RU2308972C1 - Sterilization chamber - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: medical engineering.

SUBSTANCE: device has casing 1, door 2, power frame 11 of the door, locking bracket 3 and mechanism for blocking the locking bracket 5 doors mounted on opposite axles of forcing frame axles rotatable about vertical chamber axis, and mechanism for locking and fixing the door 4 mounted on in the central locking bracket part. Destructor set is mounted on casing back wall and inlet and outlet nipples. The mechanism for blocking and locking door 4 is designed as three-cam handle fastened in case-shaped bushing conjugated with lead screw. Hemispheric lead screw end is placed into matching hemispheric recess of door-fastening member. The mechanism 5 for blocking locking bracket 3 is designed as rotating threaded upright mounted on forcing frame axle.

EFFECT: high reliability in sealing sterilization chamber; prolonged service life; high operation reliability and safety level.

5 cl, 7 dwg

Description

The invention relates to the field of medical equipment and can be used for surface low-temperature sterilization of surgical, dental, endoscopic and laboratory instruments, as well as medical equipment and products that are resistant to interaction with high concentrations of ozone.

The developed invention will find application in stationary clinical and medical institutions, outpatient clinics, rural hospitals, clinics, as well as in mobile hospitals of the Ministry of Emergencies and Moscow Region and other medical institutions where sterilization of the instrument and equipment used is required.

The invention can be effectively used to sterilize instruments and equipment in hairdressing and beauty salons, etc.

The Orion sterilization chamber is known (see the prospectus of NPO Orion and RF patent No. 2183469, А61L 9/015, 1998).

The principle of operation of the chamber is that the ozone-air mixture produced by the ozonizer with a pre-determined concentration of ozone is fed through a hose into the chamber, in which bacteria, viruses and fungi are quickly and efficiently destroyed by atomic oxygen having a strong oxidizing ability.

The sterilization chamber is a rectangular box and contains a housing, a lid, flat removable shelves for laying sterilized items, a filter with a catalyst, a pair of taps for supplying the ozone-air mixture and its removal from the chamber and hoses.

The ozone-air mixture enters the chamber through the top valve from the ozonizer, and since this mixture is heavier than air, the lateral location of the top valve does not allow you to evenly and quickly distribute the mixture throughout the chamber, in particular, deliver it immediately to all sterilized objects and their parts, which leads to unequal sterilization of objects and lengthening the time of the sterilization process.

In addition, to provide access to the ozone-air mixture to all parts of the sterilized items on the shelves made numerous holes. At the same time, individual sections of the sterilized objects are in contact with the shelves with flat contacts, which makes it difficult for ozone to access them. This also leads to uneven sterilization of these areas.

The internal parts of the housing and the cover are designed so that they do not have hard-to-reach spots for periodic sanitary treatment. However, the material used for the manufacture of chambers (organic glass) fades over time (microcracks appear on it), which further leads to a deterioration in the conditions for sanitary treatment. In addition, the material used is not durable.

Thus, a significant drawback of this design is the low efficiency of both the sterilization process itself and the operation of the chamber as a whole. In addition, the fragility of the material of which the chamber is made, and the insufficient strength of its entire structure, as well as the absence of removable trays for the instrument to be sterilized, significantly limit its practical use, make it possible to use this camera in specially adapted stationary rooms and do not allow it to be used in hard conditions during emergencies, in field hospitals and inappropriate transport. It should be especially noted that the design of the sterilization chamber, the use of organic glass for the manufacture of the chamber, a complex system of locks that does not eliminate the deformation of the door, do not provide the required tightness of the chamber. The leakage of ozone of high concentration significantly reduces the safety of the practical use of this sterilization chamber and complicates its maintenance.

Known sterilization chamber described in the patent of Russian Federation No. 2242995 (A61L 2/00, filed November 3, 2003), the closest in technical essence and which is selected as a prototype of the patented invention.

