JP3178302B2 - Medical oxygen concentrator - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a patient with respiratory failure
The present invention relates to a medical oxygen concentrator mainly used for home oxygen therapy by a patient (hereinafter simply referred to as a patient). Among them, an oxygen gas (including an oxygen-enriched gas) concentrated by a pressure fluctuation adsorption method (hereinafter, also referred to as a PSA method). , The same shall apply hereinafter).

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A medical oxygen concentrator is mainly used as a supply source of oxygen gas used by patients for home oxygen therapy. Therefore, various conditions are required for the oxygen concentrator, and the contents thereof include the following. High reliability because it is used for medical purposes. Because it is often used continuously for a long period of time, both day and night, it should be a quiet device with low noise so that it does not disturb sleep, including the patients themselves, as well as family members living in the same room. The oxygen gas discharged from the oxygen concentrator by the PSA method is as follows:
It is a very dry gas from which water has been almost completely removed.
Since the nasal mucosa and the respiratory tract are dry and painful, they have a function of humidifying the oxygen gas. Low power consumption due to use of household power supply.

[0003] Regarding the humidification of oxygen gas described in the item, in many cases, oxygen gas is passed through a container containing water in the form of air bubbles, humidified, and then inhaled for respiration. However, for the patient, humidifying the oxygen gas coming out of the oxygen concentrator requires a lot of trouble and is troublesome. There is a strong demand.

[0004] Humidifiers that have been widely used in the past include:
There are the following problems. The water in the humidifier evaporates and depletes as it is used and must be replenished.Moreover, bacteria and algae grow in the container of the humidifier, and there is dirt due to the attachment of garbage. Cleaning is required about once a week. At the time of cleaning the humidifier and refilling / replacement of water, there is a problem that if the lid of the humidifier is not sufficiently and securely tightened, oxygen gas leaks and does not go to the patient. Patients who use oxygen concentrators and humidifiers have relatively weak physical strength, and many elderly people may not be able to securely close the humidifier lid.This problem is acute and serious. is there.

[0005] This humidifier can be mounted in a convex shape from the housing forming the outer shell of the oxygen concentrator to the outside, or can be mounted in the concave portion by providing a concave recess in the housing. There is a thing, but the former, which is mounted in a convex shape, may cause the mounting part of the humidifier (which often also serves as the oxygen gas supply port) by accidentally hitting when walking near the device. There is a breakage accident. In the latter case, dust and the like are easily accumulated in the concave portion, which makes the medical machine unsanitary. For this reason, there is a method of attaching a door in front of the concave portion to make it difficult for dust and the like to enter, but there are problems that the door is damaged and that it is troublesome when refilling or replacing water.

[0006] The oxygen concentrator used for home oxygen therapy is
The sound generated by the air bubbles of the humidifier was not so noticeable during the daytime when the background noise was relatively large because it was used day and night. Therefore, some patients have been unable to sleep well due to this noise. For this reason, as described above, a humidifier is housed in the recess of the casing of the oxygen concentrator, and a door is attached to the front of the humidifier to prevent intrusion of dust and the like, and there is also a device that is expected to reduce the noise.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION To solve the various problems which occur in such a conventional humidifier, a quiet medical oxygen concentrator which does not require replenishment or replacement of water and has a low operating noise. The purpose is to provide.

[0008]

That is, the present invention provides at least one adsorption cylinder filled with an adsorbent, compressed air supply means driven by the power of an electric motor for supplying compressed air to the adsorption cylinder, An oxygen concentrator based on a pressure fluctuation adsorption method (PSA method) basically comprising a motor and / or a fan means for cooling a compressed air supply means, wherein a water-permeable hollow fiber permeable membrane is used as a membrane. The oxygen-enriched gas supplied to the module, and the moisture contained in the compressed air is separated and removed by the hollow fiber permeable membrane, and the moisture separated from the compressed air is concentrated in the adsorption column and supplied to the humidifying means. And the humidifying means by the membrane module has a soundproofing function together with the above-mentioned electric motor and / or equipment for generating noise when operating such as compressed air supply means and fan means. A medical oxygen concentrator for, characterized in that accommodated in the housing to be. Further, the compressed air supply means, the humidification means by the membrane module, and the passage through which the compressed air passes from the compressed air supply means to the humidification means are configured to be maintained at a temperature higher than the outside air temperature by a certain value or more. 2 and each unit is housed in a housing together with the above-mentioned electric motor and / or devices that generate heat during operation of the compressed air supply unit, etc., thereby maintaining a temperature higher than the outside air temperature. I have.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. 1 to 3 are flow sheets of an oxygen concentrator according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing an example of a configuration inside an outer casing of the oxygen concentrator (a right half part). FIG. 5 is a view for explaining the internal configuration of a housing having a soundproof function (accommodated in the left half of the external housing).

