JP3246396U - Oxygen therapy device for small animals - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] To provide an oxygen therapy device for small animals that is not easily affected by the usage environment, has a simple configuration, and can maintain constant oxygen and carbon dioxide concentrations inside a cage. [Solution] An oxygen therapy device for small animals (10) that includes an oxygen concentrator (12) that generates concentrated oxygen, an oxygen hose (22) connected to the oxygen concentrator (12), a cage (14) that houses a small animal, and an outside air mixer (16) that is connected to the oxygen hose (22) and inserted into the cage (14) to mix air with the concentrated oxygen supplied from the oxygen concentrator (12) and flow inside the cage (14). [Selected Figure] Figure 1

Description

This invention relates to an oxygen therapy device for small animals, for example, using an oxygen concentrator.

A conventional oxygen therapy device for small animals is composed of an oxygen concentrator containing zeolite and a cage for housing a small animal. The cage is an open cage with a through hole that connects the inside and outside, and the through hole is sized to be able to release the oxygen-containing air inside the cage to the outside in response to the supply of oxygen-containing air from the oxygen concentrator so that the oxygen concentration inside the cage can be maintained at an oxygen concentration that is considered optimal for intensive oxygen therapy for small animals without providing the cage with an oxygen concentration adjustment means, and so that the oxygen-containing air inside the cage can be replaced with fresh oxygen-containing air from the oxygen concentrator (see Patent Document 1).

Patent No. 5130307

However, in the above-mentioned oxygen therapy device for small animals, the oxygen concentration and carbon dioxide gas (carbon dioxide) concentration in the cage can fluctuate depending on the usage environment, and it is difficult to reliably control these by changing only the size of the holes.

The present invention is intended to solve the above problems and aims to provide an oxygen therapy device for small animals that is not easily affected by the usage environment, has a simple configuration, and can maintain constant oxygen and carbon dioxide concentrations in the cage.

This invention is an oxygen therapy device for small animals that includes an oxygen concentrator that generates concentrated oxygen, a hose connected to the oxygen concentrator, a cage for housing a small animal, and an outside air mixing member that is connected to the hose and inserted into the cage to mix air with the concentrated oxygen supplied from the oxygen concentrator and flow it inside the cage.

It is preferable that the outside air mixing member increases the amount of air by using the Venturi effect.

The outside air mixing member is preferably a blender.

This invention is less susceptible to the effects of the usage environment and has a simple structure that can maintain constant oxygen and carbon dioxide concentrations inside the cage.

1 is a block diagram of an oxygen therapy device for small animals according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the principle of a blender (Venturi mask) used in an oxygen therapy device for small animals according to one embodiment of the present invention. This figure shows the results of measuring carbon dioxide concentration inside a cage that is widely used in Japan. This figure shows the standard values (numbers are maximum values) of oxygen concentration in the cage using six types (six colors) of blenders. FIG. 13 is a photograph of color-coded blenders placed on top of a cage.

The oxygen therapy device for small animals according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, the oxygen therapy device 10 for small animals includes an oxygen concentrator 12 that generates concentrated oxygen, a cage 14 that houses a small animal A such as a dog or cat, and an outside air mixer 16 that mixes the concentrated oxygen supplied from the oxygen concentrator 12 with air and flows it into the cage 14.

As is well known, the oxygen concentrator 12 is a device that separates nitrogen gas and oxygen gas in the air, eliminates the nitrogen gas, and supplies high-concentration oxygen gas. This gas separation method can be broadly categorized into a "membrane type" method that uses a molecular membrane to obtain a relatively low concentration of oxygen, and a "PAS type" that uses zeolite to obtain a high concentration of oxygen. Either type of oxygen concentrator 12 can be used, but the "PAS type" oxygen concentrator 12 has the advantage of being able to obtain a large flow rate. An oxygen hose 22 (hose) through which concentrated oxygen flows is connected to the oxygen concentrator 12.

The cage 14 is large enough to house a small animal, has an opening on the front, and a door 18 that closes the opening. The cage 14 is made of transparent plastic so that the inside can be seen through. The cage 14 does not have any holes large enough to control the oxygen concentration or carbon dioxide (carbon dioxide) concentration inside, but does have a minimum necessary gap 20. The gap 20 is, for example, a through hole formed in the cage 14, and exists in any location on the cage 14 (for example, the top and bottom). It goes without saying that the formation of the gap 20 at the bottom of the cage 14 increases the discharge function of heavy carbon dioxide gas.

