JP2006232632A - Oxygen concentrator - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an oxygen concentrator for generating an oxygen-concentrated gas using an adsorbing agent and where the maintenance work of adsorbing columns packed with the adsorbing agent can be performed efficiently. <P>SOLUTION: In the oxygen concentrator 1, a pair of adsorbing columns 41, 42 used for generating the oxygen-concentrated gas are placed on a sliding plate 80 which is set so as to be pulled out to an outer direction against a floor plate 72 in the casing of the concentrator. A magnetic valve and the like connected to a compressor and the adsorbing columns 41, 42 are housed in a sound absorbing box located at the back side of the casing 3. The adsorbing columns 41, 42 and a product tank 50 are placed between the sound absorbing box and the front panel 5 of the casing 3. As a result, the maintenance work of the adsorbing columns 41, 42 is simply performed and the concentrator can be miniaturized and lightened by effectively utilizing the inner space of the casing 3. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a pressure fluctuation adsorption type oxygen concentrator that generates an oxygen-enriched gas by using an adsorbent capable of preferentially adsorbing nitrogen over oxygen.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a pressure fluctuation adsorption type oxygen concentrator using an adsorbent that preferentially adsorbs nitrogen is known as a medical oxygen concentrator used in home oxygen therapy such as chronic bronchitis.
This type of oxygen concentrator usually has at least two adsorption cylinders filled with an adsorbent, and supplies oxygen-enriched gas to each adsorption cylinder by supplying high-pressure air into the adsorption tower via a compressor. Oxygen-enriched gas is continuously produced by alternately and repeatedly performing a pressurizing step to be generated and a depressurizing step to regenerate the adsorbent by exhausting nitrogen adsorbed on the adsorbent by reducing the pressure in the adsorption tower. Configured to generate.

  Further, in this oxygen concentrator, in order to efficiently generate a high-concentration oxygen-enriched gas, when the adsorption cylinder is depressurized and nitrogen is exhausted, the adsorption cylinder is subjected to the adsorption cylinder in the pressurizing process. Part of the generated oxygen-enriched gas is sent as a purge gas to regenerate the adsorbent, or during the decompression process, the adsorbent can be regenerated by reducing the pressure inside the adsorption cylinder to a negative pressure using a vacuum pump. Has been done.

  By the way, the largest parts used in this type of oxygen concentrator include a compressor and an adsorption cylinder. And, since these parts need maintenance such as overhaul, considering the maintainability of each part, the compressor is housed in a silencer box and placed on the left (or right) side of the oxygen concentrator. In general, a plurality of adsorption cylinders are arranged in the front-rear direction on the right (or left) side of the oxygen concentrator (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

In addition, a noise reduction box containing a compressor is installed on the back side of the oxygen concentrator to prevent noise, and an adsorption cylinder is placed between the silencer box and the front panel of the oxygen concentrator. (See, for example, Patent Document 2)
JP 2002-153558 A JP 2004-188123 A

  However, when the suction cylinder is arranged between the sound deadening box and the front panel as in the latter case, when the suction cylinder is replaced, the front panel on which the operation switch, the display device, etc. are assembled is removed. There was a problem that workability was poor.

  Further, as in the former case, when the muffler box and the adsorption cylinder containing the compressor are arranged on the left and right sides of the oxygen concentrator, it is only necessary to remove the left and right exterior covers (in other words, without removing the front panel). ) Since maintenance work of these parts can be performed, workability during maintenance can be improved as compared with the case where the suction cylinder is disposed between the silencer box and the front panel.

  However, since the adsorption cylinder is directly fixed in the apparatus main body, the workability when removing the high-pressure air supply pipe and the oxygen-concentrated gas output pipe from the adsorption cylinder for maintenance of the adsorption cylinder is improved. Unfortunately, further improvements were desired.

  The present invention has been made to meet these demands, and in a pressure fluctuation adsorption type oxygen concentrator that generates an oxygen-enriched gas using an adsorbent, the maintenance work of the adsorption cylinder filled with the adsorbent is more efficient. The purpose is to be able to do well.