The oxygen concentrator based on the PSA method comprises a compressed air supply means 2 driven by the power of a motor, one or more adsorption cylinders 12 and 13 filled with an adsorbent, and a motor and / or compressed air supply means. A buffer means 16 for storing the oxygen-enriched gas generated in the adsorption cylinders 12 and 13 if necessary, and a fan means 31 for cooling the oxygen-enriched gas. And a humidifying unit 3 for humidifying by applying the pressure.

The air introduced from the suction filter 1 is first compressed and compressed by a compressed air supply means 2.
For example, when the number of the adsorption cylinders is two, the supply is alternately supplied to the two adsorption cylinders 12 and 13 by the valve means 11 for controlling the operation of the PSA method. In the adsorption cylinder, nitrogen and the like are adsorbed and removed to generate oxygen gas (pressure adsorption step), and this oxygen-enriched gas is stored in the buffer tank 16, and a part of the gas passes through the orifice 14 to complete the pressure adsorption step. The adsorbent is made to flow back to the adsorption column under reduced pressure exhaust, and the adsorbent is regenerated by assisting desorption of the adsorbed nitrogen and the like (decompression desorption step), and the exhaust gas is exhausted to the atmosphere via the silencer 17. Buffer tank 1
The oxygen-enriched gas stored in 6 is supplied to a pressure reducing valve 10 and a throttle valve 9.
Then, the pressure and flow rate are adjusted so as to be supplied to the patient.

Each of these devices is housed in the external housing 23. However, since the devices are noisy during operation, the outer shell of the external housing 23 is made of a soundproof material to provide sound insulation. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, a sound insulating plate 33 is provided in the air inflow passage 34 and the air discharge passage 35 for cooling the electric motor and the compressed air supply means 2 and the like, or a sound deadening duct is provided in the bottom of the outer casing 23. Various measures have been devised to reduce noise, such as providing 36.

In order to further enhance the soundproofing function, compressed air supply means 2 including a motor as a source of noise during operation, fan means 31, valve means for controlling the flow of compressed air, exhaust gas, oxygen-enriched gas and the like. 11 etc. are shown in FIG.
It is preferable to house it in soundproof housings 29 and 30 having a soundproof function in the external housing 23 as shown in FIG.
The air taken in from the air inlet 24 passes through the air inflow passage 34, passes through the air inlet 25, and passes through the air inlet 2.
6 enters the soundproof housing 30, and further enters the soundproof housing 29 through the communication opening 32 by the fan means 31, a part of which is taken into the compressed air supply means 2 as raw material air, and most of the compressed air including the electric motor is provided. The warm air heated by cooling and exchanging heat with the supply means and other heat-producing devices that consume electric energy is discharged from the air outlet 27 through the air outlet 28 and the silencing duct 36 to the atmosphere. However, although the temperature inside the housing is higher than the outside air temperature, the cooling means is configured so that the temperature higher than the outside air temperature is usually 30 ° C. or less, and appropriately about 20 ° C. The means are also housed in a housing at this temperature. In the example of FIG. 5, the two soundproof housings 29 and 30 are combined and used, but the fan means 31 may also be housed inside the soundproof housing and configured by one soundproof housing.

Further, the sound deadening duct 36 is connected to the outer casing 23.
The caster attached under the bottom of the, made effective use of the space between the outer housing and the ground or floor, is in contact with the bottom surface of the outer housing 23, is composed of sound insulating material, and A sound absorbing material is attached to the inner surface of the air passage, and a sound insulating plate is also provided. The sound insulating plate used in the present invention has a function of pasting a sound absorbing material on both surfaces or one surface of the sound insulating material and forming a plurality of through holes in the surface, and has a function of passing cooling air while absorbing sound waves. However, it is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to this, and other forms may be used.