The sterilization chamber according to the patent of the Russian Federation No. 2242995 is used for surface sterilization of surgical and laboratory instruments, as well as medical and laboratory products. The chamber consists of a case in the form of a horizontal cylinder, a door with a viewing window in the form of a round rim with a shaped seal of ozone-resistant rubber, removable shelves for sterilized objects, which are placed on the guides of the removable frame, cranes for feeding and discharging the ozone-air mixture. The upper and lower tubes with holes for uniform distribution of the ozone-air mixture throughout the body are located in the cavity of the housing of the sterilization chamber. A quick lock is used as a clamping device. Filters with catalysts for decomposing the spent ozone-air mixture are located on the rear end wall of the chamber body. The camera body, door, shelves and removable frame are made of stainless steel sheet.

The sterilization chamber described in the patent of the Russian Federation 2242995 has a number of significant structural and operational disadvantages that reduce the sterilization efficiency and degrade the operational properties of the chamber.

In particular:

- the known camera has an imperfect system for sealing the chamber cavity. In particular, the design of the door and the clamping mechanism do not provide uniform pressing of the door to the camera body, and the use of an annular sealing seal on the door does not allow to provide the required degree of tightness of the camera. Such design flaws of the chamber cause leakage of the ozone mixture, which significantly reduces the safety of the camera and the convenience of its maintenance;

- in the patented design of the sterilization chamber, the uniform distribution of the gas mixture throughout the chamber volume is not guaranteed. The use of additional tubes for supplying the ozone-air mixture into the chamber leads to uneven flow (supply) of the gas mixture along the length of the tube. The maximum flow rate (respectively, the concentration of the ozone-air mixture) will be in the area of the first hole after the inlet fitting, and the minimum flow rate (respectively, the concentration of the gas mixture) will be at the last hole in front of the plugged end of the tube. Thus, the quality of sterilization of objects will be different depending on the location of the trays relative to the zone of maximum and minimum supply of ozone-air mixture;

- the viewing window of the chamber door does not allow visual inspection of the entire surface of the trays with sterilized objects, especially the lower tray;

- the cylindrical shape of the chamber body (the curvature of the walls of the housing) when placed in the chamber cavity of the pallets (trays) with sterilized instruments does not allow optimal use of the entire useful volume of the chamber,

The present invention solves the problem of increasing the reliability of the sealing of the sterilization chamber, increasing the service life, operational reliability, convenience and safety of operation of the chamber.

The solution to this problem is achieved as follows.

A sterilization chamber similar to the design described in RF patent No. 2242995, and containing a housing with handles for transportation, in the cavity of which there is a removable frame for installation of removable trays for sterilized objects on its guides, a door mounted on the housing with the possibility of rotation about the vertical axis of the camera , elastic sealing door seal, door locking and locking mechanism and destructors installed on the rear wall of the housing for decomposing the outgoing ozone-air exhaust the mixture and the nozzle for supplying and discharging the ozone-air mixture, according to the present invention, the patented chamber is distinguished by the structural design of the chamber body, contains fundamentally new structural units - the door power frame, the locking bracket and the bracket locking mechanism, and also has a fundamentally different design, location and the principle of operation of the locking and fixing mechanism of the chamber door.

According to the invention, the housing of the sterilization chamber is made in the form of a cube or parallelepiped and is equipped with a power frame of the door, which is permanently attached to the end hole of the chamber. Along the perimeter of the door's power frame, an elastic sealing seal is fixed.

According to the present invention, the camera is equipped with a locking bracket and a locking mechanism for locking the locking bracket, which are mounted respectively on opposite axes of the power frame of the door. The locking bracket is mounted to rotate relative to the vertical axis of the camera. In the central part of the locking bracket mounted mechanism for fixing and locking the door, and at the end there is a groove for the locking mechanism of the locking bracket.

The locking mechanism of the locking bracket is mounted to rotate relative to the vertical axis of the camera and with the possibility of interaction with the groove of the locking bracket.

