ALEXANDRIA, Va., Oct. 21 -- United States Patent no. 12,440,373, issued on Oct. 14, was assigned to AESCULATECH INC. (Los Angeles).

"Device for controlled injection across a variety of material properties" was invented by Niki Bayat (Pasadena, Calif.), Adam Griese (Los Angeles), Roby Menefee (Los Angeles), Rahul Janardhanan (Los Angeles) and Jose Ramirez (Denver).

According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "Described herein is a generalized injection device for delivering formulations of various mechanical properties to precise locations. Of particular interest is the manifestation intended for the application of a thermally responsive hydrogel to the tear duct for the purpose of occlusion, as a treatment f...