WO2004041336A1

WO2004041336A1 - Inhalation therapy device

Info

Publication number: WO2004041336A1
Application number: PCT/EP2003/012404
Authority: WO
Inventors: Thomas Gallem; Markus Urich; Uwe Hetzer
Original assignee: Pari GmbH Spezialisten für effektive Inhalation
Priority date: 2002-11-07
Filing date: 2003-11-06
Publication date: 2004-05-21
Also published as: DE10251865B3

Abstract

The inhalation therapy device comprises an aerosol generator (2) and a mixing chamber (3). The introduction of atmospheric air is achieved by means of ventilation channels (9), controlled by an inspiration valve (20), comprising a funnel-like region (23) and a valve opening (22). The valve opening (22) surrounds the membrane (6) of the aerosol generator (2), whereby the edge (24) of the valve rests on a surface of the aerosol generator (2).

Description

Inhalation therapy device

The invention relates to an inhalation therapy device with an aerosol membrane generator and a mixing chamber and an inhalation valve.

Inhalation therapy devices of this type can be used to nebulize medicated liquids, liquid medications or other therapeutically usable liquids, for example salt solutions, in order to provide the patient with an aerosol for inhalation.

DE 199 53 317 A describes such an inhalation therapy device with a membrane aerosol generator, the membrane of which is penetrated by a

Vibration generator is set in vibration, whereby a liquid present on one side of the membrane is atomized through the membrane and released into a mixing chamber. In the mixing chamber, the aerosol mixes with ambient air during the inhalation process, which is fed to the mixing chamber through an annular gap formed around a liquid storage container. A flat circular inhalation valve is provided in the annular gap, which releases the annular gap during the inhalation phase and closes it during the exhalation phase.

When the patient exhales into the device in the known therapy nebulizer, a large part of the breathing air gets directly into the environment via an exhalation valve provided in a mouthpiece of the device, but the aerosol membrane generator and the area of the liquid storage container are also exposed to part of the breathing air. This leads to undesirable ones Contamination of the aerosol generator. Against the background of this prior art, the problem to be solved by the invention is to provide an inhalation therapy device in which the inhalation valve is designed in such a way that the risk of contamination of the aerosol membrane generator by the patient's breathing air during the exhalation phases is reduced.

This problem is solved by a

Inhalation therapy device with an aerosol membrane generator, with a

Liquid storage container into which a medicinal liquid can be filled, with a membrane which is connected on one side to the liquid container in such a way that one in the

Liquid reservoir filled liquid comes into contact with one side of the membrane, and with a vibration generator, through which the membrane can be set in vibration, so that one in the

Liquid reservoir filled liquid is atomized through openings in the membrane on the other side of the membrane to form an aerosol, a mixing chamber into which the aerosol membrane generator generates the aerosol, and an inhalation valve which allows the inflow of ambient air into the mixing chamber during inhalation phases and during exhalation phases prevents the aerosol from escaping from the mixing chamber, which forms a wall section of the mixing chamber which has a funnel-like area, the tapering end of which

Valve opening includes and extends to the aerosol membrane generator, so that an edge surrounding the valve opening in the rest position of the inhalation valve on a surface of the aerosol membrane generator is arranged surrounding the membrane. The funnel-like design of the valve according to the invention has the effect that, on the one hand, a dimensionally stable and flexible valve element provides the function as an inhalation valve and, on the other hand, a favorable flow of the supply air is achieved, since the valve opening surrounds the membrane and thus the supply air the aerosol it produces. The design, which resembles a funnel, ensures that the aerosol is deposited to a lesser extent in the mixing chamber during inhalation phases.

By designing the inhalation valve as a wall section, it also defines the dimensions of the mixing chamber, which immediately minimizes the space that comes into contact with aerosol. In other words, the funnel-like design according to the invention in the form of a wall section avoids an area for the inhalation valve which is to be provided in addition to the mixing chamber and then also comes into contact with aerosol. The cleaning of the therapy device is correspondingly easier.

In an advantageous embodiment, the funnel-like area of the inhalation valve is rounded, conical-flat, stepped or meandering.

To increase the dimensional stability and to protect the valve against damage, the edge of the valve opening advantageously has a thickening or a bead all around.

So that the inhalation valve is easier to handle and protected against damage, the inhalation valve has an edge section next to the valve element. The edge area is preferably for holding the Inhalation valve, in particular designed for clamping between the aerosol generator and the mixing chamber.

In order to be sufficiently dimensionally stable on the one hand and at the same time sufficiently flexible, that is

Inhalation valve preferably made of an elastic material.

