Spray Delivery Device with Airflow Sensing and Dynamic Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electronic spray devices struggle to dynamically adjust the delivery rate of fluid droplets in response to varying inhalation or gas flow rates, leading to inefficiencies in medicament delivery, coating processes, and gas treatment applications.
Innovation Solution
A spray delivery device with a vibrating perforate membrane, controlled by a spray controller that modulates the drive signal in response to airflow rate feedback from a sensor, allowing for proportional adjustment of the spray rate to match the inhalation or gas flow rate, using techniques such as time-based, amplitude-based, or frequency modulation of the drive signal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If the spray generator operates at resonant frequency for efficient energy transfer, then droplet generation efficiency is improved, but the delivery rate cannot be dynamically adjusted to match varying inhalation or gas flow rates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by enabling the spray generator to operate at resonant frequency when high delivery rate is needed, while also allowing dynamic adjustment of the drive signal parameters (amplitude, pulse width, frequency) in response to sensor feedback about inhalation or gas flow rate. This allows the system to transition between fixed resonant operation and dynamically adjusted operation to match varying demand conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback control by using sensors to detect inhalation rate or gas flow rate, then using this information to modulate the drive signal parameters to the spray generator. The controller adjusts the amplitude, pulse width, or frequency of the drive signal based on the sensor output, creating a closed-loop system that automatically matches delivery rate to demand while maintaining efficient operation near resonance.
2Device complexity
If a fixed delivery rate is used in the spray device, then device complexity is reduced, but medicament delivery efficiency and user experience are worsened due to inability to match inhalation rate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses feedback control where sensors detect inhalation rate or gas flow rate and this information is fed back to a controller that adjusts the drive signal parameters. This closed-loop approach enables dynamic matching of delivery rate to demand, significantly improving medicament delivery efficiency and user experience while adding only moderate complexity through standard sensor and controller components.
3Device complexity
If the spray rate is not matched to the inhalation or gas flow rate, then device complexity is reduced, but wastage of medicament or coating material increases and treatment efficacy decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback control by sensing inhalation rate or gas flow rate and using this information to modulate the spray generator drive signal. This ensures the spray rate is dynamically matched to the actual demand, minimizing wastage of medicament or coating material by delivering only what is needed while maintaining simple operation through automated control.
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
This solution enables precise control of fluid delivery rates, optimizing user experience, medicament efficiency, coating quality, and gas treatment efficacy by ensuring the delivery rate matches the inhalation or gas flow rate, reducing wastage and costs while ensuring consistent and targeted dosing.
Implementation Method 1
The alternating voltage drives this component into oscillatory deformation at the drive frequency. This deformation is coupled to the perforate membrane causing it to vibrate and generate the liquid spray.
Implementation Method 2
Spray generators such as those described above often have a resonant frequency at which energy is efficiently transferred to the perforate membrane and hence to the liquid. To obtain good performance it is known that the spray generator must be operated at or at least close to the resonant frequency
Implementation Method 3
a spray generator, comprising a perforate membrane and actuation means configured to ultrasonically vibrate the perforate membrane in response to a drive signal from the spray controller, such that vibration of the perforate membrane causes liquid droplets to be ejected
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
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AI summary
There is disclosed a device for delivering a fluid spray to a mouth of a user, either directly, or via a flow conductor such as a tube or pipe. The spray device uses a vibrating perforate membrane to create the spray and the vibration of the membrane is controlled in response to input from a flow rate sensor which detects a flow rate through the device or through the flow conductor. There is further disclosed a corresponding method of controlling a spray head in a spray delivery device.