JP2014176479A - Breathing gas humidifier - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a breathing gas humidifier capable of smoothly humidifying a breathing gas and washing the inside of a chamber easily.SOLUTION: A breathing gas humidifier includes: a base 2 having a heater 22 covered by a heat sink 23; and a chamber 3 detachably disposed on the base 2 for circulating a breathing gas. The chamber 3 includes: a heating plate 81 coming into surface contact with the heat sink 23 in a state of being attached to the base 2 and heated by the heater 22; a sheet-like humidification member 11 partially to be soaked by water content in the chamber 3 to keep a humid condition. The sheet-like humidification member 11 comes in surface contact with the heating plate 81.

Description

  The present invention relates to a warming / humidifying device for maintaining a breathing gas used in a ventilator, oxygen inhalation therapy, or the like at an appropriate temperature and humidity.

  2. Description of the Related Art There are known a ventilator for sending a breathing gas containing a predetermined amount of oxygen to a patient's respiratory tract and a device for oxygen inhalation therapy. In such devices, when the patient is supplied with dry breathing gas, the patient's throat, nasal cavity and mucous membranes will dry out over time, causing not only discomfort to the patient, but also airway damage. There is a fear. For this reason, a warming humidifier for taking water vapor into the breathing gas and maintaining it at an appropriate temperature and humidity has been used.

And as a breathing gas warming humidifier, for example, a breathing gas is passed through a chamber in which water is stored as disclosed in Patent Document 1 or Patent Document 2 and humidified with evaporated water, etc. It has been known.
In Patent Document 1, a heating element is provided in a chamber for storing water. By heating the water in the chamber, the evaporation rate is increased, and the water vapor taken into the breathing gas (breathing gas) passing through the chamber is increased. Heating humidifiers with increased amounts have been proposed.
Moreover, in patent document 2, the heat-transfer plate is provided in the bottom wall part of the chamber, The water accumulated in the chamber by the heat-transfer plate can be heated and heated.

Special table 2011-512889 JP 2012-185825 A

However, in the configuration in which the water accumulated in the chamber is heated like the heating and humidifying devices described in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, it takes time to heat until water vapor is generated from the water surface, It is necessary to heat the water to a high temperature.
In addition, in such a humidifying humidifier using water, cleaning is periodically performed in order to keep the inside of the chamber clean. However, the cleaning operation must rely on human means. For this reason, in order to easily clean the inside of the chamber, it is required to make the structure inside the chamber as simple as possible.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and provides a respirator gas humidifier that can smoothly humidify a respiration gas and easily clean the inside of the chamber. The purpose is to provide.

  The present invention relates to a respirator gas humidifier that circulates a respirator gas in a chamber in which water is stored to heat and humidify the respirator, and includes a base having a heater covered with a heat sink, A chamber that is detachably provided and through which the breathing gas flows, the chamber being in contact with the heat sink in a state of being mounted on the base, and being heated by the heater; A sheet-like humidifying member that is kept in a wet state by immersing a part in water in the chamber, and the sheet-like humidifying member is provided in surface contact with the heating plate. To do.

Rather than heating the entire water in the chamber, the wet sheet-shaped humidifying member is heated by immersing a part of the water in the water, so that the water can be reliably evaporated with less energy. For this reason, the time until water vapor is generated can be shortened, and the breathing gas passing through the chamber can be humidified smoothly.
Further, since the chamber can be removed from the base and the heater as a heat source is attached to the base, the structure in the chamber is simplified and the cleaning operation can be easily performed.

  In the breathing gas heating humidifier of the present invention, the heater is formed in a columnar shape, one end thereof is erected on the base, and the heat sink is provided in a cylindrical shape covering the surface of the heater. The heating plate is provided in a cylindrical shape and is disposed at the center of the chamber, and the sheet-like humidifying member is provided in a cylindrical shape along the circumferential surface of the heating plate, and is disposed inside the heating plate. By inserting the heat sink, the heating plate and the heat sink are fitted and provided.

