Method to secure an elastic component in a valve
AssigneeNavilyst Medical, Inc.
InventorStephen C. Miller
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus for controlling fluid flow through medical devices, specifically for sealing devices which remain in place in the body to provide long term access to the vascular system. Exemplary embodiments of the present invention describe a wedge or other similarly shaped geometrical feature for fixing an elastic component and controlling an internal stress of the elastic component.
Claims16
A valve for controlling a flow of liquid through a conduit extending between an internal structure within a living body and an exterior of the living body, comprising:
- a flexible member, including a slit formed on a central portion thereof, that is designed to act accordingly to a predetermined fluid pressure;
- a first housing defining a first lumen extending therethrough, the first housing including a first contacting surface adapted to contact a first side of the flexible member, the first housing defining a relief area extending about a perimeter of the first contacting surface;
- and
- a second housing adapted to mate with the first housing, the second housing defining a second lumen and separated from the first housing by the flexible member, the second housing including a second contacting surface which, when the first and second housings are mated to one another in an operative configuration with the flexible member located there between, contacts a second side of the flexible member, a radially outer portion of the second contacting surface including a substantially wedge-shaped protrusion that aligns with and extends into the relief area when the first and second housings are mated in the operative configuration, the protrusion contacting the flexible member such that a peripheral portion of the flexible member extends into the relief area, and wherein the protrusion extends substantially and continuously around a perimeter of the second contacting surface.
A valve for controlling a flow of liquid through a conduit extending between an internal structure within a living body and an exterior of the living body, comprising:
- a flexible member, including a slit formed on a central portion thereof, that is designed to act accordingly to a predetermined fluid pressure;
- a first housing defining a first lumen extending therethrough, the first housing including a first contacting surface adapted to contact a first side of the flexible member, the first housing defining a relief area extending about a perimeter of the first contacting surface;
- and
- a second housing adapted to mate with the first housing, the second housing defining a second lumen and separated from the first housing by the flexible member, the second housing including a second contacting surface which, when the first and second housings are mated to one another in an operative configuration with the flexible member located there between, contacts a second side of the flexible member, a radially outer portion of the second contacting surface including a protrusion that aligns with and extends into the relief area when the first and second housings are mated in the operative configuration, the protrusion contacting the flexible member such that a peripheral portion of the flexible member extends into the relief area,
- wherein the protrusion is formed as a series of discontinuous raised areas separated circumferentially from one another by gaps around the perimeter of the second contacting surface, and
- wherein the protrusion extends substantially and continuously around a perimeter of the second contacting surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.