Apparatus for sterilizing objects to be sterilized
First Claim
1. An apparatus for sterilizing objects having a wetted surface, said apparatus comprising:
- a sterilizing chamber, means including an ozone generator for providing a mixture of ozone and oxygen to said sterilization chamber;
a heater for heating said mixture of zone and oxygen;
a first conduit means coupling said ozone generator to said heater;
a second conduit means coupling said heater to one end of said sterilizing chamber;
seat means in said sterilizing chamber to support a hollow piece having an opening therethrough to be internally sterilized, said seat means having a conduit element communicating through a third conduit means with an intake of the ozone generator and a recirculating pump in said third conduit means for inducing a positive flow of ozone containing gas through said seat means and any hollow piece seated thereon whereby ozone depleted gas in said third conduit is recirculated through said ozone generator and said heater, said third conduit means communicating through a first valve means with a second pump connected to a gas discharge port for withdrawing gas which has passed through said seat means, said first valve means for fluidly isolating said second pump from said seat, and a second valve means in said third conduit means for fluidly isolating said recirculating pump from said seat means when said first valve is open.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method for sterilizing objects to be sterilized is disclosed, in which an object to be sterilized such as a hand piece is preliminarily brought into a wetted state, and then accommodated and air-tightly closed up within a sterilizing chamber communicated with an oxygen cylinder, oxygen fed from the oxygen cylinder is introduced into an ozonizer to produce ozonized oxygen gas having an ozone concentration of at least 10000 ppm, preferably 15000 ppm or higher, then the ozonized oxygen as is made to pass through the sterilizing chamber after it has been heated up to perfectly replace air within the sterilizing chamber by the ozonized oxygen gas, also moisture adhered to the objects to be sterilized is partly evaporated, subsequently the communication between the sterilizing chamber and the oxygen source is interrupted, the ozonized oxygen gas is circulated through the sterilizing chamber and the ozonizer while it is heated up at the inlet of the sterilizing chamber to thereby enhance the ozone concentration up to at least 20000 ppm, preferably up to 30000 ppm or higher without consuming oxygen, and meanwhile, bacteria adhered to the objects to be sterilized are sterilized surely in a short period of time by the ozone gas under an inflated and wetted condition of the bacteria.
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Citations
7 Claims
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1. An apparatus for sterilizing objects having a wetted surface, said apparatus comprising:
- a sterilizing chamber, means including an ozone generator for providing a mixture of ozone and oxygen to said sterilization chamber;
a heater for heating said mixture of zone and oxygen;
a first conduit means coupling said ozone generator to said heater;
a second conduit means coupling said heater to one end of said sterilizing chamber;
seat means in said sterilizing chamber to support a hollow piece having an opening therethrough to be internally sterilized, said seat means having a conduit element communicating through a third conduit means with an intake of the ozone generator and a recirculating pump in said third conduit means for inducing a positive flow of ozone containing gas through said seat means and any hollow piece seated thereon whereby ozone depleted gas in said third conduit is recirculated through said ozone generator and said heater, said third conduit means communicating through a first valve means with a second pump connected to a gas discharge port for withdrawing gas which has passed through said seat means, said first valve means for fluidly isolating said second pump from said seat, and a second valve means in said third conduit means for fluidly isolating said recirculating pump from said seat means when said first valve is open.
- a sterilizing chamber, means including an ozone generator for providing a mixture of ozone and oxygen to said sterilization chamber;
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2. An apparatus for sterilizing objects having a wetted surface, said apparatus comprising:
- a sterilizing chamber;
means including an ozone generator for providing a mixture of zone and oxygen;
a heater;
a first conduit coupled to said ozone generator and to said heater for heating said mixture of ozone and oxygen;
a second conduit coupled to said heater and to an inlet at one end of said chamber;
an outlet communicating with an end of said sterilizing chamber other than said one end;
a first conduit-and-valve means communicating with said one end of said sterilizing chamber and with an inlet for said ozone generator;
circulating pump means in said first conduit-and-valve means for withdrawing ozone and air from said sterilizing chamber and creating a flow of ozone and air through said sterilizing chamber and said ozone generator whereby the gaseous content of said sterilizing chamber is recycled through the ozone generator for restoring or increasing the ozone content of the gas content of said chamber and the ozone can operate as a bacterium destroying medium; and
exhaust means communicating with said outlet, said exhaust means having a valve operable to release externally the gases from said chamber;
seats in said sterilizing chamber to respectively support hollow pieces to be sterilized, each of said seats having a respective conduit element communicating with the interior of a respective hollow piece supported thereon, a second conduit-and-valve means for alternately directing the gas passed through said seats and pieces supported thereon to said exhaust means for exhausting ozone and air from said sterilization chamber and third valve means in said first conduit-and-valve means or for alternately recycling ozone and air from said chamber sequentially to said pump, said ozone generator, and said heater for causing the ozone and air mixture to pass through the interior of said hollow pieces for sterilizing the interior of said hollow pieces when said pieces to be sterilized are received in said seats;
said exhaust means also including an exhaust port, and a second pump being provided between said seats and said exhaust port to cause the ozone and air mixture to be exhausted through said exhaust port while said third valve means is closed to fluidly isolate said circulating pump means in said first conduit-and-valve means from said seats. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
- a sterilizing chamber;
Specification