US852549A - Massage appratus. - Google Patents

Description

. PATENTED MAY 7, 1907.

n. c. PIS HER. MASSAGE APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 3, 1905.

llllll 3 having a multiplicity of ports for the purpose llNliTED STATES ATENT OFFTOEQ MASSAGE APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent Fatented May 7, 1907.

Application filed July 3,1905. Serial No. 268,074.

To all whom, it 777/6117/ concern.-

Be it known that I, DANIEL O. FIsHER, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Massage Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

The primary object of my invention is to provide an apparatus for treating the eyes and cars by a treatment similar to massage or similar to leaching of other parts of the body, although my apparatus may of course be used for other purposes where pressure or suction is to be applied intermittently. It has been found in the practice of treating the ears, eyes, etc., that either suction or pressure is at times desirable, and my apparatus is adapted to apply either to the body.

My invention consists essentially in the use of a source of fluid pressure, an instrument for application to the body of the patient, a conduit between them, and in providing in that conduit means to alternately connect the instrument with the source of pressure and with an atmosphere of lower pressure for the purpose of giving rapid impulses to the body of the patient without fear of danger to the part treated.

My invention consists also in the combination of a source of pressure; a three-way valve, and means to continuously operate the valve so that it will alternately connect a port leading to the object to be operated upon with an atmospheric port and a port connected with the source of pressure.

Another feature of my invention is a valve of giving a multiplicity of impulses for each revolution of the valve shaft.

Other detailed features of my invention are described below:

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of the preferred valve. Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation of the valve seat on line 22 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the valve. Fig. l is a side elevation of the valve seat. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing the apparatus operating on the eye of the patient.

A is an eye cup connected by conduit B with the receptacle or valve casing D supported on base D. Leading from receptacle D is conduit E having stop-cock e, gage e and needle valve 0 Conduit E is connected with pressure or vacuum tank F having gage f and safety valve f and having connection G with pressure or vacuum pump H. Re-

form and which has ports (2 arranged similarly to ports (2 but alternating with them and extending through the valve seat to the atmosphere. Journaled in the receptacle is shaft (6" which has shoulder (Z to bear against the sleeve journal (i threaded for adjustment in the receptacle. Check nut d is threaded. to engage in sleeve journal. Engaging the shaft at one end is step screw (Z and carried at the other end is pulley d for connection with means for rotating it. Nipple o" is connected with conduit B and nipple (Z is connected with conduit E.

Valve J is mounted on shaft d and has ports arranged similarly to the ports in the valve seat.

I will describe the operation of my apparatus when used with a pressure tank and pressure pump, as the operation with a vacuum tank or a blower will be sufficiently clear from that description.

The pressure pump supplies the tank with air under pressure which is controlled by the safety valve f and which is indicated by gage Air is conveyed from the tank to the receptacle by conduit E. Stop cock 6 being opened the desired pressure in the conduit will be obtained by adjustment of the needle valve and will be indicated by gage (2. Valve J is rotated through pulley d and is adjusted with reference to its valve seat by means of the step-screw and sleeve journal. The ports in the valve are arranged to register alternately with ports d and ports d of the valve seat. l/Vhen the valve ports register with the ports d impulses of pressure are conveyed to the body of the patient and when the valve ports register with ports (Z of the valve seat pressure is exhausted to the atmosphere, and for each revolution of the valve as shown there will be six impulses and six exhausts with the result that the number of impulses of pressure per unit of time will be much greater than with any apparatus heretofore known, and this is due to my constantly rotating valve and to the arrangement of ports.

The advantage of my arrangement of stop-cock, gage and needle valve in conduit E is that the operator can regulate and ob serve the exact amount of pressure that is being transmitted to the patient and this pulsating IIO pressure can be maintained uniformly regardless of the pressure in the tank, the only requirement being that the pressure in the tank be greater than the desired pressure on the patient.

Any suitable number of ports in the valve and valve seat may be used, depending on the treatment desired.

It will be clear that when a vacuum is used that air is withdrawn through the ports at and when ports d are open that air is sup plied from the atmosphere, and the rest of the operation when vacuum is used will be clear from the description already given. In some cases I substitute for the tank F ablower which will not depart from the princi le of my invention, which is that a source 0 pressure may be connected with the body or the patient by a conduit which has means to alternately apply the pressure to, and relieve it from the body of the patient, to gain the advantages recognized to be due to the rapid 1application of pulsations of pressure to the It will be clear that in the form of my invention herein shown tank F is the source of pressure, eye-cup A is the instrument for application to the body and that pipes B and E constitute a conduit connecting them, while the valve J is the means in that conduit for alternately connecting eye-cup A first with tank F and then with the atmosphere. It will also be clear that when operating under a vacuum the ports (1 and pipe B constitute the conduit connecting eye-cup A with the source of pressure which in this case is the atmosphere and valve J will then alternately connect instrument A first with the relatively high pressure of the atmosphere and then with the relatively low pressure of the tank F.

What I claim is:

1. An apparatus of the character described comprising a source of constant pressure; an instrument for application to the body a c0nduit connecting the source of constant pressure and the instrument; and means in said conduit to alternately connect said instrument first with the source of constant pressure and then with an atmosphere of lower pressure.

2. An apparatus of the character described comprising a source of pressure; a three-way valve having the first port thereofconnected with the source of pressure, the second port connected with the object to be operated upon, and the third port communicating with the atmosphere; and means to continuously operate the valve to alternately connect the second port with the firstand third orts.

3. An apparatus of the character escribed comprising a source of pressure; a three-way valve having a port leading to the object to be operated upon, a set of ports communi-- eating with the source of pressure and a set of ports communicating with the atmosphere; and means to continuously rotate the valve to alternately connect the first mentioned port first with one of the portaof the first set and then with one of the ports of the second set.

4. An apparatus of the character described comprising a source of pressure; a rotary three-way valve having a port leading to the object to be operated upon, a set of ports communicating with the source of pressure and a set of ports communicating with the atmosphere, and means to continuously rotate the valve to alternately connect the first mentioned port with the two sets of ports.

5. A three-way valve comprising a receptacle having two chambers; a valve seat separating the chambers and having one set of ports leading from one chamber to the other and having anotherset of ports leading from one chamber to the atmosphere; a valve to fit the valve seat and having ports to alternately register withthe two sets of ports of the valve seat and means to rotate the valve. 1

6. The combination of a three-way valve; a source of constant pressure; a conduit connecting the source 01 constant pressure and three-way valve; a ressure gage for that conduit; a stop-cock 1n the conduit between the three-way valve and gage and a needle valve in the conduit between the gage and source of constant pressure for regulating the capacity of the conduit; substantially as, and for the purposes, described.

DANIEL O. FISHER.

Witnesses:

MARGARET B. DoNKIN, G. A. ROCKWELL.

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