  In order to achieve this object, the invention according to claim 1 has a plurality of adsorption cylinders filled with an adsorbent that preferentially adsorbs nitrogen over oxygen, and each adsorption cylinder is provided with a compressor. A pressure process for generating oxygen-enriched gas by supplying high-pressure air into the adsorption tower, and regenerating the adsorbent by reducing the pressure in the adsorption tower and exhausting the nitrogen adsorbed on the adsorbent. A pressure fluctuation adsorption-type oxygen concentrator that generates an oxygen-enriched gas by alternately and repeatedly performing a depressurization step, wherein the plurality of adsorption cylinders are directed outward with respect to the main body floor of the oxygen concentrator. It is characterized by being placed on a slide plate that is mounted so that it can be pulled out.

  As described above, in the oxygen concentrator of the present invention, the plurality of adsorption cylinders constituting the apparatus are placed on the slide plate that is mounted so as to be able to be pulled outward with respect to the main body floor. Therefore, when the suction cylinder is removed from or attached to the main body for maintenance of the suction cylinder, various pipes with the slide plate pulled out (that is, the suction cylinder taken out from the main body) This makes it possible to perform the desorption operation of the suction cylinder, and to efficiently perform the maintenance operation of the adsorption cylinder.

  Next, the invention according to claim 2 is the oxygen concentrator according to claim 1, wherein the compressor is housed in a silencer box and disposed on the back side of the oxygen concentrator, and the slide plate is The oxygen concentrator is arranged between the silencer box and the front panel so that the oxygen concentrator can be drawn outward from the side surface and the plurality of adsorption cylinders can be arranged along the front panel of the oxygen concentrator. It is characterized by being.

  As described above, according to the oxygen concentrating device of the second aspect, since the muffler box containing the compressor is arranged on the back side of the device, even if the noise generated by the compressor leaks from the muffler box. The noise can be prevented from being radiated to the surroundings from the front panel side of the device.

  In addition, since the muffler box containing the compressor is larger than the adsorption cylinder, the muffler box and the adsorption cylinder are arranged separately on the left and right sides of the apparatus, and the oxygen concentrator is improved in order to improve the appearance of the oxygen concentrator. If the outer shape is symmetrical, a wasteful space is created on the side where the adsorption cylinder is arranged. According to the oxygen concentrator according to claim 2, the adsorption cylinder is arranged between the silencer box and the front panel. Therefore, by processing the front panel in accordance with the shape of the suction cylinder, it is possible to prevent a wasteful space from being formed in the apparatus, and to reduce the size and weight of the apparatus.

  Further, the invention according to claim 3 is the oxygen concentrator according to claim 1 or 2, wherein when the adsorption cylinders are placed on the slide plate, they are connected to the adsorption cylinders. An insertion hole is formed to allow a pipe to be passed through, and a space in which a pipe connected to each of the suction cylinders can be stored is formed in the floor portion on which the slide plate is mounted. To do.

  Thus, according to the oxygen concentrator according to claim 3, since the insertion hole is formed in the slide plate, when the slide plate is pulled out for maintenance of the adsorption cylinder, the slide plate It is possible to perform the work of detaching the pipe from the back side of the suction cylinder. And since the space which can store the piping connected to each adsorption cylinder is formed in the floor part of the main part of a device with which this slide board is installed, this piping is stored by storing piping in this space. Noise generated from (in detail, an electromagnetic valve or the like provided in this pipe) can be suppressed.

The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
In this embodiment, oxygen is concentrated by adsorbing and removing nitrogen from the air using a nitrogen adsorbent, and this is a stationary medical device that supplies oxygen-enriched gas containing high-concentration oxygen to a patient. An oxygen concentrator (hereinafter referred to as an oxygen concentrator) is taken as an example.

First, FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which the oxygen concentrator 1 of the present embodiment is viewed obliquely from the front.
As shown in FIG. 1, the oxygen concentrator 1 is one in which various components are housed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped casing 3, and the upper portion of the front panel 5 of the casing 3 is tilted. Are assembled with various parts for operating the oxygen concentrator 1 and displaying its operating state, such as an operation unit 6 for setting the discharge flow rate of the oxygen enriched gas by an external operation. Further, in the front panel 5 of the housing 3, below the slope on which the operation unit 6 and the like are assembled, a humidifier 7 that humidifies the generated oxygen-enriched gas, and an oxygen-enriched gas humidified by the humidifier 7. A discharge port 9 and the like are provided.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 2, ambient air is introduced into the housing 3 via the air intake 12 and the dust filter 14, and the introduced air is purified by air. Is sucked into the compressor 20 through an intake filter 16 for noise reduction and an intake muffler 18 for noise reduction.