The oxygen-enriched gas supplied to the patient by adjusting the pressure from the buffer tank 16 to the patient is almost completely removed from the water and is in a dry state. A humidifier such as a bubble type that provides moisture by passing through water is provided, but even the sound of the bursting bubbles is a target for noise reduction. In the present invention, the humidifying means 3 using a hollow fiber permeable membrane is used in place of the conventional bubble humidifier. Similarly, for the purpose of reducing noise and for the reason described later, soundproofing at a higher temperature than the outside air is used. Case 2
9 housed.

The humidifier 3 using a membrane module having a hollow fiber permeable membrane as a diaphragm, which is used as a means for solving the problem in the present invention, will be described in further detail.

[0017]

The hollow fiber permeable membrane that constitutes the membrane module is the one that permeates the moisture in the atmosphere best, and its transmittance is proportional to the difference in partial pressure of the atmospheric moisture between the outside and the inside of the hollow fiber permeable membrane. . If the outside is the primary side through which the pressurized air containing moisture passes through the hollow fiber permeable membrane wall and the secondary side through which the dry oxygen-enriched gas passes through the inside, the moisture partial pressure is high on the primary side and low on the secondary side . The principle of water permeation is that water molecules diffuse from the primary side through the membrane wall of the permeable membrane and diffuse through the secondary side wall surface, so that the water molecules permeate the membrane wall. Since the permeation amount of water per unit area of the permeable membrane by the perfluoro ion exchange membrane is considerably large, efficient permeation can be obtained even if the partial pressure difference between the primary side and the secondary side is small. In order to humidify the secondary side to a high humidity, it is necessary to increase the partial pressure of water on the primary side.

Since the dry oxygen-enriched gas is humidified using the moisture contained in the atmosphere, the moisture partial pressure on the primary side of the moisture supply is determined by the amount of moisture contained in the atmosphere, that is, the temperature of the outside air and its relative humidity. If the temperature is low and the relative humidity is low, the secondary side may not be sufficiently humidified. In Japan, the average monthly relative humidity of major cities from Hokkaido to Okinawa is mostly distributed at 60 to 90%. The low humidity season is March / April, and the relative humidity of cities such as Tokyo with little greenery is low. In addition, the monthly average temperature throughout the year is distributed in a wide range of -9 to 29 ° C., and in winter such as Hokkaido, the temperature is dried by indoor heating, and the relative humidity is considerably low. The partial pressure of water contained in the atmosphere at 0 ° C. and 80% relative humidity is 4.89 mbar. This is 4
When pressurized to kgf / cm ² G, the volume is reduced to 1/5, and the water partial pressure is increased by a factor of 5 to 24.45 mbar. In experiments at this low temperature, the relative humidity of the oxygen-enriched gas to be humidified sometimes did not reach the calculated target value with the moisture permeating to the secondary side. As a result of diligent research, the primary pressurized air is cooled down in the path leading to the humidifying means and the temperature decreases, causing dew condensation, and the moisture partial pressure of the gas required to humidify the secondary gas is sufficient. It turns out that there are things that can not be obtained.

Therefore, the primary water partial pressure of 2
In order to maintain 4.45 mbar, unless the temperature is raised to 22 ° C. or more, moisture in the air will condense and will not exceed the saturated steam pressure at that temperature. For this reason, in order to increase the water partial pressure on the primary side, not only the air must be pressurized but also a high water partial pressure cannot be maintained unless the temperature is set higher than the outside air. The value of the temperature to be increased can be determined based on the temperature of the secondary gas, which is the gas to be humidified, and the target humidification value. The temperature of the oxygen-enriched gas obtained by the oxygen concentrator by the PSA method is several degrees higher than the outside air temperature. Usually, the range of 1 to 2 ° C is almost the same. Assuming that it is 2 ° C higher than the outside air,
In order to increase the relative humidity to 90%, the permeation performance of the moisture permeable membrane is greatly affected. However, in the permeation performance at the current technical level, the temperature is increased to about 5 to 16 ° C. or higher and the primary side is increased. It is necessary to maintain the water partial pressure.

