Breathing equipment such as resuscitators

• US 4,077,404 A
• Filed: 10/19/1976
• Issued: 03/07/1978
• Est. Priority Date: 09/17/1975
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: H B W Medical Instruments Manufacturing Company Incorporated
• Original Assignee: H B W Medical Instruments Manufacturing Company Incorporated
• Inventors: Elam, James O.
• Primary Examiner(s): Michell, Robert W.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Recla, Henry J.
• Application Number:
  US05/733,755
• Time in Patent Office: 504 Days
• Field of Search: 128/145.5, 128/145.6, 128/145.7, 128/145.8, 128/188, 128/203, 128/142 R, 128/142.2, 137/102, 137/517
• US Class Current: 128/204.28
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 16/0084 self-reinflatable by elasticity, e.g. resuscitation squeeze bags
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 16/208 Non-controlled one-way valves, e.g. exhalation, check, pop-off non-rebreathing valves
• CPC Class Codes: A62B 9/02 Valves non-return valves mounted in breathing masks or helmets A62B18/10
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/2544 Supply and exhaust type

Abstract

Breathing equipment, for instance a resuscitator, adapted to supply ambient air or alternatively oxygen from a pressurized source, the equipment including non-rebreathing valve mechanism having inspiration and expiration ports, and arranged to assure automatic operation to effect oxygen "blow-by" under conditions of operation tending to close the expiration port, and thereby prevent undesirable build-up of pressure in the patient'"'"'s lungs.

Claims

1. A resuscitator valve mechanism including a valve chamber having opposed end walls spaced a predetermined distance from each other and joined by side walls, opposed inspiration and expiration ports in said end walls, respectively each having a valve seat surrounding the port, said valve seats facing toward each other, and the chamber having a port in a side wall of said chamber between said opposed end walls for communication with the patient'"'"'s lungs, a valve in said chamber having opposed spherical surfaces facing away from each other, said surfaces being disposed on the longitudinal axis of said valve and being spaced a predetermined distance from each other, and presented toward the valve seats at the opposite ends of the chamber, the valve having clearance adjacent the side walls of the chamber to allow for passage of gas and being movable in opposite directions to engage either of the valve seats and close one or the other of the opposed ports, a spring urging the valve away from the expiration port seat, and the valve mechanism having means providing for connection of a source of pressurized inspiration gas and for directing such pressurized gas to the inspiration port, the valve being movable away from the inspiration valve seat under the influence of the pressurized gas, the spring being a helical coil compression spring with one end seated against an end of the valve chamber around the expiration port and the other end presented toward the valve for engagement therewith, the length of said expiration port seat being greater than the length of said spring when fully compressed such that said spring is deflectable sufficiently to provide for engagement of the valve with the expiration port seat and thus close the expiration port, the length of the spring when fully expanded being less than the difference of the predetermined distance which said end walls are spaced and the longitudinal distance which said spherical surfaces are spaced whereby, the length of the spring is less than that required to urge the valve into engagement with the inspiration port seat, and the valve being of low mass and its motion being unquided except for the action of said spring and of gas flow through the valve chamber, thereby providing for substantially unrestrained displacement of the valve from the inspiration valve seat under the influence of even weak spontaneous inspirational effort by the patient.

2. A resuscitator valve mechanism including a valve chamber having opposed end walls spaced a predetermined distance from each other and joined by side walls, opposed inspiration and expiration ports centrally located in said ends walls, respectively, each having a valve seat surrounding the port, said valve seats facing toward each other, and the chamber having a port in a side wall of said chamber between said opposed end walls for communication with the patient'"'"'s lungs, a ball valve having a predetermined diameter in said chamber having clearance adjacent the side walls of the chamber to allow for passage of gas and being movable in opposite directions to engage either of the valve seats and close one or the other of the opposed ports, a helical compression spring between the ball valve and the wall of the chamber around the expiration port and urging the ball valve away from the expiration port seat, the length of the spring when fully expanded being less than the difference of the predetermined distance which said end walls are spaced and the predetermined diameter of the valve whereby, the length of the spring is less than that required to urge the valve into engagement with the inspiration port seat, and the valve mechanism having means providing for connection of a source of pressurized inspiration gas and for directing such pressurized gas to the inspiration port, the ball valve being movable away from the inspiration valve seat under the influence of the pressurized gas and unopposed by the spring, the length of the expiration port being greater than the fully compressed length of the spring, whereby said spring is deflectable sufficiently to provide for engagement of the ball valve with the expiration port seat and thus close the expiration port.

3. A resuscitator valve mechanism as defined in claim 2 in which the end of the spring positioned adjacent to the expiration port is secured in that position.

4. A resuscitator valve mechanism including a valve chamber having opposed end walls spaced a predetermined distance from each other and joined by side walls, opposed inspiration and expiration ports in said end walls, respectively, each having a valve seat surrounding the port, said valve seats facing toward each other, and the chamber having a port in a side wall of said chamber between said opposed end walls for communication with the patient'"'"'s lungs, a valve in said chamber having opposed convexly rounded surfaces disposed on the longitudinal axis of said valve and being spaced a predetermined distance from each other, and presented toward the valve seats at the opposite ends of the chamber, the valve having clearance adjacent the side walls of the chamber to allow for passage of gas and being movable in opposite directions to engage either of the valve seats and close one or the other of the opposed ports, a helical bias spring urging the valve away from the expiration port seat, and means for delivering a pressurized gas into the valve mechanism and for directing such pressurized gas into the valve chamber through the inspiration port, the valve being movable away from the inspiration valve seat under the influence of the pressurized gas, the length of the expiration valve seat being greater than the fully compressed length of the spring whereby, the spring is compressible sufficiently to provide for engagement of the valve with the expiration port seat and thus close the expiration port, and the convexly rounded surface of the valve presented toward the expiration port being proportioned to seat in the adjacent end of the helical bias spring, the length of the spring when fully expanded being less than the difference of the predetermined distance which said end walls are spaced and said longitudinal distance which said convexly rounded surfaces are spaced, whereby the length of the spring when fully expanded is less than that required to urge the valve into engagement with the inspiration port seat, the motion of the valve in said valve chamber being unguided except for the action of said spring and of the gas flow through the valve chamber, and the convexly rounded surface of the valve presented toward the expiration port seat, the valve clearance adjacent the side walls of the chamber and the spring tending to retain the ball valve in a position spaced from the expiration port during selected flows of inspiration gas from said pressurized source thereof into the valve mechanism.