UV flux multiplication system for sterilizing air, medical devices and other materials
First Claim
1. An UV flux multiplying air sterilization chamber comprising:
- a plurality of inner surfaces, wherein at least one of said inner surfaces comprises a reflective material having a diffuse reflective behavior and a reflectivity of greater than about 75%;
an inlet aperture for air to flow into the chamber and an outlet aperture for air to flow out of said chamber; and
a light source emitting an UV light, wherein a flux of said UV light is multiplied by reflecting said UV light multiple times from the inner surfaces of the chamber.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An ultraviolet flux multiplying air sterilization chamber comprises inner surfaces having a diffuse reflective behavior. The sterilization chamber includes an inlet aperture and an outlet aperture for air to flow through said chamber and a light source emitting an ultraviolet light. Due to the reflectivity of the inner surfaces of the chamber, a flux of the ultraviolet light is multiplied by reflecting multiple times from the inner surfaces of the chamber. The inlet and outlet apertures are advantageously configured to reduce the amount of light that escapes from the chamber and increase the amount of photons available in the chamber. In an exemplary embodiment, packed arrays of fibers, spheres, or other small particles are placed at the inlet and/or outlet to the chamber. These packed arrays provide light scattering events such that the light incident on the packed arrays reflects back with high reflectivity.
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Citations
82 Claims
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1. An UV flux multiplying air sterilization chamber comprising:
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a plurality of inner surfaces, wherein at least one of said inner surfaces comprises a reflective material having a diffuse reflective behavior and a reflectivity of greater than about 75%;
an inlet aperture for air to flow into the chamber and an outlet aperture for air to flow out of said chamber; and
a light source emitting an UV light, wherein a flux of said UV light is multiplied by reflecting said UV light multiple times from the inner surfaces of the chamber. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38)
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39. A flux multiplying air sterilization chamber comprising:
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a plurality of inner surfaces, wherein at least one of said inner surfaces comprises a reflective material having a diffuse reflective behavior;
an inlet aperture for air to flow into the chamber and an outlet aperture for air to flow out of said chamber, wherein the inlet and outlet aperture each comprise light reflecting fibers and a frame for housing said light reflecting fibers, wherein air flows through said inlet and outlet apertures; and
a light source emitting a light, wherein a flux of said light is multiplied by reflecting said light from the at least one of said inner surfaces and the light reflecting fibers.
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40. A flux multiplying air sterilization chamber comprising:
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a plurality of inner surfaces, wherein at least one of said inner surfaces comprises a reflective material having a diffuse reflective behavior;
an inlet aperture for air to flow into the chamber and an outlet aperture for air to flow out of said chamber, wherein at least one of the inlet and outlet aperture comprises an air spreader for decreasing the velocity of air passing through said at least one of the inlet and outlet aperture; and
a light source emitting a light, wherein a flux of said light is multiplied by reflecting said light from the at least one of said inner surfaces and the light reflecting fibers. - View Dependent Claims (41, 42, 43)
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44. A flux multiplying air sterilization chamber comprising:
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an inlet aperture for air to flow into the chamber and an outlet aperture for air to flow out of the chamber;
a light source disposed inside said chamber and configured to emit light within said chamber;
a moveable inlet device with at least one surface that is highly reflective and configured to increase the fraction of chamber interior surface area that is reflective within said sterilization chamber when said light is emitted; and
a moveable outlet device with at least one surface that is highly reflective and configured to increase the fraction of chamber interior surface area that is reflective within said sterilization chamber when said light is emitted. - View Dependent Claims (45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60)
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61. A sterilization chamber comprising:
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an inlet aperture for air to flow into the chamber, an outlet aperture for air to flow out of the chamber;
a continuous light source disposed inside said chamber and configured to emit light within said chamber;
a moveable inlet device with at least one surface that is highly reflective and configured to increase the fraction of chamber interior surface area that is reflective within said sterilization chamber when said light is emitted; and
a moveable outlet device with at least one surface that is highly reflective and configured to increase the fraction of chamber interior surface area that is reflective within said sterilization chamber when said light is emitted. - View Dependent Claims (62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68)
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69. A method of moving air through a sterilization apparatus that comprises a sterilization chamber and a rotating drum mounted on an axle within the sterilization chamber, said rotating drum having highly reflective inner and outer surfaces attached to said rotating drum, the method comprising:
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coupling said sterilization chamber to said rotating drum; and
rotating said rotating drum so that a plurality of vanes are each respectively extended during a first portion of the said rotation of said drum and said plurality of vanes are each respectively retracted during a second portion of the rotation of said drum. - View Dependent Claims (70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75)
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76. A modular flux multiplying air sterilization chamber configured to interconnect with at least one other modular chamber, comprising:
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a plurality of walls having inner surfaces, wherein each of said inner surfaces comprises a reflective material having a diffuse reflectivity of greater than about 75%;
a first wall of said plurality of walls having an aperture configured to allow air to enter the modular chamber;
a second wall of said plurality of walls having an aperture configured to allow air to exit the modular chamber;
a light source configured to emit a light incident onto at least one of said plurality of inner surfaces. - View Dependent Claims (77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82)
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Specification