Therefore, in a humidifying means comprising a compressed air supply means for taking in and compressing the atmosphere containing water vapor and a membrane module having a hollow fiber permeable membrane as a diaphragm, a compressed air supply means is provided on one side of the membrane of the humidification means. Through the compressed air compressed in the above, and through the humidified gas to the other side of the diaphragm, the compressed air supply means and the humidification means, and the temperature of the passage of the compressed air from the compressed air supply means to the humidification means Is set to be higher than the atmospheric temperature by a certain value or more.

According to the present invention, in order to maintain the temperature, P
The heat generated in the oxygen concentrator by the SA method is used efficiently. This is performed by housing a humidifying unit using the membrane module in a housing that houses a compressed air supply unit including an electric motor and other heating devices that consume electric energy. In addition, this case has a soundproof structure,
It is also preferable to have an effect of preventing noise from leaking from a motor and / or an air supply unit, a fan unit, and the like, which are devices that generate noise. However, in a device that does not require soundproofing, it is not necessary to use a soundproofing housing. Further, in the outer passage 5 and the inner passage of the hollow fiber permeable membrane 4 in the membrane module (humidifying means 3), the larger cross-sectional area has less airflow resistance and allows the compressed air to flow easily. A larger cross-sectional area can be produced without increasing the number of hollow fibers. Therefore, flowing compressed air or exhaust gas containing water through the outer passage 5 has less ventilation resistance, and the compressed air is efficiently supplied to the adsorption cylinder. Since the air can be supplied well and the air pressure generated by the compressed air supply means can be reduced accordingly, the load on the motor can be reduced and the power consumption can be reduced.

With this configuration, the compressed air containing a large amount of water passes through the outer passage, and the inner passage contains substantially no water that is concentrated and generated.
The low-pressure oxygen-enriched gas whose pressure has been adjusted in passes through, and only the moisture in the atmosphere permeates from the outside to the inside, so the moisture obtained by separating from the atmosphere is converted into a concentrated oxygen-enriched gas. By applying and humidifying, there is no need to replenish or replace water as in a conventionally used bubble-type humidifier, thereby eliminating the cause of unsanitary conditions.

[0023]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings, particularly the configuration focusing on the humidifying means 3. However, this is only for explanation, and the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 1 is configured such that the whole amount of the compressed air pressurized by the compressed air supply means 2 flows to the outside passage 5 of the humidifying means 3 using the hollow fiber permeable membrane 4. It is. In the compressed air, the moisture contained while passing through the outer passage 5 penetrates into the inner passage of the hollow fiber and is separated and removed therefrom. Supplied to the end. Then, in the adsorption column, nitrogen or the like is adsorbed and removed to generate oxygen gas, and this oxygen-enriched gas is stored in the buffer tank 16. The oxygen-enriched gas stored in the buffer tank 16 is supplied to the pressure reducing valve 1
0 and the throttle valve 9 are adjusted to an appropriate pressure and flow rate, and supplied to the inside passage of the hollow fiber permeable membrane 4 of the humidifying means 3 to be supplied with the water separated and removed from the compressed air to humidify. Is supplied to the patient from the outlet 8.

Here, the suction filter 1 is for removing dust in the air and supplying clean air to the compressed air supply means 2. Further, the pressure reducing valve 10 adjusts the pressure (for example, about 0.3 kgf / cm ² · G) suitable for using the oxygen gas stored in the buffer tank 16 for use. It adjusts the flow rate of the oxygen-enriched gas taken out from the outlet port 8 and supplied to the patient, and may be of any type such as a needle valve type or an orifice selection type as long as the gas flow rate can be adjusted. Good. If it is necessary to adjust the degree of humidification, a variable throttle valve 20 is provided between the inlet side and the outlet side of the inner passage of the hollow fiber permeable membrane 4 of the humidifying means 3 so that the unhumidified oxygen rich A part of the oxidizing gas may be bypassed and mixed with the humidified oxygen-enriched gas.