According to the patented invention, the chamber door is made of transparent ozone-resistant material and is installed behind the power frame from the side of the locking bracket. The camera door is mounted to a mounting unit, which includes a metal holder mounted on a support beam, in the central part of which a thrust bearing is fixed. To ensure the so-called A “floating door landing” has a hemispherical recess in the thrust bearing, and the end of the lead screw of the locking mechanism for locking the door is also made in the form of a hemisphere and placed in the hemispherical recess of the thrust bearing. In this case, the thrust bearing and the end of the lead screw of the door locking mechanism are fixed (interconnected) by the fixing plate.

According to the present invention, an effective mechanism for fixing and locking the chamber door is developed. The mechanism for fixing and locking the door is made in the form of a three-jaw handle fixed in the housing sleeve. The sleeve is coupled to a threaded spindle, which is mounted to move relative to the longitudinal axis of the chamber. The end of the lead screw is made in the form of a hemisphere and placed in the corresponding hemispherical recess of the thrust bearing of the door mounting unit. The hemispherical end of the lead screw and the thrust bearing are fixed to each other by a fixing plate.

According to the patented invention, to ensure a high level and reliability of sealing, the camera is equipped with a locking mechanism for locking the locking bracket. The locking mechanism of the locking bracket is made in the form of a rotary threaded stand mounted on the axis of the power frame with the possibility of rotation relative to the vertical axis of the camera, a lock nut is installed on the threaded surface of the rotary stand, and a handle is fixed at the end.

The invention provides that the camera body is made of sheet stainless steel. Another promising embodiment of the camera body is also possible.

According to the invention, the camera housing is made of stainless steel sheet, viewing windows are made on the side surfaces and the upper face of the housing. Glasses made of transparent ozone-resistant material are fixed on the viewing windows. Glasses are pressed to the seals by frames and covered with a decorative casing. To ensure the tightness of the glass fastening, a clamping frame is used, which, due to the fastening screw and the support bracket, reliably seals the glass on the viewing windows of the case.

The technical result of the patented invention is as follows:

- the introduction to the design of the chamber of the locking bracket and its locking mechanism exclude the possibility of unlocking and depressurization of the chamber door during sterilization;

- the developed mechanism for fixing and locking the door, as well as an adjustable locking mechanism for locking the locking bracket, allow the door to be clamped to the power frame at different pressures inside the chamber and during aging and deformation of the door seal;

- the developed original design of the mechanism for fixing and locking the door and its location in the central part of the locking bracket provide increased operational reliability and sealing efficiency of the internal volume of the chamber. Patented technical solution allows constructively realize the camera door in the form of the so-called. "floating doors." The developed mechanism allows the door to move freely on the axis of the screw on all planes within ± 4 °, which reduces the accuracy requirements for manufacturing the power frame of the door and ensures uniform pressing of the surface of the chamber door along the entire perimeter of the door to the power frame and the sealing seal.

The invention is illustrated by the description of a specific example of a structural implementation of the camera and the drawings, which show:

figure 1 is a three-dimensional image of the sterilization chamber (version of the housing with viewing windows);

figure 2 is a three-dimensional image of the sterilization chamber (option all-metal housing made of stainless steel);

figure 3 is a three-dimensional image of the sterilization chamber (view from the rear end wall);

figure 4 - design of the door and the locking mechanism of the door (section AA);

5 is a removable frame with guides for removable shelves;

6 is an embodiment of removable shelves for the camera;

figa - mounting mechanism for removable side windows of the camera body;

figb is an example of a fitting assembly of the camera body.

Patented sterilization chamber contains (FIGS. 1, 2) the following structural basic elements: body 1, door 2, locking bracket 3, locking and fixing mechanism for doors 4, locking mechanism of the locking bracket 5.