An outside air mixing member 16 is inserted into a part of the cage 14. The outside air mixing member 16 is, for example, called a blender, and can also be, for example, a Venturi mask (Venturi tube).

The tip of the oxygen hose 22 connected to the oxygen concentrator 12 is removably attached to the outside air mixing member 16, and is inserted into the cage 14. In this way, the concentrated oxygen supplied from the oxygen concentrator 12 via the oxygen hose 22 is mixed with several times the volume of air in the outside air mixing member 16, and sent to the inside of the cage 14.

There are standards for the carbon dioxide concentration that is acceptable in a human living environment. Specifically, the building standards for houses and the like stipulate 1000 ppm. The Ministry of Culture's recommended value for school classrooms is 1500 ppm, and the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare's standard for an eight-hour work day is 5000 ppm. According to this embodiment, by using a blender to mix oxygen and outside air, it is possible to ventilate the cage with a large amount of outside air. As a result, it is possible to reduce high concentrations of carbon dioxide and obtain measurement values that meet these standards.

Next, we will explain the operation of an oxygen therapy device for small animals according to one embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, a small animal A is housed inside a cage 14, and concentrated oxygen with a predetermined oxygen concentration is supplied from an oxygen concentrator 12. The concentrated oxygen passes through an oxygen hose 22, enters and passes through the outside air mixer 16, and mixes with outside air as it passes through the outside air mixer 16. This results in a mixture of concentrated oxygen and air, which is then supplied to the inside of the cage 14.

Here, a blender, a Venturi mask (Venturi tube), is used as the outside air mixing member 16, so the Venturi effect can be created. By creating the Venturi effect, oxygen and air can be mixed and the oxygen concentration can be adjusted to a set level. The Venturi effect is the principle of creating a jet stream by making the outlet small and letting oxygen flow forcefully, creating negative pressure around the jet stream and drawing in air.

In particular, the blender, which is an outside air mixing member 16, can be easily assembled with a single touch by connecting it to the tip of the oxygen hose 22 and inserting it into the cage 14, and a mixer of a specified concentration can be supplied inside the cage 14. For example, by preparing multiple types of blenders for different settable oxygen concentrations, the internal environment of the cage 14 can be adjusted to various oxygen concentrations. It is preferable to form the blenders in different colors to distinguish the settable oxygen concentrations.

Inside the cage 14, a high concentration of oxygen is filled due to the large amount of mixture of air and outside air, and the air inside the cage is stirred and discharged to the outside through the gap 20. The mixture supplied to the inside of the cage 14 increases in volume because outside air is taken in by the outside air mixing member 16. By supplying the mixture with an increased volume of air to the inside of the cage 14, the air inside the cage 14 is diffused, and carbon dioxide gas, ammonia gas, etc. (gases generated by the breathing of small animals) that have been retained inside the cage are forcefully discharged to the outside of the cage 14 through the gap 20. In this way, the oxygen concentration of the air inside the cage can be increased while at the same time increasing the discharge effect of carbon dioxide gas, etc. retained inside the cage, and the concentration of carbon dioxide gas and ammonia gas inside the cage can be reduced.

In particular, because the oxygen concentration inside the cage is not maintained by the size of the holes formed in the cage 14, the gap 20 can be kept to a minimum. This means that the cage is less susceptible to the effects of the environment in which it is used, and the oxygen concentration inside the cage can be maintained at an optimal level.

In conventional oxygen therapy devices for small animals, the oxygen concentration inside the cage is controlled by the size of the holes formed in the cage, and the oxygen concentration is maintained at an optimal concentration. However, in this embodiment, the oxygen concentration inside the cage can be maintained at an optimal concentration and carbon dioxide gas inside the cage can be discharged to the outside by simply discharging air to the outside through the gap 20 present in the cage 14, rather than by the size of the holes. In particular, since the size of the gap 20 is the minimum necessary, hot or cold air from an air conditioner or cooler, for example, is less likely to penetrate into the cage, and the cage is less susceptible to the effects of the usage environment in which the cage 14 is installed.

Next, we will explain an experimental example of an oxygen therapy device for small animals according to one embodiment of the present invention.

First, we will measure the carbon dioxide concentration inside the cages commonly used in Japan.

The oxygen supply was 3 L/min (oxygen concentration 90%) from an oxygen concentrator. When the oxygen concentration in the cage reached 40%, the oxygen supply was stopped, and when it fell below 40%, the oxygen supply was started again to maintain the oxygen concentration in the cage at a constant concentration of 40%.