The invention is described below using an exemplary embodiment and with reference to FIG

Drawings explained in more detail. In the drawings:

1A shows a sectional view of an inhalation device according to the invention with the inhalation valve closed;

IB is a sectional view of an inhalation device according to the invention with the inhalation valve open;

2A, 2B and 2C alternative configurations of an inhalation valve according to the invention; and

3A and 3B are perspective views of an inhalation valve according to the invention.

FIGS. 1A and IB show an exemplary embodiment of an inhalation therapy device 1 according to the invention, which has an aerosol membrane generator 2 and a mixing chamber 3. In the exemplary embodiment shown, the two components are designed as separate units, which are connected to one another in a suitable manner in the region of the inhalation valve, so that both components as functional unit can be handled safely.

The aerosol generator 2 of the exemplary embodiment from FIG. 1A comprises a liquid storage container 4, into which a medicament-containing liquid 5 can be filled, and a membrane 6, which seals off the liquid storage container 4 on an open surface. As a result, the membrane 6 is connected on one side to the liquid container 4 in such a way that the liquid 5 filled into the liquid storage container touches one side of the membrane 6. At the membrane 6 is a vibration generator 7, ^'for example, a piezo element, is arranged to vibrate through which the membrane 6 when the vibration generator is driven. 7 In the embodiment shown here, membrane 6 and

Vibration generator 7 is designed to be rotationally symmetrical, so that the vibration generator 7 concentrically surrounds the membrane.

If the vibration generator 7 is excited, for example an alternating voltage is applied to the piezo element, the membrane 6 is set in vibration, so that the liquid 5 which is filled into the liquid reservoir and is present on the membrane passes through openings in the membrane to the other side of the membrane Membrane promoted and atomized there to an aerosol. The aerosol is released into the mixing chamber 3.

In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 1A, a mouthpiece 10 is also provided, which in the example shown is formed in one piece with the mixing chamber 3, but which, in a modified embodiment, can also be designed to be separable from the mixing chamber 3. Via the mouthpiece 10, the patient inhales that generated by the aerosol membrane generator 2 and into the mixing chamber 3 dispensed aerosol when inhaled through the mouthpiece.

During the inhalation phase, ambient air flows through supply air channels 8, which are formed in the aerosol membrane generator 2, into the therapy device and reaches the mixing chamber 3, as can be seen in particular from FIG. 1B; the flow of the supply air is indicated in FIG. IB by the arrow lines 9. According to the invention, an inhalation valve 20 is provided for controlling / checking the supply air, which in the inhalation phases detects the inflow of

Ambient air allows into the mixing chamber, as shown in FIG. IB, but which closes the supply air channels 9 in exhalation phases such that the exhaled breathing air does not flow through the supply air channels 9, as shown in FIG. 1A. The inhalation valve 20 according to the invention thus prevents

Is transported exhalation phases, the aerosol with the respiratory air by the air supply channels 9 from the mixing chamber and that breath air into the supply air ducts ^passes'. 9 As a result, the area around the liquid container 4 in the aerosol generator 2, in which there are often also other components, for example electrical connections for controlling the piezo crystal, is protected from breathing air and thus from contaminants which enter the therapy device with the breathing air , The inhalation valve according to the invention thus protects the interior of the aerosol generator during the exhalation phases.

The exhaled air is led out of the mixing chamber 3 or the mouthpiece 10 in a different way, for example via the known mouthpiece valve 32, 321, 322, the functioning of which is not discussed in detail here.

According to the invention, the valve element 21 of the inhalation valve 20, as shown in FIGS. 1A and IB, forms a wall section of the mixing chamber 3 in which it is open Closing wall area of the mixing chamber 3 supplemented. The valve element 21 of the inhalation valve 20 comprises a valve opening 22, which is formed by the valve element 21, as can be seen in FIGS. 1A and IB, tapering at least in regions like a funnel. A sufficiently dimensionally stable valve element 21 is created through the funnel-like region 23 of the inhalation valve 20, through the opening 22 of which the supply air can flow into the mixing chamber 3 when the patient inhales. Because in the inhalation phases, the valve element 21, which resembles a funnel, is deflected out of the rest position, into which it always returns automatically due to its dimensional stability and elasticity, and, as shown in FIG. 1B, releases a gap through which the supply air passes the inhalation valve 20 can.

Since the gap is formed in the immediate vicinity of the membrane 6 and surrounds it, flow guidance of the supply air that supports aerosol generation is achieved. This is because the supply air to a certain extent encloses the aerosol emitted by the membrane 6 and thus reduces the risk that the aerosol will quickly hit a wall of the mixing chamber 3 and separate there. This is also a particular advantage of the inhalation valve according to the invention.