When the chamber is mounted on the base, the heat sink is inserted inside the heating plate, so that the heating plate and the heat sink are fitted, and the inner peripheral surface of the heating plate and the outer peripheral surface of the heat sink are in surface contact. Provided. Therefore, the heat of the heater can be smoothly transferred to the heating plate via the heat sink.
In addition, by providing a heating plate in a cylindrical shape and arranging it in the center of the chamber, the internal space of the chamber can be heated almost uniformly from the center to the circumferential direction, and the sheet-like humidifying member can be heated evenly. Thus, water vapor can be generated evenly in the circumferential direction, and heating and humidification of the breathing gas can be performed evenly.
Furthermore, a stable mounting state can be maintained by supporting the center of the chamber by fitting the heat sink and the heating plate. Further, the chamber can be attached and detached by moving in the vertical direction, and can be easily performed by being guided by the heat sink, thereby improving the handleability during chamber cleaning.

In the respirator heating humidifier of the present invention, the heating plate and the heat sink are formed in a tapered shape that gradually decreases in diameter toward the upper side, and the outer peripheral surface of the heat sink and the inner peripheral surface of the heating plate Are preferably formed at substantially the same inclination angle.
In this case, since the opening diameter of the heating plate is larger than the tip diameter of the heat sink, the chamber can be easily attached and detached.

  According to the present invention, rather than heating the entire water in the chamber, the wet sheet-like humidifying member is heated, so that the water can be reliably evaporated with less energy. For this reason, it becomes possible to shorten time until water vapor | steam is produced | generated, and the gas for breathing which passes the inside of a chamber can be humidified smoothly. Further, since the heater is provided on the base side, the structure in the chamber is simplified, and the cleaning operation can be easily performed.

It is a perspective view which shows one Embodiment of the heating humidifier of the breathing gas of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the state which opened the cover part of the chamber of the heating humidifier shown in FIG. It is a cross-sectional perspective view of the chamber part of a heating humidifier. It is a cross-sectional perspective view which shows the state which removed the chamber from the state shown in FIG. It is a principal part cross-section perspective view which shows the state which removed the tower unit from the container part. It is a perspective view of a tower unit.

Hereinafter, a breathing gas heating humidifier according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
The breathing gas heating humidifier 100 of the present embodiment shown in FIG. 1 is used by being connected to, for example, a CPAP device for assisting spontaneous breathing to treat a respiratory disorder. A CPAP device is a device that treats a patient using an auxiliary stimulation method called a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), via a patient interface such as a nasal prong, tracheal intubation tube, or nasal mask. A breathing gas consisting of a predetermined amount of a mixture of oxygen and air is supplied to the patient. The warming humidifier 100 is provided to maintain the breathing gas supplied to the patient at an appropriate temperature and humidity, and the breathing gas sent from the CPAP device is heated by the warming humidifier 100. It is humidified and supplied to the patient.

As shown in FIG. 1, the warming humidifier 100 includes a main body 1 with a built-in control unit, a base 2 provided integrally with the main body 1, and a chamber 3 provided detachably on the base 2. A supply hose 4 for sending a breathing gas into the chamber 3, an interface connection hose 5 for sending the heated and humidified breathing gas from the chamber 3 to the patient interface, and a water supply unit 6 for supplying water into the chamber 3 With.
As shown in FIG. 1, the heating / humidifying device 100 is placed on a gantry 7 that is movable by a caster 71, and is movable together with the gantry 7.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the base 2 has a recess 21 into which the chamber 3 can be mounted by fitting the lower portion of the chamber 3, and a substantially cylindrical heater at the center of the recess 21. 22 is erected vertically. The surface of the heater 22 is airtightly covered with a heat sink 23 made of a metal having high thermal conductivity (for example, aluminum). The heat sink 23 is formed in a shape in which the upper end of the cylindrical body portion is integrally closed with the top plate portion.

The chamber 3 is composed of a container part 8 for storing water and a lid part 9 attached to the upper part of the container part 8. The chamber 3 is composed of the container part 8 and the lid part 9 and is used for breathing in the internal space of the chamber 3. By passing the gas, the breathing gas can be heated and humidified.
The container portion 8 and the lid portion 9 of the chamber 3 are formed of a transparent resin such as an acrylic resin such as polycarbonate resin (PC) or PMMA, or a polysulfone resin (PSU).

