West China Hospital Licenses Semi-Automatic Surgical Instrument Pre-Processing System for RMB 160,000

Recently, West China Hospital of Sichuan University released a public notice, proposing to“A Semi-Automatic Preprocessor for Surgical Instruments”The invention patent is licensed to the industry party for use. The specific transaction method is implementation licensing, with an agreement amount of160,000 yuan。

In clinical medical practice, surgical site infections have always been a significant risk factor threatening patients’ lives and health and affecting the quality of medical care. As the first critical line of defense against surgical infections, the standardization and effectiveness of pre-treatment for surgical instruments directly determine the quality of subsequent cleaning, disinfection, and sterilization processes, thereby influencing the safety of instrument reuse and patient treatment outcomes.

# Pre-treatment of Surgical InstrumentsPre-treatment of surgical instruments refers to the preliminary processing performed immediately after use, aimed at enhancing the efficacy of subsequent cleaning and sterilization, minimizing damage to instruments caused by contaminants, and reducing the risk of cross-infection. Its core objective is to promptly decompose organic contaminants such as blood, tissue fluids, and mucus, thereby preventing the formation of biofilms on instrument surfaces due to dried residues.

Once such biofilms form, they not only hinder the effective contact between disinfecting agents and microorganisms, significantly compromising sterilization efficacy and substantially increasing the risk of infection, but also cause continuous corrosion to instrument surfaces, thereby shortening instrument service life and raising hospitals’ medical supply costs.

Furthermore, standardized and efficient pre-treatment can effectively minimize direct contact between operators and contaminants, thereby reducing the risk of occupational exposure. Meanwhile, it shortens the duration of subsequent cleaning processes and improves the pass rate of instrument cleaning, playing an irreplaceable and significant role in optimizing hospital operational efficiency and enhancing overall medical benefits.

However, the traditional preoperative preparation protocols for surgical instruments currently widely adopted in clinical practice have many significant shortcomings and are difficult to meet the requirements of modern medicine for precision, efficiency, and safety.

Currently,The mainstream preprocessing workflow is as follows:After the procedure, medical staff will rinse contaminated instruments under running water to remove visible blood stains from their surfaces. Subsequently, the instruments are placed in a standard container and soaked in multi-enzyme detergent for at least 2 minutes, or a moisturizer is directly sprayed onto the instrument surfaces using a manual spray bottle. For instruments that cannot be cleaned immediately, repeated application of the moisturizer is used solely to delay the drying of contaminants.

This traditional model, which relies on manual operations, has significant drawbacks:

First, the soaking time relies entirely on manual judgment and control.Lack of Precise Quantitative StandardsExcessive soaking time can cause detergents to corrode instruments, while insufficient soaking fails to adequately break down organic contaminants, resulting in incomplete pre-cleaning and posing risks for subsequent sterilization processes.

Second, consumables such as multi-enzyme detergents and moisturizers are relatively costly, and during manual addition or spraying, they are prone toUneven Usage and Severe Wastesuch issues. This not only increases the operational costs of hospitals but also makes it difficult to ensure that all instruments receive uniform and effective processing.

Third,Lack of Automated Batch Processing Capabilities. When facing large batches of surgical instruments due to high surgical volumes, manual processing is inefficient and labor-intensive, and the quality of processing is susceptible to subjective factors such as operator fatigue and oversight, thereby further increasing the risk of infection and instrument wear.

Fourth,Lack of Closed-Loop Management in the Handling Process, making it impossible to record and trace key parameters such as soaking time and reagent dosage, which is detrimental to the comprehensive control of medical quality.

Therefore, the development of a surgical instrument pre-processing device that integrates precision, efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and universality has become the key to addressing industry pain points and meeting urgent clinical needs.

To address the shortcomings of traditional solutions and fill gaps in market demand, our semi-automatic surgical instrument pre-treatment machine adopts “precise control, high efficiency and convenience, and cost-effectiveness” as its core design philosophy. It has achieved multiple innovative breakthroughs in technical architecture, functional implementation, and structural design, thereby establishing comprehensive competitive advantages.

InControl Mode, the device innovatively adopts“Electronic Control Automatic + Manual Emergency”Dual-mode design achieves a dual enhancement in operational flexibility and scenario adaptability.

