Ultrasonic Flow Sensor Direct Contact Terminals
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ultrasonic blood flow sensors for auxiliary artificial heart pumps require labor-intensive lead wire soldering, risk damage to piezoelectric transducers, and are single-use due to infection concerns, leading to high costs and operational challenges.
Innovation Solution
An ultrasonic flow sensor design featuring tubular main body with integrated ultrasonic signal transmission and reception elements and electrodes that connect via contact members on an electrical circuit device, eliminating the need for lead wires and allowing for easy, secure attachment and repeated use of transducers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If lead wires are soldered to piezoelectric transducers, then electrical connection is achieved, but the operation becomes time-consuming and requires substantial skill
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the lead wires from the system by providing electrical connection terminals directly on the piezoelectric transducer housing. This allows direct electrical connection between the transducer and circuit board without requiring soldering operations, thereby maintaining reliable electrical connection while dramatically simplifying the installation process
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary structure - the housing with integrated electrical connection terminals - that mediates between the piezoelectric transducer and the circuit board. This intermediary provides both mechanical mounting and electrical connection functions, eliminating the need for separate lead wires and soldering operations
2Reliability
If soldering is performed on piezoelectric transducers, then electrical connection is established, but the transducer is liable to be damaged by heat
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the soldering process from the connection method by providing direct electrical terminals on the housing. This eliminates the harmful thermal effects of soldering on the piezoelectric transducer while maintaining reliable electrical connection through direct contact terminals
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the thermal field (soldering) with a mechanical field (direct terminal contact). Instead of using heat to establish electrical connection, the system uses mechanical pressure contact between terminals, thereby eliminating heat damage while maintaining electrical connectivity
3Reliability
If lead wires are used for connection, then electrical connection is achieved, but excessive tensile force can break the piezoelectric transducer
Solution Approach 1:
The patent eliminates lead wires from the system by integrating electrical terminals directly on the housing. This removes the mechanical weakness of lead wires that could transmit excessive tensile force to the transducer, while maintaining reliable electrical connection through rigid terminal contacts
Solution Approach 2:
The housing serves as an intermediary structure that provides robust electrical connection terminals directly attached to the transducer mounting surface. This intermediary eliminates the need for flexible lead wires and provides a rigid mechanical and electrical connection path that cannot transmit damaging tensile forces to the transducer
4Reliability
If the blood flow sensor is designed for single use, then infection control is ensured, but the cost of the sensor increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the blood flow measurement system into two parts: a disposable sensor head that contacts the blood and a reusable electrical circuit device. The sensor head contains the piezoelectric transducers and housing, which can be sterilized and reused, while only the portion contacting blood is discarded, thereby reducing overall cost while maintaining infection control
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables recovery and reuse of the expensive piezoelectric transducer components by designing a modular sensor head that can be sterilized and reused. Only the disposable portion that contacts blood is discarded, allowing the high-cost transducers to be recovered and used multiple times, thereby reducing the effective cost per measurement while maintaining infection 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
Simplifies the connection process, reduces the risk of transducer damage, enables repeated use of components, and lowers the overall cost of the flow sensor while maintaining accurate blood flow measurement capabilities.
Implementation Method 1
a flow sensor of the blood flowmeter includes two piezoelectric tranducers serving as an ultrasonic signal transmission and reception element
Implementation Method 2
first and second ultrasonic beams emitted from said first and second ultrasonic signal transmission and reception elements toward an inside of the tubular main body are received by said second and first ultrasonic signal transmission and reception elements, respectively and a difference in a propagation time period between the first and second ultrasonic beams propagating between the first and second ultrasonic signal transmission and reception elements is a measure of a velocity of the fluid flowing through the tubular main body
Data Source
AI summary
First and second piezoelectric transducers 2 and 3 are fixed to a tubular main body 1 via first and second fitting bases 4 and 5. On front and rear surfaces of an end portion of each of the first and second piezoelectric transducers 2 and 3 are provided first and second electrodes 6 and 7. When the tubular main body 1 is secured to a circuit box, each of the end portions of the first and second piezoelectric transducers 2 and 3 is inserted between first and second contact members provided on the circuit box such that the first and second electrodes 6 and 7 are electrically connected to the first and second contact members, respectively to connect the first and second piezoelectric transducers 2 and 3 to the circuit box by one touch operation.