Flexible tube coupling- and closing apparatus

Claim 1

A HYPODERMIC NEEDLE COUPLING FOR THE PORT TUBES OF MEDICAL AND SURGICAL FLUID HANDLING EQUIPMENT COMPRISING: (A) A PLASTIC FLUID COLLECTING AND ADMINISTERING TUBE OF FLEXIBLE RESILIENT COMPOSITION AND THIN-WALLED, INTEGRAL CONSTRUCTION AND WHICH IS SEALABLE, STERILIZABLE AND NON-WETTABLE TO BLOOD, SAID THIN FLEXIBLE PLASTIC TUBE HAVING AN END; (B) A HYPODERMIC NEEDLE COMPRISING A SUBSTANTIALLY SMALLER RIGID TUBULAR CANNULA HAVING AT ONE END A POINT FOR PIERCING PUNCTURABLE CLOSURES AND FOR MAKING SUBCUTANEOUS INJECTIONS, THE OTHER RIGID CANNULA END INSERTED IN SAID FLEXIBLE TUBE END AND WITH THE FLEXIBLE TUBE END SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCED AND CONTRACTED ABOUT THE RIGID TUBE END; SAID FLEXIBLE PLASTIC TUBE AND RIGID NEEDLE CANNULA FORMING UNMATCHED TUBULAR PARTS WITH THE OUTSIDE DIAMETER OF THE RIGID CANNULA BEING SUBSTANTIALLY SMALLER THAN THE NORMAL INSIDE DIAMETER OF THE FLEXIBLE TUBE, THE CANNULA-TUBE RELATION BEING EXEMPLIFIED BY THE COUPLING OF A 15 GAUGE CANNULA HAVING AN OUTSIDE DIAMETER OF ABOUT 0.072 IN. TO A 3 MM. TUBE HAVING A FULL-OPEN INSIDE DIAMETER OF ABOUT 0.118 IN.; (C) MEANS COMPRISING AN EXTENDING LENGTH OF SAID FLEXIBLE TUBE SHAPED BEYOND SAID RIGID CANNULA END FOR DEFINING A GRADUAL, SMOOTH, LAMINAR-FLOW-PROMOTING ENLARGEMENT OF THE BORE OF THE COUPLING TO THE NORMAL FULL-OPEN DIAMETER OF SAID FLEXIBLE TUBE; AND (D) MEANS FOR FIRMLY AND DIRECTLY ADHERING SAID SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCED AND CONTRACTED FLEXIBLE TUBE END TO SAID RIGID CANNULA END, SAID ADHERING MEANS PROVIDING SEALED INTERFITTING AND INTEGRAL COUPLING OF SAID SUBSTANTIALLY SMALLER RIGID CANNULA DIRECTLY TO SAID NORMALLY SUBSTANTIALLY LARGER FLEXIBLE TUBE.