Disposable Luer lock syringe

Claim 2

A disposable Luer lock syringe comprising a syringe barrel adapted to receive a syringe piston, said barrel including a plastic Luer tapered connector connected thereto at the distal end thereof for receiving a coupling element of a device adapted for fluid communication with said barrel, a plastic fracturable portion connected to said connector and spaced proximally of the distal end of said connector, and a plastic Luer lock collar connected to said barrel and surrounding said connector and having thread means thereon adapted to threadedly engage portions of the coupling element when the coupling element is received by said connector, said collar having a plurality of circumferentially disposed generally axially extending grooves each having a bottom wall with weak portions of less thickness than the depth of the groove so that weak portions of said collar and said connector can be bent sufficiently to fracture said fracturable portion and prevent effective reuse of the syringe.

Claim 3

The syringe of claim 1 wherein said connector and collar are of a thermoplastic material and integrally connected together.

Claim 4

The syringe of claim 2 wherein said barrel is an integral, single-piece plastic member.

Claim 5

The syringe of claim 1, 2 or 3 wherein said collar is circumferentially continuous.

Claim 6

The syringe of claim 4 wherein said plastic comprises polypropylene.

Claim 7

The syringe of claim 5 wherein the wall thickness of said relatively weak portions is substantially less than 0.01 inch.

Claim 8

The syringe of claim 1 wherein said collar is circumferentially continuous and integral with said connector, and wherein said collar includes relatively rigid ribs on the opposed sides of each of said grooves of greater thickness than said bottom walls and which circumferentially alternate with said grooves.

Claim 9

The syringe of claim 7 wherein said barrel is a single-piece plastic member.

Claim 10

The syringe of claim 8 wherien said grooves extend proximally from the distal end of said collar.

Claim 11

The syringe of claim 9 wherein said grooves extend substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of said barrel.

Claim 12

The syringe of claim 10 wherein each of said weak portions is fracturable and tearable when a selected portion of said collar is sufficiently bent radially outwardly.

Claim 13

The syringe of claim 1 or 11 including a coupling element comprising a needle assembly having a hub and a needle cannula connected to said hub, said hub having an inner Luer tapered surface for fluid-tight connection with said connector, and radial extension means on said hub for threaded engagement with said thread means.

Claim 14

The syringe of claim 12 further including a needle sheath enclosing said needle cannula and having an open proximal portion surrounding said hub, said hub and said surrounding portion having complementary engagement means whereby rotation of said sheath effects threaded rotation of said hub into tight engagement with said connector, said fracturable portion fracturing and said collar flexing in response to a manually applied force on said sheath causing angular movement of said hub, said connector, and said collar.

Claim 15

The syringe of claim 7 or 13 wherein said thread means are continuous from beginning to end.

Claim 16

A single-piece syringe barrel of thermoplastic material for a disposable Luer lock comprising a cylindrical main body portion open at the proximal end for receiving a syringe piston, and Luer lock connection means integrally connected to the distal end of said body portion, said connection means including a generally radially inwardly extending end wall at the distal end of said body portion, a Luer tapered connector extending axially from said end wall, a fracturable portion between said body portion and said connector, and an annular flexible Luer lock retaining collar surrounding said connector, said collar having a plurality of generally radially inwardly and axially extending circumferentially spaced grooves in its outer wall in each quadrant thereof defining axially extending ribs on each side of each groove, each of said grooves having a fracturable bottom wall portion with a thickness less than one-half of the thickness of said collar taken through one of said ribs, and thread means on the inner wall of said collar for threaded engagement with a coupling element of a device adapted for connection in fluid communication with the barrel.

Claim 17

A single-piece syringe barrel of thermoplastic material for a disposable Luer lock comprising a cylindrical main body portion open at the proximal end for receiving a syringe piston, and Luer lock connection means integrally connected to the distal end of said body portion, said connection means including a generally radially inwardly extending end wall at the distal end of said body portion, a Luer tapered connector extending axially from said end wall, a fracturable portion between said body portion and said connector, and an annular flexible Luer lock retaining collar surrounding said connector, said collar having a plurality of generally radially inwardly and axially extending circumferentially spaced grooves in its outer wall in each quadrant thereof defining axially extending ribs on each side of each groove, each of said grooves having a fracturable bottom wall portion with a thickness less than one-half of the thickness of said collar taken through one of said ribs, and thread means on the inner wall of said collar for threaded engagement with a coupling element of a device adapted for connection in fluid communication with the barrel.

Claim 18

The barrel of claim 15 wherein said collar is circumferentially continuous and said threads are continuous between the beginning and end thereof.

Claim 19

The barrel of claim 16 wherein said thermoplastic material comprises polypropylene.

Claim 20

The barrel of claim 16 wherein said connector extends distally beyond the distal end of said collar.

Claim 23

The method of claim 19 including the step of completely breaking the connector away from the barrel at the fracture by moving said sheath.

Claim 24

The method of claim 20 including molding the collar so that the bottom walls of the grooves have portions with a wall thickness of less than 0.01 inch.

Claim 25

The syringe of claim 1 including a coupling element having a Luer tapered surface sealably engageable with said connector, and means for moving said coupling element and said connector angularly relative to the longitudinal axis of said barrel to fracture said fracturable portion.

Claim 26

The syringe of claim 1 wherein said fracturable portion includes an annular groove at which said fracturable portion is fracturable.

Claim 27

The syringe of claim 1 or 13 wherein the thickness of the bottom weak portion of each of said grooves is approximately 0.0065 inch.

Claim 28

The syringe of claim 23 wherein the thickness of the bottom wall weak portion of each of said grooves is less than one-third of the maximum thickness of said collar.

Claim 29

The syringe of claim 25 wherein said collar is thinnest at its distal end to facilitate the start of a tear during the fracturing of said fracturable portion of said connector.

Claim 30

The barrel of claim 16 wherein the thickness of each of said bottom wall portions is less than the depth of each of said grooves.

Claim 31

The barrel of claim 27 wherein said collar has approximately twenty of said grooves.

Claim 32

The barrel of claim 16 wherein said fracturable portion of said barrel includes an annular groove disposed adjacent the junction of said end wall and said connector.