On the one hand,Via Intelligent Control Panel, operators can pre-set key parameters such as soaking time, the ratio of detergent to water, and the timing of waste liquid discharge. The equipment automatically completes the entire process, including lid opening and closing, lifting and lowering of the soaking basket, precise dispensing of reagents, instrument soaking, and collection and discharge of waste liquid. This eliminates the need for continuous manual intervention throughout the process, effectively avoiding subjective human errors and ensuring the standardization and consistency of the pretreatment procedure; on the other hand, the equipment is equipped withFoot-Operated Pressure Plate Mechanism, in the event of an emergency or when emergency operations are required, operators can directly drive the lifting and lowering of the immersion basket by stepping on the foot pedal, thereby rapidly completing the loading and unloading of instruments, which greatly enhances the practicality of the device in complex clinical scenarios.

AtCore Function OptimizationIn this regard, the device directly addresses the core pain points of traditional solutions, achieving two key breakthroughs:

First, the soaking time can be precisely controlled. The electronic control system strictly enforces the preset soaking duration; once the time elapses, it automatically drives the soaking basket to rise, removing the instruments from the soaking solution. This fundamentally eliminates instrument corrosion caused by excessive soaking time, while ensuring adequate decomposition of contaminants and guaranteeing effective pre-treatment.

Second, the application of moisturizers is highly efficient and energy-saving. The equipment innovatively incorporates a liquid distribution pipe combined with evenly spaced nozzles within a sealed processing chamber, working in conjunction with a precisely controlled pump system to uniformly and quantitatively spray the moisturizer onto the surface of medical instruments. Compared with traditional manual spraying methods, this approach not only delivers more uniform and longer-lasting moisturizing effects but also reduces moisturizer consumption by over 30%, significantly lowering the cost of medical consumables.

InStructural Design, the device balances practicality, portability, and safety:

High-strength casters are installed at the base of the device, facilitating flexible movement and deployment between different areas such as operating rooms and sterile supply centers, without the need for a fixed installation space;

Built-in independent waste liquid tank, connected to the soaking tank via dedicated piping, works with solenoid valves to precisely control waste discharge, achieving centralized collection and compliant disposal of contaminants while preventing secondary pollution from waste leakage;

Meanwhile, the equipment constructs an automated instrument basket transfer system through the coordinated linkage of mechanical structures such as telescopic motors, rotary motors, threaded rods, and guide rods, enabling the batch handling of instruments."Soak - Transfer - Moisturize"Continuous Operation – Upon completion of the soaking cycle, the equipment automatically transfers the instrument basket to the holding area, where it undergoes humidification treatment via a spray nozzle system. This significantly enhances the processing efficiency for batches of instruments, making it particularly suitable for medical institutions with high surgical volumes.

Compared with similar products on the market, this patented technology has established a distinct competitive advantage through precise market positioning and core technological strengths, successfully filling the market gap between “traditional manual tools” and “high-end fully automated equipment.”

Compared with traditional manual pre-processing tools, this device achieves a leapfrog improvement from "manual extensive operations" to "intelligent precise control," thoroughly overcoming core challenges such as uncontrolled soaking times, uneven reagent usage, and low batch processing efficiency, while simultaneously reducing manual labor intensity and lowering the risk of occupational exposure.

Meiyajie Semi-automatic Surgical Instrument Pre-treatment Machine,Focused on the processing of contaminated surgical instruments in hospital settings, this equipment is characterized by its high-efficiency spray washing and compatibility with a wide variety of instrument types. Equipped with a nozzle-based spray cleaning system, it effectively removes stubborn residues from instrument surfaces and crevices. Integrating a complete workflow comprising pre-cleaning, spray washing, rinsing, disinfection and lubrication, and drying, the device meets the pre-treatment requirements for various medical devices, including standard surgical instruments, respiratory and anesthesia tubing, and humidifier bottles.

Jinnick JK Series Semi-Automatic Preprocessor,It precisely meets the usage requirements of small and medium-sized hospitals and private institutions, offering both convenience and practicality. The device employs imported PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) technology and features a 7-inch color touchscreen as the human-machine interface, with multiple pre-set programs available for flexible selection. Its modular design accommodates the needs of different departments, enabling not only the processing of conventional surgical instruments but also high-pressure spraying, automatic irrigation, and full-immersion disinfection for endoscopes.

Getinge AER 4400As a high-end, semi-automatic pre-cleaning machine dedicated to endoscopes, it holds a core share of the global premium market, leveraging strict regulatory compliance and precise processing technology.

This device strictly adheres to international standards for cleaning and disinfection, focusing on the pre-treatment of flexible endoscopes such as gastroscopes and colonoscopes. Leveraging precise enzyme control technology and a high-pressure perfusion system, it achieves comprehensive cleaning of luminal components, including instrument channels and suction channels, while also providing efficient disinfection and drying functions. Its core advantage lies in its ability to process instruments with complex lumens, effectively reducing the risk of cross-infection associated with endoscopy.

*Patent transaction information is provided by Zhongji Institute.