Although the hollow fiber permeable membrane used in this embodiment is constituted by a perfluoro ion exchange membrane, other ion exchange membranes may be used. Further, in the figure, the hollow fiber permeable membrane 4 is represented as a single double line from the inlet side to the outlet side, but actually, the outer diameter is 0.3 mm and the inner diameter is 0.15 m.
A bundle of about 3500 hollow fibers having a length of about 25 cm and a length of about 25 cm was used.

In the humidifying means 3, the inlet and the outlet of the outer passage 5 and the inner passage of the hollow fiber permeable membrane 4 communicating with the outside of the humidifying means 3 may be located on either side of the humidifying means 3. Although there is no directionality in the passage, it is preferable that the flow of the compressed air containing water and the flow of the dried oxygen-enriched gas are in directions opposite to each other. The reason is that the rate at which moisture permeates through the membrane of the hollow fiber is not proportional to the pressure difference between the two gases as described above, but is proportional to the partial pressure difference of the moisture in that gas. By making the flowing directions of the compressed air in which the partial pressure of moisture decreases and the oxygen-enriched gas, which is humidified and the partial pressure of moisture gradually rises, opposite to each other, both the outside and the inside of the humidifying means 3 are formed. This is because the partial pressure of the moisture of both gases is substantially equal over almost the entire area of the passage, so that the humidifying effect can be further enhanced. However, in this embodiment and the second embodiment described below, the amount of the compressed air and the exhaust gas flowing through the outer passage 5 of the hollow fiber is about 3 times larger than the amount of the oxygen-enriched gas.
Since the number is sufficiently large as 0 times, a remarkable effect is not exhibited.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 2 is basically the same as the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 except that a part of the compressed air pressurized by the compressed air supply means 2 is supplied to the humidifying means 3. This is an example in which it is configured to flow through the outer passage 5 of the hollow fiber permeable membrane 4. When the compressed air passes through the passage in the humidifying means 3, the moisture contained therein passes through the inside passage of the hollow fiber permeable membrane and is separated and removed therefrom. Is released into the soundproof housing 29 having The compressed air used for humidification is released into the atmosphere and discarded, and is wasted. Therefore, it is better to reduce the compressed air as much as possible. The flow rate thereof may be substantially the same as the flow rate of the oxygen-enriched gas flowing to the humidifying means 3. Further, when the flow rate becomes higher, the amount of compressed air supplied to the adsorption column decreases, and the performance of the oxygen concentrator as a whole deteriorates. Therefore, the flow rate is reduced by the throttle valve 20, and the degree of humidification is reduced. Adjust for optimum. Furthermore, since a noise is generated if the air is released to the atmosphere immediately after the throttle valve 20, the silencer 21 is provided. However, the silencer 21 may be omitted if the housing has a sufficient soundproofing function.

On the other hand, the remaining portion that occupies most of the compressed air is
It is supplied to the adsorption column 12 or 13 via the valve means 11 for controlling the operation of the adsorption separation by the PSA method. Then, in this adsorption column, nitrogen and the like are adsorbed and removed to generate an oxygen-enriched gas, and this oxygen-enriched gas is stored in the buffer tank 16. The oxygen-enriched gas stored in the buffer tank 16 is supplied to the inner passage of the hollow fiber permeable membrane 4 of the humidifying means 3 by adjusting the pressure and the flow rate by the pressure reducing valve 10 and the throttle valve 9 to an appropriate pressure. The water separated and removed from the compressed air is provided and humidified, and supplied to the patient from the outlet 8.

In this embodiment, the amounts of gas flowing in the outer passage and the inner passage of the hollow fiber are made substantially equal.
It does not matter if it flows into any of the passages. In such a case, it is preferable that the flowing directions of the respective gases be opposite as described above. (In Fig. 2, it is in the same direction for the sake of drawing.)