  The compressor 20 reciprocates an internal piston by the rotation of the motor 21 to compress intake air and generate high-pressure air. The generated high-pressure air is supplied with check valves 25, 26 for preventing backflow, and Then, the gas is supplied to the pair of adsorption cylinders 41 and 42 through the supply valves 31 and 32 each composed of an electromagnetic valve.

  Further, exhaust valves 33 and 34 made of electromagnetic valves are connected to the supply paths of high-pressure air from the supply valves 31 and 32 to the adsorption cylinders 41 and 42, respectively, and when the exhaust valves 33 and 34 are opened. The adsorption cylinders 41 and 42 can be opened to the atmosphere via the exhaust muffler 28 with the silencer 27.

  A pressure sensor 24 is provided in the discharge path of high-pressure air from the compressor 20 to the check valves 26, 26, and the operation state of the compressor 20 is based on a detection signal from the pressure sensor 24 on the electronic control device 60 side described later. Have been able to monitor. A cooling fan 22 is provided above the compressor 20 so that the compressor 20 can be cooled by the cooling fan 22.

  Next, the adsorption cylinders 41 and 42 are filled with a zeolite-based adsorbent (for example, Li-X zeolite) that preferentially adsorbs nitrogen in the air and separates oxygen, and the exhaust valves 33 and 34. When the high pressure air is supplied from the compressor 20 through the check valves 25 and 26 and the supply valves 31 and 32, the nitrogen is adsorbed from the air and oxygen-enriched gas is generated. Then, the generated oxygen-enriched gas is sent to the product tank 50 side through the check valves 43 and 44.

  The product tank 50 is provided with a pressure regulator (regulator) 52 that regulates the pressure of the oxygen-enriched gas. The oxygen-enriched gas regulated by the pressure regulator 52 is supplied to the operation unit 6 described above. After being sent to the humidifier 7 via the flow rate setting device 54 capable of setting the flow rate through the humidifier 7, the flow rate is set to the outside via the outlet valve 56 and the discharge port 9, which are electromagnetic valves. Discharged.

  An oxygen sensor 57 for detecting the oxygen concentration of the oxygen-enriched gas and a pressure sensor 58 for detecting the discharge pressure of the oxygen-enriched gas are provided on the oxygen-enriched gas discharge path from the flow rate setting device 54 to the humidifier 7. Is provided so that the oxygen concentration and discharge pressure of the oxygen-enriched gas can be monitored on the electronic control device 60 side, which will be described later, based on detection signals from these sensors 57 and 58.

  A purge valve 48 made of an electromagnetic valve is connected to the discharge path of the oxygen-enriched gas from the adsorption cylinders 41 and 42 to the check valves 43 and 44 through orifices 45 and 46, respectively. For this reason, when the purge valve 48 is opened, a part of the oxygen-enriched gas generated in one of the adsorption cylinders 41 and 42 can be supplied to the other.

  The purge valve 48, the supply valves 31 and 32, the exhaust valves 33 and 34, the compressor 20 (specifically, the motor 21), the cooling fan 22, and the outlet valve 56 are driven and controlled by the electronic control circuit 60. .

  That is, the electronic control circuit 60 is mainly configured by a microcomputer including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like. After the oxygen concentrator 1 is turned on, the electronic control circuit 60 is controlled by a flow rate setting device 54 according to a preset control program. Drive control for driving the motor 21 and the cooling fan 22 of the compressor 20 at a rotational speed corresponding to the set flow rate, alternately opening the supply valves 31 and 32 at regular intervals, and alternately supplying high-pressure air to the adsorption cylinders 41 and 42 Pressurization control (pressurization process) to generate oxygen-enriched gas by supplying to the exhaust gas, open the exhaust valve 33 or 34 of the adsorption cylinder 41 or 42 for which the supply of high-pressure air is stopped by this pressurization control The depressurization control (depressurization step) for depressurizing the adsorption cylinder 41 or 42 and exhausting the nitrogen adsorbed by the adsorbent therein, and opening the purge valve 48 in synchronism with this depressurization control As a result, a portion of the oxygen-enriched gas generated in the adsorption cylinder 41 or 42 in the pressurized state is purged to the side of the adsorption cylinder 42 or 41 in the reduced pressure state, and the inside of the adsorption cylinder 42 or 41 in the reduced pressure state 90% or more of the concentrated oxygen is continuously generated by performing purge control for regenerating the adsorbent, and the outlet valve 56 is opened, and the generated concentrated oxygen is discharged from the discharge port 9. Let it drain.