The lid portion 9 is detachably provided on the hinge mechanism portion 24 provided on the base 2 and has a lock portion 25 that engages with the container portion 8. When the lid portion 9 is attached to the hinge mechanism portion 24, the lid portion 9 is rotatably supported by the main body 1 by the base end portion of the hinge mechanism portion 24 so that the upper portion of the container portion 8 can be opened and closed. The lid portion 9 can be attached to and detached from the upper portion of the container portion 8 even in a state where it is detached from the hinge mechanism portion 24.
Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the lid 8 has an inlet 41 for taking in the breathing gas into the internal space of the chamber 3, and an outlet for leading the breathing gas humidified in the chamber 3 to the outside. 51 and a water supply port 61 for supplying water for humidification into the chamber 3 are provided. The inlet 41 is connected to the supply hose 4, the outlet 51 is connected to the interface connection hose 5, and the water inlet 61 is connected to the water supply unit 6.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the container portion 8 is provided with a heating plate 81 made of a metal (for example, aluminum) having high thermal conductivity at the center of the bottom portion. The heating plate 81 is formed in a shape in which the upper end of the substantially cylindrical sleeve-shaped body portion is integrally closed with the top plate portion. The outer peripheral surface 81a of the heating plate 81 constitutes a part of the internal space of the chamber 3, and the internal space is formed in a ring-shaped space. A heat sink 23 is inserted inside the body portion of the heating plate 81 when the container portion 8 is mounted on the base 2.

  Further, the heat sink 23 and the heating plate 81 are formed in a slight taper shape so that the diameter gradually decreases toward the upper side, and the outer peripheral surface 23a of the heat sink 23 and the inner peripheral surface 81b of the heating plate 81 have substantially the same inclination. It is formed at an angle. Then, the chamber 3 is moved up and down so that it can be attached to and detached from the base 2 so that the heating plate 81 and the heat sink 23 are fitted with the chamber 3 attached to the base 2. Is provided. Therefore, in a state where the chamber 3 is mounted on the base 2, the inner peripheral surface 81 b of the heating plate 81 and the outer peripheral surface 23 a of the heat sink 23 are in surface contact, and the heat of the heater 22 is smoothly applied to the heating plate 81 via the heat sink 23. It has come to be communicated to.

Further, since the center of the chamber 3 is supported by the fitting of the heat sink 23 and the heating plate 81, a stable mounting state of the chamber 3 on the base 2 can be maintained. Furthermore, since the movement of the chamber 3 is guided by the heat sink 23, the chamber 3 can be easily attached and detached.
And the tower unit 10 which has the sheet-like humidification member 11 is attached to the outer peripheral surface 81a of this heating plate 81 so that attachment or detachment is possible (refer FIG. 5).

As shown in FIG. 6, the tower unit 10 includes a frame body 12 that supports the sheet-shaped humidifying member 11 in a substantially cylindrical shape, and a cylindrical partition plate 13 that is provided around the sheet-shaped humidifying member 11 with a space therebetween. These two parts are combined. And the frame 12 and the partition plate 13 are formed with resin, such as a polypropylene.
The frame body 12 has a shape in which the annular portions arranged at both ends in the length direction of the tower unit 10 are connected by four plate-like portions, and is a sheet-like humidifying member that closes between the plate-like portions. By attaching 11, the sheet-like humidifying member 11 is held in a substantially cylindrical shape. In this case, since the heating plate 81 is formed in a slight taper shape, the plate-like portion and the sheet-like portion of the frame body 12 can be brought into close contact with the outer peripheral surface 81a of the heating plate 81. Similarly to the heating plate 81, the humidifying member 11 is also formed in a slight taper shape having an inclination so that the diameter gradually decreases toward the upper side.

Further, the partition plate 13 is formed in a cylindrical shape covering the outside of the frame body 12, and the frame body 12 and the partition plate 13 are connected at both ends of the tower unit 10.
And in the state which attached the tower unit 10 to the heating plate 81 of the container part 8, while arrange | positioning so that the sheet-like humidification member 11 may surface-contact with the outer peripheral surface 81a of the heating plate 81, the partition plate 13 of the chamber 3 The internal space is partitioned into a double ring-shaped space with an inner side and an outer side. Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the internal space of the chamber 3 is partitioned into an inner humidifying space 31 in which the sheet-like humidifying member 11 is disposed and a preheating space 32 adjacent to the humidifying space 31. It will be.

