhaler counter (20) comprising a counter housing (390), a rocker arm (200) with a pawl (210), the rocker arm being pivotally supported by the housing and arranged to perform a rocker movement in response to a linear actuation motion, a return spring (220) for resetting the rocker arm, a ratchet wheel (230) engagable with the pawl to convert the movement of the rocker arm into an incremental rotational motion of an axle arrangement (240) advancing a display means (60), the axle arrangement further comprising a back rotation prevention means (280) in the form of a spring loaded friction brake and a worm gear, the display means comprising rotatable indicator means (120) with teeth that engage the worm-gear and a stationary scale.
Claims18
An inhaler counter comprising:
- a ratchet wheel, a pawl, and a display, the ratchet wheel and the pawl being arranged to transform a linear actuation motion into a rotational motion that advances the display by the pawl engaging a tooth of the ratchet wheel, the pawl and ratchet wheel arranged to effect the disengagement of the pawl from the engaged tooth on the ratchet wheel by establishing abutment of the pawl and the ratchet wheel at a lever point following the engaged tooth with respect to the direction of the rotational motion of the ratchet wheel;
- wherein the lever point on the ratchet wheel is located on a tooth subsequent to the engaged tooth, and
- wherein the subsequent tooth includes a convex back surface and the pawl includes a low profile pawl counter surface that abuts the convex back surface to form the lever point.
An inhaler counter comprising:
- a ratchet wheel;
- a pawl, the ratchet wheel and the pawl being arranged for transforming a linear actuation motion into a rotational motion advancing a display by the pawl engaging a tooth of the ratchet wheel;
- and
- a friction brake preventing back rotation of the ratchet wheel, the friction brake comprising a cylindrical element and two inclined friction surfaces in V-arrangement each engaging a cylindrical surface of the cylindrical element, the cylindrical element being coupled to the rotational movement of the ratchet wheel and urged against the friction surfaces by a spring member.
An inhaler counter comprising:
- a ratchet wheel;
- a pawl, the ratchet wheel and the pawl being arranged for transforming a linear actuation motion into a rotational motion advancing a display by the pawl engaging a tooth of the ratchet wheel;
- and
- a friction brake preventing back rotation of the ratchet wheel, the friction brake comprising a cylindrical element supported by two inclined friction surfaces in V-arrangement, the cylindrical element being coupled to the ratchet wheel and urged against the friction surfaces by a spring member, wherein the cylindrical element and the ratchet wheel are arranged on a common axle arrangement, and that the friction break functions as a bearing for the axle arrangement.
An inhaler counter comprising:
- a counter housing,
- a rocker arm with a pawl, the rocker arm being pivotally supported by the housing and arranged to perform a rocker movement in response to a linear actuation motion, a return spring for resetting the rocker arm, a ratchet wheel engagable with the pawl to convert the movement of the rocker arm into an incremental rotational motion of an axle arrangement advancing a display means, the axle arrangement further comprising a back rotation prevention means in the form of a spring loaded friction brake and a worm gear, the display means comprising rotatable indicator means with teeth that engage the worm-gear and a stationary scale.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.