  The electronic control circuit 60 monitors the operation state of the oxygen concentrator 1 based on the detection signals from the pressure sensors 24 and 58 and the oxygen sensor 57 described above, separately from the control for generating the oxygen concentrated gas. The monitoring control is also executed to display the monitoring result on the display device 59 assembled on the inclined surface of the front panel 5.

  Next, among the components described above, the compressor 20 and the supply / exhaust path switching mechanism 30 including the supply valves 31 and 32 and the exhaust valves 33 and 34 connected to the compressor 20 generate noise due to their operations. Therefore, the sound absorbing material is housed in a sound deadening box 70 made of a metal case on which a sound absorbing material is attached. As shown in FIG. 3, the sound deadening box 70 is installed on the back side of the housing 3 in order to prevent noise from leaking out from the front panel 5 side.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view of the inside of the oxygen concentrator 1 as viewed from the left side, and FIG. 4 described below is an explanatory view of the inside of the oxygen concentrator 1 as viewed from the front (front).
Further, since the suction cylinders 41 and 42 and the components downstream of the suction cylinders 41 and 42 do not emit a large noise, they are arranged outside the muffler box 70. Of these, the suction cylinder 41 having a large outer shape. , 42 and the product tank 50 are arranged in the space between the sound deadening box 70 provided on the back side of the housing 3 and the front panel 5 in order to effectively use the internal space of the housing 3. 5 are arranged in a line along the panel surface (see FIG. 4).

  The suction cylinders 41 and 42 and the product tank 50 are installed on the floor plate 72 in the housing 3 together with the sound deadening box 70. The floor plate 72 can be drawn outward from the side surface of the housing 3. A slide plate 80 is provided, and the pair of suction cylinders 41 and 42 are placed on the slide plate 80.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the slide plate 80 is formed to have a size capable of closing a long slide hole 76 formed in the floor plate 72 substantially parallel to the panel surface of the front panel 5 from above. A pair of fitting rails 81 and 82 that can be fitted to the inner end of the sliding hole 76 are provided on the rear surface. For this reason, the slide plate 80 can slide in the left-right direction of the oxygen concentrator 1 along the slide hole 76 from the storage position shown in FIG. 5 to the drawing position shown in FIG. .

  Further, arm-shaped mounting members 85 and 86 for positioning the pair of suction cylinders 41 and 42 are provided on the upper surface of the slide plate 80, and further, from the mounting member 85 to the slide plate 80. In addition, through holes 87 and 88 are formed in the respective adsorption cylinders 41 and 42 for passing piping connecting the purge valve 48 and the check valves 43 and 44 (see FIG. 6).

  That is, as is apparent from FIGS. 3 and 4, piping members (purge valve 48, check valves 43, 44, etc.) for guiding the oxygen-enriched gas generated in each adsorption cylinder 41, 42 to the product tank 50 are provided. The pipe member and the suction cylinders 41, 42 accommodated in the space 74 are slid from the mounting member 85. They are connected through insertion holes 87 and 88 drilled over the plate 80.

  As described above, in the oxygen concentrator 1 of the present embodiment, the pair of adsorption cylinders used to generate the oxygen enriched gas are mounted so as to be able to be drawn outward with respect to the floor plate 72 inside the housing 3. It is placed on the slide plate 80.

  For this reason, when the suction cylinders 41 and 42 are removed from or attached to the housing 3 for maintenance of the suction cylinders 41 and 42, the side plate of the housing 3 is removed and the slide plate 80 is pulled out. As a result, it is possible to perform the attachment and detachment operations of various pipes very easily, and the maintenance operation of the suction cylinders 41 and 42 can be performed efficiently.

  The compressor 20 is housed in a silencer box 70 together with a supply / exhaust path switching mechanism 30 including supply valves 31 and 32 and exhaust valves 33 and 34. The silencer box 70 is disposed on the rear surface of the oxygen concentrator 1. Therefore, noise leaking from the muffler box 70 can be prevented from being radiated from the front panel 5 side to the surroundings.