In addition, a communication portion 33 that communicates the preheating space 32 and the humidification space 31 is provided at the lower portion of the partition plate 13. The communication portion 33 includes a lower communication portion 34 disposed below the water surface, It is comprised by the upper side communication part 35 arrange | positioned above the lower side communication part 34, and adjoining to the water surface w and opened on the water surface. And the water in the container part 8 can be distribute | circulated between the preheating space 32 and the humidification space 31 by the lower side communication part 34, and water is stored by the same water level in the preheating space 32 and the humidification space 31. .
In this case, the lower end of the tower unit 10 is immersed in water and the lower end of the heating plate 81 is also immersed in water. However, most of the tower unit 10 and the heating plate 81 are exposed on the water surface. It is done. For this reason, while the water in the chamber 3 can be heated with the heating plate 81, the space in the chamber 3 can be heated, and the humidity of the internal space of the chamber 3 can be increased.

In addition, the internal space of the chamber 3 is sequentially heated in the circumferential direction from the central portion by the heating plate 81 disposed in the central portion of the container portion 8, and the humidification space 31 to the preheating space 32 are respectively The region is heated almost uniformly in the circumferential direction. Similarly, with the sheet-like humidifying member 11 disposed evenly in the circumferential direction at the central portion, it is possible to uniformly warm and humidify the breathing gas in the circumferential direction of the preheating space 32.
The suction port 41 and the water supply port 61 provided in the lid portion 9 are connected to the preheating space 32. On the other hand, the air outlet 51 is connected to the humidification space 31, and the breathing gas taken in from the suction port 41 moves from the preheating space 32 to the humidification space 31 via the communication portion 33 and is taken out from the air outlet 51. It is supposed to be. Therefore, the breathing gas flows from the bottom toward the top along the surface of the sheet-like humidifying member 11 in the humidifying space 31.

The sheet-like humidifying member 11 is made of a material excellent in water absorption and breathability, such as a nonwoven fabric formed of natural materials such as rayon, polyester, and cotton. The sheet-shaped humidifying member 11 is in a state where the lower end is immersed in the water in the container portion 8 in a state where the tower unit 10 is attached to the heating plate 81 as described above. Thereby, the sheet-like humidification member 11 sucks up water by capillary action, and water permeates throughout the sheet, and a wet state containing water is maintained.
The sheet-shaped humidifying member 11 can be attached by adhering to the frame body 12, but by inserting the sheet-shaped humidifying member 11 into the mold in advance when the frame body 12 is molded, the frame body 12. It can also be provided integrally.

A water supply unit 6 that supplies water into the chamber 3 includes a water supply bag 62, a water supply hose 63 that connects the water supply bag 62 and the chamber 3, and a water supply pump 64 that supplies the water in the water supply bag 62. Is provided.
The water supply hose 63 is connected to a water supply port 61 provided in the lid portion 9 of the chamber 3, and water is supplied from the water supply bag 62 into the chamber 3 according to the water level stored in the chamber 3. It has come to be.
Although not shown, the heating / humidifier 100 is connected to a gas supply device (for example, a CPAP device) for sending a breathing gas into the chamber 3.

Next, the operation of the warming humidifier 100 will be described.
Before supplying the breathing gas into the chamber 3, water is supplied from the water supply bag 62 into the chamber 3. Thereby, the lower end part of the sheet-like humidification member 11 is immersed under the water surface, and the sheet-like humidification member 11 sucks up water and becomes a wet state. In this state, the gas supply device is driven to supply the breathing gas into the chamber 3 from the suction port 41.

The breathing gas is first introduced into the preheating space 32, and the breathing gas taken into the preheating space 32 flows downward toward the upper communication portion 35 of the partition plate 13. When passing through the preheating space 32, the breathing gas is preliminarily heated and preliminarily humidified by water vapor evaporated from the water surface w in the chamber 3 into the preheating space 32. And when passing through the upper communication part 35 of the partition plate 13 and moving to the humidification space 31, the breathing gas passes through the upper communication part 35 close to the water surface w, so that it comes into contact with the water surface w and is humidified. Promoted.
The breathing gas taken into the humidification space 31 changes its flow direction upward and flows toward the upper outlet 51. At this time, the breathing gas vaporizes moisture contained in the sheet-like humidifying member 11 by flowing along the surface of the humidifying sheet-like humidifying member 11 heated by the heating plate 81. The water vapor is taken in and humidified. Then, the humidified breathing gas is taken out from the air outlet 51 to the outside.