The embodiment shown in FIG. 3 is basically the same as the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, except that the compressed air from the compressed air supply means 2 is supplied to the adsorption cylinder 12 or the valve 12 through the valve means 11. 13
The oxygen-enriched gas is supplied to and concentrated to generate an oxygen-enriched gas, and this oxygen-enriched gas is stored in the buffer tank 16. And
When the adsorption column 12 or 13 enters the vacuum desorption step, a part of the flow is returned to the adsorption column through the orifice 14 to assist desorption of the adsorbed nitrogen and the like. Through the humidifying means 3 into the outer passage 5 of the hollow fiber. Moisture contained in the exhaust gas passes through the inner passage of the hollow fiber and is separated and removed. Exhaust gas that has passed through the membrane module and dried is passed through the silencer 17,
It is released into the soundproof housing 29 having the above soundproof function.
On the other hand, the oxygen-enriched gas is supplied to the inner passage of the hollow fiber in the wetting means 3 to provide moisture separated and removed from the exhaust gas to humidify.

In this case, it is necessary to lower the pressure during the decompression / desorption step of the adsorption cylinder as low as possible within a predetermined time, and a humidifying means for reducing the ventilation resistance when exhaust gas flows during desorption as much as possible. Therefore, as in the case of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the inner passage of the hollow fiber is used as the passage of the oxygen-enriched gas, and the outer passage 5 is used as the passage of the exhaust gas. Although the exhaust gas at the time of desorption has a higher relative humidity than the atmosphere, the pressure is low because the gas is released to the atmosphere and the pressure is reduced, and the partial pressure difference between the moisture of both gases generated inside and outside the hollow fiber permeable membrane 4 is reduced. Since it is relatively low, the humidification effect is somewhat lower than that of the embodiment of FIG. 1, but it is 50 to 90% (RH), and there is no practical problem. Furthermore, in this embodiment, when the humidification needs to be adjusted, a variable throttle valve is provided between the inlet side and the outlet side of the inner passage of the hollow fiber permeable membrane 4 of the humidifying means 3 so that the humidification is performed. To bypass some of the oxygen-enriched gas
It is the same as in the embodiment of FIG. 1 that the gas may be mixed with the humidified oxygen-enriched gas.

The mounting in the housing in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 is performed by a method similar to the method shown in FIGS. The humidifying means by the membrane module is housed in the tub so that the water partial pressure on the primary side can be kept high. It also serves as a protection housing for preventing noise from the noise source.

[0034]

By using the oxygen concentrator of the present invention, the troublesome operation of the conventionally used bubble humidifier such as replenishment and replacement of water, cleaning of the container, etc. can be relieved. In addition to preventing the oxygen gas from leaking due to the imperfect lid, there is no need to worry about the sound of bubbles popping out or take measures. Furthermore, the humidifying means as well as the electric motor, compressed air supply means, fan means, etc., which are the noise sources of the apparatus, are housed in a housing having a soundproof effect, and the cooling ventilation passage is made unique. Therefore, the operation sound is very quiet, which is suitable as a medical oxygen concentrator.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a flow sheet of an oxygen concentrator according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view showing a flow sheet of an oxygen concentrator according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a view showing a flow sheet of an oxygen concentrator according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view of a right half part schematically showing an example of a configuration inside an outer casing of the oxygen concentrator.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a configuration inside a housing having a soundproofing function.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 suction filter 2 compressed air supply means 3 humidification means 4 hollow fiber permeable membrane 5 outer passage 8 outlet 9, 20 throttle valve 10 pressure reducing valve 11 valve means 12, 13 suction cylinder 14 orifice 16 buffer tank 17, 21 silencer 23 outer casing Body 24 Atmospheric intake 25 Air air inlet 26 Air inlet 27 Air outlet 28 Air outlet 29, 30 Soundproof housing 31 Fan means 32 Communication opening 33 Sound insulation plate 34 Air inflow passage 35 Air exhaust passage 36 Sound reduction duct

(56) References JP-A-5-49697 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) A61M 16/10 B01D 53/04 B01D 53/22 C01B 13 / 02

Claims (7)