In the rest position, in contrast, the valve element 21 rests on a surface of the aerosol generator 2, as shown in FIG. 1A, so that there is no gap between the aerosol generator and the valve element 21. Furthermore, in the rest position, the edge 24 of the valve opening 22 surrounds the membrane 6 of the aerosol generator, the valve opening 22 preferably being circular, in particular if the membrane 6 and the vibration generator 7 are also circular. 1A and IB thus show that the tapering region 23 of the valve element 21 extends according to the invention to the aerosol membrane generator 2 in such a way that the edge 24 surrounding the opening is arranged on a surface of the aerosol generator 2 and surrounds the membrane β _. , The surface of the aerosol generator 2 thus forms, as it were, that shown in FIG. 1A

Embodiment the valve seat for the valve element 21 of the inhalation valve 20th

1A and IB also show that the valve element 21 has a circumferential bulge or thickening 24 at the edge of the valve opening 22, as a result of which the opening edge is strengthened and the dimensional stability is increased. In particular, this design of the edge of the valve opening 22 makes it possible, in the case of the normally occurring breathing air flows, to reliably prevent the valve element 21 from being deflected by the breathing air flow to such an extent that it extends completely into the mixing chamber 3 and thereby assumes a new, dimensionally stable position from which it does not return to the rest position shown in FIG. 1A. At the same time, the bead 24 on the edge of the valve opening 22 reduces the risk that this area of the valve element 21 is damaged.

As shown in FIGS. 1A and IB, the funnel-like shape of the valve element 21 according to the invention can be achieved by a rounded wall profile; however, other wall shapes are also conceivable, for example the conical, flat profile shown in FIG. 2A, the stepped profile shown in FIG. 2B or the meandering profile shown in FIG. 2C.

In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIGS. 1A and IB, the inhalation valve 20 is between a wall section 31 of the aerosol generator 2 and a wall section 31 of the mixing chamber 3 and preferably held, for example clamped, in such a way that the inhalation valve 20 is securely fixed and its valve opening 22 is exactly positioned. The inhalation valve 20 has an outer edge section 25 for the

Bracket / fixation on the aerosol generator 2 and / or the mixing chamber 3 is formed. The exemplary embodiment shown in FIGS. 1A and IB is also particularly advantageous because the inhalation valve 20 is used to seal the connection point between the aerosol generator 2 and the mixing chamber 3. For this purpose, the edge section 25 of the inhalation valve 20 is adapted to the end cross sections of the aerosol generator 2 and the mixing chamber 3. Figures 3A and 3B show that the adjustment of the

Edge section 25 can go very far, but a transition to the funnel-like valve element 21 according to the invention with valve opening 22 can always be easily created. However, this type of adaptation ensures that the material of the inhalation valve 20 which is fundamentally suitable for sealing purposes is also used for sealing the transition between the aerosol generator 2 and the mixing chamber 3. It also follows that the inhalation valve 20 according to the invention is preferably formed in one piece.

Claims

claims

halation therapy device with

a. an aerosol membrane generator (2), i. with a liquid reservoir (4) into which a therapeutically usable liquid (5) can be filled, ii. with a membrane (6) which is connected on one side 'to the liquid container (4) in such a way that a liquid (5) filled into the liquid storage container comes into contact with one side of the membrane (6), and iii. with a vibration generator (7), by means of which the membrane (6) can be set in vibration, so that one is filled into the liquid storage container

Liquid (5) is atomized through openings in the membrane (β) on the other side of the membrane to form an aerosol,

b. a mixing chamber (3) into which the

Aerosol membrane generator (2) which produces aerosol, and

c. an inhalation valve (20, 21), i. that in inhalation phases the influx of

Allows ambient air into the mixing chamber (3) and prevents the aerosol from escaping from the mixing chamber (3) in exhalation phases, ii. that forms a wall section of the mixing chamber (3), iii. which has a funnel-like region (23), the end of which comprises a valve opening (22) and extends to the aerosol membrane generator (2), so that an edge (24) surrounding the valve opening (22) in the rest position of the inhalation valve (20, 21 ) on a surface of the aerosol membrane generator (2) surrounding the membrane (3).

2. Inhalation therapy device according to claim 1, characterized in that the funnel-like area (23) of the inhalation valve (20) is rounded, conical-flat, step-like or meandering.

3. Inhalation therapy device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the edge (24) of the valve opening (21) has a thickening or a bead all around.

4. Inhalation therapy device according to claim 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that the inhalation valve (20) has a valve element (21) and an edge portion (25).

5. Inhalation therapy device according to claim 4, characterized in that the edge region (25) is designed for holding the inhalation valve (20), in particular for the clamping between the aerosol generator (2) and the mixing chamber (3).

6. inhalation therapy device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the inhalation valve (20) consists of an elastic Material is made.