In addition, although the sheet-like humidification member 11 becomes a form in which moisture is deprived by humidifying the breathing gas, since the lower end portion of the sheet-like humidification member 11 is immersed below the water surface, when the breathing gas is humidified At the same time, the water is sucked up and kept wet. For this reason, the gas for breathing can be humidified continuously.
In addition, although the water level decreases as the water in the chamber 3 is consumed, in the humidifier 100, water is automatically supplied from the water supply unit 6 according to the water level in the chamber 3. Yes.

Thus, according to the warming / humidifying device 100 of the present embodiment, the sheet-like humidifying member 11 is not wet, but is partially immersed in the water in the chamber 3. Since water is heated, water can be reliably evaporated with less energy. For this reason, the time until water vapor is generated can be shortened, and the breathing gas passing through the chamber 3 can be humidified smoothly.
In addition, since the sheet-like humidifying member 11 is excellent in water absorption, water can be quickly sucked up from the lower end portion immersed in water while evaporating water from the surface disposed in the humidifying space 31. Can be continuously evaporated.

  By the way, the chamber 3 is periodically cleaned for cleaning the inside of the chamber 3. However, in the warming humidifier 100, when the chamber 3 is cleaned, the chamber 3 (the container portion 8 and the lid is covered). 9) can be removed from the base 2 and the heater 22 as a heat source is attached to the base 2 side, so that the structure in the chamber 3 is simplified and the cleaning operation can be performed easily. It has become.

  Furthermore, since a part of the heating plate 81 is disposed so as to be immersed in the water in the chamber 3, the water in the chamber 3 can also be heated by the heating plate 81, and the humidity in the chamber 3 can be increased. it can. Moreover, humidification of the breathing gas is promoted by bringing the breathing gas into contact with the surface of the heated water.

Further, the base 2 and the chamber 3 can maintain a stable mounting state by supporting the center of the chamber 3 by the fitting of the heat sink 23 and the heating plate 81. Further, the chamber 3 can be attached and detached by moving in the vertical direction, and can be easily performed by being guided by the heat sink 23, so that the handling at the time of cleaning the chamber can be improved.
Since the heating plate 81 and the heat sink 23 are formed in a tapered shape that gradually decreases in diameter toward the upper side, the opening diameter of the heating plate 81 becomes larger than the tip diameter of the heat sink 23, and the base 2 And the chamber 3 can be easily attached and detached.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, A various change can be added in the range which does not deviate from the meaning of this invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Main body 2 Base 3 Chamber 4 Supply hose 5 Interface connection hose 6 Water supply part 7 Base 8 Container part 9 Cover part 10 Tower unit 11 Sheet-like humidification member 12 Frame body 13 Partition plate 21 Recessed part 22 Heater 23 Heat sink 24 Hinge mechanism part 25 Locking portion 31 Humidification space 32 Preheating space 33 Communication portion 34 Lower communication portion 35 Upper communication portion 41 Suction port 51 Air outlet 61 Water supply port 62 Water supply bag 63 Water supply hose 64 Water supply pump 71 Caster 81 Heating plate 100 Respiratory gas 100 Heating humidifier

Claims (3)

  A respirator gas humidifier that circulates a respirator gas in a chamber in which water is stored to heat and humidify the respirator, and has a base with a heater covered with a heat sink, and is detachably attached to the base. And the chamber through which the breathing gas is circulated, and in the chamber mounted on the base, a heating plate that is in surface contact with the heat sink and heated by the heater, A breathable gas comprising a sheet-like humidifying member that is partially immersed in water and kept in a wet state, and the sheet-like humidifying member is provided in surface contact with the heating plate Heating humidifier.   The heater is formed in a columnar shape, one end thereof is erected on the base, the heat sink is provided in a cylindrical shape covering the surface of the heater, the heating plate is provided in a cylindrical shape, The sheet-shaped humidifying member is provided in a cylindrical shape along the circumferential surface of the heating plate, and the heat sink is inserted inside the heating plate, The respirating gas humidifier according to claim 1, wherein the heat sink is fitted to the heat sink.   The heating plate and the heat sink are formed in a tapered shape that gradually decreases in diameter toward the upper side, and the outer peripheral surface of the heat sink and the inner peripheral surface of the heating plate are formed at substantially the same inclination angle. The respirator warming humidifier according to claim 2.

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