Michael D Armstrong

US Patent:

53341732, Aug 2, 1994

Filed:

Apr 1, 1993

Appl. No.:

8/041489

Inventors:

Michael Armstrong - Baltimore MD

International Classification:

A61M 500

US Classification:

604263

Abstract:

A protective cap (13') for a needle (12) has a stabilizing foot (16), the bottom surface (17) of which is provided with an adhesive (18). When the needle (12) is removed from its sterile package (11), a protective cover (19) is peeled off the foot (16) to expose the adhesive (18). The foot (16) may then be adhered (temporarily) to a suitable supporting surface, such as a patient's roll-away table (14), so that the cap (13') is substantially in an upright or fixed position and will not fall over even if the table (14) is moved or jarred. After use on the patient, the used needle (12') is inserted within the cap (13') with a "snap" or other suitable interference fit and, thereafter, the assembled cap (13') and used needle (12') are simply lifted or otherwise removed from the table (14) and tossed into a suitable "sharps" container (23) for ultimate disposal. In a preferred embodiment (FIGS. 12A-12C) the protective layer (29) is automatically pulled away from the foot (16) as the needle and cap assembly (10) is removed from the sterile package (11).