Method for manufacturing hollow needling implement, device for manufacturing hollow needling implement, and hollow needling implement

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11433224-B2
Application number	US-201816646722-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 14, 2018
Priority date	Sep 13, 2017
Publication date	Sep 6, 2022
Grant date	Sep 6, 2022

Abstract

A method for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement (1) including a fine hollow protrusion (3) having an opening (3h) of the present invention includes a protrusion forming step of inserting a projecting mold part (11) into a base material sheet (2A) from one face (2D) side thereof, the base material sheet containing a thermoplastic resin, thereby forming a non-penetrated hollow protrusion (3) projecting from another face (2U) side of the base material sheet (2A). Subsequently, an opening forming step is performed in which an opening (3h) that penetrates the hollow protrusion (3) is formed by using a contactless opening forming means disposed on the other face (2U) side of the base material sheet (2A).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement including a fine hollow protrusion having an opening, the method comprising:
a protrusion forming step of inserting a protrusion-forming projecting mold part into a base material sheet from one face side thereof, the base material sheet containing a thermoplastic resin, thereby forming a non-penetrated hollow protrusion projecting from another face side of the base material sheet;
a cooling step of cooling the non-penetrated hollow protrusion, the cooling step being performed after the protrusion forming step;
an opening forming step of forming an opening as a through hole in the non-penetrated hollow protrusion by using a contactless opening forming means disposed on the other face side of the base material sheet while the non-penetrated hollow protrusion is being cooled in the cooling step, and
in the opening forming step, the opening is formed in a state in which the projecting mold part is inserted in an interior of the non-penetrated hollow protrusion.

2. The method for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement according to claim 1 ,
wherein, in the opening forming step, the opening is formed at a position offset from a center of a tip portion of the non-penetrated hollow protrusion.

3. The method for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement according to claim 1 ,
wherein a laser device is used as the contactless opening forming means.

4. The method for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement according to claim 3 ,
wherein, in the opening forming step, the opening is formed by irradiating laser light from the laser device onto the non-penetrated hollow protrusion from a direction that is inclined with respect to an insertion direction of the projecting mold part.

5. The method for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement according to claim 4 ,
wherein an angle that is formed by the insertion direction of the projecting mold part and the inclined direction in which the laser light is irradiated is from 5 to 85 degrees.

6. The method for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement according to claim 1 ,
wherein the projecting mold part has a heating means, and
in the protrusion forming step, the base material sheet is heated and softened by the heating means.

7. The method for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement according to claim 6 ,
wherein a time for which the base material sheet is heated and softened by the heating means is from 0 to 10 seconds.

8. The method for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement according to claim 1 ,
wherein the projecting mold part has a heating means, and
an ultrasonic vibration device is used as the heating means.

9. The method for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement according to claim 1 ,
wherein, in the protrusion forming step, an insertion speed at which the projecting mold part is inserted into the base material sheet is from 0.1 to 1,000 mm/sec.

10. The method for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement according to claim 1 ,
wherein, in the cooling step, the non-penetrated hollow protrusion is cooled in a state in which the projecting mold part is inserted in an interior of the non-penetrated hollow protrusion.

11. An apparatus for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement including a fine hollow protrusion having an opening, the apparatus comprising:
a protrusion forming section including a protrusion-forming projecting mold part that is disposed on one face side of a base material sheet containing a thermoplastic resin;
a cooling section that cools the non-penetrated hollow protrusion; and
an opening forming section including a contactless opening forming means that is disposed on another face side of the base material sheet,
wherein the apparatus is configured to insert the projecting mold part into the base material sheet from the one face side thereof, thereby forming a non-penetrated hollow protrusion projecting from the other face side of the base material sheet, and to subsequently form an opening as a through hole in the non-penetrated hollow protrusion by using the opening forming means from the other face side of the base material sheet while the non-penetrated hollow protrusion is being cooled by the cooling section, and
wherein the opening forming section is configured to form the opening in a state in which the projecting mold part is inserted in an interior of the non-penetrated hollow protrusion.

12. The apparatus for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement according to claim 11 ,
wherein the opening forming section is configured to form the opening at a position offset from a center of a tip portion of the non-penetrated hollow protrusion.

13. The apparatus for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement according to claim 11 ,
wherein the contactless opening forming means is a laser device.

14. The apparatus for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement according to claim 13 ,
wherein the opening forming section forms the opening by irradiating laser light from the laser device onto the non-penetrated hollow protrusion from a direction that is inclined with respect to an insertion direction of the projecting mold part.

15. The apparatus for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement according to claim 14 ,
wherein an angle that is formed by the insertion direction of the projecting mold part and the inclined direction in which the laser light is irradiated is from 5 to 85 degrees.

16. The apparatus for manufacturing a hollow protruding implement according to claim 11 ,
wherein the projecting mold part has an ultrasonic vibration that heats and softens the base material sheet.

17. A hollow protruding implement including a fine hollow protrusion having an opening,
wherein the opening is a through hole disposed at a position offset from a center of a tip portion of the hollow protrusion,
an inner diameter of the opening on an outer surface side of the hollow protrusion is greater than the inner diameter thereof on an inner surface side of the hollow protrusion, and
a space in the hollow protrusions is formed in a shape that conforms to the outer shape of the hollow protrusion.

18. The hollow protruding implement according to claim 17 ,
wherein the inner diameter of the opening gradually increases from the inner surface side of the hollow protrusion toward the outer surface side thereof.

19. The hollow protruding implement according to claim 17 ,
wherein the inner diameter of the opening on the inner surface side is from 1 to 500 μm.

20. The hollow protruding implement according to claim 17 ,
wherein the inner diameter of the opening on the outer surface side is from 1.1 to 15 times greater than the inner diameter thereof on the inner surface side.

21. The hollow protruding implement according to claim 17 ,
wherein an opening area of the opening on the outer surface side of the hollow protrusion is larger than the opening area of the opening on the inner surface side of the hollow protrusion.

22. The hollow protruding implement according to claim 17 ,
wherein the space in the hollow protrusion is formed in a conical shape that conforms to the outer shape of the hollow protrusion.

Assignees

• Kao Corp

Inventors

• Hamamoto Shinji
• Niitsu Takatoshi

Classifications

• A61M2037/0023

  Drug applicators using microneedles · CPC title

• A61M37/0015 Primary

  by using microneedles · CPC title

• A61M2037/0053

  Methods for producing microneedles · CPC title

• B29C2791/009

  Using laser · CPC title

• A61M37/00

  Other apparatus for introducing media into the body (for reproduction or fertilisation A61B17/425; apparatus for iontophoresis or cataphoresis A61N1/30); Percutany, i.e. introducing medicines into the body by diffusion through the skin (salt baths A61H33/04) · CPC title