The amount of carbon dioxide gas supplied was 100-120 ml from a carbon dioxide gas cylinder under the following conditions: 10 ml/kg for the dog's tidal volume, 100 ml for a body weight of 10 kg, and 2,000 ml for a respiratory rate of 20 breaths per minute. Of the 2,000 ml of ventilation (exhaled air), the carbon dioxide concentration is about 4% (80 ml), but in the experiment this was increased by 25-50% and set at 100-120 ml/min.

As shown in Figure 3, when the oxygen concentration reaches the set value of 40%, the oxygen supply stops, and when it falls below 40%, the oxygen supply resumes. However, during the time when the oxygen supply is stopped, the cage is not ventilated, and carbon dioxide accumulates inside the cage. When the oxygen supply is resumed, the cage is ventilated and the carbon dioxide concentration drops, but the accumulated carbon dioxide cannot be completely eliminated, and it gradually accumulates inside the cage and continues to increase.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the principle of this device is an application of Bernoulli's law in fluid mechanics. For example, there is the nebulizer, which is something we are familiar with. Nebulizers, which were widely used in the past, suck in the liquid medicine at the bottom of a bottle when compressed air from a compressor is blown through a thin nozzle, turning it into a fine mist that can be inhaled by the patient, but when there is no liquid medicine, outside air is sucked in.

In this embodiment, oxygen from the oxygen concentrator is passed through a special blender instead of a nebulizer. Changing the structure of the blender changes the amount of outside air that is sucked in, which changes the amount of ventilation in the cage. For this reason, the oxygen concentration and carbon dioxide concentration can be changed by using several different types of blenders.

In this study, six types of blenders were used to simulate the changes in oxygen and carbon dioxide concentrations. The oxygen source was an oxygen concentrator with a standard oxygen concentration of 90% and a flow rate of 3 L/min. Carbon dioxide was supplied from a carbon dioxide cylinder at a rate of 100 to 130 ml/min.

This method allows the oxygen concentration to be selected from six levels (blender). This device is equipped with monitors for oxygen concentration, carbon dioxide concentration, temperature, humidity, etc., and constantly monitors the environment inside the cage and displays it on the panel. It is equipped with a pulse oximeter specifically for small animals, and by knowing the _SPO2 , it is possible to select the appropriate oxygen concentration according to the animal's symptoms and avoid administering excessively high-concentration oxygen.

Figure 4 shows the standard values (maximum values) of oxygen concentration inside the cage using six types of blenders. Figure 5 shows a photograph of the different colored blenders placed on the top surface of the cage.

The relationship between the blender color and oxygen concentration (standard oxygen concentration that can be set) is as follows: blue - 25% oxygen concentration, white - 28% oxygen concentration, orange - 30% oxygen concentration, yellow - 33% oxygen concentration, red - 37% oxygen concentration, green - 50% oxygen concentration.

The blender of this embodiment mixes 3 to 10 times as much outside air (e.g., room air) as the oxygen sent from the oxygen concentrator 12 and supplies it to the cage 14, so the internal environment of the cage 14 is close to the temperature and humidity of an air-conditioned room. Furthermore, odors and other fumes from within the cage are exhausted to the outside, creating a favorable environment inside the cage. In other words, the method of this embodiment makes it possible to set the oxygen concentration even in a simple cage that does not allow for oxygen concentration adjustment.

The above configuration shows one embodiment of the present invention, and is not intended to limit the scope of the utility model registration claim to the above configuration. The technical idea of the present invention should be protected as the scope of the right, and the degree of design changes made by a person skilled in the art should be included in the scope of the utility model registration claim.

10 Oxygen therapy device for small animals 12 Oxygen concentrator 14 Cage 16 Outside air mixing member 18 Door 20 Gap 22 Oxygen hose (hose)
A. Small animals

Claims (3)

an oxygen concentrator for generating concentrated oxygen;
a hose connected to the oxygen concentrator;
A cage for housing small animals;
an outside air mixing member that is connected to the hose and inserted into the cage to mix concentrated oxygen supplied from the oxygen concentrator with air and flow the air into the cage;
An oxygen therapy device for small animals. The oxygen therapy device for small animals according to claim 1, wherein the outside air mixing member increases the amount of air by the Venturi effect. The oxygen therapy device for small animals according to claim 2, wherein the outside air mixing member is a blender.

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