US3406690A - Pediatric urine collector - Google Patents

Description

Oct 22, 1968 A. A. IGEL ETAL. 3,406,690

PEDIATRIC URINE COLLECTOR Filed May 24, 1965 INVENTOPS ANTHONY A. IGEL .GEORGE E. LIESMANN ADOLPH POKRAS BY a W United States Patent ice 3,406,690 PEDIATRIC URINE COLLECTOR Anthony A. Igel, St. Louis, Mo., and George E. Liesmann, Milwaukee, and Adolph Pokras, Mequon, Wis., assignors to Brunswick Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Filed May 24, 1965, Ser. No. 457,921 4 Claims. (Cl. 128-295) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A pediatric urine collector is taught which has a structural shape which conforms more readily to the natural uro-genital area of an infant. The top and bottom seams of the bag are transverse to the plane of the primary aperture so that when the collector is attached to the infant a triangular shaped top front surface of the bag is in contact with the infant instead of a broad rectangular shaped surface. In this way, the likelihood of the bag becoming detached by leg or body movement is reduced. The collector also employs a plurality of small openings around the primary aperture through which adhesive acts to grip a foam pad to the inside of the collector bag. The adhesive on the bag serves to hold the bag against the body of an infant.

The present invention refers to pediatric urine collectors and to a method of making such collectors.

Since it is often not practical or desirable to catheterize infants or small children, pediatric urine collectors have been developed to obtain urine samples. Such a pediatric urine collector is disclosed in the US. Patent 2,877,769 issued to E. J. Hill. Urine collectors are constructed of flexible plastics in order not to injure the infant should the infant be restless or be active and in order to be as economical to purchase as possible so that they may be disposable.

The present invention provides a plastic pediatric urine collector having an improved construction which is simpler and more economic to assemble.

Thus it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved pediatric urine collector.

A further object is to provide a disposable, flexible pediatric un'ne collector having an internal pad partially surrounding an aperture for receiving the uro-genital organ of an infant and a film of adhesive for securing the collector to the infant wherein the film of adhesive also secures the pad against the inner surface of the collector.

An additional object is to provide a new and improved method of making a pediatric urine collector.

Another object is to provide a method of assembling a pediatric urine collector having an internal pad wherein the pad is secured in place by an externally applied film of adhesive which adheres directly to the collector and to the pad through holes punched around a primary aperture which is designed to receive the uro-genital organ of an infant.

Further objects and advantages will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevational view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a front elevational view of the embodiment illustrated in FIGURE 1 with a protective shield removed to expose a film of adhesive;

FIGURE 3 is a side elevational view of the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGURES 1 and 2 with a protective shield partially removed to expose a film of adhesive;

FIGURE 4 is a partial sectional view of the embodiment illustrated in FIGURES l-3;

3,406,690 Patented Oct. 22, 1968 FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGURES l-4 being applied to a male infant; and

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view of the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGURES 14 being applied to a female infant.

While this invention is susceptible of embodiment in many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and will be herein described in detail, an embodiment of the invention with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the embodiment illustrated. The scope of the invention will be pointed out in the appended claims.

As described in the aforementioned US. Patent 2,877,- 769, a pad is secured around a portion of a primary aperture for receiving the uro-genital organ of an infant to prevent the flexible plastic collector from tending to seal over the vulva of a female patient while the collector is adhesively secured in position. The present invention makes it possible to secure such a pad in the desired position without requiring a separate adhesive or securing means other than the film of adhesive which is applied to the external surface of the collector. Thus, the work of internally securing pads by one method or another to the inside wall of the collector is saved because it is no longer necessary to insert a securing means inside the collector.

Referring now to the figures, a flexible and foldable plastic tube 10 has a primary aperture 11 punched through it. A series of smaller apertures 12-18 are punched through the tube 10 around the primary aperture 11. Although polyethylene has been found to be a preferred material for the tube 10, any other suitable flexible and foldable plastic material may be utilized. A film of modified acrylic resin base pressure sensitive adhesive 20 is applied to the outer surface of the tube 10 around the periphery of the aperture 11, as illustrated in FIGURE 2. Prior to the placement of the film 20 on the outerside of the tube, a polyurethane foam pad 21 is placed against the inner surface of the plastic tube 10 so that it surrounds a portion of the aperture 1 1, preferably surrounding the upper and side edges of the aperture, as illustrated in FIGURES 2 and 4-. When the film 20 is placed on the outer surface of the tube 10 covering the apertures 12-18, the film will penerate these apertures and adhere to the surface of the pad 21. FIGURE 4 illustrates portions of the film 20, 2%25 which have penetrated the respective apertures 12-13 and 17-18 to adhere to the pad 21. Although polyurethane foam is a preferred material for the pad 21 and modified acrylic resin base pressure sensitive adhesive is a preferred adhesive for the film 20, those skilled in the art will recognize that many other materials are presently available which can be substituted for the material of the pad and of the film.