On the back wall of the housing (Fig. 3), a set of destructors (filters) 6 is placed, which provide for the decomposition of ozone after the sterilization duty cycle, and input 7 and output 8 fittings are located. The inlet nozzle 7 is designed to fill the chamber with an ozone-air gas mixture, and the outlet nozzles 8 are used to vacuum, deactivate and equalize the pressure in the cavity of the sterilization chamber. An example of a structural embodiment of the fitting node 7 (8) is shown in Fig.7b. The body 32 of the fitting using the gaskets 33 and nuts 34 are mounted and sealed in appropriate places on the rear wall of the housing of the sterilization chamber.

The invention provides that the camera body can be made in the form of a cube or parallelepiped of various structural materials. For example, the camera body 1 ¹ (figure 2) is made of all-metal thin-sheet stainless steel.

A promising embodiment of the camera body is its implementation of stainless steel sheet 1 ² (figure 1) with viewing windows. Inspection windows are made on the lateral surfaces and the upper face of the casing, on which glass of transparent ozone-resistant material is fixed, for example glass 10 with a thickness of 8 mm. In this constructive embodiment, the housing 1 ² (Fig. 1) of the glass 10 is closed with a decorative casing 9 (Fig. 7a).

An example implementation of the mechanism for fastening the glasses 10 on the viewing windows of the housing 1 ^{2 is} shown in figa. The glasses 10 are pressed against the seals 36 by the frames 30 and closed by a decorative casing 9. The pressing frame 30, by means of a fixing screw and a support bracket 31, provides pressing (sealing and sealing) of the glasses 10 on the viewing windows of the housing 1 ² . The viewing windows of the camera body 1 ² allow you to visually control the presence and composition of the instruments to be sterilized.

The door 2 of the sterilization chamber (1, 4) is made in the form of a square or rectangle of ozone-resistant transparent material of various thicknesses, for example triplex with a thickness of 20 mm Door 2 provides reliable sealing of the internal cavity of the camera body.

To ensure the reliability of the door fastening and achieve a consistently high level of sealing of the internal volume of the housing, the camera is equipped with a power frame of the door 11, which is permanently (rigidly) fixed and sealed on the end opening of the housing 1 ¹ or 1 ² (Figs. 1, 2). Along the perimeter of the power frame 11 of the door 2 is fixed elastic sealing seal 16 made of siliconized rubber.

A door 2 of transparent ozone-resistant material is installed behind the power frame 11 from the side of the locking bracket 3 (Fig. 4) and is mounted in a mounting unit that includes a metal holder 18 with rubber gaskets (not shown), which is mounted on a metal support beam 17. Structurally, the support beam 17 is an element of a p-shaped section (channel). A thrust bearing 15 is fixed in the central part of the metal support beam 17. A hemispherical recess is made in the thrust bearing 15 to accommodate the hemispherical end of the lead screw 14 of the door locking mechanism.

The locking bracket 3 is mounted on the axis 24 of the power frame 11, which makes it possible to rotate relative to the vertical axis of the camera. In the central part of the bracket 3, a mechanism 4 for fixing and locking the door 2 is mounted.

The mechanism for fixing and locking the door 4 (Fig. 4) is made in the form of a three-jaw handle 12 fixed in the housing sleeve 13. The housing sleeve 13 is coupled to a threaded spindle 14, which is mounted for movement relative to the longitudinal axis of the camera. The end of the lead screw 14 is made in the form of a hemisphere and placed in the corresponding hemispherical recess of the thrust bearing 15 of the mounting unit of the door 2. The hemispherical end of the lead screw 14 and thrust bearing 15 are fixed to each other by a fixing plate 37 (Fig. 4). The developed mechanism allows the door 2 to move freely on the axis of the screw 14 on all planes within ± 4 °. This constructive solution can significantly reduce the requirements for precision manufacturing of the power frame 11 and to ensure uniform pressing of the surface of the door 2 around the entire perimeter of the sealing seal 16.

