Passive Fluid Flow Regulator Membrane With Multiple Through Holes
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing passive fluid flow regulators for drug delivery and cerebrospinal fluid drainage face challenges in maintaining constant flow rates due to varying reservoir pressures and are costly and complex to manufacture, with existing solutions prone to overdrainage and requiring surgical adjustments.
Innovation Solution
A passive fluid flow regulator with a membrane featuring multiple through holes that allow fluid flow across a range of pressure thresholds, ensuring a substantially linear and constant flow rate, and a bi-directional design for easier manufacturing and flexibility, using silicon or Pyrex substrates with precise hole distribution for optimal fluidic resistance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a single through hole is used in the membrane, then the device structure is simple, but the flow rate cannot be maintained constant across varying pressure ranges
Solution Approach 1:
The membrane is segmented into multiple through holes (at least three) with different diameters instead of using a single hole. Each hole contributes to flow regulation at different pressure ranges, enabling the device to maintain constant flow rate across a broader pressure spectrum while keeping the overall structure relatively simple.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the membrane are assigned different properties through varying hole diameters. Smaller holes provide resistance at lower pressures while larger holes allow flow at higher pressures, creating localized quality variations that collectively achieve constant flow rate maintenance across the entire pressure range.
2Reliability
If a spiral etched channel is used for flow regulation, then the flow rate can be maintained constant within a predefined pressure range, but the fabrication process becomes complicated and expensive
Solution Approach 1:
The complex spiral etched channel structure is extracted and replaced with a simpler alternative: multiple through holes directly in the membrane. This extraction eliminates the need for delicate spiral pattern etching while preserving the flow regulation function through the pressure-dependent opening/closing mechanism of multiple holes.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention adopts a simpler, less expensive membrane structure with multiple holes instead of costly precision-etched spiral channels. This approach uses readily manufacturable components that achieve the same flow regulation effect without requiring expensive specialized fabrication processes.
3Manufacturing precision
If the device is designed for one specific set of parameters, then the manufacturing precision can be optimized, but the adaptability to different delivery conditions is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The device achieves multi-functionality by incorporating multiple through holes with different diameters in the same membrane. This single structure can handle multiple pressure ranges and flow rate requirements, making the device adaptable to different delivery conditions while maintaining manufacturing precision through standardized hole fabrication processes.
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 provides a cost-effective, flexible, and reliable means to maintain constant fluid flow rates across a range of pressures, reducing the risk of overdrainage and simplifying manufacturing, while allowing for adjustable flow rates without surgical intervention.
Implementation Method 1
when the pressure applied on the membrane increases, the length of the fluid pathway located within the flow regulator channel increases and so does the fluidic resistance of the device
Implementation Method 2
a resilient membrane tightly linked together in peripheral linking areas so as to define a cavity therebetween
Implementation Method 3
the membrane has a central through hole contiguous with the cavity, to define a pathway for a fluid from the fluid inlet to the fluid outlet, and is flexible so as to be able to come into contact with the substrate, in case a fluid would apply a pressure on the first surface that would be larger than a first predefined threshold value. As the membrane would come into contact with the substrate in the region of its central through hole, this would occlude the latter
Implementation Method 4
the more pressure is applied against the membrane, the more it closes the channel thus forcing the fluid to flow in it to find its way out of the cavity. Consequently, when the pressure applied on the membrane increases, the length of the fluid pathway located within the flow regulator channel increases and so does the fluidic resistance of the device
Data Source
AI summary
A fluid flow regulator (1) of the passive type is disclosed which has a fluid inlet adapted to be connected to a fluid reservoir and a fluid outlet (13) adapted to be connected to a patient's body. The regulator comprises a rigid substrate (2) and a resilient membrane (3) tightly linked together so as to define a cavity (6) there between which is disconnected to the fluid outlet while the membrane has a first surface (12) opposite the cavity which is connected to the fluid inlet. The membrane has a plurality of through holes (15) contiguous with the cavity, to define a pathway for a fluid from the fluid inlet to the fluid outlet, and is flexible so as to be able to come into contact with the substrate as a fluid applies a sufficient pressure on the first surface. The through holes are arranged such that, when the fluid pressure increases, they close one after the other to increase the regulator fluidic resistance so that a fluid flow rate would be substantially constant as a function of the pressure applied on the first surface within a predefined pressure range.