Medical Air Separator with Driven Actuator for Microbubble Removal
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing air separators in extracorporeal blood treatment systems are ineffective in removing gas and air bubbles, particularly microbubbles, at higher blood flow rates due to insufficient residence time and centrifugal forces, leading to potential organ damage and cognitive impairments in hemodialysis patients.
Innovation Solution
A medical-technical air separator with a hollow-cylindrical air separation chamber designed for spiral blood flow, enhanced by a driven actuator that increases rotation, allowing for longer residence time and higher centripetal forces, effectively separating microbubbles across a wide range of blood flow rates.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a conventional air separation chamber is used with lateral or tangential inflow to create vortex, then air bubbles can be separated at low flow rates, but at higher flow rates the residence time becomes insufficient and separation effectiveness decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the dynamics principle by introducing a driven actuator that actively rotates the air separation chamber. This dynamic rotation amplifies the vortex effect and centrifugal forces throughout the chamber, creating stronger separation forces that remain effective across a wide range of blood flow rates. The active rotation compensates for the reduced residence time at higher flow rates by intensifying the separation mechanism.
2Productivity
If blood flow rate is increased to improve treatment productivity, then more blood can be processed, but air bubble separation becomes insufficient due to shorter residence time
Solution Approach 1:
The driven actuator dynamically rotates the chamber to maintain effective separation forces even at high blood flow rates. This active rotation ensures that centrifugal forces remain sufficient to separate microbubbles from blood regardless of the flow rate, allowing high productivity without sacrificing separation reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the operational parameters by actively controlling the rotation speed of the chamber through the driven actuator. By adjusting the rotation speed, the system can optimize separation effectiveness for different blood flow rates, maintaining reliable microbubble removal whether the flow rate is high or low.
3Device complexity
If the air separation chamber is designed without active rotation to simplify the device, then the device complexity is reduced, but separation effectiveness at higher flow rates becomes insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the passive mechanical design (relying solely on natural vortex from lateral inflow) with an active driven rotation system. The driven actuator provides controlled rotation that reliably generates the necessary centrifugal forces for effective separation, replacing insufficient natural convection with active mechanical rotation.
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 achieves significantly improved separation of air or gas bubbles, especially microbubbles, ensuring reliable removal at both higher and lower blood flow rates, reducing the risk of organ damage and cognitive impairments.
Implementation Method 1
Due to the centrifugal or centripetal forces acting in this flow pattern, blood is forced radially outward, while air, and thus also air or gas bubbles, remain in the center of the rotating flow and the chamber
Implementation Method 2
the air separator has a driven actuator which is arranged and/or designed to amplify the rotation of the spiral blood flow... allowing for longer residence time and higher centripetal forces
Data Source
Figure 1~2
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Figure 5~7
AI summary
The invention relates to a medical air separator (1) for separating gas bubbles, in particular micro gas bubbles, from blood passed through the air separator (1), comprising a substantially hollow cylindrical air separation chamber (2) with a blood inlet (7) arranged longitudinally (6) on one side of the air separation chamber (2) and a blood outlet (8) formed longitudinally (6) on the other side, wherein the air separation chamber (2) is designed such that a blood flow (29) rotating substantially spirally about a longitudinal axis (29) of the chamber (2) can be formed from the blood inlet (7) to the blood outlet (8), wherein the air separator (1) has a driven actuator (11) for increasing the rotation of the spiral blood flow (29).It further relates to a blood tubing set and a device for extracorporeal blood treatment with such an air separator (1) and a method for separating gas bubbles from blood passed through the air separator (1).