Syringe safety assembly

Abstract

Systems, devices, and methods are provided for providing safe syringe assemblies for injections. The syringe assemblies include a shielding mechanism that covers a syringe needle after an injection is delivered, thereby reducing the risk of a subsequent accidental stab from the needle. The shielding mechanism has a pre-injection configuration in which the needle extends beyond the housing and a post-injection configuration in which at least one component of the syringe assembly covers the needle. In some implementations, the syringe assembly includes a lock that inhibits the assembly from returning to the pre-injection configuration once an injection is delivered. The syringe assemblies may also include a bevel orientation mechanism that allows a user to align a needle bevel to accurately insert a needle for injection.

1 . A syringe assembly, comprising:
 a housing having a retaining clip and an inner chamber with a first opening for receiving a syringe and a second opening to allow a needle of the syringe to extend beyond the housing;   a first sheath positioned within the housing;   a spring that exerts a force biasing the housing in a direction towards the second opening of the housing and biasing the first sheath in a direction towards the first opening of the housing; and   a retainer that moves in a direction perpendicular to the spring force to release the retaining clip upon actuation of the syringe assembly.   
     
     
         2 . The syringe assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the retaining clip is static and does not move relative to the housing when the syringe assembly is actuated. 
     
     
         3 . The syringe assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the syringe assembly is actuated by the depression of a plunger into the syringe. 
     
     
         4 . The syringe assembly of  claim 3 , wherein the plunger contacts the retainer and exerts a force that causes the retainer to move perpendicular to the spring force. 
     
     
         5 . The syringe assembly of  claim 3 , wherein:
 the plunger contacts an intermediate actuator; and   the intermediate actuator contacts the retainer and exerts a force that causes the retainer to move perpendicular to the spring force.   
     
     
         6 . The syringe assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the syringe assembly moves from an unshielded configuration to a shielded configuration upon actuation of the syringe assembly and the first sheath includes a locking mechanism that locks the housing and first sheath in the shielded configuration and prevents the syringe assembly from returning to the unshielded configuration. 
     
     
         7 . The syringe assembly of  claim 6 , wherein the locking mechanism comprises a shelf on the housing that contacts legs on the first sheath. 
     
     
         8 . The syringe assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising an outer top at the first opening of the housing, wherein the first sheath is held within the housing by the outer top. 
     
     
         9 . The syringe assembly of  claim 8 , wherein the outer top is configured to receive a syringe inserted into the syringe assembly. 
     
     
         10 . The syringe assembly of  claim 9 , wherein an opening of the outer top is shaped to match a shape of a collar of an inserted syringe. 
     
     
         11 . The syringe assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising a second sheath positioned within the housing. 
     
     
         12 . The syringe assembly of  claim 11 , wherein the first sheath includes a locking mechanism comprising legs on the first sheath that contact a shelf on the second sheath. 
     
     
         13 . The syringe assembly of  claim 12 , wherein the legs are angled to allow the legs to deflect as the shelf passes the legs when the first sheath and second sheath move from an unshielded configuration to a shielded configuration and prevent subsequent deflection, blocking the shelf from moving back past the legs once the syringe assembly is in the shielded configuration. 
     
     
         14 . The syringe assembly of  claim 11 , wherein the spring is positioned at a top opening of the second sheath. 
     
     
         15 . The syringe assembly of  claim 11 , wherein the spring contacts the second sheath directly to exert a biasing force on the second sheath. 
     
     
         16 . The syringe assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the spring surrounds at least a portion of a syringe inserted into the syringe assembly. 
     
     
         17 . The syringe assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising a top cover coupled to the housing. 
     
     
         18 . The syringe assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the syringe is pre-filled with a dosage of medication. 
     
     
         19 . The syringe assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the syringe is empty and configured to be filled with medication by a user prior to injection. 
     
     
         20 . A method of making a syringe assembly, comprising:
 providing a housing having a retaining clip, said housing having an inner chamber with a first opening for receiving a syringe and a second opening to allow a needle of the syringe to extend beyond the housing;   positioning a retainer to interact with the retaining clip, wherein the retainer moves in a direction perpendicular to a spring force to release the retaining clip upon actuation of a syringe;   placing a sheath within the housing; and   positioning a spring to exert a force biasing the housing in a direction towards the second opening of the housing and biasing the sheath in a direction towards the first opening of the housing.   
     
     
         21 - 38 . (canceled) 
     
     
         39 . A syringe assembly, comprising:
 a housing having an inner chamber with a first opening for receiving a syringe and a second opening to allow a needle of the syringe to extend beyond the housing;   a sheath positioned within the housing;   a spring that exerts a force biasing the housing in a direction towards the second opening of the housing and biasing the sheath in a direction towards the first opening of the housing;   a locking mechanism that resists the biasing force of the spring; and   a plate that rotates to release the locking mechanism upon actuation of the syringe assembly.