Alveolar Breath Sampling Device with Cartridge Segmentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current medical devices for sampling end-tidal breath and ambient air lack efficiency in collecting and analyzing alveolar and ambient air samples separately, and do not provide a secure, anonymous data transmission process for diagnostic purposes.
Innovation Solution
A medical device that collects alveolar and ambient air samples using cartridges Cp and Ca, respectively, with a pneumatic circuit and solenoid valves, and automatically purges the system, allowing for secure data transmission and analysis without patient identification, utilizing a graphical interface and mini PC for QR code generation and remote database synchronization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If separate cartridges are used for alveolar and ambient air sampling, then sampling accuracy is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device divides the sampling function into two separate cartridges: a first cartridge for alveolar breath sampling and a second cartridge for ambient air sampling. This segmentation allows independent optimization of each sampling path and ensures accurate separation of the two sample types, directly resolving the contradiction by improving measurement precision through functional division.
Solution Approach 2:
The sampling device integrates multiple functions into a single portable unit: alveolar breath sampling, ambient air sampling, temperature monitoring, data processing, and QR code generation. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate devices while maintaining sampling accuracy, thus improving the precision-quality trade-off.
2Reliability
If automatic purging procedure is implemented, then reliability is improved, but loss of time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device performs an automatic purging procedure before each sampling session to clean the internal pneumatic circuit and remove residual contaminants. This preliminary action ensures the system is ready for accurate sampling without requiring manual intervention, thereby improving reliability while minimizing time loss through automation.
Solution Approach 2:
The purging procedure is executed automatically by the device itself without requiring user intervention. The system self-maintains its internal cleanliness by circulating air through the pneumatic circuit and activating the pump to remove contaminants, thus improving reliability while avoiding the time cost of manual cleaning operations.
3Measurement precision
If QR code identification system is used, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device uses QR codes as a simplified form of digital identification. Instead of complex barcodes or RFID tags, the system generates and prints QR codes that encode sample identification information. This copying approach provides reliable sample tracking and identification while keeping the device design simple and cost-effective.
4Reliability
If heating system is added to prevent condensation, then reliability is improved, but use of energy increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device monitors temperature parameters and activates the heating system only when the temperature drops below a predetermined threshold. By changing the operational state of the heating system based on temperature parameter changes, the system prevents condensation in the pneumatic circuit while minimizing energy consumption during normal operating conditions.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables efficient and reliable collection of alveolar and ambient air samples, ensuring contamination prevention and secure anonymous data transmission for diagnostic purposes, facilitating remote data synchronization and epidemiological investigations.
Implementation Method 1
the passage of air contained in the buffers through the first cartridge Cp and the consequent entrapment of the volatile organic compounds on the adsorbent bed contained in the cartridge itself
Implementation Method 2
The sections of the device in which the air exhaled by the patient flows are brought, through a specially designed heating system, to a temperature which prevents the formation of condensation
Data Source
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AI summary
A sampling device (1) for collecting samples of the alveolar respiratory portion characterized in that it comprises a pneumatic circuit managed/controlled by an electrical interface, wherein said pneumatic circuit comprises: • A plurality of 2-way solenoid valves (V1, V2, V3, V4) • A plurality of 3-way solenoid valves (V5, V6) • At least one patient breath cartridge (Cp) · At least one ambient air cartridge (Ca) • At least one suction pump (P) • At least one flow meter (F) • At least a first and a second buffer (Bl, B2) wherein said cartridges (Ca and Cp) are configured to allow the identification of the differences between the ambient air, also breathed by the patient, and the breath of the patient him/herself, so as to be able to determine whether a contamination is present in the ambient air or it is due to a pathology of the patient; wherein said electrical interface is operatively connected to said pneumatic circuit and further comprises: • At least one heating element (H) · At least one temperature sensor (T) • At least one power supply outside or inside the device itself.