The lead screw 14 converts the rotational movement of the three-jaw handle 12 into the reciprocating motion of the surface of the door 2. The choice of the length of the lead screw 14 allows you to adjust the pressure of the locking mechanism 4 and lock on the door 2 and thereby eliminate the possibility of destruction of the door assembly.

The locking mechanism 5 of the locking bracket 3 provides an emphasis on the locking bracket 3 when the door 2 is in the closed position. The locking mechanism 5 of the locking bracket 3 is made in the form of a rotary threaded stand 19 mounted on an axis 23, which is mounted on the power frame 11. On the threaded surface of the rotary strut 19 is installed a lock nut 21, and a handle 20 is fixed at the end. The locking mechanism 5 of the locking bracket is mounted on the axis 23 of the power frame 11 with the possibility of rotation relative to the vertical axis of the camera and with the possibility of interaction Ia with the groove 22 of the locking arm 3. The locknut 21 allows to fix the optimum size of the locking mechanism and to adjust the degree of compression sealing glass 16, 10 by shrinkage deformation and aging sealing material during operation of the sterilization chamber.

In the internal volume of the camera housing is placed (Fig. 5) a removable frame 25, 26 for installing on its guides 27 retractable pallets 28 for placing removable trays 29 on them (Fig. 6) with sterilized objects. Figure 5 shows one retractable pallet 28. The design of the patented chamber provides for the simultaneous use of up to three retractable pallets, which are placed on the vertical racks of the frame 25, 26.

Transportation and transfer of the sterilization chamber is carried out using handles 35 mounted on the housing.

The operation of the sterilization chamber is as follows.

By rotating the three-jaw handle 12, the mechanism 4 for fixing and locking the door 2 is brought into the “Open” position. The handle 20 and the rotatable threaded stand 19 of the locking mechanism 3 for locking the locking bracket 3 are removed from the groove 22 of the locking bracket 3. Turn the locking bracket 3 around the axis and open the door 2. The door 2 freely rotates about axis 24 through 180 °, which allows the pallets 28 of the frame to be extended 25 with trays 29 beyond the internal volume of the chamber. On the guides 27 of the frame 25, removable trays 29 are pre-pushed or pushed out of the chamber with pre-loaded for sterilization, for example, surgical or laboratory instruments. Trays 29 can be installed in the frame 25 at five different levels of height.

Close the door 2, for which the locking bracket 3 is rotated around the axis 24 and installed close to the power frame 11. Enter in the groove 22 of the locking bracket 3 a rotary rack 19 and the handle 20 of the locking mechanism 5 of the locking bracket 3.

Locking mechanism 5 of locking bracket 3

- eliminates the possibility of unauthorized (arbitrary) movement of the locking bracket 3 during operation of the camera relative to the door 2, which will lead to depressurization of the camera;

- allows you to adjust the pressure of the door 2 to the power frame 11 with an overpressure inside the chamber up to 90 mm Hg.

By rotating the handle 12 of the mechanism 4 for fixing and locking the door 2, they tightly press the inner surface of the door 2 to the sealing seal 16 around the entire perimeter of the seal, which ensures a reliably high level of tightness of the chamber cavity.

Before sterilization with a compressor (not shown) through the nozzle 8, the chamber is evacuated and atmospheric non-sterile air is removed from the chamber.

Sterilization of surgical and laboratory instruments is carried out, for example, as follows.

Set the maximum concentration of ozone in the chamber. For this, an ozone generator (not shown) through the inlet fitting 7 into the cavity of the sterilization chamber serves an ozone-oxygen mixture. After 60 minutes of supply, the ozone-oxygen mixture in the chamber reaches a predetermined value, for example 25-30 g / m. The supply of the ozone-oxygen mixture is stopped and the instruments are sterilized for 20 minutes.

