MEMS Respiratory Sensor Lip Placement for Ventilator Synchronization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current noninvasive ventilation systems face challenges in accurately synchronizing with patients' spontaneous breaths due to delayed detection of inspiratory and expiratory cycles, leading to suboptimal patient-ventilator synchronization, particularly with nasal masks that introduce variations in respiratory data acquisition and indirect sensing methods.
Innovation Solution
A noninvasive spontaneous respiratory monitoring device utilizing micro-machined MEMS thermal sensing elements integrated with flow and carbon dioxide sensors, placed on the upper lip, provides real-time data on breath flow rate and direction, and carbon dioxide concentration via wireless transmission, enabling precise synchronization between patient and ventilator.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a sealing face mask is used for noninvasive ventilation, then the patient can receive mechanical ventilation support, but the mask becomes obtrusive and reduces patient compliance and mobility
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the sensing function from the traditional sealing face mask by placing a flow sensor on the patient's lip. This allows the mask to be opened or removed without compromising the ability to detect respiratory flow, thereby improving patient compliance and mobility while maintaining ventilation support effectiveness
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a flow sensor as an intermediary device placed on the lip to detect respiratory flow. This intermediary enables accurate detection of patient's spontaneous breaths without requiring a sealing face mask, thus resolving the contradiction between effective ventilation support and patient comfort/mobility
2Reliability
If sensors are placed away from the patient to detect respiratory patterns, then the system can monitor breathing, but the detection becomes delayed and synchronization with spontaneous breaths is poor
Solution Approach 1:
The patent places the flow sensor on the patient's lip, which is the earliest point where exhaled breath becomes accessible. This preliminary positioning allows the system to detect the very beginning of exhalation, eliminating detection delays and enabling precise synchronization with the patient's spontaneous breaths
3Ease of operation
If a nasal mask is used for oxygen therapy, then the patient can move freely with minimal obstruction to natural respiratory passage, but the mask introduces variations in respiratory data acquisition and is less effective for mechanical ventilation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the respiratory detection function from the nasal mask by placing a flow sensor directly on the lip. This eliminates the variations in data acquisition introduced by the nasal mask's open space character while maintaining patient mobility and natural breathing, and enables accurate detection for mechanical ventilation synchronization
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 device achieves high-accuracy, real-time monitoring of respiratory patterns, improving patient-ventilator synchronization, enhancing treatment compliance, effectiveness, and tolerance by directly measuring respiratory data with minimal obtrusiveness, even in mobile patients, and allowing for continuous monitoring of respiratory failure progression.
Implementation Method 1
micro-machined MEMS thermal sensing technology that can measure the continuous temperature change of respiratory gases
Implementation Method 2
The sensors utilized were micro-machined thermopiles
Data Source
AI summary
The invention discloses a noninvasive spontaneous respiratory monitoring device, which comprises a sensing patch that can be placed in proximity to the nasal airway of a patient. The sensing patch measures both the flow profile and carbon dioxide concentration of a patient and wirelessly transmits the acquired data to the control circuitry for synchronizing the respiratory support of a mechanical ventilator. The device can also be used as a standalone unit for monitoring for the diagnosis purposes the spontaneous respiratory function of a patient with respiratory dysfunction.