Respiratory Muscle Training Device with CO2 Feedback
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current respiratory muscle endurance training devices are often complex and expensive, limiting their widespread use for patients with COPD and others who need to improve their ventilatory efficiency and exercise tolerance.
Innovation Solution
A portable respiratory muscle endurance training device with a chamber and patient interface that includes CO2 and temperature sensors, one-way inhalation and exhalation valves, and flow indicators, allowing for adjustable volume and providing feedback on CO2 levels and usage duration to enhance training efficacy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If complicated and expensive equipment is used for respiratory muscle endurance training, then training effectiveness is improved, but device complexity and cost increase, limiting widespread use
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs disposable or low-cost components such as the reservoir bag and tubing that can be easily replaced, eliminating the need for expensive durable equipment while maintaining training effectiveness. The reservoir bag serves as a simple, replaceable component that provides the necessary volume without requiring complex mechanical structures.
Solution Approach 2:
The device utilizes the patient's own breath to automatically drive the training mechanism. The reservoir bag fills during exhalation and empties during inhalation without requiring external power sources or complex control systems, making the equipment simple and self-regulating.
2Reliability
If fixed volume chamber is used to retain exhaled gases, then CO2 level increases to improve training efficacy, but chamber volume must be precisely controlled to avoid excessive CO2 retention
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from a fixed-volume chamber to a dynamic reservoir bag that can expand and contract. The bag's volume automatically adjusts based on the patient's breathing pattern and lung capacity, eliminating the need for precise manufacturing tolerances while maintaining effective CO2 retention for training purposes.
Solution Approach 2:
The reservoir bag allows the volume parameter to change dynamically during use rather than being fixed at manufacturing. This enables the same device to adapt to different patients with varying lung capacities without requiring precise volume calibration, solving the manufacturing precision problem.
3Ease of operation
If portable device is used for home-based rehabilitation, then accessibility is improved, but device must be simple enough for patient self-management
Solution Approach 1:
The device requires no external power source, complex controls, or technical assistance to operate. The patient simply breathes through the mouthpiece, and the reservoir bag automatically fills and empties with each breath cycle, making it entirely self-manageable while maintaining consistent training effects.
Solution Approach 2:
The device provides immediate tactile and visual feedback through the rising and falling of the reservoir bag, allowing patients to self-monitor their breathing patterns and training intensity without requiring electronic sensors or complex interfaces, ensuring both simplicity and training consistency.
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 is accessible for home-based pulmonary rehabilitation, improving exercise intolerance and quality of life by providing a non-pharmacological treatment for Dyspnoea and COPD, while being adaptable for various users, including those with COPD and healthy athletes.
Implementation Method 1
One or both of a CO2 sensor or a temperature sensor can be coupled to the chamber or patient interface
Implementation Method 2
One or both of a CO2 sensor or a temperature sensor can be coupled to the chamber or patient interface
Implementation Method 3
a fixed volume chamber in communication with the patient interface, where the fixed volume chamber is sized to retain a portion of a patient's exhaled gases
Implementation Method 4
A variable volume chamber in communication with the fixed volume chamber, where the variable volume chamber is configured to be responsive to the patient's exhaled or inhaled gases to move from a first position to a second position
Implementation Method 5
one-way inhalation and exhalation valves and flow indicators can also be associated with the chamber or patient interface
Data Source
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AI summary
A respiratory muscle endurance training device (50) comprising: a patient interface (53) for transferring a patient's exhaled or inhaled gases; a fixed volume chamber (54) in communication with the patient interface, wherein the fixed volume chamber is sized to retain a portion of a patient's exhaled gases; a variable volume chamber (58) in communication with the fixed volume chamber, wherein the variable volume chamber is configured to be responsive to the patient's exhaled or inhaled gases to move from a first position to a second position, and a variable orifice (204) adjustable for permitting a portion of exhaled air to escape during exhalation and receiving a supply of air during inhalation.