Breathing Assistance Guard With Flexible Liquid Chamber Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing breathing assistance apparatuses face challenges in securely and efficiently accommodating and replacing liquid chambers without requiring disassembly, which can complicate maintenance and hygiene protocols.
Innovation Solution
A breathing assistance apparatus with a housing featuring a recess and a guard comprising a flexible barrier that moves between covering and access positions, allowing secure retention and easy replacement of liquid chambers without disassembly, using biasing devices to maintain the barrier in the covering position.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a fixed guard structure is used to secure liquid chambers, then security and stability are improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to difficulty in replacement
Solution Approach 1:
The guard structure transitions from a static fixed position to a dynamic movable position. The biasing device enables the guard to move between a first position that secures the liquid chamber and a second position that facilitates removal, allowing the same structure to provide both security during operation and ease of replacement during maintenance.
2Reliability
If disassembly is required to replace liquid chambers, then security and stability are improved, but device complexity worsens due to additional assembly steps
Solution Approach 1:
The guard structure is segmented into movable and fixed portions, allowing independent movement of the guard while the housing remains stationary. This segmentation enables the guard to be actuated separately to release liquid chambers without requiring disassembly of the entire housing or other components.
3Ease of operation
If a movable barrier is used to facilitate liquid chamber replacement, then ease of operation is improved, but reliability worsens due to potential failure to secure chambers
Solution Approach 1:
The biasing device provides self-actuating functionality that automatically moves the guard between secured and accessible positions. When a liquid chamber is inserted, the biasing device automatically moves the guard to the first position to secure it; when force is applied during removal, the guard automatically moves to the second position to facilitate extraction, eliminating the need for manual intervention.
Data Source
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AI summary
A breathing assistance apparatus 10 has a housing 100 with a recess 108. A guard 200 is mounted to the housing 10, the guard having a base 201 and a barrier 251. At least part of the base 201 is flexible. The barrier 251 is movable between a covering position in which the barrier 251 partly covers the recess 108 and an access position in which the recess 108 is less covered or is uncovered by the barrier 251. Said at least part of the base 201 is configured to flex as the barrier 251 is moved between the covering position and the access position.