18910590. VALVE SEALS FOR ENDOSCOPES (Boston Scientific Scimed, Inc.)
VALVE SEALS FOR ENDOSCOPES
Organization Name
Boston Scientific Scimed, Inc.
Inventor(s)
Rosangel Aimee Ramos Espinoza of Boston MA US
Nathan Thomas Cummings of Worcester MA US
VALVE SEALS FOR ENDOSCOPES
This abstract first appeared for US patent application 18910590 titled 'VALVE SEALS FOR ENDOSCOPES
Original Abstract Submitted
An endoscope (e.g., a duodenoscope) includes a bifluidic valve for controlling the flow of water and air through a flexible tubular probe to respectively irrigate or insufflate an internal cavity of a patient. Some examples of the bifluidic valve include a flexible valve seal that allows air to flow in one direction but not in reverse. Different examples of the valve seal include various features, such as a set of overlapping flexible flaps arranged in a spiral, a rubber-like disc with an array of cross-slit perforations that open in response to a positive pressure differential across the disc, a resiliently expandable cone with multiple concentric ridges, a valve spool encircled by an elastic tubular piece that can expand radially to open an air passageway in the valve spool, and an elastic tube that in reaction to being compressed or otherwise shortened bulges radially outward to block an annular air passageway.