Disposable Flowmeter with Baffle for Airway Resistance Measurement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing medical diagnostics devices for measuring airway resistance are prone to contamination and require complex calibration, especially due to the interaction of exhaled air with non-disposable components, and they do not effectively protect the internal mechanisms from harmful viruses.
Innovation Solution
A respiratory device design featuring a disposable flow tube and shutter in direct contact with exhaled air, with a filter to prevent contamination and a baffle for improved pressure response and simplified linearization, isolating the reusable electro-mechanical module from contamination and enhancing measurement accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If exhaled air directly contacts the flowmeter components, then calibration is simplified, but contamination risk increases
Solution Approach 1:
The flowmeter is divided into disposable components (flow tube, shutter) that contact exhaled air and reusable components (electro-mechanical module, sensor) that remain clean. This segmentation allows the disposable parts to be calibrated once during manufacturing while protecting the reusable parts from contamination, resolving the contradiction between calibration simplicity and contamination risk.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs disposable flow tubes and shutters that are discarded after single use. These inexpensive components can be pre-calibrated during manufacturing without concern for future contamination, while the expensive reusable electro-mechanical module remains protected from viral contamination, solving both the calibration ease and contamination protection requirements.
2Reliability
If disposable components are used for each measurement, then contamination is prevented, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The disposable flow tube and shutter are combined into a single integrated component that is discarded together. This merging reduces the number of separate disposable parts that need to be assembled and tracked, simplifying the overall device structure while maintaining contamination prevention through single-use operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The disposable flow tube acts as an intermediary between the patient's exhaled air and the reusable sensor. This mediator component absorbs the contamination risk, allowing the expensive reusable electro-mechanical module to remain clean and reusable, thus preventing contamination while maintaining reasonable device complexity.
3Measurement precision
If traditional calibration methods are used, then measurement accuracy is achieved, but calibration process becomes complex
Solution Approach 1:
The disposable flow tube and shutter are calibrated during the manufacturing process before being distributed to users. This preliminary calibration action eliminates the need for complex calibration procedures at the point of use, maintaining measurement accuracy while significantly simplifying the calibration process for end users.
Solution Approach 2:
The device incorporates self-calibration features where the disposable components are pre-calibrated to work automatically with the reusable module. This self-service approach maintains measurement precision through factory calibration while eliminating complex user calibration procedures, resolving the contradiction between accuracy and calibration complexity.
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
The solution effectively protects the device from contamination, improves pressure response and flow measurement accuracy, and simplifies the calibration process, allowing for reliable and efficient airway resistance measurements while maintaining the reusable module's integrity.
Implementation Method 1
Due to Bernoulli's effect, drop in pressure (negative pressure relative to ambient) caused by increased air velocity through restriction in the flow tube pulls in (entrains) air through the port. This entrainment effect can be created for example in Venturi or Pitot tube.
Implementation Method 2
a filter to prevent contamination
Data Source
AI summary
A flowmeter has a disposable flow tube and a part of the shutter which are in direct contact with exhaled air and protect the rest of the device from potential contamination with harmful viruses.