Nebulizer and nebulizer kit

• US 10,434,266 B2
• Filed: 08/18/2016
• Issued: 10/08/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/27/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Omron Healthcare Company Limited (Omron Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Omron Healthcare Company Limited (Omron Corporation)
• Inventors: Sasai, Yoichi, Ito, Shinichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Dixon, Annette
• Application Number:
  US15/240,018
• Publication Number:
  US 20160354560A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,146 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 11/002 by flow deviation causing inertial separation of transported particles
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 11/02 operated by air or other gas pressure applied to the liquid or other product to be sprayed or atomised sprayers for horticulture A01G, A01H; killing insects A01M; air humidifying by nozzles F24F6/14, F24F6/18; cooling by spraying F28B, F28C
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 11/06 of the injector type
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 15/0021 Mouthpieces therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 15/08 Inhaling devices inserted into the nose
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2206/14 Static flow deviators in tubes disturbing laminar flow in tubes, e.g. archimedes screws

Abstract

A nebulizer kit includes an atomizer generating an aerosol, and a particle sorting route communicating with the atomizer and sorting liquid particles in the aerosol to adjust a particle diameter distribution thereof, and guiding the aerosol to a discharge port. The particle sorting route includes a first particle sorting route with a uniform cross-sectional area in the first direction and a second particle sorting route with an inner end wall that curves from the first direction toward a second direction included in the same plane as the first direction. The first particle sorting route guides the aerosol to the second particle sorting route in the first direction, and the inner end wall of the second particle sorting route guides the aerosol in the second direction while aerosol particles with a certain particle diameter or more are attached thereto.

Claims

1. A nebulizer kit comprising:

an atomizer that generates an aerosol by atomizing a liquid and ejects the aerosol in a first direction; and

a particle sorting route that is in communication with the atomizer, and sorts particles of the liquid included in the aerosol so as to adjust a particle diameter distribution of the particles of the aerosol, and thereafter guides the aerosol to a discharge port;

wherein

the particle sorting route includes a first particle sorting route that extends in the first direction from the atomizer and has a uniform or substantially uniform cross-sectional area in the first direction, a second particle sorting route that is in communication with the first particle sorting route and includes an inner end wall that directly faces the atomizer and has a curvature that curves from the first direction toward a second direction, and a third particle sorting route that is in communication with the second particle sorting route and extends in a direction parallel or substantially parallel to the first direction in a state of being shifted in a direction perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the first direction;

the first particle sorting route guides the aerosol ejected from the atomizer in a direction equal or substantially equal to the first direction to the second particle sorting route in the first direction;

the inner end wall of the second particle sorting route guides the aerosol in the second direction, which is inclined with respect to the first direction, such that particles, among the particles of the aerosol, that have a particle diameter of a certain value or more collide with and attach to the inner end wall; and

the third particle sorting route has a cross-sectional area greater than an entire cross-sectional area of the second particle sorting route in the first direction, and allows the aerosol to flow to the discharge port, particles with the particle diameter of the certain value or more among the particles being attached to an inner wall thereof that is parallel or substantially parallel with the first direction and is inclined with respect to the second direction.

2. The nebulizer kit according to claim 1, wherein

the second particle sorting route and the third particle sorting route overlap with respect to the first direction;

and

in the third particle sorting route, outer air is allowed to flow toward the discharge port from a side near the atomizer with respect to a region at which the third particle sorting route overlaps with the second particle sorting route with respect to the first direction.

3. The nebulizer kit according to claim 1, wherein

the third particle sorting route extends in a direction parallel or substantially parallel to the first direction over a certain length or more from a terminal end of the inner end wall of the second particle sorting route on a side opposite to the first particle sorting route.

4. The nebulizer kit according to claim 1, wherein the atomizer includes:

a compressed gas supply that ejects compressed gas in a direction parallel or substantially parallel to the first direction; and

a liquid supplying member that is arranged on one side in an orientation of intersecting the first direction in a periphery of an opening portion of the compressed gas supply, and supplies a liquid to an ejection route for the compressed gas in accordance with negative pressure accompanying ejection of the compressed gas; and

the compressed gas supply is such that on another side, which is opposite to the one side in the periphery of the opening portion, a wall surface of a compressed gas supply route is extended in or substantially in the first direction past an outer surface on the one side of the compressed gas supply.

5. The nebulizer kit according to claim 1, wherein the atomizer ejects the aerosol such that in a speed distribution of a jet flow of the aerosol with respect to a direction perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the first direction, more speed components in a direction opposite to the second direction are included than speed components in the second direction.

6. A nebulizer comprising:

a main body including a compressor that discharges compressed gas;

a compressed gas pipe through which the compressed gas discharged from the compressor is introduced; and

the nebulizer kit according to claim 1 that generates the aerosol using the compressed gas supplied through the compressed gas pipe.