Nasal breath monitor

• US 4,924,876 A
• Filed: 11/04/1987
• Issued: 05/15/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 11/04/1987
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Peter Cameron
• Original Assignee: Peter Cameron
• Inventors: Cameron, Peter
• Primary Examiner(s): Wayner, William E.
• Application Number:
  US07/116,697
• Time in Patent Office: 923 Days
• Field of Search: 128/725, 128/720, 128/200.24, 128/724, 364/413.03
• US Class Current: 600/538
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/087 Measuring breath flow
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7232 involving compression of the physiological signal, e.g. to extend the signal recording period
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 7/003 Detecting lung or respiration noise
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 1/34 by measuring pressure or differential pressure
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 15/068 with electrical means G01F15/063 takes precedence

Abstract

A nasal breath monitor, which uses separate sensors for each nostril to detect the flow of the breath, electronic circuitry to amplify and enhance the detected signal, and stereo headphones to bring this information to the ears.

Claims

1. A device for monitoring the nasal breath which comprises:

a. means for seperately sensing the flow of air through the two nostrils; and

b. means for seperately amplifying the output of said means for sensing the flow of air; and

c. means for making the said seperate amplified outputs sensible to the user, thereby providing an indication of relative airflow through the two nostrils.

2. A device for monitoring the nasal breath as recited in claim 1, in which said means for sensing the flow of air comprises pressure transducers.

3. A device for monitoring the nasal breath as recited in claim 2, in which said pressure transducers comprise condensor electret microphones.

4. A device for monitoring the nasal breath as recited in claim 1, further comprising an additional means for sensing ambient disturbances, and differential amplifiers to permit cancellation of these ambient disturbances.

5. As device for monitoring the nasal breath as recited in claim 1, in which means for signal compression is used to increase the dynamic range.

6. A device for monitoring the nasal breath as recited in claim 1, in which means for low-pass filtering is used to reduce noise.

7. A device for monitoring the nasal breath as recited in claim 1, in which said means for making the amplified output sensible to the user comprises audio amplifiers and stereo headphones.

8. A device for monitoring the nasal breath as recited in claim 1, in which said means for amplifying the sensed flow of air comprises a differential amplifier, such that the output is proportional to the difference in flow between the two nostrils.

9. A device for monitoring the nasal breath which comprises:

a. two condensor electret microphones which seperately sense the flow of air through the two nostrils; and

b. a differential amplifier, which amplifies the difference between the outputs of the two condensor electret microphones; and

c. means for compression of the differentially amplified signal; and

d. means for low-pass filtering of the compressed signal; and

e. means for audio power amplification of the differentially amplified, compressed, and filtered signal; and

f. headphones to make the said audio power amplified signal audible to the user.

10. A device for monitoring the nasal breath which comprises:

a. two condensor electret microphones which seperately sense the flow of air through the two nostrils; and

b. a third condensor electret microphone to provide an ambient reference; and

c. differential amplifiers, which amplify the difference between the reference microphone and the microphones which sense the flows of air; and

d. means for compression of the differentially amplified signals; and

e. means for low-pass filtering of the compressed signals; and

f. means for audio power amplification of the differentially amplified, compressed, and filtered signals; and

g. stereo headphones to make the said audio power amplified signals audible to the user.