  Further, since the suction cylinders 41 and 42 and the product tank 50 are arranged in a row in the horizontal direction between the sound deadening box 70 and the front panel 5, the upper portion of the front panel 5 is inclined and the inclination thereof. The operation unit 6 and the display device 59 can be assembled to the portion, and the degree of freedom in determining the design of the oxygen concentrating device 1 can be increased while effectively using the internal space of the housing 3. In addition, since the internal space of the housing 3 can be effectively used, the apparatus can be reduced in size and weight.

  Further, the slide plate 80 is provided with insertion holes 87 and 88 for piping, and when the adsorption cylinders 41 and 42 are placed, the oxygen-enriched gas passes through the insertion holes 87 and 88. Since the piping for discharge can be connected, the piping work can be easily performed, and the piping members (the purge valve 48, the check valves 43, 44, etc.) connected through the insertion holes 87, 88 are floor boards. Since it can be accommodated in a space formed below 72, noise generated from these piping members can also be suppressed.

As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, A various aspect can be taken in the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention.
For example, in the embodiment described above, the suction cylinders 41 and 42 are placed on the slide plate 80. However, in addition to the suction cylinders 41 and 42, the product tank 50 may be placed.

  In the above embodiment, the slide plate 80 has been described as being able to be pulled out in the outward direction (that is, the lateral direction of the oxygen concentrator) by removing the side plate of the housing 3. Alternatively, the slide plate 80 may be pulled out behind the oxygen concentrator by changing the arrangement.

It is a perspective view showing the appearance of the oxygen concentrator of an embodiment. It is explanatory drawing showing the structure of the oxygen concentration apparatus of embodiment. It is explanatory drawing showing the state which looked at the inside of the housing | casing of the oxygen concentrator of embodiment from the left side. It is explanatory drawing showing the state which looked at the inside of the housing | casing of the oxygen concentration apparatus of embodiment from the front. It is explanatory drawing showing the state in which the slide plate was accommodated in the housing | casing. It is explanatory drawing showing the state by which the slide plate was pulled out from the housing | casing.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Oxygen concentrator, 3 ... Housing, 5 ... Front panel, 6 ... Operation part, 7 ... Humidifier, 9 ... Exhaust port, 12 ... Air intake, 14 ... Dust-proof filter, 18 ... Intake muffler, 20 ... Compressor , 21 ... motor, 22 ... cooling fan, 24 ... pressure sensor, 25, 26 ... check valve, 28 ... exhaust muffler, 31, 32 ... supply valve, 33, 34 ... exhaust valve, 41, 42 ... adsorption cylinder, 43, 44 ... Check valve, 45, 46 ... Orifice, 48 ... Purge valve, 50 ... Product tank, 52 ... Pressure regulator, 54 ... Flow rate setting device, 56 ... Outlet valve, 57 ... Oxygen sensor, 58 ... Pressure sensor, 59 ... Display device 60 ... Electronic control circuit 70 ... Silencer box 72 ... Floor plate 74 ... Space 76 ... Sliding hole 80 ... Slide plate 81, 82 ... Fitting rail, 85, 86 ... Mounting member 87 , 88 ... insertion hole.

Claims (3)

It has a plurality of adsorption cylinders filled with an adsorbent that preferentially adsorbs nitrogen over oxygen, and generates oxygen-enriched gas by supplying high-pressure air into the adsorption tower via a compressor for each adsorption cylinder. Pressure for generating oxygen-enriched gas by alternately repeating a pressurizing step and a depressurizing step for regenerating the adsorbent by exhausting nitrogen adsorbed on the adsorbent by reducing the pressure in the adsorption tower A variable adsorption type oxygen concentrator,
The oxygen concentrator, wherein the plurality of adsorption cylinders are placed on a slide plate that is mounted so as to be able to be pulled out outward with respect to the main body floor of the oxygen concentrator. The compressor is housed in a muffler box and disposed on the back side of the oxygen concentrator.
The slide plate can be drawn outward from the side of the oxygen concentrator, and the muffler box and the front panel can be arranged so that the plurality of adsorption cylinders can be arranged along the front panel of the oxygen concentrator. The oxygen concentrator according to claim 1, wherein the oxygen concentrator is disposed between the two. The slide plate is provided with an insertion hole for passing a pipe connected to each adsorption cylinder when each adsorption cylinder is placed,
The oxygen concentrating device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a space capable of accommodating a pipe connected to each adsorption cylinder is formed in a floor portion to which the slide plate is mounted.

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