In order to protect the adhesive film 20 prior to the utilization of the urine collector, a paper shield composed of two sections 26 and 27 is placed over the film 20 as is best illustrated in FIGURE 1 and is adhered to by the adhesive film 20. The tube 10 is closed by an upper transversely sealed end 28 adjacent the aperture 11, and by a transversely sealed lower end 29 which are both normal to the aperture 11. Thus the tube 10 becomes a collector or bag having only one primary aperture which is designed to receive the uro-genital organ of an infant.

The sequence of operations for assembling the urine collector is to punch the primary aperture 11 and the surrounding apertures 12-18 in the tube 10, place the pad 21 over the holes 12-18 and against the inner surface of the tube 10, apply the film 20 over the outer surface of the tube 10 surrounding the aperture 11 and covering and penetrating the holes 12-18, placing the shield sections 26 and 27 onto the film 20, and transversely heat sealing the upper and lower ends of the tube 10 in the direction normal to the aperture 11.

The urine collectors are preferably packaged in sterile containers and are preferably maintained in a sterile condition until they are to be utilized to collect urine samples. For the purpose of shipment and handling, the tube 10 is folded at each side to produce folds 30 and 31 as illustrated in FIGURES 13. Transverse folds 32 and 33 are created adjacent the sealed ends 28 and 29. When the transverse folds are created, such rectangular folds as 34-37 must be created. Thus the collector may be packaged and shipped fiat as illustrated in FIGURES 1, 2 and 4. When the collector is to be utilized it is removed from its packaging and the lower sealed end 29 pulled out to expand the collector as illustrated in FIGURE 3. The shield sections 26 and 27 may then be peeled off as illustrated in FIGURE 3, to expose the film 20 as illustrated in FIGURE 2. The aperture 11 is then placed around the uro-genital organ of a male infant as illustrated in FIGURE 5 or the uro-genital organ of a female infant as illustrated in FIGURE 6, and the film 20 is pressed against the skin of the infant to form a seal between the collector and the infants skin. When the urine collector is applied, the upper sealed end 28 may be pulled out to aid in expanding the collector, as illustrated in FIGURE 5.

Although the preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated in the figures, those skilled in the art will recognize that many variations of the invention may be utiilzed which are within the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A pediatric urine collector comprising:

a polyethylene tube having an outer surface, an inner surface, a transversely sealed upper end, a trans versely sealed lower end, a primary aperture sufiiciently large to surround a childs uro-genital organ adjacent the upper end and a series of apertures smaller than said primary aperture surrounding said primary aperture, said transverse seals being disposed generally parallel to each other and normal to said primary aperture,

a film of modified acrylic resin base pressure sensitive adhesive on the outer surface of said tube surrounding said primary aperture and covering said smaller apertures,

a polyurethane foam pad partially surrounding said primary aperture on the inner surface of said tube and adhering to said adhesive film through said holes, and

a protective paper covering surrounding said primary 4 aperture and adhering to said adhesive film to protect said film until it is removed to apply said primary aperture around a childs uro-genital organ and said adhesive film onto the childs skin around said organ.

2. A pediatric urine collector comprising:

a foldable tube having an outer surface, an inner surface, a transversely sealed upper end, a transversely sealed lower end, a primary aperture sufficiently large to surround a childs uro-genital organ adjacent the upper end and a series of apertures smaller than said primary aperture surrounding said primary aperture, said transverse seals being disposed generally parallel to each other and normal to said primary aperture,

a film of adhesive on the outer surface of said tube surrounding said primary aperture and covering said smaller apertures, and

a foam pad partially surrounding said primary aperture on the inner surface of said tube and being adhered to by said adhesive film through said holes.

3. A pediatric urine collector comprising:

a tube having an outer surface, an inner surface, a sealed upper end, a sealed lower end, a primary aperture sufiiciently large to surround a childs urogenital organ and a series of apertures surrounding said primary aperture,

a film of adhesive on the outer surface of said tube surrounding said primary aperture and covering said series of apertures, and

a pad partially surrounding said primary aperture on the inner surface of said tube and being adhered to by said adhesive film through said holes.

4. A pediatric urine collector comprising:

a bag having an outer surface, an inner surface, a primary aperture sufiiciently large to surround a childs uro-genital organ and a series of apertures,

a film of adhesive on the outer surface of said bag covering said series of apertures, and

a polyurethane foam pad partially surrounding said primary aperture on the inner surface of said tube and adhering to said adhesive film through said holes.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS FOREIGN PATENTS 631,987 12/1961 Canada.

CHARLES F. ROSENBAUM, Primary Examiner.

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