Before opening the door 2 of the sterilization chamber, the ozone is exhausted and decomposed from the chamber using a set of destructors 6. The ozone-oxygen mixture of the chamber through the outlet fittings 8 and destructors 6 is fed to the compressor input (not shown). From the compressor output, the obtained oxygen (ozone has decomposed to oxygen in destructors 6), oxygen is fed back to the chamber. As a result, after 10 minutes of compressor operation, only sterile oxygen is present in the chamber. After that, open the door 2 of the chamber and take out the sterilized instrument.

The testing of the developed sterilization chamber confirmed the undoubted operational advantages and advantages of the patented chamber compared to known devices of a similar purpose:

- the developed design of the camera is made of ozone-resistant materials (stainless steel, glass, silicone), which leads to an increased life of the camera up to 10 years or more;

- Patented sterilization chamber and its manufacturing technology are simple and economical. The cameras can be made in various sizes, for example, in volumes of 45, 65 and 85 liters, etc. with a single standard size of the door assembly;

- the implementation on the side surfaces and the upper edge of the housing of the inspection windows in the form of removable glass elements allows for damage to be promptly replaced, which also increases the operational life of the camera;

- in the patented sterilization chamber, the ozone-oxygen mixture is supplied to the inlet fitting under pressure, which allows the active gas to be evenly distributed over the entire volume of the chamber, thereby ensuring high quality sterilization of instruments placed in the chamber, etc. items.

Claims (5)

1. A sterilization chamber, comprising a housing with handles for transportation, in the cavity of which a removable frame is placed for installation of removable trays for sterilized objects on its guides, a door mounted to rotate relative to the vertical axis of the chamber, an elastic sealing door seal, a door locking and locking mechanism and destructors installed on the rear wall of the housing for decomposing the exhaust gas mixture and the fitting for supplying and discharging ozone-oxygen or ozone-air mixture, characterized in that the housing of the sterilization chamber is made in the form of a cube or parallelepiped and contains a power door frame that is permanently attached to the end hole of the chamber, an elastic sealing seal is fixed around the perimeter of the power frame of the door, the camera is equipped with a locking bracket and a locking mechanism for locking the locking bracket installed respectively, on the opposite axes of the power door frame with the possibility of rotation relative to the vertical axis of the camera, in the Central part of the locking bracket the door fixing and locking mechanism is mounted, and at the end there is a groove for the rotary threaded stand of the locking mechanism of the locking bracket, which is mounted to interact with the groove of the locking bracket, while the camera door is made of transparent ozone-resistant material, installed behind the door frame on the locking side the bracket and is mounted in a metal holder mounted on a support beam, in the central part of which a thrust bearing is fixed, in the hemispherical recess of which eschen retaining plate and fastened end of the screw shaft locking mechanism and locking of the door, in the shape of a hemisphere. 2. The sterilization chamber according to claim 1, characterized in that the door locking and locking mechanism is made in the form of a three-jaw handle fixed in a housing sleeve that is coupled to a threaded spindle screw that is mounted to move relative to the longitudinal axis of the chamber, the end of the chassis the screw is made in the form of a hemisphere and placed in the corresponding hemispherical recess of the thrust bearing of the door mounting unit, while the hemispherical end of the lead screw and thrust bearing are fixed to each other by a fixing plate Noah. 3. The sterilization chamber according to claim 1, characterized in that the locking mechanism of the locking bracket is made in the form of a rotary threaded rack mounted on the axis of the power frame with the possibility of rotation relative to the vertical axis of the camera, a lock nut is installed on the threaded surface of the rotary rack, and fixed at the end a pen. 4. The sterilization chamber according to claim 1, characterized in that the housing of the chamber is made of sheet stainless steel. 5. The sterilization chamber according to claim 1, characterized in that the camera body is made of stainless steel sheet, inspection windows are made on the side surfaces and the upper face of the case, on which glasses of transparent ozone-resistant material are fixed, the glasses are pressed to the seals by frames and covered with a decorative casing Moreover, in order to ensure the tightness of the glass fastening, the clamping frame interacts with the glasses on the viewing windows of the housing by means of a fixing screw and a support bracket.

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