Diverter for the flow of liquid in a circuit.

The present invention relates to a diverter for the flow of liquid in a circuit.

It is known that in many circuits which convey liquids, existing in the most varied fields of technology, it is necessary to create, during operation, different conditions for the circulation of said liquid in order to meet different functional requirements.

A typical situation is that which occurs in medical technology, in which circuits exist which are adapted to be connected to a patient for the infusion or extraction of liquid and comprise an extraction pump and a delivery pump for said liquid drawn from a tank; this is the case, for example, of circuits for the infusion or extraction of blood or physiological solution in the left ventricle of a patient during heart surgery.

In such circuits, the extraction and delivery pumps are always in motion, and it is thus the task of the operator to act on the circuit so as to alternately cause the infusion of liquid or the extraction thereof depending on the requirements.

One of the methods adopted by operators according to the prior art in order to act on the circuit is to clamp, by means of conventional forceps, the lines which must be occluded in order to determine the required operating step, but obviously this method does not allow the promptness of intervention which is often required.

Flow diverters have also been proposed based on the presence of a movable element which is in contact with the liquid and is provided with seals defining paths for said liquid within the circuit and capable of alternately providing the required operating steps, but such diverters are not free from the typical drawbacks related to the presence of liquid seals.

What has been described above for the medical field is also true for other fields of technology, and thus the aim of the present invention is to provide a diverter for the flow of liquid in a circuit which offers maximum speed in actuation and simultaneously ensures the absence of leaks in the circuit from the paths selectively followed by the liquid.

The proposed aim is achieved by a diverter for the flow of liquid in a circuit, according to the invention, characterized in that it comprises a plurality of ducts made of deformable material, adapted to be connected to the circuit and inserted in a structure for supporting means adapted to assume two different positions in order to selectively compress, until they collapse and thus occlude, portions of said ducts, creating such occlusions as to determine two different conditions for the circulation of the fluid.

Advantageously, in a medical circuit which is adapted to be connected to a patient and comprises an extraction pump and a delivery pump with recirculation, the diverter according to the invention is characterized in that it comprises a plurality of ducts made of deformable material, in which the duct adapted to be connected to the tube for coupling to the patient has a first branching, one branch whereof is adapted to be connected to the tube for coupling to the extraction pump, and the other branch in turn has, after a portion of appropriate length, a second branching into two branches adapted to be respectively connected to the tube for coupling to the pump for delivery from the tank and to the tube for recirculation to said tank, said plurality of ducts being inserted in a structure for supporting means adapted to selectively compress, until they collapse and thus occlude, the portion comprised between the two branchings and the branch adapted to be connected to the tube for connection to the extraction pump simultaneously with the branch adapted to be connected to the recirculation tube.

Further characteristics and advantages will become apparent from the description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of the invention, illustrated only by way of non-limitative example in the accompanying drawings, wherein: <ul id="ul0001" list-style="none"><li>figure 1 is an exploded view of the diverter according to the invention;</li><li>figure 2 is a view of the diverter in the condition of infusion of liquid to the patient;</li><li>figure 3 is a schematic view of the plurality of ducts in the functional condition of figure 2;</li><li>figure 4 is a view of the diverter in the condition of extraction of liquid from the patient, with simultaneous recirculation of liquid arriving from the delivery pump;</li><li>figure 5 is a schematic view of the plurality of ducts in the functional condition of figure 4.</li></ul>

With reference to the above figures, and in particular to figure 1, it can be immediately seen that the diverter comprises a plurality of ducts made of deformable material, generally indicated by the reference numeral 1, inserted in a structure generally indicated by 2 which supports the lid generally indicated by 3 and has a bottom 4.

Considering the individual elements, it can be seen that the plurality of ducts 1 comprises a duct 5 adapted to be connected to a tube, for coupling to the patient, which is intended to convey, for example, blood or physiological solution to the left ventricle during heart surgery.

Said duct 5 has a first branching 6, and the branch 7 is intended to be connected to the tube for coupling to a pump for extracting liquid from the patient, while the other branch has, after a portion 8, a second branching 9 into two branches.

The branch 10 is intended to be connected to the tube for coupling to a pump for the delivery of the liquid from the tank, and the branch 11 is intended to be connected to the tube for the recirculation of the liquid to the tank.

The plurality of ducts 1 is inserted and appropriately retained in place in adapted fixtures such as 2a, 2b in the structure 2 supporting the lid 3 which is pivoted on the axis 2c. Said lid, which for the sake of convenience in manual actuation is shaped according to two planes 3a, 3b which converge at the edge 3c at the pivoting axis, comprises, at the side 3d which is substantially parallel to said pivoting axis, two brackets 12, 13 adapted to simultaneously compress the two branches 7 and 11 until they collapse and thus occlude, as indicated by 7a, 11a in figure 3, at a stroke limit position of the lid.

At the side 3e opposite to the side 3d with respect to the pivoting axis, the lid 3 comprises the bracket 14 adapted to compress the portion 8 until it collapses and occludes as indicated by 8a in figure 5 at the other stroke limit position of the lid.

When liquid is to be infused to the patient, the operator presses the plane 3a of the lid 3 until it moves to the stroke limit position illustrated in figure 2, with occlusion of the ducts 7 and 11 and exclusive opening of the duct 10 which conveys the liquid sent by the delivery pump, which is always in motion, passing through the branching 9, the portion 8 and the branching 6, to the duct 5 connected to the tube for coupling to the patient, as indicated by the arrows of figure 3.

When liquid is to be extracted from the patient with simultaneous recirculation to the tank of the liquid sent by the delivery pump which, as mentioned, is always in motion, the operator presses the plane 3b until it moves to the stroke limit position indicated in figure 4; in this position the brackets 12 and 13 are disengaged from the ducts 7 and 11 which are thus open like the duct 10, while the portion 8 is instead occluded, so that the liquid sent to the duct 10 by the delivery pump recirculates in 11, and the liquid is extracted from the patient through the duct 7, as indicated by the arrows of figure 5.

From the foregoing it is evident that the device according to the invention offers, with the absence of seals in contact with the liquid, the maximum assurance of efficiency in the correct definition of the paths which must alternately be followed by the liquid within the circuit, and the great promptness and speed of intervention allowed to the operator by the device are furthermore evident.

The described invention is susceptible to numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the inventive concept; all the details may furthermore be replaced with other technically equivalent elements.

In the practical embodiment of the invention, the materials employed, as well as the shapes and dimensions, may be any according to the requirements.

Where technical features mentioned in any claim are followed by reference signs, those reference signs have been included for the sole purpose of increasing the intelligibility of the claims and accordingly, such reference signs do not have any limiting effect on the scope of each element identified by way of example by such reference signs.