Systems and methods for pumping milk from a breast, wherein the milk is expressed from the breast under suction and milk is expulsed from the pumping mechanism to a collection container under positive pressure. In one approach, the breast pump assembly includes a breast adapter and a receptacle configured to cup the breast adapter, and the breast adapter is removable from the receptacle.

A breast milk collection device includes a reservoir volume and an adaptor having one end to receive a woman's breast. The adaptor has a drip tube communicating with the reservoir. A source of cyclical application and relief of vacuum force is applied to the woman's breast located in the adaptor for the expression of breast milk. A one-way assembly permits breast milk to enter the reservoir and to submerge the valve element. The valve assembly includes a flexible barrier having an interior hollow chamber in fluid communication with said cyclical source of vacuum force and relief pressure, the flexible barrier fluidly isolating the source from the reservoir. The flexible barrier inflatably expands when relief pressure is applied to the interior of the flexible barrier, the flexible barrier becoming deflated when a vacuum force is applied to the hollow interior of the flexible barrier.

The combination of a breast pump shield, with its ring, applied to the flange lower end of the shield, and the ring being C shaped in cross-section, having an upper flange, a lower flange, both integrally structured with a base wall. The physiological stimulator integrally formed with the lower flange of the sealing ring extends inwardly and upwardly within the shield, and therein functions as a means to place pressure upon the breast of the mother to help induce and stimulate the flow of breast milk during usage of the associated breast pump.

A method for operating a breastpump unit for expression of human breastmilk and various breast shields for use in this method allow a maximum pumping performance and a minimum pumping duration per pumping session. The breast shield has an inner chamber for receiving a nipple of the breast and also at least one outer chamber which at least partially surrounds the nipple. The inner chamber is subjected to a constant pressure and the at least one outer chamber is subjected to a pulsating pressure.

A breast pump includes a main body, a breast milk suctioning shield, and one or more air pumps. The breast milk suctioning shield is assembled in an accommodation space of the main body and detachably connected to the main body. A front end of the breast milk suctioning shield has a breast shielding portion, and a nipple passage extends from a rear end of a center portion of the breast shielding portion. One or more deformable members and a non-deformable supporting member are assembled with an annular connection portion located between the breast shielding portion and the nipple passage. The air pump has an intake port and an exhaust port. The intake port is controlled by a first valve controller to suction the nipple passage and generate a negative pressure, and the exhaust port is controlled by a second valve controller to inflate or deflate the deformable member.

A breast milk collecting method by stimulating the mammary gland of a breastfeeder to eject breast milk includes providing an audio-playing device to generate an auditory stimulation, providing a video-playing device to generate a visual stimulation, and providing a breast pump to generate a tactile stimulation and collect the breast milk. In this method, the breast pump is placed on a breast of the breastfeeder, and one or more deformable members of the breast bump is inflated or deflated alternately to touch and press the breast so as to mimic a breastfeeding condition to generate the tactile stimulation, so that the pituitary gland of the breastfeeder can be directly stimulated by the multiple sensory stimulations to secret prolatine or oxytocin, thereby allowing the mammary gland of the breastfeeder to eject the breast milk to be collected by the breast pump and treated collectively.

A breast shield for expressing human breast milk. The breast shield includes an outer housing and a flexible inner liner within the outer housing. In use, with the breast shield applied to a breast, the inner liner is in contact with the surface of both the areola and nipple of the breast. The breast shield further includes an outer chamber between the outer housing and the inner liner and an inner chamber within the inner liner. In use, the inner and outer chambers, are subjectable to differential pressure and the differential pressure is operable to cause the inner liner to exert a massaging effect against the surface of both the areola and nipple of a breast.

Systems and methods for pumping milk from a breast, wherein the milk is expressed from the breast under suction and milk is expulsed from the pumping mechanism to a collection container assembly.

A wearable passive suction-based milk collection device comprises a compressible milk pouch with a nipple hole or opening in a rear face of the compressible milk pouch. The rear face of the compressible milk pouch is configured to seal against at least part of the user's breast when the pouch is compressed by a user in order to create a negative air pressure inside the pouch, providing suction onto the nipple thereby drawing milk from the nipple for collection in the milk pouch. The device is shaped, at least in part, to fit inside a bra.

A breast pump device and associated methods for extracting breast milk are disclosed. A pump head comprises an external shell with an elastic membrane disposed and bonded therein to define at least one hermetically sealed chamber. Manipulation of the elastic membrane, for example, by adjusting suction or pressure in the sealed chamber or within an interior volume defined by the elastic membrane permits radial mechanical compression (positive pressure) to be applied to a nipple positioned in the pump head to simulate compression of the nipple by the infant's tongue and simultaneously permits axial hydraulic or pneumatic suction (negative pressure) to be applied to the nipple to simulate the infant's minimum intra-oral vacuum. The breast pump device of the present invention can generate these simultaneous compressions and suctions with a single vacuum source, which may be an electric pump or a hand-operated mechanical pump.