Methods, devices, and systems for coupling fluid lines

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9879807-B2
Application number	US-201214123008-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 8, 2012
Priority date	Jun 8, 2011
Publication date	Jan 30, 2018
Grant date	Jan 30, 2018

Abstract

The disclosed subject matter includes embodiments of fluid couplings that prevent or discourage misconnection of fluid lines. A coupling device includes multiple male and female connectors that are joined to a common line. The coupling device is mated to a matching coupling device only when all the multiple male and female connectors are property joined. If any of the connectors is not property mated to a corresponding one, the coupling will leak. The coupling devices are made unique by providing an arrangement the connectors, number of connectors, shape of connectors or arrangement of interfering connector parts that ensure that any attempt to improperly couple two fluid lines will result in the incomplete mating of one or more of the connectors and thereby cause leakage of the fluid, failure of the coupling to engage, or otherwise cause the attempt to connect to fail.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A system for ensuring against improper interconnection of fluid lines, comprising:
a kit including
devices with channels that convey fluid, and
coupling devices for interconnecting the channels;

each of the coupling devices including at least one connector that must be oriented in predefined physical relationship in order to connect to the at least one connector of a paired one of the coupling devices;
interfering elements arranged on at least some of the coupling devices that prevent said at least some of the coupling devices from being connected to first others of the coupling devices but permit said at least some of the coupling devices to be connected to second others of the coupling devices, wherein
the at least some of the coupling devices are configured such that the orientation in the predefined physical relationship brings the at least one interfering element of each of the at least some of the coupling devices into interfering engagement with the at least one interfering element of the first others,
each coupling device of the least some of the coupling devices includes a plurality of connectors that connect to a furcated channel that converges to a single channel inside the coupling device, and
said plurality of connectors on at least one of the coupling devices includes at least one male connector and at least one female connector configured to interfit with at least one female connector and at least one male connector, respectively, on another of the coupling devices.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the coupling devices are configured such that orienting for coupling the at least one connector of any two mating pairs positions interfering elements of each coupling device pair such that the members of the coupling device pair can be brought together or are prevented from coming together, when the multiple connectors of each coupling device pair are sealingly engaged and such that the coupling devices cannot be coupled with an identical coupling device.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the predefined physical relationship includes aligned axes of each member of a coupling device pair so that they are parallel.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein
the interfering elements of the coupling devices are arranged such that orienting respective pairs of the coupling devices to sealingly engage their connectors results in mutual interference of the coupling devices, which prevents their interconnection.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the predefined physical relationship positions interfering elements of certain coupling device pair such that they interfere when the multiple connectors of each coupling device pair are positioned with their respective axes aligned so as to be capable of sealingly engaging each other, thereby preventing interconnection of said certain coupling device pairs.

6. A fluid channel coupling system for conveying a fluid, comprising:
coupling devices, each having connectors that sealingly engage corresponding connectors on another of the coupling devices;
each of the connectors being in fluid communication with a common port that furcates within the coupling device such that when the connectors of two coupling devices are mutually engaged, the respective ports are in fluid communication with each other and such that when less than all of the connectors of the two coupling devices are mutually engaged, the fluid conveyed by the fluid channel coupling system is permitted to flow out from either of the respective ports thereby causing a leak, wherein
at least one of the coupling devices includes at least one male connector and at least one female connector configured to interfit with at least one female connector and at least one male connector, respectively, of another of said coupling devices.

7. The system of claim 6 , wherein a first of the coupling devices has at least one interfering element that interferes with at least one interfering element of a second of the coupling devices such that both the first coupling device connectors cannot be sealingly engaged with both the second coupling device connectors.

8. The system of claim 6 , wherein a first one or more of the coupling devices are attached to containers of fluid to form access ports for removing fluid from the containers and the contents of the containers of fluid are different.

9. The system of claim 8 , further comprising a fluid circuit having a coupling device that is compatible with the first one or more of the coupling devices and incompatible with a second coupling device attached to a container of fluid.

10. A fluid coupling system, comprising:
a first coupling device with a first body and a second coupling device with a second body;
the first body having a single port with one opening at a first end, a double port with at least a first male connector and a first female connector at a second end, the single port and the double port being interconnected for fluid communication by a branching channel in said body;
the second body with a single port with one opening at a first end, a double port with at least a second male connector and a second female connector at a second end, the single port and the double port being interconnected for fluid communication by a branching channel in said body;
the first body double port being configured to connect to the second body double port to form a sealed channel connecting the first body single port to the second body single port wherein the first male connector and the first female connector of the first body interfit with the second female connector and the second male connector of the second body.

11. The system of claim 10 , wherein the first and second coupling devices are identical.

12. The system of claim 10 , wherein the first and second coupling devices are configured to allow frictional engagement of the first body connectors with the second body connectors to form the sealed channel.

13. The system of claim 10 , wherein the first body carries at least one first latch member and the second body carries at least one second latch member, the first latch member being configured to interferingly engage the second latch member to increase the resistance of the first and second coupling devices to disconnection.

14. The system of claim 13 , wherein the first latch member is movable relative to the major portion of the first body to permit release of an engagement of the first and second latch members.

Assignees

• Brugger James M
• Treu Dennis M
• Utterberg David S
• Nxstage Medical Inc

Inventors

• Brugger James M
• Treu Dennis M
• Utterberg David S

Classifications

• A61M2039/1027

  Quick-acting type connectors · CPC title

• A61M39/1011 Primary

  Locking means for securing connection; Additional tamper safeties (A61M39/16 takes precedence) · CPC title

• A61M39/105

  Multi-channel connectors or couplings, e.g. for connecting multi-lumen tubes (multi-channel connectors in general F16L37/56) · CPC title

• F16L41/023

  Y- pieces (F16L41/025, F16L41/026, F16L41/028 take precedence) · CPC title

• A61M2039/1094

  at least partly incompatible with standard connectors, e.g. to prevent fatal mistakes in connection · CPC title