(57) [Claims] At least one adsorption cylinder filled with an adsorbent, compressed air supply means driven by the power of an electric motor for supplying compressed air to the adsorption cylinder, the electric motor and / or compressed air supply means In an oxygen concentrator based on a pressure fluctuation adsorption method (PSA method) basically comprising a fan means for cooling, a membrane module having a hollow fiber permeable membrane capable of transmitting moisture as a diaphragm is provided as a humidifying means, The compressed air from the compressed air supply means or the exhaust gas desorbed and discharged during the decompression and desorption step of the adsorption cylinder is supplied to one side of the membrane of the membrane module to remove moisture contained in the compressed air or the exhaust gas. The water separated by the hollow fiber permeable membrane is separated and removed, and the water separated by the hollow fiber permeable membrane is concentrated in the adsorption column and supplied to the oxygen-enriched gas supplied to the other side of the membrane module to be humidified. In addition, the humidifying means by the membrane module is housed in a housing having a soundproofing function together with the above-mentioned electric motor and / or compressed air supply means, equipment that generates noise during operation, etc. Characteristic medical oxygen concentrator. 2. At least one adsorption cylinder filled with an adsorbent, compressed air supply means driven by the power of an electric motor for supplying compressed air to the adsorption cylinder, the electric motor and / or compressed air supply means In an oxygen concentrator based on a pressure fluctuation adsorption method (PSA method) basically comprising a fan means for cooling, a membrane module having a hollow fiber permeable membrane capable of transmitting moisture as a diaphragm is provided as a humidifying means, The compressed air from the compressed air supply means or the exhaust gas desorbed and discharged during the decompression and desorption step of the adsorption cylinder is supplied to one side of the membrane of the membrane module to remove moisture contained in the compressed air or the exhaust gas. The water separated by the hollow fiber permeable membrane is separated and removed, and the water separated by the hollow fiber permeable membrane is concentrated in the adsorption column and supplied to the oxygen-enriched gas supplied to the other side of the membrane module to be humidified. And the passage through which the compressed air is supplied from the compressed air supply unit, the humidification unit using the membrane module, and the compressed air from the compressed air supply unit to the humidification unit is maintained at a temperature higher than the outside air temperature by a certain value or more. A medical oxygen concentrator characterized by the following. 3. A compressed air supply means, a humidifying means by a membrane module, and a passage through which compressed air passes from the compressed air supply means to the humidifying means is provided with heat when the electric motor and / or the compressed air supply means is operated. The medical oxygen concentrator according to claim 2, wherein the generated devices are housed in a housing whose temperature is higher than that of the outside air. 4. The medical device according to claim 3, wherein the housing housing the devices that generate heat during operation of the electric motor and / or the compressed air supply means has a soundproofing function. Oxygen concentrator. 5. The compressed air from the compressed air supply means is supplied to an outer passage of a hollow fiber in a membrane module serving as a humidifier, and moisture contained in the compressed air is transmitted to an inner passage of the hollow fiber. The compressed air passed through the membrane module is supplied to the adsorption column and concentrated to generate an oxygen-enriched gas, and then the oxygen-enriched gas is supplied to the inside passage of the hollow fiber in the membrane module. The medical oxygen concentrator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the oxygen is supplied and humidified by supplying moisture separated and removed from the compressed air. 6. A part of the compressed air from the compressed air supply means is supplied to the outside or inside passage of the hollow fiber in the membrane module serving as the humidifying means, and the moisture contained in the compressed air is supplied to the hollow fiber. The compressed air passing through the membrane module is separated and removed, and the compressed air that has passed through the membrane module is released through the throttle valve into the housing having the soundproofing function, while the remaining compressed air is supplied to the adsorption column. Then, the oxygen-enriched gas is generated, and then the oxygen-enriched gas is supplied to the other side passage of the hollow fiber in the membrane module, and humidified by giving moisture separated and removed from the compressed air. The medical oxygen concentrator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: 7. An oxygen-enriched gas is generated by supplying compressed air from a compressed air supply means to an adsorption column to generate an oxygen-enriched gas, and exhaust gas desorbed and discharged in a decompression / desorption step of the adsorption column is humidified by The water contained in the exhaust gas is supplied to the outer passage of the hollow fiber in the membrane module to be transmitted to the inner passage of the hollow fiber to be separated and removed, and the exhaust gas passing through the membrane module is subjected to a throttle valve. Through the inside of the housing having the soundproofing function, while supplying the oxygen-enriched gas to the inside passage of the hollow fiber in the membrane module, and humidifying by giving moisture separated and removed from the exhaust gas. The medical oxygen concentrator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the medical oxygen concentrator is configured as follows.